Did anyone else notice the full page ad in the Daily Camera, "Freedom Is In The Air," from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce?

It was a misleading advertisement that purported to "stand up for workers' rights and jobs" but really was anti-union propaganda, equating "organizing" with the "Cold War" and communism.

There was a picture of a World War II bomber, a red white and blue patriotic insignia, with the words, "Workforce Freedom" emblazoned on it.

The ad describes the "Employee Free Choice Act" as "Orwellian."

But, it is the ad itself that connotes an attitude and a policy of "control by propaganda, misinformation, denial of truth."

It attempts to manipulate the reader with the use of clichés and dying metaphors.

George Orwell criticised this form of political discourse "which even think your thoughts for you, to a certain extent."

But, what the Employee Free Choice Act is aiming to do is remove current obstacles to employees who want collective bargaining, to allow employees to form unions.

How ironic that essentially a union representing large corporations and businesses across the country, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is trying to thwart the rights of it's employees to organize.

What's more alarming is that the Chamber, both on the local and national level, have so much influence on the policies and budgets of our cities, states and federal government.

Among the Chamber's top priorities nationally was the $750 billion financial rescue/bailout package.

Locally, The Chamber is embedded in our Boulder City Government and it's members used in a "task force" to make up our yearly budget.

Do we want this union of businesses, these lobbyists, to dictate the priorities, policies and budgets of our cities, all the while going after workers' rights with a new set of misleading attacks targeting the pro-union Employee Free Choice Act?

These right-wing and corporate interests have adopted a new anti-union talking point that is literally as absurd as those used by the fictional dictatorship in George Orwell's 1984, which proclaimed such slogans as "War Is Peace" and "Freedom Is Slavery."

The Chamber of Commerce's is "Protect the Rights of American Workers." That's like saying, Orwell-style: "No Unions = More Rights for Workers." Does enhancing the right to form unions, punishing corporations that intimidate workers and allowing workers to choose the majority sign-up option — a choice now held by employers — actually threaten workers' rights? Of course not.

Seth Brigham