This is Jacobin Radio, I'm Suzy Weisman. We begin today with Nelson Lichtenstein, who joins

us to talk about the impending rail strike and the tentative deal reached to prevent it

by labor leaders, the government, and the freight rail companies. The workers are demanding

paid sick days and more predictable and humane schedules, but they weren't at the table

forging the tentative agreement. They're the ones, however, who will decide whether

or not to ratify or reject the deal. Nelson says rail workers are shaking up labor

once again. His title for the op-ed that appeared in the LA Times on September 15th was,

we need a railroad strike. He'll explain. We then turn to Ukraine and talk to Ukrainian

writer and documentary filmmaker Anatoly Ulyana about his article published by left

east on September 10th called The Superfluous People of Eastern Ukraine. This article is

like no other than I've seen because it addresses a crucial question about what happens

when the war, once the war ends. However, that may turn out, when the question of reintegrating

the Donbass, not just territory, but the peoples becomes primary. Anatoly extends his

analysis to include all those who will be strangers in their own country. We get his

take when our program returns in just a moment.

This is Jacob and Radio. I'm Suzy Weisman and very pleased to have Nelson Lichtenstein

back with us. He's joining us to talk about the state of the impending rail strike and

the tentative deal agreed upon to prevent it by labor leaders, the government and the

rail industry. Workers weren't at the table for the marathon talks, but there are, I don't

know, somewhere I keep seeing either 115,000, 20,000, more than 100,000 workers who were

represented by 12 different unions, but three main ones who are going to decide whether

or not to ratify or reject this deal. Nelson has an op-ed in the LA Times on September

...