A sort of revenge -- made easier

Years ago, as the nonvoluntary subject of a telephone call-demand strategy, the same old hackneyed argument about employees "doing all the work" was repeatedly used to bombard respondents who normally would be busy with their own professions. Perhaps the intent was to increase perquisites for oil-industry workers, who work in dirty and dangerous circumstances. Rather then write up some kind of referendum or public-interest lawsuit, the tack was taken to open up the industry to employee buy-out procedures.

One of the first employee-owned-and-operated businesses was therefore the former Kendall Oil Refinery in Bradford, PA, that was acquired and its title changed to 'American Refining Group'. Gloating and boasting abounded, with visions of international wealth and labor-union accolades predominant.

However, the 'new option' was being touted and implemented within the Business Administration domain of human endeavor, and the reality was that any business could be henceforth petitioned to be an employee buy-out. The belly-buster result was that a Taco Bell franchise restaurant in San Francisco, CA, became the following employee-owned-and-operated acquisition using the new procedures.

ARG continues to operate, with a newly-learned tolerance for direct laughter -- a tolerance become necessary and perhaps used as reference to justify the increase in gasoline prices at the pump.