Yes. My grandfathers were both coal miners, one electrocuted thanks to his inability to afford proper footwear. You all can mail me my check check at www.urasucker.com.
The end of access to free labor created the industrial revolution. The continued access to cheap labor prolongs it. People tend to create labor saving machines when there is a reason to. I think hard core dem types would rather have half the material goods we enjoy today if it means they have servants to lord over
One of my great-grandfathers fought in the Union Navy. He was killed, long after the war, in a log drive down the St. Croix/ Mississippi about four decades later.
So, where is the slavery?