If you have been following our coverage of Union Bitch-Fight 2008, you’re pretty aware that SAG and AMPTP negotiations were only extended for two, paltry days before the AMPTP was going to break off and negotiate with AFTRA in an attempt to rope in SAG by getting AFTRA to agree to a similar deal as the WGA and the DGA.

The difference being that SAG’s been asking for more money over a few different issues, notably the actor-centric pay scale for guest appearances and extras.

As expected, the AMPTP called off negotiations with the Screen Actor’s Guild, leading SAG to issue a pres release to its members demonizing the AMPTP while simultaneously trumpeting: “Guild Offers to Continue and Negotiate ‘Around the Clock’ to Complete Deal.”

We’ll let sit the fact that they’ve just now started to go “around the clock” now that negotiations have stopped. A rational person would ask: shouldn’t you have been going around the clock this whole time, since failure to reach a deal will result in another costly strike?

Luckily, we don’t need a rational person, ‘cause Michael Bay went and got pissed all over his message boards.

From the Shoot For The Edit Message Boards, the official place to hear from Michael Bay:

Oh my god. SAG wants more than Directors and Writers? That’s a smart tactic I guess. When are people going to understand, most importantly actors - we are at war - we are facing a major recession - our country is in dire need of being fixed - our country also has no money because we have given trillions to the Iraq war and we have NOT even started to pay for it - it is just paid right now by printing more money on presses - China owns our ass in every way. Why not strike on a business in a down fall. Just like the writer’s they made pennies on the four extra months striking - when you do the real math and they are paying the price for it still - so many writer’s out of work still!!! I want this business to thrive - I know the studio heads and they will punish those that defy them. Okay, be an idealist - but you will never get a better deal then the writer’s or directors - only the same - the studio’s will never allow it, don’t kid yourself. The working actors don’t want a strike - they have said so. Too many non working actors have a say which is crazy - maybe there are just too many actors?? Gosh I’m even a member of SAG, but I don’t feel I’ve earned the right to vote in this guild.

One hunch, the leaders of these guilds seem to like the limelight they get in the press, it becomes more about the ego in the room rather than something smart. Striking is not smart. Through the history in America, strikes in businesses have only gained the union worker 6% at the max - so take the emotion out of it and go for the 6%. A path to strike is not smart for the hundreds of thousands of people in this business. Sanity needs to prevail here - talk real and talk the same talk as your union brothers - not more!

Bay is right, Hollywood production has slowed to a crawl singe the WGA strike, and the DGA was smart enough to take the same deal, knowing full-well that the studios are not in the business of giving in to a single union.

This has been the plan all along: the AMPTP will get AFTRA to sign the same deal as everyone else, then it will be everyone v. SAG as the industry gets down on its knees to ask its actors not to walk off set for a few months while their union leaders masturbate all over the conference table.