Long quotation from here, emphasis added:
When “we” complain about the systemic inequities that exist in higher education, it’s because of this: 500 applicants, many if not most of whom were qualified for the position, one job. We complain because we were misinformed and misled about our chances on the job market. And, out of fear and desperation, we go further into debt, we push ourselves harder and harder to publish, go to conferences (hence the debt), pay others to improve our application materials, and wear ourselves out trying to differentiate ourselves from the other 499 candidates.
If we give up and walk away, it’s not because we couldn’t “handle” academia, it’s because academia has told us, in no uncertain terms, there is no room for us, no place for us at the table, but that the institution is more than willing to exploit us as adjuncts. When we speak up, when we fight, when we demand change, we are silenced, shamed, and shunned, not by everyone, but by enough people who hold positions of authority and power that it is clear we are not welcome. We’re told, you’ll never get a job with THAT attitude, or that we’re just entitled and unwilling to work, and I wonder if I even want to work in higher education with colleagues who would treat others with such disdain and disrespect.
We are made to feel bad about staying (who would stay and allow themselves to be exploited as adjuncts?) and bad about leaving (obviously if we truly cared about academia then we would sacrifice everything to stay or that we are cowards unwilling to fight). We speak out and we open ourselves up to very public and vocal criticism that looks to discredit us; we remain silent and we are complicit.
To those who are our allies, to those who would say, don’t give up, higher education needs you, I say, then fight for us, fight with us. Lobby the government, lobby the administration, lobby your department, heck, just makes friends with an adjunct. But don’t make us feel bad for doing what’s best for our long-term health and wellness because we choose to leave academia.
I am against the take-an-adjunct-to-lunch idea, though, because I am for doing much more than that. Don’t just smile at an adjunct today, smile at a provost and demand an FTE, ideally on the tenure track.
Axé.
coldhearted scientist وداد 
To which I say, right on.
Ah, just left a longish comment on a later post in which you asked a question about adjuncts. Now I realize I was hasty, and should have back-tracked to see that it was part of a series.