Mrs Attacks!

Once foiled by Slim Whitman's yodal, this savy and persistant martian (Mrs Newt) has found a new avenue to take control of the whitehouse!

Don't Blame That Asshole!

On my way up to Kimberly yesterday, just a bit north of Milwaukee I saw a teabagger with his pickemup truck towing his fancy boat. On the back window of his cap he had a sign that sad "Don't blame me, I voted for the white guy."

But I actually have to, in a way, commend this Asshole for clearly and succinctly demonstrating the source of his assholery, he's a racist. Now if you're a fucking racist scumbag, why hide it? If those are your beliefs stand by them and proclaim them! Don't be shy. Don't have a hidden agenda. Don't pretend that you hate the president because of some policy or position he's taken that you disagree with. Don't worry about what other people think, what's socially acceptable, be yourself.

Shave Your God Damn head!
Get yourself a pair of clodhoppers!
Grow a funny little mustache just under you nose!

Asshole

PS, I also saw another one of those billboards proclaiming the end of the world this Saturday coming back on Hwy 41. Our cornucopia is spilling over with nuts. I can't wait till Sunday.

Kloppenburg Recount Volunteers Needed in Waukesha

A connected friend just called and told me that Kloppenburg's people need recount watchers in WAUKESHA County (where else could it be more important?) this Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday from 8-5.

If you have free time those days and times, you can call their scheduling line and sign up for a shift:

(608) 206-9452

If that doesn't work, they were previously advising people to call the campaign office.  

 608-218-1203

The numbers may not be staffed at all times, so be patient.

Connected friend said that Joanne is currently ahead, though she doesn't expect that to last.

Word is that some of the ballot boxes have come in unsealed and in other bad conditions.

So, it's vitally important that we keep an eye on the county folk that caused this cock-up in the first place.

Please Volunteer!

The End is this Saturday!

That's what a lot of the fundies are saying: http://judgementday2011.com/may-21-judgement-day/

I heard about this on NPR and I even saw a big billboard put up by Relevant Radio, proclaiming May 21st 2011 as Judgment Day on I-43 coming back from Green Bay this Saturday. People are quiting their jobs, spending their savings in the certainty that this is it and they'll be raptured at the end of the week.

If I had any idea how to do it, I'd organize a flash mob in reverse, a flash rapture if you will. If we could get thousands of people to just disappear from where their supposed to be and leave a little pile of cloths and shoes. Just think about when these folks start hearing reports of people vanishing and they're still here, left behind to face the tribulation. What FUN!

Where did the debt come from? The Post & Bloomberg know.

A really good article about where the National Debt (see clock at left) comes from?

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/running_in_the_red_how_the_us_on_the_road_to_surplus_detoured_to_massive_debt/2011/04/28/AFFU7rNF_story.html?nav=emailpage

The simple answer: tax cuts and unpaid for spending -- including wars.  And you'll never guess who's responsible for most of it...

Okay, probably you will guess -- but Tea Baggers and Republicans won't.

Lyin Ryan Racine Venue Change Friday

RACINE: Friday 3:45-5:00pm, Caesar Chavez Community Center Gymnasium, 2221 Douglas Avenue (venue changed to accommodate larger crowds)

Please also see the Billionaires for Wealthcare tribute to Paully. Dress in your CEO finery to regale our wonderous benefactor! http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=203093959723333#wall_posts

Royal Pain in the Ass

God I can't wait until this fricken wedding is done! It's getting increasingly difficult to avoid the annoying coverage. It's the nauseating combination of two things I have no use for whatsoever, fauning celebrity gossip and aristocracy.

I suppose I'm being optimistic that it will stop there. There wil be the honey moon and then the move in to the castle day, yadda yadda yadda.

There Goes Lyin' Ryan

Today's location for Rep. Paul Ryan's Kenosha listening session on the GOP budget recently changed! The location is now Gateway Technical College - 3520 30th Avenue in Kenosha. It also now begins 2:45 instead of 3:00 and runs until 4:00 pm. Hope you can attend and let others know he has changed the place to Gateway! Thanks!

There Goes Lyin' Ryan

Today's location for Rep. Paul Ryan's Kenosha listening session on the GOP budget recently changed! The location is now Gateway Technical College - 3520 30th Avenue in Kenosha. It also now begins 2:45 instead of 3:00 and runs until 4:00 pm. Hope you can attend and let others know he has changed the place to Gateway! Thanks!

Jeremy Ryan Getting Hit By Tea Party Guy With Sign!! SHARE!!

Is this conservative who engaged in political violence a "Thug"? My guess is no, he's probably someone who let their politically passions momentarily get the better of him. Should we use his example to paint them all as "thugs"? Of course not!

I’ve heard so called conservatives use the word “thug” to refer to union members more in the last two months than I’ve heard it used in my entire life. I can only assume it must be one of their propaganda talking points, you know, such as ”waste, fraud and abuse” or “prosperity”. The GOPsters have brought a lot of things to average Americans over the years, prosperity isn’t one of them.

Thug, Noun 1. A violent person, especially a criminal. 2. A member of a religious organization of robbers and assassins in India, suppressed by the British in the 1830s. I’m going to assume they're attempting to use the former definition, not the latter.

I’m not a union member or a public employee, nor is anyone in my immediate family, but I am for the moment still a member of the middle class besieged by the Republican Party and their plutocratic patrons. I don’t know how many of these demonstrations the folks applying this term have been to, but I’ve been to a dozen or more both locally and in Madison and I’ve yet to see a single “thug”, no violence, no criminals, none whatsoever. In fact when I was at one of the protest rallies in Madison I spoke with several law enforcement officers, including a policeman from Manitowoc. He was very complimentary of the demonstrators and said he had witnessed no violence in the weeks that he had been there and that of the hundreds of thousands of people who had come to the capitol over the weeks, there had been only 9 arrests for minor incidents, mostly disorderly conduct. He said that was “nothing” and that you get more than that at a single Brewer or Packer game.

We've all seen how Fux Snooze invented supposed Thuggery in Madison: http://www.prwatch.org/spin/2011/03/10253/fox-news-madison-protest-footage-aims-deceive Funny thing though, I don't recall seeing palm trees or mounted police in Madison as their video footage displayed. So Cult of Con memebers, why not do us all a favor? Pull your heads out of you AM radios, stop doing the Fux Snooze and if you're going to call people names try to do it with a decent basis in reality.

The Sara Schulz Show

We have a local progressive voice, Sara Schulz who has started a talk radio show Saturdays from 10:00 to 11:00 AM: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/saraschulz You can also listen any time to her archived shows. She said that her discussion of Walker's Wisconsin Ecomonic Development Corporation would make me angry. She was right. This unaccountable opaque board of Wanker's corporate cronies will have a $379,000,000 slush fund to what will with. The whole show was great and is well worth a listen! She encourages people to call in at: 310-742-1896 Or you can email her at saraschulzshow@gmail.com

Palin to Attend TP Rally in Madison this Saturday!

More cowbell, less Palin! http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/gop-presidential-primary/156099-palin-to-attend-wis-tax-day-rally

Rob Zerban (D) to take on Paul Ryan (R-WI) – Why I am Encouraged

Rob Zerban (D) to take on Paul Ryan (R-WI) – Why I am Encouraged

After reading my take on the '08 race, don't scream at me, just an honest observation!

Waukesha Vote Irregularities Go Back to 2004

Again, imagine if these vote irregularities were happening in Milwaukee. The wingnuts on reationary radio and their parrots would be beside themselves, "Brown people are stealing our votes! http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/04/11/965994/-Waukesha-voting-irregularities-go-back-to-2004

Statement & Account of Ramona Kitzinger, Waukesha Board of Canvassers member since 2004:

http://www.orchidforchange.com/parties/waukeshadems.com/ht/display/ArticleDetails/i/1343504 Monday, April 11, 2011 (Waukesha County Democratic Party)On Tuesday night, I received a voice message from someone in the office of Clerk Kathy Nickolaus informing me of a Wednesday canvass meeting, which I returned the next morning and said I would be able to report into the canvass by noon � which I did. Normally the canvass would begin at 9am on Thursday, as has been the general practice for many years. No one explained why they were beginning the canvass on Wednesday, just to please report immediately. Before this telephone call, I had not been contacted as the designated Democratic observer, and I saw no public notice of the abnormal canvass time. The phone call simply instructed me to report by noon to begin the canvass, which I did. The canvass then proceeded as normal, with no glaring irregularities or mention of a possible 15,000 vote error in Brookfield City. On Thursday, I then showed up as per normal procedure at 9am and the canvass again went normally and concluded sometime between 4pm and 5pm. During the course of the day, the issue of minor vote corrections in New Berlin and Lisbon came up, but again nothing of a historic nature or reflecting glaring irregularities. In fact, the matter of vote totals in Brookfield City came up specifically during the course of Thursday�s canvass. In retrospect, it seems both shocking and somewhat appalling there was no mention of discovery of this 15,000 vote �human error� that ultimately had the potential to tip the balance of an entire statewide election. How is this possible? Once the canvass had been completed and the results were finalized, I was called into Kathy�s office along with Pat (the Republican observer) and told of an impending 5:30pm press conference. It was at that point that I was first made aware of an error Kathy had made in Brookfield City. Kathy told us she thought she had saved the Brookfield voter information Tuesday night, but then on Wednesday she said she noticed she had not hit save. Kathy didn�t offer an explanation about why she didn�t mention anything prior to Thursday afternoon�s canvass completion, but showed us different tapes where numbers seemed to add up, though I have no idea where the numbers were coming from. I was not told of the magnitude of this error, just that she had made one. I was then instructed that I would not say anything at the press conference, and was actually surprised when I was asked questions by reporters. The reason I offer this explanation is that, with the enormous amount of attention this has received over the weekend, many people are offering my statements at the press conference that the �numbers jibed� as validation they are correct and I can vouch for their accuracy. As I told Kathy when I was called into the room � I am 80 years old and I don�t understand anything about computers. I don�t know where the numbers Kathy was showing me ultimately came from, but they seemed to add up. I am still very, very confused about why the canvass was finalized before I was informed of the Brookfield error and it wasn�t even until the press conference was happening that I learned it was this enormous mistake that could swing the whole election. I was never shown anything that would verify Kathy�s statement about the missing vote, and with how events unfolded and people citing me as an authority on this now, I feel like I must speak up.

Mythology of the Cult of Con

Can you imagine the wailing & gnashing from the Cult of Con if 8,000 votes had appeared two days late out of Milwaukee instead of Brookfield? Brown people are stealing our votes! As it was Wanker had already segregated Madison off as not part of Wiscinsin.

April 4th Day of Action

TODAY - Area Teachers will convene after school (3:30pm) in 3 locations:
Horlick cluster-sidewalk in front of Quarry Lake Park
Park cluster-Monument Square
Case cluster-Hwy. 31 and Hwy. 20
ALL WILL CONVERGE AT Hwy. 31 and Hwy. 20 At 5:00 pm for giant visibility event! Be There!

JoAnne Kloppenburg In Racine Today!

The Candidate for Supreme Court will be in Racine on Monday April 4th for a whistle-stop rally. 11:30 am at Racine's Monument Square. Be there and tell your friends!

Prosser Not Fit To Be Dog Catcher!

Stating that Prosser has lost the "even-handed impartiality" that is an essential asset for any judge, Lucey said in a statement issued Thursday evening. http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/119033134.html Prosser also has displayed "a disturbing distemper and lack of civility that does not bode well for the high court in the face of demands that are sure to be placed on it in these times of great political and legal volatility." Kloppenburg, on the other hand, has adhered throughout her campaign to both even-handedness and non-partisanship, Lucey said. The chair of Prosser's campaign is former Republican Gov. Tommy G. Thompson. In a response issued Thursday night, Prosser said he was disappointed with Lucey's decision but his respect and admiration for the former governor remain unchanged. IT GETS EVEN WORSE! Any sense that Prosser is impartial and judicious is ludicrous. the fact of the matter is that he is a vidictive A$$hole willing to use his seat on the People's bench to punish political opponents. This man is not fit to serve as dog catcher: http://blog.wisdc.org/2010/12/prossers-pitch.html Below is a letter account of Prosser's threat, made anonymously due to fear of retribution: I am writing to you anonymously to inform you of comments that were made by Justice Prosser in his stump speech to Wisconsin Association for Justice at its board meeting on December 2, 2010. In his comments, Justice Prosser indicated that he wished the trial lawyers to know that if the race led to him being attacked from the "left," that he would move to the right and the trial lawyers would suffer for it. He stated that it would be in the best interest of the trial lawyers if he stayed in the middle. In fact, he said "don't force me to run a campaign that is not down the middle and honorable." When asked to explain that, he indicated that if the left demonizes him, it will push him to the right. He said he would do whatever was necessary and would side with those who were supporting him so he would not be retired as a Justice. It was evident to those in the room that he was issuing a threat that if he was not supported by the trial lawyers, then they could expect that the decisions he renders will be against the interests that the trial lawyers espouse on behalf of injured consumers. It appears clear by his comments that he would prejudge any issue that came against him from someone who did not support him in the campaign. It should be noted that Justice Prosser's comments to the Wisconsin Association for Justice had been made privately to other individuals who reported that he was contacting them for support. In his contact, he would indicate that if he was not supported by those on what he considers the "left," he would move to the right in his decision making if he were to be re-elected. He further indicated that he wished he didn't have to do that but would do so if necessary so that he would be re-elected. These comments are not in keeping with the judicial code of ethics. These are clearly questionable campaign tactics for someone who seeks to sit on the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Sincerely, A Concerned Attorney

GOP$ter$ Fear the Public

With the center of gravity for Wisconsin located in the southeast, where are the GOP$ters going to hold PUBLIC hearings on their budget bill? As far away from the public as possible, Stevens Point, Arcadia and Minong (MINONG?!). O.K. and West Allis. I guess they couldn't be totally blatant about waving their privates at the public.

We've long known that public is a dirty word to these corporatists, what's become evident now is that is also a scary word to them. Scary because of course Repubicons are A$$holes and A$$holes are fearful.

Or maybe I'm wrong and they just wanted to tour the highways that will get special treatment from the millions of dollars being diverted from the public education of our children to the corporate sponsors in the road builder lobby. But I'm willing to bet that the only facilities capable of accomodating a large public event in Arcadia and Minong are the public's schools.

WHEN GOP$TER$ ATTACK - ACADEMIC FREEDOM!

MUST READ: Now the GOP$ers are going after distinguished professor William Cronon is the Frederick Jackson Turner and Vilas research professor of history, geography and environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin and recently elected president of the American Historical Association because they don't want The People to Know that: a group called ALEC writes their LAWS FOR THEM! http://scholarcitizen.williamcronon.net/ Cronon on his private blog http://scholarcitizen.williamcronon.net/ "One conclusion seems clear: what we’ve witnessed in Wisconsin during the opening months of 2011 did not originate in this state, even though we’ve been at the center of the political storm in terms of how it’s being implemented. This is a well-planned and well-coordinated national campaign, and it would be helpful to know a lot more about" In other words, the Republicon ideal of "Local Control" is a LIE! You cannot have local control (or democracy) when your hidden agenda is adopted from NATIONAL THINK TANKS! The republicon party IS A LIE! You can read the NYT article comparing A$$hole Snott Wanker to UltraMericanScum Joseph McCarthey http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/22/opinion/22cronon.htm Very good! That and the blog piece linked above leads to this: http://www.jsonline.com/blogs/news/118654904.html The GOP$ters are making the HUGE stretch that by bringing this information to the public, he is violating UW policy: The university has an e-mail policy that states, "University employees may not use these resources to support the nomination of any person for political office or to influence a vote in any election or referendum.” To which charge the professor CORRECTLY responded: "It never occurred to me that my suggestion that more study needed to be done about the group might be interpreted as electioneering," Cronon added. "The GOP drew a line that had not occurred to me. That my posting might damage people involved in the recall elections. That surprised me. But that's clearly what they were concluding." SERIOUSLY, if citizens can't bring forth information about politicians and political groups because someone thinks it might influence votes then DEMOCRACY IS DONE! If information shouldn't influence vote then what the F%$& should! I guess I shouldn't need to ask this question of the would be junta that brought us FUX SNOOZE! The NYT calls this a shabby Crusade: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/28/opinion/28mon3.html?_r=1&ref=opinion "This is a clear attempt to punish a critic and make other academics think twice before using the freedom of the American university to conduct legitimate research." Professors are not just ordinary state employees. As J. Harvie Wilkinson III, a conservative federal judge on the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, noted in a similar case, state university faculty members are “employed professionally to test ideas and propose solutions, to deepen knowledge and refresh perspectives.” A political fishing expedition through a professor’s files would make it substantially harder to conduct research and communicate openly with colleagues. And it makes the Republican Party appear both vengeful and ridiculous. This is an attack on academic FREEDOM and further proof that Republicons are A$$HOLE$!

Racine Protest 3-25-11

Don't Forget GOP$ter Protest Today - Racine Marriott

Racine County GOP$ters are having their annual Lincoln Denegration Dinner today at the Racine Marriott to shill for their corporatist sponsors. Gather in the Case HS parking lot. Bring a sign or a noise maker. I'm bringing my cowbell. I've gotta fever for more cowbell and less Snott Wanker!

Invited guests include Scott Walker (word is he'll be there), Ron Johnson & JB Van Hollen. Cocktales @ 5:30, piggies to the trough @ 6:30.

GOP$ter Protest this Friday - Racine Marriott

Friday evening (3/25/11) the Racine County GOPsters will host their annual Lincoln Dinner Fundraiser at the Racine Marriott. As if Honest Abe would have anything to do with these liars, crooks and corporate sell-outs! The keynote speaker is Georgia radio talk-show host and Presidential hopeful Herman Cain http://www.hermancain.com/ Go figure, a wingnut talk show host as President. I think that'd be about the last straw for America.

Invited guests include Scott Walker, Ron Johnson & JB Van Hollen. Cocktales @ 5:30, piggies to the trough @ 6:30.

The Friday visibility protest at Hwys 20 & 31 is moving west to make sure all GOP members get a good view of the energy they have inspired. Please be at the Case High School parking lot around 4pm. Think of a clever sign or bring a noise maker! And of course, dress for the weather. Bring every person you know - because the press will be there, and a good showing is key!

Also, "like" Racine Solidarity on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Racine-Solidarity/110477482366322 The place to find out about anti-Wanker Events in the Racine, Kenosha and Walworth CO. areas. And please pass the word on to others you know in the area.

It's the Inequity Stupid

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-in-america-chart-graph

Scott Walker in Pleasant Prairie TODAY 9:30!

Top o the Marnin! SCOTT WALKER will be at 7809 100th St. in Pleasant Priairie TODAY (3/17) at 9:30AM for a "jobs" press conference. I called and 12 news gave me the address which was being with held on the news and web (we've gottem on the run). Thank you channel 12! This is an empty mfg building in the industrial park about two block due south from the power plant off 80th Ave, just west of Green Bay Rd., east of Cty H and north of Hwy 165. 95th St or 165 will get you to 80th Ave which will get you to 100th St. on the east. There are no sidewalk and not much public right-of-way to be on. One possible solution is to drive by beeping show me what democracy looks like (dit dit dit dit-dit dit-dit dit dah!)

Aircraft Carrier USS Ronald Reagan

To the Japanese victims of the earth quake/tsunami/nuclear disaster - "I'm from the (US) government and I'm here to help".

The Cult of Con vs the Founders, Freedom, Education & Democracy

"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free, in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." Thomas Jefferson

Thomas Jefferson drafted the Northwest Ordinance of 1785, also known as the Freedom Ordinance providing the means by which the territories to the northwest of the orginal 13 states (south of the great lakes, north of the Ohio River and east of the Mississippi, later OH, MI, IN, IL & WISCONSIN) would enter the union.

The ordinance declared the area to be free of slavery and provided for a layout of townships of 36 square miles, 6 miles on a side with a north and south orientation, divided into one-square-mile lots of 640 acres, to be sold at $1 per acre.

One section was set aside to be sold for income supporting public schools (the first national education law written anywhere), which reflected Jefferson’s commitment to public education as essential to democracy.

Solidarity Racine Facebook Page

Finally, a useful purpose for Facebook! http://www.facebook.com/pages/Racine-Solidarity/110477482366322

Kleefisch @ UW-P Tomorrow

The Kenosha Chamber of Commerce has invited local business owners and leaders to a round-table discussion with Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch, 9:00 AM-10:30 AM, Wednesday, March 16, 2011 at UW Parkside Student Center Walnut Room, 900 Wood Road, Kenosha Wisconsin. They will discuss ways in which small businesses can move our economy forward and create jobs for Wisconsin workers as the Walker Administration works to reform government, provide safety in our communities and no tax increases.

Following the roundtable the Lt. Governor will tour Jockey International, 2300 60th Street, Kenosha.

Welcome to Wiscossippi Walmart Elementary School #213

Stop SB 22, the privatization of our public Schools. Public education should be in the interest of the public good, not for private profit, it should benefit children and communities, not corporations!

More Republicon Power Grabbing for the Plutocrats. If you thought the budget dispair bill which stripped $1B from K-12 education (While increasing the transfer to the road builder lobby by $5B) was bad, IT ONLY GETS WORSE! In summary, SB 22:

• Creates a 9-person authorizing board for charter schools: 4 appointed by the Gubner, 3 by the senate majority leader and 3 by the speaker of the assembly (who know, Wanker and the Fitzfuckheads). This limits legislative oversight and hands decision making power over to Wanker's cronies.


• Changes the law limiting organizations to opening only one charter school, allowing for profit Charter Management Organizations (CMOs) to enter Wisconsin, leading franchized schools.


• Removes the requirement for teachers at charter schools to have achieved certification.


• Lifts cap on and promotes virtual (online) schools.

By the way, there is NO EVIDENCE that charter schools do a better job at educating young people. So what are the ramifications if this bill is passed?

• Public tax dollars will be siphoned to the clutches of private hands and away from local communities.


• Traditional public schools become further strapped for funds.


• The power of locally elected school boards will be decreased.


• Segregation of the school age population will increase.


• "Difficult" students will be pushed out of charter schools and into under-resourced public schools.


• Increased reliance on teaching to the test.


• Low educator compensation and moral.


• High educator turnover.


• Destruction of the one institution that pulls many communities together.

The Gipper vs the GOPsters

"Where free unions and collective bargaining are forbidden, freedom is lost." - Ronald Reagan


IN YOUR FACE REPUBLICONS!

ReCall - Because Wisconsin Will Never Forget!

This poll was taken yesterday, BEFORE last night's egregious events: http://voices.washingtonpost.com/plum-line/2011/03/poll_majorities_support_recall.html

Sen. GOPHopper or someone else? 54% - someone else, 43% GOPHopper.

How does Sen. Kapanke ranke? 57% someone else 41% Kapanke.

I like those odds!

Question: Collective Bargaining – Right or Privilege?

After the blatant abuse of power illegal vote yesterday in the Wisconsin legislature, I keep seeing my fellow middle class workers’ right to collectively bargain called a privilege.

Click to read more: Question: Collective Bargaining – Right or Privilege?

Anti-War on the Middle Class Rally - Friday 4PM Hwys 20 & 31

Nuff said.

Protest 9AM Today - Monument Square

A message to all members of Community for Change. In light of tonight's illegal assault to strip Wisconsin unions of collective bargaining rights and the insane and arrogant manner in which it passed the State Senate there will be a protest in Racine at Monument Square at 9am ~ Thursday March 10th. This will be a vocal and peaceful protest. Please come and stand with your friends and neighbors to say "NO" to this abuse of Wisconsin workers!

Town Hall Meeting At Case HS Thurs & Buses to Madtown Sat

A message to all members of Community for Change

There will be a Budget Town Hall on Thursday (March 10) at 7pm at Case High School. Sponsored by the Institute for Wisconsin's Future.
Be there and spread the word....at least it won't be cold!
Buses! We got buses going to Madison on Saturday:

From Racine/AFL-CIO

Racine 1 bus (Kobussen School Bus)
12:00 pm Park & Ride Racine/Sturtevant

(First come first serve)

From Racine/Voces de la Frontera

Buses depart 10 am from Pick ‘n Save, 2210 Rapids Dr. Return at 6:30 pm
(To reserve your seat for Racine buses call: 262-619-4180

Unbalanced - Why America is Falling Over

Most Americans don't realize how unbalanced we are (see above). Balance is a healthy thing for Democracy. We once had a healthy Democracy.

We once had balance, but 30 years of rigging the rules to advantage the elites who disproportionately fund (bribe) politicians has led to the Plutocracy we have today, where bankster crooks on Wall St. get bail outs and working people get attacked and are told to give up more of what little they have left and are propagandized to envy those workers that still have something left of what it once meant to be middle class in America.

It's a divide and conquer strategy by the Plutocracts like the Koch Bros and their puppets like Scott Walker and the other Radical Republicons who would have wealth rule like a banana republic.

Support Rally at the School for the Deaf in Delavan Friday 4-6

Here is an opportunity for what we are hoping will be just as big as the event in Elkhorn (500-700):

DELAVAN CELEBRATING HOMETOWN HEROES—
SUPPORTING PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
FRIDAY MARCH 11th 4-6 PM

MEET AT THE DELAVAN SCHOOL FOR THE DEAF

This event will be similar to the Elkhorn event held on 2/22 and will focus on the positive contributions made by public sector workers. Keep it positive, professional, and proud. Please meet at the Delavan School for the Deaf, intersection of Hwys. 11 and X.; parking available on side streets

It is our job to help keep the heat on in terms of showing up for rallies and demonstrations. The Wisconsin 14 are keeping up their bargain by staying in IL. As Michael Moore said on Saturday in Madison, It is unusual to find Democrats in agreement on anything for so long. Keep up the hard work!! Bring your friends, neighbors, families and your children. Help them learn about democracy in action!!

See the Michael Moore video at http://prwatch.org/2011/03/99441/live-reporting-wisconsins-protests.

March for the Middle Class!

Please join Kenosha Labor for a March to Save the Middle Class on Wednesday, March 9th. The March will convene at 4pm at Kenosha City Hall (625 52nd Street) and move to Civic Center Park (900 57th Street) for a rally at 5pm.

Join your brothers and sisters in Kenosha with a strong showing of support for workers rights and for Senator Bob Wirch! See you there, dress warm and get ready to shout loud!

Q: Why Tax the Rich to Fill the Deficit?

A: Because they've got all the money now and they are the ones benefiting disproportionately from system, so they should support it disproportionately.

And remember, the next time you hear some GOPundit say that the average incomes of Americans are rising that it is only half the truth, designed to deceive and therefore, a lie. Ask them if the incomes of average Americans are rising. The answer is NO!

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF WISCONSIN

AN OPEN LETTER TO THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF WISCONSIN

From the concerned employees of UW-Parkside.

Local Kill the Bill & Worker Rights Event

Saturday Rally and Canvass - Burlington
Saturday March, 5th - 10am-12pm
Southern Lakes United Educators office
616 Droster Ave. Burlington, WI. 53105

If you have questions about these events, please contact:
Justin Geiger
WI AFL-CIO
SE WI Service Area Organizer
office: (262)456-1151
Cell: (414)745-4177

BAPblog Redesign

Awesome Kay! Thanks for the new look!

Vigil Tonight in Burlington

TONIGHT! Thursday Candle light vigil - Burlington
Thursday, March 3rd – 5 p.m.
Burlington at the Wehmhoff square downtown- 355 N. Pine St. burlington,WI. 53105
You know, two blocks south of Fred's!

Fox News Lies About "Violent Wisconsin Protests"

The palm trees, the mounted policeman and the violence proves that this is NOT Madison and tha FuxSnooze LIES!

ASStroturf

WALKER'S PUBLIC RELATIONS BUS TOUR STARTS MARCH 3rd! The Koch Brothers funded front group, American's for Prosperity for Millionaires, are trying to shore up Walkers sagging support.

First Stop for Walker - Kenosha - Brat Stop 9 a.m. Be there today and tell puppet governor sell out Walker to hit the bricks! Here's the schedule link for other cities around the state.

Q: Why Tax the Rich to Fill the Deficit?

A: Because they've got all the money now!

Snott Wanker's Answer instead?

- Tax cuts for the rich
- Sacrifice from the middle class
- Death panels for the poor
- Roads instead of schools

Local Kill the Bill & Worker Rights Events

Wednesday AFSCME Meeting and March - Union Grove
TODAY Wednesday March, 2nd- 3:30pm
American legion hall
1027 New Street
Union Grove, WI 53182

Thursday Candle light vigil - Burlington
Thursday, March 3rd – 5 p.m.
Burlington at the Wehmhoff square downtown- 355 N. Pine St. burlington,WI. 53105

Friday Visibility on Hwy 20 - Racine
Friday, March 4th - 4pm-6pm
Hwy 31 and Hwy 20 Racine, WI.

Faith Forum: Budget Impact on Racine County
Friday, March 4th - 6pm
Location to be determined

Saturday Rally and Canvass - Burlington
Saturday March, 5th - 10am-12pm
Southern Lakes United Educators office
616 Droster Ave. Burlington, WI. 53105

If you have questions about these events, please contact:
Justin Geiger
WI AFL-CIO
SE WI Service Area Organizer
office: (262)456-1151
Cell: (414)745-4177

The Joke's On Us Peasants

"A unionized public employee, a teabagger, and a CEO are sitting at a table. In the middle of the table there is a plate with a dozen cookies on it. The CEO reaches across and takes 11 cookies, looks at the teabagger and says, "Look out for that union guy -- he wants a piece ...of your cookie."

WI Taxpayers Contribute Nothing to Employee Pensions

Forbes: Wisconsin Lie Exposed - Taxpayers Actually contribute Nothing to Employee Pensions

http://blogs.forbes.com/rickungar/2011/02/25/the-wisconsin-lie-exposed-taxpayers-actually-contribute-nothing-to-public-employee-pensions/

It's the Disparity Stupid / Plutocracy Now

Look at these graphs: It's the Disparity, Stupid.

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-in-america-chart-graph

Do not however, read this article: Plutocracy Now: What Wisconsin is Really About.

http://motherjones.com/politics/2011/02/income-inequality-labor-union-decline?page=1

It's just too damn depressing for our democracy. I'll go to Madison Saturday, because if I'm going down, I might as well be swinging against plutocracy. But if Madison isn't a water shed, then I fear democracy is dead.

You'd think actual proof of the sell out of your democracy by the Koch Whores to the big money guys would wake most people up. But the FuxSnooze.

The Repubicons say they're so concerned about the debt, though they caused it and their continued actions speak otherwise.What's maddening is that the middle class people are supposed to sacrifice (if ya want blood don't look to turnips) but we dare not even think about asking the mega rich people to kick in more to solve the debt problems, because both parties serve them alone. They alone possess the money that is key to the TV ads, which are most sacred to all who would "serve the public".

What the GOPsters have succeeded in doing again is what they are SO good at; pitting different sectors (public/private) of the poor, working and middle classes against one another to fight over the remnant crumbs while the top 1% who possess more wealth than the bottom 90% combined, laugh all the way to their bailed out banksters and tell the politicians they sponsor that they need even more! It's a disgusting, vile situation in America today! Democracy my ass.

Pro-labor Rally in Kenosha today at 4PM!

Pro-labor Rally in Kenosha today at 4PM!

Click for details!

Madam, I Must Stick my Nose in There

From Yesterday's Democracy Now! headlines: http://www.democracynow.org/2011/2/23/headlines

A Republican state legislator in Georgia has introduced a measure that would make abortion the legal equivalent of murder and force the criminal investigation of women who suffer miscarriages. The bill, HB 1, from House Republican Bobby Franklin, would classify the removal of a fetus under any circumstance other than during a live birth or to remove a dead fetus as "prenatal murder." Doctors and hospitals would be forced to report miscarriages to authorities, who would then have to investigate if the miscarriage occurs without medical attention.

Walker is a Koch Whore

This is proof that Walker doesn’t work for the people of Wisconsin. He’s nothing but a shill for his plutocrat corporate sponsors, raiders of the public trough, enemies of democracy! Think government is too expensive? ANY price is too expensive when the government isn’t yours! You are being SOLD OUT!

A prank caller posing billionaire con-man David Koch was able to speak with Gov. Scott Walker for 20 minutes yesterday afternoon as Walker laid out in detail his strategy and confirmed that it was intent to cripple public employee unions. The governor's office has confirmed that the call did take place.

The Audio of the conversation was posted on the Buffalo Beast and you can listen to it here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/23/scott-walker-buffalo-beast-phone-prank_n_827058.html?ir=Chicago

The man pretending to be Koch said, “You’re the first domino.” To which Walker replied, “Yep, this is our moment”. Walker laughed about bringing a baseball bat to a potential meeting with Dems (Gee, ya think there’ll be a few cardboard bat in Madison after today?!).

In closing the prankster says: "I'll tell you what Scott, once you crush these bastards, I'll fly you out to Cali and really show you a good time." Walker replied. "Alright, that would be outstanding. Thanks for all the support and helping us move the cause forward. We appreciate it and we're doing the just and right thing for the right reasons and it's all about getting our freedoms back". Then the caller said, "Absolutely. And you know, we have a little bit of vested interest as well" and laughed. "That's just it. The bottom line is, we're going to get the world movement here because it's the right thing to do," replied Walker. Walker ended the call saying, thanks a million." Walker ends the call by saying, "thanks a million."

It should be more like THANK MILLION$! The brothers own Koch Industries, Inc., which is the largest privately-owned company in America and has significant operations in Wisconsin. Its political action committee gave $43,000 to Walker's campaign, and donated heavily to the Republican Governors' Association, which funded ads attacking Walker's opponent in last year's election. The Kochs also give millions to support Americans For Prosperity, which launched a $320,000 television ad campaign in favor of Walker's legislation. The Koch have also opened a lobbying office on Wisconsin’s capitol square and may be positioning themselves to buy publicly owned power plants at whatever price their boy Scotty sets as stipulated deep in the 144 pages of Walker’s Budget Despair Bill.

Part of the irony is that Walker suggests that if the unions are helping with costs for the 14 Dem senators to stay in the land of Lincoln (another Quorum foiler) that is might be an ethics or legal violation. But apparently he thinks there’s no ethical or legal violation to his shilling for his corporate sponsor! He also complains that unions give money to Dems and expect something in return while he’s talking at length to his faux corporate sponsor about doing his bidding!

Elkhorn

400-500 demonstrated against Plan Plutocracy with peaceful high spirits on the square in Elkhorn last night, countered by 50-75 teabaggers.

Oh Mr. Lincoln, the Irony!

Indiana Dems Flee to Illinois as former Party of Lincoln cries foul! On December 5, 1840 State Legislator Abraham Lincoln jumped from a 2nd story window to deny the Illinois House a . . . QUORUM!

http://www.kmph.com/Global/story.asp?S=9803297

Panderer to Payoff Plutocrats

The Budget Dispair Bill contains provision for Walker to sell off or lease publicly owned heating and cooling power utilities with no bidding at whatever price they determine is "fair". And who will Pay the Plutocratic Privatizing Profiteers (Koch Bros) "return on investment" in little scotty walker? The citizens of Wisconsin of course!

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/21/947947/-The-Koch-Brothers-End-Game-in-Wisconsin

In short:
1) Koch Brothers get their puppet Governor Walker in power
2) Governor Walker gins up a crisis
3) Democrats and Progressives take the bait and counter-protest on collective bargaining
4) Governor Walker will compromise on collective bargaining if the rest of the budget is passed as is
5) Bill passes, with Trojan horse give-a-way to the Koch Brothers nested in
6) Koch Brothers will buy Wisconsin state-owned power plants for pennies on the dollar in closed unsolicited bids for which there will be no oversight
7) Koch Brothers get the best vertical monopoly in a

Evidence: http://motherjones.com/mojo/2011/02/wisconsin-scott-walker-koch-brothers

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker: Funded by the Koch Bros.
Protesters surrounded Wisconsin's capitol building in Madison this week to register their opposition to GOP Gov. Scott Walker's plans to strip collective bargaining rights from public employees. Wisconsin Republican Governor Scott Walker, whose bill to kill collective bargaining rights for public-sector unions has caused an uproar among state employees, might not be where he is today without the Koch brothers. Charles and David Koch are conservative titans of industry who have infamously used their vast wealth to undermine President Obama and fight legislation they detest, such as the cap-and-trade climate bill, the health care reform act, and the economic stimulus package. For years, the billionaires have made extensive political donations to Republican candidates across the country and have provided millions of dollars to astroturf right-wing organizations. Koch Industries' political action committee has doled out more than $2.6 million to candidates. And one prominent beneficiary of the Koch brothers' largess is Scott Walker.

Public Wisconsin workers earn less in total compensation than private

Graphic: Public Wisconsin workers earn less in total compensation than private

Video from Madison Saturday and Vigil for Workers in Elkhorn on Tuesday

Great! video shot by a local man in Madison on Saturday the 19th with lots of excellent comments from demonstrators regarding what Walker's push to plutocracy is really all about, cheap labor, insecure workers and one party rule: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQMu2NcCWDo

ALSO: A Candlelight Vigil will be held in downtown Elkhorn on Tuesday, Feb. 22 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. We are asking people to bring candles and signs that do not attack individuals, but rather point out the contributions that public service workers make to the community such as:
"Local Unions Support Local Jobs"
"We love our health professional/teacher/nurse/maintenance worker/child care professional" etc.
"Labor rights are human rights"
You get the picture...

**A sign making party will be held at the Walworth County Dems office at 13 E. Walworth St. on Monday at 6:30 p.m. - bring posterbaord and markers.

Please forward this and duplicate and distribute lavishly. We are expecting a good turnout - we have buy-in from WEAC, two local units of AFSMCE, IBEW, Walworth County Dems and the Construction and General Laborers Union Local 464 as well as numerous community members who "get it". Many thanks to all!

Conservatism: America's Leading Cause of Stupidity!

Five states in the U.S. specifically prohibit collective bargaining for teachers. Their rankings in combined ACT/SAT scores:
44. Virginia
47. Texas
48. Georgia
49. North Carolina
50. South Carolina

Wisconsin is tied for second. http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/states/USCHARTsat.html

Walker's One Man Death Panel!

The Budget Dispair Bill that Scott Walker attempted to ram through to prevent public scrutiny contains a change to the way Medical Assistance is determined that is every bit the egregious dictatorial power grab that his attack on labor and the middle class is. In fact, this is probably WORSE, because people's health and their very lives are at stake. These are the pro-life, family values folks, right? But hey, don't take my word for it. Below is a dire warning and analysis from a person whose famiily will be directly impacted by Walker's one man death panel and his would be power to change the rules with NO PUBLIC NOTICE and NO PUBLIC HEARINGS!

SPREAD THIS WORD!

Thanks,
Sean

For years, advocates in Wisconsin have been working to make life better -- in some cases, make life possible -- for people with disabilities.

The process has been slow. It has taken years to create the programs and put the funding in place to allow people with disabilities to live a meaningful life in their communities, in their homes, with the healthcare support they need. Bit by bit, but with much further to go, the argument has moved forward: if you don't want to go back to the bad old days of warehousing people in very expensive institutions where lives were unbelievably difficult and generally much shorter, the public needs to step up and provide support.

This successful argument has won us the MA waiver that provides intensive therapy for children with autism.

We've won funding for health care.
For respite care.
For the home modifications that keep people safe and mobile.
For the supports that allow adults with disabilities to live in the community.

On Friday February 11, Governor Scott Walker proposed a so-called "budget repair" bill that will allow him and his appointees to restructure and slash Medical Assistance programs in Wisconsin. If this bill passes, the future slashing will take place...

Without public notice. Without public input.

The budget bill was released on Friday. A public hearing was announced Monday noon to take place on Tuesday at 10am, less than 24 hours notice.

They want the legislature to rubber-stamp this bill with a vote THIS WEEK. (And they claim they have the votes to do it -- though the protests are beginning to make some Republican state senators squirm.)

Very few people even know about the provisions of the bill impacting Medical Assistance.

Some links to news articles backing this up...
Walker budget proposal would impact how health care works in state: http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_a28507fa-38a7-11e0-a87e-001cc4c002e0.html
Budget repair bill gives Walker free hand to revamp, cut Medicaid programs: http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/health_med_fit/vital_signs/article_979fd798-385c-11e0-b233-001cc4c03286.html
State attorney said Walker's Medicaid plan raised "potential constitutional issues": http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/health_med_fit/vital_signs/article_cee543c2-3939-11e0-8619-001cc4c03286.html

The bill also eliminates outright the agency that coordinates my daughter's respite care services, the Wisconsin Quality Home Care Commission. (The cuts in the respite funding itself will surely come later. Without public input or notice.)

Why don't people know about this?

Two major reasons:
1) The bill is loaded with outrages. The one that has been in the headlines, that people know most about, is the proposal to strip most collective-bargaining power from public employees, so that (for starters) the governor can implement a massive cut in take-home pay via drastically-increased employee benefit contributions. [For JoyDad and myself, the loss of income amounts to half our mortgage payment every month, the equivalent of a 150% income-tax hike.] The union-busting, an outrage in and of itself, also sets the stage for immense cuts in public education...
2) The timeline is appallingly, undemocratically short. The advocacy groups have not had time even to properly analyze the Medical

Assistance provisions in the bill, let alone inform the public to get to the hearing and tell their stories. People slept over in the Capitol rotunda in Madison last night. I submitted my written testimony Tuesday morning, but could not stay the whole day awaiting my turn to speak.

As I said in a letter to the editor that was published Tuesday, nobody is arguing that the state has no budget challenges. Some pain will have to be shared. Tax increases will have to be a part of this puzzle.

Governor Walker's approach so far, however, has been to hand over millions of dollars in corporate tax giveaways during a special-session in January this year. In other words, making the hole bigger, creating an "emergency" wher none truly exists.
And the mechanism that allows unfettered cuts to Medical Assistance, without so much as public notice let alone public input, is moving through practically un-noticed.

Scarier still -- the Walker-appointee in charge of the Department of Health Services, which will be responsible for the Medical Assistance revisions, is one Dennis Smith, formerly of the Heritage Foundation, who has argued that states would be better off dropping Medicaid altogether: http://www.heritage.org/Research/Reports/2009/11/Medicaid-Meltdown-Dropping-Medicaid-Could-Save-States-1-Trillion

Spread the word. Call the state legislators, or e-mail them if their phone mailboxes are still jammed full like they were yesterday! Write to your local paper. Hit the streets if you're anywhere near a rally. The Capitol was alive with protest today, what with the Madison schools closed as the teachers go out to advocate for Wisconsin public education -- JoyDad and I support them wholeheartedly.

But if the MA issue continues to fly under the radar, the protests won't get that part of the bill so much as tweaked.

Please help!

====
P.S. A little bit of wonky sausage-making detail for those who are interested in such things! According to the balance of powers in the State of Wisconsin, Medical Assistance changes have had to go through a legislative process, either through direct legislation or through administrative rule-making. Both approaches require public hearings.

The budget proposal changes the requirements for the process. Changes would be able to be made via "emergency rule," regulations which could be created by the Department of Health Services under the aforementioned Dennis Smith. Ordinarily, hearings must be held on emergency rules, and then after a specified period of time, the emergency rules must be converted into final rules, with another round of public hearing. However, according to the budget proposal, the new "emergency rules" slashing MA could be passed without hearing by the Joint Finance Committee, simply by the committee declining to take them up.

The JFC is currently 8 Republicans, 4 Democrats. The committee WILL DECLINE to take up any proposed emergency rules that result in MA cuts. So the emergency rules will simply pass into effect in 14 days. No public notice, no public input. The bill also waives the requirement for the emergency rules to be revisited and converted into final rules. No chance for public input and changes there either.

Re-posted with slight updates from the blog, Elvis Sightings by way of the Daily Kos: http://elvis-sightings.blogspot.com/2011/02/wisconsin-attack-on-medical-assistance.html

Walker Gins Up "Crisis" to Reward Cronies

I thought this piece from the Cap Times might help everyone fight the good fight.

Say "NO!" to Walker's despicable plan.  In fact, say "HELL, NO!" and help turn out anyone who backs him on it.

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/editorial/article_61064e9a-27b0-5f28-b6d1-a57c8b2aaaf6.html?sourcetrack=moreArticle

Contact your legislators and make them do what's right!

Or, if they're on this list, you could start recalling them right now.


http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/02/18/946601/-Wisconsin:-8-GOP-state-senators-can-be-recalled-Right-Now,-Walker-next-January

Keep the faith!  Keep up the pressure!

REPEAT - Rally for Rights in Racine Today! (Friday) Monument Square 4PM

Progressivism or plutocracy! Play it again Sam!

Democrats with real gumption?! Salute the Senate Dems, may there be more where that came from!

Walker's blitz on working people goes way beyond public employees. This NOT about temporary concessions to get through a crisis, it is about plutocracy vs democracy. It'll be the police and firefighters next and then the private sector unions, etc., etc, Waging a War on Working People.

A coordinated attack was launched last Friday with Walker's pronouncement that he would end a 70 year tradition of collective bargaining for Wisconsin's public servants. On the very same day the Club for Growths began airing TV ads attacking public employees and urging support for Walker's power grab. That is NO ACCIDENT!

This is about money taking power. The Koch Bros have come to town, OUR government in the bathtub to drown!

There is another rally TODAY at Monument Square in Racine today (Fri 2/18) at 4:00 PM. Be There at the Square! Despite the balmy weather there's a corporate shill in the air!

I am not, nor is anyone in my family a public employee or even a union member. But this is just another, albeit more egregious example, in a long line of assaults on the middle-class by our would be plutocratic overlords and their Republicon thugs. This, like the equally unnecessary voter ID bill is completely politically motivated and designed to weaken democracy and move toward one party rule. If it works it will go WAY beyond public employees and WAY beyond Wisconsin.

Walker has invented this crisis at pretext for his blitz on workers. On Jan 31 the Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported that Wisconsin would end the budget year with a $121.4 million positive balance. http://legis.wisconsin.gov/lfb/Misc/2011_01_31Vos&Darling.pdf

Two weeks later, after Walker pushed through $140 million in new spending and tax cuts for his cronies he's claiming we have a $138 million deficit. Walker is liar. And he won't stop there. He and his radical allies will not be happy until they can proudly say:

Tax cuts for the rich!
Sacrifices for the middle class!
Death panels for the poor!

Stand up today so that tomorrow we needn't say "Welcome to Walker's Wiscossippi!

Rally for Rights in Racine Today! Monument Square 4PM

Progressivism or plutocracy!

Walker's blitz on working people goes way beyond public employees. This is about plutocracy vs democracy. A coordinated attack was launched last Friday with Walker's pronouncement that he would end a 70 year tradition of collective bargaining for Wisconsin's public servants. On the very same day the Club for Growths began airing TV ads attacking public employees and urging support for Walker's power grab. That is NO ACCIDENT!

This is about money taking power. The Koch Bros have come to town, OUR government in the bathtub to drown!

There is a rally at Monument Square in Racine today (Thurs 2/17) at 4:00 PM. Be There at the Square! Despite the balmy weather there's a corporate shill in the air!

I am not, nor is anyone in my family a public employee or even a union member. But this is just another, albeit more egregious example, in a long line of assaults on the middle-class by our would be plutocratic overlords and their Republicon thugs. This, like the equally unnecessary voter ID bill is completely politically motivated and designed to weaken democracy and move toward one party rule. If it works it will go WAY beyond public employees and WAY beyond Wisconsin.

Walker has invented this crisis at pretext for his blitz on workers. On Jan 31 the Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported that Wisconsin would end the budget year with a $121.4 million positive balance. http://legis.wisconsin.gov/lfb/Misc/2011_01_31Vos&Darling.pdf

Two weeks later, after Walker pushed through $140 million in new spending and tax cuts for his cronies he's claiming we have a $138 million deficit. Walker is liar. And he won't stop there. He and his radical allies will not be happy until they can proudly say:

Tax cuts for the rich!
Sacrifices for the middle class!
Death panels for the poor!

Stand up today so that tomorrow we needn't say "Welcome to Walker's Wiscossippi!

America: The Richest Nation in the World – Really?

America: The Richest Nation in the World – Really?

I got fired up and posted a pretty detailed rant after watching Thom Hartmann's Big Picture show from last night on RT. Frankly, we should all rise up and continue to fight until this is resolved. This suffering needs to end and this nation needs a wakeup call.

An Open Letter to My Legislators

Dear Senator Wanggaard and Representative Vos --

I am deeply distressed by Governor Walker’s threat to strip the collective bargaining rights of our public employees.

These people -- our teachers, ER nurses, 911 operators,  snow plow drivers, and others -- have given our state their best for many, many years.  To take their right to bargain collectively away from them is not just a slap in the face for all their hard work, it is just plain wrong.

Governor Walker has made a series of terrible blunders since taking office, mistakes that cost our state the good, high-paying jobs of the future -- turning down the money for high-speed rail (and the jobs and cleaner environment that would bring), turning away funding for rural broadband access, and making it more difficult to site new, efficient windmill generators among them -- and all this within 2 months of being sworn in!

This threat to our public employees is just his latest bad move, and it’s a tactic I urge you to oppose.

Certainly, during these tough times, all of us must tighten our belts and pitch in where we can for the common good.  The public employees union, as the employees themselves, agree with this.  It smacks of dictatorship to exclude these people from the talks that will affect their lives, their salaries, their benefits, and, thus, their futures.

Mr. Walker must not seek to balance Wisconsin’s budget on the backs of middle-class workers and the poor!  The benefits these people have now are ones they bargained for in good faith -- and sacrificed for  -- in the past.  It is wrong, just plain wrong, to take away those benefits, and the right to bargain for them, now or at any time in the future.

By acting unilaterally as he has threatened, Governor Walker is robbing Peter to pay Paul.  There is, in fact, no need to rob anyone.  Reasonable people can sit together across a table and come to reasonable agreements.

So, I urge you to stand up for the right of every Wisconsinite to organize and bargain collectively -- the right of all of us to seek our future together.

Because I have volunteered to teach 100+ students tomorrow in Kenosha, I will not be marching on the capital tomorrow.  But I will be with those protesters in spirit.

Since I cannot be there, I count on you to represent my interests.

Yours Sincerely,

Steve Sullivan

Then they came for the Trade Unionists....

This statement is often misquoted -- especially by the right wing, who like to insert themselves into it -- but here's the real thing.

And I want you to pay special attention to the 2nd stanza, and think about the Governor's threat to collective bargaining in Wisconsin:

First They came... - Pastor Martin Niemoller

First they came for the communists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a trade unionist.

Then they came for the Jews,
and I didn't speak out because I wasn't a Jew.

Then they came for me
and there was no one left to speak out for me.

*
I guess the Governor felt he could just skip that first step in this day and age.


Stand up against the Governor of Wisconsin and for our teachers & public workers, before it's too late.

Contact your state reps.

WI Public Employees Over Compensated? NO!

Rutgers Prof Jeffrey Keefe just completed a study which shows that when controlling for education level Wisconsin Public Employees are undercompensated by 4.8% compared to similar private sector employees, and that INCLUDES their pension and health insurance benefit packages: http://www.epi.org/publications/entry/6759/

59% of full-time Wisconsin public sector workers hold at least a four-year college degree, compared with 30% of full-time private sector workers. Wisconsin state and local governments pay college-educated employees 25% less in annual compensation, on average, than private employers.

Action Alert Worker's Rights & the Budget Repair Bill

Many of you are already aware that Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker has planned legislation that will strip state workers of their right to collective bargaining.

Former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold released the following statement:

"Governor Walker’s request to the State Legislature to eliminate nearly all of the collective-bargaining rights for thousands of Wisconsin workers is big government at its worst. No private employer can do what the governor proposes, nor should it. For decades, Wisconsin has protected the rights of workers to collectively bargain with their employer on wages, benefits, workplace rules, and many other aspects of their employment. The governor is wrong to suggest that public workers are responsible for the state’s budget woes, and he is wrong to use that bogus excuse to strip them of rights that millions of other American workers have."

There are a number of things you can do:

There are buses going to Madison on Tuesday and Wednesday.
These buses are headed to rallies at the Capital. The buses will be leaving the park and ride at Highway 11 and I-94 at 7am. The rallies are planned for noon. The buses WILL be returning each day. If you want to be part of this and want to be on the bus please RSVP to Meg at megwi@aol.com

There will be marching and rallying in Racine on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 4pm to 6pm at the Racine Unified Central Office. That's at 2200 Northwestern Ave. Just show up and be supportive.

Call, email, or fax State Senator Van Wanggaard and tell him to vote against this proposal.
~His office phone number is 608 266 1832, or 866 615 7510. His mailbox is full now, but try again on Monday and Tuesday and Wednesday and
Thursday.
~His email address is sen.wanggaard@legis.wisconsin.gov
Send him an email right now and tell him that you do not want Wisconsin union
workers to have their rights taken away.
~His fax number is 608 282 3561. Send a fax telling him how you feel about what
Gov Walker is trying to do to your friends, relatives and neighbors.

Call the legislative hotline and tell your State Senator that you oppose this bill. That number is 877 753 5578.

Help make phone calls telling other people to call, email, or fax. There will be phone banks set up at the Labor Hall in Racine at 1840 Sycamore (across from
Skatetown). Calling will start tomorrow (Sunday) at 11am. If you can join in, RSVP to Meg at megwi@aol.com...or just show up. (You WILL need to bring your own cell phone to use,as we do not have phone lines set up. Make sure you have free minutes on Sundays.)
One or all actions will make a difference. Please join your friends, family and neighbors in Wisconsin who will be affected by this legislation!

Fruther Proof the Ryan is Lyin Sack of Shit

The following half truth (LIE!) courtesy Paully Ryan and the Weekneed Standard was posted by Nemo on Free Racine and is making all around the wingnut blogospere. The truth, which CONservatism cannot abide, follows below

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/cbo-director-says-obamacare-would-reduce-employment-800000-workers_547288.html

Chairman [Paul] Ryan: “[I]t’s been argued...that the new health care law will create jobs and increase labor force participation. But if I recall from your analysis, it was quite the opposite. Is that not the case?”

Director [Douglas] Elmendorf : “Yes.”...

[…]

Rep. [John] Campbell: Thank you, Mr. Chairman, we'll -- and Dr. Elmendorf -- and we'll continue this conversation right now. First on health care, before I get to -- before I get to broader issues, you just mentioned that you believe -- or that in your estimate, that the health care law would reduce the labor used in the economy by about 1/2 of 1 percent, given that, I believe you say, there's 160 million full-time people working in '20-'21. That means that, in your estimation, the health care law would reduce employment by 800,000 in '20-'21. Is that correct?

Director Elmendorf: Yes. The way I would put it is that we do estimate, as you said, that...employment will be about 160 million by the end of the decade. Half a percent of that is 800,000.

http://thehill.com/blogs/healthwatch/health-reform-implementation/143379-gop-jumps-on-old-cbo-job-numbers

EXCERPT: However, the CBO prediction is a little more nuanced. Last summer's CBO report said the projected labor reduction is "largely" the result of more people voluntarily staying out of the workforce because the healthcare reform law gives them better healthcare options through an expansion of Medicaid and new state-run health insurance exchanges.

From the report:

"The expansion of Medicaid and the availability of subsidies through the exchanges will effectively increase beneficiaries’ financial resources. Those additional resources will encourage some people to work fewer hours or to withdraw from the labor market."

Further, a ban on discriminating against preexisting conditions will likely "increase the appeal" of health insurance plans offered outside the workplace for older workers.

"As a result," CBO said, "some older workers will choose to retire earlier than they otherwise would." END EXCERPT

Hey, THAT means they'll leave job openings that younger workers can fill. BONUS!

Thank you Nemo for your continued service in allowing me to point out the lies required to advance the Con-servatisma. If you must lie to advance your thoughts, your thoughts are not advanced.

Hooray For Eqypt!

I'm so happy for the people of Egypt and hopeful that it goes well from here to peaceful democracy there and elsewhere!

Fux Snoozers Most Misinformed

The University of Maryland conducted a studt after the fall election that shows there is a disturbing amount of misinformation, you know propaganda in the Plutocratic States of America and that it is influencing the what citizens believe (wrongly) and how they vote (ignorantly): http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/pdf/dec10/Misinformation_Dec10_rpt.pdf

But Fux Snoozers are by far more likely to swallow the bullshit and then regurgitate it all over what remains of our republic. Fux viewers are by:
-14 points more likely to mistakenly believe that the stimulus legislation did not include tax cuts. -13 points more likely to erroneously believe that the auto bailout only occurred under Obama.
-12 points more likely to hold the incorrect belief that when TARP came up for a vote most Republicans opposed it.
-30 points more likely to mistakenly believe that most scientists do not agree that climate change is occurring.
-31 percent more likely to believe the that it is not clear that Obama was born in the United States.

Want more clear evidence of the lies the Teabgnorant are more likely to believe? Read it and weep:
-Most economists estimate the stimulus caused job losses (12 points more likely)
-Most economists have estimated the health care law will worsen the deficit (31 points)
-The economy is getting worse (26 points)
-Their own income taxes have gone up (14 points)

Plutarch's like Rupert the Murdoch and the Koch Bros don't like bedrock American values like self determination through the INFORMED consent of the citizenry. They're not your countrymen, they're would-be overlords.

Torturer-In-Chief Forced to Cancel Trip

On February 7, 2011, two torture victims were to have filed criminal complaints for torture against former president George W. Bush in Geneva, who was due to speak at an event there on February 12th. On the eve of the filing of the complaints, George Bush cancelled his trip. Swiss law requires the presence of the alleged torturer on Swiss soil before a preliminary investigation can be open. The complaints could not be filed after Bush cancelled, as the basis for jurisdiction no longer existed.

http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2011/02/08-2

On Monday, the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) released the 'Preliminary Bush Torture Indictment', a document outlining the core aspects of the case against Bush for torture, and his violations of the Convention Against Torture to which the United States is a signatory.

An Easy Understanding of the 2nd Amendment

An Easy Understanding of the 2nd Amendment

Seeing recent (today) Facebook gun owner posts, I figured this to be an appropriate rant.

The 2nd amendment to the US Constitution simply states: A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the People to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.

...

The founders were quite scared of a standing army in the US; they wanted the states to form local militias that would be activated when necessary. In order to maintain this idea of not having a standing army, we needed the right of the people to keep an bear arms.

NFL a Triumph of Socialistic Capitalism

This Sunday millions of Americans will gather watch the spectacle of the NFL Superbowl, a triumph of socialistic capitalism. The NFL is by far the most successful professional sports enterprise in America today. And the reason for this great success? Revenue sharing among the individual franchises that make up the league, you know socialism. They share revenue on everything from tickets and TV to towels and t-shirts, with the individual franchise keeping a portion of the sales and the rest going for equal distribution among all the teams.

Make no mistake about it, the NFL and the individual franchises (except for the most-glorious Green Bay Packers, owned by The People of Green Bay) are capitalistic ventures intent on making a profit and a return on investment and that is as it should be. But the NFL, unlike it's now weaker cousin MLB (America's former passtime) long ago realized that the health and well being of the whole is directly related to, and dependent on, the health and well being of each individual member.

By socializing their success the NFL has been able to produce a superior product with most of the teams being competative at any given time and a fairly rapid turnover of championship teams. And this has been good for their customers, the fans who get competative teams to root for and close, entertaining games to watch, which in return is good for the NFL and all it's members. There are no Yankees in the NFL, using their big media market renvue advantage perenially to buy their way to success. There are no Cubs, perpetually refusing to re-invest revenue in a superior product, secure in the monopoly over their mindlessly loyal and long suffering fans. It's better to be successful on a wheat pile than king of a dung heap.

Purity is not always a good thing and often comes with severe drawbacks and shortcomings. It's true with dogs and horses. Constant inbreeding in the quest for purity ends up accentuating inherent weaknesses and in general, mutts tend to be healthier than purebreads. The same is true with economic systems. Pure capitalism and pure socialism soon show the cracks of their inherent weaknesses that inevitably lead to crisis and failure. But the balancing act of a healthy blend allows the strengths of both to come through while keeping expression of the weaknesses of each to a minimum.

So remember this Sunday when when your witnessing a prime display of sucessful socialistic capitalism that even the Packers from the smallest city in professional sports can reach the top and enjoy their day in the sun when there is a reasonable sharing of resources and a level playing field. Go PACK GO!

Egypt

I'm watching the events in Egypt in particular and the region in general with great hope for the people of the middle-east and a peaceful transition to freedom and democracy.

Gas prices be damned if it works out it would be well worth almost any price over the near term.

State of the Union? Unbalanced & Sick

From last Thursday's On Point with Tom Ashbrook: http://www.onpointradio.org/2011/01/inequality-societies

American inequality is at towering heights not seen since before the Great Depression. Wealth is packed at the top of the ladder, and dwindling on the rungs below.

The picture naturally makes many uneasy. A new global research effort says we are quite right to worry about it.

In their new book Inequality: The Enemy Between Us, two British epidemiologists say inequality is a public health issue, a national health issue. From crime rates to drug use to teenage pregnancy to heart disease and more, they say, the evidence shows inequality makes countries sick, even the rich.

Inequality: the enemy between us?

By Richard Wilkinson and Kate Pickett

Excerpt of the Excerpt: Like others, we had been working for some years trying to understand the tendency for health to be better in countries with smaller income differences between rich and poor. There are now around 200 studies of income inequality and health. Other researchers working on violent crime had shown that homicide rates were lower in more equal countries. We started to wonder whether this pattern applied to other health or social problems. To find out, we collected internationally comparable figures on levels of trust, mental illness, life expectancy, infant mortality, prevalence of drug use and levels of obesity, homicide rates and rates of imprisonment, teenage birth rates, children’s educational achievement, and measures of child wellbeing – for each of 21 rich developed market democracies.

To measure inequality we used the ratio of the incomes of the top 20 percent in each country compared to the incomes of the bottom 20 percent. In the more equal countries (Japan, Finland, Norway, Sweden) the top 20 percent have 3.4 to 4.0 times as much. In the more unequal societies (USA, Portugal, UK) they have between 7 and 8.5 times as much. By this measure they are twice as unequal as the more equal countries.

Although people have often regarded inequality as divisive and socially corrosive, that did not prepare us for what we found. The frequency of all these problems was systematically related to income inequality. The bigger the income differences between rich and poor in each society, the worse these health and social problems became. And rather than things being just a bit worse in more unequal countries, they were very much worse. More unequal countries tended to have three times the level of violence, of infant mortality and mental illness; teenage birth rates were six times as high, and rates of imprisonment increased eight-fold.

The sense that inequality is divisive was shown by the fact that in more unequal countries, only about 15 percent of the population feel they can trust others, compared to around two-thirds in the more equal ones. That evidence was supported by relationships with social capital and levels of violence – all showing that inequality damages the social fabric of society.
Although the statistics told us that these relationships could not be dismissed as chance, we thought we should check in a second, independent, test bed to see if the same relationships held true. We looked at data for the 50 states of the USA, asking exactly the same question: did the more equal states, like the more equal countries, also do better on all these health and social problems than the less equal ones?

The pattern was extraordinarily similar. What the evidence shows is a tendency for more unequal societies to be socially dysfunctional right across the board. It is not that one country or state has good health but high levels of violence, or high teenage birth rates but low levels of drug abuse. Instead, the pattern is for most problems to become better or worse together.

Wisconsin Governor Walker – A Plagiarist and Shill With No Ideas (of his own)

Wisconsin Governor Walker – A Plagiarist and Shill With No Ideas (of his own)

As the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign reports, Scott Walker, our new governor, is only pushing ideas from right-wing ideologues that funded his campaign.

62% of Americans: Leave Obamacare as is or Make it do MORE!

A January 2011 AP Poll shows 62% of Americans like Obamcare as is, or want to see it changed so that it does more. See Table HC14a, above. http://www.ap-gfkpoll.com/pdf/AP-GfK%20Poll%20011411.pdf

The GOPbuser Protection Act of 2011

Part of the GOPster corporate takeover involves an attack on the Constitutional Right of The People to seek redress for their grievances in order to protect Corprate ASSets. They call it "Tort Reform" and use the GOPmyth of many frivolous lawsuits and outrageous awards as cover for the schilling for their corporate sponsors.

That's bad enough, but their assualt on the rights of the most vulnerable among us to receive justice is nothing less than DISPICABLE!

Please take a moment to read the attached letter from Disability Rights Wisconsin et. al. to see what being done to the defenseless in your name, for one reason, the conservation of money for the Ownership of Greed Oligarch's Party. It's only 3 pages, but what it reveals . . .
http://www.disabilityrightswi.org/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/Senate-letter-re-SB1-Aging-and-Disability-Groups.pdf

EXCERPT:For the large number of elderly residents of nursing homes or group homes who have any degree of memory loss, for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, and for many people with mental illness, asking the resident to testify about the abuse they experienced is not a realistic option (they may not clearly recall the events or their testimony may not be convincing to the court). The most accurate and compelling evidence of physical or mental abuse they have experienced in a facility would be a) an incident report created by staff of the facility contemporaneous with the incident, as required by federal and or state law; and b) investigative reports generated by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS). SB 1 explicitly prohibits prosecutors, residents, families, guardians, or advocates from using either of those types of reports in any criminal or civil legal proceeding. This prohibition applies to all state, county, and private long term care, psychiatric, or children’s facilities.

Republicons just make me SICK!