This Just In...Walker is Right...Well, Sort of...

So I was watching my local NBC affiliate, WEAU, and of course they played footage from a recent interview our illustrious governor had given them (could have been any television or radio station...he says the exact same things to them all)...Mostly to continue to spread the same boilerplate lines about how he is the greatest thing to happen to Wisconsin since beer, cheese, and the Green Bay Packers...What struck me, after I was able to get past the deadened look in his eyes (I mean come on...it's almost like from the invasion of the body snatchers), was that what he was saying was correct...just not in the context that he is comprehending it.

Walker: "To me if you do things for the right reasons long term people will see what we’re doing is historic here in Wisconsin and even maybe in the county."

He's right. The only difference is that it's our movement that is creating history from right action.

Walker: "It will show we stood up and did the right thing. "

Again, right on. Fighting for the dignity of working people, the environment, education, and a litany of other critical issues is the right thing to do...

Walker: "We thought more about the next generation then we did about just the next election."

Again...Spot on. When I look at my two young children...I know, I KNOW, that we must nurture a place in which they are able to get educated, have safe access to drinking water, be able to afford to go to college if they so choose, be respected on the job, and have access to a safe and dignified retirement. Thank you Scott for crystallizing for me, again, why we are doing what we are doing...

http://www.weau.com/...

PPP Finds Barrett as the Top Choice Among Wisconsin Dems...

Public Policy Polling has released a poll that shows that Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett is the preferred choice of Wisconsin Democrats to face off, again, against Scott Walker in Wisconsin's upcoming recall election. Barrett does better with Democratic voters than former Dane County Executive, Kathleen Falk and former congressman, Dave Obey.

http://www.wispolitics.com/...

My preferred choice is the same as many of you as well: Russ Feingold. But with all indications that he has no interest in running, I am wondering what you guys think of a rematch between Barrett and Walker. Falk has never really appealed to me as a candidate. I love Dave Obey's no B.S., aggressive style...

Waukesha County Judge Orders GAB to Carry Walker's Water...

This should come as a shock to exactly....nobody... The judge selected to hear Governor Walker's assertion the the GAB should discard obviously false names has ruled in the Governor's favor...Waukesha County...huh...who would have figured...This is clearly a judicial end around the explicit purpose of the law which requires the candidate up for recall to sift and filter through the names and addresses in order to challenge the perceived invalid ones.

http://www.weau.com/...

This is clearly a disappointing ruling and, honestly, I am not sure how this is all going to play out...what with the make up of our illustrious State Supreme Court. The end result seems to be this...Governor Walker, and his ilk, get a free pass with regards to the heavy lifting they should be required to do. Regardless, I am certain that those in the position of vetting petitions on our end will have done a very good job of limiting the type of signatures the Republicans want everyone to believe are rampant...

Either way, the clock is ticking for Scott Walker...

Solidarity everyone!

Walkerites Behaving Badly...

Not that this surprises anyone...but I thought I'd share it anyway. The Capital Times, out of Madison, reported that two men were arrested Saturday for spitting on recall volunteers in Arena, Wisconsin...Like I said, not surprising...disgusting yes, surprising no. This behavior will, of course, continue and worsen (as some numerous fellow Kossacks have shared their stories) as the recall and removal of Walker becomes more and more close at hand.

The old saying "like father, like son" really hits home with this sort of thing. I assume that they are father and son from the names reported. It made me reflect on my relationship with my son, and whether or not I am burdening him with crippling prejudices and acceptance of abhorrent behaviors, as is clearly the case with these two men.

I think back to my experience of standing outside a local hotel/conference hall with protestors in Eau Claire in February or March of this year and having a man in his Mercedes SUV rolling down his window and flipping us all off...with his two small children in car seats in the backseat...So keep up the great work Wisconsin! Try to stay positive...and safe...

I guess at least these two guys got to spend a little quality time together this Christmas season...in holding cells...

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/crime_and_courts/two-arrested-for-allegedly-spitting-on-recall-workers-in-iowa/article_989fd244-2a3a-11e1-bb3f-001871e3ce6c.html

Collective Bargaining and Wisconsin's Prisons...

What!?!

You mean that an exodus of Wisconsin's prison employees as a result of Scott Walker's attack against public employees could lead to dangerous working conditions? People tend to focus only on the financial component of Wisconsin's Act 10, and as bad as that is for working families, there is a more insidious and dangerous part that is not often looked at.

With the new law limiting collective bargaining to base wages, prison workers have zero say in their working conditions. As a result, administrators and political toadies have the ultimate authority to institute any "reforms" they want regarding personnel and working conditions.

Isn't it possible that the front line employees working with some of Wisconsin's most dangerous population might have valuable insights gained from years of professional experience...Doesn't matter...and we are now seeing the ugly results of this. Attacks on staff are on the rise at Wisconsin's Dodge County Correctional Facility...

http://www.wispolitics.com/1006/111122_AFSCME.pdf

AFP Rears Its Ugly Head In Wisconsin Recall......

Not that this is surprising to anyone, of course...

As I was getting ready for work this morning, I turned on the NBC and ABC affiliates in my city. Both channels were running the newest installment of Americans for Prosperity's commercials celebrating their savior (and according them, our savior as well), Scott Walker. I am sure Walker is shocked and incredulous that money from outside state interests is being dumped into the recall process on his behalf! ;)

In their ad, they made the claim that there has been no significant public employee layoffs. We, of course, know that this has not been the case. Wisconsin's own Department of Workforce Development recently reported that we have lost 8,500 public sector jobs in the past year. This accounts for approximately five percent of all public sector employment in the state. That's one year. As the budget continues to get sliced thinner and thinner, it is just a matter of time before these numbers increase even more dramatically.

My doctor once told me that in medical school they taught him that all bleeding eventually stops...but for our sake, it's be nice if we could begin to staunch the bleeding by removing this governor sooner, rather than allowing the patient to expire...

Solidarity!

Brief reflection on the man that is Scott Walker...

In Wisconsin today, as everybody knows, we are locked in what can be regarded as an existential battle going on between the forces that see value in average, everyday working people, fair compensation, and a voice in the workplace, and those that see these people as a fundamental threat to the well heeled and their contemporary version of laissez faire economic policies and interests. I digress. As I was teaching a class recently, I came across a quote by abolitionist Wendell Phillips that I think really reflects our governor. "He is a first rate, second rate man." Phillips was referring to President Lincoln and his vacillations on whether or not he should enact some sort of order that would lead to emancipation of slaves.

I understand the historical context is vastly different, at least superficially, between that situation and our situation in Wisconsin. And I am certainly not correlating Walker to Lincoln. Lincoln at least struggled with his inaction. Walker, and his G.O.P. cohorts seem gleeful in their efforts at crushing the strong voice that unions have given average people in Wisconsin. I know that their moves are self-serving and political in nature. I don't like it, but I can understand it on some level. But there is an additional, personal joy they seem to elicit from their actions. That joy is what ensures that Walker will always be a second rate person, both as governor, and in a few months...a private citizen...

Solidarity!

Over 50,000 Signatures so far to Recall Walker...

Not sure why they are releasing this data right now, but whatever...Needing to average around 9,000 signatures a day, we seem to be off to a good start for just a couple of days into the effort. Now granted, this weekend is the opening of deer hunting, so I have no idea what organizers and petition circulators can expect, but overall a great start! I'd say that we are coming for you Governor Walker...

http://www.weau.com/home/headlines/Organizer_50000_signatures_to_recall_Walker_134074573.html

Wisconsin Lost Just Under 10,000 Jobs Last Month...

I don't even like talking about this because bad economic news means that real families are hurting. However, this data serves to remind us Wisconsinites that Scott Walker's promise of 250,000 additional jobs by the end of his first term is simply just a slogan...much like his stupid "Wisconsin:Open for Business" one posted on all the signs coming into the state. The reality is this: our state has 8500 fewer public jobs compared to this time last year. This includes teachers, police officers, street crews, etc...The argument that people are not seeing a drop in public jobs or services simply does not hold water...Walker's slash and burn attacks against public employee unions has done nothing to maintain jobs or services. And the 14,500 total new jobs over the past year owe nothing to his policies and tax breaks for the well-heeled...At this rate, Walker will only have to be in office for another 17.25 years to reach his goal...Or maybe just a few more months...pending the peoples' judgement.

http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_a958c294-113a-11e1-9740-001cc4c03286.html

Next Step in the Manitowoc Crane Union Busting Playbook...

After 200 union machinists walked off the job for Manitowoc Crane on Monday, over the company's insistence that a new contract contain language making the company an open shop, management has now laid off 150 additional workers...blaming the striking workers...This is, of course, solely the responsibility of management and falls squarely at their feet. It is just another attempt to break the resolve of the union members by hurting their friends and colleagues. Again...standard boilerplate for management...and timeless and shameless!

http://www.leadertelegram.com/news/daily_updates/article_a958c294-113a-11e1-9740-001cc4c03286.html

Walker's Union Busting Efforts Trickle Down...

Hats off to the 200 or so union machinists who walked off the job on Monday over Manitowoc Crane's attempt to bust their collective power down by instituting an open shop. I know this is historical standard operating procedure from the "Right to Work" advocates (i.e. union busting corporations), and after the punch they delivered to public employees this past spring, I am surprised that there hasn't been some substantive push by the Wisconsin Republican Party to pass legislation regarding this prior to the possibility of losing control of the entire structure of state government sometime next spring/early summer.

Stick to your guns guys and keep the pressure on!!!

Solidarity!

http://host.madison.com/ct/business/biz_beat/biz-beat-union-blames-walker-in-manitowoc-crane-strike/article_fe09630a-109c-11e1-8d9c-001cc4c03286.html

Here it comes...

It hasn't taken long for the incoming administration and legislature to start focusing on stripping the poor and defenseless of their health insurance program, Medicaid...

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/health_med_fit/vital_signs/article_bbc93402-19b7-11e0-98fe-001cc4c002e0.html

The fox guarding the henhouse...

Somehow this seems to make perfect sense...They don't try very hard to conceal it anymore...

http://blog.aflcio.org/2010/12/28/republicans-tap-leading-foe-of-wall-street-reform-to-oversee-new-rules/

Anything is good news...

With Republicans poised to flex some regressive muscle over the next two years, reminding American workers of their rights is absolutely critical in stamping out intimidation...Now, we'll see if the Obama administration sticks to its guns...

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/22/business/22labor.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail0=y

Holding the wolf by the ears...

Thomas Jefferson's spineless characterization of the issue of slavery should be instructive for today's Republicans. For in America at that time in history, people couldn't conceive of an existence without it,and yet many realized that it was a morally corrupt institution living on borrowed time. Fast forward to today's Republican Party. When Nixon and the Republicans instituted their "Southern Strategy" after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the party made a hard shift to the right and embraced a strong effort of race baiting and fear mongering. Sometimes it was dog whistle, sometimes shouted from the roof tops. Sowing that philosophy has put the G.O.P. in the position they are today. A party that knows long term it cannot hold onto their race based strategy and remain a relevant political force long term, but one that can't let it go because the party is crammed full of people who have bought the shit they've been selling for the past forty years...

http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/12/27/zelizer.barbour.race/index.html

The Christmas Spirit...

And God bless us, everyone...

Why Tax Cuts Don't Stimulate Job Growth...

This is one of those "no-shit" moments...People have bought into the zombie-lie that tax cuts create jobs...Demand for products stimulates job growth...giving corporations and rich people more money does not...Companies will not produce products, and consequentially jobs, if the majority of Americans are limited financially and unable to purchase those goods...Extending and expanding unemployment insurance is a far better methodology of keeping money floating throughout the economy...

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-13/rich-americans-save-money-from-tax-cuts-instead-of-spending-moody-s-says.html

Class Warfare...Killing the little guy...

I thought that Bob Herbert really hit the nail on the head with his recent Op-Ed. American companies are raking in record profits. So where is the economic recovery and job creation? It's simple really...The profits are falling into the hands of an ever-shrinking group of rich who hold on to the money...Demand drives production in a capitalist economy and without having money in the hands of the majority of Americans, who incidentally are more likely to spend it on essentials, demand for American products and, consequentially, jobs for Americans are not going to follow...No company is going to build or manufacture products without a demand for them, so why hire when people don't have the money to buy the products?

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/27/opinion/27herbert.html?_r=2

Unfettered Capitalism...Republican-style...

It's important to remember what lengths capitalists from the Gilded Age would go to in order to break company unions and reduce their workers' wages and safety conditions on the job. Today's newest crop of (and many old guard) Republicans, and sadly,some Democrats too, are all too willing to go back to this criminal mistreatment and exploitation of fellow human beings...

The Homestead Steel Strike...

Simply Disgusting...

Not surprising, but certainly something more in tune with the 1890's than should be tolerated today. This should just serve as a reminder to everyone that large corporations not only do not create jobs (demand for products does that), but risk and throw away working people's lives with impunity...all for the not so mighty dollar.

W. Va. mine blast: Coal firm had worst safety record