Friday, February 25, 2011
This is Democracy?
When I first watched the news of the 1 AM voting I just saw the shouting of "Shame" and didn't catch what was happening. Various news channels showed pretty much the same footage. Then I was watching Fox 11 News (gasp!) and they showed the video with audio of the railroad job. The Speaker called for the ayes, the nays and ordered the clerk to record the vote and adjourned. It took just seconds. Most Republicans refused to talk to the media (no wonder)except for Rep. Michelle Litjens, R-56 and she commented how the Democrats had the opportunity to vote but chose not to vote. What an outrageous comment!
It was very obvious that the Republicans must have met in caucus and planned this high speed vote. Democrats were shouting to be recognized by the Speaker and were shouting "No!" but were ignored and the Republican members of the Assembly walked out immediately following the vote.
The Democrats are right -- the vote took seconds, probably no more than 4 or 5 seconds and there was no opportunity to vote unless it had been pre-arranged. Even Rep. Bob Zeigelbauer stated it took him by surprise and he had no chance to vote.
This action by the Republicans gives proof that the Republicans have no interest in serving the public. It is all about a power grab and stripping public employees of collective bargaining rights.
WLUK Channel 11 (Green Bay) has the video. Select "Assembly Passes Budget Bill". You may have to replay it a couple of times because the vote happens very quickly. Amazing display of a perversion of democracy. Thank you WLUK! (25 Feb 2011).
It was very obvious that the Republicans must have met in caucus and planned this high speed vote. Democrats were shouting to be recognized by the Speaker and were shouting "No!" but were ignored and the Republican members of the Assembly walked out immediately following the vote.
The Democrats are right -- the vote took seconds, probably no more than 4 or 5 seconds and there was no opportunity to vote unless it had been pre-arranged. Even Rep. Bob Zeigelbauer stated it took him by surprise and he had no chance to vote.
This action by the Republicans gives proof that the Republicans have no interest in serving the public. It is all about a power grab and stripping public employees of collective bargaining rights.
WLUK Channel 11 (Green Bay) has the video. Select "Assembly Passes Budget Bill". You may have to replay it a couple of times because the vote happens very quickly. Amazing display of a perversion of democracy. Thank you WLUK! (25 Feb 2011).
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Walker's bill will allow the Gov. to sell power plants without bidding
Union busting.
Creating a one party system.
So be it!
I will not negotiate.
Read the bill. Focus on page 6 and page 24 of the 144 pages and you will find that this bill if passed will allow Walker to sell power plants without bidding and avoid review by the Public Service Commission. The Koch brothers were the 2nd largest contributer to Walker's campaign ($43,000)and have energy interests in Wisconsin. Follow the money and see where the trail leads. If Walker is successful in getting this bill passed, not only will public labor unions be crippled but the billionaires will have a virtual monopoly on energy in Wisconsin. Have people really forgotten the so-called energy crisis and the collapse of Enron following the secret meetings between the White House and the corporations? We cannot afford to repeat those mistakes. This bill must be voted down.
Creating a one party system.
So be it!
I will not negotiate.
Read the bill. Focus on page 6 and page 24 of the 144 pages and you will find that this bill if passed will allow Walker to sell power plants without bidding and avoid review by the Public Service Commission. The Koch brothers were the 2nd largest contributer to Walker's campaign ($43,000)and have energy interests in Wisconsin. Follow the money and see where the trail leads. If Walker is successful in getting this bill passed, not only will public labor unions be crippled but the billionaires will have a virtual monopoly on energy in Wisconsin. Have people really forgotten the so-called energy crisis and the collapse of Enron following the secret meetings between the White House and the corporations? We cannot afford to repeat those mistakes. This bill must be voted down.
Fox News Gets It Right
I had to watch the video of Shep Smith & Juan Williams (Wednesdays With Juan) twice because I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Walker's bill is really about politics and union busting and "...to pretend this is about a fiscal crisis in the state of Wisconsin is malarkey". Bust the unions - it's over!
Take a look for yourself.
This episode gets stranger everyday.
Take a look for yourself.
This episode gets stranger everyday.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
News Flash: 1st Amendment Only Applies to Republicans!
Speaker of the House John Boehner recently blasted President Obama (that is not a news flash, that is Boehner's modus operendi) about Obama's sending OFA (Organizing for America) to Madison, WI. He goes on to compare this to Greece style protests. In Boehner's words:
* "Now, worse, his political organization is colluding with special-interest allies across the country to demagogue reform-minded governors..."
*"...we see the same sort of protests (Greece) on the streets of Madison, fueled by President Obama's own political machine"
"The President should make it clear to his friends that the people of Wisconsin, and states across America, can handle their own affairs without Washington special-interest money and meddling."
Will Boehner assure us that "special-interest money and meddling" is not coming from the Club for Growth, 527 tax exempt group that does not have to disclose the identities of donors or reveal activities to the IRS or the FEC. The Koch brothers must not fit Boehner's definition of "money" or does the Constitution & Bill of Rights only apply to the wealthy?
Today we will see the non-meddling of a special-interest group (Tea Party) answer to the Koch brothers' petiton (standwithwalker.com). Why is the mainstream media not asking questions about Americans for Prosperity and their connection to the Koch brothers? They should be asking questions about the Koch brothers businesses in Wisconsin and they should be able to connect the dots if they do some leg work. But, it is much easier for the media to take press releases from these organizations rather than ask tough questions.
This struggle in Wisconsin is about the future of collective bargaining and the rights and financial future of ALL Americans. If the Koch brothers and their billionaire friends win in Wisconsin it will be very difficult times for the working class and the middle class.
* "Now, worse, his political organization is colluding with special-interest allies across the country to demagogue reform-minded governors..."
*"...we see the same sort of protests (Greece) on the streets of Madison, fueled by President Obama's own political machine"
"The President should make it clear to his friends that the people of Wisconsin, and states across America, can handle their own affairs without Washington special-interest money and meddling."
Will Boehner assure us that "special-interest money and meddling" is not coming from the Club for Growth, 527 tax exempt group that does not have to disclose the identities of donors or reveal activities to the IRS or the FEC. The Koch brothers must not fit Boehner's definition of "money" or does the Constitution & Bill of Rights only apply to the wealthy?
Today we will see the non-meddling of a special-interest group (Tea Party) answer to the Koch brothers' petiton (standwithwalker.com). Why is the mainstream media not asking questions about Americans for Prosperity and their connection to the Koch brothers? They should be asking questions about the Koch brothers businesses in Wisconsin and they should be able to connect the dots if they do some leg work. But, it is much easier for the media to take press releases from these organizations rather than ask tough questions.
This struggle in Wisconsin is about the future of collective bargaining and the rights and financial future of ALL Americans. If the Koch brothers and their billionaire friends win in Wisconsin it will be very difficult times for the working class and the middle class.
Thursday, February 17, 2011
Another Republican't Misnomer - Budget "Repair" Bill
Another Republican't Misnomer - Budget "Repair" Bill
Republican't Governor Scott Walker should call his bill what it is - a budget union busting bill - certainly not a budget repair bill. That is his real goal. Get rid of the only real competition Republican't have -- labor unions.Then our broken election process will be 100% dominated by big money donors. That is why other Republican't governors across the USA are watching Wisconsin so closely.
If Walker gets his way we will see this effort replicate across the country. And if those efforts are successful and unions and collective bargaining are destroyed then who will speak for the working class? We will see further cuts in wages in both the public and private sector. We will see benefits lost and working conditions compromised. Corporations will make even more profits than what we saw in 2010. Stockpiling greenbacks and not hiring workers - typical Republican't recipe for greed.
In Wisconsin we have about a $130 million dollar hole in the budget after handing out about $150 million in tax breaks. And we know where those tax breaks went. The WI Dept of Revenue records can be checked to find out how much corporate income tax the largest corporations actually pay. There is a significant gap in what the corporate income tax rate is and what those corporations actually pay.
Republican'ts repeat the refrain about how high the corporate income tax rate is but they do not want to deal with questions about how much taxes corporations actually pay. And this tax evasion exists across the country. The average working class taxpayer who has their income show up on W-2 forms cannot afford to pay for a tax attorney to find loopholes in the tax code. And look at who writes the tax code.
Too many people have forgotten their history and the accomplishments men and women in the labor movement made:
8 hour work day
Abolition of child labor
Safer working conditions
Minimum wage
Workers compensation
Then end of company stores
And the list goes on. Do people really think those benefits will continue without labor unions? Workers in non-unionized work places have seen their wages rise to keep up with increases that have been gained by union workers. The pay gap between workers and CEOs has increased dramatically. Payments to CEOs of corporations that have had the greatest layoffs has been increasing. Reward executives who cut their work force."So be it" in the words of the Speaker of the House.
This struggle in Wisconsin is not simply about public employees making a larger contribution to their pension and paying more of the health care costs. This struggle is about the economic viability of all public and private sector workers.
Don't let misrepresentations and distortions cloud your thinking. Take some time to seriously consider what is ahead. Look at the big picture. Look at the long term outlook. Look at who is funding the ads you see on TV support the Governor's proposal. Ask yourself what is going to happen when workers take another financial hit. Are they going to be going out and create more consumer demand? How will this proposal "repair" the budget? Why should Wisconsin give more tax breaks to corporations and take more from the workers? Why are the those who supported Walker in the 2010 campaign exempt from this proposal?
Let's work together on real solutions to make Wisconsin a better place.
Republican't Governor Scott Walker should call his bill what it is - a budget union busting bill - certainly not a budget repair bill. That is his real goal. Get rid of the only real competition Republican't have -- labor unions.Then our broken election process will be 100% dominated by big money donors. That is why other Republican't governors across the USA are watching Wisconsin so closely.
If Walker gets his way we will see this effort replicate across the country. And if those efforts are successful and unions and collective bargaining are destroyed then who will speak for the working class? We will see further cuts in wages in both the public and private sector. We will see benefits lost and working conditions compromised. Corporations will make even more profits than what we saw in 2010. Stockpiling greenbacks and not hiring workers - typical Republican't recipe for greed.
In Wisconsin we have about a $130 million dollar hole in the budget after handing out about $150 million in tax breaks. And we know where those tax breaks went. The WI Dept of Revenue records can be checked to find out how much corporate income tax the largest corporations actually pay. There is a significant gap in what the corporate income tax rate is and what those corporations actually pay.
Republican'ts repeat the refrain about how high the corporate income tax rate is but they do not want to deal with questions about how much taxes corporations actually pay. And this tax evasion exists across the country. The average working class taxpayer who has their income show up on W-2 forms cannot afford to pay for a tax attorney to find loopholes in the tax code. And look at who writes the tax code.
Too many people have forgotten their history and the accomplishments men and women in the labor movement made:
8 hour work day
Abolition of child labor
Safer working conditions
Minimum wage
Workers compensation
Then end of company stores
And the list goes on. Do people really think those benefits will continue without labor unions? Workers in non-unionized work places have seen their wages rise to keep up with increases that have been gained by union workers. The pay gap between workers and CEOs has increased dramatically. Payments to CEOs of corporations that have had the greatest layoffs has been increasing. Reward executives who cut their work force."So be it" in the words of the Speaker of the House.
This struggle in Wisconsin is not simply about public employees making a larger contribution to their pension and paying more of the health care costs. This struggle is about the economic viability of all public and private sector workers.
Don't let misrepresentations and distortions cloud your thinking. Take some time to seriously consider what is ahead. Look at the big picture. Look at the long term outlook. Look at who is funding the ads you see on TV support the Governor's proposal. Ask yourself what is going to happen when workers take another financial hit. Are they going to be going out and create more consumer demand? How will this proposal "repair" the budget? Why should Wisconsin give more tax breaks to corporations and take more from the workers? Why are the those who supported Walker in the 2010 campaign exempt from this proposal?
Let's work together on real solutions to make Wisconsin a better place.
Thursday, February 3, 2011
Let's disenfranchise more voters (especially if they are likely to lean left!)
The Republican'ts campaigned on the idea they were going to focus on the economy. So what is a top priority? Voter ID. How many cases of voter fraud/impersonation have we had in WI? (none - unless you count 2 cases of ACORN deputy registrars who were prosecuted). How will this law be enforced? (Are we going to use the Florida model and challenge voters who cannot prove their legitimate right to vote until after the polls close & the election is over?) Andrea Kaminski, League of Women Voters of WI does an excellent job of covering this subject.
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