Russ Feingold is used to being called a maverick, but nothing can be more outrageous than syndicated Republican talk show host Rush Limbaugh’s comparison of him to the terrorist, Osama Bin Laden.

Limbaugh said that Bin Laden’s recent comments “sounds like this could easily be [said by] Russ Feingold, the Senator from Wisconsin.”

Limbaugh clearly doesn’t understand the differences between Wisconsin’s squeeky clean maverick senator and a cave dwelling, mass-murdering terrorist. But it’s not the first time that Limbaugh has used inflammatory rhetoric to incite his audience and it won’t be the last.

They’re typically allies, but apparently the lovefest have come to an end for Republican activists Robert “Bob” Dohnal and J.J. Blonien.

According to state records, Dohnal is hoping to cash in with a lawsuit against Blonien.

Hat tip: Dan Bice

It’s getting to be that time — the time when newspapers and every news outlet that wants to claim they have some insight publishes polls about one candidate or another.

Yes, we’ve all heard about the poll putting Tom Barrett over both Scott Walker and Mark Neumann in the race for Governor next fall. The reality is that much can happen between now and next November and a poll taken today means little.

So ignore those polls until a month or so before the election. If they show a significant gap between the candidates, they might be a harbinger of things to come. If not, they’re just some pol or some pundit jumping up and down over something that matters little.

Local leaders aren’t used to looking at thinking about the needs of their community in terms of age, but they should.

Consider how all of us benefit society. In our young lives we symbolize hope and optimism. As enter our working years we keep the engines of industry and commerce going. As we enter our golden age we can share wisdom and a less harried calm with our fellow man.

At least that’s the way it is in a perfect world. In real life everyone struggles to get by and we compete for finite resources to improve the lives of our families — whichever age we fall into.

That’s why good zoning is so important. A community with mostly children may forget its seniors. A community with mostly seniors may forget its children. Communities which favor one group or another do so at their collective peril.

Consider Brown Deer for instance. A village of 12,000 in Milwaukee’s northern suburbs has, over the last 10 years built two very large apartment buildings with the requirement that they be only used for senior living. Another is being built on one of their last few parcels — changing it from commercial to residential.

But why is this not good?

Although we all have needs as human beings, we are not all treated the same by our government. Consider this — children do not have the right to vote. They rely entirely on others for their livelihood. Our taxes pay for schools and everyone pays. Seniors do not have the same ability to productively work at the same level as their younger years. Both groups, our young and our old need some sort of aid. Just as children have schools, seniors are the beneficiaries of medicare and social security. But a key difference in both of these groups is that seniors get to vote and that vote, when it comes to children, is cast locally and since schools are a local issue and taxed locally, the decisions of seniors can be the deciding factor.

As a side note, social security and medicare are paid federally zoning does not come into play.

Communities like Brown Deer who haphazardly approve housing which favors one age group over another do so at their own peril. In Brown Deer, school referrendums have gone down in flames in large part because of an organized senior population which has united to oppose additional school spending.

Young people who are looking for a new home want the best for their children. They are looking for a home in a community with good schools. Communities which reject school spending will have fewer young people wanting to purchase homes in those communities. That will drive down property values which in turn will increase the burden of essential services on those who remain.

The restructuring of MPS is running into hurdles and roadblocks.

Critics of MPS correctly point out that the school system has been poorly managed and many business and community leaders look to the Mayor of the City of Milwaukee for a fix. Unfortuately the current system gives the Mayor no voice and no control over the running of MPS. Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett would like the authority to appoint the Superintendent of MPS. Since the Mayor ends up taking on much of the blame for the failing schools, it makes sense that he would have control over it.

Not surprisingly, the MPS school board members aren’t in favor of this. They’ve rallied to maintain control and anti-reform advocates have found allies in an unlikely coalition in the State Assembly. Since any change of this magnitude for MPS would require a change in state law, a coalition of democratic legislators from the central city and the entire republican caucus has vowed to oppose the reform.

Why?

The answer isn’t obvious but it’s borne from fear and cynicism.

The central city democrats oppose it out of fear that the Mayor, whoever will be in that position, would be difficult to control and his or her could make sweeping changes that they perceive would be harmful. Urban anti-reform advocates say that this would reduce their ability to have a say in the political process since elected school board members who no longer have a say in the appointment of the new Superintendent of Schools. They miss one key element here — the Mayor is an elected position who they will continue to be able to vote for or against even if this proposal passes.

Republicans oppose the bill because it would give a win to Mayor Barrett who happens to be running for Governor. Desperate to grab onto power, they don’t feel they can allow Barrett to win on any issues — especially anything that has to do with reform. If Barrett were to succeed to cobbling together a majority of legislators to support his plan, he would emerge as a leader who has fought for reform and that would make him a formidable candidate in the election for Governor this fall.

Right now the only thing bottling up a vote on MPS reform is the State Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker, a Democrat. Decker doesn’t want to schedule a vote on the bill and if it is a Democrat who kills the reform, then Barrett loses. If it turns out that it is the Republicans who have united to oppose the reform, and the bill goes down, then Barrett gets a major win because he will be able to travel the state saying that his reform efforts would have passed, but the Republicans opposed them. And who would the public like to see in office, those who oppose reform, or the champion of reform?

Maybe it’s just a lack of understanding of the political process. Maybe it’s just ignorance. Either way, what the Catholic Church did to Julie Lassa, the state legislator, can be neither forgiven nor excused. Lassa, it seems, is doing her part by making church leaders pay for their sins.

State Senator Julie Lassa is one of those pro-choice democrats who was also Catholic. An Archbishop on a mission, then-Archbishop Burke, decided to make an example out of her and denied her communion and also denied her ability to have her child baptized in the church.

What a bone-headed move.

To scorn an individual is one thing. To scorn their child is heartless and cruel. Burke not only turned his back on Lassa, he turned his back on an infant who bore no blame for the disagreement that Burke had with Lassa.

Lassa is seeking revenge.

Now she has a bill before the legislature to virtually eliminate the whole statutes of limitations on lawsuits. This would have a devastating effect on the archdioces since many sex scandal victims of the Catholic Church cannot file claims because it is way beyond the statues of limitation. Lassa wants to eliminate those statutes which would open up the church to lawsuits which in turn could bankrupt the archdioces.

The Journal-Sentinel belives it’s a great thing and they want to be a part of it. Their recent editorial suggested that the bill was a good thing and the only redress for victims of sexual abuse by clergy. They fail to address all of the good that the church does as though this bill would somehow make it possible for victims to gain closure. But that’s simply not true. Victims would get money from the church which doesn’t amount to closure – it just amounts to taking away funds from an organization whose clothing the poor and feeding the hungry.

It seems as though the Journal-Sentinel isn’t looking at the big picture here. If the Catholic Church has to deal with more lawsuits, it would likely go bankrupt and calls for the church to help the poor will go unanswered. Those that have no means cannot offer help. If you strip away the archdioces means, they will be unable to come to the aid of those who so desperately rely upon them.

Lassa has also been a victim here though. Because she is pro-choice, she and her child were singled out as not being eligible for the benefits of the sacriments. How out of touch did the church have to be? Did they just think that there actions would never have ramifications? Apparently Burke forgot that Jesus was both a forgiving and understanding man — both traits that then Archbishop Burked lacked.

None of this is to excuse what happened with the sexual abuse scandal that wracked the archdioces. But Lassa’s bill will do little to soothe the hearts of those who were wronged. Lassa’s bill does little but offer her the ability to retaliate against a church that has turned its back against her and her child. The catholic church preaches about extending compassion to others but denied that compassion to Lassa and after the way they treated her, she’s not about to turn the other cheek.

How is everyone else in the world doing? Are they struggling to make ends meet?

Who cares.

Unfortunately that twisted sentiment is one that “welfare queens” and corporate CEO’s share. Neither really cares about the next person just trying to get by. Welfare queens care less that someone else has to work hard to pay their way. Corporate CEO’s could care less about the workers under them and whether they’ll be able to pay their own bills.

Both have convinced themselves they ought to get more.

Are either any better? Of course not all people on welfare are bad people trying to scam the system just like not all corporate CEO’s are looking to screw over their workers to earn themselves million dollar bonuses. But right now it’s not the welfare queens that are making small amounts off the system that are the problem. Corporate CEO’s on the other hand are. The CEO’s aren’t looking at taking large cuts in their own salaries but they are looking to cut their staffs at the worst possible time in our economy.

Yet who makes the headlines? Who do we as a society seem to get more enraged over? The person who indefinately lays off a thousand workers or the person who get their check for a few hundred dollars a month? Forgive me if I am too logical here, but shouldn’t we be more outraged at the person who chose to throw people out of work so they can justify a fat bonus for themselves?

Just last week there was a story in the news about a corporate executive who was outraged because the bank that she worked for had capped her salary at a few hundred thousand for the year because our government, who with the power of our taxes which helped to bail out the bank, demanded the capped salary. Well maybe, just maybe, that exec should have been enraged when she saw that the decisions in her bank were so lousy that they would lead to the bank needing a bailout. Did she think of that?

So forgive me if I’m not compassionate enough for the corporate CEO’s and the corporate executives who are bringing home hundreds of thousands and in many cases millions of dollars while the staff underneath them is having their salaries cut or their jobs eliminated. Forgive me if I don’t feel pain over the fact that they might not be able to afford to pay cash for that new yacht they were thinking of picking up, or that month long vacation to a warm climate where white sand beaches and the smell of coconut drinks are their only care in the world while their workers worry about how they’re going to feed their families.

The problem is that a general lack of civics, decency and morals that have pervaded the business world. At no time do many of these folks stop to think about how their fellow man will be affected. At no time do they think, “gee, maybe this will hurt someone”. No, their thought is for themselves and what’s strictly in it for them. They think, like the welfare queens that society has bashed for over thirty years now, that they deserve everything they get little thought goes to the thousands of workers and former workers who are struggling to figure out how they’re going to pay the mortgage this month.

I’ve always thought it was interesting that we live in one of the most technologically advanced ages, but the political discourse that much of the public seems to subscribe could be cut right out of an episode of “The Flintstones”.

One of the biggest and most dishonest pieces of rhetoric is “cut taxes”. We’ve all heard it. Sometimes the candidate that simply says they will cut taxes prevails — much like if Fred Flintstone said, “rock good”.

The result of elections where this type of thing prevails can be disasterous as we saw several years back when a bunch of “cut taxes” politicians in California did just that and decided that a scheme investing in high-yield derivatives would allow them to maintain services while cutting taxes. Well Orange County lost big and rather than blame the simplistic politicians, Orange County resident blamed the derivatives. Now in the same state, Governor Arnold Schwartzenegger wants to borrow money to pay for operating expenses and the debt load is growing out of control and their bond rating is poised to suffer.

Locally we have Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker who has consistently used the same rhetoric and the voters have rewarded him by returning him to office. The problem is that the public doesn’t have a solid grasp on what he has done to the fiscal state of the County. Walker has done what Schwartzenegger has done — he has borrowed heavily to pay for ongoing operating expenses. As an example, the pension plan which Milwaukee County is legally committed to funding is not fully funded. Walker has invested the funds in risky places and has lost big. Voters have to make up the difference but Walker has simply borrowed money so voters don’t realize that their taxes have gone sky high because of his poor decisions. The irony here is that Walker did receive a large chunk of money via a lawsuit against Mercer for bad advice the county was given regarding their pension plans several years ago. Where did that money go?

Operating expenses.

After all, why tax when you can borrow to pay for expenses? That way you can put off todays expenses and get all the benefits of a public happy with a sustained level of services. Of course this isn’t sustainable but the public doesn’t know that. Since Walker is running for Governor, it won’t much matter to him if he loses because the next guy will have to figure out how to pay the bill that Walker has run up. It’s a bit like inviting someone to a dinner party at a restaurant and leaving the last guy to arrive with the check.

The reality is that Walker’s over simplistic message has no place in good government and a trite “cut taxes” has about as much substance as “yabadabadoo”.

What happens when you’ve worked really hard on your campaign, talked to many people including many who disagree with you, then spent the next two years trying to raise money while hearing from people who support the opposing party anyway that the President is doing a horrible job?

Well you vote against what the President supports, right?

Unfortunately right in several instances. The democrats in the senate from historically conservative districts are doing exactly what the conservative democrats did in Clintons mid-term election. They’re running for their lives from all that is perceived as liberal. But like the democratic congressmen and congresswomen running for office in Clinton’s mid-term, they will lose their seats.

They will lose their seat not because their own districts did not believe in the same things they believe in. They will lose their seats because they lacked the backbone to accomplish anything that separates them from the republicans. They chose to listen, not to the many people who supported them, but rather to the people who opposed them in the past and to those who will oppose them next November. They should lose. They deserve to lose. After all, if democrats can’t even rally around an issue as fundamentally democratic as healthcare as a right as opposed to healthcare only for the rich, and we’re clearly moving in that direction, cowardly democrats deserve to lose.

But is this, or should it be all doom and gloom for democrats? Of course not. Remember, this is a new crew of democrats than in Clinton’s mid-term. They don’t have the experience of seeing their red-state democratic friends box up their belongings to clear out their offices for the next wave of rabid republicans.

And yes, they do deserve to lose.

This may be the year that congressional democrats are given their virtual pink slips, but the remaining democrats will see who wins their seats and who loses. Those who fought the tough fight and held firm on a public option will go home and campaign this fall. Some of them will win and return to the Senate and the House. The Senators who opposed the pubic option but did not fall as they were not up for re-election will see this and maybe some of them will find a little courage knowing that when a democrat stands for a democratic ideal, they are rewarded by the electorate, but a democrat who stands for nothing will almost always be punished. (I can’t help but be reminded of the first Batman movie where Jack Nicholson’s Joker character proclaimed, “this town needs an enema”.)

To top it off, democrats still hold the White House and President Obama is every bit as shrewd as his predecessor. There is little doubt that he will take every opportunity to bash a new Republican house which opposes is every move. There is little doubt that he will place the blame for failures exactly where it belongs — on the obstructionists.

And that, is the short version of why Obama will be rewarded by the electorate with a second term.

2009 was a horrible year.

The economy threw many people out of work and many of those that continued to work were underemployed and of course the stock market tanked.

A spate of deaths among family and friends in late 2008 was carried forward with the loss of my Grandfather in 2009. On top of that, this site was hacked and it took a huge effort to get things back and running smoothly and safely.

I held out hope for a public option for healthcare but that didn’t happen. Milwaukee County government, under the glazed eyed Scott Walker, saw the loss of more services and raised their debt load even more to pay for ongoing operating expenses. All this despite winning a sizable sum in a lawsuit which, ironically, was only won because County leaders (who Walker demonized in his successful effort to win his seat in 2001) were given misleading information which led to a costly mistake.

Anti-reform advocates came together to fight against a plan to turn MPS governance over to the City of Milwaukee, despite the fact that MPS, under the not-so-watchful eye of a part-time school board, has had failing marks for years. Of course when businesses locate to a community they look to the Mayor to find out what is going on with a city and speculate on whether they wil have an adequately educated workforce. Since MPS Board members don’t have to deal with those issues, and they can’t anyway because they have to work full-time jobs to support their own families, the problems are kept from them, as is the blame for a failing system.

In Brown Deer, Village officials lacked vision and understanding of diversity approved another senior housing complex at he exclusion of working families and children. With the trend of seniors organizing to oppose nearly every school referrendum on the ballot, this may well tip the balance from a family friendly community to an educational black hole.

Unemployment stands at just over 10% (worse for minorities), many people have lost their homes to forclosure due to the fact that lending and investments have been largely deregulated by Republicans in the last 30 years and of course the swine flu outbreak (H1N1 if you want a more sterilized way of putting it).

If there was a silver lining, it was the folks down at City Hall in Milwaukee. Despite having investments which hurt the pension plan investments for all governments, Mayor Tom Barrett and the City Council passed a budget that funded the plan for retirees by 99% and didn’t borrow money to do it. They cut back in many areas but still managed to keep the costs down to the rate of inflation. On top of that, Barrett hasn’t given up on the plan to turn MPS over to the City and now has both the Governor and key State Senators on his side. Fortunately Barrett has chosen to run for Governor, unfortunately so has Walker. The outcome of that race will help to decide whether 2010 will suck also or whether it will bring hope for a new and responsible 2011.

On a personal and more positive note, I just became a Godfather for a wonderful little niece of mine named Anna.

So there’s still hope for 2010.

There is a lot of rhetoric right now about who is a conservative and who is a liberal one and what type of candidate is better for Wisconsin. Next November we will have two candidates to choose. It appears that the Democratic nominee is Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett. Republicans must choose whether they prefer former Congressman Mark Neumann or Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker as their nominee. Just as important as who will be chosen, is how the public will be informed of what the candidates stand for and whether they are telling the truth.

Republicans seem to have chosen Scott Walker as their golden boy to spite the fact that the primary has not even yet. This seems odd since Walker has far more negatives than does Neumann. As the Milwaukee County executive, Scott Walker has sold finite assets and borrowed money to pay for ongoing expenses. Still, Walker claims that he is a conservative candidate. Rather than look at any substance Republicans seem happy to line up behind him.

This is proof that the Republican leadership – that is the ones that are pulling all the strings, have little interest in traditional conservative values these days. Big ideas have little value to them. What they do put a value on though is electability above all costs and Walker now has a track record of running aggressive and simplistic campaigns which have won him a few elections.

Walker has run his campaigns on a simple message – taxes are bad and his opponent, whoever it is or whatever they believe in or have stood for in the past, is for big taxes. His simplistic demonizing and redefining his opponent has worked well for him since the media has happily been complacent in spreading Walker’s propaganda rather than reporting the news and doing any fact checking.

But will it work this time?

Nationally there has been a sea change in how news is covered. Republicans on the national scene have been successful at demonizing Democrats and, for the most part, the entire mainstream media has gone along and “reported” the horrible claims that Republicans have had about Democrats as though they were facts. This all changed just a few years ago when Comedy Central’s The Daily Show came on the scene and showed the absurdity of the claims. As ratings soared, The Colbert Report quickly followed, providing the only liberal balance to the mainstream media. Despite its comical setting, liberal and moderate viewers began to think of The Daily Show as one of the only honest reporter of the news. Seeing soaring ratings on Comedy Central, NBC responded by starting to report the news and by starting to do some fact checking. MSNBC brought on two liberal commentators, Keith Olberman and Rachel Maddow. Both have become extremely popular.

But there is no local Olberman and there is no local Maddow.

Without fact checking from the mainstream Wisconsin media, Will Walker be successful in his bid to demonize Barrett?

That is still unknown because while we do not have our local Olberman or Maddow, we do have blogs. There are plenty of blogs out there that offer little to no insight into what is happening, but if you take the time to look, and keep in mind the perspective of the writer, you can still gain insight into a candidate and an issue.

The best blogs out there are the ones where the writers have some experience or have done some investigation into issues. And no, I’m not talking about someone who has surfed the web and now considers themselves an expert. There are blogs, such as Eye on Wisconsin, written by Private Investigator Cory Liebmann, which state facts and even will take the time to pull public records to support an argument. Then there are blogs from former public employees such as James Rowen’s blog, The Political Environment. Former Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporter Gretchen Schulz writes an informative blog called Milwaukee Rising where she explores mass transit, parks issues and all things Milwaukee. New Urbanist Dave Reid does a good job with his blog Urban Milwaukee. And of course I’ve written Watchdog Milwaukee from the perspective of a former County Supervisor and former Planning Commissioner for years.

Are the blogs on par with Maddow or Olberman—of course not, but they do help to disseminate information to the public who is thirsty for more than just Republican talking points.

Of course there are traditional republican blogs where the focus is all talking points all the time. You’ll find little disagreement on these blogs and no new ideas to solve complex problems, but if you’re looking for well linked blogs that link to other republican blogs, the republicans have that mastered.

But back to the Governor’s race.

The interesting thing about this race is that the republican blogs pretty much all lined up behind Walker. The mainstream media appears to have given Walker its blessing despite the fact that his opponent, Mark Neuman is a former Congressman with extensive private sector experience. Yes, it is odd that the Republican Party of Wisconsin, who preaches about how government should be run like a business, appears to be turning its back on a successful businessman like Neuman, but is embracing Walker who has never held a private sector job in his life.

Am I the only one sensing a conflict here?

Over the better part of the next year we will see these campaigns being covered more or less by the media. It will be interesting to see if the mainstream media continues to ignore Neuman and if the winner of the Republican nomination gets a free pass as it has in the past. But maybe, just maybe, it won’t matter what ideas or facts the mainstream media wants to limit our facts to this time. Maybe, just maybe, voters will seek out informative blogs to get the real stories.

We have to do something right? The public is expecting some sort of compromise correct? If we do not get something passed, we will not really be doing our jobs now will we?

This is the crux of the problem in Congress today with the debate on health care.

Many Democrats want national health care, real national health care that is — – health care that includes a public option. Republicans have made it clear that they are going to block any public option with a filibuster.

It is really quite obscene.

Democrats require a 60 vote majority to cut off debate and end a filibuster. The only way they can get to 60 is if they include the vote of Connecticut Sen. Joe Lieberman who currently caucuses with the Democrats.

Lieberman has stated that he will oppose any healthcare bill that includes a public option. So, despite having over 50% of the seats in the United States Senate, Democrats can not get a healthcare bill passed that will actually help people. The compromise plan put forward will require everyone to have health insurance. This bill is little more than a big gift for the insurance industry.

What has happened is that the Democrats have given up on a public option. They have given up on the one plan that would actually help many Americans. Instead they sought a compromise that would effectively help and no one but the insurance industry — key contributors to the Republican Party.

This is a slap in the face to everyone who held out hope, to everyone who dared to think that things could get better, to everyone that collectively joined on election day in November 2008 and thought the same words that they been hearing on the campaign trail — yes we can.

Is this what keeping hope alive is? Are we supposed to say yes we can, when Congress continues to say, no we can’t.

Seniors are being scared out of their wits by this healthcare debate. They are being told that there will be death panels — a manufactured fallacy put forth by failed vice presidential hopeful, Sarah Palin. They are being told that health care for all will lead to rationing. They are being told that extending Medicare to people younger than 65 years old, is a horrible plan.

They are being told a lie.

Let us stop fooling ourselves into believing that we do not have healthcare rationing now. When health insurance companies deny claims for people who are seeking necessary and needed healthcare procedures, our health care is being rationed. Why would we pass a bill in Congress that would give the same people who have been rationing healthcare additional funding?

When I look back to when I was in my 20s, I went several years without health insurance. Yes, it was risky, but I had to make an ugly choice. I had to choose whether I would use my pay from my part-time job to pay for tuition, or to pay for health insurance. The irony was that at that time in my life I was working for a health insurance company. They did not offer health insurance to their part-time employees. I chose my education over feeding the health insurance industry.

For the most part my risk paid off. I earned my bachelor’s degree and lived through several years of not having health insurance. But it was not without incident. I was in my 20s and a drunken bar patron unexpectedly decided to punch me in the nose. It broke. I bled profusely. The next morning when I looked in my bathroom mirror, my nose was about a half-inch to the left of where it should have been. Overnight, my nose had set itself and I did not have the insurance to go into the doctor’s office and have it professionally set so I re-broke my own nose, moved it back to the center of my face, and it eventually healed.

It should not have been necessary.

Even today there are many people who have to tend to their own wounds, seek their own home remedies, and hope and pray that they will be okay. They do this because, like me back in my 20s, they cannot afford health care insurance. This is rationing in its worst form and yet congressional Republicans are telling us that somehow the system that we have no is better than a system where I could have gone in to see a doctor? Sadly, Democrats, who by the way are in the majority, are going along with it.

This new plan is flawed. It fails to address one of the key problems with healthcare — rationing as it exists today. To pass this plan is no service to the public. To pass this plan helps only the insurance industry. It forces people to buy health insurance — people like I was in my 20s. If this plan had been in effect in the 80s, I would not have had the opportunity to choose college tuition over what likely would have been a substandard insurance policy.

Went to Outback in Waukesha County tonight.

Amusing fact — over half of the men in the restaurant were wearing baseball caps… and yes, during dinner. My how things change.

The Shepherd-Express has given Milwaukee County Supervisor Lynne DeBruin the title “Jerk of the Week” for her votes siding with County Executive Scott Walker on the recently passed budget.

I can understand why they did it and DeBruin has certainly been a disappointment on many issues but while I don’t agree with what she has done and would never do what she has done, I can at least understand it.

If DeBruin had taken a stand, the pro-recall group, Citizens for Responsible Government, promised to recall her from office. Just their threat appears to have had their desired impact in this case.

But why? Why would an elected official cave in to the threats of a group who she fundamentally doesn’t agree with?

DeBruin is a situation where she has been out of the private sector for so long that she would have a difficult time adjusting to the schedule if she ever went back into her career of nursing. She faces the threat of recall whenever she hints at returning to her left of center roots and she is the sole bread winner in her family. Losing the job would be personally and financially devastating to her.

I cannot imagine that she wants to take these positions but she feels she is forced to by the hand that has been dealt to her. It takes a great deal of courage to take those stands and she has seen former colleagues, who were also friends of hers fall because they stood on principle.

This is not meant to excuse her actions but to understand them. DeBruin has been in office a long time and sees her elected post as a means of self-preservation. She doesn’t wants to hurt as many people as she has, but she is fearful of the private sector alternative if she cannot beat back a fight from the right. The irony here is that in her district, if she had to face a recall from the right, the only viable candidates would come from the left and then she would garner all the votes from the right as they would have no post-primary place to turn. So she truly is in one of the safest districts a Supervisor can be in.

Fortunately, at least part of the problem of poor fishing on Wisconsin lakes this past year is cyclical. Fishing was just lousy this year. Areas that had previously been near-guarantees for at least a few panfish were bust. Historically reliable fish runs were non-existent.

Catches of perch and panfish, previously considered one of the few reliable catches in Wisconsin lakes, appears to have been down as the DNR has sought to protect larger predator fish at the expense of smaller fish which fish like musky prey upon.

Even the walleye, long known to be one of the prize fish, didn’t even have a run this fall at Wisconsin’s premier walleye lake — Lake Poygan.

Large fish like the musky which hasn’t historically been a major trophy draw in Wisconsin, have become more popular to fish for. The problem with this monster predator fish is that it takes many small fish to feed it and with the large size limits required to keep a big musky (50 inches on some Wisconsin lakes), the only major predator to the musky (man) has effectively been taken out of the picture. Perch and panfish have been their victims.

Zebra mussels have taken out some of the plant life that small fish had historically fed on. Those small fish are what the Lake Michigan salmon rely upon as a food source. With the smaller fish competing with the prolific zebra mussel for food, the zebra mussel has won out and the salmon haven’t had the same small-fish bounty that they need to adequately reproduce and thrive.

And then there’s the shad, a small fish which is mostly minnow sized. The shad population exploded on inland lakes this year making the waters a virtual smorgasbord for the large fish. With easy pickings, mid sized fish that would normally bite on minnows or lure baits chose the easy meal. Despite bold colors and lures with a lot of play, the shad was a reliable food source.

The irony is that one of the problems that has made fishing poor on inland lakes, the explosion of the shad, would have likely improved Lake Michigan fishing (at least in future years) by giving the salmon a rich food source.

But quite possibly the most amusing theory that has been circulating has been the cell phone theory. It goes like this — a fisherman is out on a lake and finds the fishing is good in a specific spot. He calls all of his buddies at the bar and they hop in their boats. Within hours the spot is filled with fisherman hungry for an elusive catch. By the next day the entire fishing hole has been fished out — virtually strip mined to those who subscribe to this theory.

They’re at it again and now they expect elected officials to actually take orders from them.

Despite their dwindling numbers, despite the fact that many in the public know them to be a group of pro-recall nuts, despite the fact that they’re essentially an organization run by two members, the inappropriately named Citizens for Responsible Government is at it again.

The groups leader, Chris Kliesmet, went on record with the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel saying “at the end of the day, they have to do what they are told, not what they feel like doing”. He was referring to Milwaukee County Supervisors — the same Supervisors who were elected by 50,000 of their constituents.

Sadly, Kliesmet doesn’t understand basic civics — the high school class that teaches children that when people are elected to office in America that they make their decisions based on their conscience. That system of government, the one that we use in this country, is called a representative democracy. While Kliesmet may want the public to think he’s talking about pure democracy — the system of government where nothing happens until everyone gets in a room and votes on every issue, what Kliesmet is really talking about is a system of government where those who are elected do what Kliesmet wants them to do based on fear of losing their job as an elected official.

Kliesmet’s bully democracy may work for him, but if elected officials are going to do their jobs and analyze and assess the issues honesty, they shouldn’t have to do it with the threat of a partisan with an agenda.

Like the one-time reality TV star who recently speculated about the boy in the balloon as a way to expand his 15 minutes of fame, Kliesmet is showing he’s willing to go to extra-ordinary means in his drive to grab the spotlight once again.

What will Barrett do?

That’s the phrase on the lips of many today as Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett is expected to make an announcement as to whether or not he will run for Governor.

He should.

It’s not because democrats simply need a candidate in the race. Others could fill those shoes. It’s because Wisconsinites need someone they can rally behind. Simply put, Barrett reflects Wisconsin values.

He’s heroic. How often can you say that of a politician? There’s no question about it with Barrett. When a woman was being attacked, Barrett stepped in to stop the attack. Instead of the woman taking the brunt of the attack, Barrett fell victim to a tire iron wielding thug and for his selfless actions, he will likely never have full use of one of his hands again. How many people would do that?

He’s committed. As a Congressman he worked with his colleagues in the United States Congress to get aid for flood remediation projects in his district. Because of his actions, many homeowners who dealt with flood waters and sewer backup in their homes are safe from these disasters happening again.

He’s smart. Knowing that the Marquette Interchange, one of the main arteries for interstate commerce in all of Wisconsin, was crumbling, Barrett successfully got federal funding for its rebuilding. This saved Wisconsin residents from having to bear the brunt of this costly fix alone.

He’s friendly. Barrett is the kind of guy that you would want to toast with a good Wisconsin beer. He’s approachable and engaged.

He’s concerned. He is unwavering in his concerns for his fellow man (and woman) and will do whatever it takes within his power to help others when he can.

Barrett has a lot to consider before his announcement. There is no question that he will be making a great personal sacrifice if he does choose to run. But the upside is that Wisconsin will get a leaders it deserves, Barrett will have the honor of representing a grateful public and someday, maybe even a hundred years from now, his grandchildren will look back on his work with pride and say, “my Grandpa was Governor”.

Speculation surrounds whether or not Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett will jump into the Governors race. Respected by both Democrats and Republicans, Barrett would likely garner more votes than any of the Republican candidates if he were to take the plunge.

But with the withdrawal of Lt. Governor Barb Lawton from the race, state democrats are worried — worried that they won’t have a candidate to take on whoever wins the Republican primary. As Republicans Mark Neumann and Scott Walker battle it out in their polite little GOP primary, they don’t have something they are really good at — a target for mudslinging. Republicans are masters of negative campaigning. Should Barrett jump into the race now, Republicans would immediately shift their venom toward Barrett and the city he leads.

Barrett knows this and he is well aware that Republicans are not above trashing Wisconsin’s largest city if it means they can score a few political points. It’s a strategy that works, and they know it. After all, it wasn’t too many years ago that then-Governor Tommy Thompson ran a whirlwind campaign to make southeastern Wisconsin a tax island when he urged non-Milwaukee citizens to “stick it to ‘em” at a rally. In the end, Thompson got his way and the stadium tax was enacted only on southeastern Wisconsin residents.

So it make a certain amount of sense for Barrett to hold off, but if he doesn’t intend to take the plunge, other Democrats need to get their campaigns organized and raise money. That will take time and if Barrett waits until another Democrat has already put the work in on their campaign, he’ll likely be greeted by Democratic insider resentment for having sat on his hands as the Republican candidates raised the money they’ll need to be successful next November.

Then there’s the issue of schools. Barrett is fighting to turn the governing of MPS over to the Mayor of Milwaukee, whoever that may be at the time his plan is enacted. His frustration with MPS and the not-so-flattering grades they’ve gotten is clear and his demands for accountability are echoed by his frustration. If Barrett successfully runs for Governor and he is replaced by a Mayor who doesn’t want to have any say so about MPS, he may face a legislature who claims they’re being asked to give power to a person who doesn’t even want the power. Barrett can easily remedy this by pointing out that the Milwaukee Mayor already receives the blame for problems in MPS and logic dictates that the person who receives the blame, should have both the responsibility and the ability to make substantive changes as he or she seeks fit.

You can’t ignore the family element. Barrett has several kids still in Milwaukee schools. He regularly attends his children’s soccer games. His wife Kris is an MPS school teacher and Milwaukee residency is required for MPS teachers. This is a tough one. Barrett would be one of the few Governors who would have to commute back and forth to Milwaukee instead of staying in the Governor’s mansion should he be elected. His children are at an age where most parents want consistency in their schools so simply uprooting the whole family to move to Madison just isn’t even in the realm of possibilities. If Barrett wins the Governor’s seat, finding time to spend with his children could pose a challenge.

But still, Barrett knows that there are no other Democratic giants out there who would have anywhere near the same strength that he does should he choose to jump into the race. His hero status alone, (a distinction Barrett uses every opportunity to downplay) having attempted to come to the aid of a young lady being beaten only to suffer a severe beating himself which left him with limited use of his still-healing right hand, goes miles to show him as a respectable, decent guy. His selfless actions earned him the eye of many admirers who otherwise would have never heard of Barrett or cared much to listen to a story about him. Without Barrett in the race, the election may well go to one of the Republican challengers who are already campaigning.

This will not be an easy choice for Barrett.

It’s human nature, but we seek answers to things that we do not understand. and sometimes our fears fester until our anger boils over. What makes us human is that we can choose to control these emotions. We can choose to be better than pure, reactionary instinct.

Why do I bring this up? It’s because of what I’ve seen and heard in the wake of the Fort Hood shooting. People who I otherwise respect and listen to feel it is important to point out that the shooter was a Muslim. Islam is an evil religion they say but they ignore that many other people who have done bad things are non-Muslims.

Yes, the shooting was a horrific crime, but Timothy McVeigh was a Catholic altar boy. Serial killers Ed Gein, Jeffrey Dahmer and John Wayne Gacy were Lutherans. Should we jump to the conclusion that since all were Christian, that Christianity is an evil religion?

Rather than grab a torch and join the lynch mob, let’s remember that cruelty has no faith and ignorance imparts no wisdom.

Is that the smell of desperation in the air?

A modest crowd of anti-reformers has gathered to oppose Mayor Tom Barrett’s proposal for the city to take over MPS. The plan by Milwakee Mayor Tom Barrett is really quite simple — the Mayor would appoint a Superintendent who would run MPS, in many ways, like the existing Superintendent, but would be answerable to city leaders.

The shrieks are almost palpable but keep in mind — they are just shrieks. Apparently we’re all supposed to believe that this is some crazy coup de tat by Mayor Barrett and he wants to take away our rights as citizens to vote for a school board. This rhetoric is both simplistic and lacks a basic understanding of civics. After all, if the schools in MPS would get even worse than they have been allowed to become under a system of an elected school board, the public could simply throw out the elected Mayor at the next election. Whallah — democracy in action.

But let’s look at what has happened under this system of Milwaukee schools being under the not-so-careful watch of a school board. Parents opting to send their children to MPS schools has bottomed out. Many of the good kids are now attending choice or charter schools and state dollars have gone to fund these private schools at the same time as they have been stripped away from public schools.

What has the MPS response been? They’ve made up large orange and black banners that say “High Standards start here” to be applied to all of their schools.

High standards?

One of the bright spots in MPS has been Rufus King High School. King has been a magnet for kids who want to do well in school and stay away from the trouble makers who ought to have been expelled a long time ago. Well, MPS administrators have decided that since they have already closed several of the schools due to reduced enrollment, they’ve moved some of these trouble-makers into King. So now, the good students who want to learn have to deal with threats, intimidation and an unsafe learning atmosphere when the trouble-makers choose to show up for school.

Here’s some basic tips for the school board — if something is going well, don’t screw up what’s going well. Kids who don’t want to learn and don’t want to be in school shouldn’t be warehoused with the few kids who are looking for an oasis of education in the morass of a poorly managed school system.

Oh but now we’re all supposed to believe that these two plans that have come out from the anti-reformers are going to change something.

Well the orange and black banners didn’t work. More teetering around the edges isn’t going to change things either.

When the school system has difficulties, parents and people who plan to be parents vote with their feet. They move out of the district and go to the suburbs. What is left is people who either don’t plan on having children or people who don’t have the economic ability to move. That is exactly what has happened with MPS. Young people and young parents are getting out. They’re fleeing to the burbs.

Why are they doing this? They’re doing this because they don’t believe their children will get a good education and they don’t believe their children will be safe. No orange banner, nor calls for change from those who have resisted change will bring them back.

Walk the streets of Waukesha, Menomonee Falls, Oak Creek, Brown Deer or Franklin and ask young homeowners why they didn’t choose to buy in Milwaukee. The answer for many will be MPS. People want the best for their children and there is little confidence that MPS will provide them a quality education.

It’s really an issue of accountability. When a school system fails, the fingers usually get pointed toward city leaders, including the Mayor. If the Mayor is to take the heat, the Mayor ought to at least be able to make some changes when changes are needed. By continuing to have an ineffective part-time School Board, accountability will continue to be elusive.

In contrast, the Milwaukee Mayor has always been able to speak with and work effectively with State officials and even Federal officials — two key players who are necessary to bring to the table for substantive reforms. At the same time, school board members have failed to increase the graduation rates and have failed to find the right recipe for success.

If we really want high standards, we need to substantive changes and we need a substantive leader to make that happen. An orange banner just isn’t going to do it.

Pitting themselves against children was probably not the smartest thing that CRG has ever done but they narrowly failed to kill a vote for a modest 2.99% increase in the tax levy for schools. The 140-138 vote was a testament may be a signal that even in their home of Brown Deer, CRG support is waning.

Although CRG (Citizens for Responsible Government) has experienced several defeats over the past few years, it’s tough to believe that the birthplace of CRG, the Village of Brown Deer, would hand them another defeat.

This weekend, CRG distributed a flier to Brown Deer residents urging them to come to cast a “no” vote against the budget in part because, as CRG claimed in their flier, “more money is not equating to better student performance — ACT scores continue to decline. They are the worst in the North Shore area..”

The North Shore includes the wealthiest and most well funded schools in the state. Funding North Shore schools well has served the North Shore well in the past and what CRG was suggesting was that Brown Deer residents shouldn’t even give their schools an inflationary increase to cover costs.

If you want to make sure that parents will come out to support school funding, what you want to do is tell them their kids are stupid and don’t deserve the benefits of other, wealthier communities. Pit their children against saving about $50 per homeowner (the amount of the increase) and a parent will choose their child over the money every time.

CRG thuggery hasn’t worked very well for them lately. When a CRG rally-goer knocked a woman over, shoving her to the ground recently, they didn’t win any points with the public. When a CRG founder and activist was appointed by County Executive Scott Walker to head up the Milwaukee County Ethics committee as a reward for helping Walker and his allies, he lied to the County Board about his political activism and they responded by denying the confirmation of his appointment. When a CRG founder and activist tried to get the County to adopt a plan which he would personally profit from, again, CRG was defeated.

While CRG is very good at garnering media attention, logical policies aren’t their strong point. Choosing the strategy of directing a torch yielding crowd to attack and politically lynch those who oppose their views may be great for the cameras, it’s not the way to run a government.

Who does this Jesus guy think he is anyway? Doesn’t he realize that if he gets his way taxes will go up? Doesn’t he realize that it’s the natural order of things? The free market has proven to be the driver for the best business practices.

And there he goes with his high-minded, better than thou attitude. Did you hear what he actually said the other day? “Blessed are you who are poor, for yours in the kingdom of God. Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh.” (Luke 6:20-21)

Blessed? Blessed?

Gimme a break. What, is he trying to guilt us into opening our wallets? Just because someone else isn’t as well off as I might be, I’m supposed to give some of mine to them? Bah!

That’s just socialism.

You want some words of wisdom for the hungry? Let them eat cake. Giving people a handout isn’t going to help them. You know what will help them? Work. If you’re hungry, get a job. Buy your own food. Don’t want to work, we don’t need you. You know what we call that? It’s called culling the herd. It’s the natural order of things. It makes us all better people.

Did you hear what his big crusade was last week? He said this, and I’m not kidding — “The afflicted and needy are seeking water, but there is none, and their tongue is parched with thirst”. Oh, I get it. Now we’re all supposed to care about water and water quality for everyone. Who is supposed to pay it? You know what, if we’re so worried about the thirsty, I’ll hand out bowls so when it rains they can catch the rain and take a drink. That’s charity — not socialism and it’s better than this whole socialist stuff.

But really, this Jesus guy is such a trouble maker. I’m inclined to just do something about it, but as many of my like-minded friends remind me, he would happily become a martyr for his cause. Before you know it, everyone will know the name of “Jesus”. It’ll be all like, “Jesus would do this, Jesus would do that”. There’s already a few people who have even been texting WWJD as though we’re all supposed to know what that means.

Folks, let’s be careful about this guy. The next thing you know, if this Jesus guy gets his way, we’ll all be marching up and down red square carrying little hammer and sickle flags.

Once again, the group calling themselves “Citizens for Responsible Government” (CRG) is in the news and they’re busy vilifying members of the Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors.

CRG’s claim to fame has all been related to accusing others of wrongdoing and posturing itself as the white knight riding in to save the day but CRG didn’t exactly write the book on accusatory politics and they’re not unique.

In fact, Wisconsin has a long history of accusatory politics. In 1950, Wisconsin’s Republican Senator Joe McCarthy impugned the character of many good people. Careers were destroyed and even peoples ability to make a living was hurt for fear of an employer associating with those that McCarthy slandered. Eventually McCarthy was exposed as a cruel fraud who refused to offer any proof for his accusations.

Unfortunately his spirit is alive and well in politics today.

But before even the rise of McCarthyism, America’s first anglo settlers burned people at the stake that they believed to be witches. This past week, a CRG supporter shoved a woman who as peacefully protesting a CRG rally. The CRG assailant then knocked another man to the ground.

World history is rife with people making baseless accusations and actually earning the respect of followers. But whether it is the Salem Witch Trials, the rise and fall of McCarthyism, or today’s ravings from CRG, America will have to deal with liars and scoundrels who care little for the truth. What matters to them is only whether their supporters and their beliefs are being represented. The end, apparently, justifies the means.

Really now, will it make a difference if Wisconsin legislators outlaw “texting” while driving?

What about using a cell phone while driving, using a radio (or mp3 player) while driving, programing a GPS while driving? Where do you stop? Where will we draw the line? What technology will arise in the future? Should we just figure there will always be someone willing to pass a law?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not in FAVOR of activities that distract drivers away from the road. I just question how this will be enforced. How will a police officer tell that a person is texting before pulling them over to give them a citation. Will drivers be pulled over because some overzelous rookie suspected or thought that the driver may be texting? And for that matter, if we’re going to put the burden of figuring out whether drivers are breaking the law, is there some training or perhaps some technology that will give them some sort of insight as to whether a person might be texting or not? And if there is an accident that happens that could have been avoided had the police caught the renegade texter, will proponents of the law point their fingers at law enforcement and suggest they didn’t do their jobs?

Where do you draw the line?

I know that there is a Statist mentality that says that we need a law for everything and if there’s a problem, the natural thing to do is to pass a law so some grandstanding politician can say that they protected the public. But if a law really can’t be enforced, why would we be spending time and money passing another feel-good law that can’t be enforced.

Hat tip to Cognitive Dissidence.

Running for Governor is Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker’s #1 priority so the long term health and safety of our community barely makes it onto his radar. As is the case this year as every other year of his budgeting, Walker cut funding that he knew the County Board would put back in. That way, Walker gets to claim that he’s cutting or holding the line on taxes, but the big bad County Board refused to see the “wisdom” of his work “protecting” the taxpayers.

What bunk.

Once again, Walker is proposing to cut funding for the Milwaukee County House of Corrections (HOC) Farm and Fish Hatchery. Why, you would ask, is the House of Corrections doing these responsibilities in the first place. The answers are multiple.

Cost Effective Services: Inmates have little to do but wait for their sentences to be served. There aren’t a whole lot of opportunities to keep inmates busy. They can cook in the kitchen, do laundry and occasionally a small crew can pick up litter on the sides of the highway. Running a fish hatchery and farm at the house was done on the cheap since inmates are paid next to nothing for their work.

Security: Inmates have little to do while serving their sentence. House of corrections inmates are not the normal bad boy that you see on the prison shows. You won’t find a whole bunch of felons at the House. People sentenced to the House have typically done non-violent crimes like driving without a license or drunk driving. Still, put a large amount of people in a room for months after months and you will have conflict if you don’t have something to keep them busy. Don’t think so? Watch the TV reality show Big Brother and you’ll get an understanding of what I mean.

Job Training: Inmates who are lucky enough to be chosen for work at the fish hatchery or the farm gain valuable work experience as well as an understanding of the benefits of a work ethic. After working at a fish hatchery they are qualified to move their skills to the private sector. The same thing goes for farm work.

Food for Inmates: Many people complain about how they have to pay high taxes. By running a farm at the HOC, inmates are able to grow food to feed the inmate population at the HOC, at the County Jail, and for some of the mental health facilities that the county runs.

Food for the Hungry: Food that is grown by inmates that isn’t already used in County facilities is given to Hunger Task Force, a non-profit food bank which distributes food to multiple food pantries throughout the metro area.

Stocking fish for Ponds in County Parks: Without the fish hatchery Milwaukee County won’t be restocking the fish that are in their ponds at the county parks. Urban fishing is a great recreational opportunity for seniors and for families. By having inmates to the labor to raise the fish, the county’s only cost is the infrastructure for the tanks and transportation. Without the hatchery, fishing at County Parks will be ridiculously poor.

Plants and Trees for the Domes: The Milwaukee County Domes at Mitchell Park are a unique sightseeing destination as well as a Milwaukee Landmark. Few people realize that plants and trees at the domes sometimes get their start at the HOC.

Cutting off funding for the HOC farm and fish hatchery is a bit like a farmer selling off their seed corn. Services will be dramatically and negatively impacted. This is one of those budget cuts that Walker has attempted in the past and he knows that the County Board will put funding back in. The public should prepare itself for yet another round of Board bashing by Walker. Once again he will sell himself as the white knight fighting for the taxpayers while bashing the board as a bunch of oafish and selfish politicians looking out for their own self interest.

The truth is that it’s Walker, not the board, who is looking out for himself and his own craven lust for greater political power.

It seems every year or two the federal reserve tries to bring dollar coins into the mainstream. From a practical and financial standpoint, it makes a lot of sense but it seems that every right wing group under the sun opposes them for one reason or another.

So you want the dollar coin to succeed? Are you willing to take a little bitter pill for the betterment of society?

Put Ronald Reagan on the coin with a big ole’ “In God We Trust” across his chest and you’ll find the right clamoring to get their hands on those babies.

But really, why should we care who is on it if it’s going to save taxpayers a ton of money on reprinting costs?

One thing that Milwaukee Alderman Tony Zielinski does very well is to cue in on issues that generate the interest of the media. Seeking out opportunities to be at odds with his colleagues or the Executive branch and be vocal about it seems to be something that Zielinski is working on mastering and any media attention Zielinski can draw now that he has announced his intention to seek the democatic nomination for Leitenant Governor is likely to help him in his run. Zielinski is a smart enough pol to know that the media usually takes the easy route and just covers what the Executive branch has to say and Zielinski’s not above getting nasty if it means an opportunity to get his face in the news.

Usually the person who is running for Lieutenant Governor and Governor have at least a cordial relationship and they don’t work at cross purposes to each other. But if Mayor Tom Barrett, who hasn’t yet ruled out a run for Governor, wins the democratic nomination it could be awkward for Zielinski if he wins the democratic nomination for Lieutenant Governor.

But will it backfire?

A few weeks ago, Mayor Barrett asked the State to support his plan to turn over the running of Milwaukee Schools to the City. As is to be expected, the Milwaukee School Board members opposed Barrett’s plan. In Barrett’s weekly email update Barrett writes:

There are critics of school governance reform who have correctly pointed out that the citizens of Milwaukee hold me responsible for addressing many issues – job creation, crime reduction, and health issues such as teen pregnancy. However, those who follow by suggesting I should therefore not be concerned about the academic achievement of Milwaukee Public Schools fail to recognize that these problems are inextricably linked and must be addressed collectively.

We cannot expect the educational attainment of our workforce to increase and diversify as long as we continue to have more than 70% of our 10th graders not proficient in reading and fewer than 40% of MPS graduates enrolling in post secondary programs within a year of graduation.

Zielinski doesn’t agree with Barrett’s plan for reform and he’s being vocal about it. In his fight for the status quo, Zielinski is using a populist strategy. Zielinski describes a meetings he attended as a “community meeting opposing the Mayoral effort to take our right to vote away for school board”.

Whether his strategy of “the Mayor’s bad and I’m good” will work is yet to be seen.

You have to wonder though, with this apparent animosity from Zielinski, whether they could be effective if they end up running together for state office. Even if he’s not successful and both stay in City government, will they be able to effectively work together for their mutual constituents.

Recently, both right-wing GOP Gov. Rick Perry of Texas and supposed moderate Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty of Minnesota have expressed sympathy for the “Tenther” movement. For those of you who don’t have the Constitution and Bill of Rights memorized, this is the Tenth Amendment:

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.

Tenthers argue that the Federal government should exercise no power not explicitly given to it in the Constitution. Perry and Pawlenty are using this argument to claim that, should the Congress and President enact health-care reform, they can keep it from applying to their states. (This is quite similar to the “Nullification” theory that helped lead to, and was settled by, the Civil War.)

He won’t do it, but I wish Barack Obama would send Perry, Pawlenty, and any other Tenther governors the following letter:

Dear Governor X,

In accordance with your expressed desire that your state not be subject to any Federal program not explicitly authorized by the Constitution, as of now I am cutting off all Federal funds distributed to your state or to individuals or institutions therein for the following purposes:

Medicare
Medicaid
Social Security
Veterans’ health care
Immunization
Transportation infrastructure (e.g. highways, bridges, rail)
Air traffic control for flights within your state
Education of special-needs students
FEMA assistance after hurricanes, wildfires, and other disasters
HIV/AIDS prevention and services
CDC investigation and technical assistance
Certification of health care providers and suppliers
Scientific and technological research
Highway safety
Job creation and retention
Child support enforcement
Unemployment insurance administration
Adult literacy and English language acquisition
Crime victim compensation
[etc., etc.]

Congratulations on your new sovereignty. Let me know how it works out.

School Board members desperately want to maintain control of the Milwaukee Public Schools. The problem is that when there are problems with MPS, many people look to blame the City — not a school board.

MPS has undergone a sea change of reforms and been subjected to a ton of changes pushed on them from the State of Wisconsin. They haven’t been able to turn things around dramatically and the school choice program has drawn off some of the most talented students. Unlike privatized schools, MPS isn’t allowed to expel students.

But when there are problems in MPS, who do people point to? Who do people blame?

They blame the City.

If the city is going to take the blame, shouldn’t they have responsibility for the success or failure of our schools?

Turning the city over to the Milwaukee Mayor won’t, in itself, fix the problems but turning it over would make it so that a full time branch of government is analyzing the problems. Right now, a part-time board which meets after their day jobs is in control. They choose a Superintendent who does most of the job but this model hasn’t been terribly successful.

It’s time for a change.

Those of you who, like me, were saddened by the ludicrous conservative response to President Obama’s anodyne “stay-in-school-and-study-hard” speech need to read this article from the St. Petersburg Times compiling some teenagers’ reactions to the speech: they’re quite heartening, and some are very funny. Those Elmbrook School District kids missed out.

Comparisons have been made to GOP Presidents who made speeches to schoolchildren, but what the wild reaction made me think of is my own reaction to the news that then-President Reagan had been shot. I was liberal even then, and it would have been hard to find an action or opinion of Reagan’s with which I agreed. But I was upset by the shooting and would have been horrified if he had died: he was, after all, the President of the United States.

But the immediate conspiracy theories — and the willingness of conservative parents to keep their kids out of school rather than risk their being exposed to ideas they (the parents) disagree with — are the final proof that conservatives will never accept Obama as a legitimate President. (That doesn’t mean they’re all “Birthers” — that’s just one concrete way of delegitimizing Obama.) I don’t think it’s just about race, though it would be hard to deny that’s a contributing factor. For whatever reason, they reject him: he’s not their President, and I dare say a fair number of them would celebrate if he were assassinated. I realize that’s a terrible thing to say, but scan the righty blogs and I think you’ll agree.

There’s a lot of talk from fear-mongering from the right against national health care these days. They’ve even sought to scare people by talking about how the government will have to decide who will live and who will die, all based on costs.

But if the fear is that someone other than the individual needing care will be making the decisions, the Republican faithful are a little late for the boat. You see, death panels have been around in this country for years. In fact, you could say that I was on one.

In the 1980’s I was a health benefit claims analyst for a major insurance company here in town. I was given guidelines on what to cover and what not to. If the procedure or the medicine wasn’t something that was done all the time, the orders that were given to me were to decline the claim.

And I was in charge of AIDS claims.

I dealt with people every day who had severe problems. In the 80’s, people didn’t live with AIDS for the most part, they died from it and it was my job to make sure that only those treatments that were approved and by the book were covered. I declined a lot of charges and sometimes customers would try to slide through treatments that were still, at that time, deemed experimental. But back then, AIDS was still pretty new and most anti-virals were experimental.

I denied a lot of claims.

I did what I could for people within the guidelines that I had to work for, but still, I was making decisions that would affect whether someone could get the medicine they needed. If I denied the claim, and the customer appealed, it advanced to the Claims Examiner. Sometimes it would then go to the doctor who was on staff. He had two degrees. He was both a doctor and a lawyer. His presence on the staff strengthened their ability to deny a claim.

We even had customers that would seek alternative ways of keeping their costs low. I can recall one customer who worked for a veterinarian and the drug he needed was also stocked at the vets clinic but at about 1/2 of the price he would have paid at a pharmacy. But because he got it dispensed to him at the vet clinic, I was instructed to deny it. Had he paid full price for that medicine we would have covered it at 80%. It was the same exact medicine at the same exact dosage that he needed.

Now if you really want to be precise about the whole thing, the real death panel wasn’t us folks making the day to day benefit decisions on what could be covered and what wasn’t going to be — it was the actuaries and the underwriters. They were the ones who made the decisions as to what type of procedures could be covered by each plan. They designed the plans and we carried out the marching orders. They weren’t making their decisions based on whether it would make sense to get people the care they needed. It was there job to maximize profitability.

So the next time you hear someone tell you that they’re afraid that nationalized health care will create a situation where we have death panels with people making decisions as to who lives or dies based on costs, remind them that we’ve had death panels for a very long time now — we just call them insurance companies.

“I was raised to keep to yourself.”

This is what the mother of the suspect in Mayor Tom Barrett’s beating said on Tuesday. She also accused the Mayor of provoking her son.

Seeing this just galvanized the feelings I’ve been having since I first heard the circumstances of Barrett’s beating on Sunday morning. Of course, I believe that he is a hero, as do many other people. He saw a woman and a young child being threatened by a man on the street. The woman was calling for help, asking someone to call 911.

Barrett did. And then he went one step further. One step further than I don’t think most people would take. He put his safety in danger by stepping in and trying to calm the situation. Would most people do that? We’d like to think we would, but would we?

The gnawing feeling in the pit of Barrett’s stomach as he approached the scene, the taste of adrenaline in his mouth, the fear for the safety of his family who were with him; he must’ve been breathing fast, his heart beating and sweat breaking out even as he tried to exude a calming influence.

I am not sure the majority of people could actually do what he did. Call 911, yes, from the safety of the other side of the street. But walk into a volatile situation? One in 5 of us, maybe.

That’s why we see what he did as heroic, because it is different. It is rare. It is something to be admired. Courage is not the absence of fear, it is the overcoming of fear.

Thank you, Mayor Barrett. I am glad that you were not “raised to keep to yourself.” And I hope that you will make a full and speedy recovery.

And that your story becomes a lesson to us all.

Two term Governor Jim Doyle is calling it quits after this term but let’s not forget how effective he has been.

After nearly two decades of neglect by former Governor Tommy Thompson, Doyle recognized that Milwaukee played an important role in the future of Wisconsin. While Thompson traveled the state encouraging voters and rural legislators to “stick it to Milwaukee”, Doyle put the reconstruction of the Marquette Interchange back on the priorities map.

Under Doyle, Wisconsin now has its sex offenders residential locations now online.

Under Doyle, the path has been set to bring high speed rail to Wisconsin.

Under Doyle, by 2010 non-smokers will, for the first time in Wisconsin history, have access to pubs and restaurants which they’ll be able to enjoy smoke-free.

Under Doyle, UW-Madison is becoming a key research center for stem cell research — a type of research that provides hope for cures for many different terminal diseases.

Under Doyle, the Wisconsin state budget has been balanced despite inheriting a record breaking deficit from Republican Governor Scott McCallum. In fairness to McCallum and his short term after being promoted from Lt. Governor mid-term, most of the budget deficit was due to phantom revenues put into the budget from Tommy Thompson.

Although Doyle has sometimes rankled some of the more liberal members of his own party, overall he has shown himself to be a steady and effective leader.

Democrats will find the next year exciting as several of their finest are expected to step forward to run for the democratic nomination. One thing is definite — most democrats will miss knowing that Doyle was their 800 pound gorilla walking into the room on election day.

There’s never an excuse for domestic violence. Clearly Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett agrees but unfortunately he paid the price this weekend.

Barrett suffered a brutal attack at the hands of a pipe wielding thug. While the thug with a criminal record was in the middle of assaulting his own girlfriend, Barrett stepped in and came to the rescue. Unfortunately for Barrett, his assailant was trained in fighting and Barrett paid a hefty price.

Barrett is in pretty bad shape and continues to deal with the pain from his beating. But if you can look past his battle scars, including cracked ribs and missing teeth, you’ll find a man with courage and conviction. You’ll find a man who is willing to stand up and deal with the consequences of standing up for the values instilled in him as a boy — Milwaukee values. The values that say that a man should never hit a woman, that you should be courteous and kind, and that you should adhere to the golden rule.

When Barrett intervened to protect the victim he showed courage as well as chivalry — two characteristics that usually conjure up images of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.

Milwaukee should be proud they have such a leader.

Puff away.

That’s what CRG recall advocate Bill Savage wants the public to be able to continue to do in bars. Savage is bent out of shape that State Senator Jim Sullivan supported Governor Jim Doyle’s proposal which will make all bars smoke free by 2010. For years, non-smokers have complained that they were unable to go out to local taverns without having to breathe second hand smoke from cigarettes. They contended, and medical science backed them up, that second hand smoke contributes toward respiratory problems and can even cause restriction of veins and arteries.

Savage was so upset with Sullivan that he organized a recall attempt against Sullivan. Anyone who looked at Sullivan’s record already knew he was in favor of smoking bans. Having authored the smoking ban while serving as an Alderman in the City of Wauwatosa, Sullivan wasn’t afraid to let it be known what he stood for. Sullivan then went on to successfully run for the State Senate seat in what is clearly now a sore spot for Savage.

Well it looks like Savage has become the victim of his own pro-smoking advocacy.

He recently suffered a heart attack and had a quadruple bypass done; all by the way, at taxpayer expense. You see Savage is a member of Republican Representative John Pridemore’s staff.

Savage and other anti-Sullivan bellyachers have been claiming that the recall attempt is non-partisan. Well it turns out, that’s not the case.

It started out to be a pleasant enough evening. Spending some time with a friend, a few drinks, a good game of cribbage — all added up to a recipe for a relaxing time.

But to the lady blathering on behind me — shut the hell up. The guy that’s with you wasn’t staying there because he was sincerely interested in talking with you. He wanted to get into your pants. Take a breath. Take several. If you’re at all interested in hooking up with that guy, the most tolerant of men, you really need to learn to relax.

And no, you’re not an expert on what liberals think, believe in, or act in. I am. I’m a liberal. We’re not out to get you. We’re not looking to destroy this country. We’re not out to bankrupt the country. We’re not looking to turn this country over to terrorists. We’re not out to do this horrible thing, or that horrible thing. We just believe in different things.

So put your cigarette out and shut your mouth for a second. It feels better already doesn’t it? All of a sudden the world seems a better place.

You want to know who we are and what we believe in? (Well I’m going to pretend that you care, if just for a minute.)

We are fiercely patriotic. We want this country to succeed. Economically, we want everyone to at least have a chance at being successful and to at least have a chance at the pursuit of happiness. And yes, that means we oppose discrimination. We support our republic and our republic form of government but we also know that shared community values, many that can be learned in high school civics classes, are of a benefit.

Oh and by the way, shut up. Just for a while. We would lay our lives down and fight for the rights that our Constitution and our Bill of Rights give us, but we tire of those who don’t know us or understand us telling us that we don’t love our country.

One of those rights is free speech. So go ahead. Rant away. It’s you’re right. Oh, and by the way, it’s your right because liberals fought for you to have that right.

One would think that with the County winning a $45 million settlement from their lawsuit against the Mercer actuaries, there would at least be a little apology squeaking out from the editors down at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.

Don’t hold your breath.

The Journal-Sentinel shares some damning guilt in what happened back in 2001.

No one in the printed media has ever taken the time to look at the information that Supervisors were given. It’s much easier to print sensationalism. It’s much easier to make claims that Supervisors didn’t read the information they were given than to actually cite the lines they were supposed to read. The reason? Those lines don’t exist. The Journal-Sentinel did a hatchet job several years ago in order to sell newspapers; not to expose the truth. Will this lawsuit, where Mercer admits nothing and the County settles for a fraction of what was lost result in Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker admitting that he lied when he smeared the Democrats in County Government in order to further his own craven lust for power?

Of course not.

Will it result in an apology editorial from the Journal-Sentinel to those removed from office due to Walker’s allegations?

Let’s not hold our breath.

There’s a reason they call it “public service” and it’s not always fun. Of course if it were like taking a trip to Disneyland, people would be lining up at the City Halls and Courthouses around the country to take out nomination papers to run.

I’m talking about serving in public office.

Oh sure, there are the good times. It’s a rush to finally gather enough votes to get a policy of yours through whatever legislative body you would so choose, and it’s nice to talk to people whose lives you have truly improved in some substantial way but it’s not all good times. You have to run for office, deal with obnoxious liars and be subject to an alarming amount of criticism, some of it though the media. There are many who will think they own you for your years in service and confuse even your personal time for required years of servitude to them. You’ll also miss out on time with friends and family that only someone else who has been in office can appreciate.

But all that gives a person a better understanding of what it takes to run a government. I’m talking about basic civics here. Yes, you may have had civics in High School, but being in office is like civics class on steroids.

It’s been years since I’ve served, but I can still look back on some of those times with fond memories as well as a sense of accomplishment. Does that mean I’d do it again? This summer I’ll have a chance to do something I just wasn’t able to do when in office — go camping with friends. Today I’ll spend time on this sunny day fishing a little with my son on a lake and having a few martinis with family in the evening. With every passing year, I’m enjoying my personal time more and more.

They’re both hardcore Republican activists masquerading as impartial information providers. Both have had talk radio shows and now both talk show host Charlie Sykes and Milwaukee Magazine columnist Jessica McBride have had extramarital affairs.

While both have made their living wagging fingers at others, neither can be accused of discretion. While Sykes picked an opera singer to hook up with while still being married to now Appeals Judge Diane Sykes, McBride was smitten by power. McBride, who has lectured on journalistic ethics while teaching classes at UW-Milwaukee, chose Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn who she was writing a story on.

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reporter Dan Bice, who broke the story of the affair, cites this little nugget of correspondence between the two — “Warm, no not warm, hot memories of beautiful moments … I feel younger today than I did last night.”

It’s time to light a few candles and cue up the Barry White.

McBride’s editor at Milwaukee Magazine is Bruce Murphy who has taken some journalistic liberties of his own over the past few years. According to Bice’s story, Murphy seems to care little that McBride was carrying on a tryst with the Chief while she was writing the story “the Cop who can’t stop.”

McBride is married to former Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher and while Bucher no longer wields the power of the law, Flynn does. How does that affect McBride?

“I feel younger today than I did last night.”

Apparently, power really is an aphrodisiac.