Archive for the ‘Politics’ Category

What I Mean When Talking About “Responsibility Free” Right Wing Talk Radio

September 1st, 2010

Anonymous email leads to charge on WTMJ 620 by Charlie Sykes leads to press release by Republican Party of Wisconsin.

None of it’s true of course, and I don’t expect to hear anything on Sykes’ show tomorrow about it. Unless of course he uses his microphone on Wisconsin’s largest radio station to  lash out at the “LIBERAL MEDIA” for calling him on passing off a totally fabricated story and using it as example of how he’s the “victim”.

The state Republican Party blasted Democratic candidate for governor Tom Barrett on Wednesday for holding a “secret” fundraiser with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi — then quickly retracted the statement saying it had no evidence the event occurred.

Spokespeople for Barrett and Pelosi said no such fundraiser occurred.

The Republican Party released its attack on Barrett – which included a drawing of Pelosi handing a bag of cash to Barrett – based on statements by WTMJ-AM (620) host Charlie Sykes and questions from reporters, said Andrew Welhouse, a spokesman for the Republican Party. – jsonline.com

But it’s just “entertainment”, right? Maybe he’ll spend an hour or two of his show talking about important issues like how a website for a candidate wasn’t renewed  instead.

As Expected, Towns Along High Speed Rail Line Want a Stop Now That Oconomowoc is Out

August 26th, 2010

To follow up on this post last week, it’s no surprise that other towns along the proposed high speed rail line between Milwaukee and Madison would like to be the replacement stop for Oconomowoc. I predicted as much when writing about it last week. The whole article is here.

But this humdinger of a quote from the Hartland village president got my attention:

In Hartland, just a few miles from Neumann’s Nashotah home, Village President Dave Lamerand says, “I am not in favor of the high-speed rail to begin with. I don’t think they should be spending the money.”

But, Lamerand adds, “If they are going to build it, I would like Hartland to be considered for a station,” possibly on Capitol Drive, about half a mile from the intersection of state Highways 16 and 83 and within walking distance of downtown.

A rail station could help boost the village’s economy, raise its visibility and bring workers to Hartland factories, Lamerand said.

“We don’t see a lot of minuses,” Lamerand concluded.

See if you can follow the logic there… He’s not in favor of the high speed rail line, but if it’s going to be built, he’d like his town to be one of the stop because of the positive economic impact it would bring.

So what exactly doesn’t he “favor” about high speed rail? The boost to the local economy? That’s like saying I don’t favor paying for a car unless it helps me get to work and make a living.

At any rate, I’m glad to see Wauwatosa is making a play for a stop. It makes sense and if the local leaders can get over the fact that it might make the anti-rail crowd(who are apparently only anti-rail because of the economic benefits it would bring) angry, it would be a real boost to the city and it’s economy.

Shuffling the Deck Chairs on the S.S. Milwaukee County Doesn’t Cut It

August 25th, 2010

Short and to the point.

If an administrator at a major division of local government is doing such a terrible job that it warrants his removal, why place him in another administrative position in another division at all?

Milwaukee County officials said late Wednesday that John Chianelli, who oversees the troubled Milwaukee County Mental Health Complex, would be leaving that post Monday.

It said Chianelli, in his post since late 2007, will transfer to a position as deputy director of the Disabilities Services Division . jsonline.com

What happened to running this County “like a business”? If a chief financial officer was doing a bad enough job to be relieved of his duties, who in their right mind would reassign him to be the assistant operating officer?

Seriously.. why? Fire him flat out.

Computer of Walker Aide Seized by District Attorney, Full Coverage on Right Wing Radio Begins When?

August 24th, 2010

I fully expect days of coverage from responsibility free right wing talk show hosts about this story. When it was a front line worker for the County who had his work computer removed a few months back, it provided days of speculation and outage amongst the chattering class in Milwaukee. So if some average County employee generated that kind of outage and speculation, it should be fireworks when the County Executive’s housing administrator and former campaign aide has his computer removed for investigation by the District Attorney, right?

Right?

It’s also worth noting that this isn’t the first time someone who works for the County Exec. has been caught. As the article points out, another one of his staff resigned earlier this year after spending a good portion of her day posting pro-Walker messages and campaigning on his behalf on several web sites.

While I’m willing to give the guy due process and let the situation play out, that courtesy wasn’t extended by the chatterboxes on right wing radio the last time this happened, and they’ve been completely mum about the situation that’s coming out today. Just like they were in the previous one when someone from Walker’s office resigned a few months ago for campaigning on the taxpayer dime.

If You’re Not On Board With High Speed Rail, Don’t Expect a Free Ride

August 19th, 2010

I can’t say I know the exact particulars of the decision as to why Milwaukee suburb Oconomowoc was removed as a potential stop on the high speed rail line being planned between Chicago->Milwaukee->Madison (and St. Paul in the future). What I do find interesting about the story though is that all the sudden a prominent Milwaukee suburb is upset about not having a stop in their town. It’s interesting because for as long as I’ve lived in Wisconsin, most of the suburbs have been very anti-rail and have done everything in their power to stop either light or heavy rail from moving forward in Southeastern Wisconsin.

I mean if it’s such a choo-choo train, boondoggle, ancient technology, “half fast”, waste of taxpayer money that no one will ever ride, which is the truth broadcast on a daily basis by at least the two largest radio stations in Wisconsin, why is Oconomowoc upset?

Could it be that once you get past the rhetoric of the responsibility free talk radio show hosts and anti-Milwaukee attitude a lot of the suburbs have, towns which are stops for rail see an economic benefit as a result? Again, if this is just a “boondoggle” that will waste money and no one will ride, why are these Oconomowoc officials so upset about being left behind?

Questions aside, a bit of advice for towns like Oconomowoc who do see the benefit of being one of the stops on the proposed high speed rail line: I get that you want the stop and don’t want to pay a nickle for it because that might signal to your conservative leaning constituency that you’re not following the Bible according to Skyes & Belling. However, if you really want to “get on board” with this project because you do see the benefits of it, you will probably need to spend a little political and hard capital to make it happen.

Otherwise suburbs like Wauwatosa, which see the benefit of having a stop in their town, will be more than happy to be of stops on the line for all the reasons that you don’t seem willing to recognize or talk about in public.

Fox News: We’re Officially Firmly in the Pocket of the Republican Party

August 17th, 2010

Not that there was ever a lot of doubt about the coordination between FOX News/News Corp and the Republican Party, but it’s now official. News Corp is firmly in the pocket of the Republican Party.

News Corp., which owns Fox News and the New York Post, gave $1 million to Haley Barbour’s Republican Governors Association this year, according to the RGA’s most recent filing.

The company’s media outlets play politics more openly than most, but the huge contribution to a party committee is a new step toward an open identification between Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. and the GOP. The company’s highest-ranking Democratic executive, Peter Chernin, recently departed. – Politico

Yes, it’s within their rights to do so, but how can any credible news organization claim any journalistic standards when it’s written out a fat one million dollar check to a particular political party. Imagine the OUTRAGE on responsibility free right wing talk radio if CBS or Disney wrote out a $1 million check to the Democratic party. That would only confirm the belief among the right and probably generate breathless coverage from outlets like FOX News about the blurring of the lines between the media and political parties.

President Obama Stands Up For Religious Freedom, Even When It’s Unpopular

August 14th, 2010

Most people won’t agree with it, but it takes leadership to do the right thing in cases like this. And coming out in favor of religious freedom – without exception – is something that I’m happy to see the President of the United States do.

In the Virginia Act for Establishing Religion Freedom, Thomas Jefferson wrote that “all men shall be free to profess, and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion.”

That is not to say that religion is without controversy. Recently, attention has been focused on the construction of mosques in certain communities – particularly in New York. Now, we must all recognize and respect the sensitivities surrounding the development of lower Manhattan. The 9/11 attacks were a deeply traumatic event for our country. The pain and suffering experienced by those who lost loved ones is unimaginable. So I understand the emotions that this issue engenders. Ground Zero is, indeed, hallowed ground.

But let me be clear: as a citizen, and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practice their religion as anyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community center on private property in lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable. The principle that people of all faiths are welcome in this country, and will not be treated differently by their government, is essential to who we are. The writ of our Founders must endure. – President Obama (AP link)

I think the ‘unshakable’ part there is especially true and relevant. Freedom of religion or speech for that matter doesn’t mean freedom of religion when it’s popular or polling well. Freedom of speech doesn’t mean you can only speak your mind when it’s not controversial. As two of the major cornerstones of American freedom – true freedom I might add – they need to be absolute and as unshakable as the President says.

Scare Monger Rep. Gohmert Making it Up as He Goes Along About “Terror Babies” In U.S.

August 13th, 2010

This is prime example of the LIBERAL MEDIA going after innocent well intentioned House Republicans who are trying to protect us from the phantom “terror babies”!

I’ve never heard of Rep. Gohmert before, but there’s obviously a good reason for that. On the flip side, he’s probably now the hero of the ultra conservative movement for scaring people about a completely fabricated story about Muslim Terror Babies(!) and then going on CNN to “take on” Anderson Cooper. One things for sure, Cooper has a lot more patience in dealing with that guy than most people would.

Good For Mayor Barrett: Stands Up for Laid Off Teachers, Against Silly and Expensive Benefits

August 10th, 2010

Good for Mayor Barrett:

Breaking with his own supporters, Democratic gubernatorial candidate Tom Barrett asked the Milwaukee teachers union Tuesday to drop its lawsuit seeking taxpayer-funded erectile dysfunction drugs such as Viagra.

The Milwaukee mayor said he was “surprised and disappointed” to learn about the lawsuit at a time when Milwaukee Public Schools has laid off hundreds of teachers, including his own wife.

If MTEA put as much time and effort into getting 400+ recently laid off teachers back in the classroom as it has been negotiating and litigating silly things like viagra and Easter vacation reimbursements, it would be a benefit not only the kids in MPS, but would help out the perception of the teachers union among the residents of Milwaukee. Plus, it’s just the right thing to do, ya know?

And on a side note, I don’t know that the Mayor is really “breaking” with his own supporters unless the article is referring solely to the small number of people who would benefit from either issue.

And on another side note, interesting that I couldn’t find anything about this in the local paper and had to rely on the Chicago press to link to.

Life Moves On, Even if I Don’t Blog About it!

August 10th, 2010

Just a quick note in what will be the slowest month of blogging for me on record (at the current rate)… Being on leave means I have more time to consume and analyze news and the happenings of the day. The funny thing is that, at least for the time being, I have a very low desire to comment/blog on what I see going on around me – at least in the political sphere.

A newborn baby is certainly the focus of our lives right now and when I put the whole “big picture” vs. issue of the day in to perspective, I really don’t feel too guilty about not keeping up with my usual schedule in regards to blogging/facebook/twitter/etc…

Colton is doing great and I’m truly enjoying the time I get to spend with him during my time off.  Plus, I’ve been able to tackle the projects around the house I’ve had on the back burner for so long. A happy baby, a fixed toilet and an organized basement are my major accomplishments over the past few days and it feels good to make some tangible progress  on the things very close to my life right now.

That said… The folks at MTEA are doing about as good a job as a PR professor would lecture about to alienate the public in their bizarre quest to bargain for things like paid vacations during Easter and get viagra for retired teachers while totally whiffing on real issues like getting laid of teachers/counselors back to work. Republicans continue in their mission to run out the clock to November and oppose oxygen because the President supports it. Two of the major candidates for Governor in Wisconsin are taking a horse and buggy approach to transit in this state by saying they’ll kill high speed rail if elected. Responsibility free right wing talk show hosts are still outraged at any and every thing possible. Conservatives are shouting at rain clouds and blaming Tom Barrett… because it rains.

Basically, life goes on whether I blog about it or not!

In Brief: Link to TV Appearance Yesterday, FMLA, Fighting Flooding

August 4th, 2010

Morning Blend appearance. I was on “The Morning Blend” morning TV show on WTMJ yesterday as part of their round table discussion. We talked over priced baby diapers, internet dating and other topics. The link to watch is here if you’re interested. Going forward, I’ll be making a regular appearance on the show to provide some insight from the male point of view.

FMLA begins. So I’m officially on FMLA leave for the near future. One thing that I’ve done with the birth of our children is save up my vacation and sick time for the purpose of using it when we have a baby. I don’t take any huge vacations and generally avoid sick days (when possible with two small kids) because being able to spend some serious quality time with a newborn is important to me. I know a lot of people who are forced to go back to work after a week or two of having a new baby and completely missing out on the first couple months of their baby. I’m happy I can take as much time as I am with Colton.

Flooding in Milwaukee. Policy hand grenade time! You know what would create thousands of jobs in Milwaukee, reduce the impact of pollution in Lake Michigan and prevent millions of dollars in damage to homes? Separate the sanitary and rain sewers in Milwaukee! I know it’s not an extremely popular option from most of the folks on my side of the aisle, but it needs to be done and the sooner we start, the sooner it’s finished. For all the conservatives out there who are cheering this on as well, I hope you’re equally committed to the proposals out there to separate the sewers when the price tag is revealed. Yes, it will be expensive.