The (Somewhat) Daily RAG

Can we recall the ads?

2011-12-21T21:39:00.000-08:00

sYou'd have to be living under a rock -- or as intelligent as one -- not to realize that Wisconsin has "Recall Fever" these days and even though there aren't yet enough signatures on petitions to recall Gov. Scott Walker the hype is building.

Funny thing but right now it's all hype and no substance. If you listen to the opponents, the governor is a great savior who led us from the brink of fiscal disaster without raising taxes. That's the "ends justify the means" approach.

Some of those favoring recall engage in the same logic but with a different twist. They say classes are overcrowded and good teachers are leaving. In other words, they're not sure the "ends" are anything to brag about. Both miss the point.

Recalls are extraordinary elections, sparingly used and typically when there has been some abuse(s) so severe that the normal election cycle needs to be trumped. Whether you like or dislike a particular incumbent and/or his or her performance isn't the appropriate issue. Voters have the chance to express their approval or disgust at the next regular election.

It's only when the situation is irregular -- extraordinary, if you will -- that a recall should be seriously considered. And because it's serious business the discussion should be serious.

To me, the real recall issues are whether the integrity of the office, the state or the legislative process was so compromised as to warrant removal from office. This isn't an "ends" discussion but rather one that calls for a reflection on what and who we are in Wisconsin and what we expect from our elected officials.

The dialogue should be serious and not influenced by big and/or outside spenders who look to Wisconsin as some epicenter battle ground. This is a Wisconsin thing and it's a time when we need sober debate and reflection -- not special interest groups trying to cloud the real issues.

Chief Flynn needs to resign

2011-11-05T13:47:00.000-07:00

At first it was hard not to like Milwaukee's Police Chief, Ed Flynn. New strategies brought down the murder rate while officer morale significantly improved. Most of the community embraced him so well that his romantic indiscretions with a married journalist resulted in little more than a yawn and he stayed on the job.

I long respected how Chief Flynn would fully, immediately and publicly back his officers when they were right. It was the right thing to do. So was his promise that, "If we mess up, we 'fess up."

But now the chief seems to have forgotten that promise. Police response times are lagging, yet he offeres puffery and excuses. A recent Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel series uncovered serious police discipline issues.

With over 30 years of law enforcement experience behind my belt I can safely say it's proper to back officers when they're right but it's also necessary act decisely when their misconduct threatens public safety or erodes the respect due good officers. Instead of discussing his department's performance with respect to weeding out the bad apples Chief Flynn declined to talk to the media.

The straw that broke the camel's back is the arrest of an openly credentialed newspaper photographer doing her job and not violating any laws. Chief Flynn blindly backed the officer involved -- saying the officer didn't know se was a member of the working media -- and then tried to soft-pedal things when Mayor Tom Barrett publicly disagreed after seeing photographic evidence (see photo above) that the photographer's media pass was clearly visible. Flynn suggested a meeting with media representative to discuss differences. Not a bad idea but not enough.

The man who promised to "'fess up" when the police "mess up" failed to do that. He's destroyed his own credibility and damaged that of his department. He should resign.

CONCEALED CARRY SHOULDN'T BE BLATANTLY CRAZY

2011-05-25T20:57:00.000-07:00

Is there lunacy in the water at the State Capitol?

You have to wonder when you read about how the Senate Judicary Committee on a 3-2 vote put forward a bill that will allow people in Wisconsin to carry concealed weapons without a permit and without any training. And one wacko from Wausau -- Pam Galloway -- even went so far to say that she wouldn't mind people being able to pack heat in the State Capitol.

Now I'm not opposed to sane concealed carry laws -- ones that require people to have proper training (including refresher training), a background check and periodic licensing. Our law enforcement officers have to have this and more and may also subject to additional administrative oversight such as not carrying weapons when drinking. Law enforcement agencies from around the state have weighed in with legitimate fears about the mess virtually unrestricted concealed carry could cause. They're the experts. Legislators and the governor ought to listen to them.

Yes, there is some merit in the adage that "When guns are outlawed only outlaws will have guns." But our police chiefs and sheriffs aren't saying that guns should be outlawed but that there should be reasonable restrictions on who should be permitted to clandestinely carry them. Law enforcement officers must meet strict standards just to carry their weapons out in the open. Legislators would confirm their insanity if they vote to allow just about anyone to pack heat without any regulation.

Make the lawbreakers (literally) pay

2011-05-16T21:02:00.000-07:00

The legislature has been grappling with how to financially support Wisconsin's justice system -- courts, police, prosecutors, public defenders, corrections and support agencies.

The issues are lengthy and solutions few but here's a "no brainer" for your consideration: make the lawbreakers pay.

After all, scofflaws use the services and thus a greater user fee should be collected. Simply stated, fines and costs haven't kept pace with inflation.

A $37 speeding ticket in 1973 costs $176 today. Adjusted for inflation that $37 should be $187 today. There's no reason why those who break the law and use the services of the justice system shouldn't pay their fair share.

Trump fires himself

2011-05-16T20:42:00.000-07:00

Donald Trump said today he's not a candidate for the Republican presidential nomination.

Too bad.

Granted, "The Donald" was far from politically correct and his unabashed views may have inspired fear and loathing among establishment Republicans and Democrats but that's precisely why a Trump candidacy may well benefit all Americans despite his limited chance of victory.

Like him or not, agree or not, Trump asked some questions that needed to be asked and if he remained in the race he essentially could be more than a "spolier" but rather someone who might help set the agenda for the debate.

Trump is right to question our inability to control such things as gasoline prices and relationships with other nations that exploit us but give little in return. His blunt attacks on the status quo may not always be accurate or welcome but probably quite necessary because nobody else is doing it.

Think about it. Republicans clamor about lower taxes and less government spending but the Bush II administration ran up record defecits and spending. The GOP hopefuls are essentially locked in an internal battle over who is the most to the right in the party hijacked by extreme special interests.

Democrats are no better. The mantra of "health care and education" is hollow when you consider that when they had a majority in the Clinton administration that they did nothing substantive about either. Despite the paucity of accomplishments the mantra continues.

At the end of the day Trump may have had a businessman's epiphany and decided that it's a money losing deal. Probably true but nonetheless his voice was one that could have provided necessary direction to the national agenda.

Fr. Pfleger pfull of hot air

2011-05-10T20:38:00.000-07:00

Fr. Michael Pfleger is an archdiocesan priest in Chicago at odds with his bishop, Francis Cardinal George.

In brief, Cardinal George told Fr. Pleger he wanted him to leave his job as pastor of St. Sabina, a predominantly black Catholic parish on Chicago's south side, to head up St. Leo High School.

Pfleger balked at the reassignment, essentially telling his boss to stuff it.

Cardinal George responded by suspending Pfleger who responded by telling the Cardinal that unless he's reinstated by this weekend, he'll start preaching at other churches.

Say what? You got it right -- Pfleger issued an ultimatum to Cardinal George.

Now I am far from being an archconservative Catholic (like fellow blogger Dad29) but, folks, diocesan priests take vows of obedience. Pfleger is a priest. Cardinal George is his bishop. Guess who's going to win this battle?

Pfleger's tantrums make it obvious that Cardinal George probably made the right call in suspending him -- and if Pfleger wants to preach in another church, the Cardinal should call his bluff with the response that he's free to do just that -- as long as it's not in a Catholic church.

Feds wrong to pass on Walker's request for rail aid

2011-05-09T16:39:00.000-07:00

While putting the kabosh on more expensive rail projects, Gov. Scott Walker asked for a more responsible $150 million in federal transit aid to upgrade the Milwaukee-Chicago Amtrak Hiawatha train service -- six round trips daily supported by Wisconsin and Illinois taxpayers.

The feds told Wisconsin to take a hike. Big mistake.

The KRM rail debacle -- which has been documented here in the past -- ended (thankfully) with the change in administrations in Madison. This made upgrading the Hiawatha service even more compelling.

The Chicago-to-Milwaukee Hiawatha service operates on 79 mph track. New stations were added a few years ago at Mitchell Field and Sturtevant. Stations are needed in Kenosha and probably Caledonia. In fact, Kenosha was promised an Amtrak station in 1990 as part of Dairyland Greyhound Park's license application. We never got it. It was a good idea then and an even better one now.

Gov. Walker has been a polarizing figure since he took office in January. Nonetheless even a broken watch is correct twice a day and Walker's modest request -- probably too modest as it did not include stations in Kenosha and Caledonia -- should have been granted.

Howard J. Brown -- Another of "The Greatest Generation" gone

2011-04-29T12:35:00.000-07:00

It is with deep sadness to write about the passing this morning of Howard J. Brown – friend for more than 46 years, benefactor, confidant and occasional intellectual sparring partner.

Officially, Kenosha’s “Uncle Howard” was for 40 years the publisher of the Kenosha News. He passed that title onto Ken Dowdell ten years ago but remained president of the parent company which owns television stations and other newspapers.

The Kenosha News, however, was his “baby” and the people of this community by and large his unofficial nieces and nephews.

There wouldn’t be enough space in the newspaper to list the many people, organizations and causes Howard supported – almost all privately. Yes, he was a trustee of Carthage College and the ringmaster for Kenosha Christmas Charities – the official name for what we know as Goodfellows. A rite of passage into adulthood for many business and professional people in our community was receiving the Goodfellows invitation from Howard.

Media owners like Howard do not exist today. He would work late hours and take delight not only in a good news story but being able to sell someone an ad in the paper. Reporters would not find it unusual for Howard to stop at their desks and provide his good counsel. Readers had a way of telling when Howard wrote an editorial. The preacher of brevity as the soul of wit seldom practiced it.

Howard was very loyal to Betsy – his “bride” – and virtually every adult conversation would inquire about your bride and children. Howard was also very proud of his girls, all of whom are independently successful women today.

On a very personal level, I would not be where I am in life without his support, guidance and advice which began when a precocious 12-year-old popped into his office and started a lifelong friendship.

Only two or three times did I ever see Howard emotional. The last was about when he held back tears to lament how he had to lay off employees and downsize due to the economy, something he dearly did not want to do. His sadness then was greater than at the death of his own father who lived well into his 90’s.

Last year at one of our lunches I told Howard how much he meant to me and said that the one lasting impression I had was his reverence for people and the dignity of work. It didn’t matter if you were a high roller, a public official or the man stocking the vending machines Howard respected you and made you feel that way.

For all the good that Howard has done for others and this community he only asked for one thing in return – that you “be of good cheer.”

Journal-Sentinel "fact checkers" pants are down

2011-04-29T07:22:00.000-07:00

The "fact checkers" at the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel created a gaffe of their own today in the story about state supreme court candidate Joanne Kloppenburg's statement: "There are legitimate and widespread anomalies, and widespread questions about the conduct of (the Wisconsin Supreme Court) election, most visibly in Waukesha County, but also in counties around the state."

The newspaper rated Kloppenburg's statement as "barely true" and at the end of the day they may well be right but we're not there yet. A statewide recount of votes in the Kloppenburg's battle to unseat incumbent justice David Prosser is underway. The recount process will be the arbiter of whether there were irregularities, widespread or otherwise. We'll know more when that process is finished. It isn't and the newspaper shouldn't have jumped the gun.

We can't rate the newspaper's claim "pants on fire" but more appropriately the Journal-Sentinel was caught with its pants down.

Trumped: Obama reveals birth certificate in hopes "The Donald" will go away

2011-04-27T23:05:00.000-07:00

President Obama Wednesday took some wind out of Donald Trump's sails when he called the billionaire's bluff and released his birth certificate showing that the president was, after all, born in Hawaii. Yawn.

Of course the Obama team hopes this will squelch Trump and like-minded people. My take: it will end that debate and open the door to others.

Trump is the spolier Democrats and Republicans love to hate. The "birther conspiracy" buffoonery is now sidelined -- as it should be -- and the nation can now focus on other issues and I don't see "The Donald" going away but rather he may just be getting warmed up/

Predictably unpredictable, brash and politically uncorrect Trump could be the spolier who either ruins the election for one candidate or else defines the race for everyone. Don't sell him short.

Trump's two major talking points -- gasoline prices and a huge trade imbalance with China -- may well resonate with voters feeling the pain of $4+ a gallon gasoline and the loss of American jobs, both to seemingly deaf ears in both major political parties. What will make life especially uncomfortable for the political elite is that Trump is basically right. His issues are viable and voters may be swayed by straight talk from a businessman vs. same old, same old from a bunch of political hacks.

Ignoring Trump is something Democrats and Republicans should do at their own peril. If you don't think an outsider can't get elected president, I have two words for you: Jesse Ventura.

Waukesha County: Get a new county clerk

2011-04-26T20:18:00.000-07:00

Waukesha County needs a new county clerk.

Kathy Nickolaus -- who sat for more than a day on the news that she goofed in reporting votes from the City of Brookfield -- wisely pulled herself out of running the recount of votes in the hotly contested state supreme court election which originally had challenger Joanne Kloppenburg with a razor thin lead until the "missing" Brookfield votes were "found" and reported.

It appears that Nickolaus -- no stranger to controversy as observed here earlier this month -- had some prodding from state officials but nonetheless it was the right thing to do.

So why the "I have no comment" when asked tonight by a news reporter about the rationale for her decision to recuse herself?

The high road would have been to proudly say that "Given the history here I felt it was proper to avoid even the appearance that there might be impropriety in the process."

That would have been the high road. Nickolaus didn't take it. Even though I don't buy the notion that there was hanky-panky in her goof-up, sitting on disclosing the error and now giving evasive answers to what ought to be a simple answer should prompt Waukesha County voters to give her the boot.

Obama: Bush III???

2011-04-25T21:59:00.000-07:00

The Republican'ts are gearing up their war machine and mud pie throwers to take on Barack Obama's reelection campaign -- and my guess is that just like Obama's shot at delivering the hope and change he promised, they'll fizzle.

That's because "inside the Beltway" advisers don't have a clue how angry and disillusioned voters are. They'll overanalyze and miscue the skew but the simple truth is that it's the economy.

You'll recall that in 1992 George H.W. Bush blew a massive post-Desert Storm approval rating. How? He was insensitive to the economy (which was a lot better then than now).

Son George W. wasn't much better. He got us into a bottomless pit of a war, draining our economy and wasting American lives.

So we got Barack Obama, a charismatic speaker but unable to make the leap from charismatic candidate to governance. High unemployment, rising consumer prices and gasoline topping $4 per gallon hardly qualify as talking points for reelection -- and then there's the fact that Bush's war is now his and we keep wasting American lives in the bottomless pit of middle east conflicts.

Of course there's more ineptness to go around. After all, Obama couldn't control his own party and the Demo, who had the chance at success, squandered it. A laudable effort to deal with health care reform wound up with a horrendous law and no real reform (particularly cost containment) at a time when the Obama administration couldn't manage the economy.

The Repulican'ts, of course, will get mired up in Obamacare, the Ryan budget plan to nowhere and whether Obama has a legitimate Hawaiian birth certificate. They may just do Obama a favor by deflecting attention away from Obama's major economic failures.

It's not rocket science, folks. They only need to recite two Ronald Reagan lines: (1) Are you better off than you were four years ago?; and (2) Isn't it nice to see the gallons add up faster than the dollars?

A hat tip to a clean election

2011-04-22T02:07:00.000-07:00

In the midst of the celebrated state supreme court race -- the surrogate referendum on rookie Gov. Scott Walker -- there was an election for mayor of Madison in which the incumbent, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, lost his bid for reelection to former Mayor Paul Soglin.

This election is not just as asterisk in Wisconsin history or a footnote about Soglin getting a third crack at serving as Madison's mayor.

It really is a study about how two men can conduct a gentlemanly, above the belt campaign for political office, a rarity today.

Soglin and "Mayor Dave" confined their rhetoric to who has the best vision for Madison and the best skill set to get there. The voters chose Soglin but, as The Capital Times, which endorsed Soglin, noted, they had to choose one or the other and a vote for Soglin was not a vote against Mayor Dave who did an able job of running the city for eight years.

After the election Soglin praised Mayor Dave for his civility and cooperation in the transition. These two men showed us that it's possible for politicians to disagree on some issues without being disagreeable or disgusting. For his part, Soglin says he's not going to reject the good things Cieslewicz did for Madison but intends to build on them. And Mayor Dave left office without even a hint of "sour grapes" but, to the contrary, by an exemplary show of courtesy and cooperation.

We joke a lot about "the People's Republic of Madison" and it being "an isthmus surrounded by reality" but in reality Madison has generally been a well-run city. Other communities could learn from its successes, especially how to have an election in which while one candidate had to lose, everyone still won.

Appointing judges doesn't stop political shenanigans

2011-04-22T01:04:00.000-07:00

The Wisconsin State Journal editorially expressed growing discomfort with Wisconsin's elected judiciary which it feels does little to insulate judges from partisan politics, a scenario played out in recent state supreme court soap operas...er...elections.

The newspaper is right to voice concerns about judicial independence and freedom from partisan politics but abandoning electing judges won't necessarily solve the problem. If you need proof, let's look at Iowa where judges from the local level to the supreme court are nominated and appointed but face retention elections where voters periodically decide whether to keep a particular judge in office.

After the Iowa Supreme Court ruled same sex marriages were protected by the state constitution three of the seven justices lost retention votes. While their supporters cried foul that judicial independence was being attacked and outside groups were influencing the election the process nonetheless was followed according to law. In short, like it or not, Iowa voters had the chance to express their oversight over the court.

Waiting for the next retention vote, however, isn't enough for some Iowa Republican legislators, five of whom have introduced impeachment bills against the other four justices who have yet to come up for their retention votes.

The four resolutions — one for each justice — argue Chief Justice Mark Cady, and justices David Wiggins, Daryl Hecht and Brent Appel, performed a function solely reserved for the legislature in making the ruling. The court’s decision violated the state’s constitutional separation of powers, and created social disorder and unrest, the resolution said.

Not all Republicans are willing to go that far. The resolution will move on to the House Judiciary Committee, where its chances of advancing are unlikely, said its chairman Rep. Rich Anderson, R-Clarinda.

The justices’ actions in issuing a ruling that in effect legalized same-sex marriage do not meet the standard for impeachment spelled out in the Iowa Constitution: misdemeanor or malfeasance in office, Anderson said. He believes the majority of House Republicans agree with him and that it’s unlikely that the resolutions will go anywhere.

Anderson is a lawyer who initially applied to fill one of the three seats left open after voters in November ousted three justices but later withdrew his name.
“Rendering an opinion or resolving a dispute, which is what judges and justices are charged with doing, that is not misconduct or wrongful or unlawful,” Anderson said. “As much as the sponsors of the resolution disagree with the opinion, I don’t think the legal standard is met.”

Anderson's assessment mixes Iowa law with Iowa common sense. If the voters don't like the other for justices, they can give them the boot at the next election.

This process, however, is far from immune from politics. Outgoing Gov. Chet Culver, a Democrat, could have appointed three replacements before he left office but yielded to calls that he allow his Republican successor, Terry Branstand, to make the appointments.

In my view that gives a governor too much power and makes it easier to stockpile a court with partisan jurists. In other words, six of one, a half dozen of another.

Bras and prostates -- television is the vast wasteland.

2011-04-22T00:25:00.000-07:00

Nearly 50 years ago Newton Minow, then chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, feared that television was becoming a "vast wasteland." How prophetic.

I just awoke to a half-hour paid program on WTMJ-TV about how to buy better fitting bras that show enough cleavage while not drooping. This was followed by another prolonged infomercial on prostate health supplements. They should have completed the circle by airing Povich and Springer.

Sheesh.

Prosser vs.Kloppenburg: A most necessary unnecessary recount

2011-04-22T00:19:00.000-07:00

It's hard not to have mixed feelings about Joanne Kloppenburg's legitimate demand for a recount of the votes in her battle to unseat David Prosser from the Wisconsin Supreme Court, a surrogate battle between two political parties in a supposedly nonpartisan race fueled by enormously disgraceful quantitues of special interest money and injudicious conduct by a sitting supreme court justice.

You'd have to be living under a rock not to be aware of the highlights of this soap opera -- little-known Kloppenburg at first claiming a razor-thin victory and then two days later the disclosure by the Waukesha County Clerk that she failed to tally thousands of votes from Brookfield, a Republican stronghold that eventually put Prosser more than seven thousand votes ahead of Kloppenburg.

If that wasn't bad enough, the particular county clerk not only had ties to Prosser but has had her election conduct questioned in the past and was involved in one of the premier legislative scandals when she was a Republican causcus staffer a few years ago. If that wasn't enough of a cloud, the clerk waited more than a day to disclose discovery of her latest mistake.

Regardless of who you voted for, the Waukesha County fiasco raised very good questions about how we run elections in Wisconsin -- concerns unfortunately drowned out by the cacophony of spin cycles by the political camps and their financial supporters. Let's try to cut through the many layers of crap and try to make some sense of this.

First, we need to get out of the way the obvious but still ignored truism that this is politics, folks. Had thousands of uncounted votes favoring Kloppenburg turned up in Dane, Milwaukee or some other county the Prosser supporters would be crying bloody murder. One day your're the bug, next day the windshield. Neither side can claim purity. It's like having two madams arguing over which one is the bigger whore. Get over it.

Next, there are quite a few folks distressed that Kloppenburg is demanding a recount. They point out that while she's within the .5% difference in vote totals entitling her to ask for a free recount, the chances that she'll find enough votes to change the results of the election. Ordinarly this point is not without merit but this isn't an ordinary election and the catcalls about Kloppenburg exercising her right are myopic and misguided.

Yes, there is an expense to a recount and, yes, it's not likely to change the result. But integrity does not operate on a balance sheet or a profit and loss statement. What these folks -- including the editorial board of the Racine Journal-Times -- are saying is that we're wasting money on a recount. While that has some plausibility it also begs the question of whether we should place a dollar value on the exercise of our rights and say to people, "It's your right to challenge __________________ but you shouldn't because it'll cost us money for you to exercise your rights." That's a slippery slope.

In a micro perspective we conduct a recount to come up with an accurate tally of a close election. The larger view, which apparently is overlooked by many here, is that we also do this to ensure the integrity of the election process and here, where there have been plausible concerns about the conduct of some election officials, it's not blatantly improper to seek a recount not just to ensure the accuracy of the outcome but also the integrity of the election itself. That oversight is necessary, proper and priceless. To suggest otherwise is to cheapen the respect for the election process. It's important that the public have confidence in the process, including the conduct of election officials and equally important that oversight be exercised to prevent potential future abuses.

This brings us to Prosser's cheap shot labeling Kloppenburg's call for a recount as "frivolous." He should know better, especially since he's caught flak -- appropriately -- for his vulgar and sexist description of Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson as a "bitch."

Allow me to illustrate why this latest manifestation of foot-in-mouth disease demonstrates legitimate concerns over Prosser's judicial temperment.

Several years ago I handled a case involving a fight between two Jewish businessmen which broke out after one called the other a "schmuck." For most of us that term connotes someone who is somewhat like a blundering fool and/or just generally inept -- not the kind of stuff that should lead to fisticuffs. An expert on Jewish culture, however, explained to me that in his culture the ostensibly benign epithet is actually much more offensive as it's the functional equivalent of calling someone a "cocksucker."

So, too, is the word "frivolous" in legal circles. The general public may equate the term with "unnecessary" while in legal parlance it's a pretty significant slap when one attorney uses it against another. Beyond the general implication of incompetence it's also used to slap up an attorney who claims either a nonexistent legal wrong or legal right.

Here, Kloppenburg is well within her legal rights to demand a recount, even though the outcome of the election is not likely to change. A recount may be costly and some may question its necessity but it's hardly "frivolous" and Prosser of all people should know better. He owes Kloppenburg and the people of Wisconsin an apology.

For those who decry the recount because it costs money and is unlikely to change the result, you need to chill out and remember it's not just about the "bottom line" of who won this election. It's also to provide necessary oversight over a murky election. You don't measure transparency and integrity in dollars and cents.

Many years ago a young reporter was lectured by Capt. John Weinandy of the Toledo Police who noted with approval the broad access local media enjoyed to the police station and adjacent city hall. "One reason we don't have much corruption here," Capt. Weinandy explained, "Is that there are reporters everywhere and, unlike other cities where they try to hide things, we generally want the public to know what we're doing."

Capt. Weinandy is right. The price of transparency is far cheaper than that of corruption.

Milwaukee Marcus PAC -- Bush league in a big city

2011-04-21T23:06:00.000-07:00

Earlier this week my wife and I celebrated her birthday by a trip to "the PAC" -- er, Marcus Center for the Performing Arts or whatever it was renamed -- to see Les Miserables for the umpteenth time.

What can I say? We love the show and for the most part we weren't disappointed. The latest tour has new special effects and sets which gave the performance a bit of a fresher look. It's worth seeing but not necessarily in Milwaukee.

That's because the PAC just isn't quite up to snuff these days -- inside or outside. Think of a 1960's era Holiday Inn which was great in its day but even with remodeling may fall a bit short of contemporary standards.

The PAC suffers from bad audio. Yes, it has a sound system but there aren't good speakers in place where people need to have them -- away from the stage. In today's world people know clean and crisp audio is possible in a theater and for the price you pay at the PAC it should be pristine. No excused.

Then there's the complaint of myopic Mike Fischer, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel critic, about the disruption caused by latecomers being seated. Fisher blindly blamed the patrons, a cheap and generally inaccurate shot.

Besides a bush league sound system, the PAC, unlike other venues around the country -- even the Fox Cities PAC in Appleton (a nice facility, by the way) -- offered no traffic control and there was a huge traffic bottleneck in which it literally took almost a half-hour to travel one block and into the parking garage where only one employee was manning the entrance gate. Adding injury to insult -- almost literally -- was the icy conditions in the ramp making it difficult for patrons to safely (and efficiently) walk from their cars.

This smacks of community indifference and poor management. If you want people to come to the PAC then you need to make it inviting and efficient to do so. We patronize theater venues around the country and most today are pretty attentive to this. Sadly, Milwaukee isn't. Again, no excuse.

Greetings from the (very windy) Great Smoky Mountains National Park, TN

2011-04-16T22:01:00.000-07:00

Rainy, too.

Leaving at 4:00 a.m. for the Smokies...need to get away for a long weekend.

2011-04-14T20:50:00.000-07:00

Partisanship vs. Public Safety: Assembly Republicans Ignore Crime Victims

2011-04-14T16:12:00.000-07:00

Buried in this week's chaos report from Madison is the demand from Gregory Gracz -- Governor Walker's hand-picked employment relations secretary who was once the focus of a sexual harassment controversy -- that Wisconsin prosecutors take six additional furlough days before the end of June, a move that violates the state's contract with the Association of State Prosecutors which caps furlough days at five per year and, if carried out, would wreak havoc on the state's already understaffed district attorney offices.

Assistant district attorneys took ten furlough days in the past two years but refused state demands, beginning with former Gov. Jim Doyle, to take the additional six days, pointing out that the they were the only employees who were furloughed in 2003 after which the state agreed to place a cap on furlough days. In addition, the state's own figures show the state is short well over 100 prosecutor positions and young prosecutors often work side jobs due to low pay. Further, unlike state public defenders who can farm out some of their work, prosecutors have no limit on the number of assigned cases.

Gracz has threatened to cut prosecutors to 80% part-time status, another contract violation, if they don't cave in to the state's demands. He fears that if the prosecutors don't take the additional furlough days other state unions with "me too" clauses in their contracts could demand payment for six furlough days, costing the state an estimated $11 million, Gracz said.

Assemblyman John Steinbrink (D-Pleasant Prairie) authored a nonbinding resolution which reads: "Resolved by the assembly, That the governor, the secretary of administration, and the director of the office of state employment relations cease and desist all actions relating to requiring unpaid leaves of absence or reducing the FTE status for any state employee who is an assistant district attorney for the remainder of the 2010−2011 fiscal year."

Steinbrink accurately pointed out that even with current staff shortages and furloughs Wisconsin cititizens who have been victims of nonviolent crimes have had to wait to have their cases charged or in some instances no charges have been filed.

Assemblyman Robin Vos (R-Burlington), co-chair of the Joint Finance Committee, aptly noted that in the last session the Democratic majority ignored pleas from district attorneys that the furloughs would devastate their offices.

Vos is mostly correct except that Steinbrink and Senator Robert Wirch (D-Pleasant Prairie) tried to tack on a $5 surcharge on some traffic fines to resolve the problem but party leaders sat on the bill until it died.

Still Vos, who argued in favor of the prosecutors last year, did a turnabout when, if he was correct that political posturing was the only motivation for Democrats, he could have called the bluff and supported the nonbinding resolution. In brief, he had an opportunity to rise above it and didn't. The Republican controlled assembly this afternoon refused to even take up the resolution on a 39-56 vote with only one Republican, Jeremy Thiesfeldt, bucking the party line.

Over 50,000 visits!

2011-04-14T07:33:00.001-07:00

Thanks!

(Now only if I accomplished something!)

Heading to the Smokies this weekend!

2011-04-13T22:38:00.000-07:00

Doofus Democrats and Rectal Republicans

2011-04-13T21:43:00.000-07:00

With the drama queens in our state capitol captivating the nation's attention it's been easy to do two things: (1) focus on the Republicans in Madison because, well, they simply suffer from so much rectal-cranial inversion that they're hard to ignore and (2) forget what's happening in Washington, such as the audacity of Barack Obama to seek another term as our president. I mean, folks, we thought there couldn't be anyone as inept as George W. Bush. What we proved is that P.T. Barnum was right.

On a winter's day in December 2007 I was visiting a friend in an Iowa nursing home just before the Iowa caucuses would kick off the presidential campaign season. Iowans are not afraid to share their opinions with you and these old folks were true to form except that the typical support for the GOP in those parts wasn't even on the radar. It's the economy that bothered them and there was a feeling among these elder WASP's that there really was a need for change and Obama should be given a chance.

Let's remember that George W. Bush wasn't exactly a rocket scientist but 2004 was his year. After all, we were at war and in the post-9/11 United States there was no inclination to change commanders. Of course the Democrats didn't help matters. Instead of the best and the brightest they gave us John Kerry, a man with virtually no accomplishments in his two decades in the United States Senate. In short, they gave us a candidate more inept than Bush.

The 2008 presidential election was supposed to be a wake up call from America to Washington: fix the economy and get out of this war. The buzz saw that cut down the GOP was dramatic. You'd think the Democrats would have figured out that this was 1992 all over again when daddy Bush got the boot because he was insensitive about the economy.

So Barack Obama came on the scene full of a mandate for hope and change but, in the end, we have little hope and any change was for the worse. We're still in a war. American troops are still dying in the Mideast. Our economy has yet to recover. And the voters, fed up with the fact the Democrats squandered their chance to fix things, went red and now the Republicans think they have a mandate for their ideology.

Wrong. Only people who are inside the Beltway can't figure out that it's the economy, stupid.

With gas prices shooting over $4 per gallon, our incompetent president has been sitting on his hands and his few supporters have been trying to defect any blame, saying it's the speculators.

Well, in part, they have a point. In part. Prices shot up due to instability in the middle east where, guess what, we still have troops on the ground. Where is the outrage against the Obama team for not bringing our troops home and getting us mired deeper into an unwinnable war against an enemy that doesn't care?

In short, Obama failed us, just as Bush did. But George W. never promised hope and change.

The sad part is that there is really nobody on the bubble up to the challenge of fixing things and the voices of reason and common sense have all but been silenced. But for all his ineptness and indifference, Obama may in the end have little to worry about -- especially if the Republicans put up Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachmann against him.

And now, back to politics in Fitzwalkerstan...

2011-04-12T22:52:00.000-07:00

Time for a brief diversion from politics

2011-04-12T22:44:00.001-07:00

Shenandoah National Park, VA

Wisconsin's new tourism slogan: FORGET BARABOO. THE REAL CIRCUS IS IN MADISON.

2011-04-12T22:22:00.000-07:00

I never thought any of the successors beat "ESCAPE TO WISCONSIN" but feel free to add your picks for our new state tourism slogan below.

Wisconsin Politics: Come Smell Our Dairy Air (Or where is Fighting Bob when we really need him?)

2011-04-12T22:06:00.000-07:00

Wisconsin's new tourism chief, Stephanie Klett, says the state is looking for a new tourism motto. After all, the way things are going in Madison you're certainly no longer among friends and given our perennial budget crisis, we can no longer afford to live like we mean it when life isn't so good. In fact, the political and economic chaos, rather than enhancing our state's image, leaves a lot of folks wondering if we should escape Wisconsin.

All puns aside -- at least for the moment -- we all ought to be concerned about how the shenanigans in Madison hurt our state's image. Being open for business doesn't necessarily mean business will come -- or stay -- here. Removing about $380 million a year in purchasing power from state employees will hardly create jobs or turn money around in local economies -- and that's just state employees. When de facto pay cuts hit local workers and teachers the economic hit will likely be a mini tusnami with no appreciable benefit to most taxpayers, especially the middle class.

To be fair, this didn't start with Scott Walker but our rookie governor makes a bull in a china shop look docile. And while it's easy to bang up on legislative Republicans, we must remember than when Democrats were in the majority under Jim Doyle the legislature's poo-bahs asserted virtually no independence from another of the finest governors that money can buy. It's been a slippery political slope for the past two decades and Walker and his Republican bobbleheads only attract the lightning rod -- or the mindless praise -- because of the ultraextremism which has taken partisanship to a new low in our state.

It's kind of like the fall elk rut. The male wapiti are so preoccupied with banging up on each other that it's impossible for them to see the big picture. Unlike the elk, however, partisan legislators these days no longer hang out with the colleagues they bashed during the political rut. In short, rather then playing the role, they've let the role play them.

This is serious stuff. A lot of day to day governance -- the nuts and bolts stuff -- got done because politicians would sit down and dine and drink with each other -- a rarity today. A month or so ago I was with Michigan's Levin brothers -- Senator Carl and Congressman Sandy, both old-school liberals -- and we got to talking about the demise of personal relationships among elected officials and ultraextreme hardball politics. They pointed out that the gridlock today can be traced to blind "oneupsmanship" than is becoming more the rule than the exception.

If we want Wisconsin open for business we must realize that business wants more than just a favorable tax climate. People with money to spend is one plus -- and happier people even better. Responsible collaborative labor peace is gold. Labor instability is quicksand. A solid, well-maintained infrastructure is likewise essential but the day to day governance and keeping the ship afloat is taking a back seat to the political shockwaves coming from the state capitol.

What's the solution? Democrats will say return them to power but they had a shot and failed to adequately address our state's problems. The proclaimed concern for Wisconsin's working men and women and the dignity of our political process is just that -- proclaimed -- but the reality is that the mark of a great politician is the ability to conceal envy when accusing an opponent of screwing the public.

Perhaps the solution for what ails Wisconsin now is going back to the future. The "Fighting Bob" La Follette Progressive party -- perceived now as a liberal faction -- was actually spun off of the Republican party in Wisconsin. A responsible significant third party in Madison and Washington may provide the balance that we critically need -- a watchdog over the extremism of the far left and far fight. Perhaps now more than ever if we can't get the two major parties moving toward the center we need a buffer between them.

Time is running out. If we can't restore sanity to the state house then perhaps there's no reason for us to stay a little longer because the "dairy air" of Wisconsin politics will have become an irreversible noxious stench.

Fixing Wisconsin's Economy: No Quick Fix, But Possible

2011-04-11T23:39:00.000-07:00

Rookie Gov. Scott Walker likes to tout his mantra that "Wisconsin is open for business." But talk is cheap.

Unfortunately, almost everything the neophyte governor and his cronies have attempted isn't the type of governance that leads to the stable soil for growing good jobs and Wisconsin's economy, according to Chandley McKelvey, a former Wisconsin development secretary, who wrote that a demoralized workforce and an image of political instability doesn't attract the right attention to Wisconsin. Add to that Walker's efforts to undermine the University of Wisconsin system and it's hard to find a blueprint to grow out economy for long term prosperity.

The truth is no fix is quick but the result of a deliberate process. Toward the end an educated, stable and prosperous workforce is an asset, not a liability.

For far too long Wisconsin has sought to cling onto a manufacturing based economy as manufacturing jobs have been drying up around the country. Yet we have great educational tools at our disposal but have failed to maximize the possibilities that our educational system should be a partner, not an outsider, in pursuing economic growth,

Add Waukesha County SNAFU to Wisconsin's dysfunctional politics

2011-04-09T22:55:00.000-07:00

It didn't take long for the political wagons to circle and volleys to be fired after Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus' stunning disclosure that she miscued on election night and didn't include 14,000+ City of Brookfield votes in her tally -- and then when she discovered her error she sat on it for more than a day before making a public disclosure.

Of course, Nickolaus, a former Republican legislative staffer, is no stranger to controversy herself. Her office's antiquated computer system was rapped before the current debacle by the county's IT honchos but she refused their offer to update and secure her system. In 2006 she miscued again and called the wrong winner in a Republican primary race for state assembly. Before that she had to be given immunity from prosecution to testify about political hijinks in the Republican caucuses at the state capitol including using state employees to work on political campaigns on state time.

Suffice to say that Nickolaus herself is a polarizing force and her conduct here, even if legitimate, will be skewed by her past history as well as the political tsunami surrounding not only David Prosser's bid to keep his seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court but the conduct of rookie Gov. Scott Walker and his legislative cronies.

With a recount in the race between Prosser and challenger Joanne Kloppenburg on the horizon it didn't take long for the Republican and Democratic parties to hire big gun law firms to duke out the recount process in what is supposed to be a nonpartisan race.

Then after Nickolaus' shenanigans Congressman Tammy Baldwin from Madison wrote Attorney General Eric Holder asking for a federal investigation of the missing Brookfield vote tally, mirroring the editorial position of The Capital Times.

Meanwhile, pundits on the right are willing to accept Nickolaus' tardy mea culpa explanation of human error which, to be frank, may be accurate but her past track record and the political firestorm surrounding this election raise enough suspicion that an independent review is justified.

Earlier the suggestion was made here that the proper forum for this inquiry is to convene a grand jury in Waukesha County. That's still a good idea and a far better one than bringing in federal investigators. Maybe that will be necessary at some point but the good citizens of Waukesha County ought to have a crack at investigating and cleaning up their own mess.

That may not be easy. District Attorney Brad Schimel is likely busy these days figuring out how to cope with Walker's bombshell threat to cut prosecutors to part-time (80%) status even though the state's own figures show that almost every district attorney's office is understaffed. And don't look for Walker buddy J.B. Van Hollen, the state attorney general, to do anything.

The failure of Schimel and/or Van Hollen to act may delay and obfuscate a much needed open and transparent investigation of what happened in Waukesha County. Time is of the essence.

Updated: Grand Jury Necessary To Ensure Electoral Integrity

2011-04-07T18:43:00.000-07:00

The grand jury is commonplace in many states but a rarity in Wisconsin because it's rarely needed.

Unlike grand jury states our prosecutors can directly file charges and, if a secret proceeding and/or compelled testimony is needed to investigate a crime, a judge may hold a "John Doe" proceeding -- essentially a one-man grand jury with almost all of a grand jury's authority. But the grand jury law is still on the books in Wisconsin and there's a time and place for convening one.

Now is the time. Waukesha County is the place. The reason is because the people of Wisconsin -- especially the citizens of Waukesha County -- need to be assured that the electoral process is fair, accurate and free of taint.

I have been intimately involved with the election process for more than forty years both in Wisconsin and elsewhere. Despite the political rancor which permeates many election campaigns, the fact is that the thousands of election workers and clerks, regardless of their own political beliefs, are uniformly passionate and committed to ensuring that elections will be fair and square and everyone's vote will be counted. I have undying respect and gratitude for them -- and so should you.

Yes, these folks are only human and they do make mistakes. That's why there's an official canvass after the results are initially tabulated. That's why recounts can be had. It's certainly possible to transpose numbers or mistake a "2" or a "3" for "5."

And there are system failures. After the controversial 2000 presidential election where Florida's punch card voting system and it's proverbial "hanging chads" came under fire Nancy Principe, who had been Kenosha County Clerk, told me that she got rid of punch card voting because it was difficult to count those ballots more than once and come up with the same results.

This brings us to Waukesha County where Kathy Nickolaus, the county clerk, dropped a bombshell that 14,000 votes in the City of Brookfield weren't counted Tuesday. 14,000. That's not tranposing a number of mistaking a "2" or "3" for a "5."

Nickolaus said that she failed to save in her computer and consequently report 14,315 votes cast in the city of Brookfield, omitting them entirely in an unofficial tally released after Tuesday's election. The new totals give 10,859 more votes to incumbent Supreme Court Justice David Prosser from Brookfield and 3,456 more to challenger Joanne Kloppenburg. Smaller discrepancies turned up in two other communities as well.

A tearful Nickolaus told reporters that it was human error for which she accepts responsibility. I tend to believe her. You'd have to be awfully diabolical to conjure up a scheme like this.

Nonetheless, a boner like this is bad even without evil intent and circumstances surrounding Nickolaus and her office suggest that a lot of folks won't be comfortable taking her word for it. After all, she's the Republican county clerk in a heavily Republican county in which the bulk of the missing votes favor a former Republican legislator who yesterday was trailing by 204 votes.

Apart from that, Nickolaus has been under fire in her own county. While she said the problem had nothing to do with her election system, which has been criticized as outdated, her election operation was the subject of a county audit last year after complaints that she was not cooperative with information technology specialists who wanted to check the system's integrity and backup.

The audit found that while the clerk's system generally complies with state and federal guidelines and accuracy of election totals was not at issue, Nickolaus should improve security and backup procedures. Not among the audit recommendations was Nickolaus' decision to no longer report municipal election results separately on election night, as most other county clerks do. Nor does she show in the running totals throughout election night what proportion of the voting units are included in the tallies. Had municipal results also been on her web site, the error might have been caught sooner.

Then there's what happened in 2006. Christine Lufter, who lost a Republican primary in the 97th Assembly District, was originally shown by Nickolaus to be the winner.

Computer monitors at the county clerk's office showed Lufter winning her race, as county officials scrambled to correct flawed returns from the City of Waukesha. Final results later showed Lufter losing to fellow Republican Bill Kramer by a significant margin.

Nickolaus said some returns from the City of Waukesha inexplicably had data recorded in the wrong column, which momentarily skewed results.

Nickolaus and her staff resorted to correcting the city's results manually -- a process that continued until 1 a.m., with staffers poring over a blizzard of numbers on computerized printouts.

"The best thing to do is go back to paper," Nickolaus said of the tedious process. "And that's exactly what we did."

Then there's the aura of partisanship.

For 13 years Nickolaus worked for the Assembly Republican caucus, one of four partisan legislative groups that were shut down following a criminal investigation into state staffers doing campaign work on state time.

The investigation eventually led to the resignations and criminal convictions of leaders in the Senate and Assembly for directing caucus and staff employees to engage in illegal political activity during their state employment. Nickolaus, a data analyst and computer specialist for Assembly Republicans, was granted immunity in 2001 by authorities conducting the investigation.

So, while Nickolaus may be right -- in fact, she probably is right -- that this was a massive human mistake, the public interest in ensuring a fair, accurate and competent election remains, particularily amidst the backdrop of questionable practices in her own office. We need to do more than take her word for it. Plus we need to make sure than reasonable measures are taken to ensure that it doesn't happen again.

A grand jury is necessary here not to go on a witch hunt or to order Nicklaus' head on a silver platter. To the contrary, the grand jury isn't just a prosecutor and a judge where the opinions of two lawyers guide the course of the proceedings. The grand jury is made up of Waukesha County citizens and with safety in numbers insulates the review process from potential accusations of collusion.

As a veteran public official Nickolaus should welcome the scrutiny. She should realize that her constituents, the candidates and the people of the entire state have a stake in ensuring the integrity of our elections. Toward that end the grand jury process should be open and transparent.

This is something much larger than whether Prosser or Kloppenburg wins. In fact, the candidates should equally welcome such an investigation because not to have one would mean that the winner will take office under a cloud of a potentially suspicious election instead of the light of a free, fair and competent electoral process.

A hat tip to my nephew Brian for the additional information about the 2006 incident.

This is what democracy looks like!

2011-04-06T20:25:00.000-07:00

At 11:45 this morning the epicenter of Wisconsin politics was, for a moment, the Town of Lake Mills in Jefferson County, the lone precinct not reporting votes in the nip and tuck battle by Justice David Prosser to keep his seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

An hour later the vote tally was completed and Prosser gained a net two votes which left challenger Joanne Kloppenburg, a relatively unknown veteran environmental prosecutor, with an unofficial 204 vote margin of victory in the hotly contested race.

It was a battle in which more than $3 million in special interest money was poured to promote one side or the other in what otherwise would have been a battle between two rather lackluster personalities but for it becoming a surrogate referendum on the administration of rookie Gov. Scott Walker.

The attack ads, robot phone calls, mass mailings and what have you brought a strong turnout for what is usually a mundane off-year spring election day. And it also brought some interesting results.

Kloppenburg trounced Prosser in Dane County, as expected, and he returned the compliment in Waukesha, Walworth, Washington and Ozaukee Counties. Racine and Kenosha pretty much cancelled each other out. Milwaukee went for Kloppenburg but the Fox Valley and most of northeastern and north central Wisconsin tipped in Prosser's favor.

All of this led to the nail biting exercise of waiting for stray unreported votes to come in from western Wisconsin. The La Crosse area was strongly for Kloppenburg. Then came Eau Claire, Chippewa and Dunn Counties which helped the previously little known Kloppenburg squeak past Prosser by 206 votes. And then it was down to the Town of Lake Mills which had some ballot issues the night before.

The major news media outlets stumbled trying to locate the missing vote tallies but just before seven this morning the weekly Lake Mills Leader reported on its website that 24 paper ballots needed to be counted and that would happen at 8:30 a.m. The major media outlets missed this.

A funny thing happened at 8:30 a.m. A quorum of canvassers wasn't rounded up so the tally was postponed until 11:45 a.m. with a proper notice of at least two hours given. This, too, was dutifully reported by the little Lake Mills Leader.

As Wisconsin waited for news as to whether Prosser could regain his lead and win reelection the major media outlets continued to chug along in blissful ignorance until about an hour before the adjourned canvass when they scrambled to find and get to the town hall.

And so it went. Under the watchful eyes of television cameras and hot lights the canvass plodded along for an hour before it was over. Dutifully at 12:58 p.m. the Lake Mills Leader updated its website with the Town of Lake Mills vote and, for an hour or so, the little weekly "scooped" the rest of the state with the news.

All the millions of dollars of special interest ad money, all the hype and noise of what passes for news reporting these days and all the anxiety surrounding this important political battle was reduced to a small room in a small town hall in rural Jefferson County dutifully, accurately and competently reported to the people of Wisconsin by the Lake Mills Leader.

As it should be.

Back in the 2000 presidential election one of the major party boffos was blowing steam about how demeaning it was that they had to spend time at city halls in Florida while votes were tallied. "What is this? A city council election?" was the arrogant salvo that made me smile.

No, it wasn't a city council election. It was American democracy reduced to its humble, basic level. Instead of a moment of shame, it was a proud observation that the high and mighty were made to cool their heels while local folks went through the process of trying to ensure that everyone's vote was counted.

As it should be.

For all the foulness of this election the sweetest breath of fresh air came for a brief moment at the Town of Lake Mills town hall where the high and mighty had to cool their heels and all the fancy expensive satellite trucks owned by well-heeled media conglomerates were upstaged by a little weekly newspaper.

This is what democracy looks like.

Are you better off than you were four years ago?

2011-04-06T19:54:00.000-07:00

As Barack Obama announces his bid for reelection next year and Republicans stuggle to find the equally most extreme candidate to alienate middle America, it's time to ask ourselves what Ronald Reagan suggested that we ask: "Are you better off than you were four years ago?"

Well, fair question. We're still seeing American men and women killed in the line of military duty and the National Guard on the front lines due to the lack of an indequately staffed regular armed forces. Our troops aren't back home and we're still meddling in the affairs of other nations.

Then there's the economy. Although there's a smidgen of light the fact is that too many people are out of work, too many people are working harder for less, too many jobs have been exported overseas and prices continue to go up -- especially groceries and gasoline.

I think I'll stop there because the rest would simply be piling on. Ronald Reagan once quipped when gasoline dipped below a buck a gallon, "Isn't it nice to see the gallons add up faster than the dollars."

Obama and his crew didn't fix our foreign policy or our economy. About the only hope we'll have for change is a few coins in our pocket after filling up the gas tank.

Cubs Win! Cubs Win! What if the Cubbies really did win the World Series?

2011-04-01T08:07:00.000-07:00

It's April Fool's Day and since the Kenosha News abandoned its popular front page April Fool's spoof maybe we could think of one of our own.

How about the Cubs winning the World Series?

How powerful would that be? So powerful that even in a city where "the fix is in" can usually dictate the outcome of things, the one place where it never worked is at Wrigley Field.

Oh, the Cubbies came close -- like the 2007 and 2008 National League Division Championships -- but what if they took the whole enchilada? After all, the last time the Cubs played in the World Series was 1908.

I think not.

The Cubs are popular as one of "America's teams" because they are the perennial underdogs, even with stellar players like Ernie Banks, Sammy Sosa, Ron Santo, Rick Sutcliffe and that Sandberg guy.

They play in a small park in which nothing's fancy -- that's the way Bleacher Bums like it -- and parking is a joke.

But it's also the place where the class acts like Banks and Santo and the loyal crowds spurred on by Jack "Hey! Hey!" Brickhouse and Harry "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" Caray had fun regardless of the final score.

A Cubs World Series appearance -- and hopefully a victory -- might change all that. Maybe success would go to their heads and the "friendly confines" would become not so friendly. Maybe one of the last vestiges of real major league baseball would begin its ultimate decline.

It would be like the coyote ultimately catching the roadrunner or Elmer actually shooting Bugs Bunny. It could very well be the demise of one of "America's teams."

Maybe a Cubs World Series victory would be the worst thing that could happen. Just maybe.

But there's absolutely nothing wrong with Cubs fans dreaming the impossible dream.

And there's always next year.

GOP: Labor and collective bargaining are good for America

2011-03-31T21:04:00.000-07:00

"Under the Republican Administration, as our country has prospered, so have its people. This is as it should be, for as President Eisenhower said: "Labor is the United States. The men and women, who with their minds, their hearts and hands, create the wealth that is shared in this country—they are America."

The Eisenhower Administration has brought to our people the highest employment, the highest wages and the highest standard of living ever enjoyed by any nation. Today there are nearly 67 million men and women at work in the United States, 4 million more than in 1952. Wages have increased substantially over the past 3 1/2 years; but, more important, the American wage earner today can buy more than ever before for himself and his family because his pay check has not been eaten away by rising taxes and soaring prices.

The record of performance of the Republican Administration on behalf of our working men and women goes still further.

The Federal minimum wage has been raised for more than 2 million workers.

Social Security has been extended to an additional 10 million workers and the benefits raised for 6 1/2 million.

The protection of unemployment insurance has been brought to 4 million additional workers. There have been increased workmen's compensation benefits for longshoremen and harbor workers, increased retirement benefits for railroad employees, and wage increases and improved welfare and pension plans for federal employees.

In addition, the Eisenhower Administration has enforced more vigorously and effectively than ever before, the laws which protect the working standards of our people.

Workers have benefited by the progress which has been made in carrying out the programs and principles set forth in the 1952 Republican platform.

All workers have gained and unions have grown in strength and responsibility, and have increased their membership by 2 millions.

Furthermore, the process of free collective bargaining has been strengthened by the insistence of this Administration that labor and management settle their differences at the bargaining table without the intervention of the Government.

This policy has brought to our country an unprecedented period of labor-management peace and understanding.

We applaud the effective, unhindered, collective bargaining which brought an early end to the 1956 steel strike, in contrast to the six months' upheaval, Presidential seizure of the steel industry and ultimate Supreme Court intervention under the last Democrat Administration.

The Eisenhower Administration will continue to fight for dynamic and progressive programs which, among other things, will:

Stimulate improved job safety of our workers, through assistance to the States, employees and employers;

Continue and further perfect its programs of assistance to the millions of workers with special employment problems, such as older workers, handicapped workers, members of minority groups, and migratory workers;

Strengthen and improve the Federal-State Employment Service and improve the effectiveness of the unemployment insurance system;

Protect by law, the assets of employee welfare and benefit plans so that workers who are the beneficiaries can be assured of their rightful benefits;

Assure equal pay for equal work regardless of Sex;

Federally-assisted construction, and maintain and continue the vigorous administration of the Federal prevailing minimum wage law for public supply contracts;

Extend the protection of the Federal minimum wage laws to as many more workers as is possible and practicable;

Continue to fight for the elimination of discrimination in employment because of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry or sex;

Provide assistance to improve the economic conditions of areas faced with persistent and substantial unemployment;

Revise and improve the Taft-Hartley Act so as to protect more effectively the rights of labor unions, management, the individual worker, and the public.

The protection of the right of workers to organize into unions and to bargain collectively is the firm and permanent policy of the Eisenhower Administration."

-- 1956 Republican National Platform

Would today's GOP call Ike a flaming liberal?

True definition of "Peace Officer"

2011-03-29T08:59:00.000-07:00

A well-written Wisconsin State Journal article about the chief of the Capitol Police. Click here to read.

Peter Barca for Governor? Don't laugh.

2011-03-28T21:24:00.000-07:00

Peter Barca, Kenosha's north side Assemblyman, sure found no honeymoon in his job as the leader of a distant minority in the Wisconsin Assembly.

Barca gained statewide attention for his leadership of the Assemnbly Democrats during the budget repair bill chaos. Assertive and articulate leadership makes Barca someone to watch -- plus his short stint in Congress is another tick on his resume.

Should Governor Walker be recalled it's a loosely kept secret that former Senator Russ Feingold would like to challenge him in the recall election but Feingold, just bounced out of Washington by Wisconsin voters, may not be the best choice for Democrats. Besides having just been defeated in a statewide race, Feingold is, well, the guy who Republicans will instantly paint as a liberal.

Barca has the brains but not the baggage and he may be a better choice for Democrats -- plus he's not from Madison or Milwaukee, another plus. He's clearly someone to watch.

If only he'd return his phone calls.

Slimy Scott Fitzgerald: Ends justify the means?

2011-03-26T23:10:00.000-07:00

What a week it was in Wisconsin government.

The Dane County District Attorney, acting on numerous citizen complaints, sued to void the collective bargaining law passed in shotgun fashion by the Fitzgerald brothers and crew and rapidly signed by Governor Scott Walker.

A circuit judge temporarily blocked the Secretary of State from publishing the new law until the claim that it's voidable because the Open Meetings Law was violated is resolved in court. The state attorney general says a circuit judge can't do that and asked the Court of Appeals to intervene. That court then entreated the Wisconsin Supreme Court to take the case, noting both side appear to have made some plausible arguments. An expedited decision is expected on whether the state's high school will step in.

But that's not fast enough or sure enough for Scott Fitzgerald.

The Legislative Reference Bureau published the law online Friday in a surprise move, after a meeting with Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau. But serious questions remain over whether the law went into effect Saturday — especially because Secretary of State Doug La Follette, who typically publishes laws, is barred from doing so by a restraining order.

Even the Reference Bureau says its move didn't put the law into effect. La Follette agrees. But Fitzgerald insists that the law is now law.

"I still do believe this will bring a conclusion," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, the legislation is in effect today."

Fitzgerald said he got the idea for the LRB to publish the law after reading a Wisconsin State Journal article earlier this month, which said laws don't take effect until one day after they are published with the LRB. Fitzgerald and his staff researched the statutes before meeting with Steve Miller, LRB director, on Friday morning to discuss the issue.

So what's wrong with this picture? Plenty.

Fitzgerald knew that the Wisconsin Supreme Court was poised to decided whether to take up the case challenging the bill's publication. That action could come "any day" yet Fitzgerald opted to attempt an "end run" around the judicial process.

Rather than shed light on a difficult situation, Fitagerald muddied the waters. Nobody really knows if the LRB's actions constitute lawful publication of a new law, something else the courts may need to sort out. Obviously Fitzgerald didn't make things any easier.

Like them or not, our courts exist for a reason -- to resolve legal disputes. That's what was in the works . when Fitzgerald jumped the gun and tried to do an end run around the judicial process. In so doing he thumbed his nose at our judicial process -- just another step in the "ends justify the means" mentality so prevalent in the Walker regieme.

OFFICER BIRKHOLZ: THANK YOU FOR PROTECTING AND SERVING US

2011-03-24T05:07:00.000-07:00

Here in Wisconsin we take time out from our political turmoil to reflect on a young man who left us all too soon.

Officer Craig Birkholz of the Fond du Lac Police Department, a decorated veteran, was essentially ambused Sunday morning by a crazed man who also critically wounded another officer and his canine partner before taking his own life.

Just 28 years old and married for less than two years, Officer Birkholz, a former Pleasant Prairie resident and Tremper High School graduate, Officer Birkholz already had a track record of commendable service. Birkholz , an Army veteran, served two tours, one in Afghanistan and one in Iraq. He survived multiple mortar attacks and had marveled that he had gone through two wars without firing a single shot. He was an honors graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh who had hopes of becoming a federal officer.

On Sunday morning Officer Birkholz was felled by gunfire on an ordinarily quiet Fond du Lac street -- a senseless attack that reminds us all of the dangers our police officers and firefighters face every day as they do jobs most of us wouldn't. All of us (including this ex-cop) who have served our communities know that we should live each day as if it is our last because one day we could be right.

As we mourn with and for the Birkholz family, it is fitting to laud the men and women of the Kenosha Police Department, especially Chief John Morrissey, who appropriately are treating the loss of Officer Birkholz as if it was one of our own, supporting the Fond du Lac Police Department in planning and executing funerals in Fond du Lac Wednesday and here in Kenosha on Friday and Saturday.

Those who have had the sad duty to attend one of these funerals will understand the impressive symbolism of hundreds of squad cars and officers who descend on a community to honor a fallen comrade. We also know that politicians will extend condolences, maybe make a speech, and there will be commentaries, like this one, decrying violence and the loss of human life all too soon.

All of this, however, was eclipsed Wednesday by a young girl who stood out in the sleeting afternoon to pay her respects. She held a handmade sign that simply stated, "THANK YOU FOR SERVING AND PROTECTING US!"

This young lady's words sums up the feeling of a grateful and mounful state.

Guest comment: Assemblyman Mark Pocan on the mess in Madison

2011-03-20T20:21:00.000-07:00

Here is Rep. Mark Pocan’s March 16 letter to Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald:

Usually a letter from me is filled with pointed humor. You will find none of that in this letter. I write today in the utmost somber of terms, out of fear for the institution of the Wisconsin Legislature.

In the past few months, we’ve seen the state Capitol completely locked down to the public and, at times, our own members couldn’t even get inside this building. We’ve seen a joint committee end a public hearing with members of the public still on the speaking list. We’ve seen the Assembly also shut off debate with members of both parties still on the speaking list and deny members the right to vote. You’ve literally silenced the minority party and the general public. That alone should give you pause.

Rather than heeding that pause, you pushed ahead and violated the open meetings law on multiple occasions. It is a sad day in Wisconsin when our legislative leaders think they are above the very laws we make.

Sen. Fitzgerald, after trying every trick in the book you could think of to compel members of the state Senate back to Wisconsin, you realized your gimmicks weren’t legal. But that didn’t stop you from threatening your own members with those gimmicks. Imagine my surprise when the headline in March 16’s paper read “Olive branch offered.” That’s an awfully nice headline for someone who was doing nothing more than acknowledging their own illegal threats.

Speaker Fitzgerald, never in my seven terms in the Assembly, one as member of leadership, have I witnessed leadership overreach so far that there were motions to remove both the speaker pro-temp and the speaker. I hope the gravity of this isn’t lost on you.

Gentlemen, the threats need to stop. Look around. Is this institution your family runs the same institution you want to look back upon 20 years from now with pride? I’ve served with both of you during my seven terms in the Legislature and I’ve enjoyed getting to know you. The Fitzgerald brothers that I got to know on the Joint Committee on Finance and in the Assembly are not the same men running Wisconsin’s Legislature right now.

So far this term, Wisconsin politics has sunk to a new low, something to be ashamed of. Contrary to media accounts, flip-flopping on potentially illegal threats isn’t the same as offering an olive branch. I believe just two and a half months into this legislative session, this institution is already beyond repair. Only time will tell if I’m right. For the sake of the integrity of the Wisconsin Legislature, I hope I’m wrong.

The state Legislature over the past few months has been transformed into a vindictive and malicious institution with severe repercussions. Last session, when Democrats controlled the majorities in both chambers, we never reached this far or violated our own rules in the manner in which you have done.

Issuing press releases and conducting press interviews isn’t going to put this genie back in the bottle. It is going to take hard work and long hours of reaching across the aisle. It may even mean standing up to your own governor the next time he illegally threatens to kick kids off BadgerCare or issue layoff notices to state workers as a pawn in his political game of chess.

The Legislative Fiscal Bureau hasn’t even released their summary of the governor’s budget bill, yet the few details the public has already gleaned from the bill make it wildly unpopular from the start. You have your work cut out for you in the coming months, as the state budget bill is surely going to be contentious. Will you continue to lead as you have the past few months, or will you use the beginning of this legislative session as a series of teachable moments to be learned from and improved upon? For the sake of the integrity of the Legislature and for the sake of all of Wisconsin, I hope you choose the latter.

As I write this, I do not have an answer of how to fix all that has gone wrong this session. However, simply assuming we can return to session as things have been for the past 100 years is just not possible. This Legislature will function long after we are all gone, but this shouldn’t be the standard we set. We owe more to this institution.

Please, gentlemen, put this genie back into the bottle.

Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, represents District 78 in the Assembly.

The Value of Education -- and Teachers

2011-03-20T11:07:00.000-07:00

A pharmacist friend in Jasper, Alberta said that she was appalled at the seemingly light sentences given to abusers who kill children while someone murdering a police officer gets a life sentence.

Her take on this disparity was, "How do you know that if this child grew up he wouldn't become a policeman?"

An interesting and provocative take which I recalled when thinking of the value of education and our teachers who seem to be under attack these days as overpaid (whoever though a teacher could be accused of that?) and greedy.

First, the facts. Here's what the Kenosha Unified School District, the state's third largest, pays teachers. Hardly outrageous salaries, even with benefits.

We all know that generally speaking high school graduates make more money than those who dropped out and college graduates usually make more than high school grads. That increased income, of course, turns around in our economy and helps pay the taxes that keep essential government services afloat.

More important, however, is that teachers in a child's life can mean the difference between success and failure. How do you know that this first grader won't become the scientist that discovers a cure for cancer? Or become the CEO of a major corporation? And, as the bumper sticker says, "If you can read this, thank a teacher."

So, if our teachers contribute to the success of these future scientists and corporate wizards -- as well as those who are just ordinary folks in our communities who are the nurses, restaurant owners, physicians, police officers and firefighters -- then maybe they deserve better compensation because of their importance to society and our communities. Of course, our strained budgets don't permit this to happen but at least our teachers deserve to keep what they already have as well as our respect for the work that they do.

Here in Wisconsin, we have an excellent state university system -- which Governor Walker and some politicians want to dismantle -- as well as an educated workforce and a fairly good technical college system that needs some juice to remain competitive in today's rapidly changing world.

Despite some lapses in central city environments -- after all, teachers aren't miracle workers for kids who come to school without parental and community support -- our educational system does a pretty darn good job. We don't top or come near to the top of the college test scores every year without some credit going to our schools and teachers. (And who do we compete with for the top honors? Iowa and Minnesota -- our neighbors who also have made education a priority public policy.)

So this begs the question of why Wisconsin doesn't do more to promote quality education as a business incentive. Our neighbors in Iowa -- which has the nation's highest literacy rate -- got that a long time ago. The Des Moines area capitalizes on attractiving clean industry in the form of banking, insurance, finance and high technology. Why isn't Wisconsin -- and more specifically, Kenosha -- doing more to attract these industries and jobs?

The manufacturing glory days are long behind us and hitching our wagons to falling stars isn't all that productive for the state's economy and finances. Education should have been a marketing tool a long time ago and should be now -- except that shortsighted politicians want to dilute its viability, not just in terms of dollars but also in terms of respect. Further, the state's political instability doesn't lend itself to attracting high tech industries and workers.

Our state's future depends on education -- and those who are smart enough not only to realize it, but to capitalize on it.

More on Journal Communications and hypocrisy

2011-03-18T22:34:00.000-07:00

An anonymous sufferer from rectal-cranial inversion chose to write me about the observations made about the $2 million compensation package laden with fringe benefits paid last year to the CEO of Journal Communications, the parent company of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel which, even today, editorialized that public employees should not be allowed to collectively bargain over "benefits."

This jerkoff wrote: "Quit belly-aching about PRIVATE SECTOR pay. If you don't like it, BUY THEIR STOCK and vote the guy out."

This goofball misses the point. It wasn't the pay the CEO received that was at issue. After all, it's only $752,000 out of two million bucks and some change. But that's one of the major points -- all the "benefits" and bonuses that nearly tripled the base pay.

So many people want government to be run like a business and, quite frankly, to the extent it's possible I am one of them. But when was the last time a government employee received even a fraction of the bonuses, incentives, options and other goodies this CEO got? Instead the newspaper editorializes that government workers are overpaid compared to the private sector and should have their benefits cut while its corporate parent showers its brass with bennies that government employees would never dream of.

Let's even take a stab at some of that "lavish" government pay. The state is the biggest public law firm in Wisconsin with hundreds of lawyers yet the top pay -- a level few state attorneys will ever reach -- is less than the starting pay for associates at Foley and Lardner, Wisconsin's largest private law firm, also with hundreds of lawyers. I guess if we want parity with the private sector, then there are hundreds of state lawyers entitled to some pretty hefty raises.

On the hyprocrisy meter, the Journal-Sentinel maxes out as "disingenuously hypocritical."

Ethics at the Journal-Sentinel??? Stop the presses!!!

2011-03-17T22:36:00.000-07:00

This tidbit -- ironically from the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel -- makes for some interesting reading:

Steven J. Smith, the chairman, chief executive and president of Journal Communications Inc., received total compensation of more than $2 million last year/ Smith received a salary of $752,000, bonus of $97,760, stock awards valued at $452,500, non-equity incentive plan compensation of $391,040, change in pension value and nonqualified deferred compensation earnings of $312,211 and other compensation of $13,442 for a total of $2,018,953, the company's proxy statement shows.

That's up 39.7% from 2009, when Smith made $1,445,492. Journal Communications posted a profit of $34.4 million in 2010, up 698% from $4.3 million in 2009.

So the Journal-Sentinel whines on the editorial page that state workers are overcompensated and should suck up massive pay cuts to match the suffering workers in the private sector yet its parent company lavishly fawns dollars and bonuses on corporate brass, perks which are never available to government workers.

Anyone smell hypocrisy here? Or maybe another Koch ho??

Where are the moderate Republicans?

2011-03-11T04:54:00.000-08:00

Paul Soglin -- who started his political career as Madison's "hippie mayor" but turned out to be one of the best friends the Chamber of Commerce ever had -- laments in his blog that Wisconsin needs moderate Republicans to step up to the plate and lead us out of our current mess in Madison.

He's right. The problem, however, is that Main Street Republicans are a dying breed and the nation is far poorer for it.

Once upon a time Republicans by and large were the farmers and merchants -- folks who made our communities tick -- and the notion of conservatism wasn't a litmus test because while Republicans often held conservative core values they did not proclaim rigid orthodoxy.

Republicans favored a sound dollar, a flourishing economy, strong defense and less government. Less government, not "no government." This meant that government should stick to its core functions and not do goofy things.

Those moderate Republicans were the backbone of our communities and, more often than not, the saviors of our nation.

Indiana's Richard Lugar, before becoming an international relations expert in the Senate, pioneered the Indianapolis-Marion County "Unigov" which improved delivery of services on a regional basis at less cost to taxpayers. Teddy Roosevelt was a devoted conservationist who gave us pure food and drug laws. Richard Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency. Ronald Reagan tirelessly fought to break down the barriers of communism in Eastern Europe.

But here at home it was Republican Dwight Eisenhower who put the U.S. into space and stepped up to the plate to begin the battle for civil rights for all Americans. Not only did Ike send federal troops into Little Rock to carry out school desegregation but the federal judges he appointed were often the only recourse blacks in the south had prior to enactment of civil rights legislation.

On that subject, it was Republicans who blasted President Kennedy's proposed civil rights bill as too weak and his successor called upon Senator Everett McKinley Dirksen of Illinois to marshal the votes needed to enact the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964. In one of our nation's most tumultuous times Main Street Republicans saved the nation.

But somewhere along the way Republicans moved away from Main Street and as Democrats moved further to the left the GOP embraced the extreme ideology of the right. Ronald Reagan's "big tent" was torn to shreds and hauled away.

At a time when our nation -- and this state -- need the Eisenhowers and Dirksens we instead get the Shiite wing of the Republican Party.

There's a reason for recalls

2011-03-10T21:59:00.000-08:00

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel editorializes that the transgressions of state senators of both parties don't justify recalling them and that lawmakers should be able to do their jobs without looking over their shoulders.

Wrong.

The editorial's premise that hasty recalls are ill-advised is sound. But the current shenanigans by the Senate and Assembly Republicans are living proof of why recall opportunities exist.
This is not to let the Democrats off scot free. If you perceive their leaving the state in order to stall a preordained vote on some very bad legislation as a transgression it's still not up to the level that should trigger a recall. The same can't be said for the Republicans.

Let's start with the notion of a preordained vote. Not unprecedented but here the so-called "budget repair bill" would have unraveled 50 years of precedent in a matter of days with no meaningful public input. In fact, before the Joint Finance Committee commenced its hastily called public hearing announcements were made that Governor Walker "had the votes" to get his way. Why bother with a public hearing that was nothing more than a sham process?

More important, the justification for recall is found not in the shenanigans -- including an unlawful misuse of state troopers to pressure the missing senators -- but rather in the Republicans forfeiting the very purpose of their office. It is the legislative branch that is supposed to set policy and the executive carries it out.

Here the GOP legislators couldn't move fast enough to cow-tow to the executive, ignoring that the three branches of government exist to provide a system of checks and balances. No dissent, no meaningful debate -- it's Walker's way or the highway. Why should the Democrats return when their input will ne for naught?

A friend once chaired the Michigan Senate's appropriations committee. I once asked him if he thought of running for governor. He replied, "Why should I? When he wants something he has to come and see me."

As it should be. The lock-step rigidity in abdicating our system of checks and balances alone justifies recall.

Guest Comment: Open For Business Starts With Quality Education

2011-03-07T21:18:00.000-08:00

My wife's first letter to the editor:

Governor Walker says, “This ultimately is about the future of our state.” He’s correct. This fiasco he’s created IS about the future of Wisconsin. Under his plan, the future of our state looks very bleak.

Drastic cuts for schools mean much larger class sizes and major cuts or elimination of programs such as music, theater, sports, advanced placement, etc. – all directly affecting our children. Is this good for Wisconsin?

Wisconsin’s SAT scores are second in the nation! There are five states that don’t allow collective bargaining for teachers, all of which are at or near the bottom in SAT scores! Is that what we want for Wisconsin?

People move to Wisconsin for our quality educational system. What will happen with the Governor’s plan? Will people continue to move here when the test scores plummet? Will businesses come to Wisconsin if they are unable to find well-prepared students? Will quality teachers come to Wisconsin for a lower salary? Is this good for the future of Wisconsin?

The longer this fiasco continues, the more divided Wisconsin becomes. This division will last for years to come. Is this good for the future of Wisconsin?

The Governor’s plan and his uncompromising attitude will affect Wisconsin’s future, not positively as he tries to convince us, but in a far-reaching negative way.

I applaud the 14 senators who have put their careers at risk to stand up for what they believe in – a bright future for Wisconsin!

Please consider deeply what kind of future you want for Wisconsin and our children. And while you’re at it, say a prayer for our leaders.

Politicians Misuse State Patrol?

2011-03-04T20:28:00.000-08:00

Early 20th century state police forces had little resemblance to modern professional law enforcement but were oft known for being strikebreakers. The growth of the trade union movement saw resistance to creation of such units for fear they would be misused. The public concern about this resulted in the Wisconsin State Patrol having specific prohibitions imposed on it by the legislature:

"No state traffic officer shall be used in or take part in any dispute or controversy between employer or employee concerning wages, hours, labor or working conditions; nor shall any such officer be required to serve civil process. The department may assign state traffic officers to safeguard state officers or other persons." [Wis. Stat. s. 110.07(2m)]

Fast forward to the past couple of weeks where state troopers were sent to the homes of the 14 State Senate Democrats who left the state to delay passage of the so-called "budget repair bill." Troopers were also used for "security" at the state capitol during nearly two weeks of public employee protests. And now the Republicans in the State Senate want law enforcement officers to round up the 14 Democrats whom they've cited for contempt.

Not only is it a slippery slope, it's arguably an unlawful misuse of the state patrol. You'd think the powers that be over at the state patrol would be slapping some folks up, pointing out that troopers have no business getting anywhere near a labor dispute and no authority to serve civil process such as that being promulgated by the Senate Republicans to arrest their opposition.

Of course, you'd think in Wisconsin that the director of the Wisconsin State Patrol would be free of political influence -- well, as free as a Governor's appointee can be -- but newbie Gov. Scott Walker carried nepotism to a new low as his director is none other than the father of the Fitzgerald boys who are the Republican leaders in both houses of the legislature. I guess when you're in the family business you don't bother with such things as reading the law that governs your agency.

The Damage To Our Capitol

2011-03-03T20:53:00.000-08:00

For as long as I can remember Wisconsin has been a special place. (Even as a little boy I would note that the restrooms in Illinois stores seemed dirtier!) It was a place to be proud of -- with progressive traditions which put us a cut above other places.

Madison, too, was a special place, and not just because I went to school there. I have family born and raised in Madison. Even though I tilt more conservative than many in Dane County I still feel at home in what was often called the isthmus surrounded by reality. Long ago a girlfriend once remarked, "It seems like your blood pressure drops once you've crossed the Dane County line."

She was right. At night the dome of our beautiful state capitol -- a somewhat smaller cousin of the United States Capitol -- shined as a beacon for miles guiding me home.

As for the building itself, I had the privilege to work in it and appreciate the marble, engraved door knobs and history of the building. It truly does belong to the people and can be inspirational.

And for two weeks our capitol was the focus of probably the largest peaceful assembly to seek a redress of grievances in our nation's history.

But our governor ordained that the capitol should be closed to the people, the demonstrators kicked out and the public -- even legislators -- denied meaningful access to our capitol. Our capitol. Ours.

Then tonight I heard a shocking report that there may be $6-7 million damage to the building blamed on the protest. If true, it's heartbeaking that a priceless beacon of hope could be tarnished. But from all accounts I've heard the protest was well controlled and vandalism was not the order of the day.

Whatever the repair cost, tho, the damage to our state done by the shotgun bobblehead legislature and our corrupt governor far exceeds it. Marble and concrete can be polished and fixed. Our state's tarnished reputation is a tougher repair.

The corruption which cut into our institutions -- and even our state's soul -- cannot be calculated in dollars and cents. It may be irreparable.

And our capitol? It's still beautiful. But instead of being a beacon of hope, it reeks not so much of the body odor of thousands of demonstrators but of the stench of corruption. Spic-and-Span and opening the doors and windows won't get rid of that.

Missing: A Branch of Government

2011-02-23T22:32:00.000-08:00

One of my political mentors was Charlie Zollar, shrewd as he was affable and chair of the powerful Michigan Senate Appropriations Committee -- perhaps more accurately the powerful chair of the powerful Michigan Senate Appropriations Committee.

In his Lansing office I once asked the upwardly mobile Charlie if he thought about running for governor.

"Why the Hell would I want to do that," he bellowed. "When he wants something he has to come and see me."

Charlie's lesson was that there's more than one branch of government and the executive must work with and get along with the legislative. (Of course, here in Wisconsin, the judicial branch is in its own world of discord and cow-towing to well-heeled special interests, but that's a story for another day."

In the current budget adjustment bill chaos in Madison Governor Walker has firm allies among the Republicans in the Senate and Assembly to the point where the Fitzgerald bobbleheads who run both houses say that the bill will pass without any amendments. Wow! They're right -- Walker's grip on them is so tight that there is no dissent, no individual thinking -- just rote compliance.

That's too bad. The three branches of government are supposed to serve as checks and balances. But in present-day Wisconsin we have bobbleheads.

For sale: Wisconsin. Contact Governor Scott Walker.

2011-02-23T20:11:00.000-08:00

In Casablanca Captain Louis Renault, Rick's amiably corrupt police friend, utters a famous line, "I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!" as he collects his winnings.

The same can be said for politics in Madison. The teachers and parents whose perception of Wisconsin government is based on what they taught or learned in the fourth and ninth grades certainly have had their ideals crushed by seeing politics as usual in the raw -- except carried to unprecedented new lows.

It is said that the mark of a good politician is the ability to conceal envy when accusing the opponent of screwing the public. Our brand new governor doesn't even bother to conceal it. His ego and delusional behavior have shown that he is immune to criticism. He doesn't care.

Wisconsin has weathered some rather controversial coziness in recent years. Tommy Thompson had lots of business friends but he sought to be a people's governor. Jim Doyle's ties to Indian gaming interests left heads shaking. But that's chump change compared to Scott Walker.

Walker is like the emperor caught with his pants down. His telephone conversation with a blogger posing as one of his campaign contributors shows that Walker's agenda isn't fixing the state budget but becoming a self-aggrandizing union buster. Further, Walker unabashedly discusses his strategy for crushing Democrats in the legislature, pretending that he would discuss the budget with the opposition but only as a trick to get boycotting Senate Democrats back into the State Capitol so majority Republicans can ram through his so-called "budget repair bill."

Much of what Walker says in the 20 minute conversation was embellishing his image, ego and message. No major smoking gun, to be sure. But the indifference to the process is shocking even for those who have seen Madison politics at its worst in the past. Walker seems oblivious to the concerns of others. There is only one way -- his way and don't delay.

Past abuses and an unwillingness to cut budget pork and pass the hat to pay for core services means Wisconsin legislators must make hard choices. There is a process for doing that and it involves give and take. That's too deep for college dropout Walker who seeks to dump Wisconsin's progressive traditions for temporary expediency and sucking up to his financial backers.

The real message from Scott Walker isn't that these are tough times and we need to work together to solve tough problems. It's that he and Wisconsin are for sale to the highest bidders.

Kenosha County Board: Right call, wrong way

2011-02-22T22:12:00.000-08:00

By a 19-9 vote tonight the Kenosha County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution opposing Governor Scott Walker's so-called "budget repair bill."

Though largely symbloic -- our new governor seems to only hear those who agree with him 100% -- the board's resolution carries the right message. Supporters, many of whom were either union members or from union families (or both), make it clear that collective bargaining is an essential part of our state's fabric and should not be tossed out the window in order to address the state's fiscal issues and, in fact, should be used as a tool to accomplish that objective.

The fly in the ointment tonight was that this resolution wasn't the only one on the agenda.

Supervisor Joe Clark, a Pleasant Prairie Republican, offered up two resolutions supporting Walker but the board sent his to a committee -- essentially neutering them -- while voting to suspend its rules to take up the one opposing the budget bill.

Board chair Mark Molinaro told supervisors that even though the resolutions could be voted on separately they could be debated together but nonetheless they voted to consider only one tonight. That's wrong.

Sure, Clark's resolutions probably would have gone down to well-deserved defeats, but it's only fair that if the rules are going to be suspended for one, they should have been for all.

Why it's difficult to solve a state budget crisis

2011-02-19T14:21:00.000-08:00

A few years ago I was with my friend, Brian, and his dad, an Alberta legislator and right-hand man to "King Ralph" Klein, Alberta's long-time Conservative premier, an earthy ex-broadcaster who had the good fortune to be running an oil-rich province.

We were watching a hockey game with Ralph who was peppering some young people with questions about government that you won't find in a civics test. Ralph kept hammering them with the same question that they stumbled to answer -- What's the number one goal of every elected official?

Finally King Ralph bellowed the answer: To get reelected!

Concise, to the point and hardly rocket science but true indeed and that very crusty piece of reality should be in our minds as ponder our state's financial mess. It didn't happen overnight and solving it isn't as easy as cutting spending, gutting union contracts and the unions that negotiated them or eliminating "waste" in government. Partisanship also doesn't work as every party is equally to blame. One day you're the bug, next day you're the windshield.

Let's go back to the early 1970's when Pat Lucey was the governor who touted a "no tax increase" state budget except that there were dozens of fee hikes and cuts in shared revenue to schools and local units of governments. Maybe the state income tax rate didn't increase but taxpayers shelled out more for license plates, tuition and local property taxes.

Things went well to the point that when Pat quit to become Ambassador to Mexico, Marty Schreiber, his successor, was blessed with a billion dollar surplus which, he argued, should be socked away for a rainy day.

But my dear friend and mentor, Lee Sherman Dreyfus, rode the mantra of giving the surplus back to taxpayers as he swept into the Governor's office in 1978 and legislative Democrats, not to be outdone, blasted Dreyfus' plan to distribute the largess as favoring the affluent. Lee countered by telling the Democrats to feel free to come up with their own plan, which they did and it gave back more than Dreyfus asked. The net check to each taxpayer, as I recall, came out to something like $80 which, even in 1979, wasn't a lot.

Things changed and as Lee left office in 1983 the state's finances began to sour and the new governor, Tony Earl, sure wished he had that rainy day fund. Instead Earl and his Democrats imposed a temporary income tax surcharge.

To their credit, it got the job done without significant pain and was even terminated ahead of schedule. Instead of being a hero, Tony was hailed by challenger Tommy Thompson as "Tony the taxer" and that manta cost Tony reelection in 1986.

Of course Tommy and his successor, Jim Doyle, each had their special projects and even when the economy went south during Doyle's second term we saw ridiculous special interest spending at the same time employees providing core services were being furloughed and constituent services curtailed.

So, from this inside perspective, here's your reality check.

First, cutting "waste" and "fat" in government sounds great in a political ad but rarely happens in a meaningful way and, even when attempted, usually fails. Think about it. If you really cut out the waste and fat, then you wouldn't have any more to cut, right? That's assuming the best-case scenario. In reality, trimming government fat may stub special interest toes and that doesn't help reelection chances.

Second, when cuts are made, it's usually core services that are attacked, not the pet projects.

So, if you really want to cut spending, you need to empower the folks who run the show on a day-to-day basis to spend taxpayer money as if it was their own. It seldom happens. And special interest spending must take a back seat to funding core services.

The reality is also that even if you've cut as much as you can, it may not be enough. Prices go up and the state is a consumer like the rest of us. Without a rainy day fund socked away -- something we encourage people to have -- the state gets into a frenzy to address budget defecits because there was no planning for them. When my home was flooded I had to dip into savings to make repairs. Same for medical emergencies not covered by insurance.

Between Lee "giving back the cookie jar" and Tony getting his head chopped off for actually raising taxes, albeit temporarily, you're not likely to see the state do anything meaningful to truly manage its finances. Doing so would violate King Ralph's rule #1.

And if you don't believe me, ask Tony the Taxer.

Nobody likes paying taxes and no politician likes raising them.

The Elephant In The Room

2011-02-19T08:14:00.000-08:00

If they step back, many of my soon-to-be-ex-friends who are bashing Wisconsin's public employees will see that their real angst isn't at the men and women who sacraficed increased pay for those benefits but rather with the elephant in the room: uncontrolled health care costs.

I'm hearing from people who say it cost them $1800 a month for their health insurance (which can be deducted from their taxes if they are self-employed or part of a corporation, by the way, unlike employees who have to meet unreasonably high threshholds before a deduction becomes available). Ironically the state pays that much and more for family coverage for its employees, particularly in southeast Wisconsin where we have some of the most expensive health care costs in the nation.

This is the elephant in the room they're missing. The real beef isn't with the workers but with the outrageous cost for health care that simply isn't being held in check. Say what you want about "Obamacare" but its biggest flaw is that it dodged cost containment. Without costs in check the bill is a disaster, even if you like the concept.

I lived in Canada so I'd like to tell you about the Canadian system which, although not perfect, is a starting point. Canadians see their doctors, just as we do. Instead of having a gazillion different insurance companies with a gazillion different sets of costly rules and procedures, there is a single payer: your province. There are no hospitals across the street from each other using your health care dollars to run ads on TV and in the newspapers. Drugs aren't covered but drug costs are a fraction of what they are here. The only real problem is that you don't get instant elective surgery. The system isn't perfect but it works and Canadians zealously defend it.

One tremendous aspect of the Canadian system that we don't understand is that it spreads the cost of health care. This is important because it allows small businesses to compete for employees as the cost of health care is borne by all taxpayers. There are no $1800 monthly premiums.

So, if this system works, why isn't it available here? Good question.

Let's see. The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel is part of Journal Commuinications, a conglomerate that also owns other newspapers and broadcast outlets. Even the Kenosha News does. Do you think editorial writers are going to bite the very hands of the advertisers? And the health care industry contibutes mightily to politicians so good luck getting anything done there.

So, here's my take. Take away my insurance benefits and give me the Canadian health care system. I'll gladly pay for my supplemental policy to cover dental, vision and drugs (as many Canadians do or their unions negotiate).

My friends, your beef isn't with fellow workers. It's with a corrupt health care system that's run amok and the corrupt politicians and institutions afraid to do anything about it.

Steve Lund: A ‘yes man’ in every key job

2011-02-19T07:05:00.000-08:00

by Steve Lund - Kenosha News

If everyone wasn’t already up in arms about Gov. Scott Walker’s legislative proposals, they might be talking about how many of his actions are too sleazy for Wisconsin’s good-government tradition.

Sleazy move No.1:

He appointed Steve Fitzgerald, 68, father of Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Assembly Speaker Jeff Fitzgerald, to a nice job as head of the State Patrol. Technically, the appointment was made by Transportation Secretary Mark Gottlieb, but Gottlieb is also a Walker appointee.

It’s good that the appointee, a former county sheriff and former U.S. Marshal, is well qualified for the job, but there are probably quite a few people who could fill the position. This appointment to a job paying $105,700 annually adds cement to the bond between the governor and the Fitzgerald brothers who lead the state Legislature.

The governor has little or no control over whom other legislators elect to the leadership positions in the Assembly and Senate, but he did have an effect on the Republicans becoming the majority party in both the chambers. Walker helped to lead a Republican sweep in November, and he helped the Fitzgerald brothers vault from being minority leaders to majority leaders. It’s a huge difference in terms of influence.

They’ve shown their appreciation by rushing almost all of the governor’s proposals through a special session of the Legislature.

With their father’s appointment to head the State Patrol, they have even more reason to show their appreciation to the governor.

Sleazy move No. 2

: Walker proposed taking collective bargaining rights away from public employees, except police officers and firefighters.

Why, if the issue is fixing the state budget, should police and firefighters be exempt? One answer is that some, if not all, police and firefighters unions supported Walker in the campaign. A better answer is that police to some extent and firefighters to a greater extent are popular.

Walker may be correct that most private-sector workers are resentful of the pension and health benefits state workers and teachers have. That doesn’t mean the public thinks the right to bargain collectively about those things should be taken away. Walker could negotiate the changes in benefits without rewriting state labor law.

But even if the voting public resents the better health insurance and pensions that public sector workers have, they like police service and they treat firefighters like heroes. The Legislature might think twice about changing the bargaining rules for cops and firefighters.

Wednesday afternoon it began to look like the Legislature was having second thoughts anyway and would propose “substantive” amendments. That was a big change from Tuesday, when legislative leaders announced they had the votes to pass Walker’s proposal before any testimony was heard at the public hearing.

Sleazy move No. 3:

Gov. Walker wants to fill more jobs with political appointees. Former Gov. Jim Doyle fought (with his own party) to keep the secretary of the Department of Natural Resources a political appointee, but Gov. Walker also wants public information officers and the lawyers for state agencies to be political appointees. This has nothing to do with fixing the budget, but it’s part of the budget repair bill.

The Wisconsin League of Conservation Voters’ newsletter had this to say about the political appointees: “The citizens of Wisconsin have the right to expect that the spokespeople who provide information to the public and the state’s lawyers who administer justice are doing their jobs in the interest of the citizens of the state. Government employees should not have to be worried that they could be fired at any time for providing truthful information or representation that is displeasing to the governor.”

Add it up, and Gov. Walker would get a pretty high score on the Sleaze-o-meter. He’s building an environment where it will be very difficult for anyone to disagree with him.

Kenosha News: Slow down and talk about budget repair bill

2011-02-18T15:43:00.000-08:00

Sometime in the middle of the day Thursday, the special legislative session officially became a circus.

Demonstrators protesting Gov. Scott Walker’s budget repair bill, which strips public employee unions of many of their collective bargaining rights, had been sleeping overnight in the state Capitol. High school students were walking out of schools in Kenosha and staging their own demonstrations. In other cities, so many teachers took personal days or called in sick so they could go to the demonstrations in Madison that schools had to close.

But what really turned the session into a circus was the the Democratic members of the state Senate refusing to show up for a floor session. It was the only way they could think of to prevent the Republican majority from passing Walker’s bill. The Senate needs 20 members present to pass a fiscal bill, and there are only 19 Republican senators.

The Democratic senators were reported to be out of the state so they could be out of the reach of the Wisconsin State Patrol, which the Senate majority leader said could be sent to bring them to the Senate chamber.

It is reminiscent of a situation in Texas several years ago, when legislators fled to Oklahoma to prevent the majority party from passing a redistricting plan.

Circus-like or not, the Democratic senators’ action may have forced the one thing that’s needed most right now: A deep breath. Everyone, including the Republican majority in the Legislature, ought to slow down.

The legislation that the governor proposed has enormous implications, not just for the short-term financial problems it purports to fix. The Senate and Assembly were scheduled to vote on the bill on Thursday, just a week after the governor announced the plan.

It is not reasonable to expect workers who are directly affected by the governor’s bill to accept the changes as legitimate when they have had so little time to absorb them and when they have not had a chance to influence the legislation.

In our view, the governor is correct that public sector workers ought to be paying more for their health insurance and pensions, but the legislation he has proposed goes far beyond that. He has proposed taking away their rights to bargain for anything other than wages, and he wants to put a cap on the wage negotiations.

We think the governor, the Legislature and the residents of Wisconsin would be well served if this process would slow down. Now we have demonstrators shouting and disrupting the legitimate work of elected officials, but they might not be shouting if they were ever given a genuine chance to be heard. On Wednesday Republican leaders announced they had the votes to pass the bill when a public hearing on it had barely begun.

If the governor believes he needs an emergency budget repair bill, he should propose one that makes emergency repairs, not something that rewrites the state’s collective bargaining laws. Had he done that in the first place, this circus might not have happened.

Chris Abele: Is this numbskull for real?

2011-02-03T20:21:00.000-08:00

Scott Walker's election as Governor leaves Milwaukee County with an interesting cast of characters seeking to replace him as county executive. Perhaps the most interesting is relatively unknown, but well-heeled, Chris Abele.

Abele flashes onto our television screens out of the blue proclaiming that he's the candidate above partisanship, willing to embrace good ideas no matter where they come from. Sounds great, eh?

Not so fast.

Travelers in the desert report seeing mirages. At first they appear clear but when you approach them they become fuzzy and disappear when they are reached. Abele is reminiscent of such a mirage.

For example, one of his campaign ads says he'll cut of "perks" -- his word -- for county officials such as cell phones. Say what?

In case he hasn't checked, it's 2011 and most of the executive world is welded to smart phones that enable voice and data communication. It's how business is done these days and the mantra that government should operate more like a business is basically sound.

And it doesn't have to be just executives. When there's a crisis in the building -- like an overflowing toilet -- and custodians are needed, what's the best way to get in touch with them?

Instead of being a good steward of taxpayer money, someone who advocates such looniness is not only dumb, but costly.

Then there's his newest idea, resurrecting the notion that consolidating services is more efficient and cost effective. Sometimes it is, sometimes not. But one of Abele's ideas also comes right out of the loonie bin.

Abele says that the Milwaukee Police Department should take over investigations from the Milwaukee County Sheriff's Department. Again, at first blush those who are not familiar with law enforcement might think it's an idea worth pursuing. In reality, though, it's another mirage.

Sheriffs are the chief law enforcement officers in the county with broad authority. Milwaukee County is bit unique because there are no unincorporated areas but the sheriff has specialized enforcement responsibility over county-owned property such as te courthouse, Mitchell Field, county institutions, the Milwaukee County Zoo, the jail and House of Correction, parks and so forth. County detectives also deal with cross-jurisdictional issues and witness protecton.

Not only is the law enforcement responsibility for these properties a matter of law, it's a matter of expertise. County officers know these facilities and their enforcement needs which are not necessarily the same as in a municipality. Shifting these duties would be a costly boondoggle, requiring training scores of officers. Further, the city would need to hire more personnel and the new hires might not have sufficient experience to replace the competence level lost by reassignment of experienced officers to duties performed by sheriff's detectives.

This is not to say that Abele's mantra of being creative and open-minded is entirely flawed. It isn't. But the more he floats dumb idea, the more his incompetence is unmasked. That's scary.

Iowa Supreme Court Vote: The Silent Majority Speaks

2010-11-14T21:49:00.000-08:00

Last year the Iowa Supreme Court penned a unanimous decision interpreting the state constitution as permitting same-sex marriage. I read the opinion and found no historical or legal basis for the curious holding that embraced such legal scholarship as referring to Iowa's state motto ("Our Liberties We Prize and Our Rights We Will Maintain").

The ensuing firestorm was predictable. Gay marriage supporters praised Iowa's "enlightened" approach while opponents feared the Hawkeye State would become the next Sodom and Gomorrah. Also predictable was that the next judicial election would set the stage for what amounted to a surrogate gay marriage referendum.

Iowa does not elect judges. They're appointed. But there are periodic "retention" elections where voters get to say "yes" or "no" on whether a judge is retained in office.

Bob Vander Plaats, a Republican who lost a bid to be Iowa's governor, spearheaded the effort to oust three of Iowa's seven Supreme Court justices. His campaign prediactably got a chunk of right-wing campaign change.

On the flip side, a counter-campaign endorsed by former Gov. Bob Ray, a moderate Republican and friend of mine, expressed concerns that failure to retain these justices would set the stage for more politicized judicial elections and interfere with judicial independence.

The truth is that both sides had meritorious arguments. The controversial decision was flawed. Despite the contortionist efforts to weave the Iowa constitution to support same-sex marriage, one is hard-pressed to envision how the framers of that constitution would have envisioned it embracing gay marriage in 1846.

On the flip side, concerns over judicial independence are not entirely without merit. Judicial elections here in Wisconsin have become increasingly politicized. Concerns over special interest groups being able to hijack an election are generally justified.

At the end of the day, however, Iowa voters bounced the three justices out of office. Iowa voters did this, not out-of-state special interest groups. Lest anyone think this is anything other than Iowa common sense pulling in the reins on judicial activism, this is the same state that boosted a guy named Barack Obama on his way to becoming president in 2008.

While I'm conceptually sympathetic to the concerns about special interests frustrating judicial independence, the retention election exists for a reason. All Iowans did was exercise their right to vote on the performance of their judiciary.

For their part, the ousted justices essentially didn't campaign. That's too bad. If there was a sound basis for the same-sex marriage decision, then they should have been proud to defend it against a political challenge. Did they seriously think there would be no fallout? Perhaps voters saw more than just a controversy over same-sex marriage -- judicial arrogance on top of judicial activism.

A huge change in Kenosha County?

2010-11-02T22:39:00.000-07:00

For decades being a Republican in Kenosha County was an exercise in futility. Democrats had a lock on things, except perhaps in the rural Assembly district where Samantha Kerkman, despite an aggressive challenge from Democrat Steve Brown, easily won reelection.

That was then. Take a look at "now."

The Republican hurricane hit Kenosha County, to be sure. Look at the race for governor:

Candidates Votes %

Walker/Kleefisch (REP) 24246 50.92%

Barrett/Nelson (DEM) 22835 47.96%

Not only did the GOP carry Kenosha County in the governor's race, it also picked up the bulk of the votes for U.S. Senate despite the fact Senator Russ Feingold's sister in a Kenoshan:

Candidates Votes %

Ron Johnson (REP) 24596 51.55%

Russ Feingold (DEM) 22514 47.19%

Now I've always felt that people who cast straight party ballots in rote fashion have succeeded, at a minimum, in checking their brains outside the door of citizenship but the tale of straight party ballots in Kenosha County is telling:

Candidates Votes %

Democratic (DEM) 11197 49.88%

Republican (REP) 11113 49.51%

While Democrats still outpaced Republicans in terms of straight ticket ballots in Kenosha County, the difference is statistically miniscule. Granted the GOP picked up a boost from protest votes -- the extent of which can't be assessed now -- but for a county where the GOP for so long was a virtual non-entity, these numbers suggest that the union-sustained lock on Kenosha County voters may well have been broken.

FLASH: Eugene Kane gets it (really, sorta)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2010-10-03T08:28:00.000-07:00

Eugene Kane, The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel's resident purveyor of "victim mentality" broke with tradition today and offered significant insight on Milwaukee's dubious distinction as the nation's fourth "poorest city."

Kane correctly laments why aren't more people outraged over this and then embraces this cogent analysis:

Years ago in Milwaukee, a high school graduate - or dropout - could get a good manufacturing job at any number of plants in the neighborhood. The factories had lots of jobs, all in support of a thriving national automobile industry, and some plants often ended up employing several members of a single family.

During those times, the take-home pay was so good - with overtime - that many workers managed to purchase their first homes and raise stable families with children who also looked to the factories for future employment.

Of course, it didn't last forever.

The decline of the industrial economy - with factories closing or moving away - spelled bleak times for a significant part of the working population, particularly in black Milwaukee, for decades to come.

Then Kane points out that the answer to the problem is jobs.

He's right. And he's also right that both major candidates for governor have given lip service to the need for more jobs.

I used to live in one of the nation's most impoverished, challenged and segregated cities in America: Benton Harbor, Michigan. Unlike many other challenged cities Benton Harbor's plight was not ignored by the more affluent who for over four decades poured millions into special programs -- private as well as government funded -- to rescue the city with negligible results. Since then I've oft lamented that perhaps the best thing Whirlpool Corporation, the city's major benefactor, could have done is to have simply continued to make washers there.

Where Kane misses the boat is that he hasn't gone far enough. Milwaukee must rely on its own people and resources to solve these peoplems. Madison can't. Washington can't. It's the people of Milwaukee who must take control of their own destiny. The battle to overcome poverty, crime, illegitimacy and other social ills starts one person, one family, one block at a time. Waiting for someone else to solve a problem would be like me waiting for Congress to find a way to make me thin.

The leadership must come from within. Sure, we can help the process but it must start with the people living in those challenged communities. They must be the catalysts for change. The cycle of dependency must end before real change can occur.

Perhaps the best thing would be a public-private partnership where enhanced resources would be provided for a limited time. We must be focused on the fact that the old industrial jobs aren't coming back and thus an educated workforce is the only way to go. However, Milwaukee has had educational opportunities but if people don't use them they are meaningless.

As I said, change comes first from within.

Goliath (Walgreen's), meet David (Ald. Ted Ruffalo)

2010-09-13T19:28:00.000-07:00

Politicians are expected to do things to make themselves look good to constitutents, particularly when citizens are fired up over something.

A good example is the lawsuit Milwaukee County filed against the Milwaukee Braves when the team's new owners announced it was being moved to Atlanta. A hometown legal victory allowed the fans to blow off some steam but the Wisconsin Supreme Court ruled baseball is exempt from antitrust laws and the rest is history. But, hey, we got another year of baseball in Milwaukee and the locals at least scored a moral victory.

Fast forward 45 years to Kenosha where Walgreen's, the drug chain giant, abruptly closed its downtown store which had been at its present location for nearly a half-century. A corporate p.r. moron had the audacity to suggest that the brand new Walgreen's store at 75th Street and Sheridan Road could serve the needs of downtown shoppers.

The new store, of course, is 1.6 miles south of the one that was closed last week and by no means even remotely conveniently to those who live and work in the downtown area. But that's not the point.

Rookie Ald. Ted Ruffalo, a young ex-Marine whose district includes downtown Kenosha, is floating a proposal to pull city approval of licenses and permits that allowed constructing and occupancy of the new Walgreen's.

Ruffalo's proposal documents how Walgreen's officials during the licensing process for the new store led the city to believe that the downtown store would be kept open.

Of course the David vs. Goliath images Ruffalo's campaign conjures up are likely to endear him to a lot of voters, once the testoserone levels stabilize Ruffalo's idea actually is worth a shot.

Ruffalo suggests, probably correctly, that the city gave its approval for the new store on the condition and with the understanding that the old one -- which by no means suffered from a lack of patronage -- would be kept open and so by Walgreen's breaking its promise the city should be able to revisit the propriety of the new store.

He has a point. Whether it would survive a legal challenge down the road is anyone's guess -- Walgreen's may be a corporate Goliath but it isn't major league baseball -- but in this case it appears city fathers were misled and, at a minimum, the remedy might be taking the approval process back to square one.

Of course there are those who will point out, with some merit, that the city shouldn't pit one neighborhood against another but that's not Ruffalo's idea. Standing up for honesty and fair dealing is.

Yes, our David could be considered a brash young man not savvy to the all of the ways of city hall but, on the flip side, if the growing number of empty storefronts across the city -- even in prosperious neighborhoods -- is any indication, the ways of city hall haven't been very effective.

You go, Ted! Semper fi.

Scott Walker a RINO?

2010-09-09T20:29:00.000-07:00

Good question.

For several weeks it seemed that Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker was steamrolling his way to the Republican nomination for Governor.

With momentum behind him, however, it seems odd that Walker would take public digs into opponent Mark Neumann.

Walker's current campaign ad compares Neumann with House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, an insulting buzz phrase for right-wing Republicans.

But the accuracy of that ad and the inferences flowing from it have come into question: http://www.politifact.com/wisconsin/statements/2010/sep/09/scott-walker/scott-walker-says-mark-neumann-nancy-pelosi/ and Neumann came out with a positive response, noting Walker's own support for federal transportation funding.

All of this calls to mind Ronald Reagan's Eleventh Commandment: Thou shalt not speak ill of any fellow Republican."

In light of this transgression and the tenor of Walker's campaign, the question is begged: Is Scott Walker a RINO?

For the record, I am undecided, but this swipe against Neumann could well backfire.

Stop the presses! UAW and WEAC endorse Democrat!

2010-08-19T22:56:00.000-07:00

Newcomer Steve Brown, college professor and radio geek, is waging a feisty campaign to unseat Republican incumbent Samantha Kerkman in the 66th district Assembly race.

Like any candidate, especially a newcomer, Brown obviously wants to get his name out as much as possible and his campaign keeps on cranking out news releases, many of which hammer at Kerkman's voting record. Some are becoming a little repetitive, to say the least, but the two most recent are hardly show stoppers.

Brown wants you to know he's pleased that the United Auto Workers and Wisconsin Education Association Council have endorsed his campaign. That news is hardly equivalent to walking into a microwave cookoff wearing a pacemaker.

There's an old saying in journalism: If a dog bites a man, that's hardly news but if a man bites a dog, that's news.

If the UAW and WEAC endorsed a Republican in a contested election that would be news. But for now, it's just a big yawn.

Don't look for Brown to be yawning much, though. His repetitiveness may be narrow and myopic but it's not inappropriate to question Kerkman's voting record. For all we know, Kerkman may have good reasons why she voted the way Brown says she did on the issues that matter to him. Hopefully she'll step up to the plate and tell her side of the story.

Let's kill all the lawyers.

2010-08-18T21:46:00.000-07:00

I received a peculiar comment to the preceding commentary. It came from a well-known self-described “conservative” who ordinarily argues against government intrusion into individual rights. Yet, when it comes to the proposed Cordoba Center, the controversial Islamic cultural center planned a couple of blocks from the downed World Trade Center in New York City, this is what he wrote:

“And common sense, or sensitivity, is a law which ALSO should be equally distributed. The Constitution does not condone ‘up your ass!’ positions. That is, what is legal is not necessarily right. Only lawyers would believe otherwise.”

My correspondent is correct in saying that what is legal is not necessarily right. For example, many would argue that the civil law permits abortions contrary to moral law. But he’s dead wrong that the Constitution does not condone “up your ass” positions.

The civil rights movement was founded on moral authority but certainly whenever those who sought to enforce segregation were challenged they must have felt he protestors were taking an “up your ass” position. In fact the First Amendment guarantees those who wish to peacefully protest the right to advocate “up your ass” positions.

My correspondent also wrote that New York’s governor made the magnanimous gesture of offering to find another location for the cultural center. In no way, shape or form does this make the situation any better.

What if the members of the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, which was blown up Ku Klux Klansmen in 1963, killing four girls inside the ladies room, wanted to rebuild it across from the courthouse. What if the city fathers told them, “We don’t want you to build it here” but offered to find another location? Would that be religious freedom?

And the lament that “only lawyers would believe otherwise” is a curious but all too typical knee-jerk reaction. At least it’s a little bit original and not the usual quote from Shakespeare vowing the “kill all the lawyers.”

“Let’s kill all the lawyers.”

Lay people and comics like to use this gag line. More often than not this Shakespearian “sound byte” is uttered without a basic understanding of the context or meaning of the quote. It’s like selectively quoting scripture. For instance, by selectively piecing quotes together, we can find biblical authority for committing suicide -- “And Judas went out and hanged himself . . . and Jesus said, go ye and do likewise.”

As we review Shakespeare’s Henry VI, part two, we find at this juncture in the story Jack Cade’s rebellion was picking up steam. Dick, the butcher, was a member of this rebellion. As Dick utters the famous words “first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers,” he was referring to ways that the rebellion might be successful. They recognized that to succeed, they must get rid of those who knew and enforced a system of laws. They did not want any learned and informed opposition to the rebellion they had planned against the government. This makes sense.

If you are tempted to create anarchy through rebellion, the first objectives will be to get rid of legal process, individual rights, and the truth. The members of the rebellion realized it would be the lawyers that would stand up and identify how individual rights were being abused and due process was not being afforded. It was the lawyers who would recognize that rebellion sought to take away freedoms rather than grant them. This concept that the lawyers would recognize was later put in context by Daniel Webster who stated, “liberty exists in proportion to wholesome restraint.”

Regrettably, lawyers have not aided in the proper interpretation, particularly those hired guns who promise they’ll win your personal injury case. Lawyers, however, occupy a very important position in our society. As officers of the court, it is a lawyer’s responsibility to uphold the Constitution and be instrumental in ensuring our system of justice is efficient and effective. Without that kind of leadership, lawyers cannot live up to the accolade which Dick, the butcher, gave to the profession when he said, “first thing we do, let’s kill all the lawyers.” I say accolade because it was recognized that the law and those that were sworn to uphold it were direct obstacles and impediments to those who would seek to take away our freedoms and liberties.

As Americans we have the same responsibilities as a part of the stewardship of our citizenship. As Thomas Paine stated, “those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom, must like men undergo the fatigue of supporting it.”

As a nation, we have adopted and applied the rule of law as the foundation of our system of government and the vehicle through which individual rights are protected. We all have the responsibility of ensuring its continued existence.

So, the next time you hear someone offhandedly quote Shakespeare (maybe the only quote they know of Shakespeare) as stating “the first thing we do, is kill all the lawyers,” take the time to provide them the context of the statement and fill in with the rest of the story. And, give thanks when someone challenges the application of the law because that is a part of the meaning of freedom in this great nation.

We are better than that, aren't we?

2010-08-14T09:48:00.000-07:00

Plans to built an Islamic cultural center, including a mosque, two blocks from the former World Trade Center attracted national attention. Despite the broad controversy -- with even President Obama weighing in -- it's important to recognize that it's first a local matter -- not exclusively a local matter, but primarily one.

City government cleared the way, appropriately, recognizing that despite opposition to the project being built so close to Ground Zero, the Constitution nonetheless would be meaningless if the freedom to worship was curtailed. Actually, I should have said Constitutions in the plural.

As a local issue first, the primary guidance comes from Article I, Section 3 of the New York Constitution which begins: "The free exercise and enjoyment of religious profession and worship, without discrimination or preference, shall forever be allowed in this state to all humankind." State constitutions are often overlooked but they are actually our primary sources of freedom. The New York Constitution is more emphatic in many respects than the United States Constitution. The First Amendment begins, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

The phrase "without discrimination of preference" in the New York Constitution is instructive. It's the state's policy that one religion should never hold preference over another nor should the state sponsor discrimination against any religion. Further, the free exercise and enjoyment of religious worship "shall forever be alllowed in [New York] to all humankind."

This left the city no choice but to approve plans for the Islamic Cultural Center so long as it complied with all other zoning and building code requirements. As Americans we can have it no other way without sacraficing our own liberties. And if we do, then terrorism won.

William Allen White, the sage of Emporia, said it best: "Liberty is the only thing you cannot have unless you are willing to give it to others." The fact that one of our great cities will not stand in the way of an Islamic Cultural Center two blocks from Ground Zero shows the world that we are better than those who will not grant the same freedom to others.

Quick, where is the Buddhist shrine in Baghdad? The Roman Catholic Cathedral in Tehran? The Mormon Temple in Damascus? The Unitarian Meeting House in Kandahar?

That an Islamic Cultural Center would be built two blocks from Ground Zero shows the world two things: First, we are better than that. The beacon of hope this nation was for oppressed people shines as much today as it has for more than two centuries. Our forefathers came here seeking religious freedom. Is it any wonder that the first part of the First Amendment addresses freedom of religion?

Second, the greatest antidote to terrorism is freedom. Freedom, freedom, freedom -- more, not less. When freedom is curtailed -- and when fear and prejudice gain dominion over us -- terrorism wins.

By granting freedom to those we may not like we gain more for ourselves. William Allen White was right: Liberty is the only thing we cannot have unless we are willing to give it to others.

And when we do, we show the world -- including those who would love nothing better than for there to be no religious freedom -- that we are better than that.

Welcome, Dr. Hancock

2010-08-10T15:46:00.000-07:00

Michelle Hancock has been on the job for a month or so as the new superintendent of the Kenosha Unifed School District. So far she appears to be doing a decent job and every district resident and staff member should be enthusiastic about helping her.

This was the place where Kenosha learned that there was controversy surrounding Dr Hancock when she was a school administrator in Rochester, New York which our school board (and local news media) failed to uncover in its vetting process leaving many potential questions unanswered. Nonetheless Dr. Hancock is here and things seem to be going well.

We're all aware of the rtetorical question of whether the glass is half empty or half full. Unless and until proven otherwise, let's wish her well and hope that maybe part of the reason she came here is to get away from the controversy surrounding management of the Rochester district (which has a high graduation rate of 46%, far less than Kenosha's 84.1%).

Of Walgreen's, an indifferent city management and downtown Kenosha

2010-08-10T15:30:00.000-07:00

Walgreen's has been a fixture in downtown Kenosha for much longer than 1962 as the Kenosha News reported (1962 is when it moved to its present location). The mammoth drug store chain plans to shutter the cramped store in September, offering up a lame excuse that the new Walgreen store at 75th Street and Sheridan Road will better serve the area.

Who are they kidding? And why isn't city hall reacting?

A lot of folks are working hard to breathe new life into downtown Kenosha. Bistros, galleries, shops, condos are adding some life into the otherwise moribund patient. Add the museums, trolley and lakefront and it's curious why our city fathers -- and the school district, for that matter -- aren't more concerned.

Walgreen's was the last general retail establishment in downtown Kenosha. It's more than a pharmacy, as are most Walgreen stores around the country, but in an area with no other sources for a loaf of bread, cough syrup, Kleenex or panty hose you'd think Walgreen's would be looking to expand, especially with new residential development. Shame on them.

And city hall? They probably need to buy another ream of paper to keep up with the list of shuttered storefronts in this city. Shame on them, too.

If city hall hasn't been on the phone with CVS, what's taking so long? The downtown area needs a modern drug store, among other things. Or will the old Walgreen's become an unwelcome city landamark: another shuttered storefront?

Alderman Marks: Stick to your guns

2010-06-09T17:37:00.000-07:00

The Kenosha News editorialized that the city council should ignore Alderman Katherine Marks' opposition to plans by Bear Realty to build a 70-unit apartment complex on the old American Brass site in her district.

Alderman Marks is right to oppose the project and, if they are smart, the rest of the city council will follow suit.

Many Kenoshans may not realize it but the present development at the old Brass site is, on a national scale, huge. The suburban style Pick-N-Save grocery store has a pharmacy and bank inside. There's a TCF Bank as well plus Chen's Bistro and a Subway. There are vacant storefronts to the south of the restaurants and apartments above them.

This development is a shining light in an area that went for 30 years without a grocery store, saw banks replaced with usurious payday loan stores and lost its drug store many years ago when Hub Drug folded shop.

This development exists in a fragile neighborhood struggling to stay intact. Concentrated enforcement by the Kenosha Police and Sheriff's Department with help from state and federal agencies helped restore confidence in the neighborhood. The grocery store, banks and restaurants serve a mix of neighborhood clientele and folks (such as myself) who enjoy the convenient layout of that Pick-N-Save and the cuisine at Chen's.

The newspaper is quick to point out that Bear owner Steven Mills is a respected developer and rents are said to start at $672 per month. The newspaper misses the point.

High density housing is seldom a blessing for challenged and fragile neighborhoods. To the contrary, if Mills wants to do something positive for the neighborhood, building quality, affordable owner-occupied housing would be the way to go as people who own their homes have a stake in their community.
The potential problems associated with high density housing at that location would be a possible death knell for the businesses who chanced moving into a challenged area. These businesses depend on patronage from the community at large for their survival. If people even perceive that area as unsafe they will drive by. This in turn will hurt the neighborhood residents who need those businesses and the jobs they provide

The newspaper notes that the council usually doesn't buck an alderman who opposes something in his or her ward but suggests that it should do so here. That's wrong. Alderman Marks is in a better position to understand the needs of her neighborhood and to respond to the wishes of her constituents. She should stick to her guns.

It should not surprise anyone that the Kenosha News supports the Mills development despite strong neighborhood opposition. Bear Reality is a major advertiser and newspapers these days need all the business they can muster in order to survive. But that's not an excuse to insult Alderman Marks and her constituents.

OMG! What an election!!

2010-04-06T21:31:00.000-07:00

Today was not a good day to be an incumbent in Kenosha County.

Five incumbent county supervisors got the boot from voters: Anita Faraone, Mark Modory, Roger Johnson, Jennifer Jackson and Jim Moore. Erin Decker, a Republican activist, beat Johnson by just three votes. Expect a recount there.

Kenosha County GOP Chair Kathy Carpenter, a fellow blogger, lost her nonpartisan bid to be reelected to the Kenosha Common Council. Katherine Marks, who tried to retire from the council but announced as a write-in candidate when nobody filed for the seat, won re-election.

Incumbent Kenosha Unified School Board member David Fountain lost to David Gallo. Rebecca Stevens won re-election over challenger Robert Nuzzo. Fountain was on the board when it voted to invest taxpayer money in now nearly worthless investments. He, like Stevens, voted to hire Michele Hancock as the new superintendent without fulling vetting Hancock's background.

Some good public servants were booted out today. This may be a sign of what's to come this fall when state and national races are on the ballot. Perhaps the so-called "silent majority" has just been awaken.

Didn't vote? Don't bitch!

2010-04-06T07:04:00.001-07:00

It's election day.

Thanks, Village People -- and the inside scoop

2010-04-03T12:02:00.000-07:00

A fellow blogger and Pleasant Prairie resident commented on the controversy surrounding the vetting of Kenosha's new school superintendent, Michele Hancock, by observing that he hopes for the sake of the children of the school district that the critiques of Hancock's administrative performance are wrong and that she turns out to be the best superintendent the district ever had.

Amen. Not only do I wish her well, but, as stated previously, it's too bad that the vetting occurs after she was hired. It's a shame that our school board didn't do its homework before making the contract offer. This is exacerbated because board members had the opportunity to publicly and privately interview Hancock and some board members even went to Rochester to check her out.

What's obvious is that they didn't do a very good job of checking. Nor did the Kenosha News or any other media outlet. As reported here, Hancock was an oustanding teacher and elementary school principal whose performance appears to have gone south when she became a central office administrator. That's a critical point which needed further investigation before she was hired.

Any sports fan knows that the best managers weren't always the best players and the best players aren't always the best managers. This is true at least for no other reason that the two roles are different. The job of a player is to get the job done. The job of a manager is to get the job done through others and, concurrently, the duty of a manager is to provide the resources and support necessary for the players to get their jobs done. This isn't rocket science. It's Management 101.

Hancock was a great teacher and an award winning principal who literally invested her own sweat and paint into cleaning up a troubled Rochester, New York grade school. Then she turned to staff and student performance and turned that around to the point where her school won a National School Change Award. Here's a summary of why that happened:

The first thing that Michele Hancock did when she was appointed a new principal in June 1999 was to bring together her family to paint the uninviting elementary school she inherited. Michele's new message was that expectations had to be high for the students in this urban high poverty area and, with hard work, school improvement was possible. Over the next four years, the grade 4 English Language Arts (ELA) passing scores went from 13.3% to 63.2% while the math scores rose from 30.7% to 78.8%. Science scores jumped 39 points to 70% and 83% passed the new social studies exam. Now a poster hangs outside each teacher's room announcing the instructional specialty, such as cooperative learning, that teachers can model. Michele covers classes so teachers can observe other classes and discuss those instructional specialties and best practices with their colleagues.

This is great stuff and the kind of achievement we want to see not just in Kenosha but everywhere. The story, however, soured when the Rochester District plucked Hancock out of her school and made her the district's diversity chief. It was during her tenure in that job that she attracted criticism for encouraging the use of Black English Vernacular (Ebonics) in school to communicate with some black students.

Shortly thereafter, with no human resources experience (other than at the building principal level), Hancock was promoted to be the district's personnel director. Her performance in that job was controversial as well. You've read about the allegations that she called teachers at a Rochester schoool on the carpet after they voted "no confidence" in their principal (who was then reassigned). Even her boss, who was part of that conversation, said that Hancock told the teachers that there was a "perception" of racism in their actions.

And then Hancock helped stage a two-day resort retreat for Rochester district administrators to the tune of $18,000 when the district's finances were over $60 million in the hole.

Further, while Hancock did a great job with her school when she was a principal, did that success infect the Rochester district? Apparently not. The latest high school graduation rate there was reported at 46%, down from 52% the year before. (Kenosha's is 84.1%.)

So we have two portraits of Michele Hancock: outstanding teacher and award winning principal vs. inexperienced controversial administrator of an academically and financially troubled district.

This is precisely the contrast that our school board (and the media, for that matter) should have picked up on and further vetted. They didn't hire Hancock to be a building principal or curriculum coordinator. They hired her to be the superintendent -- top dog over all the other administrators, educators and support staff. The question we're all going to be waiting to have answered is which Michele Hancock did we get -- the outstanding teacher and award winning principal or inexperienced controversial administrator?

This is by no means an insignificant question in this school district where many superintendents have had a rocky road. Local talent Joe Bisciglia took the job on a divided vote and it wasn't that long after that the board was looking to dump him. Then came Michael Johnson, an "outsider" with new ideas every day but academic achievement and staff relations issues clouded his tenure and he took another job. Then local boy R. Scott Pierce came back to Kenosha but it wasn't that long afterward that he, too, had strained relations and moved on. Throughout much of this Joe Mangi held things together reasonably well and deserves credit for doing so.

Both Hancock's background and the district's made it compelling for the school board to have made the right choice the right way. Even the Kenosha News complained of the lack of transparency in the process.

At the end of the day, Village People pegs it when he says that he hopes that Hancock turns out to be the best superintendent the district ever had. Amen to that. It's unfortunate that the school board failed to clear the debris from the road before her arrival.

And now, for the rest of the story.

I admit that I hadn't paid much attention to the school board's selection process but, after reading that Hancock got the nod, decided to see what I could learn about her. A simple "Google search" led to the various news articles both about her successful career as a teacher and principal and the questions about her administrative performance. That initial search took perhaps a minute and not more than two. In other words, I pretty much stumbled onto this information. That's exactly what the school board -- and the news media -- should have done. After all, we bought the board members laptop computers. How hard would it have been for them to use them?

Did Pam Stevens miss the point?

2010-04-03T01:56:00.000-07:00

The Kenosha News -- which did a hasty and incomplete attempt to catch up with the blogosphere in its story today over the hiring of Michele Hancock as the new Kenosha school superintendent -- has an interesting take in the story from board president Pam Stevens:

Unified School Board President Pam Stevens said she’s disappointed some would denigrate Hancock before she even had a chance to start her job. Stevens said the candidate vetting process was consistent. Stevens said all the candidates were given the opportunity to explain their education philosophies during closed-session board interviews and at the community forum in February.

If this is an accurate portrayal of Stevens' position, she's obviously missed the point: The criticism wasn't about Hancock as much as it was the school board's failure -- and that of the headhunter firm it hired -- to perform due diligence in investigating Hancock's background.

And, if the newspaper's story is correct, then Stevens is either ignorant or incompetent or both. "Vetting" isn't just about a process being "consistent" or giving candidates an opportunity to explain their educational philosophies.

Consistency is a baseline principle but, if followed strictly, is myopic and can lead to an incomplete and inaccurate picture. On the other hand, vetting is a process of examination and evaluation, generally referring to performing a background check on someone before offering him or her employment.

Stevens may be partially correct in that in the hiring process it's not unusual to have a standardized series of questions to pose to each candidate and to that extent consistency has some purpose -- but that's just the beginning of vetting.

Stevens, who I philosophically agree with much of the time, nonethtless misses the point in this quote: “Just because an African-American female walks into a room, all of the sudden we’re going to change our list of questions and ask, ‘Since you’re an African-American female, are you going to teach ebonics?’”

Of course Stevens is correct when she predicates the question of "Are you going to teach ebonics" with "Since you are an African-American female" which is an apparent reference to Hancock's ancestry. But the issue isn't Hancock's ancestry, it's the controversy over her purported acceptance of the use of Black English Vernacular in school, regardless of the extent she thinks it's appropriate. More important is the issue that the school board didn't investigate it before hiring Hancock.

In fact, the first story here about Hancock quoted extensively from the newsletter she wrote and included her philosophy on the use of BEV (ebonics):

The newsletter, Diversity Dialogue, suggests teachers use BEV to communicate with students. It says teachers can:

• “Switch into BEV in specific situations or informal discussion.”
• "Translate common phrases in Standard English into BEV.”
• “Read and retell stories in both BEV and Standard English.”

“We need to embrace the diversity they bring into our schools,” said the district’s Chief of Diversity and Leadership, Michele Hancock.

Hancock and Tyra Webb-Johnson, Director of Coaching and Leadership, wrote the newsletter. They are both former elementary school principals.

“We want (teachers) to have a better understanding of what BEV is so they can incorporate it into their teaching. That way, they're not alienating the students who are speaking the vernacular and degrading them,” Webb-Johnson said.

Ebonics was debated nationally in 1996 when the Oakland, California school district proposed using it in the curriculum.

Ebonics is defined as a speech pattern used by some African-Americans that does not follow standard grammar.

“No matter how you speak, you do need to learn the standard form so you can embrace the larger audience of people,” Hancock said. “But you can hold on to the richness of your family environment and not feel that is beneath any standard of living.”

Hancock says many people, including her own son, who graduated from college, know how to "code switch" between Standard English and Ebonics. She said students must learn to be proficient in Standard English.

“Many African-Americans are bi-dialectic in their speech patterns. I think it's critical teachers understand those speech patterns so they can effectively, visually show children how they are speaking, but not to denigrate it, but to celebrate it,” Hancock said.

Nowhere here was it said that Hancock advocated teaching Ebonics and, in fact, Hancock's own words clearly show that she believes students must learn to be proficient in Standard English. Nonetheless she also supported the limited use of BEV in school and that, according to the Rochester television news report quoted here, brought critcism from many segments of that city's black community, including a school board member, former mayor and parents and students.

As for Stevens' comments about consistency, that's a smokescreen. Consistency is a minimum across-the-board baseline. Had the school board or its consulting firm performed due diligence and uncovered this information, the board, if it had done its job, would have asked Hancock about it. Stevens admitted that the board had closed door interviews of the candidates. The questioning could -- and should -- have happened there. Stevens and her fellow board members dropped the ball, plain and simple.

The board's failure to do its job shortchanged constituents and Hancock. As noted here, it would have been preferable for the new superintendent to come in on a wave of optimism, not under a cloud of controversy.

Further, the "Ebonics" controversy is one that is likely to be inflammatory and incite prejudices in quarters other than here. That's unfortunate because the issues surrounding Hancock's fitness for her new job go well beyond that.

For example, the recent controversy in Rochester where elementary school teachers at a school that voted "no confidence" in their principal (who was reassigned) felt intimidated by Hancock and her boss over the suggestion that the vote may be perceived as racially motivated also deserved vetting. The Rochester Democrat-Chronicle reported that the Rochester Teachers Association said that Hancock and the Rochester superintendent berated staff and then launched a retaliatory investigation of three teachers at the school. While denying the union's allegation of retaliation, Superindent Jean-Claude Brizard confirmed that Hanock "said there was a perception of racism in the school."

By itself this tiff may not be terribly significant and could be dismissed as union-management sniping. But the Rochester superintendent, who is also black, confirmed that Hancock did raise the issue of race with the teachers. Further, as noted here:

On May 21, 2008 WHAM's veteran education reporter, Rachel Barnhart, wrote that Hancock was named the new human resources chief (later morphed into "Human Capital Initiatives") for the Rochester district although Hancock "doesn't have a background in human resources."

Less than two years later Hancock -- who received $36,000 from the Rochester district toward her doctoral degree studies -- was applying for and ultimately accepted the Kenosha job although she has no experience as a superintendent or even an assistant superintendent.

Had our school board had done its homework and asked the right questions, perhaps there wouldn't be as many now -- or at least there'd be better answers.

Hancock is being paid a starting salary of $195,000 -- $45,000 more than the current superitendent, Joe Mangi, a veteran educator. Yet she has never been a superintendent -- or an assistant superintendent -- of any district and has less than two years of experience in her current personnel position, one which she came into without human resources experience. Add that to the Ebonics controversy and the flap with the teachers and you don't think that there are things that Hancock should have questioned about? And let's not forget the $18,000 two-day resort retreat Hancock organized for administrators of a school district that's over $60 million in the red and has a graduation rate of 46%, down 52% from the previous year.

Today's newspaper story drivels on about how Stevens says the board wouldn't think of supporting an Ebonics curriculum and anyone who would suggest it is misinformed. She's right. Anyone who would suggest it is misinformed -- even her. The issue isn't Ebonics -- it's the board's failure to properly check out its choice to be the new superintendent.

The story goes on to say that Stevens takes "with a grain of salt" what Hancock's detractors say about her. Then Stevens is quoted as saying, “I really thought some people in Kenosha were above that."

Time out for a reality check. Get the message, Pam: It's not about "Hancock's detractors" but rather the failure of the board to do its job. As noted here, Hancock was an outstanding teacher and elementary school principal but her performance came into question when she became a central office administrator. The board's woefully inadequate vetting of Hancock not only was a disservice to the taxpayers but to Hancock who, if she truly is the best choice for the job, should be able to come on board with full support and confidence, not unanswered questions. As written here:

That research should have prompted other questions, such as why would the Rochester district take a successful principal away from the job she did so well and move her into another in which her performance was controversial? Why with no personnel management experience (except as a building principal) was she shortly after arriving at the central office put in charge of human resources? Why, if the Rochester district is managed so well, does it have a high school graduation rate of 46%, down from 52% the year before?

Second, the failure to get these issues out in the open and, hopefully, resolved before hiring Hancock is no favor to her.

Incoming chief executives typically have a "honeymoon period" but Hancock's may be short-lived, if she gets one at all.

For example, her controversial advocacy of using Black English Vernacular (Ebonics) in her stint as diversity chief might have been explained better had it been placed on the table sooner rather than later. "Hindsight being 20-20" I suspect many of us have done things earlier in our careers that upon reflection we wish we might have done differently. If, for example, Hancock were to offer that explanation now, wouldn't folks be skeptical?

Our school district has its own set of issues. Relocating, becoming acclimated to this community and getting down to solving the district's problems are enough to keep anyone busy. If Hancock truly is the best choice for Kenosha's new school superintendent, she deserves to come into this community on a wave of optimism, not under a cloud of controversy.

Once again, this isn't about taking a slap at Hancock but rather about the school board's failing to properly exercise its responsibilities. It's difficult to embrace Hancock as the best choice for the position when the issues come up after the board made its choice. The board created this controversy -- not anyone else. Even Hancock noted the legitimacy of a proper inquiry: "I think it’s great they’re questioning. And I can say I have answers because I know me. But I hope people give themselves a chance to know me and it not be generated by misunderstanding."

Exactly.

You'd have to be naive or incredibly stupid (or both) not to recognize that achieving success rarely comes without some controversy. That controversy can be misinformed, mean-spirited or just plain ignorant. But it can also have varying shades of merit. Regardless, it doesn't go away unless it's addressed fully and honestly and even then you won't be able to please everyone.

Finally, a few words about race. Frankly, as an old civil rights advocate, I cringe at the thought because in today's world there should be no place for bigotry and racism. Nonetheless I sadly realize that for some people it is an issue. Not for me.

I don't particularly care if Hancock is black, white, yellow, brown or some mixture of whatever. I only care about if she's the best person for the job. That said, I must confess that I nonetheless find value in diversity but, as diversity happens, that value should necessarily depreciate. After all, shouldn't the ultimate goal of the NAACP (or, similarly, the American Cancer Society) be to put itself out of business?

Maybe a dart isn't enough

2010-04-02T08:54:00.000-07:00

The Kenosha News each Sunday devotes its editorial to a series of "laurels and darts" (I like to call them bear hugs and moose droppings) and just last month printed this one:

DART — To the Kenosha Unified School Board, for delaying the announcement of its choice for superintendent. The board was very forthcoming in announcing the selection of three finalists and it narrowing of the field to two final candidates. Unfortunately, after meeting this week to select a candidate of choice, the board got very quiet. At a time in which government bodies from school boards to Congress are being criticized for a lack of transparency, our board decides not to makes its choice public to allow attorneys to begin initial contract discussions and ensure those talks will go well. There is keen interest in this community about who will become the leader of Kenosha Unified. Delaying an announcement to ensure every “i” is dotted and every “t” is crossed was a poor decision by the board. Fortunately for the voters in the school district, the Kenosha News was able to confirm negotiations have begun with Michele Hancock of Rochester, NY.

So, folks, while the newspaper justifiably complained about the school board's secrecy in the superintendent selection process, what of its own lack of due diligence? Over the past week or so readers here have learned of a series of potential "red flags" surrounding the school board's choice. The newspaper is aware of them. It has chosen to do nothing with this information.

Nothing as in not reporting a word. Nothing as in not doing its own investigation. Nothing as in not questioning the school board candidates for next week's election about their take on this situation. Nothing as in not questioning the present seven school board members over their lack of due diligence. Nothing as in not questioning why the headhunter firm, Ray and Associates, hired by the school board failed to find out this information which is in the public domain. Nothing as in not questioning the board members who went to Rochester about why they didn't have this information -- or did they and chose not to share it? Nothing as in not questioning Hancock so that she can tell her side of the story.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.

Darts? Nah. Maybe the school board and the newspaper are candidates for Patriot missiles.

Does it matter? You betcha!

2010-03-31T21:06:00.000-07:00

The discovery of unexplained baggage by Kenosha's newly appointed school superintendent is disturbing for many reasons.

First, it demonstrates that there were serious gaps in the vetting process by the Kenosha Unified School Board and its superintendent headhunter, Ray and Associates of Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

If the various controversies involving Michele Hancock as the diversity director and human resources chief of the Rochester, N.Y. city school district were discovered with a simple Google search, it's simply appropriate to wonder why board members weren't able to do the same? And, if they didn't, why didn't the district's consulting firm?

It's not rocket science to figure out that the ball was dropped. And it gets worse.

Three board members traveled to Rochester to check out Hancock. Did they only hear good things about Hancock, such as her oustanding performance as an elementary school teacher and principal?

If they did, then they didn't learn that things went south when Hancock went to the central office, first as diversity director and then as human resources chief, a position for which she had no prior experience. Did they know that Rochester district taxpayers shelled out $36,000 to help Hancock get her doctorate, only to have her go job hunting elsewhere?

Was it a lack of diligence or is it possible -- just possible -- that maybe some folks in Rochester intentionally may have concealed important information? Or maybe both?

That's why it would have been critical for board members and their consulting firm to have done a simple Google search and followed by contacting the right folks in Rochester.

That research should have prompted other questions, such as why would the Rochester district take a successful principal away from the job she did so well and move her into another in which her performance was controversial? Why with no personnel management experience (except as a building principal) was she shortly after arriving at the central office put in charge of human resources? Why, if the Rochester district is managed so well, does it have a high school graduation rate of 46%, down from 52% the year before?

Second, the failure to get these issues out in the open and, hopefully, resolved before hiring Hancock is no favor to her.

Incoming chief executives typically have a "honeymoon period" but Hancock's may be short-lived, if she gets one at all.

For example, her controversial advocacy of using Black English Vernacular (Ebonics) in her stint as diversity chief might have been explained better had it been placed on the table sooner rather than later. "Hindsight being 20-20" I suspect many of us have done things earlier in our careers that upon reflection we wish we might have done differently. If, for example, Hancock were to offer that explanation now, wouldn't folks be skeptical?

Our school district has its own set of issues. Relocating, becoming acclimated to this community and getting down to solving the district's problems are enough to keep anyone busy. If Hancock truly is the best choice for Kenosha's new school superintendent, she deserves to come into this community on a wave of optimism, not under a cloud of controversy.

Superintendent hiring: Why didn't Kenosha school board check out its choice?

2010-03-28T02:50:00.000-07:00

A few years ago Kenosha Unified School Board members got laptop computers. The current board sure needs a crash course on how to use them.

Had the school board performed due diligence it would have discovered that less than three years ago its newly hired school superintedent, Michele Hancock, was the center of controversy in Rochester, New York when she was the school district's diversity chief, over her advocacy of Black English Vernacular (Ebonics) in school -- an idea wisely flamed by many Rochester African-American community leaders, parents and students.

They would also have found out that while they were cutting a deal with Hancock she was embroiled in a battle with teachers at a Rochester school (blandly called School #41) who recently staged a "no confidence" vote in their principal, Roschon Bradley. According to WHAM-TV in Rochester:

Teachers say Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard and Chief of Human Capital Initiatives Michele Hancock held a staff meeting earlier this week and implied the teachers at School #41 are racist for banding against Bradley, who is black.

Rochester Teachers Association President Adam Urbanski said teachers who attended the meeting said Brizard and Hancock “berated them and lectured them. Teachers were shocked and hurt and disappointed that the district seemed to suggest that the problem wasn’t with the principal, it was with them.”

Urbanski said Hancock told the teachers their vote of no confidence was perceived as racist and as a bullying tactic.

Further investigation shows that these aren't the only two storms of controversy surrounding Hanock, who will be paid $195,000 -- $45,000 more than current superintedent Joseph Mangi, a career Kenosha Unified educator.

On May 21, 2008 WHAM's veteran education reporter, Rachel Barnhart, wrote that Hancock was named the new human resources chief (later morphed into "Human Capital Initiatives") for the Rochester district although Hancock "doesn't have a background in human resources."

Less than two years later Hancock -- who received $36,000 from the Rochester district toward her doctoral degree studies -- was applying for and ultimately accepted the Kenosha job although she has no experience as a superintendent or even an assistant superintendent.

Last year Hancock's name popped up again in another WHAM report, this time defending the $18,000 taxpayers shelled out for a retreat attended by 29 Rochester school executives at a swanky resort:

The cost was $18,000. The trip took place from January 29 to January 31. The district said 29 staff members went on the trip, although the district paid for 40 to attend.

According to documents obtained by 13WHAM News, the district’s Chief of Human Capital Initiatives, Michele Hancock, booked the retreat in November. The trip was approved by Superintendent Jean-Claude Brizard in December.

The purpose of the trip was to “enable team-building” among the district’s Dream Schools, according to Hancock’s request for a contract with Beaver Hollow. “The retreat will include instructional leadership, learning organizations, adult growth, and professional development.”

The menu for the staff members included Jack Daniels marinated steak with tobacco onions, shrimp fritters, cheddar corn muffins, and “enticing desserts.”

The district budget deficit at the time of the retreat was about $60 million. The school board recently approved cutting more than 200 teaching positions.

The $18,000 two-day retreat was just the tip of the iceberg. Barnhart's investigative reporting last year showed that the financially strapped Rochester district spent $240,000 on catered meals since 2007 without school board approval.

So, what does this have to do about Kenosha? Plenty. Just look at what Kenosha Unified's superintendent search job posting listed as criteria for the new superintendent:

KUSD seeks a superintendent who:

• Is strongly committed to a “student first” philosophy in all decisions.
• Will inspire trust, has high levels of self-confidence and optimism, and models high standards of integrity and personal performance.
• Possesses excellent people skills and presents a positive image of the district and will commit to community visibility with high interest in a broad range of community groups, organizations, and unions.
• Willing to listen to input, but can make a decision when necessary including appropriate participation of others in planning and decision making.
• Demonstrates effective communication skills to include speaking, listening and writing.
• Has demonstrated the ability to enhance student performance, especially in identifying and closing or narrowing the gaps in student achievement.
• Can delegate authority appropriately while maintaining accountability.
• Possesses the leadership skills required to respond to the challenges presented by an ethnically and culturally diverse community.
• Work cooperatively with the board of education.
• Is able to identify and select building and central office administrators who are capable of advancing the district vision.
• Has knowledge of and successful experience in sound fiscal practices and management of district resources.

Hancock's lame defense of an $18,000 resort tab for a two-day conference for 29 administrators in a school district more than $60 million in the hole hardly qualifies as someone successful in sound fiscal pratices and management of district resources.

Although Hancock was a nationally recognized elementary school principal who successfully turned around a decaying and underachieving grade school, the Rochester district's most recent high school graduation rate was only 46%, down 6% from the previous year. By contrast, Kenosha's most recent graduation rate was 84.1%.

As for inspiring confidence and improving the district's image, advocacy of Ebonics, defending wasteful spending and berating teachers doesn't bode well and the latter brings into question her "people skills."

This brings us back to the original point: where was the due diligence in the superintendent selection process? Maybe our school board members aren't computer literate despite the investment in their laptops, but then why didn't Ray and Associates, the Iowa consulting firm hired to conduct the nationwide superintendent search, pick up on these red flags?

Clearly, the ball was dropped.

Officers: Keeping the streets safe starts with safe streets

2010-03-28T00:36:00.000-07:00

I realize it's probably annoying at times for the police officers I work with to hear me say, "When I was a cop" followed by some anecdote of keeping the peace in the mid-1970's. There are times, though, when these discussions are necessary. This is one of them.

Truth be told -- "Radar" was said to be my middle name (and it had nothing to do with the character in M*A*S*H). Former Grant County Deputy Jim Stark used to remind me, though, that there was more to being a cop than "running radar." Of course he was right.

Much of what police officers do is geared to keep our streets safe. That said, keeping the streets safe starts with keeping safe streets.

I am appalled each day when I drive around and see the many pot holes, worn out signs and decayed roadways. When I was a cop we took note of these deficiencies, called them in and, unless an immediate response was in order, the dispatchers presented a list of the needed repairs each morning to the appropriate crews.

Why isn't this being done now? And if it is, then why aren't the repairs happening? How much time and does it take to call in a pot hole or a burned out street light? As for deficient signs, state law requires all traffic signs to conform to the Uniform Manual of Traffic Control Devices. How hard is it to pick up a microphone and call in a sign that needs replacement or repair?

Not very time consuming. Not very hard. And there's no excuse -- none -- for officers failing to comply with the time-honored community caretaking function of American law enforcement.

I love our officers dearly but there are some who need a reminder that there's more to the job than making arrests.

Incompetence at all levels

2010-03-26T07:18:00.000-07:00

It was reported here -- from credible sources -- that Kenosha's new school superintendent, Michele Hancock, comes from Rochester, New York with a host of issues including:

Promoting the use of Black English Vernacular ("Ebonics") in school.
Allegations that she recently intimidated the staff at a Rochester school that voted "no confidence" in the school's principal.
Hiring her at $195,000 -- $45,000 more than the present superintendent -- when she has never been a superintendent, even in a small district.

The first two bullet points were previously discussed. The third points out that Hancock's management experience was as an elementary school building principal, diversity director for the Rochester schools and then director of human capital initiatives (which, from reading the school district's web site, appears to be an amalgamation of a personnel director and diversity director).

This is not to say that Hancock hasn't had some successes. Her work as an elementary school principal in one of Rochester's worst schools included literally cleaning and painting the building, uplifting educational test scores and engaging parental involvement. Building diversity and being an effective personnel manager are also important goals.

But the job that was open in Kenosha was the top dog's. The third largest school district in the state should command talent that has experience running a school district, and perhaps preferably one in Wisconsin. Why did the school board hire someone without that experience? And what about the new superintendent's controversial background in Rochester, which included criticism from the black community?

The lack of public dialogue about the school board's failure to perform due diligence here is astounding. Even Lenny Palmer at WLIP says he's given up on the board which seems immune to public input. The Kenosha News has simply ignored the controversy. Ditto for WGTD. And WLIP? They gave up their news department years ago and rely on stories taken from the newspaper. This isn't rocket science. A simple Google search would have provided the basis for further inquiry.

In all of this I feel a bit for Hancock, though it's hard to effectuate much sympathy when she's being paid substantially more than an experienced incumbent. Coming into a new job with unexplained baggage helps nobody, including Hancock. She could turn out to be the best superintendent we've ever had but this is a job that requires an experienced person who can hit the ground running. Can that happen when there are clouds over her?

The incredibly shrinking newspaper

2010-03-23T21:28:00.000-07:00

Not only did the Kenosha Unified School Board flub due diligence in failing to flesh out newly hired superintendent Michele Hancock's controversial background, but the Kenosha News was just as guilty.

Our local newspaper, like so many across the nation -- including big dailies such as the Chicago Tribune -- has been shrinking its size -- literally -- as well as content. Some of this is inevitable as alternate delivery mechanisms have struck a hard blow at traditional newspapers, radio and television news.

One would think, though, that in a competitive environment the news content would be increased, particularly local news content.

Today's Kenosha News story on the hiring of Dr. Hancock touches the surface -- her salary and praise for her from the board that hired her as well as the superintendent she'll replace -- but where is the background? Had someone done a Google search a couple of weeks ago maybe they would have uncovered the WHAM-TV report on the Ebonics controversy or last weekend's Rochester newspaper story on allegations that Dr. Hancock intimidated teachers who gave a "no confidence" vote in their principal. Maybe then the school board and the community could have "vetted" this candidate more comprehensively.

Vetting isn't completely a negative process, either. There are positives in Dr. Hancock's experience, such as how she and her family invested long hours into literally cleaning and painting the rundown Rochester school where she became principal.

Nonetheless the WHAM-TV report about the Ebonics controversy quickly deals the race card away. All of the critical comments came from black students, parents and community leaders.

True, the newspaper expressed concerns about the lack of openness in the superintendent selection process, but at the end of the day what would be so difficult about a one minute Google search or calling the Rochester newspaper and asking, "You know one of your school administrators is a finalist for superintendent here. What do you know about her?" That's basic journalism.

It will be interesting to see if the newspaper follows up on this, even at this late date. More interesting, though, is a reader comment on its web site: "I went to the websites that were referred to early in this blog and read them carefully. They were ALSO blogs, meaning that they were based on OPINIONS, not facts."

That's not always an inaccurate assessment as a general statement but in this case, if the writer was referring to this blog, the commentary was completely separate from the WHAM-TV reporting which was reprinted verbatim. WHAM-TV is a well-regarded broadcast news operation. The source of the story, including the reporter's name, was clearly stated here. Hard to see how that could have been missed.

As for blogs, yes they are mixtures of opinion and fact, some more so than others. But as traditional media sources increasily fail to do their jobs it's probably better that there are these outlets for opinion and information to fill the gap.

This nation has a rich history of blogging. Except in the old days before computers and electronic communication the functional equivalent of blogging was practiced in public speeches and writings by the likes of Patrick Henry and in Benjamin Franklin's Poor Richard's Almanack. In the words of the late William T. Evjue, activist newspaper publisher, "Let the people have the truth and the freedom to discuss it and all will go well."

Kenosha's new school suprintendent cited in newspaper editorial over Ebonics

2010-03-22T23:22:00.000-07:00

School Daze -- Is English Degrading?

Daily News-Record, Harrisonburg, VA, April 2, 2007

Administrators in this nation’s public schools, we feel certain, wonder why they, at times, come under fire from those whom they serve. This latest gem emanating from the Rochester, N.Y., school system should provide an inkling.

In a recent newsletter sent to teachers and staff, two district officials — Michele Hancock, chief of diversity and leadership, and Tyra Webb-Johnson, director of coaching and leadership — warmly approved of the use of Black English Vernacular (Ebonics) in Rochester’s classrooms. Among other things, the two women said, teachers should feel free to “translate common phrases in Standard English into BEV” and “read and retell stories in both BEV and Standard English.”

Their rationale for marginalizing Standard English is stunning. “We want (teachers) to have a better understanding of what BEV is so they can incorporate it into their teaching. That way, they’re not alienating the students who are speaking the vernacular and degrading them,” Ms. Webb-Johnson said.

So, expecting kids to use Standard English — once called the “King’s English” — is “degrading”? What’s “degrading,” in our mind, is the message conveyed by these alarming sentiments — namely, that African American students are unable, for some reason, to learn the communication skills needed to succeed in life’s marketplace.

What a disservice this is to children whose very future will — not may, but will — be determined by how well they are educated. Giving them a pass on the employment of good grammar is akin to handing them a ticket to permanent underclass status. Schools are supposed to be oases of enrichment, not wastelands of hopelessness.

My take is that our new superintendent perhaps meant well but failed to grasp the bigger picture. There's often a huge gap between being educated and being smart. Perhaps Ms. Hancock meant well but the road to failure has all too often been route directed by those who mean well. We have long decided that racial equality is the public policy of this great nation. It is insulting to suggest that standards somehow need to be lowered. To be fair, an unacceptable number of American young people of all races in college and the workforce lack basic linguistic and math skills. We ought to be raising the student to the standards, not lowering the standards. To do otherwise is a cynical insult to our youth.

Kenosha Unified: Who the Hell did the background check here?

2010-03-22T22:25:00.000-07:00

Michele Hancock, Kenosha's newly minted $195,000 school superintendent (up from Joe Mangi's $150,000) caused quite a stir at home in Rochester, New York. Amazing how parents and students have more common sense -- and how our school board failed its due diligence in checking this out. But what else is new? Read on...

Rachel Barnhart/13WHAM (Rochester, N.Y.) – It’s called Black English Vernacular – or more commonly – Ebonics.

In a newsletter to staff, Rochester City School District officials say it is OK for students and teachers to speak Ebonics in class.

The newsletter, Diversity Dialogue, suggests teachers use BEV to communicate with students. It says teachers can:

• “Switch into BEV in specific situations or informal discussion.”

• "Translate common phrases in Standard English into BEV.”

• “Read and retell stories in both BEV and Standard English.”

“We need to embrace the diversity they bring into our schools,” said the district’s Chief of Diversity and Leadership, Michele Hancock.

Hancock and Tyra Webb-Johnson, Director of Coaching and Leadership, wrote the newsletter. They are both former elementary school principals.

“We want (teachers) to have a better understanding of what BEV is so they can incorporate it into their teaching. That way, they're not alienating the students who are speaking the vernacular and degrading them,” Webb-Johnson said.

Ebonics was debated nationally in 1996 when the Oakland, California school district proposed using it in the curriculum.

Ebonics is defined as a speech pattern used by some African-Americans that does not follow standard grammar.

“No matter how you speak, you do need to learn the standard form so you can embrace the larger audience of people,” Hancock said. “But you can hold on to the richness of your family environment and not feel that is beneath any standard of living.”

Hancock says many people, including her own son, who graduated from college, know how to "code switch" between Standard English and Ebonics. She said students must learn to be proficient in Standard English.

“Many African-Americans are bi-dialectic in their speech patterns. I think it's critical teachers understand those speech patterns so they can effectively, visually show children how they are speaking, but not to denigrate it, but to celebrate it,” Hancock said.

13WHAM News showed the newsletter to several black leaders in the community.

“Anybody who suggests that these kids will lose their identity because they cannot be, should not be encouraged to speak Ebonics is wrong,” said school board member Van White, who is pushing to create an African-American studies department in the district. “We are not African-Americans because of how we speak, but who we are as a people.”

“I understand there's a need for teachers and students to meet on some common plane, but I'm not sure expressing that as Ebonics as that plane is a way to go,” said City Councilman Adam McFadden.

“It's acceptable in hip hop culture, but I don't think anyone would suggest the way forward for students already coming to school with severe educational deficiencies is to maintain a deficient language pattern,” said former Mayor William Johnson.

Johnson and then-Police Chief Bob Duffy fired a white police officer for writing a memo called “Ghetto Lingo,” which claimed to translate English phrases into African-American vernacular.

Hancock and Webb-Johnson say many white teachers come to them for help communicating with students. The BEV suggestion is not a mandate, they said.

“It doesn't hurt the kids. What we're saying to the children is we value what you bring. You have value,” said Hancock.

"What if one of your teachers started speaking Ebonics to you tomorrow? I would think they were crazy!" said Jada Scott, an 8th grader.

"I just think that's outrageous. Ebonics, that's something that kids speak out in the street with their friends, it's not something to be encouraged in the classroom,” said Maxine Humphrey, a high school senior.

“I think it's not a good idea,” said senior Candice Scott. “If we learn to speak Ebonics and we get into the real world, I don't think it's going to be of any help to us."

"I don't think it's a very good idea. I think it's more important for the kids to reach up to the school standards, instead of the school coming down to the kid’s level,” said parent Melynda Scott.

Backhanded compliment

2009-10-09T23:25:00.000-07:00

I remember a concert where the Clancy Brothers were greeted with applause until Tommy Makem stepped up to the microphone and said, "Why don't you wait until we do something before you clap?" There is a parallel to the Nobel Peace Prize awarded President Obama, one that should transcend politics.

Much of the response has been predictably political -- Obama fans rejoiced and opponents blasted away -- but for all Americans there is reason to worry.

Don't just take my word for it -- let's look at the New York Times: "Whatever it meant on the world stage, in the United States the award to Mr. Obama was a decidedly mixed blessing. It was a reminder of the gap between the ambitious promise of his words and his accomplishments. It drew attention to the fact that while much of the world was celebrating him as the anti-Bush, he had not broken as fully as he had once implied he would from the previous administration’s national security policies. And it set off another round of mocking criticism from opponents who have chafed at what they see as the charmed and entitled rise of Mr. Obama."

The Times' editorial pointed out the reason for concern: "Certainly, the prize is a (barely) implicit condemnation of Mr. Bush’s presidency. But countering the ill will Mr. Bush created around the world is one of Mr. Obama’s great achievements in less than nine months in office." The editorial writer concedes that Obama has much to do to actually earn the award.

This is true. When Jimmy Carter was recognized it was more than 20 years after leaving office when the efficacy of his mideast initiatives produced tangible results. By prematurely awarding Obama, does it not signal some interference in American foreign policy?

Prematurely awarding the prize to President Obama has all the makings of a backhanded slap, not just toward the previous occupant of the West Wing, but toward its present occupant and all Americans.

Kenosha News no longer published in Kenosha?

2009-07-02T20:02:00.000-07:00

Yep. Starting August 26, 2009 the Kenosha News will no longer be published in Kenosha.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel scored a five-year contract to print the Kenosha News which will be giving the boot to 53 employees, 13 of them full-time.

This news is a dark day for the Kenosha News which has been in a steady decline for a few years, shrinking both the size of the paper and the contents of local news stories.

This is a far cry from the days when one could walk down 58th Street in downtown Kenosha and look inside a large window to see the Goss press "that prints your Kenosha Evening News."

That press was decomissioned several years ago with printing and distribution moved to an addition.

The newspaper gave some stock excuse for sticking it to its staff. Regardless of whether the reason is valid, the news is sad and disgusting.

How did Dad29 miss this?

2009-06-17T07:04:00.000-07:00

The Vatican Wednesday declared "illegitimate" the ordination of priests planned for later this month by a hardline breakaway movement from the Roman Catholic Church.

"The ordinations are ... still to be considered illegitimate," the Vatican said in a communique, despite its controversial decision to lift the excommunication of four bishops from the Society of St Pius X including Holocaust denier Richard Williamson.

Members of the fraternity "do not exercise legitimate ministries in the (Roman Catholic) Church," the communique said. The Vatican will maintain this position "as long as issues concerning doctrine are not clarified," it said, adding that the Switzerland-based group had "no canonical status in the Church."

The pope's decision in January to lift Williamson's excommunication infuriated the Jewish community and many Catholics.

Benedict's predecessor Pope John Paul II excommunicated Williamson and three other bishops after traditionalist leader Marcel Lefebvre ordained them as bishops of his separatist church in 1988.

Their fraternity rejected reforms passed by Second Vatican Council in the early 1960s, notably including a declaration, Nostra Aetate, which ended a Church doctrine by which the Jews were held responsible for killing Jesus Christ.

Williamson, who claims that no Jews were killed in Nazi gas chambers, has apologised to anyone offended by his remarks but has refused to retract his assertions, saying only that he would reexamine the historical evidence.

The pope said in March that while the bishops had been "invited" back into the fold, they "do not (yet) legitimately exercise any ministry in the Church."

Benedict said that the four must recognise "the authority of the pope and the Second Vatican Council" in order to "complete the last steps necessary to achieve full communion with the Church." Lefebvre ordained the four, in defiance of John Paul II, as bishops to create a heirarchy for the breakway group.

Do you think Doyle and the Democrats are doing a good job of running Wisconsin?

2009-06-15T06:16:00.000-07:00

It's a fair question in light of Doyle's predicted $6.2 billion budget shortfall.

Yep, times are tough but catch this little blurb from Oklahoma and then ask yourself the headline question:

OKLAHOMA CITY -– State Treasurer Scott Meacham on Thursday announced a budget shortfall for the current fiscal year.As a result, state agencies will have to cut their budgets by 1.42 percent for June.Meacham said he does not think the public will notice the cutbacks.The last allocation to state agencies is set to go out next week. The amount, $480 million, will be reduced by $6.8 million, Meacham said.The agency cuts amount to a 0.1 percent reduction for all of fiscal year 2009, which ends June 30."Since January, we have been cautioning that this scenario could occur as Oklahoma experiences the effects of the recession," Meacham said. "Unfortunately, a revenue shortfall has now occurred and we are forced to make small, across-the-board cuts."The state's last budget shortfall occurred in fiscal year 2003.

Can you make an undocumented left turn?

2009-06-14T22:42:00.000-07:00

Leave it to the Kenosha News to screw things up.

Reporter Terry Flores wrote an interesting article today about how the state budget bill includes a provision that would permit illegal aliens to secure driver cards from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, a practice similar to Utah's which doesn't issue illegal aliens regular driver's licenses.

The story, of course, features a left-wing slant with the telling repetition of "undocumented immigrants" instead of the accurate description of "illegal aliens."

Of course, if Terry Flores or one of her editors made a left turn while driving in violation of an official sign prohibiting such a turn, I guess they'd be making an undocumented turn.

Sheesh.

Too bad Barack never met Ben Lawton

2009-06-14T22:04:00.000-07:00

There are people in life you are privilged to have known.

The late Ben Lawton is one of them.

Ben Lawton died in 1987. He was only 64 but had a rich life which included being a cardiac surgeon, president of the Marshfield Clinic and University of Wisconsin regent.

What impressed me the most about Ben Lawton was his ability to speak for the common man.

On the cost of medical education: "If I had to pay what these kids do now, I'd still be driving a beer truck."

On the high cost of medical care: "Do you need $70,000 in tests for a 70 cent answer?"

Ben Lawton was no country quack. He helped bring top quality health care to the rural areas of central Wisconsin -- "gold card" care by urban standards.

And he and his cohorts did it in such a way to avoid duplication of costs and services.

As Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Nancy Pelosi and others look for ways to deal with their health care issue, it's too bad Ben Lawton isn't around to advise them.

One thing I think he'd point out is that you'll never do anything meaningful if you don't control insanely spiraling costs.

Simply stated, the health care industry has run amok and just throwing money at it -- our money -- won't fix it. (Of course, the auto industry "bailout" model should work for them, shouldn't it? Nah.)

Cost containment. Reducing paperwork burdens and duplication of services. Caps on unnecessary spending by health care providers. Ferreting out corruption and kickbacks.

These are just a few ideas to get the ball rolling. It's time that health care provders return to acting like health care professionals instead of car salesmen.

Soglin's Onto Something

2009-06-14T21:44:00.000-07:00

After reading his blog I usually think Paul Soglin, Madison's "hippie mayor" who turned out to be one of the chamber of commerce's best friends, is on something. But this time I think Paul really is onto something when he posted about what the UAW did not do to General Motors.

It's a great read:

I was raised on General Motors automobiles. Every car my Dad bought, except for a Dodge Dart he purchased from a relative, was a Chevy. My uncles and aunts bought GM.

I was committed to doing my part and bought American cars. GM cars.

My first new car purchase was a Buick Regal purchased in 1978. I loved that car. We made two trips to Boston, one to Washington D.C., two skiing trips out west to Colorado and Idaho, camping trips in Wisconsin, and countless trips to Chicago for family in all sorts of weather.

In 1982, little holes, pin holes appeared in the roof. I knew that the body problems could be a disaster so I traded it in for a new Buick Regal. The new car was nice but the engine cut out every time I made a right turn up a hill. Go figure.
In the next fifteen years, Sara and I purchased three more GM cars, including one for my mother-in-law, and not including the Buick for the mayor's office.

The last new car was the Chevy Blazer. In 1992 with three kids, three large dogs, and Sara constantly hauling furniture that she was painting, an SUV was a logical choice. The vehicle was a nightmare.

The United Auto Workers (UAW) did not put the holes in the roof of the Regal.
The UAW did not create the design defect that made the second Regal stall on the
right turns.
The UAW did not design the Blazer which Consumer Reports rated as one of the worst SUVs on the road.

The UAW did not make the Japanese design of my Infiniti with 90,000 miles and rides like it was brand new.
The UAW did not make GM build Hummers while Toyota was building the Prius.
The UAW did not order German and Japanese engineers to build smart, zippy, fuel efficient cars for the youth market so they would grow up snickering at U.S. cars.

The UAW did not fog the minds of GM executives so they believed they were on the right track with the Cadillac Escalade.

Pork and slime: Another day in Madison

2009-06-13T09:58:00.000-07:00

Wisconsin's prince of slime, Jimmy Doyle, woes and moans over a projected $6.6 billion dollar budget defecit.

Jimmy -- heaven forbid that anyone call him James E. Doyle, jr. -- lays on the guilt trip that times are tough. User fees will increase, services will be curtailed and even essential state employees will be furloughed. Cue the drama! Oh, the pain we must all bear!

Now, my late mom would say, "You have to spend money to make money" and I don't object if there's a return on our investment. But don't hand us crap about how bad the state's finances are and then go out on a spending spree.

The Wisconsin State Journal caught Jimmy Boy and his majority pals in Madison with their pants and panties down:

It's hard to take state lawmakers seriously when they talk about how
difficult the state budget is when they're splurging on pet projects. Just look
at the laundry list of earmarks Democrats who control the Legislature's budget
committee slipped into the budget in the middle of the night last week before
quickly advancing the state's two-year spending plan:

• $28 million in state-funded borrowing for a nursing building on the UW-Madison campus -- something the university didn't ask for or prioritize.

• $5 million for the Bradley Center in Milwaukee.

• $500,000 for an opera house in Oshkosh that was already being repaired without help from the state.
• $100,000 to restore a stone barn in Oconto County.

• $50,000 for playground equipment in a Beloit park.

The list goes on and on. And most of the dozens of last-minute earmarks benefit the districts of committee members or the districts of vulnerable incumbents.

Some of these projects may be worthy. But they can hardly be justified as essential in the face of a record state budget shortfall.

Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and Sen. Mark Miller, D-Monona, tried to defend the excessive earmarks during a meeting with the State Journal editorial board Wednesday. The two men chair the Legislature's budget committee. Pocan said the earmarks attached to the budget last week represent only a tiny fraction of the state's overall spending.

But what Pocan ignores is that these pet projects are hugely symbolic, leading to public distrust and disgust.

Ordinary citizens will ask themselves: Why should I have to sacrifice for the state through service cuts and higher taxes if somebody else is getting $13 million for an armory in Wisconsin Rapids, $500,000 for an environmental center to serve Monona and Madison, $50,000 for a shooting range in Eau Claire County and $46,000 for subsidized recycling bins in Wrightstown.
The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel reports that 29 earmarks were for more than $100,000:
$44.5 million, mostly in bonds, for a University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire education building; represented by Sen. Kathleen Vinehout (D-Alma) and Rep. Jeff Smith (D-Eau Claire).
$13 million for the Wisconsin Rapids armory; represented by Sen. Julie Lassa (D-Stevens Point), who is on the committee, and Rep. Marlin Schneider (D-Wisconsin Rapids).

$28 million in bonds for a School of Nursing facility at the UW-Madison; Sen. Judy Robson (D-Beloit), a nurse who sits on the committee, has long backed her profession in the Legislature.

$6.6 million for a Yahara River project in Dane County; the county is represented mostly by Democrats, including the committee's co-chairmen, Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Mark Miller (D-Monona).

$5 million for the Bradley Center Sports and Entertainment Corp. in downtown Milwaukee; represented by Sen. Spencer Coggs (D-Milwaukee) and Rep. Leon Young (D-Milwaukee).

$4 million for planning a joint museum for the State Historical Society and Department of Veterans Affairs; an area served by Pocan, Miller and other Dane County legislators would benefit.

Up to $1.25 million for Manitowoc Road in Bellevue; represented by Sen. Alan Lasee (R-De Pere) and Rep. Ted Zigmunt (D-Francis Creek).

$800,000 for the AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin; the center has locations throughout the state.

Up to $500,000 for Washington Street in Racine; Democrats Sen. John Lehman, a committee member, and Rep. Robert Turner represent the area.
$500,000 for an environmental center in a park that borders Madison and Monona; the two cities are represented by the committee's co-chairmen.
$500,000 for the Oshkosh Opera House; Republican Sen. Randy Hopper and Rep. Gordon Hintz, a Democrat, represent Oshkosh.
$500,000 for Eco Park in La Crosse; represented by Sen. Dan Kapanke (R-La Crosse) and committee member Rep. Jennifer Shilling (D-La Crosse).
Up to $430,000 for Highway X in Chippewa County; represented by Sen. Pat Kreitlow (D-Chippewa Falls) and Rep. Kristen Dexter (D-Eau Claire).
Up to $400,000 for State St. in Racine; represented by Lehman and Turner.
$300,000 for the AIDS Network in Madison; represented by Pocan and Senate President Fred Risser (D-Madison).
$250,000 for a bridge on S. Reid Road in Rock County; Robson and Rep. Chuck Benedict (D-Beloit).
$250,000 for the Madison Children's Museum; represented by Pocan and Risser.
$125,000 to remodel an Eau Claire library; represented by Kreitlow and Dexter.
$100,000 for Huron Road in Bellevue; represented by Lasee and Zigmunt.
$100,000 for the Stone Barn historic site in Oconto County; represented by Sen. Dave Hansen (D-Green Bay), who sits on the committee, and Rep. John Nygren (R-Marinette).

The dark side of our future: abberations in the gene pool

2009-06-13T09:44:00.000-07:00

Julius Burton -- who admits he shot two Milwaukee police officers point blank -- has a rather interesting, albeit brief, Facebook page. He's "engaged "to "baby mama" who is a high school junior.

And just like Charles Manson, this useless piece of human excrement has his share of supporters and followers, such as brother Donovan whose intellectual capacity must have been strained to write this token of support: "My mothing fucking brother nigga i love u til neath no matter what."

A wonderful testament to the Milwaukee Public Schools, I'm sure.

Message to everyone: Dreams still can come true

2009-06-12T06:20:00.001-07:00

In the midst of the daily barrage of depressing news, occasionally there's a ray of hope and optimism -- something that went down as it should.

Sunday night's Tony awards ceremonies in New York brought home that point when the award for best featured actress in a musical went to Karen Olivo for her role of Anita in the revision of West Side Story that opened earlier this year on Broadway.

My wife and I had the privilege of spending New Year's Eve up close at the preview of the new West Side Story at the National Theatre in Washington, D.C., the very same venue that the original version opened at in 1957.

The revised version -- I am reluctant to say revival because there's been a significant revision -- is a bit more realistic in that a good chunk of the dialogue is in Spanish, i.e., those parts that would have been spoken by the Sharks and their community. Also, both the Jets and Sharks appear a bit less like choir boys although that could have been carried farther.

Nonetheless, what stole the show was the firery performance by Karen Olivo as Anita followed by Josefina Scaglione, a 21 year old actress from Buenos Aires who is the new Maria. (Scaglione was nominated for a Tony award for best actress in a musical but didn't win.)

Olivo's passion, dancing, singing -- you name it -- went beyond flawless. Every review in Washington and later in New York clearly pegged her as the star of the show and the Wall Street Journal went so far as to call Olivo's performance "blowtorch hot."

So, why is this significant?

At the age of six, Karen Olivo became enamored with Anita played by Rita Moreno in the movie version of West Side Story. She got to play the role at her high school in central Florida from which she graduated in 1994.

Olivo made her way to Broadway, starting as an understudy in Rent where she met her husband and then went on to a critically acclaimed performance in In the Heights which she gave up to take a chance on West Side Story.

Sunday night a stunned and often speechless Olivo cried during her acceptance speech -- a note of humility not lost on the masses -- but just as important were the cheers from the Orlando area moms and dads from her high school theater days (the Florida version of the KYPAC moms here in Kenosha) who knew that someday she'd make it.

In that teary acceptance speech Olivo said that dreams can come true and it's obvious that she's living proof.

So the next time you see some talented kid giving it his or her best, there's nothing wrong with encouraging them to move forward. It can happen.

The demise of Chrysler -- and common sense

2009-06-09T17:21:00.000-07:00

You have to wonder what kind of parents raise the dim bulbs who have graduate degrees but no common sense.

The folks who are destroying Chrysler and the brainless bankruptcy judge who is enabling them are seriously in need of a reverse lobotomy.

I'm sure we could talk forever about the ills of the auto industry but the example I cited last month holds true today -- the last day that Sun Country in St. George, Utah will be selling Chrysler products.

Auto dealer trade groups point out -- correctly -- that the dealers don't cost the manufacturers money. They buy their inventory at wholesale and pay for their building, employees and parts. They even buy the sign.

When you ask company flacks why they want to reduce the dealer network you get a hodgepodge of nonspecific gobbledygook that sounds like MBA-speak but is about as valuable as an old Yugo.

The brainless bozo of a bankruptcy judge in New York doesn't give a rat's behind about the dealers or Chrysler's customers. Ditto for small town America.

Why should he? (If you have to ask, then you're obviously part of the problem as opposed to part of the solution.)

As previously stated, the dealer network helps Chrysler sell its cars. They also service them and sell parts. Dealers pay their own way.

So, if you're in the booming town of St. George and your local Chrysler dealer is closing, are you likely to buy a car that can't be serviced unless you drive a couple of hours to Las Vegas?

You can't even drive an hour up the road to Cedar City. Nope. Chrysler pulled the plug on its Cedar City dealers, too.

Multiply that by the other dealers Chrysler kicked out and the towns they served and it certainly gives anyone with common sense pause when buying a new car. Simply stated, if you can't buy it or get it serviced locally, why bother with a Chrysler product?

That's basic common sense -- something that the MBA's and bankruptcy court bozos in Manhattan can't connect with in any way, shape or form. Chrysler and its federal enablers are basically telling customers and dealers, "Screw you!"

There's a Toyota dealer in St. George. Ditto for Honda. And Nissan. Why does that matter?

Years ago one of the complaints against imports was that if you travel you can't find service and parts.

Amazing how times have changed -- and how if common sense was truly common, you'd buy it at Wal-Mart.

RIP: Chrysler

2009-05-14T22:09:00.001-07:00

Chrysler Corporation died Thursday following a long period of neglect.

The post-mortem examination established suicide as the cause.

The end came as the company fired one-fourth of its 3200 dealers leaving many areas without a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep dealer.

18 of those dealerships are in Wisconsin ranging from Dodge City in Milwaukee to Quinn Motors in Ellsworth.

Nearly 40,000 people work at the 789 dealers which as of June 9 will no longer sell Chrysler products. The troubled automaker refused to buy cars, tools and parts back from the terminated dealers.

The loss of so many dealers will mean lost sales, property and income tax dollars in the affected communities as well as a decline in charitable contributions.

As for customers, Chrysler's attempts to mollify them probably won't work.

Here's a good example.

Take St. George, a fast-growing community in southern Utah about two hours north of Las Vegas.

There's one Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep dealer in town Sun Country, established in 1945 and known as southern Utah's number one Dodge dealer. Until now.

Sun Country is closing, leaving Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep owners with nowhere to go -- not even 50 miles up the road to Cedar City which has its Chrysler dealers on the hit list.

With no reasonably accessible product support in your area, why would you want to buy a Chrysler product?

No doubt that question will be on the minds of a lot of prospective Chrysler owners -- and you can't blame them.

In memory of Ralph Fox

2009-05-12T06:24:00.000-07:00

The Kenosha News today carries the obituary of Ralph Fox.

If you're under 50, give or take, you won't likely remember Capt. Fox but he was the original "Officer Friendly" of the Kenosha Police Department who visited schools, worked with "patrol boys" and crossing guards, spoke to community groups, etc. He was the guy who told you not to take rides from strangers and how to witness a possible abduction and report it to the police.

Law enforcement has changed in the 34 years since Ralph retired and, in some respects, not for the better.

Ralph was one of the World War II veterans who successfully and honorably transitioned into law enforcement at a time when cops were more peace officers than law enforcement officers. He will be missed but his legacy lives on in much more formal ways.

Gas prices

2009-05-12T06:21:00.000-07:00

Today's Kenosha gas price: $2.50 per gallon.

Yesterday in California (which usually has higher prices): $2.38 per gallon.

Grrrrr.

Long overdue...and still long overdue...

2009-05-07T06:29:00.000-07:00

After sleeping on the issue for years, a fire was lit in Madison this week and the legislature appears ready to enhance Wisconsin's weak Clean Indoor Air law to match that of most of our surrounding states, ending our dubious title of Ashtray of the Midwest.

The best analysis comes from our old sparring partner, Eugene Kane. It's well-written and comes from Eugene's heart.

Surprisingly, Eugene missed an important point in the struggle and that is the targeting cigarette companies did to trap minority customers. I can tell you that some of the strongest support for smoking restrictions comes from groups such as NAACP and the Urban League -- and for good reason.

To chase or not to chase...

2009-05-06T18:18:00.000-07:00

...that is the question buzzing around Kenosha since a drunken driver decided not to stop for a deputy sheriff and plowed into an innocent man's car on Kenosha's north side.

That innocent family man -- Anibal Tellez -- was just on his way home from work. He lost his life. His family lost a husband and father.

The buzz, of course, is predictable. Some folks are questioning why the deputy had to chase the drunk in the first place. Others say they understand why and feel sorry for the Tellez family. Reaction is emotional and predictable -- it happens like this anywhere in the country.

Having been a police officer and having been in a few chases, let me set the record straight on a few things.

First, if you think cops "get off" on the thrill of a chase, think again.

When we put on the lights and siren and the motorist speeds up instead of pulling over, we don't know why. Is it a frightened kid? An illegal immigrant without a driver's license? A dangerous felon who abducted someone? A drunk and dangerous driver? All of the above?

Truth is, we usually don't know. Also true is that if you've never been behind the wheel of a squad car during a chase, you can't possibly understand the dynamics. If you think it's fun, you're sick.

Every car you see coming up to a stop sign on a side road causes another lump in your throat? Will that car stop? Slow down for that stop sign! Stop! Please stop! Stay stopped! Don't pull out!

Those are some of the things that run through your mind in a chase. The greatest fear is that some innocent person will get in the way and become a victim.

Why not radio ahead? Cops do -- but seldom will there be other squad cars in position to be effective?

Stop strips? Didn't have those in my day -- but they still take time to put down, time that often doesn't exist.

During a chase an officer has to balance many competing exigencies -- protecting his or her safety, accurate radio transmissions on the progress of the chase (in Iowa I once got into a chase on roads without names -- imagine that feeling of helplessness), calculating what to do defensively if some motorist or pedestrian pulls out in front of your squad car and so forth.

Fun? No way. And the sad reality is that no matter what the officer does, the officer will be damned if he or she does and damned if he or she doesn't chase. And regardless of the outcome, there will be Monday morning quarterbacking by well intentioned people with no clue of what it's really like.

I've been there and done that and, no, I didn't always chase.

I once stopped a guy because his license was revoked. When I got up to his car and asked to see his driver's license, I noticed that he reeked of alcohol. "Fuck you, pig. I don't have to show you my goddamn fucking driver's license." He drove off -- fortunately not at a high rate of speed.

Do I chase him? If I did, he might speed up and the risk of carnage increases exponentially. Backup? The nearest officer was 13 miles away -- in the wrong direction.

Do I not chase him? If he gets into a crash and there's a victim injured or killed, that decision will be microscopically reviewed.

In this case, I opted to follow from a distance. Fortunately he made it home safe, slept it off and had a surprise visit at lunch from myself and two state troopers. Less than 24 hours after the incident he was sentenced to 90 days in jail with the admonition, "Next time an officer asks to see your license, you stay there and show it."

The ultimate insult here may well come in the courtroom where many of our judges soft pedal their sentences for knowingly fleeing an officer. Unlike the Iowa judge they, for the most part, fail to send the right message and actually enable more chases in the process. The news media rarely reports on these irresponsible sentences and the judges who handed them out are never held accountable.

I will not trivialize the death of Anibal Tellez by saying something trite like "it's unfortunate." Of course it is. All that and a lot worse.

Don't forget that the person responsible for this death is the drunken moron that wouldn't stop -- not the deputy.

And if you want to play Monday morning quarterback, well, if you haven't been in the officer's shoes, you probably won't know what you're talking about.

Note to Brett Favre: Character STILL matters

2009-05-05T21:50:00.000-07:00

Here we go again.

"Broadway Brett" Favre just said he's through with football and has no plans to return to the NFL next season.

Now come word that the just-released Jets quarterback will be talking with the Minnesota Vikings.

You'll recall that in March 2008 Favre gave that teary-eyed emotional farewell to football speech in Green Bay and wished his successor, Aaron Rogers, all the best.

Then Favre did an about face and demanded his old job back.

But when the Packers said Favre could rejoin the tea, but they would honor their contractural and moral commitments to Rogers, Favre threw a hissy fit right at general manager Ted Thompson.

The whiny Favre then finagled his way out of the Packers organization -- which said it would still welcome him after his playing days ended -- and wound up as a New York Jet. (Favre later conceded it was done as a way to spite Thompson.)

I was in New York that August day when the town was abuzz with Favre fever. Mayor Michael Bloomberg, in welcoming Favre, told him he could have the key to the city after he brought a championship to New York.

Broadway Brett was the darling of Gotham City until his performance waned and that early enthusiam turned to disappointment and angst.

The injured Favre said this time his retirement announcement was for good and the Jets dutifully released him.

The ink was barely dry on that paperwork when news broke out that Favre will be talking with the Vikings.

Certainly Favre's legendary on-the-gridiron performance is something that can never be taken from him. He earned it.

But also certain is that Favre's lack of good character. He's shown that he's not a man of his word. He also showed us that he's a crass cry baby who thinks of nobody but himself.

We're taught in Luke that the person who exalts himself will be humbled and the one who humbles himself or herself will be exalted. Favre must have skipped out on Sunday school the day that was brought up.

Here's a guy who should have respected the fact that the Packers waited for him to resolve his annual "will I play" soap opera before moving on and offering the starting quarterback job to Rogers. When he changed his mind and demanded his old job back, Favre in essence wanted the Packers to go back on their word to Rogers.

The Packers wouldn't bite -- and rightfully so -- but offered Favre a chance to rejoin the team where he could have mentored and backed up Rogers.

That wasn't good enough for Favre. After his "180" he felt he was entitled to waltz up Lombardi Avenue and tell the Packers how things were going to be done.

Unlike Packer fans, who mostly forgave Favre, Jets fans turned on him in a New York minute when his performance went south. It may well be that the New Yorkers had Favre pegged correctly.

Of course, Favre has the right to do what he wants but will the Vikings want this troublemaker on their roster?

That said, there may be good news if Favre puts on a purple uniform. That may be just what the Packers need to energize them into a powerful football team.

From the "no comment" department: The Barney Frank Tea Party

2009-05-05T07:22:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Doug Snow.

GOP: Whining away toward another defeat

2009-05-04T22:41:00.000-07:00

The big kick in the Republican party since last November is to bum rap John McCain and publicly disavow any merit to the notion that the party ought to be a "big tent" which can hold a vast range of differing social beliefs.

In other words, these numbskulls blame the Obama victory on McCain not being conservative enough.

Truth be told, many of these people skewered McCain before the convention and then, when he became the nominee, supported him mainly because he wasn't "the other guy."

It's high time these rectal-cranial inverts got a huge reality check enema.

First, the GOP was pretty much doomed in November by the stumbling and bumbling of one our most unpopular presidents who did zip to help Republican chances of keeping the White House.

Second, the Democrats were not only aided by the national spirit of discontent, but they also had an extremely charismatic candidate who appealed to a broad section of Americans with his promise of change. Barack Obama also stood out as a beacon of hope for African-Americans and his support among black voters was to be expected.

Third, John McCain's biggest enemy wasn't ideology: it was John McCain who came off as a progressively stumbling and bumbling candidate. Ronald Reagan -- who originally proferred the "big tent" theory -- wasn't a spring chicken when he ran for president in 1980 but he didn't seem terribly old.

Yes, McCain did Leno and Letterman, but, at a minimum, his speech and demeanor, especially compared to the charismatic Obama, was that of a confused old guy.

McCain, for the most part, did lousy in the debates. I would rather have seen his famous acerbic temper because what we saw didn't exude confidence in his skills.

And then there was McCain's flip-flops. Maybe the 2000 version of John McCain stood a chance of beating Obama but the 2008 incarnation didn't.

There was no Ross Perot spoiler on the ballot in 2008. I highly doubt many Republicans voted for Obama because they couldn't stand McCain or wanted a more conservative candidate. Obama's margin of victory game imprimatur to his approach.

And so we fast forward to those Republicans who now skewer McCain and reject the notion that the GOP ought to have a more moderate and progressive approach. In their myopic view, the fact a call for a bigger tent didn't work in 2008, it won't work down the road.

The reality check is that unless he could essentially out-Obama Obama, McCain didn't stand much of a chance. And it wasn't McCain who adulterated the conservative message -- the prime perpetrator for that was George W. Bush.

Yes, the GOP needed a much more consistent message and still needs it today. John McCain lost that election for many reasons. Being too far to the center wasn't one of them.

Only in San Francisco

2009-05-03T21:37:00.000-07:00

Well, actually South San Francisco.

I was at a Target store tonight -- a nice two-story store complete with escalators for shopping carts.

Anyway, I stopped in the men's room, opened the door to the stall and saw on the floor the remnants of a used condom.

Slut a couple of wheezeballs!

Don't bash factory workers

2009-05-02T23:59:00.001-07:00

Let’s not bash Kenosha

Even though Bosmo and the 17 rocket scientists are utterly incapable of filling potholes with anything other than bicycles, motorcycles and subcompacts, it’s important to point out that now is not the time to bash Kenosha and, more specifically, Chrysler workers.

I say this because I was particularly disturbed by a comment posted on the Kenosha News website which essentially said good riddance to Chrysler because now Kenosha might be able to shed its factory-town mentality.

How insulting.

No doubt Kenosha was less than progressive in the years following the Great Depression and American Motors, an absentee corporation at that, controlled much of everyday life in this area. We all know that when AMC caught a cold, Kenosha got pneumonia and we rode that roller coaster for decades.

It was also an especially hard hit in 1988 when Chrysler pulled the plug on auto production here because the city had just begun to diversify its economic and social fabric and a more orderly transition would have been more favorable. Nonetheless, eventually Kenosha was dragged kicking and screaming into the 20th century.

The posters who bash our factory workers and factories overlooked the benefits these people and institutons bestowed on us.

First, money turned around in the local economy. Kenosha had nice homes, good schools and beautiful parks. These things wouldn’t have occurred without the good paying jobs and benefits that AMC workers enjoyed.

Yes, we did bemoan on more than one occasion how Kenosha may have been backward, but it turns out that our conservatism saved this community.

When financial institutions overextended themselves with risky lending and foolish ventures, Kenosha’s banks and savings and loans would have nothing of it. As a result Kenosha Savings and Loan and First National Bank were among the soundest financial institutions in the nation.

The fact that we didn’t do a lot of goofy things (notable exception: the ill-fated downtown “mall”) turned out to be good because when the time came, we were also to do things right.

Just look at the most recent industrial and commercial development in the greater Kenosha area. This couldn’t have happened in the old days. Waiting turned out to be a plus.

In addition, Kenosha did something quite unusual because the suburban-style expansion was coupled with inner city redevelopment. Kenosha is a national model, folks. Who among us would have thought that 20 or 30 years ago?

Those factory workers were our fathers, uncles and grandfathers who built nice homes, paid high takes and sent a not-so-subtle message to us baby boomers that went something like this: “I lived through the Depression and when World War II came was drafted. When I got out I came home and worked at American Motors. I never got a chance to finish school. But you -- you’re going to go to school and make something of yourself.”

Folks, those factory workers some belittle made a lot of themselves -- and us -- and we owe them our respect and gratitude. These are the folks who made it possible for us to succeed.

When auto production ended in Kenosha, it wasn’t just a plant closing. It was stealing this community’s soul and identity. Even in the worst days of this city you could go almost anywhere in the country and as soon as Kenosha was mentioned you’d hear, “That’s where they make Ramblers.”

For better or worse, we had an identity -- and a not so bad one at that. Now we are a nice bedroom suburb. Nice, but not the same.

Instead of belittling the factory workers who were the bedrock of this community, we ought to be thanking them and remembering in meaningful ways what they gave all of us.

Deja vu all over again

2009-05-02T23:58:00.000-07:00

Déjà vu all over again

Yes, folks, when it comes to Chrysler and Kenosha, it’s déjà vu all over again.

Part of me feels that Chrysler’s plan to close the Kenosha engine plant should come as no surprise. We’ve been there before -- more than once.

In case you forgot -- or you were too young to remember -- Chrysler ceased auto production in Kenosha in 1988, just a couple of years after it bought out American Motors.

Before that time there was great optimism that Chrysler and AMC were a great fit. Kenosha’s AMC workers turned out a quality product and it was stunning when Chrysler pulled the plug on making cars here, keeping only a smaller work force at the engine plant.

Chrysler, of course, kept the plum of the AMC takeover: the Jeep line. And, to Chrysler’s credit, the Kenosha engine plant was modernized, well-run and had good labor relations.

Yet we should forgive anyone if they feel that Chrysler may not have been playing with a full deck when it spent the last three years wooing union concessions in order to make Kenosha an attractive place to manufacture its new Phoenix engine line.

And this week -- just one day after Chrysler workers voted to grant the company more concessions -- Chrysler put itself into bankruptcy and in its filing announced eight plants, including Kenosha, are slated for closure.

Skepticism, too, should be forgiven. This bankruptcy filing didn’t just happen overnight. The paperwork had to be in preparation for days and weeks, perhaps months. They didn’t just pull this out of thin air and run it over to the federal courthouse the next morning.

Then there’s the Fiat connection.

Fiat was supposed to be Chrysler’s savior. Uh-huh.

An Italian automaker that turns out flashy but less than reliable products is a good fit for an American automaker that turns out flashy but less than reliable products. Uh-huh.
Wasn’t Daimler supposed to be Mopar’s savior? At least the German automaker has the ability to turn out somewhat decent products. We all know that Daimler bailed.

And did anyone forget how Renault -- a French automaker that turns out less than reliable products -- once owned a significant chunk of AMC but, at the end of the day, also failed to be a knight in shining armor.

The only thing that really seemed to work was when Lee Iacocca was at the helm and Chrysler got loan guarantees -- not a cash bailout -- from Uncle Sam.

Iacocca got Chrysler’s act together, eventually satisfied its creditors and his name became a household word. Who’s the CEO of Chrysler now? Does anyone know? Does anyone care.

I could go on and on about all the incentives the state and union gave Chrysler over the years but you get the picture. Perhaps, just perhaps, this is déjà vu all over again.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.