Tired

Yesterday I visited with Laura.  It was a great time with us just talking and spending time together.  I really needed to unwind and have conversation.  Even when we don’t agree we do it in a good way.  She is mad at me because today the plan was for me to go see One for the Money – which I did.  Laura – take your honey and go see the movie.  It is worth the tickets price – captured all the good things in the book. 
Laura asked me a question yesterday that had been on my mind for a while.  She asked if I get tired of all the political stuff.  The answer is easy.  Absolutely.  Here are a few of the things I’m tired of. 
I’m tired of having to fight for rights that women should already have.  I’m tired of fighting for the people who have nothing but can’t be heard because they can’t pay for the $5000 a plate dinner.  I’m tired of having to read and research and analyze all sorts of information in order to see what mayhem the politicians are up to yet again.  I’m tired of feeling betrayed by my elected officials – like the governor, senators, representatives – almost all of them.  I’m tired of signing petitions to stop things that have no affect on my elected officials.  I’m damn tired of my elected officials not representing me or my beliefs but following their own agenda and pocketbook.
Yeah – I’m tired but what do I stop doing?  Who do I stop trying to stand up for?  Women?  Children?  The poor?  It would be nice if the politicians (doesn’t matter what party) would listen to me and all their other constituents. 
As a parent, I’ve always been told to pick my battles.  I guess I’m picking my battles now but to be honest there are so many right now that it is exhausting.  What the hell… I don’t need to sleep but women need birth control and the right to make decisions about their own bodies.  Children need education, protection from being forced to work, food, and so much more.  The poor need education and a helping hand.  Someone has to speak up for them and fight to protect them. 

If my voice can be heard through a phone message, email, letter, petition, or any other way, then I’ll take being tired.  Will you?

End of Year

I suppose I should have something profound to say about the year ending and a new year beginning.  Or not.  In reality, I’m looking forward to the last three days of my vacation.  I’ve enjoyed the time I’ve had off.  I’ve done more crafting then writing.  I’ve lounged and read books more than I meant to. 
However, I have done a lot of prep work for two manuscripts.  I’ve also spent some time submitting my work to different publications.  My to-do list has nearly been ignored but I am feeling relaxed and rested from the last few weeks of stress.
I’m not making any New Year’s resolutions.  They are made and broken too easily.  Moving forward I want to keep improving things at work, writing, and trying to find a balance for doing all the things I like to do. 
There is an old Irish curse (I think) – May you live in interesting times.  We are certainly doing that.  This year has been interesting when it comes to politics and society.  Our culture is on the brink of changes.  The question becomes will it be changes for the good or the bad?  I guess that will be determined by what your beliefs are. 
For me, I’d like a little less interesting and a bit more balanced.  However, I’m up for standing up for what I believe (as you probably all can tell from my postings).  I hope in the new year we learn to respect those we put down.  I’d like to see women struggle less when it comes to making money and having control of their own bodies.  I’d like to see Gays and Lesbians have the right (like all the rest of us) to be married.  I’d like to see the politicians actually represent what the majority of people want. 

I have the feeling that 2012 will continue to be interesting times for us.  Whether you agree with my politics or beliefs, I wish all of you the best and to continue living in interesting times.

Political action

I’m very worried that the politicians in office now are going to ruin our economy and society.  I’ve spent the morning contacting every one I could with the message below. 

Here is a web site you can use to find out who represents you:
http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml

I wrote the following that I sent to both my senators and representatives.  I also sent pieces of it to the President and Vice President.  I have no idea if this will do any good.  However, I feel like I should speak out.  I’ll at least have voiced my opinion. 

I urge anyone who feels the same way to do the same.  If you want to copy what I have below – feel free.  If you have additional ideas – add them in and post them here.  Maybe if we all start talking one on one with them – flooding them with our beliefs then they will start to listen and act appropriately.

Here is what I wrote:

This year has been a difficult one for our country.  There is a great deal of divisiveness in our country and especially in politics.  This divisiveness is part of what is hurting our economy.  The public does not trust our politicians to do what is best for the country.
I am a state worker and a union member but I don’t necessarily vote the way my union wants.  I look at each candidate and determine how closely candidates’ beliefs are to my own beliefs.  I look for someone who is willing to do what is right and what the people want rather than what they or their contributors want. 
I realize I’m one voice.  I am one person in a sea of constituents who are diverse and have as many opinions as there are people.  However, I cannot in all good conscious remain silent about what I feel needs to happen to make our country better and stronger.
Business is important to our economy.  Without it we are back to an agrarian society and we have too many people to go back to the family farms.  Business needs to have a level playing field.  However, this does not mean they have a free ride as I feel they are getting.  It means that we make sure there aren’t monopolies and that they are able to do the business they are in – provided it is legal and safe. 
They do not deserve tax breaks so they can billions in profits while the majority of the people cannot make their bills.  We may be a global economy but we certainly aren’t preventing companies from taking their business elsewhere.  It has happened repeatedly and to the detriment of our economy.  American workers are among the best educated and the hardest working.  Yet business doesn’t value that because they have to provide a safe working place, work with unions, and pay a higher wage. 
While it may be cheaper to use Chinese workers, the quality of product is substandard.  The safety of the products is below par as we’ve seen from all the recalls. 
With gas prices hovering between $3 and $4 a gallon, the regular person often has to choose between food and other essentials and the ability to get to work.  I do not work in the same town I live.  I have to drive 19 miles to my work five days a week.  This gets to be costly.  There are not any buses or trains that allow me to commute or I would.  My husband has to commute the same distance.  We cannot afford to upgrade our cars nor can we afford one of the hybrid cars.  Therefore, we are stuck paying the outrageous price for gas while the oil companies make billions in profits each quarter.  This means I have less money to spend on other things. 
Medicare, Medicaid, and Social Security have been under threat by political players.  These programs help those who are either unable to work or have worked all their lives and are now in retirement.  My mother is 80 years old.  She was widowed in her 50s.  She’d been a farm wife her entire adult life.  Because of the many factors she sold the farms, file for bankruptcy, and had to start over.  She went back to school, got a degree and started her career.  She worked well into her 70s retiring only a couple of years ago.  She was a Certified Nurse’s Assistant working with Alzheimer patients at a county home and then at a private facility.  She contributed to retirement and social security. 
Her retirement barely covers her expenses and she is already living with one of my sisters.  Now there is a threat that social security won’t be able to be paid out because the politicians can’t seem to grasp a concept that most kindergartners do.  Cooperation is key to solving our problems.  If my mother does not receive her social security, she will not be able to pay her bills.  This means that she and my sister may not be able to stay in the house they are in.  They could lose the house and their financial stability.  They won’t have money for food, electricity, and other essentials.  Will the politicians be going without their paychecks until the budget crisis is over?  If not then I suggest you find a way to keep Social Security payments going out.
As for cutting these services, don’t.  It is wrong.  Most of the people using them have been working their entire lives, paying in to get this benefit.  They are relying on this as their retirement.  If you take it away then they are without a safety net.  Incomes are not such that most people can afford to put away money for retirement and medical care.
Perhaps politicians would understand this better if they had to utilize the same benefits rather than getting a special retirement fund that gives them benefits based on nothing more than being a politician.  Politicians are not above the American public, they are the servants of the American public.  Therefore, they should not have any benefits the American public doesn’t have.
Planned Parenthood, birth control, and abortion are key issues for me.  I’m a woman with three daughters, four sisters, and five nieces on my side of the family and many more on my husband’s side of the family.  Women make up 51% of the population.  Yet we are underrepresented in politics.  As far as I’m concerned, men have no say in what happens to women’s bodies.  It isn’t your body that is wracked with hormones and the severe and drastic changes that occur during a pregnancy.  Women have three choices when it comes to being pregnant.  If the pregnancy is unwanted, none of these choices are easy to follow through with.  No one should have any right to say what happens to a woman’s body except that woman. 
Would I like to see abortion stop?  Yes.  However, that is not likely to happen.  Men do not take responsibility for where their sperm goes (condoms are the best contraceptive yet so few use them) and they also are not stuck with a child they don’t want.  Many men are able to walk away without one ounce of responsibility.  Until men control themselves, women should have the right to an abortion, free birth control, and the privacy to make the decisions needed when pregnant without stigma or recrimination. 
Society penalizes women for being women.  Our wages are still only about 80% of what men make.  Women are typically the ones responsible for most day care, household chores, and family maintenance.  This is just another reason why women should have access to free birth control, abortion and the privacy needed for decisions about her body.
There are several ways to improve the economy without attacking the m idle class, elderly, and poor.  We do need a balanced budget.  We need to live within our means and stop borrowing or living on credit.  This goes for the individual, business and government. 
Here are the ideas I have for improving the economy. 
Sales tax:  Sales tax means someone is buying something and paying the government a portion of it.  If you buy a stick of gum (because that is all you can afford) then you pay less than if you buy a private jet.  Therefore, let’s have a federal sales tax of 1-2% as well as raising the state sales tax by a ½ – 1%.  This will increase funding based on what people can afford. 
Tax breaks for the rich:  There shouldn’t be any.  They make the most money and should pay the most for taxes.  They should contribute to social security based on how much they make not have a flat rate for those who make over a certain amount.  If you make a million dollars a year then you pay into social security a percentage of that million dollars – the full amount.  If you make $30,000 a year, than you pay in the same percentage on your annual wage. 
Regulate the banks and the oil companies.  These groups seem to be out of control.  Every time the price of gas goes up the economy tanks.  So make them ask before they are allowed to raise prices.  It is done with utility companies, it can be done with oil companies.  As well as these regulation let’s get some decent, safe public transportation.  I’d be happy to let someone else do the driving for my commute – if there were a service available.  There isn’t.  I live in a small city and commute to a small town.  Banks seem to think it is ok to set up fees for their customers.  Fees that are complicated and confusing so a person who already barely makes ends meet is hit with fees that they didn’t even know were on their account.  There needs to be more honesty in the banking industry.
At the same time we are working on the economy we need to be looking out for our environment.  We cannot continue the way we are destroying the natural world around us.  We see in the violent weather patterns that Mother Nature is trying to bring herself back into balance.  This may be a natural cycle as some scientists say but I think we brought this cycle around quicker by destroying so much of our natural world. 
If we destroy our world by polluting our air, water, and food supply, how will we live?  We have to make the environment a top priority.  Instead of destroying our natural environment we need to protect it and find safer, healthier ways to live.  There isn’t one answer that is right in this issue.  No one thing will replace our reliance on oil and coal which are the worst polluters.  However, making solar, wind, geothermal and other environment friendly power sources more affordable will allow more people to utilize them.  This means that we are less reliant on these dirty power sources and more reliant on the clean ones. 
These are just a few ideas can help us go from floundering to recovering.  We need to find our feet and stand firm.  To do that we need to work together rather than acting like spoiled children fighting over whose turn it is to be in control. 

Independence Day

Two days of rest and relaxation, you would think I’d be happy as a clam.  Do we really know if clams are happy?  I was for a bit.  I got great news from my daughters in Georgia.  They officially have a new apartment and Stephanie got a brand new car.  Hopefully this will be less worrying about them down there.  The last two days have been wonderful.  Saturday we went to the carnival for lunch and to a movie.  It was calm and relaxing.  Sunday we were vegetables and watched DVR and DVD stuff.  I crocheted on Stephanie’s afghan.  It was a good weekend. 

This morning I woke up before my alarm which is never a good thing.  I managed to get back to sleep and got up to play on the computer.  I went from playing on the computer to working on budget.  Starting in August I’m losing about $175 a month.  Somewhere in my budget I have to find this money.  It is a lot to juggle and think about. 

This morning I’m not so relaxed and rested.  However, it is the 4th of July and I’m not at work.  I can do what I want with the day and just kick back.  Vicki has gone off to the parade and carnival.  I’m going to close my budget and hope that I’ve figured out how I’m paying my bills and getting things organized. 

The problem I’m having is that once I start looking at my budget I start worrying about those who are going to be affected even worse by what is going on with our economics and politics.  There are all these cuts going through with the budget.  What will happen to those families who have two teachers earning money and maybe losing their jobs?  What will happen to the single moms who rely on Head Start and Badger Care to assist them?  What will happen to the libraries and the schools?  So many people are negatively impacted by this budget and by what is going on with the government it is disturbing and heartbreaking.  I wonder if the politicians stop to think about that when they get out their red pens to say – we don’t need this or that.

On a side note, I read a friend’s blog and it was amazing.  Here is a link to an amazing blog that is well worth reading:  http://lillith3feathers.wordpress.com/2011/07/02/freedom-struggles-part-i/

Fix Wisconsin (and maybe the US too) part 2

On a state level we have to have a balanced budget.  We are not (as a state) allowed to have a deficit.  We need to pay the bills and care for our people.  We need to not punish one group or another.  We need to not be contentious about the hard times we have right now.  It is time to pull together and work hard to make things work.
On a federal level we don’t have to have a balanced budget.  That is the first change I would make.  Just as the individual cannot spend more than they make, our government needs to not spend more than it makes.
Here are some things to consider if the above doesn’t work to make the budget work.  Let’s look at the taxes that haven’t been raised in say the last five years.  If it hasn’t been raised then it is time to raise them.  I know NO ONE likes to pay more in taxes, however, we aren’t going to have this luxury.
Here’s the thing – taking money away from the poor – not going to fix the problem.  Why not you say?  Well because they are poor and don’t have any money.  Therefore, we can’t get more income from them.  It doesn’t save money to stop paying for preventative care and birth control.  It costs more money in the long run.  Plus the poor have it hard enough.  Let’s not make their lot in life worse.
We need to look at luxury items.  Yes I know the corporations and the rich people are cringing.  Here is the thing – if you have extra, then you need to give back.  Oh don’t worry I don’t think you should give till you are poor – I just think you have the ability to pay more so you should.
We need to encourage employment here.  I don’t know if we are necessarily going to be a manufacturing country anymore but we need to figure out how to keep our people employed.
We need to have a national healthcare plan so that everyone has equal access to care.  This means we need to rein in the insurance and pharmaceutical companies.  They make HUGE profits.  This is at the cost of the individuals who have to pay for all this crap. 
Education needs a revamp.  Teachers who excel at their jobs need to be compensated appropriately.  Those who aren’t good teachers need to be washed out.  Our schools need to step away from you are in grade X and will learn this.  They need to accommodate the students’ level of knowledge.  If a five year old is reading at a twelve year old level – they should be taught at that level.  We need to get our kids an education.  Studies show that more education means less likelihood for a need to rely on aid of any kind.
The society in US is a prude.  There is nothing wrong with sex or the naked body.  Like everything else we need to educate our populace (starting at a young age) that sex is normal and natural.  Virginity isn’t a prize to be clung to like some Victorian spinster.  It is a state of being.  You either have had or haven’t had sex.  Therefore we need to teach our kids how to have save and protected sex.  There are too many dangers in unprotected sex.  Pregnancy is the least of the worries.  There are all sorts of sexually transmitted diseases that will do everything from make you uncomfortable to kill you.  That needs to stop.  Oral sex is still sex and kids need to know that.  We need to teach our kids to respect their bodies and themselves. 
This leads to a woman’s right to control her own body.  Every woman should have the right to say what she wants to happen to her body.  No one – NO ONE – gets to say whether it is the right time for her to have a baby or not.  If she is pregnant and makes the difficult and heart wrenching decision to terminate that pregnancy, that is her choice.  No one – and in particular – no man gets to say she shouldn’t do that.  No I’m not pro-abortion – I’m pro-CHOICE.  That means that I think all the options should be available to women without recriminations for choosing one over another.
We have one planet to live on.  We need to respect our planet and figure out a way to live in harmony with all the creatures here and with the environment.  If we destroy our planet than where are we going to live?  Cut government subsidies to the oil companies unless they are developing other types of energy.  It is clearly obvious that nuclear energy is NOT the way to go.  The question then becomes what is the way to go?
How are we to accomplish all of these changes and adjustments?  Well here is the first steps I can think of:
1.      Meet with respect and an open mind.
2.      Discuss options and ideas
3.      Formulate a plan of action
4.      Execute that action plan
5.      Evaluate that plan on a regular basis
6.      Revise the plan as is needed
7.      Repeat…
There you go in three pages I’ve fixed the government and our society.  I know that people will read this and think – this woman is NUTS.  That’s okay because I probably am.  See I expect my elected representatives to actually do their job and represent ME.  I expect them to listen and hear all sides of an argument before they make a decision. 
Maybe I’m just idealistic in my belief that the founding fathers (there should have been mothers involved too) had it right with government for the people by the people.  I think that if we all pull together and get down to brass tacks we can make our country a better place for everyone to live, work and play. 
Obviously we won’t cure all the ills in one big meeting but let’s at least be open and have the discussions needed to bring our economy and lives back into a balanced place.
Now if you have managed to get to the end of this and still are reading – good for you – let me know what you think.  I’d love to hear others ideas about how to fix these difficult problems.

Fix Wisconsin (and maybe the US too) part 1

So much strife and dissent has occurred in the last three months.  It is exhausting to try to keep up with all the things that are going on.  Frankly I’m tired of the spoiled little boys and girls who are making the decisions in our government.  It is all about one party or the other and not what it should really be about. 
What should it really be about you might ask?  Here is my take on that. 
Our elected officials are not sent to Madison (or Washington) to get rich or to push their agenda (or the agenda of one entity – party, company, industry, person).  They are sent there to represent the people in their district. 
I know many districts are diverse with a number of opinions and beliefs.  Here’s the thing – the only way to find out what your constituents want is to LISTEN to them.  It is to have an open door police to take their phone calls, emails, and in person appointments to determine what they actually want you to do. 
If they aren’t doing this then they are not in touch with what the people in their district want, think, feel, or believe.  Even if they won an election that doesn’t mean the constituents agree with the legislator’s beliefs.  Therefore you have to do the above to stay in touch with in order to vote according to how the constituents want. 
Here is what I see we need to do (this is my opinion not anyone else’s and not based on some political agenda – no funds were taken from any special interests other than my own to form these opinions…)
·         Every employee needs to look for money saving ideas and present them in a professional way to offer options to the chiefs.  The people in the trenches see where there is waste.  They see where the programs work and where they don’t work.  These are the people who should be able to say – oh we can save money here…
·         Every employee needs to look to conserve everything from the energy bill (turn off those lights that aren’t needed) to the supplies they are using.  The savings may be small but pennies add up.
·         Every employee needs to be willing and flexible to the changes that will come down the chain of command.  Try something – if it doesn’t work fine but don’t just dismiss it because it is a change from what you are used to. 
·         Every employee needs to be doing their job to the fullest and best of their ability.  Get the work done – then go find more work.  If you are done with your work offer to help someone who isn’t done yet. 
·         Every department in the state (and the federal level too) needs to look at the ideas presented by the employees and determine whether they can be implemented.  If they can GREAT!!!  If they can’t – tell us why.  If an employee knows the why of it they can look at the situation differently and come up with a better solution.
·         Every department needs to look at their budget and determine where the fat is.  There is almost always excess.  Yes it is a difficult thing to say – if we don’t do this it will adversely affect our customers.  However, how many people will it affect?  Is it a small enough number that it could be dropped without too much difficulty?  Are there alternatives out there for the services and can we direct the customers to these services. 
·         Every department needs to look at the top level of administrators and determine how many there are and if there are too many.  These are the people who are paid the most and if we have to reduce the number of employees this would be the best place to start.  Now I’m not saying get rid of key people – that is just stupid.  I’m saying look for the “too many chiefs” syndrome and trim there.
·         Every unit in the department needs to look at the workflow to see how they can make it more efficient.  This will allow their people to do more with less.  We are doing it anyways we might as well make it easier.
·         The unions need to encourage their members to do all of these things.  They need to look for better ways to negotiate in order to complete the contracts quicker and with less strife.
·         The unions need to survey their members to see what is important to them – do they want a higher wage?  Do they want better benefits?  What is most and least important to the members?
·         Once these things have been done then the leaders need to meet – not just with department heads but with the employees of the state, the unions, the public – to discuss how much has been saved.  If we have made the budget balance – woo hoo – everyone do a happy dance.  If not – start the process over again.

Writing Momentum

I’ve been working on a manuscript since Thanksgiving weekend.  I’ve got 500 pages double spaced done.  I’m not done with the story though.  I’ve not written since January and have been frustrated with my progress (or lack of really).
I have friends who read for me.  You all know who you are so first THANK YOU!!  They often yank me back on track, encourage me, and offer an honest critique. One of the friends I sent this manuscript to has been sending me her thoughts on it as she progresses through the manuscript.  This has been great on this project for me. 
Since I’ve not written much in the past two months, it has made me go back to reread what I’ve got done.  I started reading again and low and behold – I didn’t want to stop.  I just wanted to read through this book.  It grabbed me and enthralled me.  Now I know that may sound conceited and that isn’t how I mean it.
The story captures so many of the things I’ve been coping with lately.  Some of it really resonates with me right now with the political issues we are dealing with. 
Aside from that though, these characters are familiar to me.  They seem almost more familiar than some of my family members.  It is like sitting down with old friends to say “Hey what’s going on in your life.”   Then I read some more and wow I know. 
I’m hoping to get back to writing soon.  I can see the next chapter in my head.  I know where I’ll be going and what I’ll be having these characters doing.  (No spoilers though so keep reading.)  I just need the time to sit down to the computer and work.
Interestingly enough, at my work they are doing some repairs which will involve lack of access to the elevator and asbestos removal on another floor.  Since I have asthma I don’t want to be in the building for the removal – yes I know they seal up the space but I still don’t want to be around.  So I will be having some unexpected free time at home. 
Now I just have to pray to the Goddess of Inspiration and hope she blesses me….

Summing up the week

It has been an eventful week.  There has been a lot going on in the political arena.  It had the unexpected benefit of creating a family gathering with little arguing and a lot of agreement on the one topic which seems to have unified the family.  Surprisingly this is politics. 

One of my sisters has been going to the protests and she shared her experiences.  I loved the stories about the farmers driving their tractors and manure spreaders – seems very appropriate.  The rest of us just discussed whatever details we had heard and some of our fears.  When a topic negatively affects every member it definitely pulls the family together.

Mom’s 80th birthday was Saturday.  She is as spunky and sassy as ever.  She goes to Curves and the Aquatic center to work out regularly each week.  She volunteers to help out at the church.  She is busier than I am and seems to have more energy. 

All of my siblings were together on Saturday.  We were only missing two brothers-in-law and a lot of grandchildren / great grandchildren.  It was a good gathering.  My aunt came with her two grandsons.  They are very handsome young men.  It is strange how when you don’t see them for a while you lose track of how old they are.  Now these two young men are the same ages as my two younger daughters roughly.  However, when I saw them I was like – wow they got to be handsome adults.  What’s up with that?  I guess I still see them as the little boys that tagged along at the family gatherings. 

It was a busy and full evening with much delight, discussion, and even a scare.  My sister’s mother-in-law stepped wrong and fell down the basement stairs.  She’s about my mom’s age so you can imagine how bad this could be.  Fortunately, she was banged and bruised but had no serious damage.  We are all grateful no lasting damage was done. 

I submitted a poem and an essay to a publication today.  I’m keeping my fingers crossed to see if they get published.  I have to print out the new version of it though because I made some pretty drastic changes. 

For me the best news – I tried another pain killer and I think I may have finally found a replacement.  The first dose went VERY well.  No side affects and pain relief.  So hopefully my search for a new drug has ended.  I will still be careful taking it the next couple of times but if it continues to perform well then I will bid the Darvacet a sad but fond farewell.

For Shame

I watched John Stewart last night and he talked about Pete King from NY who is calling for McCarthy like hearings within the Muslim communities.  This is appalling.  McCarthyism was one of the worst things in our recent history. 

Saying that one group is responsible for the ills of our nation is ridiculous.  It makes them scape goats when in reality it isn’t the Muslims but the extremists in all religions and view points. 

I’ve heard recently about laws being passed to make it legal to kill doctors who perform abortions.  I’ve heard the rhetoric from whichever wing (can never keep the extremists straight) where they are condemning abortion but then also turn around and condemn single mothers. 

Here is my thought on that issue – NO ONE has any right to say what I do with my body and whether I choose to be married or not. 

We need to get out of people’s lives and let them live them.  If they aren’t breaking laws or hurting others then leave them alone. 

If King wants to study the radicalization of anything great – do it in general terms across society – don’t pick on one group.  It didn’t work in WWII with the Japanese.  It didn’t work in the 50s with Communism.  It won’t work now with the Muslims.

It seems some of the political machines forget that we are supposed to be a religiously free country. 

Go Democrats!!!

I’m not a political person – yes I know I’ve posted so much this week on the issues going on but under normal circumstances I’m just not.  I don’t vote by party lines.  I don’t discuss my votes.  I vote – every election.  I despair that our politician will ever get what is needed for our country.

Today though, I was PROUD of our state Democrat senators.  The Republicans and Governor have closed their minds and their ears to the pleas of the workers in the state.  Walker said he had 8,000 emails supporting what he is doing.  How many did he have wanting it to stop?  How many people have protested – somewhere around 50,000. 

I watched the national programs tonight – they were amusing.  They also got to the heart of the matter.  I think this is the first time I’ve heard the other side of the story.  It has been the Republicans BLASTING away at the “evil” state workers and unions. 

The overly dramatic presentation of the information was a bit much (maybe because I’m from the Midwest) but maybe that will start people thinking.  Paul Ryan is an idiot.  He accused the protesters of being violent.  I say come to Madison and see for yourself.  The Madison police had only good things to say about the protesters.  Apparently Ryan thinks the teachers are a bunch of violent radical people.  Well they are radical – they want to keep their rights.

If Walker and his cronies have their way, Wisconsin will become a state of haves and have nots.  It isn’t the state workers who have.  It will be the corporations, big business, and the politicians who have.  The workers – everyone else will be a have not.  State worker (those that don’t already have second jobs) will be looking for a second job. 

I hope the Democrats drive their point home and stick together.  They are doing what’s right and I intend to support them.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/116369554.html
http://host.madison.com/ct/news/local/education/local_schools/article_28c5e5c6-3882-11e0-8bd0-001cc4c03286.html

http://host.madison.com/ct/news/opinion/editorial/article_61064e9a-27b0-5f28-b6d1-a57c8b2aaaf6.html

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