The American Addiction To Guns Is Killing The Country

One child, one town after another.

From the AP:

27 Dead, Including 18 Children, At Sandy Hook School Shooting In Newtown

And we have been warned, repeatedly, and have failed, repeatedly, to effectively confront this recurring nightmare effectively:

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Without Baseline Gun Control In The Public Interest, More Aurora/Oak Creek Massacres Are Inevitable

And: The White House has this all wrong:

12:08 pm

White House: Today is not the day for gun-control debates

White House press secretary Jay Carney says President Obama has been briefed on the shooting, but that today is not the day to discuss policy. The following report comes from Washington Post reporter Philip Rucker.

For starters, we need long waiting periods for handgun purchases, magazine capacity limitations, and an assault weapon sales ban.

And a national movement to overcome lethargy and fear.

 

Appreciating David Haynes Live-Tweeting, Facebooking Walker Interview

As the Governor is interviewed at the Journal Sentinel editorial board, Editorial Page Editor David Haynes is posting on social media.

Samples:

David D. Haynes

‎@GovWalker on mining bill: Should begin with Assembly version; willing to listen to Sen. Cullen's and Tim Sullivan's ideas. #wipolitics

Like · · Share · 18 minutes ago via HootSuite ·

Options

David D. Haynes

‎@GovWalker says new mine in North Woods and environmental protection "not mutually exclusive."

Like · · Share · 17 minutes ago via HootSuite ·

Will Rebecca Kleefisch's Marriage Beliefs Make Supreme Court Brief?

After all, she's Wisconsin's Lt. Gov. now and same-sex marriage is headed to the US Supreme Court, so...

"This is a slippery slope in addition to that -- at what point are we going to OK marrying inanimate objects? Can I marry this table, or this, you know, clock? Can we marry dogs? This is ridiculous."

Pro Basketball In Milwaukee: Pass The Bucks, Or Spend Some To Save Them?

Posted this over at Purple Wisconsin, the Journal Sentinel's blog platform:

There's no way to avoid noticing that the Milwaukee Bucks are playing their best basketball in years just as movers-and-shakers in media and the business community are talking seriously about finding a few hundred million dollars to build the NBA team a new basketball arena.

"Daunting" doesn't describe the political obstacles confronting such an enterprise - - assuming some level of public financing will be sought, which is a pretty safe assumption unless Warren Buffett is thinking of moving to town.

Not to mention that the ruling party at the State Capitol these days is said to be allergic to new taxing or picking corporate winners and losers or fostering dependency through public spending/subsidies.

Besides, if Scott Walker decided the state did not have the money to help operate a fully-federally-constructed-Amtrak connection from Madison to Milwaukee, how could he back state funding for a destination arena in Milwaukee that could have seamlessly delivered Madison fans and their spending to NBA games, NCAA tournaments, pro hockey contests, state rivalry college tlp-offs or major concerts.

Heck, state government even overruled Milwaukee County taxpayers who voted a few years ago to authorize an added fractional sales tax to help save the local bus system for local residents or retirees who earn less money than your average NBA player.

So it would be quite the contortion for state officials to approve fresh state funding for an arena.

Supporters will make their jobs and trickle-down arguments. They will point to the Miller Park and Lambeau Field precedents.

And there may actually be a way to add in publicly-owned land in the Park East Corridor to reduce up-front taxpayer contributions, though to do it would take the land off the tax rolls and deprive schools and public safety services of future support.

And just to be clear: I recognize a basketball arena can add monetary and reputational value to the downtown, the city and the state.

I can see a deal coming forward that also directs revenues to other basic, vital public institutions - - parks, and the transit system - - as it also serves an arena and the businesses and staffs benefiting by proximity - - but that kind of a global arrangement will require some big thinking from some decision-makers who have histories of discomfort with thinking big about government, and Milwaukee, too.

DNR Closes Meetings, Mocking Walker Open Government Pledge

Enforcement conferences where facts about pollution violations are disclosed have recently been closed as a policy change at the DNR, the agency says.

Remember when Scott Walker enunciated during the 2010 campaign his commitment to open government?

Transparency

When he says he believes in government transparency, it's not just a campaign slogan, Walker said.

"I don't just say that, I've lived it," he said.

Salute The Nature Conservancy For WI Donations

Hats off to this great organization for giving the people of Wisconsin large parcels of valuable land years in the assembling, and also for donating financing to guarantee the acreage's long-term care. 

Thanks also to Don Behm of the Journal Sentinel for an authoritative description of the parcels.

NASA's James Hansen To Speak In Milwaukee

This is, as they say, a Big Get for the 2013 Sustainability Summit.

Political Understatement

As the kids say, "ya think?"

Walker says right-to-work battle would be distraction

Dwindling Water In US West Amplifies Water Concerns Here, And Everywhere

The Washington Post takes note of what appears to the recognition that the Colorado River cannot sustain the West's water demands, especially as the climate continues to warm and people are still moving in large numbers to the seven US states that rely on the river.

This underscores the value of the Great Lakes Compact and the foresight shown by the eight states and two Canadian provinces that negotiated and adopted it.

The City of Waukesha is the first community seeking a diversion of Great Lakes water under the agreement's strict rules and standards that discourage moving water to a community like Waukesha that is entirely outside of the boundaries of the Great Lakes basin.

The more attention paid nationally and regionally to climate change, water resource management and conservation, the higher the bar for Waukesha and the diversion application as it faces a 2018 water supply deadline.

The Buffet In Joel Kleefisch's Mind

Seems the GOP legislator from Oconomowoc lives by "food for thought."

*  On taking Walker's cue and abandoning eliminating same-day voter registration:

"There's no soup," he said. "I'm just gathering ingredients..."

*  On pushing for a Sandhill crane hunt:

"Many call (sandhill cranes) the ribeye of the sky," Kleefisch said.

*  On pushing for a wolf hunt:

A press release sent out by State Rep. Joel Kleefisch this week contained an odd typo...

The release praised the state Senate for passing a bill co-authored by Kleefisch that made hunting wolves legal. But...the representative accidentally wrote "marinating" the "viable and sustainable pack."

* On when it's OK to have a member of the Assembly cast someone else's vote:

So what is going on with Kleefisch -- who admits he voted for another rep?

"The rule says you have to be present in the chamber.  The bathroom counts as the chamber.  And the parlor counts as a chamber if you are going to eat," said Joel Kleefisch.
 

Walker, Blameless, Recycles "Uncertainty" Jobs Excuse

Remember this from May, when Walker's job creation numbers were poor? Politics, uncertainty blamed:

Walker blamed the state's employment woes on the recalls, saying employers are hesitant to add jobs during times of political uncertainty but that there would be a "dramatic turnaround" after June 5.

Seven months later: same excuse - - politics and uncertainty - - plus some embellishments:

The governor also said that he believed he could still achieve his stated goal of creating 250,000 jobs in his four-year term, though he acknowledged ongoing concerns about the "fiscal cliff" negotiations in Washington as well as uncertainty about costs connected to the Affordable Care Act.

"We're just under 100,000," he said Wednesday morning...

Later Wednesday in Madison, Walker clarified the number, saying it was just over 86,000 jobs...

According to an analysis published in November by PolitiFact Wisconsin, Walker has been responsible for a net of 25,411 jobs created.

This is Walker's complete PolitiFact scorecard, by the way:

Walker's statements by ruling

• True 6 (10%)(6)
• Mostly True 5 (9%)(5)
• Half True 11 (19%)(11)
• Mostly False 12 (21%)(12)
• False 20 (34%)(20)
• Pants on Fire 4 (7%) (4)

To Counter The Big Walker Jobs' Lie, We Need Billboards

The facts are here, courtesy of Wednesday's Journal Sentinel, so all we need are a few bucks:

The governor also said that he believed he could still achieve his stated goal of creating 250,000 jobs in his four-year term...

"We're just under 100,000," he said...

According to an analysis by PolitiFact, Walker has been responsible for a net of 25,411 jobs created.

Walker Says "No" To His Voting Registration Idea - - But The Snyder Rule Applies

Scott Walker backs away from his plan to end election-day registration - - but let's remember that MI Gov. Rick Snyder said the same thing about so-called Right-To-Work laws, too.  Trust, but verify.

Walker Can't Stand The Heat

For now, drops half-million dollar Mansion kitchen remodeling from state building commission agenda. I say, for now, because the administration leaves the door open for taxpayer billing:

The funding request was removed from Wednesday's agenda for the State Building Commission, although Department of Administration Secretary Mike Huebsch says it will return if enough donations cannot be raised

Among my remarks in posts about this selfish proposal were these lines earlier this morning:

Assembly boss Robin Vos, (R-Rochester) abandons fatter per diem payments to state reps. The idea was ill-timed, conceived and illegitimate.

Next up for abandonment: that $487,000 new kitchen remodeling for the Governor's Mansion.

The GOP saw these as losing, self-generated problems, and cut their losses. They won't back down on bigger matters, like voter suppression and anti-labor scheming.

Vos Drops Talk Of Bigger Legislative Expense Accounts

Assembly boss Robin Vos, (R-Rochester) abandons fatter per diem payments to state reps. The idea was ill-timed, conceived and illegitimate.

Next up for abandonment: that $487,000 new kitchen remodeling for the Governor's Mansion.

Some are saying it's no big deal if private donations pay the tab, though the makeover request to date has the State Department of Administration's stamp on it.

Wrong: the whole idea is imperious; I'd like to see the GOP raise a half-million for meals for the homeless instead.

Rick Snyder Has Done The Impossible

He dethroned Scott Walker as America's Most Devious Governor.

Greendale Rep. Serves One Natural/Cultural Gem, Ignores Others

I've brought up on this blog more than once the insensitive statements made by GOP State Rep. Jeff Stone about the state's exclusion earlier this year of Native American participation as the Assembly wrote a mining bill to help enable a massive open-pit iron ore mine at the edge of Ojibwe lands and rice-growing water in Northwest Wisconsin.

And it occurred to me Stone's words ring even more hollow because he lives in and represents the Milwaukee County suburban Village of Greendale - - a special, charming, historic and planned community that rightly maximizes its proximity to nature, not unlike communities in the Penokee Hills which the mine would change forever.

One standard for Greendale and its "gentle hills," and one for the Penokee Hills?  

From Greendale's website:

The site of the development, adjacent to beautiful Whitnall Park, was chosen for its gentle hills, thick wooded areas, and scenic ponds. One of three “Greenbelt” communities in the country, the historic village of Greendale was built on the “garden city” model, in which housing was situated within easy walking access of gardens, employment and a town center...

Residents continue to enjoy lush green spaces, outstanding municipal services, thriving businesses and a highly rated school district...Visitors, and residents alike, savor the community’s heritage, and newcomers as well as founding families are committed to preserving Greendale’s rich history and small town charm.

Also from the website, a few lines from its Smart Growth plan:

1.    Preserve the Village’s diverse environmental and natural resources, including its waterways, woodlands, and open spaces that support local flora and fauna.
2.    Protect Greendale’s natural and historic charm through retaining the traditional suburban character of the Village.
3.    Maintain and enhance access to parks, open space, integrated pathways, and a wide range of recreational programs and facilities that help preserve Greendale’s quality of life.
4.    Preserve and enhance Greendale’s community character, including the distinct identities of the Village’s neighborhoods, districts, and corridors, while directing growth and development.

Imagine what an open-pit mine at the Village borders would do to "Greendale's natural and historic charm..."

Or in Waukesha's Lake Country?

Photos From The 2012 Wisconsin Wolf Hunt

These photos were obtained from the Wisconsin DNR through an Open Records request. The agency said it does not photograph every legally killed wolf at its registration, so more information about the origin or location of the photos, and a handful of others sent to me, was not readily available.

Getting To The Bottom Of Energy, Transmission Line Needs

From my friends looking for answers:

Madison meeting to focus on state’s energy future:  

http://thecountyline.net/pages/?p=12717

Action Alert : Join a vital discussion of Wisconsin's energy future    http://www.wnpj.org/node/7597 

 

Background: For years, ratepayers and municipalities concerned about proposed high-voltage transmission lines have been asking important questions about Wisconsin's energy policy. Thanks to their perseverance, despite a lack of information from utilities and the Public Service Commission, a special bipartisan legislative meeting on energy policy will be held Tuesday.

Participants will call for greater public and local government participation and for a two-year moratorium on high-voltage transmission lines, among other suggestions, and will hear from innovative energy specialists from Massachusetts and Oregon.

Take Action: Attend the special bipartisan legislative meeting on Wisconsin's energy future on Tuesday, December 11, from 1 to 3 pm in the State Capitol building in Madison. 

A networking meeting will follow, from 3 to 5 pm. Buses are being organized from the Vernon / Monroe / Juneau County area to Madison - call 608-625-4949, email type@mwt.net or check the SOUL of the Kickapoo website for bus details.

Contact for more info: SOUL of the Kickapoo:

608-625-4949,soulofthekickapoo@gmail.com   

Wisconsin Is Open To Usury

Wisconsin Republican state officials with major shame deficits and unapologetic dependencies on lobbyists have tweaked the rules...and their friends in the pay day loan business have hit pay dirt and are back, baby - - and all it'll cost you to play, Bucky is, oh, interest pegged at 500%, the Journal Sentinel reports.

Give or take.

Conservatives can soothe ttheir consciences repeating talking point irrelavancies like 'borrowers making good choices' and 'giving consumers options' and 'opening up the free market.'

But enabling the extension of such intentionally exploitative credit brings only discredit to Wisconsin when