Archive for the ‘Framing Narrative’ Category
Two Japanese Scientists Invent “Stop Talking” Device
Two Japanese scientists have invented a device that will make people stop talking in their tracks. It sounds like science fiction (hence my “SFnal” tag), but it actually is quite a simple thing: human beings cannot handle hearing their voice with a few milliseconds delay while continuing to speak — if this happens, human beings stop talking. (Psychologists have known this for years.) Now, these two scientists (Kazutaka Kurihara and Koji Tsukada) have invented a gun that after pointed at a speaker will actually stop someone speaking in his or her tracks without physical discomfort.
Here’s a link:
http://www.technologyreview.com/blog/arxiv/27620/
The ethical implications of this are appalling, though the scientists believe the use of their invention could be benign; they envision the gun being pointed at people who insist on talking on their cell phones in a library (or perhaps in the office) rather than this gun being used, en masse, to stop peaceful protestors from speaking their minds by the powers that be.
Maybe it’s just me, but I believe this technology is incredibly dangerous. It has the potential to completely silence dissidents, forever; it makes George Orwell’s restrictive society envisioned in his book 1984 look paltry by comparison. Because what one group of politicians thinks is “right” and “just” speech would be hated by another group of politicians; this has the potential to cause massive unrest that would be totally unable to ever be relieved, unless this technology is somehow countered.
While this invention was probably going to come about sooner or later, I wish for the sake of humanity that it hadn’t happened now; there are protests going on all over the world in favor of peace and financial equality that could end up being prematurely silenced.
Worse yet, now that this invention has been made public, every military branch in every country in the world has to want this technology, as it would obviously aid them in their work. And an unscrupulous country’s military getting this technology before everyone else would be a deadly scenario that even Andrew Krepinevich (he of SEVEN DEADLY SCENARIOS fame, a book I reviewed a while back at Shiny Book Review) would have reason to fear.
Now that this technology has been made public, my hope is that other scientists will be working on a way to counter, or at least minimize, the damage this technology could easily cause. What one technology gives, another technology can take away, and in this case, this is definitely a technology I believe should be countered as soon as possible for everyone’s sake.
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Note: the reason I tagged this with “framing narrative” is because the scientists’ reason for narrative framing is simple: they want to make money off this device, so they’re emphasizing the more benign purposes for which such a device could be used. My view is much more along the “realpolitik” line — what is such a device likely to be used for, and why?
Rep. Robin Vos (R) Calls Recalls “Frivolous” Because “They Cost Too Much”
Representative Robin Vos (R-Rochester) is at it again.
Vos doesn’t like recall elections, even though his own party, the Wisconsin GOP, went after three Democratic state Senators last year — Bob Wirch of Kenosha, Jim Holperin of Conover, and Dave Hansen of Green Bay. All three easily withstood their recall elections and were retained. (Maybe Vos only dislikes them because his own party lost when they attempted to unseat these three Democratic Senators. But I digress.) He believes they are too expensive, and asked Wisconsin’s Government Accountability Board how much it’s going to cost for the election to recall Governor Scott Walker and Lieutenant Governor Rebecca Kleefisch — as that’s a statewide election — mostly because he seems to believe that widely publicizing the estimated cost of the statewide recall election will somehow stop the recall process in its tracks. Note that the gubernatorial/Lt. Gov. recall election is estimated to cost $9 million according to Wisconsin’s county clerks and the GAB; this cost covers only one election, not with the sure-to-come primary beforehand. Supposedly, having Kleefisch on the ballot as is usually the case in any gubernatorial/Lt. Gov. election will cost more, something I highly doubt.
Please see this link for further details:
Worse yet, in this article, Vos calls the recalls “frivolous,” saying:
“People cannot say this is somehow worth the cost to have these frivolous recalls. It’s a shame we’ve come to this.”
I have news for Rep. Vos. He is misusing the word frivolous, which is defined by the Free Dictionary as:
friv·o·lous (fr
v
-l
adj.
1. Unworthy of serious attention; trivial: a frivolous novel.2. Inappropriately silly: a frivolous purchase.
Note that these recall elections, while they are expensive, have not been undertaken lightly. It takes a lot of effort to gather 540,000 signatures statewide in two months, which is what is required to recall both Walker and Kleefisch, as that’s 1/4 of the total votes cast for Governor in the 2010 election. And that effort, by its very definition, is the epitome of seriousness — in other words, Rep. Vos, no one would ever undertake such a grueling effort unless they were quite serious
So the first definition, that of being “unworthy of serious attention,” fails.
But what about the second definition, “inappropriately silly?” Do these recalls qualify for that definition, either?
No, they do not. Once again, the recalls may well be wrong in certain lights; certainly, they are in the eyes of Robin Vos. But one thing they are not is “inappropriately silly,” especially considering Vos’s own party, the GOP, supported the recalls of Holperin, Hansen, and Wirch last summer. (I guess we’re supposed to have short memories about that, huh?)
The main reason I see for Vos to do this is because it’s the only play the Wisconsin GOP has left, to wit: stall. Obfuscate. Cast aspersions on the people recalling Walker, Kleefisch, state Senator Van Wanggaard (R-Racine), and more — because it’s the only thing the Rs can do, as they’re very well aware that Walker and Kleefisch will be recalled. They’re also very well aware that Wanggaard will be recalled, and that other senators who are in danger of recall (including Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald and Senator Pam Galloway, R-Wausau) may have to defend their seats as well.
So the way I see it, the only reason Vos is saying and doing all this is because he knows his party will lose these recall elections. He’s the co-chairman of the Legislature’s finance committee — a very powerful leadership position — yet Vos has to know which way the winds are blowing in Wisconsin. The GOP’s days are numbered; it’s quite possible that the Wisconsin Assembly (lower house) will go solid blue next year due to the GOP’s overreach. And Vos’s own seat, which has been a safe Republican haven for at least twenty years, may even be in jeopardy because people are that angry over what the GOP has done.
I’m most unimpressed with Vos on these issues, and believe his logic chain, at best, is suspect. His understanding of the adjective “frivolous” is flawed. And he’s crying sour grapes because of how expensive the recalls are, when as Wisconsin Democratic Party chairman Mike Tate said here:
“The $9 million cost of a statewide recall election is great, but the cost of doing nothing is far greater. This undertaking is the biggest investment in the future of our state and families we can make.
It would take more than 7 recall elections to equal the cost of Walker’s tax increase on seniors and working families. It would take more than 11 recalls to equal the tuition hike Walker foisted on University of Wisconsin-System students and their families. And Walker’s $2.3 billion in tax giveaways to out-of-state corporations and the super-rich would pay for more than 255 recall elections. Wisconsin simply cannot afford Scott Walker any longer.
At the end of the day, no matter how Scott Walker and his Republican Party try to spin it, the people of Wisconsin called for this election. There is no price tag on democracy.” (emphasis mine — BC)
Agreed, though they way I’d put it is that Vos’s complaints about how expensive the recall elections will be are an attempted framing of the narrative that should not stand, as it is fundamentally flawed both on its merits and its ethics.
So let’s bring on the recalls already. Because whether Vos or the Wisconsin GOP likes it or not, what’s good for the goose is good for the gander; if the GOP can undertake recall efforts as they did last summer, they have absolutely no right to complain now. (Or as I said the other day with regards to Wanggaard’s impending recall election: “Them’s the breaks.”)
Cell Phone Etiquette, Redux
Folks, a while back I wrote a post about cell phone etiquette, and I’d hoped that I’d exhausted that subject. However, I’ve noticed two more problems lately and I wanted to discuss them.
First, if you are in a business meeting, please stay off your cell phone even if all you’re doing is sending text messages. Texting people during meetings is rude and disrespectful to those who are giving business presentations; it’s also rude and disrespectful to your colleagues, who are there to listen and/or speak . . . how can you possibly be learning or speaking if you’re spending your whole time in the business meeting texting someone else?
Second, if you are in a music lesson or in a music rehearsal, stay off your cell phone! Whether you’re texting someone or actually taking a phone call, this isn’t just rude and disrespectful — it’s also extremely annoying. The rest of us are trying to learn something in that lesson or rehearsal; we’re listening to the instructor (in the case of a lesson) or are watching the conductor and/or listening to the conductor’s instructions (in the case of a rehearsal). If someone’s madly texting away, or worse yet, talking on a cell phone, it’s nearly impossible to concentrate on the lesson or rehearsal — so again, do not do this.**
I keep trying to figure out why someone might want to do this, but keep failing; even if there’s a family emergency, you should not be repeatedly texting anyone in a meeting, or in a band rehearsal, or in a music lesson. (In that case, you should acknowledge the message, politely excuse yourself, then get to the person who’s in crisis immediately.) And as for taking a cell phone call during any of these activities? Why do it?
I don’t have a clue why there are people in this world who are so pig-ignorant that they don’t understand this, but let me say it loud and clear for these individuals, so they’ll never forget their manners again:
DO NOT text people during meetings, lessons, or rehearsals, because it is extremely offensive and obnoxious.
Texting other people when you should be concentrating on what’s going on around you also actively hurts those of us who are trying hard to learn something.
There’s no excuse for this behavior, SO JUST DON’T DO IT.
Got it? (Good.)
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** And yes, I’ve observed these very things in recent days. How anyone can be texting away during a music rehearsal is beyond me. (Apparently this person has no social skills, or manners, either.)
“Drop Dead Diva” Season Three Finale: Fun, but Unbelievable
I’ve watched Lifetime’s original TV show Drop Dead Diva since its inception; it’s about a shallow blonde model, Deb, who dies and ends up in the body of a plus-sized lawyer, Jane (Brooke Elliot). This is a fun fantasy premise that has enchanted me for three years now; that Jane works with her former fiancé, Grayson (Jackson Hurst), only adds to the fun. Because as the beginning of “Drop Dead Diva” states, “The only people who know me are my girlfriend Stacey, and my Guardian Angel, Fred.” (Stacey is played by April Bowlby, and Fred by Ben Feldman.)
Jane is a great character to watch, partly because she’s had to come to terms with being a larger-sized person, and partly because actress Elliot definitely knows what she’s doing. Jane is smart, something Deb-turned-Jane appreciates as Deb wasn’t; Jane also is compassionate, something Deb tried to be but didn’t always accomplish in her former life as a bubbly blonde model.
At any rate, trying to summarize three seasons worth of episodes is probably too difficult, so let’s just say that Jane still loves her former fiancé but has an active social and sex life. She’s now dating a plus-sized man named Owen, a judge (played by Lex Medlin). Jane is a fashion plate who enjoys life and food and has an unusually good head for the law, so overall, it seems like Deb has come out ahead on the deal.
Note this is a fantasy premise that has often been used in romance novels but only rarely on TV; I point this out because in a fantasy/romance with anything close to a premise like this, the one thing that has to be inviolate is that Grayson (Deb’s fiancé, whom Deb-turned-Jane still loves) can never find out that Jane is really Deb. This has been pointed out several times in the past; for example, in season two’s cliffhanger, Jane tried to tell Grayson after Grayson had been hit by a car that she was really Deb.
And what happened? Well, Grayson didn’t remember anything Jane said. More to the point, he had partial memory loss of anything around the actual incident . . . so it’s been established that Grayson should not know that Jane is Deb, because God (or the Higher Power, or whoever Fred the Guardian Angel answers to) seems to want it that way.
However, Stacey actually tells Grayson after an ill-advised kiss (Grayson starts it and apologizes for it) that while she is not Deb, Jane actually is Deb. Which prompts Grayson to go to the airport to try to stop Jane from leaving for Italy (Jane saw Grayson and Stacey kiss, but didn’t see Stacey more or less pushing Grayson away, and told Fred that Stacey had cheated on him as Fred and Stacey have a relationship going that’s leading toward marriage; this prompted Jane to take the “vacation of a lifetime” and go to Italy), but of course he can’t manage it.
So who does get on the plane to go with Jane? Her current judge boyfriend, Owen, who’d been about to go to New Zealand for a year instead, but passed on that opportunity to be with Jane.
Look. I am very much in favor of love. I also am very much in favor of marriage, true romance, and all the ins and outs that come along with the deal. But I’m also a writer and editor. And because of that, I can tell you right now that Stacey telling Grayson that Jane was Deb shouldn’t have happened. Because if it did, Grayson shouldn’t have remembered it because up until now, Grayson hasn’t known and Jane hasn’t been able to tell him because every time she tried, something awful happened to Grayson.
For example, Fred said at the end of season 2’s finale that Grayson “needed to fall in love with Jane” as she was now, not merely to see Jane as an extension of Deb, which is what would’ve happened if God (or whatever the Deity/Higher Power is conceived of as being in this show) would’ve allowed Jane to tell Grayson who she was. When Jane tried anyway, Grayson promptly forgot and lost some other memories along the way.
That’s why Stacey absolutely cannot tell Grayson this and be believed; that Grayson did believe it is obvious because he went to the airport to try to stop Jane from leaving for Italy.
So what happened in last night’s episode turned the actual premise of Jane doing her best to get on with her life with or without Grayson as a romantic partner (as Grayson has been a very solid friend to Jane, and vice versa) into a farce. I don’t respect that, because the way the narrative has been framed up until this point made far more sense from a fantasy/paranormal perspective than it is making right now with this latest plot-wrinkle.
Further, Fred’s role as guardian angel is now in doubt because Jane admittedly shut him out (she told him to leave Stacey, too, but one would hope that Fred will instead confront Stacey and Grayson and find out quickly that both realized the kiss was a mistake and will never happen again under any circumstances whatsoever). And Fred’s character is what keeps this show as real as it is; Fred is honest, funny, down-to-Earth, in love with Stacey because he sees her goodness as well as her beauty and wants to have a life with Stacey and has given up a great deal in order to do so. (You’d have to go back to season one to see why I say this, but it’s the truth.) He’s a character that you can’t help but root for, because Fred cares about Deb-turned-Jane and wants her to be happy.
Every character on “Drop Dead Diva” has depth and I have really enjoyed watching them, and the show, evolve over time. But I don’t like it when a show’s premise has been compromised, and that’s exactly what’s happened here.
So the upshot of my critique is that “Drop Dead Diva’s” season three finale was fun, but completely unbelievable. And while I’ll still watch and enjoy season four, and wonder what Grayson is going to do with his newfound knowledge (if he really does remember it, long-term, as he still may not), I believe “Drop Dead Diva” has blown its original premise to high heaven. And that’s not good.
Scott Walker: Bad for Wisconsin
The state of Wisconsin continues to be in turmoil due to Governor Scott Walker (R) and his blatant attempt at a power-grab. For the third week in a row, protests are going on all over the state — so what does Walker do about it?
Nothing. (That’s right. Zero. Zip. Diddly-squat.)
But the Republican Governors’ Association and the Republican National Committee, along with “independent” groups like the Koch Brothers’ funded “Americans for Prosperity” and the misnamed “Wisconsin Club for Growth” have television ads all over the state claiming that Scott Walker is “leading” while the “Wisconsin 14” (or “Fab 14” as some are now calling them) have “refused to do their jobs.” This is an attempted framing of the narrative that’s a complete and utter distortion of the facts, and is one I’m just not willing to allow.
The facts are these. On February 11, 2011 (a Friday), in the afternoon, Scott Walker sent what he called a “budget repair bill” to the Wisconsin state house (lower house is the Assembly, equivalent to the national House of Reps., while the upper house is the state Senate) which called for an end to collective bargaining along with deep cuts in Medicaid along with the state-run Badger Care program which takes care of low-income adults and children. Walker stated at that time that if his “budget repair bill” wasn’t passed, the Wisconsin state workers would end up with layoffs (rather than the mandated “furlough days” under the previous Governor, which continue to be in effect through June 30, 2011; these are days the workers do not get paid, and state government does not function), and he urged the bill’s swift passage.
The reason this didn’t happen — the swift passage — is because the fourteen Senate Democrats (out of thirty-three) fled the state. You see, by doing this, they denied Scott Walker’s bill a quorum in the state Senate. At that time, every single Republican would’ve voted “yes” on this bill, including my state Senator, Van Wanggaard (R), even though Wanggaard is a former policeman, a former policeman’s union member, and worst of all, a former policeman’s union representative. (This seems mighty hypocritical to me and I’ve said so; my e-mail to him was very short and succinct. I said, “Vote against this bill or prepare to be recalled.” That’s because I dislike hypocrisy with a passion and Wanggaard, along with Scott Walker himself, did not campaign on such radical and extremist ideas.)
At any rate, the “Fab 14” left the state and have been in Illinois ever since. But the Assembly eventually passed this bill — though legal efforts are underway to see if chicanery was involved as the Assembly had been in session for over 63 hours and somehow, many Dems in the Assembly weren’t allowed to vote while some of the R’s weren’t even in the room yet were counted (by osmosis? Wisconsin’s state constitution does not allow for votes via proxy; you must actually be in the Assembly chamber to vote.) — while the Senate remains stalled out due to the “Fab 14” staying out-of-state.
Yesterday, two things happened of consequence. One, the Capitol building was locked, which is against the Wisconsin state constitution (this had been going on for a few days at night, but yesteday apparently was the first day the building was locked as a whole), and two, State Senator Glenn Grothman (R), called the Wisconsin protestors who’d been occupying the statehouse (as is their legal right under the Wisconsin state constitution) “slobs,” re-iterating his comment from the day before, this time on Lawrence O’Donnell’s “The Last Word” primetime show on MSNBC.
Now, the importance of the Grothman comment was this: O’Donnell brought on four protestors, one a very articulate young, female student, one a skilled tradesman in his forties, one a nurse in her late forties-early fifties, with the other woman’s age being unable to be determined by me (but she was obviously a professional woman); her profession was announced but somehow I lost track. At any rate, these four were far from “slobs,” yet Grothman refused to relent; instead, he poured on the vitriol, saying that most of the people occupying the capitol building were “students, or unemployed people, having a holiday, banging their drums and screaming” at him, and that this had never happened in all his years in the state Senate.
But this is the age of YouTube, my friends . . . Grothman’s comments are assuredly there by now, and there’s a big problem for him in them. You don’t call Wisconsin protestors’ by the derogatory word “slobs.” Especially when some of them come from your district, the 20th (representing West Bend and parts of Fond du Lac, Sheboygan, Ozaukee, and Dodge counties), and most especially when you are the Assistant to the Senate Majority Leader (second in line). This looks really, really bad to call Wisconsin protestors, who are also taxpayers and voters, “slobs.”
The good news from my perspective is that Glenn Grothman is in danger of being recalled. Here’s a link from the Capitol Times (Madison, WI):
And here’s a story from the Daily Kos:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/03/03/951991/-Wisconsin-Recall:-$-and-Volunteer-Drive-Day-2
The fact of the matter is that Grothman, along with seven other Republican Senators, are in danger of recall, while three of the five Senators on the Democratic side who’ve been targeted may have real problems holding their seats (especially considering they’re all out-of-state at this time). I would tend to think Grothman’s comments regarding the protestors and taxpayers and voters of Wisconsin would drastically hurt him no matter how much money the Republican Party of Wisconsin throws his way (much less people like the Koch Brothers, who are out-of-state but are extremely wealthy; the $43,000 they gave to Scott Walker is pocket change for them).
At any rate, this is what Scott Walker has done so far. He’s divided the state — right now, according to a recent poll from the Public Policy Institute (a reasonably neutral place), 52% would vote for Tom Barrett (the Democratic candidate in the last election) while only 45% said they’d vote for Walker if the election were held today with the knowledge that Walker wants to break public employee unions. Here’s a link to that:
And the beat goes on, because of Walker were vulnerable to recall today (he is not, as my state Senator Wanggaard also isn’t; they both have to be in office one full year before they can be legally recalled), he’d be in deep trouble because 48% would vote to recall him, while 48% wouldn’t, and the other 4% are “undecided.” (Note these poll numbers were taken before Walker’s recent budget bill for fiscal year 2011-12; in that bill, Walker would cut something like $900 million from the public schools/public educational efforts. These numbers to recall will go up, and the numbers of people dissatisfied with Walker will also go up due to that.)
As the Guardian (a UK newspaper) noted, Scott Walker may be an ex-governor far sooner than anyone would’ve imagined; see this link for further details:
You see, Wisconsin voters don’t like it that the state isn’t able to do its business, but most of them are placing the onus of responsibility on the Governor, Scott Walker, rather than the fourteen Senators who did the only thing they could do to slow down or stop the “budget repair bill” — and they are right.
Scott Walker, in short, is very bad for Wisconsin. Hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites all over the state have gone out to protest, while hundreds of thousands more have expressed their support for the “Fab 14” and have written letters to the editor condemning Walker’s actions. (One or the other.) And there are all these recalls going on for the Republican Senators that I discussed — those vulnerable to recall now — while assuredly if this “budget repair bill” ever passes with Van Wanggaard’s support, he’ll be recalled as soon as humanly possible, too.
The only hope the R’s have in Wisconsin right now is that people forget all these protests, forget the money-drain having extra police and fire in Madison has been, forget Scott Walker’s grandstanding and inability to compromise (when politics is supposed to be the “art of the possible,” meaning compromise is a must), and forget that his Lieutenant Governor, Rebecca Kleefisch, has stood right behind Walker and has not only affirmed her support for the Republican party line, but has said she’d do the same thing in his place. (The latter is what will end up getting her recalled, too, as she didn’t campaign on such drastic tactics, either.)
So it’s obvious, folks, what needs to be done. Walker needs to be recalled as soon as humanly possible, as does Kleefisch, as does every Republican Senator who has expressed unwavering support for this horrible bill — now or later. And if Van Wanggaard is smart, and wants to hold onto his seat for his four-year term (assuredly he’ll be out once he gets recalled; this is the only shot he has to keep his seat), he’ll vote against Walker’s horrible “budget repair bill.”
But no one said he has to be smart, and I for one am hoping he won’t be because I’m itching to work on recalling this man as I cannot stand hypocrisy in any way, shape or form.
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** Note: My late husband Michael couldn’t stand hypocrisy either, and I really wish that he were here to help me work on the recall effort. Michael was an honest, able, ethical man who was deeply principled and would be appalled at all of this. I stand against Scott Walker and all he stands for, with the certain knowledge that my husband would back me and understand exactly why I must do this.
Odds and Ends
Today’s post is going to be a catch-all of various things.
First, I had been pursuing a job in Madison, WI; it was a writing/editing gig and I felt I could really help the particular company in question, and that it would be something I could do that would not set off my particular round of health issues (I am partially disabled, physically, though there’s nothing wrong with my mind or work ethic). But this job has said “no” even though I apparently got to the very last round . . . this might be considered a triumph after eighteen months of unemployment (I’m certain my late husband Michael would find it so), but it’s hard to see it that way now as I’m still among the ranks of the unemployed, nor do I have a job that’s right up my alley as I’d truly hoped this job would be.
So back to the drawing board, there.
As for the Wisconsin protests against sitting Governor Scott Walker and his atrocious “budget repair bill” that would strip public employee unions of their collective bargaining rights and would drastically cut Medicaid and our low-income health program Badgercare (I’m on the Badgercare waiting list as I qualify, but last I knew there were nearly 100,000 on the waiting list before it was frozen last September), they are still happening. There are protests all over Wisconsin; there was a protest in Racine a few days ago that I unfortunately was unable to attend that netted two hundred or so in the freezing rain, while in La Crosse a bunch of university professors joined the local teacher’s union (perhaps the one their teaching assistants belonged to; I’m unsure on that — note that when I was a graduate teaching assistant at Nebraska, we were not unionized, though my brother, who is a teaching assistant at Indiana, is) even though they didn’t need to do so for their jobs in solidarity with the protestors. There have been protests in Superior, which is across the Mississippi River from Duluth, MN, against this “budget repair bill” of Walker’s . . . there have been protests in Oshkosh, Green Bay, Eau Claire, and elsewhere along with the usual places to protest, Madison (our state capitol) and Milwaukee. In addition, many Republican legislators homes are being picketed, including my own newly-elected state Senator, Van Wanggaard (it’s not a constant thing, but it has happened in the last ten or eleven days more than once, and with more than one person) . . . the state remains opposed to Walker’s union-busting provisions while being divided on whether or not Walker’s budgetary proposals are good or bad for the state.
However, many commercials are being aired by the so-called Wisconsin Club for Growth, which is no such thing — that is a front group funded by the wealthy Koch brothers (they of the infamous “prank call” fame, where Gov. Walker admitted he was trying to bust the unions along with many other things that may get him into hot water with the Government Accountability Board here in WI), and is headquartered in Washington, DC — to recall state Senator Bob Wirch of Burlington/Kenosha. These commercials are obnoxious, and offensive, aping the “All Points Bulletin” of a policeman’s call to his dispatcher . . . when I heard them, I immediately wrote a letter to Wirch expressing my support for his position and told him I’m glad he’s sticking up for Wisconsin’s voters because goodness knows, aside from the “WI 14” Democratic Senators, no one else is. (That they’ve had to flee the state in order to avoid a quorum is the only thing they could do to slow this process down.)
I truly hope Bob Wirch isn’t recalled, mind, but even if he is, it’ll take time.
Speaking of recall, I know I’m already planning on recalling Van Wanggaard in a year’s time, the first permissible date as he’s newly-elected, because he obviously does not represent Racine voters — according to a recent article in the Racine Journal-Times, Racine Assemblyman Cory Mason has had 1057 calls against the “budget repair bill” of Scott Walker’s, while he’s had 97 for it, and Racine Assemblyman Robert Turner (my particular Assemblyman) has had over 1000 calls against while only 20 in favor as of earlier this week on Monday. (What does that tell the rest of you about what Racine thinks about this, hmm? Do you really think Wanggaard, who’s said he’ll vote “yes” on this bill, is properly representing Racine on this issue? I know I sure don’t.)
In sports news, Milwaukee Brewers catcher Jonathan Lucroy has had surgery on his right pinkie finger (his throwing hand) and may miss the start of the season as he’s not supposed to throw for a month. They put a pin into his right pinkie finger and Lucroy says he will catch (but supposedly not throw; how is that supposed to work again? Will he have a coach sitting there who will take the ball out of Lucroy’s glove, then toss it back to the pitcher in question in the bullpen before the pitcher throws again?) and that he doesn’t plan to miss any time whatsoever.
What is a little bit frustrating about Lucroy’s assertion is that he’s a very young man. He needs to be careful of his health. If he tries to come back too soon, he’ll be hurting himself, long-term. He seems to be worried he’ll lose his starting position, or maybe he’s even worried about being sent back to Triple A (AAA) ball due to injury, but I think that’s highly unlikely. If Lucroy rushes himself now, he may end up worsening this injury down the line and perhaps even shortening his overall career (as throwing arms are important, and messing with your motion due to an injured finger is very common) if he over-does. I hope the Brewers new training staff (with a new manager came new coaches and staff) will “sit” on him and get him to back off working so hard; it’ll be difficult for Lucroy to sit and watch, but it’ll be much, much better for his team overall if he just lets this heal without hindrance.
Other than that, in Brewers’ news, Zach Greinke said he’s having issues with his new medicine for Social Anxiety Disorder (or SAD) and the sports talkers in Milwaukee seem concerned about it as Greinke said that the new med makes him “more tired” but didn’t really clarify in what way; some talkers seem to believe that means he’ll have trouble with his stamina on the mound, but I doubt this . . . I’ve never had SAD, but my grandmother needed anxiety medicine in her last years of life — I know this isn’t exactly the same thing, mind you — and changing a medicine’s dosage, even, can make you feel more tired at the end of the day, or perhaps when you wake up. These feelings wear off after a little bit, but can get in your way if you don’t know what’s going on at first . . . anyway, Greinke probably meant that he’s getting used to the new dosage, doesn’t like it, and would rather not have to deal with it, but not that he’ll have any trouble pitching.
At any rate, the way Wisconsin is going right now, I’ll be glad to see the Brewers in action. I know that I’m ready for some baseball, and I’m more than ready for some healthy interest in something beyond the asinine behavior of our current, sitting Governor.
Time to de-stress
After the tumult of the past week, I badly needed a day to get away from it all and de-stress.
You see, I get very worked up about politics. I don’t see it as “political theatre,” or at least not just that . . . I see it as extremely important. And sometimes, the importance of the political moment can crowd out everything else.
I don’t know about anyone else, but what I do to de-stress is to read my favorite “comfort books” (as I discussed a few blogs ago), rest, then meditate after I’m a bit calmer. Because things are usually neither as bad as they first appear, nor as rosy as they can look in our best moments — they’re like people, period, and have elements of both.
That we can have the seed of hope in a truly despairing day is one of those conundrums philosophers have been trying to solve for millenia, and I know I certainly don’t have the answer to it. But that does seem a saving grace, now and again.
Yesterday, the hope I saw despite all the tumult was an unusual picture — on MSNBC’s “The Ed Show,” starring disc jockey and humanitarian Ed Schultz, he had a member of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered (GLBT) community in Madison right alongside a member of the pro-life community in Madison. This is rarely seen; even more rare, they got along, and agreed that what the protestors are fighting about (the right to have their voices be heard through collective bargaining) is extremely important.
But I couldn’t take in that hopeful picture just then; I was too wracked by the suffering I could see, easily, if the current Governor of Wisconsin, Scott Walker, gets his way.
Therefore, what this blog is about is simple: sometimes we need to take a step back when we’re too emotionally involved in something — particularly if it’s an external event. (I’m not saying you should step back from your love relationships; far from it! Though sometimes sleeping on a decision helps you, so the principle does apply somewhat even to this example.) Only when we de-stress a bit can we actually figure out that there are hopeful things going on all around us, big and small . . . and that life isn’t as bad as it first appears.
My late husband Michael often used this axiom — just get through the day, or as he put it, “sufficient unto the day are the needs thereof.” (I know he’s quoting someone but I haven’t been able to figure out who said this first.) It helps to remember that not everything in the world is awful, hopeless, bleak beyond belief or worthless, even though stupid things do keep happening (today, in Madison, some probably well-meaning doctor handed out fake “I am really ill” slips to anyone who asked, including a Fox News producer) that make my teeth grind.
Now, I’m going back and watching some more of “The Maury Show,” which is yet another way to de-stress that I find extremely helpful. I hope you find your way to relax, get away from it all — at least mentally if you can’t physically — and remember to enjoy whatever you can of your life.
Gov. Scott Walker Miscalculates over “Budget,” Tries to Bust Unions — Battle Ongoing
Folks, I’ve never seen anything quite like what’s going on in Wisconsin this past week.
I’d said last November, right after Scott Walker won the right to be incoming Governor, that if he and the Republicans believed him being elected was a “mandate” to do anything other than what he’d said he’d do — that is, govern wisely and well, with consensus — he had another think coming. The Democrats had miscalculated their position in 2008, which is what led to the 2010 elections going so much in the direction of the Republicans . . . and now, with Scott Walker’s insistence on getting rid of the collective bargaining rights for state public employee unions as part of his “Budget Repair Bill,” he, too, has miscalculated.
When Scott Walker campaigned in Wisconsin, he said he was a centrist, who wanted a balanced budget, who would do modest and effective things — and how that was interpreted was that he wouldn’t change very much (trust me, changing whether state public employee unions are allowed to collectively bargain with the state is a huge change, especially as we’ve had these provisions in place for well over fifty years). Yet Walker’s view of “modest” is exactly what he put up — a bill that would strip all public employee unions of their right to collectively bargain; a bill that would force unions to re-certify every year; a bill that has caused massive unrest throughout the entire state of Wisconsin, massive protests (over 35,000 today was estimated; 30,000 on Thursday; 25,000 on Wednesday; 15,000 to 20,000 on Tuesday, in Madison alone, with additional protests outside Republican lawmakers’ homes throughout the state and at least two protests at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire campus andthe University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh campus, with over 2,000 people showing up to protest at Eau Claire and an unknown number in Oshkosh), and 56% of the state being against Gov. Walker’s so-called “modest proposal.”
Here’s a link to the most recent story, where the Wisconsin Assembly (our lower house) was going to take a vote without the Democratic members even being present; when the Dems showed up and demanded their rights to be heard, the vote was “rescinded” — meaning it’ll have to be taken again, with the Dems present. That vote will take place next Tuesday, as President’s Day is Monday.
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/116470423.html
And that’s not all; our Democratic state Senators (upper house) have walked off the job, all fourteen of them, and have gone to neighboring states (currently, they are supposed to be in Illinois) so the Senate will not have a quorum and cannot pass this bill; here’s a link to that story:
http://www.jsonline.com/news/statepolitics/116381289.html
There also are many, many stories about how Gov. Walker insists this is a “modest” proposal which shouldn’t “shock anyone,” and a story was aired tonight by Greta Van Susteran on Fox News that quoted Wisconsin’s Lieutenant Governor, Rebecca Kleefisch, as once again calling this a “modest” proposal that “shouldn’t have taken anyone by surprise.”
Yet this is a surprise, folks, precisely because Walker and Kleefisch didn’t explain what they planned to do to balance Wisconsin’s budget. They certainly didn’t say that they planned to de-certify unions, public or private; they certainly didn’t say anything about that in this particular state, where unions have a rich history, the state that gave the United States as a whole the forty-hour work week, vacation pay, worker’s compensation and a form of Social Security for retirement. (Yes, Wisconsin was first in the nation for all of those things.) Because if they had, I can assure you, they would’ve lost. Big-time.
At this point, Walker and Kleefisch are on the “recall road,” because Wisconsin taxpayers truly didn’t expect this out of their elected officials and are protesting in record numbers against this bill. The Wisconsin constitution allows for government officials to be recalled if they’ve been in office for one full year; right now, Walker and Kleefisch have been in office only about five weeks, so we have a long way to go before we can recall. But protests like this will not be forgotten, not in a year, not in five years . . . not ever.
All I can say, aside from the fact that I am against Gov. Walker’s proposal because he didn’t campaign on it and it looks like a naked power-grab to me, is that soon, the (R) in back of both Walker and Kleefisch’s name will not stand for Republican. Instead, it will stand for “recall,” or better yet, “recall and replace.”
I’m telling you now, and for the record — unless Gov. Walker backs down with the demands to disallow collective bargaining in the state of Wisconsin for public unions, he can and will be recalled. (Lt. Gov. Kleefisch, too.) Guaranteed.
So I urge you, please do not believe the hype, or Gov. Walker’s attempt to frame the narrative. The non-violent, peaceful protests here are because of one thing and one thing only: because Gov. Walker overstepped his authority. Wisconsin’s voters do not like what Walker has done here even if they think he has a point about the budgetary shortfall. **
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** Note: I am in this category. I also believe that anyone who supported the Tea Party’s right to protest should support these folks’ right to protest against a Governor trying to take too many rights away, too quickly, without a public debate.
** Gov. Walker proposed this “budget repair bill” last week Friday. And in a week’s time, the state is up in arms. (Does that really tell anyone out there the state supports Walker? How about that survey saying 56% are against him I talked about before? Were those 56% all in error?)
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