Wisconsin Senate and Attorney General Races
In prior articles I talked about selecting candidates for elected office with the ability to do a good job representing us. Like hiring an employee, voters need to look at the education, knowledge, work history, experience and skills of the candidates to make the best choice.
Employers also look at the attitudes and personal beliefs of potential employees. With the candidates discussed this week basic qualifications are not the issue. It is the attitudes and beliefs of the candidates that voters need to consider. There are significant differences in political and ...
Electing The Future
It is easy to think elections and politics don't matter. But politics is how we make decisions and run our society. Who we elect makes a difference in many everyday practical ways. Do the potholes get filled? Is the water safe to drink? Do your kids have a good school? Do they have health care? Can they afford to go to college or tech school? Do your taxes go to help your community and build a better country? Or are they wasted on corporate subsidies, tax breaks for the wealthy or some war on the other side of the world?
Our future will be shaped by the choices we make ...
Other Wisconsin Candidates
This article discusses two Wisconsin statewide races that get little attention in the press; Secretary of State and State Treasurer. How much do you know about these candidates? Do you have enough information to make an informed choice? Because you don't have any information, will you simply not vote for either candidate?
In Wisconsin, Republicans have spent years weakening and under-funding these two independently elected offices. This has included eliminating duties and advocating to abolish both the Treasurer and Secretary of State.
Since Trumps “big ...
Hands Off Our Earned Benefits
Social Security is an incredibly effective and popular program. It provides benefits to over 1.2 million Wisconsinites and keeps over 400,000 out of poverty. There is no reason Social Security should be a partisan issue. It benefits Republicans, Democrats, and independents.
But Senator Ron Johnson wants to put these vital earned benefits at risk by turning Social Security and Medicare into “discretionary spending.” That would turn these programs from guaranteed earned benefits into ordinary government spending that Congress has to vote to fund every ...
Letter to the Editor
Is anyone aware that there is a Notice of Intent to Drill, a prelude to mining, by Green Light Metals in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest at the Medford-Bend Deposit in Taylor County and the Reef Deposit in Marathon County, just below the Dells of Eau Claire? This is a Canadian Company that has appeared to have spun the company name serval times from Badger Minerals, Aquila, Green Light Metals, and GORO.
A week ago, our group chose a supervisor to bring forth our resolution for clean water. We had resolutions from three Wisconsin Tribes as well, including the Ho ...
AVOIDING NUCLEAR WAR
The world is now closer to nuclear war than at the time of the Cuban missile crisis. History matters.
In 1961 the U.S. placed nuclear armed Jupiter missiles on the Soviet Union's border in Turkey. The Soviets reacted and in 1962 placed missiles in Cuba. The U.S. was outraged and threatened nuclear war because the Soviet Union had had the audacity to do to America what America had done to them.
Quoting then Soviet Chairman Nikita Krushchev in a statement to President Kennedy:
“You are disturbed over Cuba. You say that this disturbs you because it is 90 miles by ...
Hold the January 6 Insurrectionists Accountable
The Jan. 6 Committee has shown us all that Donald Trump was at the heart of a criminal conspiracy against our beloved system of government that ensures our freedoms. He must be held accountable for that. And so, too, must his Wisconsin accomplices. These include the 10 false electors from Wisconsin, who impersonated the real electors and attempted to subvert the will of the people of our state. False elector Derrick Van Orden is running as a Republican to represent the 3rd Congressional District. These also include Sen. Ron Johnson, who offered to hand deliver to Vice ...
GET OUT AND VOTE
George Carlin said, "If you don't vote, you lose the right to complain." I don't know if that's true, but I'd rather not find out. I know that voting is the one thing I can do, and as difficult as Wisconsin is trying to make it to vote, the more I'm determined to exercise my one most basic rights. Make sure you're registered! People with disabilities are protected and can have friends or family members drop off their ballots. I know people who work on elections, they are my friends and neighbors. They work hard to make sure elections are fair and secure. Attacks on them ...
ACT 134
To Marathon County Board of Supervisors:
I am writing in support of the resolution, titled: RESOLUTION TO CALL FOR LEGISLATIVE ACTION TO
PROTECT MARATHON COUNTY FROM THE IMPACTS OF METALLIC SULFIDE EXPLORATION AND MINING.
I currently live in Madison, Wisconsin and am a Political Scientist, specializing in federalism and
intergovernmental relationships. But I spent much of my early life living in Colby, Wisconsin in Marathon
County and still have extended family living all around the county. I know many farmers and small
business owners who live in the area around ...
Wisconsin Candidates for Assembly
Voting is like hiring an employee. Voters are hiring a representative to take care of public business for all of us. Employers typically look at education, work history, knowledge and skills to assess the person's ability to do the job. With some jobs there are formal certifications or skills assessment tests that can help.
Unfortunately, with elected officials there are no formal qualifications, certifications, or civil service tests to weed out the incompetent. In Wisconsin you can't cut hair or sell real estate without training and a certification. But any nincompoop ...