Live From Madison

[cariad]

Hiya,

Have not been on in a while. Received devastating news two days ago at a meeting with the school board president that our idiot governor Scott Walker wants to cut education by one BILLION dollars in this state. My kids are going to lose all of their 'specials' (art, physical education, math program) at school, plus 6 additional teachers. The school only has 22 as it is. The meeting that our PTA hosted with the school board president made the front page of our paper. This was bloody shocking, people were screaming and crying and we had over 200 hundred in attendance. Anyone who has been to a PTA meeting for a school of roughly 400 knows that that is unheard of. Well done to our PTA president.

Gwyn and I are furious. The governor wants to crush the unions and he's willing to sacrifice my sons' education to achieve that goal. Gwyn booked off Thursday (at some risk to his new job) and we all jumped in the car and headed to Madison in a convoy with teachers and parents. The teachers bravely ignored the threats of disciplinary action from the superintendent, and he was forced to shut the schools down today for lack of teaching staff. I spent today in Madison as well, meeting up with the Milwaukee crowd. The atmosphere there is electrifying. I know there have been TOTALLY FABRICATED reports of violence. Could this be a less violent crowd? It's like Woodstock without the drugs. People are passing pizza around the rotunda, singing the national anthem, making room for little kids to get a better view, holding hands with strangers, and spreading liberal love everywhere. Yesterday we happened to follow the firefighters and police into the rotunda and the chant from the teachers quickly changed to 'thank you, thank you, thank you' echoing through the capitol as the parade of firefighters and cops passed under the dome. I can honestly say I felt PRIDE in this country, and this is not something I can say very often.

We stood in the rotunda for hours chanting. I had a spot close enough to hear the leaders, so once I could hear the chant I turned around to shout it to my section so we could all join in. Teachers from my son's school were there, and they kept thanking us. It feels weird to be thanked for something that I would not have missed for the world. Union forever!!!

This is what democracy looks like:

[Chris]

So how long is the next election of Govenor? Enough outcry can force him to resign if people do not like him that much.
 
I can see cutting P.E. class, but Math is something we need especially when the US is not even on the top ten list of educated students in a few of these type of fields. How about cutting these over inflated salaries of school board people who only work the job part time

[Rerun]

Do School Board Members get paid?  How about cutting the salaries of the Superintend and all the congressmen!

With ALL the money going towards education where does it all go.  The kids in our state have to bring their own supplies and extra for the kids who don't bring any. 

Maybe if parents would feed their kids at HOME that would save our tax payers money. 

Anyway, good luck.  Yes, it has been on the news.  Stay safe in case the police start shooting rubber bullits! 

[galvo]

Fight the good fight, cariad.

[carol1987]

Cariad

I am in NJ.. but am "with" you in WI!!! It is so frustrating...  I want to drive out there myself!!!  I had my DH call his union to see what they are doing to support you guys ....

[Chris]

Watching the news right now and the democrats from Wisconsin are hiding out in Chicago so that a vote can not be done on the issue. However the news said the Repblican side has enough votes to pass it and the democrats do not want to return untill they discuss it before voting.
 
So who's money are they using to hide out in Chicago?

[YLGuy]

I think it is great what you are doing. 

[willowtreewren]

 

The LAST place any budget should be cut is education! Good grief, it affects the future!

 

Keep up the fight!

[WishIKnew]

Good for you!  I'm "wiith" you!  Glad you went and that your voices may be heard!  Cutting education is crazy!  You go!

[cariad]

So how long is the next election of Govenor? Enough outcry can force him to resign if people do not like him that much.
 
I can see cutting P.E. class, but Math is something we need especially when the US is not even on the top ten list of educated students in a few of these type of fields. How about cutting these over inflated salaries of school board people who only work the job part time

Chris, Walker has been on the job 2 whole months! It will take a recall to save this state. A friend of mine ran over to me at our PTA meeting with the president of the school board and whispered "We're trying to decide whether we should leave the state or the country." I replied "Country. Come with us to England!" I don't know about school board salaries, my guess is those are quite modest. However, the superintendent! He apparently just gave himself a substantial raise and his salary is now around $260,000. Dems are paying their own way in Illinois. You should thank them for boosting your economy!

The math they are going to cut is a special maths program for the kids in school who are not being challenged enough in their regular class. My older son was born a math fanatic - you can tell how easy the math is for him by how much Rangoli he has time to draw all over his papers while he's waiting for the rest of the class to finish.

Rerun, I know it's bonkers the supplies that we are asked to bring in for school here! Apparently, some schools tell the parents to bring in toilet roll!! We have to bring in 4 boxes of tissues at the start of the year, and I thought that was idiocy. I am worried about the protests today with the Tea Party rolling in. I just hope for peace and non-violence despite the disagreement over policy.

Fight the good fight, cariad.

Always, galvo, always!

Carol, thanks so much for the support. We are honoured to each contribute in our own small way to fight for all working people across the country.

Thanks, Marc! And our school teachers thank you, too!

Oh, Aleta! Agreed, agreed, agreed! The governor sent his own boys to MPS (Milwaukee Public School system) when he was just making his working wage as a state legislator. Now that he makes a governor's salary, he has put the application in to send them private. Apparently that's not enough for him, though, now that his family does not need it anymore he has to burn MPS to the ground and wreck it for everyone else. Hypocrite!

Thank you, WishIKnew! I never thought we would see this flash point in ultra Dem Wisconsin, but it's been an insane couple of years. Our school board president said he has never seen anything like this and that this will set education back in Wisconsin 60 to 70 years. Excellent plan, Walker!

Save the middle class!! Walk like an Egyptian, Wisconsin!!! Go to Madison!

[Poppylicious]

I have a friend who lives in Wisconsin and her FB status updates - and the comments from her friends on said status updates - over the last few days have really irked me.  They tend to think that the teachers are to blame ('why did they do it on a schoolday?' and 'I looked up my son's teacher's salary and she's earning 72k [how much?!], surely she can take a pay-cut?' and 'look at them all on the news having a fabulous day off work whilst my daughter loses a day of education') ... *sigh*

I replied "Country. Come with us to England!"

I'm not sure that things are that much better over here, cariad!

 

[cariad]

I have a friend who lives in Wisconsin and her FB status updates - and the comments from her friends on said status updates - over the last few days have really irked me.  They tend to think that the teachers are to blame ('why did they do it on a schoolday?' and 'I looked up my son's teacher's salary and she's earning 72k [how much?!], surely she can take a pay-cut?' and 'look at them all on the news having a fabulous day off work whilst my daughter loses a day of education') ... *sigh*

I replied "Country. Come with us to England!"

I'm not sure that things are that much better over here, cariad!

 

Thanks for the insight, Poppy. If your friend and her friends think this is about salary cuts, they must be trapped at the back of a deep, dark cave. It's about union busting. The unions have already agreed to all concessions, but Walker wants to do in their collective bargaining rights and that is where every teacher I know draws the line. We are also losing SAGE which is a program that keeps class sizes down. Right now they are limited to 15 students per teacher, some schools are able to push that to 18 but no higher. Next year, should nothing change, my younger son will be in a class with around 30 bewildered and crying 5-year-olds.

If you don't mind my asking, as a school teacher, how do you think the new leadership in England will affect education in your country? Do you see positive changes on the horizon, or the kinds of cuts we're being threatened with here? I am familiar with the riots at the university level, but what of the comprehensives and the specialty schools? I had a specialty school in mind for Aidan way back when, but I would hate to move to England to find that all of those programs have lost their funding.

[kitkatz]

If the school districts cannot cut costs instead of teacher salaries and our health benefits then something is wrong.  I effect childrens' lives on a daily basis and should be paid for it.

[Jean]

This is just a terrible thing going on in WI, fight the good fight Cariad, but if it gets violent, walk away. I cant imagine what is going thru the mind of your brand new governor.

[carol1987]

The unions have offered  financial concessions.... he won't be satisfied til he guts the union!!

Of course Unions must be smart given the environment in our country right now... but I know how much the union my DH is in protects them.. in terms of safety on the job!!

I saw Gov. Christie on TV today and he was talking about how he has cut public sector jobs and created private sector jobs.. but no one followed up with the obvious question... do the new private sector jobs pay a decent wage or will they just add to the working poor in NJ???

[Henry P Snicklesnorter]

.

[cariad]

Kit, I stand behind you teachers 100%. I used to be afraid to be alone with my younger child he was just so defiant and angry and exhausting as a toddler. His current school and the amazing teachers there really turned him around. I've just opened my letter telling me that he's been placed at his brother's school. I fear he will regress in the public school system, but the headmistress has promised me that she will not let this school decay.

Jean, it is a mess, but on the plus side the Madison police force has sent an open letter to the protesters thanking them for not resorting to violence. It seems that when the tea party came to town and there were some 70,000 at the capitol, there was not one incident of violence.

Agreed, carol. This is all about killing the unions, in the birthplace of the American union no less. The Legislative Financial Bureau, which is non-partisan, has said there is NO budget crisis in Wisconsin and we will have a surplus by year's end, so Walker's 'budget repair bill' is unnecessary. Also, it will kill jobs. My sons' school will have to sack around 10 people, multiply that by the 200+ schools in our city and you have an employment disaster. Then there is the litigation that will challenge this bill and the fact that he's trying to set the unions on a course of having to negotiate wages each and every year. Expensive, pointless, bureaucratic.... and watch out for it to happen in your state if he succeeds.

Interesting perspective from the outside, Henry. It may look dire to you, but you have oversimplified the matter (perhaps purposefully) and I believe in Obama's ability to see us through this. Regardless, we are talking states issues in this conversation, not federal. However, to boggle the minds of the Americans even further, Walker is turning down hundreds of millions in Title I funds. If that is not playing politics with my sons' education, I do not know what is.

(I have to report though that my husband has spent half of his working life in US manufacturing, and he said the move to Asia was ages ago and that there has been a robust backlash against this policy. Companies have come round to the idea that it is not really boosting their profits to have everything take 4-6 weeks to obtain, and then much of the time you get the wrong item, the wrong material, and crap quality. Time and language barriers are still a real problem. Plus there is the publicity nightmare, at least in automotive, of getting parts from China and Taiwan.) 

Oh, and currently, collective bargaining for teachers intact, Wisconsin ranks second in the nation in ACT and SAT scores. I've just received the rankings for the states that have outlawed collective bargaining for teachers. Are you ready for this? It's enlightening:

Virginia - 44
Texas - 47
Georgia - 48
North Carolina - 49
South Carolina -50

[Bill Peckham]

PolitiFact looked into the ACT/SAT score tweet and it is about par for the internet. To me the most damning thing is that he says he campaigned on ending collective bargaining but there isn't any evidence that he did. It wasn't in his campaign's material, in his platform, I haven't even seen YouTube video of him referring to it. This is a move against unions as pure political calculus.

Cutting funding is with in the norm of state politics, elections are fought on the issue. Funding was part of the campaign, the cuts sound short sided but I'm not sure it's unexpected.  Elections matter. This attack on the union though is overreach and that usually doesn't workout for the reacher.

I heard a great story on NPR about Egyptians sending pizza to the protesters in Madison. You can send pizza to them from anywhere in the word through Ian's Pizza's website. I just called and the lines were busy.

[cariad]

PolitiFact looked into the ACT/SAT score tweet and it is about par for the internet. To me the most damning thing is that he says he campaigned on ending collective bargaining but there isn't any evidence that he did. It wasn't in his campaign's material, in his platform, I haven't even seen YouTube video of him referring to it. This is a move against unions as pure political calculus.

Cutting funding is with in the norm of state politics, elections are fought on the issue. Funding was part of the campaign, the cuts sound short sided but I'm not sure it's unexpected.  Elections matter. This attack on the union though is overreach and that usually doesn't workout for the reacher.

I heard a great story on NPR about Egyptians sending pizza to the protesters in Madison. You can send pizza to them from anywhere in the word through Ian's Pizza's website. I just called and the lines were busy.

Well, look at you this morning, Mr. Killjoy with your fancy facts....

Thanks for the info, Bill, though this does require me to send an email out to a dozen or so people. Someone posted this on the Facebook page that I volunteered to moderate, and I have always believed that misinformation, even over something small like this, weakens your entire argument. Good job I never went into politics, I wouldn't last a moment in the current climate. I do have one minor gripe with PolitiFact's analysis, over the difference between the ACT and SAT rankings. They reckon that the SAT scores are better because that population is self-selecting. Unless things have changed since I graduated, these populations are all self-selecting. It was never a requirement to take either of these tests, and if you had intentions of going to a foreign university, or if you did not want to attend university, you were not required to pay the rather steep fees and sit one of the exams. I don't know if there was a hardship application if one could not pay, either, but it would seem that poorer populations are likely underrepresented in these stats.

I hope you're right about the end result of the overreach. I have read that legal challenges will come fast and strong. If anyone is interested, this is an easily readable article from our local alternative press that discusses how these cuts do nothing to help the economy - they are costly and will kill jobs. http://www.expressmilwaukee.com/article-13897-walkerrss-renewed-war-on-workers.html I don't think it mentions that Walker's budget cuts force schools to break the law. In 2000, a law suit was filed against the public school system and the Supreme Court of WI ruled that all students were entitled to a basic education that included art, music, foreign language and physical education. My son receives no music training at his school, and next year PE and art will be cut. They want to do away with the single and dual immersion schools (my son attends one) as well, though they then go and hire language teachers to give students a half hour of foreign language a day. Never mind that few students ever successfully learn a language that way - I guess they adhere to the adage If it's not worth doing, it's not worth doing well.

I paid little attention to Walker in the election, so I wouldn't be au fait with his platform. He ran against Mayor Barret, who I think is an interesting person and would have done a better job. (Anyone recall seeing an article from a few years ago when Barret, attending a Brewers game without security, ran to the aid of a woman being mugged in the car lot? He sustained a few injuries. Anyhow, that was Walker's opponent. He and Walker are old political rivals.) Doyle overstayed his welcome, and seemed to take a lot of criticism for the financial collapse under Bush. He did not even try for reelection. I voted, and let's just say my conscience is clear. I'm sure you've heard by now about Walker talking to a journalist for 20 minutes, thinking he was talking to one of the Koch brothers - according to Slate magazine, we are now obsessed with the Koch brothers in Madison. Um, are we supposed to ignore this? He refuses to talk to Dems, but he talks to some out-of-state billionaire and repeatedly kisses his.... ring. 


I love the pizzas being sent. Those do indeed get passed around the Rotunda, as well as hot dogs. I will probably be there Saturday, somewhere in the Milwaukee crowd, so if you intend to send a pizza over, please remember that many of us liberals are also vegetarians.... 

[cariad]

Returning to MadCap tomorrow. Someone send a veggie pizza around 4PM, 'kay??

Apparently they have organized the pizza distribution process. One can now visit a table for their pizza requirements rather than loitering in the rotunda and waiting for the box to float by. They also have a first aid table, and many of the most central protesters stay up late to voluntarily scrub the floor and bathrooms of the Capitol.

I'm sure you've heard that the assembly passed the bill. I don't care how Republican and anti-union you are, why would you want to destroy education? Taking one billion away from schools? I am making phone calls this afternoon to try to get people to join the fight. I even emailed Obama this morning. I never thought I would see the day in Wisconsin.

If you are able to get to Madison, please do yourself a favour and visit the protest. Our alderman, mayor and representatives from our senator and assemblyman were at a town hall meeting last night. They all agreed that no one has ever seen anything like this, and it is a testament to the character and reason of the people of Wisconsin. The senator and assemblyman spoke to the crowd via mobiles pressed against microphones. One was in his 56th hour of testimony, the other is in hiding. I heard a comment this morning, and I agree with it, that Walker has managed to make unions cool and accessible to young people. In drama, we call that peripety.

The alderman talked a lot about health care costs being the biggest budget item. Once the furor dies down - assuming it ever does - I would like to draft a letter mentioning the need to advocate for home dialysis for both better outcomes and financial savings. Perhaps I will ask the people on this site for feedback.

Back to the battle....

[WishIKnew]

   Sending my support!

[carol1987]

Cariad...
Oh but according to walker the protesters are all bused in out of staters.. 

Keep strong out there... My hubbie and I will be at a support rally in NYC tomorrow!!

Has anyone started to try and recall walker??

[cariad]

Thanks WishIKnew and Carol!

Carol, have fun at the rally. Political rallies always make me feel connected to other people in a wonderful way. The union members of Wisconsin thank you for the solidarity.

I wish someone would start an official recall, but I have not heard of any. There are a few unofficial ones, which I guess are trying to get an idea about the numbers out there in favour? I think it would require 20,000 signatures. That does not seem like it would be that difficult - bring a petition to Madison and hang it up near the pizza table. Job done!

Just finished up my calls. We should have good turn out. By and large, people are very interested in hearing about this and learning what they can do. Sometimes I do love this progressive little city....

[MooseMom]

I've heard that in Wisconsin, the governor has to serve one year before he can be recalled.  So, he could be recalled this time next year at the earliest.  However, I also heard that state senators can be recalled immediately provided they've served four years.

Cariad, why do you think that such a pro-union state as Wisconsin voted in Republicans last year?  Do you think that this might be the beginning of a class war in your state?  I know you don't know the answer to this, but how many of the protesters do you think voted for Walker?  Any idea?

[cariad]

Cancel that pizza order! We are still on the third coast!

Aidan had his baseball tryout this morning. He was a bit tense, I was a nervous wreck. He is playing up, so he will be one of the youngest in the league, and baseball is not his game.... that would be soccer. He has very little baseball experience, and the kids who were there were extremely good. So, we walk in and half of his soccer team is there. I felt like Sarah Palin with all of the smiling and waving across the gymnasium. We are city dwellers playing in the suburbs, which means we're louder, pushier and more ill-mannnered than that lot. Gwyn loves to shout advice and encouragement in Welsh. Anyhow, we received two requests for Aidan's presence at a soccer tourney where the team is short a player. He is going to play for one of his best friend's teams. That game is in an hour, so even though Aidan was willing to go to the capital, that boy is so mad for soccer I couldn't justify the trip any longer.

I've heard that in Wisconsin, the governor has to serve one year before he can be recalled.  So, he could be recalled this time next year at the earliest.  However, I also heard that state senators can be recalled immediately provided they've served four years.

That makes sense, I suppose, though it's disappointing that we cannot ride this momentum straight to a recall. Our senator is new, too, so he cannot be recalled just yet. However, he's a Dem, so we want to keep him.

Cariad, why do you think that such a pro-union state as Wisconsin voted in Republicans last year?  Do you think that this might be the beginning of a class war in your state?  I know you don't know the answer to this, but how many of the protesters do you think voted for Walker?  Any idea?

Oh, MM, I just do not know!! *blub* *blub* (*shakes fist* *rends garments*)

It must have something to do with the utterly mindless anger from the last election, where having any anti-status quo air about you helped. Now it's like they all woke up with a tremendous hangover. Part of me wants to shout "why couldn't you all have come together like this BEFORE the damn election?!"

A literal class war, no. I don't know that Wisconsin has all of that many rich people in it, it is not like California where the ostentatiousness is surprisingly well-tolerated by all of us little drones. No idea who voted for whom, though the cities are very progressive. As Stephen Colbert joked to a guest who went to U of Madison, "What's the matter? University of Michigan not liberal enough for you?"
 
Regardless, I think we can all agree that Walker has gone too far on education. One billion dollars taken out of the school system? These are schools that have been cutting back for years, there was already no where left to cut, and this is a direct attack on Milwaukee. That is not to mention the $188 Million in Title I that Walker will reject just to make some anti-Obama, anti-Fed, political point. As we discussed on our school's new political committee, even Walker supporters are going to be galled by this. We don't have to editorialize when we contact people, the facts are compelling on their own. This is a devastating, unprecedented attack on public education. Oh, and of course there is a clause in the budget proposal that allows no-bid sales of power plants to private citizens. He may as well have written "Private citizens named Koch."

The next milestone is March 1 where Walker will (probably) reveal his budget. Our alderman made it clear that the budget is not statutory. Apparently, 'budget repair bill' is a legal term, and as such is required only under certain conditions, and Wisconsin does not meet those conditions.