A grizzled and weathered old man stands timeless and unmoving behind wizened eye's. Behind him in suit pants and shirt skateboards a young Jewish man with curled hair and full beard. He deftly swerves and moves around a small group of attractive Asian women who although together belong to two very different camps. Some are wearing full length white dresses and the rest seem to be having a competition to see who can got the closest to being naked. They board a metro bus with a member of the state Assembly as the Assembly woman's aide walks to his B.M.W. turbo. The bus driver honks his horn at a nearby group of pro-union/anti-radical conservative protesters who at first look appear more diverse than all the folks previously mentioned.
It's summer time in lovely (and sweltering) Madison, WI but it reminds me of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. There is no telling what you will see here next and for the most part that is a grand and glorious thing in my way of thinking. Remember the caveat though-I said for the most part. What I have noticed in the last week and is somewhat surprising and definitely depressing to me are the beginning signs of the unity and solidarity of the protesters being tested and stressed. The beginnings of dissension are within our ranks and that is something that none of us need.
Last week in the Joint Committee on Finance this became apparent to me when minor conflict and a few words were exchanged between members of the A.S.O., the group Voces de la Fronteras (really hope I spelled that right) and DefendingWisconsin creator Jeremy Ryan. Some people accused others of not doing enough, others accused folks of doing too much, none of the above could agree on tactics and intentions to save their lives. Infighting such as this does absolutely zero to help save the Badger State from the forces of tyranny and greed that threaten us all.
I have said before and will repeat again "with all this work to be done defending Wisconsin, there is a role for everyone regardless of skill set, tactics or individual agenda." You don't have to agree with Jeremy Ryan's pushing the envelope and repeated arrests but any sane person knows that if the state Supreme Court overturns judge Sumi's ruling on the Budget Reform Bill the only thing left protecting us will be Jeremy's pushing for a ruling of violation of the states open meetings law.
You can say that Voces de la Fronteras shot themselves in the foot by announcing their agenda and timeline for it, ahead of time over the Internet where it was picked up by the Republican party who took all the wind out of their sails by postponing the meeting until night time. But at least they organized and came in from Milwaukee and were here. At least they intimidated the G.O.P.
You may not agree with my hunger strike but you have to admit it generated a metric ton of international and regional attention to the plight of Wisconsin and its pivotal role in our nations future for generations to come. Just as America is a diverse nation, just as Wisconsin's population is diverse so to must be the tactics and people united against the threat to our beloved state!
In short now is the time to do some serious soul-searching and agree to disagree about the details. Regardless of what tactics are used the media will distort and misrepresent us and our intentions. Regardless of how finely or grossly we state our case we know that our words fall on the deaf ears of our fraudulently elected government.
SO DON'T SWEAT THE PETTY THINGS ! And never pet the sweaty things(ewwww)
We are in the middle of class warfare the likes of which has never been seen before and it really does not matter one darn bit if you wear a tie or not, whether you hold out your pinkie as you drink or not. Such small differences should be beneath out notice at this point.
What we do need and really should have right now besides strength in numbers and unity and solidarity is someone or a few someones who have the ability and resources to provide communication and oversight between the more than a dozen political action groups, the dozens of unions, the Democratic party and the citizenry of the state. I am not the person for the job. The late great Ben Masel knew a lot about this and we are weaker for his passing.
But especially now with the recall elections coming up and the need to monitor them because there will be voter fraud once again from the G.O.P. That is as sure as death and taxes and our vigilance against this must be widespread and unflinching. We also have the police and firefighters unions which we need to maintain better communications with. I have been working and organizing the National Guard and they are very willing to help us (they have been donating equipment and supplies to us in case of occupation) and they do not stand with Scott Walker at all but I am just one man trying to organize between the other groups and the Guard which is scattered throughout the state. If you have any any idea's on how to organize and promote more efficient communications between all these fine folks please let me know. Or just set it up on your own and run with it, it should be very easy to establish contact with all of us once your up and running.
And for the activists and organisers around Madison please be aware that there are 3 - 5 white Ford Focus' with Washington D.C. plates following us around just recently and I'm positive that their inhabitants intentions have nothing to do with our best interest's. Please be safe and alert at all times, we are at war people and though we didn't start it, it is our duty to end it here for the good of our children, our state and our nation and I thank you for all your efforts in this most just and honorable cause. In solidarity my sisters and brothers.
On Wisconsin! FORWARD!!!!
It's summer time in lovely (and sweltering) Madison, WI but it reminds me of Sunset Boulevard in Los Angeles, California. There is no telling what you will see here next and for the most part that is a grand and glorious thing in my way of thinking. Remember the caveat though-I said for the most part. What I have noticed in the last week and is somewhat surprising and definitely depressing to me are the beginning signs of the unity and solidarity of the protesters being tested and stressed. The beginnings of dissension are within our ranks and that is something that none of us need.
Last week in the Joint Committee on Finance this became apparent to me when minor conflict and a few words were exchanged between members of the A.S.O., the group Voces de la Fronteras (really hope I spelled that right) and DefendingWisconsin creator Jeremy Ryan. Some people accused others of not doing enough, others accused folks of doing too much, none of the above could agree on tactics and intentions to save their lives. Infighting such as this does absolutely zero to help save the Badger State from the forces of tyranny and greed that threaten us all.
I have said before and will repeat again "with all this work to be done defending Wisconsin, there is a role for everyone regardless of skill set, tactics or individual agenda." You don't have to agree with Jeremy Ryan's pushing the envelope and repeated arrests but any sane person knows that if the state Supreme Court overturns judge Sumi's ruling on the Budget Reform Bill the only thing left protecting us will be Jeremy's pushing for a ruling of violation of the states open meetings law.
You can say that Voces de la Fronteras shot themselves in the foot by announcing their agenda and timeline for it, ahead of time over the Internet where it was picked up by the Republican party who took all the wind out of their sails by postponing the meeting until night time. But at least they organized and came in from Milwaukee and were here. At least they intimidated the G.O.P.
You may not agree with my hunger strike but you have to admit it generated a metric ton of international and regional attention to the plight of Wisconsin and its pivotal role in our nations future for generations to come. Just as America is a diverse nation, just as Wisconsin's population is diverse so to must be the tactics and people united against the threat to our beloved state!
In short now is the time to do some serious soul-searching and agree to disagree about the details. Regardless of what tactics are used the media will distort and misrepresent us and our intentions. Regardless of how finely or grossly we state our case we know that our words fall on the deaf ears of our fraudulently elected government.
SO DON'T SWEAT THE PETTY THINGS ! And never pet the sweaty things(ewwww)
We are in the middle of class warfare the likes of which has never been seen before and it really does not matter one darn bit if you wear a tie or not, whether you hold out your pinkie as you drink or not. Such small differences should be beneath out notice at this point.
What we do need and really should have right now besides strength in numbers and unity and solidarity is someone or a few someones who have the ability and resources to provide communication and oversight between the more than a dozen political action groups, the dozens of unions, the Democratic party and the citizenry of the state. I am not the person for the job. The late great Ben Masel knew a lot about this and we are weaker for his passing.
But especially now with the recall elections coming up and the need to monitor them because there will be voter fraud once again from the G.O.P. That is as sure as death and taxes and our vigilance against this must be widespread and unflinching. We also have the police and firefighters unions which we need to maintain better communications with. I have been working and organizing the National Guard and they are very willing to help us (they have been donating equipment and supplies to us in case of occupation) and they do not stand with Scott Walker at all but I am just one man trying to organize between the other groups and the Guard which is scattered throughout the state. If you have any any idea's on how to organize and promote more efficient communications between all these fine folks please let me know. Or just set it up on your own and run with it, it should be very easy to establish contact with all of us once your up and running.
And for the activists and organisers around Madison please be aware that there are 3 - 5 white Ford Focus' with Washington D.C. plates following us around just recently and I'm positive that their inhabitants intentions have nothing to do with our best interest's. Please be safe and alert at all times, we are at war people and though we didn't start it, it is our duty to end it here for the good of our children, our state and our nation and I thank you for all your efforts in this most just and honorable cause. In solidarity my sisters and brothers.
On Wisconsin! FORWARD!!!!
3 comments:
You are spot on Matt. I appreciate the Jeremy's, those that will rush into M &I, those that will stand up and speak in a JFC meeting...and get carried out!
I don't know exactly what my "role" is yet, but I think I'm getting closer to it.
The thing I know for sure is that I will keep coming, keep chanting, keep singing, and talking with like minded wonderful people....those that are in the front lines, and those that aren't.
Most people have taken an attitude that it doesn't matter anymore.....they have the majority, and let's fuck 'em while we can attitude....what is all this time spent at the Capitol really going to accomplish? I'll tell you! It's going to make you feel like family, a part of a revolution, like you are DOING something....no matter what it is!
I thank those knowledgable protesters on the front lines....without them this movement would be a drizzle.
NOTHING here in the news about the events occurRing around the capitol in Madison on June 6. I watched news from Brasil, from Sao Paulo: The governor of Rio de Janeiro said "the hundreds of fire fighters who were on strike were vandals and irresponsible." A nationaly famous evangelical pastor prayed for the firemen who were jailed and for their families. He said the firemen put their lives on the line and called the rulers and authorities arrogant. Meanwhile, today a #wiunion tweet directed to "The Good News in Wisconsin that AREN'T BEING COVERED by the Media" by Mike Elk, of Working in These Times. The text didn't open from the tweet, nor on a Google search, and the same thing happened at a local copy store. Did "In these Times forget to put Elks story up? It kind of seemed suspicious. Don't forget that the mainstream media forgets about you. Peace, Madison.
On a whim, I bought a best of REO Speedwagon at that store that has a sign that looks like a target. I was curious: Where did these guys come from? I asked Wickipedia and found out when they started they attended the University of Illinois. Anyway, check this song out: "Golden Country". I dedicate this one to Scott Walker. Peace, Madison.
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