Progressive Thinking

'twas the night before Christmas, and all through the state, petitioners were stirring, because the recall can't wait...

The republicans were smugly snuggled, with Koch cash in their bed, while the rest of the state is all seeing red...

The volunteers in their recall t- shirts and the staff in winter hats weren't settling down for a let- up just yet...

For out in our communities there arose such a clatter because when Walker got in we knew something was the matter...

When, what to our wondering eyes should appear, but thousands of protesters with a resolve without fear.

No Walker! no Walker! No walker! They called...

And that wish will come true if we all keep resolve...

For there is no greater gift that we can give our great state,

Than a Democratic governor

Before it's too late!

Looking forward to working with you all in 2012!

The RECALL is going well...but we are not there yet.  And you know as well as I do that the fight to end here is going to be harder with Christmas and worse weather coming.

I was wondering if all of us could take one cut turf in a highly democratic area in Green Bay and be responsible for it by next Thursday?  We are getting flyers together to drop at doors with office info if no one is there, so this would not be a waste of time if people aren't home.  Labor Temple, Teamsters, GBEA will all be on as potential places for folks to stop by and sign, too.

I know my family will being doing the turf with me...although they don't know that yet.

Please let me know if you can't do this or find someone else to do it.  Otherwise, we can get the turfs cut!

ALSO, there is a wierd thing happening with people unwilling to sign 'Clay-fish' recall.  NO!  I don't accept that from people...I till him she would be a clone of Walker and we have to make sure that she goes, too.

GREEN BAY - Unemployment up in Wisconsin, teachers and public workers villified, state torn apart, concealed carry with NO TRAINING, liquor available for purchase at 6 am, equal pay law overturned, teachers allowed to be fired for test scores. Education at all levels CUT! Stupid when we need re-training programs...  HE ran on creating 250,000 jobs out of that brown paper bag.  He needs to leave office with that brown paper bag over his head.  As soon as possible... He is such a tool! 

Four of us are going to work the mall area in Green Bay for signatures today.  I have collected sixty or so in the last two weeks...it has not been hard.  People want to sign.  My goal is 100 by the middle of next week.  I know two people who are trying to get 1000 just by themselves...

Many on this list are doing the same thing!  Re-energize yourselves folks!  Download a petition at wisdems.org today! Five signatures to turn in once you get it filled.

In green bay at the dem office-- 1061 W. Mason.  La Crosse friends-- I am sure that it is easy to find where to go...

Come help with paperwork...bring some treats for the staff and volunteers...donate to keep offices open!

WE HAVE TO DO THIS TOGETHER!  GRASSROOTS IS CRITICAL GOING INTO 2012.

We must get sanity back in Madison.  This is a middle of the road state--NOT what we are having thrust on us right now!

GREEN BAY - State Rep. Jim Steineke, R-Vandenbroek, has introduced a resolution to rename the Capitol Holiday Tree the Capitol Christmas Tree.

"It is what it is, it's a Christmas tree," Steineke said Tuesday. "I just think that in Wisconsin we called it a Christmas tree for 70 years. We call it a Christmas tree in Washington at the White House. I don't see any harm in calling it a Christmas tree in Madison, Wisconsin."

Sounds simple enough. Or is it?

What if you are not a Christian? Maybe you are a Native American and choose to practice your traditional beliefs. Or a Jew, or a Muslim? What if you just plain don’t believe in religion at all? Many estimate that up to 40% of Americans do not believe in the traditional concept of a god, though most choose to not to talk about it among believers.

Should the State use your tax dollars to ram someone else’s religion down your throat?

When I was with Milwaukee County, we set up a big tree in the courthouse and a variety of little trees in several departments, including Human Resources, at this time of year. The County Executive would come down and make a speech. Several employees would spend hours decorating the tree in our department, usually on a Friday afternoon. Everyone was nice.

But wouldn’t you rather they spent their time processing your job application? Or doing any other kind of real work?  If they wanted a Christmas tree, they were certainly free to set one up at home.

Every year, for our friends in the GOP like Rep. Steineke, the Christmas verses Holiday tree issue provides a perfect opportunity to pander to their base. Here we create another “issue” that sounds simple if you don’t really think about it.  "The governor believes a Christmas tree should be called a Christmas tree," Chris Schrimpf, Scott Walker's communications director, said in an email Tuesday.

But is it that “simple”, or does it only seem so if you believe that everyone should share your particular beliefs. Maybe Scotty and friends are just trying to give their supporters the impression that they are “standing up for them” in Madison. It is certainly easier than doing any real work, like creating more jobs in Wisconsin.

Yes, this is an issue that is not an issue. And the “it’s a tradition” argument has been used too often to support too many practices that should have been forgotten years ago.

Maybe we should just let all the practicing Christians have their Christmas trees at home. Religion is supposed to be an individual preference, isn’t it?

GREEN BAY - Today, the Green Bay/NEWi Progressive joins dozens of grassroots groups across the state in supporting the recall of Scott Walker. We do not begin this undertaking lightly, but Walker has put Wisconsin's way of life in jeopardy with a radical agenda that puts the good of corporations and cronies before the good of the citizens of our state. Massive cuts to education and healthcare have been accompanied by assaults on democratic institutions and the ability of citizens to have their voices heard.