Wednesday, Sept. 5, 2012
Issue of the Week: Why Is Abele Afraid to Let the Public Speak?
Plus: Remembering Julie Wichman
With the 2010 Citizens United decision, the U.S. Supreme Court made one of the most damaging rulings in its history. The ruling essentially said that corporations can spend unlimited money from corporate treasuries on election campaigns—which, by the way, provides foreign companies with an opening to influence U.S. elections. Millionaires, billionaires and corporations can spend tens of millions of dollars on television ads full of lies and distortions to try to pervert the outcome of any U.S. election. It is completely legal now.
One of the few means available to the average voter to begin to change this perversion of the democratic system is to express his or her position on the error of the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. Voters can express themselves by such acts as signing petitions, demonstrating in the streets or putting an advisory referendum on the ballot. The citizens of the city of West Allis had such an advisory referendum on their ballot in April 2012, declaring that corporations are not people and that money is not speech—the issues at the heart of the Citizens United decision. The referendum passed with 70% support.
The citizens of Milwaukee County petitioned their county supervisors to add this advisory referendum to the November ballot. The Milwaukee County board overwhelmingly passed it, with a super-majority of 14-4, giving the voters an opportunity to express themselves in their democracy. It was then sent to County Executive Chris Abele's office. Abele did two things. First, he had his office come up with a disgraceful fiscal note—Abele's people calculated that it would cost more than $37,000 to put another line on the ballot. Yes, sadly, this is true: This is the type of silliness that has taken over the county executive's office since Abele's election. But the other thing he did was far more devious. Since he knew the county board would override his veto, he stalled until a state statutory deadline had passed. The state requires that the referendum be passed, signed and slated to be on the ballot 70 days prior to an election. By stalling, as Abele did, the referendum will not be on the November ballot and the people will not be heard. If he had simply vetoed the referendum in a timely manner, the county board would have had the opportunity to override his veto. So much for trying to work with the county board in an honorable way.
So why did Abele execute a backhanded maneuver to kill the advisory referendum? Why would he want to prevent voters from having a chance to express their opinions? Abele claims that he generally agrees with the resolution, but is opposed to spending $37,000 on an advisory referendum. Virtually all rational people would be opposed to spending $37,000 to add one line to a ballot that already has to be printed for the November election. If Abele is paying $37,000 to add one line to the ballot, then we have much bigger problems with Abele running our county. Our advice: Don't give your credit card to Abele and send him out to buy your groceries.
Unfortunately, Abele also has a history of saying one thing and doing the opposite. This duplicity is not something new. For example, he loved former Parks Director Sue Black, persuaded her to reject a job offer from Chicago and stay in Milwaukee and gave her multiple raises, and then suddenly fired her, giving her no reason for the termination.
So what really happened? Why did Abele kill a popular referendum?
Talking to people close to the issue and the Abele administration, they say that it probably comes down to one issue: Abele's political future needs decisions like Citizens United. Few believe that Abele would have been taken seriously as a candidate for county executive were it not for his father's money. He had no experience ever having a real job; he had no college degree of any kind; and he had no public policy or political experience that would have prepared him to even be a staffer in the county executive's office, let alone the county executive himself. He won because of one thing: The family money he spent on the race dwarfed everything else. Despite what Abele says about his feelings toward Citizens United, he knows that without his family money, he would not be where he is today.
Remembering Julie Wichman
Julie Wichman was given a stark choice this summer. Diagnosed with inoperable cancer and told she could live for several months on a respirator or several weeks without, she chose the path of freedom and sociability by rejecting the constraints of the respirator. Julie lived her last weeks at the Zilber Family Hospice and at home, surrounded by family and friends from many aspects of her rich life. She was happy and in good spirits, an inspiration to anyone who was with her before she passed away on Aug. 22.
Julie was managing editor of the Shepherd Express during a critical period of the paper's 30-year history. Joining the staff in 1991 after a stint with Wisconsin Woman magazine, Julie eased the paper through its growing pains as ownership and editors changed and the focus broadened from an East Side alternative to metro Milwaukee's weekly newspaper. Julie was inevitably a voice of reason and a bright light in dark moments. Along with her responsibilities at the Shepherd, she also edited our fondly remembered, monthly sister publication, the Mature American. Julie left the Shepherd Express in 2001 for a position as editor at MATC.
Always an encouraging spirit, Julie moonlighted as an editorial consultant for local writers and helped guide several manuscripts from conception through publication. She was also involved in several environmental organizations. It's in keeping with Julie's concern for family and friends that she didn't want to interrupt anyone's Labor Day plans with a funeral. Visitations will be held 11 a.m.-3:45 p.m. Sept. 9 at Krause Funeral Home (12401 W. National Ave., New Berlin). A ceremony will follow at 4 p.m. (D.L.)
Heroes of the Week: Wildlife In Need Center Volunteers
Wildlife In Need Center (W349 S1480 S. Waterville Road, Suite B, Oconomowoc) was founded in 1994 and provides rehabilitation to sick, injured and orphaned native Wisconsin wildlife with the goal of safely releasing them back into their natural environment. This nonprofit admits 2,000-3,000 animals every year from as many as 140 different species, ranging from reptiles and amphibians to birds and mammals. In addition, Wildlife In Need Center (WINC) actively offers helpful information about local animals to the public. Each year, volunteer telephone counselors handle about 10,000 calls from citizens with wildlife questions or concerns, and educational volunteers present more than 100 informative programs to various schools, scouts, senior centers and religious and civic organizations, as well as to birding and garden clubs.
"We literally could not do what we do without the helping hands and generous hearts of our volunteers," says Joan Rudnitzki, executive director of WINC.
Volunteers are always needed to help with landscaping, gardening, animal care, office work and educational programs. Those who have expertise in marketing and information systems are desired as well. WINC is currently seeking donations of hull-less seed, berries (fresh/unsweetened frozen), paper towels, flashlights, pillowcases, smelt or minnows, and various office supplies. For more information about the organization or to view a complete wish list, visit www.helpingwildlife.org; volunteer inquiries can be emailed to Lisa Rowe at lrowe@helpingwildlife.org.
One of the few means available to the average voter to begin to change this perversion of the democratic system is to express his or her position on the error of the Supreme Court's Citizens United decision. Voters can express themselves by such acts as signing petitions, demonstrating in the streets or putting an advisory referendum on the ballot. The citizens of the city of West Allis had such an advisory referendum on their ballot in April 2012, declaring that corporations are not people and that money is not speech—the issues at the heart of the Citizens United decision. The referendum passed with 70% support.
The citizens of Milwaukee County petitioned their county supervisors to add this advisory referendum to the November ballot. The Milwaukee County board overwhelmingly passed it, with a super-majority of 14-4, giving the voters an opportunity to express themselves in their democracy. It was then sent to County Executive Chris Abele's office. Abele did two things. First, he had his office come up with a disgraceful fiscal note—Abele's people calculated that it would cost more than $37,000 to put another line on the ballot. Yes, sadly, this is true: This is the type of silliness that has taken over the county executive's office since Abele's election. But the other thing he did was far more devious. Since he knew the county board would override his veto, he stalled until a state statutory deadline had passed. The state requires that the referendum be passed, signed and slated to be on the ballot 70 days prior to an election. By stalling, as Abele did, the referendum will not be on the November ballot and the people will not be heard. If he had simply vetoed the referendum in a timely manner, the county board would have had the opportunity to override his veto. So much for trying to work with the county board in an honorable way.
So why did Abele execute a backhanded maneuver to kill the advisory referendum? Why would he want to prevent voters from having a chance to express their opinions? Abele claims that he generally agrees with the resolution, but is opposed to spending $37,000 on an advisory referendum. Virtually all rational people would be opposed to spending $37,000 to add one line to a ballot that already has to be printed for the November election. If Abele is paying $37,000 to add one line to the ballot, then we have much bigger problems with Abele running our county. Our advice: Don't give your credit card to Abele and send him out to buy your groceries.
Unfortunately, Abele also has a history of saying one thing and doing the opposite. This duplicity is not something new. For example, he loved former Parks Director Sue Black, persuaded her to reject a job offer from Chicago and stay in Milwaukee and gave her multiple raises, and then suddenly fired her, giving her no reason for the termination.
So what really happened? Why did Abele kill a popular referendum?
Talking to people close to the issue and the Abele administration, they say that it probably comes down to one issue: Abele's political future needs decisions like Citizens United. Few believe that Abele would have been taken seriously as a candidate for county executive were it not for his father's money. He had no experience ever having a real job; he had no college degree of any kind; and he had no public policy or political experience that would have prepared him to even be a staffer in the county executive's office, let alone the county executive himself. He won because of one thing: The family money he spent on the race dwarfed everything else. Despite what Abele says about his feelings toward Citizens United, he knows that without his family money, he would not be where he is today.
Remembering Julie Wichman
Julie Wichman was given a stark choice this summer. Diagnosed with inoperable cancer and told she could live for several months on a respirator or several weeks without, she chose the path of freedom and sociability by rejecting the constraints of the respirator. Julie lived her last weeks at the Zilber Family Hospice and at home, surrounded by family and friends from many aspects of her rich life. She was happy and in good spirits, an inspiration to anyone who was with her before she passed away on Aug. 22.
Julie was managing editor of the Shepherd Express during a critical period of the paper's 30-year history. Joining the staff in 1991 after a stint with Wisconsin Woman magazine, Julie eased the paper through its growing pains as ownership and editors changed and the focus broadened from an East Side alternative to metro Milwaukee's weekly newspaper. Julie was inevitably a voice of reason and a bright light in dark moments. Along with her responsibilities at the Shepherd, she also edited our fondly remembered, monthly sister publication, the Mature American. Julie left the Shepherd Express in 2001 for a position as editor at MATC.
Always an encouraging spirit, Julie moonlighted as an editorial consultant for local writers and helped guide several manuscripts from conception through publication. She was also involved in several environmental organizations. It's in keeping with Julie's concern for family and friends that she didn't want to interrupt anyone's Labor Day plans with a funeral. Visitations will be held 11 a.m.-3:45 p.m. Sept. 9 at Krause Funeral Home (12401 W. National Ave., New Berlin). A ceremony will follow at 4 p.m. (D.L.)
Heroes of the Week: Wildlife In Need Center Volunteers
Wildlife In Need Center (W349 S1480 S. Waterville Road, Suite B, Oconomowoc) was founded in 1994 and provides rehabilitation to sick, injured and orphaned native Wisconsin wildlife with the goal of safely releasing them back into their natural environment. This nonprofit admits 2,000-3,000 animals every year from as many as 140 different species, ranging from reptiles and amphibians to birds and mammals. In addition, Wildlife In Need Center (WINC) actively offers helpful information about local animals to the public. Each year, volunteer telephone counselors handle about 10,000 calls from citizens with wildlife questions or concerns, and educational volunteers present more than 100 informative programs to various schools, scouts, senior centers and religious and civic organizations, as well as to birding and garden clubs.
"We literally could not do what we do without the helping hands and generous hearts of our volunteers," says Joan Rudnitzki, executive director of WINC.
Volunteers are always needed to help with landscaping, gardening, animal care, office work and educational programs. Those who have expertise in marketing and information systems are desired as well. WINC is currently seeking donations of hull-less seed, berries (fresh/unsweetened frozen), paper towels, flashlights, pillowcases, smelt or minnows, and various office supplies. For more information about the organization or to view a complete wish list, visit www.helpingwildlife.org; volunteer inquiries can be emailed to Lisa Rowe at lrowe@helpingwildlife.org.
Money is used to keep score, agreed.
But money also buys power, including power to silence an opposing voice, even if it is simply thru buying up all the media access time and channels, so there is no room left for those on limited funds, leaving them with no voice at all.
That is why we had Community Access Channels on Cable, which AT&T fought hard to kill. That is why there were rules like equal time, and mandated time for Public Service Announcements. That is the point of Net Neutrality, keep the internet available for all, including .org sites and protest groups, instead of nothing by commercial .com and tightly screened & controlled "selective news" propaganda sites.
Most people who have the money are just plain greedy, want to make more money, with lowest cost of advertising, lowest amount of competition and dissent. They can make more money when they don't have to work so hard (spend so much) on advertising and persuading public opinion, making money is easier when you can keep opposing views out of the media, off the ballot. Cannot let the opposing views even be counted.
And this kind of thinking hides behind "It costs too much public money".
If you let the wealth-makers take absolute control so they can re-build a profitable place "for all", can you also trust them to leave us a system where the majority (by numbers of people) still have a voice, never mind still have a feeling of real success? Are you sure they will not leave you with a system that funnels all the wealth to numero uno and leaves you as corporate servants and slaves, unhappily working just to keep your own body alive, no realistic dream that you can rise out of it?
Just like you say, the top 0.1% are also saying "More is better", especially when it is more accurately recast as "More for me, less for all y'all"
The whole plan was to allow unlimited money, did not matter who from (that's their brand of "equality"). The other element needed, as shown by Walker, was to eliminate union money from ever accumulating, therefore not a threat against the "One share one vote" corporate way.
Did you notice that the key nugget was really to stop the state from collecting union dues? What if the only dues collected was voluntary? How many would not bother to pay their dues, as the economy got tougher and tougher. Unions cannot donate to campaigns if the money is not there.
It was the big squeeze out play in action!
Wrong. On election night when the votes are being counted and the numbers are flashing across thge screen, they are now visible for all to see, even if just a tag along when the real focus is on who becomes prez.
What some really want is locallized broadcasts, so all houses in a given Ward see ONLY they items that are on their Ward's ballot. If you can't see what is going on in a neighboring Ward, City, County, State, how sheltered will we become? Clueless as to what the big picture is doing. We will then make decisions only on what is presented to us... by the corporate owned commercial media.
I watched an old DVD from 1998, a movie called "Pleasantville". Re-watch it, the themes going on in the public back then are still present today, the movie has a new interpretation. It reflects when "Leave It To Beaver" type of Black and White was giving away to Color TV, right down to when certain characters started to see and be in color, while the Black and White status quo faught this "Color". Included a different take on "No Coloreds allowed", applying it with all white actors.
Citizens United works with earlier decisions on money equals speech, therefore limiting money will limit speech, means free speech means cannot limit money. The net effect is that access to the media (which is limited commercial airwaves) now belongs to the highest bidder.
Access to the voter is also through these limited airwaves, therefore messages to inform and persuade the voter now belongs to the highest bidder
Since this also means Union money cannot be limited, the only answer is to stop Unions from getting the money with which to outspend corporate interests. It's why Walker did not, could not directly outlaw the existence of a union, all he had to do was outlaw using the State of Wisconsin's payroll department to collect those union dues for the workers unions. If the 49% of the workers who voted against unionizing are left to voluntary payment (means no payment), it makes Wisconsin effectively a Right to Work state, at least as far as Union money making it into politics.
This was to ensure that the only money left in the politics game would be Republican money, since we know that union money is Democrat money... "Check and mate!"