middle wi news - july

8/6/2019 Middle WI News - July

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Recall Elections Loom in the Next Two Weeks

Middle WisconsinNews

A FACT-DRIVEN VOICE FOR

MIDDLE WISCONSIN VIEWS

FROM THE MIDDLE OF THE STATE

FOR THE MIDDLE CLASS

Au g u s t 3 , 2 0

Recall Elections . . . . . . . .1

News and Notes . . . . . . . .3

Working Wisconsin ... . . . 5

Native Americans . . . . . . 6

The Essay Page . . . . . . . .7

Letters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

The Literary Page. . . . . . 10

Grassroots Wisconsin . . .11

Challenging the Myth . . .12

Beyond Wisconsin . . . . . 14

© 2011Middle Wisconsin

IN THIS ISSUE:

www.M id d le Wisco n s in . co m

Six months after contentious legislation which stripped collective bargaining rightsfrom most state public employees, the recall elections that have been requested by

constituents in nine districts are about to take place, the results of which will deter-mine the balance of power in the state Senate for the next year. Next week TuesdayAugust 9th, the six Republican Senators who had recall petitions submitted as a resuof their votes on the budget and other bills supported by Governor Walker will be dfending their seats against Democratic challengers. The latest polling done by inde- pendent observers shows that the Democrats are leading in three of the districts (14,and 32).

In district 14, polls show Rep. Fred Clark leading incumbent Senator Luther Olsen, chairman of the education committee, which has great power to allot

funds to public education and voucher programs. ReJessica King appears to have a narrow lead over Sator Randy Hopper in the Fond du Lac area, district18. Hopper attracted national attention when it wadiscovered that he appar- ently has a mistress and donot reside permanently in the district he represents. district 32 in the La Crosse area, Rep. JenniferShilling has a substantial lead over Senator Dan Kapanke, owner of the La CrosseLoggers baseball team.

Republicans are holding on to narrow leads in the other three districts: In district 2

near Green Bay, Senator Robert Cowles has a small lead over Nancy Nussbaum. Indistrict 8, Senator Alberta Darling has a small lead over Rep. Sandy Pasch in the suburban Milwaukee area. Darling, a powerful member of the Joint Finance Committehas the largest war chest of any of the recall candidates, showing donations of over $million. Finally, Senator Sheila Harsdorf is in nearly a dead heat in the latest polls

with teacher Shelly Moore in district 10 near Menomonie and Hudson. Moore

seemed to make significant points in her two debates with Harsdorf recently, advocing for the position of standing up for the middle class.

(Continued on next page)

By Jim Mattes

Editorial Committee: Dave Svetlik, Jim Mattes,



Recall Elections Continued . . . . . Of the Democratic Senators up for recall the following Tuesday, August 16

th

, SenJim Holperin in District 12 has been targeted by Republicans and Tea Party Northwoods leader Kim Simac. The other senator, Bob Wirch of Pleasant Prairie distric22 appears to be safely in the lead in his contest. Senator Dave Hansen of GreenBay already won his contest last month, as there was no primary. Who controls thSenate will likely be determined by the winners in those three races.

Television spending is particularly hot in the Olsen race. As of July 22, conserva-tive groups Club for Growth and Wisconsin Family Action had spent $415,000 onattack ads against his Democratic challenger Rep. Fred Clark, according to theCampaign Media Analysis Group.

In the Clark/Olsen race three debates were held in each assembly district in SD-14contrasting the two candidates starkly. Topics included how to balance the budget, how to be responsiblefor care for seniors, and how to fund our publicschools.

Representative Clark and Senator Olsen disagreedon specific issues. Clark asserted that in tough economic times, cuts to technical schools would make itharder for the under - employed to adjust to a chang

ing economy. Olsen de- fended his support for voucheschools, which send money from rural schools to private schools in Mil- waukee. While Olsen claimedthat tax cuts to large out-of -state corporations were intended to stimulate our economy, Clark reminded the audience all three nights that education is an investmentin our future and is the only way to make sure our children can compete in a globaeconomy.

These elections are approaching next Tuesday. As Middle Wisconsin supporters,we have a duty to inform our family, friends and co-workers who live in these districts about the stances of the candidates running. The balance of power in the statSenate will be determined by the results of these six elections and the three heldthe following week on the seats held by three Democrats who were targeted for leaving the state during the budget debate back in February.

The following site is the most up to date site in which readers can follow the pollsads and money spent for each of the elections that are approaching.

http://wispolitics.com/index.iml?Article=238683

(This has all the projections for victory for each race.)

Middle Wisconsin News

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* FREE *

CONCERT FORVOTERS

SUNDAY, AUGUST 14,9 AM – 9 PM

400 BLOCK,DOWNTOWN WAUSAU

Promoting Voter IDLaw awareness andVoter Registration

Music, special guestspeakers, vendors

and more

Performers &approximate times:

Bart Hobson & AmyRaddatz (9:00)

Tyler Vogt (10:00)Solidarity Sing-along

(11:15) Orlow & the Chronical-

ly Wasted Band(12:15)

Hometown HarmonyClub (1:30)

Sloppy Joe (3:15) The New Merry Prank-

sters (5:00) Doug Kroening & the

Railers (6:45) Jam (8:15)


UPCOMING EVENT








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State Redistricting Plan

Passes both Houses

A plan to adjust district boundaries based on populationchanges over the past decade passed both the Senate andHouse on strictly partisan voting lines last week. The plan is currently being challenged by Democrats in theCourts based on issues of the lack of contiguous votingdistrict boundaries and the hardship caused for blocks of voters who will have to vote in new districts.

The Republican-drawn plan passed the Assembly on a57-40 vote with one Republican voting against it. The plan was not addressed by a single Republican on thefloor before being voted upon.

The State Senate passed the bill 19-14 on a strictly partyline vote. Sen. Scott Fitzgerald was the only Republicanto speak in defense of the plan. "I'm proud to announcethat the new maps conform to constitutional and legalrequirements. They are substantially equal in popula-

tion, they are compact, they are contiguous districts, andthere is a deference to our minority populations in our urban centers," the senator said during debate.

"The senator from the 13th said all of that with astraight face," countered Sen. Spencer Coggs. "But this plan makes absolutely no sense." Coggs went on toclaim, "That‘s not a competitive map, folks, that‘s a do-

over map...Voters are supposed to pick their politicians.Politicians are not supposed to pick their voters."

There is already a federal lawsuit this year, even though

Governor Walker has yet to sign the bill into law. Thelawsuit filed last month by former Senate DemocraticMajority Leader Judy Robson of Beloit and 14 other citizens asked for a federal three- judge panel to developa redistricting plan if lawmakers do not put a constitu-tional plan in place in a timely fashion.

Check out DefendWisconsin.org, July 20th andDane101.com July 19th for further details.

Wausau Faces $1.1 Million Deficit

The city of Wausau recently announced that it is facingover a million dollar deficit, due largely to state aid cutthat werenot offset by anticipated savings. Remember that in theGovernor‘s financial formula, he assured people that thcuts or

―tools‖ as he called them, would allow cities and countgovernments to deal with the financial realities theyface. The cuts were supposed to be made up by the in-creased revenue from increased contributions from public employees to their health benefits and pensions. Theamount of money generated from these contributionsdoes not equal the $970,000 that was cut in state aid. Inaddition, the city anticipated a rise in personnel spend-ing through increased wages, insurance and miscellaneous costs.

One option the city has is to increase property taxes by1.5 %, which is the maximum the state is allowing.This, however, would only generate a little over $300,000 in revenue. The City Council has suggestedthat there will be little choice but to make departmentcuts across the board. Parks and Recreation are amongthe departments suggested for the cuts. For more recentupdates on this story, check the WDH July 16th issue.

News and Notes

By Jim Mattes





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Republicans Continue to Rail

Against Poor and Middle Class

Rep. Denny Rehberg (R -Mont.) has compared PellGrants to ―welfare‖."So you can go to college on Pell Grants — maybe Ishould not be telling anybody this because it‘s turning

out to be the welfare of the 21st century," Rehberg toldBlog Talk Radio in April. "You can go to school, collectyour Pell Grants, get food stamps, low-income energyassistance, Section 8 housing, and all of a sudden wefind ourselves subsidizing people that don‘t have tograduate from college.‖

From the GOP-Is-Out-Of -Touch-With-Real-America De- partment: more proof that the Republicans cannot compre-hend what life is like for most Americans, Montana Repub-lican Congressman Denny Rehberg told a town hall audi-ence that he feels their pain, because he is "cash poor" and

"struggling" as a small businessman, just like they are.

Except: While Rehberg calls himself poor and com- plains that he‘s struggling, the fact is that he is, as of 2009 records, the 14th richest member of the House of Representatives. Opensecrets.org estimates that his av-erage net worth in 2009 was $31 million. If he‘s strug-gling on that, one has to wonder if he‘s really a goodarbiter of what‘s fair for Main Street America.

To read more about this topic, check out (Amanda Terkel- Huffington Post 4/1/11) and http:// blog.alfranken.com/2011/07/22/kaal-sen-franken-looks-to-

prevent- pell-grant-cuts/ and http://www.a2politico.com/?

p=8956

Pell Grants

Due to an unexpected shortfall in funding for the federalPell Grant program for the 2011-2012 school year, Congressvoted to reduce funding by several billion dollars in theSpring of 2011.

While at first it was speculated that the maximum availablePell Grant amount was going to be significantly reduced,along with the overall reach of the program, neither of thesreforms were passed, although the average award amountsfor the 2011-12 school year will be significantly reducedacross the board.

Along with these reduced award amounts, the other major change brought upon by this Congressional vote will be theelimination of a student‘s ability to obtain more than onefull Pell Grant award per school year, as no longer will stu-dents be able to get two Pell Grants per academic year. After comparing the new 2011-12 award schedule with the

2010-11 award schedule, it seems like on average award

amounts are lower by about seven hundred dollars acrossthe board. The minimum amounts for each enrollment statuhave also been significantly reduced to a uniform rate of five hundred fifty dollars.

Overall this recent Congressional vote is a lose-

lose situa-tion for students, as they will not be able to access the samekind of funding via the Pell Grant program as they could in2010-2011. That being said, it could be a lot worse, as themaximum Pell Grant amount, and the maximum EFC cutofthreshold were left untouched, while they were originallythought to be in jeopardy.

(Reference source:http//:pellgranteligibility.net/pell-grant-cuts-for-2011-2012/

News and Notes Continued . . . . .

http://blog.alfranken.com/2011/07/22/kaal-sen-franken-looks-to-prevent-pell-grant-cuts/



















http://www.a2politico.com/?p=8956



http://pellgranteligibility.net/pell-grant-cuts-for-2011-2012/













February 11, 2011-a day that will live in infamy. On this day,Scott Walker with the support of Republican think tanks andthe likes of the Koch Brothers, waged an all out assault on theworking and middle class of Wisconsin. What is commonlyreferred to as the ―Budget Repair Bill‖ is truly a misnomer. Ittruly was a Budget Depair Bill as it stripped away 50 years of collective bargaining rights for public employees in Wiscon-

sin. His Majesty Walker opined that ―Wisconsin was broke‖and eliminating collective bargaining rights would right Wisconsin‘s economic

ship. But it was more nefarious than this simple uneducated rationale for initiatingsuch measures.

We soon found out that the attack on public employees was part of a greater plan tocreate a Wisconsin where corporations and the wealthy were the ―haves‖ and ordi-nary working families would be the ―have-nots.‖ The radical Republican legisla-ture soon after rapidly passed a biennium budget in June 2011 which raised taxes othe middle and working class and cut 800 million to schools while simultaneouslygiving tax breaks to corporations and the wealthy to the tune of 2.3 billion and

counting. This was done under the false pretenses that jobs would be created by thwealthy and corporations. If this was so, then the Bush tax cuts should have hadour economy humming along like a fine tuned Indy car. The biennium budget canonly be characterized as ―Robin Hood in Reverse.‖ The radical Republicans in thegreat State of Wisconsin value corporations over communities and profits over peo ple.

The only way to get the economy on track is Trickle Up economics-getting moneyinto the hands of the working and middle class while requiring the wealthy and corporations to pay their fair share. Instead Scott Walker and his minions pander to big business and are financially rewarded by their corporate masters for attacking

the working and middle class. It is time to take back Wisconsin from those whoaim to hurt us. Recall elections are occurring all over the State. This is our oppor-tunity to fight back and restore worker‘s rights and the middle class to their rightful place at the table instead of being treated as indentured servants.

Working Wisconsin Labor News and Views

By John Spiegelhoff


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ONGOING

INVITATION

Mondays

5 pm

Day’s Bowl-A-Dome

Wausau Bring a friend or two

and join Middle Wis-

consin members

Monday nights to

talk current events &

have some fun.

―There’s class warfare, alright,‖ Warren Buffet,the world’s third richest man, said in 2006, ―butit’s my class, the rich class that’s making war,

and we’re winning.‖



The American Indian Resource Center of MarathonCounty has been up and running since March 15th,2011. Wausau previously was the home of an Indi-an Center, but had to shut its doors in 2004. Thecenter was founded by Kelly Knudson of Wausau. Knudson is the mother of a

Native American teen and decided it was time that Natives had a place theycould go to for help. She did some research and formed a board of directors andstarted writing grants. Soon the center received a grant from the Forest CountyPotawatomi Foundation in the amount of $15,000. The grant helped us open our doors.

The Resource Center gives inner city and off reservation Native Americans a place to go for help or guidance. The Center is also a great place for non- NativeAmericans as well, as it gives them a place to learn more about the Native Amer-ican culture first hand. Native Americans make up less than 1% of the UnitedStates population today.

The Resource Center provides many services. The Career Services helps withanything from helping writing resumes, volunteer opportunities, and assistance.College applications and financial aid forms are also a service the employees atthe center can help with.

Our youth service consists of tutoring, mentoring, and socializing with other Na-tive American youth. Cultural guidance and awareness is also one of the mostimportant aspects of the center. The youth are split up into two separate groups;the senior youth and the junior youth. The senior youth run their own youthcouncil and are involved in many activities throughout the year.

The Women‘s Wellness Department, part of the A.I.R.C. runs a program calledthe United Natives Women‘s Society. This is a group of ladies who meet everyMonday @ 6:30 at the center. They work on building positive relationships with

one another as well self -improvement and spiritual growth.

The A.I.R.C. consists of four board members. The director is Dylan Prescott,Vice President Kelly Knudson, Treasurer Joey Daniels and Naomi Peters as theSecretary. The center is conveniently located downtown Wausau. See us at :

indiancenterwausau.org

Native American Outlooks Middle Wisconsin News

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~~~~~~

Treat the earthwell,

It was not

given to you by

your parents,

It was loaned

to you by your

children. Indian Proverb


The American Indian Resource Center Of

Marathon County





Things are changing. The old ways arebecoming ineffective....the shell of thecurrent system is crumbling. The mediaare fast becoming a dead-end. Unifiedgroups of Arab youth and workers, top-pling their corrupt rulers, are shown onthe 'news', but the protests in our own city

squares are not being heard by our owncitizens because of a media system thathas money as its prime motivator. Theconsumerist, capitalist system leads youto believe that you have the power of choice, but in reality it only tips the bal-ance of money and power away from themany and toward the rich and powerfulfew. The old two-party system is ineffec-tive, and is only a vehicle for further divi-sion amongst those who would be gath-ered under the banner of the common

man. The rich and powerful seek to pitbrother against brother, to sow confusionand animosity amongst us, in order tomuddy and obscure the truth, to weakenour struggle for unity, and to then takeeverything for themselves. And yet, weare on the cusp of a new dawn. The timeis right for reform and change...the peopleare ready for real reform and real change,not empty platitudes and empty promises.

We must become the new media, thenew broadcasters, the new journalists,and spread the information that the corpo-rate-run media will not. We must becomea positive movement of real people,spurred by what is fundamentally rightand good, and not spurred by corporatecash and lies. We must rally others to our side...those who are afraid to speak out,those who are unsure, but who are ready

for real change. They will join us whenthey see that we are their neighbors, thwe are even-keeled, that we are fair -minded, that we are many, that we arestrong, that we control our own destinyand that we can affect real change. Asmembers of the working class, as theeveryday citizens of this state, this coutry...we are the majority, and if we stantogether and act together, we can mak

these things happen.

Here and there, we may have to workwithin the shell of the old system in ordto achieve our first victories, but eventuly we will break free of this shell andtranscend the boundaries and divisionsthat have been made for us and havekept us down. We can break the old sytem, we can break the power of the maters, we can make new ways and new

connections, we can create a new systto replace the corrupt and broken systeof old. We can create something new tis built on truth and goodwill, on hardwork and on positively fueled ingenuityWe can build a new society, a new community...one that serves the best intereof mankind, and that values what is rigand good over what can be bought andsold.

Changing…


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By Nathan K.

The Essay Page

―Until one is committed,there is hesitancy, thechance to draw back - -

Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation),there is one elementarytruth that ignorance of which kills countlessideas and splendidplans: that the momentone definitely commitsoneself, then Provi-dence moves too. Allsorts of things occur tohelp one that would

never otherwise haveoccurred. A wholestream of events issuesfrom the decision, rais-ing in one’s favor allmanor of unforeseenincidents and meetingsand material assis-tance, which no mancould have dreamedwould have come hisway. Whatever you can

do, or dream you cando, begin it. Boldnesshas genius, power, andmagic in it. Begin itnow.‖

Goethe/W.H. Murray

COMMITMENT




We can overcome the machinations of the powerful and reveal their messagesas lies. They know that we are many andthat we can bring them down if we areunited. They fear us, and that is why theyare redoubling their efforts to buy off allavenues of power, to divide the peopleand to distort the truth. We must strikewhile the iron is hot, we must act while

time and momentum are on our side.They have great quantities of money, butwe have great quantities of people. Theyhave unquenchable greed, but we haveunquenchable heart. They sow fear, butwe can sow hope...and when we nourishthat hope, we can reap strength from thathope in order to break down the doorsthat are shut to us and the walls that di-vide us. They seek to burn our govern-ment down, our society down, but we aremade up of people who rescue, who in-

vestigate, who have the know-how tokeep things working. They have never learned how to build, only destroy, asthey have never given, only taken. but wecan build...we are made up of people whobuild, who repair, who imagine, whoteach, who create. They seek to divide usthrough our differences, but we can in-stead unite and make a difference. Wemust!

We can buy locally, from our neighbors,

instead of buying from conglomerates thatexploit cheap labor who toil in deplorableconditions halfway around the world. Wecan demand that our elected officials actin our best interests, by communicatingwith them and making sure that they un-derstand what we want and need. If theyrefuse to listen, or refuse to act, we mustreplace them with representatives that willlisten and act. We must spread the mes-

sage of change, spread the informatiothat would be suppressed by the fear mongers, and spread the powerful andpositive feeling of solidarity and goodwto our neighbors. If we do these thingswe will prove that we really do share cmon ground despite what the powerfu

would have us believe, and we will be-come the vehicle for change itself. Wecan do this, and we must do this.

Our children are counting on us tomake these changes happen. their futudepends on what we do now, in the faof this great and terrible power rising ubefore us. The earth calls out to us, itsstewards, to protect it for generations tcome. Our ancestors beckon us from byond the grave, to build upon the lesso

they learned the hard way, to continuestruggles they fought hard for and diedfor, so that they shall not have done sovain. We must stand up, we must act, must fight! We will undoubtedly suffer backs, and we will lose ground from timto time. But, we must share strength wone another, and pick each other up. Umately we will persevere...if we stand gether we can never be defeated.

Changing Continued. . . . .


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Middle Wisconsin News is

Middle Wisconsin News isseeking submissions. We arelooking for letters to the edi-tor, articles on relevant top-ics, and reports from people

on the street (rallies, visitswith politicians, school boardand city council meetings,etc.) We ask that letters belimited to 600 words and thatreferences be cited whereappropriate.

Please provide author name,municipality, and phone num-ber for purposes of verification.

Feel free to contact us withyour ideas for articles. Weare seeking people who wishto submit occasional work

and those who would like tobe regular contributors. Top-ics can include politics, socialissues, economics, educa-tion, local business, unions,events, and other appropriatetopics. We hope to representthe broad spectrum of people:blue collar and white collar workers, public and privateemployees, union and non-union members, businessowners, farmers, and more.

Submissions may be edited

for length, clarity, accuracy,and taste, but we will seekthe author’s approval beforepublication.

Emailed submissions shouldbe sent in plain text or asMicrosoft Word attachments.If you would like to contribute,contact:[email protected]

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS




Congressman Duffy, Senator Johnson, Governor Walker:

This letter is about Grover Norquist‘s Pledge:

―I____________pledge to the taxpayers of the (district) state of ____________ and to theAmerican people that I will: ONE, oppose any and all efforts to increase the marginal in-come tax rate for individuals and businesses; and TWO, oppose any net reduction or elimi-nation of deductions and credits, unless matched dollar for dollar by further reducing taxrates.‖

This pledge should be unconstitutional.

You are signing a pledge to one man, Grover Norquist, and American Tax Reform. You

are not signing that pledge to me, your constituent. I totally disagree with the pledge. Youhave taken the oath of office and this pledge conflicts with your oath of office.

Needless to say, I am deeply disappointed (to put it mildly!) to see that you have signedthis pledge. This pledge is meant to protect the Rupert Murdoch‘s ($4.8 billion in tax re-funds paid for by us, the American taxpayer) of this country.

What has happened to your loyalty to this great country of ours and to the people of US?What has happened to representing us, the little guy?

The Recession was created by greed/ risk taking by Wall Street and other wealthy individ-uals. This pledge is one more ploy to dupe the American people into believing that taxes

and what they are used for --education, infrastructure, defense, and the list goes on and on--

is the evil in this country. Taxes are not the cause of the problem--greed, a dysfunctionalgovernment, partisanship, ―winner take all politics‖, and the list goes on as to what has brought us to this point in history and the problems we face.

Personally, I feel you need to remove your name from the pledge and start working for meand all Americans--not Grover Norquist.


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Letters

―I Pledge Allegiance to Grover Norquist and to the Wealthy for

Whom He Stands . . . . .‖

An Open Letter to:Congressman Duffy

Senator Johnson

Governor Walker

Sincerely,

Joyce Leudke

DID I mention that I’vesigned a pledge —

just like those Republi-can congressmen whohave signed writtenpromises to differentpolitical enforcers notto raise taxes or per-mit same-sex mar-riage? My pledge is tonever vote for anyonestupid enough to signa pledge — therebyabdicating their gov-erning responsibilitiesin a period of incredi-bly rapid change andfinancial stress. Sorry,I’ve signed it. Nothingmore I can do.

(Thomas L Friedman)

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=grover+norquist&hl=en&sa=X&rlz=1R2TSND_enUS408&biw=1366&bih=641&tbm=isch&tbnid=HNzPODIqeaSZaM:&imgrefurl=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33969490/ns/us_news%253Fq%253DGrover%252520Norquist&docid=L08DbctV23w9CM&w=474&h=356&ei=Kns6Tq3





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The Literary PageA Book Review by Mandy Wright

Don’t Think of an Elephant! Know Your Valuesand Frame the Debate by George Lakoff.

If you have ever asked yourself, ―Why do so many people vote against their ownself -interests?‖ this book will help you embark upon the journey of solving that puzzle. Here George Lakoff, a professor of Cognitive Science and Linguistics, presents a series of essays outlining the vision and values of progressives, howthey are framed politically, and what action can be taken to strengthen the pro-gressive cause.

Lakoff emphasizes the nurturing values of progressives, namely empathy andresponsibility. He takes a look at how these values unite us, but also how thereare divisions within the philosophies of progressives that keep us from unitingand becoming more powerful. These divisions fall into six categories: socioeco-nomic, identity politics, environmentalists, civil liberties, spiritual, and antiau-thoritarians, and all have the same basic value system. The GOP has been able toemotionally frame the issues to pull votes away from progressive policies andvalues, but there are steps we can take. The advice Lakoff gives that is particu-larly relevant, even without reading the book includes ―the truth alone will notset you free, you need to speak to your moral perspective at all times, remember that voters vote their identity and their values which need not coincide with their self -interest, unite and cooperate, be proactive not reactive, and finally, speak tothe progressive base in order to activate the nurturant model of ‗swing voters‘ – don‘t move to the right‖. These are some ideals it would behoove our elected progressives to adhere to.

Specific political battles are named to provide examples of the language andframework that have been used against progressives. Nixon, the war in Iraq, gaymarriage, Schwartzenegger, Medicare, abortion, and Afghanistan are all given asexamples that, with proper framing, the progressives could have won since most people do stand for family and community values. But the Republican Party hashijacked even these basic ideas to turn issues from actually benefitting our com-munities and families to depleting them, while trumpeting ‗family values‘.

Part Two, ―From Theory to Action‖, helps take the reader from frustration to ac-tion. Despite the publication date of 2004, Lakoff‘s predictions on the currentMedicare debate are spot on. His newest book, The Political Mind, delves deep-er into cognitive science to further reveal how we function socially and political-ly, and also comes highly recommended. If you are trying to wrap your mindaround just how we ended up in this political mess, take the time to invest in thisshort and very easy read.

For the truth is that Ialready know asmuch about my fateas I need to know.The day will comewhen I will die. So

the only matter of consequence beforeme is what I will dowith my allottedtime. I can remainon shore, paralyzedwith fear, or I canraise my sails anddip and soar in thebreeze."

Richard Bode. First

You Have To Row a

Little Boat

(Published 1993)




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Grassroots Wisconsin

A Call to Members of Middle Wisconsin:

―Grassroots Wisconsin‖ is a new addition to Middle Wisconsin News that we arehoping to make a regular monthly feature. The goal of this page is to focus on

local activities, business developments, and organizations that are having a

positive effect on our lives and communities. In a world that seems increasingly controlled by out-side forces, it seems imperative that we grow and nurture our local economies and support systems.

We are looking for stories on:

Local church developments and activities

New programs and activities being implemented in our schools

Locally owned businesses that are dedicated to improvement of our communities

New locally owned business start-ups

The Farmers Market

Community Supported Agriculture

Locally owned restaurants, coffee shops, grocery stores

Locally owned credit unions and banks

Locally owned manufacturing activities and start-ups

Please feel free to contact us at: [email protected] Your thoughts and contributions canbe a force for goodness and decency in our communities.



We are told that America and Wisconsin are broke - that austerity budgets targeting the middle and lower classesare required to pay for our profligate ways. However, there is a disconnect between wealth and money that is contributing to the problem. Adding simple definition to these concepts may shed light on our predicament.

We could say that wealth is all of the goods and services that improve the physical human condition. It is housingfood, clothing, transportation and communication systems, and countless other commodities and services thatcontribute to our physical well-being. The late visionary, R. Buckminster Fuller, defined wealth as available physi-cal resources, in the form of matter and energy, multiplied by the scientific and technical capability to most effec-tively use these resources to man’s advantage (currently accumulated human knowledge). Stating this as anequation, Fuller concluded that:

WEALTH = RESOURCES X EVER GROWING HUMAN KNOWLEDGE.

Based on the laws of physics, wealth is incorruptible and inherently global.Knowledge and resources are worldwide and the greatest multiplication of wealth

can only be realized through the synergies of universal cooperation.

Money at its best is a medium of exchange for the fair transfer and trade of wealth. But money is not wealth. It is a legally sanctioned claim to wealth - a sys-tem of indebtedness wherein the holder of $100 is owed that amount of wealth ingoods or services by his society, until this individual chooses to ―spend‖ the mon-ey. Money is based on manmade rules and, unlike wealth, is infinitely corrupti-ble. It is this corruptibility that lies at the heart of our economic woes.

Now, all of this seems uselessly theoretical until we realize that in 2011 there are 18.6 million (1 in 9) empty

homes in America and 3.5 million homeless people, and that an estimated one billion people around the world live

in near starvation while we produce one and one half times the food needed to feed everyone. Clearly, the laws o

physics and Fuller’s wealth equation are telling us that we can afford to do whatever is necessary to care for hu-manity, while the manmade rules of ―money‖ are telling us we are broke. Further clarification might be of value.

Wealth is that which physically supports the human condition. Money is an exchange mechanism for trading

wealth. But money can also be invested to make money. In the case of legitimate interest bearing loans to indi-

viduals or businesses, or through the purchase of stocks or bonds in private or public enterprises genuinely im-

proving the human condition, this investment can usefully lead to a tangible increase in true wealth. But let us

take using money to make money to an extreme. We will call this methodology, used by the financial industry,

something like ―exotic financial instruments.‖


By Dave Svetlik


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CHALLENGING THE MYTH... “And if all others accepted the lie which the party

imposed—if all records told the same tale— then the lie passed into history and became the truth.”

—George Orwell, 1984 (published in 19

The Fallacy ThatAmerica Is “Broke”



Exotic financial instruments do not create wealth. They transfer the claim to wealth (increase the indebtedness ofsociety to the holder) by the manipulation of money. Through game playing and deceit, money is moved upward,and society falls farther into debt. To make matters worse, money is power. Through the efforts of well paid lob-byists, the legal system and tax codes are altered to further favor the game players. The money - the claim to thewealth – is methodically removed from average Americans. We are told that infrastructure, public education, so-cial security and Medicare are unaffordable. After all, America is ―broke.‖

But let us rephrase some questions: Do we have sufficient cement to rebuild our bridges? Yes. Do we have suf-ficient structural steel? Yes. Do we have the technical knowhow? Yes. Do we have sufficient manpower? Yes –we have high unemployment. Are we capable of growing enough food to feed these people? Yes - excess food iwasted in America. Can we house these workers? Yes - obviously.

―Oh, but wait‖ say Wall Street and their Washington servants, ―You people can’t build these bridges. You forgot –America is broke. You don’t have any money. And besides, you cannot afford enough clean water to mix the ce-ment because, don’t you remember? You had to sell us (privatize) your public water utilities because - - you’rebroke. We hedge fund managers and Wall Street bankers and corporate CEO’s have simply been savvy busi-nessmen. It’s nature’s way, and now you Americans - - well, you’re broke.‖

So we sit and look at the unused cement, the rusting steel, the wasted food and crumbling homes, our unem-ployed workers, undereducated children, and poverty stricken elderly, because of course, ―we’re broke.‖ We arebeing made to suffer in a land of near -endless wealth, because money is infinitely corruptible.

Neither America nor the world are ―broke.‖ However, we continue to operate planet Earth under the now scientifi-

cally and technologically disproved Malthusian belief that there is not enough to go around-

someone must sufferand go without. This is at the root of the hoarding behavior of Wall Street and the mindless wars over oil re-

sources in the Middle East. The tragedy is that continuing this false, reflexive belief makes it a self -fulfilling proph

ecy. Our greatest efforts are dedicated to subverting one another, rather than developing the technologies and

systems thinking that would enable mutually assured human success..


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CHALLENGING THE MYTH…“And if all others accepted the lie which the party

imposed—if all records told the same tale— then the lie passed into history and became the truth.”

—George Orwell, 1984 (published in 1949)(continued from page 13)

Native American Thoughts On Privatization

Our land is more valuable than your money. It will last forever. It willnot even perish by the flames of fire. As long as the sun shines and

the waters flow, this land will be here to give life to men and animals.We cannot sell the lives of men and animals: therefore we cannotsell this land. It was put here for us by the Great Spirit and we can-not sell it because it does not belong to us. You can count your money and burn it within the nod of a buffalo’s head, but only the Great Spirit can count thegrains of sand and blades of grass of these plains. As a present to you, we will give you anythingwe have that you can take with you: but the land, never.

Unknown chief of one of the bands of the northern Blackfeet upon being asked by U.S. delegates

for his signature to one of the first land treaties in Montana (1800’s)





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Beyond Wisconsin

Whether you will or not

You are a King, Tristram, for you are one

Of the time-tested few that leave the world,

When they are gone, not the same place it was.

Mark what you leave.

Welcome to the ―Beyond Wisconsin‖ page. We are introducingthis page as a new regular feature of the newsletter at the sug- gestion of Ben Swanson, one of the leaders of Middle Wisconsin.The purpose of this page is to look at the larger issues - national andglobal - that are impacting all of our lives. We are all aware of the problems we face in Wisconsin, but we also all know we are no islandunto ourselves. We begin this first issue by (hopefully) thinking as universally as we can.

When the poet Edwin Arlington Robinson wrote the following verse about a MedievalKnight, he could well have been speaking to all of us:

Whether we ―will or not,‖ all of our lives have an impact. It is not optional. We will sel-dom know how, or in what large or small ways, but none of us leave the world the same place that it was. We must all ―Mark what you leave.‖

But taking this concept farther, we are all also passengers aboard the same lonely planet,

hurtling through space, and whether we ―will or not‖ - whether we like it or not - we areall citizens of the world. It is not optional. It is critical that we now begin thinking of ourselves in this way.

When we begin visualizing ourselves as citizens of the world, the process becomes trans-formational. As citizens of the world we begin to understand that Earth is our home - our ship - the only one we have. We must care for her. As citizens of the world we begin tounderstand that we as individuals, or as nations, are no special ―Children of God.‖ Allhumans are. As citizens of the world we begin to understand that if we and our childrenand grandchildren are to survive, all humans must survive. A ship stays afloat or goesdown with all hands. As citizens of the world we begin the systems thinking, now made possible through computer technology, required to overcome the ancient ―you or me - not

enough for everyone‖ false belief, that continues to undermine universal human success.

Perhaps one of the most universal thinkers ever to grace our world was R. Buckminster Fuller, author of ―Operating Manual for Spaceship Earth.‖ At one of the lowest points inhis life - some say near suicide - it occurred to Fuller that ―You do not belong to you, you belong to the Universe.‖ This became the guidance system for rest of his life.

And so a hope, an ideal, a meditation if you will:

―I do not belong to me, I belong to the Universe. I am a citizen of the world, and my lifewill make a difference.‖

By Dave Svetlik

You do not

belong to You, You belong to

The Universe

R. Buckminster Fuller

middle wi news - july

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