What
This Is…
Issue #87- November 11,
2012
In this issue: Election Results
Honoring
Our Veterans…
Today
we honor the men and women who serve our nation in so many ways. Be sure to remember those who have given so much
in your thoughts words and actions today (and all days).
Election
Results- Where Do We
Go
From Here?…
It's over, or is it? While many of us breathed a sigh of relief on
Tuesday and woke to positive feelings on Wednesday morning, I have to admit to
mixed feelings. Of course the victories
for President Obama, Tammy Baldwin and Mark Pocan meant that the signs in my
yard were finally signs of victory (after a couple of long years of defeat). I too, basked in the glow of the many
victories for progressive causes from around the nation. Yet, maybe due to my recent political
"awakening", at the same time I felt the happiness of these victories
I also am fully aware that we have a lot of work still to do.
The victories on Tuesday
were many and raised the hopes of progressives around the state and
nation.
Of course there is the
significant problem in Wisconsin
that the GOP regained complete control of our state government. This means that we face the same situation as
we did in the spring of 2011, and we all know how that turned out.
While the loss of the
senate is obviously problematic, I was heartened by the statewide victories of
Obama and Baldwin. To me this points
towards a shift in Wisconsin
away from the conservative agenda and more towards a moderate direction. Local races are heavily influenced by
districting, incumbency and other factors beyond political philosophy. The statewide elections give me hope that we
are seeing a change in the Wisconsin
electorate.
While we may look ahead
with concern about the immediate future of Wisconsin, we also know that we can directly
impact what legislation and policies are proposed and implemented here. Conservatives in Wisconsin may want to push ahead with their
"reforms" in many areas, but they also know that we stand ready as a
collective group to hold them accountable to all citizens.
We have learned some
painful lessons over these past years as we have relied on elected officials to
represent us without fully engaging in efforts to make sure that our interests
were adequately advanced and defended.
Without oversight, even the best of our political leaders can easily
fall victim to the big money and become mired in politics that fail the very
citizens who need representation the most.
Over time this has resulted in a slow deterioration of safety nets and
the implementation of legislation that benefits the few, rather than the
many. This process has accelerated in
recent years and threatens the fabric of our national identity.
I don't want to leave
readers with a sense of disappointment or despair. There really is a lot to celebrate from this
past week. However, I also hope that we
can avoid becoming complacent and seeing a repeat of 2010 occur. The gains we made on Tuesday can only be
maintained by our participation in the process.
A citizenry does get the government and society it deserves, so we need
to work together to make sure we create a positive future for ourselves, our
communities and our world.
So, while we enjoy the
victories of November 6th, we need to maintain our focus on topics and issues
that will impact our future in significant ways. Look for ways to get involved and stay
involved, remember the union chant "One Day Longer, One Day
Stronger!"
Campaign Finance- Some may argue that the victories of progressive
and Democratic candidates demonstrates that money may not have the impact it is
given credit for. They say this with the
assumption that it is only Republican candidates who benefit from the changes
in campaign financing brought about by Citizens United. Yet we know that all candidates and both
parties spent huge amounts of money on ads and propaganda designed to vilify
and distort the image of the opposition.
There are numerous
examples of exorbitant spending from races around the nation. A senate race in Montana cost over $40 million. Here in Wisconsin our race for U.S. Senate cost
somewhere in the neighborhood of $60 million.
There is talk that the presidential campaign may run well into the
billions of dollars. With the reality of
a struggling economy and rising poverty, this type of spending on politics is
sickening.
It would be one thing if
the information that was being spread by the huge amounts of spending helped
citizens make informed decisions. The
truth is that there is little if any truth in most of the "attack
ads" financed by big money interests.
The volume of negative ads drowns out any positive message that would
attract voters and forces all of us to sift through piles of unsolicited,
inaccurate information forced on us using every available medium.
Clearly we need to work
for a change in how America's
political "business" is conducted.
Misleading and Divisive Information- In the same way that advertising and other
political messaging driven by out of control spending damages our nation's
collective view of politics, so too does the propaganda that passes for
"news" on many TV and radio shows.
Because of inaccurate coverage deliberately designed to mislead and
spread fear among citizens, our nation is always on the edge of disaster. Political talk and TV also increases
divisions among the people of our nation, painting different groups in extreme
ways that portray us as a society of opposing "cultures" that are
mutually exclusive and incapable of coexisting.
The more people hear the
message that we are a nation in crisis and that there are specific groups that
are to blame, the less rational our debate and our problem solving strategies
will be. Jokes and satire are one thing,
but the efforts to incite negative feelings between groups of citizens have
tremendous potential to be incredibly harmful to our nation's future. In the end, we must remember that we are all
American's and all world citizens. Our
responsibility is to a greater good, not a political party.
Gerrymandering and Lack of Competitive Local Races-
I've heard many Republicans
talking about how Wisconsin voters were mislead in the national races, but
"saw the light" in local races.
They claim that this is the reason behind the results that put the state
senate back in GOP control. What they
are ignoring is another possible analysis (and one that I believe to be more
accurate), the senate districts were set up by the GOP controlled legislature
to insure Republican control of our legislature for the foreseeable
future. The redistricting plan that was
put in place sets up "safe" districts for most legislators and
reduces the number of "purple" districts where there are competitive
races. By gerrymandering the different
districts the GOP is able to control local races and dominate state politics in
a way that benefits only a minority of voters.
We saw the results of this last February and are fearful that this will
continue into the future.
In my district here in Madison, no GOP candidate
was involved in the race against Senator Risser. A strong democracy needs discussion, debate
and competitive elections. Without
challengers our elected officials don't have to represent the people of their
district as diligently. They are not
held accountable in as meaningful a manner as if they need to defend their
performance every election cycle.
Non-competitive races also drive down voter participation. Many voters wonder why they should bother
voting when their either isn't a race, or a there's a race that is already
essentially decided before it begins.
Election Reform- We must restore trust in our electoral system. Because of the emphasis on voter ID and voter
fraud in the past year, the electorate has developed a skewed view of our
electoral process. This has resulted in
significant concern about the integrity of our elections and led to efforts to
change the ways that we vote.
It should be obvious to
all citizens that we need to be sure that all laws and policies are followed
during elections. However, the idea that
we need to make drastic changes based on false assumptions about voter fraud
results in disenfranchisement for voters and cynicism about elections in
general. At my polling place on Tuesday
there was an election observer who created a sense of discomfort for many
voters. He kept trying to get closer to
poll workers and voters and was obvious in his efforts to check out voters by
entering names in his phone as people went through the line. This type of behavior, while technically fine
under election rules, is intimidating for some and unpleasant for all.
Daily Kos: BREAKING: OH SOS Husted
Busted - Installed Uncertified & Untested Software on OH Voting M
Worker's Rights- There is little doubt that states like Wisconsin,
Ohio and Michigan went for Obama due in large measure
to the efforts of organized labor. Unions provide a sense of hope and support
while protecting the interests of their members. People who feel empowered, are organized and
who are educated about issues are able to make choices based on a wider world
view.
Unfortunately for
organized labor, this means that we will continue to be a primary target for
conservatives who want to use their influence to dominate our nation
politically and economically. You can be
sure that the attacks on unions and workers will not end with this election,
but will probably intensify in states where the GOP holds control.
For Wisconsin this means we must be ready to
fight against any efforts to implement "Right to Work" legislation or
policies. We must also be vigilant about
efforts to raid pensions like the WRS.
Walker and his GOP allies have shown that they are willing to go to
extreme lengths in their attacks on workers, but we have also shown our
willingness to resist these efforts.
Public Education- Another area that has taken significant hits in
recent years is public education. This
is true at all levels of government and is one place where we can find little
joy in the results of Tuesday's elections.
While some would argue that wins by the Democrats will benefit public
education, the policies that the current administration has implemented don't
give us much hope. It seems that
unfortunately, both parties have bought into the ideas of the
"reformers" and subscribe to ideas like testing and privatization of
our public schools.
ZCommunications
| Sit-In Tells Rahm Emanuel: Stop Closing Chicago Schools by Samantha Winslow |
ZNet
With the results of our
state election creating a GOP majority in all branches we can assume that there
will be efforts to impose more cuts to public education. Our only recourse is to continue to work at
all levels to make the voices of public educators, students and families heard,
and heard loudly. We must stand firm in
our resistance to "reforms" that don't work and in our efforts to
educate our society about the benefits of education and the value of our public
education system.
Buy
Local- Make a Wise Investment In Our Future…
I'm
sure you have all been as "pleased" as I am to see that many stores
seem to have skipped Halloween and Thanksgiving and gone right to their
Christmas/Holiday sales. With the
impending holiday shopping season approaching rapidly, now is a good time to
start planning for ways to spend our money wisely. I continue to believe that we should be
implementing "Buycotts" and focusing our efforts on finding merchants
who sell products and services that support progressive ideals. As you get ready to shop for the holidays
remember that your money is one of the most valuable "weapons" in
your arsenal of change. In addition to
shopping in stores that are worker friendly, local and that sell American made
products, be sure to mention the reasons you are frequenting their
business. Each purchase helps send a
strong message that we value all labor and that we are willing to put our money
where our values are.
No comments:
Post a Comment