I am a Wisconsin citizen. It's been a crazy month here, and from the looks of it, it's about to get crazier.
I'm liberal. I disagreed with what Governor Scott Walker was attempting to do to the collective bargaining rights of public workers in Wisconsin. I supported the 14 Democratic senators that fled the state in order to force Walker to negotiate to reach a bill that everyone was alright with. I understand that Wisconsin is in financial trouble; the entire Goddamn country is. But I don't think that targeting public workers is the answer. Making them pay more for pension and insurance, fine, that doesn't really effect me; it doesn't seem fair, but so be it. However, these people have the same rights as any other workers in the country, including the right to unionize and collectively bargain. Yes, we all know that unions have issues, but lets face it: every group has issues. Some priests embezzle from church congregations, some CEOs rob their employees' pensions, and some union bosses are the same. But those are only a few bad apples.
Like I said, I'm liberal. I didn't vote for Scott Walker. 48 percent of Wisconsin voters didn't vote for Scott Walker. The amount that did hardly makes Walker king of Wisconsin, despite the fact that he believes he did. This is not a one party system. America is not a one party system. Concessions must be made on bills all the time. The Democratic senators fled Wisconsin to halt the bill and force Walker to negotiate, a desperate act that seemed to be working until now. Tonight, Republican senators in Wisconsin modified the bill to overcome the 3/5 quorum that stopped the bill from passing. They passed a bill that stripped public unions of their collective bargaining rights. By taking the fiscal parts of the bill out, they proved that this was purely political, not to balance the state budget.
The protests in Madison have been peaceful so far. I fear that this will change. But tomorrow, I will return to the capitol, and show solidarity with public workers across the state.
The full story of what has happened tonight can be read here:
http://host.madison.com/wsj/news/local/govt-and-politics/article_8747fa04-4a74-11e0-8e6b-001cc4c03286.html
Great, another step in the wrong direction.
ReplyDeleteIt's about time they started trying to make the situation better and not worse.
Make up your mind! We need to get on the right side. Following&Supporting
ReplyDeleteThanks for the summary on this, I have heard bits about it but it is nice to see someone talk about it who actually lives there! Good luck.
ReplyDeleteThe only coverage I've had on this is from Jon Stewart (it's on comedy central here in Sweden) so it's nice to read an actual opinion!
ReplyDeleteOh yeah, USA is in such a hole that I doubt it will ever get out of there. Your contrys debts (to China, Russia and others) are amounted to trillions of USD, I really can't think of a way you guys can pay that much. US government seems not to think about that.
ReplyDeleteWow, things are just spiraling down. I wonder how long it will take before things get too bad?
ReplyDeleteGood for you. Stand up for what you believe in.
ReplyDeleteHopefully things won't turn ugly and the message will be heard.
It's ridiculous, bipartisanship is a joke. It seems that when either side is in power, they try to spite the other. It's getting out of hand really, and each side thinks that they can get away with things like this that kill the spirit of democracy. All those people represented by democrats were just disenfranchised by this vote. I hope they hang Walker and the Republicans in Wisconsin out to dry in the next election for acting like a dictatorship.
ReplyDeleteMajor bummer. Hope shit doesn't hit the fan.
ReplyDeleteThat is fucking awful. They are doing some evil shit just to get some political notoriety. This does not serve Wisconsin's interests.
ReplyDeleteGood luck sir. I say throw some molotovs and make it real
interesting insight. not surprising with how the world is though :(
ReplyDeletewow this sounds serious. keep your ear to the ground
ReplyDeleteAt least he'll only have one term..
ReplyDeleteI don't live in the US but I have been hearing a lot of this online. From what i've heard...this was rushed underhandedly through the system without giving anyone a chance to challenege it? Doesn't sound right to me!
ReplyDeletecool post thanks supportan yuh
ReplyDeleteCould someone clue me in a little?
ReplyDeleteIts nice to find out how things are going in the USA and comparing it to how we are financially doing in the UK. We're all in the same shit hole together.. i'll be sure to follow so i can read more about it )
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