Last week the Governor brought together concerned Legislators to discuss the struggling Milwaukee Public Schools. Invited to the meeting were officials with experience turning around failing school districts in Boston and Chicago. The discussion centered on proposals to significantly overhaul the Milwaukee Public Schools system.
Many of our schools are struggling [...]
The debate over a proposed Wisconsin climate change bill has prompted dueling memos from Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce and its allies and the co-chairs of the Governor's Task Force on Global Warming, which is sponsoring the bill.
It also has prompted at least one Freudian slip: WMC complained about the [...]
I've written a proposal to the Knight News Challenge to fund the development of a service to provide web sites for townships in Wisconsin. The point of the proposal is to provide better government transparency at a grassroots level by providing townships with web sites that will automatically feed a' [...]
An MPS School
Email I sent to my State Rep Jon Richards and Senator Jeff Plale about the Governor's move to take the voter out of policy making at Milwaukee Public Schools.
I am not happy about the attempt to take power from the citizens of Milwaukee' [...]
-- George McGovern in a Washington Post column.
[...]As the debate rages over how to fix what's wrong with Milwaukee public schools, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has found a new cause for alarm: Our schools leave our kids so ill-prepared that they can't even make the grade as cannon fodder any more.
It seems an unusually high percentage of [...]
I have a story today that comes from my predilection to “self-syndicate”, meaning that I post my stories far and wide, in the same way a newspaper columnist is syndicated nationally—or beyond.
After I post, I know others will also post my stories to their sites, a topic that was itself [...]
Funny how peace advocates like Sen. Russ Feingold and Rep. Tammy Baldwin become leading champions for veterans, and chickenhawks like Dick Cheney and the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) take direct aim at our veterans.
This difference of opinion and commitment is the one reason veterans' advocates maintain hope for a change' [...]
I listened to President Obama Tuesday night.
I heard: This is not another Vietnam. These are different circumstances, and there will be a different outcome.
I'd like to believe that, but I don’t.
It looks too much like Vietnam, when another liberal Democratic president got talked into a war we couldn’t win.
I heard:' [...]
Just about every session of the legislature has included' [...]
Photo: Fighting Bob LaFollette (upper right) harmonizes with the Grannies.
Repeal of Wisconsin’s restrictions on new nuclear power reactors is “a gift to the dying nuclear industry that Wisconsin residents can’t afford,” a Carbon Free Nuclear Free coalition of 13 environmental, public interest and consumer groups -- with [...]It's not exactly man bites dog, but Milwaukee Democrats will join peace activists Wednesday in expressing their concerns about President Obama’s plan to send additional American troops to Afghanistan, and Sen. Russ Feingold already has weighed in against the Obama plan.
A rally and response to Obama’s speech is planned' [...]
We’re diving deep into “geek world” today with a story that combines economic hardball, the periodic table of the elements, and a barely noticed provision of the Defense Authorization Act that seeks to break a monopoly which today gives China near-absolute control over the materials that make cell phones, electric [...]
It's that time of year again when we ask you to support Uppity Wisconsin and other progressive activities around the state. Donate $2 or more to Uppity Wisconsin.
Donations help to fund hosting and management of the site, as well as helping to pay for other progressive activities in Wisconsin, including' [...]
I'm very sorry to hear from our good friends at Operation Migration that someone has broken into their hanger in Necedah and vandalized almost everything in it. Car tires were slashed, some of Richard's lovely sculptures were broken, and the wings for their ultralights were destroyed. This' [...]
I have a Thanksgiving story for your consumption that has nothing to do with turkeys or pumpkin pie or crazy uncles.
Instead, in an effort to remind you what this holiday can really stand for, we’ll meet some people who are thankful today for simply being free.
It’s a short story today, [...]
McClatchy Newspapers reports President Obama to go the LBJ route, 34,000 more troops. If true, perhaps Obama can run in 2012 on a platform of 'not as many dead.'
From Iowa comes sanity and courage. United States candidate for the Iowa Democratic nomination for Senate, Bob Krause, became the [...]
Netroots Minnesota was a great experience, and I'm really interested in starting up an event in Wisconsin. This would be similar to the Netroots Nation annual event, but for Wisconsinites. There would be whatever progressive politicians we could get to come, workshops about blogging, about building hyperlocal web sites, citizen' [...]
Did you ever have to make up your mind? Pick up on one and leave the other behind...
Did you ever have to finally decide? Say yes to one and let the other one ride...
One of these days, the Journal Sentinel is going to have to finally decide:
Should [...]
I spent a great weekend at Netroots Minnesota, being energized and learning a lot from other bloggers, developers, advocates, organizers, journalists, and other netroots types. All I could think was how great it would be to bring the idea to Wisconsin (whether it was really called Netroots Wisconsin or not). [...]
November 23, 2009, NPR: "Capitol Corridor Runs Cleaner-Burning Diesel Train" Morning Edition (2:18, audio.) California Department of Transportation implementing more efficient, lower emissions diesel rail engine.
[...]So -
Here I am at the beginning of Netroots Minnesota, the first regional Netroots Nation conference. Personally, I hate living in what amounts to a suburb of Minneapolis --- How's about a Netroots Wisconsin conference?
Anyhoo, I'm not going to bore you with one of those tweet-by-tweet live [...]
Our favorite irascible media tyrant is in the news once again, and once again it’s time for me to bring you a story of doing one thing while wishing for another.
In a November 6th interview, Sky News Australia’s David Speers spent about 35 minutes with the CEO of NewsCorp, Rupert [...]
We strive to be, if anything, a participatory space around here, and I’ve had a question come to my inbox that is very much deserving of our attention.
To make a long story short, our questioner wants to know why, on the one hand, despite the passage of the American Recovery [...]
SEATTLE (FNS)--Longtime activist Geov Parrish unexpectedly revealed to the crowd gathered to celebrate his 50th birthday Friday evening his impending plans to end his decades-long career as a public issues advocate in exchange for new opportunities in the field of corporate communications management and image development.
The announcement appeared to be [...]
As was expected, Governor Doyle this afternoon vetoed the Independent DNR Secretary Bill. This is a bitter disappointment to the coalition of hunters, fishers, environmentalists and others who fought for the bill and successfully had it passed by the legislature.
The bill would have made the DNR secretary [...]
Russ Feingold sat down this afternoon with Mike Gousha at the Marquette Law School -- here it is.
Artist: Russ Feingold Title: Interview at Marquette Law School Mike Gousha Length: 56:38 minutes (38.89 MB) Format: MP3 Stereo 44kHz 96Kbps (CBR) [...]Plans are taking shape for a memorial service for Ron Domini, the longtime Wisconsin AFSCME political director who passed away Monday night at Madison Hospice. This is excerpted from an email from Domini's daughter. Jamie, who said it was OK to share publicly:
What an amazing three weeks we have' [...]
Across the country, and in Wisconsin, there's a movement quietly taking shape to reclaim November 11 as a day of peace.
What is now called Veterans Day was originally designated in the US as Armistice Day, the day that World War I ended at 11 a.m. on 11/11. ' [...]
Ron Domini, who for many years was the political director of Wisconsin AFSCME, died Monday night at Madison Hospice, where his family and political friends had gathered and visited to pay tribute during the last 10 days.
Domini was diagnosed in July with advanced lung cancer, which was complicated by pneumonia. [...]
There has been a great wailing and gnashing of teeth over the past day or so as those who follow the healthcare debate react to the Stupak/Some Creepy Republican Guy Amendment.
The Amendment, which is apparently intended to respond to conservative Democrats’ concerns that too many women were voting for the [...]
Ninety percent (90%) of the opinion in the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism (WCIJ) report on high speed rail is status quo, anti-public investment, and emphatically Cato Institute doctrine.
This essay presents eleven (11) charges that WCIJ failed their ethical principles. And twelve (12) characteristics of sloppy writing that denigrate journalism [...]
From the On The Earth Productions folks:
[...]Listen in below for the revival of Uppity Radio. I'll be talking to Jennifer about the prospects of a Carbon Free Nuclear Free Wisconsin. Jennifer will be touring our part of the state, stopping in [...]
Members of Veterans for Peace have again been barred from participation in Milwaukee's Veterans Day Parade.
Although the parade website says the event is “Honoring all Americans who have served,” it has refused to allow Veterans for Peace members – many of whom are combat veterans with' [...]
Heartland Hollar had a little fun with Sarah Palin's upcoming visit to West Allis, and Wisconsin Right to Life totally lost its cool, warning of terrible lefty plots to disrupt things.
Hollar's back with a new post, offering free copies of Palin's book to the first 100 people' [...]
It is now Election Day around the US, and one ballot question that is attracting national attention is Washington State’s Referendum 71.
Voting “yes” on the Referendum would codify in law various protections for same-sex domestic partners, and it is similar to a measure that the citizens of Maine are also [...]
From Madison Peace Coalition:
BOOKS, NOT BOMBS !
Peace Demonstration for Obama's Visit to Madison
Wednesday, November 4th
President Obama is coming to Madison this week, and peace activists will assemble to call for an end to war and for shifting government spending priorities from the military to education and other' [...]
Uppity Wisconsin has not had a Blog Talk Radio show for a long time - but we're bringing it back, and hope to make it a more regular feature. I'll be talking to Jennfer Nordstrom (who will be coming up here to the Chippewa Valley on the 10th and 11th) [...]
Unfair, outrageous hyperbole? No. This is the effect of the vote on an amendment offered last month on a vile story not told widely enough.
by Gordon Duff
Is it this plain? Are the facts this clear? Did 30 Republicans vote to allow defense contractors protection if their employees are [...]
From Here to There Conference this November 13-14 in Fitchburg, WI.
This Midwest-focused Bioneers event is designed to address the question of "How can we get from where we are right now, to where we want to be?" Seeking to spark imaginative conversations about a just and sustainable tomorrow, key [...]
I've just created a Wisconsin Progresive Twitter List, using the new Twitter List feature. You can follow the list at http://twitter.com/cruiskeen/wisconsin-progressive . If your favorite Wisconsin Progressive Twitterer is not on the list, you can nominate them on Listorious at http://listorious.com/cruiskeen/wisconsin-progressive
' [...]
Wisconsin urgently needs to reduce its carbon footprint while providing safe, secure, dependable and affordable energy. One proposed solution is to build new nuclear reactors to boil water to produce electricity. But can Wisconsin afford new nuclear reactors? Energy expert Peter Bradford says no, and will explain [...]
What radio talker Jerry Bader said on the air about Barbara Lawton is indefensible.
Lawton is correct. A two-week suspension is not adequate punishment for Bader's reckless disregard of the truth or the wild claims he described as factual. He should lose his job.
Maybe Lawton thinks that will be' [...]
Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice Michael Gableman is indignant over a proposed rule that justices recuse themselves from cases involving a party that has given them $1.000 or more, the Journal Sentinel reports:
The sharpest questioning came from Justice Michael Gableman, who is fighting an ethics complaint that he lied in his [...]We are now about two weeks away from the November election in Washington State, and one item on the ballot that has national attention is Referendum 71, the so-called “everything but marriage” proposal that would give same-sex couples more rights and protections than they have today.
There has been a lot [...]
DPW Chair Mike Tate Statement on Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton’s Announcement that She Will not Seek the Democratic Nomination for Governor
Madison – DPW Chair Mike Tate released this statement following an announcement by Lieutenant Governor Barbara Lawton that she will not seek the Democratic nomination for Governor in 2010.
“As [...]
This very official looking email just arrived in my inbox minutes ago. I've seen no media reports to confirm it. If it is true, what a bizarre way to handle this shocking turn of events. Maybe it will turn out she is hiding and not in' [...]
Senator Feingold this morning on Face The Nation, discussing the Afghanistan options, and discussing the need for a strong public option in health care reform.
[...]
It's become more or less common knowledge that US forces have been using music as an operational tool for some time now, and I've begun seeing lists of the songs that are being used either to inflict pain, to demoralize, or to just generally disorient various people in various sorts [...]
The Journal Sentinel editorializes:
Citizens always complain that their taxes are too high. And they are.That surprised me. My wife and I are citizens, have never complained that our taxes are too high. And they aren't.
So what's going on? I thought Paddy McIlheran wasn't writing editorials any more. Did I get' [...]
Peter Bradford developed expertise on nuclear issues through many years. He's served on the Federal Nuclear' [...]
I paved a section of the road to hell with my good intentions this week, but did not get anything written about the latest outbreak of the concealed carry virus, which seems to have infected Milwaukee DA John Chisholm and Police Chief Ed Flynn.
The dynamic duo suggested they would be [...]
Mark Neumann's campaign for governor just keeps rolling along, with great staff work and photo opportunities for the media. Why do I have the feeling we'll see this one with the fright wig again during the campaign? Heartland Hollar has the uncropped photo and notes that [...]
It was a long hot August for those who would like to see health care reform, as rabid “Town Hall” protesters proffered visions of public options that would lead to death panels and socialism and government tax collectors with special alien mind control powers that would use sex education and [...]
Tradewell is on the bleeding edge of criticism that our military is leveling against its Democratic commander-in-chief.
From the Times report Monday (Bumiller): "Last week the national'" [...]
Date:
Wed, 11/11/2009 - 3:00pm - 5:00pm
Jennifer Nordstrom, a Wisconsin native now working with Carbon Free, Nuclear Free, a campaign Jennifer Nordstromof the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER), will be speaking at Racy D'Lene's Coffee Lounge [...]
Date:
Tue, 11/10/2009 - 7:00pm - 8:30pm
Jennifer NordstromJennifer Nordstrom, a Wisconsin native now working with Carbon Free, Nuclear Free, a campaign of the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research (IEER), will be speaking at the Menomonie Public Library [...]
Date:
Wed, 10/21/2009 - 6:30pm
Join us next week, Wednesday, October 21 at Dooley's Pub for Eau Claire's Green Drinks.
*New Location - Dooley's Pub
*New Weekly 5-10 Minute Presentation
*6:30PM Wednesday, October 21
All' [...]
Showing of the film Flow followed by a discussion at the Menomonie Public Library. This is a film about water vulnerability throughout the world. Sponsored by Sustainable Dunn.
Location Menomonie Public Library600 Wolske Bay Rd Menomonie, WI, 54751United States 44° 53' 10.5468" N, 91° 55'" [...]I don't know what my friend John Nichols has been smoking for breakfast, but he's certainly enjoying the view from some other vantage point than the rest of us.
OK, John, I'll grant that Scott Walker is not David Duke.
But is he Wisconsin's William F. Buckley?
Good grief, John, get a [...]
There was a time, in the 1990s, when “boy bands” walked tall in the musical world. New stars with names like “BoyzIIMen” and “Backstreet Boys” and “*NSYNC” were everywhere to be seen, and positioned prominently within this firmament of stars was an Irish band, “Boyzone”. One of the five members [...]
Memo to Milwaukeeans who may be feeling powerless to stop Badger Guns from continuing the sales practices that put more handguns into the hands of criminals than any other gun store in the nation. From the Philadelphia Inquirer:
By Monica Yant KinneyThis column goes out to [...]
Memo to Milwaukeeans who may be feeling powerless to stop Badger Guns from continuing the sales practices that put more handguns into the hands of criminals than any other gun store in the nation. From the Philadelphia Inquirer:
By Monica Yant KinneyThis column goes out to [...]
A citizen call to the state’s Fraud, Waste and Mismanagement hotline led to an audit of quality of road construction in Wisconsin. The caller’s complaint specifically mentioned the thickness of concrete pavement used in state highway projects.
But as the Legislative Audit Bureau uncovered problems with monitoring of road construction quality, [...]
A citizen call to the state’s Fraud, Waste and Mismanagement hotline led to an audit of quality of road construction in Wisconsin. The caller’s complaint specifically mentioned the thickness of concrete pavement used in state highway projects.
But as the Legislative Audit Bureau uncovered problems with monitoring of road construction quality, [...]
This from our friends at the Nuclear Information and Research Service:
The New York Times yesterday published a remarkable joint op-ed from Senators John Kerry (D-MA) and Lindsay Graham (R-SC). Remarkable not because Graham became the first Republican to sign on to a climate bill, but because of the enormous price [...]
So we are now finding out the answers to some of our questions about which members of Congress actually represent We, the People...and which ones represent, Them, the Corporate Masters.
We have seen a Democratic Senator propose a policy that would put people in jail for not buying health insurance [...]
Al Gedicks, director of the Wisconsin Resources Protection Council and a longtime activist on mining, nuclear and environmental issues, will be on Wisconsin Public Radio Wednesday from 7 to 8 a.m. to debate whether Wisconsin's so-called nuclear power "moratorium" should be repealed. A supporter of the repeal bill will also' [...]
I just finished a radio show with Kenneth Quinnell of the Florida Progressives Coalition. We were joined by Zach Wisniewski of Blogging Blue We chatted for a half hour about the Cheddarsphere, what's going on in Wisconsin, and our own personal blogging battles. Tune in here:
Editor's Note - this is our first tell-a-friend campaign on Uppity Wisconsin - odds are good that you're going to find problems and software bugs. Help us fix it - let us know!
The raising and sales of pets in Wisconsin is largely unregulated. We have a serious puppy mill problem. [...]
State legislators who want more nuclear reactors in Wisconsin are ready to try again, with a bill to repeal what is commonly, and incorrectly, called the state's nuclear moratorium law.
The usual suspects, State Reps. Mike Huebsch and Phil Montgomery and State Sen. Joe Leibham, are circulating a' [...]
Strategic Vision, the controversial (some say phony) polling firm that perhaps should have called itself Virtual Reality, has been a major factor in Wisconsin media's political coverage.
As we noted earlier, the media, particularly the Journal Sentinel, were all too happy to report the results released by Strategic Vision, which' [...]
When does a public opinion poll not reflect public opinion?
When its methodology is flawed.
Or when there's no methodology at all, except to make up some numbers and feed them to the gullible news media, which simply prints them, no questions asked (in more ways than one.)
That, it appears, may be' [...]
Jim Hightower gave (as usual) a spritied speech at Fighting Bobfest this year - challenging the audience to "Go Get 'Em". Thanks to the fine people at On The Earth Productions.
We're working on a number of new features on the site. This week's new feature is a new news page. We're working on bringing together the best of progressive news in one place. The current new page is a first pass, and will improve and be expanded over the next' [...]
Those among us who are familiar with the Bible will recall that Jesus Christ himself was an active member of the health care community as he travelled about the Holy Land.
It is reported that he practiced within multiple medical specialties, and his works as both an ophthalmologist and a neurologist [...]
Watch Democracy Now! every day on Uppity Wisconsin.
[...]Watch Democracy Now! evey day on Uppity Wisconsin.
[...]FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – September 23, 2009
Contact: Zach Lowe (202) 224-8657
Statement of U.S. Senator Russ Feingold
On the Obama Administration's New Policy on the State Secrets Privilege
Washington, D.C. - Today, the Obama administration released details about its new policy on invoking the state secrets privilege. Senator Russ Feingold, a cosponsor of the' [...]
The Wisconsin State Aseembly has voted 61-32 to return the selection of the DNR secretary to the DNR board, rather than the governor. This bill would put the selection of the DNR secretary back in the hands of the board, where it was before former Governor [...]
When it comes to getting around, Americans love to consider the question of “what if…?”
As a result, our cars have evolved into “land yachts”, our trucks have become “monster trucks”, and the desire to drag our living spaces around with us has morphed into converted busses with rooms that pop [...]
No Longer a Monster from Displaced Films on Vimeo.
Veterans testifying at Winter Soldier hearings, reveal the truth about Iraq and Afghanistan in a six-part web series. Watch the moving final episode. Earlier episodes here.
[...]
Date:
Tuesday, September 29, 2009 - 19:30
Amy Goodman, from Democracy Now! will speak at UW-Eau Claire.
Amy GoodmanWHEN: 7:30pm
WHERE: Zorn Arena at The University of Wisconsin- Eau Claire. 105 Garfield Ave, Eau Claire, Wisconsin
DESCRIPTION: The 68th season of [...]
Last Saturday I was honored to participate in the Annual Vietnam Veteran Appreciation Gathering in Altoona. Veterans from around northern and western Wisconsin gathered to share camaraderie and memories. The day, sponsored by Thuy Smith and her husband Steve, was particularly special as we celebrated the creation of a new [...]
xoff, mal contends, Steve Hanson, fake consultant, SocratesChildren, Sen. Kathleen Vinehout
