A new organizing effort in western Wisconsin, with the theme of "Health care, not warfare," has sparked new Moratorium events on Friday, Nov. 21, in Rice Lake, Superior, and Eau Claire.
"People quickly see the connections and respond instantly to the 'Health care Not Warfare' theme and the coordinated public lobbying tactic," organizer Steve Carlson says. More communities are expected to join in December.
Read more and see a full list of events.
The big question is whether legislators will figure out they have nothing to fear from the gun lobby.
Veterans for Peace chapters in Milwaukee and Madison have planned special Veterans Day events this weekend that promote peace rather than militarism. Details:
MILWAUKEE VETERANS FOR PEACE:
Barred from the city’s Veterans Day parade, Milwaukee Veterans for Peace, Chapter 102, will sponsor its own Veterans Day event at 10 a.m. in front of Milwaukee City Hall , 200 E. Wells, to observe the day with a call for peace.
Iraq veterans Ryan Freund and Ryan Nofsinger will share their experiences, and Vietnam veteran John Zutz will discuss the history of Veterans Day (originally Armistice Day), established in 1919 as a day to express support for peace and justice, not militarism.
Mark Foreman, a Vietnam veteran and president of the local VFP chapter, will serve as master of ceremonies. Music by Iraq war veteran Jason Moon will be followed by ringing of a bell 11 times to honor those who have served and to wish for peace. It is symbolic of the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month in 1918, which was the beginning of the cease fire at the end of the First World War.
After the program, Veterans for Peace members will go into the crowd of Veterans Day Parade watchers and collect donations for homeless veterans who live on the streets of Milwaukee .
The Veterans Day Parade Committee told Veterans for Peace it could not march in the parade with its banner because the group’s name is “political.”
MADISON VETERANS FOR PEACE:
Memorial Mile – the Third Display
On Saturday, Nov. 8, some 4,800 tombstones will be erected along Speedway Road in Forest Hill Cemetery on Madison's near west side. (Volunteers are needed that morning -- contact John Fournelle by email: jhfour@gmail.com).
After two successful and well-attended displays of the Mile at Olbrich Park, the chapter received permission from the Madison Parks Commission to move the Memorial Mile to a new location on the near west side. Forest Hill Cemetery, which faces Speedway Road between West High school and the Glenway golf course, is a dignified and appropriate location for the Mile.
It is the resting place for literally hundreds of Union and Confederate soldiers, as well as veterans who served in the Spanish-American War, World Wars I and II, Korea, Viet Nam and the first Gulf War. It is the site of annual Memorial Day ceremonies respecting the sacrifices of so many Americans.
The public is invited to participate in the installation of the Mile on Saturday, Nov. 8, starting at 9am and also help uninstall the headstones the following Saturday, Nov. 15. Last May thousands of passers-by viewed the Memorial Mile during the week at Olbrich Park and comparable numbers of visitors are likely this November at Forest Hill. The Mile may be visited any time, day or night, during November 8-15.
The quiet cemetery roads may be entered at either end (near West High or at the Glenway St. end). Visitors may park along the internal cemetery roads. Walked quietly among the stones; leave flowers if you wish. The sobering and respectful display symbolizes the deaths of over 4,300 US service personnel in Iraq and nearly 500 in Afghanistan. Over 35,000 Americans have been seriously wounded in Iraq. To date 95 Wisconsin soldiers have died, symbolized by the small Wisconsin flags on scattered headstones.
Veterans for Peace members and volunteers will be available as often as possible throughout the week to answer questions, listen and share thoughts.
Sunday Ceremony and Reading of Names
A one-hour memorial ceremony will be held on Sunday, Nov. 9, at 2pm at the west end of the display. Those attending are welcome to park on the cemetery roads on that end. Featured speakers include the Rev. David Couper, Iraq War veterans Fran Weidenhoeft and Nate Toth (Iraq Veterans Against the War) and Vietnam veteran Will Williams. Bagpiping will accompany the reading of the 95 Wisconsin war dead at the end. VFP board member Frank Court will be the master of ceremonies.
Here's what Lautenschlager herself says:
In 2004 Peggy Lautenschlager, now an attorney for Lawton & Cates, said she also used DOJ personnel to monitor polling places on Election Day, but her efforts were focused on making sure voters got their chance to vote.
"It is clear that under the guise of stopping alleged voter fraud he is concerned about obtaining voter suppression," she said.
Van Hollen said earlier this week that he planned to send out his own team of agents and attorneys, saying voters, "have a right to vote in fair elections untainted by election fraud."
Lautenschlager said her efforts in 2004 were "diametrically opposite to what Van Hollen is proposing to do on Tuesday."
It was simply a matter of the script being "poorly worded."
That's what Jessica McBride says, and she should know. More here.
Mayor Tom Barrett opposes the referendum on the Nov. 4 ballot to require paid sick leave, saying it would make the city uncompetitive. It's a federal issue, he says.
As a good faith gesture to show he wants to make Milwaukee more competitive, Barrett agrees that he and other members of his administration will give up their 15 days of sick leave a year, so the money can go to keep libraries open and shelter the homeless.
Tim Sheehey of the Metropolitan Milwaukee Assn. of Commerce, a leading opponent of the paid sick leave idea, said he and the MMAC staff would quit taking any paid sick days, too.
What's that? Barrett and Sheehy didn't say that second part? What a surprise.
As Dominique Noth at the Milwaukee Area Labor Council said:
That's one of the ironies of this whole thing. It's too easy for those who have paid sick days to argue it's too costly to give it to those who don't, and it's silly to argue that our conscience should wait until the US Congress decides.
If there were any doubt about whether John McCain -- or the Wisconsin Republican Party -- had a shred of decency left, the answer is no.
As forecast yesterday, the GOP mailer tries to make it look like Obama is a terrorist who wishes he had planted more bombs.
Pardon the expression, but it should blow up in the GOP's face.
Hello, I'm calling for John McCain and the RNC because you need to know that Barack Obama has worked closely with domestic terrorist Bill Ayers, whose organization bombed the US Capitol, the Pentagon, a judge's home, and killed Americans. And Democrats will enact an extreme leftist agenda if they take control of Washington. Barack Obama and his Democratic allies lack the judgment to lead our country. This call is paid for by McCain-Palin 2008 and the Republican National Committee at 202-863-8500.
I called that number to tell them I was considering voting for McCain after last night's debate, but never would after that insane phone message. But, alas, all of their voice mailboxes are full. I'll bet they are.
If he's even remotely like the kind of decent person people used to think he was, you have to wonder how McCain will be able to live with himself after the disgraceful campaign he's run.
The Washington Post reported it first:
The Wisconsin Republican Party has issued a call for volunteer poll watchers for Election Day, and the criteria is a little specific, seeking especially folks made of sterner stuff.
Jonathan Waclawski, the party's election day operations, wrote in a Sept. 8 e-mail that he needed contact information for people "who would potentially be willing to volunteer ... at inner city (more intimidating) polling places. Particularly, I am interested in names of Milwaukee area veterans, policemen, security personnel, firefighters etc. ... If you have any connections with such organizations, please pass that information on."
Doesn't it make you wish we had concealed carry?
Pistol-packing poll watchers is all we need. And if it hadn't been for Gov. Jim Doyle's veto, we'd probably have them.
Friday, Oct. 17, is Iraq Moratorium day.
The Third Friday of every month is designated as a day to interrupt our daily routines and take some action, individually or collectively, to call for an end to the war and occupation of Iraq.
In Milwaukee, the Milwaukee Coalition for a Just Peace and Peace Action-Wisconsin sponsor a rush hour downtown vigil from 5 to 6 p.m. at the corner of Wisconsin Avenue and Water Street. People fill all four corners, hold signs, flags, and banners, leaflet pedestrians, and interact with drivers who show their support for getting out of Iraq.
If you can't do that, consider taking some individual action. There are lots of ideas on the Iraq Moratorium website: http://www.iraqmoratorium.com/indiv_actions.htm
The Milwaukee action is one of a dozen or more across Wisconsin, which are listed here: http://iraqmoratoriumwis.blogspot.com/
You'll find a full listing of events across the country here: http://iraq-moratorium.blogspot.com/ Since it began in September 2007, there have been nearly 1,500 Iraq Moratorium actions in 42 states and 236 communities. Join us.
I went off and worked in politics for 20+ years, then came back to antiwar work after my retirement a year ago -- and found Julie Enslow as a key person in Milwaukee, now with Peace Action-Wisconsin, the successor to Mobilization for Survival. She and the organization are both still going strong.
Julie's about to get some well-deserved recognition for her lifetime of work. Julie, a stalwart of the Milwaukee peace movement for more than 30 years, will receive a lifetime Peacemaker award on Oct. 4 from the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, a statewide network of 159 organizations working for social change. Read More »
GWC 022406 LIPSTICK
They say you can put lipstick on a pig - but it's still a pig.
(SOUND EFFECT: OINK!)
An ill-advised constitutional amendment, once called TABOR, is back with a new name, the Taxpayer Protection Amendment.
But it has the same flaws as the earlier version, the Oshkosh Daily Northwestern says.
Taxpayers need protection, all right - protection from this same old bad idea.
The Beloit Daily News calls it "gimmicky nonsense." The Appleton Post-Crescent says it's "an example of wrong-thinking government."
Local officials, seniors, nurses, firefighters, teachers, and retirees are opposed to the amendment. They know it will cut vital services for the people who need them the most.
Wisconsin doesn't need a constitutional amendment to hold down spending. It needs state legislators who will make some tough decisions.
Call your legislators today at 1-800-362-9472. Ask them to oppose the so-called Taxpayer Protection Amendment.
(SOUND EFFECT: OINK!)
Paid for by Greater Wisconsin Committee
Greater Wisconsin later ran a variation on the theme -- about lipstick on a pig and "cosmetic changes" to the proposal --in several State Senate districts, urging people to call their legislators and ask them to oppose the scheme. All four ended up voting against it.
When I shared these with Michelle McGrorty, executive director of Greater Wisconsin, she cracked: "Just further proof that liberals were attacking Palin even before she was running."
The Iraq Moratorium marks its first anniversary on Friday, but it won't be a celebration.
The goal when the Moratorium was launched in September 2007 was to put itself out of business by ending the war and occupation of Iraq.
Perhaps that was a bit optimistic. Read More »
Ritter has warned since last spring that Bush and Cheney are likely to attack Iran during their remaining days in the White House.
This interview with Matt Rothschild, editor of The Progressive, explains why he believes that "we've never been at a greater risk of American military action against Iran."
Ritter speaks at 7 p.m. Friday at Our Savior's Lutheran Church, 3022 W. Wisconsin Ave. The talk is sponsored by Peace Action-Wisconsin. A $10 donation is suggested; student admission is free. Ritter will sign books afterward.
Ritter also will speak Saturday at Fighting Bob Fest at the Sauk County fairgrounds in Baraboo.
Bill Christofferson, an antiwar atheist, walked with the group of Catholic Workers for a day last weekend, on the Mississippi River from Pepin to Maiden Rock, and reports on the trip at Uppity Wisconsin.
Eleven events are scheduled in Wisconsin on Friday, August 15, as part of the Iraq Moratorium, a growing national, grassroots effort to end the war and occupation of Iraq. This is the 12th month of such actions.
Wisconsin has had more local events than any other state except California, with six times the population. Two communities, Rice Lake and Waupaca, are holding their first Moratorium events on Friday. Wisconsin events are listed on a new blog, Iraq Moratorium-Wisconsin.
The national Iraq Moratorium asks people to take some personal or group action on the Third Friday of every month to express their support for ending the war and bringing the troops home. Those actions can range from wearing a button or black armband to work or school to participating in an organized action.
Since it began in September, more than 1,200 events in 41 states and 240 communities have been listed on the Iraq Moratorium website, www.IraqMoratorium.com , which also collects reports, photos and videos of events and offers ideas and tools for organizers to use.
The Madison-based Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice, a coalition of more than 150 groups, has helped promote the Moratorium in the state.
Do something, whatever you are comfortable with -- whether it's wearing a button or protesting in the streets -- to call for an end to the war and occupation. It's got to stop, and we've got to stop it.
By John LaForge
TUNNEL CITY, Wisconsin -- The long history of anti-nuclear protests in Wisconsin caught up yesterday with Kathy Kelly, a founder of Voices for Creative Nonviolence in Chicago, when a group of 13 peace activists walked onto the grounds of Ft. McCoy, the National Guard base near here, calling for an end to the U.S. occupation of Iraq.
Ft. McCoy is one of the country's largest Guard bases and is a central training and deployment hub for occupation troops being shipped into Iraq and Afghanistan.
Of the 13 peace activists that were charged and ticketed with trespass, only Ms. Kelly was kept in the Monroe County jail in Sparta, because of an outstanding warrant. Kelly, who has twice been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize, was being held on a 1999 warrant from Ashland County, Wisconsin. The warrant stems from a protest against the now-closed submarine transmitter Project E.L.F. near Clam Lake.
The Extremely Low Frequency (E.L.F.) transmitter was the object of nuclear weapons protests from 1968 until it closed in 2004. Critics called it a "nuclear war trigger" because of its function in signaling a potential first-strike with submarine-launched ballistic missiles. Read More »
Wisconsin has had more events than any other state except California. Rice Lake just announced yesterday that it would begin monthly vigils in August, and others are in the works.
The Moratorium has a new website address, www.IraqMoratorium.com, and a new logo.
There's also a new Iraq Moratorium Wisconsin blog site, which lists Badger State events and reports. Visit it here.
One thing that hasn't changed is the determination to end the senseless war and occupation of Iraq, by encouraging locally organized, grassroots actions to move more of the silent majority who say they oppose the war to do something to end it. Read More »
The Department of Corrections has decided it is just too risky to allow a non-profit, in-state group to send free books to inmates in Wisconsin prisons.
Citing security concerns that the books somehow might contain contraband, Corrections has informed Wisconsin Books to Prisoners that it will no longer allow the group to send books to prisoners. Read More »
The walkers leave Prairie du Sac Thursday morning, July 31, headed for Baraboo. The schedule for the next week or so follows below the fold: Read More »
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