Politics
Corporate Colonization of Wisconsin – Part VII: Policing the Colonies
This is the seventh in a series of articles by Dr. Keith Roberts discussing the corporate colonization of the state of Wisconsin. In this segment Dr. Roberts discusses how police and National Guard forces in Wisconsin have been manipulated to support the colonization of the state. Previous articles in this series can be found archived under the author’s name.
ALL DICTATORS AND COLONIAL GOVERNORS NEED THE SUPPORT OF THE POLICE AND MILITARY TO KEEP THE LOCAL CITIZENS INTIMIDATED AND SUBMISSIVE.
The Wisconsin State Patrol
Immediately after assuming control of the ...
WORKERS’ MEMORIAL DAY – APRIL 28TH
Unless you are a labor historian, you probably wouldn’t know who Mary “Mother” Jones was. But her legacy in the labor movement is immense.
Mary Mother Jones was born Mary Harris in 1837 in Cork, Ireland. She moved to Toronto, Canada at ten years old due to the potato famine in Ireland. In her early adulthood she moved to the United States, married and had four children. In 1867 yellow fever struck her entire family leaving her a widow. She moved to Chicago where her small dressmaking shop eventually burned in the 1871 Chicago fire.
In her later years, Mary ...
ON THE BOOKSHELF…..THOMAS PAINE AND THE PROMISE OF AMERICA
Thomas Paine and the Promise of America was written by author Harvey J. Kaye. Kaye is the Ben and Joyce Rosenberg Professor of Social Change and Development at the University of Wisconsin—Green Bay. He is an award-winning author and editor.
“These are the times that try men’s souls.” I say this often in our hectic and uncharted times. However, Thomas Paine first said those words to the colonial soldiers fighting for independence from England.
Thomas Paine (1737-1809) is a symbol of patriotism. For the past 240 years, Americans have claimed Paine as the figure ...
Worker Exploitation Laws
A group of people decide to go out to eat. Everyone in the group knows that they will receive a bill when they finish eating. Two people in the group decide that the others will need to pay their dinner bill despite partaking in the benefits of the meal.
After reading this hypothetical situation did you perhaps say to yourself “I would never think about doing something like that!”
This hypothetical situation is similar to what people commonly and unfortunately call “Right to Work” laws. “Right to Work” is a name or slogan that can be accurately described ...
Blue Jean Nation
American democracy is caught on the horns of a dilemma. Most Americans are feeling fed up with the Republicans and let down by the Democrats — with good reason — as both major parties are failing the country. Yet a third party isn't the answer. Like it or not, America has a two-party system.
Ours was not set up as a parliamentary democracy, where competing factions can join forces and form coalition governments. We don't have fusion voting, or instant runoff voting, or proportional representation, or any of the mechanisms that would allow third parties or independ...
RE-PURPOSING GOVERNMENT
REPURPOSING GOVERNMENT
This commentary is a distillation of Mike McCabe’s keynote speech at the Wisconsin Grassroots Network festival in Mazomanie on March 28. It was first published as an opinion column by the online news site Wistopia on April 3. It is reprinted from the Blue Jean Nation website at: http://www.bluejeannation.com/commentary04-13-2015/
It’s easy to be consumed by what or who we are against rather than what we are for. But if we are going to get Wisconsin and our nation out of the rut we are in politically, we cannot afford to dwell on what ...
Corporate Colonization of Wisconsin – Part VI: Free Markets don’t make Free People
This is the sixth in a series of articles by Dr. Keith Roberts discussing the corporate colonization of the state of Wisconsin. In this segment Dr. Roberts discusses the fallacy of “Free Markets” and how plutocrats have taken over national economies and political parties. Previous articles in this series can be found archived under the author’s name.
You can always tell if an organization or think tank is trying to pick your pocket if it has “free market” in its title or as one of its goals. Organizations like the Club for Growth, The Heritage Foundation, ...
CELEBRATE EARTH DAY ON APRIL 22…..
There was a time when man took no more
Than he needed.
That time is gone….
There was a time when he gave something back.
That time is gone….
There was a time when he worshipped the creator
And honored creation.
That time too is gone…
Now the waters are polluted.
Our natural resources are all but gone
And creation is dying…
It is time…
To find our way back to the earth.
--Kevin Thunderhorse Wright
It is easy on warm sunny days to find my way back to the earth. Spring flowers are blooming. Lettuce planted last November has sprouted. Rhubarb ...
PROTECTING WISCONSIN’S WATER
An editorial in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel April 7, 2015 states:
"Once again, Gov. Scott Walker's budget is taking Wisconsin in the wrong direction. Instead of spending more to curb runoff pollution, the 2015-'17 budget actually cuts programs that address the problem. That not only weakens protections for the state's waterways, it undercuts administration officials who say they're committed to reducing runoff pollution."
The governor's budget cuts $5.7 million from programs needed to address runoff problems. The cuts would reduce funding and staff at the ...
CRITICAL PROGRAMS FOR CHILDREN
Elected Congressional officials must act soon in order for CHIP (Children's Health Insurance Program) and several child nutrition programs to continue beyond this year.
CHIP provides affordable health insurance coverage to millions of kids in the US, and over 150,000 in Wisconsin. Thanks in part to CHIP, 93 percent of children in America have health coverage with low premiums, deductibles, and the preventive care children need.
Nutrition programs like school breakfast and lunch and WIC provide nourishing meals to low- and moderate-income children both in and out of ...
