SEPTEMBER INTERLUDE
(Editor’s Note: The family of Carl J. Nelson (1915-2015) has given permission to Middle Wisconsin to reprint his poetry here. Carl Nelson was a farmer, logger, producer of strawberries and raspberries, philosopher, Quaker, a poet and a pastor.) These are golden days,Summer has spent its intensity of purpose,and September brings a welcome release. Goldenrod warm the fallow fields and road sides,Trees appear disheveled and wornwith leaves beginning to mellow.Even the relentless blue of the skyis softened with haze.Smoke ...
REAL FREEDOM IS A UNION JOB
“Where free unions and collective bargaining are forbidden, freedom is lost.”President Ronald ReaganOn Labor Day we remembered the sacrifice of union activists to improve the lives of all of us. We should remember that unions and the labor movement helped build the middle class in America. They brought us the weekend, healthcare, retirement, work place safety, and many other employment standards. Unions have also contributed, along with many other social justice advocates, to making “freedom” more than just a platitude. They give some reality to our over-hy...
MORNING MUSINGS
Here are my morning musings from the front porch on a cloudy autumn day.A hummer is humming, its wings whirring as it flits from flower to flower seeking nourishment for the day. Soon they will be making their arduous journey to a warmer climate.Bees aren’t buzzing, but they dive into the bright yellow zinnias gathering nectar to store for the winter.Mourning doves perch on the fence, swoop to the ground scratching for morsels—their soft murmurs are comforting.The finches quietly cheep as if they are saying a long goodbye before heading south. Their ...
THINNING THE HERD
“Either we limit our population growth, or the natural world will do it for us...” David Attenborough, British naturalist producer of nature documentaries. “Reproductive rights are an environmental issue.”Center for Biological Diversity There is a cartoon that shows deer in the woods with a sprawling, traffic jammed, polluted city in the background. One of the deer is saying, “Let me get this straight, it is our herd that needs thinning?” The current world population is 7.7 billion and is increasing by 82 million each year. ...
SAY NO TO ENBRIDGE PIPELINE EXPANSION
If we can stop Enbridge from building the Line 3 in Minnesota, there will be no need for Line 66 through Wisconsin. Allies in Minnesota, including Honor the Earth, MN 350, Minnesota Interfaith Power and Light, Friends of the Headwaters and others, have organized a major rally to show Minnesota Governor Tim Walz the huge opposition to a new Line 3 in Minnesota. You are invited to attend this rally on Saturday, September 28 at 1 p.m. in Duluth from 1 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. The location is Gitchi-ode’ Akiing at Lake Place Park in Duluth on the shores of ...
PUBLIC BANKING – UNIT II: THE COST OF “INTEREST”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZhsxQ6Kb2ELet us assume a state needs to replace an aging bridge on one of its state highways. If the contractor’s bid for supplying the materials and completing the construction is two million dollars, the tax payers of that state will eventually pay close to four million dollars for the bridge. How can this possibly be? The answer in a word is - - “interest.”The near doubling of the cost of most public projects, from bridges, to schools, to water and sewage systems, is the result of the legal process of fractional reserve ...
LABOR DAY AROUND THE WORLD IN 2019
To celebrate Labor Day, look at what Labor is doing around the world.1. Australia celebrated its Labour (that’s the Australian spelling) Day in Queensland on May 6. Thousands of workers marched through the streets of Brisbane asking for a pay rise.Ros McLennan (Queensland Council of Unions) said that people are struggling to make ends meet. “They are stuck in labour hire, casual work or on sham contracts.” Many workers live paycheck to paycheck and can’t really plan for the future.2. Europe launched the results of its annual Global Rights Index (from ...
PUBLIC BANKING
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8VkkCQyoRfYUNIT I: FRACTIONAL RESERVE BANKINGAs the above video by the Philadelphia branch of the US Federal Reserve Bank (the Fed) indicates, money is created out of thin air by the private banking industry through a process called “fractional reserve banking.”We all find this difficult to believe. It defies our “household budget” logic. How can money be created out of nowhere? Let us take time to look at how the centuries old practice of fractional reserve banking led to current practices where, by law, private banks ...
2019 SOLAR GROUP BUY PROGRAM HITS SECOND BENCHMARK IN CENTRAL WISCONSIN
The popular solar group purchasing program for central Wisconsin home and business owners continues to see success. The “Grow Solar Central Wisconsin” group buy program has collectively reached its second milestone, 100 kilowatts (kW) of solar. All participants will now receive $.10 per/watt rebate on their systems, in addition to the already lower than average negotiated price. The program is hosted by the Midwest Renewable Energy Association (MREA) with the goal of helping home and business owners in Portage, Wood, Lincoln, and Marathon counties use their ...
YOU ARE INVITED TO THE 21ST CENTURY WISCONSIN POLITICAL REFORM CHAUTAUQUA
Please join us at our Reform Chautauqua, Sept. 7-8 in Menomonie, Wisconsin.Speakers include former Sen. Dale Schultz, Matt Rothschild of the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign, Mike McCabe from Blue Jean Nation, Sachin Chheda on Fair Redistricting, Lena and Rich Eng from Unite America and George Penn with United To Amend.Please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/21st-century-wisconsin-political-reform-chautauqua-tickets-62148252095.Are you a citizen activist, who fully understands that our democracy is corrupted and needs to be restored? ...
