(printed with permission from the author. You can read more of Greg’s writing at www.poeticfarmer.com)   Learn to recognize the cow that’s going blind early, give her extra time and never separate her from the herd.   Get rid of the bull when he postures sideways toward you, lowers his head and froths while pawing the dirt.   Keep the herd away from the woodlot during deer season.   When retrieving the herd develop a fine cattle call, breathing from the diaphragm, don’t be shy and practice patience, ...

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lpho-eie-fw   When we begin to see money as a public utility – Money becomes our Servant rather than our Master   Across the nation we watch as our roads and bridges, our public schools, our public water and sewer systems, our public parks and public buildings fall into disrepair. And across the nation we hear cities and states cry out - - “WE DON’T HAVE THE MONEY.”  It is the classic budget problem and the solutions for “we the people” are always austerity. They are always painful, ugly, and, in the long ...

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If you have any of the following, you can thank a union. Weekends Paid vacation FMLA—Family and Medical Leave Act Paid sick leave Child labor laws Social Security Minimum wage 8-hour work day Overtime pay OSHA ---Occupational Safety and Health Administration Health care Dental Vision Collective bargaining Breaks Wrongful termination laws Age discrimination laws Raises in pay Sexual harassment laws American Disabilities Act Holiday pay Military leave Equal pay act Civil rights Workers’ compen...

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This past Tuesday, September 24 I had the grand opportunity to hear Nell Anderson talk about her time in El Paso, Texas where she worked with migrants.   Nell is a former Wausau resident and Wausau School District employee. She went on a transformative awareness trip to El Paso, Texas with Abriendo Fronteras—Opening Borders.   She met migrants and human rights advocates on both sides of the U.S.-Mexican border. In her group were people from Minnesota, North Dakota, Colorado, Oregon, and Wisconsin. They stayed in a mission center in El Paso. &nb...

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(Dan is a member of Citizen’s Climate Lobby Rib Mountain—Marshfield Chapter)   On the evening of September 24, 2019, the members of the Wausau City Council stepped up and voted in favor of a resolution in support of State and Federal action on climate change.   In doing so, Wausau joins a steadily growing list of over one hundred cities and counties in Wisconsin and the rest of the country who recognize the dangers we face. There are now five cities in our own 7th Congressional District who have done so. The pressure on our State and Federal legislators ...

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The best times for viewing stars and planets in September 2019 are the beginning and ending days of the month. A new moon occurs on August 30 and again on September 28 when Earth’s moon is so close to the Sun that they both set at almost the same time. Skies will be darker at these times. In contrast, a full moon occurs on September 13, making it more difficult to see fainter objects.   September is a good time to see the Summer Triangle, an asterism of three of the brightest stars in the sky. An asterism is a group of stars that are associated in some way but ...

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I had the incredible experience of hearing a former racist skinhead and a Sikh man share the same stage. They told their amazing story of how they met and became friends. They are now as close as brothers.   The Veninga Lecture (September 23 at Wausau East High School) featured Arno Michaelis and Pardeep Singh Kaleka tell their stories.   Arno was a leader of a worldwide racist skinhead organization in the late 1980s and early 1990s the group that produced the shooter at the August 5, 2012 shooting at Oak Creek Sikh Temple.   Arno turned his ...

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(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 worn with leaves beginning to mellow. Even the relentless blue of the sky is softened with haze. Smoke ...

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“Where free unions and collective bargaining are forbidden, freedom is lost.” President Ronald Reagan On 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...

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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 ...

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