Wisconsin Recall Fizzles

The Wisconsin Republicans held control of the Wisconsin Senate, keeping four of six seats against Democratic challengers in the recall election.

If I were a Wisconsin Union worker, which I am not, I would be asking why 30 million dollars of the pension was spent in this Recall effort? Did it save or create jobs? Did it make Wisconsin, and the United States a more pro-Union, pro-worker place?

Richard McEnroe, of Three Beers Later, said this:

Seriously, the entire labor movement of the United Freaking States focused its wrath upon one state and six Republican state senators… and the people of Wisconsin looked at all the money being spent, looked at all the screaming marchers, looked at what their state government had been hiring, looked at the goons harassing vote canvassers, and said, “Yyyyyeah… no.”

Richard might be on to something right there. Maybe holding the Capital hostage, and the Democrats running to Illinois to hide out for a couple weeks wasn't the best thing going for them? Not exactly a good PR move? 30 Million pretty well wasted.

News of the Day

News of the Day...

or what I'm tracking.

Mr. Obama is expected to announce Afghanistan troop drawdown today. No doubt this will make some people happy and make a few others, like those fighting there, and the non-Taliban folks get kind of jumpy. Well, mission accomplished, and there's no more money. Besides, we've got Syria to stick our junk into. No, not kidding. It looks like Senator Graham is beating the drum to start a SIXTH war in Syria. Come on.

I wonder how our new Secretary of Defense feels about this? Yeah, Gates is leaving, if you didn't see his farewell tour the last couple months. Leon Panetta was unanimously confirmed as new Secretary of Defense.

Back to politics, Newt Gingrich's hilarious new political comedy continues to lose team members faster than Chef Ramsey expunges game-show contestants. Newt's team just lost his fundraising director and consultant. Now that's a reality show I'd watch on C-Span Ocho!

Former Utah governor Jon Huntsman enters race for Republican presidential nomination. For some reason, excuse me if I barely noticed. Am I supposed to be excited, angry, or meh about this? I'm going with meh.

And the story that pretty much writes itself Half-term Gov. Sarah Palin Packs In Her Bus Tour...Halfway Through. It really was a short bus.

Oh and Ai Weiwei was supposedly released. That's cool. They nabed him for tax evasion.

And finally, Wisconsin has passed right-to-carry legislation, leaving Illinois as the only one where only the bad guys are allowed to possess firearms. Guess it's going to be a summer of flash mobs in Chicago?

Dirty Cheese In Wisconsin Election?

A corrected "computer filing error" by Waukesha County Clerk Kathy Nickolaus has given conservative judicial Supreme Court incumbent David Prosser a net-gain of over 7,500 votes.

With the new tally, Prosser appears to be the winner. His liberal opponent, JoAnne Kloppenburg, led by 204 votes after the first unofficial tally was concluded yesterday.

Unions and Democrats had hoped to replace Prosser with Kloppenburg, with the plan that a new liberal majority would rule in favor of Big Labor if the Republicans' budget-repair bill made it to the state's highest court--which would then reinstate collective bargaining to most of Wisconsin's state employees. Ta Da. Yeah, it's a long shot, but it's all they had left.

If Prosser's win holds up, it will be another devastating defeat for the Unions. They elevated this race, they threw all of their resources into it... and still lost.

WI Supreme Court: Incumbent trails union-backed candidate by a few hundred votes; summary of recent vote fraud incidents

Sunday Comics - The Week in Review

End of the week. Finish line.

Charlie Sheen is nuts - and that is the MOST important issue in America, nay, the world right now. Now, just so that no one forgets, everyone was caught up on what a nut job Anne Hache was the days before September 11th. So, just saying.

Meanwhile, Sheen is a master - he has successfully ended that vile steaming pile of sitcom. Let the man have a victory dance.
Libya isn't revolting, they're falling into full blown Civil War. The sooner that the Colonel "leaves" the better it will be for everyone.
Meantime, how's that revolution reverberating everywhere else? Well, all politics are local - as Uncle Tip O'Neil used to say.

I particularly liked this one...And the SCOTUS decided to read the First Amendment out loud, again, to come up with their decision. Not a popular one, to be sure, but it was the correct one.
We made it. See you here next time.

Stupid Indiana Flanders

Two governors in states bordering Illinois are celebrating the Prairie State's massive tax increase.

"You guys are nothing if not entertaining. It's like living next door to the Simpsons — the dysfunctional family down the block." ~Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels, commenting on Tuesday's rush to raise taxes in Springfield, IL

Wisconsin's new governor, Scott Walker, is more succinct: "Escape to Wisconsin."

Bill Ecton, 54, owns Ecton's True Value Hardware in Robinson, Ill., just a few miles from the Indiana border. He was resigned to the fact that Illinois ultimately would raise taxes to repair the budget, but he said the taxes will take a toll.

"If I have to pay more to the state, it's money that I can't pay out in wages," Ecton said. "I'm not saying I'm laying people off, but maybe I'm going to look twice at adding another one."

Not the White Man's Bitch

Ieshuh Griffin is running for state office in Wisconsin, and she wants voters to know she is "NOT the white man's bitch".

She wanted that statement posted under her name on the ballot for state representative, in the place where the candidate's political party would be listed. "Its not racist, its not a slur...its not pointed to a particular person, in my point of view the average politician is a token" Griffin says.

Despite that, for some reason, the state's Government Accountability Board said no, and now Griffin is suing. She says her "freedom of expression" is being "suppressed". GAB spokesman Reid Magney says Griffin was denied because "Staff determined that her language used on her declaration of candidacy is perjorative in nature and does not satisfy the requirements of Wisconsin statutes". One board member asked "what if she just said 'not under the white man's influence? Is that okay?" No direct answer was given.

Griffin is running as an independent, to replace State Representative Annette "Polly" Williams, who is retiring after 30 years in office.

On a blog, which says its paid for by "The Poor People's Piece of the Pie Campaign", a statement attributed to Griffin is posted saying "There currently is...an in-depth corruption within our government... SLAVERY, yes SLAVERY has returned in almost every aspect except name".

Ieshuh has shown her light on the growing racism in the land that is not being addressed. Liberty is always for freedom from intimidation and discrimination. I wish Ieshuh the best of luck in her lawsuit and candidacy. Science knows she knows how to get attention.

Brett Favre puts a fork in it

(Link) Favre OUT!

Done.
D.U.N.
Done.







Until he changes his mind, again.

Beware of 'Sconsinites!

Wisconsin is a very different place than the rest of the world. Some of the world's friendliest people cruise the tree lined streets in monster trucks carrying firearms and cases Pabst Blue Ribbons. With such notable exceptions as Jeffrey Dahmer, these well armed people are extremely generous and willing to help out their fellow man.

It is understandable understanding the natives that the first circus took place in Wisconsin. As did the invention of the ice cream sundae. Lots of sight and sound - signifying nothing. This great state contains the bratwurst capital of the world (Sheboygan), the Morel Mushroom capital (Muscoda), the U.S. seed-spitting and speed eating championships (Pardeeville), the world's largest outdoor fish fry (Port Washington), the Cow Chip Throw (Sauk Prarie), and plenty more unusual, yet entertaining, activities. Including on of the best festivals ever - Summerfest.

When there are no exciting activities happening in the Cheese State, people seem to hang out and drink a bit. This leads to many fun times. Among them shooting folks out of your hunting tower, tipping dairy cows (the state domestic animal), and escaping from self made devices (Harry Houdini is from Appleton). Sometimes people just stay home alone and, like the gentleman whose name was not released in the police report, watch porno.

James Van Iveren was sitting around his mother's house where he lived listening to music on the night of February 12th when he heard shrieks from a woman apparently being raped in the apartment upstairs. At first our hero did nothing hoping the screams would go away. When they did not he flew into action.

Grabbing a family heirloom, a cavalry sword and bounded up the stairs to save this poor woman. He pounded on the door until the frame and lock busted and the door flew open.

"Where is she?" James yelled at a very surprised man on his couch.

The unnamed man had no idea what this crazed neighbor, thrusting a 39 inch sword, was talking about. This made James angrier. James held the sword at the neighbor and made him walk around the apartment opening closet doors to prove that there was no woman present. Frightened, the man obliged.

After a full search of the house, James was convinced that there was no wrong doing in the apartment and headed back downstairs. A few moments later he saw a police cruiser outside the apartments. Knowing that they were there for him, he walked outside to talk to the police about the "rape" sounds that he had heard.

The police discovered after what had to be an entertaining moment that the lady was on a DVD. A pornographic DVD. They had the neighbor replay the section that Mr. Van Iveren apparently heard.

James Van Iveren is charged with criminal trespass while using a dangerous weapon, criminal damage to property while using a dangerous weapon and disorderly conduct while using a dangerous weapon. He faces up to 33 months in prison if found guilty.

Now my advice.

• When watching pornography in your home, keep the volume at a reasonable level. This is especially true if you are into rape porn.
• If you bust into someone's apartment for any reason, do not take any heirlooms that you may want to keep.
• If you are 39 and live with your parents, try as hard as possible not to make the news. Steve Bartman will verify that one for me.
• If you are an ear witness to a rape, do something or don't do something. Do not admit to not doing anything until it became unbearable to you.
• If an incident happens at your house involving pornography, do everything in your power to keep your name out of the papers.