"It Is Sacred"

I sat through nearly nine of the twelve hours of testimony that was given yesterday to a subcommittee of Wisconsin State Legislators whose task is to pass mining legislation that has been written by, for the very first time in state history, the regulated industry. An entity that goes by the name of GTAC had a representative there to speak as well, but virtually nothing he had to say made any sense to those who know the history of mining in the state. I have participated in several rounds of public comments, working through the legislative process to help craft regulations and assisting in educating the public about the nature of trying to mine in sensitive areas and the headwaters of river systems that we all hold in common as citizens. What was just as stunning now as it was thirty years ago, when I began my own involvement in environmental issues, was the absolute disconnect between those who believe in their dominion over nature and those who realize that we are integral to the ecology of Mother Earth. The outright lies, about the nature of the geology, the proposed changes to wetlands protection, the air and water quality that mining would affect, the number of jobs that a mine would "create" and the impacts on local communities were bad enough. Serious questions arise about the validity of any position taken by the corporation, (GTAC) because they have already acted in ways that would normally be prosecuted.
It is an crime to tell someone that if they do what you want them to, something good will happen and if you do not do what they want, bad things will happen. When they ask for money, that is called extortion, organized crime is often prosecuted for engaging in this type of crime. Racketeering is enlisting enough people as to control a market. I see no reason why enlisting the government to help steal from the public should be any different from using any other group of organized criminals to do so. What will be stolen, in this case is two-fold. First off, by having a mining company re-write the laws, the company has already stolen our democratic process. The sham of only allowing twelve hours of testimony to be heard from the public, hundreds of miles from where the mine would operate, with only two business days warning has also stolen rights that belong to the public and have been well-established by time-honored practices that have served us well since Wisconsin has been organized as a state. The second thing that has been stolen from the people of Wisconsin are the laws that have sought to protect the environment from mining interests, who leave social distortion, cultural mayhem and environmental destruction in their wake. This assault on state law also renders useless, the hundreds of thousands of hours spent crafting the laws than now partially protect state resources like clean air and water.
I am writing in parlance that the average person might understand, but the deepest assault is a bit more esoteric. First, the history buffs and folks enamored by the "good old days" spoke about the need to recover the boom times that mining provided the north woods. What these people forget is that instead of prostrating themselves to set dynamite in warrens of tunnels, or shoveling the ore into carts, the way mining used to take place, modern mining allows a single guy in a truck to cart away more pulverized rock powder in a minute than a whole community used to be able to produce in a day. Forgetting the fact that the geology that led to mining certain parts of our state was the exact same geology that led to the end of mining, did not seem to be enough, the supporters also had to parrot back the same ignorant statements that they rest their arguments upon. One supporter hastened to say that the town of "Wakefield gets it's water from the (now-closed) Montreal mine". This may be true but has absolutely nothing to do with the proposed mine that lies under sulfide bearing rock that will be blasted to powder, creating acid mine drainage in the next watershed over.
The people who clung to the "jobs" issue failed to mention that the problems that they have always had with shrinking population is that the first extraction was the forest itself, then the mineral wealth under their feet. They do not understand that the low-grade ore that is left is just that. One person "in favor of the mine", bemoaned the "fact" that their children will all have to move away if they want to get jobs and another said that six homes on one lake alone had been foreclosed on and were now sitting empty. Hmmmm, sounds like a vacation retreat center about to happen, but that would require a bit of investment and commitment to finding creative ways of making a living. There are many flourishing vacation rental businesses across the north...One wondered if their children just wanted to get away from the land of not much to do. One fellow who, as I recall, was a school board chairman, said that if just six families would move into their school district it would help the school to hang on in spite of dwindling enrollment and plummeting state aid. Keep in mind that these same voices doubted the integrity of the science behind the opposition to the mine and the sentiment that most folks spoke out about that was we need to take our time and protect the environment, rather than bowing to corporate power and promises.
This is the second round for this law, even though it was reintroduced this session as AB 1 and SB 1, none of the prior testimony, which ran 348 against environmental destruction to 24 in favor of mine development, will be allowed to be considered in the new fight spear-headed by governor scott Walker, to reduce the effectiveness of Wisconsin state law.
Two particular interactions during the hearing yesterday were most telling, one was the question, late in the day by the committee chair. "Why is this issue more important in Ashland County than in Iron County?" Iron county is not even in the watershed that would be affected by acid mine drainage. 2/3 of the proposed mine and all of the acid mine drainage would be in Ashland County. To date, there has not been a single public hearing on this issue there. Secondly, and perhaps most sadly, was the representative who spoke against changing the current laws. You would think that someone who wants to protect the state would have a better grasp on the situation. They said that the wild rice which grows in the floodplain of the Bad River is "almost sacred" to native people. Luckily, there were folks close by who chimed in, "It IS Sacred!" Several times during the hearing, the relationship between the sanctity of the land and sacred rites and/or objects came out. Just the sheer amount of TNT that would be used to blast the rock to the consistency of talcum powder would unleash a toxic legacy that would last beyond seven generations. I am sorry if I misquote Mike Wiggins, but he said something like, Imagine wiping the Vatican from the face of the earth, that is what the headwaters of our reservation are to us.
Several times, it was brought to light that the rights of native populations were guaranteed by a government much older than that of the State of Wisconsin. The treaties entered into by their nations and the nation of the United States of America explicitly state that there is a responsibility of the federal government to assure protection of the resources upon which their culture, their nation, and their subsistence way of life depend. Because of these treaties, the relationship between the people and their land may not be taken for granted, cannot be infringed and certainly by this understanding, must not be ruined by releasing toxic substances into the air or water of one nation by negligence or design by the other. The air, the water, the earth, rock and the intact ecosystem upon which life thrives is sacred. This needs to be made clear to the temporary custodians of our state. Our interest is in protecting this land forever.

Wisconsin's Current Crop of Hot Heads

The rethuglicans are gloating over their recent rise to power, riding the coat tails of public opinion that the government has been spending money like a drunken sailor and promising to rescue us with their crisis management style brought about by fear and hate. Ironically, the recent economic crash has been far more gentle here in our state, mainly because unemployment never spiked to the levels of other states and the excesses of the multimillionaires did not have as much traction here as they did elsewhere. Although we have one or two cities that are in dire straights, these are the result of long-term structural changes that have isolated whole communities from sources of capital, strangled the commercial sector and foisted poverty on the vast majority of the population. Nothing that the current crop of rich white males is relying on to "save our state" will help those people. In fact their gerrymandering (redrawing district lines to favor their candidates) has led to a situation in which hundreds of thousands of people will remain disenfranchised, unable to vote for a state senator for six years. As you might guess, the vast majority of these people are poor, of color and their neighborhoods are probably the most in need of enlightened vision, not the policies of old that created the ghettos in which they are forced to survive, of any in the state. The cities most reliant on heavy industry really took it on the chin and will continue to have growing pains as we shift into a new, sustainable society.

Wisconsin, after two years of rule by Governor Scott Walker (R) ranks forty-seventh(47th) out of fifty states in job creation. Up until a couple months ago, the ranking was dead last. Unemployment is terminally over ten percent in the largest city in our state, but his mega-bail outs for his corporate sponsors are directed to the smallest towns, where the locals still feel that they are under threat. Under threat of what, I cannot understand. The only explanation for this fear, that I can fathom, is that the rich white males are hoping the locals in these areas are as bigoted as the rethuglicans hope they are. These folks, "new rethuglicans" posit, for the most part, the people they represent are like them, accustomed to male-dominated lily-white view of the world that was the rule throughout the last century. This is the very world-view that they see the world from and it is like a containment vessel that thrives on prejudicial language as well as that nasty old Calvinist belief that only good people are living to god's plan, proven to them through economic prowess and refined taste. The dark side cuts with unsavory vehemence for those who are obviously morally suspect, simply because of their poverty and what it reflects about their "goodness". These beliefs have power over their perception. It is because of their "moral values" that we have the most to fear. Even though state wide, we have some of the lowest unemployment in the nation, the drum beat of lies that we get from our political "leaders" is that we need to create jobs in the private sector at all costs. "We have fallen and we can't get up.", without the help of giant corporations, seems to be their watch word. This in a state with fiercely independent voters and citizens that have seen the historical record of wealth much more drastically than many other states. We see daily, the artifacts of pollution, rape of Mother Earth, the results of socialist programs like the WPA and CCC. We can attest to the value of our education and the blessings of community support and interaction. After the first oppressors had their way with our state, lying, cheating and despoiling the reations between our government and the people, huge cash reserves were removed at great cost to Wisconsin's original residents. The toxic legacy of mining and the loss of soil that came with early "development" was the result of well-heeled interests running over the public for profit. The same relationships of exploitation and extraction has been applied to nearly everything of value in our state. It is just as well, there can be no way found of capitalizing on the rich family and community that we feel in our hearts, for if there were, that too would have been extracted by the rich fiends. We have more than enough examples of the way the power brokers exploit whatever they can for profit. Nary a tree was left after the lumber boom and after 90% of our forest had been decimated, The Peshtigo Fire, fed by tinder dry slash, ravaged the most populated part of our state. Their was a "land boom" here, that was more devastating than the recent housing market crash. It even drained more fortune than the recent financial market crash. Nearly every citizen in our state lost their entire life's work to fund the lavish lifestyles of a few souls. Again, wealthy interests sold off land with a fervor that had been unrivaled in human history. They extracted money from the burgeoning population on the promise that the newly deforested landscape was well-suited for wheat production.

Residents put their back into their living back then as they do now. One man, with an ox, could clear about an acre of stumps each year, but by the time they discovered that the wheat harvest would crash after about three years of production, they were left with nothing but land that was best suited for forest and no way to restore the ecosystem. All that could live on the destitute soil was grass. At the time, caring for livestock was "women's work". It took a massive swallowing of pride to make Wisconsin the dairy state, but our white ancestors have become adept at swallowing their pride in service to the ultra-wealthy.

Milwaukee, our largest city used to be a hotbed of socialist ideology. We raised a crop of politicians in the last century that saw first-hand the depraved greed that wealthy men use to guide "development" in our state. Hard-working men and women have subsidized the wealth of people far away, supported their lavish lifestyles, and suffered at the hands of these callous thugs who, for too long, have taken their cut for protection, for the privilege of dealing with them or for their luxuries and your burden. The socialist revolution was on. Many continue to call Wisconsin home because of the long history of social activism, environmental protection and the value we place on education, family and service. From the Co-ops of rural communities to the pride we have in our schools, we have proof positive that without commitment to our communities, the rich will bleed us all dry.
There are many among us, and we hope that we are in the majority, who can smell a fish and tell if it is bad, who can see a liar and identify them and to suss out who is acting like they care so they can cheat us in the end.

Remember When Reading Was Fundamental, Now It Seems That Ignorance Is In Style

In the case of the current Governor of Wisconsin, we have reached a new level of ignorance. Without understanding the history or culture of our state, economics or science, he has developed policies and made changes to our government that will take us from the top tier of states in several important areas and insert us into the roster nearer to states such as Alabama, Mississippi and Texas. I have no issue with how other states value education or the social safety net, but there were good reasons for me to choose Wisconsin as a place to settle, invest in and devote my life to. Why we have the rule that recalling our leaders cannot be begin for a year after they are elected makes no sense to me. The hundreds of thousands of people who have flocked to the state capitol and to governor walker's speaking engagements across Wisconsin should indicate that the policies he advocates are not only unsound, but unwanted by those he feels do not deserve to be represented.
The people who warned us about this man's record were spot on, but the rhetoric of hate and fear seems to have overwhelmed logic at the polls. Even if there were truth behind the lies he is willing to tell, I would seek that truth and go with it, but his allegiance is obviously to those who are privileged and stand to gain the most through further enslavement of the working people of our state.most contrary to the Wisconsin Idea is the undermining of standards of living of public workers. government is not and should never be run like a business. If government were a profit center, private industry would be all over taking the opportunity away from duly elected officials. Instead, the privateers continue to cherry pick discreet elements of government's role, swooping in to take over profitable parts of their dealings and leaving the less profitable parts, like getting real and necessary work done, to be paid for by taxpayers. In fact, the social service net has already been largely taken over by industrialists, adept at pocketing the majority of funding to cover "administrative costs" and stiffing recipients of housing, medicare and programs designed to save money through energy efficiency improvements. In twenty years, when we graduate the cadre of individuals who first experienced an education of teachers who earn less than their mentors, the chickens will finally be home to roost. By that time, picture language may have supplanted English as the preferred method of communication.
Please, let everyone you know who lives here in Wisconsin, to get behind the recall efforts. I'm sure that those who elected Mr. Walker were less inclined to accept his approaches as they just wanted to send the message "We need change". Of course, when one votes out of a sense of desperation, very little good can come from it. being responsible citizens requires far more than just showing up on election day. we need to seriously ask ourselves why power vacuums exist in government and who benefits most by finding just the right schmuck to fill the bill. People, not money are supposed to be in charge and have their needs met. Next time an ingrate helps you at a chain store, or restaurant, don't get mad at them. Place the blame on the corporados who deemed it necessary to squeeze the person's teachers even harder, making them do ever more with ever less, then ask how your dollars might be better spent somewhere else, where education and training are still deemed part of the American Way.

"Nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression.

In both instances, there is twilight where everything remains seemingly unchanged. It is in such twilight that we all must be aware of change in the air...however slight...lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness.
-Justice William O. Douglas
Tens of thousands of Wisconsin citizens have stood up, willing to add their voices to the din against the coming darkness over the past two weeks. here at The Otherfish Wrap, we have been continuing our wage slavery so that we don't lose our home. having to make a choice between supporting your own lifestyle is just what the oligarchy intended when they took their illegal actions. The concept of rights to collectively bargain is, in fact, a human right. Workers must be allowed to control access to their work, or indentured servitude will raise it's ugly head again. many americans have died in the process of building unions from the ground up. If we make sweeping changes, basically outlawing collective bargaining amongst public employees, only outlaws will be unionized.
Power brokers hate it when the citizenry becomes educated. This is the main impetus for the hate speech "news outlets", the argumentitive talking heads that we are allowed to see on the airwaves, and the opinionmakers running amok through both the printed word and, more and more frequently, the digital realm. educating one self takes time and effort that many do not have, or may not place value upon. Luckily, we are beginning to wake up to the fact that the old way of life is on the ropes. The recent crash of the economy made most of us aware that we came within a hair's breadth of utter collapse. The banks have now been stabilized, after they got caught with their pants down nearly three years ago. what is most alarming is that the general public seems to be in the mood to forgive and forget, embracing once again the cold hard facts of republican "values".
Liars lie, cheaters cheat and the ignorant usually remain unenlightened. Nothing has changed with these guys. Why are so many willing to fall right back into their fold? a friend married a man that she "stole" from a former wife. When he bagan stepping out on her, she was crushed. did she really think that he would be more committed to her that his previous woman? Really, can we just take a deep breath, stand back and gain a little perspective on what is actually going on?
The big money is on the Republicans. The bail out was first dreamed up by those who say, "The members of the other party are tax and spend. We are conservative." The non-financial fortune 500 companies currently have enough cash on hand and short term debt owed them that they could finance another bail out of the same magnitude of the one we tax payers just invested in for their benefit! "Oh, no! That is privately held wealth and 'proves' that those companies are working for the American Way." What a crock. It proves that they have benefitted immeasureably from the luxurious cocoon that we have provided for them.
One of my favorite bumperstickers says, "If you are not angry, you're not paying attention." The sentiments are resonating across our great land. please do not look away or turn on the idiot box to escape. Write a letter to your representatives, invest in real people and the future of our world by getting involved. Encourage your friends and relatives to take back our country from the wealthiest interests who control things now. The time has come to stop the Texas School Board from dictating the textbooks for our country. I can't understand who thought that using the same textbooks that are used in a state with one of the lowest average SAT/ACT scores uses, was a good idea. Corporate interests far outweigh the rights and interests of american citizens. The darkness is falling and we must either kindle a new light or get into our caves again as soon as possible.
there is no reason that Egypt can oust their corrupt leader in seventeen days, but here in the US, we must wait for over a year to recall our governor. Scott Walker has done more to cripple our state in a brief month or two that he has been in office than many of us can fathom. Simpletons and the morally bankrupt belong in a compassionate care facility, not the state's highest office.