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| Meg Lanker-Simons at Occupy Casper. Her union supports Occupy Wall Street. I wonder about mine, SEIU. Meg is one of my co-panelists (with Jaren Artery) for the presentation "Snarky Slacktivists of Online Outlaws: Leftie Bloggers in Red-State Wyoming" at the John R. Milton Writers' Conference Oct. 27-29 in Vermillion, S.D. |
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Showing posts with label work. Show all posts
Our unions getting behind Occupy movement
One of Wyoming's major political parties to honor working people at annual dinner
It's too early for a wind-bending quiz but I have one for you anyway.
Q: Which of America's major political parties is more concerned with creating jobs, extending unemployment benefits and preserving pensions than in continuing tax cuts for millionaires?
The clock is ticking. I'll give you another second.
Stumped?
Here's a clue:
Q: Which of America's major political parties is more concerned with creating jobs, extending unemployment benefits and preserving pensions than in continuing tax cuts for millionaires?
The clock is ticking. I'll give you another second.
Stumped?
Here's a clue:
The 2011 Jefferson-Jackson Banquet is set for Saturday, Oct. 1, at 7 p.m., at the Outlaw Inn in Rock Springs.
Click here to learn more and to buy your tickets now.
The theme of this year's event will be support for working people everywhere, including organized labor, nonunion workers, and those who are looking for jobs - especially in light of Republican attacks on unions and the unemployed in many states across the nation.
The Outlaw Inn has offered us a discounted rate of $85 per night. You can reserve your room by calling the Outlaw Inn at 307-362-6623 and asking for the Wyoming Democratic Party rate.
We are in the process of finalizing the details for our guest speaker for the evening, so check back here for that exciting news when we are ready to make an announcement. Also at the banquet, Wyoming Democratic Party Chairman Chuck Herz will announce the winner of our Party Builder of the Year Award.
We look forward to seeing you at the Wyoming Democratic Party's annual fall rally as we lay the foundations for victory in 2012.Now do you know the answer?
Despite what the Gov says, Cindy Hill continues her war against public employees
Why does Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill hate her permanent employees?
Probably because she can't fire them every time her little heart desires.
Hill had some juicy quotes in yesterday's Casper Star-Tribune story, "Wyo. Gov. Mead: At-will employment should be consistent."
“I have SOME permanent employees who are very personally committed and find ALL at-will employees are personally committed to their work,” Hill said.
I have capitalized "some" and "all." I am a permanent state employee. If I saw my agency director saying that only SOME of her employees were "personally committed," I would ponder several things:
1. Thank God that there are laws that protect me from Tea Party extremists such as Cindy Hill.
2. Why do Republicans hate the people who actually do the work?
3. This person is in charge of our public schools?
4. What is my union’s (Wyoming Public Employees Association) position in this tug-of-war between its members and Hill?
Cindy Hill is part of the Republican bid to privatize everything. As we've seen in Wisconsin and Ohio and Florida, Republicans governors and their lackeys are trying to undo every gain made by employees since The Great Depression.
One has to wonder how Wyoming will find and keep “personally committed” employees when right-wing extremists such as Hill are calling the shots.
On this Labor Day weekend, "Take 'Em Down"
In March, when Wisconsin public workers were battling anti-union legislation, this blog featured a video of the Dropkick Murphys' song, "Take 'Em Down," dedicated to that struggle.
The fight still rages this Labor Day weekend. But it's not only workers in Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio battling regressive governors and legislatures. Workers in almost every state have seen ugly anti-worker legislation raise its ugly head. You can trace these proposals back to ones crafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council or ALEC. Each year, legislators (mostly Republicans) gather at the ALEC conference to pick up their marching orders. This August the conference was held in New Orleans. This fall, you can expect to see more legislation that attempts to take away any protections for public workers, including teachers. Here's a recent article on the subject in The Nation.
In Wyoming, Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill is attempting to classify all of the department's jobs "at-will." With this designation, any worker can be fired at any time for any reason. Although Wyoming is a so-called "Right to Work" state, permanent state employees (once past the probation period) are covered by various protections from this sort of random, politically-motivated dismissals. Fortunately for state employees such as myself, Wyoming Attorney General ruled this week that agency heads cannot set their own personnel policies. The AG's opinion was issued Aug. 25 and schooled Hill on the law. To put it simply, she cannot make up the rules as she goes along. The Wyoming Department of Administration and Information (A&I) determines personnel policies at the request of the Governor. If it's time for rules to be changed, the Gov has to take that action and not Ms. Hill. Perhaps she forgot to read the state org chart. The Gov's office announced that it may have something to say on the matter next week. Read about the AG's decision in the Sept. 2 Casper Star-Trib.
Interesting to note that 40 people in Hill's 146-employee department have left since the new Superintendent took office in January. In some places, that would be classified as a purge.
Hill came to office in the Tea Party wave of 2010. She handily defeated Democrat Mike Massie, a former state senator and one-time staffer at the Wyoming Humanities Council. Not only did we lose one of our few Democratic senators, we also lost the opportunity to have a highly intelligent and efficient voice for education in the superintendent's chair.
Hill and her pals in the legislature want to blame teachers for Wyoming's lack of progress in public education. The problems go deeper than that. But you know how those Tea Partiers are -- thinking deeply is not their strength.
Meanwhile, let's celebrate workers on this Labor Day weekend. Here are the lyrics to "Take "em Down" by the Dropkick Murphys:
When the boss comes callin' they'll put us down
When the boss comes callin' gotta stand your ground
When the boss comes callin' don't believe their lies
When the boss comes callin' his take his toll
When the boss comes callin' don't you sell your soul
When the boss comes callin' we gotta organize
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash them to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
When the boss comes callin' you'll be on your own
When the boss comes callin' will you stand alone?
When the boss comes callin' will you let them in?
When the boss comes callin' will you stand and fight?
When the boss comes callin' we must unite
When the boss comes callin' we can't let them win
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
We gotta take the bastards down
When the boss comes callin' they'll put us down
When the boss comes callin' gotta stand your ground
When the boss comes callin' don't believe their lies
When the boss comes callin' his take his toll
When the boss comes callin' don't you sell your soul
When the boss comes callin' we gotta organize
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
The fight still rages this Labor Day weekend. But it's not only workers in Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio battling regressive governors and legislatures. Workers in almost every state have seen ugly anti-worker legislation raise its ugly head. You can trace these proposals back to ones crafted by the American Legislative Exchange Council or ALEC. Each year, legislators (mostly Republicans) gather at the ALEC conference to pick up their marching orders. This August the conference was held in New Orleans. This fall, you can expect to see more legislation that attempts to take away any protections for public workers, including teachers. Here's a recent article on the subject in The Nation.
In Wyoming, Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill is attempting to classify all of the department's jobs "at-will." With this designation, any worker can be fired at any time for any reason. Although Wyoming is a so-called "Right to Work" state, permanent state employees (once past the probation period) are covered by various protections from this sort of random, politically-motivated dismissals. Fortunately for state employees such as myself, Wyoming Attorney General ruled this week that agency heads cannot set their own personnel policies. The AG's opinion was issued Aug. 25 and schooled Hill on the law. To put it simply, she cannot make up the rules as she goes along. The Wyoming Department of Administration and Information (A&I) determines personnel policies at the request of the Governor. If it's time for rules to be changed, the Gov has to take that action and not Ms. Hill. Perhaps she forgot to read the state org chart. The Gov's office announced that it may have something to say on the matter next week. Read about the AG's decision in the Sept. 2 Casper Star-Trib.
Interesting to note that 40 people in Hill's 146-employee department have left since the new Superintendent took office in January. In some places, that would be classified as a purge.
Hill came to office in the Tea Party wave of 2010. She handily defeated Democrat Mike Massie, a former state senator and one-time staffer at the Wyoming Humanities Council. Not only did we lose one of our few Democratic senators, we also lost the opportunity to have a highly intelligent and efficient voice for education in the superintendent's chair.
Hill and her pals in the legislature want to blame teachers for Wyoming's lack of progress in public education. The problems go deeper than that. But you know how those Tea Partiers are -- thinking deeply is not their strength.
Meanwhile, let's celebrate workers on this Labor Day weekend. Here are the lyrics to "Take "em Down" by the Dropkick Murphys:
When the boss comes callin' they'll put us down
When the boss comes callin' don't believe their lies
When the boss comes callin' his take his toll
When the boss comes callin' don't you sell your soul
When the boss comes callin' we gotta organize
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash them to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
When the boss comes callin' you'll be on your own
When the boss comes callin' will you stand alone?
When the boss comes callin' will you let them in?
When the boss comes callin' will you stand and fight?
When the boss comes callin' we must unite
When the boss comes callin' we can't let them win
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
We gotta take the bastards down
When the boss comes callin' they'll put us down
When the boss comes callin' gotta stand your ground
When the boss comes callin' don't believe their lies
When the boss comes callin' his take his toll
When the boss comes callin' don't you sell your soul
When the boss comes callin' we gotta organize
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Let them know
We gotta smash 'em to the ground
Let em know
We gotta take the bastards down
Is Department of Ed effort to make all employees at-will the start of WY anti-public worker effort?
On Monday, the AP reported that
At-will state employees usually are in management positions. Nothing particularly wrong with that. They get bigger salaries and take bigger risks. It's much different to try to classify all of your employees as at-will. That means that anyone can be fired at any time for any reason. State employees would have no job protections once they complete the one-year probation in which you can be fired without cause, If all of us are at-will, we could conceivably be fired any time for any reason by any of our superiors.
If this sort of anti-public worker effort looks familiar, that's because it is. Think Wisconsin. Think Minnesota. Think Florida. In fact, think of all those states that were taken over by Repub Govs and Republican-dominated legislatures in 2010. Some (WI) are heavily union states. Some (FL) are so-called Right to Work states. It doesn't seem to matter. If your state got an infusion of Tea Party politicians in 2010, public workers are under the gun.
Wyoming is a so-called Right to Work state. There is a union for public employees but workers don't have to join. On Sunday in the Casper Star-Tribune, Wyoming Public Employees Association Director Betty Jo Beardsley noted that there are 1,600 union members throughout the state. This represents a minority of those eligible for union membership. Betty Jo did say that she's had a number of new sign-ups from the Dept. of Ed since January, which is when the wacko 2011 Wyoming State Legislature began its session. That began with a battle over tenure for teachers and their Wyoming Education Association union, with 6,500 members. Some Tea Party Republicans had some less than nice things to say about teachers and other public workers. Cooler heads prevailed and the anti-teacher bills were defeated.
Those bills will be back in the Legislature again, courtesy of right-wing anti-public education groups and other outside agitators such as the American Legislative Education Council (ALEC).
The WEA summed up its success against these Know Nothings with excellent ass-kicking videos by Ron Sniffin. Here's how Ron's vid summed it up:
The Education Legislative Session from Ronald Sniffin on Vimeo.
This time around, public workers will be the target. Cindy Hill's attempts to transform at Dept of Ed jobs to at-will status is the opening salvo.
"the head of the Wyoming Department of Education wants all new hires to be classified as at-will employees who serve without job protections."
At-will state employees usually are in management positions. Nothing particularly wrong with that. They get bigger salaries and take bigger risks. It's much different to try to classify all of your employees as at-will. That means that anyone can be fired at any time for any reason. State employees would have no job protections once they complete the one-year probation in which you can be fired without cause, If all of us are at-will, we could conceivably be fired any time for any reason by any of our superiors.
If this sort of anti-public worker effort looks familiar, that's because it is. Think Wisconsin. Think Minnesota. Think Florida. In fact, think of all those states that were taken over by Repub Govs and Republican-dominated legislatures in 2010. Some (WI) are heavily union states. Some (FL) are so-called Right to Work states. It doesn't seem to matter. If your state got an infusion of Tea Party politicians in 2010, public workers are under the gun.
Wyoming is a so-called Right to Work state. There is a union for public employees but workers don't have to join. On Sunday in the Casper Star-Tribune, Wyoming Public Employees Association Director Betty Jo Beardsley noted that there are 1,600 union members throughout the state. This represents a minority of those eligible for union membership. Betty Jo did say that she's had a number of new sign-ups from the Dept. of Ed since January, which is when the wacko 2011 Wyoming State Legislature began its session. That began with a battle over tenure for teachers and their Wyoming Education Association union, with 6,500 members. Some Tea Party Republicans had some less than nice things to say about teachers and other public workers. Cooler heads prevailed and the anti-teacher bills were defeated.
Those bills will be back in the Legislature again, courtesy of right-wing anti-public education groups and other outside agitators such as the American Legislative Education Council (ALEC).
The WEA summed up its success against these Know Nothings with excellent ass-kicking videos by Ron Sniffin. Here's how Ron's vid summed it up:
The Education Legislative Session from Ronald Sniffin on Vimeo.
This time around, public workers will be the target. Cindy Hill's attempts to transform at Dept of Ed jobs to at-will status is the opening salvo.
Real Dems Are Kicking It in WI: See Ya'll Aug 9th: There Is Nothing So Winning As Winning!
It's no accident that the Wyoming State Seal features "Equal Rights" front and center
A colorful rendering of the Wyoming State Seal is being embedded in the new plaza in front of the State Capitol Building. On Friday, I stopped to watch the installation. Joe from southwestern Virginia and Joe from Cheyenne were supervising the work. From afar, the seal looks magnificent. During the legislative session, I had seen an artists's rendering of the finished project.
This is a major improvement over the aging plaza that was in place this time last year. In Cheyenne, we always measure time by Cheyenne Frontier Days -- "The Daddy of 'Em All." It's our version of the New Year's celebration. The year ends or begins with CFD -- not quite sure which. Anyway, the construction barriers and construction crews and the big box surrounding the Chief Washakie statue will all be removed by July 22 to make way for the influx of tourists.
What they will see is instructive. The plaza will be flanked by statues of Nellie Tayloe Ross, the first woman governor of a U.S. state, and Chief Washakie, the legendary leader of the Shoshones. Wyoming may be the only U.S. state to celebrate the contributions of a suffragist and a Native American chief in front of its Capitol Building. You might call this a concrete representation of the stat'e slogan, "Equal Rights," that also is part of the state seal. Has Wyoming lived up to this clarion call for justice? No. Shoshone and Arapaho youth on the sprawling Wind River Reservation continue to commit suicide at alarming rates. The dropout stats for Rez youth are the worst in the state and the unemployment rate is 70 percent. Women nationally earn 77 cents for every dollar earned by a man. In Wyoming, women earn 67 cents for every dollar paid to guys (such as me). The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission reported these figures in May.
But the state seal sounds the call for justice. Here's a description of the state seal from the official State of Wyoming site:
But the state seal sounds the call for justice. Here's a description of the state seal from the official State of Wyoming site:
The Great Seal of the State of Wyoming was adopted by the second legislature in 1893, revised by the sixteenth legislature in 1921. The two dates on the Great Seal, 1869 and 1890 commemorate the organization of the Territorial government and Wyoming's admission to the Union. The draped figure in the center holds a staff from which flows a banner bearing the words, "Equal Rights," and symbolizes the political status women have always enjoyed in Wyoming. The male figures typify the livestock and mining industries of the state. The number 44 on the five-pointed star signifies that Wyoming was the 44th state admitted to the Union. On top of the pillars rest lamps from which burn the Light of Knowledge. Scrolls encircling the two pillars bear the words, Oil, Mines, Livestock, and Grain, four of Wyoming's major industries.
No mention of the area's original inhabitants, but we'll work on that. The "draped figure" is obviously a woman. The two men flanking the "Equal Rights" figure are a miner and a herder or a cowboy. It celebrates Wyoming's status as the 44th state admitted to The Union. It celebrates knowledge. It celebrates industry, farming and ranching. It celebrates working people.
The miniscule photo above doesn't do it justice, especially when compared to the large state seal that will be the centerpiece of the plaza.
As I talked to Joe and Joe at the Capitol, the Tea Party was holding a rally on the publicly-funded and maintained Capitol grass. The Tea Party doesn't believe in taxes except for war-making. Not sure what they think of the Capitol renovation. This is just the first stage of a major overhaul of the historic structure, inside and out. Tea Partiers maintain that they pay too many taxes. Most of them drove to the rally public roadways, although some may have beamed in from Planet Tea Party. Many of them are Medicare-eligible, judging by their ages, although maybe they are doctrinaire enough to refuse those benefits which they contributed to all their lives. Some Tea Partiers want to revoke the 10th and 14 amendments of the U.S. Constitution. Some even go so far as to advocate secession.
But the part of the state seal that seems to rankle them the most concerns "equal rights." The Tea Party crowd hates those "illegal aliens," such as the ones that Sen. John McCain says started the Arizona wildfires. The Tea Party crowd loves Arizona's racist SB1070 law and wants Wyoming to have one just like it. There was one proposed in the most recent legislature but it went down in flames. HB94, according to the Equality State Policy Center, "would have led to racial profiling, split up Wyoming families with documented and undocumented members, and hamper police by drawing off resources to enforce federal immigration law." The measure was killed in committee. The Legislative Management Council rejected a move to fund an interim study on the immigration issue. Since the Republicans control all legislative business, it is safe to assume that some Republicans take our "Equality State" motto seriously.
That also applies to the same-sex marriage issue. Live-and-let-live Republicans killed HB74 -- the "Validity of Marriages" bill. This happened only after pressure by live-and-let-live Wyomingites, gay and straight.
The next Tea Party rally will probably be on the completed plaza. It's a public space, and publicly-funded at that. Protesters will stand right on the state seal that promotes equal rights and justice for all (A-L-L) and education and the Union and workers and they will promulgate ideas antithetical to those things we hold dear.
Thanks, Joe and Joe and all the Joes and Janes who continue to build Wyoming and make it a great place to live. It takes hard work and eternal vigilance to keep it that way.
But the part of the state seal that seems to rankle them the most concerns "equal rights." The Tea Party crowd hates those "illegal aliens," such as the ones that Sen. John McCain says started the Arizona wildfires. The Tea Party crowd loves Arizona's racist SB1070 law and wants Wyoming to have one just like it. There was one proposed in the most recent legislature but it went down in flames. HB94, according to the Equality State Policy Center, "would have led to racial profiling, split up Wyoming families with documented and undocumented members, and hamper police by drawing off resources to enforce federal immigration law." The measure was killed in committee. The Legislative Management Council rejected a move to fund an interim study on the immigration issue. Since the Republicans control all legislative business, it is safe to assume that some Republicans take our "Equality State" motto seriously.
That also applies to the same-sex marriage issue. Live-and-let-live Republicans killed HB74 -- the "Validity of Marriages" bill. This happened only after pressure by live-and-let-live Wyomingites, gay and straight.
The next Tea Party rally will probably be on the completed plaza. It's a public space, and publicly-funded at that. Protesters will stand right on the state seal that promotes equal rights and justice for all (A-L-L) and education and the Union and workers and they will promulgate ideas antithetical to those things we hold dear.
Thanks, Joe and Joe and all the Joes and Janes who continue to build Wyoming and make it a great place to live. It takes hard work and eternal vigilance to keep it that way.
Women Progressives in Wyoming show their steel
This progressive blogger is off to the Netroots Nation 2011 Conference in June
I’m pleased to announce that I’ve received a scholarship to the Netroots Nation 2011 Conference in Minneapolis. Thanks to all my friends and acquaintances who voted for me. And thanks to Democracy for America. I’ll be hauling myself, my blog and my laptop off to one of the twin cities June 16-19.
I am told that the Minneapolis summer is warmer than Wyoming’s and a bit more humid. I am also told that it doesn’t snow there in June. In Wyoming, you can’t promise that.
As Minnesota Sen. Al Franken said at Netroots National 2010 in Las Vegas: "It's a little bit less glitzy and glamorous than Las Vegas, but it's also a little bit less hot. It's a place with great fishing, beautiful scenery and tons of energetic progressives ready to show Netroots Nation a good time."
"Lots of progressives." Wow. We have a small but mighty contingent of progressives in this state. And we are formulating big plans to push back against the Wyoming red tide. Now -- and in 2012.
As a Red State blogger, I often feel isolated. The conference is an opportunity to trade tips and organizing strategies with other prog-bloggers. I’ve been paying particular attention to Wisconsin bloggers the past few months. Those are some grassroots community organizers who know how to fight a Tea Party governor and his minions who are trying to dismantle 100 years of progress.
On Wisconsin! And, in June, on to Minnesota!
Some Wyoming Democrats wear the cloak of invisibility
Not me.
Go to http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/us/politics/17wyoming.html
Photo of Gillette mural by Steve Remich
Push Brothers! -- great poster for the workplace
Democratic Grassroots Coalition installs new officers April 18 at IBEW Union Hall
Laramie County Democrats Grassroots Coalition meets on Monday, April 18, 7 p.m., at the IBEW Union Hall, 810 Fremont, Cheyenne. Main order of business is the installation of new officers. See you there...
Laramie County Democrats meet to ponder the 2011 legislative session -- and plan for the future
Full house tonight for the monthly meeting of the Laramie County Democrats. We meet on the last Monday of each month at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Union hall in sight of Frontier Refinery. We had to wait awhile for another meeting to adjourn, this one of the refinery's union members. But we didn't mind -- lots of catching up to do with fellow Dems. And time to meet some new people.
One note on unions -- Wyoming is a so-called "Right to Work" state. Another one of those Republicanisms. "Right to Work" means that the corporations tell you if you have the right to work in this state. And what wages they deign to give you. We know from events in Wisconsin, Ohio and Michigan that the Republican Party's primary agenda is to kill unions so that they can tell everyone where, when and how they have the right to work. They want all of us to make the same wages as a factory worker in Indonesia. When we all get paid 15 cents an hour, the conglomerates will move all the jobs back to the U.S.A. And they shall be proclaimed heroes.
Why were people gathered tonight? We are angry. We are shocked that the highs of 2008 have been replaced by the ultra-lows of 2011. The national scene has gone loco. Governors elected with less that 50 percent of the vote are outlawing unions, stripping tenure from your children's teachers, privatizing crucial government services, banning foods stamps to union families during strikes, bringing murder charges against women who get abortions, etc. And that's just some of the crazy laws that have been proposed -- and adopted -- around the U.S.
Wyoming had its share of right-wing crazies in the legislature. We were able to avoid electing a right-wing crazy as Governor -- Ron Micheli of Uinta County -- and did end up with a moderate, Matt Mead. Gov. Mead seemed upset at some of his party's legislative antics, but he also has spouted some of the same anti-Obamacare rhetoric that you see at Tea Party rallies.
What can Dems do when they are only 14 out of 90 legislators?
"We decided to go on defense," said Rep. Jim Byrd at tonight's meeting. "We could tell that the crazies were at the gates."
The crazies are almost too numerous to mention. So were their crazy bills. Even before the session ended, the Casper Star-Tribune summed it up as a total waste of time. A number of the time-wasting Republicans are from Natrona County. Kroeker, Brechtel, Gay. Something nasty in that water up there.
No so-called social issue bills were passed by this legislature. It wasn't for lack of trying. But it wasn't just the Dems who blunted the onslaught. Rep. Ken Esquibel said the House Republicans got split among its factions. Rep. Byrd: "There is a moderate Republican component. We need to support them."
These Repubs have been labeled RINOs (Republican in Name Only) by right-wingers disappointed that the social issue bills didn't pass. At least one letter to the ed in the CST has called for a concerted effort to defeat the RINOs and replace them with more right-thinking members. You will recall that Republican Cale Case publicly opposed the anti-gay marriage bill and Sue Wallis opposed the abortion notification bill. There were others.
But the main thing is to elect more Democrats. That's the goal for 2012. We'll start with Laramie County. You say it can't be done? Well, 3,800 new Democrats registered to vote in 2008. Many of them actually voted. In 2010, they either stayed home or voted Republican. The votes are out there...
One note on unions -- Wyoming is a so-called "Right to Work" state. Another one of those Republicanisms. "Right to Work" means that the corporations tell you if you have the right to work in this state. And what wages they deign to give you. We know from events in Wisconsin, Ohio and Michigan that the Republican Party's primary agenda is to kill unions so that they can tell everyone where, when and how they have the right to work. They want all of us to make the same wages as a factory worker in Indonesia. When we all get paid 15 cents an hour, the conglomerates will move all the jobs back to the U.S.A. And they shall be proclaimed heroes.
Why were people gathered tonight? We are angry. We are shocked that the highs of 2008 have been replaced by the ultra-lows of 2011. The national scene has gone loco. Governors elected with less that 50 percent of the vote are outlawing unions, stripping tenure from your children's teachers, privatizing crucial government services, banning foods stamps to union families during strikes, bringing murder charges against women who get abortions, etc. And that's just some of the crazy laws that have been proposed -- and adopted -- around the U.S.
Wyoming had its share of right-wing crazies in the legislature. We were able to avoid electing a right-wing crazy as Governor -- Ron Micheli of Uinta County -- and did end up with a moderate, Matt Mead. Gov. Mead seemed upset at some of his party's legislative antics, but he also has spouted some of the same anti-Obamacare rhetoric that you see at Tea Party rallies.
What can Dems do when they are only 14 out of 90 legislators?
"We decided to go on defense," said Rep. Jim Byrd at tonight's meeting. "We could tell that the crazies were at the gates."
The crazies are almost too numerous to mention. So were their crazy bills. Even before the session ended, the Casper Star-Tribune summed it up as a total waste of time. A number of the time-wasting Republicans are from Natrona County. Kroeker, Brechtel, Gay. Something nasty in that water up there.
No so-called social issue bills were passed by this legislature. It wasn't for lack of trying. But it wasn't just the Dems who blunted the onslaught. Rep. Ken Esquibel said the House Republicans got split among its factions. Rep. Byrd: "There is a moderate Republican component. We need to support them."
These Repubs have been labeled RINOs (Republican in Name Only) by right-wingers disappointed that the social issue bills didn't pass. At least one letter to the ed in the CST has called for a concerted effort to defeat the RINOs and replace them with more right-thinking members. You will recall that Republican Cale Case publicly opposed the anti-gay marriage bill and Sue Wallis opposed the abortion notification bill. There were others.
But the main thing is to elect more Democrats. That's the goal for 2012. We'll start with Laramie County. You say it can't be done? Well, 3,800 new Democrats registered to vote in 2008. Many of them actually voted. In 2010, they either stayed home or voted Republican. The votes are out there...
Speaking of historic placemaking -- or lack of it
Maine artist Judy Taylor created the labor history mural that Gov. Paul LePage wants to remove the the state labor department building:
UPDATE: ThinkProgress reports that the Governor decided to remove the mural after receiving one anonymous. Later he admitted that it was an anonymous letter and not a fax. One anonymous fax/letter undoes years of hard work and erases a landmark? And why is the governor lying about it?
In the summer of 2007, I responded to a Call to Artists sponsored by the Maine Arts Commission. The call was to create an artwork depicting the " History of Labor in the State of Maine". After a reviewing process, I was selected to do the commission. Along the way, I met some wonderful, and dedicated people. I also got an excellent education in Maine History. Below, is the 11-panel mural that was painted on 4 x 8 sheets of specially prepared MDO board. The panels were applied to adjoining walls in the Dept. of Labor reception area. In total, the mural measures 36 feet in length, and is nearly 8 feet tall.As a public service to artists everywhere, here are the mural panels. Find the descriptions at Judy's web site.
UPDATE: ThinkProgress reports that the Governor decided to remove the mural after receiving one anonymous. Later he admitted that it was an anonymous letter and not a fax. One anonymous fax/letter undoes years of hard work and erases a landmark? And why is the governor lying about it?
Now is the time to be creative about historic placemaking in downtown Cheyenne
The project has kind of a high-and-mighty name: Downtown Cheyenne Historic Placemaking Project. And the goals are not simple:
1. Involve a wide range of people and organizations to bring different perspectives to the table
2. Reach agreement on the major issues and opportunities affecting downtown’s near-term future and means by which to address them
3. Launch new partnerships and initiatives to accelerate downtown revitalization
The first goal is not a tough one. A wide range of people with different perspectives will attend the first meeting March 31 at the Plains (see details below). There are as many visions of downtown as there are weeds on the prairie. Some of those ideas will be as hard to nail down as a tumblin' tumbleweed. Still, it’s important to hear ideas, even if they are: we don’t need no stinkin’ downtown placemaking – and what the hell is placemaking anyway?
Reaching agreement will take time. But what do we have if not time? Downtown Cheyenne has been around for almost 150 years, since those first tents sprang up along the railroad lines in the 1860s. It’s boomed during good times and almost gone bust in bad times. But not even the rampant development along Dell Range killed it. Hurt it, and emptied some of the buildings. But downtown lives on in 2011, with some renewed signs of life:
I urge all of you to get out to this meeting on Thursday, March 31, 5:30-7 p.m. at the Historic Plains Hotel. Doors open at 5:30 and the presentations and brainstorming begins at 6. An hour is not a lot of brainstorming time, but it’s a start.
FMI: 307-637-6251.
1. Involve a wide range of people and organizations to bring different perspectives to the table
2. Reach agreement on the major issues and opportunities affecting downtown’s near-term future and means by which to address them
3. Launch new partnerships and initiatives to accelerate downtown revitalization
The first goal is not a tough one. A wide range of people with different perspectives will attend the first meeting March 31 at the Plains (see details below). There are as many visions of downtown as there are weeds on the prairie. Some of those ideas will be as hard to nail down as a tumblin' tumbleweed. Still, it’s important to hear ideas, even if they are: we don’t need no stinkin’ downtown placemaking – and what the hell is placemaking anyway?
Reaching agreement will take time. But what do we have if not time? Downtown Cheyenne has been around for almost 150 years, since those first tents sprang up along the railroad lines in the 1860s. It’s boomed during good times and almost gone bust in bad times. But not even the rampant development along Dell Range killed it. Hurt it, and emptied some of the buildings. But downtown lives on in 2011, with some renewed signs of life:
- LightsOn! Project at the Hynds Building
- Renovation of the old Greer Furniture Building
- Construction at the old Dinneen car dealership
- Two weekly farmers’ markets, with the Tuesday Market on Yellowstone moving to the Historic Depot Plaza in June (and the winter farmers’ market in the Depot)
- The Third Thursday Art Design & Dine art walk
- Harvey Deselms moving his gallery to the Historic Whipple House
- Renovation of the State Capitol grounds, which will include an expanded plaza for gatherings and protests and just hanging out. The Capitol Building, of course, is downtown’s matching bookend, the renovated Depot being the other. The plaza will be flanked by the statues of Chief Washakie and Esther Hobart Morris, the same statues that represent The Equality State in the U.S. Capitol Statuary Hall in D.C.
- The Great Big Hole on 16th Street/Lincolnway
- Lots of empty buildings and storefronts
- No grocery store
- No comprehensive downtown plan
- Did I mention that Great Big Hole on 16th Street?
I urge all of you to get out to this meeting on Thursday, March 31, 5:30-7 p.m. at the Historic Plains Hotel. Doors open at 5:30 and the presentations and brainstorming begins at 6. An hour is not a lot of brainstorming time, but it’s a start.
FMI: 307-637-6251.
Made in the USA? Good idea 'til greed got in the way
This is a 1983 song by Bob Dylan but it's even more relevant today. It reflects what's happening in Wisconsin and what Republicans are trying to do to all working people in the USA -- bring our wages down to the levels conglomerates pay labor in Indonesia and Latin America:
Union Sundown (excerpt)
Bob Dylan
Well, my shoes, they come from Singapore,
My flashlight's from Taiwan,
My tablecloth's from Malaysia,
My belt buckle's from the Amazon.
You know, this shirt I wear comes from the Philippines
And the car I drive is a Chevrolet,
It was put together down in Argentina
By a guy makin' thirty cents a day
Well, it's sundown on the union
And what's made in the USA
Sure was a good idea
'Til greed got in the way.
From Working Words: Punching the Clock and Kicking Out the Jams, edited by M.L. Liebler and published by Coffee House Press.
Union Sundown (excerpt)
Bob Dylan
Well, my shoes, they come from Singapore,
My flashlight's from Taiwan,
My tablecloth's from Malaysia,
My belt buckle's from the Amazon.
You know, this shirt I wear comes from the Philippines
And the car I drive is a Chevrolet,
It was put together down in Argentina
By a guy makin' thirty cents a day
Well, it's sundown on the union
And what's made in the USA
Sure was a good idea
'Til greed got in the way.
From Working Words: Punching the Clock and Kicking Out the Jams, edited by M.L. Liebler and published by Coffee House Press.
Ashes to ashes -- now take the bastards down!
So Ash Wednesday was yesterday. This marks the beginning of Lent. I wore ashes on my forehead for most of my life. I miss them, but I can no longer stomach the Catholic Church and its bigotry against the LGBT community and women. And hypocrisy on child sex abuse by priests. I do like the Pope's cool shoes.
As Lent begins, I also think of St. Patrick's Day and the holiday's importance in our Irish-Catholic family. Many of those memories involve drinking and toasts to The Old Sod where I've never been and to where my Irish grandfather never wanted to return. It'd odd to be nostalgic for a place I haven't visited. But it's in my blood and I grew up with the stories. I credit some of my storytelling and writing skills to DNA and a certain spirit that travels down the generations. My parents, both terrific readers, get a lot of the credit. So do the nuns and priests and public school teachers who educated this lad.
Irish have a creative side, a drinking side, a dark side, a feisty side. I was thinking of that when I watched this Dropkick Murphys song as accompaniment to videos of the worker protests in Madison, WI. "Take the bastards down." Has a good ring, don't you think? As a public service to me and my readers, I'm going to track down the origins of this song. The Murphs are known for their ass-kicking shows. Maybe this is an original. Maybe an old union song. I will let you know. Meanwhile, here's the vid:
UPDATE: Here's a post from the Dropkick Murphys web site (with cool T-shirt):
As Lent begins, I also think of St. Patrick's Day and the holiday's importance in our Irish-Catholic family. Many of those memories involve drinking and toasts to The Old Sod where I've never been and to where my Irish grandfather never wanted to return. It'd odd to be nostalgic for a place I haven't visited. But it's in my blood and I grew up with the stories. I credit some of my storytelling and writing skills to DNA and a certain spirit that travels down the generations. My parents, both terrific readers, get a lot of the credit. So do the nuns and priests and public school teachers who educated this lad.
Irish have a creative side, a drinking side, a dark side, a feisty side. I was thinking of that when I watched this Dropkick Murphys song as accompaniment to videos of the worker protests in Madison, WI. "Take the bastards down." Has a good ring, don't you think? As a public service to me and my readers, I'm going to track down the origins of this song. The Murphs are known for their ass-kicking shows. Maybe this is an original. Maybe an old union song. I will let you know. Meanwhile, here's the vid:
UPDATE: Here's a post from the Dropkick Murphys web site (with cool T-shirt):
Hey Everyone -- the Dropkick Murphys would like to take a moment to acknowledge the struggles of the working people of Wisconsin and to pledge our support and solidarity by releasing the song “Take Em Down” from our upcoming album. We think it’s appropriate at the moment and hope you like it.
We have also created a limited edition “Take ‘Em Down” t-shirt which will be available for sale shortly at www.dropkickmurphys.com/merch. Proceeds from the “Take ‘Em Down” t-shirt sales will benefit Workers’ Rights Emergency Response Fund (https://afl.salsalabs.com/o/4002/wi-response).
4&20 blackbirds: "The Tale of Two Rallies" in Montana
I've been missing a lot of good stuff happening in Montana because I haven't been visiting 4&20 blackbirds. But here's a great post by jhwygirl, former WY resident (she still occasionally sneaks over the border) and now a spur under the saddle of Montana knuckleheads.
Read her latest post at http://4and20blackbirds.wordpress.com/2011/03/05/if-it-isnt-clear-now-who-the-legislature-should-be-listening-to-it-should-be-still-more-national-attention/
With a great graphic:
Read her latest post at http://4and20blackbirds.wordpress.com/2011/03/05/if-it-isnt-clear-now-who-the-legislature-should-be-listening-to-it-should-be-still-more-national-attention/
With a great graphic:
Imagine a protest with imaginative signs
Wisconsin Department of Administration Secretary, on behalf of Gov. Walker, told a Madison judge Tuesday that the display of "angry, disdainful signs" was one reason that protesters should be denied access to the State Capitol.
Mean signs? Really? Should we pull up the Tea Party photo album?
No need - - as Wednesday the US Supreme Court ruled 8-1 that truly angry, disdainful signs displayed weirdly and offensively by anti-gay protesters at US military soldiers' funerals is legally protected free speech under the US Constitution.
Huebsch picked the wrong day to complain about signs.
Another miscalculation by the Walker Gang, and for now, the Capitol remains open - - though Huebsch and Co., in slowing down the flow of people through the doors, seem to playing fast and loose with the word "open."
Forget the MSM -- Russia Today covers Wisconsin
Remember when Pres. Reagan called the Soviet Union "The Evil Empire?" I do. This clip comes from "Russia Today" and takes a look at another Evil Empire -- Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and his union-busting tactics. Link courtesy of our our fine friends at the Solidarity Wisconsin blog -- and others in the Wisconsin Progressive Bloggers Corps (and not the MSM).
Russia Today covers Wisconsin | Solidarity Wisconsin
Russia Today covers Wisconsin | Solidarity Wisconsin
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