Your 6/1/19 cover illustration of gerrymandering Republican rats carving up the Wisconsin cheese their own delicious way concisely spells out nearly everything need known about prevailing vice-gripped GOP politics in the state since the Scott Walker garbage barge crashed into Madison in 2010. But, as David Daley points up [in “Democrats Just Blew It In Wisconsin: Elections Are likely to Stay Rigged In Favor of GOP”], a Democratic Party complacency also ran with the pack of noxious vectors currently gnawing their way through the fabric of political fair play in many US localities, and helped leave an especially frayed civic picture here.
There’s little debate that Dems. have ceded too much state and local political organizing to malign sharpies like the Kochs, but it’s just as true that Democrats are getting both outsmarted and outplayed head-to-head, true in Wisconsin particularly.
Well-meaning Walker challengers hailing from down-state Democratic strongholds had a diluted appeal beyond those precincts, with the party hamstrung by a fairly weak candidate bench to draw on from the hinterlands, and known Dem. Congressional commodities apparently didn’t want to take the pay cut or flat-out feared the well-oiled Walker machine, with very good reason.
In Wisconsin’s critical state judge race Daley spotlights, the liberal challenger might have hewed to a tone better fitting a non-partisan judicial post and squeaked by with breathing room, but couldn’t help take the TV ad bait offered up by an anti-choice, anti-gay opponent, which mostly just served to arouse culture-warrior sleeping dogs, and this eminently winnable election was dropped by less than a percentage point.
Wisconsin has always had its share of hard-bitten GOP operatives and the constituencies that loved them, but these were largely contained and moderated by majorities of cooler heads, and a general civility prevailed for many years. You could point a finger at Reagan revolutions, George W., the Kochs, and ultimately the intractable Walker for battering and reconfiguring that consensus, but without question, a Democratic complacency enabled the wave of marauding hardliners bent on harshing that Badger mellow.
But as signally important ground was finally gained with the election of Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, it’s hard to figure how the super-wired-in, progressive-leaning Millennial/Z generations that jelled to knock Scott Walker out of the box weren’t more savvy to that next-up, crucial state Supreme Court race, taking just a few moments from school, multiple jobs, childcare and five-hour sleep to cast a vote that would clearly count just as much in their lives; a self-explaining paradox for sure, but only to an extent.
To that point, Daley concludes that showing-up is everything, and until Democrats get really good at all-caps bookmarking of critical election dates with a succinct, compelling story of what’s at stake for their most potent voting bloc, they will continue to get out-flanked by a mercenary GOP, with or without their crafty line-drawing machinations.
As they shored-up their Walker-era gains (both legislatures/bashed unions) by virtue of the solid judge majority they clawed out this Spring, it must be noted this border-to-border contest was by-definition unburdened by any GOP gerrymandered electoral table-tilting. — No excuses, guys.
MIKE WETTSTEIN Jr., Appleton, Wis.
I always look forward to finding the latest TPP in my mailbox, and the 5/15/19 issue was among the best. Dolores Cullen’s illustrations are always spot-on.
Several columns about plans for Medicare for All, or some, or most, appeared. It’s unfortunate that they still involve insurance and pharma “markets” that fluctuate at will. Americans have had the evils of “socialized medicine” drilled into us for way too long. It’s not “un-American” to fund a national health care program, even if the 1% have to kick in their share. What’s un-American is that our government seems to run on political infighting and back-room deals and outright lies.
In response to Margot Ford McMillen’s “Kick a Bully If It’s Monsanto,” I’d like to offer a few words in defense of Roundup. Used carefully, Roundup can be a life saver for people with allergies to specific plants — I use it on poison oak. It’s potent stuff that should never be sprayed indiscriminately around food crops, animals or people. Instructions and precautions are clearly spelled out in the label booklet in both English and Spanish.
Sadly, too much of our present agricultural system has become built around this product. Crop seeds are genetically modified to resist it, but the weeds win out anyway; that’s why they’re called weeds. We need to return to using robust seeds and sensible rotation methods for crops that can resist weeds, not weed killers.
BETTER CROWDER, Honeydew, Calif.
I read Ed Rampell’s movie review of “Knock Down the House” [6/1/19 TPP] that was titled “Queen Lears: Four Feisty Female Insurgents …” “Queen Lears” is a cute title, but c’mon, “Queen” of what? It doesn’t make sense. A reference to King Lear? You can’t seem to resist the temptation of using a clever turn of phrase or reference with no substance behind it. Also, the alliteration doesn’t work either: 3 Fs and an insurgent. It sounds like something out of reactionary pseudo-intellectual discourse. The supercilious tone is consistent throughout the review.
Just as bad, or worse, is the content. Rampell’s main point is that the film does not address itself to the tensions between being a member of Democratic Socialists of America, like Alexandria Ocasio Cortez — and running a political campaign as a Democrat. Agreed, that’s an important point, but it was not the focus of the film. To cover that issue reflectively in a way that would avoid stereotypes and misconceptions would be the subject of another work. Rachel Lears’ and Robin Blotnick’s intentions were not to make their viewers think about what it means to be a socialist in these times, but to expose, to witness, the concerted efforts of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people moving the electoral process — what’s left of it — painstakingly and admirably toward equality and fairness against powerful forces of money and power, including the money and power of the Democratic Party.
Ed Rampell does not talk about the national impact “Knock Down the House” has had on the US film viewing public. The film made it to Netflix, for Christ’s sake, a success worth noting. And from what I understand, through the not always reliable world wide web, another film is in the works about the Green New Deal. The “left,” whatever that is these days, would do well to celebrate such efforts: the youth, energy, conviction, and the technical-aesthetic skill that went into the making of that film. In the days of Trump and international threats of authoritarian electoral victories, environmental genocide, and world nuclear annihilation what we need is a twenty-first-century popular front, a world alliance of everyone who still believes in democracy and equality. And thanks to media messages sent to us every day, such efforts are barely visible. Lears and Blotnick are countering that, and we need to acknowledge their (and our) success.
MICHAEL UGARTE, Columbia, Mo.
A suggested definition for a new American dictionary noun entry: “a Trump,” meaning an intentional falsehood, frequently often-repeated by a powerful but compromised official, and intended to confuse, deceive and brainwash the public. Unfortunately, Donald Trump’s ongoing and overriding propensity to lie on an epic scale merits an official introduction of “a Trump” into the English language.
Our current president, according to an objective count since he assumed office in January 2017 — and more significantly, by subjective exposure to his public comments — as of May 2019 had totaled well over 10,000 “Trumps” and significant exaggerations. For the past two years, to avoid possible brain damage from Trump chaos, I hit the mute button when Trump speaks on TV, and ignore his tweets.
In my opinion, the question now for America is, “When is enough, enough?” Simple civility, compassion, rationality, competence and respect for the rule of law — all are at stake these days. America must never again repeat the Trump experience.
More importantly, with presidential primaries and the general election in 2020, how could I possibly vote for a chaotic, indifferent, cruel individual I would not even trust to care for my pets, much less watch my great-grandchildren, much less govern America — the “shining city on the hill” and beacon of hope for all mankind. Trump is Murphy’s Law for America writ large.
PAT V. POWERS, Utopia, Texas
You know, I’m writing this on Memorial Day and it really makes me sick to my stomach to listen to our draft-dodging president talk about honor, duty and service to our country when he never had the balls to serve our country in any capacity except to take advantage of it to enrich himself financially!
MIKE EKLUND, Mercer, Wis.
While it may be that Ralph Nader has earned the right to nag those of us who are “contented” [“The Contented Classes – When Will They Rebel?” 6/15/19 TPP], things have changed a bit since he did his ground breaking advocacy. Here in West Virginia, for example, we have programs for prevention of: obesity, stop sign running, teen pregnancy, diabetes, suicide, black lung, drug overdosing, tobacco, and illiteracy, and no doubt a bunch more that don’t come readily to mind. We get substantially more federal dollars than we send to D.C. And yet, the support for DJT (“down with socialism!”) is higher here than in any other state.
On a personal level I (a retired professor) have tried to teach adult literacy and only one of my four students persevered and his chances of improvement are very low. Phooey.
Furthermore it is becoming more difficult to identify real victims. Here again in WV, we have a considerable amount of addiction and many consider addicts — recovering or not — as victims. OK, but we also have a rising number of damaged crack babies along with a diminishing number of foster homes. Surely, prevention of this very, very unfortunate situation will have to involve forceful efforts to change the behavior of addiction “victims.” I mean I get it that we should not “blame the victims” but ... what are we going to do?
If memory serves, a majority of white women voted for DJT (by an admittedly tiny margin). Since it is hardly possible to imagine a more sexist person, I doubt if I am alone in asking myself if feminism is worthy of continued support.
Right now I may advocate for some amelioration of likely climate disaster. But as far as any other usual progressive concern, if I do get an urge I may just pour myself a rum & Coke and put on a Jimmy Buffet record.
JOHN D. PALMER, Huntington W.V.
As we struggle with daily and individual problems, we still find the hidden strength to work to correct world concerns and injustices.
Animals, oceans, Earth and atmosphere are in grave danger — serious and deadly. While we try to question, learn, correct or give, it often takes a town, and mine is another to abolish “Columbus Day.”
We look forward to celebrating Indigenous People’s Day on Oct. 14, 2019.
To all the people and towns who work to make this happen — Tubutne.
That’s “thank you” in the Algonkian language.
FLORA ORMSBY SMITH, Marblehead, Mass.
From The Progressive Populist, July 1-15, 2019
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