Courts, Elections
Move along, nothing to see here
MADISON, Wis. — In response to calls from the family of the victims of sexual assault who Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce outed in a $1 million ad campaign for Michael Screnock, WMC has taken down the list of its board of directors from its website.
“The family of the children who were victims of sexual assault who WMC outed demanded WMC’s ad come down and in response WMC took down the names of its board of directors,” said Scot Ross, One Wisconsin Now Executive Director. “This shows that in their desperation to try and win an election WMC knows it did something hideous and now they are trying to hide.”
Via WMC Takes Down Board of Directors Page | One Wisconsin Now.
Elections, Schools
School referenda on the ballot
We’ll see if this trend of large amounts of school referenda in recent years starts to fade with both the aid increases, and because of a provision in the state budget that limits schools to 2 referendum questions a year, and limits the dates those referenda can take place. But the continued large amount of referenda (66 questions on Tuesday) shows that one pre-election bump by the Governor hasn’t come close to filling in the gaps of 6 prior years of state cuts to K-12 education and limits on property taxes to make up the difference.
Via Jake’s Wisconsin Funhouse: The other big item on tomorrow’s ballot- school referenda.
Elections, Law, Sen. Fitzgerald
Not his only ‘weird sense’
I find no issue with trying to avoid disenfranchising voters. And certainly the logistics in these cases is always problematic but Wisconsin has done hundreds of these special elections over the years under very similar circumstances. I read somewhere else that there might be about 100 such voters who may be affected. But there was never any concern shown or voiced for the tens of thousands of voters disenfranchised by NOT holding the special elections…all of those Wisconsin residents who live in the affected districts. Those residents who don’t have representation.
Via Scott Fitzgerald’s Weird Sense of Voter Disenfranchisement! | Blogging Blue.
Assault Awareness & Prevention, Congress, Misconduct, Negligence
Calls It Quits
“I have determined that it is in the best interest of my constituents and my family to end my time in Congress at the end of this year and not seek re-election,” she said in a Facebook post. “Too many women have been harmed by harassment in the workplace. In the terrible situation in my office, I could have and should have done better.”
Via Congresswoman Esty Leaving Elected Office | CAFFEINATED POLITICS
Music, Politics
On Ted Nugent
Elections, UW Madison
On-Campus @ UW-Madison
On-campus voting places will be open for the election on Tuesday, April 3, and resources will be available for students to register to vote.
Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. On-campus polling places include Memorial Union, Red Gym Memorial Library and Eagle Heights Community Center. To find out where to vote, go to https://myvote.wi.gov/en-us/FindMyPollingPlace.
Via Students can vote, register at on-campus polling places in April 3 election.
Environment, Foxconn, Water
Thirst
Just to give an approximation for the purposes of visualization: A gallon of water weighs 8.36 pounds and a typical semi-tanker can hold about 6000 gallons of water legal weight for transport.
So after doing the math for 7 million gallons per day that would mean the equivalent of looking at over 1,100 semi tankers of water. Of course they’re not trucking it but it gives you an idea to visualize the magnitude. Every day.
As an example, if you went to park 1,100 semi tankers end to end they would stretch for over 14 miles. Looked at another way, if you jammed them all together with no space between them in the most compact parking area you would need a lot that is almost 4 miles by 4 miles or almost 16 square miles.
Uncategorized
Other States Weigh In
Officials from New York and Illinois, the two Great Lakes states that did not compete for the plant, questioned aspects of the deal during the proposal’s comment period, which concluded earlier this month.
A letter from New York’s Department of Environmental Conservation quoted the compact’s requirement that water diverted to nearby communities largely serve residential customers.
“Here, it is unclear that the proposed diversion is largely for residential customers,” the letter said. “The water is intended to facilitate the construction and operation of the future industrial site.”
New York also questioned whether Wisconsin could unilaterally approve the deal, saying the compact’s general prohibition of new diversions “favors and potentially mandates” review by the other states bordering the lakes.
A letter from the Illinois Attorney General’s Office said the utilities involved in the project haven’t made clear how they would treat wastewater from the Foxconn plant before ultimately releasing it back into Lake Michigan. They argue that Racine should not be able to exceed the amounts defined in its current permit for returning wastewater to the lake.
Courts, Elections
Screnock v. Dallett
When it comes to figuring out what the electorate may look like for Tuesday’s Supreme Court election in Wisconsin, I think it’s instructive to look at three different sets of Wisconsin electorates.
1. The primary election in February.
2. The April election in 2017 – where Tony Evers easily won the School Superintendent race with a Dem-leaning electorate, and then contrast with the 2013 April election where now-Chief Justice Pat Roggensack cruised to a win with a GOP-leaning electorate. April 2016 is a bad example because of the much higher turnout due to contested presidential primaryies going on for both parties.
3. The November elections of 2016 and 2014, to give an idea of the difference between a November electorate and an April.
Via Jake’s Wisconsin Funhouse: What to look for in turnout for Tuesday’s SCOWIS election
Local Government, Madison
City of Madison Meetings
Holy (whatever), this is one huge mess this week. There are 4 meetings in legistar without agendas, 2 committees show up in legistar and aren’t on the weekly schedule and of the meetings that are scheduled 5 are in the middle of the day. No meeting on Tuesday for the election. Don’t forget to vote!
Seasons
Spring gets all the best press…
Spring, oh I love you, Spring! Nature’s rebirth is our seasonal blessing! What joy to see your greenery once again! What happiness to breathe your fragrance once again! What contentment to hear your birds in the morning once again! What reassurance to feel your soft turf under our weary feet! Our senses come alive and we drink you in in big gulps of gratitude. For Spring is the season of hope and the season of promise. And I love it because it restores my soul through its resilient persistence. It always shows up.
Via In Spring, Everything Is Full of Promise – Empath Lights
Books, Food
Book Review: Food Sanity
It’s amazing how many different diets–including Paleo, Atkins, Mediterranean and Keto–we have at our disposal. I myself have tried Tim Ferriss’ slow-carb diet, though I’m familiar with others. One thing is clear: there’s not a lot of consistency in terms of what you may or may not eat from one diet to another.
Leave it to a chiropractor to figure it out.
In Dr. David Friedman’s recently published book, Food Sanity: How to Eat in a World of Fads and Fiction ($19.99, Turner Publishing), which I accepted an offer to review, he pores over unbiased research to debunk myths and create a definitive list of what foods to eat and what foods to avoid.
Elections, Gov. Walker, State Journal
A little help from his friends
On March 24, two days after Dane County Judge Josann Reynolds, (Branch two), ordered Scott Walker to call two special elections, and one day after Republicans vowed to enact legislation blocking the judicial order, the Wisconsin State Journal ran a banner, 3/4-inch headline reading “State GOP seeks swift action” in its print edition.
This March 24 headline misleads readers with the undefined “seeks swift action,” omitting the fact state Republicans scrambled to continue to block elections, (as the news piece reports).
Uncategorized
But haven’t you imagined this, at least once?
Music
Take On Me
Faith, Holiday
Happy Easter 2018
Empathy
Hope for Ourselves
To be whole, you have to have hope for yourself. To be whole, you have to face the truth of your past and your present. And this kind of clarity is hard and sometimes scary, and it often comes at a tipping point. When we can’t not do it anymore, then we face it. And I know that empaths are so brave for others. We need to be brave for ourselves. To do what it takes to stitch up that wound. (We know that scar tissue is stronger than skin. We will be stronger too.)
Food, Madison
Blue Agave
Blue Agave opened late last year in the former home of the Bayou, bringing yet another Mexican option to downtown. I’ll probably return for happy hour when the drinks aren’t overpriced and to get more of the delicious guacamole.Similar to the Bayou, Blue Agave turns into a dance club after dinner, featuring Latin music.The menu has the expected chicken dishes, burritos, fajitas, chimichangas and tacos. The entrees here are big and filling.
Gambling, Lottery
Long odds
Since 2009, Khalil Audi of Cudahy, Wisconsin, has cashed in lottery tickets 33 times to the tune of about $80,000.
His $10,000 win from Badger Cash Blowout? A one-in-72,000 chance. When he bought a $30 Super Millions scratch-off ticket, he had a one-in-200,000 shot of winning $5,000 — the same odds as giving birth to conjoined twins.
But that ticket cashed, too.
With wins as recent as 2017, Audi’s luck has not run out. Along the way, he has won Pick 4 a handful of times. Audi’s wins are surprising, but he is not even the luckiest person in Wisconsin.
According to Wisconsin Lottery data obtained by Gaming the Lottery, an international investigation into the global lottery industry, the state’s most frequent winner was Annie Mason of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Mason bought tickets worth $600 or more 65 times since 2000, for total winnings of $466,780. She hung up twice when contacted by a reporter.
Via Some people repeatedly win the Wisconsin Lottery. Do they play fair? | WisconsinWatch.org