Wisconsin Update (March 11/11)

Mike Elk, who along with Mother Jones has been providing great coverage of events in Wisconsin, has some details on the 'Move Your Money' campaign.

M&I Bank is the largest bank in Wisconsin, and was the recipient of $1.7 billion in TARP bailout money from the federal government. The bundled contributions from M&I executives were Walker’s second largest source of campaign funds. According to records provided by the Sunlight Foundation, executives at M&I Bank gave $46,308 to Walker’s campaign. And now, a group of local unions in Wisconsin have threatened to pull their money from M&I Bank unless it denounces Scott Walker’s attack on workers’ rights.

“Walker and his henchmen in the GOP have chosen to ignore the people of Wisconsin, but we all know now that they will listen to their big money donors,” says factory worker David Goodspeed, union member of Sheet Metal Workers Local Union 565."This is an opportunity for donors like M&I to be good corporate citizens and do what’s right for the citizens who bailed them out.”

Firefighters said they withdrew $182,000 (or $192,000 -- number varies) from the bank yesterday and are encouraging others to do the same.

When I blogged on this yesterday, I was wrong. The Bank of Montreal doesn't own M&I yet.

A senior union researcher estimates that unions have at least $1 billion invested in M&I Bank, mostly through pension funds. Discussions are going on at the highest levels of the labor movement about how exactly to leverage this financial clout in the political debate in Wisconsin. Since the Bank of Montreal is in process of purchasing M&I Bank, US unions have reached out to the Canadian Labour Congress to urge their involvement in a disinvestment campaign.

Some photos of the demonstration outside the bank here.

Scott Wanker signed the illegally passed union-busting bill this morning in private, but will hold a public ceremonial signing this afternoon, I guess, to rub salt in the wounds of working people.

Having lost this battle, activists are now concentrating on recalling ReThug senators.

The process isn't easy and only two pols have been successfully recalled in state history. There's a formula for how many signatures required depending on the last vote.

Signature gathering is a laborious and costly process that challenges even the best organizations. And, you can be assured that Republicans will try to disqualify as many of the petition signers as possible -- meaning that recall advocates will need well in excess of 15,000 [for each pol] just to be safe.

But, Democrats insist they are well on their way -- having already collected 15 percent of the signatures they needed over the weekend. Liberal groups say that have raised close to $2 million dollars in support.

There's an online poll there at WaPo and currently 71% think the recall will succeed.

Meanwhile, in case anyone still had a lingering doubt about what this bill is really meant to do, a dim-witted ReThug spilled the beans on live telly.

In an interview with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly moments ago, State Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI), one of Walker’s closest allies in the legislature, confirmed the true political motive of Walker’s anti-union push.

Here's what the ijit said (video at the link):

FITZGERALD: Well if they flip the state senate, which is obviously their goal with eight recalls going on right now, they can take control of the labor unions. If we win this battle, and the money is not there under the auspices of the unions, certainly what you’re going to find is President Obama is going to have a much difficult, much more difficult time getting elected and winning the state of Wisconsin.

It's a two-fer! Reduce the power of unions for your political masters AND your corporate masters. Win-win.

Stay tuned. Tomorrow, another rally will be held. And the farmers are coming! On their tractors! They're calling it Tractorcade.

The hardy tweeps of Wisconsin are joking about the weather forecast for tomorrow. It's going to be warm! 40 degrees F! That's about 4.5 in celsius.

Tractorcade is slated to start at 11 a.m. (Central). I'll look for and post a live feed. The main rally is later but I don't want to miss the farmers.

Organizers are hoping for the biggest rally yet -- at least 100,000 people.

Wisconsin: A Canadian Connection

Well, well, well. That evil bank, M&I, that was Scott Walker's second-biggest donor and is today the target of mass withdrawals started by firefighters is owned by the Bank of Montreal.

Anybody with a BeeMo account feeling solidarity with Wisconsin workers?


(Sadly, I bank elsewhere.)

*La bouche en cul de poule*

"Chicken butt mouth" is the loose translation for a term which means, en français, the grimace made by someone pinching their lips. This explains the hideous face depicted above.

Stevie Spiteful wears it well, don't you think?

Wisconsin Update (March 10/11)

Apparently M & I Bank is a big supporter of Scott Walker. The firefighters just marched to the Capitol again. Guy got on what they're calling the 'People's Mike' and said that they'd made a short stop on the way. They stopped at the bank and withdrew $182,000.

Bank run!

It Has Arrived

'When fascism comes to America, it will come wrapped in the flag and waving a cross.'

And creating emergencies that have to be fixed by draconian measures.

Last night, ReThugs in Wisconsin and Michigan stole democracy. In what is a doubtlessly illegal move, the Wisconsin 'Budget Repair Bill' that guts union powers was stripped of spending issues -- though it wasn't really -- to make it passable without a quorum. In other words, passable despite the fact that all 14 Democratic Senators are out of state to prevent just this.

And then it was passed.

One Republican voted against it.

In the video posted by Buckdog you can hear protesters shouting 'Shame' in the background.

Remember that the unions had already made all the financial concessions called for in the bill. But they wouldn't agree to having their rights fucked with.

Scott Walker, elected governor by 52% of voters, kept saying that the the bill was all about the budget. The people kept saying it was all about union-busting.

Unions called for an emergency rally this morning. The #WIUnion twitter tag is rolling like mad but it's clear that protesters are at the Capitol again. Locked out. State troopers are guarding the doors and riot gear has arrived.

Just now, people are tweeting that cops are dragging out the protesters who managed to get into the assembly area.

You think that's bad?

Over in Michigan -- Michigan for chrissake -- there is practically no opposition to the ReThugs and looky what they passed yesterday.

A day after facing hundreds of rowdy, pro-union protesters that filled the state Capitol, the Senate voted on Wednesday to grant broad new powers to emergency managers who oversee financially struggling cities and schools, including the authority to void union contracts and remove elected officials.

Got that? Remove elected officials.

And just for extra ReThug frothy fun, there are also new taxes on the poor and elderly. And, of course, it strips unions of collective bargaining rights.

Michael Moore was on the Rachel Maddow Show last night.

Watch.

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

This is how it starts, folks.

ADDED: Good summary from the Guardian.

Clever, Well-Made Attack Ad

Using Stevie Spiteful's own words against him.

What would Steve 2004 say about Steve 2011?

Watch.



Let's make it go viral.

Grievous bodily harm.

What do Robert Pickton, Fernando Manuel Alves, Daniel Katsnelson, Justin Fuminori Onzuka and Russell Williams as well as, allegedly Amitabh Chauhan and Suganthan Kayilasanathan, have in common?

They are predators and takers. They drugged women, they sexually assaulted them when they were unconscious, they preyed upon them by isolating them from other people and they exploited their vulnerabilities.

Consent is not a concept they understand or choose to negotiate with a potential sexual partner. These assailants select and use women who are unable to stop them or they take whatever means necessary to ensure they get what they want.

Three of the men mentioned are also physicians though Onzuka lost his license to practice medicine in Ontario.

Amitabh Chauhan and Suganthan Kayilasanathan have taken impressive means to dodge criminal charges laid against them. Nonetheless, the Toronto police suspect these alleged predators have done this before; this case has been publicized widely to encourage other women to report similar assaults.

Robert Pickton believed the women he drugged, sexually assaulted and in many instances also murdered and dismembered were "immoral, impure or greedy". He took what he wanted from them and he justified his crimes with selected passages from the Bible.

Though the men named may be sociopaths, their shared proclivity for sexual torture and terrorism is reinforced by a prevalent rape culture - which includes misogynist p0rn0graphy that dehumanizes women and children.

From here:

Fortunately, not all men are prone to abuse, violate, brutalize, and/or murder female family members, intimate partners, spouses, neighbours, work colleagues, parishioners, clients or acquaintances. Unfortunately, the minority of men who engage in these actions are recidivists and their level of violence tends to escalate if they're not stopped by their peers or the criminal justice system.

Unless systemic efforts are made to identify the reasons why violent misogyny rules some men and concerted strategies are taken to prevent its development in boys, incidents like this will increase.

The affidavit said the assault started after a 19-year-old boy invited the [11-year-old] victim to ride around in his car. He took her to a house [...] where one of the other men charged, also 19, lived. There the girl was ordered to disrobe and was sexually assaulted by several boys in the bedroom and bathroom. She was told she would be beaten if she did not comply, the affidavit said.

A relative of one of the suspects arrived, and the group fled through a back window. They then went to the abandoned mobile home, where the assaults continued. Some of those present recorded the sexual acts on their telephones, and these later were shown among students.

Residents in the neighborhood where the abandoned trailer stands [...] said the victim had been visiting various friends there for months. They said she dressed older than her age, wearing makeup and fashions more appropriate to a woman in her 20s. She would hang out with teenage boys at a playground, some said.

“Where was her mother? What was her mother thinking?” said Ms. Harrison, one of a handful of neighbors who would speak on the record.

More relevant would be to question the parents of those boys who allegedly detained and repeatedly sexually violated this girl. Sadly, were the victim an 11-year old boy, it's unlikely members of the community would so easily absolve the assailants of responsibility for their actions.

As with pedophile priests, rape culture facilitates a knee-jerk response that shames / blames girls and women for the violence done to them.

Raymond Gravel & BBW

Who would have guessed that SUZYALLCAPS was into schadenfreude?

Here's the difference between Father Raymond Gravel & Blob Blogging Wingnut. SHE gloats, scolds and whines. Were the situation reversed and SHE had initiated a civil suit against an ideologically-bound, fundamentalist religious online publication, Father Gravel would not be writing that it was HER fault, that SHE deserved to be calumnized.

From here:

Fr. Rosica of Salt + Light TV felt the fury of LifeSiteNews in 2009 when he spoke out in defence of the Church’s decision to celebrate a funeral mass for Edward Kennedy, despite the senator’s record of supporting abortion rights. [...]

“At best, the activity of LifeSite is a form of unthinking activism akin to a shooting gallery. Now and then they hit a target,” he said. “More often, however, they leave a vast trail of collateral damage, character assassination and destruction of reputations of good people, including Cardinals, Bishops, priests, religious and community leaders.”

Fr. Rosica said he is no fan of Fr. Gravel and disagrees strongly with his political activism and activity. But he still seriously questions LifeSite’s treatment of the priest. “No matter how ambiguous, deplorable, scandalous and improper Fr. Raymond Gravel’s behavior is purported to have been in Quebec and in Canada, he remains a human being, and a Roman Catholic priest who has helped many people with their personal difficulties and crises. He has brought people to Christ,” he said [...]

It's evident in everything Fr. Gravel says and does that he follows the teachings of Jesus, that he does not stand in for God and jury and that he doesn't shove judgemental crap down people's throat as SHE does.

Raymond Gravel believes in rights, justice and dignity - and he extends that support to many members of society, as shown in the video posted below. He even expressed empathy towards catholic bishops who chose Canon law, ecclesiastical imperatives and the Vatican's interests over the lives of girls and boys sexually violated by pedophile priests.

Blob Blogging Wingnut believes in religious authoritarian orthodoxy.

Obligatory IWD Post

'Euphoria is not victory.'
-- From an article by Robert Freeman I plan to blog on later.

Today in Tahrir Square in Cairo, fifty* women rallied for women's rights on International Women's Day. I followed pakinamamer and Egyptocracy, women who were there.

They report that they were shouted at, groped, and intimidated. By ordinary Egyptian men.

They left, telling women on their way into the square to forget it.

Egyptocracy said:

Women of #Egypt, we have a long way to go.

She was echoed by anameenana:

Sexism and inequality sadly remain wide spread in #Egypt #Jan25 can NEVER be a success if women remained 2nd class citizens

My feelings on IWD align pretty well with Antonia Z's.

Sorry, but I can't get it up for International Women's Day.

And the Voice on CBC's The Current, who this morning said something like: 'It's International Women's Day. To politicians, cue the empty rhetoric.'

Fuck IWD.

(Ha. Just came here to post this and saw that my virtual roomie and I agree. Again.)

*CORRECTION: Tweeps are now saying the number was around 200.