For most of us, the last couple weeks' protests here in Madison have been very positive; at times exhilarating and even fun. That phase is ending now. What appears likely to come next is a GOP-caused Civil War from which my state will never recover.
As we all know, Scott Walker's attempt to destroy public workers' unions launched the massive protests here that the whole world has been watching for the last couple weeks. Those who didn't already know it learned yesterday that what Walker and his Republican allies are about is far, far more evil, destructive and divisive than mere union busting.
The 2011-13 budget that Walker introduced yesterday guts Wisconsin's public education system. It would decimate many health care and environmental programs. To make a long, horrific story very short, it will create a Wisconsin that those of us who have spent most or all of our lives here will not recognize. If you're interested in more of the particulars, you might start by checking here, here or here.
The protests will now be joined by many who have not particularly cared about the fate of public sector workers. If you'll pardon a mixed-species metaphor, those whose oxes had not been gored by Walker's "repair" bill will now see graphically that they DO have a dog (the whole damn kennel, actually) in this fight.
As outrage over Walker's and the Republicans' efforts to destroy Wisconsin spreads and grows, it is highly unlikely that protesters will remain as scrupulously tolerant and civil as has been the case so far. We Badgers tend to be an unusually neighborly lot, but what Walker and his party are attempting might have made even Mr. Rogers want to kick ass.
Meanwhile, the state's hard-core Republicans are going to get angrier and meaner with each passing day. After all, it's their "right" to do whatever they'd like to Wisconsin. Voters have given them total control over the state: governor, both houses of the legislature, AG's office, and a one-vote majority on the state supreme court (though that could swing the other way with next month's election).
In taking the draconian actions that they have, Wisconsin's Republicans have created the beginnings of a Civil War in this state. Hyperbole? I think not.
From 1972-74, teachers in the tiny Wisconsin hamlet of Hortonville (2000 pop. 2,357) went out on strike. They were fired and replaced with scabs. Every Wisconsinite with the slightest degree of political engagement chose sides. Ill-feeling and often open hatred permeated the state. Friendships ended permanently. Families were split -- some have never reunited.
What's happening statewide now will literally be thousands of times bigger -- and potentially thousands of times worse -- than what happened in Hortonville 40 years ago. There's still time for Republicans to walk our state back from the brink. But that seems highly unlikely. Right-wing hate radio is very strong in Wisconsin. It would take very little to persuade significant numbers of the right-wing authoritarian lunatic third of our population that the time has come to enforce their perspectives with lethal force. Already last week, Indiana Republican Deputy Attorney General Jeffrey Cox advocated exactly that. Let just one drunk or despairing (or whatever) lefty lose his cool and do something ugly, and it will provide the Right with exactly the Reichstag moment that they've been waiting for.
It's impossible to know where all this goes next, but I just can't imagine how it can be anywhere good. I happen to be an atheist, but I would not be opposed to the theologically-minded amongst us saying a few prayers for our state. As things stand this morning, I'm having a hard time envisioning what, other than some sort of deus ex machina, can now save my state from a conflagration from which it will never recover.