From Alton, in the great state of Illinois.....
Photo credit: Madison Capitol-Journal
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Stand up, Badgers, sing!
"Forward" is our driving spirit,
Loyal voices ring.
On, Wisconsin! On, Wisconsin!
Raise her glowing flame
Stand, Fellows, let us now
Salute her name!
Madison Capitol-Journal:
Police said about 70,000 people showed up at the Capitol Square on Saturday, Feb. 26, the largest turnout yet.
Keep it going, Badgers--you're doing us all proud.
Doc's Cheers and Jeers begins below the fold, with news from around the nation, around the world, and up your alley! ("Up my alley?" Up yours!)
DISCLAIMER: AAbshier's Cheers and Jeers are not affiliated in any way, shape, or form, with Bill in Portland Maine's Cheers and Jeers. The use of the words JEERS and CHEERS , the swoosh/gong device, pie references, pootie pics, Snokat being perky, mattress references, whomps, Snuggies, kvetching over DK4, the heartbreak of psoriasis, and flicked peas are all used with permission of Bill in Portland Maine and the members of the C&J Café community. Any further resemblances to BiPM`s Cheers and Jeers are deliberately coincidental. So there.
NOTE: The last time I hosted C&J I referred to Republicans as assholes, when I should have referred to them as heartless assholes. I regret the error.
Your Moment of Witzelsucht For the Week:
(in the box so that you can avoid it and not miss anything else)
I decided to post this just for the halibut:
The Land o' Cheeseheads:
Cheers to the people of Wisconsin. They have been cheered many times already, but they deserve one more, not just for the sheer size of the protest organized for Saturday, but for their decorum:
Madison police spokesman Joel DeSpain said early Saturday afternoon that the number of protesters — nearly all of whom opposed Walker's plan — was in excess of 70,000, the estimated number of protesters in attendance last Saturday.
"We've had no problems," DeSpain said, adding that officers were again committed to keeping the Square "safe for democracy."
Cheers to the end of a good run averted. After over a week of live-in protests inside the Wisconsin capitol building, it was set to be cleared by 4 PM local on Sunday. The official reason was "cleanup", this in spite of the fact that the live-ins had been taking charge of cleanup duties themselves during the week. Although a few people did leave, most stayed, and the chief of the capitol police said they could stay the night. WIN!
Jeers to the ever-hypocritical Scott Walker. On the Guardian website (yep, I had to go to Old Blighty to find real news on the Governor), John Gardner writes:
Walker had candidly no interest in poverty, education, effectiveness or anything except state funds for his district. His district's largest share of the state budget came for a racial integration programme that bussed Milwaukee minority students into his suburb. Unpopular with his voters, it nevertheless subsidised his school district, thereby reducing constituents' property taxes. Simultaneously against spending and taxes, but for massive state subsidies for his district, Walker publicly opposed the programme, but – behind closed doors – made sure it continued.
This, while some in our national media burnish his Reagan-like credentials. Ugh.
Cheers to the ultimate Scott Walker insult:
Behind the walls where he avoids all critics, Walker may see Ronald Reagan in the mirror. But many of us see a stubborn and incurious reflection of George W. Bush, with a touch less humanity.
Lower than Shrub. That burns.
Cheers to union thugs. She's too young for me. Damnit.
And now, a word from our sponsor:
What do you call 10,000 lawyers on the bottom of the ocean? A good start:
(these kind of lawyers, anyway--I know there are good ones who do right!)
Cheers on the birthday of one of our greatest writers, John Steinbeck. His greatest novels, The Grapes of Wrath and Of Mice and Men, have become required reading in most high school classrooms, or at least were when I was in high school (who knows with these crazy wingnut school boards these days). We've seen in the Wisconsin capital rotunda the playing out of Steinbeck's vision for the worker-run camp, where all took care of business and helped each other. Pay your respects here.
Jeers to the Oscars show, which took too damn long as usual. I went salsa dancing instead, but they had on the TV, sound off, over the dance floor.
Jeers to missing the obvious. A woman in Belleville, IL, lost her dog. As this story in the Belleville News-Republican Democrat describes, there were all sorts of possibilities for getting the word out on a lost dog, and she went through a lot to get her pet back home. While it did end well, Mr. (Dr.?) Veterinarian here asks, why wasn't the dog microchipped? It would have been a lot easier to find the owner, and most likely a shorter process. The story writer missed that too. DUH!
Cheers to a great sense of humor. In Godfrey, just north of us in Alton, we have Josephine's Tea Room, which, as you might expect, expects an overwhelmingly female clientele. A manly-men infiltration was held, with 11 men dressed in hunter's camouflage and Carhartt overalls came in for lunch. They were received in good humor by all, and were even presented with a cake--if they sang for it (they did). When I was married we dined there a few times, and I was the only man there, typically--I could have used the support!
Inky says, "Hit that reco button, or I'll burn you with my laser eyes!"
So, what's new in your world this week?