Pro-Life Wisconsin “has a black friend”

Pro-Life Wisconsin released an Alex Jones-worthy rant decrying “the continuing eugenics movement in Wisconsin” supposedly perpetrated by our friends at Planned Parenthood. The extreme right-wing PLW goes on to accuse Planned Parenthood of racism, alleging a vast abortion-marketing campaign targeting minorities.

Pro-Life Wisconsin believes their own obvious focus on race should be excused, citing their latest PR stunt, “was created by Ryan Bomberger (who is biracial).”

In another display of vapidity the press release bemoans birth control, oblivious to the connection between birth control, unplanned pregnancy and the abortions Pro-Life Wisconsin is constantly fussing over.

Groups like Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin and Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota are constantly under attack with baseless claims. Last week on Talk of the Nation a right-wing activist called in posing as a former contributor to Planned Parenthood who changed her position following a young girl she knew supposedly being counseled by an employee, essentially to get an abortion over any other option (audio at 21:00). The caller blew her cover by referring to herself as “pro abortion” a term only used by the far right, not to mention that Planned Parenthood provides comprehensive reproductive health care, not just abortions.

Other dubious “facts” were presented by listeners of the program, and guest Marjorie Dannenfelser of the anti-abortion rights Susan B. Anthony list, calling into question how far the already far-right will go to instill their flawed morality into the laws of our land. Compare that with the email from a listener who said Planned Parenthood saved her life after being gang raped, and who is on the side of humanity — the anti-choice right, or Planned Parenthood?

The man who could have governed

That is Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett, standing in solidarity with protesters in Madison on Saturday, as a citizen concerned about the future of our state (photo by my sister).

In August of 2009, Barrett took a beating defending a woman and child from an attacker. Tom Barrett could be our governor. Instead the voters of Wisconsin were convinced they needed Scott Walker, based on some empty rhetoric about creating 250,000 jobs by cutting taxes for the rich people he can find the time to take phone calls from.

Where was Governor Walker on Saturday? Up north doing some fine dining with his cheerleaders, while hundreds of thousands of hard working public employees are seeing their rights trampled.

What would Scott Walker have done outside the state fair that night in August? Guess.

Go Brewers

I heard something is going on with unions in Wisconsin. But on another note check out Brew City Fanatic, a new Brewers blog for you fans out there. Opening day is less than a month away! Go Brewers.

Darrell Ehrlick is braindead

This “journalist” writes that state Senate Democrats, Kathleen Vinehout in particular, are guilty of a dereliction of duty by fleeing the state instead of allowing Walker’s union busting bill to pass, and then attempts an apples-to-apples comparison of state senator to welder, grocery clerk or any other job.

Ehrlick accuses Senate Dems of stooping to Walker’s level by refusing to show up and negotiate, and even pulls out “two wrongs don’t make a right.”

Democrats did what they had to do or else this “budget” bill with massive implications unrelated to the state budget would have been rammed through with little debate or public input.

Does Mr. Ehrlick think the members of the Assembly offering amendments to the bill are in dereliction of duty? The bill is going to pass the Assembly unchanged anyway. Following Ehrlick’s logic, we should be happy the Republicans are allowing amendments to the bill at all, they won the last election right?

At the end of Ehrlick’s piece he brings up Vinehout’s “plagarism” incident from last year. If Ehrlick is too stupid to understand the concept of politicians using speech writers and the like, he doesn’t deserve a column, even in the Winona Daily News. Maybe the Winona Post will take you Darrell.

I hope you have a google alert set up for your name, Darrell Ehrlick.

Wisconsin Unions

Apologies for the lack of content during what has been a very important couple of weeks. I’ve been working long hours. Making time and a half for the overtime…thanks unions.

Celebrating National Marriage Week: Day 5, Ron Johnson

It’s day five of National Marriage Week. Talking about Senator Ron Johnson isn’t exactly “celebrating” in light of his typical, career politician, Republican point-of-view, but National Marriage Week won’t be worth celebrating until everyone can celebrate it.

In Ron Johnson’s expert opinion, possibly due to his private sector experience working for his father-in-law, traditional marriage has been around “for thousands of years … and I just don’t see any reason to change that.”

Johnson’s inherited industry, plastics, hasn’t been around “for thousands of years” but he was still pretty psyched about the holographic cards promoting his candidacy last summer.

Ron Johnson wants the government out of his life…but squarely positioned between two people of the same gender who love each other, and want to be treated like everyone else. Yet Johnson believes liberals are standing in the way of freedom, and health care is the greatest threat to freedom in his lifetime. That’s not even hypocrisy, it’s stupidity.

Celebrating National Marriage Week: Day 4, those affected

Happy National Marriage Week Day four!

Today we’ll look at the personal stories of those affected by state and federal gay marriage bans. A few years ago Illusory Tenant put together these examples of gay and lesbian couples from a New Jersey Supreme Court case;

From Lewis, et al. v. Harris, et al., a 2006 decision of the New Jersey Supreme Court, here’s a few of the godless reprobate plaintiffs that are hell bent on destroying our civilization:

Alicia Toby and Saundra Heath, who reside in Newark, have lived together for seventeen years and have children and grandchildren. Alicia is an ordained minister in a church …

Mark Lewis and Dennis Winslow reside in Union City and have been together for fourteen years. They both are pastors in the Episcopal Church.

Diane Marini and Marilyn Maneely were committed partners for fourteen years until Marilyn’s death in 2005. The couple lived in Haddonfield, where Diane helped raise, as though they were her own, Marilyn’s five children from an earlier marriage.

Karen and Marcye Nicholson-McFadden have been committed partners for seventeen years. … [T]hey are raising two young children conceived through artificial insemination, Karen having given birth to their daughter and Marcye to their son.

Suyin and Sarah Lael have resided together in Franklin Park for most of the sixteen years of their familial partnership. … They live with their nine-year-old adopted daughter and two other children who they are in the process of adopting.
Cindy Meneghin and Maureen Kilian first met in high school and have been in a committed relationship for thirty-two years. They have lived together for twenty-three years in Butler where they are raising a fourteen-year-old son and a twelve-year-old daughter. Through artificial insemination, Cindy conceived their son and Maureen their daughter.

The horror … the horror.

Last week Blogging Blue had the compelling story of a 19 year old Iowan raised by two women, who were finally allowed to marry in 2009 when the state’s Supreme Court legalized same-sex marriage. Some in Iowa have been attempting to regress, even before the court’s decision was made, offering amendments to the constitution similar to Wisconsin’s unfortunate and hurtful amendment.

Real people are affected by our state’s discrimination. If the government is going to be involved in the business of marriage, it needs to treat everyone equally. The Constitution of the United States is pretty clear on that.