Gray Matter

Monday, March 31, 2008

Vote As If Your Life Depended On It

Yes, we all have the right to stay home and not vote. That doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to do.

Yes, elections are messy, aggravating, distasteful affairs. But the brains in our head (the gray matter, if you will) give us the capacity to evaluate the candidates and make an informed decision.

Yes, there is an incredibly important presidential election this year that seems to be sucking the oxygen out of the multitude of local contests here in Wisconsin and elsewhere. But the truth is that your vote for Wisconsin Supreme Court justice may be the most important one you cast this year.

Look, I know that the deluge of manipulative, offensive ads run by so-called independent third party groups make it difficult not to turn your back on the whole unseemly process and wish a pox on both of their houses. But there is a reason these organizations with deep pockets are spending so lavishly on this race. It really matters.

Just imagine if we held a national vote to elect a justice to the Supreme Court of the United States. The airwaves would be bursting with provocative ads trying to convince us of the relative merit (or, more likely, the scandalous past) of one candidate or the other.

Could you possibly decide to ignore the process and stay home on Election Day?

So I urge you to approach Tuesday’s election as if your life depended on it. By that I mean you should do what you would do if you learned you have a serious illness and had an important decision to make about your care.

You would go online and research your options. You would seek out experts with the knowledge and experience that could provide you with valuable information to help with the decision. And you would talk to your friends whose opinions you respect.

Time is short. Do your due diligence and vote tomorrow.

I think the choice is clear. Justice Louis Butler is an intelligent, accomplished, respected, ethical jurist who has the support of an overwhelming majority of his fellow judges. His opponent, Mike Gableman, has been a judge for a fraction of the time Justice Butler has and has engaged in the kind of sleazy campaign that is so antithetical to our notion of a respected and thoughtful judiciary.

But don’t take my word for it. Visit the candidates’ own websites, see how the campaign has been covered by the state (and the nation’s) media, and talk to people.

Can’t we all please agree that elections are important and that all of our votes matter? Do I need to remind you of that drawn out debacle 8 years ago in Florida when the term “hanging chad” entered our nation’s vernacular?

So vote. I don’t want to hear any excuses.

(0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Hey Milwaukee Bad Guys, There’s A New Maestro in Town!

When Edward Flynn was appointed Milwaukee’s new police chief, the community engaged in a group swoon. Flynn hit all the right notes as he met with the various key constituencies in town.

Politicians, law enforcement officials, community activists and the business community all applauded the choice and Mayor Tom Barrett was praised for using the heft of his office to twist arms and influence this critical appointment (which, of course, was made by the Fire and Police Commission and not by the Mayor).

Chief Flynn is closely associated with the philosophy of community policing and everyone seems to agree that this is a wonderful thing. But community policing is one of those generic terms, like democracy, good schools and market economies, which appeal to most everyone but are not always so easy to put into action.

While it’s way too early to issue a judgment on the chief’s performance, you have to say that so far, so good.

First of all, he has authorized (ordered?) his district captains to develop proposals for addressing the critical issues in their communities. He has held public meetings to announce and promote these initiatives. People have noticed and, by and large, have responded well.

Second of all, he has expanded the presence of beat cops in busy neighborhoods. I’ve seen more police walking around in the last few weeks than I have in years. This is a key component of community policing. Beat cops walking around neighborhoods obviously isn’t a new idea; but it happens be incredibly effective. Who’d have thought?

Yesterday, Chief Flynn held a news conference at the District 5 headquarters to call attention to an early, if modest, success. Police conducted a crackdown in the neighborhood around N. 19th Street and W. Nash where a gang known as the Nash Street Boys was believed to be dealing drugs and intimidating people. A group of law enforcement officers including Milwaukee police and FBI agents conducted arrests of 39 individuals suspected of gang involvement on Feb. 14th.

In the month following the Valentine’s Day arrests, total criminal activity decreased by one third (24 incidents in the month before contrasted with 16 incidents since). Chief Flynn was joined at the news conference by Mayor Barrett, District Attorney John Chisholm, as well as a cross section of uniformed officers and appreciative residents.

Chief Flynn pointed out that this was only the beginning but part of community policing is to focus on results and these positive results were worth noticing.

But I found the most noteworthy aspect of the announcement were the broad smiles on the faces of the young police officers. Flynn remarked that they were smiling because successful police work is fun. But after the news conference, the officers made it clear that they enthusiastically support the chief’s program.

“It’s taken away a lot of the red tape and lets us do our jobs,” said Officer Teresa Heidemann. “We get to be cops.”

It hasn’t been all smooth sailing for Chief Flynn. Somehow, his department released a report on the investigation of past voting irregularities without clearing it with him. It included policy recommendations that he said did not belong in a police document.

In addition, Chief Flynn proposed a reorganization of his department that was voted down by the Common Council. Asked about that vote, Chief Flynn responded “It sends the message that I have work to do communicating with the Council.”

You’d like to say that the town has a new sheriff but that office is already filled. Since he’s been striking the right notes and committed to harmonious relationships, let’s call him the “Maestro” (with apologies to Mark Metcalf).

Meanwhile, The Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction held a public forum today to discuss the designation of Milwaukee Public Schools as a District Identified for Improvement. While DPI Superintendent Elizabeth Burmaster went to great lengths to acknowledge the special circumstances facing MPS, the federal No Child Left Behind legislation requires the state to get involved when a school district seriously underperforms as MPS has over the course of two years in a row.

Anyone have an idea where to find a “Maestro of Schools?”

(0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Race, Politics and Easter

It’s Easter Sunday and the topic du jour is race. The old ad used to say “You don’t have to be Jewish to like Levy’s Rye Bread” (maybe it was a New York thing), so perhaps you don’t have to be Christian to appreciate the irony of the moment.

Barack Obama was forced to deliver a speech on the subject of race because he has been buffeted by charges of poor judgment for maintaining a relationship with his preacher, the Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Radio, television and YouTube listeners and viewers have been barraged by clips of Wright railing against the inequities of our white-dominated society and even asserting that our nation brought 9/11 on ourselves through our actions around the world.

I thought Obama was faced with a “Sister Souljah” moment, similar to when Bill Clinton needed to repudiate one of his core constituencies in order to prove his independence and character.

But once again Obama proved that he is possessed of a remarkable intelligence and sophisticated appreciation of the powerful tensions tearing at our divided nation. He delivered a speech in Philadelphia last Tuesday that rejected Wright’s words but placed them in the context of our nation’s great but imperfect history. We should not forget or ignore that history, he said, but neither should we be poisoned by it.

It is a history that has left scars on many people of many colors, faiths and bckgrounds but it has also taught us that we have the means, through our system of government and the power it bestows on “We, the People,” to right wrongs and continue the process of constructing a “more perfect union.”

Obama delivered a great and timely speech that brings to mind Lincoln’s Second Inaugural when the 16th president called on the nation to look beyond the Civil War and begin the process of healing and reconciliation. Of course, Lincoln did not live long enough to preside over a nation at peace, Reconstruction was marked by unfortunate abuses and racism persisted through the Jim Crow years of the 20th century and even in today’s post-Civil Rights era.

It remains to be seen how this election year will play out. But once again former President Bill Clinton revealed himself to be more interested in exploiting race for political advantage than in serving as one of the nation’s and his party’s senior statesmen. His comment that he hoped the nation would have two candidates in the general election able to focus on important things and not be distracted by the ugly and divisive issue of race was a transparent and shameful attack on Obama.

Obama went on to deliver speeches on the economy and foreign affairs but the Wright controversy continues to dog him. Conservative talk show hosts are gleeful that they have been provided with ammo to challenge Obama’s patriotism by associating him with Wright. It’s ridiculous and offensive but it’s a free country.

Race has also made an unfortunate appearance in the campaign for Wisconsin Supreme Court justice. Challenger Michael Gableman is running an ad that is being compared to the Willie Horton ad of George H.W. Bush and Lee Atwater. The ad accuses incumbent Justice Louis Butler of working to free a criminal and juxtaposes the pictures of Butler and the defendant, both African American.

Of course, Butler was a defense attorney at the time and every schoolchild knows that our Constitution guarantees everyone charged with a crime with competent defense. You’d think that a candidate for judge would know that.

Whether it’s racist or not, Gableman’s ad is dishonest and repulsive and it is leading to the defection of supporters who feel he crossed a line they cannot condone.

It is unfortunate that such issues must dominate the news at a time when Christians celebrate the miracle of the Resurrection. But perhaps it isn’t such a bad thing for us to be reminded of the teachings of Jesus about loving our neighbors and helping the less fortunate among us.

Do you have to wonder what the Prince of Peace would have said about the leaders of the WMC and other business leaders who are spending millions to install Gableman on the court? Something about a camel squeezing through the eye of a needle, perhaps?

(0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink

Saturday, March 22, 2008

OMG Check Out This Bracket!

It’s March madness, baby! The competition leading up to the Final Four and the NCAA basketball championship has evolved into one of the most entertaining sports events of the year. And with Wisconsin and Marquette playing well and still alive as of this writing (Wisconsin has already advanced to the Sweet Sixteen while Marquette is battling tough with favored Stanford in the second half).

But this being Wisconsin, ya gotta check out the bracket competition developed by the Washington Post.

They started with 64 of the finest beers in the nation and are letting their discriminating readers decide which brews advance.

I’ll drink to that.

And while I’m raising a glass in tribute to the MSM’s WP, one of the twin titans of newsprint, let me also suggest that you have a look at the Post’s fact checker feature which examines the dubious claims of the various campaigns and grades them on a scale of Pinocchios for untruthfulness.

Hillary Clinton’s assertion that she made a trip to Bosnia because it was too dangerous for Bill and that she dodged bullets at the airport earns the highest rating of four Pinocchios. Apparently, the comedian Sinbad was on the trip with her, as were print and broadcast reporters and they’ve called her on her whopper.

Who knew Sen. Clinton had a Rambo complex?

(0) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Greed and the Wisconsin Supreme Court

If you’ve been in front of a television recently, you’ve probably seen those ads trying to influence the election for the Wisconsin Supreme Court. Incumbent Louis Butler is being challenged by Butler County Circuit Judge Mike Gableman. Gableman is the bobblehead who allegedly bought his seat on the bench and Butler is the alleged criminal coddler.

For years and years candidates for state Supreme Court conducted low-key campaigns awash in decorum and highfalutin legal principles. But that was then and this is now. Over the last two contests, Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, the state’s largest business group has decided to spend an inordinately large amount of money to elect candidates to the state Supreme Court who are friendlier to business interests.

Last year, the group spent big bucks to elect Annette Ziegler to the court, despite the ethical lapses that led to her being sanctioned for failing to disclose her ties to a bank that was involved in a case before her. Now it is throwing its girth into a campaign to unseat a respected incumbent on the court by attempting to portray Louis Butler as soft on crime.

The business leaders who have signed off on this transparent effort to make the court more pliant to the state’s wealthy corporate interests should be ashamed. This isn’t about crime, this is about greed.

Newsweek did a fairly comprehensive analysis of this race and cited “uncanny parallels” between the election in Wisconsin and the plot of John Grisham’s novel, “The Appeal,” where business interests fund attacks on an African-American member of the state Supreme Court in Mississippi. In both cases, the business groups falsely accuse the sitting justice of acting to release a convicted sexual predator.

The Greater Wisconsin Committee, a liberal advocacy group, has responded to these horrid attacks with ads questioning the challenger’s record on crime. To his credit, Butler has called on all third party groups on both sides to “stand down” and allow the candidates to make their own cases.

Unfortunately, challenger Gableman has engaged in his own outrageous attack campaign which is drawing fire from the state’s good government groups, including the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign , Wisconsin Judicial Integrity Campaign Committee, Common Cause and Citizen Action, for false statements and misrepresenting Butler’s record.

But those fine, upstanding folks at the WMC definitely deserve a dubious achievement award for acting so selfishly and egregiously on behalf of the state’s wealthiest interests. Former Madison mayor and liberal blogger Paul Soglin is engaged in a personal campaign to call the members of the WMC to account for this greedy behavior.

The members of the WMC board are ultimately responsible for this reprehensible slander of Justice Butler. These business executives probably support token good causes and are undoubtedly regarded as respected pillars in their communities. But they shouldn’t be able to hide behind the relative anonymity of the front group they control.

How can we expect citizens to have faith in our government when the groups with the deepest pockets try to subvert the institutions we rely on the most to serve the public interest objectively and honestly? Isn’t it time we told the WMC leadership and their ilk to focus more attention on the quality of their products and providing decent wages and benefits to their workers rather than spending gobs of money to stack the judiciary?

There goes one of the WMC ads on television again. Excuse me, I need to take a shower.

(1) Comments • (0) Trackbacks • Permalink