text:
This Just In ...
Kevin Fischer is a veteran broadcaster, the recipient of over 150 major journalism awards from the Milwaukee Press Club, the Wisconsin Associated Press, the Northwest Broadcast News Association, the Wisconsin Bar Association, and others. He has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for over three decades. A longtime aide to state Senate Republicans in the Wisconsin Legislature, Kevin can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, "InterCHANGE," on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10, and heard filling in on Newstalk 1130 WISN. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, and their lovely young daughter, Kyla Audrey, in Franklin.
UPDATE: The Barking Lot (08/27/11)
Last Saturday's Barking Lot included a must-see video account of the dog that grieved next to the coffin of its soldier owner. That might be the dog story of the year.
Here's the latest about Hawkeye.
UPDATE: Is honesty always the best policy?
We posed that question recently.
Here's the update.
Important information from Franklin alderman Kristen Wilhelm
Dear Residents:
Please distribute the break-in notice to help keep
BURGLARY - Be sure to secure your home especially before going to bed.
Recently, I received two reports from our police department where break-ins
or entering through an unlocked door have taken place. These incidents
happened in the early morning hours when the residents were home sleeping.
Please make an extra effort to secure exterior doors, close and lock garage
doors and lower level windows and call the police immediately if you see or
hear any suspicious activity.
SEPTEMBER 6TH - Also, a reminder of the upcoming Council meeting Tuesday,
September 6 (after Labor Day). You may want to check your email again prior
to Tuesday. I will make every effort to notice you of items of interest
after I have a chance to read through the meeting packet. The agenda comes
out on Friday's around 5 pm. You can also view meeting agendas online by
clicking the calendar tab at www.franklinwi.gov or Click here for City
meetings calendar <http://www.franklinwi.gov/Home/Calendar.htm>.
ST. MARTINS FAIR -St. Martins Fair takes place on St. Martins Road (County
Hwy. MM), from W. Forest Home Avenue to W. Church Street, the first Monday
of every month, weather permitting, and then Sunday and Monday of Labor Day
weekend. Fair vendors sell a wide assortment of merchandise, while music
groups provide entertainment throughout Labor Day weekend.
First Mondays of each month - 6 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Sunday of Labor Day Weekend - 8 a.m. to 9 p.m.
Monday of Labor Day Weekend - 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.
I hope you are able to enjoy time with family and/or friends over the Labor
Day weekend.
"The changes are saving taxpayers millions"
WLUK investigates and finds Governor Walker's reforms are working.
Q. How many WI school superintendents have a higher salary than Gov. Walker?
Hope Unseen
Today in
Smiley is an Army veteran.
He served in Iraq.
A car bomber blew himself up in front of Smiley's military vehicle in 2005.
Smiley is an Army first.
From CBS' "Sunday Morning" September of 2010:
"American combat operations in Iraq drew to a close this past week, seven years and five months after we first committed our forces to topple the government of Saddam Hussein. Operation Iraqi Freedom claimed more than 4,400 American lives and wounded another 32,000. Behind every one of those numbers is a story, and some of those stories are above and beyond . . . like the one our Tracy Smith will tell in our Cover Story."
Franklin developer files for bankruptcy
The Milwaukee Business Journal is reporting that well-known, highly-regarded Franklin developer Mark Carstensen has filed for personal Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
The newspaper notes Carstensen "has developed more than $100 million of commercial projects." However, according to the paper, "Carstensen lists assets of $3.2 million and liabilities of $46.4 million, which mainly are from personal guarantees on real estate development loans."
Carstensen is not alone. Other area developers who have filed for bankruptcy include Robert Patch, Jeff Klement, Scott Fergus and John Kuhn.
Goodnight everyone, and this weekend, don't over-exert
"The joy of music should never be interrupted by a commercial. "
-Leonard Bernstein
It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.
The weekend has finally arrived.
The sun has set.
The evening sky has erupted.
Let's smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday….and this week, Monday.
Tonight, some work-related music to segue into the holiday weekend.
Let's get started...
The Barking Lot (09/03/11)
The Barking Lot is a regular weekly feature of this just in…Written by my lovely wife, Jennifer and me. It opens with the weekend dog walking forecast followed by the main blog from dog lover, Jennifer. Then it's DOGS IN THE NEWS and our close. Enjoy!
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST: We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Tough forecasting today. Rain and there could be lots of it depending where you are. Scattered thunderstorms. Chance of rain is 50%. Normal high of 79, but it looks like a wet Saturday. "C" If you can avoid those storms, "A"
SUNDAY: Mostly sunny. High of 71. "C'
MONDAY: Partly cloudy. High of only 64, far below normal. Won't feel like Labor Day. A decent d dog-walking day, but unseasonably cool... "D"
Here's my lovely wife, Jennifer with this week's main blog:
2011 POO Awards - Week 3
Each week during this year's high
POO stands for Piling On Offensively (Or if you prefer, Pouring it On Offensively).
Week 1
Luck 73, Birchwood 22
Week 2
Coleman 63,
Week 3
Edgar 71, Chequamegon 7
Edgar usually ends up on my list once a season. It led 59-0 at halftime of their blowout.
UPDATE: Green Bay columnist needs to "chill" about women, football, and underwear
Yes he does and hopefully has done so by now because...
Lost in all the hoopla about the Brewers and Packers and Badgers was this: The Lingerie Football League season is underway.
Bad news, though.
In the first game of the season played at the
Week-ends (09/03/11)
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week. Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
Marie Rose Abad
Doug MacMillan and his friend
Thomas Sephton
David Reichenberg
Branndin Phillips-Laramore
Michael Perry
Tom Lashinski
Robert Friscia
John Atzbach
The Kragthorpes
Oscar Pistorious
Jeremy Shockey
Emmanuel Marlow
Jon Simpson
Kimberly Garrity's adult children and their father
Michael Ray James and Tina Alberson
Minenetta Walker
Jill Green
"Some of these folks in Congress right now would love to see us as second-class citizens. Some of them in Congress right now with this tea party movement would love to see you and me ...hanging on a tree. Some of them right now in Congress are comfortable with where we were 50 and 60 years ago but it's a new day with a black President and a Congressional Black Caucus."
Andre Carson
"All of us, especially Congressman Carson, Congresswoman Waters and others who have engaged in racially-motivated rhetoric, should follow the example of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., not the example of Reverend Jeremiah Wright."
Allen West
"As reported here previously, African-Americans are hardly underrepresented in the
Though only 12 percent to 13 percent of the
According to The Washington Post, blacks hold 44 percent of the jobs at Fannie Mae and 50 percent of the jobs at Freddie Mac.
The EEOC, where African-Americans are overrepresented by 300 percent, has been asked to oversee the new 'government-wide initiative to promote diversity and inclusion in the federal workforce.'
I'm not making this up."
Pat Buchanan
''I don't know how much God has to do to get the attention of the politicians. We've had an earthquake; we've had a hurricane. He said, 'Are you going to start listening to me here?' Listen to the American people because the American people are roaring right now. They know government is on a morbid obesity diet and we've got to rein in the spending."
Michele Bachmann
"The liberal talking points have been established. Perry is dumb, Romney is weird and Bachmann is scary. Expect that to be repeated endlessly until one is established as the nominee, who will then inherit all three descriptions."
You Too, Congress
"I have a home on
George Will
"The City is a co-sponsor of the Labor Day parade event, because we provided the payment for the insurance premium for the event, and we agreed to erect a stage and provide city services at no cost to the Marathon County Central Labor Council.
The banning of a political party from participation at any event co-sponsored by the City is against public policy and not in the best interest of all the citizens of the City of Wausau. And therefore, we encourage the event organizer to invite all interested parties, or reimburse the city for other costs."
Wausau mayor Jim Tipple after the Labor Council announced it would refuse Republican elected officials to be in the Labor Day parade. The Council later reversed its decision.
"...unions didn't invent labor. Labor is something we do with our hands, brains and backs and can be successful without the aid of unions."
Swannie Tess of Brookfield in a letter to the editor at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
'Disenfranchise is the word of the day and the context will be as to "deprive (someone) of the right to vote." This argument is disingenuous on its face and an outright lie that is perpetuated by the same people that mindlessly parrot this canned spiel.
Recommended Reading (09/04/11)
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend (You will note that on occasion, I do not endorse the opinions of the author and may point that out. Despite my disagreements, I still feel the piece is worth a read).
Have Wisconsin unions jumped the shark?
"There's an old TV saying given to the moment when viewers realize a series has peaked – it's called 'jumping the shark.' It's in reference to the fifth season of Happy Days, when the Fonz, is waterskiing – complete with leather jacket – and proceeds to jump over a shark. The scene was so outlandish and ridiculous, that viewers realized the show as creatively bankrupt. The popularity of the series declined from there.
We may have just witnessed the
Where does David Prosser go to get his reputation back?
"There are some people who need to apologize to Mr. Justice David Prosser now that he has been cleared and soon. They took a shallowly researched and preposterous allegation -- that Prosser held fellow justice Ann Walsh Bradley in a chokehold -- and ran to the guillotine with it.
Here is a list of people who should apologize for their rush to judgment. These named should be ashamed of their lynch mob mentality. Their judgment, blinded as it was by partisan fury, should forever be suspect. Their names must be synonyms for ignominy, the triumph of willful ignorance over patient fact-finding. They are practitioners of the dark arts of 'by any means necessary.'
They put our democracy in a chokehold."
Health care law: More insured, but...
"In a key finding, the report said the newly passed law will slice the number of uninsured (WI) residents by 340,000, or 65 percent, primarily because of government subsidies and the existence of an individual mandate that all residents must buy health insurance.
(That latter requirement has been ruled unconstitutional by a federal court of appeals, it should be noted, and is now headed to the Supreme Court for disposition.)
But that's about all the good news the study contained."
Obama WAS trying to use speech one-upmanship as political ploy
"The American left and its handmaidens in the Old Media spent 24 hours desperately trying to spin Obama's attempt to schedule a joint session of Congress on the same day as the GOP debate as an example of how the GOP is refusing to work with him. These leftists categorically deny that Obama was simply engaging in political brinkmanship, using his selection of Sept. 7 as a political ploy. But the very night that Obama was shot down by Speaker Boehner on the date he chose for his jobs address…"
Six ways Obama might win young voters in 2012
"What potent potion, pray tell, will he concoct to get the 18- to 35-year-olds to actually get off their unemployed butts, leave their mommies'
One tactic that might garner the youth's vote for Obama would be for him to turn to
For instance, howzabout the following considerations for 2012's election, Mr. President?
1. Show up to all the debates in an egg like Lady Gaga did for the 2011 Grammys. You could have four of your men—Biden, Geithner, Holder and Napolitano—carry you into each contest like an avian Cleopatra. The kiddos would love it."
"He cannot claim a single success. His resume is a bibliography of failure. His signature achievement, the dubious namesake ObamaCare, was designed by someone else. Its central feature, the individual insurance mandate, is destined to be overturned by the Supreme Court.
My Most Popular Blogs (09/04/11)
As I post every Sunday, here are the five most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
1) Photos of the Week (08/28/11)
My Most Popular Blogs (09/04/11)
As I post every Sunday, here are the five most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
1) Photos of the Week (08/28/11)
2) DRAGNET: The case of the missing alderman from
Culinary no-no #242
Collectively, our nation is too fat and too lazy.
According to national data, one of every three Americans is obese. More than 60 percent of Americans is overweight or obese. Obesity costs a male sufferer $2,644 annually, a female $4,879. Portion sizes are larger. Eating habits have become more atrocious. 78% of Americans are not meeting basic activity level recommendations.
A study reported last week in The Lancet found that the percentage could rise from 32% of men who were obese in 2008 to around 50% in 2030, and from 35% for women in 2008 to between 45% and 52% in 2030. The number of obese people in this country could increase from 99 million in 2008 to 164 million by 2030. The result will be higher health care costs with more Americans developing weight-related diseases like type 2 diabetes, heart disease and cancer.
No one questions the severity of the problem.
· Requiring posting of calorie counts on chain restaurant menus
Let's talk "work" on this Labor Day
The Tax Foundation has prepared The Tax Bite in the Eight-Hour Day for this year.
"In 2011, Americans will devote 2 hours and 13 minutes of every eight-hour workday, or over a quarter of their working hours (27.7%), to paying taxes. In a nine-to-five workday, it takes until 11:13 a.m. to earn enough to pay that day's share of taxes at the federal, state and local level.
If we add the federal deficit to the picture—that is, if the federal government were planning to collect enough in taxes during 2011 to finance all of its spending—Americans would work until lunchtime, 12:07 p.m., for the government, before keeping any of their earnings for themselves."
Broken down is the amount of time we work for each individual tax.
Individual income taxes: 46 minutes of work in an eight-hour workday.
Social insurance taxes: 29 minutes of work.
Sales and excise taxes: 20 minutes of work.
Property taxes: 16 minutes of work.
Corporate income taxes: 16 minutes of work.
Which state has the biggest tax bite? That honor belongs to
Read more from the Tax Foundation.
And here's a Labor Day extra: How Unions Kill Jobs
Culinary no-no #243
This is a special edition of Culinary no-no that includes a Labor Day picnic assortment of dinner table taboos, in no particular order.
1) Retired Channel 6 anchor/reporter John Drilling is one of six Milwaukee TV veterans to enter the "
3) Take restaurant critics with a grain of salt.
4) Here's a new way to use Spam.
5) I love a good beer with a nice cigar flavor.
6) We gave our dinner guests salmonella. Should we tell them?
7) This is the future of eating? I don't think so.
8) That label? Don't trust it.
9) My prime rib has how many calories????
10) Oscar Meyer goes to court.
11) Why are restaurant websites so bad?
Goodbye summer
Technically, a few weeks of summer remain. However, the end of the Labor Day weekend is traditionally considered summer's farewell.
A regular This Just In reader submitted this photo taken in
Hello autumn.
September news from Franklin alderman Kristen Wilhelm
Dear Residents,
Here is good news from our Chief of Police and a few items of possible interest.
In case you missed them over the holiday weekend...
Here are some of our regular weekend features:
Culinary no-no #243
Culinary no-no #242
Photos of the Week (09/04/11)
I want to be Joe Cahn
Cahn is the Commissioner of Tailgating.
He'll be in
2nd UPDATE: The Barking Lot (08/27/11)
Previously on The Barking Lot...
Dogs mourn. What can you do to help a grieving pet?
Well, I don't think so, but I bet a lot of folks would say yes.
A new look Notre Dame this Saturday
This Saturday, Notre Dame renews its rivalry with
Check any list about college football's coolest helmets and
Some might consider the Fighting Irish hat rather plain. Not so given its great tradition.
This Saturday, the ND helmet and uniforms will sport a new look. According to the university's website:
Notre Dame will wear retro-style adidas football uniforms this Saturday at
UPDATE: OK, Franklin, let's try this one more time
Previously on This Just In...
OK, so up and down my subdivision, what the hell do you think happened today?
The latest pro-life news
UPDATE: 9/7/11 I suggest supermarkets alter their signage. Long before September 11th, he developed an evacuation plan for the bank. The plan and its preparation were hugely unpopular with the Morgan Stanley staff, many of whom thought Rescorla was mad. Ultimately, however, the plan saved 3,000 lives. It was put into effect after the first jet hit the North Tower--even though WTC managers were instructing everyone to stay in the buildings. When the second jet hit the South Tower, Rescorla averted panic and organized a rapid evacuation. Rescorla went back inside to help the injured and trapped get out. He was still inside when the building collapsed and his body was never found." Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Gay thinks so. He'd feel differerently, I'm sure, if he was anywhere near Lambeau Field, or the Badger State for that matter. Kevin has commented many times that if he ran a TV news network, he would open each and every segment with scenes from 9/11. He feels, and I agree, that we became complacent far too soon after the tragedy and that we continue to take our freedoms for granted. 'Millions of Americans rely on Medicare in their retirement….But with an aging population and rising health care costs, we are spending too fast to sustain the program. And if we don't gradually reform the system while protecting current beneficiaries, it won't be there when future retirees need it. We have to reform Medicare to strengthen it.' 5) I want to be Joe Cahn Check it out, right at the bottom… MacIver News Service | September 12, 2011 | Updated 6:45pm Business Steps Up: Hiring Our Heroes The candidates also went at it on immigration. The conservative website HUMAN EVENTS cited predictions by the White House in January of '09 that President Obama's stimulus package would bring unemployment down to 6.8%, and that these figures were never realized. The Joint Finance Committee voted unanimously to have the state pay the costs - $7.4 million of it immediately - to 199 local law enforcement agencies, four state agencies and three And Depp. 'Maybe it's a gift from my Daddy, " Wakana said while smiling. The never ending pasta bowl MacIver News Service | September 18, 2011 [Madison, Wisc…] Thousands of liberal political activists, gathered here Saturday for an annual conference, cheered and laughed as a speaker recounted the recent assault of a GOP lawmaker. Features to look for: city lights, lightning flashes in the clouds, the stars in the night sky above, and the dawn at the very end. UPDATE: Yes, I'm aware that at a recent meeting, the Franklin School Board unofficially endorsed a tax levy that was -0.4%. However, this is Franklin we're talking about. I'll believe it when I see it in the adopted budget. Hopefully justice will prevail in this case (Watch all videos). Our sweet daughter has loved the one or two hummingbirds that descend on our backyard flowers. Welcome to Obama's 1) Photos of the Week (09/18/11) AND FINALLY, Don't overstay your welcome at a busy restaurant. To clarify: Take your time and enjoy your food, wine, conversation and after-dinner treats. Nobody should ever feel rushed. The latest federal court ruling is that ObamaCare is unconstitutional. The Obama administration could have asked that the case be re-heard, thus delaying the inevitable, that the issue would go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. It chose not to. We the People Need More Jobs Also today, TIME.com has posted a gallery of rare Elvis photos. TIME writes: Quite the response. PLEASE! With all the acrimony earlier this year in Madison over Governor Walker's state budget that was approved by legislative Republicans, all the ugly protests, the storming of the Capitol, the property damage, the threats of death and sexual assault, teachers abandoning their classrooms to picket and then seek fake doctor's excuses, one would have thought Wisconsin schools were going to hell in a hand basket. *SEE UPDATE AT BOTTOM* Here is an excerpt from Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor's proposed 2012 City of Franklin budget written by Finance Director Cal Patterson: Sidonie Gabrielle
From Pro-Life Wisconsin and
NYC mayor has contempt for Catholics
The Catholic League issued a news release today that reads, in part:
"Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg's duplicity in handling the 9/11 memorial ceremonies scheduled for Sunday:
Last week, Mayor Bloomberg signed into law [click here] the 'Workplace Religious Freedom Act,' a bill designed to award new rights to Sikhs and Muslims. But when it comes to showing sensitivity to Catholics, the mayor shows nothing but contempt."
Read the entire release and send the mayor a message to dump his 9/11 gag rule.
Read more here.
I must admit I'm disappointed in Archbishop Timothy Dolan's take on the matter. Dolan met with Bloomberg about a month ago.
"I think other people were involved in the planning not just him," Dolan said in an interview with the cable news outlet NY1. "He was very honest and up front. I think it's very limited. It may not be the way I want it, but it's just going to be immediate family and the political people who were in office then and political people now. I'm fine with that."
This is more like it:
"Nobody was turning religious leaders away from the scene 10 years ago. Why are they being banned from the 10th anniversary?" said the Rev. Richard Land, who leads the public policy arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, the nation's largest Protestant group. "The only answer pure and simple is anti-religious prejudice."
UPDATE: Culinary no-no #230
Culinary no-no #230 dealt with shoppers who abuse the express lanes.
Seems the left is still experiencing great difficulty embracing this new era of civility.
More of them really do need to read my blog.
Franklin, you asked for it and you just might get it
Franklin School Board member Janet Evans informs that tonight the board is holding a special meeting to hear from an architect. Here's hoping she follows up with a blog describing what's really going on.
I wrote the following last December about the facilities planning surveys:
The Franklin School District intelligentsia gets the public all lathered up by painting the picture of crumbling structures and kids that will be forced to sit in trailers (yeh, right) and sports teams that will be worse than the Bad News Bears unless you, yes you, struggling taxpayer, open up your wallet for the millionth time and fork it over.
They think they've got your number. They will send out sob story of a survey, one after another, begging for just the right answers, and when you politely, innocently tell them, you bet, we'd love to see an improved this and a new that……..BAM! They're introducing proposals to raise taxes by a bundle to build and/or improve all these facilities THAT YOU THE PUBLIC DEMANDED.
FranklinNOW reporter Mark Schaaf noted, "Many have complained about the state of Franklin's athletic facilities."
Yeh, I know. That's a heartbreaker. Major frustration.
Being the sports-minded fellow I am, I commented to my wife, Jennifer what a crummy season the high school baseball team had.
The football team? Struggling. Just struggling. Year after year.
I think the boy's soccer team made the playoffs this past fall. Yes, yes, I think I'm right. Did you know they only managed three goals....... against an MPS team? Now, you build two more soccer fields and we won't be embarrassed like that ever again!
And the high school basketball teams, boy's and girl's…….it's no wonder they haven't been to state for a few years. It's you cheapskate taxpayers. All your fault.
At first I urged residents to "Toss the survey in the trash where it belongs."
A few days later, I had a change of heart.
There it was in my mailbox.
What the hell, I thought. I paid for it. Might as well open it up and take a look.
The survey was stunning in its lack of transparency, written and presented with an all too obvious woe is us, we must tax to the max mentality.
We learn that a study was conducted this past summer of the conditions and use of our school facilities, and whad'ya know??? OF COURSE our facilities are going to hell in a hand basket. Those poor, poor, children. Whatcha gonna do about it, Franklin taxpayers? Let us give you some idea$.We've got all kind$ of option$ about the middle $chool, the high $chool, a $wimming pool, performing art$, indoor and outdoor phy$ical education and athletic $pace, and a community center. My oh my, we sure need a lot.
I took out my trusty calculator, and let's suppose a resident decides to support every one of the spending options, including the most expensive choices. That translates into spending an incredible:
$235.4 million
I urged Franklinites to fill out the survey by checking all of the NO or NONE OF THE ABOVE choices. The Franklin School District was setting a big, fat trap for you taxpayers.
The final results showed this non-shocker: About 70 % of school district staffers support big spending on all kinds of new facilities.
Want to know the crux of the president's jobs speech in about two minutes?
From the MacIver Institute:
For nearly three years as Americans have struggled through this Great Recession, President Obama has given speeches that relied on failed Keynesian economic theory and the politics of class warfare and envy. As his big government policies have spent this nation to the brink, the employment picture continues to worry families across the nation.
His rhetoric is nearly as lofty as the nation's unemployment rate.
On Thursday, September 8, 2011, President Obama will deliver a major economic address before a Joint Session of Congress. The MacIver Institute expects it will be more of the same rhetoric and promotion of government-first solutions we've been hearing for the last 3 years.
The timing of the speech also conflicts with the pomp and circumstance surrounding the kickoff of the 2011 NFL season. As a public service, we've combed through the hundreds of speeches President Obama has already made to give you a concise two-minute preview of his latest 'big speech.'
You can watch this and not miss one second of Thursday's football festivities as the 13-time World Champion
"The Man Who Predicted 9/11"
I've blogged in the past about Rick Rescorla, one of the many unsung heroes of 9/11 who is now the subject of an opera.
The History Channel premiered a Rescorla documentary in 2002. On its website, the History Channel writes:
"In 2001, Rick Rescorla was the 62-year-old head of security at the Morgan Stanley Bank. The bank's offices were situated high up in the South Tower at the World Trade Center. Rescorla was convinced that Osama Bin Laden would use jet planes to try and destroy the World Trade Center.
Is there something wrong with tonight's Packers/Saints game?
Government spending DOES NOT create jobs
President Obama's jobs plan announced tonight spends $450 BILLION.
Remember Chris Gizzi?
Goodnight everyone, and have a 6-point weekend!
"Music and sports more or less go hand-in-hand these days. You can't attend a professional sporting event, whether it be wrestling, baseball, basketball, football, soccer or even lacrosse, without getting pummeled by a variety of music. Stadium speakers routinely blast player's 'theme' songs and fan favorite standards used to build up excitement in the crowd, and that's not including down-n-dirty chants from the bleachers. Music's inescapable interaction with sports doesn't just reside in the professional realm, either. The same holds true for minor league sports, the Olympics, all the way down to college, high school, and junior high events where cheerleaders intermingle their home spun cheers with pre-recorded music."
It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.
The weekend has finally arrived.
The sun has set.
The evening sky has erupted.
Let's put controversy and provocative blogs aside for the rest of this work week and smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday.
Tonight, pigskin performances.
That was an electrifying game last night, going right down to the final play.
Photo: Journal Sentinel
With Thursday's Packers-Saints game, the high school, college and pro football seasons are now all underway.
And music, whether it be a high school ensemble, the big brassy bold UW marching band, or raucous tunes played over the PA at Lambeau is a major component of the football experience.
Let's begin tonight by walking into the Time Tunnel. If you're my age, you remember this tune being played at every high school game, a perfect selection for any high school band. The perfect blend of horns and percussion.
Do you remember...
The Horse?
The Barking Lot (09/10/11)
The Barking Lot is a regular weekly feature of this just in…Written by my lovely wife, Jennifer and me. It opens with the weekend dog walking forecast followed by the main blog from dog lover, Jennifer. Then it's DOGS IN THE NEWS and our close. Enjoy!
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST: We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Mostly sunny. High of 76. "A"
SUNDAY: Partly cloudy. High of 78. "A"
Here's my lovely wife, Jennifer with this week's main blog:
POO Awards 2011 - Week 4
Each week during this year's high
POO stands for Piling On Offensively (Or if you prefer, Pouring it On Offensively).
Week 1
Luck 73, Birchwood 22
Week 2
Coleman 63,
Week 3
Edgar 71, Chequamegon 7
Edgar usually ends up on my list once a season. It led 59-0 at halftime of their blowout.
Week 4
Ashwaubenon 64, Green Bay West 0
The halftime score: 57-0.
Week-ends (09/10/11)
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week. Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
Mychal Judge
They were just doing their jobs
Welles Crowther
Ric Rescorla
Mickey Kross
Rescue dog teams
Nice kids in Eau Claire
And the countless other heroes of 9/11. God bless them, one and all.
Sadie Sipes
Alan Moore
Marietta College (Ohio)
Paul Ryan protesters
Richard Trumka
Michael Bloomberg
Abortion clinic workers
"President Obama said the following during his jobs speech last night:
Isn't that what Paul Ryan and the House Republicans have been saying for months, while Obama has been busy demagoguing their plan?"
The Weekly Standard
"We waited 30 months for this?"
Herman Cain's one-sentence news release reacting to the president's jobs speech.
"Obama is still suffering from the Speech Illusion, the idea that he can come down from the mountain, read from a Teleprompter, cast a magic spell with his words and climb back up the mountain, while we scurry around and do what he proclaimed."
Maureen Dowd
"(Obama) believes people are stupid, or at least not smart enough to catch onto him. ...He's going to put some things out there and dare Republicans to block it. If we agree with it, then we own it with him. If we block it, then he can blame us when the economy doesn't get better. So he's playing a game with this."
Jim DeMint
"It would be like Al Gore saying he created the Internet."
Mitt Romney at the GOP debate commenting on Rick Perry claiming credit for jobs related to
"This president is a nice guy. He doesn't have a clue about how to get this country working again."
Mitt Romney at the GOP debate.
"Michael Dukakis created jobs three times faster than you did, Mitt."
Perry to Romney at the GOP debate.
"Well, as a matter of fact, George Bush and his predecessor created jobs at a faster rate than you did, governor."
Romney to Perry.
"No, but it means that, if he wants to write another book, I'll write another foreword."
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, when asked if his foreword to Perry's book was an endorsement of its contents.
"I kind of feel like the pinata here at the party."
Rick Perry at the GOP debate
"We got to keep an eye on the battle that we face: The war on workers. And you see it everywhere, it is the Tea Party. And you know, there is only one way to beat and win that war. The one thing about working people is we like a good fight. And you know what? They've got a war, they got a war with us and there's only going to be one winner. It's going to be the workers of
Jimmy Hoffa
"No, I don't support a fence on the border. The fact is, it's 1,200 miles from
Rick Perry
"If there is a common theme in the various rubble of cultural ruin, it's the urge to enter adolescence ever earlier and leave it later and later, if at all. So we have skanky 'tweens 'dry humping' at middle-school dances, and an ever greater proportion of "men" in their thirties living at home with their parents."
Mark Steyn
No way to treat a hero.
Media overlook violent talk on the left.
The president's (ho-hum) jobs speech.
Win a baby, for real, on the radio.
Dutch woman refuses to let go.
Guys, if they want sex, you best oblige.
Men's fashion goes feminine.
That's it for this week. NewsBusted has the week off and will return next week.
We close with CBS photojournalist Mark LaGanga narrating his incredible video from 9/11.
A 9/11 announcement from Franklin Fire Chief Martins
From: James Martins
Subject: September 11 Ceremony Announcement
On Sunday September 11, 2011 Zone D Fire and Police Departments will join at Whitnall Parks Botanical Gardens, to remember the events of September 11, 2001 and honor those who lost their lives that day. We would like to extend an invitation to all of Franklin and other citizens to be part of this short ceremony. Please invite family and friends to attend. Any questions contact myself or Cathy Heder at the Fire Department.
Thank you.
Chief Martins
Thanks to
A preview of Culinary no-no #244
We're up to Culinary #244 that will be featured here tomorrow (Sunday).
To prepare you so you have a better appreciation of what's to come, please read Culinary no-no #217.
Recommended Reading (09/11/11)
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend (You will note that on occasion, I do not endorse the opinions of the author and may point that out. Despite my disagreements, I still feel the piece is worth a read).
The 9/11 overreaction? Nonsense
The experience of a lifetime
"As we passed through security to begin our tour, a cell phone rang. One of the members of our tour was being notified that a plane had crashed into the
We noted a quickened pace in the steps of the staffers passing us. Some began to move in a trot or near running pass. My wife, showing worry, questioned the guide as to whether this behavior was unusual. The guide, a long-time Capitol staffer, stated in a calming way, 'No.' It was only appropriate to say that at this point that all hell broke loose.
A lady officer started running at me screaming 'Get out of here.' It is an image burned into my mind forever."
"For approximately seven minutes the president stayed in the classroom while the students proudly read 'The Pet Goat' to him. He was later criticized for not leaving immediately, but to the young people in that classroom, he made the right decision."
Ten years after
"Before TSA was created, private contractors paid airport inspectors not much more than minimum wage. They weren't very good. Now we spend five times as much, and they're still not very good.
Today even the TSA knows that private security is better. In one of its own tests, its screeners in
We'll never get over it, nor should we
Never forget 9/11? If only it were that easy
"It's also inappropriate to feel grateful for the attack on the
12 words to describe Obama's jobs speech
"Thursday night's show by President Obama struck me as…"
Now You're Messin' with a Son of a B*tch!
"Originally, "son of a bitch" (n), was a term chiefly used in the
My Most Popular Blogs (09/11/11)
As I post every Sunday, here are the five most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
1) 9/11 IMAGES: "Powerful and disturning"
2) Photos of the Week (09/04/11)
3) "The Man Who Predicted 9/11"
4) A new look Notre Dame this Saturday
6) Franklin developer files for bankruptcy
7) Recommended Reading (09/04/11)
Culinary no-no #244
There's a lot to ponder when venturing out to eat.
ATTITUDE: I just don't feel like cooking.
NECESSITY: Maybe the frig isn't as well stocked as you'd like.
WHAT: What am I hungry for?
STYLE: Do I go fancy or casual?
LOCATION: Do I head across town or stay close to home? Is getting there easy, and can I park with ease?
REPUTATION: A familiar spot or new place?
SPECIAL OCCASION: Does it call for a celebration?
How about this as a deciding factor: I want my dining choice to be
HASSLE-FREE. You shouldn't have to, for example, purchase tickets that might be only available, and quite expensive at that, on the black market in order to secure a table.
When it comes to restaurant arrogance and elitism, I thought I'd heard it all when I blogged about Next. Wrong. There's the brand new Rogue 24 in
But once inside...
"They've got two tasting menus, an a la carte salon, fancy equipment and vintage furnishings."
The fabulous tasting menus include The Journey and The Progression. Either will take hours to finish.
And oh, yes...the kitchen is in the middle of the dining room.
The swank Rogue 24 seats 52. Everybody wants a chance at dining there and empty tables are rare. Chef/owner RJ Cooper, recognizing a hot commodity, decided if you want in, you must comply with a requirement that could very well be a first in the restaurant business.
You must sign a two-page contract. That's right. A contract. To eat out.
As part of the contract, you agree not to bring cell phones or cameras. The intent is to eliminate dining distractions to have the ultimate experience.
You must surrender credit card information.
Then there's the cancellation policy. Cancel your reservation within 72 hours up to 3 p.m. of the day of your reservation and you are charged 50% of the tasting menus selected. Cancel after 3:00 p.m. on the day of the reservation or show up 30 minutes late or more and there's a 100% charge.
The contract must be submitted within 72 hours of making the reservation or the whole deal becomes void.
So Major that as Rogue 24 recently planned for its exciting grand opening, Eater.com focused not on the rose veal or sea urchin or partridge egg or hog jowl or foie gras or violet potato or chocolate
Obviously, the tremors were felt because Cooper immediately made changes. Gone is the 100 percent charge for cancellations made after 3 p.m. on the day of the reservation or for those showing up more than 30 minutes late.
Then Cooper went on damage control, and gave Eater.com less than convincing arguments in defense of his contract, cell phone and Twitter ban.
From the Eater.com Q and A with Cooper:
You wouldn't ask a guest to leave if you saw them taking a picture?
No, because it's not about being a cop or a Nazi.
Why the stringent cancellation policy?
It's not set in stone. Do we abide by it? No. The policy gives us a chance to fill the table and it gives the diner a reason to call and cancel. Have we charged anybody? No, because that's not what it's about. It's about making sure we are able to fill the seats of our revenue base. This also guarantees diners a seat. We're sold out tonight and we're sold out all week.
Have you had cancellations?
Absolutely. We had a cancellation today; the woman's sick. What are we going to do? Charge her? No, she's sick.
So why have it in the contract?
Actually, we just modified the contract today.
What's the new policy?
It's basically, "Please call and cancel." We're not here to win it all. All we're saying is, "We're a 52-seat restaurant. If 10 people no-show, that's one fifth of our revenue gone." All we want is the opportunity to fill the table.
I get the sense that you had no idea this contract would be a point of controversy.
No, I didn't. But it's not any different than going to Minibar or Alinea. The difference is that Alinea has six reservationists that can handle that; we have one. Minibar has six seats; we have 52. Komi has a no camera and phone policy in their restaurant. What's the difference? Is it going to make experience better to have a phone? If it does, please tell me, because I hate my phone. I'd rather not have to deal with the 500 emails and 60 voice messages I get every day. I'd rather just sit and really enjoy the experience of a place like this. Are we doing this out of arrogance? No. Are we doing it out of being hyped? No. We're doing it to make sure you as a diner have a valued experience.
"Are we doing this out of arrogance? No. Are we doing it out of being hyped? No."
Sorry, but he is arrogant and does want the hype. He just doesn't want the controversy. So he changed course. But not enough. A contract to eat at a restaurant? I'm not marring the place. Cooper erred twice, once with the original contract, and twice when he simply modified the damn thing instead of dumping it altogether.
These supposedly trendy concepts begin on either coast and take their time getting to us plain folks in the heart of the country. Here's hoping this one starts and ends at Rogue 24.
Restaurant workers that don't get the limelight...but should.
About those portion sizes...
The potato war goes to Congress.
A feel-good 9/11 story
In honor of September 11th, "Gowns for Good" provided over 100 free wedding gowns to brides engaged to a member of the military at the Belle Vogue Bridal Shop in Overland Park, Kansas last Friday and Saturday.
The latest pro-life news
From Pro-Life
Time to fret
There it was, right on the front page of an edition the New York Times editors had to know would be seen extensively.
GAB Grants Walker Foe's Request to Make Recalls Easier, More Likely
Board's Action Done without Legislative Direction
Hiring Our Heroes
Following the 10th anniversary of the tragic events of 9-11, we ask you to recognize
the sacrifice that our military community makes every day to defend the freedoms we
enjoy as American citizens. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce believes that there is no
better recognition of that service than to ensure veterans and military spouses have jobs
that take advantage of their extraordinary leadership and advanced technical skills.
In that spirit, we launched Hiring Our Heroes in March of this year. Hiring Our Heroes is
a commitment to connect over 100,000 talented veterans and military spouses to jobs
through local Chambers of Commerce in 100 communities across America. Begun in
partnership with the Joining Forces initiative, we have already worked with 20 local
Chambers to host hiring fairs that have brought together more than 20,000 veterans and
military spouses with 1,000 different employers in 16 states.
But our work is just beginning. Though veterans and military spouses make exceptionally
talented and dedicated employees, unemployment levels remain stubbornly high – for that
reason, we are expanding our efforts from 100 hiring fairs to several hundred
communities in the next three years.
We are asking for you help in this effort. Everyone has a role to play. Visit the Hiring Our
Heroes page to find out how to host a hiring fair in your community, join an already
scheduled event or be a volunteer.
Not sure how to help? Have questions? Email us at firstname.lastname@example.com
and we'll figure it out together.
To learn more about the program, and to stay up-to-date with events and happenings, follow
us on Facebook and Twitter.
Let's work together to put our Heroes back to work.
Bill Miller
Senior Vice President and National Political Director
U.S. Chamber of Commerce
P.S. Help us spread the word of Hiring Our Heroes by or forwarding this email to anyone
you think may be interested.
Do you have respiratory problems?
The state is recommending you take action against that foul odor.
UPDATE: DNR issues advisory
In case you missed Monday night's GOP debate like me...
Rick Perry got hammered over his since-rescinded executive order mandating HPV vaccinations for middle-school-aged girls in
How many jobs, Mr. President, how many?
It's a retread, the same old failed solution to our struggling economy. President Obama's misguided jobs plan offers more runaway spending, increased taxes, and adding to the deficit.
It took almost a week, but finally some news people are asking the obvious question: How many jobs do we get for that $50 billion? Simple question. Certainly someone had done the numbers crunching and had developed at the very least an educated prognostication and prepped the Obamessiah to handle such an inquiry even without a teleprompter.
So what's the answer? You can probably imagine. Let's go to the tape.
CNN correspondent Dan Lothian to Office of Management and Budget Director (OMB) Jack Lew: "How many jobs will be created with this plan?"
Lew answered that the administration had not proclaimed an estimate.
Lothian to Lew: "Why not?"
Lew: "We've seen the same numbers that you've seen that private forecasters put out. [i]t's always a challenge with these kinds of projections because they're subject to a lot of things other than just what you're proposing in the package."
HUMAN EVENTS to Lew: "How can there be confidence in any figures you offer on jobs created or what the unemployment will be, based on that record?"
Lew: "As you know, I was not a member of the economic team then, and I have an outsider's knowledge of the deliberations that were going on at the time. I will say that the Recovery Act produced the level of new jobs that was expected. What changed was that the economy was in a much deeper recession than anyone knew at the time. The hole was deeper, and it was that much harder to get out.
So I think there's a danger of ever predicting unemployment rates, because as I said in response to the earlier question, there's a lot of things that determine what the unemployment rate is and will be. So even if you create x-million new jobs, if you started out farther behind in economic growth, it's going to take longer to hit a certain level of employment/unemployment."
HUMAN EVENTS asked Lew if there would be any more predictions of employment figures.
Lew: "I'm not making any other predictions."
Typical White House. In over their heads. Never was, never will be ready for prime time.
An Obama lapdog, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel headlined a story today that
No quote in the article from Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner who says the jobs plan will hurt Wisconsinites and increase taxes by $405 billion.
Back at the White House, the greatest orator God ever placed on the planet can only muster, "No comment."
Dear JFC: Think twice before paying them a cent
You recall the Capitol chaos earlier this year when angry union mobs did extensive damage to our beautiful state Capitol building. Numerous law enforcement personnel needed to be called in to help an inundated, outmanned Capitol Police force.
From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:
"The Legislature's budget committee Wednesday approved paying $8.2 million to cover the costs of having scores of law enforcement agencies provide security at the Capitol during this year's protests.
Republicans and Democrats clashed over whether to pay the full costs for the aid provided by the City of
That last statement is dubious. Several state lawmakers wrote to the chairs of the Joint Finance Committee saying that "the security costs incurred by the state of
I love this part of the lawmakers' statement: "We also note that (
In a nutshell, from all accounts, certain law enforcement officials didn't do their job. They allowed protesters to run wild, wreaking havoc in our state's most cherished taxpayer-supported building. And this is coming from yours truly who has a reputation of undying support for our police and sheriffs.
As a taxpayer, I urge Joint Finance Committee members to carefully review all requests for reimbursement and reject them if need be. Maybe that will send a proper and strong message that when you put on the badge, you leave your politics at home.
E-mails, I get e-mails: In a nutshell...
The folks who are getting free stuff,
Don't like the folks who are paying for the free stuff,
Because the folks who are paying for the free stuff,
Can no longer afford to pay for both the free stuff and their own stuff.
The folks who are paying for the free stuff,
Want the free stuff to stop.
And the folks who are getting the free stuff,
Want even MORE free stuff on top of the free stuff they're getting already!
Now.....The people who are forcing people to PAY for the free stuff,
Have told the people who are RECEIVING the free stuff,
That the people who are PAYING for the free stuff,
Are being mean, prejudiced and racist.
So.... the people who are GETTING the free stuff,
Have been convinced they need to HATE the people who are PAYING for the free stuff because they are selfish. And they are promised more free stuff if they will vote for the people who force the people who pay for the free stuff to give them even more free stuff.
And - - - that's the Straight Stuff.
What does Kevin Fischer have in common with Johnny Depp?
MUST SEE VIDEO: Nice nonchalant catch
September 14, 2011
Watch carefully.
Renowned baseball writer: Brewers are on a "whining steak"
Tracy Ringolsby is a veteran, highly respected Hall of Fame baseball writer. His latest column on foxsports.com is about the latest goings-on with the Milwaukee Brewers. It opens this way:
Emphasis on the past tense.
Just when the Brewers, who reside in the smallest market in the major leagues, get to crunch time in their bid to claim the National League Central title, the squeaky wheels start to make noise."
It closes this way:
"It's time for the Brewers to get their focus back on the field and put the self-pity party on hold."
Read the beginning, the end, and all that's in-between here.
E-mails, I get e-mails: The Federal Budget - In understandable terms
For current fiscal year:
Franklin's motto: Spend, Spend, Spend
"A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you're talking about real money."
A quote attributed to US Senator Everett Dirksen (R-Illinois) during the 1960's.
An exchange that took place at the last Franklin Common Council meeting on September 6 was anything but controversial. But it was quite revealing, demonstrating the mindset that permeates the vast majority of the Franklin Common Council and yes, I'll toss in Mayor Tom Taylor.
They just can't say no to any spending item.
At issue was this item on the agenda:
Resolution awarding contract to D.C. Burbach, Inc. in the amount of $11,981.70 for the installation of concrete sidewalk in easement from
Back to the S.27th Street drawing board
Efforts by
"The economy was booming in 2004 when Oak Creek and Franklin drafted the long-range development plan for the six-mile stretch of 27th Street between College Avenue and County Line Road."
"Since then, the real estate industry went soft, and the reality of development on South 27th has not lived up to the optimism that preceded the recession. City officials are looking at new public incentive programs, a business improvement district and modifying zoning along the street to attract projects in an economy with fewer development opportunities and heavier competition from other communities."
"A source of optimism in
Projects in the corridor include Dental Associates' $9.5 million headquarters and clinic that will open this month. A restaurant and banquet center is planned to replace the former golf dome on
"The (Forward Franklin Economic Development) committee is considering creating
'We're not sold on it, we're not really sure how we would pay for it, but it's being kicked around,' he said."
"'It comes down to is the city serious about budgeting dollars for economic development and, if they're not, this is all a waste of time,' (Alderman) Steve Taylor said."
Goodnight everyone, and enjoy the last weekend of the summer!
"Summer is kind of like the ultimate one-night stand: hot as hell, totally thrilling, and gone before you know it."
It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.
The weekend has finally arrived.
The sun has set.
The evening sky has erupted.
Let's smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday.
Tonight, one last grasp of summer, my favorite season of the year.
In the upper Midwest, summer is cherished, cradled, fondled, elevated to a gigantic, almost constant ongoing party, until suddenly, it's gone, blown away by frosty winds.
Three months of summer are instantly replaced by a week or two of fall, followed by 14 months of winter. Alright, I know that's mathematically incorrect, but you get my drift.
Summer this year officially began on June 21, 2011. That wasn't that long ago. Remember what was going on at the time? Here are just a few items:
North Carolina man robs store for a dollar so he can get health care in prison for medical problems.
New bride arrested for biting, beating her husband during attack just hours after their wedding.
Woman pleads guilty to stashing stolen mink coat in her underwear for 3 days.
Bruce Springsteen gives 'The Big Man' a memorable send-off at funeral of Clarence Clemons.
Jack McKeon returns to manage Florida Marlins at age 80, second oldest in MLB ever to Connie Mack.
St. Louis Cardinals lose Albert Pujols for approximately six weeks due to fractured left wrist.
LeAnn Rimes shows off bikini body in Twitter photo, continues to shrug off scary skinny criticism.
Summer was just beginning.
The nights have been chilly this week, that's for sure. I hope you haven't forgotten last Monday and had the good fortune to be outdoors and soak in what might have been the most beautiful night of the entire year.
Perfect temperature, around 80 degrees.
Little humidity.
And that breeze.
I was working a high school soccer game in the press box, running the clock. We opened the windows as far as we could and smiled as that wind blew in. My partner, Mike Wenzel and I agreed. It wouldn't get any better than this the rest of our high school soccer schedule.
It really, really was that nice.
Next up, a mix of classical and jazz.
Remember the early 70's and that great instrumental of 2001: A Space Odyssey? It was performed by Eumir Deodato.
From those early years of his career, "The Spirit of Summer."
The Barking Lot (09/17/11)
The Barking Lot is a regular weekly feature of this just in…Written by my lovely wife, Jennifer and me. It opens with the weekend dog walking forecast followed by the main blog from dog lover, Jennifer. Then it's DOGS IN THE NEWS and our close. Enjoy!
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST: We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Sunny. High of 66. That's below normal, but it's sunny and dry and not all that terrible. "B"
SUNDAY: Afternoon showers. High of 69. "C"
Here's my lovely wife, Jennifer with this week's main blog:
As I have stated in the past, I am not a big lover of pit bull breeds. I would never feel comfortable around one and never in a million years would I let Kyla anywhere near one. I know, I know… there are no bad dogs, only bad owners. I know, I know… YOUR pit is just a big lover/teddy bear/baby/sissy/dog-that-is-afraid-of-its-own-shadow. I know, I know… the media is out to get your favorite breed. Save your arguments for someone whose mind you can change.
For every cute and cuddly story about a reformed pit bull that has saved a life literally or figuratively, there are probably a hundred or more about one who has taken a life or dramatically changed it for the worse.
Do I feel terrible that a breed has been used for horrific crimes that have somehow fallen under the label of "sport?" Of course I do. I think it is sick, inhumane, disgusting and appalling that people could do this to animals for so-called "entertainment." But you won't find me looking to pit bull rescue groups when it comes time to adopt the first Fischer dog for our family.
Great for all the dog-loving do-gooders out there who rescue these poor things and consider them rehabilitated. Personally I don't know why anyone would put themselves willingly in a situation like that but as they say, "whatever." I do think that if you are going to rescue a dog like this, you shoulder more than the usual amount of dog-owning responsibility. It is up to you, angel with kibble, to keep your propensity-to-maul dog away from any other warm-blooded being.
While the following local blog may seem pertinent to residents only of
Apparently a pit owner is disturbed that other dog owners are letting their dogs go off leash in a park that is specifically a LEASHED park. She is afraid of what could happen if that sweet but too-assuming lab came too close to her "VERY aggressive" dog. Technically and legally, she is right. However if her dog is that anti-social why is she taking it to ANY dog park? Yes I know that all dogs should be socialized. But is a dog park the best place to start?
And I love her additional argument: "It's not just me and my dog issues," she added, "it could be a kid that the big, goofy, friendly dog knocks over." Hmmm… I don't recall ever reading about a medical catastrophe caused by a St. Bernard running over a toddler.
You can read the entire exchange here.
---Jennifer Fischer
Thanks, Jennifer.I must admit my patience has run out regarding pit bulls. Poodles and terriers aren't terrorizng. We know the breed that is.
Time now for DOGS IN THE NEWS, canines that made headlines the past week, and we've got a bunch.
Today happens to be National Puppy Mill Awareness Day. A
Ayen's Law gets tough on owners of killer dogs.
Police chief wants big dogs kept away from children. Find out where.
Woman charged with animal cruelty wants dog back.
Woman fighting for her life wants to find her missing dog.
New study: 9/11 search and rescue dogs suffered minimal setbacks.
Military to train more dogs.
Bill approved to make VA service-dog friendly.
Small dog rescued from crack caused by drought.
A dog rescue that moved into Michael Vick's former house is now facing problems.
Dog survives arrow through head. Another survives a nail gun.
Dog saved, then lost.
Dog's disobedience saved man's life.
Hunter beefs up his resume.
One-eared dog is a hero.
Guide dogs deal with distractions.
Yes, you can get your dog used to a car ride.
Therapy dog comforts airport passengers.
Inmates train dogs to help others.
Noisy dogs can threaten backyard diplomacy.
Are you a responsible dog owner?
Why do we love our pets?
OK, one more time...can you afford a dog?
Eight-year old combat dog Fitas is seen with a French soldier from chef dog unit of Warhouse Camp in Kabul on September 10, 2011. Fitas the dog, injured in his leg, was captured and kept by the Taliban for five months before being found by Afghan National Army soldiers and returned to French troops. Photo: Getty Images
And we close as we always do, with our closing video.
13 dogs from Japan's "Super Wan Wan Circus" now hold the record for the most dogs skipping rope.
POO Awards - 2011: Week 5
Each week during this year's high
POO stands for Piling On Offensively (Or if you prefer, Pouring it On Offensively).
Week 1
Luck 73, Birchwood 22
Week 2
Coleman 63,
Week 3
Edgar 71, Chequamegon 7
Edgar usually ends up on my list once a season. It led 59-0 at halftime of their blowout.
Week 4
Ashwaubenon 64, Green Bay West 0
The halftime score: 57-0.
Week 5
Walworth Big Foot 61, Clinton 12
Last week Big Foot scored 57. They outdid themselves this week.
2011 POO Awards - Week 5
Each week during this year's high
POO stands for Piling On Offensively (Or if you prefer, Pouring it On Offensively).
Week 1
Luck 73, Birchwood 22
Week 2
Coleman 63,
Week 3
Edgar 71, Chequamegon 7
Edgar usually ends up on my list once a season. It led 59-0 at halftime of their blowout.
Week 4
Ashwaubenon 64, Green Bay West 0
The halftime score: 57-0.
Week 5
Walworth Big Foot 61, Clinton 12
Last week Big Foot scored 57. They outdid themselves this week.
UPDATE: The POO Award is posted each week on Saturday morning. However, some high school games are played on Saturday afternoon. After Saturday's action, I am adding another POO recipient:
University School 70, Hope School 16
Week-ends (09/17/11)
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week. Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
We begin with bystanders in Logan, Utah:
Doug's daughter Regis lays the smack down
Regis is Regis Giles. Her father is Doug Giles, one of my favorite columnists and authors.
Regis will be the host of a weekly hunting show on cable next year entitled, "Primal Urge." Here's a sample of the shooting, and I do mean shooting for the program.
Good for you, Regis! You are awesome! (Make sure to watch the following in full screen).
Recommended Reading (09/18/11)
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend (You will note that on occasion, I do not endorse the opinions of the author and may point that out. Despite my disagreements, I still feel the piece is worth a read).
Wisconsin Lawmaker Warns of Escalating Violence
"Somebody is seriously going to get hurt…or killed."
Stupid in America
"School spending has gone through the roof and test scores are flat. While most every other service in life has gotten faster, better, and cheaper, one of the most important things we buy ---education --- has remained completely stagnant, unchanged since we started measuring it in 1970. Why no improvement? Because K-12 education is a government monopoly and monopolies don't improve."
Make September 11 a National Holiday
"September 11th was an attack on all Americans and that's why a fitting commemoration of our mutual resolve to never forget those who gave their lives that day would be to preserve September 11th on our calendar as a national holiday."
The Luckiest - How 9/11 Saved My Life
"(On 9/111) I brought my daughter home for the first time. I sat alone with her in a recliner in my apartment, when she began to cry. Her father was truly petrified, as nothing was putting this baby at ease. I knew that I had to do something.
Just then, a frightened man with a wretched voice began to sing. The song was The Luckiest, by Ben Folds, and it meant the world to this little girl. If the song stopped for even an instant, she would begin to cry again. She needed me to sing that song for her in that moment. She needed me to embrace her, but nowhere near as much as her father needed the same. The 'culture of life' had found us both. And on that day, I had become – The Luckiest."
Five Reasons Black Americans Should Give Up On The Democratic Party
"Americans should have given up on the Democratic Party a long time ago.
1) Black Americans have been voting for the Democrats en masse for almost 40 years. What do they have to show for it economically?"
I agree with the people who yelled "yes," we should let him die at the debate
"One of the dirty little secrets of health care in this country is that a lot of the people who don't buy insurance can afford it, but choose not to do so."
Should faking a name on Facebook be a felony?
"Imagine that President Obama could order the arrest of anyone who broke a promise on the Internet. So you could be jailed for lying about your age or weight on an Internet dating site. Or you could be sent to federal prison if your boss told you to work but you used the company's computer to check sports scores online. Imagine that Eric Holder's Justice Department urged Congress to raise penalties for violations, making them felonies allowing three years in jail for each broken promise. Fanciful, right?
Think again. Congress is now poised to grant the Obama administration's wishes in the name of 'cybersecurity'."
Hero Irish cleric calls for end to holy celibacy
''I think priests should have the freedom to marry if they wish. I'm worried about the decreasing number of priests and the number of older priests
My Most Popular Blogs (09/18/11)
As I post every Sunday, here are the five most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
1) 9/11 IMAGES: "Powerful and disturning"
2) Photos of the Week (09/11/11)
3) Did anyone in Franklin make this list?
4) Franklin's motto: Spend, spend, spend
5) E-mails, I get e-mails: In a nutshell...
6) Remember Chris Gizzi?
7) The Barking Lot (09/17/11)
8) Culinary no-no #244
9) "The Man Who Predicted 9/11"
10) Week-ends (09/17/11)
Photos of the Week (09/18/11)
1) Relatives of 9/11 victims listen to the US national anthem during the ceremony marking the 10th anniversary of the terrorist attack. In the September 11, 2001 attacks, Al-Qaeda hijackers crashed passenger planes into the
2) New York police and firefighters and Port Authority police salute during the singing of the Star Spangled Banner at one of the entrances of 9/11 Memorial Plaza during the tenth anniversary ceremonies of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks at the World Trade Center site, September 11, 2011 in New York City.
3) Former first lady Laura Bush wipes away a tear as former President George W. Bush listens during ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of the 9/11 attack in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, September 10, 2011. Picture taken September 10, 2011. REUTERS/JASON COHN
4) Family members gather at the edge of the North Pool during anniversary ceremonies at the
5) Robert Peraza, who lost his son Robert David Peraza, pauses at his son's name at the North Pool of the 9/11 Memorial during tenth anniversary ceremonies at the site of the World Trade Center on the morning of Sept.11, 2011.
6) A woman mourns the loss of her son, ten years after he died in the attacks on the World Trade Center during the tenth anniversary ceremonies at the site of the World Trade Center September 11, 2011, in New York. AFP PHOTO/POOL/CAROLYN COLE
7) U.S. flags stand among a list of victims' names on a memorial pool during tenth anniversary ceremonies of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks at the
8) A man looks at the names on the wall of the newly opened "Empty Sky" memorial to victims of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center in Liberty State Park in Jersey City, New Jersey September 10, 2011. The memorial displays the names of people from
9) The "Tribute in Lights" illuminates the sky over lower
10) Representatives of 87 fire departments from the U.S. and Canada hold flags to be presented to family members of firefighters who have died this past year. They were attending the annual IAFF Fallen Fire Fighter Memorial Observance at Memorial Park in
11) Barack Obama awards the Medal of Honor to former Marine Corps Cpl. Dakota Meyers, 23, from Greensburg, Ky., Sept. 15, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C. Cpl. Meyers was in Afghanistan's Kunar province in Sept. 2009 when he repeatedly ran through enemy fire to recover the bodies of fellow American troops. He is the first living Marine to be awarded the Medal of Honor for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan. Photo: Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP
12) First lady Michelle Obama, left to right, Mike Meyer, Dakota Meyer and President Barack Obama after Obama signed the Medal of Honor citation in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on Sept. 15, 2011. Meyer, a former Marine sergeant, received the award for courageous actions while serving in Afghanistan. Photo: Joao Silva / New York Timesa via Redux
13) A P-51 Mustang airplane is shown upside down, then vertical, right before crashing at the Reno Air show on Friday, Sept. 16, 2011 in Reno Nevada. The plane plunged into the stands at the event in what an official described as a "mass casualty situation." Photo: Tim O'Brien/Grass Valley Union via AP. The crash was captured on video.
14) In this Monday, Sept. 12, 2011 image taken from video, a group of people tilt a burning BMW up to free Brandon Wright, on his back on the ground, who was pinned underneath after he collided with the car while riding his motorcycle on U.S. 89 in Logan, Utah. Authorities said Wright was riding his motorcycle near the Utah State University campus in Logan when the 21-year-old collided with the BMW that was pulling out of a parking lot. Tire and skid marks on the highway indicate that Wright laid the bike down and slid along the road before colliding with the car, Assistant Police Chief Jeff Curtis said. Police officers quickly extinguish the flames. Photos: Chris Garff / AP
15) In this aerial photo, an area of the Pagami Creek wildfire shows active burning and creates a large smoke plume on Tuesday Sept. 13, 2011 in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness in Northeastern Minnesota. The haze from the fire was heavy enough that some people reported burning eyes and difficulty breathing in the Chicago area, 400 miles south of the forest fire, the National Weather Service said. Photo: Clint Austin / The Duluth News-Tribune via AP
16) Lightning flashes over the Las Vegas Strip during a thunderstorm early on September 13 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Photo: Ethan Miller / Getty Images
17) Saltwater crocodile 'Cassius' is pictured in Marineland Melanisia at Green Island on the Great Barrier Reef in Queensland, Australia, on Sept. 15. Cassius was officially declared the 'World's Largest Crocodile in Captivity' by the Guinness Book of Records, measuring 5.48 metres and weighing close to a ton. Photo: Brian Cassey / EPA
18) A Siproeta Ephaphus butterfly lands on the leaf at the Botanic Garden Jose Celestino Mutis during an exhibition in Bogota on September 14, 2011. Colombia is one of the countries with the greatest diversity of butterfly species, with some 5,000 diurnal and over 20,000 nocturnal. Photo: Luis Acosta / AFP - Getty Images
19) Richie Moretti, right, and other staff members at The Turtle Hospital in Marathon, Fla., perform a final examination of a Federally-protected loggerhead sea turtle before releasing it off the Florida Keys near Marathon, Fla., Wednesday, Sept. 14. The turtle suffered a spear gun shot to its head in early August and a veterinarian surgically removed the spear that missed vital structures. Keys residents and businesses have amassed a $16,000 reward fund for tips leading to the arrest and conviction of the guilty party. The x-ray taken prior to surgery is displayed on the monitor in the background. Photos: Andy Newman /Florida Keys News Bureau via AP
20) An albino sea pup with rare reddish-brown fur was spotted in August under some logs on a Russian beach by photographer Anatoly Strakhov. The seal was rejected by his family and left to fend for himself, according to Caters News Agency. "He was hiding and waiting for his mother to come and feed him," Strakhov told the Daily Mail. "I was pleased to be able to capture such an unusual animal, but the poor seal is almost blind and so was unlikely to survive in the wild." Good news! The Daily Mail reported that the seal was taken into the care of a dolphinarium. Photos: Anatoly Strakhov/Caters News Agency
21) Veterinarian Doctor Maria Diaz gives milk to a newborn lion at the Zoo and Eco Park 'Joya Grande' in the Santa Cruz de Yojoa municipality, department of Cortes, Honduras, on September 17, 2011. Photo: Orlando Sierra / AFP - Getty Images
22) A visitor poses in front of a beluga swimming inside an aquarium at the Laohutan Ocean Park in Dalian, in northeast China's Liaoning province, Saturday, Sept. 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
23) Gardener Peter Glazebrook poses for photographers with his world record breaking onion at The Harrogate Autumn Flower Show on September 16 in Harrogate, England. Peter Glazebrook from Newark, Nottinghamshire claimed a Guinness World Record with his giant onion weighing 8.150kg. Photo: Christopher Furlong / Getty Images
24) The Toronto Blue Jays Edwin Encarnacion (10) loses his hold on his bat as Boston Red Sox catcher Jason Varitek catches the pitch in the first inning of their MLB American League baseball game at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts September 14. Photo: Brian Snyder / Reuters. Moments later, a fan reaches up to make the grab on the bat. Photo: Charles Krupa / AP
25) Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, left, encourages a youth member of the Singapore Basketball Association to complete his set of push-ups during a basketball clinic on Saturday Sept. 17, 2011 in Singapore. Bryant says he's still considering playing overseas as an owners' lockout of players threatens to sabotage the upcoming NBA season. (AP Photo/Wong Maye-E)
26) Wisconsin players take the field before Saturday's game against Northern Illinois won by the Badgers, 49-7. Note the empty seats at Soldier Field. The announced attendance was 41,068. Journal Sentinel photo: Benny Sieu
27) Miss Angola Leila Lopes is crowned after being named Miss Universe 2011 in Sao Paulo, Brazil on Sept. 12. Photo: Reuters
28) Cheerleaders dance during the EuroBasket 2011 second-round match between Greece and Russia at Siemens Arena in Vilnius, Lithuania.Photo: Getty Images
29) A waitress carries beer mugs in the Hofbraeuhaus-tent after the opening of the famous Bavarian "Oktoberfest" beer festival in a beer tent in Munich, southern Germany, on Saturday, Sept.17, 2011. The world's largest beer festival, to be held from Sept. 17 to Oct. 3, 2011 will see millions of visitors. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader). Here are great photos from last year's Oktoberfest.
30) Underneath a flowing tiered skirt, Lady Gaga wore sky-high shoes and stilts during a photo shoot Monday on a
31) Chris "The Dutchess" Walton shows off her record breaking fingernails in New York, Wednesday, Sept. 14, 2011. The Dutchess holds the world's record for the longest fingernails on a pair of female hands, according to the new Guiness World Records 2012 book. Photo: Seth Wenig / AP. Walton's nails measure 10 feet 2 inches (3.1 meters) on her left hand and 9 feet 7 inches (2.92 meters) on her right hand and has been growing her nails for 18 years. Photo: Stan Honda / AFP - Getty Images
32) Garry Hine, left, and Gary Wychocki help move a giant chocolate bar to a scale Tuesday, Sept. 13, in Chicago. The chocolate bar weighs 12,000 pounds and measures 3-feet high and 21-feet long. It includes 1,200 pounds of almonds, 5,500 pounds of sugar, 2,000 pounds of milk powder, 1,700 pounds of cocoa butter and 1,400 pounds of chocolate liquor. The bar will tour schools across the United States as part of a portion-control education campaign called "Think Big. Eat Smart." Photo: Brian kersey /World's Finest Chocolate via AP
33) A volunteer holds the end of a 47-foot long bratwurst as Chicago's Berghoff Restaurant goes for the Guinness World Record for the Midwest's Longest Brat on Thursday September 15, 2011. Photos: Mira Oberman / AFP - Getty Images
APRIL 21, 2011: Wakana Kumagai, 6, waits for her mother Yoshiko after visiting the grave of her father, who was killed by the March 11 tsunami, at a temporary mass grave site in Higashi-Matsushima, Miyagi prefecture, April 21, 2011, after attending an entrance ceremony of Omagari elementary school. Her father Kazuyuki called his wife Yoshiko just after the March 11 earthquake to tell her to take the children to Omagari elementary school which was serving as a shelter. He was found near the shelter four days after the tsunami, Yoshiko said. Photo: Toru Hanai / Reuters
FIVE MONTHS LATER: From photoblog.msnbc.msn.com: "One day, one of Wakana's dolls was miraculously found in the rubble. The doll was her favorite when she was a baby, to the point where without out it she would immediately begin to cry and complain.
They arrive at the Emmy Awards
Tonight, I'm busy watching watching ESPN baseball and NBC Sunday Night Football. But I recognize the great interest in tonight's Emmy Awards. I'm not a fashion guru, thank you, but...
Actress Gywyneth Paltrow arrives at the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 18, 2011 in
Actress Claire Danes arrives at the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 18, 2011 in Los Angeles, California.
Actress Nina Dobrey arrives at the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 18, 2011 in Los Angeles, California.
Actress Louise Roe arrives at the 63rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards held at Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE on September 18, 2011 in Los Angeles, California.
Culinary no-no #245
Speaker's Suggestion that Protesters Start Urinating on GOP Lawmakers Draws Applause, Laughter at Fighting Bob Fest
The latest pro-life news
September 19, 2011
In This Issue:
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Debate heats up regarding use of aborted
On Sunday, September 11 there was a column in the
fetal body parts in Wisconsin research
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel opposing a ban on aborted fetal
tissue research.
PLW's communications director Virginia Zignego had a
letter to the editor on the issue in the Milwaukee Journal
Sentinel on Sept. 14 and the Wisconsin State Journal on Sept.
The Milwaukee Journal editorial board weighed in, stating moral
concerns hold no sway in this brave new world we're living in.
Read the editorial board's statement here.
Rep. Andre Jacque had the below op-ed in the Milwaukee
Journal Sentinel on Sept. 15:
authorization and conduct of scientific research, a point
underscored by numerous and horrific past failures to
establish or follow such protocols. Yet as a University of
Wisconsin-Madison graduate with substantial coursework
in the biological sciences, I heard the declaration from more
than one of my professors that the ethical questions
surrounding pushing the boundaries of scientific inquiry should
be "set aside and dealt with later" if there was "great potential"
for medical breakthroughs.
Imagine what atrocities can be justified by such a
philosophy! We can do better. I have introduced Assembly
Bill 214 to establish reasonable standards for human tissue
research and to prohibit the sale or use of aborted fetal body
parts for experimentation or other purposes.
A question as the new Fall TV Season gets underway...
Who will be the first to get the axe on DWTS?
Chaz Bono, or...
UPDATE: The Barking Lot (09/17/11)
The Barking Lot research/production team missed an item for this past Saturday's blog and it's a dandy.
Scroll down to the final question in Dear Abby?
UPDATE: Culinary no-no #221
Culinary no-no #221 dealt with the school district of San Antonio where five elementary schools placed cameras in cafeteria lines to spy on what kids were and weren't eating.
The update: The state of Michigan is going to require BMI reports on kids.
Hey lady, would you like to smell my thigh?
World famous soccer player David Beckham went undercover in a Target store for the Ellen DeGeneres show. Beckham, with Ellen coaching in his ear, tried to sell cologne.
The video is hilarious.
MUST-SEE VIDEO: The world from outer space in 1 minute
Science educator James Drake assembled this time-lapse video of Earth at night from International Space Station imagery. Pacific Ocean and continues over North and South America before entering daylight near Antarctica. (Credit: Infinity Imagined)
UPDATE: Culinary no-no #245
The potato was prominent in Culinary no-no #245.
The update: A Democrat Congressman tries to block proposed school-lunch standards that discriminate against potatoes.
Say it ain't so, Tony
On June 9, 1972, the day before he was to begin some concert dates at Madison Square Garden, Elvis Presley held a rare news conference. Watch how he responds to a question about Vietnam and a follow-up about :38 into this video...
It's a shame and deeply disappointing that the legendary Tony Bennett did not take Elvis' approach.
UPDATE: Speaker's Suggestion that Protesters Start Urinating, etc...
I honestly don't expect the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Wisconsin State Journal, the Capital Times, or any other newspaper in Wisconsin for that matter to weigh in on this.
However, the
The group is calling for an apology.
UPDATE: Speaker's Suggestion that Protesters Start Urinating, etc...
I honestly don't expect the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Wisconsin State Journal, the Capital Times, or any other newspaper in Wisconsin for that matter to weigh in on this.
However, the
The group is calling for an apology.
Tommy Thompson is in the race
The former governor has released the following video:
Memo to the Franklin School Board
And that goes for you, too,
It can be done.
The latest from Rehorst
The Monthly Newsletter of Wisconsin's First & Finest Craft Distillery
In This Issue
Travel Green Wisconsin
Pumpkin Spirit Available This Week!
Pumpkin Seasonal Spirit Release Party!
GLD Products Available in Minnesota
Martin Hintz New Book
Pumpkin Old Fashioned
3RD UPDATE: The recall process in Wisconsin needs dramatic change
Previously on This Just In…
The latest: Vos says recalls 'like a cancer' - State recalls cost taxpayers estimated $2.1 million
The MPD lays the smack down on a 68-year old TV cameraman
I started working in broadcast journalism in
During that time, I've not been aware of any photojournalist being arrested while on the job shooting video of a fire. That is, until now.
I am not the biggest fan of Milwaukee Police Chief Ed Flynn. Believe me, I know more than a few police officers who are in the same boat.
Throughout my years in journalism, I got to know Clint Fillinger, a photojournalist at Channel 6 in
But Fillinger, who is 68, was recently roughed up by some of Flynn's officers while he simply was doing what so many have done so many times before him, and including him…shooting video of a working fire while on the job, representing a local TV news station.
This situation could have been handled much better by the local police. It is amazing to me how much harassment they are subjected to and will take from criminal scum, but they have no trouble playing tough against a 68-year old man with a camera simply doing his job.
2ND UPDATE: Speaker's Suggestion that Protesters Start Urinating, etc..
Previously on This Just In…
The update: Lo and behold, the Wisconsin State Journal says knock it off!
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel???
4TH UPDATE: The recall process in Wisconsin needs dramatic change
Previously on This Just In…
The update: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says, yes, changes are needed.
Goodnight everyone, and a have a daddy-o weekend!
"Life is one grand, sweet song, so start the music."
Ronald Reagan
It's Friday night. Time to unwind with our regular Friday night feature on This Just In.
The weekend has finally arrived.
The sun has set.
The evening sky has erupted.
Let's smooth our way into Saturday and Sunday.
This weekend, my Dad would have celebrated a birthday. We miss him dearly, but we hold on to many wonderful memories, including the music he loved.
Tonight, as I've done in the past, some selections will be shared from Dad's record collection.
Let's start with a rather appropriate instrumental that was one of Dad's all-time favorites, performed live with not only the traditional take, but a jazzy interpretation as well.
This video's for you, Kyla!
Imagine if she saw these.
Around 100 hummingbirds show up daily on the front porch of Ernie Blanco and Kathleen Gillespie in Ragley, Louisiana. The birds started showing up after Hurricanes Gustav and Ike in 2008.
Franklin shutout?
When was the last time this happened?
The Barking Lot (09/24/11)
The Barking Lot is a regular weekly feature of this just in…Written by my lovely wife, Jennifer and me. It opens with the weekend dog walking forecast followed by the main blog from dog lover, Jennifer. Then it's DOGS IN THE NEWS and our close. Enjoy!
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST: We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Showers. High of 60. "D"
SUNDAY: Scattered showers. High of 60. "D"
Here's my lovely wife, Jennifer with this week's main blog:
Several years ago when Kevin and I were first dating, we went to a brew pub we both enjoy. One of my favorite items there is a wonderful, warm, crusty-yet-soft dinner roll. I could eat a basket of them all by myself.
Obama's spin goes country
First, there was the Man in Black...
Now there's a president who has run the country into the ground, but blames everyone else rather than himself and his policies.
Take it away, Lars Larson!
2011 POO Awards - Week 6
Each week during this year's high school football season, I'm giving out a weekly POO Award to the
POO stands for Piling On Offensively (Or if you prefer, Pouring it On Offensively).
Week 1
Luck 73, Birchwood 22
Week 2
Coleman 63,
Week 3
Edgar 71, Chequamegon 7
Edgar usually ends up on my list once a season. It led 59-0 at halftime of their blowout.
Week 4
Ashwaubenon 64, Green Bay West 0
The halftime score: 57-0.
Week 5
Walworth Big Foot 61, Clinton 12
Last week Big Foot scored 57. They outdid themselves this week.
UPDATE: The POO Award is posted each week on Saturday morning. However, some high school games are played on Saturday afternoon. After Saturday's action, I am adding another POO recipient:
University School 70, Hope School 16
Week 6
Leading 54-0 in the second half,
Extremely reliable sources tell me that when the score became 47-0 in the 2nd quarter, the commissioner of athletics for MPS instructed the official timer to implement the running clock, even though WIAA rules order a running clock not be used until the second half.
Assistant coaches for
Edgar 63, Phillips 0
Elkhart Lake 67, Stockbridge 0
Week-ends (09/24/11)
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week. Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
Six Japanese men
Matt Collins
Drew Champagnie
Ben Campbell
Parishioners in Lakeland, Florida
CNN's Top Ten, including one from Wisconsin
Keith McVey
I love this one...Josh Ripley. MORE.
Angela Mauer-Pfister's father
President Obama
Governor Deval Patrick
Shirley Anderson
Josh Rendon and Ebony Jackson
Noble Wray
Illinois politics
City officials in San Juan Capistrano
Uninsured drivers
And this one was mighty disappointing...
Yes, entertainers would be best to just shut up.
"My next door neighbor's two dogs have created more shovel ready jobs than this administration."
Gary Johnson
"If [former President] Bill Clinton had been in the White House and had failed to address this problem, we probably would be marching on the White House. There is a less-volatile reaction in the CBC (Congressional Black Caucus) because nobody wants to do anything that would empower the people who hate the president."
CBC Chairman Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.)
"We are far past sending out talking points. Do not attempt to dumb it down. We cannot stand any more explanations. Have you talked to any Democratic senators lately? I have. It's pretty damn clear they are not happy campers."
Renowned Democratic strategist James Carville
"His nomination to be the Democratic Party's candidate could be in jeopardy. He's trying to drag Democrats out on a limb with him. It's hard to believe Democrats will follow him. Aside from hard-core Democrats with safe seats, he's just not going to get much support from his own party."
Cheri Jacobus, political strategist and president of Capitol Strategies, talking about President Obama.
"In a fact sheet published by Office of the Press Secretary, the White House itself has estimated that president's new jobs plan will cost a total of $447 billion. $447 billion divided by 1.9 million (jobs to be created) equals approximately $235,263."
"If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no other reason than they have been brought there by no fault of their own, I don't think you have a heart."
Rick Perry
"Governor Perry, no one is suggesting up here that the students that are illegal in this country shouldn't be able to go to a college and university.... The point is, why are we subsidizing? Not that they can't go. They can go. They just have to borrow money, find other sources to be able to go. And why should they be given preferential treatment as an illegal in this country?"
Rick Santorum
"I don't try and define who is rich and who is not rich. I want everybody in
Mitt Romney
"Not with my brother, with my dad, not with me at all. I admire him."
George W. Bush, denying rumors of a tense relationship with Texas Governor and Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry, who served as Bush's lieutenant governor in
"$16 muffins and $600,000 for event planning services are what make Americans cynical about government and why they are demanding change."
Chuck Grassley, U.S. senator and senior Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee, on a recent report describing the Department of Justice's wasteful spending.
"This guy pushed every one of the media's buttons. He was liberal, he was different, he was new, he was black. Oh my God, it was the potpourri of everything. They are so vested in our first black president not being a failure that it's going to be amazing to watch the lengths they go to protect him. They, I believe, will spout this racist line if some of their colleagues up here aren't doing it aggressively enough. There is going to be a real desperation."
Congressman Joe Walsh (R-Ill.) about the media and President Obama.
"Barack Obama ran against the wars – then expanded them.
Barack Obama ran against federal wiretapping programs – then expanded them.
Barack Obama ran against Bush's faith based initiatives – then expanded them.
Barack Obama ran against Bush's debts – then expanded them."
Blogger Aleister
"He was the sweetest, kindest kid you'd ever know. He would give all his heart to you before he gave any to himself."
Tracy Rodemyer, a resident of Williamsville, New York, said of her 14-year-old son, Jamey, who committed suicide Sept. 18 after years of bullying both at school and online because of his sexuality.
New hotline opens in Illinois to help illegal immigrants facing deportation.
Milwaukee police take 4 hours to respond to burglary call.
Wisconsin's business climate still bad, but turning around under Walker.
Chaz Bono.
And Troy Davis is innocent.
This traffic jam really stunk.
Congratulations, ma'am. It's a boy. By the way, we land in one hour.
Parents sue to kick 41-year old son out of the house.
That's it for this week. We close with the latest from NewsBusted.
War hero wants to be fireman, but...
President Barack Obama awards the Medal of Honor to former Marine Corps Cpl. Dakota Meyers, 23, from
Recommended Reading (09/25/11)
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend (You will note that on occasion, I do not endorse the opinions of the author and may point that out. Despite my disagreements, I still feel the piece is worth a read).
Why Obama should resign
"The sputtering economy is about to stall out, unemployment is high, his jobs program may not pass, foreclosures are rampant and the poor guy can't even sneak a cigarette."
Four minutes to explain all that is wrong with America
"In a three minute, 51-second song, Mr. EBT champions his eponymous card -- or rather, his sister's EBT card. (Yes, that's fraud.) Because, as we all know, government dependency is a family value. As he wanders aimlessly through the aisles of corner stores, he chants, 'Sandwiches, chips, Snickers, Twix ... I'm eating good. Potato chips ... a big box of Oreos ... cereal, Kix ... my EBT, my EBT...walking down the ave', there's food I got a hunger for.' He doesn't have a hunger for grammar, but he has hunger for taxpayer cash. 'It's the EBT, it's not food stamps,' he says. 'If I don't have my card, I use someone else's!'
Cop-killer is media's latest baby seal
"For decades, liberals tried persuading Americans to abolish the death penalty, using their usual argument: hysterical sobbing.
Only when the media began lying about innocent people being executed did support for the death penalty begin to waver, falling from 80 percent to about 60 percent in a little more than a decade. (Silver lining: That's still more Americans than believe in man-made global warming.)
Fifty-nine percent of Americans now believe that an innocent man has been executed in the last five years. There is more credible evidence that space aliens have walked among us than that an innocent person has been executed in this country in the past 60 years, much less the past five years.
But unless members of the public are going to personally review trial transcripts in every death penalty case, they have no way of knowing the truth. The media certainly won't tell them."
Top 0.1 percent pays more income tax than bottom 80 percent
"Now, I don't know how much Warren Buffett pays his secretary, or how much either of them really pays in income taxes. But when 0.1 percent of the population is collectively paying more in income taxes than 80 percent of the population is collectively paying, it's clear that there's not a whole lot of need for the 'Buffett Rule'."
What we owe the extraordinarily brave
"Last Sunday was television's night, what with the Emmy Awards and all.
And yet as I watched the funny and jubilant, I couldn't stop thinking about the blank, distant expression of Marine Sergeant Dakota Meyer on 60 Minutes less than an hour before."
How to fix our illegal immigration problem in 5 steps
"The reality is that if the people in D.C. actually want to put an end to illegal immigration, they could do it within a year or two without resorting to the open borders and amnesty crowd's favorite imaginary bugaboo: rounding up millions of people, one by one, and deporting them. How do we do it?"
Don't let cheerleaders wear short skirts to school
"Are the skirts these days obscenely short? Yes. I really do think they are in the context of class, when you have to sit in a desk and people are like two inches away from you. It's really hard to sit comfortably without showing more than you want to in a cheerleading skirt. Especially the newer ones without pleats. The end.
I always thought it was totally stupid that cheerleaders had to wear their uniforms to school, but I never really thought about it until now.
None of the sports teams wore their uniforms to school in my high school. I'm pretty sure they don't today, either. Why make the cheerleaders do it? Or better -- why LET them even if they want to?"
Hot Dog Time
"Okay, so we're broke. Not 'have to stretch to next payday' broke. Really broke. Our accounts are overdrawn, the credit cards are maxed out and if that's
We're in an economic hole so deep we're bumping elbows with blind moles. Can feel the heat from the core of the earth on the soles of our feet. Need a co-signer to play pinball. We're so broke,
My Most Popular Blogs (09/25/11)
As I post every Sunday, here are the ten most read blog entries of mine from the previous week. NOTE: some entries may have been posted prior to the past week.
2) Memo to the Franklin School Board
3) Franklin's motto: Spend, Spend, Spend
4) Culinary no-no #245
5) 2ND UPDATE: Speakers Suggestion that Protesters Start Urinating etc
6) If computer problems were real
7) Week-ends (09/24/11)
8) The MPD lays the smack down on a 68-year old TV cameraman
9) Week-ends (09/17/11)
10) The Barking Lot (09/24/11)
Photos of the Week (09/25/11)
1) Ryan Braun swings and connects on a three-run homer Friday night to beat the Florida Marlins, 4-1 and capture the NL Central Division crown, the first such title for the Brewers in 29 years. Photos: Tom Lynn,
2) Ryan Braun holds a championship belt as the team and their fans celebrate at
3) A campaign staffer helps a glass repairman clean up broken glass in the early hours of Friday, Sept. 23, after President Barack Obama's West Los Angeles campaign office was vandalized. Photo: Kevork Djansezian / Getty Images
4) The crime scene where two trucks were found with 35 bodies along an avenue in Boca del Rio,
5) Emergency responders work at the scene where a building collapsed onto a street and bus on the corner of
6) The fountains at the
7) Japanese athletes swim the final stretch into the Suao harbor, northeastern
8) Ana Julia Torres kisses Jupiter, a lion who was rescued from a circus 12 years ago, on September 17, 2011, at Villa Lorena shelter, in Cali, Valle del Cauca department, Colombia. Torres, a 52 year-old teacher, founded the Villa Lorena animal shelter 17 years ago, which protects about 600 animals seized from drug traffickers, circuses, animal traffickers or abandoned by their owners. (AFP/Getty Images/Luis Robayo)
9) Mish Whalen writes on photoblog.msnbc.msn.com: "A poor little featherless penguin born Aug. 17, 2011, was abandoned by its parents just days after its birth. An aquarium keeper said: 'Its parents kicked it out from time to time, or even left it on the icy ground to let it die,' according to Rex Features. Keepers at the aquarium decided that the sad baby penguin's lack of feathers and weak condition were due to difficulties digesting food and absorbing nutrition. Spokeswoman Wang Dan said: 'In the beginning we tried to send it back to its parents, hoping they would still take care of it and help it grow stronger, but they neglected it and even kicked it out. We then decided to feed it by ourselves'. The keepers at LHT Pole Aquarium in
10) The next Friday night fish fry sensation? Chef Tim Creehan, right, and chef Philippe Parola prepare Asian carp at Christ the
11) Wisconsin defensive back Marcus Cromartie (14) breaks up a pass intended for South Dakota wide receiver Dustin Nowothy during the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Sept. 24, 2011, in Madison, Wis. The Badgers won handily, 59-10. (AP Photo/Andy Manis)
12) Carolina Panthers fans watch the team play against the Green Bay Packers on September 18, 2011 at Bank of America Stadium in
13) Carolina Panthers' Brandon LaFell (11) falls back after catching a touchdown pass against Green Bay Packers' Jarrett Bush (24) during the first quarter on September 18, 2011 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC.
14) Green Bay Packers' Charles Woodson (21) intercepts a pass intended for Carolina Panthers' Steve Smith (89), as Nick Collins (36) closes in, during the second quarter on September 18, 2011 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC. Green Bay won, 30-23.Photo: David T. Foster III- Charlotte Observer
15) Carolina Panthers' Steve Smith (89) watches the ball bounce away after being stripped of it while being hit by Green Bay Packers' Morgan Burnett (42) and Nick Collins (36) during the third quarter on September 18, 2011 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC.
16) Green Bay Packers' Jordy Nelson (87) streaks down the sideline in front of the team's bench on his way to the endzone against the Carolina Panthers late in the fourth quarter on September 18, 2011 at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, NC.
17) BAM! Arizona Cardinals quarterback Kevin Kolb, left, is sacked by Washington Redskins outside linebacker Brian Orakpo in the first half of in
18) Chicago Bears quarterback Jay Cutler (6) listens to quarterback coach Shane Day during a time out in the first half of an NFL football game against the New Orleans Saints at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Sunday, Sept. 18, 2011. (AP Photo/Bill Feig)
19) Combo picture dated on September 20, 2011 shows fans wearing glasses during various rugby matches at the 2011 Rugby World Cup. Photo: Stf / AFP - Getty Images
20) A general view of the La Monumental bullring on September 22 in
21) Dolores Hope leans over to talk with her husband, entertainer Bob Hope, as they ride in a car as Grand Marshals for a parade in his honor in Toluca Lake in this May 30, 1998 file photo. Dolores Hope died on September 19 at age 102. Photo: Fred Prouser / Reuters
22) A German Motorway Police handout photograph dated September 20 shows a vehicle which was stopped by police on the motorway near
23) Mexican cooks make a 50-metre-long "Taco" (Mexican typical food) at Garibaldi square in Mexico City, on Sept. 22 in the framework of the 2nd Taco Festival, in an attempt to break a record of the most long "Taco" of the world. Ronaldo Schemidt / AFP - Getty Images
It's not the photo of the year, but for a lot of you, it just might be.
A koala takes an afternoon nap in a tree at the San Diego Zoo,
The wording above simply doesn't do the picture justice.
Culinary no-no #246
It was the busy lunch period at a suburban
We ordered, waited for our lunches to arrive, then ate, and were just about done. The adjacent party of six was still occupying the table. Their check had been presented. They paid it. Asked for more coffee and water. They yacked. And yacked. And yacked some more. And then a few pulled out the daily newspaper, spread it around, and proceeded to start reading. And they read. And read. And read some more.
Meanwhile, a large crowd had assembled in the lobby areas waiting for their opportunity. The inconsiderate six, in absolutely no hurry, were unfazed. Finally, a restaurant manager's patience tank hit empty.
"I'm sorry, folks, but I could please ask you to leave. I have people waiting and need this table."
Still unfazed and nowhere near apologetic, the discourteous six quietly, silently folded their newspaper sections, got up, and left.
Bravo to that manager because this...
Is not this...
In the restaurant business, table turnover is critical to the bottom line. The owner wants to seat as many as possible. The wait staff wants to service as many potential tipsters as possible.
In a city where many, if not most dining trends originate, many New York restaurants have decided that if you won't leave, they'll make you leave by instituting time limits ranging from 60 minutes to two hours. Some are using stop watches. One is actually resorting to an hourglass.
Good idea or not? Let's explore.
You have the above-mentioned example of the morons who thought they were in a Christian Science Reading Room.
Then there's the last time Jennifer, Kyla and I went out to eat. It was this past Friday night. Our dining experience lasted somewhere between 75 and 90 minutes. But consider that we ordered about 5-10 minutes after getting our menus, we passed on appetizers, took dessert to go, and paid our bill in while leftovers were being packed. Otherwise, our total time on the watch could have been close to or exceeding two hours meaning in NYC, we would have been reprimanded.
Appropriate or bad business?
Think about it. Two hours should be more than enough, correct?
But why punish customers by rushing, and potentially, losing them?
On the other hand, you waited and waited and dropped some heavy cash at the bar doing so. Now you've finally been seated. Isn't it only fair that someone else now be forced to be just as patient for that same table?
The hope is that diners will readily recognize that a busy restaurant is filled with people who would prefer that you not dilly dally when you've basically done all there is to do.
Zagat has just released The Ten New Rules of Dining Etiquette. Here's one of them:
Common courtesy should prevail, but in this age of bad manners and selfishness, it doesn't. Thus, in NYC, the clock is ticking the moment your keister hits the chair.
But get this. For all the griping about these new time restraints, a nationwide Zagat survey shows 60% approve.
I say no. Until 2011, restaurants have understood table turnaround is vital and have somehow managed to deal with poky patrons. Time limits seem to be a somewhat desperate maneuver. I may have jumped through hoops to secure a reservation and still had to wait. Now the wait staff is handing me a menu. I want the best dining experience possible, and that means not having to sweat out a stop watch.
Read much more from the New York Post.
Fast food and food stamps... The point is, the program shouldn't be a program at all.
Meet blogger Curtis...idiot.
This is what you eat in a year.
20 years ago vs. today.
Grilled cheese vodka?
With tomato soup chaser, I imagine.
The latest pro-life news
From Pro-Life
State Regulators Tell Lawmakers Two-Mile Milwaukee Train Project Could Require $70 Million in Related Utility Work
MacIver News Service | September 26, 2011 | 9:40 am
ObamaCare about to go to the SCOTUS
This tactic is open to interpretation. It seems 2012, an election year, will provide the backdrop for the ultimate ruling on socialistic medicine.
Personally, I can't wait for the case to finally hit the highest court in the land. A binding decision must be rendered, and I'm confident the Supremes will strike down what is obviously an unconstitutional mandate.
Here's more from Politico.
Get ready to play FINAL JEOPARDY!
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, yes it's that time.....time once again for another This Just In edition of:
Are you ready?
Well then, let's play!
Today's Final Jeopardy category is:
Now, you know how this works.
In a moment, I'll give you the Final Jeopardy clue.
You will have 30 seconds (if you play fair, that will be when the music runs out) to come up with an answer and remember, players……… your answer must be in the form of a question.
Here's your clue.
Good luck.
Alright players, time's up.
Again, today's Final Jeopardy category is:
The Final Jeopardy answer was:
The correct question is:
What are Samoas?
We the People Need More Jobs
Encourage the President to Approve the Keystone XL Pipeline,
and Create Jobs Now.
With the national unemployment rate stuck above 9%, President Obama has rightly
chosen to focus on job creation with a tremendous sense of urgency.
However, urgency is only half the battle. America doesn't just need a plan—we need
action now.
There is one thing the Administration can do right now to create upwards of 250,000
new, long-term American jobs:
Approve a Presidential Permit for the Keystone XL Pipeline.
UPDATE: Culinary no-no #246
Previously on This Just In... (check out the final item).
The update...
THE LATEST: Billboard stays, but cheesehead comes off.
Head over to Cold Stone Creamery...NOW!
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Today is a huge day for Elvis fans. RCA has released, "Young Man With the Big Beat," a new 5-CD super deluxe set highlighting Elvis Presley's 1956 RCA debut with RCA master recordings, live performances, outtakes and rare interviews.
Here's a great review from Goldmine Magazine.
Does the Franklin Public School administration really want a referendum?
They may want to reconsider.
The Wisconsin Reporter writes in a piece about how the state budget is saving local municipalities money as a result of the state budget proposed by Governor Walker and approved by legislative Republicans:
"Referendum is a tool in Act 10 (the state budget) that hasn't received much attention. School boards are free under the law to take teacher salary increases to district voters, and let taxpayers make the final call.
But the odds of voter approval drop in tough economic times. And school referenda have fallen in recent years, said (Dale) Knapp, of the (
Asking for money to cover salaries and benefits, however, is a tough question, the researcher said.
'Many in private sector, many in public sector, are getting by with minimal raises at best,' he said. 'To ask them to pay for higher salaries is probably going to be a real difficult sell'."
My guess,
Go Bucky, stick it to Bo Pelini!
There are a few reasons why I truly hope Wisconsin beats the dickens out of Nebraska this Saturday night:
I am a Badger fan.
I've never really liked Nebraska.
This is Wisconsin's biggest game in the Big Ten Conference this season. Win this one and you could be on your way to a national championship.
Nebraska's head coach, Bo Pelini is not very nice. Beat him, Bucky. Beat him bad.
UPDATE: Photos of the Week (12/19/10)
Remember this photo?
A cross-eyed opossum (didelphis) called Heidi sits in its interim enclosure, in the zoo in
"Please, Sir, your country needs you to run for President"
Quite a question.
"Vegetarian - that's an old Indian word meaning lousy hunter"
He's a slice of Americana.
After 33 years, 92-year old Andy Rooney leaves CBS' "60 Minutes" after this Sunday's broadcast.
The latest from Franklin alderman Kristen Wilhelm
Dear Residents,
2ND UPDATE: Let's pass Caylee's Law in Wisconsin
Previously on This Just In…
The update: The Green Bay Press Gazette tracked down some professors who pooh-poohed the proposed legislation. It's the usual lame arguments: Knee-jerk reaction, unnecessary, taking advantage of sensational headlines.
It's tough on crime. Good enough for me.
Photo IDs a hardship???
NEWS BULLETIN: WI still spends a lot on public schools
Facts are foreign and actually painful to liberals. It hurts when they don't fit nicely in a four second sound bite or on a bumper sticker or rhyme nicely in a protest chant. That's why they won't accept, or at the least understand new numbers crunched by the nonpartisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau (LFB).
In a memo to the entire Wisconsin Legislature, the LFB compares state support of statewide K-12 education between school years 2009-10 and 2010-11.
Total state funding for school year 2009-10 in millions: $6,219.5
Total state funding for school year 2010-11 in millions: $6,234.2
Those no-good, evil Republicans.
The Milwaukee Brewers and Lou Holtz
The current Brewer euphoria is wonderful and more than understandable. After all, Milwaukee hadn't captured a division crown in nearly 30 years until last week.
But now the regular season is over. Everyone left standing is 0-0. The Brewers have a losing record against every team in the playoffs except St. Louis.
Celebrations, though warranted, need to end while the focus be on the future.
As a Notre Dame fan, I'm mindful of what former ND football coach Lou Hotlz said after the ND-USC game at the Los Angeles Coliseum where the undefeated #1 Fighting Irish beat the previously undefeated #2 Trojans, 27-10. Despite the huge victory, Holtz cautioned that Notre Dame hadn't won anything just yet. We, Holtz said, just put ourselves in a position to do something special.
Franklin city budget good but could be better
Here's the bottom line. The mayor's budget includes a city property tax levy decrease of 2.4 %. In his budget message, the mayor also has, as he has done in the past, placed a great deal of emphasis on the city tax rate that falls 7.18%. In a city budget document, the rate by formality must be included, but the rate is meaningless. It's the levy that counts.
Some would argue a decline in the levy by over two percent is commendable. I submit the cut could be even bigger, especially when you have this quote from Franklin Finance Director Cal Patterson in the mayor's proposed budget:
Something doesn't smell right in the proposed 2012 city of Franklin budget
"The City of Franklin has for many years included solid waste charges as part of the services funded by the property tax levy. The Mayor is proposing starting in 2012 that these charges be funded by those citizens that receive the benefit of garbage collection, recycling collection, leaf and brush collection and residential drop off services at the DPW yard. This funding will be in the form of a special charge that will be added annually to the property tax bill.
The amount of the gross charge is calculated to be $140 per year for each single family home. The amount of the actual charge will be about $104."
Got that?
I'm not sure how an actual charge has to be described by the word about.
We'll come back, but first, some important background is in order.
During 2010, and especially around budget time, I wrote several blogs about Franklin being a tax hell and backed them up with factual, numerical data. Last December, following passage of our city budget and about the time property tax bills were to be mailed, Steve Walters wrote a column in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel comparing property taxes in Wisconsin from 2002-2010, or Governor Jim Doyle's tenure in office.
From one of my blogs:
Here is one of Steve Walters' findings:
"+19.1%: The Legislative Fiscal Bureau estimates that the December 2002 net property tax bill on that mythical median-valued Wisconsin home was $2,517, and the bills that will soon be arriving in that homeowner's mailbox will be for $3,000 - a $19.1% increase."
Walters' column got me wondering how the city of
The property tax levy is the most important tax piece. In 2002,
Rather than focus on the levy,
OK, so let's look at the tax rate. In 2002,
Even if you just look at the past four years going back to 2006,
This Just In…December 13, 2010.
Goodnight everyone, and have a weekend that will leave you speechless!
"Music is love in search of a word."
Latest Posts
I suggest supermarkets alter their signage.
Long before September 11th, he developed an evacuation plan for the bank. The plan and its preparation were hugely unpopular with the Morgan Stanley staff, many of whom thought Rescorla was mad. Ultimately, however, the plan saved 3,000 lives. It was put into effect after the first jet hit the North Tower--even though WTC managers were instructing everyone to stay in the buildings. When the second jet hit the South Tower, Rescorla averted panic and organized a rapid evacuation. Rescorla went back inside to help the injured and trapped get out. He was still inside when the building collapsed and his body was never found."
Wall Street Journal columnist Jason Gay thinks so.
He'd feel differerently, I'm sure, if he was anywhere near Lambeau Field, or the Badger State for that matter.
Kevin has commented many times that if he ran a TV news network, he would open each and every segment with scenes from 9/11. He feels, and I agree, that we became complacent far too soon after the tragedy and that we continue to take our freedoms for granted.
'Millions of Americans rely on Medicare in their retirement….But with an aging population and rising health care costs, we are spending too fast to sustain the program. And if we don't gradually reform the system while protecting current beneficiaries, it won't be there when future retirees need it. We have to reform Medicare to strengthen it.'
5) I want to be Joe Cahn
Check it out, right at the bottom…
MacIver News Service | September 12, 2011 | Updated 6:45pm
Business Steps Up: Hiring Our Heroes
The candidates also went at it on immigration.
The conservative website HUMAN EVENTS cited predictions by the White House in January of '09 that President Obama's stimulus package would bring unemployment down to 6.8%, and that these figures were never realized.
The Joint Finance Committee voted unanimously to have the state pay the costs - $7.4 million of it immediately - to 199 local law enforcement agencies, four state agencies and three
And Depp.
'Maybe it's a gift from my Daddy, " Wakana said while smiling.
The never ending pasta bowl
MacIver News Service | September 18, 2011
[Madison, Wisc…] Thousands of liberal political activists, gathered here Saturday for an annual conference, cheered and laughed as a speaker recounted the recent assault of a GOP lawmaker.
Features to look for: city lights, lightning flashes in the clouds, the stars in the night sky above, and the dawn at the very end.
UPDATE: Yes, I'm aware that at a recent meeting, the Franklin School Board unofficially endorsed a tax levy that was -0.4%. However, this is Franklin we're talking about. I'll believe it when I see it in the adopted budget.
Hopefully justice will prevail in this case (Watch all videos).
Our sweet daughter has loved the one or two hummingbirds that descend on our backyard flowers.
Welcome to Obama's
1) Photos of the Week (09/18/11)
Don't overstay your welcome at a busy restaurant. To clarify: Take your time and enjoy your food, wine, conversation and after-dinner treats. Nobody should ever feel rushed.
The latest federal court ruling is that ObamaCare is unconstitutional. The Obama administration could have asked that the case be re-heard, thus delaying the inevitable, that the issue would go all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. It chose not to.
We the People Need More Jobs
Also today, TIME.com has posted a gallery of rare Elvis photos. TIME writes:
Quite the response.
With all the acrimony earlier this year in Madison over Governor Walker's state budget that was approved by legislative Republicans, all the ugly protests, the storming of the Capitol, the property damage, the threats of death and sexual assault, teachers abandoning their classrooms to picket and then seek fake doctor's excuses, one would have thought Wisconsin schools were going to hell in a hand basket.
Here is an excerpt from Franklin Mayor Tom Taylor's proposed 2012 City of Franklin budget written by Finance Director Cal Patterson:
Sidonie Gabrielle