Comments
Personal Observations on Various Topics
"I just thought we were all in this together." - The Heidi Chronicles by Wendy Wasserstein
On why I’m running:
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I’m running because decisions are being made that are taking this state in the wrong direction. I’m running because we need more progressive voices in the state government. I'm running to defend working-class families. I’m running because I believe our current representative is too frequently on the wrong side of the issues. I’m running because our current representative ran unopposed in the last two elections — and that is totally unacceptable!
On being a Democrat:
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I am running as a Democrat because the Democratic Party best represents the concerns and values of regular people, like you and me. They are the best advocate for the middle class. Depending on the issue, my position ranges from progressive to moderate. I stalwartly believe in many of the tenets of the Progressive Movement. I also am very concerned about environmental issues and strongly hold many of the values of the Green Party. As political parties, however, the Greens unfortunately have a limited focus and, although the Progressive Movement is strong in
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I recently gave a friend of mine, who professed to be a staunch Republican, copies of both the Democratic and Republican party platforms (available from each of their Web sites). She diligently read both, even highlighting relevant passages in each. She came back to me, appalled at the lack of compassion reflected in the Republican platform. She felt that the Republican platform was full of empty rhetoric, where the Democratic platform offered solid, real-world solutions. After many years, my friend is now a proud (and vocal) Democrat.
On health care:
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Run, do not walk, to see the movie Sicko!
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Why do hospitals need to advertise? If I’m in an ambulance, I’m not going to tell the EMT, “No, no, please take me to Oconomowoc. I understand they have the best cardiac care.” We should have outstanding care throughout the state.
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How does this “negotiate with insurance companies” idea work exactly? “Dear Mr United Healthcare CEO, won’t you please lower your rates so poor people can afford health insurance? Oh, and won’t you please consider taking only $60 thousand in salary this year instead of $60 million?”
On jobs:
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On July 10, 2007, while addressing the Assembly during a debate on an amendment to the state budget, our current representative, Mark Gottlieb, had the following to say about the announced closure of Simplicity Manufacturing:
I live in
On technology:
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It has been put forth that, if we finance alternative fuel research through the UW System, the patents and copyrights for any new technologies invented should be owned by the people of the State of
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We must fight to preserve Internet freedom. Net Neutrality — the principle that Internet users should be able to access any web content they want, post their own content, and use any applications they choose, without restrictions or limitations imposed by their Internet service providers — is one of the reasons the Internet has grown so exponentially. We must make certain that for-profit interests do not destroy the democratic culture of the Web!
On energy:
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Much has been said about the various sources of alternative energy: solar, wind, hydrogen, nuclear, ethanol, butanol, methane, biomass, natural gas, clean coal, liquid coal, [~deep breath~] hydropower, geothermal power, tidal power, photovoltaics, biodiesel, used vegetable oil, switchgrass, corn, sugar cane, sugar beets … makes your mind swim, doesn’t it? What I dread is a repeat of the Betamax-vs-VHS syndrome. For those who don’t remember the “Great Video Tape Wars of 1976”, Betamax was a video tape format created by Sony and introduced to the marketplace on April 16, 1975. Although the Betamax format was far superior to the VHS format, introduced by JVC in 1976, the proponents of VHS launched a much stronger marketing campaign and by 1984, forty companies utilized the VHS format in comparison with Beta's twelve. Sony finally conceded defeat in 1988. I am concerned that a similar thing might happen with the alternative fuel debate. We may end up with a less-efficient, more-expensive fuel source merely because the manufacturers have enough money to push their product on the market. Let’s make sure we do this right and choose the best product!
On taxes:
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Taxes, taxes, taxes … if you listen to enough Republicans, you’d think “tax cuts” were the ultimate solution for everything — from invigorating a sagging economy to curing hemorrhoids. [Yes, I “borrowed” that from an unnamed comedian.]
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Certainly I, like you, don’t like having a large portion of my paycheck ripped out for taxes even before I cash it — not to mention paying still more taxes out of what little is left. But I do understand the need for taxes to pay for the things that are necessary for a smooth-running, socially-conscious society. You get what you pay for. There are some things that we can do better as a group than we can individually — there is power in numbers. I support fair taxes and quality services.
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Have you ever seen the movie Dave? When the president’s chief of staff cuts funding to a program supported by the First Lady, Dave (who is impersonating the president) calls in his accountant, Murray. Dave and Murray crunch the numbers and are able to restore the program. It’s a great scene and serves as a comedic example of what we need to do with our state budget.
General thoughts:
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Aristotle said, “The law is reason free from passion”. That’s what you’ll be sending me to
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There is a movement growing across the nation toward “citizen legislators”. That’s me. I’m not a lawyer; I’m not a political science major. I’m just a regular guy. I go to work and do my job to the best of my ability and try to make ends meet. I’d sit in my apartment and watch the news and, probably like you, complain about stuff. I’d see that things have gone awry and think there was nothing I could do about it. But there is! That’s why I’m running for the Assembly: because I believe that things can be better!