The Coming Violence

in Madison?

And if it happens, even on a large scale, look for the same media that has been in an uproar for the past couple years over imagined violence at Tea Parties to minimize it, if they are unable to continue to ignore it.

[Update a while later]

Or of course, they won’t minimize it, but will instead maximize it and blame it on the “violent right-wing rhetoric.” Somehow.

71 thoughts on “The Coming Violence”

  1. David,

    You do know that the Police Chief of Chicago is an executive position and so is not a union member? And is an example of the problem of political patronage.

    In the old pre-union days when a new Police Chief came in he could get rid of any existing officer and replace him with one loyal to him regardless of training or experience. Political appointees didn’t stop at the top but extended down to the rank and file. That stopped with the emergence of public unions and was one of the factors driving their emergence.

    So you may still have someone incompetent at top but the officers who actually put their lives on the line are now skilled and experienced professionals. Would you really want it differently?

  2. Hi All,

    BTW, evidence of what I noted on the Tea Party focus on taking away rights. Now they are seeking laws to stop college students from voting where they live, forcing them to vote at their parents addresses…

    http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/03/06/AR2011030602662_pf.html

    In states, parties clash over voting laws that call for IDs, limits on where college students can cast ballots

    By Peter Wallsten
    Washington Post Staff Writer
    Monday, March 7, 2011; 12:15 AM

    [[[New Hampshire’s new Republican state House speaker is pretty clear about what he thinks of college kids and how they vote. They’re “foolish,” Speaker William O’Brien said in a recent speech to a tea party group.]]]]

    And

    [[[New Hampshire House Republicans are pushing for new laws that would prohibit many college students from voting in the state – and effectively keep some from voting at all.]]]

    It also looks like the Military is on their list as well, taking the vote away from the military and their spouses stationed in the state.

    [[[In New Hampshire, the measure that covers college students also targets members of the military who are temporarily stationed in the state.]]]

    I expect disfranchising other government employees will be next…

    Yep, standard tactics, taking rights away from one group at a time…

    Ironic that a state whose motto is “Live Free or Die” is leading the way in taking away the freedom to vote where you actually live.

    I do hope you enjoyed voting for the Tea Party in the last election. It might well have been your last opportunity to vote 🙂

  3. It was kind of you to provide that link, Mr. Matula. It calls to mind the $74 million school bond election to be held tomorrow in my small city, which has been a source of much local controversy.

    Our state has only recently begun requiring I.D. to be shown at the polls, but it has long been the case that people of voting age become eligible to vote after only 30 days of residency in our state. A tremendous effort has been put forth by teachers favoring approval of the aforementioned bond to register students attending the local college, including those from out of state, and to persuade them be transported to the polls to vote in favor of it. This has been the cause of resentment amongst many local property owners, since these students have no permanent stake in this community and will be gone many years before the 25-year bond is paid off. This same bond was rejected in a special election held just this past November, and feeling is running very high, particularly since there has been a great deal of theft and vandalism of signs paid for by those who oppose approval. Four young people were arrested last week in a pickup containing evidence of sign theft, to the tune of $2,800.

    Unfortunately, this city is run by the Democratic party, and, although these elections cost the taxpayers $40,000 each time one is held, the law permits the city to hold four more of them on this issue during 2011. There is good reason for absentee voting, and I feel certain that many of our state legislators, who are not predominantly Democrats, will be interested in the article you linked to. I will forward it to my representatives tomorrow.

  4. danae,

    Most bond issues are paid off by property taxes and sales taxes, revenues of both of which are likely boosted greatly by the students at the college you have in your community. On the other hand its unlikely many of those college students will be sending kids to your local district since as you noted they are leaving and so will not benefit from the higher sales taxes or rent they will be paying as a result of the bond issue.

    I would agree to your community disenfranchising those college students if the community is also willing to exempt them from sales taxes when they purchase goods in the community and refund then the portion of their rent that goes to the real estate taxes the owners pay.

    But it doesn’t seem you should have it both ways, take their tax money while denying them the right to vote on how its spent. Wasn’t one of the cries of the Revolution, “No Taxation without Representation?”

  5. Tea Party focus on taking away rights

    As the guy in ‘Sneakers’ said about organized crime, ‘they’re not that well organized.’ Funny how people that do not understand the tea party know it’s ‘focus.’

    I also love the slight of hand in talking about ‘taking away rights.’

    Let’s keep it simple for ya… The big government is treading on the rights of people everywhere in this country. Public unions, in collusion with politicians, are part of that. The tea party, whatever it’s problems, is fighting against that.

    You may like a big irresponsible government which makes smearing all members of the tea party with lies par for the course. Lying about the tea party does not weaken them. Quite the contrary. So please keep it up Thomas. You’re doing good work.

  6. ken anthony,

    [[[The tea party, whatever it’s problems, is fighting against that.]]]

    So you disagree with the New Hampshire Tea Party Republicans taking away the voting rights of students and the military? Or do you think that is a good thing? Or are they only Tea Party policies when YOU agree with them?

  7. Thomas, sales tax doesn’t enter into this, and tourists contribute far more to those funds than students do. Nearly all out-of-state students live on campus and take their meals there, tax-free. Even the few who pay property tax through rental housing get a big bang for their bucks.

    They take advantage, free of charge, of our bike and walking paths, our picnic parks, beaches and docks, fishing and birling ponds, skateboard parks, tennis and volleyball courts, baseball fields, libraries, police and fire services, streets and roads, etc., all paid for at a much higher rate by property owners.

    If they insist on voting on bond debt they won’t be around to help repay, perhaps we should grant them each a fraction of a vote, say one to four twenty-fifths, at a ratio commensurate with the amount of time they expect to be part of our community and the life of the bond. Poor young ‘uns, we don’t like them feeling unrepresented.

  8. Thomas,

    Students should vote in their home districts, period. If they want to change their legal residence to the college campus, fine.

    Absent that, they should not be able to vote on bond issues where they do not live. They should not have the right to bind the people who actually do live near the campus to accept debt.

    Sales taxes are paid at the point of purchase regardless of where the purchaser lives. That is a non-issue, and it has nothing to do with voting.

  9. …do you think…

    You’re missing the big picture here Thomas. Politics was going along just the way you liked it. The tea party was not in the picture. They didn’t like what they saw and they stayed home.

    Now they are engaged. Mostly in ways you have no visibility of. You are completely unaware of the most important things that are happening. You just keep reading the papers with your old glasses.

    It’s not about this policy or that and members of the tea party will disagree even on things that seem fundamental.

    But they aren’t going anywhere and like 2010, they will continue to have an impact. Angle wasn’t the big picture. Even all the seats gained was not the big picture. And you never will get it either.

    You keep voting for Reid and telling us all the nasty things about the tea party. Being from NV, you might even pass a silver nugget in all that excrement.

    You probably still think the outcome in DE was bad. Having Coons rather than Castle means the accountability is where it should be. All good.

    Engagement is messy. Walking into the gas chamber can be very orderly.

  10. Heartbreak. The bond failed to pass, and by a larger margin of votes than in November. The head of the district is not downhearted, vows to determine “what went wrong.” I’m betting we’ll see this baby again by June.

    Our homegrown lefties remind me of the mother of two children I grew up with. If they didn’t eat all their supper, she served the remains to them the next morning for breakfast. If they didn’t eat it then, it became lunch… and so on. This sometimes led to indigestion.

  11. Ken Anthony,

    [[[Now they are engaged. Mostly in ways you have no visibility of. You are completely unaware of the most important things that are happening.]]]

    Yes, I am sure the billionaires behind it are looking for new strings to pull now the public is wise to their tea Party minions 🙂

  12. rickl,

    [[[If they want to change their legal residence to the college campus, fine.]]]

    Unfortunately that is exactly what the law would prohibit for both college students and any members of the military (and their families) stationed in the state…

  13. danae,

    [[[Nearly all out-of-state students live on campus and take their meals there, tax-free. Even the few who pay property tax through rental housing get a big bang for their bucks.]]]]

    Really? You mean there is a huge fence that prevents them from going into town to spend? Tell me, have you talked to your local Chamber of Commerce? They should have a good idea what the students spend in your town. The full impact of the college on your economy. You might be surprised how much they are subsidizing the locals like yourself.

  14. the billionaires behind it

    You are a comedian. That is so funny. Yes, billionaires exist. We would both agree on that. You would expect them to be involved on all sides because, ya know, people are people. You could also make it sound so sinister by saying ‘behind it’ when ‘in front of it’ and ‘along side it’ just doesn’t have that same accusational punch. You are staying in form.

    But here’s the thing. You keep talking about the infighting and then suggest they are an orchestrated mob. So which is it? Be consistent rather than calling them inbred sub-IQ evil geniuses. It reminds me of the comedian that says, “you can call me funny; you can call me hilarious; but please, please, don’t call me a riot!”

    So billionaires are only allowed to support your views. Is that it?

  15. ken anthony

    Since you changed the subject I guess you admit I am right about it 🙂

  16. I’m trying to understand you Thomas. You talk about Billionaires, strings and minions. I’m wondering what you think it means.

    Are the billionaires the only ones that count? They’re the puppet masters and the rest of us don’t count. Nobody without billions has an opinion, they’re just minions.

    Wow. The inside of your brain is one of the scariest places I’ve ever been. I think I need a drink.

  17. ken Anthony,

    No, what is scary is trying to think like a Tea Party minion, believing you are not a puppet whose strings are being pulled. I guess you missed the news of the Walker phone call recording…

  18. Gotcha. Everybody else is a minion and you’re not. You’re the only one walking in the bright light of sunshine and the rest of us are all delusional. Being influenced means being a puppet and you’re never influenced. If you’re not right all the time, like you, then your desire not to be robbed by those that know better than we is just silly.

    Check and check.

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