What could Wisconsin and Libya possibly have in common?

Wisconsin, the happy home of Cheeseheads and cheese, and Libya, one of the world's worst, most brutal dictatorships don't have much in common, right? Well, if you believe the signs of the union protesters circling the state capitol building in Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker is a "Midwest Mubarak" and of course, just as bad as Hitler. See, cutting cushy union benefits is just like killing millions of people or holding a country under your thumb. Don't you get it? Well no, I don't quite follow the logic of that claim. But that doesn't mean the protesters are wrong, they're just right in a way that they don't intend; because in a way the crises in the Middle East and the Midwest are similar.

First, both are examples of the people rising up to take control of their affairs back from corrupt entities that have entrenched themselves in power for far too long, squelching any attempts at reform. The difference? In the Middle East the ones holding the signs and chanting are the people, in the Midwest the ones holding the signs and chanting are the entrenched interests.

I realize that unions traditionally are seen as the quintessential institution of the working man, but in modern America that is simply no longer the case for a number of reasons. Only a small and ever-decreasing number of American workers are represented by unions anymore (around 6.9% in the private, i.e. nongovernment, sector), but more important than overall numbers is the fact that as of 2010 there are more members in the public employee unions (PEU), at the local, state, and federal levels, than in the private sector unions. PEUs are fundamentally different from what you think of as a traditional union because when the union sits down to negotiate with their employers (politicians), they're really sitting on both sides of the table. Why? Just follow the money! Unions constitute 9 of the top 20 political donors of 2010 with the vast majority of their money going to Democrats. Thus, PEUs spend like mad to get their favored candidates in office, then once they're in, the politicians return the favor by granting the unionized government workers ridiculously generous benefits, pay, etc. and the taxpayer foots the bill.

This racket has been going on for the better part of 50 or 60 years depending on the state, and at the federal level since 1961. It's time to put a stop to this experiment. It's corrupt and it's too expensive to sustain any longer. Last November, the voters of Wisconsin kicked the Democrats out of the majority in both chambers of the Wisconsin Legislature and out of the Governor's Mansion. Gov. Scott Walker openly campaigned on the plan he's now implementing. The will of the electorate in Wisconsin really couldn't be clearer. So go ahead unions, compare Wisconsin to Egypt and Libya all you want, and go ahead and hide in Illinois, all of you Democratic legislators, just don't kid yourselves about who it really is that's trying to thwart the democratic process.

Welcome to my blog!

After being prodded by some friends and by the awareness that any writing skills I might have ever possessed are certainly atrophying now that I'm out of school, I finally have broken down and started a blog.

My intent here is to write something like a post a week about whatever is on my mind (read: politics). I'd also like to try to do book reviews on here. My hope is that this will be good practice for improving my writing and argumentation skills.

I've noticed that thoughts that seem really smart in my head often don't look nearly so good on paper (or the screen, as the case may be). I think forcing myself to write my arguments down in a place where others can read them will impose a sort of discipline on my thinking and ultimately result in better reasoning. Already, as I was writing my first post, I found myself looking at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Heritage Foundation, and White House websites to make sure I was using accurate information. I think this is a good thing. I will always do my best to back up my arguments with facts.

I hope you'll share whatever thoughts you have in the comments section, and I'll do my best to reply. I look forward to having some good discussions and maybe even debates.

You all know how much I like to talk, talk, talk about politics, books, and pretty much anything in the world. Each of you has probably been hostage at some point as I ranted on about something or other. Well now, you don't even have to see me in person in order to be subjected to my rants. Maybe it's better this way.

Thanks all of you for reading, I hope you enjoy it!

P.S. The name of my blog and the quote underneath it are from the poem "Das Göttliche" by Wolfgang von Goethe. The quote translates as, "May the noble man be helpful and good! Untiringly may he create that which is useful and right. Be to us an example of that sensed Being!