Scott Walker = Downfall of Wisconsin

Alright, folks. I apologize in advance because this will probably get long, but I'm about to do a major political rant here. I'm usually not one to be so open about my political views, but with everything that's been happening, I feel like I have to say something. I don't know what your beliefs are or how much you follow politics, but I just have to say this. I believe that what Scott Walker is currently doing to the state of Wisconsin is unspeakable. For weeks, he's been trying to pass his proposed "budget repair bill," which in reality has so little to do with the budget that I'm not even sure how it's called that. He's tried repeatedly to convince people how broke this state is, but he's conveniently failed to mention that we became far more broke once HE took office in January. In addition, he has attempted to brainwash people into thinking that stripping unions of their collective bargaining rights is one of the only ways to fix this so-called budget crisis. Uh, wrong. If it were actually about the budget, then Walker and his little asshole followers would have been willing to negotiate the terms of the bill like normal politicians do; however, because this whole shittin' mess has been more about dismantling unions than it has about helping the state, he refused to negotiate his stance. Figures. For those of you who don't know, union members tend to vote largely Democratic, so by taking away their rights, Walker is essentially doing all of this for political gain in hopes that breaking up the unions will increase his chances for re-election next term. For God's sake, his camp has even admitted that that's what they're doing! Nothing like looking out for the good of the state. Right. I swear to God, if this guy gets re-elected, I will move out of this state. Granted, I'm not part of a union, but many of my dear friends are deeply affected by this and I fully support them. If you haven't been following, here's what you should know. In order to pass this budget bill, there needs to be a certain number of senators in session to meet the quorum necessary to vote. Perhaps you've heard of the 14 "missing" Democratic senators? Well, those Senators fled to Illinois to prevent the Senate from being able to vote on the bill until the rest of the members agreed to negotiate. The only time Walker offered to talk with these Senators was when he mentioned tricking them into a fake negotiation and voting behind their backs once they returned. Tell me this, if a policy you're trying to pass is so controversial that you have to trick people in order to get it passed, then maybe, just maybe, wouldn't you stop and think, "Hey, perhaps this isn't in the best interest of the people?" Not if you're Scott Walker. Anyway, no one knows how long the Dems will remain out of state, but sadly, tonight we realized that it doesn't really matter, at least not for the part of the bill involving unions. Because the collective bargaining piece of the budget doesn't involve spending money, those sneaky little Republican bastards were able to separate that piece of the bill out and vote on it tonight, even without the missing Senators. Sadly, it passed, hence the reason I'm so fired up and writing about this. Here's the thing. By separating that part of the bill out, they're essentially admitting that eliminating collective bargaining has no financial effect, thereby proving the point that this has NEVER been about the budget. What does it mean? Basically, the majority of union workers in WI will lose the right bargain for wage increases, and they also have to pay more towards their pensions and double their health insurance contributions. Interestingly, union workers agreed to these increases as long as they could keep their right to bargain, but nope. Walker still insisted that taking away their bargaining rights was the only way to go. Now that it passed, it basically means some pretty significant pay cuts for union workers. Um, how does this help the state again? Last time I checked, taking a significant amount of money away from the working middle-class who's already struggling isn't, or at least shouldn't be, at the top of the list for solving the state's budget problems. Seriously. This shit is messed up. In the words of Mark Miller, Democratic Senate Minority Leader, "In 30 minutes, 18 state Senators undid 50 years of civil rights in Wisconsin. Their disrespect for the people of Wisconsin and their rights is an outrage that will never be forgotten." Couldn't agree more. Sadly, for me, it's not even so much about what Walker is doing as it is about how he is doing it. He is a shady character who will clearly do anything for personal gain. Anyway, maybe you don't care about this as much as I do, but if you have any interest in it, I strongly encourage you to stay informed. And if you don't do anything else, all I ask is that you PLEASE do not vote for this corrupt a-hole next time around. Ok, rant over. Thanks for reading. :)