Democracy requires the hearing of all voices. For most of the week here in Madison, the protest has been the voice of those protesting Gov. Walker's bill. The protest existed, of course, because those voices had NOT been heard, and the Governor's bill seeks to silence those voices pretty effectively by ending the tradition of collective bargaining. Nevertheless, the conservative voices wanted to back their man, and support the proposed bill, and Saturday was their opportunity.
There were about 5,000 counter-protesters in support of the Gov. and the bill. They were ringed in by 45,000 protesters circling the square and rallying on the opposite side of the Capitol. In general, things were peaceful. There were some heated conversations, but no altercations and Madison police issued a statement praising the peaceful demonstration.
Most of the Tea Party signs focused on the budget - about which I have already spoken, but I'll reiterate that while the Gov. claims we have a budget deficit, the Legislative Fiscal Bureau reported that the fiscal year ended with a modest surplus. Any shortfall is the doing of this Governor. Many of the signs voiced opinions against labor unions. The speakers at the noon rally railed against unions in general, and teachers in particular. The crowd cheered.
While I generally avoided taking pics of crazy signs on both sides (comparisons of Gov. Walker with ousted Egyptian President Mubarak, for example), I was compelled to snap this shot because the talking heads on the Right insist that this sign never appears at Tea Party Rallies. It's condition says otherwise.
To the loonies on both sides: Hyperbole hurts your case and makes you look idiotic.
There are more pics from Saturday's rally in a SLIDE SHOW, primarily of the Tea Party group, but it was hard to ignore the other 45,000. The most recent photos are up front.
Sunday, February 20, 2011
Wisconsin Point:Counterpoint
Saturday, February 19, 2011
The Nation Hears Wisconsin
Finally, the national media is starting to pay genuine attention to what is going on in Madison, Wisconsin. We are now starting Day 6 of peaceful protest over the newly elected Republican Governor's plan to break the state worker's unions. The crowd yesterday was the largest so far, and while I have not seen an official estimate, I guesstimate it at 40,000. My estimates all week have been pretty close, so if I am off, I will put in a correction later.
Born in the USA
Let me state - categorically and emphatically - that this protest is not merely about wages and spending cuts as the Governor would have people believe. There is a fiscal crisis in Wisconsin only - ONLY - because this Governor created it in six short weeks. What this protest is about is a concerted effort by the Republican party to break unions across the nation. As goes Wisconsin, so goes the nation. Why does that matter? What good are unions to you? Let me explain.
Bake sales versus Billionaires
There are the usual selling points that unions brought us fair wages, weekends, 8-hour workdays, child labor laws, and so on. Those are surely important to most of us. But this is more insidious than merely wanting to have an easier time of controlling wages.
Seven of the Top-10 donors to political candidates in 2010 are PACs representing Corporations and assorted billionaires like the Koch brothers. They contribute - primarily - to Republican candidates. The other three donors in the Top-10 are labor unions who donate - primarily - to Democratic candidates. Break unions, state by state, and in short order, national elections will be solely funded by Corporate interests and Republicans will win all elections. It is as simple as that.
The national media early in the week was reporting this as a "budget issue" as the Governor hoped. As journalists looked into the story however, they became aware of the larger story. Especial thanks goes to radio and television voices like Rachel Maddow and Ed Schultz for getting the real story out. The first newspaper I noted that had the real story was The Guardian UK. This morning I see the link in the New York Times alerts I get reads:
The unrest in Wisconsin this week over Gov. Scott Walker's plan to cut the bargaining rights and benefits of public workers is spreading to other states.Rush Limbaugh has been stirring the conservative voter pot for the last few days, and last night buses began rolling in to Madison bearing Tea Party and Republican counter-protesters. That is fine, democracy can use open discussion. Let us remember though, that this rally generated tens of thousands of home state protesters. The counter-protesters are being bused in from other states.
There are photos from yesterday - Day 5 - in a SLIDE SHOW. There are also photos from prior days, but the newest ones are first in the set.
On Wisconsin!
Read the rest of the post!
Thursday, February 17, 2011
This Is What Democracy Looks Like
Today was Day 4 in the ongoing protest in the capitol city of Wisconsin. Again today, in excess of 20,000 teachers, students, fire-fighters, bus drivers, garbage collectors, maintenance people, electricians, plumbers, families, young people, old people took to the street and marched on, and into, the capitol building. We were protesting the radical "budget bill" the newly elected Republican governor is trying to ram through without discussion. Among other things, the bill would terminate collective bargaining for all city workers and effectively break the back of public unions. Those things, of course, have nothing to do with the ginned-up fiscal crisis the Governor is creating to make this transparent power grab. Republicans across the country have been gunning for labor unions all year. Republicans are NO FRIEND to the working class of America.
Wisconsin is first on the block. Other states are sure to follow. In the words of a friend, Wisconsinites "are as happy to take to the streets for union causes as they are to go to a Badgers/Packers game. It's the same joyful sense of community." And take to the streets we have. Day and night for four solid days. There has been 80 hours of public commentary aimed at our legislators. Sometimes quietly, sometimes vociferously.
Protester, who loves her state, stands proudly and speaks loudly
The bill was supposed to come up for a vote late this morning so that the Governor could unveil his Bold! New! Plan! later today, not at the state capitol where the business of the people is conducted, but rather at a corporate site. One of his financial backers, no doubt. Corporate cronyism, wrapped in the flag. Unfortunately for him, 16 senators had another idea.
Wisconsin flag, flown in distress
Those Sixteen - all 14 Democrats and 2 Republicans - left the state. Rumor has it that, when charged with retrieving the missing senators, the law enforcement department (unionized...) refused to carry out that charge. The Sixteen are now out of the state, and will remain so until they deem it appropriate to return. Early statements indicate that will happen when Governor Walker agrees to actually meet and discuss his proposals with those who will be affected. You know, ruling through dialog rather than fiat. Democratic-like.
View looking up State Street towards the Capitol
Wisconsin has garnered the attention of the national media at last. Last night and today our plight - and it is a plight - were aired on CNN and MSNBC, and perhaps other networks. Articles ran in the New York Times and the Guardian UK (the most accurate, ironically enough). Tonight there were numerous media trucks in evidence, and sorta-lefty Ed Schultz was doing his MSNBC show live from Madison.
Tomorrow will bring more of the same. This fight is not over. This Governor is a believer who thinks he knows the answer. He is paternalistic and unreasonable. He will not change his mind. Like W, he's a decider. Like W, he sees himself as smarter than everyone else. Like W, he is an idiot. We have delayed the vote. We have rattled the cage. We have the attention of the legislators and the media. Hopefully, some of those legislators will realize that this bill over-reaches, and a more moderate approach is prudent.
As a final warning to my fellow Wisconsin citizens I offer this: Do not be so relieved that "the worst" has been averted that we settle for "bad".
There are more photos in a SLIDE SHOW. The set contains photos from all 4 days, but the most recent ones are first.
Al Khemia at the Hookah Lounge
Because it cannot be all about the unrest occurring in Madison, here are some great photos of local Madison band Al Khemia performing at the Mediterranean Hookah Lounge Tuesday night.
The band was relaxed and having fun, and fronted by a talented dancer.
There is a fun SLIDE SHOW of the rest.
Wednesday, February 16, 2011
Rally Against Gov. Walker and All He Stands For - Day Two
Tonight there are 30-40,000 people protesting at the state capitol. Why is this not making national news? Are you outside of Wisconsin and want to help? Consider calling our legislative leaders to tell them that "You Are Watching Wisconsin". (Thanks!) Here is the link for leaders and numbers.
Our Governor hates Democracy.
The people have noticed. Walker does not care. Like G. W. Bush, he's "a decider". Facts do not concern him.
Here is the SLIDE SHOW of today's pics. There are pics from yesterday as well, but the newer ones are first.
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Rally Against Governor Walker and All He Stands For
There were big doings in Madison, WI, today. Our newly elected Governor, in office for approximately 45 days, has managed to so anger sane Democrats and even some Republicans, that in excess of 10,000 of them took to the Capitol and the sidewalks outside to rally in protest of his so-called "Budget Repair Bill". Heck, 700 students from my former high school (Madison East) walked the three miles to participate in active democracy.
The rotunda of the Capitol was quite full, and when the slogan-chanting occurred it was impressively loud. Still, there were not more than a couple thousand people in there, and I was wondering if that was it. Then I went outside.
It was really, really difficult to find a spot to capture the size of the crowd, and I do not have a wide-angle lens (gotta remedy that). I did make an effort at one point to count a section to try to extrapolate, but gave up. Suffice it to say that there were many thousand more out at the State Street entrance, filling that walk way, and also the sidewalks from Wisconsin Ave to W. Washington. In general, the crowd was polite, peaceful, and seriously pissed off with the Gov.
Among other boneheaded, wrong for Wisconsin things, the Governor's bill would strip collective bargaining rights from state employees and make it a fire-able offense for them to participate in a job-action or strike. Basically, worker's rights would return to a status not seen in Wisconsin since the 1920's. Other proposed cuts would deeply affect BadgerCare, the state's health care safety net for the poorest citizens; attack funding for Planned Parenthood; cut funding to public schools; cut funding to the University (especially targeting departments the political Right finds galling); and to generally eviscerate unions in general. The list goes on, and I think it needs to be repeated that this Republican Gov wants to reduce taxes on corporations and the wealthy at the same time. Typical of current Republicans, this places the entire burden on those least able to bear it. If his plan is to make Madison's unemployment rate (and foreclosure and bankruptcy) the highest in Wisconsin, he is going about it the right way.
I took a lot of photos today. You can find twoscore of them in a SLIDE SHOW for your inquiring mind.
Monday, February 14, 2011
Bits of Motorcycle Goodness
I attended the Chicago Motorcycle Expo over the weekend. It is always a bit like a pilgrimage for me. I love the total immersion into bikes and bike stuff in the dead of winter. I cannot ride this time of year, but I can surely dream. this year my eye was drawn less to whole bikes and more to bits and pieces.
This next one seemed particularly "steampunky" to me, like it was both more and less dated than it really was. I spent a lot of time looking at this bike.
here are more in a SLIDE SHOW for your viewing enjoyment.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Cat Fort
After a week of digital housekeeping (see previous post), I realized I was shamefully neglecting mi gato, Nala. So I built her a fabric fort of the sort I did for myself as a kid. She seemed to appreciate it at a variety of levels:
...and my favorite,
Sunday, February 6, 2011
Sprucing up the 'ol place
A recent article in the AARP magazine (wow...THAT was weird to write) explored the concept of self-branding. Not the red-hot poker to tender flesh sort of branding, but rather creating a coherent online presence that shows a consistent face to the world, presenting me as I want to be seen. Think Starbucks, without the bitterness. It prompted me to take a few steps towards sprucing up my digital presence and making sure it tells a story that I want told.
I have been a constant denizen of the Internet and the World Wide Web since the mid-1980's, creating my first (awful) web pages in 1998 by writing HTML code in Notepad. Thus, my digital presence is excellent, and for the most part, consists of content I am not ashamed to have associated with my name. Left to nearly a decade and a half of unfocused growth and sprawl, it is even unusually cogent with a pronounced emphasis on 1) Photographs and Photography, 2) Dance and Performance, and 3) everything else. It is always educational to Google oneself, and if you do not do it periodically, I urge you to start. And do not limit yourself to Google, but use other search engines as well (Bing returned quite different results than Google), and select Web, Images, and Video as well.
The AARP article was aimed at those seeking jobs in the Corporate world, and so did not have a specific relevance for me as a self-employed small business owner in the service sector, but there were a few pearls to be found. One thing I struggle with is the suggestion to use Twitter. I already blog (as you know) and find that 2-4 posts a week has been pretty much standard for me. Is anything I have to say so important that I need to tweet 20 times a day, with a 140 character max? Maybe I am just not vain enough for Twitter (which is also hard to believe). I understand it could be useful, but I am not convinced it is the tool for me. I probably will cave in and try it, just to see if I am mistaken about its value. Any thoughts from you, dear readers?
My sprucing up of my digital image started a few weeks (hmm, months now) ago with a content change on my biz page. I changed the just-the-facts text to more of a storytelling approach. The main page has not changed because I am not certain of how I want to change it, but the sub pages have all been updated. I also added a Facebook page for my business to supplement my personal presence. (Go ahead, "Like" or Follow me there!) Now my focus turned to this blog. I want strongly to leave it as my just-for-fun photo story page, yet I wanted to sling a little fresh paint, recover some of the furniture, and so on. To that end, I have made some minor changes. The subtitle of the blog changed to reflect the just-for-fun aspect of a photographer who has a portrait studio. The link to the biz page is new. The title grew about 30% in size so that it closely matches the span of the subheading. A couple of the sidebar items were tweaked for content, and rearranged in sequence. I made a silent vow to myself to refresh my "Favorite of the Moment" photo more frequently too. Under the hood I changed my META tags to let the webcrawler (remember Webcrawler?) 'bots learn my intended story too.
So now two of my three main Web presences are telling the same story. Next for my focus is my Flickr site. I suspect that there is not much to alter there, but it is amazing what a little attention can do to freshen things up. I am pondering one more angle of Web presence, and am still pondering that step. Should I take it, you will be the first to know!
Thanks for reading along. Your comments are interesting to me, so feel free to share your thoughts.
UPDATE: I rediscovered this quote from an old post and it seemed like this was a good place to recycle it.
"Artists' essential effort is to catapult themselves wholly, without holding back one bit, into a course of action, without having any idea where they will end up. They are like riders who gallop into the night, eagerly leaning on their horse's neck, peering into a blinding rain. And they have to do it over and over again."
Read the rest of the post!
Saturday, February 5, 2011
Fame and Fortune (Grins and Giggles)
Ever since I performed at the Potowatomie Casino in Milwaukee on New Years Eve, where we had tens of thousands of dollars of phony money to throw around, I have been wanting to create this image. It was in my head all the while we were performing.
Of course, having created it and laughed at it, the scene that popped into my head is "I'm Going Home" from the Rocky Horror Picture Show, where Frank-n-furter is getting all schmaltzy and fantasizing about how great everything will be when he goes home. Then reality intrudes and he is left with nothing, nothing, nothing.
For me, somewhere in between those two extremes would be just fine. *grin*
Lyrics from Queen's "We Are The Champions"
Wednesday, February 2, 2011
PLAY DAY!
There are always multiple interpretations of a winter storm. Today all of Facebook was abuzz with lamentations about shoveling. From adults. Not much from the kids. Why? PLAY DAY!!
Love it! There are a bunch more in a SLIDE SHOW. There are some older pics too, but the new ones are first.
Reena Plows Her Way To Work
Well, we surely had a winter storm worthy of the word "storm". Madison got socked - comparatively lightly - with around 8" of snow, but the howling wind blew it into impressive drifts in driveways and sidewalks. Here is Reena heading out the front door:
You can see the snow is at mid-thigh as she pauses one step op from the front walk. She is walking to a co-workers house a few blocks away to get a ride to work with him rather than taking the bus. He figured that since he is the keyholder, and might have a tough time getting to work, there was no point in Reena standing around in the cold waiting for him if he was lats, so they should be potentially late together. That was courteous of him. Her walk was bound to be tiring...
These, and more later today, can be viewed in a SET on my Flickr site. The most recent shots are up front.
Tuesday, February 1, 2011
The Banshee
I do not use Photoshop all that much. Mostly I use it for finer tweaks to photos - particularly erasing unwanted aspects - rather than to turn normal humans into artificial porcelain dolls that look nothing like the real person (like the cover of almost any magazine. Best quote ever: Cindy Crawford once said she would love to look like Cindy Crawford.) When I do use it, it tends to be for the fun of it. Like this:
I took the lovely photo of the dancer leaping (refer back two posts) and had my way with it. First I rotated the image, then I duplicated it and converted the top layer to B&W. Next I erased, with 20% opacity, her garments to bring a dash of color back in. Then I cloned in the rest of the background that disappeared when the image was rotated. I added two layers of the text to get a bit of drop shadow, and reduced their opacity to get a conceal/reveal effect. Finally I added a top layer and filled it with a "clouds" filter, stretched to 250% or so to make it wispier, faded it, and then added a minimal "plastic wrap" filter to make the clouds and gnarly background pop a bit.
What do you think?
