Guest post on Wisconsins woes...

My cousin Jeanette and her husband Michael (who is the professional writer in the house) live in Wisconsin. They have been activists for more than 25 years, how awesome is that?!  They really do go to these protest rallies, not stay home on the couch complaining like most people today. We need to follow their example and get out there in the country and start protesting!

So, the other day she put on FB  she was going to the train station to protest Scott Walker killing the high speed train project. That's when I asked her to do a post for me since I had previously touched on this subject of highspeed rail. She lives there, is seeing it first hand, and is my expert guest poster, so welcome Jeanette please!

About 200 people came to the Milwaukee Intermodal Station on Saturday, November 20 to support high speed rail in Wisconsin. The Sierra Club sponsored a statewide Day of Action, featuring rallies in six other cities around the state. Career politician Scott Walker, newly elected Republican governor of Wisconsin is rabidly anti-government, and wants to deny the citizens of our state the opportunity to join a Midwest high speed rail system that would initially connect Milwaukee to Madison and on to Chicago and Minneapolis.

Walker campaigned on the issue of jobs, but wants to throw away $800 million of federal money already granted the state. As a result, the Spanish train car manufacturer Talgo will probably abandon its newly opened factory in Milwaukee's inner city, denying the dreams of thousands of potential job holders. One 2006 study estimates that the Midwest Regional rail System will bring Wisconsin an estimated 9,570 permanent jobs, $173 million in additional household income, and $704 million in increased property values.

Wisconsin will be left behind with this rail system, which would not only put people to work, but be an environmentally friendly way to travel. But Walker is doing the bidding of the road builders looking for more highways, which means more cars and trucks spewing carbon monoxide over the countryside. Walker said on election night “Wisconsin is open for business, which really means “we will keep the unions out”, and he hates any hand-outs by the Federal Government, which would be providing the $800 million we were alloted, $100 million of which we have already used to do the preliminary work needed to start laying the tracks. There have been numerous offers from other governors to take the money for high speed rail in their states, but Walker is trying to weasel out of giving up the money restricted to high speed rail.

Walker slashed county programs as Milwaukee County Executive, including our fabulous park
system, a remnant of the bygone age of the early 20^th century, when Socialists were active participants in Milwaukee area government. This is when our beautiful lakefront on Lake Michigan was kept open for the public to enjoy, instead of being bought up by private landholders, Now Scott Walker wants to turn back all of the gains made for the working people and give everything to the rich. And he wants to see our vision of the future derailed.

Jeanette

    

Thanks so much for this post Jeanette. Unfortunately your story is the same as hundreds of others in different states having to deal with Republican leadership doing everything in their power to kill jobs. What the hell is going on in our country? These republicans say they are listening to the voters who are sending a message, they want the government to stop spending! These are boldfaced lies! The voters have spoken loud and clear.....THEY WANT JOBS FIRST, and worry about paying down the nations debt when the country starts to prosper! Why is that so difficult to understand? These lying hypocrite republicans care not a bit about the unemployed, they want this country to stay suffering because they think it will help their chances in 2012! OH HOW WRONG THEY ARE!!!