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Uppity Wisconsin - Progressive Webmasters

« Walk Away from the Computer and Go Vote | Main | Milwaukee Talk Radio - Talking To Themselves »

April 08, 2009

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mgm

It's still the Worker's Paradise. A bio-digester in every garage and a chicken in every backyard.

Rich Preston

"She proved that you do not have to run from your core beliefs to win a state wide election..."

And she proved that incumbents that outspend their opponents have a huge advantage.

rich

I don't believe Mayor Dave is the tacit winner due to the District 2 results. When you have a progressive wingman/wingwoman, any effective politician should be able to make political hay in the middle, and Dave wasn't able to do that. Brenda Konkel made city government better and more responsive, yet Dave allowed his own relationship to devolve into a series of pointless and personal skirmishes.

The upshot is it won't be smooth sailing for Dave, sans Brenda. Attention will focus solely on Dave and the go-along crowd, from both left and right. He'll be held to more scrutiny by progressives. Worse, he and folks in general will have to recognize that nothing Dave does will win over the WSJ/business lobby. Just as Paul Soglin can't reason with the WMC, Dave hasn't made headway by acceding to or befriending Madison-bashers in the business & developer crowd. Brenda Konkel has never been the problem; Dave's inability to forward a strong agenda, is. His relationship w/Konkel has distracted from that fact.

Dave's main mistake has been twofold: 1) in not pro-actively forwarding an economic agenda ahead of the predictable backbiting and criticism; 2) in not pursuing a clear progressive agenda that distinguished himself from Konkel and made her views secondary to the bigger picture. I like Dave's style and political sensibility in many respects; on this point, though, his method's allowed his admirable & common sense approach to get lost in very minor dustups. We can't afford the go-slow approach, and that's been costly for Madison. The sustainable neighborhood coding is remarkably behind the curve; it's offered as a political externality. It should've been the first priority right out of the gate --- instead, Madison's eating the dust of dozens of other cities who've suddenly discovered ecological planning and sustainable cities. That doesn't take away from what Madison as individuals have accomplished; it's just reality. Between real vision and do-nothingism there has to be some middle ground, and any progressive sensibility interested in building a better mousetrap can't be quite so satisfied with the status quo.

Re Falk, Mistele and light rail: the tax base benefits alone should be enough to sell the system to the pro-growth crowd in Middleton and Sun Prairie. Tell them it's a way to outcompete Madison.

Key thing is light rail leverages growth more efficiently, conferring higher benefits and eliminating more costs than highways. When you add in all factors it's a no-brainer.

The choice isn't between light rail and cars; it's both/and. The question is whether Madison/Dane County grows and competes and takes its place on the national stage --- or whether it gets left behind. Way, way behind.


antpoppa

Rich
Well said..
Middleton and outlying areas should open a vein to promote light rail.

David L. Williams

The Battle of Miffland, May 1969: the Untold Story

Now manifested as an annual apolitical drunken spree by undergraduates, the Mifflin Block Party had its origins in the tumultuous late Sixties. At a time of growing protest against the U.S. War in Vietnam and deepening youth radicalization, a Madison mayor and his police chief denied a permit for a block party around the newly-established Mifflin Street Co-op, expecting to teach the hippie-radical community around the Co-op the virtues of Nixon-style Law n' Order. Police attacks on young partyers touched-off a three-day street battle--a mini-insurrection--which forever changed the political landscape of Madison. Come and hear about the historic Battle of Miffland as told by participants, part of an evening of multimedia pesentations examining the role of "street action" in the U.S. and around the world, from Miffland to the present-day.

Friday May 1st (May Day) MULTIMEDIA PRESENTATION 7-10pm--Electric Earth Cafe 546 W. Washington Ave--PARTY afterwards 10pm-midnight (beer available)--admission $5-10 sliding scale--sponsored by the Peregrine Forum, the Madison Infoshop, WORT, the Community Alliance on Latin America, the Madison Area Peace Coalition, the Immigrant Workers Union, the Industrial Workers of the World, the 4Lakes Green Party, and other organizations, more info 442-8399 or [email protected]. Participants in the Battle of Miffland who wish to speak at the event are urged to contact us immediately.

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