Pharaohs: Not just for Egypt anymore


Thirty thousand people are marching the streets of Madison, Wisconsin because Scott Walker, the state’s Republican governor, wants to use his claim of a state budget shortfall of $137 million as rationale to strip out state employee unions’ ability to negotiate wages, pensions and benefits. This legislation would effectively force state workers to pay more into their pensions and health care, resulting in a loss on average $1,000 per month, or $12,000 annually in pay. 

Exempt from this proposal are fire, police and other safety workers, but these workers have all joined forces in solidarity against the governor in support of their brethren state employees.

The democrats from the Wisconsin State Assembly have left the state en masse, preventing the legislature from passing the governor’s proposed legislation by denying him a quorum. The state police have been called off their pursuit of the escaped legislators. At last check, two Republicans from the Wisconsin State Assembly have begun to waiver on their all-out approval of the governor’s proposal. It is estimated that more than double today’s crowd count are anticipated to come to the capitol to protest the proceedings.

Apparently, the Governor believes that Pharaohs are not just for Egypt. But then again, we know what happened to the last one in Cairo.

18 thoughts on “Pharaohs: Not just for Egypt anymore”

  2. shebear:

    I wish I had coined the phrase “Teahadist”, but I think it was a term invented by the progressive blogosphere back in the good old days of 2009.

    In any case, the terminology is correct – these guys are as fanatic as mullahs.

  3. Way to go, Madison, Wisconsin. This is wonderful news that people are finally taking to the streets. Thanks for the excellent coverage here Fe et al.

    and I must say Fe, I had a great chuckle seeing the new label you’ve coined — “Teahadists”.
    Very clever! 😉

  4. So we’re down to the brass tacks of Corporations Greed vs. Unions Solidarity of the People? Hm. Shall we rename our primary parties accordingly?

  5. I think this has a chance of spreading to Ohio as well in the near future. Kasich has proven that he doesn’t care at all about the state or crating jobs. As a Bush crony, he was a lot more secure than he is now.

  7. i just want to hit the ‘like’ button here 🙂

    i’ve got a friend who now lives there, working at a university, and they’re up in arms over the attack which is definitely against them as well as many others, so i see all those posts

    here’s another video, this of the citizens occupying the legislature and then into the streets:
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XlUsoM4ruQ

  8. As Rachel Maddow reported tonight, the motion by Governor Walker is not about the budget, its a fight for the survival of the Democratic Party, since unions are the main remaining BIG sources of money that support Democrats in elections.

    Walker is trying to make his state a one-party ruled dominion for Republicans, the rest of the state be damned. This is the MO for most of the Republican governors across the country. This is Karl Rove and the Club for Growth, Citizens United and all the corporate interests who are damned if they’re going to be stopped.

    I love Rachel. Her framing is dead on target.

  13. First of all, I was struck this afternoon while reading the political blogs at the similarities between the stills of the videos of Bahrain and Madison. For a moment, without the captions, you wouldn’t be able to tell them apart.

    Ours is a fight for economic justice, and so is theirs. Of course the situation is dire in Bahrain, and we have relative comfort from a repressive regime. But the difference is slight. And shifting by hairs every day unless the people fight back.

    This is all because we have Teahadists in the governor’s office and in the state legislature, and in Congress doing their idiotic damnedest to prevent the wealthy from paying the taxes they need to pay. The only step they see as logical is to wrench whatever living the working class have to pony up for the shortfall.

    Pardon my French, but I only have one thing to say:

    GET OUT FROM YOUR GATED COMMUNITIES AND PAY YOUR FUCKING TAXES, BITCHES!!!!

  17. yes yes, thank you for bringing the (r)Evolution home Fe! i have friends teaching teachers in la crosse sending me pics of the campus rallies, to quote one of those beautyfull peeps, “‘Sconies are serious about their unions and their right to use collective bargaining. Don’t fuck with the workers in Wisconsin. Labor rights have a long history here.” so while there don’t seem to be many of us who do know such things anymore Len, there are some out there making sure we re*member. last favorite quote so far “Sen. Lena Taylor sent a tweet saying she was “doing the people’s business. Power to the PEOPLE.”
    rawk on, sister, blessed be …
    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wos-dDxpJlQ

  18. Fe,
    Thank you for bringing this story to the top. This as most of the media in the United States ignores or buries this huge issue. Wonder why.

    How many people still know what collective bargaining means? And how long it took for American workers to win that right? This is Pluto in Capricorn and it is just beginning. Uranus will be in Aries for the long haul (seven years or so) in a matter of weeks. The it will get really interesting. Seems that legal rights must be won, lost and won again. It’s our turn now, either that or serving as conscripted civilian labor.

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