MAY 20, 2002 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
STATEMENT BY DONALD FISH
CONTACT: donaldfish@donaldfish.com
Today marks the one-year anniversary of Wisconsin's citizens becoming
aware of what I, and state political insiders, have known for a long time:
that much of our government is used as our leaders' secret and illegal
campaign organization. Unfortunately, there has been little accountability
in the subsequent year, and it is now time for citizens to take matters into
their own hands. Everything in politics is about winning, and those caught
up in it seem to have an infinite capacity for rationalization. The state
must elect new leaders who do not believe their first duty is to themselves
and their elections, but rather to the constituents they are elected to
represent.
I have a website at http://www.donaldfish.com/complaint/index.htm
devoted to providing information on a related complaint I filed, August 20,
2001, with the State of Wisconsin Elections Board. This complaint
centers on allegations concerning voter databases built using state
resources and facilities that ultimately made important contributions to the
Democratic Party of Wisconsin's campaign efforts. Recently I added a
letter to this website (which is also reprinted below) I submitted to the
Elections Board, March 11, 2002, concerning my complaint. In the
interest of public concern, I will be making further updates to this website
in the coming weeks and months.
TEXT OF LETTER TO THE ELECTIONS BOARD
March 11, 2002
State of Wisconsin Elections Board
PO Box 2973
132 E Wilson St, 2nd Fl
Madison, WI 53701-2973
I have brought my complaint before the State of Wisconsin Elections
Board because of the chance it could help cultivate a genuine change in
how our elected leaders choose to govern us. I believe our leaders, their
staff and the major political parties have taken advantage of the citizens.
In the years I have been in the inner circles of politicians and politics, I
have become very aware of a culture that believes anything is okay in
the pursuit of winning, and those involved seem to have an infinite
capacity for rationalization. If they should get caught, they just 'spin' their
way out of it.
Abraham Lincoln once asked, "How many legs does a dog have if you
call the tail a leg? Four. Calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg." They
can try to say the data was just 'public information,' say everyone was just
'volunteering,' or make any of their other ludicrous claims-but it is still a
'tail.' I was there, and I know the truth.
With the activities I have described, and those brought to light by the
media, it is no wonder why it is so difficult to defeat incumbents.
Essentially, much of government is used as their secret campaign
machine, giving a distinct advantage to those who control it. Our elected
leaders have everything to gain from the status quo, but the citizens have
everything to loose. This system has a destructive impact on one of the
most fundamental promises of a democracy-fair and equal elections.
In the nineteenth century, An English painter named Samuel Palmer said,
"Wise men make proverbs, but fools repeat them." I think something like
this applies to Elections Boards as well. If these activities are not seriously
dealt with, it will be taken as a sign that this behavior will be tolerated.
And the behavior will be repeated because there is no incentive to
change.
I urge the Board to conduct a thorough and complete investigation of the
charges I have brought, and to deal with this situation in a way that is
truly meaningful and that will help return the kind of integrity to Wisconsin
government that was previously so celebrated. But if the Board fails to do
this, there is still a second chance, because in the hands of the voters lay
the power of all possibilities.
Sincerely,
Donald Fish
120 Rollins Rd
Chatsworth, CA 91311