Tony Palmeri.Com Update For January 27, 2004
1. Palmeri to Debate Klug: I will be debating former Wisconsin Congressman Scott Klug (R-Madison) on Joy Cardin's "Week in Review" program on Wisconsin Public Radio from 8 - 9 a.m. on Friday, January 28. Here's Scott's Congressional biography: http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=K000274
2. Remembering Kettl: Last year I published a piece called "Deconstructing Don Kettl" as a "Media Rant" for the Valley Scene. Dr. Jim Simmons, chair of the UW Oshkosh Department of Political Science and editor of the Wisconsin Political Scientist Newsletter, liked the piece and asked me to contribute it to the newsletter. The piece is now on Fightingbob.com with the title "Remembering Kettl" : http://www.fightingbob.com/article.cfm?articleID=327
3. Wisconsin Democracy Campaign Ad: This is an excellent call for clean government from our friends over at the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign: http://www.wisdc.org/animation/WDCTVAD.swf Here are some Action Steps: http://www.wisdc.org/powertothevoteraction.html
4. Common Cause on Redistricting: According to our friends over at Common Cause/Wisconsin, "The problem in Wisconsin is substantial and getting worse: Last year, in 51 of the 115 state legislative seats (all 99 Assembly, 15 State Senate) up for election, there was no major party opposition for the candidate (almost all incumbents) running. Most had no opposition at all, the others only minor party oppostion--all of whom had no chance whatsoever of winning. That computes to an astonishing 44 percent of all the state legislative races with no major party opposition for the other major candidate." You can find out more about Common Cause in Wisconsin here: http://www.commoncause.org/site/pp.asp?c=dkLNK1MQIwG&b=193168
5. Former Dem Party Executive Director Will Not Support Doyle: It's bad enough that Jim The New Democrat Doyle has ambitious Republicans Scott Walker and Mark Green already breathing down his neck almost two years before the 2006 elections, but old Jim can't even count on the support of Democrats: http://www.fightingbob.com/guestblog.cfm?PostID=1064 Quite frankly, I don't think Doyle could win a Democratic primary if one were held today.
6. Stop Government Propaganda Act: Now here's the best idea to come from the US Senate Democrats in a long time http://www.mediainfo.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1000778976
7. Dramatic Changes Needed To Win War: A sobering Knight Ridder Analysis http://www.realcities.com/mld/krwashington/news/columnists/jonathan_s_landay/10704306.htm
8. Gore Vidal On Bush's Inaugural Speech: "The Most Un-American Speech I've Ever Heard": Whether you like or dislike Gore Vidal's point of view, you have to respect his grasp of history and sheer eloquence http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=05/01/25/1458238
9. Countdown to Global Catastrophe: Another sobering report http://news.independent.co.uk/world/environment/story.jsp?story=603975
10. Oshkosh Politics:
11. Thanks Johnny: The late Johnny Carson was one of the biggest influences in my professional life as an interviewer. His wit, knowledge, and willingness to LET THE GUESTS TALK (the most important part of interviewing) were admirable qualities. I always was disappointed that Johnny didn't speak out more on behalf of whatever were his favorite causes, but on the other hand I am always disappointed in myself for not speaking out more. He probably didn't enjoy dealing with the ASSHOLE FACTION that is always lurking beneath the surface, waiting for someone to take a stand so they can try to beat them back into silence. Having dealt with that faction quite extensively in the last year or so, I can tell you it ain't always fun! So Johnny, from someone who always tries to let the guests speak 70% of the time, thank you!
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