Tuesday, March 11 at 7 p.m.

Viterbo Fine Arts Center Main Auditorium

Featuring the music, poetry, or talents of Tom Thibodeau, MC; Emily Dykman; Andrea Feirer; Mary Ellen Haupert; Dan Johnson-Wilmot; Joe Kruse; “Just Desserts”; Rachel Madary; Polly Pappadopoulos; Prairie Smoke; Viterbo Concert Choir; Wissing and King

A free will offering will be taken at the concert. Proceeds to benefit the Madary Children Fund.

ACTION ALERT - DON'T LET THEM BUY THE NEXT JUDGE!

[From the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice]
[UPDATE: Location has been changed at the last minute to La Crosse Chamber of Commerce, 712 Main Street]
Are you fed up with rich folks and corporations buying elections? Please take action! Join us to protest the WI Manufactures & Commerce "money collection" meetings.

ISSUE: Right now the WMC is in the process of raising millions of dollars from corporations to run attack ads against Supreme Court Justice Butler who is up for election Tues., April 1st. Last spring the WMC spent $2.2 million on attack ads to help Ms. Ziegler win a seat on the Court. We can't let that happen again.

The WMC is inviting CEO's to a round of breakfasts to ask them for money to
fund Butler attack ads. Join us in picketing at the two remaining "money collection" meetings. We have enough placards (Don't Let WMC Buy Our Supreme Court) for 100 people. So join us, dress warmly and we'll have a good time!

ACTION ALERT!: Wednesday, March 5 - Picketing 8 to 10:30 AM in La Crosse at the Gundersen Lutheran - Onalaska Clinic, 3111 Gundersen Dr., Onalaska NEW LOCATION: LA CROSSE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, 712 MAIN STREET

PLEASE CALL YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVE: Feb. 19th the WI State Senate passed SB 171, the Impartial Justice Bill. please ask your State Assembly representative to urge the Assembly leadership to hold hearings on SB 171. Ask you representative to support public funding of Supreme Court races. The bill provide $400,00 in public financing per candidate with access to an addition amount up to $1.2 million to fight "issue or attack" ads like the WMC is raising money for now.
More on WMC from Paul Soglin:

WMC is certainly the most influential lobbying organization in our state. It claims over 4,000 member businesses-and they make the biggest contributions, indirectly, to politicians' campaigns through their issue ads they purchase at election time.

WMC, through its Issues Committee has played a prominent role in a number of state wide elections including the last campaigns for Governor, Attorney General, and the Wisconsin Supreme Court.

It does this by soliciting funds and then purchasing issues ads which do not support a specific candidate but which attack the candidate WMC opposes. While WMC does not have to reveal its contributors, television stations are required to make public ad purchases. Last July the Democracy Campaign estimated that WMC spent $2.2 million on television and other advertising in an effort to defeat Annette Ziegler's opponent in the Supreme Court race. (The Capital Times, July 24, 2007). Ziegler was subsequently found to have ruled in cases where she had a conflict of interest and now faces discipline from her colleagues on the Supreme Court

WMC is hosting seminars designed to enlist opposition to the candidacy of Supreme Court Justice Louis Butler. It is estimated that WMC will attempt to raise between $2.5 and $4 million in an effort to defeat the distinguished jurist, Justice Butler. Those picketing are making it clear that the people's Wisconsin Supreme Court is not for sale.

Members of labor and professional organizations are opposed to these efforts. We do not have the legal means to find out which WMC members fund these attack ads. But we do have access to the WMC board of directors and can identify the people who are responsible for the decisions to raise the money and to buy the advertising. They can enjoy their right to raise money for issue ads and we have the right to note who is legally responsible for taking out the ads.

Again, we cannot name the individuals and corporations that contribute to the WMC Issues fund; that information is not available to the public. Only WMC can tell you who contributes to their political advertising.

We wish to make it clear that this is not a picket of the hosts of these events.

For more information, contact Paul Soglin at Soglin Consulting, 608-238-4042. Or 608-770-0947 (cell)

BACKGROUND INFO ON ISSUE FROM PAUL SOGLIN

* Here is the link to WMC's website for more information as to what they are doing: WMC Regional Meetings: Wisconsin Supreme Court Unbound (When you go to this site it says page canceled. Wait and about 30 seconds later an Adobe page will open up. See what the WMC is saying about the present Supreme Court - you'll be surprised. Buzz Davis)

* Dave Zweifel: Shining the Spotlight on WMC

Below are some other articles and editorials. (We picketed WMC in Madison, Wausau and Green Bay in the past two weeks.)

802240396/1637/WDHopinion> Our Legal System Shouldn't Be For Sale -Wausau Daily Herald editorial

.By the Wisconsin Democracy Campaign's calculations, almost $6 million was spent -- most of it by special interest groups, and $2.2 million of it by one group alone. Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce, which represents businesses and chambers of commerce, buried television stations with that much cash.

Group
1/802150587/1981> protests business lobby Wausau Daily Herald -news

Protesters target WMC The Capital Times - news

Associated Press: Protesters
Picket WMC Over Funding Of Political Ads

For more info: info@wnpj.org, www.wnpj.org

Debate Iraq

[UPDATE: Senate Dems Yank Pull-out bill. So much for backbone.]

As you may have heard, Russell Feingold's bill to have the Senate debate a "redeployment" of troops from Iraq passed out of committee by a vote of 70 to 24. Feingold says,

Now to be clear, Republicans agreed to have this debate because they're under the false impression that Democrats may be embarrassed to debate the war in Iraq.

I disagree, and so do the vast majority of the American people.

Add your name to thousands of others, and get your friends and family to join us in supporting Feingold-Reid.

I'm pleased the Senate has decided to address Iraq and how our continued military involvement there is distracting us from defeating the global terrorist threat from al Qaeda and its affiliates. But according to at least one news report this morning, some senators, even Democratic senators, don't agree.

According to the story, one senator has called the Iraq debate "a waste of time." Another called the debate a "diversion." Yet another said that Feingold-Reid was "too restrictive." And all of these are quotes from Democratic members.

We must keep up the pressure - help push this issue forward. The American people demand a debate, and thanks to your support, we've moved the ball a long way since first introducing this legislation last year. We must continue to work together in our combined effort to end one of the biggest mistakes in our country's history.

There will now be up to 30 hours of debate on this bill and it's up to each and every one of us to make sure Republicans and Democrats in the Senate feel the heat.

Act Now to Support Global Warming Legislation (from Clean Wisconsin)

[UPDATE: "02-26. A. Refused to suspend rules to withdraw from committee on Natural Resources and take up, Ayes 46, Noes 51."]

Important legislation to reduce global warming legislation is coming to a vote in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Call your Assembly representative and encourage them to support AB 157 Wisconsin's Safe Climate Act.

The effects of global warming are already being felt here in Wisconsin and if left unchecked global warming could have a devastating impact on Wisconsin's economy, culture and environment. The scientific community has said that we have very little time to enact legislation that will begin reducing global warming pollution in order to avoid the worst effects of climate change. Wisconsin cannot afford to wait for action at the federal level; we must pursue proactive solutions to reduce our global warming pollution today. AB 157 Wisconsin's Safe Climate Act will be coming to a vote soon in the Wisconsin State Assembly. Your representative's support for this legislation will be critical to ensuring Wisconsin is able to meet our global warming reduction goals.

AB 157 - Wisconsin's Safe Climate Act would require the State of Wisconsin to implement a plan to reduce our global warming pollution back to 1990 levels by 2020. These reductions will be an important first step to addressing climate change. The bill provides an excellent framework under which to advance and adopt the recommendations of the Governor's Global Warming Task Force.

Ok, let's face it. Once again, Republicans looking out for their polluting cronies are constipating this bill in the Assembly, most notably, number one blockage, Assembly "leader", Mike Huebsch. If you think it will do any good to call his office, (608) 266-3387 Or (888) 534-0094 or email him, feel free.

You could also try staring at that 8 foot mound of ice and snow by the side of your driveway to see if your x-ray vision can melt it in a matter of minutes.

The only way to get anything done, is to retire Mike Huebsch (maybe he can finish college using all the money he's saved up from his per diems.)

IRAQ MORATORIUM - FEBRUARY 15

[We interrupt this anti-war plea to mention that Chelsea Clinton will campaign for her mom on Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 11 a.m. at Cartwright Center, UW-L. See Jimmy Breslin's 2005 take on Hillary and Iraq before you go.]


I hereby make a commitment that on the Third Friday of each and every month, I will break my daily routine and take some action, by myself or with others, to end the War in Iraq.

UPDATE: FRIDAY, FEB. 15 FROM 5 TO 6 P.M. AT THE CORNERS OF LA CROSSE ST. AND WEST AVE. BRING YOUR SIGN.

A few good men (well, one) have been trying to get a monthly Iraq Moratorium demonstration going in La Crosse. I've thought of all the excuses myself and used them, too. But it's time to get out there and keep this issue out in front.

We've gone over the $1 TRILLION dollar mark and are approaching 4,000 US military casualties in Iraq and more than 1 MILLION Iraqis killed. A CBS News report in November 2007 found that 120 vets PER WEEK are attempting or committing suicide and the Bush administration has recently argued in court that veterans do not have a right to mental health care.

What have we done?! Why are we continuing to let it happen.

Join us this Friday, February 15 from 5 to 6 p.m. at the corners of La Crosse Street and West Avenue. Bring your anti war signs. We will try to keep this up every third Friday of every month - until it's over.

BTW, there are no progressive candidates left in the Democratic primary. Jump on the bandwagon if you will, but don't hold your breath for much of a "change". Currently, the US spends more on its military than all other countries combined. So, the answer, from the "most liberal" candidate?

from Obama's Foreign Policy website:

Building a 21st Century Military
-- snip --
Expand the Military: We have learned from Iraq that our military needs more men and women in uniform to reduce the strain on our active force. Obama will increase the size of ground forces, adding 65,000 soldiers to the Army and 27,000 Marines.

Doyle - OBAMARAMA

[This just in]

Governor Jim Doyle will keynote a rally for the Barack Obama presidential campaign on Thursday, February 7th at 7:00 P.M. at Valhalla in the Cartwright Center NEW LOCATION: Cleary Alumni and Friends Center (East Ave. and La Crosse St.) on the campus of the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

For more details or to volunteer please contact Mike Reynertson, Northern and Western Wisconsin Regional Field Director for the Obama campaign at 320-293-5531

THANKS!

Just a note of thanks to all those who helped organize, donated or came to our fourth annual event on Friday, February 1. Special thanks to Fayze's for donating the delicious bread and Jules' for donating the wonderful coffee. Also, thanks to RoZ for the mix tape, Guy Wolf for his special chili and the year in review (in the historic progressive style!), Cathy for the soup and programs, Xong for the soup and Jessica Thill for staffing the sign in table. Thanks too, to the Concordia Ballroom, for the wonderful friendly facility.

Our goal is to bring in all the area progressives who are out there but not necessarily connected to a group. Next year we will try something different. What? Who knows! If you'd like to be on the planning committee, please email Cathy

In the meantime, there are plenty of issues, campaigns and organizations that can use your help RIGHT NOW! Please get active - write letters to the editor, donate, sign up to hand out literature, do what you can.

In the meantime, another thanks to all the great groups who shared info and ideas:
* 7 Rivers LGBT Resource Center
* AFL-CIO
* American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)
* Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin
* Bike - Ped Committee of La Crosse
* Bluffland Bloom and Brew
* Clean Energy Coalition of La Crosse
* Clean Wisconsin
* Cornucopia Institute
* Coulee Keepers - advocating regional sustainability
* CounterRecruiters of La Crosse - a new group
* Dancing Doe Farms, LLC
* Eco-Municipality - City and County of La Crosse
* GeoPathfinders
* Get Active! - helping local candidates and causes
* Jubilee Center for Justice and Peace
* La Crosse Democrats
* LAMP (La Crosse-Afghanistan Mine-removal Project)
* La Crosse Interfaith Justice and Peace Coalition
* League of Women Voters
* Three Rivers School
* United Nations Association of La Crosse (UNA)
* UW-La Crosse Progressives
* Western Technical College Multicultural Scholarship
* Women in Black

TONIGHT - BE THERE!

Come to network, share ideas, sign up, find old friends, meet new co-conspirators!, eat, drink and be merry.

Over 25 local, regional, state and national groups, candidates and causes will be there to get you ACTIVATED for 2008 - join a national advocacy organization, sign up to work on a campaign, get info about living sustainably.

Bring a dessert to share and/or a non-perishable for the food pantry if you can. Admission by donation. Free soup (vegan and veggie options available), bread and hot beverage.

Don't miss it! [all the details are in this_story at KickTime. In Cathy's enthusiasm she left out the where, when, etc!]

Groups confirmed so far: ACLU, AFL-CIO, Bike Federation of Wisconsin, Bike-Ped Committee of La Crosse, Bluffland Bloom & Brew, Clean Wisconsin, Cornucopia Institute, Coulee Keepers, CounterRecruiters of La Crosse, Dancing Doe Farms, Eco Municipality, GeoPathfinder - how-to sustainable living, Get Active!, Jubilee Center for Justice and Peace, La Crosse-Afghanistan Mine-removal Project (LAMP), La Crosse Demcratic Party, La Crosse Interfaith Justice and Peace Coalition, League of Women Voters, Three Rivers School, United National Association of La Crosse, UW-L Progressives, Western Technical College Multicultural Scholarship, Women in Black.