Western Wisconsin Bicycle Summit - March 23

The La Crosse area is home to many passionate bicyclists from recreational family riders to commuters to off road riders to racers. But often the different groups do not have many connections.

[Update: GRAB, PRINT AND POST A FLYER!]

On March 23, that will change. The Western Wisconsin Bicycle Summit, organized by a variety of local bicycle groups in coordination with the Bicycle Federation of Wisconsin, will offer networking, learning and idea sharing opportunities for businesses, individuals and policy makers and will connect those of us interested in bicycling to the wider state, regional and national family of bicycle advocates.

The event will be at the Radisson Center, 200 Harborview Plaza in La Crosse. A networking, idea sharing, social hour with cash bar will be from 5 to 6:40 p.m.

At 7 p.m., keynote speaker, John Burke, President of Trek Bicycle Corporation. Burke passionately spreads the word about the bicycle as "a simple solution to complex problems."

More details will be released soon. For now, please mark your calendar and save the evening of Tuesday, March 23

A Million Calls

A consortium of grassroots organizations including MoveOn.org, the Center for Policy Analysis, the Progressive Congress Action Fund, HCAN, DFA and SEIU are urging at least one million Americans on Thursday, February 24 to call their senators and representatives and demand that meaningful health care reform be passed.

The Fix It and Pass It campaign is "making a HUGE push to fix the Senate bill via reconciliation and to pass it!"

When you call, please ask for these items to be included in a reconciliation fix:

* Inclusion of the public option (MOST Americans want a public option)
* The Medicare buy-in (allowing younger people to buy in to Medicare coverage)
* Fixing the excise tax
* Getting rid of the Nebraska Cornhusker Kickback deal
* National exchange NOT state exchange
* Drug re-importation
* Drug price negotiation in Medicare Part D
* Increasing subsidies.

Everything is still on the table. Now is the time to demand what MOST people want.

Contact your reps directly (see below) or use the MoveOn.org tool.

Senator Russell Feingold
La Crosse
425 State St., Room 225
La Crosse, WI 54601-3341
(608) 782-5585

Senator Herb Kohl
La Crosse Office
205 5th Avenue South, Room 216
La Crosse, WI 54601
(608) 796-0045
Fax: (608) 796-0089

Representative Ron Kind
205 Fifth Avenue S. , Suite 400
La Crosse, WI 54601
8:30am to 5pm
PH: (608) 782-2558
FX: (608) 782-4588
TTY: (608) 782-1173

FRESH

Don't forget to attend the screening MONDAY NIGHT of the new film, FRESH, Monday, February 22, 7:00 p.m., Graff Main Hall Auditorium, UW-L.

From the website:

FRESH is more than a movie, it’s a gateway to action. Our aim is to help grow FRESH food, ideas, and become active participant in an exciting, vibrant, and fast-growing movement.

When I write we, I don’t mean our small team (officially two of us, with lots of amazing helps from our interns and volunteers) but I mean YOU. All of you. FRESH is a grassroots efforts for a grassroots movement. It’s been tremendously exciting to see the movie catch on and spread like wild fire, being used all over the country as a platform to raise awareness and connecting people to the solutions available in their community.

Senator Feingold office opening open house

Please join Senator Feingold on Saturday for the official opening of his La Crosse Field Office.

Saturday, February 19 from 9 to 10:30 a.m.
116 5th Ave South, La Crosse

WTC Board Positions Open

[from June]

Western Technical College is accepting applications for their WTC District Board. The Application materials will be available starting Friday. February 19 and must be returned by 4 p.m. March 5. Three appointments are for three-year terms that start July 1. They will made at a public hearing and meeting March 25. For more information,
call (608) 785-9563.