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This Just In...
Kevin Fischer is an award-winning veteran broadcaster who has been seen and heard on Milwaukee TV and radio stations for nearly three decades.
Kevin, who is a legislative aide to state Sen. Mary Lazich (R-New Berlin), can be seen offering his views on the news on the public affairs program, “INTERchange,” on Milwaukee Public Television Channel 10. He lives with his wife, Jennifer, in Franklin.
By Kevin Fischer
Monday, Jan 5 2009, 11:16 PM
Next year, when you get invited to bowl games, do yourselves a favor.
Say no.
Stay home.
Save yourselves a lot of embarassment.
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By Kevin Fischer
Monday, Jan 5 2009, 10:30 PM
By Kevin Fischer
Monday, Jan 5 2009, 10:05 PM
Tuesday night, the Franklin Common Council will take up the Buckhorn controversy. Specifically, aldermen will consider the License Committee’s vote that a special prosecutor’s recommendation that the Buckhorn have its license suspended for 75 days be rejected. On Christmas Day 2007, Eddie Lynn Keck was reportedly over-served at the Buckhorn, left the tavern and struck and killed two people that night in a drunk driving accident.
Almost a year ago, the Franklin Common Council retained Roger C. Pyzyk, a private practice attorney who also is the Greenfield city attorney, as a special prosecutor to see if Franklin officials could take action against the tavern.
Franklin aldermen regarded the Buckhorn controversy as a hot potato, refusing comment and deferring the entire matter to Pyzyk. The city has left itself wide open to criticism that it has bungled this entire affair. The slow wheels of the criminal justice system passed judgment on Keck months ago. Franklin City Hall continues to stumble.
While I’m on record supporting a much stronger action against Buckhorn, and still do, and that is a revocation of its license, I find it highly ironic that the Franklin Common Council, in the interest of due process, stepped aside to bring in an impartial prosecutor. The prosecutor after months and months of review, paid for with Franklin taxes, came up with a recommendation, and now the Council is poised to turn it down. So, we’ve made what progress at the city level in over a year?
Personally, I believe it’s time for the aldermen to take a stand and tell the public exactly what it is they want. They ultimately have to vote on something, and the time to keep hemming and hawing is over.
Franklin aldermen, if a 75 day suspension isn’t right, what is? You were elected to make tough decisions. This is one of them, one the public is running out of patience over.
For more details on this entire story, read my recap in TOP TEN FRANKLIN STORIES OF 2008: # 9.
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By Kevin Fischer
Monday, Jan 5 2009, 07:08 PM
I have often said that we (the United States) are our own worst enemy when it comes to our illegal immigration dilemma. Here's another example.
Illegal immigrants are being smuggled into America through the Las Vegas airport. Federal agents are aware. So are local agents in Las Vegas. The response the local agents get from the feds: ignore the problem.
HT: Dad29 via Moonbattery.
Prepare to be outraged.
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By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 07:20 PM
Believe it or not, there is a fair amount of thought and research that goes into each week’s Culinary no-no. Unlike the millions of other food blogs, mine focuses on the taboo. It would be mush less arduous a task writing about culinary elements that work.
However, this week the no-no came like an Acme Company safe out of a Warner Brothers cartoon window, a virtual no-brainer crying out, “Write about me, Kevin! Write about me!”
Admit it. When was the last time you ate this combination: Ham, pork, sugar, salt, sodium nitrate, water, and potato starch? I believe I was 10 at the time.
What concoction do you get when you mix ham, pork, sugar, salt, sodium nitrate, water, and potato starch?
Ok, that was lame. Spam. Isn’t that what guys in prison are fed? A staple in private school cafeterias? The stuff Mom opened up when she didn’t feel like Betty Crocker or was just in a foul mood?
Spam is not on the gourmet’s shopping list. Hell, it’s not on a lot of people’s shopping lists. But somebody’s eating Spam. Spam claims since 1937, six billion cans around the world have been sold. Here in the United States, over 90 million cans are sold each year. Spam calls it, “a taste sensation.” I wouldn’t go that far, and I eat just about anything.
Nowhere in the world is Spam more loved than here:
The fad started during World War II and hasn’t stopped since. Hawaiians may have loved it, but I recall my father saying GI’s got so sick of it they’d toss the cans out train windows. I happen to trust their palates and judgment.
My wife and I were in the 50th state last month and I’m baffled. With all that wonderful seafood and Hawaii raising more of its beef, why would you settle for a can of Spam at dinnertime? We never saw Spam or any variation of it on any menu at any of the places we dined. But then again, we didn’t hit McDonald’s or Burger King.
Spam is a hot commodity in Hawaii, and is popular all across the country as well. Winning recipes made with Spam have surfaced at state fairs, including Wisconsin’s.
Again, I’m confused.
It’s one thing to hold a festival in its honor or try to get creative to win a blue ribbon. But this, I mean really…..
This is inexcusable.
Why?
Why?
Those idiots deserve whatever punishment they get. If there’s any justice, they’ll be forced to eat all 32 cans.
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By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 06:00 PM
Last October, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel’s Managing Editor George Stanley tried his best to convince readers that the paper is fair and balanced. He cited some examples and then wrote,
“In these cases the press, in all its forms, is not leading public opinion but reflecting it.”
He added, “We're here to serve all readers - conservative, liberal, independent and nonpolitical.”
Stanley was referring primarily to the paper’s reporters. I don’t buy it, and my skepticism applies to both the news and editorial coverage.
In my blog last October, I challenged the paper: “Stop telling us you’re fair and balanced. Prove it.”
Today, I begin a new feature on This Just In. Every week, I’ll review the most coveted editorial pages of the week by opinion-makers as well as the most widely-read, the Sunday “Crossroads” section of the Journal Sentinel. I will keep track of the conservative and liberal pieces published and keep a running score throughout the year.
I will not count pieces by Journal Sentinel columnists or Journal Sentinel editorial writers, short Quick Hits or Advisory Hits. Judgment is, of course, subjective, but I’m pretty sure I can perceive if an opinion piece is conservative or liberal.
What about Monday through Saturday? Sorry. I’m going to concentrate on the Sunday pages. If others want to take on the task of monitoring the other days, God bless them.
What about reviews based on column inches or word totals? Sorry. I have a life. The article is either conservative or liberal leaning. In the box scores, it doesn’t show how a basket was made, it just adds them up. That’s what I’m going to do. Let’s start.
TODAY’S LIBERAL PIECES:
Gregory Nemet and David Weimer: Now's the moment to levy an import tax for energy research
Dan Kohler and Andy Jorgensen: Let's capitalize on our energy assets (Uses the term, “investment, “ code for spending)
Mary T. Wagner: How about a tax on what leads to trouble?
TODAY’S CONSERVATIVE PIECES:
Michael J. Mathias: Elections a cure, not curse
Labeling Mathias’ piece “conservative” wasn’t easy. Mathias is a liberal blogger who is running for the Milwaukee School Board. He takes the position that the board should remain an elected body, unlike the Journal Sentinel that recently editorialized for an appointed board.
This is nothing new. Liberals often turn swiftly to the right when running for office. I can’t speak for the level of sincerity in Mathias’ statements, but his is a conservative view and the paper did publish an opposing stance.
But isn’t it interesting. The only “conservative” piece on the editorial pages today doesn’t come from a true conservative.
MJS SCORECARD:
TODAY: Liberal-3, Conservative-1
YEAR TO DATE: Liberal-3, Conservative -1
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By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 08:45 AM
Early morning preparations continue for President-elect Barack Obama's Inaugural Reviewing Stand on Pennsylvania Avenue in front of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds)
Palestinian protesters throws stones at Israeli troops, not seen, during clashes at a demonstration against Israel's military operation in Gaza, in the Shuafat refugee camp, on the outskirts of Jerusalem, Friday, Jan. 2, 2009. Israel showed no sign of slowing a blistering seven-day offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers, destroying homes of more than a dozen of the group's operatives Friday and bombing one of its mosques a day after a deadly strike killed a prominent Hamas figure.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
Two Egyptian men look at the smoke caused by an Israeli air strike at the Gaza border, seen from the Egyptian border crossing terminal of Rafah, Egypt Friday, Jan. 2, 2009. Israel bombed a mosque it claimed was used to store weapons and destroyed homes of more than a dozen Hamas operatives Friday, but under international pressure, the government allowed hundreds of Palestinians with foreign passports to leave besieged Gaza. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)
Palestinians look down on the rubble of the destroyed house of senior Hamas militant Nizar Rayan after an Israeli airstrike hit a nearby mosque in the Jebaliya refugee camp, northern Gaza Strip, Friday, Jan. 2, 2009. Israel showed no sign of slowing a blistering seven-day offensive against Hamas militants in Gaza, destroying homes of the group's leaders and bombing one of its mosques a day after a deadly strike on a prominent Hamas figure killed him and most of his family. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)
Supporters of Israel's recent attacks on Gaza and Hamas rally at the Federal Building in Westwood area of Los Angeles on Friday, Jan. 2, 2009. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)
Praying men block Piccadilly in London, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. Thousands of protestors marched from the Embankment to Trafalgar Square in support of Palestinians in Gaza, then on to the Israeli embassy.(AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Hundreds of shoes are seen in the road along Whitehall, as police guard the entrance to Downing Street in London, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. Several thousand people, many carrying Palestinian flags, marched past British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's Downing Street residence to a rally in Trafalgar Square, London. Outside Downing Street, hundreds of protesters stopped and threw shoes at the tall iron gates blocking entry to the narrow road. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
Potholes everywhere: A plastic cap that had had fallen off a previous car popped into the air as another car ran it over on North Central Avenue over the Kennedy Expressway in Chicago.
(Al Podgorski/Chicago Sun-Times)
Workers move the wreckage of Continental Airlines flight 1404 to a site outside a Continental hangar at Denver International Airport in Denver on Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009 from the ravine where it crash landed on Saturday, Dec. 20, 2008. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
Sumo grand champion Hakuho from Mongolia pounds steamed rice into the dough used for rice cakes at the Miyagino Stable in Tokyo, Tuesday, Dec. 30, 2008. Rice cake called "mochi" is traditional New Year food in Japan. (AP Photo/Katsumi Kasahara)
Oklahoma City firefighter C.J. Seitz carries a chihuahua from a house that was destroyed in a morning fire in Oklahoma City , Okla., Monday, Dec. 29, 2008. No one was injured in the fire. (AP Photo/Steve Gooch, The Oklahoman)
A portion of Robert Graham's bronze sculpture symbolizing the 54 social programs of the New Deal is seen at the Roosevelt Memorial December 29, 2008 in Washington, DC. Robert Graham, a sculptor whose works are seen in public spaces throughout the United States, died in California December 27 at the age of 70. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)
The lines to pay property taxes were long at Milwaukee City Hall on Monday and Tuesday, after cold and snowy weather kept taxpayers away earlier in the month, City Treasurer Wayne Whittow said. Property taxes are due Jan. 31, but many taxpayers hustle to pay them before the end of the year to claim them as an income tax deduction. Journal Sentinel photo: Jack Orton
Three members of the animal rights group AnimaNaturalis sit inside a cage to call attention to the sale of pets in front of a shopping mall in Mexico City, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. The group was protesting the sale of pets, saying people should opt for adoption instead. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)
An Australian sheep-dog chases after a ball near the western German town of Breckerfeld on December 31.(SASCHA SCHUERMANN, AFP/GETTY IMAGES)
 Laura Backman, of Portsmouth, R.I., rear, watches as her pet duck "Lemon" paddles across the floor with the assistance of a wheeled cradle in Backman's living room at her home, Tuesday, Nov. 18, 2008. The two-and-a-half year-old Pekin duck has a brain disorder that leaves the bird with difficulties balancing. (Steven Senne, AP)
In this photo released by the Wildlife Conservation Society, Shelby, a three-year old female snow leopard reclines in the freshly snow covered greenery at the Bronx Zoo's Himalayan Highlands exhibit, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008 in New York. Forecasters are calling for snow and brutally cold temperatures as a cold front whips into New York City on the last day of 2008. Shelby's apparent confront is a stark contrast to that of the New Year's Eve revelers across town as they brave high winds and falling temperatures later in the evening on New York City's Times Square. (AP Photo/WCS, Julie Larsen Maher)
A woman rides horses through the snow covered landscape on a sunny day outside Zumikon near Zurich January 1, 2009. Photo: Reuters
People skate on frozen canals in Kinderdijk's Mill Area, a UNESCO World Heritage site, near Rotterdam, Netherlands, Saturday Jan. 3, 2009. Kinderdijk, where the mills date back to the 18th century, is a good example of a low countries area where water management is carefully organised with a system of historic mills and waterways. (AP Photo/Peter Dejong)
It may be cold outside, but Daniel Jimenez, 3, of Franklin is keeping the flowers in bloom Friday at the Betty Brinn Children’s Museum in Milwaukee. Daniel’s parents, Israel and Sherry, say that he enjoys working with real flowers in the family’s garden. Journal Sentinel photo: Kristyna Wentz-Graff
The door leading to the Green Bay Packers locker room displays a sign allowing media members to enter as players clean out their lockers inside Lambeau Field on Dec. 29, 2008 following their 6-10 season. Photo by Corey Wilson/Press-Gazette
Green Bay Packers linebacker Desmond Bishop cleans out his locker inside Lambeau Field on Dec. 29, 2008 following a 6-10 season. Photo by Corey Wilson/Press-Gazette
Green Bay Packers players (clockwise from left) J.J. Jansen, Mason Crosby, Jordy Nelson, Brian Brohm and Matt Flynn play cards while players clean out their lockers inside Lambeau Field on Dec. 29, 2008 following their 6-10 season. Photo by Corey Wilson/Press-Gazette
A cross and shoulder pads are all that remain in the locker of Green Bay Packers safety Nick Collins after players clean out their lockers inside Lambeau Field on Dec. 29, 2008 following their 6-10 season. Photo by Corey Wilson/Press-Gazette
Charlotte Bobcats guard Gerald Wallace (3) is fouled by Milwaukee Bucks forward Charlie Villanueva (31) during the second half of the Bobcats' 102-92 win in an NBA basketball game in Charlotte, N.C., Saturday, Jan. 3, 2009. Villanueva was charged with a flagrant foul. (AP Photo/Chuck Burton)
Mail carrier Thomas “Mac” McGinnis has been wearing a Santa suit for nearly 20 years on Christmas Eve. “It’s a tradition now in Bay View. I have to do it,” McGinnis said. Audio Slideshow
Journal Sentinel photo: Kristyna Wentz-Graff
Pope Benedict XVI celebrates a New Year's Eve vespers service, at St. Peter's Basilica at the Vatican, Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008. Pope Benedict XVI is calling for 'sobriety and solidarity' in 2009 as the world struggles with economic and social woes. His appeal was made amid the splendor of St. Peter's Basilica during a New Year's Eve vespers service on Wednesday. Benedict described these times as being 'marked by uncertainty and worry for the future.' -- (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Dick Clark kisses his wife, Kari, on the set of "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve" in New York (Dec. 31, 2008). Photo: msn.com
Angela Sytko of New Jersey, right, and T.J. Clark New York’s of Brooklyn Borough kiss at the stroke of midnight during New Year’s Eve festivities in Times Square in New York on Wednesday, Dec. 31, 2008. — AP Photo/Peter Morgan
Police constable Lee Dingsdale receives a kiss from Aiden Cooper as revellers take to Princes Street to celebrate New Year on December 31, 2008 in Edinburgh, Scotland. Around 100,000 people are expected to brave freezing temperatures to see in the bells in the Scottish capital. Getty Images
Thomas Moeller, 31, and Sandra Neunaber, 30, kiss after Moeller asked Neunaber to marry him in front of the Brandenburg Gate on New Year's Day January 1, 2009 in Berlin, Germany. An estimated 1 million revelers descended on the area in front of the Brandenburg Gate to celebrate. Neunaber said yes. Getty Images
Robbie Knievel makes a successful jump in front of the Mirage volcano in Las Vegas Wednesday, December 31. Photo: Sam Morris, Associated Press
In Valencia, Spain, revellers took part in an unusual new year's tradition - a red underwear race. Photo: AFP
Seattle, Wash., resident Andrew DaCosta enters the Magic Kingdom on New Year's Day morning as the first person in the country to receive free admission to a Disney theme Park in 2009 as part of Disney's "What Will You Celebrate?" campaign. (Preston Mack, Walt Disney Parks and Resorts)
Participants race into the water during the annual Waupaca Polar Bear Plunge on the shores of Limekiln Lake at Becker Marine in Waupaca on Thursday, Jan. 1, 2009. Dan Powers/Gannett Wisconsin Media
Photos from the Lure Bar & Grill Polar Bear Jump on New Years Day near Green Bay. Tom Loucks photos, Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune.
People watch the sunrise on New Year's Day from a beach in the resort city of Cancun, Mexico, Thursday, Jan. 1, 2009. (AP Photo/Israel Leal)
Black and white twins Hayleigh and Lauren Durrant proudly hold their new sisters Leah and Miya — who incredibly are ALSO twins with different coloured skin. Photo: africanamericanchild.com
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By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 08:25 AM
By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 08:10 AM
In my Week-ends blog yesterday, one of my OUTRAGES OF THE WEEK was the increasing chatter about raising gas taxes. Sure, just when gasoline falls to a manageable price, political dunderheads want to jack up taxes, while the economy is still struggling.
There are more crazy ideas aimed at attacking you right in the wallet in hopes you’ll abandon your automobile.
In the city by the Bay, motorists could be charged a fee if they dare wander into heavier-traveled areas.
But here’s the real stinker. Some states want to charge you based on the number of miles you drive. How would they know your mileage? They plan to plant a GPS monitor in your car, that’s how.
Tax, tax, tax, tax, tax. Fee on top of fee.
It’s the solution to everything.
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By Kevin Fischer
Sunday, Jan 4 2009, 07:12 AM
Remember, we were informed by authorities that our most infamous sex predator was so fragile, so frail, and so near death that he could be released without supervision, that he posed no danger.
Badger Blogger has the update.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 10:43 PM
Tonight, the San Diego Chargers beat the Indianapolis Colts in an NFL playoff game, 23-17, in overtime.
The Chargers won the toss in overtime, opted to receive, and drove down the field for the winning touchdown, aided by several penalties to advance to the next round.
I again raise the issue that if the team that wins the toss in overtime scores on its first drive, the opposite team should get the ball for one last drive. I wouldn't mind seeing the current rule of sudden death changed. A playoff spot shouldn't come down to the toss of a coin.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 10:00 PM
Here are, in my view, interesting, noteworthy columns and articles from the past week that I highly recommend:
This is a must-read, from the highly under-rated Lakeland Times, “A perfect storm for WEAC's, Democrats' greed.”
“All the pieces of the puzzle are sitting on the table known as the state of Wisconsin. And all the players have been elected to sit at the table and put the pieces together. When it's done, it shall no doubt be called The Shafting of the Wisconsin Taxpayer. Let me tell you a thing or two about the players who are so eager to take your money. They are tax-and-spend liberals, in the old-fashioned sense of the word. They control the state Assembly. They control the state Senate. Worst of all, they are led by the biggest tax-and-spend liberal of them all, Gov. Diamond Jim Doyle.”
Another outstanding piece from the Lakeland Times, “Is Doyle telling the truth on state budget deficit?”
“Why would the governor mislead? All of which begs the question: Why would Doyle throw out such a misleading and large number, knowing it contained, at the very least, $2.76 billion in new spending requests from individual state agencies, much of which was unrealistic and unlikely to be approved, even by the governor himself? One answer, of course, could be that federal money and a chance for the state to get its hands on it.”
Income tax holiday could be right idea
“If you want to encourage people to spend money, give them greater access to money through the tax system. Specifically, as proposed by U.S. Rep. Louie Gohmert, R-Texas, suspend income tax withholding for two months, in lieu of allowing the treasury secretary to spend the second half of the $700 billion bailout bill from earlier this year.”
Obama Will Ration Your Health Care
“It is nearly certain that the process of determining which drugs and which treatments would be approved for use would be quickly politicized. The details of health-care policy may not be kitchen table conversation, but the fact that a Washington committee can deny grandma a hip replacement due to her age, or your sister a new and expensive drug, is. Health care is personal and voters will pressure lawmakers on access to care. Liberal experts believe that America needs to ration new technology and drugs.”
After 6 months, drivers ignoring cellphone ban
The twenty biggest stories of 2008
Everyone does lists. This is a very good one.
Make 2009 the year of useful information
"So here’s a New Years Resolution for our friends in the media: fewer unqualified experts, less wild speculation, more legitimate and even useful information."
Wild speculation? A Franklin story from 2008 comes to mind: Boomgaard.
Red light districts, secret votes taken behind closed doors. Wild speculation? That’s all it was. There's a stronger word that comes to mind.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 08:09 PM
This is fascinating.
A Canadian study has found that too much thinking can make you fat.
That’s right. Too much use of your though process can cause you to put on weight. Apparently too much brain work causes stress that results in overeating. Again, absolutely fascinating.
However, with all due respect to the researchers at the Universite Laval in Quebec, Canada, I’m afraid I have to express some skepticism. I’m not sure I buy the study’s findings. I can easily think of an example close to home that defies the study’s conclusion.
Allow me to elaborate…
BZZZZZZZZT
BZZZZZZZZt
Kevin, Kevin, Kevin.
This is your conscience speaking.
You are to be reminded that this is a new year. We still bask in the season of peace on Earth, good will to all men.
It is quite apparent the direction you are headed.
You need to seriously reconsider.
You are about to engage in totally sophomoric, juvenile behavior.
Do you really want to do this, Kevin?
It is beneath you.
Do you honestly want to sink to the childish levels of others?
Do you?
So unprofessional, so unbecoming of an adult.
The choice is yours, Kevin. Choose wisely.
I now return you to your regularly scheduled blog.
BZZZZZZZZt
BZZZZZZZZt
Anyways….Anywho…..It was just a thought. (Gosh, I hoped I spelled everything right)
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 07:37 PM
It debuts tomorrow, Sunday.
NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
That can't be possible.
ANOTHER weekend feature on This Just In?
Yes.
ANOTHER weekend feature on This Just In.
I'd love to give more details, but that might give it away. So just return Sunday (You know you will) to find out.
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I just love surprises, don't you?
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 02:00 PM
That's how one blogger who just happens to be an MPS teacher simply and succinctly reacts to a report that MPS graduation rates are up, but students aren't improving their performance. He's right, by the way.
Read the Journal Sentinel story, then the blog.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 11:05 AM
A look back at the people and events that made news the past week.
Week-ends is a regular weekly feature of This Just In...
HEROES OF THE WEEK
Photo: Reuters
That's USC Trojans quarterback Mark Sanchez as he warms up before the start of the 95th Rose Bowl game against the Penn State Nittany Lions in Pasadena, California, January 1, 2009. USC won easily, continuing the Big Ten's pattern of laying eggs in bowl games.
Take a look at the message underneath Sanchez's eyes.
R.I.P. GARENN.
What does it mean? Here's the answer with details from September and November......and this video.
Also, Wisconsin troops.
VILLAINS OF THE WEEK
Kenneth Quintana and Robert Aragon
Medics in the UK
They look like such a nice, elderly couple, the Rosenblats, don't they?
Jim Doyle, the Taxman. And if that isn't bad enough, where does the governor think all this money is going to come from? Oh, yeh. Us.
QUOTES OF THE WEEK
"I would simply point out that I've supported going to a higher level in the past."
Wisconsin Governor Doyle, hinting he would favor another increase in the state's cigarette tax. It went up $1.00 per pack in the last state budget. Doyle at the time favored a $1.77 per pack increase.
"The simple fact is that where Wisconsin went, where Republicans took us, is unsustainable for transportation (infrastructure), where you say, that's basically it on the gas tax, regardless of what the costs are and what the needs are."
Wisconsin Governor Doyle, saying he wants a return to the automatic annual increase in the state's gas tax, one of the highest in the nation.
"They're both horrible ideas, especially with where the economy sits today."
State Representative Scott Newcomer (R-Hartland) on Governor Doyle wanting to increase the cigarette and gas taxes.
"Gutless, a political cop-out."
State Senator Mike Ellis (R-Neenah) on Governor Doyle's desire to automatically raise the state's gas tax annually without a vote.
"I just don't think stopping somebody without just cause is the way for us to work in a democracy."
State Senate Majority Leader Russ Decker (D-Weston) voicing opposition to sobriety checkpoints.
"Compared to that, the pay raise is peanuts."
State Senator Alan Lasee (R-De Pere) saying he will accept a legislative pay raise.Lasee said he's earned the $2,530 annual increase, to $49,943, that over a two-year period is comparable to increases offered state workers. He also said he has saved taxpayers more than $90,000 over the last 10 years by not spending all of the money allocated to him for office expenses.
"You're not going to get me in the middle of that. They're independently elected. I'm not their boss. They're each going to make that decision on their own."
Governor Doyle on the legislative pay raise issue.
"As at every Christmas, lots of statues of Jesus have been stolen from Nativity scenes -- in parks, outside churches, even at an emergency room in La Crosse the other day. A man took the statue, got in a car and fled, say staffers. Why? We're told it's mainly pranksters and vandals. Yes, but fascinating that, come summer, birdbaths or zinnias don't seem similarly singled out by pranksters. jesus, even in plaster, remains a special target because he is sespecially meaningful. Even vandals know it."
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist Patrick McIlheran
"We're a team and we win together ... but at the same time, you can't turn the ball over and expect to win.If somebody is not playing well, they need to come out of the game.You're jeopardizing the whole team because you're having a bad day. To me, that's not fair to everybody else. You're not the only one. So when you get to the wire and somebody is just giving the game up, I mean, it's just not [fair]."
New York Jets RB Thomas Jones blasting QB Brett Favre for his performance in the Jets' 24-17 loss to Miami last Sunday.
OUTRAGE OF THE WEEK
Calls for higher gas taxes
Illegal immigrants living in public housing
Should the government pay for your TV?
MOST UNDER-REPORTED STORY OF THE WEEK
Wisconsin is broke
MOST OVER-HYPED STORY OF THE WEEK
New Year resolutions. Does anyone make them anymore? And if they do, how long do they keep them? Would someone please pass the doggone chip dip!!
STRANGEST, MOST UNUSUAL STORY OF THE WEEK
No, he's not dead. Director George Butler attends the New York Premiere of George Butler's Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry, held at the Asia Society, Friday, Oct 1, 2004 in New York. Butler wants his friends to know he's very much alive, despite his premature obituary on "The Charlie Rose Show" this week. During his annual New Year's Eve tribute on PBS to notable figures who during the year, Rose included Butler, whose 1977 film "Pumping Iron" featured a then-unknown bodybuilder named Arnold Schwarzenegger. The screen even flashed a Butler tombstone, 1943-2008. (AP Photo/Jennifer Graylock) Twincredibles
IRS leaves lawyer confused
REMEMBER: Your suggestions/nominations for any of these categories every week are welcome, especially for HEROES OF THE WEEK. If you know of anyone in the community deserving of recognition, please e-mail me.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 09:40 AM
THE WEEKEND DOG-WALKING FORECAST : We grade the weather outlook for taking your pet outdoors.
TODAY: Warmer with some early morning sun will give way to clouds, then freezing rain later in the day (around 6 p.m.) that could change to a mix of rain and snow late tonight. The National Weather Service says, "PAVEMENT TEMPERATURES WILL BE SLOWER TO WARM AND ARE LIKELY TO ICE UP. ICE ACCUMULATIONS OF .10 OF AN INCH ARE NOT EXPECTED TO CAUSE PROBLEMS WITH RESPECT TO TREES AND POWER LINES... BUT SHOULD CAUSE WIDESPREAD ICY CONDITIONS ON AREA ROADS AND SIDEWALKS." Not good, but better than Sunday, because you'll have dry dog-walking opportunities most of the day before the precipitation falls. "D"
SUNDAY: A wintry mix. You'll wake up to rain, sleet, and snow. "F"
Ask any pet owner and they will tell you of course the toughest part of it all is “the end.” When it is time to say goodbye to a furry part of the family that has made you laugh, greeted you at the door, and more than likely shared a table scrap or two with you.
I was in fifth grade when my pet rabbit died, and fortunately for me, Mother Nature took Thumper on her own. There was no need for vet-assisted euthanasia. I didn’t need to deal with those issues until I was in college, with my two dogs and cat. Needless to say no one in our family wanted to have to make the final decision as to when they should be taken to the vet to be “put to sleep.” But in all three cases it was very obvious when the time came. They certainly can’t tell you in words what they want but when you look in their eyes, you know.
The most-debated topic Kevin and I have about getting a dog is that they are with you for such a relatively short time and the good-bye is so painful that it makes him think twice about the whole thing. I, of course, feel that the last days of heartbreak are outweighed by the many years of love and joy. (I feel that if you applied this same theory to the rest of your life you would never love another human for the chance of heartbreak and loss years later.)
Recently a dear lady I know had to have the family Golden Retriever put down after a long battle with cancer. He was a very special dog to the family, deeply loved by all, especially her children. I don’t know how she and her husband handled the situation with them. I am guessing that she was kind and gentle in her explanations and let each child deal with it in the way they needed to, whether that was saying goodbye privately or being at the vet’s side when the dog was put down.
As we are getting ready to bring a new, precious life into this world, Kevin and I talk about lots of hopes, dreams, and plans for our baby. While he’s talking about a happy healthy baby that will someday earn a full scholarship to the University of Hawaii, I’m dreaming about the day we bring a fat, fuzzy puppy home and say, “She’s all yours!” But I do wonder how parents deal with the situation of young children learning about the death of a family pet.
Perhaps this article can offer some insight and helpful ideas when you are faced with a similar situation as a parent. Another resource offers thoughts on how you will know it is “time” and coping with pet loss.
To date, one of the most difficult things I have ever done is to be with each of my pets during their final moments. I held each one of them in my arms as the vet administered the shot that would bring them peace. When I got home I could still hear the echoes of their paws on the floor, the clanking of their tags on their collars. I would dream about them. It would take me a long time to get over the experience. Yet when the time came again, there I was. I felt it was the very least I could do for a companion that had given me so much. I wish I would have had this poem when I still owned Sugar, Skippy, and Tommy. But now that I know about it, it will have a prominent place in our future dog’s life… perhaps hanging above her own special doggy bed. I think it is a lovely tribute to our four-legged friends.
---Jennifer Fischer
Thank you once again, Jennifer. For newcomers to this blog, we always open with the dog-walking forecast, followed by Jennifer's main blog. Then it's my turn, with DOGS IN THE NEWS, canines that made headlines the previous week.
In Florida, Coco digs up dead baby.
White House dogs get wary, driver arrested.
Here's a picture of Murphy who was beaten.
Happy ending: Murphy is getting better and had a special honor this week.
We've blogged quite often about dogs in the movies. In "Marley and Me," as many as 22 dogs are used to portray the lead character. It begs the question: Should dog actors be allowed to go out on strike?
And here's a leftover from 2008, an article that made the news before Jennifer and I started our dog blog, the story of Yeppa and Harriet.
That's it for our inaugural installment of The Barking Lot for 2009. Last week, we featured a piece from the Wisconsin Division of Tourism about traveling with your pooch. We close this week with news that will have you shaking your head, wondering if certain pet travel is worth it.
Watch.
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 08:15 AM
By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 08:00 AM
J.Gravelle, my top guest blogger, had his column published in Friday’s Journal Sentinel.
Using his clever, razor-sharp wit, J. was, as usual, right on the money.
Way to go, partner!
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By Kevin Fischer
Saturday, Jan 3 2009, 07:45 AM
Utah blasted Alabama in last night's Sugar Bowl to finish the season 13-0.
Oklahoma and Florida play Thursday for the national championship. Each team has one loss.
College football needs a playoff system in Division 1.
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