Chicken Little

Or better known as Wisconsin's Gov. Walker, Ohio's Gov. Kasich and Indiana Gov. Daniels and all the others out there jumping on the Union busting wagon. We all must run outside to see if the sky is truly falling! But alas, it's just the GOP's, the hand is quicker than the eye trick. First and foremost, the unbalanced budgets in Ohio and Wisconsin are rooted in huge tax cuts given to the rich at the expense of the middle and lower classes. Some of those cuts have been made and some are proposed, but they are figured into the "budgets" which is causing these huge deficits. So, let's panic, run around saying, something must be done. Why does "something" always involve the middle class sucking it up and taking another one on the chin. And why not, we lead with it so often, but more about that later. 

Wisconsin Republicans, do you know that Gov. Walker said, no thanks to $800 million in federal money for high speed rail, and he gave the rich tax breaks worth $117 million. How many jobs do you think that would have brought to your state? As an Ohioan I know how I feel about Kasich proposing big tax breaks that are coming, but then turning down the stimulus money that could have created thousands of jobs here as well. Former Gov. Stickland said as he left office, "If governor-elect Kasich wants to return the funds for rail startup and send 16,000 jobs to another state, that will be his decision to make when he becomes governor."

I have had this discussion with friends and family and without exception someone will say, "I am glad Kasich killed that train proposal and saved the state all that money"....ah, WHAT?!

I want to say this again, because I don't think it can be said enough, THIS HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH THE DEFICIT!! It is about politics, it's about elections and power.

But our caring Gov Kasich is quoted as saying “This is nothing more than an effort to reduce the cost of governance so we can start to create jobs,” he said by telephone. “This is an effort to save the state, no agendas.”Again, WHAT?!                              

But, Progressives, do we have anyone to blame but ourselves? Why are we famous for getting all excited with tshirts, buttons, bumper stickers, yard signs etc when the election is romantic? Yes We Can called to our grassroots hearts like Nascar to a redneck. We felt part of something greater than ourselves, which is something the extreme right finds difficult in their all about me and mine mentality. But when it came to the midterms, where were we? Was it cold, raining, were you busy?

The only real sky that is falling, will be of our own making if we can't get ourselves organized during ALL elections, not just the pretty ones. I hope lessons have been learned, and we learn to rally together as a true force BEFORE we have the chair pulled out from underneath us, and we are left sitting stunned on our asses once again.