Meadow at Blaska Experimental Work Farm

Look who is running the show!


Madison mom urges more citizen involvement 

You may have read that UW-Madison’s student government voted “no-confidence” in the university’s police force because the department helped city police fight the rioters and looters this summer.

Worth noting that the vote Tuesday was 9-5, with 9 abstentions. Also worth noting that student government would not allow UW-Madison Police Chief Kristen Roman to speak to the council.

Matthew Mitnick

The student government president is one Matthew Mitnick. Young Matthew also serves on Brenda Konkel’s city Public Safety Review Committee. 

Neighbor Bonnie Roe tells the Werkes that she virtually attended the meeting Tuesday of its budget subcommittee of three, consisting of Konkel, Alder Patrick Heck (also Progressive Dane), and chaired by young Mitnick but could not speak because she had not registered. 

“I am incredibly heartbroken at how far down the road we are on de-funding the police. … the disdain for the police in this meeting is shocking,” Mrs. Roe says.

As seen on-line, Jeremy Ryan (aka: “Segway Boy”) urged the Konkel-Mitnick committee to defund police.

‘We have a crisis’

Bonnie Roe says she was moved to action by the tragic death of honors student Anthony Chung 09-17-2020 when his car was broad-sided by one driven at 91-mph on a city street by Maurice M. Chandler, 18, possibly in a stolen car. Anthony’s girl friend of six years —also an honor student at her college and Memorial high school — was critically injured. She is expected to spend months in the hospital. Bonnie is the mother of a Memorial High student. She asks: 

Does it matter to us that Chandler has been bailed out multiple times, mostly for $100? Or that he was supposed to have been, by court order, contained to his parent’s home on the East side, except for medical reasons? Or that multiple court dates have passed, he hasn’t bothered to show up to his hearings, and just goes on to commit more and more crimes, arrested, jailed, out on bail again…

It sounds familiar, like the case of Anisa Scott, killed in the crossfire while riding in a car in daylight hours on a major city street, allegedly by three teens (16, 17 and 19) who also had criminal histories …

These are the tip of the iceberg of what we are going to see in our community. We cannot stand by and watch this happen. We need to demand justice for these innocent victims and see to it that those who are recklessly endangering others are not just released back out on the streets to commit more crimes, get arrested and then released by the courts to do more harm.

We need more funding and human resources directed to our hurting youth from their earliest years, and we need more funding for the law enforcement officers who are left to deal with all of the pieces falling in this present moment. In my opinion, we cannot afford to defund the police in any way.


Tell the alders “No cuts to Madison police.” Tell the mayor, too!


Many called, few were chosen

Blaska is still trying to make something of himself but his hopes for appointment to the Police Citizens Oversight Board have been cruelly dashed. (Must we resort to outright bribery? Can you Go Fund me?) The Council will appoint two more; not holding our collective breaths. Here are the 76 who applied ( * indicates those selected):

Nominating organization
Shyra Adams
David Aguayo
David Bartel
Colin Barushok
Tyrone Bell
Brian Benford
Ankita Bharadwaj * OutReach LGBTQ+ Community
Anthony Black
David Blaska
Alex Booker
Tom Brown
Keetra Burnette * United Way Leaders of Color
Carlotta Calmese
Chris Carlsen
Justice Castañeda
Charles Clarke
Anthony Cooper
Ananda Deacon * Freedom, Inc.
Gene Delcourt
Jonathan Delgado
Eros Dialogos
Sita Diehl
Joan Duerst
Keith Findley * UW Innocence Project
Shia Fisher
Sirena Flores
Gregory Gelembiuk
Alex Gillis
Claude Gilmore
LaToya Greer
Jason Hagenow
Joshua Hargrove * JustDane
Russ Hinkel
Janet House
James Howard
Alice Howard
Jacquelyn Hunt * YWCA
Zach Jensen
Jacob Jokisch
Gregory Jones
Debra Julian
Chuck Kamp
April Kigeya
Shadayra Kilfoy-Flores * Community Response Team
Brent Kimbel
Rachel Kincade * Nat’l Association of Mentally Ill
Isadore Knox, Jr
Robert Lewin
Juan Jose Lopez
Bethany Matson
Nikyra McCann
James Morgan
Sedric Morris
Robert Myatt
Ayomi Obuseh
Ian Olson
Seep Paliwal
Maia Pearson * Urban Triage
Al Rickey
Alan Robinson
Larissa Rojas
Tim Saubers
Rance Schwichtenberg
Gerald Sternberg
Ron Trachtenberg
Charlie Tucker
John Tuten
Luis Velasquez
Kathryn Vellon
Yesenia Villalpando-Torres * UNIDOS Against Domestic Violence
Tyson Vitale
Sheray Wallace
Michael Waupoose
Krista Wise
Steven Wright
Jason Yackee

MH film fest is more fun than you might think!

The 3rd Annual Mental Health Warrior Film Festival is live on Saturday, September 12 from 1 P.M. – 10 P.M. at Flix Brewhouse located at 85 E. Towne Way, Madison, WI 53704.  

For more information about the festival. Can’t make it in person, enjoy the online festival.

Keep responses to fewer than 250 words; no images

27 responses to “Look who is running the show!”

  1. Ed Avatar
    Ed

    It’s amusing & interesting that a handful of students don’t like the UWPD. That it’s annm urgent matter for them. They are just temporary at the U.W. let alone on the student government. In a few years they will have moved on to something else. Hopefully as productive members of society.

  2. sentient7 Avatar

    Best road to reform? Buy firearms………….and then defund as radicals suggest.

    Bout 2 years from now, there will be a change in heart……..or 1/2 the problem folks will be shot.

  3. Paula F Avatar
    Paula F

    “We have a crisis.”

    Ya’ think?!

    I lived and breathed this issue from 2016 to 2019, and tried with all my might to get more people to see the oncoming collision course and to get involved. What’s happening now was predictable and even avoidable.

    Most were either “too busy,” didn’t see a problem, didn’t think we could make a difference, didn’t care, or didn’t want to get involved.

    There were people that did speak up, however, and because of them, we helped shepherd real change.

    This issue needs CONSTANT attention. If someone is willing to take over where I left off and do the grunt work, put in long hours, and subject themselves to regular abuse for zero pay, let me know and I will offer some ideas.

    It’s hard work but also one of the most rewarding projects I’ve taken on in my life.

    1. Scott F Avatar

      It’s time for you to join us in Florida Paula. You can help down here by balancing the invasion of NY voters. We need your support to help keep our current Governor who works very hard to stave off this left wing lunacy. So far, so good….

      1. Paula F Avatar
        Paula F

        Oh no! What’s going on over there?

        I really like what I’ve seen of DeSantis, too! He seem like a real straight-shooter and someone who genuinely cares.

  4. Liberty Avatar
    Liberty

    Looking at this list of who’s been chosen, the cops don’t stand a chance.

    Thank goodness this committee isn’t legally viable.

  5. Steve Schwoegler Avatar
    Steve Schwoegler

    The Madison/ Dane county business community needs to step up. Many people from surrounding counties go to Madison to shop, entertainment and general services. If this illogical crap continues, the money inflow will decrease dramatically. Who wants to go to a place that is hostile to the law obeying citizens.

    1. Paula F Avatar
      Paula F

      Couldn’t agree more, Steve.

      When I ran We Support the Madison PD, I reached out to A LOT business people. Just one agreed to meet with me in person. Two others offered their thoughts via email.

      Downtown Madison leadership organizations (like the Chamber) have had myriad opportunities to speak out since, especially during the riots, but have largely remained silent. If the riots and loss to revenue hasn’t compelled them to speak out, I’m not sure what will.

  6. Bill Avatar
    Bill

    Sad to say but we are the frog in the water being slowly heated up to the point where we will soon all be boiling in it. Not too many people seem to mind as they are rather complacent or oblivious to the real dangers to themselves if nothing else, in allowing this to happen.

    And to think, it wasn’t too many years ago when I had an elderly, 83 years old, member of my family that used to walk up State St. to the Capitol Square then go back down to his home every day rain or shine and we never worried about him.

    I can only say that I’m glad he did not live to see this crap going on as he grew up in Madison, went off to serve in WWII, then came back and spent the rest of his life here.

    Sad that the Regressives have lulled many in this town to think that they know what they are doing and can run a community.

    Run it right into the ground I’d say.

  7. sad sack Avatar

    would be curious to know about this student “leader.” where is he from, etc.

    1. Gary Kriewald Avatar
      Gary Kriewald

      My guess is anywhere but Wisconsin. More importantly, he represents the growing number of college students everywhere who have been primed by their high school education to absorb the leftist propaganda that nowadays comes as naturally as breathing on campuses like UW-Madison. Connect that fact wih an upbringing in which they are the pampered, overindulged center of their parents’ universe and the unsurprising result is a specimen like Mr. Mitnick.

  8. Almosmostarepublican Avatar
    Almosmostarepublican

    I have sent emails to the mayor and to Konkol’s committee telling them not to defund the police. It’s a bad idea.

    1. Almosmostarepublican Avatar
      Almosmostarepublican

      I don’t mean it’s a bad idea to email the mayor or Konkol. It’s a bad idea to defund the police.

  9. Eric Z Avatar
    Eric Z

    I wrote in the Squire for Dane Co D.A. Be interesting to see if the lamestream media credits him with the vote. I’m thinking not.

    1. David Blaska Avatar

      Well, one does have to be registered as a write-in to have one’s votes recorded. I am not. Thanks just the same. “Cruel but fair.” That is my motto.

    2. georgessson Avatar
      georgessson

      Eric, Great minds think alike -I did the same. While not valid, I’d bet it raises some eyebrows.

    3. Liberty Avatar
      Liberty

      I didn’t know you had to be a registered as a write-in for the vote to count. Interesting. Because I too would have put in Blaska,

  10. Alfred E. Newman Avatar
    Alfred E. Newman

    Representative politics at it’s best. shouldn’t a panel hold the views of the people they serve? This is democracy at it’s best, unlike the US Senate where the republican majority represents 15 million less people than the democratic miniority.

    1. richard lesiak Avatar
      richard lesiak

      Just like Wisconsin. Everyone wants the pandemic to end. What do we get? Lawsuits. Who are the 3 “concerned” citizens that WILL says they need to represent in our courts? Wed. 27 more dead, cases going up, businesses closing, our tax money wasted. What do vos and fitzgerald think they are going to gain from all this?

      1. Kooter Avatar
        Kooter

        Um, because what the governor did was illegal!

    2. Cornelius Gotchberg Avatar
      Cornelius Gotchberg

      Ichabod Evers has been a MASSIVE FAILURE to America’s Dairyland, allowing an unprecedented spike of WuHan Virus cases to spread unchecked.

      He should be recalled IMMEDIATELY, and everyone that helped get him elected should be summarily SHAMED to the fullest extent of the blogosphere!

      The Gotch

      1. richard lesiak Avatar
        richard lesiak

        Cut and paste your posts now? The WH Task Force just asked Wis to step it up because they are alarmed at the numbers. How about some help Vos? Where are you? Having lunch with WILL and discussing how much taxpayers will fork over for lawsuits? You want a recall-go for it. The nice fall weather should make it easy for ‘ya all. Just follow the play book from the mayor’s recall; that worked well. Oh wait; it didn’t.

    3. Cornelius Gotchberg Avatar
      Cornelius Gotchberg

      Only people who are monumentally imbecilic from a hierarchical government management standpoint fail to realize that STATES are the PRINCIPLE_GOVERNMENTAL_ENTITY responsible for protecting the public’s health in the United States.

      The federal Big Gubmint is the “backstop” when Governors (like Lefty morons Cuomo [NY], Whitmer [MI], Murphy [NJ], Ichabod Evers [WI], and soon Newsom [CA]), are too staggeringly useless/clueless to handle the job they’re elected to do.

      This is why the Still Yer President Trump WH has to step in and hold Ichabod’s widdle hand and DEMAND he do what he needs to do.

      If not, he gets TAKEN OUT, like the toothless, ineffectual trash he is!

      The Gotch

      1. richard lesiak Avatar
        richard lesiak

        Trump did kick the can down the road to the governors because he had no idea of what to do. My point, which you tried to deflect from, HOW ABOUT SOME HELP FROM THE Goobers On Parade . We have some of the worst numbers in the nation and all they want to do is go to court. How about some real help vos. So you had a couple of Old Fashions before your 4.99 fish fry and your talking about “taking out” Evers? Go up to NE Wis and tell the staff at their maxed out hospitals how much trump has done for them. Your just a loud-mouth wannabe proud boy gutless wonder.

  11. Cornelius Gotchberg Avatar
    Cornelius Gotchberg

    “shouldn’t a panel hold the views of the people they serve?”

    When yer right, yer right.

    Ergo, The Gotch expects you to completely, and vocally, support the IMMEDIATE dissolution of this horrendously UNREPRESENTATIVE joke of a panel and establish one which ACCURATELY reflects our Fair City’s DEMOGRAPHICS.

    To wit:

    78.4 % EVIL Whiteys
    6.8 % Blacks
    6.9 % Hispanics

    Divvy each group by gender (50 % M–50 % F!) and ideological persuasion.

    Or, you can leave it the way it is and pretend you’re not a Rank Hypocrite.

    The Gotch

    1. richard lesiak Avatar
      richard lesiak

      If your the voice of whitey then no wonder people are are ready to fight.

  12. […] •   Appointing the last two members of the Police Civilian Oversight Committee: Isadore Knox Jr. — very much a moderate, if not conservative. He was nominated by the NAACP. And Anthony B. Cooper Sr., CEO of Focused Interruption. (The other 11 here.) […]

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