They’re just getting warmed up!
Really? The Wisconsin State Journal is endorsing a candidate a full 37 days before Election Day? Got to be some kind of record! Has early voting started already? (No, in-person absentee voting cannot begin until two weeks before Election Day 11-08-22.)
Madison’s newspaper of record is going with appointed incumbent Kalvin Barrett for Dane County sheriff even though challenger Anthony Hamilton “comes off as more straightforward than Barrett. We didn’t like Barrett’s refusal to address, even in a general and brief way, Hamilton’s charge that Barrett is retaliating against Hamilton for political reasons.”
Also, “Barrett … oversaw a virtual blackout of public information about the Department of justice’s shooting of an unarmed black man …” The newspaper admits, “Most of Hamilton’s allegations ethical and legal lapses are still being sorted out, including in court. So, they’re hard to judge, pending further investigation.” Reason enough, one might think, to keep one’s powder dry until those ethical and legal lapses can be sorted out. But Barrett is their man!
We’re still not laughing
Gosh, we miss Arlo & Janis, Hagar the Horrible, Dr. Morgan, Crankshaft, Beetle Bailey, and Dilbert. (Although welcome the return of For Better or Worse, even though they’re re-runs, as is Peanuts.)
Looks like the decision to deep six (verb, transitive) our favorite newspaper comic strips was not taken at 1901 Fish Hatchery Road, Madison WI but at Lee Enterprises corporate headquarters in Davenport IA for all 77 newspapers it publishes. The NY Daily News reports that Dilbert went down in all of Lee Enterprise newspapers, including the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, which the Pulitzer chain unloaded right before on-line news began crimping local newspapers.
The Washington Post asks “Is this the beginning of the end for the daily printed comics page in many American towns and cities?”
Comics sections in many papers have been shrinking for years, but Dan Piraro, who draws Bizarro, says the across-the-chain changes by Lee Enterprises feel less gradual. “Seeing the dominoes begin to fall at such an accelerated pace is scary”
Lee Enterprises, a newspaper group that is majority-owned by a large investment firm, stopped running Bizarro and many other comics in their papers this past week. Lee Enterprises owns more than 75 newspapers across the United States and they are standardizing their comics pages with a handful of features they think Americans should read.
The Bizarro cartoonist writes on his own website:
Although most of you who read these blog posts read our comics online, newspapers are our most reliable — and almost only — revenue source and provide the income that allows us to continue to make comics. Many readers figure that since Bizarro is well-known that I must be rich. That’s never been the case and as more people turn to reading comics exclusively online, the industry has continued to shrink along with my income.
As a public service, the Werkes presents this classic funny:
Blaska’s Bottom Line: You comic strip lovers can write all the letters you want, corporate Davenport isn’t listening. As for the Dane County sheriff’s race, Barrett gets the nod, apparently, because “He’s also the sheriff now, which is no small thing.”
Education
Blaska Policy Werkes 
David,
That is a funny one. Thank you for bringing that to light on this day. You have brought a smile to my face despite some bad times we all have been experiencing.
Thanks once again.
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Chuckling about the glass ceiling broken in Italy. Yay girl power!
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Yes, all I could think was that this endorsement was a complete non sequitur.
“We didn’t like that he would not answer a direct question about a specific accusation, but after all, he IS the Sheriff, which is no small thing.”
And exactly what did he do to attain that position? Did he win an election? No. Had he attained a senior, top position in the department on merit? No. He was elevated in an arranged, political move designed to specifically avoid an election.
And what about the other criticisms? Appearing with a wanted pedophile and then trying to intervene in his arrest does not even rate a response from WSJ.
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” ‘He’s also the sheriff now, which is no small thing.’ ”
Not so sure Whiskey Tango Foxtrot that’s supposed to mean, but you could make the argument that having two (2) people interested in being the Sheriff (or PC) in the 77 Square Miles Surrounded By A Sea Of Reality ain’t such a bad thing; to wit:
Three (3) years ago as we speak, and after Police Chief Koval announced his retirement, acting Madison Police Chief Vic Wahl was asked by NBC-15’s John Stofflett if he’s interested in the job:
Wahl: “I will not be putting in for the permanent position,”
Stofflett: “Any chance that once you experience it (being Chief) you might change your mind on that?”
Wahl: ” No, I don’t think so; and IF ANYTHING IT WOULD PROBABLY HAVE THE OPPOSITE EFFECT.” (bolds/caps mine)
Now you tell The Gotch: what makes a guy that’s been on the force…HERE…risen through the ranks…knows the lay-of-the-land like the back of his hand…for that length of time…to turn down the next, seemingly seamless, logically sound career advancement step, by essentially saying SHOVE IT?
The Gotch
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You’re all missing the big picture here. We are building a NATIONAL MODEL.
Kalvin Barrett
Shon Barnes
Carlton Jenkins
Jack Daniels
Rumor is Lilada Gee is gunning for the Mayor next. Perhaps Brandi Grayson will take out Parisi. C’mon people get on board. It’s all going so well!
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Madison/Dane County’s version of diversity, which seems suspiciously monotone. Kind of the local version of today’s tv commercials. Anyone from outer space viewing an hour’s worth of them would conclude that this country is 95% black.
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If Kalvin Barrett isn’t elected sheriff I’m sure the Dane County Board will find a way to reduce funding. Just look at the jail funding. The Mayor and Common Counsel got rid of Chief Koval by basically defunding the police department. If your not Woke, no need to run for election in Dane County.
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I didn’t know there was a time limit on endorsements. Is there a sliding scale based on the importance of the job?
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What the newspaper business as well as the radio and T.V. business have is a monopoly on what is truth and what is a lie. To put it this way:
An English professor wrote these words on a black board.
“A woman with out her man is nothing.”
All the males in the class re-wrote it this way.
” A woman, without her man, is nothing.”
However, all the females in the class wrote it this way.
“A woman, without her, man is nothing”
Punctuation is powerful.
You see, just changing the punctuation in a sentence completely changes the message of the sentence.
That is what our modern day press does. They ignore or trash the truth in order to change the narrative to fit their ideology which is the ideology of the left.
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Good point, BC, though more so with the inflection of spoken words; try it with Nearly All Lefties Are Complete Morons:
*NEARLY All Lefties Are Complete Morons
*Nearly ALL Lefties Are Complete Morons
*Nearly All LEFTIES Are Complete Morons
*Nearly All Lefties ARE Complete Morons
*Nearly All Lefties Are COMPLETE Morons
*Nearly All Lefties Are Complete Morons
Depending on the word you emphasize, this Immutable Universal Truth will display a subtly different meaning….
The Gotch
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Thanks Gotch,
I also remember the Dan Rather eye brow raise as he would do the evening news cast.
It was his way of expressing doubt in what a President or some other person said.
Same thing, just another way of expressing it.
I have come to look at life in this way: God’s word does not change. His word always remains the same.
Let those who try to spin His words in a different way in order to suit their ideology. Pick up the good book to the chapter that they site and read His words very carefully and you will no doubt come up with the conclusion that they are full of crap.
Some truths are, Immutable Universal Truth.
In my mind, God’s word is that Truth!
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Bill: The version I heard is: “A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle.” Too cute.
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“Hamilton’s allegations ethical and legal lapses are still being sorted out, including in court. So, they’re hard to judge, pending further investigation.”
So let’s just give Barrett a free pass on that one? Too hard to investigate? Not enough time? Is an investigation underway right now? And if not, why not? How about we do like Evers did in Kenosha, when he condemned police action despite stating up front, that he didn’t have details and didn’t know what had happened. That didn’t stop him from inciting a riot.
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Quite right—left-wingers and their big media sycophants only withhold judgment and wait for the facts when it’s those in their tribe. Kyle Rittenhouse and Justice Kavanaugh know this better than most.
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“What are YOU laughing at today?” The notion that anyone would be surprised that the WI State Journal would endorse anyone but a Democrat. (Personally, I’m waiting with bated breath for the Cap Times’ endorsements.) Not that it matters. It’s on a par with all those yard signs you see for Evers, Barnes, Poocan, Barrett, etc. Preaching to the choir or, as it’s known locally, election season in Madison.
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Dave,
Trump won the election in Wisconsin. Counting unlawful votes for Biden does not mean he won. Is it really that hard to understand?
Read Wis. Stat. 6.77(a) Alternate Absentee Ballot Site
“ The governing body of a municipality may elect to designate a site other than the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners as the location from which electors of the municipality may request and vote absentee ballots and to which voted absentee ballots shall be returned by electors for any election. The designated site shall be located as near as practicable to the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commissioners and no site may be designated that affords an advantage to any political party.”
ALL CAPS TO HELP YOU UNDERSTAND
THE LAW PROVIDES FOR *ONE* ALTERNATE SITE
-All ballots placed in the multiple drop off boxes are invalid!
-Only the contents of the box closest to the office of the municipal clerk or board of election commission.
When the LAW is applied to lawless Dane and Milwaukee Counties, Trump Wins.
Thousands of citizens are in prison because “nobody is above the law”. Yet David Blaska continues to push the false victory and grants an exception to the crooks.
What law do YOU feel should be ignored so anti-American elements can “win” the next election?
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Trump lost the election in Wisconsin. Election deniers like you will help him lose again, God willing.
No voter ignored any law, RMX. They voted where and how they were told by local election clerks. Those election clerks were informed by the WI Elections Commission. That guidance was erroneous, as determined by a subsequent state supreme court ruling. That does NOT invalidate an entire election!
Think of it this way: If the city council by ordinance makes my street one-way from East to West but the city sign crew screws up and puts up signs reading West to East, and I follow the signs — am I now “above the law”?
In any event, there is no way to tell what absentee ballots were deposited in a drop box versus those dropped at city hall. They did not double vote. They were not ineligible felons or aliens. Wisconsin voted for Joe Biden. We lost.
NOW DO YOU UNDERSTAND? (CAPS to help you understand.)
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You are right on this one Dave. Denying the election is all BS to put up a smoke screen for all the illegal activities that trump was involved in. Stealing secrets, financial crimes, election tampering, etc. is what they are deflecting with this crap. It’s also interesting that after all the time these fools were screaming about the election being stolen that when they are finally called into court to prove it they file lawsuits in order to hide. Yep; I’m speaking of you Vos. Who is paying your lawyer fees Robin?
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Except that Robin Vos has done nothing illegal, for which too many Republicans fault him. Nor is he accused of any illegality.
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After two years of running his mouth and spending our money on a sham investigation Vos was asked to answer some questions. What did we get; more lawyers. Who is paying for this crap?
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Boy! Is that tortured logic. Circular finger pointing to say. “Yes a simple law (one alternate voting place) was interpreted by the Wisconsin Election Commission to mean “Aw hell, as many as you want in Wisconsin.’ Because Covid?
Of course the RINO’s will roll over because “everyone hates Trump as much as they do.”
The media will shreik ‘Trump Booga Booga!”
“Election Deniers! Fascists! RAY-cists!”
Then everyone that buys energy, hates high crime and cares about our borders will vote out the Dems. Repubs will take over more of their native Swamp, blame Dems for Washington Party’s inability to do other than spend more money than we have, expand government erode our individual rights (Honey? There are sixteen black SUVs out front and the FBI and CNN want to talk to you.) and keep the border open.
In two years it’ll be halftime, switch sides.
Trump! You magnificent Bastard!
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Bottom line: you cannot penalize the voter by throwing out his vote because of an error by the election administrator. I get the issues — crime, energy, inflation, reverse racism, etc. But overthrowing the Constitution for the equivalent of an American Mussolini is not the answer for too many of us. Trump blew it big time.
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Right. No one is accountable. Every election is final.
Everything inside the Party. Nothing outside the party.
The Party above all else.
To include the state and federal constitutions.
Anyone on WEC get a sanction?
Anyone else?
False electors indeed.
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Mark, was that a pro-Trump rant or anti-Trump?
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Why does Gableman’s office still exist even after being fired? Why do we have to go to court to release every scrap of paper that should be public record? Illegal?? Maybe. Looks like the judges are getting sick of all this shuck, dodge and delay BS.
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