#Wisconsin Union

[revoltedstates]

George L. Hyde, Co. C, 2nd Wisconsin Infantry, Iron Brigade. Via Wisconsin Volunteers.

[mercerharlan]

Butler, WI

[20th-century-railroading]

Arriving Fond du Lac by James House Via Flickr: A Geneva, UT all-rail ore train arrives at North Fond du Lac, WI as a northbound WC manifest departs. April 1996

[thoughtportal]

Child Labor Laws in Iowa

[originalleftist]

North American Building Trades Union Endorses Joe Biden.

Makes sense, given how many construction workers his opponent is known to have ripped off. And how much Biden has done for workers as president.

This is a big deal- as the article notes, the Union has a quarter of a million members across Michigan, Wisconsin, and Pennsylvania, all key swing states. Clinton's narrow (tens of thousands of votes) loss in those three states made Trump president. Biden's win in them secured his presidency, along with his victories in Arizona and Georgia.

[aryburn-trains]

No. 153 -"Flambeau 400" Milwaukee, WI

No. 153 is departing the new Milwaukee Road station for Green Bay. The C&NW had been using this station for 3 years when the photo was taken. It will stay on the Milwaukee Road through the City of Milwaukee until it reaches the connection to the C&NW at Wiscona. Tom Hoffmann photo, 8-14-1969.

[sarkos]

There were Thieve's Guilds and Adventurer Guilds since the beginning, you can't act surprised

[selwyngrimm]

Then real reasons you get paid well in the trades isn't because it took five years or work and school to become sort of competent at your job or because your brothers and sisters gave blood for your union contract-- it's because you have to shit outside when it's 6°F (-9 with the wind chill).

[wausaupilot]

The Milwaukee Teachers Union, a sitting state senator, and Scott Walker – The Top Campaign Finance Violators in Wisconsin

Political candidates and interest groups have paid tens of thousands of dollars in penalties since the 2016 launch of the Wisconsin Ethics Commission, which oversees political campaign finance reporting and lobbying.

By Peter Cameron and Hallie Claflin, THE BADGER PROJECT Political candidates and interest groups have paid tens of thousands of dollars in penalties since the 2016 launch of the Wisconsin Ethics Commission, which oversees political campaign finance reporting and lobbying. The Badger Project requested documents on all campaign finance penalties, which the commission calls negotiated “settlements,”…

[thirst2]

On March 6, 2011, bluegrass musicians in the Madison, Wisc. area recorded a song in protest of Governor Scott Kevin Walker’s proposed budget "repair" bill that would end 50 years of collective bargaining for Wisconsin workers.

Money speaks for money, the devil for his own. Who's going to speak for the skin and the bones?

[revoltedstates]

Eli Spade, 161st New York Infantry (Aug 1862 - Aug 1863) and 1st Wisconsin Heavy Artillery (Sept 1864 - May 1865). Via Wisconsin Volunteers.

[anistarrose]

Please don't tune out when you get to the non-partisan section of your ballot this November. First off, where state Supreme Court justices are elected, Republicans are trying their darndest to elect candidates who will destroy reproductive freedom, gut voting rights, and do everything in their power to give "contested" elections to Republicans. Contrast Wisconsin electing a justice in 2023 who helped rule two partisan gerrymanders unconstitutional, versus North Carolina electing a conservative majority in 2022, who upheld a racist voter ID law and a partisan gerrymander that liberal justices had previously struck down both of.

Second, local judicial offices will make infinitely more of an impact on your community than a divided state or federal legislature will. District and circuit courts, especially, are where criminalization of homelessness and poverty play out, and where electing a progressive judge with a commitment to criminal justice reform can make an immediate difference in people's lives.

It's a premier example of buying people time, and doing profound-short-term good, while we work to eventually change the system. You might not think there will be any such progressive justices running in your district, but you won't know unless you do your research. (More on "research" in a moment.)

The candidates you elect to your non-partisan city council will determine whether those laws criminalizing homelessness get passed, how many blank checks the police get to surveil and oppress, and whether lifesaving harm reduction programs, like needle exchanges and even fentanyl test strips, are legal in your municipality. Your non-partisan school board might need your vote to fend off Moms for Liberty candidates and their ilk, who want to ban every book with a queer person or acknowledgement of racism in it.

Of course, this begs the question — if these candidates are non-partisan, and often hyper-local, then how do I research them? There's so much less information and press about them, so how do I make an informed decision?

I'm not an expert, myself. But I do think/hope I have enough tips to consist of a useful conclusion to this post:

Plan ahead. If you vote in person, figure out what's on your ballot before you show up and get jumpscared by names you don't know. Find out what's on your ballot beforehand, and bring notes with you when you vote. Your city website should have a sample ballot, and if they drop the ball, go to Ballotpedia.

Ballotpedia in general, speaking of which. Candidates often answer Ballotpedia's interviews, and if you're lucky, you'll also get all the dirt on who's donating to their campaign.

Check endorsements. Usually candidates are very vocal about these on their websites. If local/state progressive leaders and a couple unions (not counting police unions lol) are endorsing a candidate, then that's not the end of my personal research process per se, but it usually speeds things up.

Check the back of the ballot. That's where non-partisan races usually bleed over to. This is the other reason why notes are helpful, because they can confirm you're not missing anything.

I've seen some misconceptions in the reblogs, so an addendum to my point about bringing notes on the candidates: I strongly suggest making those notes a physical list that you bring polling place with you. Many states do allow phones at the polling place, but several states explicitly don't — Nevada, Maryland, and Texas all ban phones, and that may not be an exhaustive list. There may also be states that allow individual city clerks to set policies.

You should also pause and think before you take a photo of your ballot, because even some states that don't ban phones still ban ballot photographs. But whether it's a photo, or just having your phone in general — in an environment as high-risk for voter suppression as the current one, you don't want even a little bit of ambiguity about your conduct. Physical notes are your friends.

[20th-century-railroading]

Before the Canadians by Don Kalkman Via Flickr: Wisconsin Central SD45 6521 led T045 across the Fox Lake Subdivision with an eclectic motive power consist, That Elgin Joliet and Eastern SD38-2 was dead in tow on the way to Wisconsin and Southern's paint booth in Horicon for a repaint. August 28, 1997

[raggedyanndy]

LET'S FUCKIN GOOOOOOOOOO

main points:

The Act 10 law effectively ended collective bargaining for most public unions by allowing them to bargain solely over base wage increases no greater than inflation. It also disallowed the automatic withdrawal of union dues, required annual recertification votes for unions, and forced public workers to pay more for health insurance and retirement benefits. The lawsuit filed by the teachers and other public workers on Thursday alleges that Act 10’s exemption of some police, firefighters and other public safety workers from the bargaining restrictions violates the Wisconsin Constitution’s equal protection guarantee. The complaint notes that those exempted from the restrictions endorsed Walker in the 2010 gubernatorial election, while those subject to the restrictions did not. The Wisconsin courts should follow the lead of the Missouri Supreme Court, which struck down a law resembling Act 10 in 2021 based on similar arguments, union attorney Jacob Karabell said in a written statement.

[reasonsforhope]

It was a really, really good political news day today in the US (4/4/23)

For anyone who hasn't heard, not only did Trump get arrested, but also:

-We found out that the legal case against him in this prosecution (stormy daniels hush money case) is SIGNIFICANTLY stronger than people had speculated. Like, wow do they have receipts.

-In fact, the evidence was so entirely there that the new question on prime time news (well, at least on msnbc lol) is "Hey, why didn't the federal courts prosecute him for this already???)

-Trump FAILED UTTERLY in his attempts to rally mass protests and demands for "death and destruction" if he was arrested. There was no violence at the arrest at all, and as for Trump supporters? They failed to show up in any kind of numbers--reportedly only about a hundred people were protesting the arrest

-We (aka Judge Janet Protasiewicz) WON what is widely considered to be the most consequential election of 2023, a Wisconsin state supreme court election that handed control of the state supreme court to the left

-Because of that election win, it is now extremely likely that abortion will be legal in Wisconsin, and that Wisconsin won't be able to throw out electors in the 2024 presidential election

-ALSO bc of this, Wisconsin, the most gerrymandered state in the country, will probably get nonpartisan, accurate maps, which COULD FLIP THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES in 2024

-In Chicago, Brandon Johnson, union organizer and former teacher, won the election for mayor, in a decisive win progressives, esp for meaningful criminal justice reform and investment in mental health (whereas the other guy was campaigning on hiring hundreds of new cops and being super tough on crime)