The unrest in the Middle East continues to expand, but it's important to call attention to the beginnings of our own fight for freedom igniting right here in the United States of America. The fight against the government by the public employee worker unions is one of the first stands the people will have to take to prevent their rights being stripped from them and their savings winnowed down to nothing to feed that fraction of the population above them pulling all the strings.
What the current situation is in Wisconsin is this; the 18 democratic senators have left the state to hold up legislation that would eliminate most bargaining rights from public workers unions (excluding protections for the police and firefighters unions). Fundamentally, this is the removal of rights from U.S. citizens on the part of the state government, disempowering a majority to empower a minority (a rich one at that). The many lose out for the few; we will see this attempted robbery continue, even more blatantly if Wisconsin falls. This shouldn't be a surprise; it is natural when one is continually victorious to pursue further conquests. In this case, the victories are the removal of rights from mass organizations, while continuing to confer benefits to those in the highest earning brackets. It is at its most basic the utilization of the laws and legislature to subjugate the many without using the threat of force. With an overall spineless or completely complicit democratic opposition, republicans know they will have no legislative opposition. Fortunately, public unrest can still hurt.
Currently, the protests in Wisconsin have gained the support of the police and firefighter unions, commendably standing in solidarity with other public employees. Most newsites have reported that firefighters and police were exempted from the bill's cuts, ostensibly because those unions voted for Walker. This is incorrect: according to Mahlon Mitchell, president of the Wisconsin Professional Firefighters Association, only the Milwaukee unions voted for Walker. Walker's reasons for excluding those public employees from the budget cuts were ideological, Mitchell says.
That aside, Mitchell explains, "I think that we have to be clear, that this is not just an attack on unions, this is an attack on the middle-class. We have over 200,000 public sector employees in the state of Wisconsin. There’s jobs, there’s families, that’s 200,000 employees. Now think about their wives and children, you could throw another 100,000 on top of that. This is a clear attack on the rights the middle-class has to talk to their employers about hours, wages and working conditions. We just cannot stand by and let that happen." (Mahlon Mitchell at Democracy Now)
It's important to note that the public sector employees have already accepted all of Walker’s proposed cuts, which would see them pay 12 percent of their health benefits and half their pension costs. What they are fighting to keep is their right to collective bargaining.
Because of similar legislation in Ohio, and taking inspiration from Wisconsin, protests are taking place in Columbus. This Tuesday, the Wisconsin assembly is set to begin debate on Walker's plan.
It is important to understand that the mainstream media, and media as a whole, is myopic; it concentrates its gaze on one subject at a time. Even the best news sites and aggregates are affected by this "focus of attention", as perhaps it should be. We, however, must keep in mind all the important events happening simultaneously around our earth. Whatever may be going on in the Middle East, as Wisconsiners plan their own surge of protest Americans must pay attention to the struggle going on in our own country at this very moment. This week should be pivotal in Wisconsin vs. Walker.
In solidarity with our protestors,
The Dragon of San Marcos
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