Advoken's Blog
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Make no mistake about it: We in Wisconsin have plenty to learn from Michigan’s action this week in passing the Right-to-Work (for less) law. Talk about stealth legislation, this is it. Not only did the heavily Republican legislature ram the antiunion law through both the Senate and House without a public hearing and with no…
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A strong, vibrant labor movement is a must if our nation and its citizens are to thrive. As the percentage of workers in unions has fallen from a high nearly 60 years ago of 34% to the current 11%, so has the typical income of working families. The growing gap between the wealthy and all…
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To Parody “Thanks for the Memory,” a popular song introduced in 1938 and made popular as the signature tune for Comedian Bob Hope: Thanks for the Memory Of gorging and puffing From turkey and stuffing Filled with sweet potato And lettuce with tomato. Of family and friends And talk that never ends Of hoping…
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My sleep-deprived brain is just racing with thoughts on this cloudy November morning in Milwaukee. Most Promising Moment for the Future: The rights of women were advanced, as they now will hold nearly 20 seats in the 100-seat U.S. Senate. Tammy Baldwin in Wisconsin became the first female U. S. Senator from our state and…
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The year 2011 was remarkable for two incidents that foretell the future as people struggle for economic equality in the United States. The first was the February and March uprising of workers in Wisconsin to preserve their right for public employee collective bargaining as well as to express their general concern with the attacks upon…
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Like many older American cities, Edgerton, Wisconsin, has a proud and honorable heritage. On a recent, and hot, weekend in July, the city celebrated that history with a ceremony entitled “Tobacco Heritage Days.” That Edgerton would continue to celebrate “tobacco” as its heritage is understandable, but troubling. It’s understandable since at onetime it was nicknamed…
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Our recent blog, “Is Labor Losing the Battle for the Public Mind” has generated some interesting comments and ideas. Fortunately, none of them spent time playing the “blame game” on the failure to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, but focused upon how working people and unions should respond to turn the tide. You can see…
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As I write this, it has been more than 24 hours since the network declared Scott Walker the winner over Milwaukee Mayor Tom Barrett in the Wisconsin recall elections – enough time to digest the hurt and to put the loss into perspective. Don’t despair, this will not be another lament or excuse for the…
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(A comment by Ann Germanson, wife of the writer of this blog) Wisconsin voters who narrowly elected Scott Walker governor in 2010 didn’t know that he was planning to “divide and conquer” the citizens he was sworn to serve. Maybe they weren’t aware Walker came into the office as a representative of the American Legislative…
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In the early days of World War II – May of 1942 – some 1700 delegates from local unions of the Steel Workers Organizing Committee (SWOC) and the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers gathered in the Music Hall of the Cleveland Public Auditorium to form the United Steelworkers of America. Seventy years…
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