Friday, March 16, 2018

Scott Walker campaign season solution to school safety



Reported in No gun control or arming teachers in Scott Walker's $100M school safety plan.  (Madison.com, 3/16/2018)

Related reading:
There are approximately 55 million K–12 students in America and roughly 3.5 million adults employed as teachers. There are, in addition, millions of support staff—janitors, nurses, cooks, after-school-program providers, and so on. Even in the deadliest years, the chance of a student or adult being killed at school is roughly one in a million. By contrast, roughly five out of every 100,000 American residents are murdered each year. Extrapolating from this, schools are somewhere in the region of 50 times safer than society overall. 
And yet you’d never know that from the level of fear that exists around schools—or from the vast amount of money we spend attempting to make them more secure.

Racine County air quality alert: Foxconn emissions of ozone precursors



Foxconn could increase Racine County’s emissions by 6 percent.  (Milwaukee Business News, 3/14/2018)
Most of the emissions will come from the fabrication plant where Foxconn will actually be building the LCD panels that will eventually become televisions and monitors. The fabrication process involves putting thin-film transistors and color filters on two glass substrates, joining the pieces together, inserting liquid crystals and cutting the displays to size.


Other Foxconn posts:
March 2018
Here's a proposal that's chock full of nuts.  (3/9/2018)
The toxic possibilities of Foxconn's wastewater discharge.  (3/8/2018)
Marquette Law School poll: Most folks aren't buying Scott Walker BS about statewide benefits of Foxconn deal.  (3/5/2018)
Wisconsin Department of Administration policy analyst: Walker pretty much shot his wad with Foxconn deal.  (3/5/2018)
UPDATE. John and Kim Mahoney take issue with that 'generous offers' happy talk.  (3/3/2018)
 
February 2018
Make way for robots.  (2/25/2018)
Foxconn now classified as public works project.  (2/21/2018)
Two peas in a pod: Scott Walker in top 10 of least popular governors, Terry Gou's Foxconn in top 10 of America's most hated tech companies.  (2/13/2018
Scott Walker pins his hopes on an old-fashioned manufacturing kind of guy.  (2/13/2018)
Con artists reap benefits of Scott Walker's Foxconn deal.  (2/10/2018)
Get me rewrite: Foxconn CEO Terry Gou interested in UW-Madison AI expertise to automate his factories.  (2/9/2018)
Foxconn puff piece: Will the real Naoki Hosoya please stand up.  (2/8/2018)
Wisconsin taxpayers carry the burden for job creators.  (2/6/2018)

January 2018
Not to mention Grantsburg, Hayward, Bayfield, Ashland, Hurley, Eagle River, Crandon, and Florence.  (1/26/2018)
Wisconsin cities with highest unemployment rates could use some of that Chicago millennials Foxconn love that Scott Walker is dishing out.  (1/27/2018)
GOP bastion in Racine County sez 'no' to Foxconn-related development.  (1/21/2018)
UPDATE. Here comes that specious Foxconn-Boeing comparison again.  (1/18/.2018)
The Foxconn ka-ching ka-ching ka-ching.  (1/17/2018)
FierceWireless's buzzkill on the Foxconn deal.  (2/16/2018)
Official press agency of People's Republic of China: 'Villagers' in Racine County rebel against Foxconn land grab.  (1/12/2018)
Owner of company that wins Foxconn road construction contract serves up heaping helping of hyperbole, as well campaign contributions to GOP incumbents.  (1/5/2018)

December 2017
Historic giveaways: Most expensive taxpayer-funded jobs in history is Scott Walker's top accomplishment in 2017.  (12/26/2017)
Gateway Technical College cutting-edge Foxconn curriculum does not include workforce development, employee relations, and management concepts.  (12/25/2017)
Let's put this Foxconn deposit in perspective.  (12/23/2017)
UPDATE. Scott Walker Monday tweet storm attempts to distract us from his highway funding mess.  (12/19/2017) 
GOP legislative aide and letter writer Keith Best needs to brush up on his Foxconn analogies.  (12/16/2017)
UPDATE: The Wisconn Valley Way to Wisconsin's fiscal and moral bankruptcy.  (12/15/2017)
Scott Walker, meet Andrew Ng, who wants to help Foxconn bring intelligence displayed by machines to Racine County.  (12/14/2017)
Some residents of Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, and Illinois will help to foot the bill for a $140,000,000 Foxconn campus electrical substation.  (12/12/2017)
A deafening silence: What role will robotics play at Foxconn's Mount Pleasant manufacturing plant?  (12/12/2017)
Inquiring minds want to know why driverless technology wasn't discussed during Foxconn contract negoatiations, Scott Walker.  (12/12/2017)
Donald Trump and Terry Gou: Scott Walker loves these two peas in a pod.  (12/9/2017)
Reggie White:Green Bay Packers:: Foxconn:Wisconsin (Scott Walker analogy reveals his crazed desperation).  (8/10/2017)

Beulah Fox Boll (1930-2018) Warren High School class of 1948



1948 Dragon yearbook


Beulah's high-school activities:
Latin Club (2).

1967 Warren City Directory
1983 Warren City Directory

A two-fer.  Beulah and Blanche were pretty much two peas in a pod as far as their popularity as a baby name in the 20th century is concerned -- a slow decline from the start followed by a steep drop after World War II.


My favorite Blanche.



Other class of '48 graduates:
2017
Phyllis Miller Maze. (12/27/2017)
Dorothy Anderson Turner.  (9/27/2017)
Margaret Mathyer Conroy.  (4/26/2017)

2016
Ruth Figliuzzi.  (11/5/2016)
Donna Mack Schuler.  (3/19/2016)

2015
Carol Jean Niver Hampson.  (10/22/2015)
Frank Marlett.  (9/13/2015)
John Giltinan.  (7/76/2015)
Lela Nichols Akeley.  (6/24/2015)

2014
Ella Atwell Blum.  (12/24/2014)
Betty Carlson Johnson.  (10/26/2014)
H. Kent Peterson.  (10/1/2014)
Kenneth Lundahl.  (9/21/2014)

2013 
Carl Leave.  (12/26/2013)

Thursday, March 15, 2018

Paul Ryan, invertebrate, has everything to lose, including his November 6th re-election



Reported in Conor Lamb Wins Pennsylvania House Seat, Giving Democrats a Map for Trump Country.  (The New York Times, March 14, 2008)

Related reading:
Somebody Edited the Invertebrate Wikipedia Page to Include Paul Ryan,  (New York, 1/27/2018)


UPDATE. California high school spokeswoman admits she 's clueless about 'gun shows' in the classroom


WOW!  Just plain fucking WOW!

Emphasis added
Photo credit:  Slideshare

Reported in Teacher’s Gun Is Accidentally Fired During Public Safety Class, Injuring 3.  (The New York Times, 3/14/2018)


Original 3/14/2018 post, "Get me rewrite: Attending a school with guns is likely to increase your odds of death", starts here.


Living in a house with a gun increases your odds of death.   (Axios, 6/13/2016)

This just in!


Related reading:
This Week in Foolishness: Five Republicans Who Favor Guns in Schools Over Gun Control.  (Borderless News and Views, 2/8/2013)

The U.S. of A.  Where it always seems to be This Week in Foolishness.

This week in the cereal aisle UPDATE: Hurry!! Spring edition Reese's Puffs going fast.


Photo by Retiring Guy

Original 3/12/2018 post starts here.

Photo by Retiring Guy
(Nutrition information and explanations at Fooducate)




Other weeks in the cereal aisle posts:
2018
Lucky Charms wants you to have a daily dose of yellow 5 and blue 1.  (3/9/2018)
The takeover of Mom.  (3/1/2018)
Hoopla over rainbow marshmallows added to Lucky Charms.  (2/22/2018)
Kellogg's Donut Shop in your choice of flavors.  (2/14/2018)
Just a spoonful of sugar helps the shredded wheat go down.  (2/6/2018)
General Mills offers yet another flavor of Cheerios -- chocolate and peanut butter.  (1/30/2018)
I suspect this special edition Cocoa Puffs isn't exactly flying off the shelves.  (1/16/2018)
\What's really going on with this General Mills blend.  (1/10/2018)
Giant size bargains to kick off the new year.  (1/3/2018)

2017
Satisfy your craving for chocolate.  (12/22/2017)
Pumpkin Spice runs amok.  (11/7/2017)
Danger lurks.  (11/2/2017)
Dan G. wets himself over Special K Blueberry with Lemon Clusters.  (9/20/2017)
Limited Edition Mocha Crunch.  (7/16/2017)
Kellogg's Frosted Flakes with Marshmallows.  (2/1/2017)
A marriage between General Mills and Girls Scouts of America.  (1/19/2017)

2016
Alpha-Bits is getting squeezed out.  (11/23/2016)
Special K continues to branch out.  (10/23/2016)
Wedding bells chime.  (10/5/2016)
The price of convenience (22.54 cents per ounce).  (8/19/2016)
Make up your mind already!  (8/14/2016)
Remember Nabisco Shredded Wheat?  (7/13/2016)
Features Batman and Superman.  (7/7/2016)
Post wants you to have ice cream for breakfast.  (6/30/2016)
Tiny Toast.  (6/21/2016)

There are two sides to every story and then there's the truth



Related reading:
State Senate Panel Passes Scaled Back Version Of Bill That Would Close Lincoln Hills. (Wisconsin Public Radio, 3/14/2018)
Sen. Van Wanggaard, R-Racine, who chairs the committee that passed the amended Senate bill, said the Assembly's proposal provided a good framework for closing Lincoln Hills. But Wanggaard said senators had concerns with the plan, including questions about how much the new facilities would actually cost. 
"We need to know what that amount's going to be," Wanggaard said
And we need to know why the GOP has been helpless to resolve this scandal.


Other Lincoln Hill posts
2018
Drop in juvenile detention rates has done nothing to address racial disparities.  (1/29/2018) 

2017
UPDATE: Based on recent evidence, the facilities' remote location and chronic staffing shortage keeps Juvenile Corrections from fulfilling its mission.  (11/28/2017)
It's 243 miles, and a world away, from Racine to Irma.  (10/31/2017)
UPDATE.  And, by extension, make Scott Walker look bad.  (10/10/2017)

2016
Point/counterpoint: Open records and the Wisconsin Department of Corrections.  (8/8/2016)
State workers watching porn gets Scott Walker all het up but mistreating juvenile inmates -- not so much.  (7/6/2016) 
Wendy Peterson schedules a Lincoln Hills double bill.  (4/7/2016)
Wendy Peterson shares her favorite Hollywood movie prison scenes.  (4/7/2016)
Former Wisconsin DOC Secretary tries to take advantage of Walker administration disdain for open records law.  (3/26/2016)
 Dear Ed Wall, Taking the job is just the first step.  (3/20/2016)
Has the State of Wisconsin got a deal for Ed Wall!!  (3/1/2016)
The Lincoln Hills Scandal slide show timeline: Scott Walker's bottom line is to cover his butt.  (2/28/2016)
LINCOLN HILLS SCANDAL UPDATE: Scott Walker and the broken chain of command (with Jessie Rodriguez exception).  (2/27/2015) 
Hands-off manager Scott Walker must still be licking his Presidential campaign wounds.  (1/14/2016)
Because Scott Walker believes he's hired the best employees to work for the citizens of our state.  (1/9/2016)

2015
Selective Republican logic inoperative when applied to Wisconsin juvenile corrections program.  (12/24/2015)
The dysfunction of Scott Walker's executive branch of government in 1 defensive quote.  (12/20/2015)
Scott Walker and Lincoln Hills School for Boys: Too busy thinking about his (presidential) baby.  (12/19/2015)
Still in the news: Lincoln Hills School for Boys.  (12/13/2015)
Scott Walker shows us how to deflect (Taking no responsibility, chapter 2).  (12/12/2015) 
As usual, Scott Walker takes no responsibility.  (12/11/2015)
In the news: Lincoln Hills School for Boys, Wisconsin Department of Corrections.  (12/11/2015)

UPDATE. The HUD furniture scandal


Minor-league stuff, but here we go again with the 'little white lies'.


Quoted in Emails Reveal Ben Carson and Wife Personally Selected $31,000 Dining Table.  (The New Civil Rights Movement.  3/14/2018)
“The secretary did not order a new table,” said Carson, the HUD secretary. “The table was ordered by the career staffers in charge of the building.”


Original 3/7/2018 post, "Setting U.S. housing priorities:  Ben Carson must feel like a winning contestant on The Price is Right", starts here.

SourceHickory Chair

See HUD's $31,000 mahogany dining set.  (CNN, 2/28/2018)
But it's the Jefferson sideboard, wood top and breakfront deck base (pictured) from the Alexa Hampton Collection that really racked up the charges. The three pieces total $13,579.

Related reading:
Trump Budget Would Increase Homelessness and Hardship in Every State, End Federal Role in Community Development.  (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 5/27/2017) 
US housing department to spend $165,000 on own furniture as it faces $6.8bn budget cut.  (The Guardian, 2/27/2018)




Wednesday, March 14, 2018

Microsoft employee diversity, and the lack thereof


Gender gap


Diversity gap

New Microsoft Diversity Figures Reveal Gender Gap, Minority Employment Increase.  (Richmond Patch, 11/17/2016)
The lack of gender diversity in the tech world has been an issue, with some estimates showing that women only account for 30 percent of the tech workforce.

Apparently, there are actually some brain-dead Democrats who are engaged in the 'robust' debate: Walk vs. Chew Gum



The Plum Line Opinion.  Three big takeaways from Trump’s humiliating Pennsylvania failure.  (Washington Post, 3/14/2018)
Democrats can do better among blue-collar whites. In his speech to supporters last night, Lamb stressed the importance of organized labor to the future of the Democratic Party, spoke up for the value of unions and work, and emphasized the importance of maintaining bedrock programs such as Medicare and Social Security. He had also campaigned against the GOP tax cuts as a giveaway to the rich — and, importantly, blasted the tax cuts for creating deficits that would require deep cuts to entitlements, harming the middle class.

Conor Lamb clearly demonstrates what a false choice it is.  


Robust:  Most definitely an overused adjective. 

Trump touts dubious research in border wall tweet


Sources:  @realDonaldTrump (highlight added); Southern Poverty Law Center

Economic Policy Institute FAQ (excerpts)

9. Do unauthorized immigrants increase budget costs for states or the federal government?
Unauthorized immigrants are a net positive for public budgets because they contribute more to the system than they take out.16 Unauthorized immigrants generally cannot receive benefits from government programs, except in some cases, such as when unauthorized immigrant children receive public education, and in some states that allow unauthorized immigrants to attend state colleges at in-state tuition rates. Nevertheless, most of these unauthorized immigrants will still pay taxes. 
Unauthorized immigrants are also unlikely to receive any income credits available through the tax code, or to receive a tax refund if they overpaid in their regular payroll withholdings.

Tuesday, March 13, 2018

Meet the real Donald Trump


SourcesChicken, shit


The shameless Scott Walker, our sloganeering governor, is counting on a widespread outbreak of voter amnesia on November 6



Walker can run but he can't hide from this kind of headline.



Original 10/1/2017 post, "Providing some context to a Scott Walker education funding tweet", starts here.

What Scott Walker tweeted

What he left out
In fact, in February 2012 we rated True a broader claim -- that Walker had enacted "the biggest cuts to education in our state's history." The $1.2 billion in reductions included $792 million in direct state aid to kindergarten-through-12th grade schools, which is the focus of the new Greater Wisconsin Committee ad.  (PolitiFact Wisconsin)

My version of Walker's tweet to illustrate the cuts to education funding that took effect as a result of Walker's first budget.




Related post:
UPDATE. It might be time to require drug tests for elected officials.  (9/8/2017)

West Towne Mall Sears anchor makeover UPDATE: Appropriate exterior color choice for Total Wine



Photo by Retiring Guy


Sorry, guys, I'll be looking for something in a more comfortable price range, such as this Mirassou 2015 Pinot Noir.



Related posts:
What does a Bon Ton bankruptcy filing mean for this West Towne Mall anchor?  (2/14/2018)
Sears reduction/Dave & Buster's addition: The signage is up.  (2/14/2018)
West Towne Mall Sears anchor makeover: Total Wine coming soon to this location. (2/6 /2018)
UPDATE. A pleading Sears store at West Towne Mall in Madison WI takes a page from Scott Walker: WE'RE OPEN FOR BUSINESS!!  (11/27/2017)


Original 2/8/2018 post, "West Towne Mall Sears anchor makeover:  Total Wine coming soon to this location", starts here.

Photo by Retiring Guy

Total Wine proposes 23,146-square-foot store at West Towne Mall.  (Wisconsin State Journal, 1025/2017)
Total Wine & More, a Maryland-based liquor store company, has filed a request with the city for a liquor license for a 23,146-square-foot store at West Towne Mall. The store would be nearly twice the size of the nearby liquor store at Woodman’s Market and be located in the highly visible southeast corner of the mall near the intersection of South Gammon Road and the Beltline. 
The proposed store would use part of the space that became available last year when the Sears store was reduced in size and be located adjacent to a 31,000-square-foot Dave & Buster’s restaurant scheduled to open this spring.

Other Wisconsin locations:  Brookfield, Greenfield.

Related post:
UPDATE. A pleading Sears store at West Towne Mall in Madison WI takes a page from Scott Walker: WE'RE OPEN FOR BUSINESS!!  (11/27/2017)

UPDATE. Bill Dix leaves others to repair damage to door of Iowa State Senate chamber


Photo credit:  Iowa Senate Republicans

Reported in Republican Bill Dix swiftly resigns after video of him kissing lobbyist appears online.  (Des Moines Register, 3/12/2018)






1/11/2018 update, "The wit and wisdom of Bill Dix".


Quoted in Bill Dix is a very dumb man. (Iowa Starting Line, 11/19/2017)


Original 1/9/2018 post, "With a name like this, I guess you too would take kick-in-the-door GOP pride in these legislative accomplishments", starts here.



2018 Iowa Legislature opens with GOP optimism — and reminders of 2017.  (Des Moines Register, 1/8/2018)
Senate Majority Leader Bill Dix, R-Shell Rock, said GOP lawmakers are ready to continue the work they began last session when they promised to "kick the door in" to enact change.

Related posts:
Who's in charge in Iowa: Governor, Senate, House (1992-2017).  (12/3/2017)
What happens when the GOP takes over a state legislature.  (6/29/2017)
The tender sensibilities of Iowa State Senator Mark Chelgren.  (2/15/2016)

GOP monkey business on House Intelligence Committee


Better known as the GOP caucus of the House Unintelligent Activities Committee


Around town UPDATE: A not-so-faded Flo strikes a new pose


Photo by Retiring Guy

Other Around Town posts:
3 orange cones on sidewalk.  (2/26/2018)
This corner house is now a rental.  (1/16/2018)
This 1955, 1296-square-foot ranch on Cooper Avenue was listed at $219,500.  (1/13/2018)
It's always the season of the witch at this Anderson Street address in Middleton.  (1/11/2018)
A sure sign that this request went unheeded, if not unseen.  (12/24/2017)
Turnstile Christmas Eve services at St. Luke's.  (12/13/2017)
You've heard of a bear hibernating, but how about a bakery?  (12/13/2017)


Original 10/26/2014 post, "I Wonder If Flo Can Sing and Dance", starts here,

I've always been struck by her facial resemblance to Ann Miller.


Meet Stephanie Courtney, the comedian and actress who has played Flo in about 50 commercials.

And, no, she didn't die in an car accident.

Monday, March 12, 2018

Opponents of a Lake Michigan marine sanctuary misrepresent (i.e., lie about) University of Michigan study



Actually, here's what the study showed.


Reported in Reactions to Scott Walker's withdrawal of marine sanctuary nomination run the gamut.  (Sheboygan Press, 3/12/2018)


The word 'little' appears 21 times in this report, never once in close proximity to the phrase 'economic benefit'.

And then there's this.



Unfortunately, in Wisconsin's case, hysteria rules.
“I didn’t think we were going to win.  I just thought I had to do this because what the government was doing was so wrong, was just so wrong, that I just had to do something.”

UPDATE. Evolving mysteries of the NCAA selection committee (part 2)


Sources:  Big 12, Big 10

Actually, there is no mystery here.

Trae Young is Sporting News' 2017-18 college basketball Freshman of the Year.  (Sporting News, 3/9/2018)
The 6-2 point guard has been venerated as the second coming of Stephen Curry, leading the nation in points (27.4) and assists (8.8) per game nearly all season. He's been denigrated as his Sooners have fallen from grace, going from a potential No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament to a bubble team as they lost seven of eight in February, a nosedive that coincided with a dip in his production.

No bubble team here conspiracy alert!  I suspect that CBS made Oklahoma's appearance in the NCAA tournament a non-negotiable item with the selection committee.  (My father-in-law is smiling down on me from heaven right now,)


Original 3/11/20180 post, "Evolving mysteries of the NCAA selection committee", starts here.



NCAA Tournament selection committee leader explains why even easy wins matter.  (CBS Sports, 3/6/2018)
It's all about the eyeballs. And guess who is broadcasting many of the games? Rasmussen has a high opinion of the evolving methods of the selection committee, but he also knows there are still miles to go when it comes to getting the right information and at the same time being open to everyone's opinions and observations in that committee room.


UPDATE. Trade wars are easy to win (The 'chicken wars" edition)




Reported in What History Has to Say About the ‘Winners’ in Trade Wars.  (The New York Times, 3/8.2018)

Related reading:
If You Aren't Worried About A Trade War, You Don't Know About The Chicken Tax.  (Forbes, 3/3/2018)
How it started.  The switch to factory farming in the United States after World War II transformed chicken from a luxury food to a mass-produced commodity. Once American poultry companies had satisfied the domestic demand, they started shipping their surplus boilers and fryers across the Atlantic. 
Soon, European chicken farmers were crying foul.


3/11/2018 update, "The Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930 edition", starts here.

Photo credit:  Wikipedia

Related reading:
The battle of Smoot-Hawley.  (The Economist, 12/18/2008)


3/10/2018.  The McKinley Tariff Act of 1890


Reported in What History Has to Say About the ‘Winners’ in Trade Wars.  (The New York Times, 3/8.2018)

The McKinley Tariff of 1890.  (U.S. House of Representatives)

Related posts:
Greetings from Trump's America: Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin, which has much to lose in a Trump trade war.  (3/7/2018)
Uttered without a hint of irony.  (3/6/2018)
Trump, tariffs and trade wars: Be careful what you wish for.  (3/6/2018)
UPDATE. Donald Trump and his 'easy-to-win' trade war is a disaster-in-the-making for Harley-Davidson.  (3/4/2018)
Will Donald Trump lose his edge in Manitowoc County with his 'easy-to-win' trade war?  (3/4/2018)