Retiring Guy's Digest: 2014-04-06

Saturday, April 12, 2014

Legislators in Louisiana, Our 2nd Poorest State, Roll Up Their Sleeves and Work to Make The Bible the Official State Book

Source: PovertyUSA

Holy Bible clears first hurdle to becoming Louisiana's official state book. (New Orleans Times-Picayune, 4/10/2014)

It passed the House Committee on Municipal, Parochial, and Cultural Affairs 8 to 5.

Mark Gundrum, Former Republican State Legislator, Now Activist Judge for Scott Walker

Sen. Jon Erpenbach must reveal who emailed him about Act 10, court rules. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/9/2014)

The deck is stacked. Judge Mark Gundrum, a former state lawmaker appointed to the Court of Appeals by Walker in 2011, stressed in the main opinion the importance of allowing the public to see who is contacting legislators. Making public their email addresses is also essential because it can reveal clues about the employers of the senders, he wrote.

"Clues about the employers"?! Well, yes, this is a game Wisconsin Republicans are playing. And since they control the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of government -- and that's not likely to change until folks start paying attention on a regular basis -- they make the rules.

The MacIver Institute for Public Policy, a conservative "think tank" and self-proclaimed "Free Market Voice for Wisconsin", appealed the decision. Probably knowing that all the ducks were lined up in a neat little row.

Funny how Republicans get themselves in a lather over the identity of constituents who contact their legislators via email but resolutely defend the anonymity of "dark money" big donors.

Just another example of their hypocrisy.

Related posts:
Republican hypocrisy: The "hits" to local control just keep on coming. (2/28/2014)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel editorial board calls out Republican hypocrisy. (2/17/2014)
And the hypocrisy just keeps on coming: Republicans can't even give lip service to their "Principles". (2/14/2014)
Yet another lesson in Republican hypocrisy. (2/13/2014)
Another lesson in hypocrisy: Wisconsin Republicans disparage Mary Burke for her wealth. (1/31/2014)
A lesson in hypocrisy, Waukesha County edition. (1/29/2014)
Your Wisconsin Republican Assembly hard at work promoting Governor Walker's jobs agenda (and GOP principles). (11/15/2013)

U.S. Public Library Children's and Young Adult Program Attendance Per 1000 Population (Top and Bottom 10 States)

Wisconsin: 283.2

Wisconsin: 16.3

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services "Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Fiscal Year 2011".

Other public library statistics posts:
U.S. public library program attendance per 1000 population (top and bottom 10 states). (4/12/2014)
Wisconsin the unquestioned leader in interlibrary loans provided and received per 1000 population. (4/11/2014)
Wisconsin and Ohio share the public library interlibrary loan spotlight. (4/10/2014)
Public library visits and circulation per capita by population of legal service area (2011) . (4/8/2014)
Decline in Number of Bookmobiles Continues to Accelerate in 2011. (4/7/2014)
Library circulation per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10+ states. (4/5/2014)
Library visits per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10 states. (4/5/2014)
The biggest and the smallest U.S. public libraries: Hours of operation (2011). (4/3/2014)
Hours of operation. (4/3/2014)
Public Libraries: Larger and Smaller Units of Governance, Iowa and South Carolina. (4/1/2014)
Number of public libraries in the ten most populous states. (4/1/2014)
Percentage distribution of public libraries by legal service area population. (3/30/2014)
Public libraries by type of legal basis. (3/30/2014)
Public library revenue. (3/24/2014)
Number of libraries, 2011 (administrative units). (3/19/2014)
Library staffing, 2001-2011. (3/19/2014)

U.S. Public Library Program Attendance Per 1000 Population (Top and Bottom 10 States)

Wisconsin: 358.3

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services "Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Fiscal Year 2011".

Other public library statistics posts:
Wisconsin the unquestioned leader in interlibrary loans provided and received per 1000 population. (4/11/2014)
Wisconsin and Ohio share the public library interlibrary loan spotlight. (4/10/2014)
Public library visits and circulation per capita by population of legal service area (2011) . (4/8/2014)
Decline in Number of Bookmobiles Continues to Accelerate in 2011. (4/7/2014)
Library circulation per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10+ states. (4/5/2014)
Library visits per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10 states. (4/5/2014)
The biggest and the smallest U.S. public libraries: Hours of operation (2011). (4/3/2014)
Hours of operation. (4/3/2014)
Public Libraries: Larger and Smaller Units of Governance, Iowa and South Carolina. (4/1/2014)
Number of public libraries in the ten most populous states. (4/1/2014)
Percentage distribution of public libraries by legal service area population. (3/30/2014)
Public libraries by type of legal basis. (3/30/2014)
Public library revenue. (3/24/2014)
Number of libraries, 2011 (administrative units). (3/19/2014)
Library staffing, 2001-2011. (3/19/2014)

Friday, April 11, 2014

As of December 31, 2013, Sen. Mike Ellis had a campaign cash balance of $182.200.43

On Politics: Senate President Mike Ellis announces he won't run for re-election. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/11/2014)

None of whom are on the list below. In a statement, Ellis said he was following in the footsteps of Tim Cullen, Bob Jauch and Dale Schultz, who also are retiring after decades in the Legislature.

At This Point, Penny Bernard Schaber is Running Unopposed in Wisconsin's 19th State Senate District

Does Mike Ellis sound tipsy to you in this video?

On Politics: Senate President Mike Ellis announces he won't run for re-election. (Wisconsin State Journal, 4/11/2014)

There is definitely more to this story. Questions also remain about why James O'Keefe and Project Veritas targeted Ellis using fake identities and a hidden camera in recent weeks. The group also appears to have secretly audio recorded Ellis several months ago.

What Barbie and Ken Learned

From the 1961 album Barbie Sings.

Barbie intones in the intro to the song, "We have so many things to take about. You know, I used to wonder what it would be like to

go my first dance
have my first date
wear my first formal and
have a whole wardrobe of pretty clothes."

What Barbie learned about in school:

readin'
writin'
'rithmetic
presidents
kings

More specifically, Barbie learned how to

read a book
write a letter
sew and cook
knit a sweater

Ken, an outdoorsy kinda guy with rhythm, learned how to

ride a bike
drive a golf ball
swim and bike
do the cha-cha

Hat tip to LuxuriaMusic.

Coming Soon to this West Johnson Street Location: More Luxury Apartments

Photo by Retiring Guy (4/10/2014)

A "Rear Window" fantasy

Ovation 309

309 W. Johnson St.

Madison, WI

Maybe I'm misinterpreting the figures, but the monthly lease for a 1200-square-foot apartment is $2300.

No Walker Donors Among These Challengers in Wisconsin's 3rd Congressional District

Chippewa Falls woman to join in race against Kind. (Chippewa Herald, 4/10/2014)

And the challengers are. Mueller, a civil rights Attorney in Eau Claire, announced her candidacy recently at the district Republican Caucus in La Crosse. She considers herself a constitutional conservative, supporting both Second and Fourth Amendment rights. (Tea party alert!! And again.)

Mueller has not yet filed with the Federal Elections Commission. Republicans who have filed for the Third District seat as of Thursday include Christopher J. Anderson of La Crosse and Tony Kurtz of Prairie du Chien.

Wisconsin the Unquestioned Leader in Interlibrary Loans Provided and Received per 1000 Population

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services "Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Fiscal Year 2011"

Other public library statistics posts:
Wisconsin and Ohio share the public library interlibrary loan spotlight. (4/10/2014)
Public library visits and circulation per capita by population of legal service area (2011) . (4/8/2014)
Decline in Number of Bookmobiles Continues to Accelerate in 2011. (4/7/2014)
Library circulation per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10+ states. (4/5/2014)
Library visits per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10 states. (4/5/2014)
The biggest and the smallest U.S. public libraries: Hours of operation (2011). (4/3/2014)
Hours of operation. (4/3/2014)
Public Libraries: Larger and Smaller Units of Governance, Iowa and South Carolina. (4/1/2014)
Number of public libraries in the ten most populous states. (4/1/2014)
Percentage distribution of public libraries by legal service area population. (3/30/2014)
Public libraries by type of legal basis. (3/30/2014)
Public library revenue. (3/24/2014)
Number of libraries, 2011 (administrative units). (3/19/2014)
Library staffing, 2001-2011. (3/19/2014)

With These Prices, There's Likely to be Less Beef on the Grill This Summer

Beef prices hit all-time high in U.S. (Los Angeles Times, 4/10/2014)

Less beef in our diet is likely to be part of the new normal. Extreme weather has thinned the nation's beef cattle herds to levels last seen in 1951, when there were about half as many mouths to feed in America.

For a longer historical view, I had to use the retail price of beef, as "all-fresh" was first reported by the USDA in July 1987.

Thursday, April 10, 2014

Sprechen Sie Sound Bite?

In abuse cases, Ozanne offers a break to minority parents who spank. (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 4/10/2014)

Will we hear anything of substance? The other AG candidates were given copies of Ozanne's program, called "Deferred Prosecution Unit Child Abuse Initiative: Addressing Racial Disparities & Corporal Punishment." All were highly skeptical of this kinder, gentler approach to child abuse cases.

Steve Colbert as "The Late Show" Host: The Gauging has Begun

A Big Job Might Ruin a Good Thing. Gauging Stephen Colbert as a ‘Late Show’ Host. (The New York Times, 4/9/2014)

Jason Zingman speculates on Colbert's "fitness".

On the other hand, Mr. Colbert has defied expectations before. When “The Colbert Report” debuted in 2005, a nightly show satirizing Bill O’Reilly seemed like it would eventually be a dead end. Mr. Colbert proved otherwise — and could do it again. He has evolved inside his character, finding room not just to express complex points, but also moments of delirious silliness and even earnest emotion. His interviews in particular are marvels of wit and curiosity.

Ladies and Gentlemen, meet the new host of "The Late Show"!

Stephen Colbert to Succeed Letterman on ‘Late Show’. (The New York Times, 4/10/2014)

The people's choice.

Arthur Smith (1921--2014)

Arthur Smith Dies at 93; Wrote ‘Dueling Banjos’. (The New York Times, 4/8/2014)

Getting his inspiration from piano boogie woogie. “Guitar Boogie,” an instrumental with a deft solo released in the late 1940s, was his first major hit, recorded when he was 24 and serving in the Navy. The song, a precursor to the rock ’n’ roll of the coming decades, has been covered by musicians like Les Paul, Chuck Berry and Alvino Rey.

History South: Arthur Smith

Iowa Republican Caucus Voters Not Singing Scott Walker's Song

Source: Suffolk University poll (April 3-8, 2014)

Table is based on following questions:

Please tell me who would be your first choice if the Republican Caucus for President was held today?... (I can read you a list of possible candidates if you like.)
Who would be your second choice?

82-Year-Old Pulaski Skyway to Get Much-Needed Rehabilitation

Photo source: Library of Congress

Drivers in New Jersey to Lose Link as Pulaski Skyway Route Closes. (The New York Times, 4/9/2014)

Time for an upgrade. The integrity of the structure, which opened in 1932, has grown increasingly worrisome in recent years, officials said; its roadbed and concrete railings are so frayed that the state installed netting to catch the falling debris.

“We can’t put any more Band-Aids on the bridge,” James S. Simpson, the New Jersey transportation commissioner, said on Monday as he examined the underside of the bridge from a construction lift in Jersey City. “The patient is 82 years old.”

Pulaski Skyway rehabilitation

The BS-o-meter Just Did a Wild Series of 360s (or, What Scott Fitzgerald is Doing on His Summer Vacation)

The 1st of 14

They'll keep sayin' it til we all believe it. At the start of this session, Republicans in the legislature made ~~gave lip service to~~ a commitment to make job creation a top priority. (That's an x'ed out editorial insertion, of course.)

Unfortunately, too many people seem to be swallowing this line.

Who Will Run in Wisconsin's 22nd Assembly District Now That Don Pridemore is Retiring?

Rep. Don Pridemore news release

Hitting all the conservative high notes in 10 years of service. Since 2004, Representative Pridemore has served as a loyal supporter of conservative values. He has worked to

reduce taxes,
expand educational choice,
protect the unborn,
promote family values and
expand the free exercise of Second Amendment Rights.

22nd Assembly District

Public libraries in the 22nd Assembly District

Menomonee Falls Public Library (service area)

Milwaukee Public Library. (service area sliver)

Pauline Haass Public Library, Sussex (Lisbon service area)

Sources: Ballotpedia, Wisconsin Government Accountability Board

Who will run? I suspect there will be a Republican primary and, perhaps, though probably not likely, a Democratic sacrificial lamb.

Who will win? This district stays deep red.

The list keeps growing.

Mike Ellis, Caught in the Act

Mike Ellis: Talk of illegal fundraising, attack ads was hypothetical. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 4/9/2014)

Meet the attacker, Judi Rhodes Engels

Mike Ellis was first elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly in 1970

He was re-elected in 1972, 1974, 1976, 1978, and 1980.

He was elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1982.

He was re-elected in 1986, 1990, 1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, and 2010.

Let's make his 2014 re-election "hypothetical". It's possible some folks on the far right are wishing for the same thing.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Wisconsin and Ohio Share the Public Library Interlibrary Loan Spotlight

Wisconsin is #1 in interlibrary loans provided.

Ohio is #1 in interlibrary loans received.

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services "Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Fiscal Year 2011".

Other public library statistics posts:
Public library visits and circulation per capita by population of legal service area (2011) . (4/8/2014)
Decline in Number of Bookmobiles Continues to Accelerate in 2011. (4/7/2014)
Library circulation per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10+ states. (4/5/2014)
Library visits per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10 states. (4/5/2014)
The biggest and the smallest U.S. public libraries: Hours of operation (2011). (4/3/2014)
Hours of operation. (4/3/2014)
Public Libraries: Larger and Smaller Units of Governance, Iowa and South Carolina. (4/1/2014)
Number of public libraries in the ten most populous states. (4/1/2014)
Percentage distribution of public libraries by legal service area population. (3/30/2014)
Public libraries by type of legal basis. (3/30/2014)
Public library revenue. (3/24/2014)
Number of libraries, 2011 (administrative units). (3/19/2014)
Library staffing, 2001-2011. (3/19/2014)

Operation Prosperity Inc. Bats .286 in Polk County Board Elections

Who We Support

Operation Prosperity, Inc.

Vote totals: Polk County Clerk

Bill Lueders: Big money backfires in local races. (Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, 4/7/2014)

Big money for a small county. Operation Prosperity supported its slate with a website, Facebook page, yard signs, automated phone calls and mailings. In a pre-election filing, it reported independent expenditures of more than $15,000.

That’s actually big money for an election in Polk County, population 44,000. County Clerk Carole Wondra says none of the 28 candidates vying for 15 redrawn board seats filed campaign reports, required when their spending tops $1,000. So Operation Prosperity invested more in the candidates it backed than the candidates themselves.

Post-Crescent Interview with Appleton Public Library Director Colleen Rortvedt

Decision nearing on site selection for Appleton library. (Appleton Post-Crescent, 4/8/2014)

The finalists. Three downtown locations — the current Appleton Public Library, an area off Lawrence Street overlooking the Fox River and the block that contains Post-Crescent Media — are being considered as the site for a new or renovated library.

Related posts:
Consultants recommend 3 sites for new downtown Appleton Public Library. (3/19/2014)
Appleton Public Library hires Godfrey's Associates to gather data and public input on future of library. (8/19/2012)
Appleton Public Library Colleen Rortvedt interviews on Post-Crescent's newsmakers. (4/19/2012)
Community conversations bbout the Appleton Public Library. (4/18/2012)
"Quirky" Geenan favors new Appleton library over downtown exhibition center. (2/14/2012)
Post-Crescent editorial board agrees with decision to wait on library building project. (7/18/2011)
Appleton Public Library Director Colleen Rortvedt provides context to Post-Crescent article on library expansion. (7/7/2011)
New library placed on indefinite hold. (7/6/2011)
On the need for a new library. (2/4/2011)
Director responds to 'frequently observed misconceptions'. (12/4/2009)
Readers weigh in on new library. (11/9/2009)
Mayor provides his perspective on library planning process. (10/7/2009)
Post-Crescent supports next step in library facilities planning process. (10/6/2009)
Financing options for Appleton's library project. (10/6/2009)
Potential sites for new library under discussion. (10/4/2009)
Membership of capital facilities committee for library project approved. (8/7/2009)
Terry Dawson's discusses Appleton library building project. (7/16/2009)
Library building project update. (6/18/2009)
Appleton's library planning escapes budget cuts. (11/13/2008)
Post-Crescent endorses library design study. (11/11/2008)
Study: New library should be built downtown. (7/10/2008)

Open Book Wisconsin: Transparency Up to a Point

Editorial: Credit state for showing checkbook. (Wisconsin State Journal, 4/8/2014)

Lawyers' fees. Change some more search criteria, and you can quickly see the Legislature paid the law firm Michael Best and Friedrich at least $325,000 during the first half in 2011, when top leaders were re-drawing voting district maps to their advantage. (Although this is not explicitly stated in Open Book Wisconsin.)

Then there is this nebulous category.

Which is used to classify $773,410 in Department of Transpiration payments to Michael Best & Friedrich in 2013.

If I want to know the specifics, I need to fill out this online form. (Which I did. One form per transaction number.)

Michael Best & Friedrich has a lucrataive working relationship with the State of Wisconsin. (Big surprise, huh? Law firm knee deep in state's many hot-button issues. Wisconsin State Journal, 1/22/2012)

In addition, Michael Best & Friedrich appears twice on the vendor list.

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Invitations to Fly from Diane, Cheryl, and Mandy

Best of the Worst Vintage Airline Ads: I’m Cheryl. Fly Me! (Stuff mom never told you,
5/5/2011)

Songfacts

Public Library Visits and Circulation Per Capita by Population of Legal Service Area (2011)

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services "Public Libraries in the United States Survey, Fiscal Year 2011".

Other public library statistics posts:
Decline in Number of Bookmobiles Continues to Accelerate in 2011. (4/7/2014)
Library circulation per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10+ states. (4/5/2014)
Library visits per capita: Top 10 and bottom 10 states. (4/5/2014)
The biggest and the smallest U.S. public libraries: Hours of operation (2011). (4/3/2014)
Hours of operation. (4/3/2014)
Public Libraries: Larger and Smaller Units of Governance, Iowa and South Carolina. (4/1/2014)
Number of public libraries in the ten most populous states. (4/1/2014)
Percentage distribution of public libraries by legal service area population. (3/30/2014)
Public libraries by type of legal basis. (3/30/2014)
Public library revenue. (3/24/2014)
Number of libraries, 2011 (administrative units). (3/19/2014)
Library staffing, 2001-2011. (3/19/2014)

Peter Matthiessen (1927-2014)

Peter Matthiessen, Lyrical Writer and Naturalist, Is Dead at 86. (The New York Times, 4/5/2014)

It was a man's world. Mr. Matthiessen was one of the last survivors of a generation of American writers who came of age after World War II and who all seemed to know one another, socializing in New York and on Long Island’s East End as a kind of movable literary salon peopled by the likes of William Styron, James Jones, Kurt Vonnegut and E. L. Doctorow.

New York State Writers Institute, State University of New York at Albany.

Peter Mathiessen, the Art of Fiction #157. An interview in The Paris Review, Spring 1999.

Peter Matthiessen in The New Yorker. (4/6/2014)

A Matthiessen bibliography, LINKcat-style. (List is limited to print books. Only 1 of his books is available in large print and 3 in an audio version. These 4 items are not included here.)

Can claim to have read only 1 of his books, At Play in the Fields of the Lord. It's been more than 40 years. Nothing remains.

Then and Now: The Hilldale Towers, Wisconsin Department of Transportation Building, the Park Tower Apartments

Photo source: Malls of America

Green arrow at left-center of aerial view indicates the approximate location of where I took the photo below in Rennebohm Park.

Sorry, best I could do. Unable to get myself elevated.

Hilldale Towers

Park Tower Apartments

Weston Place with Dirty Snow in Foreground

Weston Place residents have not been happy of late.

An 8th-floor corner unit........

...does not provide a view of Lake Monona.

Who Will Run in the 28th Assembly District Now That Erik Severson is Not Seeking Re-Election?

LINK

Public libraries in the 28th Assembly District.
Amery Area Public Library
Balsam Lake Public Library
Centuria Public Library
Dresser Public Library
Frederic Public Library
Grantsburg Public Library (Mary Ann Erickson Memorial)
Larsen Family Public Library, Webster
Luck Public Library
Milltown Public Library
Osceola Public Library
Somerset Public Library

Republican Severson won't seek re-election. (Wisconsin State Journal, 4/7/2014)

The 17th State Assembly member and 11th Republican not running for re-election. Severson is an emergency room doctor from Osceola who was first elected in 2010.

“The power of Wall Street can’t be overestimated.”

216 holds in 3 copies in LINKcat

‘Flash Boys’ Fuels More Calls for a Tax on Trading. (The New York Times, 4/7/2014)

Which will go nowhere. Not only are Republicans in Congress against new taxes in general, as are many Democrats, but opposition from deep-pocketed campaign donors on Wall Street is enough to persuade even politicians who might favor the idea to back off.

And now that the Supreme Court has eliminated the cap on the total amount an individual can contribute to federal candidates in a two-year election cycle, the biggest donors will increasingly hold sway.

Another victory for oligarchy.

Monday, April 7, 2014

Marathon Memorial at the Boston Public Library

Boston Public Library

Awaiting the End of the World, Staying Hydrated, with LifeStraw

The Capitalism of Catastrophe. (The New York Times, 4/6/2014)

This report comes to you from the National Preppers & Survivlists Expo. (SUNDAY!!!!!)

What it's all about. One could have found an answer — actually, many answers — here over the weekend at the third annual National Preppers and Survivalists Expo. A trade show catering to those with an apocalyptic bent, the two-day exposition was an opportunity for vendors of calamity swag to meet their clientele.