Saturday's welcome home gathering in Madison, Wisconsin was the 'real' thing!
Ostensibly overshadowed by the events in Japan, uncovered by a weak media, more than 100,000 Americans gathered in Madison, Wisconsin a week ago to welcome the 14 heroic Democratic Senators home.
Granted, the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear uncertainty in Japan was front page news -- the heart-wrenching devastation deserving extensive coverage -- but the return home in Wisconsin was equally important to our politics here in the United States.
Something was happening in Wisconsin that is important to the political discourse in this country. And, as usual, the overall media failed in its job.
Far larger and more 'real' than the 'Tea Party' events, the welcome home demonstration received far less coverage than the 'manufactured' tea party gatherings.
Why is that?
The intentional bias of the overall media is a subject that needs to be addressed and discussed extensively. Their failures and penchant for sensationalism over substance requires forensic scrutiny and immediate change, as do the rules of ownership.
But this is about the 'real' uprising in Wisconsin -- about the anger over the destructive course Wisconsin politics has taken as a result of the Republican majority and what the citizens of the badger state are doing about it.
Very few Americans heard about the thousands of Wisconsinites who gathered in Madison to show solidarity with the returning Senators. Few saw clips of the impassioned speech of Tony Schultz, a rural 3rd generation farmer who, along with other Wisconsin farmers, had had enough of the strong arm tactics of Governor Walker and the Republican legislators and came out in support of hard-working Wisconsin citizens.
The outright attack on the working class of Wisconsin is not sitting well with the citizens throughout the state.
Right-wing media continues to misrepresent the events in Wisconsin, lying to distort the validity of these grass-roots demonstrations.
One of the most disturbing lies, propagated by Karl Rove, Hannity, Van Sustern and the horde of Fox family pundits, is that the demonstrators are union thugs from out-of-state.
Unlike the Tea Party affairs, where protesters were bussed in from neighboring states by organizations like Freedom Works for the purpose of creating chaos, these protests are local. They are the citizens of Wisconsin.
For four solid weeks, day after day, the citizens of Wisconsin showed up at the Capitol Building, exercising their 1st Amendment rights the freedom to voice their disgust and to peaceably assemble.
This is a Wisconsin Revolution!
More than 95% of the demonstrators at every demonstration around the state consisted of Wisconsinites.
The other lie perpetrated by right-wing zealots is one of thuggery, wrongly portraying these gatherings as violent demonstrations.
Yes, gatherings of this nature can go awry. But that never occurred, even with the size and magnitude of these crowds -- routinely exceeding 30,000 people and more every single day.
At times things got raucous but, as Madison Police Chief Noble Wray stated in a press release "crowd behavior has been exemplary," and commended them for the peaceful way they expressed their 1st Amendment rights.
The Wisconsin demonstrations are more spontaneous, purposeful, and focused than any of the Tea Party rallies.
The next time someone describes the Tea Party as grassroots, call them out. Politely explain that Wisconsin is a 'real' grassroots movement.
Point out that, unlike the Tea Partiers, the people of Wisconsin have a 'real' issue to respond to and responded in huge numbers and in 'true' patriotic fashion.
Grassroots movements have a way of spreading, as they have in Ohio, and Michigan.
The media failed to cover what will turn out to be an historical event. The working people of Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Florida and others must continue this struggle against the tyrannical power grab by these corporatist Governors.
Recalls need to be initiated in every state that attempts to usurp the rights of working-class Americans.
A recall petition of Michigan Governor Rick Snyder is gathering momentum and the recalls of the Wisconsin Eight have exceeded expectations.
The power generated by these movements must be sustained and succeed if this country is to stave off a move to Plutocracy.
Outcomes in each of these states affects every working man and woman in America.
This is the battle for the middle class!
And the grassroots movement in Wisconsin is ground zero!