Wisconsin: Police refuse to close capitol, will sleep in capitol with protesters tonight

Source: The Wheeler Report

MADISON—Following action by lawmakers to approve a rule change that clears
the way for closing down the State Capitol and ejecting the people protesting
Governor Walker’s bill to curtail union activity, the head of the Wisconsin
Professional Police Association called on the governor today to keep the capitol
building open and allow the peaceful protesters to remain.

“The law enforcement officers from across the state that have been working at
the Capitol and have been very impressed with how peaceful everyone has
been,” said WPPA Executive Director Jim Palmer. “As has been reported in the
media, the protesters are cleaning up after themselves and have not caused any
problems. The fact of that matter is that Wisconsin’s law enforcement community
opposes Governor Walker’s effort to eliminate most union activity in this state,
and we implore him to not do anything to increase the risk to officers and the
public. The costs of providing security can never outweigh those associated with
a conflict.”

Palmer also announced that, beginning tonight, the WPPA is formally requesting
its members from across the state to come to the Capitol to sleep amongst the
throngs of other union supporters.

“Law enforcement officers know the difference between right and wrong, and
Governor Walker’s attempt to eliminate the collective voice of Wisconsin’s
devoted public employees is wrong,” continued Palmer. “That is why we have
stood with our fellow employees each day and why we will be sleeping among
them tonight.

Read more: http://www.thewheelerreport.com/releases/February11/0225/0225wppa.pdf

---

The tide is really starting to turn against poor Scotty boy!

change -- God love 'em!

Isn't the National Guard in Iraq or Afghanistan? They are calling "bullshit" on Governor Walker and on President Obama (I voted for the man, so I can say that) from foxholes on the AfPak border.

I wonder if Walker has any assets that can be frozen as the Swiss are freezing Gadhafi's assets? Hah!

:thumbsup:

No such thing. International Guard yes. But we really have no national guard... so if disaster strikes don't look for them.

1957 and the Little Rock Nine, of course. Gov. Faubus called out the National Guard to prevent the kids from attending. Ike then federalized the National Guard and sent in the 101st to assure that they went to school.

Ike was probably responding more to Faubus flouting the Supreme Court and the President than the justice of the thing, but he did the right thing. This won't get to that point, but still.

Remember when we had a Republican like Ike, who warned us of the military-industrial complex, instead of cookie-cutter Koch toadies like Walker, who yearn to be OWNED by the military-industrial complex?

Those days are sadly gone forever.

Jim Palmer.

Got to love it those cops know right from wrong .... wanna shut down the capital?
Tell you what how do you feel about cops from all over the state coming to sleep in
the Capital Building?


e mail link
palmer@wppa.com

A personal one!

Thank you very much for your e-mail. I’m impressed that you heard of me all the way in California, but I’m glad others are following our ordeal.



Thank you again.



Solidarity!



THE WISCONSIN PROFESSIONAL POLICE ASSOCIATION



Jim Palmer

Executive Director

I wrote him back and sent him one of several links to this story - that I said I found on DU!

:thumbsup:

Hope you will post it. Love the Solidarity! part.

I'm shocked.

a mini-Libya...

Libya has protests. Military has turned against the corrupt leader. So the corrupt leader hires mercenaries.

Wisconsin has protests. Police turn against corrupt leader. So the leader hires mercenaries.

Hopefully this will remain peaceful.

Maybe the Koch brothers will pay their way to Wisconsin.

I confess, it feels odd to be cheering for the police. In this case though, they have my full, enthusiastic, and grateful support.

like this. :) As an old Trotskyist from the 60s/70s era, it's unusual to be sending kudos to the police, but here I am. Wisconsin policemen, SOLIDARITY with the workers of the world!

Lefties like me are antiauthortarian most of the time, but this seems to be cutting across the old lines. And I'm happy about it!

nt

and Boo the bad ones.
Doesn't matter what color/uniform they're wearing.

SOLIDARITY!!!

Funny & ought to get some media attention.

Here's a recent chalkboard of Ian's Pizza on State showing that donations have come from all 50 states and 45 nations ... and still counting:



Ian's has been very pro-Solidarity (of course it doesn't hurt their bottom line, but they've been very good). Someone setup a Facebook Page for them - that my be the easiest way to donate:

http://www.facebook.com/IansPizzaOnState?sk=wall

They have a direct website, along w/ a couple of other progressive restaurants in the Capitol area:

http://www.ianspizza.com/
http://www.marigoldkitchen.com/
http://www.campusspecial.com/wisconsin/restaurant/pizza-di-roma

DISCLAIMER: I have NO financial connections with any of the sites listed

I've had the pizza there myself. It's *really* good pizza and it looks very much like a local business too.

:-)

I wonder if they're TYT fans. :D

One group of scientists who were musicians on the side put on a live concert from Antarctica for Al Gore's Live Earth shows, I wouldn't be surprised if one of them put in the order.

Netherlands is on there too!
No relative of mine, I don't know anybody who owns a credit card ;)

but the one that really gets me is ANTARCTICA!! Wow.


B-)

They're police, after all. We should send them donuts.

send 'em a racine kringle.... strawberry cheesecake :D

why don't we ask them and let them chose? :hippie:

China Wok delivers:
http://www.madisonclick.net/cgi-bin/index.pl/info-13819-China-Wok.html

Now I can see Koch Brothers thru their puppets - Walker to name one, to bring in Black Water types.

Where is hell is the libural media - huh?????

to the degree that it should be reported, Gov Walker would have been run out of office on Day 3.

What a treat he's in for, when he discovers that they'll have no more intention of harming their friends & neighbors than the cops.

federalizes them in the interest of preventing grievous damage to Wisconsinites' First Amendment rights to free speech and assembly.

Alternately, I hope the Wisconsin Guard turns around and arrests Walker as an "enemy of the people" (Extra-constitutional though such an arrest would be, I would like to see it happen because I have really grown to despise that son of a bitch Walker over the past two weeks.)

:toast:

I'm guessing the current questioning over his wanting to plant troublemakers will be fun.

Signature gathering and organizing is already in progress ...

Can't impeach because it's a Reptilian legislature.

However, a number of WI GOP State Senators can be recalled, which appears to be a plan which is picking up both support and popularity.

A lame duck Gov Walker lacking the necc. support for the upcoming damage control routines will be... "a very, very little let us do, and all shall be done"

At least 4 are realistically vulnerable.

I take it Alberta isn't a "Darling"!

I certainly hope that people around the country are taking a lesson from what happens when you listen to asshat republicans, let alone if you elect them.

You know the neocons/fundies/baggers hate government, except when it wields the authority club they so love; military or police.

Wonder what the cons are thinking now?

Figures... they're so thick they make the Great Wall of China look like a picket fence.

He is the new hero of the right. He sees himself as a new Saint Ronnie.

I hope this works.

the madison police and mayor are really ,really pissed off. the police have had a interesting history in madison with protests but this one...ya walkers pissed off the wrong people.

the national guard will do nothing to stop the protests

However, he's too busy cleaning the stains out of his underpants.

A great display of patriotism by American's fed up with a lot of the capitalistic ideologies of people that should be serving them.

He assumed that they would behave as he himself would under similar circumstances.

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

Love it. The protestors will prevail...

www.whatthefuckhaveunionsdonesofar.com

Your subject doesn't really match the statement as best I can tell.

According to what I read the WPAA is only asking the Governor not to enforce the rule changes.

Further, it is not clear if the WPAA members being asked to sleep amongst the protesters would be doing so in an official, on the job capacity, or if the WPAA is simply requesting his union members to join the protest on their own time.

Perhaps the police really are refusing to obey the orders of the Governor, but this statement doesn't seem to indicate that.

last paragraph: "“Law enforcement officers know the difference between right and wrong, and
Governor Walker’s attempt to eliminate the collective voice of Wisconsin’s
devoted public employees is wrong,” continued Palmer. “That is why we have
stood with our fellow employees each day and why we will be sleeping among
them tonight."

Find a police chief saying they won't close it and then you've got something.

People keep making the silly assumption that because the police support the unions (they do) they won't fulfill their duty. That it will he like the military turning on a dictator.

Let's put it this way. If union bosses actually had such power, the lies that the right tells about unions would be true.

But this still effectively prevents the closing of the Capitol. You're right that this is just a call to off-duty law enforcement union members to join the protests. But if Walker were actually going to try and clear the capitol it becomes a WHOLE lot harder to get any on-duty police force to carry it out. Disperse a crowd of protesters filled with other LOEs from around the state? Fat chance, even for a State Patrol run by a newly appointed corrupt hack.

Thanks to our union brothers and sisters in blue.

and doing the right thing.

illegal orders.

Stephen Fitzgerald to head the state patrol. Stephen’s a great guy he’s raised two sons. One of them is the state senate majority leader and the other is the state assembly leader. Both of them are backing Walker. So Steven is earning a modest $106,000 and getting a fat ass pension boost as he nears retirement (Fun fact: Stephen lost election to Dodge Country Sheriff by a 2-to-1 margin, so you know he’s a people person).

As an Ohio State Fan I know one thing ..... don't mess w/ them Badgers.

I've also heard you shouldn't mess with the Packers.... They're known to take out Bears.

Standing up for the people and the actual Law of this land.

Unlike the Thuglicans! Who are just selfish ignorant low lives, red necked, Constitution hating, law breaking cretins.

A salute to these wonderful officers!:toast: :yourock: :patriot:

But this is very encouraging

:evilgrin:

All elected leaders everywhere in America should take note of this. Whenever the police side with the people against elected officialdom it's past time for them to resign.

- And that includes Congress.......

adversarial situation between the demonstrators and law enforcement. This is interesting. Tomorrow will the the biggest day ever. I hope no one gets hurt, cops or demonstrators.

moral of the story: it can be repeated over and over and over.

he knows the police do not respect him and are against him ....so he will use the NG tp remove the police too

Walker and the Koch brothers are mad as hell and will take this all the way to the wall after the prank call

I doubt they want to harm their friends & neighbors. That's my hope, in any case.

The NG has turned on the populace only a very few times and it was, at the least, a PR nightmare, and at the worst, a killing field. There is no reason to believe what is true with the police would not be true with the NG.

And I'm lovin' it.

PB

saying police cleaning up and Capitol closing 4 PM Friday. What is the truth?

That would be immensely heart-warming, don't you think?

“The law enforcement officers from across the state that have been working at the Capitol and have been very impressed with how peaceful everyone has been,” said WPPA Executive Director Jim Palmer.

"WE" are NOT...
racist, hateful, gun-totin', obnoxious, ignorant, mindless (except when we only open our minds to "Foc News") people... we stand for what is right, regardless of ANYthing else.

If they are trying to change/pass laws to make it end.

let peaceful disobedience reign supreme. There is no louder voice, in politics. Thumbs up to whoever is calling the shots of the actions of the Wisconsin State Police. ( all in Capitals because the moment calls for loud.)

edit: spelling

And everyone who supports these brave Wisconsin workers. With strength and unity we shall overcome!

:fistbump:

Thats kinda cool, and at least they can stay warm over night.

Solidarity and get that Walker asshole runnin' out!

:kick:

As my brother used to say: "Outstanding!"

We've been fighting against this type of leadership on a national level for 11 years now & it's good to have the law enforcement see the light!!!

Nothing gets us angrier than being wronged.

Welcome aboard!

:hi:

:patriot:

:loveya:

then again, they got away with 2000 without much reaction from public!!

They killed our president in '63 and stole our people's government --

and since then how many stolen elections and assassinations of liberals -- ?

Loving it.

I love watching history being made. This is history and I hope a turning point for our country. If it's not, I fear for what comes next.

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

:patriot:

against you, you ain't got much of a chance, Scotty! You fought the law and the law won, dude.

I believe we are in a Global Revolution against the corrupt and corrupted.

Call the Willy Street Co-op, at 608-251-6776. They will send water.

businesses nearby are delivering food and water to people. Willy's is a co-cop, where the local people own shares in the business. They have been around since the hippie days. I do have someone on the ground, who says they are delivering. Of course, so are many other local businesses. In these tough times, I am glad that so many of them are making money.

:kick:

you just gotta laugh at it saying that didn't sound right. LOL

it seems like it is starting. We need to shame them..
That is the only thing that works against greed born of making everything wrong.

Thank you all so much for your hard work.
And for your dedication to progress for our world to live vibrantly while at peace. We can do it.

Remember this concept from Saturday Night Live way back when?

Happy Fun Ball

That big voice in this song belongs to Deirdre Fogarty-Harris, resident of San Francisco, hailing from NY.

there are some definite similarities here....

The policemen and firemen depend on collective bargaining to make their dangerous jobs attractive. They don't seem to understand that well-paid workers with secured pensions buy their oil and make the airplanes fly.

My friend and I showed up with our kids for a sleepover to be turned away by people with guns. The Madison Police met us on the sidewalk to APOLOGIZE for the situation, explained they were given no warning about the sudden "closure", and gave the boys neat MPD stickers. Kids were really bummed. Looked like people were leaving with belongings, but the officer said anyone there was allowed to stay so maybe they just decided to break camp and go.