The Year That Was 2011: Holy crap, what just happened?

Like a steaming bowl of mashed potatoes, end-of-the-year recaps and best-of lists have become the comforting if somewhat bland staple of blogs during the last few weeks of the annum. You can certainly dress them up with gravy and butter and such (funny videos, surprisingly novel subjects, genuinely interesting dot connecting), but they are what they are: navel-gazing.

Which isn’t to say that staring deep into one’s own bellybutton can’t have constructive uses; honestly, we’d all do well to be at least a little bit more self-reflective.

So it is that I always find myself thinking back on the Year That Was—usually around the time my new day planner insert arrives in the mail. And this year, as I started to conjure up all the events and goals, frustrations and triumphs of the past year, all I could think was: WTF, 2011? WTF.

There are interesting times and then there are Interesting Times, and with the way things went this past year I can only imagine that the seeming glut of Big Happenings will only continue, if not get more hectic.

Worldwide you had the Arab Spring, the earthquake and tsunami (and ongoing nuclear catastrophe) in Japan, serious economic uncertainty, the long overdue deaths of several powerful madmen (OBL, Gadhafi, Kim Jong-il), a record tornado outbreak in the US, the Occupy movement, the terrorist attacks in Norway, the shooting of Rep. Giffords, the end of the space shuttle program, the royal freakin’ wedding—and it goes on and on….

Here in Wisconsin it was like the whole state was plunged rather suddenly and unexpectedly into a kind of political civil war back in February when still fresh-faced Gov. Scott Walker announced his “budget repair bill” (Act 10) that would strip public workers of their right to collective bargaining and otherwise significantly weaken their unions. Starting then, and especially after all of the Senate Democrats high-tailed it to Illinois to avoid a vote on the bill, hundreds of thousands of Wisconsinites descended on the Capitol building here in Madison to set up camp, protest, testify, for weeks—months—on end.

On the first real day of protest (Feb. 14, 2011), I found myself wedged between a marble wall and a crowd of people watching as Peter Rickman, who has since become one of the ubiquitous faces of the protest movement in Wisconsin, dumped pile after pile of “We Love UW” Valentine’s Day cards on the desk in front of the governor’s office. I watched as the group then filled the rotunda for a short while, chanting and waving signs, having no earthly clue just how often I was to see the same thing (and on a much, much larger scale) over the coming weeks.

Or just how much pizza would get sent/eaten, though (being wildly lactose intolerant) I never got to eat any of it myself.

That's a lot of folks.

I snapped a half-decent cell phone picture of the bigger crowd in the rotunda a few days later, posted it to Twitter, and suddenly my inbox began filling up with notifications of new follows, retweets, questions – people wanted to know what the heck is going on in Madison? I’ve spent much of my time, almost non-stop, trying to convey an answer through tweets, photos, videos, and essays about what I’ve been seeing unfold. Because with the recalls and new legislation and everything else, it hasn’t stopped.

What’s happened, and continues to happen, in Wisconsin isn’t the biggest story in the world—but it’s the biggest story for most of us who live here. This year has dramatically changed the way the citizens of this state interact with and think about one another, for better and for worse.

It’s still an overwhelmingly polite and hospitable place to land and live, but there’s a certain wariness and weariness evident even in those folks who, up until February, would never have called themselves political. Whatever you think about what Walker and the like are doing, we can all probably agree that it’s had a profound effect on Wisconsin.

In many ways, too, what happened at the Capitol last winter was the spark that set fire to the Occupy/99% movement. Many of the tactics, impromptu and planned, employed in Madison provided the template for some of what was done at Zuccotti Park. This unified outpouring of discontent would have happened with or without Wisconsin’s example, of course, but you can’t disconnect them, either.

Meanwhile, because this is a personal blog, I’m compelled to note just how much my own life changed in 2011, to point out the sheer volume of shit that went down in the last 12 months. It’s a little overwhelming to think about, honestly, especially in light of what it might mean for the next 12 months.

I turned 30 in November and someone asked me if I was where I had expected to be in my life. I had no answer, because I’ve honestly never put age deadlines on my goals and hopes. When I was a little girl I never thought, “I’m going to be married by this age!” or “I’m going to have kids by this age!” or “I’m going to own a house or make a living wage by this and that age!”

For better or worse, that’s just never been how I operate. What I had hoped, abstractly, was that, as I grew older, I would find a way to make money doing things about which I felt passionate and useful—and, in that regard, I can say (with a not inconsiderable amount of relief) that I’ve been pretty damn successful.

I don’t make a living wage…yet. But I get by with a little help from my partner and friends and community, all of whom I do my best, every day, to give something back to in return. And I do this as a writer, as a musician, as a part-time barista (because of course), as an event organizer, as an actor in a web series, as what I hope is a good partner and good friend.

I mean, I get paid to write articles and take pictures and do interviews with interesting people. How cool is that? How lucky is that? (Because I recognize that while I’ve worked really friggen hard for what I’ve got, it’s been pure luck that I was born where I was born, at the time I was born, raised by a particular, decently well-off family in an absurdly well-off country, etc. etc.)

The best band that ever banded.

And I had the good fortune to have some of my words and pictures included in two very excellent books about events in Wisconsin from this year. Lovely to be in such good company.

And I made a lot of wonderful new friends. And I got to go on tour with my band, which is made up of three of my best friends in the world, one of whom just had one of the most beautiful babies I’ve ever met. One of them also co-wrote and produced a musical this year. And we opened for m-f’ing Tiffany. Not bad, not bad.

Oh and did I mention that I got married? I mean I’ve been with the guy for over seven years now so, yeah, shouldn’t have been a big surprise. It was just never one of those stated goals for me and so kind of crept up and was an entirely awesome shock to find myself standing in a friend’s backyard on an unseasonably gorgeous early September day saying “I do” to this incredible human being.

So there’s that.

And about a million other things, too, that I’ll leave out for the sake of brevity and privacy and also the realization that my life may be the most important thing in the world to me, but is not, in fact, the most important thing in the world to the world. I’m OK with that. It’s best that way. NOW GET OFF MY LAWN.

Now, then, what to do with this new year that promises to be even more thrilling and exhausting and world-changing than the last?

I don’t believe the world will literally end in December 2012 (the Mayans had to pick some date to stop writing their thousands-of-years-into-the-future calendar, after all). I do believe in massive change, though—the kind that alters the world we know so much that it may seem like a kind of apocalypse, and I’ll be buggered if it doesn’t feel like we’re smack in the middle of such a transition.

I got to eat a cupcake this one time in 2011. That was pretty cool.

I won’t guess at what that means for the world—I don’t have that kind of foresight or omniscience—but I can say that I predict 2012 will involve some upheaval in my own little life. I think I’m ready. I hope I’m ready.

Here’s wishing you all a year full of the right kinds of challenges, rewards, and good naptimes.

Here we go again (Battle for Wisconsin: Day 117)

One-hundred and seventeen days later and we the people of Wisconsin are still here, still speaking out against the Republican agenda to destroy the achievements of a progressive state, still supporting each other and standing up for the most vulnerable among us.

When this whole thing started on February 14 no one, not the protesters or the politicians or the media, thought this would become a new Movement, would last so long.

But here we are. Here we remain.

It's gotten more frustrating as the GOP-controlled Legislature pushes through bill after destructive bill in a seeming whirlwind of activity. Tensions between protesters and police have begun to result in excessive uses of force and poor decisions. There are now the inevitable schisms within the movement, between people who have different ideas of how best to see this thing through. For the most part, though, there is unity - and an indefatigable spirit of community and determination to make Wisconsin, make our country, better for everyone.

A protest tent "city" called Walkerville has been ongoing at the capitol square all week and will now be headed into a second. There have been teach-ins and free concerts, shared meals, theatrical protests.

Next week will be a real test, though - of the cohesiveness of the movement and the people involved, of their willingness to remain peaceful, patient, and active. Gov. Walker, you see, is prepared to see Act 10 (the so-called budget "repair" bill, which includes stripping collective bargaining rights from public employees) introduced as an amendment to the bigger, biennial budget. That means no more public hearings, no committee votes, just a straight vote on the floors of the Senate and Assembly.

Worth noting, too, is the fact that the biennial budget now includes severe restrictions on the collective bargaining rights of police and firefighters, who had previously been exempt. One can only assume this is a little payback for the fact that so many cops and firefighters joined in solidarity with the protesters, recognizing (rightly, as it turns out) that they were likely next. And that the Good Fight means standing up for others even when you're not directly effected.

So next week is probably going to be big. The governor knows this - a state emergency response team has apparently been formed to keep tabs on social media sites for inside tips on what the protesters are planning (I'm looking further into this, by the by, so stay tuned).

No matter what does happen in the coming days, though, we must all remember that we're in this for the long haul. The destruction that's taken decades to implement will take just as long, if not longer, to fully undo. Ours has to be a multifaceted, patient, compassionate and ever-vigilant campaign.

Me, right now, I'm focused on letting my knee heal so I'm free to re-commence running around like a chicken with its head cut off as events ramp up again this week. Keep an eye on my Emily's Post blogs for updates and more in-depth information - but I'll try to keep making more personal updates here, too. For better or for worse, I live in interesting times.

ETA: According to Rep. Mark Pocan's vlog, the Fitzgerald Brothers have decided to move Legislative proceedings this week into what's called "Extraordinary Session." What does that mean, exactly? It's quite the trick:

Extraordinary Sessions are very rare and seldom used for the Budget. In an Extraordinary Session action can not be postponed, points of order are decided within one hour, the daily calendar is effective immediately upon posting and does not have to be distributed, motion to advance legislation and message it to the other house only required a majority vote of those present, the session can be expanded to include any other legislation, including new legislation (financial martial law?) and "No notice of hearing before a committee shall be required other than posting on the legislative bulletin board, and no bulletin of committee hearing shall be published.

Don't Attack; Engage: Un-asked for advice for tomorrow's Tea Party rally in Madison

And lo! Word has come that She of the Mother Grizzlies and Folksy Drawl shall be gracing fair Madison tomorrow for a "Tax Day Tea Party" at the Capitol.

That would be Sarah Palin, of course, apparently paid enough by one of the organizing groups (AFP?) to haul her and her Alaskan entourage to balmier climes here in Wisconsin to be the keynote speaker at tomorrow's aforementioned event.

It's no accident that Palin will be appearing here, alongside local conservative Monsters of Talk Vicki McKenna and John T. Harris, and Wall Street Journal columnist John Fund. Madison has been ground zero of the grassroots, pro-labor groundswell that started in February when Gov. Scott Walker introduced his truly awful budget "repair" bill, and has continued ever since.

The Capitol has played host to hundreds of thousands of people from all over the state (and beyond - there's nothing wrong with support from fellow travelers, despite Walker's hypocritical cries to the contrary), who've marched, camped, testified, pizza'd, and sang their way through some deeply trying times.

So of course, come time for the Tea Party's now annual tax day rally, they'd choose to co-opt the location and bring in the "big" guns.

But you know what? I could care less about Palin. Or McKenna and Harris and Fund. They're the rabble-rousers, spitters of convoluted, often meaningless (or downright false) platitudes and generalizations meant to stir the pot for the sake of their own higher ratings and stuffed wallets.

We've got these folks on the left, too: Though I don't harbor the same disgust held for Palin and the like when it comes to them, I wasn't particularly thrilled when Michael Moore or Ed Schultz started popping up at the #wiunion protests, either. Their hearts might be in the right place - I don't know because I don't know any of them personally - but ultimately their high profiles serve as a distraction from the important message and meaning of the demonstrations.

It's about everyday people working to make things better.

It's pretty much the same case for the Tea Party. While there are certainly elements of the movement that are on the extreme fringe (there have certainly been elements of racist, xenophobic, and misogynistic ideas and attitudes on display), I've gotten the impression that a large chunk of the people who show up at Tea Party events are just regular folk struggling with some of the very same problems facing their counterparts at the pro-union rallies.

As I see it, the difference between us is twofold: 1) The information we've been given/sought out/been privy to, and 2) how we've chosen to react to it.

None of that makes any of us inherently better or worse, of course, it just means we're walking alternate paths. And I suggest that, rather than show up at tomorrow's rally ready to fight and yell, or wave insulting/condescending signs, or even focus your curses and derision on the celebrity speakers, it would be far more productive to simply shop the farmer's market and then maybe have a civil conversation with a Tea Party attendee.

Ask them why they've come, what struggles they're having personally. If they're at all inclined to listen, tell them simply about your own troubles and why you've chosen to tackle them in a different manner. Get a little nerdy and cite some factual research to back up your position, but always be willing to hear the other person out. Be willing to admit if you were maybe wrong about your initial perceptions regarding the people that go to Tea Party events. Or challenge them, gently, if maybe you were right.

Don't accuse anyone of being anything - challenge ideas, not individuals. This guy lays out the technique rather succinctly.

Most importantly, don't give Palin or any of the other talking heads any ammunition against you or the movement (believe me, they'll make up plenty on their own), and don't feed their egos by focusing on them at all. Focus on the regular folks who're there, and find the common ground you inevitably have with them. Show them, don't tell them, what democracy looks like.

And then go get some spicy cheese bread from Stella's - it's freakin' delicious.

Battle for Wisconsin: The dawn of week three

May you live in interesting times.


Said as a curse, not a blessing, this saying (allegedly of Chinese origin, but who knows really) certainly applies to the current situation in Wisconsin. I'm still attempting to nurse myself back to health from a particularly nasty and tenacious cold, but have been doing my best to keep up with events as they unfold.

I wrote a summary of today's public access crackdown at the Capitol for Dane101 if you'd like to check it out. Basically, just over two weeks in, the Department of Administration and, presumably, Republican officials have decided that the public's ability to enter the building should be severely limited. Even those who work in the Capitol have been trouble getting in, bags are being searched, and now the rumor is that the windows are being welded and/or locked shut in order to prevent food from being delivered to protesters who've either been inside since yesterday or managed to squeak in this morning.

This all comes after the optimism of last night, when police conceded to allowing demonstrators to remain in the rotunda even after the 4 p.m. shutdown time handed down by the Walker administration.

All of it is being done under the guise of needing time to clean the building (even though they were able to clean it while protesters were there, and even though protesters themselves have been cleaning during the entire occupation), and now, I can only assume, because Walker has decided to give his budget address from the Assembly instead of off-site as originally planned.

Interesting, because the Wisconsin State Constitution explicitly forbids the Legislature from restricting the public's access to the building for any reason.

In the meantime, Walker is now also trying to say that a flyer found in the Capitol proves that the union claims that they're willing to concede to increased pension and benefit contributions in order to keep collective bargaining rights (something the national press as almost entirely ignored, by the way) are false. Because we all know that 1) random flyers found in the rotunda should be taken as gospel truth, and 2) Walker and the GOP wouldn't possibly make shit up in order to demonize their opponents.

Lame.

I'll have more on all of this, plus a few other related items, in a comprehensive Emily's Post tomorrow. You can also check out a handy timeline of events so far over at Isthmus. Suffice to say that this ain't over, and I suspect times will get yet more interesting in the near future.

Lost Time: Battle for Wisconsin, Day 11

Sometimes technology just fails you. I spent several hours at the capitol today, sending information and photos about the protests to Twitter via my fancy schmancy new phone (specifically through HootSuite), only to come home tonight to find that none of my posts had actually, y'know, posted.

More than a little frustrating, but not the end of the world.

What I saw today was pretty amazing, though - a continuation of the impromptu community that's sprung up in the rotunda, with several tables of free, donated food (including vegan options, natch), a lending library, first aid station, and even a roped off "family area" for kids and parents to hang out and play.

The rotunda is covered in signs of all sorts - some showing solidarity from far away states, some displaying good humor about the situation, some displaying crucial information about events and organizing as well as background facts on the current situation. There's a huge paper banner covered in signatures from people pledging to go on general strike should the bill pass, and a whole wing on the second floor covered with messages from individuals to Scott Walker expressing their opposition.

The firefighters continue to rally to show support and almost always do so with the help of their bagpipe and drum corps. I ran into a gent dressed as the Predator outside on the capitol steps. The first piece of #wiunion related graffiti I've seen in nearly two weeks of action, which shows remarkable restraint, I think.

I'm told that tonight several elected officials are camping out with the protesters in the rotunda. On Saturday there's been a call to hold solidarity rallies at capitol buildings in all 50 states.

It's both strange and wonderful to find yourself in the middle of such an enormous and important historical moment. I have been nothing but impressed and inspired by the fortitude and dedication of the multitudes of Wisconsin residents and out-of-state friends who've committed to seeing this thing through. I can only hope that the momentum remains even after this particular battle is fought and done.

Tomorrow I'm taking an official day off from everything and heading to Milwaukee for a mountain bike clinic at Ray's Indoor Mountain Bike Park. I'm hoping it will go a long way toward refreshing me and rebooting my brain to tackle the days ahead.

Many thanks, too, to everyone on Twitter and around the internet who've been keeping up with all of this and doing what they can to help spread information. When my technology isn't acting up, you can follow me, too, for updates and the like @millbot.

Battle for Wisconsin: Day 9 personal update

It's official: I'm exhausted. But I can't stop paying attention, which means that I can't stop running around to cover as much of the goings on here in Madison as physically possible. I suspect I'm going to get very sick very soon if this keeps up.

Yesterday I had the distinct pleasure of sitting in on a roundtable interview with SEIU president Mary Kay Henry. You can read more about that over at today's Emily's Post if you'd like, but suffice to say that she was very personable and very informed and seems like an excellent choice to lead that union group. Glad she came to town to show support.

Today I've been at the capitol since about 11 a.m., observing yet another rally on the State Street steps (it was only a matter of time before local political song group The Raging Grannies got their turn at the mic). I slipped inside about halfway through to find the rotunda as filled with people and drumming as always.

Only two of the entrances/exist to the building are open (north and west, I think) to the public, with a very heavy police presence guarding all of the rest, as well as upper stairways and galleries leading to Senate, Assembly, and Supreme Court chambers. I've seen cops and troopers from all over the state, too, including places like Waukesha and Manitowoc.

On the second floor of the capitol there are several impromptu stations set up by and for protesters, including a large free food set-up (I availed myself of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich because I was about to fall over from hunger at one point), a first aid station, boxes full of free toiletries for those camping out, information booths, and more.

These folks know how to do it up right.

My only regret is that I physically can't partake of the boatloads of free pizza being donated from around the country/world to the protesters via Ian's Pizza. It's hard to catch wafts of delicious cheese smells and know that I can't eat any. Stupid lactose intolerance.

The Rev. Jesse Jackson, who's been in town for a few days now, also joined Rep. Tammy Baldwin at the head of a large parade of state firefighters as they walked around the rotunda and eventually gave some short, fiery speeches at the center of the crowd. Think I managed to snap a few good shots of the shindig, so keep your eye on my Flickr account if you're interested.

Anyway, this afternoon I'm going to attempt to cover the firefighters and nurses "address for the people" at 3 p.m. that will act as a sort of counterweight (I hope) to Walker's fireside chat at 6 p.m. - which is bound to be just as smug and infuriating as always.

A friend just brought me free food from Himal Chuli, so my day is pretty damn good.

Battle for Wisconsin - Week Two upcoming events, etc.

The situation here in Madison only grows more interesting by the day. I feel like I've been holding on by my fingernails, just trying to keep up with everything and get as much coverage of events out to the world as possible (and on that note, you can follow my real-time updates of events via my Twitter account, and see photos via Flickr).

Yesterday was my first chance to get a little bit of downtime, and of course now that means I'm fighting off yet another cold that's trying to take up lodging in my throat. But my plan for the week is to keep at it - see things through until some sort of resolution is reached.

There are lots of events planned for the week here in Madison, as well as rumors of surprise guests, anti-union agent provocateurs, efforts to clean up the capitol building, and about a billion other things. I've tried to compile as comprehensive a list of everything below, hopefully for your edification.

I've been nothing less than impressed and inspired by how peaceful everything has been up until now, so let's keep it that way, folks!

UPCOMING RALLIES

Monday, Feb. 21:

• Noon rally on the State St. side of the capitol, "Speakers will include former Green Bay Packer wide receiver (1994-95) Charles Jordan."
• 5 p.m. rally, State St. side of the capitol, including a concert with Tom Morello (of the Nightwatchmen, formerly of Rage Against the Machine), Wayne Kramer (solo acoustic, of the MC5), Mike McColgan (singer of the Street Dogs, former lead singer of the Dropkick Murphys), Tom Gabel (from Against Me!), and Tim McIlrath (from Rise Against).

Tuesday, Feb. 22:

• Noon rally on the State St. side of the capitol.
• 5 p.m. rally on the State St. side of the capitol

Wednesday, Feb. 23:

• THIS COULD BE REALLY IMPORTANT: Wisconsin Manufacturer's and Commerce (WMC), a notoriously right-wing corporate lobby with way too much influence in our capitol, is holding a "Business Day in Wisconsin" at the Monona Terrace Convention Center...which is just a couple blocks away from the capitol building in Madison. Featured guest speakers at this event include Rep. Paul Ryan and Gov. Scott Walker. Might be time for the protesters to take a little detour to make their voices heard and presence felt. (this event was organized prior to the beginning of the protests, so keep your eyes peeled if they make any last minute agenda changes) UPDATE TO ADD: A picket is being organized by Wisconsin Wave at 1 p.m. - more details here.

THINGS TO WATCH OUT FOR


There are plenty of anti-union people and organizations doing their very best to smear the image of the protesters and feed the media a message that they've been violent and are just a bunch of extremist thugs. No surprise there, but we can all be vigilent in making sure that 1) none of us do anything to feed their fires by remaining peaceful and respectful, and 2) being on the look-out for some good old fashioned agent provocateurs.

Raging right-wing talk radio host Mark Williams out of Sacramento, for instance, has decided to publicly announce on his blog that he hopes to "infiltrate" a solidarity rally being held in his city, under the guise of being an organizer, with the sole intent of feeding extreme images to the media. Thus typed Williams:

Our goal is to make the gathering look as greedy and goonish as we know that it is, ding their credibility with the media and exploit the lazy reporters who just want dramatic shots and outrageous quotes for headlines.  Even if it becomes known that we are plants the quotes and pictures will linger as defacto truth.

Williams also claims that he's received a "flood" of emails from fellow "Tea Party patriots" vowing to do the same in their respective states where solidarity events are being held. It's entirely possible that these are just the ramblings of one loose screw and not likely to impact events very much, if at all, but it's important that we remain aware of the possibility of people showing up at rallies with less-than-honorable intentions. If you see one of these chuckleheads, be sure to point them out loudly to everyone nearby but not to engage directly with them.

The best thing we can all do is go on being peaceful, respectful, clear-headed, and focused.

RESOURCES, ACTIONS, AND PETITIONS

• The ACLU has been handing out these "Bust Cards" (pdf) to protesters as a solid reference for what to do in the off chance that you find yourself in conflict with law enforcement. Know your rights and responsibilities!
• The TAA has put together a website where you can donate money for either rally organizing and food, and/or to help clean up the capitol building itself. Many volunteers have already been working hard to keep our beautiful capitol clean during its occupation, but more can always be done! This is a great way to support your state and to make the cause look even better.
• Wisconsin Wave's petition "Against Corporatization and Austerity and for Democracy and Shared Prosperity."
• One Wisconsin Now's petition opposing Scott Walker's unprecedented power grab and move to take rights away from Wisconsinite's while refusing to negotiate with them.

I will be updating this post as the day progresses - please feel free to drop me a line if you know of any events or resources or information that you think should be added!