TCD’s week in review
Replacement refs, Gov. Walker, Tommy Thompson, the Milwaukee Film Festival, Milwaukee-area employment, and more in TCD's look at the week that was.
WINNERS
Milwaukee area employment
It’s always important to tread carefully when analyzing jobs numbers, but some encouraging data about the employment situation in the Milwaukee area was released this week. According to the Business Journal of Milwaukee, “The Milwaukee-Waukesha-Ozaukee-Washington metropolitan statistical area’s unemployment rate declined from 8.2 percent in July and 8 percent in August 2011.” The national unemployment rate as of August is 8.1 percent, and has not been above 8.3 percent in 2012.
Sept. 25 was the first National Voter Registration Day, the Government Accountability Board unveiled a new website, myvote.wi.gov, to provide information to voters, and registration efforts are underway in Milwaukee. Take the time to get registered, and get to the polls on Nov. 6.
The Milwaukee Film Festival
The 2012 Milwaukee Film Festival opened last night (look for TCD’s recap later today). There’s a lot to like about this year’s festival, and people are taking notice. Case in point: ticket sales are up 86 percent over last year’s festival.
Central City Parks
County Executive Chris Abele’s 2013 budget includes $4.8 million in upgrades to central city parks. The upgrades include $2 million for Moody Park, $1.6 million for Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Center, and $800,000 for Lindbergh Park, along with additional financial commitments to Johnsons Park, Humboldt Park and Lindsay Park.
LOSERS
Milwaukee Police Department
22-year-old Derek Williams died in police custody in July, 2011. At the time, the cause of death was ruled as natural (a sickle-cell crisis), but the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner’s office recently revised the death ruling to homicide. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has complete coverage of this tragedy, which can be found here.
Tommy Thompson
In a video posted this week, Tommy Thompson said he wants to “do away with Medicare and Medicaid.” The video was taken at a June 4 meeting of the Lake Country Area Defenders of Liberty, and its release comes after Thompson lost his lead (and then some) in the race against Tammy Baldwin for U.S. Senate.
Replacement Refs and Roger Goodell
Yep, the Green Bay Packers got robbed of victory on Monday Night Football by referees who couldn’t stand up to the high standards of the Lingerie Football League, and after the public outcry that followed, the NFL and referees ended the labor dispute late Wednesday night, and the regular referees will be back in action this weekend. After the dispute ended, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell attempted to apologize to fans for the replacement referees, but said the outrage over the game’s ending represented “the beauty of sports and the beauty of officiating.” Hey Roger, why don’t you stop talking for a while? Maybe sit the next couple plays out.
Gov. Scott Walker
In the aftermath of “Goldengate” or “The Toucheception” or whatever its being called now, Gov. Scott Walker tweeted this, about the unionized, striking referees: “After catching a few hours of sleep, the #Packers game is still just as painful. #Returntherealrefs.” And this after the state adopted a new “teacher equivalency license” that would allow teachers with no college degree to teach in Wisconsin public schools. So apparently, experience and training matter in the case of those who officiate games in the (revenue-sharing, parity-loving, basically socialist) National Football League, but not in the case of those who have the responsibility to educate the next generation of Wisconsinites. #Facepalm.
