Sunday, January 28, 2007
Ever heard of thin ice? Channel 58 hasn't

I don't know what to think about this--only that it is quite funny. You'd think after all these years in Wisconsin, that these camera crews would be smart enough to know not to drive on ice and take another road.

A WDJT (Channel 58) news truck is nearly submerged in water after breaking through the ice on Big Lake Muskego this afternoon.

The truck drove off a boat launch and about 150 yards out onto an iced over channel leading to the lake when the ice suddenly gave way, said Muskego police Sgt. John Mesich.

The truck quickly sank to the bottom of the channel, which is about 4 to 5 feet deep, Mesich said.

The occupants of the truck were able to escape without injury and the truck now sits partially submerged in the channel, Mesich said.

A special company has been called to help pull the truck from the ice, but that could take two days, Mesich said. Mesich said that the crew was shooting "something ice-related."

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posted by Jon Hayden at 7:43 PM |

Friday, January 26, 2007
I didn't know Chuck Norris was a conservative

I should have known this, but I didn't. I saw him filling in for Sean Hannity on "Hannity and Colmes" tongiht. It only makes sense, as he was in the Air Force, a martial arts champion and the man who is making millions selling Total Gyms. I didn't realize he also wrote on World Net Daily, a conservative news source .

Makes you wonder if all of those college kids that create Facebook groups about the man actually know he is a flaming conservative who publically backs the likes of George W Bush, goes to church regularly, and has advocated for prayer in school.

He's a favorite of mine now.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 9:01 PM |


This is why student government needs to be abolished

I am so glad I got out of this racket a while ago. Turns out a member of the executive committee of the UW-Green Bay Student Government Association spends his days going through IRS documents to justify a rational discussion amongst the students about membership into the United Council of UW Students. First, off a disclaimer, I was heavily involved with United Council in the 2005-06 school year, so I may be biased.

With that, these are the e-mails that are circulating around the SGA listservs. This is the first e-mail from Erik Mims, the former student senate speaker. Nevermind the gramatical errors, the majority of it is a blantant lie and cannot be taken seriously.

An open letter to the Student Senate,

At ORGSMORG today our Student President expressed concern with United Council regarding their efforts to seek UW-Green Bay as a member campus through referendum in the spring elections. Last year, UWGB was a member campus; however when SGA asked for their assistance in the budget process, their self-proclaimed “student rallying voice” was silent. Upon expressing this concern our President was told she needed to “get over it”.

Is this the type of behavior appropriate for a professional organization that receives its operating income from students? (2005 reported $589,131).

Indeed, it is time to move on from United Council, what said business sense is it for us to pay $23,200/yearly (estimated 5,800 students @ $2 per student per semester) for an organization unaware and unwilling to support the very cause they claim they exist for? Furthermore, when making a decision to spend that kind of student money, it seems prudent to question their high turnover of executive directors’ and the number of other campuses that have dropped their membership.

Finally, what does it say of an organization that who’s operation depends on student money when two requests for copies of financial statements made in April 2006 by SGA, which they are compelled by law to provide, go ignored? (Complaint recently forwarded to the IRS). Should the student government not provide some oversight on behalf of UWGB students?

United Council has been unwilling to hold its programs or its employees accountable for achieving the very goals they have identified.

The Board of Regents currently does not evaluate the fiscal responsibility of United Council on a yearly basis; this increases the risk to the student, much more so in the case when student government does not provide adequate oversight.

This trend of United Council sustainability unchecked by the constantly changing of student government and our lack of a system that collects and shares institutional knowledge in regards to membership in United Council. This condition, which is further aggravated by their decision to ignore the request for financials, causes limited visibility which increases risks to students.

You might ask, but what would we do without United Council? A reasonable question. The answer is, look what we were able to accomplish without them. Last year, the Student President and I took on the budget fight, meeting with elected officials which include both state and federal representatives. Furthermore, we took a trip to Madison and made our case to the System President… and at that point we didn’t selfishly share the concern of just our campus, but of all the campuses who were suffering the same issue as confirmed by the AP news article.

This year we have one of the best Legislative Affairs Secretaries than I have seen yet, she has accomplished much more than what United Council has in the last few years while we were a member campus. It is true that it is demanding of the position, however, wouldn’t an elevation of compensation similar to perhaps the same as the SUFAC Secretary be more prudent than paying $23,200 a year to an
organization that has failed us, and by their own admission & actions are unwilling to engage in discussion or provide transparency of their organization?

Almost surely the Student Senate will address this matter at the next session; I encourage senators to come prepared to discuss this matter seriously as it is a big decision that will impact the student body. Already we have received ambiguous data when asked by Secretary Roder, how much goes towards pay and how much goes towards lobbying?

I do not have to give a ballpark figure; the documents speak for themselves,

2005 tax documents - salary compensation - $242,114 + additional employee benefits $26,370, totaling = $268,484.

Lobbying - $4,250, representing 1.5% of the employee compensation, and .007 % of the revenue.

Senators, please do not treat this matter casually, ask questions such as I suggest below, consult with Secretary Winden when in doubt about the numbers – he is there to answer your questions.

Ask –

Why, despite UWGB students paying thousands of dollars in membership fees to United Council has the Board of Regents and Student Senate not compiled data or developed performance measures to evaluate the job they are doing?

Is the decision by the Board of Regents and Student Senate supporting UC referenda engaging in a practice that fails to hold United Council accountable for achieving its organizational purpose undermining the rationale to support them in the first place?

Are we making a sound business arrangement decision? Has the Student Senate inquired with the Legislative Affairs Secretary to other possible state, national organizations, both profit and non-profit alternatives?

Are we ready to become members of United Council again? Do we have evaluation procedures in places? Have we verified that they do? Have they shown improvement in their organization including a desirable program result that would benefit UW-Green Bay?

Is it professional of an organization that proclaims their staff is professional to wear a Bluetooth Headset while presenting to a potential member campus?

Finally, why have we gone this long, this year without a Faculty Representative?

Thanks for your time,

Erik Mims
Former Speaker of the Student Senate
(2005-2006)

Then, Michael Heller, the SGA Student Senate Speaker responded with this e-mail, which actually makes sense--without the hours spent on the IRS Web site.

Senators,

I would like to take a moment to respond to the negative e-mails that were sent to the Senate in regards to United Council. My personal opinion aside, I'm writing this e-mail so that each Senator can make their own informed opinion knowing the full circle of facts. It is also important to note that if legislation comes before the Student Senate it would be to add UC to the ballot for our spring elections. We wouldn't be deciding on whether or not to join the organization but would instead be allowing the student body to make that choice. We do, in fact, work in a democratic fashion and it would be selfish and irresponsible on our part to deny students the ability to make this choice. Now I'll talk about the valid concerns mentioned in other e-mails to the Senate.

Oversight was brought up as one of the major concerns. The oversight of United Council is, in fact, quite extensive. The students of each member campus must approve the United Council budget before it is enacted each year and if any changes need to be made such as entering into a new contract or hiring a new staff member, those changes must be first be approved by the UC board. This process is similar to the way additional budget requests at UWGB go before the SUFAC committee of Senate. Furthermore, if UWGB becomes a member campus, our students are welcome to run for office within UC, providing even more extensive oversight for our campus.

Another concern with United Council was the organizations spending habits when it comes to lobbying. UC performs its lobbying by meeting with legislators to talk about student issues and encourage them to prioritize those issues. I'd like to remind everyone (especially those writing uninformed e-mails) that because United Council is a nonprofit 501 (c) (3) classified organization, it is legally required to remain nonpartisan. It is important to note that lobbying has to be done in a different manner when an organization has this special tax status. Groups such as the Sierra club lost this status decades ago because they funnel money, time, and resources into specific partisan campaigns so that these candidates will support their agenda. It would be illegal for UC to use these tactics. UC lobbying is done not through endorsing candidates and campaign donations, but rather through the lobbying staff members of UC who are paid compensation. This compensation is included in the salary section (as opposed to the lobbying section) of the UC budget. Finally, numerous elections were swayed with the student vote during the past election with the help of UC student voting campaigns. If this trend continues, legislators will begin to take students much more seriously. This student voice is needed to curtail rising tuition; UC can't accomplish it on its own.

One last concern was the poor representation afforded to UWGB by UC. I'll ask you now, how can an organization represent a school that does not participate in that organization? This is similar to how legislators historically haven't listened to students because they don't vote. UWGB lacked a voting voice on the UC board of directors for half of the 2005-2006 academic year because our student body president fired and failed to replace this representation. In addition, UWGB either lacked full representation or had no representation at every UC General Assembly, a time when the direction of UC campaigns is formulated and voted upon by member
delegations. As I stated at our last Senate meeting, we make up United Council. If we fail to participate and vote in the organization it seems obvious that the organization will not address our specific needs and will instead concentrate on the needs of the voting members. The same goes for any organization that takes its direction from its voting members.

Maybe we can fight tuition increases and financial aid decreases on our own instead of joining the super-majority of UW institutions. It is possible that we could be successful but usually strength comes in numbers, as the saying goes. I challenge you all to form your own opinion on this issue now that you see both sides of the story. Don't take my word for it, and don't take the word of anyone else. Review the facts and decide for yourselves how you feel about United Council but please remember that your opinion may not be the opinion of the students you represent.

And then, shortly thereafter, Mims responded with this:

If to ask questions, openly correspond with those that represent me, and ask that before a $23,200 decision is set forth and certified by the Student Senate to be worthy of the student body’s determination that alternatives be identified (whether any exist or do not exist), evaluation standards be considered to include a data exchange between new student administrations, constitutes as a negative email,

Then so be it, I sent a “negative” email, or is it perhaps a different view than what the Speaker suggests followed?

I simply am asking Student Senators to apply critical thinking skills to this question, and not make a decision to put the senate’s certification upon a potentially costly venture.

Are there alternatives (has anyone asked the Legislative Affairs Secretary to research alternatives to include national, regional, both profit and non-profit)? How are the alternative records compared to United Council? Does United Council indeed have the monopoly on this type of representation?

Are the financial oversights sufficient? Have you looked at their fiscal policy?

I can assure you there is no mention of an independent auditor who reports to the UC Board, this document you can find on their website.

What is their track record and performance? How many advertisements have they put in newspapers to share student issues with the community? Were they the only ones that effected student election swings?

What explains their high turnover of Executive Directors?

I believe the efforts of our Legislative Affairs Secretary and her committee, along with the will of the student “voting voice” had one of the highest off-presidential election turnouts seen for UWGB yet.

The Speaker mentions their special tax exemption of 501 (c) (3) status; it is true they have to abide by certain laws, including sending financials requested by any public entity. SGA sent two separate requests in April of 2006; neither was responded to, compelling a complaint to be filed with the IRS.

United States T.D. 8818 makes it clear that –

Responsible persons of a tax-exempt organization who fail to provide the documents as required may be subject to a penalty of $20 per day for as long as the failure continues. There is a maximum penalty of $10,000 for each failure to provide a copy of an annual information return. There is no maximum penalty for the failure to provide a copy of an exemption application.

I again ask, what does it say of a “professional” organization that they proclaim to be who responds to our Student President who tries to discuss a significant concern she has, that she needs to “get over it”? Regardless if you support the Student President or not, she received more votes than any other candidate did for anything… she was elected by the students, thus, should any external influence be telling our President this? What if a State Representative or Senator attempts to discuss a concern they have, will United Council professional staff tell the lawmaker that they need to “get over it”?

That, ladies and gentlemen, is what I find unacceptable and unprofessional of an organization whose professional staff has quarter of a million dollars tied up in wages and fringe benefits.

Finally, I ask you not to confuse my request to critically evaluate legislative action
regarding United Council as an opinion that the organization’s purpose is not a good idea, quite the contrary. I just believe that there are alternatives available. Last year when we lobbied to save the budget cut of yet another police officer, an important issue given that 150 beds had been added on campus along with significant physical assets such as MAC Hall and the Kress Center, the representatives we met with, which included U.S. Rep. Mark Green, stated that they prefer to hear from the UWGB student body rather than United Council.

Four elected representatives shared this with us. Given that, what is their effectiveness?

I only ask that a critical evaluation be afforded this decision, as should be applied to every voting decision asked of senate. Ask questions, talk to senior Senators such as Senator Czypinski, Navin, or Seleskie, ask them what they think, what kind of questions they would ask. Talk to Secretary Winden, ask him to go over what the numbers in the documents previously forwarded indicate.

Thanks for your time,

Erik Mims

So what does it all mean? It means that most people in student government are worthless. The executive branch of student government is worthless. And that all they care about is their own vested self-interests.

While no action is completely selfless, I do believe that Mr. Heller has a point--that working together, instead of seperately, works better in the halls of the Capitol and in Van Hise Hall.

There are universal issues that students are extremely concerned about. I consider it a three-ring circus. Tution is one of them. Financial aid is another. State funding is a third. The rest, for the lack of a better term, are on the fringes and are side shows. We can pick and choose what side shows we want to view and be a part of, but you can't dismiss the main event in the center of the big top.

I have had my difference with many of the issues and campaigns of United Council. I have a major problem with the UW System admissions policy and their push for more affirmative action. However, I can choose not to participate in that push. When it comes time for tuition hikes, financial aid or other system-wide impacts, we join together for the fight.

One of the most amazing experiences was to see that more than 50 students from a majority of the UW campuses attend the July 2005 UW Regents meeting where they voiced their opposition to the tuition hikes. It worked. For the first time ever, a Regent other than the student Regent, voted against the tuition hikes. Five regular regents, along with the student regent, voted agaist the 7 percent tuition hike. Interesting, eh?

This internal discussion amongst the student government in my eyes is a joke. While I admit there are accountability issues with United Council, especially with the funding of it, the isolationism that UWGB students are getting is not going to work for them in the long run.

Just a thought or two.

EDIT: At the request of my insider from within student governance statewide (who lurks in the shadows and is long since retired like myself ), I have removed some of my more poignant comments about a certain specific person. I have received some calls and some e-mails as to wondering who I received this from. As someone trained in journalism, I respect the fact of anonymity at the request of the source. I can assure you that it is not someone at UW-Green Bay or has ever been associated with UWGB.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 8:29 PM |

Thursday, January 18, 2007
You'd think the Spice Boys have something better to report on

But they don't. Instead they pick on Brandon Rosner, John Gard'd campaign manager.

After swallowing hard and accepting that he had lost his congressional bid to Democratic political novice Steve Kagen, then-outgoing Assembly Speaker John Gard knew just what he had to do:

Arrange for taxpayers to give his soon-to-be former campaign manager a bonus by putting him on the state payroll for six weeks.

Brandon Rosner landed a job as Gard's administrative assistant beginning Nov. 15 - just a week and a day after the Republican leader lost to Kagen, an Appleton physician who captured 51% of the vote.

Rosner kept the post until Dec. 29. He was not paid while he was on a three-week vacation during his brief stint with the state.

Bottom line: He walked away with about $3,500 to buy Christmas presents.

What made this temporary job particularly sweet is that Rosner scored a pay hike from his campaign job. In the first 11 months of last year, Rosner, a 2002 graduate of the Milwaukee School of Engineering, netted a salary of $34,957. Many campaigns report only what a staffer is paid after taxes.

Gard defended the hiring of Rosner, whom Gard said he has known since Rosner was 8.

"Hey, I guess I felt like it was a good move, a temporary hire," said Gard, who collected per diem for working in Madison only nine days in November and December. "We got our work done and moved on."

...

Rosner was nowhere nearly as quotable regarding his temporary state job.

"It was just an opportunity that came available after the election in the speaker's office," said Rosner, adding that he's still looking for a more permanent opportunity.

Rosner tried to end the interview there, but we told him that we had a couple of other questions, including why his state work schedule was so erratic, working some days four hours and others 10, and whether he made more money as an underling than he did when running Gard's campaign.

His answer: "I don't recall."

Wait a minute. You don't recall whether you got a pay hike?

"That's correct."

But he was certain of one thing: The state job was not a payback for what he did for Gard's campaign.

"Not at all - nope," said a clearly irritated Rosner. "Do you guys have any other questions other than that item?"

Nope, not at all.

Yes, sometimes people don't actually look at their check stubs. It happens when you have obviously better things to do than sit around in a newsroom, and pick who you're going to pick on today.

While I can't defend Brandon as what he did in the Capitol because I just don't know, but what I can say is whatever he did, the taxpayers got a deal at $3,500. Brandon is one of the hardest working people I've ever met. Whatever he did, I am 100 percent sure that he gave it his best.

posted by Jon Hayden at 1:03 PM |

Monday, January 15, 2007
Dr. Millionaire dodges all of the questions

If you think Dr. Millionaire was bad in debates, check out this un-edited video of Kagen dodging all of the questions.

HT: Kevin @ Lakeshore Laments

posted by Jon Hayden at 11:11 PM |

Tuesday, January 09, 2007
KRM sales tax dead, but press on for trains

Just after they propose cutting the sales tax for the train and buses, the Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority has decided to scrap the plan for a one-half percent increase in sales taxes to pay for projects that are not needed.

The Southeastern Wisconsin Regional Transit Authority took a step back from a regional sales tax today, leaving questions about how a proposed commuter train line could be financed.

But the authority did ask the Legislature to put it in charge of running the KRM Commuter Link, a 33-mile train line that would connect Milwaukee, Racine, Kenosha and the southern suburbs with 14 round trips each weekday.

Members of the three-county authority decided today not to move forward from their preliminary vote to ask the Legislature to authorize a two-tiered 0.5% sales tax to build and operate the train line and to take public bus systems off the property tax.

In the original proposal, 0.05%, or 5 cents on a $100 purchase, would be used for the KRM Commuter Link, which would cost $237 million to build and $14.7 million a year to operate. Milwaukee, Racine and Kenosha counties then could levy up to 0.45% more, or 45 cents on a $100 purchase, to replace levy support for the buses.

After the sales tax drew political opposition, however, the authority put that option on hold to explore other possibilities. Among those under discussion are using a portion of the 2-cent-a-gallon gas tax that now pays for cleaning up pollution caused by leaking underground fuel tanks, or structuring some sort of tax incremental financing district to take advantage of projected property value increases around train stations.

So a using a tax that pays for environmental protection and cleanup? This makes absolutely no sense. Either they plan on not cleaning up leaking gas tanks, or they plan on raising the tax, or both. So the idea is that we're going to raid that fund, to pay for something completely unrelated. Don't you just love big government?

The second idea is possibly an idea, a TIF. But once again, instead of collecting property taxes today, we'll collect them down the road--which doesn't pay for the project today. Sure, you can bond, but that will create more debt that will have to pay off.

Here is my plan if they really want these trains: If the business community really wants it, let them pay for it. They do all of the talking how it will bring substancial industry and revenue to the area. Put your money where your mouth is. Private enterprises, in partnership with municipalities, do work. Afterall, look at the telco's, the cable co's, and energy co's. They are raking in profits all while spending billions on infrastructure.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 10:25 PM |


Just how low will Kagen go?

Not even two weeks into his tenure as a Congressman, Dr. Millionaire Steve Kagen is already making an ass out of himself. So much for together, seems like this doctor likes to divide.

In the January 2007 edition of The Scene (www.scenenewspaper.com), Representative Dr. Steve Kagen, M.D. (Democrat-Appleton) had some interesting things to say about his recent meetings in Washington, D.C. According to The Scene, Kagen confronted Deputy Chief of Staff Karl Rove in one of The White House’s restrooms. Holding the bathroom door closed, Kagen told Rove, "You’re in The White House and you think (sic) your safe, huh? You recognize me? My name’s Dr. Multimillionaire and I kicked your ass.”

At another point The Scene reports Kagen told Vice President Cheney, “Mr. Vice President, thank you for your service to the nation and thank you so much for coming to Green Bay and campaigning against me. I couldn’t have won without your help.”

When meeting President Bush The Scene reports that Kagen told Bush, “Mr. President thank you for coming to Green Bay. My name is Dr. Multimillionaire. That was before the race. Now they call me Doctor (sic) Thousandaire. I couldn’t have won without you coming.” The Scene also reports that Kagen purposely referred to Laura Bush as Barbara when he met her. According to The Scene Kagen stated when meeting the First Lady, “Hi Barbara, how are ya?” The Scene relayed that Kagen did this because Kagen learned “that the meanest thing you can say to another gentleman is he is a fine fellow and you then refer to his spouse by a different name."

We knew he was a racist with his Injun comment. We all knew he was a pompous ass with the way he ran his campaign. I didn't realize you could call out big oil in a debate, but drive a Chevy Suburban to it. (I guess you have to make up for things being as small as he is.) But I didn't think he'd get this low this soon.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 4:40 PM |

Sunday, January 07, 2007
Back in Action

Lime green didn't cut it for me, so its 3:33 a.m. and I figured out the problems with Blogger.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 3:33 AM |

Saturday, January 06, 2007
More on the SE Wisconsin commuter train

I stumbled upon this Web site this morning and it looks like there is a group ready to go if there is going to be a referendum for the tax shifting to pay for trains and buses in Southeastern Wisconsin. It is dubbed the Southeastern Wisconsin Coalition for Transit NOW.

Of course it is mostly propaganda about the trains, the economic benefits and everything else under the sun. There were two things that struck me (1) the misinformation on the economic benefits of the train and the project; and (2) the absence of the proposed consolidation of the bus systems. (Sorry no link, because there isn't anything on the site.)

Somehow raising sales taxes for trains increases economic output. I've taken a few economics classes and I still don't understand how--mostly because in reality it doesn't. They use three examples of how spending millions of dollars benefits the communities.

  • HarborPark in Kenosha, WI was 60 acres of lake front property left vacant and blighted after the Chrysler plant closed. The property was assessed at $0. One of the key goals of the HarborPark development was to attract residents that would use Metra for their daily commuting. A over 300 units will be built with
    value of over $100 million. The annual property tax revenues will be about $2.5 million when completed in 2006.
  • Arlington Towne Square in Arlington Heights, IL is one of five developments that are a part of a very recent major downtown redevelopment. In total, $200 million was invested near a new Metra station (Metra service was existing before new station was built). The Arlington Towne Square redevelopment used old housing/commercial real estate that was valued at 2.5 - $3 million and brought in $65,000 annually in property and sales tax. This property was transformed into the $65 million Arlington Towne Square mixed-use tower that includes residential, commercial, retail, underground parking and a theatre. Occupancy is near capacity in 2 years. $1.5 million in annual property and sales tax are realized from the Arlington Towne Square development alone.
  • Fox Island Place in Aurora, IL is a landmark historical hotel that has been renovated into a 110 unit apartment building. It is situated a few blocks from a recently renovated and expanded Metra station. Occupancy is always at full capacity with a waiting list. According to the manager, the biggest selling point of Fox Island Place is their proximity to the Metra station. About half of their tenants choose to not own cars, instead using Metra and other transit services. The manager stated that without the Metra station, occupancy would be cut in half and the historical landmark apartments would not have been developed.

Interesting how this organization pointed out two cities (in Illinois no less) that were already connected with the Metra System in the Chicagoland area. The author doesn't want to point out that the infrastructure was already there--the projects were renovations of train stations that had no new impact on service, or new service.

Also, let's take a look at the taxbase for the two cities and compare them to Kenosha, Racine and Milwaukee. (Based on per-capita income from the U.S. Census.) Take a look at the counties and it gets closer, but a considerable difference

I'm sure I picked the wrong data to look at, but look at discrepencies of the total amount of dollars in the counties. Cook County residents can have a massive train service and still pay significantly less when it comes to transporation compared to any of the Wisconsin counties. Building trains and train stations aren't cheap. Taxpayers in Southeastern Wisconsin cannot afford this project.

And let's not forget about Harbor Park...
This group claims that Harbor Park was built for the Metra. In reality, it was built because something had to be done with the land and the city took the ball and ran with it. It is true that the land of the old American Motors (Not Chrysler) plant was worthless. It was contaminated by toxic waste nearly 20 feet down and the environmental risk of building over it was severe. Kenosha did a great job of redeveloping it, but it wasn't overnight. It took them a decade from when the last AMC smoke stack was demolished in 1988 to roughly 1998 when most of the framework of the Harbor Park was developed.

Metra has been stopping in Kenosha at least since the closure of the AMC plant. Redevelopment wasn't a result of the Metra. Redevelopment was a necessity of downtown Kenosha as teh Village of Pleasant Prairie and Town of Somers exploded outside of city limits. In the 1990s, downtown Kenosha was dead. There were numerous attempts to change the way it worked, but they all failed. They took out the through streets, they put them back in. They put in a worthless trolley system and a massive bus station. All of these were failures, until the redevelopment was finalized.

Throughout the course of Kenosha's downtown redevelopment, there was no rennovation of the Metra station. In fact, it technically isn't a station, rather the northern stop. The "station" is a convenience store that you can purchase snacks, your parking pass for the lot and get some basic information on the Metra service. The train had zero impact on Kenosha's redevelopment process. There isn't anything that connects the train station to the new Harbor Park development.

Their story is full of holes.

And travel time will increase with commuter rail...
On the same page, they list the total time from all of the various stops on the rail line. Last time I wrote about this, I came to these stats for the time for Amtrak:

And with the proposed KRM line:

And let's take a look at the proposed stops along the Wisconsin lakeshore:

My oh my, that is a lot of stops. I am trying to think of where they would put a train station in Somers that is near something useful. The tracks they will use run parallel to Wisconsin 32, aka Sheridan Road. The only logical place I can think of to put this station would be on Hwy E (12th Street). But there is a problem, there is a fire station next to the tracks. Hmm. I suppose one could be put on Hwy A. But that isn't where the population in Somers is. The population is mostly west of Green Bay Road (Wisconsin 31). If someone in Somers wanted to take a train to Chicago, they would be better off driving the 5-10 minutes to Sturtevant and taking the Amtrak. If they want to go north, they have easy access to Interstate 94 and Wisconsin 31.

Now this is where any numbers will look good. This KRM group posted this on their site:

A recent Transit NOW survey of 100 seniors from Caledonia, a potential station site on the KRM Commuter rail line, provides another good example of how commuter rail increases visitor spending in a city. Of 99 seniors surveyed, 100% said that they would take commuter rail. Of those 99, 90% would go to Milwaukee, 42% would go to Kenosha, 17% would go to Chicago, 14% would go to Racine or South Milwaukee. The stated purpose of their trips was 66% shopping, 65% musical shows, 51 % restaurants, 47% theatre, symphony or ballet, 43% would go to museums. These are trips that they would otherwise likely not have made.

Of course seniors are going to use a train. Hell, they are the primary consumer of the bus system in all three counties. Their mobility is limited because of various factors: health, drivers license, money, etc. There are other factors too. Racine buses don't run up in Caledonia, nothing does. The proper question would have been to 100 random people, not seniors. Or, 100 random people age 18-65, people that work for a living.

And what about the buses?
Seriously, this is what matters most. We can argue all we want about the trains, at least we all agree that it is a new tax. The tax shifting for the bus system will result in an increase in total taxes. That is a guarantee. Then the rural residents of Kenosha and Racine Counties will pay for something they don't have access to. Stupid.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 10:47 AM |

Friday, January 05, 2007
Kids sure are dumbasses these days

First it was Grand Theft Auto, and now its Saddam's hanging. Kids will do anything they see on TV these days.

Sergio Pelico was found dead Sunday in his apartment bedroom in the Houston-area city of Webster, said Webster police Lt. Tom Claunch. Pelico's mother told police he had previously watched a news report on Saddam's death.

"It appears to be accidental," Claunch said. "Our gut reaction is that he was experimenting."

An autopsy of the fifth-grader's body was pending.

Julio Gustavo, Sergio's uncle, said the boy was a happy and curious child.

He said Sergio had watched TV news with another uncle on Saturday and asked the uncle about Saddam's death.

"His uncle told him it was because Saddam was real bad," Gustavo said. "He (Sergio) said, 'OK.' And that was it."

Of course, the left is going going to push for the 6PM news to be blocked by the V-Chip now.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 12:58 AM |

Thursday, January 04, 2007
Dr. Millionaire takes office and he wants to continue his practice too

Just when you think Steve Kagen couldn't be a worse representative to Northeastern Wisconsin, the Green Bay Press-Gazette gives us this little bit of information:

U.S. Rep. Steve Kagen will be allowed to continue seeing patients on a limited basis in his medical practice as an allergist after he is sworn in as a member of Congress today.

Kagen, D-Appleton, who moved into his new congressional offices in Room 1232 of the Longworth House Office Building on Wednesday, said he would see patients occasionally and not keep regular office hours.

"My first job is to serve the people as their congressman and that job is Monday through Friday," Kagen said in an interview.

When he does see patients, Kagen will not receive any personal compensation.

"We can bill the patient or their insurance carrier, receive payment for those services and that payment goes for the overhead," he explained, noting that the terms under which his medical practice can continue operating were outlined in a letter late last month from the House Committee on Standards of Official Conduct.

So you're going to see patients on Saturday and Sunday? I guess when you don't get appointed to any meaningful committee, you need something to pass the time. I guess "no patient left behind" is no longer on the forefront of Kagen's priorities, but soaking the insurance companies for his serivices is. Interesting.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 5:10 PM |

Wednesday, January 03, 2007
2006, it was great knowin' ya

Like everyone else who writes a blog, I was going to do some year-end review type deal. I thought 2006 was a year that was worthy of such review. I started jotting down notes one night of all of the things that had happened.

I was amazed, and kind of shocked and weirded-out, at the events of what took place.

We had the big election where if you were racist, corrupt or just down right sleezy, you were elected.

If you killed hundreds of thousands of your own people, you were a hero amongst the likes of Jimmy Carter and Amnesty International.

If you thought that the Holocaust, or 9/11, didn't happen, you got to keep your job and be protected in the media.

Intentionally misleading the public on a campaign issue would only backfire as Wisconsin was smart enough to read a referendum question.

Millions of people were blacked out for high-profile NFL games, in favor padding the pockets of a monopoly. Cable companies call you out on it, and the viewers lose.

Any moron (myself included) can go online and become big by writing a blog, creating a video and putting it on You Tube, or exploiting yourself on Myspace or Facebook. Google would buy into these ideas and by YouTube, in the single worse investment ever.

Brown County residents re-elect Guy Zima and later find out that Zima likens Carol Kelso to Adolf Hitler and her subordinates to the likes of the Nuremburg trials.

Isreal attempts the Rumsfeld Doctorine of war by invading Lebannon, only to retreat and lose the month-long war.

Liberals think that they can become the president as Hillary, Obama, Guilliani, McCain and Edwards all but announce their plans for 2008.

The only good news was Intel released their next-generation processor, dubbed Core 2, which is a technological breakthrough.

If this was 2006, what will 2007 be like? By looking at the results of the Fiesta Bowl on Jan 2, expect anything--especially the Statue of Liberty play.

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posted by Jon Hayden at 10:19 PM |

Monday, January 01, 2007
Happy New Year!

There is nothing better than watching the Packers stomp on the Bears, a case
of MGD and good company with friends to ring in the new year! I wish
everyone a happy new year!

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posted by Jon Hayden at 1:06 AM |

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