Radicalized in America!

Madtown is Mad

Mar

10

by

Live BEAST Report: Wisconsin Capitol in Lockdown

Madtown @ night

I left the Capitol at about 6:30 am CST, and I was assured by a Wisconsin state trooper that I’d be let back in at 8 am — regular business hours. Some 40 people remained in the building. As thousands descend on the Capitol, there are reports trickling out that the people who occupied the building overnight have been hauled out through underground tunnels (not confirmed). No one is being let in. Not Jesse Jackson. Not State Assembly Dem Joe Parisi. They both tried.

The ever growing crowd is determined to gain entry. They’re getting frustrated, but calm, peace and respect for the cops prevails. “They’re just doing their jobs,” Jesse Jackson told the crowd in front of the main entrance. Yes, they are doing their job. Keeping the gate.

The crowd keeps growing and it’s cold. I had to get some coffee. John Nichols from The Nation is sitting behind me, tapping on a netbook and sipping a cup. He’s a celebrity in Madison. As our Union cabbie told us the other night, “It’s a good lefty town.”

Right now about 3,000 students have walked out of class and they’re marching toward the Capitol…with cop car escorts. Maybe they truly are doing their jobs. Madtown is mad about last night.

Just in: cops are unloading crowd control gear in front of the building. Shit.

Stay tuned…

UPDATE:

We’ve received reports that approximately 150 people are still inside the Capitol. No riots in progress; and even less riot control. The cops are being cool, though they won’t let us in the media entrance. The one flatfoot blocking the door claims to have never heard of this “Buffalo Beast” or “prank calls” or “Governor Walker.” Stonewalled. The freedom of the press, without laminated junk dangling from their necks, is being abridged! I demand unfettered access. “I am David Gregory’s favorite liberal blogger,” I howled. Stone. Fucking. Walled.

Oh, and the assembly is ramming through this bullshit bill as I type. People are truly angry. The Capitol is surrounded, and yet the people are impotent. We’re just walking around in the cold while decency dies inside. But recall efforts are underway. The people remain positive, for the most part.

Trotsky’s hitting the “medicine” pretty hard, and he’s starting to scare people. I think. I have no other way to account for the overwhelming distrust of the media present here today. No one wants to be Brietbarted, O’Keefed or out-Foxed. Names are held close to the chest, placards even closer. I find it odd, but I can’t blame them.

One jackass Tea Party guy tried to rile a ruckus, but we refused to feed the troll real meat. He melted and evaporated before our eyes.

I’ve not slept in some time. And I likely won’t sleep anytime soon. “You can sleep when you’re dead,” say the natives.

Stay tuned…

UPDATE (4:45 pm CST):

The State Assembly passed the bill, as expected. Inside the Capitol, Madtown was mad. I don’t know what else to say.

________

Posted in News

  • Jo

    Thought this was America? Great job, keep it up.

  • Red

    From a lonely liberal in Texas, keep fighting the good fight up there.

  • Cor

    So it didn’t occur to anyone to shut down the assembly? But Oooooooh – we sure are MAD. There’s even a slim chance this is – gasp!- illegal. Let’s complain through legitimate channels and be taken seriously by Count Fuck Dracula! Dracula understands pitchforks, goddamnit! WTF is WRONG with you people?

  • Anteprepro

    If you want to write your treatise on why protest is uncalled for or is inherently ineffectual, please do so. Otherwise, I am fairly certain that something like this warrants anger, and warrants protest. If there are “legitimate channels” to use that people aren’t also looking to right now, please go out and inform them about it.

  • Cor

    By “Legitimate channels” I meant arson. Glad to clear that up.

  • Anteprepro

    Ah, well alright then. Thumbs up from me.

  • Sue Stiles

    this is a joke right? the solution is to vote republican? yikes. what you think spanky? they legitimint?SS

  • Anteprepro

    Yes, the person who said that was a troll whose been changing his name.

  • Ozinator

    hmmm

    Josh keep fighting (or eating–whatever you are doing there)

    Anteprepro? Are you your own troll?

  • Anteprepro

    Earthquakes are usually the cause of tsunamis, so it’s not that peculiar of a combo. And while I’m being a pedant, “whose” in my last comment should be “who’s” and, no, I am not Mr. Troll Warlock Assassin. Which…is that just a reference to Charlie Sheen’s recent rantings, or is it a WOW reference? And how trippy is it that there can be confusion between the two….

  • Sue Stiles

    troll…..it is only the intellectually lost who argue. OSCAR WILDE

  • Sue Stiles

    I AM NOT A MULTI-POST-FAKER!SS and if you want further confirmation, i will be glad to provide it. I have only been on this site for a week. I am not about invalidating the views of others, having to be right, or he said-she said pointless shit. I hope that will clear-up the obvious mis-understanding.

  • Cali

    this is sick. thanks for posting this. I;m so tired of propaganda style news. btw, democrats and republicans are both in the worst interest of everyone but themselves. They are the mafia, inner circles. Anyone who associates with these organizations are misguided, misinformed, or just crooked.

  • http://alfrankenweb.com/forum Sir Rhino

    From JSOnline:

    Sen. Glenn Grothman (R-West Bend) said Wednesday that he was approached on Tuesday by a protester outside the M&I Bank branch across the street from the state Capitol. Grothman said the man put him a bear hug, but did not hurt him. “It was not a malicious bear hug,” Grothman said. “It was like, ‘Let’s get together better.’ I didn’t take it maliciously. I talked to him and schmoozed him. Of course, it was inappropriate.”

    So was Dougie Johnston at Madison? ;-)

  • http://alfrankenweb.com/forum Sir Rhino

    By The Way …

    Jason Linkins @ Huffington Post reported

    Murphy is likely to capture the the Green Party ballot line, state Green Party co-chairman Peter LaVenia told Roll Call on Wednesday.
    “The local out in western New York has talked to a number of different candidates, and they forwarded the recommendation,” LaVenia said. Murphy “was the only one that they came to the conclusion represents Green values … and is willing to change his registration to Green and run as a Green.”

    LaVenia said the state party is expected to finalize its endorsement by the end of the week. The special election is scheduled for May 24.

    **************

    Is this true? If so I think it is a terrible idea if going Green Party means votes taken away from a Democratic candidate and a straight line path to the political obsurity Ralph Nader currently ‘enjoys’.

    ????

  • admin

    Dear Mr. Rhinoceros,
    While we can neither confirm nor deny Murphy’s candidacy at this juncture, we can help you understand something: The two party system is a sham — two sides of the same coin masquerading as separate entities. We at The BEAST reject your simplistic, third-party-scapegoat narrative.

  • http://alfrankenweb.com/forum Sir Rhino

    Thank you for replying. I will try to be brief in my response, but I confess a tendency to create 30 page PhD dissertations at the drop of a hat.

    There is some truth in saying that Democrats are part of the problem (for instance, it is obvious to me that Blanche Lincoln was as much in the pockets of the health care insurance industry as any Republican) but to think the two parties are two sides of the same coin is, in my opinion, also simplistic.

    It is not the Democrats who are trying to kill the unions nationwide, nor was it Republicans who fled Wisconsin to stall the passage of the bill, which gave time for the demonstrations to build into a movement. While the neo-con Republicans are evil, the worst I think about Democratic politicians, in general, is that they are pussies for not standing up to them.

    The key question for Mr. Murphy at this point might be; “What are you trying to accomplish?”. If the idea is to cut the balls off the plutocrats’ lackeys, then helping them win an election either directly or indirectly is counter-productive. If Ian runs for congress under the Green Party and does not get elected, and if the votes he got plus the votes the Democratic candidate got surpass the votes the Republican candidate got, he will in fact have indirectly helped the Republican get elected.

    There are, in my estimation, Democratic politicians who, while not perfect, are above reproach in their ideals and actions. Among them is Al Franken.

    Perhaps this would be a good time to talk with some of them and give them a chance to convince you that you and the country are better served by remaining a Democrat.

    If you would like to continue this discussion in private, I will give you my email address in your Contact Us page. If you would rather continue in public, that is agreeable to me as well.

    As always, I wish you the best of all possible luck

    SR

  • http://alfrankenweb.com/forum Sir Rhino

    I see there is an important election coming up in Wisconsin on April 4, that for a seat on the state Supreme Court where Walker ally David Prosser is up for reelection against Democrat Marla Stephans. Given the mood of Wisconsinites, it should be a cake walk for Stephans, right? After all Prosser is a real piece of shit who will almost certainly vote to uphold Walkers union killing bill (see http://thinkprogress.org/2011/03/20/prosser-calls-cj-bitch/ for details).

    However, it’s a three way race with Joel Winnig running as an independent. If the anti-Republican vote is split between Stephans and Winnig, then POS Prosser could be reelected.

    Occasionally a third party candidate can be elected (Senator Bernie Sanders of Vermont for instance) but by in large third party candidates, if they have any effect at all, only act as spoilers in this country. Probably the best known was Ralph Nader in Florida in the 2000 presidential election.

    Yes, the Republicans stole that election, so Ralph’s campaign was not solely to blame, but IT DID HELP THE REPUBLICANS TO WIN. This was so not lost on the Republicans that in 2004 when he tried to run again, it was GOP donors who fattened his coffers (see http://articles.sfgate.com/2004-07-09/news/17435056_1_nader-voters-nader-s-campaign-presidential-candidate-ralph-nader for details)

    Ian, I’m sure the Green Party has many good people in it, and I’m also sure that some of their platform appeals to you, but unless you think you can win as a Green, which is more important … getting those slimy Republican motherfuckers out of office or reforming the 2 party system or standing on principle in some other way?

    If the idea of actually getting elected to office appeals to you, how many offices have the Democrats elected people into vs how many offices have the Greens elected people into? Statistically speaking, with which party do you stand a better chance of getting elected?

    Finally, my offer to you still stands, if you are interested.
    SR

  • Sue Stiles

    darthfurious, i am sue stiles, my business phone is 585-613-8989. I challenge you to do the same. that is who i am. this is how to reach me. that is the last time i am going to say it in a post. call me a liar again and i will show you why i am called “the hired gun” and “the political assassin” by monroerising.com archive 08/30/10 the CDR thread. Or check the articles in the democrat and chronicle, either way, Quote of the day; “A MAN CANNOT BE TOO CAREFUL IN THE CHOICE OF HIS ENEMIES”. oscar wilde.regardsSS

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