Badger Blogger

Ahhh….Prolonged, government funded research just never disappoints:

“The study, which appears in the Aug. 1 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), compares the rates of child abuse and neglect among nearly 2,000 Army families with confirmed incidents of child abuse or neglect. Researchers compared rates of abuse and neglect while enlisted soldiers were at home and while they were deployed for combat operations between late 2001 and the end of 2004… Researchers found that the overall rate of child abuse and neglect was more than 40 percent higher while a soldier-parent was deployed for a combat tour than when he or she was at home.”

So, would the findings of this study be yet another reason for our apologists to ask our enemies around the world to please stop hating us so much? If not for us, for our children?

Today the paper reported that crime and violence was down in Milwaukee, and the credited the aggressive policing that is FINALLY being done… When I read that column today, I gave a chuckle, it seemed like everyone was surprised that having police targeting problem areas as they are with the Neighborhood Safety Initiative, would actually bring down violent crime… But it shouldn’t come as a surprise, it is something that Captain Frankovis would probably say is something any cop on the street could have told you for the price of a cup of coffee.

Did anyone notice how Tom Barrett found time for the media today, when there was good news, but when kids get gunned down on the streets of his city, he is no where to be found…

I wonder how many lives would have been saved if Nan Hegerty and Tom Barrett had the balls to aggressively go after the thugs a few years ago…

Oh nooooo, we can’t allow the American people to believe the economy doesn’t suck… hehehe

Consumer Confidence Hits 6-Year High
Consumer confidence hit a six-year high in July, a widely watched gauge of sentiment showed on Tuesday, as Americans shrugged off falling home prices to focus on a healthy jobs market, instead.

The New York-based Conference Board said that its Consumer Confidence Index, rebounded to 112.6, its highest level since August 2001 when it recorded a 114.0 reading. That compared to a revised 105.3 in June. The July 24 cutoff for the preliminary survey of 5,000 U.S. households was before last week’s stock market tumble, however.

“An improvement in business conditions and the job market has lifted consumers’ spirits in July,” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “Looking ahead, consumers are more upbeat about short-term economic prospects, mainly the result of a decline in the number of pessimists, not an increase in the number of optimists. This rebound in confidence suggests economic activity may gather a little momentum in the coming months.”

Are there problems in some parts of the economy? Of course there are, there will always be segments that aren’t doing as well as others, but obviously the American people aren’t as stupid as the Democrats think we are.

What is WISN doing? If they insist on piping in a radio show from Madison, at least they could make it sound decent, it sounds like she is doing the radio show from a cell phone. The audio quality stinks, it is like listening to an old time AM radio station that is almost out of range or not tuned in right… This is not the quality you expect from a 50,000 watt radio station.

It looks like the trumped up charges against New Berlin Alderman Dave Ament have finally been dropped, as the Ethics Board ruled against former alderman Paul Gallagher.

Matt Thomas has been covering this, you can find his coverage at NewBerlinNow.com

Ament Cleared!
The city Ethics Board vindicated New Berlin Alderman Dave Ament today. The board found no merit in the false charges that were brought forward by Mayor Jack Chiovatero’s close political ally - former Alderman Paul Gallagher.

I commend the Ethics Board members for seeing through the lies and deceit of Gallagher’s frivolous complaint.

It has now been almost 24 hours since we learned of the passing of Tom Snyder.

CBS ran a wonderful retrospective of Tom Snyder snippets this evening in the 11:30 – 12:30 time slot that nearly brought me to tears. If you didn’t see it, you missed a piece that was put together very professionally… I am guessing, well before his death.

If you are under a certain age (I would think about 30) you probably awoke to the talking heads yesterday, mourning the loss of one of their own, and wondered quietly: “Tom who?”

I grew up about a mile from Tom Snyder’s family home on the northwest side of Milwaukee. His mother, Marie, lived in a very modest Lannon stone house, in the shadows of Mount Mary College, until it was sold sometime in the late 90’s (from memory). I knew several of her neighbors, and even mowed her lawn a couple of times. For a woman who had a son who was on our televisions every night, albeit very late, she certainly never went to great lengths to point this out to anyone.

(more…)

Another Discrimination Lawsuit by White MPD Lieutenants

(BHB posted this comment on the previous thread in which we discussed the recent settlement for $2.65 million involving 17 White MPD Lieutenants) My position on this one is no different. Although I don’t know the names of this current group of plaintiffs, I suspect there will be those plaintiffs who are deserving and those just going along for the ride. Just a reminder to everyone: although Arthur Jones nominated Lieutenants to be promoted to Captain, the promotion couldn’t happen without the approval of a majority of the members of the Milwaukee Fire & Police Commssion who had to vote up or down on the nominee. And also remember that it is the Mayor of Milwaukee who appoints the members of the FPC with approval of the full Common Council.

• big_hairy_bubba Says:
  July 30th, 2007 at 5:47 am

  Seems like at least one more shoe is about to drop… http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=639506

  Anyobdy know how much more of this is out there? Glenn maybe?

This looks to be huge. The county, under Tom Ament and before, allowed county workers to “buy into” a plan that would turn non-pension eligible time into “five- or six-figure pension gains over a retirement lifetime.”

Pension twist costs county millions
Ignoring county law and federal tax rules, Milwaukee County let employees change history by ‘buying back’ pension time from summer jobs in their youth. A Journal Sentinel investigation prompts the county to confess to the IRS.

Hundreds of Milwaukee County workers have pumped up their pensions by a total of at least $50 million through an obscure program that skirted county laws and federal tax rules, a Journal Sentinel investigation found.

Workers ranging from gardeners and grass-cutters to county government’s highest-ranking officials have tacked on extra years of service by taking advantage of uncommonly generous “buyback” practices that convert ineligible service into pension-worthy time.

By purchasing credit, in most cases for seasonal or part-time county stints worked in their youth, employees are getting five- or six-figure pension gains over a retirement lifetime. They can retire earlier with full benefits, and some qualify for free lifetime health insurance because of their buybacks.

This could be a huge story for a long time to come. Credit where credit is due, good job Milwaukee Journal Sentinel!

Update: My comments after reading book one is in Comments.

This is my one and only Harry Potter post.

I know I am in a minority, but I just don’t get the Harry Potter phenomenon. I know people that have been waiting for months for the latest Harry Potter book to come out, and when you talk to them about it, they become giddy! Many are rereading all of the earlier books, watching movies, tracking websites… and many of my blogger friends have posted about it, some several times… And I simply don’t get any of it.

I watched one of the movies… I sat there and watched the whole thing, and when it was over, I wondered where I could go to get my two hours back (or was it three… Seemed like 6). It struck me as something that kids would enjoy, but it still baffles me that so many adults are totally hooked on the series.

Now I don’t intend this to be a slam on anyone that enjoys the books and movies (that will probable be misconstrued), I am just saying that for me, I don’t understand the fascination by adults.

Who is David Walker and why will no one heed his message?

David Walker is the U.S. Comptroller General, employed by the General Accounting Office (GAO). He holds a 15 year term of office, which started in 1998. For almost two years now, David Walker has been speaking to civic groups, university gatherings, newspaper editorial boards, and bascially anyone else willing to look at his charts and graphs. And what is David Walker’s “dirty little secret”?

David Walker has a simple message: Our country faces a dire crisis. It is saddled with “massive entitlement programs it can no longer afford”, combined with an impending Medicare and Medicaid burden which will only get worse when, beginning next year, 78 million “Baby Boomer” Americans will become Social Security recipients and medical dependents of the American taxpayer. In 1966, Medicare and Medicaid spending combined to consume 1 percent of the federal budget. Last year, Medicare and Medicaid spending totalled 19 percent. The funny thing is, with the rare exception of an editorial board here and there claiming that he is “overstating” the severity of the problem, almost no one disagrees with the substance of his message. He is accompanied on his tour by members of no less than 3 think tanks, representing the entire political spectrum.

So how can we correct our course? The answer is simple, and is found in his July 18, 2007 report to the National Press Club:

To maintain just our current debt to GDP ratio, and avoid our country’s calamitous course, Mr. Walker’s recommendation is that we “immediately increase state and local tax revenues by 16.8 percent, or immediately decrease state and local spending by 14.1 percent”.

Whew, I’m glad it’s that simple.

So why, as the GAO Chief tours the country, telling taxpayers our system will be insolvent most likely by 2040 unless we take corrective action now, do our politicians place their hands over their ears and whistle a pleasant tune?

Because talking about cutting voters’ social programs, the promises their government has made to them that it most likely won’t be able to keep, or radically raising their taxes, for some odd reason doesn’t get politicians re-elected.

And hey, they need their sweet government pensions now more than ever.

Why can’t we just take people that could do things like this, out and shoot them?

Disturbing allegations of a 10-month-old girl who was sexually assaulted. Her injuries were so bad she needed surgery.

The assault happened last month, reportedly at a daycare.

Investigators are trying to determine if the sexual assault happened inside the daycare or if it might have been a family acquaintance outside the daycare.

But no, we will gnash our teeth, bluster a bit, then after a much to short jail sentence, he will find a psychiatrist to say he is all better and needs to be released. Then we will have to find him a place to live, he will get out and do it again… It is a cycle that the bleeding hearts continue to allow to continue. The recidivism rate is what it is for a reason.

Proper course of action: Summary Execution. But again, I am the extremist.

It looks like Alderthug Michael McGee Jr. is going to be hosting his ‘ol buddies, the “straight up KKK killers” and “sick fagots,” (as McGee called them) Jon Bartlett, Daniel Masarik & Andrew Spengler. It seems that they will all be held in the same Dodge County Detention Facility… Perhaps former District Attorney “Dumb Ass” will stop in for a visit.

My favorite new blog at the JSOnline site, Proof and Hearsay has the details.
Guess who’s coming to cell block C?

Jeopardy Style:

The answer is: $474,970.24

What is the correct question.

I’ll be back later to give the question, if you know it, post it.

Answer has been posted in comments

Today is the birthday of the Cheddarsphere’s favorite pin-up girl.

Happy Birthday Plel!

Now this should really be interesting. It was the “broken windows” theory that resulted in the significant decline of crime in New York City during Rudy Guiliani’s tenure as Mayor, and it was a very large part of my crime-fighting philosophy when I was with MPD but was virtually abandoned when Nan Hegerty took over. I wonder if he’ll hear about the significant reductions in overall major crime (which included a 15.5% reduction in violent crime with a 22% reduction in armed/strongarm robberies in 2003) while I was commanding District #3 during the calendar years 2002 and 2003 and, if so, what his reaction will be. I’m very much looking forward to the results of Mr. Kelling’s study and his recommendations to the Mayor.

(From the 07-27-2007 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

“The city’s Fire and Police Commission will use an $188,400 contribution provided by the Bradley Foundation to hire the New Jersey-based Hanover Justice Group to study Milwaukee’s violent crime under the direction of George Kelling, a professor at the School of Criminal Justice at Rutgers University. He is co-author of the “broken windows” theory of crime control, which contends that unchecked disorder and other signs of crime lead to increased fear, more serious crime and more severe urban decay.

Kelling is also chairman of the nationally recognized Police Institute and is working with Chief Bill Bratton and the Los Angeles Police Department. The study will not use public dollars, according to the mayor’s office.”