Thank you, Governor Evers and members of the Wisconsin Assembly and Senate for your bipartisan effort to exempt the AmeriCorps Segal Education Award from state income tax. In particular, we acknowledge Representative David Bowen for his work submitting the proposal for inclusion in Governor Evers’s Executive Budget and Senator Dale Kooyenga for supporting the proposal […]
Tag: LTTE
Letter to the Editor: Comparing PPP, ESSER in the Joint Finance Education Budget in Wisconsin
The leaders of the five largest school districts in Wisconsin have issued the following guest column in response to the recent action by the state legislature’s Joint Finance Committee: Recently, the Wisconsin legislature’s Joint Finance Committee approved a budget that was less than 10 percent of what Governor Tony Evers proposed in his executive budget. […]
Letter to the Editor: The State Needs to Re-Commit to Cities
By Brookfield Mayor Steven Ponto & Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway The cities of Brookfield and Madison are different in many ways. In one the majority votes red, the other blue. One is a suburban enclave, mostly white and upper middle-class. The other is the state’s second largest city and has a more diverse mix of […]
Letter to the Editor: Medicaid Expansion
Medicaid Expansion: How We Bounce Back by DHS Secretary-designee Karen Timberlake This week, Wisconsin’s budget committee voted – yet again – to turn down the opportunity to expand the state’s Medicaid program, thereby eliminating the opportunity to provide health care and long-term care services for more Wisconsinites and declining more than $1.6 billion in federal […]
Letter to the Editor: Avoid Building Fossil Fuel Infrastructure
By Sr. Rose Marie Dischler As a resident of Racine who lives just two miles south of the Oak Creek power plant, I care about our lands, water, air, and all communities in Wisconsin. Fossil fuels are a dirty and increasingly uneconomical way to provide for our energy needs. Wisconsin’s energy landscape has changed dramatically […]
Letter to Editor: Eliminating the State Income Tax on the AmeriCorps Education Award
By Jeanne Duffy Executive Director of Serve Wisconsin AmeriCorps members make a difference in Racine and communities throughout Wisconsin, and we can make a difference for them by exempting the AmeriCorps education award from state income tax. Each year, over 1,200 AmeriCorps members serve 1 million hours at nearly 350 service sites across Wisconsin. AmeriCorps […]
Letter to the Editor: Home Repairs
By Sr. Janet Weyker Home repairs can be expensive. However, not budgeting for them can be even more expensive, leading to the demise of the house itself. Earth is our home; it is in need of repair from the damages caused by misuse and over-use of resources. After months of diligent work, the Governor’s Task […]
Letter to the Editor: Coal Plant Retirements
By S. Janet Weyker The burning of fossil fuel is a leading contributor to climate change and poor air quality. Last week’s announcement that the U.S. will rejoin the Paris Climate Accord was good news for the environment. However, a report just released by the Sierra Club noted that 75% of the U.S.’s most coal-dependent […]
Letter to the Editor: We Energies’ Unfinished Business
By Carl Lindner Two years ago, almost to the day, a dozen or so members of the Clean Power Coalition of Southeast Wisconsin gathered in Ziegler Park, across from We Energies’ headquarters. They were there to protest the pollution and health hazards caused by the two large coal-burning plants in Oak Creek. Since 2017 the […]
Letter to the Editor: Military Veteran Commentary
By Chief of Police Art Howell In observation of the recent community conversation wherein it was suggested that military veterans be excluded from future employment opportunities with the Racine Police Department, a formal public response is in order. This conversation cannot proceed in earnest without first acknowledging the sacrifice of those who have given their […]
Letter to the Editor: Who’s Killing Who?
This year the murder of George Floyd by police in Minneapolis Minnesota, caused America and the world to concede to the reality of unjustifiable murder of unarmed Black people by the police, and the unrestricted totality of the injustices of systemic racism. Frankly speaking, these murders of Blacks by police are mostly based on racial […]
Letter to the Editor: UWP Graduates Reflect the Best of Our Region
By UW-Parkside Chancellor Ford Just one year ago, if you had told me that the next TWO University of Wisconsin-Parkside commencement ceremonies would be virtual because of a global pandemic – well, I would have found that difficult to believe. 2020 has been a year filled with change, adversity, and loss. Yet through it all, […]
Retirees to Sen. Johnson: Focus on Wisconsin’s Needs, Not Conspiracy Theories
Statement from Gary Mitchell, President of the Wisconsin Alliance for Retired Americans, regarding the decision of Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Ron Johnson to convene a hearing on Wednesday, December 16 about “Irregularities in the 2020 Election”: Senator Johnson needs to get his priorities in order and do his job for the […]
Letter to the Editor: An Awakening to The Reality of Black Political Power
Now that this election is almost over, at time of this writing, Biden/Harris are gaining in the polls, it is time that Blacks prepare to demand a serious return for their investment in the political coffers of the Democratic Party. Without a doubt it was our participation that enabled the ticket to survive thus far. […]
Letter to the Editor: Religious Leaders Call for Respect of Democratic Norms
The Racine and Kenosha Quaker Fellowship, a religious organization long associated with peace and community, unequivocally supports the right of the people to freely and fairly choose the leadership of our beloved country. We consider Trump’s refusal to accept election loss or to commit to a peaceful transfer of power to be a direct threat […]