Brief Thoughts on The WI Recall Election

Well, it’s August 9th 2011. Within 24 hours we will learn the results of the Wisconsin general elections recalling six Republicans in the state legislature. It has been a strange year for that state as the newly elected Governor Scott Walker almost instantly began the path of stripping state workers of their collective bargaining rights with the help of a Republican http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifmajority in the state legislature. What wasn’t expected was the blowback as Democrats in the legislature fled the state and went into exile in order to delay the vote and people got pissed off over the sudden loss of hard earned rights for workers and the possible end to what job security they had. So, instead of quiet acquiescence to trying to implement the Shock Doctrine in the U.S. one state at a time, people occupied the state house in Madison, and protests of some form or another managed to maintain outrage to some degree as petitions to recall politicians were undertaken.

That leads to what WI faces today. Six Republicans in the state legislature have seats up for grabs in the recall election today. The Democrats only need three to shift the majority their way and hopefully (knock on wood) work towards reversing the shift backwards that the people are facing. However, while past moment may have seemed on their side it might not be as simple.

In the weeks leading towards today the Republicans in what some have referred to as “Fitzwalhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifkerstan” have been busy trying to keep their hold on the state. From trying to redistrict in extremely quick fashion before today to billionaire funded endeavors such as ALEC, the right wing has been working just as hard to make sure their changes to our rights remain. As similar things happen in Ohio and several other states, some people see what’s ahead as an attack on the middle class and working people. Because of this many of the organizations supporting the recall are saying it’s currently too early to tell who will win.

Thus, we’re currently going to have to wait and see it unfold (as least those of us who don’t live in Wisconsin). Regardless of what happens, I have a feeling that we’re in for a long hard fight ahead.