Many political activists working on the recall elections have been saying that we want to elect Democrats to "stop the bleeding" and then we will hold them accountable to the people. From my vantage point, I do not see bleeding; I see fatal hemorrhaging from the carotid artery that only societal change, not politics, will be able to surgically repair.
When we play the game of the plutocrats, we allow:
- A "Citizen's United" election in which endless corporate moneys control the outcome
- Continuation of the false premise that Wisconsin even had a budget "crisis"
- Media framing that "the people have spoken through their votes" (regardless of the fact that this cannot be the case in a country where corporations are considered people)
- Domination by "middle class" in discourse, instead of discussions about poverty, racism, and severe social injustices
- Political tricks and illegal maneuvers (see: falsification of election date on absentee ballots, consistent election irregularities in Waukesha county clerk's office, phony robo-calls by right-wing groups, voter intimidation at polls, voter disenfranchisement through cumbersome voter ID law, etc.) going uncontested or unprosecuted
- "Conspiracy theory" narratives to dismiss all skepticism, despite tremendous evidence of organized wrongdoings
One of the main ways we play into their game is through prevarication and civility. What should have happened, as many chanted on March 9th -- the day the state Assembly illegally voted on the anti-collective bargaining bill and 7000 people immediately flooded past the gatekeepers at the capitol doors to protest -- was a general strike. If our elected officials can break a law that attempts to protect the transparency of our state legislative process by pushing through a vote without due notice, then citizens should have broken a wholly unjust law that attempts to criminalize the rights of workers to not show up for work.
I'm originally from New York. New Yorkers have a justified stereotype of being rude and abrasive (often unprovoked and for no reason). By contrast, what I have found living in Wisconsin for the past two years and in the Upper Midwest for the past four, is that civility is at a premium here. As a general rule, people like to maintain decorum and do not like to complain. That can be a very nice thing, for example, when you are new in town and everyone is welcoming and nice. But it is extremely disadvantageous when one is reticent to "act out" for fear of conflict or contention.
One of the Democrats in the recall elections said in an interview that she did not like the recent changes in Wisconsin government, because things had become so divisive and people could not compromise. Given the current state of affairs, I would say that compromise is not in order. When it comes to balancing a budget by hampering or eliminating all of the social safety nets for the poor in order to enhance incentives for corporate interests, a legislator who seeks a balanced "compromise" on these unequal terms is not a legislator that any citizen needs. Likewise, a citizen who would rather retract into her (not-so) comfortable life by casting a vote rather than by challenging an unjust political and social system is not a citizen who will be victorious for her cause. Right now, I hope that Wisconsinites can realize that when battling plutocracy, one must leave one's civility at the door. Maybe now's the time to take a lesson from the New Yorkers; maybe now's the time to stop playing by their rules and to be belligerent, obstinate, and uncompromising.
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