Sikh temple shootings: Act of terrorism or terrorizing act?

This Facebook page belongs to user helioaeromodelos who is listed as Wade Michael Page. This user joined FB on Saturday, before the shootings at the Sikh temple in Wisconsin. There is no way for TUSR to verify whether the listing actually belongs to Page whose hometown is listed as Aurora, Colorado where the shootings occurred at a movie theater showing the film ‘Batman.’ If it does belong to Page, now deceased, it appears he was inspired by the shooter in Aurora.(Screen snip, Facebook)
The shootings that left six people dead inside a Sikh temple in the Milwaukee area on Sunday have raised questions about how acts of violence are classified by government agencies. TUSR contributor Kerry Patton explains the ways agencies treat such crimes.

By Kerry Patton

Terrorism does not have a universally accepted definition. Depending on the country and government agency, the definition of terrorism varies. Inside the United States, three key definitions are accepted within the federal government. The Departments of Justice, Defense, and State have their own definitions.

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Taxpayers without representation in public employee collective bargaining

As Wisconsinites head to the polls to return or remove Gov. Scott Walker from office, ads and messaging from Democrats attack the governor for limiting collective bargaining by some public employees. I’ve often said it’s understandable why cops and firefighters need representation. What I do not see as understandable is why the clerk at the tax office needs collective bargaining rights.

Have you ever held a government job? I’ve had two.

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Gov. Walker will face two time gubernatorial loser Barrett in recall race

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (right) with his family. (Photo: Walker Campaign)Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett may hope the third time is the charm. Barrett has already failed in two races for Wisconsin governor. Now he’ll face the same GOP candidate he faced in 2010, current Gov. Scott Walker.

Barrett also lost a primary bid for governor against a fellow Democrat in 2002.

Barrett won the Democrat primary on Tuesday with a lot of help from his stronghold in Milwaukee.

Walker has been under fire since he attempted to do something about the budget shortfall he “inherited” as Dems are wont to say, from a two-term Democrat. MSNBC online news cited an “immediate budget shortfall of $137 million, projected to grow to $3.6 billion by mid-2013.”

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US Dept. of Labor focuses on labor union aspects of Labor Day

Officials observe a Labor Day celebration of yesteryear. (Photo from US Dept. of Labor, US Government)Growing up in the South in a right-to-work state, I didn’t have a very keen awareness of labor unions.

That changed when I was coming home with my parents one night and we witnessed a strike at a local cotton mill. It was dark, and there were many people lined up around the mill; a number of them were holding torches.  I remember seeing some people being beaten with sticks—later I learned the victims were called “scabs.” My dad tried to explain it to me, but I was too young.

The US Dept. of Labor apparently wants to remind Americans we get Labor Day off because of organized labor.

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Conservative media call for help in Wisconsin government worker fracas

In the video featured at Frontline Wisconsin, a labor leader calls for things to “get a little bloody” after Wisconsin conservatives attempted to rein in state spending. Consequently conservatives, including the governor, have received death threats. [Screen snip of video]Conservative media site Red State reported conservatives in Wisconsin are asking for help. Threats of recall elections are being made by labor activists who disagree with financial reform of pensions and perks for state and local workers.

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Signs in Wisconsin depict extremist rhetoric

Remember all the talk about extremist rhetoric? Some politicos were so impassioned they shamelessly used the Tucson shootings as a stump—a Democrat sheriff comes to mind.

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Time to privatize public schools?

Gov. Scott Walker’s (R-Wisc.) dilemma is shared by numerous other states—how do you keep funding public education workers whose salaries and benefit costs are sure to rise even as revenue falls? Despite reasonable pay for teachers in Wisconsin, students aren’t excelling. CNS News said, “In the National Assessment of Educational Progress tests administered by the U.S. Department of Education in 2009—the latest year available—only 32 percent of Wisconsin public-school eighth graders earned a ‘proficient’ rating while another 2 percent earned an ‘advanced’ rating.”

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