TABOR: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version April 13, 2005

Before the Republican Party ran on a platform of God, gays, and guns and condoned the sanitized corruption of sleazy shakedown artists like their leader in the House, Tom DeLay, I was proud to be one. The GOP was the party of Lincoln, economic opportunity and local control.

As a speechwriter for the Republican Floor Leader in the Wisconsin Senate, I wrote, “Government at the local level governs best,” into at least a hundred speeches. Madison and Milwaukee Democrats favored big spending for big cities. Republicans preserved the quality of life in rural Wisconsin and defended the decision-making power of local officials.

Times have changed. Republicans are attempting to emasculate the power of local officials by proposing a Taxpayer Bill of Rights. Passage would rob local officials closest to the people of their ability to make decisions about the kind of government they want and can afford.

The Taxpayer Bill of Rights, TABOR, is sloganeering at best and political opportunism at worst. Passage would take away the ability of school boards, county boards, city councils and town boards to make decisions and respond to local conditions.

If the proponents are TABOR are sincere about holding down taxes, a better solution would be to require every state mandate on local government to be funded by the same legislators who pass the mandates. Instead of sloganeering, simple-sounding solutions and pandering to the public, proponents of TABOR, if sincere, will require that every state-imposed mandate come with state-supported funding.

Funding state-mandated social service programs and circuit courts alone is costing counties an average of 40% of their tax levies. If proponents of TABOR were as sincere about holding down property taxes as they are getting elected to even higher office, we’d have state funding for state-mandated programs. That’s because the very politicians who advocate TABOR control both houses of the Wisconsin legislature and could appropriate the funding if their taxpayer-sensitive sincerity passed the truth test.

As for me, I’d prefer to hear the Republican Party advocate again for local control and funding of mandated programs. That would be a better platform than scaring people over gays and guns and claiming a monopoly on God.

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editorials/0413TABOR.doc

The Role of Religion in Polictics: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version March 28, 2005

In the following editorial comment, DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer challenges conservative Christians, religious leaders and those on the political right and left to search for middle ground on more issues than abortion and gay marriage.

“The 2004 election will be remembered as much for the re-election of President George Bush and Republican gains in Congress as it will be for making religion an central part of our political process.

Mobilizing a church going, socially- conservative constituency can be a valuable contribution to representative democracy and the conduct of campaigns.

The problem with the conservative Christian movement, however, is that only two religious issues were used to galvanize voters and create the Republican majorities.

My message to friends on the conservative side of politics is that there are many more religious issues than abortion and gay marriage. Two recurring biblical themes I encourage my friends on the right to add to their conversations about politics and government are poverty and war.

The Bible is replete with admonishments to uplift the poor and to act justly. Political discourse today is lacking a serious discussion, a search for middle ground and common good, when it comes to the millions of Americans living in poverty and thousands of troops being killed and injured in a pre-emptive war in Iraq.

Politics has polarized the left and the right. It’s time for people of faith to find a middle ground where the debate extends beyond abortion and gay marriage. Today millions of Americans live without health insurance. More than one hundred thousand Wisconsin adults survive on a minimum wage not raised since l997. College tuitions are rising faster than the rate of incarceration at over-crowded, under-staffed state prisons that are more warehouses than correction facilities. Wisconsin women make only 70% of what a man makes for comparable work. Prescription drugs are no longer affordable for seniors. Medicare and Medicaid face cuts Probation and parole agents are underpaid, teachers discouraged and law enforcement officers, EMT’s and firefighters over-extended.

The Bible calls for much more than discussions about abortion and gay marriage. An agenda including poverty and justice could keep the clergy pumping out powerful sermons well past the next election.

Imagine the dialogue if religious leaders spoke out on issues like deductibility of CEO salaries, the minimum wage, tax breaks for the rich, tax credits for the poor, the elimination of the inheritance tax, gender justice, racial equality, fair housing and the eradication of poverty. They did it before. Religious leaders led the fight for abolition of slavery, women’s suffrage and civil rights. Religion was made part of politics in the last election. Now it’s time to move it to the middle and serve the common good rather than the right and the left.


That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.”

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editori...eOfReligion.doc

Veterans Deserve Better: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version March 24, 2005

Men and women are returning from Iraq with the most serious injuries, both physical and psychological, in the history of war. Thousands of survivors are now coping with injuries that just a few years ago were often fatal.

More than 11,000 U.S. troops have been wounded in action serving in Iraq. Families are falling apart because veterans return home with post-traumatic stress disorders. Extreme anxiety, sleeplessness and nightmares, panic attacks, displaced rage and survivor’s guilt are commonly reported problems.

There certainly is reason to question the war in Iraq. The corruption charges against Halliburton, poor planning and execution and false justifications for intervention do not justify, however, the shabby treatment returning veterans are getting from the Bush administration and members of Congress. When American Legion posts have food drives for veterans and their families, when veterans have to fight their own government for paychecks and health care people of good will have to do a lot more than slap a “Support our Troops” bumper sticker on their cars.

This shabby treatment of veterans is going on at a time when members of Congress can retire with a pension paying more than they ever earned in office. A disabled veteran has to fight for health care, counseling and benefits while the men and women who sent them to war earn $161,200 a year, enjoy the best health care money can buy and retire rich.
I have nothing against those “Support Our Troops” bumper stickers but the most patriotic support people can offer, after bringing our troops home, is to see that veterans don’t suffer more in America than they did in Iraq. Veterans deserve just a little of what members of Congress so generously give themselves and it’s time they got it.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.”

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editori...324Veterans.doc

War in Iraq: Not Worth The Cost: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version February 16, 2005

“The cost of the Bush administration’s war in Iraq is now more than $300 billion U.S. tax dollars, more than l,400 American lives and more than ten thousand injuries to members of the Armed Forces. That does not count the loss of Iraqi lives and damage done to American interests throughout the world.

This, at a time of record budget deficits, proposed cutbacks in funding for Medicaid, Medicare, prescription drugs for seniors, aid to education, transportation funding, and total elimination of federal funding for Amtrak. No wonder there’s no money for a Sturgeon Bay bridge, health care for 40 million Americans and adequate funding for Head Start, the WIC program and No Child Left Behind.

It would have been a lot cheaper for the American taxpayer to put every one of the 26 million Iraqis citizens in the Witness Protection Program.

Our cost of continuing in Iraq is becoming too high for people and programs here at home. Close to l,500 lives and some of the most serious injuries incurred in combat mean it’s time to come home from Iraq.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editori...16warinIraq.doc

A safe bet for a political leader,“Take on China.” : Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version January 10, 2005
My Republican friends who now control the federal government and both houses of the Wisconsin State Legislature seldom ask for my political advice but that has never kept me from offering it. So here goes.

Take on China.

China is protecting counterfeiters who copy products and pirates who steal designs. If you thought the job losses to China from places like Monarch Ware and Mirro Aluminum are bad, consider this; American companies are losing more than $20 billion a year to Chinese competitors who steal, pirate, counterfeit and cover up. And if companies are losing that kind of money, even more job losses will follow.

A great campaign platform for either political party is to protect American intellectual property and hold the Chinese government accountable. Even Chinese government officials are using pirated software stolen from Microsoft.

China reverse-engineered a General Motors passenger car, the Chevy Spark, almost as fast as it rolled of the production line.

The most serious threat to the U.S. knowledge-based economy is the drug industry. U.S. companies pay for the research. China steals the formulas without any license payments, quality control or patent agreements.

Sony reports that China produces 50,000 fake PlayStation game consoles a day and the thievery extends from pharmaceuticals to fashion to motorcycles, Hollywood films, DVD players and even food.

Free trade should mean fair trade and when a trading partner as big as China cheats, covers up and condones its time to clean the slate. Somebody in pubic office or someone aspiring to public office needs to provide leadership by taking on China. Fair trade is as important as free trade. China is NOT playing fair.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editori...takeonchina.doc

Friendly Fire: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
July 1, 2005

The Republican Party in Wisconsin is either experiencing a serious identity crisis or it is abandoning its roots.

Back when I was one, Republicans stood for local control, individual responsibility and less government intrusion into the personal lives of individual citizens. Republicans were the defenders of local government, personal freedom and economic opportunity.

Today Republicans in the state legislature are robbing local elected officials of their power. Levy limits are just one example of state-imposed restrictions that remove power from elected officials closest to the people. Schools, towns, cities and counties are losing influence to a legislative power grab orchestrated by the Republican majority.

Republicans also recently voted to take away the ability of local officials to restrict power companies from condemning personal property and to regulate smoking by local ordinance, hardly something Republicans of the past would have endorsed. A Republican-appointed Supreme Court, in an eminent domain case, just robbed the property rights of people who can now lose their homes to developers. A Republican administration now permits snooping into your public library reading habits, holds suspected terrorists without access to any judicial system, and is obsessed with the sexual practices of consenting adults in their own homes.

Wisconsin’s Republican legislature recently removed the ability of local officials to restrict and regulate huge farming operations, concentrating power at the state, rather than local, level.

Doesn’t sound much any more like a party of individual freedom, local control and personal responsibility. Today’s Republicans could learn a lot about picking sides by looking back to past party leaders like Warren Knowles, Tiny Krueger and Lee Dreyfus.

These Republicans sided with local officials and individual property owners, not big corporations, electric utilities, mega-farms and developers. Another lesson today’s Republicans could learn from Knowles, Krueger and Dreyfus is that the persistent Republican teacher-bashing is cheap-shop politics all three were decent enough to avoid.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.

Illegal Gaming, Either Change The Law Or Enforce It: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
August 2nd 2005

Former Sheriff Chuck Brann is the bravest member of the Door County Board of Supervisors. Brann has risked the wrath of the Tavern League by speaking out against video gaming machines in Door County bars. Brann says the prohibition on the machines is not being enforced. He’s right. The Wisconsin Tavern League successfully lobbied the legislature to move enforcement of laws that prohibit the gaming machines to the Department of Revenue. That effectively gives the taverns who violate the law a free ride.

Some argue that taverns deserve to offer the poker and video machines because Native Americans have an unfair advantage. As compelling as that argument may be, Brann is right for one reason. If laws are on the books and not enforced, people lose respect for law enforcement, our legislature and the rule of law.

The taverns who make illegal payouts to patrons who gamble on their premises should work to change a law they don’t like, not ignore it. Flaunting a disregard for existing laws does not serve the common good. If you think bars should offer gambling, then work to change the law.

I invite tavern operators who make the illegal payouts to argue their case, including here with an opportunity to respond, and in the legislature where the prohibition on video poker and gambling payouts was passed in the first place.

In the meantime, Chuck Brann deserves recognition for being the moral compass of the county board.
That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer. utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Bill Chaudoir: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
July 28, 2005

If Door County had a Citizen of the Year, my first nominee would be Bill Chaudoir. Bill is the head of the Door County Economic Development Corporation. People in Madison will tell you he’s the guy who, almost single handedly, put Door County on the political radar screen with state government.

Without the leadership of Bill Chaudoir the men and women who work at the Door County business incubator might be unemployed. Without Bill, the state may never have awarded grants to address the affordable housing problem in Door County, funded the shipyard cluster project, obtained funding for a second downtown bridge and had Door County declared the capital for a day, as it recently was.

Door County is fortunate to have the dedicated leadership of people like Bill Chaudoir. When you combine his enthusiasm, articulate sales pitches on behalf of Door County, hard work, likable personality and measurable results you have what I consider a “Citizen of the Year.”

Governor Jim Doyle’s recent day in Door County and the good news he announced during his visit are a direct result of the vision and effort of Bill Chaudoir. To him, we owe our thanks. And in my book, there’s no better designation as Door County Citizen of the Year than Bill Chaudoir.
That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer. utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Senator Alan Lasee: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
July 7, 2005

If Governor Doyle signs a state budget that includes funding for a second downtown Sturgeon Bay bridge it should be named for State Senator Alan Lasee.

Lasee has guided through the budget process several important provisions for Sturgeon Bay and Door County. His leadership position in the state senate is proving to be a valuable asset for his constituents in Door County.

Senator Lasee will tell you that he really thinks major spending proposals like bridges belong in separate legislation and he’s right. But Lasee is pragmatic enough to know how the system works. He’s used his seniority, his amiable personality and position of leadership to the benefit of job creation, economic development and safe travel in Door County. Hundreds of workers will have employment in the Sturgeon Bay shipbuilding industry if the budget is signed into law as passed by the legislature.

The immediate challenge now is to convince Governor Doyle not to veto bridge funding.

Please join me in asking the governor to keep bridge funding in the budget. We’ll have a safer, more vital, vibrant community if you take a few minutes and let our governor know you support keeping bridge funding in the budget.
That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer. utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Friendly Fire: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
July 1, 2005

The Republican Party in Wisconsin is either experiencing a serious identity crisis or it is abandoning its roots.

Back when I was one, Republicans stood for local control, individual responsibility and less government intrusion into the personal lives of individual citizens. Republicans were the defenders of local government, personal freedom and economic opportunity.

Today Republicans in the state legislature are robbing local elected officials of their power. Levy limits are just one example of state-imposed restrictions that remove power from elected officials closest to the people. Schools, towns, cities and counties are losing influence to a legislative power grab orchestrated by the Republican majority.

Republicans also recently voted to take away the ability of local officials to restrict power companies from condemning personal property and to regulate smoking by local ordinance, hardly something Republicans of the past would have endorsed. A Republican-appointed Supreme Court, in an eminent domain case, just robbed the property rights of people who can now lose their homes to developers. A Republican administration now permits snooping into your public library reading habits, holds suspected terrorists without access to any judicial system, and is obsessed with the sexual practices of consenting adults in their own homes.

Wisconsin’s Republican legislature recently removed the ability of local officials to restrict and regulate huge farming operations, concentrating power at the state, rather than local, level.

Doesn’t sound much any more like a party of individual freedom, local control and personal responsibility. Today’s Republicans could learn a lot about picking sides by looking back to past party leaders like Warren Knowles, Tiny Krueger and Lee Dreyfus.

These Republicans sided with local officials and individual property owners, not big corporations, electric utilities, mega-farms and developers. Another lesson today’s Republicans could learn from Knowles, Krueger and Dreyfus is that the persistent Republican teacher-bashing is cheap-shop politics all three were decent enough to avoid.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer. utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Bar Fights and Bullying: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version June 2, 2005

The bar fights and bullying making news in Door County this past year probably started on playgrounds.

A recent book, “Bullies, the Bullied and the Bystander: From Pre-school to High School—How Parents and Teachers Can Break the Cycle of Violence,” says 30% of school kids have been bullied, ten percent relentlessly.

When playground bullies get away with their inappropriate behavior they grow into adults who don’t know boundaries. When you add a little beer-bravery to boorish behavior, bullies end up in bar fights, in court and on probation.

That kind of behavior can be prevented. Bullies get away with their behavior because bystanders do nothing. Children need to be taught that being a bully or a bystander leads to low self-esteem, an inability to deal with problems appropriately, depression, bar-room brawls and even suicide.

By allowing children or adults to be bullied we fail to teach fairness, individual respect and self-worth. The author of “Bullies, the Bullied and the Bystander” says bystanders aid bullies by encouraging or rewarding the inappropriate behavior. They do so by laughing, failing to intervene, turning their heads, denying the behavior, even laughing or making fun of the victims themselves.

For more information about “Bullies, the Bullied and the Bystander” please click on DoorCountyDailyNews.com and find a link under “editorials.”

Bullying needs to be dealt with on the playgrounds long before it gets to the bars.

If you would like a copy of a DoorCountyDailyNews.com editorial or would like to offer comments of your own, write to us at 3030 Park Drive, Suite 3, Sturgeon Bay, WI 54235 or email Roger Utnehmer at utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.” utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Door County Chamber Director Deserves Praise: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version May 31, 2005

Door County has a resource that is the envy of Chambers of Commerce across the country in Executive Director Karen Raymore.

Raymore has handled problems like beach closings and ground water contamination with a professionalism and integrity that is model for crisis management. She is recognized as a leader in Wisconsin’s tourism industry and represents the interests of Door County on the State Tourism Board.

Running a chamber is not an enviable job. Many members consider it their right to boss around executive directors. More unfortunate are the misconceptions about the role of a chamber and the behind-the-scenes efforts many members never hear about.

Raymore wrestles well with the divergent interests of her membership. She is an articulate voice for reasonable development of the tourism industry.

Tourism is a $400 million business in Door County and employs l3,000 people. The jobs, tax revenue and economic growth that result from tourism are solid reasons to join the Door County Chamber of Commerce if you are not a member, continue supporting it if you are, and pass on a word of affirmation and thanks to Executive Karen Raymore regardless.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.” utnehmer@doorcountydailynews.com
Military Recruitment: Editorial Comment

by DoorCountyDailyNews.com President and General Manager Roger Utnehmer.
Printable Version May 24, 2005

The No Child Left Behind Law means your kids can be recruited by the military without you even knowing about it. Perhaps the No Child Left Behind law should be renamed No Child Left Unrecruited, according to DoorCountyDailyNews.com President Roger Utnehmer in the following editorial.


“If you have a son or daughter in high school, knowing about an obscure provision of the No Child Left Behind law could keep them from being aggressively recruited by unscrupulous members of the military.

Before passage of No Child Left Behind, more than one-third of high schools in America banned military recruiters from their campuses. The rationale was that impressionable teen-agers need the protection of parental involvement before being unduly influenced by the sales pitches of military recruiters.

The Bush Administration made it easier for the military to circumvent that parental involvement by giving recruiters guaranteed access to all students unless parents take action to opt out. The only way a parent can guarantee the name, address and phone number of their child will not be made available to recruiters is to specifically request that the information be kept confidential. That requires contacting the high school administrative office or exercising the “opt out” at the time of registration.

That “opt out” action on the part of parents is more important than ever in light of some of the tactics used by military recruiters. There are seven investigations going on right now. One Houston recruiter allegedly threatened a young man with arrest if he did not show up at a recruiting station. In Colorado, recruiters are charged with offering information on how to doctor high school diplomas and alter criminal records in order to quality for the military.

Army officials have confirmed 480 allegations of impropriety by recruiters. If that’s what we can count on from our government, the most responsible response from parents interested in protecting their kids is to make sure their names are not made available to recruiters.

No child should be allowed to be have an abortion, get a tattoo or be recruited into the military without parental approval.

Parents need to ask school administrators to remove the names of their children from the lists made available to the military. By doing so, parents will prevent No Child Left Behind from turning into No Child Left Unrecruited.

That’s my opinion. I’d like to hear yours. I’m Roger Utnehmer.”

http://www.doorcountydailynews.com/Editori...523Military.doc