Syte Reitz

Wisconsin’s Supreme Court Justice Assaults Fellow Justice

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What is Happening in Wisconsin, AGAIN!?

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Alinsky Tactics, Supreme Court level

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Which Justice Assaulted Which Justice?

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Madison media’s lack of balanced reporting is reaching epic proportions, while some members of Wisconsin’s highest court are making a mockery of the powers entrusted to them by the people.

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Following Wisconsin Supreme Court’s June 14^th decision to uphold Wisconsin’s collective

Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson

bargaining law, Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson issued official statements criticizing respected members of her Court.  The stinging unprecedented dissent accused the conservative majority of the Court of making “numerous errors of law and fact” and stated that they “set forth their own version of facts without evidence.” She wrote that “They should not engage in disinformation,” and called their view “long on rhetoric and long on story-telling that appears to have a partisan slant.” The Chief Justice stated that this decision opens the Court “to the charge that the majority has reached a pre-determined conclusion not based on the facts and the law.”

What kind of leadership is this?

The Chief Justice’s job is one of upholding and respecting our democratic system of government, of fostering communication and unity in our highest court, not of fomenting division when a closely split ruling occurs, dividing liberal and conservative Judges of the Court.

Justice Ann Walsh Bradley

To further inflame the situation, now Justice Bradley (liberal), has accused Justice Prosser (conservative), of assaulting and choking her in the presence of 5 other Justices!  The correct procedure for such a complaint would be through legal channels, and the incident should not be discussed publicly before the investigation is complete, as any lawyer should know.  However, Justice Bradley made this accusation through the liberal media, and has not yet filed any official legal complaints in the 2 weeks since the supposed incident.

The conservative judges, as befits the legal profession, are not giving details to the press.  Justice Prosser stated his confidence that he will be cleared with investigation.  “Confidential sources” seem to indicate that Bradley has one witness supporting her claims, while 4 witnesses support Prosser’s innocence.  Yet Madison’s

Justice David T. Prosser

liberal media continues to decimate Judge Prosser’s reputation with headlines like “What To Do About High Court’s Prosser Problem,” , in which they question whether Justice Prosser remains fit to serve!

I have been struggling to assemble information on the latest happenings in Wisconsin’s dysfunctional Supreme Court in the absence of clear facts.

Now that I have managed to unearth facts that Madison’s media is unwilling to divulge, I can paint a more accurate picture.

Bottom line, for those who are impatient, is that liberal Justice Bradley seems to have used Supreme Court level Alinsky tactics.   –She physically attacked Justice Prosser, turned the tables by accusing HIM of what she had done, lied about the incident, leaked reports of the “event” to the obliging Bill Lueders of (George Soros-funded) Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, and now has the assistance of Madison’s media in smearing Justice Prosser and calling for his termination, in the hopes that the liberal 3 would shift the balance of the other conservative 4 judges in the Wisconsin Supreme Court.  With conservative Governor Walker at the helm, this seems to be a pointless pursuit.

The details of the sparring were uncovered and reported by Christian Schneider and can be found at the National Review.  If you read just one reference, this would be the one to read.

Another report summarizes events even more concisely:

Long story short: a liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court Justice named Ann Bradley has apparently tried to claim that another Supreme Court Justice, David Prosser, “choked” her.

The story had been leaked to a George Soros muckraking group, and then the incident seemed to get turned on its head when other witnesses came forth to indicate that while Prosser did put his hands up and touch Bradley’s neck, it is because she was coming at him with fists raised, meaning the contact was defensive in nature, and Bradley was the aggressor.

The plot appears to be thickening now, with news that Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson may have had a hand in orchestrating the leak in an attempt to get the conservative Prosser impeached.

As the investigation moves forward, it appears than instead of collecting a conservative scalp, that the two liberal Wisconsin SCOTUS justices may face impeachment instead. If they are impeached—and that is far from certain at this point—Republican Governor Scott Walker will have the opportunity to add two conservative justices to the bench.

It appears that the plot to frame up Prosser has backfired spectacularly.

I can only wish for such a happy ending for all of convicted felon Soros’ investments in deception.

This report of two liberal Wisconsin Supreme Court Justices, one the Chief Justice, attempting to smear and discredit a conservative colleague with lies, is symptomatic of a more general dissolution of integrity among Democrats in Madison, Wisconsin today.  The problems with Madison’s Democrats, in turn, are reflective of a growing general dissolution of Democrat integrity in the United States.

Most of us trust automatically that respected high officials support the laws they were appointed/elected to administer and that their goals include the peaceful, fair and tranquil functioning of society.

There is, however, a growing new philosophy/methodology, particularly among some in high office, which attempts to circumvent the legal democratic process in order to implement radical change rapidly against the wishes of the majority.

The new methodology welcomes and creates chaos, in the knowledge that it is easier to implement change during chaos.  The new philosophy spurns dialogue and advocates polarization, demonization of opponents, and dispensation of traditional moral constraints such as truthfulness or limiting oneself to civilized behavior.

Saul Alinsky

The new methodology is patterned after what has become known as Alinsky tactics.  Radical Democrats, including President Obama, Secretary of State Clinton, teachers unions, and numerous Wisconsin Democrats have been implementing these tactics more and more often, particularly in recent months.

For example, in Madison, 14 Democrat legislators violated the Wisconsin Constitution by fleeing to Illinois to prevent a quorum on legislation they opposed.  Protesters at the Madison State Capitol have adopted new aggressive techniques, including blowing air horns in Republican Senator’s and in conservative demonstrators’ ears. Unions have shipped aggressive out-of-state protesters into Madison by the thousands, while Madison’s liberal Mayor called off the Madison police.  Radicals brag about “peaceful” protests, while Republican Senators are being chased around the Capitol building by hundreds of protesters, unhindered by police, and damage/security bills mount to over $8 million.  Madison’s police and firefighter’s unions, as well as Planned Parenthood (America’s largest abortion provider), have joined in support of teachers’ unions that are bleeding the State dry with benefits which radically exceed what other Wisconsin workers get.  Republican Senators have received death threats for carrying out campaign promises and attempting to pass responsible legislation.  Wisconsin’s liberal Secretary of State has helped to stall publication of the collective bargaining legislation repeatedly, enabling unions to rush through new contracts before implementation of the law.  Liberal judges have procrastinated making decisions on the pending legislation, taking vacation, and making bad rulings, which must be heard, reprimanded and reversed by the cooler-headed individuals on the Supreme Court.  Wisconsin’s media, seriously dominated by radial liberals, publishes only glowing reports of the radicals, omitting any of the reality mentioned above.  The dirty tactics observed in Madison are overwhelming.

I have been so appalled by the chaos and trampling of democracy I have witnessed in Madison recently that I have written numerous articles documenting and referencing the above facts on my website,  since February.

I don’t jump to the defense of people in the absence of conclusive evidence.  However, in the light of the above facts, particularly those collected by Christian Schneider, I am willing to stick out my neck and venture to say that there is only one logical interpretation of what happened between Justices Bradley and Prosser in Madison on June 13th, the story which was leaked to the liberal press by Justice Bradley and which has spread like wildfire in the national news, accusing Justice Prosser of choking her.  Radical Democrats, yet again, are using Alinsky tactics in an effort to further their (now minority) agenda by eliminating a conservative voice from the Supreme Court.

Prosser was smeared with lies previously by Democrats during his campaign , and his installation was delayed by Democrat challenges and recounts after the election.  The latest June 14 decision of the Supreme Court approving the collective bargaining legislation was almost made in the absence of Judge Prosser, when Democrat JoAnne Kloppenburg threatened to sue yet a second time for recounts, which would have delayed Judge Prosser’s appointment yet again.

Aside from the original reports accusing Justice Prosser of choking his colleague, Madison’s media is not correcting the skewed initial reports.  They are still spreading the dirt and calling for Prosser’s removal: Madison’s Cap Times wrote an editorial entitled “What to do about high court’s Prosser problem” yesterday (6-29-11), in which they suggested that Justice Prosser was “no longer fit to serve.”

The truth cannot be found in Madison media, with very few exceptions.  – go to the National Review for truth in reporting.

Finally, it is interesting to note that Bradley did not file charges against Justice Prosser, which would have put her credibility at risk when the truth was revealed.   She just leaked the fictitious smear story to newspapers to foment liberal frenzy, a la Alinsky tactics. This is certainly not the type of behavior expected from a Supreme Court Judge, or anyone whose job function is to provide reasoned deliberation on matters that distinguish our society from anarchy.

More references from both sides of the dispute, by date :

• Saul Alinsky Tactics Evident in WI Protests 3-15-11
  

• Full Text Of WI Supreme Court Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson’s Powerful Dissent Last Week 6-19-11

• Blaska Rules Who is Partisan on the Wisconsin Supreme Court 6-24-11   Blaska -  Madison’s Isthmus.

• Prosser Allegedly Grabbed Fellow Supreme Court Justice Bradley by the Neck 6-25-11 8:46 AM  Bill Lueders at Madison’s Isthmus – Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism – funded by George Soros.

• Bradley Says Prosser Choked Her 6-25-11
  Milwaukee Journal Sentinel online

• Sources: Argument between Prosser, Bradley Becomes Physical 6-25-11
  Bill Lueders : WI Center for Investigative Journalism,  Madison’s WI State Journal

• Wisconsin Justice Says Court Fight Led to Choking 6-26-11
  Fox news
• Wisconsin Justice Accuses Colleague of Choking Her 6-26-11
  msnbc

• Cops Look into David Prosser “Choke Hold” Charge 6-27-11
  Politico

• Tensions Run High, Very High, at Wisconsin Supreme Court 6-27-11
  Wall Street Journal

• More Details Emerge in Wisconsin’s “Chokegate” 6-28-11 ***
  Christian Schneider, National Review Online  ***

• Court Watchers Say High Court Has Hit New Low 6-28-11
  Madison’s Wisconsin State Journal – Abrahamson – “Observers noted that such a personal attack was unusual in the history of the court”
• Justice Shouldn’t Trump The Law 6-28-11
  Madison’s Cap Times – Chris Rickert: “When it comes to workplace violence, justice shouldn’t trump the law.”

• Dane County Sherriff Mahoney Turns Supreme Court Investigation Over To Chief Deputy 6-29-11
  Madison’s Wisconsin State Journal –questions were raised about Mahoney’s objectivity because he endorsed Prosser’s opponent in the recent election

• What To Do About High Court’s Prosser Problem 6-29-11  
  Madison’s Cap times editorial    “no longer fit to serve”

• Barbara Beck: Justices Should Go To Principal’s Office 6-29-11
  Madison’s Cap Times defending Bradley – “behavior rarely demonstrated by a woman”

• Liberal Wisconsin Justices Looking Bad in “Chokegate” 6-29-11

• Questions – and Answers – on that Wisconsin Supreme Court ‘Assault’ 6-30-11
  ***

.Continued from “What’s (REALLY) Happening in Wisconsin?”…

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Since Wisconsin Republicans voted on Ash Wednesday, March 9, 2011 to limit union collective bargaining by passing the Budget Repair Bill , information blackout continues, and even people like me, living only 3 miles from the Wisconsin Capitol, are struggling to get all the facts.

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I continue to be amazed at the lack of news or analysis provided by mainstream media concerning all of these events, as well as the radically liberal spin seen in articles which do appear.

Persevering in collecting facts during recent weeks, I am astounded at the lack of ethics permeating the actions of the left—of the union leaders and of the Democrats who represent them.  Some of these are documented further below, in the Background section.

Newest developments:

Republicans flee Madison for safety from angry mobs and death threats

Threat slipped under a Republican Senator's door

Fifteen minutes after their rushed March 9^th vote to limit union collective bargaining, Republican legislators had to leave the Capitol building under police protection because they were being threatened by an angry mob.  They were told to get out of Madison as quickly as possible, since Republicans were unsafe in Madison that night.  The legislators filed out of the Capitol building past Democrat legislators in orange T-shirts, who reviled them, repeating phrases such as “Are you proud of yourself?” while Jesse Jackson (!) looked on.   Outside, the Republican senators were harassed by an angry mob .  Many Republicans received death threats , and some of their cars and homes were vandalized .  Little, if any of this barbaric behavior by demonstrators, was reported by mainstream media other than FOX.

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Democrats stall, backtrack on promises and misrepresent to the media

The “14 Dems” who had fled Wisconsin in order to obstruct (in violation of Senate rules) the controversial vote for which they did not have a majority, have been idolized by liberal Madison, and by the liberal media which clearly favors the Democrats.  Media, Democrats and demonstrators routinely misrepresented the Governor and the Republicans.  Their portrayal of  Republicans as rigid and uncompromising tyrants was deceitful, because in actual fact numerous secret meetings were held near the Wisconsin-Illinois border between Democrats and Republicans from Feb 28 through March 9.  During these meetings Democrats made numerous promises to compromise and to return to Madison, but reneged repeatedly, and ultimately it became apparent that Democrat leaders were stalling, were backtracking on offers, were being disingenuous, and were not negotiating in good faith.

The final blow to Republicans was a letter sent by minority leader Mark Miller (D) to Governor Walker, accusing the Governor of wanting to “keep lines of communications closed,” which was released first to the media before being delivered to the Governor’s Office.  In light of the secret negotiations going on for 10 days, during which Republicans traveled regularly to the Illinos border for meetings, this letter represented an outright betrayal and lie.  This was what compelled the Republicans to move forward on the vote in the absence of Democrats on the evening of March 9^th.

The Budget Repair Bill is Passed

The vote was conducted in the Senate in the evening of March 9^th, the Assembly approved the bill on March 10^th, and Governor Walker signed it on March 11^th.  It could have been published by the Secretary of State Doug La Follette as early as by March 15th , the last step before implementation of the bill .

Democrats Desperately Try to Stall Publication of the Budget Repair Bill

However, Democrats (representing union leaders) have launched a number of stalling tactics of dubious validity during the past week (March 10-18), attempting to delay the publication and implementation of the Budget Repair Bill.  There is little doubt that the vote was legal and that the law will stand, but by stalling implementation of the law, Democrats are buying time for  unions to rush through contract extensions and pay raises.

Incidentally, the rushing through of union contracts does NOT benefit all union members— instead, it benefits only the union bosses and senior union members, at the expense of junior members.  When union contracts with generous benefits are negotiated in lean fiscal times, the budget is used up to pay the senior member’s generous contracts, and junior members are then laid off as the money runs out.  By negotiating generous benefits, the union leaders are feathering their own nests at the expense of the jobs of their own young union members.

The stalling commenced immediately on March 10^th, with the Democrat Secretary of State stating that he plans to wait the maximum 10 days allowed before publishing the Budget Repair Bill, delaying publication until March 25 (in place of March 15).  Next, several Dane County and City of Madison officials, including  Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz  and Dane county Executive Kathleen Falk, filed complaints with the Dane County District Attorney alleging that Wisconsin’s Open Meeting laws were violated when the Budget Repair Bill was passed.

These actions were taken despite the fact that the the Open Meetings law was not violated at all.  Governor Walker ensured, prior to the vote, that the procedures adopted satisfied all relevant rules and statutes.  Legal opinions from three nonpartisan legal agencies were obtained endorsing the procedures used, and even respected Democrat Milwaukee mayor Tom Barrett had indicated that a separate vote without Democrats would be valid.  Democrats were filing invalid accusations simply to buy time.

On March 10, the day after the Budget Repair Bill was passed, James Troupis, an attorney for Fitzgerald (the Senate Majority Leader) explained to Vicki McKenna on WIBA radio that the Open Meetings law was not violated and even does not to apply to Senate proceedings, “since the Wisconsin constituti­on is quite explicit in providing the Legislatur­e with independen­t authority.”   Jim Troupis indicated that the vote had satisfied all pertinent rules—the Wisconsin Constitution, the Open Meeting law (which itself states in section 19.87 sub 2 that no provision which conflicts [with Senate rules] shall apply), and the Senate rule 93.

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Nevertheless, one week later, on March 18^th, liberal Dane County Judge Maryann Sumi issued a temporary restraining order, barring the publication of the Budget Repair Bill , claiming the violation of the state’s open meetings law.  The judge has not ruled on the claim, and is now on vacation!

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The Senate Majority Leader and Assembly Speaker released a joint statement condemning the judge’s decision:

“Dane County always seems to play by its own rules, but this morning, we saw a Dane County judge try to re-write the constitutional separation of powers… We fully expect an appeals court will find that the Legislature followed the law perfectly and likely find that today’s ruling was a significant overreach. “

One more motivation has been suggested (WIBA, March 21) for the desperate and dubious stalling tactics being exercised by Democrats on the Budget Repair Bill during the last 10 days –  Democrats are attempting to stall the Bill for a sufficiently  long time to effect the recall of the Republican Senators who voted for the bill — the newest bizarre strategy for instituting  minority rule and defeating the democratic process with stalling and bluffing.

Background

Election 2010

At the outset it is important to point out that in November of 2010 the citizens of Wisconsin elected Republicans into power– not only to the Governor’s mansion, but also into both houses of the State Legislature  .  Wisconsin, previously a Democrat stronghold, suddenly went “red” in the last election.  Voters appeared to be motivated by a desire to cut spending, to cut deficits, and to avoid passing on crippling financial burdens to future generations of Wisconsinites– the “Tea Party” philosophy.  Conservative is the new Liberal .

Madison, the Capitol City of Wisconsin, historically very liberal, locally referred to as “Moscow on the Mendota (a local lake),” was now a radically liberal island surrounded by a much more conservative sea of Wisconsin Republicans.  Madison is the home of 40,000 liberal college students on a campus adjacent to the Capitol building, home of the Freedom From Religion Foundation, and Madison is so entrenched in liberalism that only Democrats can be found as candidates on Madison Mayoral ballots.

Wisconsin pulls in their belts

Now that the newly elected Republican Governor and Republican houses of legislature have embarked on fulfilling their campaign promises to reign in the reckless and out-of-control spending of the previous Democrat administration, numerous state employees have suffered cuts in salary and benefits—including my husband, an engineering professor at the State University, UW Madison .  Despite my husband’s status as a Wisconsin Distinguished Professor and a global reputation in automotive research on engine efficiency and emission controls, he has not even received a cost of living increase in about 7 years.  Last year, he had the equivalent of a 5% salary reduction in the form of a mandatory furlough, and just recently we received notification that his take-home salary would be reduced by an additional 10%, in the form of reduced benefits (previously paid by the employer, the state of WI, and now paid for by us).  Unquestionably, this will affect our entire future.

We have not complained, because we saw the reason behind the pay cuts.  If the salary and benefits of senior members of the University community like us were not cut, then junior members (those without tenure) would be the first to lose jobs, to allow us to continue to enjoy our comforts.  Our duty to pull in our belts when financial times are tight, rather than watching the young people around us become unemployed.

Unions not out for the common good

Teachers? or Union Power?

This is the crux of the matter—willingness of senior members of organizations to take cuts so that junior members would not have to be laid off.  The willingness to put the common good before the personal good.  This is what the union leaders of Wisconsin (and of America) seem unwilling to do.

The unions of Wisconsin enjoy many benefits and have been extremely privileged.  There are dozens of states without Wisconsin’s collective bargaining for public employees, and in fact most federal workers do not have collective bargaining rights.  We value our teachers in Wisconsin, and they deserve the great treatment they had while the economy was good.  However, now that financial hardship is upon us, teacher union leaders do not have the same philosophy that most Wisconsinites have of sharing the sacrifice across the board.  They have been rushing through contract extensions before the new budget cuts are made, and have even been attempting to force through pay raises as well.  Meanwhile, typical non-union Wisconsin workers earn about 30% less than union workers in the same jobs, and are not complaining about the necessary belt-tightening.

This is not a uniquely Wisconsin phenomenon.  Unions across America have been hustling to make similar changes in advance of the budget cuts which Tea Party activists demanded in the last election, and union leaders have seen this battle coming.

Union bosses mobilized their resources to fight in Wisconsin – Madison is one of the first places these legislative fiscal reversals have come up, Madison is a liberal union-supportive environment, and Madison is filled with graying radicals and leftist college students.  Madison could be relied upon to provide numerous protesters downtown, adjacent to the campus. With the organizational help of the Democratic National Committee, the rallies in Madison were huge these past several weeks, and also included protesters bused in from across the entire nation.

What most demonstrators did not and still do not realize, is that even now, as Democrats continue political maneuvers to stall the implementation of the new restrictions on union benefits, union leaders are continuing to rush through more contract extensions which will ensure the senior union members continued comfort and benefits at the expense of laying off junior union members — who unknowingly have been out at the Wisconsin Capitol demonstrating for the union bosses.

The informational black-out; facts unreported by media

Wisconsin Capitol grounds damage

Demonstrations in Madison anything BUT peaceful

The demonstrators at the Wisconsin Capitol during the past month were loud, aggressive, unruly, and they violated many Madison ordinances.  They damaged the Capitol building, littered the downtown, destroyed the grass and Capitol grounds, brought ammunition onto Capitol grounds, harassed Republican senators, and paraded vulgar signs in and around the Capitol in front of young children. This past weekend I personally witnessed Democrats with bullhorns yelling vulgar language at Majority Leader Fitzgerald outside the Capitol building, while children in strollers were wheeled by.

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City agencies assist unions and help thwart the Governor and Legislature

The Madison City government, Madison police, Madison firefighters, and Madison media all collaborated to facilitate the union protesters and to misrepresent the belligerent and threatening tone of the demonstrations to the outside world.

The Mayor sided with the demonstrators, instructed Madison Police not to remove the demonstrators violating Capitol visiting hours, and allowed false statements to be published on the City of Madison website which proclaimed that all demonstrations were peaceful and respectful.  They were not.

The Madison Police, whose unions are exempt from the proposed legislation, still sided with the unions and stopped ticketing cars downtown for parking violations, did not arrest demonstrators for violating Capitol hours, for destruction of property, for harassment of Republican Senators , for defacement of property, for littering, and for numerous other legal infringements.

One Republican Senator was pursued and harassed by a crowd of 200, and not one policeman was in sight to protect him.  Eventually, firefighters arrived to escort him away from the barbaric crowd.  FOX was the only news channel to report on this incident.

Media misrepresents events in Madison

The media misrepresented the belligerent and threatening behavior of the protestors, and misrepresented the issues at the heart of the dispute, casting union protesters in a favorable light while vilifying the government which was trying to carry out the work it was elected to do.

The media glorified the 14 Democrats who fled Wisconsin to prevent the presence of the quorum needed to pass the legislation, while failing to report on the duplicity and outright dishonesty of the Democratic negotiation tactics – which included numerous secret meetings with Republicans near the state border, numerous promises to compromise and to return to Wisconsin, followed by numerous reversals and failures to live up to promises.

Unions are out-maneuvered by the Governor

When Governor Walker finally realized the duplicitous nature of  Democrat “negotiations” which were only being used for stalling, he outmaneuvered the Democrats by rewriting the budget repair bill. Appropriation of funds was removed so that the bill would not require a quorum to pass, and could be passed without the presence of the 14 missing Democrats.  On Wednesday, March 9^th, senate Republicans passed the new budget repair bill.  On Thursday, the Assembly approved it.  Prior to Wednesday vote, the Governor had the procedure endorsed by three nonpartisan legal agencies.  The Mayor of Milwaukee, Tom Barrett, a prominent State Democrat, had also expressed agreement that the vote could be taken without the 14 missing Democrat senators.

The rest of the news from the last 10 days has already been reported above.

Where to from here?

The only remaining question is whether the citizens of Wisconsin, as well as citizens across America where similar tactics are being used by union bosses, will withstand the lies and misrepresentations and sustain their resolution to repair the economy both in Wisconsin and nationwide.

Hateful and threatening images remain

(vulgar images have been omitted):

The chalk outline is customarily used to indicate where the murder victim once was.

Teachers? or Socialists?

Message scrawled on Republican Senator's window at the Wisconsin Capitol

Peaceful and Respectful Protest?

Freedom to trash the Wisconsin Capitol? Or freedom to subvert democracy?

Graffiti and chalk body outlines all over the Wisconsin Capitol grounds

US Military, Joint Colors

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The Huffington Post recently published an article on “religious boundary violation” in the U.S. Military – criticizing the obligatory “spiritual fitness test” given by the U.S. Military, on which

Pansy, symbol of freethought

“freethinkers” got points docked for their lack of religion.  Those who were religiously unaffiliated were then offered optional information on the benefits of developing their spirituality.

.But here are some more facts:

Death of Socrates

• • Religion and spirituality are associated with decreased rates of mental illness and have a protective effect against suicide.  Religious practice has also been shown to promote greater levels of cohesion in groups (presumably relevant to performance in the military).

Balance

• Those practicing atheism and pagan religions have higher rates of mental illness and higher suicide rates.  Self-esteem, self-control, and coping skills are also reduced in religiously unaffiliated people.

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Commendations

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Why wouldn’t the military be commended for surveying these topics among military personnel and offering religiously unaffiliated soldiers opportunities to learn about spirituality and its benefits for the individual and for the army?

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Nobody’s telling the soldiers which religion to choose, nobody’s even forcing them to choose a religion at all.  The alternative, however (eradicating all mention of religion from the military), would constitute religious coercion– forcing all soldiers into the practice of atheism.

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Religion; a parachute

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If the U.S. military has determined that particular lifestyle changes make for better soldiers – changes in diet, weight, length of hair, or supplemental education (including spirituality education) – the military would be negligent in withholding this information from soldiers, whose lives are so dependent on each other and are so often on the line.

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Incidentally, religious practice has been shown to benefit ALL aspects of life substantially:

• Strength of marriages and family relationships
• Reduction of violence, infidelity and out-of-wedlock births
• Increased educational achievement
• Improved overall health, including mental health
• Lower levels of infectious disease, depression and suicide
• Greater levels of cohesion in groups, higher levels of charitable giving, and less violent crime

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Recent online discussion at the Wisconsin State Journal produced some comments defending FFRF’s (Freedom From Religion Foundation’s) legal challenges of religion as being “within their rights.”  I find it surprising that FFRF persists in their vendetta to eradicate public mention of religion, considering that atheists are often listed as tax-exempt religious organizations themselves, and even the textbook definition of religion includes the beliefs that they espouse.  So, ultimately atheists are just pushing their OWN religious beliefs in preference to those of others.

Supporters of FFRF have also argued that   Judeo-Christian values “have shaped Western Civilization by means of state-sanctioned swordpoint.” Perhaps FFRF and its supporters are confusing militant Islamic radicals with peace loving Christians in 2011?  It is hard to find evidence of “enforcement of religion by sword point” in the US, where 80% of us are Christian, and in Madison, where 53% are Catholic, 22% Evangelical Lutheran, and only 10% of the population is outside of Christian denominations (ref).   Not too many swords being wielded by Mayor Cieslewicz or by President Obama recently as far as I can tell.

. Is not FFRF jousting at windmills?  Like Don Quixote, FFRF has imagined an enemy where no enemy exists in 2011 America.

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If FFRF were so “within their rights,” they would have more supporters than 0.003 of 1% of America, their frivolous lawsuits would be on a larger and more meaningful scale than at present, and they would enjoy better success in court.

To date, most of their demands and lawsuits have been directed at small communities, which cannot afford litigation costs.  For example, recently FFRF has challenged Marshfield, WI’s City Council’s practice of  prayer . The population of Marshfield is about 18,000; Marshfield is about 7% the size of Madison.

A number of FFRF’s and similar legal challenges have already been denied by the courts.  The U.S. Supreme Court (1983, Nebraska Legislature prayer), as well as a 2008 U.S. Court of Appeals ruling written by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor, have upheld legislative prayer .  Is FFRF also planning to initiate a lawsuit against President Obama, who ended his State of the Union address with the words “God bless America?”

FFRF’s recent, larger-scale attempt to declare the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional did succeed for one week in April of 2010 with a liberal Wisconsin judge (Barbara B. Crabb,District Judge) ruling in their favor, but the ruling was promptly challenged by the U.S. Department of Justice .  The Obama administration is planning to fight to preserve the law establishing the National Day of Prayer.  The idea of a national Day of Prayer has existed since 1775, and was supported by the constitutional congress, and by numerous Presidents, including President Lincoln.

The rationale for preserving the National Day of Prayer can be found at the American Center for Law and Justice .

There can be no denying that FFRF efforts towards the enforcement of public ATHEISM should be resisted by all reasonable Americans, just as those trying to force ANY particular religion should be resisted.   FFRF’s efforts at intimidation of small communities by litigation are misguided and are to be condemned.  FFRF should practice the same tolerance towards religious Americans that religious Americans practice towards FFRF.

Why are our many different religious roots so revered in the United States?  The United States was first settled by people fleeing governments which forbade free exercise of religion. In more recent times, my own relatives came here fleeing the occupation of Lithuania by an atheist regime which denied religious freedom.  Those unable to escape, spent decades in Siberian exile and in concentration camps.  I wonder if FFRF atheists realize where radical vendettas by intolerant people wishing to control the beliefs of others (either atheist zealots OR religious zealots) can lead?  How many RELIGIOUS groups have intimidated FFRF with numerous and frivolous lawsuits?

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As is often the case, a Wisconsin State Journal (WSJ) article sent me on an interesting thought trajectory last week.

In a New Years Day 2011 article, WSJ author Chris Rickert wrote, “I approached a handful of more-or-less randomly chosen (Madison) people who aren’t exactly celebrities (but aren’t exactly unknown either) about coming up with resolutions for Madison.”

The Greek word "atheoi" αθεοι ("those who are without god") as it appears in the Epistle to the Ephesians 2:12, on early 3rd-century Papyrus"

When thus approached, Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) atheist Annie Laurie Gaylor suggested the following resolution for Madison: “just say no to the (St. Paul’s Catholic Student) Center‘s unreasonable demand for a tax-free, 14-story dormitory and religious addition.”  Apparently this Madison atheist’s primary concern for 2011 seemed to be preventing the replacement of UW Madison’s Catholic student headquarters. (!)

Questions immediately came to mind:

St. Paul's from 1909

• Why would opposition to the Catholic Student center be so high on an atheist organization’s priority list?   (The replacement will be funded by private donations, and replaces an existing Catholic Student center, which has been in existence at that location since 1909.)
• Why is MY Catholic religion being singled out by the atheists?  (The atheist’s objections did not include other campus religious groups or buildings, or their tax-exempt status.)
• Isn’t the atheist being inconsistent? Isn’t atheism a religion as well?  Aren’t atheists simply opposing OTHER people’s religions in preference to their own? Why would they particularly single out Catholicism?

Searching the UW Madison student organization website, atheists came up as the second listing under RELIGIOUS student organizations– Atheists, Humanists & Agnostics @ UW-Madison. So atheism is listed as a religion at UW, along with Catholic student groups, Muslim student groups, and others.

If the Freedom From Religion Foundation (FFRF) is so opposed to religion, what are they specifically opposed to?

According to dictionary.com, religion is “a set of beliefs concerning the cause, nature, and purpose of the universe, especially when considered as the creation of a superhuman agency or agencies, usually involving devotional and ritual observances, and often containing a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs.”

• Is FFRF opposed to exploring the cause, nature and purpose of the universe?
• Does FFRF deny the right of others to believe in a superhuman agency (as 80% of Madison and 80% of America does)?
• Is FFRF opposed to a moral code governing the conduct of human affairs?
• Are atheists not contradicting themselves, since they also adhere to a system of beliefs and are listed under UW Madison religious organizations?

My curiosity piqued, I visited the Freedom From Religion Foundation(FFRF) website  “about” page, where I found the statement:

“The history of Western civilization shows us that most social and moral progress has been brought about by persons free from religion.”

Abraham Lincoln

Hmmm….according to FFRF, so much for considering contributions to Western civilization by Jesus Christ, George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Johann Sebastian Bach, Michelangelo, Sir Isaac Newton, Gregor Mendel, Max Planck, Albert Einstein, G.K. Chesterton, Martin Luther King Jr., Ronald Reagan, Jimmy Carter, Clarence Thomas, Pope John Paul II, Mother Theresa………?

The FFRF “about” page goes on to claim ownership of prison reform, humane treatment of the mentally ill, abolition of capital punishment, the end of slavery, women’s suffrage, and more, for people who are “free of” religion.

Johnny Cash

A brief historical tour of these topics does not support FFRF’s claims—no one group had a monopoly on reform in these areas, and numerous religious people were involved, including famous names like Abraham Lincoln and Johnny Cash.

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A visit to Wikipedia’s entry on FFRF indicates that FFRF maintained a sign in the Wisconsin State Capitol during the Christmas season, which reads:

FFRF sign at Wisconsin Capitol

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“At this season of the Winter Solstice may reason prevail.
There are no gods, no devils, no angels, no heaven or hell.
There is only our natural world.
Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens the heart and enslaves minds.”

-A disturbingly intolerant statement about many religions, particularly for a city like Madison, which prides itself on its University, its intellectualism and its tolerance!

Consider a simple substitution in the last sentence of the sign:                                    “Atheism is but myth and superstition that hardens hearts and enslaves minds.” instead of  “Religion is but myth and superstition that hardens the heart and enslaves minds.”

How would FFRF tolerate the exhibition of that in the State Capitol on a gold sign for children to view?

The first line of the FFRF verse is also inconsistent with FFRF’s supposed mission; Winter Solstice, capitalized, refers to pagan celebrations, which are religious.  Is FFRF promoting pagan holidays, while opposing Christian ones like Christmas?  Hardly sounds like freedom from religion.

The FFRF Christmas season sign is an inconsistent curiosity at best, and surely would not be appreciated by 80% of Madison, who are Christian, when they bring their children to see the Christmas tree at the Capitol each year!

How many atheists are there, anyway? Wikipedia claims 2.5% of the world’s population, 2% of the U.S. population.

And of these, how many are so militant that they cannot tolerate a Christmas tree or a “Merry Christmas” wish?  The couple of atheists/agnostics I know have no problem with Christmas, and they participate in Christmas celebrations and Christmas giving with enthusiasm.  They are quite tolerant of the Christian majority in America, and enjoy the spirit of the occasion.  So what percentage of Americans does the FFRF really represent?  It is certainly lower than the total of all atheists, 2%.  The FFRF website lists their North American membership of 15,500, which is 0.003 of 1% of the population, or one in 33 thousand people.

City-data.com demographics list Madison as 53% Catholic, 22% Evangelical Lutheran, and only 10% of the population outside of Christian denominations.

So as we delve further into the facts, we discover that in the City of Madison, which is 53% Catholic and 80% Christian, and in the State of Wisconsin, which is 29% Catholic and 80% Christian, the insignificant number of militant atheists want to prevent Catholic students from replacing their Catholic student center at their own cost when membership swells.

Catholic students in front of St. Paul's

Perhaps it is the tax-deductible status of the Catholic Student Center that offends FFRF?  The Catholic student center is located between its brethren structures, Calvary Lutheran Student Center, and Pres House, the Presbyterian Student Center.  All three are religious institutions and all three are tax-exempt.  The FFRF is also tax exempt, and the UW Madison atheist student organization (listed under Religious Student Organizations) is tax exempt. So tax exemption cannot be the problem.

Does FFRF think that UW or the City of Madison will be paying for the new structure?

FFRF’s Annie Julie Gaylor stated:“(St. Paul’s Catholic Student) Center’s unreasonable demand for a tax-free, 14-story dormitory and religious addition.” — but St. Paul’s Catholic Center is not demanding anything from anybody.  They already own the location since 1909, and the new building will be paid for by private donations.

So the Catholic Center is not unique in its tax-free status. The Catholic students are not demanding anything from anybody.  Perhaps it is the expansion that FFRF is opposed to?

St. Paul's today

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The expanded taller structure reflects the increase in Catholic students participating in the Catholic Center, and this is not surprising in a town which is 53% Catholic and a State which is 29% Catholic.  29 to 53% of the UW campus would represent about 11,000 to 21,000 students.  Does the FFRF, representing between 0.003% and  2% of the population (this would correspond to between 1 and 800 students), wish to deny the 80% Christian majority access to religious organizations and dormitories to support the student population’s interests and priorities?

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In a world in which litigation has much power to intimidate, small groups such as the FFRF have made some headway toward abolishing the rights of self-expression guaranteed to us by the Bill of Rights of the United States:

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof;”

The FFRF, with their $5 million fund balance, their half-million dollar yearly income, and 15,000 (North American) membership, is a small organization at best.  Yet FFRF has made some inroads towards stifling the freedom OF religion guaranteed to us in the United States– primarily by filing lawsuits against public expressions of religion.

FFRF should be reminded that the preposition used by the founding fathers in the Bill of Rights is freedom OF religion, not freedom FROM religion. They should be reminded that they are the guests among a majority of religious people in this country, who exhibit more much tolerance towards FFRF than is reciprocated.  And in preparation for the next time our freedom OF religion is threatened by frivolous FFRF lawsuits, we should start a Freedom OF Religion Fund to pay for the defense of the Bill of Rights against militant atheists like FFRF.  We 80% Christians and 90% religious people in this country, as well as the 8-10% tolerant atheists/agnostics/unsure believers, would prevail against the aggressive and intolerant attitudes of groups like the FFRF if we woke up, got organized and took action.

FFRF should take a lesson in tolerance from Bishop Morlino, another one of the people consulted by WSJ for this article’s New Year’s resolutions for Madison.  Bishop Morlino did not suggest stifling FFRF’s plans, challenging their tax-exempt status, or interfering with FFRF in any way.  Bishop Morlino suggested some daily quiet personal introspection for everyone in Madison– which Annie Laurie Gaylor would be wise to consider.

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A tradition in our family, to pass this from one generation to the next…….

If

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: “Hold on”;

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man my son!

- Rudyard Kipling

Thanks to Tomas Reitz, ReitzInternet

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“Jesus Christ…. is pre-Vatican II.”

– Bishop Robert C. Morlino of Madison, WI

“Not a hundred people in the United States hate the Roman Catholic Church, but millions hate what they mistakenly think the Roman Catholic Church is.”

-Bishop Fulton J Sheen – found in the Ultimate! Catholic Trivia 1001 Fun and Fascinating Facts by Scott Frush – Marshall Rand Publishing

-quoted by Cynthia (Cindy) Brewer, Editor, The Catholic Lighthouse, Diocese of Victoria, TX