Tax Revolt: Wisconsin Style

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ^ | August 8, 2003 | Meg Jones

[ninenot]

Reports from FReepers present indicate that there were around 450 tax-freeze advocates (the good guys) and about 50 Teachers' Union members who were against the freeze picketing outside.

[BostonianRightist]

"Our intent is to start a new revolution with a shout heard 'round the state," Lisowski said as the crowd cheered. Well, his shout has been heard internationally on the Free Republic Network.

[johniegrad]

Property taxes in Wisconsin are outrageous. I own two homes on different waterfront properties in Minnesota and my brother lives "in town" across the border in Wisconsin. About 5 years ago, he built a new home, three bedroom, about 3000 square feet. Nice home but not palatial. He pays more in property taxes for his one home than I do for my two homes in Minnesota. Either of my places would bring more in sale than his would.

As a result, many taxpaying citizens of this Wisconsin town leave and more across the state line. This allows them to pay less taxes, stay close to their birthplaces, and continue to work their jobs regardless of which state they work in.

The result is that more taxpayers leave and more tax consumers remain shifting an even greater tax load on those who choose to remain.

[Blue_Ridge_Mtn_Geek]

Having picked our pockets to the limit at the Federal and State levels, the tax-and-spend locusts are putting the heat on local officials to keep their gravy train flowing by raising local taxes, on top of everything else. They resent every dime left in the pockets of citizens who create the wealth they believe they have a right to mooch.

Solution to government deficits: CUT SPENDING. Starting with the bloated "defense budget", and continuing with the secular religious institutions known as the public schools. The school systems are indoctrination centers, not learning centers. For details, see: http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/

The Underground History of American Education
A Schoolteacher's Intimate Investigation
Into The Problem Of Modern Schooling
http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/underground/index.htm

For links to the book chapters, see:
http://www.johntaylorgatto.com/chapters/index.htm

[Chad Fairbanks]

Those in favor of Doyle's veto wore red for contrast with blue.

Nah, they wore red because they are commie pinko socialists... but that's just a guess ;0)

[Orangedog]

Doyle stood with mayors and uniformed emergency workers outside city halls in La Crosse and Chippewa Falls, saying he was forced to be the "grown-up in charge" in the Capitol by vetoing the Legislature's "arrogant" plan to cripple local services and public schools.

Okay, all you tax-paying "children," Doyle says you're all just too young and stupid to question his judgement.

Notice who was gathered to tell you how stupid and selfish you all are. Every single one of those people is on the government payroll, being paid with your money to tell you have no business trying to stop them from taking more of your money for themselves. This is the apex of a conflict of interest. Every single one of those "Uniformed emergency workers" should be immediately fired and have all of their benefits revoked. By attending this event, they ceased being "public servants" and have become policy wonks and political hacks.

[Oberon]

"The taxpayers have woke up and are revolting," said Ralph Lisowski, who helped organize the event at a Kenosha restaurant.

"They stink on ice!"

[ninenot]

It's not hard to figure out where local and national support for the Democrat Party comes from: the AFSCME, the Firefighter's Union, the Police Union, and the Teachers' Union.

While the NEA/Teachers' bunch provides the money and the bodies, along with the AFSCME (miscellaneous Gummint workers,) the Firefighters provide the muscle--literally roughing up anti-Democrat protesters, such as at the AlGore rally in DePere, Wi. during the last campaign.

Total State/Local tax burden in Wisconsin places us 4th in the USA; we are paying about 120% of the national average in taxes. At the same time, Wisconsin workers earn about 85% of the national average. The effect: excruciating pain.

"Ayatollah" Doyle, a thug in his own right, is now in the running for Irony of the Year with his commment that '...no one should have to [take orders] from a distant place..' (in running their local government.) He conveniently forgets about Wisconsin's Dept of Education, Department of Natural Resources, and Department of Transportation---ALL of which, from liberal-bedwetter-socialist-Madison, dictate local policies and procedures on a regular basis.

This is only Chapter One of the revolt. It's posted PRECISELY to get national FReeper attention--to make it known that the Tax Revolt is beginning to be national in scope, and will NOT BE IGNORED.

[trebb]

"It's another thing to say, 'OK, we're really going to cut our schools by $400 million over the next two years, we're going to tell local leaders that they're all big spendthrifts.' I think that's a very hard vote for a legislator to take."

The truth is often hard to take...

[Kozak]

The result is that more taxpayers leave and more tax consumers remain shifting an even greater tax load on those who choose to remain.

WEAC's magazine, the house organ for the educrat goons, had a nice article recently on retiring in OTHER states, to escape Wisconsin's confiscatory taxes. Hypocrites.

[Trust but Verify]

What you have here is Doyle talking out of both sides of his posterior. On the one hand, he's telling people to trust their local politicians not to raise taxes, and on the other he's talking baout a $400 million cut to schools if taxes aren't raised. Just how STUPID does he think we are?

Either his precious teachers union members are going to get the 400 million or they're not.

I'd prefer not.

[MediaMole]

To give non-Wisconsin Freepers some idea of Wisconsin property taxes.


117,900 asking price City of Milwaukee --- $2649.00 taxes

115,900 asking price City of Glendale --- $2188.00 taxes

116,900 asking price City of South Milwaukee $2070.00 taxes

117,900 asking price City of Greenfield -- $2240.00 taxes

117,900 asking price Village of West Milwaukee $3211.00 taxes

114,900 asking price City of Cudahy --- $2611.00 taxes

These are all communities in Milwaukee county with numbers taken from a local real estate site. These taxes are on top of a large income tax.

These are not luxurious homes.

[tom paine 2]

Until we get rid of the confiscatory public service employee pensions we will have confiscatory property taxes. We need to take all the teachers pension balances that we have already funded and convert them to 401K plans and then have the teachers contribute to their own pension plans just like the rest of us regular folks.

[Lancey Howard]

Great post!
I love a tax revolution.

I hope the taxpayers in Wisconsin have the heart and stamina to keep the heat on this disgusting scumbag Jim Doyle. Work hard for those override votes and make sure that the scumbag Democrats understand that they will pay dearly if they don't protect homeowners from exobinant, confiscatory property taxes.

Know what? Just last year the tax revolution WORKED in Tennessee, and it can work in Wisconsin, too.

[ninenot]

Thanks for your encouragement.

PING LIST: This article is not on our typical thread--but I ping you to get the national exposure this story deserves.

[sinkspur]

I take it you have a state income tax.

Our property taxes in Texas are outrageous, and we have a high sales tax.

But, thankfully, no income tax.

[ninenot]

State Income Tax is graduated, takes 6.95% at AGI over $50K (more or less...) State Sales Tax is 5%, locals can add another 1/2 of 1%. State Gasoline Tax is #2 in the country. State Cig Tax is # 4 in the country.

Those are the easy ones...

[hripka]

More examples of liberal MEDIA BIAS:

(remember this is an article about a LARGE group of tax-freeze supporters, and a much SMALLER group of tax-freeze opponents)

1. SIZE - The tax-freeze supporters (taxpayers) outnumbered the tax-freeze opponents (teacher's unions) at this rally. Yet the Journal/Sentinel prints a larger picture of the tax-freeze opponents than the tax-freeze supporters. The ratio in the printed paper's picture size is probably 3 to 1.

2. CONTENT - The larger picture of the tax-freeze opponents shows a bunch of happy faces, while the picture of the tax-freeze supporters is of (what looks like) an angry mob.

3. CONTENT - The smaller picture of the tax-freeze supporters features the view toward the armpit of one of the supporters (who is holding up a sign)

4. PLACEMENT - On the printed copy of this liberal paper, the larger picture of the tax-freeze opponents is placed ABOVE the fold on the front page, while the smaller picture of the tax-freeze supporters is at the BOTTOM of the page.

Even on the website there is the same liberal emphasis.

A PERFECT example of liberal bias (what you CHOOSE to publish, how you emphasize it, how you place the photos, what the tone is)

I have to emphasize again that it was the tax-freeze supporters that OUTNUMBERED, by at least 4 to 1, the opponents.

But, glancing at a liberal newspaper, you got the OPPOSITE IDEA!

Journalists = Objective?? HA HA HA HA HA HA !!!

[hripka]

Please see my reply on the Milwaukee Journal/Sentinel's liberal media bias regarding the tax-freeze rally in Kenosha, Wisconsin at

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/960424/posts?page=1#18