Practically Speaking

Ever notice that when government or our school district is selling an idea the estimated price is lower than the real price? They start out a program (think foot in the door) and just keep expanding it--forever.

I was looking through some of my postings on 4-K from last year and found that Elmbrook told us the cost per year would be $685,570--paid for from district reserves, by the way. This was for 200 students. Remember, we needed 2 community partner locations to accommodate these students.

Today, I noticed the price given in Elmbrook to host K4 input sessions article that the price is $860,000. That is about $174,500 higher than last year's estimate, I assume because now they are talking 300 students. (I don't know if this covers transportation or increased facility needs.)

Do you realize the financial and facility ramifications we are opening ourselves up to by going down this 4-K path? The district estimates there are 500 potential 4-K Elmbrook students!

Ask yourself if you think half day 4-K will remain at half day. Then ask why Elmbrook would stop at 4-K when private programs and other school districts are talking 3-K.

The impact on our facilities by adopting a 4-K program is huge. Increasing the enrollment by 50% to 300 students will crowd the elementary schools. What do we do if enrollments reach 500?

We have the opportunity to stop 4-K now, but it will require you to do some work.  Contact the school board members--especially Patrick Murphy and Glenn Allgaier.  I don't know that Patrick Murphy uses email much. His no vote is very important, so either give him a call or write him a letter (address and phone number are on the school board contact page link).

Give Meg Wartman and Tom Gehl an encouraging word too. (Leah Vukmir, my State Rep. said the vote no emails concerning the state budget were very helpful.)

The impact of this 4-K decision will affect education in Elmbrook forever. Elmbrook's administration and school board are telling us we have REAL high school needs. We must focus our resources on needs, not wants.

Contact the board!

Past Posts:

Elmbrook to start 4-year old day care. Oops, excuse me, kindergarten 

Open your mouth now or prepare to open your wallet 

Last chance to speak out about 4-K
 

Here I was all set to blog something about your city, school district, state, and nation rationalizing a tax increase by saying,"It's only a such-in-such% increase in your tax bill?" and that it was time for a Boston Tea Party.

But this morning I am pleasantly surprised to learn that the Elmbrook School board actually voted to NOT increase their tax levy!

The short Community Watch post stated that because the state budget "did not provide the expected $79.3 million in equalization aid but instead shifted the funds to the school tax levy credit" this would result in our Elmbrook School District receiving "an additional $1.4 million, or a 13 percent increase in the school levy credit."

Did you understand why Elmbrook was graced with the extra funds this year? It was because the state was not going to redistribute our wealth as much as usual: the state budget "did not provide the expected $79.3 million in equalization aid".

Do you know where the state would have gotten that "equalization aid"? From wealthier communities like Brookfield and Elm Grove. (Contrary to some people's opinion, this is redistribution of wealth. There is no other way to explain it.)

This practice of "equalization aid" on the school district level and tax relief on the local city level (sorry, the term for this escapes me) is nothing but redistributing the wealth from the affluent to the less well off school districts and cities. This is one of the reasons all our development starts to cost us instead of helping us.

I don't understand exactly how they formulate this, but I am not alone. I don't think all of our elected officials understand it either. This past summer, I received a letter from my State Senator Jim Sullivan. In it he stated how he was trying to get some tax relief for West Allis. He concluded his letter with a statement like, I think these are issues the 5th district taxpayers want. (Those issues he assumed I was in favor of also included Healthy Wisconsin and all those other taxes such as the hospital bed tax and oil company taxes in the governor's budget.) Here Jim Sullivan was telling me how he was trying to help West Allis at my expense, and I should be happy about that!

I do keep wondering when the taxpayers in this country will have enough of all of our taxing bodies continually increasing their spending and taxing, redistributing our  wealth, and finally revolt as our early Boston colonists did with the tea party. 

Granted, today's victory is a tiny victory, but it is a step in the right direction. Maybe the board voted in favor of us because they sensed we were getting our tea bags ready?

Before I start, here is the disclaimer: I am not a doctor nor am I licensed in the field of medicine in any way.  Nutrition and natural medicine, however, have been an interest of mine for at least 30 years.

Last Monday, my 89 year old dad was checked into Elmbrook hospital with probable pneumonia. He had a bad cold over the weekend and on Monday the nurse at the group home thought he needed medical attention. She was right.

I sat with him in the emergency room, but he was very lethargic and sleepy. They started i.v. antibiotics immediately and then sent him to x-ray, but that did not show for certain he had pneumonia. I was told when a patient is dehydrated, chest x-rays are not always conclusive for a pneumonia diagnosis. As the day wore on, they admitted him to the hospital.

Did you take a sputum sample for a culture? I asked.

No, said the nurse.

Do you know if it is viral or bacterial pneumonia? 

No, was the answer again.

Is he contagious? I asked. (My dad has 2 siblings--both in their 80s. I thought this was an important thing to know if they were to visit...also important for me.)

Oh no, said the nurse.

I said how do you know that?

Well, if he was, he would be in isolation said the nurse. (Isn’t that circular reasoning?)

So they moved him upstairs and got him settled. I called his siblings and told them not to come. I just did not feel it was safe for them to visit since I didn’t think we knew enough about dad's diagnosis.

Tuesday, the pulmonary therapist came by in the afternoon. I asked her if Dad's pneumonia was bacterial or viral. She did not know. Then how do you know if he has a contagious strain or not? She then showed me a sample collection jar. They were expecting him, a weak patient and one with cognitive difficulties, to collect that sample on his own? Had I known about the jar, I could have easily collected a sample that morning. (We finally did get one later that night.) 

Dad's strength grew little by little and he was hungry--always a good sign.

Thursday, they released him to a non-acute care facility (nursing home), but they (Elmbrook) still did not know what type of pneumonia he had. He went for physical therapy and walked more than he had since Saturday. Later, he ate in the dining room.

Friday, he had physical, speech, and occupational therapy after breakfast and did pretty well--we even sat in on a music program. After we returned to his room, I received a phone call from his doctor at Elmbrook--Dad had MRSA .  Oh...no! I said. Why are you just telling me this now? The culture takes 72 hours he said. I thought, Too bad they did not get that culture sample on Monday, they could have had the results before they released him into the public.. I breathed a silent prayer of thanks that my elderly aunt and uncle had not visited and then thought of all the chances for exposure my sister and I already had and all the people he was in contact with at Elmbrook and at this nursing home.

The doctor went on to say that Dad would have to go on yet another antibiotic (4th round since mid September) and be in isolation. That means masks, glasses, gloves, and gowns just to enter his room.

The casualness of the hospital, doctors and nursing/care giver staff concerning contagions amazes me. I was glad I took some precautions early on. I am not normally like Winthrop’s friend at home, but when it comes to hospitals, nursing homes, and public places, I am careful.

The following is a list of sensible practices that might help you stay healthier.

1.      Floors are filthy: There is no 3 second rule in a hospital. Once something falls to the floor, consider it contaminated. I got this tip years ago from a director of nursing. This means you do not put your purse, a bag, books, etc on the floor. (This rule applies to any public bathroom as well.) Nurses used to change all their clothing at work and never wore their uniforms home. That way, they were not bringing home so many germs. Some nurses will at least change their shoes before coming home, thus reducing exposing their cars and homes to germs.

2.      Wash your hands, often!  Use soap and water, lots of friction for at least 15 seconds (time by slowly singing Happy Birthday to yourself) and don’t touch the faucet or soap dispenser with your hand. Use your elbow or a piece of paper towel. Grab a separate paper towel to dry your hands and use another to open the door. Those alcohol wipes and gels are better than nothing, but running water and friction are best. Don’t forget to wash your hands after you hold a patient’s hand too and use the gloves that are in the hospital rooms for anything messy.

3.      Don’t touch any door handles or elevator buttons in public places with your bare hands if you can help it. Use an elbow, the back of your hand or a knuckle.

4.      Consider the tray table, nightstand, or any surface in the hospital/nursing home as contaminated. When I looked at the slide out tray from the hospital bed tray table, I really had to wonder, when was the last time it was disinfected? It did not look all that clean when I removed his meal tray. Plus, how do your really clean nooks and crannies? Elderly people tend to eat things that fall off their plate or meal tray right off the table. The germ population could be very high there. (Since my dad’s MRSA diagnosis, I wondered how carefully everything in his hospital room was disinfected.)

5.      Be careful not to rub your eyes, nose, lips etc with your hands when visiting the sick. This is just a good practice anyway for cold and flu season—germs enter your system through mucus membranes even through your ears! (That tip was from my dentist—he recommends a few drops of peroxide in each ear.)

6.      Don’t do ill people’s laundry with your own laundry. The nursing home admission social worker brought this to my attention. She explained you don’t want to risk bringing infection home to your family; let us do your dad’s laundry. I am really glad I followed her advice! If you are caring for someone at home, use a germicide. Shaklee has a very good one: Basic G.

As we continue to abuse antibiotics as we have as a society, super bugs or resistant strains of diseases once controlled with drugs (i.e. tuberculosis)  will become increasingly a problem. We need to be taking precautionary actions in our behaviors to limit exposure. I hope some of these tips will save you from getting sick. They are really just common sense and some are helpful for avoiding even the common cold. Since last Monday, I have been doing some nutritional things to boost my immune system, but I better save that for a later posting—this one is too long already.

If you have any experience with MRSA I would like to hear from you.

Clarification: The sub-acute care place mentioned is Care-Age of Brookfield. They had no way of knowing about my dad's condition when he was admitted. They took immediate precautions once they knew about the MRSA. Care-Age has really been trying to make my dad as comfortable as possible and thankfully, Dad seems to be getting better.

Although summer 2008 seems a long way off, it is already getting late in the season for making National Park lodging reservations! Popular parks fill up faster than the lesser known parks.

Yellowstone (our family favorite) is already showing no vacancy dates for various days throughout next summer. Don't let that discourage you, sometimes you can still work out your itinerary by staying in two locations. This happened to us our first trip in 2001--we had to move for one night in the middle of a 2 week stay. That was a huge waste of time though, and time is money when you are on vacation.

I recommend, if you are even just thinking of going, that you make your reservations now. It is easy to do. Most parks have online registration. They will charge your credit card the first night's rate but will refund it in whole if you cancel within a certain time frame (usually 48 hours prior to reserved date).

Our favorite place to be at Yellowstone is right on the geyser basin at Old Faithful Lodge cabins. We stay in the budget cabins (no bathroom--much like camping) but they do have other cabins with a bath. These accommodations are rather simple, but fit the three main rules of real estate: location, location, location! Last summer we must have seen Old Faithful erupt 100 time from this superb location. Can't beat that!

So mouse around on the National Park website and find the park of your choice. If the park has in-park lodging, there is usually a link to it. Park hotels and lodges are managed by a private company, not the National Park Service. These private companies usually manage several of the parks in a region. Yellowstone, for example, is managed by Xanterra.

Sometimes it is fun to stay in one of the more famous historic lodges, but they are too pricey for my budget. Their room rate did not prevent us from enjoying a meal, sitting by the fire in the lobby, or enjoying a tour though. There was a PBS series called Great Lodges of the National Parks, which gave detailed information about the famous lodges and their history. It is a wonderfully done production with a companion book that is a treat to page through. Our CAFE library system has both the book and the DVD.

I also own 2 very helpful books by David and Kay Scott. Their Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges book gives very practical advice on what each park accommodation is like and even includes their exact room or location preferences. I've found their suggestions helpful. Their other book, Guide to the National Park Areas gives a thumbnail sketch of each park, with map, and other helpful planning information. Our library system has both books. 

Just writing this post makes me want to start planning my next trip and packing my suitcase!

Again, if you have any questions or want any other information, just email me. I enjoyed hearing from you regarding my Mammoth Cave post--hope to hear from some of you again.

You can also reserve campground sites, mule rides or other special activities in advance too. Be sure to check the cancellation policy first.

PLEASE BE AWARE that as a rule, the cabins, hotels, lodges, etc. are NOT luxury accommodations. They usually do not have a TV or phone and often no air conditioning. In fact, hotel owners in the private sector would never get away with what they offer if it was in any other setting. The most we ever paid for a room--ever--was in Yosemite at Curry Village. The cabin was $145/night. OUCH--painful for a frugal girl like me. It had the worst, ratty bathroom I ever saw, but we were right in the valley with the granite bluffs just outside our cabin door. Can't beat that view--remember the 3 rules of real estate? It also had a black bear that visited at 2am. Staying on grounds in the park really does enhance the whole experience--after all, you aren't going there to spend time in the room! The lobbies and common areas of the lodges are usually quite charming.

I just returned from the Brookfield Library...smiling.

One of my neighbors is having a neighborhood Fall Festival party tonight and wanted to show some fun DVDs on the BIG screen. We are assisting with some of the technology to make that happen. (Translation: son is assisting.)

The original plan was to hook up a VCR to the projector and show my friend's VCR tape. But yesterday, I found I was the one needing to do that task--something a little too complicated for me. No problem, last night I reserved online It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown on DVD at the Brookfield Library.

Today, I zipped in to get it, but the check out lady couldn't find it in the usual places. She advised me to go to the children's section, that it might be on the seasonal items cart. Mary, the new children's librarian came to my aid, but even she could not find it on the cart or shelf.

Did she give up and just give me a SORRY, it's not here? No. She said she would look in the back at the circulation desk. I followed her back to check out and watched her search in all sorts of piles and stacks. She could have given up at that point and just said some sort of apology--she did try after all. Instead, Mary continued searching and looked in a stack of items needing repairs (the jacket was a bit ragged).

Eureka, she found it!

I have to commend Mary for really going the extra mile on this one. It is one of the reasons I have always preferred using the Brookfield Library over the Waukesha Library. The staff has always been friendly and helpful. Brookfield also takes better care of their materials.

So, thank you Mary. You made my day and saved my friend's party from suffering from my lack of technical savvy! 

P.S. The library is conducting a survey. There is a table set up just inside the front doors with surveys and a drop box. Take a minute and give them some feedback. I think you have until the end of the month. 

The state budget passed. There was compromise.  I am not happy about it.

I am really disappointed in Speaker Mike Huebsch. For all the no tax increase posturing he did prior to the vote, it seems he gave in to the idea that increases were OK as long as they weren't horribly high. With that kind of thinking we will never get spending under control!

The real goal should be to reduce spending, not just tailor the increases to what someone thinks we can afford. There is nothing wrong with government leaving a little extra money in your pocket at the end of the day. That extra is what we use to fund our savings, retirement, college, and charitable giving accounts.

JSOnline reported, "Huebsch touted the budget as one that keeps governent spending in line with taxpayers' ability to pay, but Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), a no-tax-increase pledge signer, disagreed."

" ' This is not a Republican budget, it is a Democratic budget; and it's riddled with earmarks and favors and new spending that we simply cannot afford,' she said."  

Some fees/taxes/surcharges or whatever you want to call them were eliminated--there won't be the bed tax or oil company tax. But there will be hefty new fees and taxes--$763.2 million of them. The $274 million increase in drivers license/car title fees and the $200 million raiding of malpractice funds along with the new cigarette tax are excessive. Granted, the estimated $378.5 million new cigarette tax probably irritates only the smokers, but on principle, it is wrong. I don't want anyone to smoke, but which group will they stab next to target for a new tax?  

Anyway, I am glad to report that Brookfield's 3 Republican legislators voted NO to this budget. By the way, I would have been even happier if our one Democrat Senator Sullivan had voted NO too. This is not a Republican or Democrat issue; it is simply a case of controlling unbridled spending.

If you are pleased with Brookfield's 3 legislators, Rep. Vukmir, Rep. Zipperer, and Senator Kanavas, who voted NO, take a moment to tell them. While you are at it, share your thoughts with Senator Sullivan, Rep. J. Fitzgerald, and Rep. Huebsch, who voted YES. 

No votes:

State Representative Leah Vukmir, Republican, 14th District
Representative Rich Zipperer, Republican, 98th District
State Senator Theodore Kanavas, Republican, 33rd District

Yes votes:

State Senator Jim Sullivan, Democrat, 5th District
Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald (Assembly Majority Leader)
Rep. Michael Huebsch (Assembly Speaker)

OK, maybe we didn't go to the center, but it sure felt like it!  This is a travel piece.

My husband and I just returned from an impromptu get away to Mammoth Cave National Park in Kentucky. Mammoth is open every day except Christmas, so maybe a little get away could be in your future too? If you go soon, the fall colors are an extra bonus.

Many people are freaked out by caves and they think they are dangerous. This may be true of caves you explore on your own, but it is not true of Mammoth--they are very safe. Mammoth Cave, by the way, is the largest cave system in the world.

Some of the tours take you to very large, tall chambers-well over an acre in size--and are well lit. They are more like going down into a huge underground parking garage. Mammoth even has a subterranean dining room called the Snow Ball Room. Of course, other tours are more demanding--steep hill climbs and up to a total 670 stairs. Our favorites are the lantern tours where the tourists carry the provided kerosene or gas lantern.

Whatever your preference, Mammoth Cave National Park has a variety of tours  to suit most people's interests: beautiful formations, historic, and easy strolls to rigorous caving. There are things to do on the surface too.

The most difficult tour offered is the Wild Cave followed by Introduction to Caving. These require belly crawls through 9 - 10" spaces, stoop walking, canyon walking (astride a gap), butt slides, and fallen cave rock climbs. There is a girth maximum of 42 inches on those two tours, I have heard for good reason because there are some tight squeezes through roundish openings!

About two weeks ago, my husband and I decided to drive down to Mammoth Cave National Park for a mini vacation, joking we were practicing for retirement. It was familiar territory; we had been there 2 times before in 1977 and 1981 B.C. (before child). We always wanted to do the Wild Cave tour, but it was sold out on our previous visits (you need to book sometimes 6 months in advance to get in). Since this trip was spur-of-the-moment, Wild Cave was again sold out, but we decided to go to Mammoth anyway.

I first checked on availability of other cave tours online. FYI, once tours are booked, there is a $3.00 fee per ticket to cancel or change them. Sometimes no refund is available if cancellation is too close to tour time, so be sure of what you are committing to. You can also get tickets at the park, but I was not about to make a 9 hour drive there without knowing we could get on our desired tours.

I called the Mammoth Cave Hotel by phone 270-758-2225 to see if rooms were available. You may view their offerings at Mammothcavehotel.com. Prices vary from $50 - $80 something per night. I booked for 4 nights. As long as you cancel 48 hours prior to arrival, you can get a full refund.

I then booked 4 cave tours online : Violet City lantern tour, New Entrance , Great Onyx lantern tour , and Introduction to caving --a Wild Cave junior tour. Presto, all set!

Now to pack. Topside weather this time of year averages 72 degrees. It was 85 degrees last weekend. Cave temperatures are always the same regardless of season: 54 degrees. You will need long pants and a jacket and/or sweater. I like to wear a fleece headband too. Some wear a baseball cap. You don't need boots for the easy or moderate tours, but walking shoes with lugged soles are helpful for tours designated as difficult.

Over the ankle boots with lugged soles are mandatory for Intro to Caving and Wild Cave tours. This rule is enforced and they will not let you go without your boots! They also tell you to bring gloves and knee pads. They don't enforce this and even have some you can use. I say they are a must--they protect your hands and knees from jagged rocks when crawling. The bonus is they keep you dry--cave floors can be wet.  The age requirement is enforced too: 10 years and up for Intro. to Caving and 16 and up for Wild Cave. They provide the hard hat and miner lights. (Click on photo to see example of the crawl.)

I have to admit that I was a bit apprehensive about the Intro to Caving tour. It's been 26 years since we were there last, which means I am 26 years older. I kept telling myself how bad can it be, they let 10 year olds do it! The tour was led by a former librarian now park ranger-early-50-something-woman. That made me feel a little better.

Once we descended the 260 stairs through the New Entrance, they made us each go through the test hole crawl, a 15 - 20" high opening you had to crawl through the best you could and squeeze through a jagged hole at the end. I did it and thought I can do this! The miner light always shed good light wherever you looked so it gave the illusion of the cave being well lit. I never felt overly confined. The remaining parts of the tour were designed to give you a taste of what you may encounter spelunking and to teach you safe caving practices.

I am glad I did it but would not do it again. It turned out to be providential that Wild Cave was sold out-I think that tour would have been too rigorous for me, although the guides told me there was a 72 year old woman who did it last summer.

Don't let the Intro to Caving scare you though. The Great Onyx Lantern tour is our favorite. It is conducted in a remote area of the cave system and is the most beautiful, I think. Onyx Cave used to be owned by Miss Lucy Cox, who was quite fussy about her cave. She made sure people did not touch the delicate formations or write their names all over. We had the pleasure of being guided by Ranger Ronnie Doyle, who worked for Miss Lucy in his youth (before the cave became part of the National Park). Talk about living history! His great uncle was also the owner of Sand Cave where the ill fated spelunker Floyd Collins  was entrapped in 1925.

So, if you are looking for a get away that is off the beaten track, Mammoth Cave National Park might just be your destination. Lots of history, great scenery, and just 485 miles away via I-94, I-294*, I-80 and I-65.

*PS We left home at 9:10am Wed. morning and missed ALL the rush hour traffic around Chicago and Gary. 

Please feel free to ask any questions if you are thinking of going. My husband and I love our National Parks and like to share information! 

I saw in the Sunday paper that the Governor was sweetening the pot on the 2nd state budget in an effort to "tempt enough Republicans in votes that would help it squeeze through the Assembly on Monday."

The thought came to me, that this whole can't we have all this spending, please approve my budget, and if you vote for my budget, I will give you this favor, reminded me of a whiny child and a parent.

Most children are very versed in negotiating deals. You know, the Mom, can't I stay up until 11pm? If you let me, I will clean my room tomorrow. Or, Dad, I really need that new pair of $400 ski boots. If you buy them for me, I will shovel all the snow. Or how about, Why can't I eat chocolate cake for breakfast? Kids will often just keep asking until they wear down the poor parent's resolve and get their way.

But good parents know they often have to remain firm in their beliefs and say no to their children. They must act responsibly and weigh the request against the need. They must factor in the requests impact to the family dynamics and budget. Saying no to some requests may make us feel badly, but to indulge the child would not be good in the long run. We know we cannot grant every request; its what makes us the grownup!

I can only hope our legislators in Madison will act like grownups and be firm in their pledges to not raise taxes--not even for a tempting piece of pork!  

UPDATE: My Representative Leah Vukmir just called to let me know that she put on high heels today so she could really dig in her heels on the budget! I asked if she had received a lot of calls about the budget and she said YES. The vast majority were urging her to not approve any new taxes or fees. Our conversation was cut short because she was being called to the floor.

Stand firm, Leah, stand firm! 

Telling the truth has taken a backseat to maintaining and attaining power. We are seeing this on all fronts.

Locally, we just approved taking 4 family's homes to build a fire station that did not need relocating and will not improve fire response times.

Regionally, our State Republicans are being branded as politicians deserving imprisonment for not yielding on an unreasonable state budget.

Nationally, the President is labeled as insensitive to children for vetoing a bill that would grant health insurance to "low income children" regardless of their family's real income level or age. (He is actually in favor of renewing that SCHIP program, just not expanding it to include 25yr olds, etc.)

A national talk show host is being vilified on the US Senate floor for saying something that an ABC news show also reported.

Globally, we are being told that we are causing global warming and must all reduce CO2 emissions to save the planet, when statistics show that temperature increases precede CO2 increases not CO2 increases causing warming. No matter that once our climate was warmer as evidenced by forests that once ranged further to the north in Canada than they do now.

What do all these things have in common? The basis for making these assumptions and accusations are not true.  Increasingly decisions are being made on the basis of emotion--not facts. If some untruth (we used to call those lies) fits a group's agenda, then the untruth will be touted to gain maximum shock value.

Every day, for some time now, I hear the geese honking overhead as they start their migrations south. Their long flights take a tremendous amount of strength and stamina, yet they do it two times a year.

The Almighty gave the geese strategies to optimize their efforts. They fly in a V formation, with the lead goose working the hardest to break through the wind. The geese flying behind the leader each benefit from that leader's efforts and HONK encouraging honks for the head goose to continue his difficult task.

It is time for us to give a HONK. Our state is still operating under last year's budget (there is no threat of government shut down as is the case in other states). The Assembly Republicans are coming under increasing pressure for not passing the Governor's budget which is loaded with $1 billion in tax/fee increases.  They will be labeled as the bad guys for not passing the budget--not the governor for submitting such a bloated budget.

This week, I heard Assembly Speaker Mike Huebsch on the radio. He stated that he thought they were holding firm on their no tax pledge. They will probably cave in on the 1/2 million dollar cigarette tax increase though, but that would be as far as they would go. That is farther than I would like to see them go.

If you don't want them to cave on other tax increases, such as the bed tax for hospitals or the oil company tax, it is time to HONK your support to the Republican Geese. Encourage them to hold fast to their no tax increase pledges.

COMMITTEE MEMBERS

REPUBLICANS:
Rep. Jeff Fitzgerald (Assembly Majority Leader), from Horicon. Counties: Columbia and Dodge
Rep. Michael Huebsch (Assembly Speaker), from West Salem. Counties: LaCrosse and Monroe
Rep. Kitty Rhoades (co-chair of Joint Finance), from Hudson. Counties: Pierce and St. Croix
Sen. Scott Fitzgerald (Senate Minority Leader), from Juneau. Counties: Columbia, Dane, Dodge, Jefferson, and Waukesha

Contact your representatives again:
State Representative Leah Vukmir, Republican, 14th District
Representative Rich Zipperer, Republican, 98th District
State Senator Jim Sullivan, Democrat, 5th District
State Senator Theodore Kanavas, Republican, 33rd District

Governor Doyle

While you are at it, did you HONK a thank you to our 7 aldermen who voted NO to moving the fire station and claiming 4 Brookfield homes with eminent domain? It is tough work being a lead goose. Encourage them with a thank you.

Bill Carnell williamcarnell@att.net 781-1058

Dan Sutton dano8287@aol.com 373-0173

Bob Reddin sreddin@wi.rr.com 781-4029

Ron Balzer ronbalzer@netzero.net 782-1177

Jerry Mellone jmellone@wi.rr.com 786-6719

Chris Blackburn blackbrn@ticon.net 821-5262

Lisa Mellone mailto:mlisa@betterbrookfield.com 780-0805

If we are following what the Task Force recommended, then why are not the other 3 possible Greenfield locations being discussed? I believe they should be brought to the table too.

I still strongly believe that our station is already in the right place. I can see that a location on Greenfield between Moorland and Calhoun might speed up dispatch to easterly district 7 locations and destinations to the west too. (It does not help the Brookfield Square/hot zone or interstate calls though.) There would not be any need to negotiate pulling out onto Moorland from Hackberry or from Moorland onto Greenfield, if it already was on Greenfield.

 

The NW corner is really a mistake if we are trying to aid dispatch to the north via Calhoun. There is no easy way for a NW corner property to dispatch trucks northbound from a busy boulevard intersection! Since this was one of the main reasons that Chief Dahms gave for favoring the new alignment (when I met with him), the NW corner seems to be the most inferior station location for this purpose. Placing it on NW Calhoun would also cause some delay for calls to the east because the light/intersection must be taken into consideration as well as the greater distance. If we are truly trying to balance response times, these two locations, NW Calhoun and NE Calhoun, fail miserably. 

Oh, what a surprise. Tonight, Elmbrook to discuss more 4-year-old kindergarten in a non-videotaped work session.

Ever notice how many trial or temporary government programs become permanent and expanded? Social Security and the increase in Wisconsin's 4% sales tax to 5% back in, was it Lee Dreyfus' day(?) are two good examples of government that just keeps growing.

Elmbrook's 4-K government program is no different. What started as a temporary, small trial basis soon will become a bloated taxpayer funded daycare project under the guise of It's for the children.

The Community Watch blurb stated, "According to a memo to the School Board, a permanent 4-K program would produce more revenue than it would cost starting in the 2010-'11 school year. Those extra funds could be used to pay other expenses throughout the district."

But get this,"It would, however, cost the taxpayers more money, because it would be funded primarily from increased property taxes. The district would be allowed to collect more taxes due to its increased enrollment."

Who is it really for?

Ever think that one reason they need those 4 year olds in school, instead of with mom, is so that mom can go back to work sooner? Of course they will try to persuade the public that the earlier the child enters the educational system the better they will do in school. I've spoken to this issue before, but if you missed that, the stats do not prove this out. Any head start evens out at around 5th grade.

So what is the real reason for sending these tykes to school? After all, it costs the taxpayers money to do it. And that, to me, is one of the reasons they are pushing this agenda: It costs taxpayers money to send 4 year olds to school. Families cannot easily afford these and other ever increasing taxes. Therefore enable mom to go back to work sooner. Then she can help contribute to the family's income, to afford the ever increasing taxes!

Obviously, it grows the Empire of Elmbrook, and 4-K enables moms to work, to fund the empire.

Dual income families are less likely to notice the bite taxes are taking out of the family budget than single income ones. 

Just once I would like to see some program discontinued because it was not cost effective! If we are not careful, we may soon need to add another S to USA. (United States of Socialist Americans)

P.S. You might want to ask yourself if you really think the 4-K program will stay at the half day level and then ask yourself why Elmbrook expanded half day 5-K to all day.

One reader emailed me that many Elmbrook moms are more interested in playing while their little darling was in kindergarten than needing to go to work. I would agree, but one reason we were given for implementing all day 5-K and half day 4-K is that we need to to be competitive with other districts. In other school districts, I would guess that working moms are more than happy to avail themselves of the free daycare.

Politically, the year 2006 was a hard one for me.  Both spring and fall elections went to candidates I did not support. (Exceptions: Lisa Mellone, Jerry Mellone, and Bill Carnell were the only bright spots that year.)

Think of what life would be like now if a different Brookfield Mayor had been elected and an incumbent Wisconsin State Senator was reelected.

Today we would not have a neighborhood with 4 of its homes crushed by pending eminent domain. I would wager we would not be moving fire station #3 either.

We also would have at least one State Senator (Reynolds) with the back bone to oppose UN-Healthy Wisconsin and the horrendously expensive state budget.

But life does go on.

I do wonder how many people still think of Mayor Speaker as a "Nice guy". 

P.S. I did not mean to ignore the governor's race! But between the governor's campaign donations and budget, there are not enough hours in the day to address that.

This is SO sad!

Tuesday night, 7, yes, 7 aldermen had the intelligence and independence of spirit to vote against moving fire station #3 to the worst possible location (my opinion), the north west corner of Calhoun and Greenfield. Trouble is, this split vote left the tie breaking vote to our mayor.

Since Mayor Speaker was the one who started this whole ball rolling, to cater to the night time residents (voters) rather than to the taxpayers, businesses and daytime population of our city, it was pretty predictable as to the way his vote would go. (It was a yes.)

I am glad there were 7 no votes though. This shows the council is breaking out of its former lock step mode and starting to think for themselves. Think of what just a few new faces on the council could do?

A big thank you to the 7 no votes: Sutton, Carnell, Reddin, Balzer, Jerry Mellone, Blackburn, and Lisa Mellone.

Sadly, my other district 7 alderman, Mike Franz, voted yes. Yes, to his own district 7 residents soon to have the longest EMS response times in the city. I sure hope someone is considering running for district 7 alderman next spring. We need another alderman who will represent US and our interests.

I was not able to attend the meeting, but Renee Lowerr was good enough to email out a short synopsis of the night's events. Thanks Renee.

She reported, "The meeting was well attended by mostly Greenfield Heights Residents.
Several residents spoke in opposition of Option #1. I believe that I was the only resident East of Calhoun that spoke about re-considering their FS move vote & rebuild at current location.

The meeting was very heated, very emotional, many ?s, comments...between the Council Members & staff."

She also added, "Four homes will be taken by eminent
domain. One on Greenfield Ave, one on Calhoun & two on Adelman Roads."