Wisconsin supporters in Woodstock

Yesterday afternoon about 100 "protestors" gathered on the corner of the Unitarian Universalist Church at Dean and South Streets in Woodstock, in support of the Wisconsinites who don't like Gov. Walker's efforts to keep the State's boat from sinking. There were plenty of signs and chanting.

On the corner across Dean Street a handful of others, mostly from Crystal Lake, showed up to protest the protestors.

On the corner of the late Dr. Tambone's former medical office stood a woman and three boys who appeared to be of middle-school age. I crossed over to talk to the boys and first asked the woman if they were her sons. You know - get parental permission before talking to the boys. They weren't her boys, and soon they crossed the street.

I attempted to have a conversation with the woman, whose name I did not ask. It's better than I don't know; that I can tell you. Then I can't attach a name to her rude manner of speaking with me and her unwillingness to engage in any reasonable conversation. She made a point of telling me that her father and brothers were all union members, but I guess I still naively expected we might have a conversation. Wrong!

I mentioned previous work with NFIB in Colorado in 1988, when I called on an owner of a small business employing 20 workers in the electronic field. I was deep in Democratic Party Pat Schroeder's Congressional District and was attempting to discuss the proposed mandatory health care issue. As I recall, the owner told me that she earned $30,000/year after paying her employees and running her business. Mandatory health insurance was going to cost her $40,000, and I asked her how much she would be earning after paying for the mandatory insurance. (Hint: $30,000 - $40,000 = < $0)

She said it didn't matter, because workers ought to have health insurance. I explained that her position would be that she would have no income herself, if she were forced to provide mandatory health insurance. And then she'd go out of business. And then were 20 employees would be out of work.

Her answer? "I want my employees to have health insurance." It didn't sink in that she wouldn't have any employees, because she'd be out of business and all her workers would be unemployed!

Then the woman on the street yesterday wanted to know if I had voted for Ronald Reagan. When I told her that I didn't remember, ... well, our conversation was over. And I don't remember. I probably did, but I don't remember. Why would I remember that? When was that election? November 1980!

So I had answered her truthfully, but that didn't matter to her. Which is what is wrong with the gang that invaded Wisconsin's Capitol recently. "It's doesn't matter; just give me more."