The Top Ten Reasons That Milwaukee Does Not Need A Streetcar (Mayor Tom Barrett, Are You Listening?)

Although the tracks have been laid in downtown Milwaukee
and the first new streetcar has made its initial run, there is
still considerable vocal opposition accompanied by pushback
to Mayor Tom Barrett's white elephant on wheels. A group
of such determined citizens, G.R.A.S.P. (Group Resistance
Against Streetcar Planning) has recently been established by
one such activist, Thomas Brian, and has welcomed many
Milwaukeeans aboard in its mission to derail the costly
boondoggle.

One of the ways in which G.R.A.S.P. is making its case is
its creation of a list of the top ten reasons that the streetcar
is a bad idea for Milwaukee, a' la David Letterman (remember
his "Top 10" lists from his old TV show? Your bemused
Peasant thought it one of the few genuinely funny features
on that show). But this list is all business in its purpose
and its substance; the cancellation of the Mayor's choo-choo
and the savings of the people's tax monies are its goals.

So here are G.R.A.S.P.' s Top 10 Reasons to Oppose the Streetcar,
as stated on the group's Facebook page (followed here by observa-
tional comments from your favorite Peasant):


1) It wasn't needed. Milwaukee did not, and does not, have a
transportation problem.

Indeed. In my opinion, Milwaukee simply needs a beefing up of
the Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) which provides
the bus service for Milwaukee and many of its suburbs. The city
could team up with the county by redirecting some of the funds
allocated to the streetcar instead to the County, under whose
auspices the local bus system operates, to fund the restoration of
some of the routes which were cut back for budgetary reasons.
More drivers could be hired and trained for the route restoration.
As a regular bus rider myself, this would benefit your non-driving
Peasant no end. There is a bus route that goes close by my new
home, but it would be nice if it had more runs during its daily
schedule in the mornings and evenings.

2) 69% of Milwaukee area residents are opposed to the streetcar
(Marquette Law School poll).

Furthermore, many of these residents have strenuously objected
to the shifting of funding of the police and fire departments to
the streetcar, especially with crime rising dramatically in some of
the neighborhoods where they live. Strange priorities, Mayor
Barrett has.

3) It's a waste of federal tax dollars. Federal tax dollars should
be off limits.

Amen to that! Why should anyone outside of Milwaukee have to
pay anything toward this ridiculous scheme? It's bad enough that
local taxpayers are expected to fund it.

4) Fixing potholes and resurfacing our terrible streets is more
important.

I'll offer no argument here! One needs a Humvee or a dune buggy to
traverse some of Milwaukee's crumbling roads without damaging
their vehicles. More badly needed things being ignored, all for the
sake of a mayor whose parents likely never bought Tommy boy a
train set when he was but a wee brat!

5) A poor design from the start. Streetcars should not share traffic
lanes with cars.

A safety hazard to be sure! But then, Milwaukee has a mayor who
doesn't seem terribly concerned with public safety to begin with
(see my earlier remarks re: Reason #2).

6) Many potential safety hazards. Lawsuits are already pending.

Dovetails with Reason #5.

7) The streetcars is going to cause traffic delays and congestion
like we've never seen before.

It's challenging enough to travel through downtown as it is!

8) The streetcar benefits special interests ... developers, general
contractors, investors etc.

The very people who support Mayor Barrett at election time with
their huge wads of cash! We peasants certainly don't have the scratch
to buy a mayor or other official.

9) Project could have been done much cheaper, with less disruption,
with traditional "trolley-type" buses.

And Milwaukee has them! I see them a lot during the many ethnic
festivals, Summerfest, etc. And riding them would be very similar to
riding the buses, and every bit as efficient.

10) The streetcar will not help (the) citizens who need it most, (to)
get to good paying jobs.

Despite claims by the streetcar supporters that the streetcar system
would "spider out" and travel along more streets in Milwaukee,
downtown and the neighborhoods, they would not get workers
and job seekers to where the jobs are. And the ridership is not going
to be high enough to justify expanding the routes of the streetcar;
it will be an uphill battle just to keep up the main route(s) with paltry
revenues resulting from scant ridership.


And there you have it. The streetcar scheme (scam?) is a turkey,
just in time for Thanksgiving. And not nearly as appetizing as
the traditional holiday entree'. Anyone interested in learning more
about G.R.A.S.P. with an eye toward joining, look up the group
on Facebook as well as its founder Thomas Brian. They will be
happy to have you and your efforts in turning back Barrett's Folly.
This is a true grassroots effort to get City Hall to respect the wishes
of the people of Milwaukee.

And tell G.R.A.S.P. that The Peasant sent you!


MEM

So Grateful for Nine Fantastic Years!

Your grateful Peasant wishes to thank you,
my wonderful readers, for nine great years
together! It was nine years ago yesterday
(I wasn't able to find the time to go online
that day) that we first began our weekly
gatherings here at this blog to examine and
discuss the latest political and economic news
each week. Being with all of you is, and has
always been the height of my week!

Thank you all for your support and your company!
We'll get together here this coming Thursday to
kick off our tenth year of keeping abreast of the
news and our support for our champions of free
markets, free minds, and a free society!

I love you all! Thanks a trillion!


MEM

Firing Line with William F. Buckley Jr.: "Muhammad Ali and The Negro Movement" ...

The Peasant Catches His Breath (And Settles Into His New Home)

Sorry, friends, but your harried Peasant is taking this week off
to rest and catch up on some personal tasks while continuing
to settle into my new home; just eleven days ago I moved into
a lovely apartment in New Berlin, a pleasant suburb of Milwaukee
where I just happened to spend most of my formative years!
This is my homecoming, in a manner of speaking.

Besides, I have been planning for a while to leave Milwaukee
to head for the suburbs. I love Milwaukee, please don't misunder-
stand, it's just that I have no confidence in the leadership at City
Hall, you know this from my prior posts regarding Mayor Tom
Barrett and his chums on the Common Council. And although
I love the people of Milwaukee along with the city itself, they
will on one hand complain about the poor condition of the
streets, or the need for a greater police presence in their
neighborhoods, or how they'd rather have improved bus service
instead of a trolley system which few will ride with any regularity
(and funding for the police and the firefighters diverted to funding
the boondoggle!) but vote the very same people who is making
their woes in the first place (?!), and by huge margins.
Mayor Barrett himself was re-elected with 70% (!!) of the vote.
So I decided to vote with my feet. Ich bin ein New Berliner!

I love Milwaukee, but barring a miracle I see no hope for a
badly needed change in its leadership. And Milwaukee will
suffer the same fate as Detroit and Saint Louis, with people
leaving for the suburbs and communities further afield to
escape the crime, the taxes, the arrogance of the city elected
officials, ...

So I am currently getting everything unpacked and situated
just so in my new digs. And I love my new home! I am most
grateful for a dear friend who helped me to become aware of
and to get the place through her connections to the peope who
bought the place earlier in the summer. They are a non-profit
group who rescue dogs from horrible situations, and will make
the lower level their headquarters while your joyful Peasant
resides upstairs in a one bedroom apartment in the house.
Among other things I shall be able to host sessions of my
Chuck Ward Celtic Song Circle with all the space I have!
And the dog charity downstairs, Canine Cupids is their outfit's
name, will be keeping banker's hours so they won't be around
evenings. There are next door neighbors but they are not in all
that close proximity so we won't be disturbing anyone with our
evenings of song!

I'll share more on all this in due course, but for now I have to
depart to take care of some of my aforementioned chores. I'll
be back of course next week! Gee, I just wrote an entire blog
piece today after all! No rest for the wicked, including your
wicked Peasant (well, left-wingers consider me to be wicked)!
See you later ...


MEM

A Liberal Calls Out His Own

The mania for driving President Donald Trump from office
by any means possible has reached epic, and epically
desperate proportions. The Liberal Establishment and their
"Deep State" chums, along with the ever-compliant, always
reliable propaganda machine-cum-lamestream media have
been trying their absolute damndest to find or manufacture
some charge(s) to impeach and remove the president from
office. Now they have seized on this stratagem: tie President
Trump to his now ex-lawyer Michael Cohen and the latter's
recent guilty plea to violation of campaign finance laws in
arranging monetary payments to Stormy McDaniels and
Karen McDougal, two women that Trump had allegedly
had affairs with long before he ran for the presidency.

Esteemed Harvard University Constitutional law Professor
Alan Dershowitz, who has voiced his discomfort regarding
the attempts to remove President Trump from office
and the dogging of people close, or formerly close to the
president, told Fox News this week that "The law is clear
that a president may contribute to his own campaign so if
the President had paid $280,000 to these two women even
if he had done so in order to help his campaign that (it)
would be no problem, that's legal, and if Cohen had made
the contribution that would be unlawful because he has a
limit of $5,200 so the complicated issue is what if Trump
told him to do it as Cohen says?" Cohen perhaps was coaxed
by the prosecution to confess to a campaign law violation
which, according to Prof. Dershowitz was not a campaign
law violation at all, in order to have Cohen say something
negative about the President in order to have something to
pin on him with an eye toward impeachment.

Dershowitz explained that, in that case, it would still not
constitute a crime because Cohen would be acting as
President Trump's representative. He further averred
"The campaign contribution would be lawful as long as the
president ultimately paid for it, so the prosecutor's in a
bit of a Catch-22. If he believes Cohen that the president
directed him to do it then it's not a crime at all; if he
doesn't believe Cohen then Cohen committed a crime
but not the president." That is to say that if the prosecutor
believes that Cohen isn't being truthful here, then Cohen
was acting on his own, separately from the president.
Many Democrat senators along with the establishment
press have been trying to pin the label of "unindicted
co-conspirator" on President Trump regarding the actions
of Cohen, who had fallen out with the president over, among
other things, Cohen having secretly taped conversations
with him in 2016 re: transferring money to someone they
called "a friend". The audio was muddled so it was not clear
whether or not Trump had directed Cohen to "pay with cash"
or to not so pay more than one woman with whom Trump
had allegedly had an affair. CNN obtained it and ran with
it to try to implicate Trump in something illegal, and
some prominent Senate democrats joined in after Cohen's
guilty plea.

But the details from that tape were obscured and therefore
sketchy at best, causing Prof. Dershowitz dismissed the label of
"co-conspirator" on that basis. The professor stated "You don't
become an unindicted co-conspirator if your action is lawful even
though the action of the other person is unlawful.And why did
Cohen tape his discussions with Trump regarding monetary
payments to anyone? What was his reason? What motivation
had he? It sounds like he had violated his duty to confidentiality
between himself and his client. Admittedly your factual Peasant
doesn't have the answers to these questions, but hopes that
they are soon revealed and brought before the public. It certainly
seems understandable though as to why Trump had dropped
Cohen as his attorney and confidant.

So if Trump ultimately made the payment through his then-
representative and attorney Cohen, reimbursing the campaign
fund, then indeed no crime was committed. The prosecution
must make the case that Cohen did not act on instruction by
Trump in making the payments, but there is no solid evidence
indicating this. But anything to tarnish the name and reputation
of a president who is so reviled by the establishment creatures
in what President Trump and his supporters have labeled
"The Swamp", so as to weaken him and his presidency and,
quite possibly, impeach and remove him from office. Prof.
Dershowitz, though a political liberal and longtime member
of the Democrat Party, has shown that he is unafraid to call
out and criticize those on his side of the political spectrum
when they act in a manner contrary to the constitutional
protections that safeguard us all, including the president.
He is a man of great integrity, and someone on the Left
whom I have great respect and regard for; I cannot say that
about very many over there! If Prof. Dershowitz cannot
shame his fellow Democrats out of their unconstitutional
and deranged quest to drive from office a duly elected
president who enjoys the support of many Americans, then
the Democrats simply have no shame.

And these people would therefore be unfit to govern.


MEM

John McCain, R.I.P.

Your quizzical Peasant wants to pay tribute to the recently
deceased longtime United States senator, Vietnam War
POW, Naval Academy graduate, and former presidential
candidate John McCain. The problem is, just what do I
say here in this blog?

We humans are truly complex beings. There are good things
and bad things about us, the noble and the shameful in each
of us. With some of us, there are many elements of both that
just scream out at one; such people seem to alternate between
the opposites so vividly that they stand out a mile. The late
Republican senator from Arizona was one of these.
Sometimes bold of action, sometimes petty of demeanor,
sometimes a staunch friend and ally, sometimes a rabid
detractor and a bitter foe. Tabbed a maverick by many in
the U.S. Senate on both sides of the aisle and by many
political observers, McCain sometimes went for the option
in a disagreement which he thought would work best and
serve the people best. Other times he seemed to take a
route which served just himself, consequences be damned.
The Arizona Republican was a strong, unwavering defender
of the unborn in the battle over abortion. A longtime
critic of President Obama's Affordable Health Care Act,
he nevertheless voted against its repeal in the first year
of President Trump's presidency, to the dismay and
disgust of his fellow Republicans in the Senate and
in the party as a whole. And he reportedly did so to
nurse a personal grudge against President Trump,
with whom he rarely agreed with politically; McCain
was one of the biggest "Never Trumpers" in the
Republican Party.

When he knew that further efforts to treat his brain cancer
would prove fruitless, McCain gave instructions to his
family and his staff to not invite the president to his
funeral service, nor his 2004 GOP running mate
former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. The latter added
whatever excitement to their ticket that it had, and almost
closed the gap in the polls leading up to the election,
while the public found McCain to be just a grumpy old
pol just hanging on for one more hurrah. When the
biased press savaged Palin at every turn neither McCain
nor his campaign staff did anything to come to Palin's
defense. And some in the party, including McCain's
cohorts,  were reportedly relieved that the ticket lost
so that Palin wouldn't steal the show as Vice President.

Yet during a campaign rally that year while talking on the
mic with some of the attendees, one woman made some
hostile remarks about McCain's opponent and eventual
election winner Barack Obama which called into question
his loyalties (U.S. or Islam?), to which McCain interrupted
to say that her allegations were not true and very unfair
before walking away with mic in hand. So much for the
charge against him by the Left of being racist, the very
accusation that they make as a matter of course against
Republican presidential candidates in general.
Here McCain showed his better angels for all to witness.

While your fair-minded Peasant recognizes this positive
quality in the man, I also cannot forget and will be a long
time in forgiving his self-serving moments which cropped
up among his service to others moments in his political
career, such as voting to not repeal Obama's craptacular
health coverage program just to spite President Trump.
But he did one thing in his life for which I shall always
have not a small measure of respect for him; when he was
a POW in the infamous North Vietnamese prison camp
nicknamed "the Hanoi Hilton" he was offered the chance
of release ahead of his fellow U.S. POWs, as he was
regarded as a "prince" by his captors when they learned
that he was a third generation Naval officer and Annapolis
alumnus. McCain, a U.S. Navy captain and fighter pilot,
was having none of it. He turned down their offer, saying
that he wanted other American POWs who were there
longer than he was (he would remain imprisoned at the
prison camp for over five years) to be released first,
otherwise no deal. This, after endless torture and privation
while kept in captivity by the North Vietnamese;
for the rest of his life McCain could not raise his arms
above his head. He had to have someone brush and comb
his hair for him, for his arms were broken multiple times
and were never set properly to heal correctly.

So, your faithful Peasant wishes Senator John McCain
God's love and mercy, and gives his condolences to
McCain's family, friends, colleagues and constituents.
All who knew or knew of John McCain have formed
opinions about him and his service, but it will require
a higher, greater wisdom to judge the man, his life,
and his soul. Rest in Peace, Senator.


MEM

The Border War

In recent years a raging battle has engaged many Americans;
the battle over who should be welcomed into our country, and
how much security should we employ at our entry points,
including our national borders, and whether or not people
who enter our country illegally should be kept from the
consequences for not only their means of entry but also for
their actions while they are here.

One irrefutable fact must be acknowledged here: the fact that
for a country to be a country it must have and maintain
definable borders. Borders define a country by geographic
territory, the scope of residence by a people united by a main
language, law, and customs. A country's people through their
government can and should determine the flow of people
entering the country, including of course immigrants, as well
as visitors on business or vacation. But our Left is having none
of it; they want to welcome all and sundry here, borders be
damned along with our immigration laws. And in these
waves of all and sundry have been some criminal elements
which have preyed upon some Americans after their arrival,
committing various crimes against them including murder.

You remember the murder of Kate Steinle, a young woman
out for a stroll along the wharves of San Francisco, a
"sanctuary city", with her father. She was shot by an illegal
immigrant who had already been deported five times and
snuck back into our country after each deportation. When
the killer went to court he was let off scot-free, having
been sentenced to time served upon arrest for his ghastly
crime of shooting a person whom he didn't know, who
never did him any harm. Just a bloodlust driving the
thug to murder Steinle, who died in her father's arms.
The city's officials who wrote and enacted the horrible
law declaring San Francisco a sanctuary city in which
people in the country illegally who come to the city
cannot be turned over to ICE (Immigration and Customs
Enforcement) for the process of deportation, regardless
the crime(s) committed by said offender hailed the
court's ruling as a victory for their despicable cause,
celebrating in the face of the grief-stricken father
there in the courtroom and in a press conference
which followed. That was their way of giving the
finger to Steinle, her father, and to all who want our
government to regulate our borders with our safety in
mind.

Just a few days ago, the body of a young woman, a
student at the University of Iowa, was found in an
cornfield not far from her Brooklyn, Iowa home.
Mollie Tibbets, just 20 years of age, disappeared
while out jogging and was missing for a full month.
The police investigation turned up an illegal alien
who went by a false name with the aid of a stolen ID,
even using it to gain work on a local farm. He
followed and assaulted Tibbets, causing a massive
head injury which likely was the cause of death,
then abandoning her body in the cornfield where
it was found. The case is presently going to trial,
and the open borders advocates are hoping for the
same result as the one in San Francisco. Meanwhile,
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) weighed in on
the Tibbets murder in predictable fashion; a backer
of eased immigration laws, she had this to say on
CNN:

"I'm so sorry for the family here, ... (but) one of the
things we have to remember here is that we need an
immigration system that is effective, that focuses on
where real problems are ... "

Cold and callous, is she not? Sen. Warren thinks that
it's not a "real problem" when dangerous criminals
who enter our country illegally kills someone. She
went on to say that our present immigration policy
separates children from their families at our borders,
and that the children are not seen by their parents for
days or weeks afterward. But somehow it is not a
problem if the parents of a child who was murdered
by a bloodthirsty thug who has no legal right to be here
never sees their child again as a result. And the
frightening thing, the maddening thing is that the
left-wing senator is far from the only government
official who holds such sentiments. Notice how these
people are all on the Left? Once again, the lefties
are showing their preferential treatment for criminals,
be they homegrown or from elsewhere. Law abiding
citizens? Victims of crime? Mere peasants, no big
deal! What's all the fuss? Besides, this is such a rotten
and immoral country that it deserves to have this happen,
to take it down a few pegs! It's an awful country with
awful people, and it's time for its comeuppance.
That's how the Left views the United States. This is
also the substance of their support for the veritable
erasure of our borders, as they can hasten the demise
of our country by diminishing border protection and
increasing entry of elements who will never contribute
anything positive to our society but rather be like
a cancer, eating away at our society and good order.
Establishing sanctuary cities is the main method of
carrying out their nefarious scheme. By the by, your
angry Peasant is sad to report that Milwaukee has
also been established a sanctuary city as well by its
left-wing municipal leaders.

Maintaining borders not only preserves a country, it
preserves public safety. Keep out the people who
try to illegally enter, and you'll keep out those who
would do the populace harm. And no, I'm not at all
saying that all who come here by other than legal
means are violent criminals, but certainly some of
them have proven to be so. Stronger border
enforcement (building The Wall, as President Trump
wants to do, would help), plus allowing ICE to do
its job without being hampered by stringent rules
which would result in the diminishment of safety
for all would likely have prevented the murders
of these young women who had lots of living
ahead of them, who had dreams and goals and
aspirations which now will never be fulfilled.
Instead, they have families and friends who are
mourning their sudden, untimely and violent
deaths, while elected public officials belittle
them and their deceased loved ones.


MEM