To the Editor:
“Wisconsin Power Play,” by Paul Krugman (column, Feb. 21), lays out the real issues in the protests in Madison, Wis. Gov. Scott Walker wants to strip power from any groups that oppose his views and policies. The protesters realized that and took action.
Those occupying the Capitol and walking around it are not radical revolutionaries or disobedient children; they are hard-working citizens committed to making Wisconsin a good place for all citizens and their families. They believe in and support a democratic process in which people discuss issues and arrive at compromises. In other words, they negotiate!
Governor Walker is afraid of negotiating, and he has persuaded the Republicans in the Legislature to give up their power and become his rubber stamp. Thank you, Mr. Krugman, for clearly pointing out why we are protesting in Madison.
Sandra Loman
Madison, Wis., Feb. 21, 2011
To the Editor:
If Wisconsin Republicans are successful in busting unions, which is their intent, they might be setting a trend that could spread to other states and eventually envelop the whole country. If that happened, it would be a profound catastrophe for America and its majority middle class and poor.
Conservatives are always invoking the names of our founding fathers and their intent. I don’t believe that the founding fathers envisioned America’s becoming a plutocracy—government of, by and for the rich. With the power of huge mountains of corporate cash taking on an ever-increasing role in determining who governs, now may be the time for democracy-lovers all over our country to begin to speak with their feet. Regular working people must not let corporate greed crush us.
Paul L. Whiteley Sr.
Louisville, Ky., Feb. 21, 2011
To the Editor:
Paul Krugman is correct to point out that the Republicans, in Wisconsin and elsewhere, want to eliminate labor unions in the interest of the oligarchs. I would add the fact that labor unions are the financial and organizational backbone of the Democratic Party.
Wiping out labor unions weakens the Democrats. The Republicans’ purported budgetary considerations are nothing but a smokescreen.
Patricia B. Wild
Larchmont, N.Y., Feb. 21, 2011
To the Editor:
What is happening in Wisconsin is inevitable. The state of Wisconsin, like most states, is running out of money. That is a reality. It does not matter how compassionate and generous legislators and the state governors are with taxpayers’ money. There is just no more money. So state workers can protest all they want, but there will still be curtailment of their salaries and benefits.
Robert Ligon
La Crescenta, Calif., Feb. 21, 2011
Keith Burgess-Jackson, J.D., Ph.D. 