Issue of the Week: Walker and Neumann: Birth Control Is Bad

Pro-Life Wisconsin announced a dual endorsement for governor, finding that both of the Republicans in the race—Mark Neumann and Scott Walker—are “100% pro-life.” No big deal, right, since the Republican Party is pro-life, right?

Well, it is a big deal, since Pro-Life Wisconsin isn’t exactly within the mainstream. Yes, it’s against abortion. But that’s not all. According to its website, “Pro-Life Wisconsin is opposed to all forms of artificial contraception. We support only natural methods of spacing the births of children.”

So it looks like Walker and Neumann oppose modern contraceptive methods—even condoms.

What’s more, Pro-Life Wisconsin, Neumann and Walker oppose abortion in all cases, including rape and incest or when a woman’s life is in danger. They also want to grant fertilized eggs total and permanent legal rights. And of course they oppose embryonic stem cell research, which Pro-Life Wisconsin calls “repugnant.”

Planned Parenthood Advocates of Wisconsin blasted the endorsement, with Public Policy Director Chris Taylor saying “these candidates are just too extreme.” We agree. Implementing this “100% pro-life” agenda would send Wisconsin back to the Dark Ages, when couples had no control over their fertility.

Hero of the Week

Jeremy Hanson

Since 1998, the Milwaukee LGBT Community Center has offered educational, social, and health and wellness services to LGBT youth and adults. In 2009, the nonprofit center served an estimated 8,000 individuals, housed six other LGBT organizations and stood as a meeting place for nine additional organizations.

Last Sunday, the LGBT Community Center’s “Hard Hat Party” at the Blatz Boiler House raised funds to put toward the construction of a new facility. Although many individuals donated their time and talents, the management at the center is especially thankful for the efforts of Jeremy Hanson, who went above and beyond in both the planning and fund-raising arenas to make the event a huge success.

Jerk of the Week

James Haney, CEO, Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce

James Haney, the retiring CEO of the Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC), is just now beginning to see the error of his ways. In an interview with the Wisconsin State Journal, Haney said he regretted the “extraordinary polarization of the political system… And I worry whether we’ve contributed to that in any way.”

Let’s see… The WMC’s hard-core right-wing propaganda makes it virtually impossible to have a reasonable conversation on issues like clean energy, mass transit, public education, clean elections, the Employee Free Choice Act (WMC brought in Karl Rove of all people to educate its members), and taxes and public investment (taxes are bad, unless they go directly into the pockets of the road builders, right?). And don’t forget WMC’s ad unfairly blasting then state Supreme Court Justice Louis Butler as “loophole Louie” simply because he had been an effective public defender. Sorry to break it to you, Mr. Haney, but WMC’s way of doing business just hasn’t helped this state’s political discourse.