A whimper, not a bang
Despite some heroic huffing and puffing, the afternoon Progressive Dane newspaper could not coax any fire from the tiny coal of presidential impeachment. And now that ember has flickered its last.
So far this year, the seed of wild Bill Evjue has published 141 "news" articles, editorials, op eds and letters urging impeachment if not of the President, then of Vice President Cheney. Hey, we'll take the attorney general. We're not particular as long as someone gets impeached. Can we do Condi?
One would have thought impeachment was the Number 1 local issue, not neighborhood safety, the quality of our drinking water, taxes, or snow removal.
In September, the Madison Common Council, the DNR-protected nesting grounds of the Progressive Dane political party, could muster only 8 votes for impeachment out of 20 members. Now, the Dane County Board has refused to put former colleague Buzz Davis' impeachment referendum on the ballot.
Not a single one of the county's 37 supervisors agreed to introduce the referendum resolution Thursday. Not such hoary Progs as Kyle Richmond, nor John Hendrick, nor Ashok Kumar. "Some came close," Buzz told reporter Bill Novak. Close? Maybe their pens were poised over the tendentious document when the ink well inexplicably ran dry. ("I say! Tough luck, old man. Worked just a minute ago. Now, be off with you.")
All that newsprint, wasted. All those singing grannies. All those ponderous symposiums and over-wrought speeches. All that preaching to an ever-dwindling choir. Let's take a walk down a memory lane of misspent effort, as chronicled by the Pravda of the Lakes. A sampling:
November 20: IMPEACHMENT TIMING MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE
September 3: COUNCIL SHOULD TAKE STAND IN FAVOR OF IMPEACHMENT
August 14: THE PEOPLE CAN LEAD WITH PUSH TO IMPEACH
June 29: BALDWIN MUST JOIN THE CALL TO IMPEACH FOR PEACE
June 25: IMPEACHMENT MUST BE USED TO STOP BUSH, CHENEY'S INSANE GOALS
March 6: IMPEACH BUSH TO RIGHT WRONGS OF WAR
And finally, this whopper, betraying an amazing tone deafness to the community around them:
February 20: PUT NATIONAL ISSUES ON LOCAL BALLOTS
No matter how obscure the messenger, if it favored impeachment it got afternoon ink. Example:
June 23: "The Dane County Chapter of the United Nations Association has adopted a motion calling for the impeachment of President Bush and Vice President Cheney. The motion calling for Congress to take swift action was adopted on a 37-15 vote at the group's June meeting." (Snarky Blaska's Blog comment: There is something called a United Nations Association? It has chapters? In Eleanor Roosevelt we trust!)
July 3: News article: Jesse Jackson Jr. calls for impeachment. (Snarky Blaska's Blog comment: It must be hereditary!)
April 5: STATE REP BOYLE CALLS FOR BUSH'S IMPEACHMENT. (Snarky Blaska's Blog comment: Bigtime tippler Boyle (mis)represents Superior! Isn't there anyone from Wyocena who wants impeachment?)
May 22: FORUM URGES ALL TO WORK TO IMPEACH BUSH
Dig this quote from the clairvoyant John Nichols, seer of things unseen and unknowable: "This is no longer the fringe. This is the core of the Democratic Party. ... The fact is, impeachment is coming to the mainstream and it is coming just in time."
Is that the fact, Jack? If Madison can't even get behind impeachment ... well, you get the idea. Well, O.K., probably not you John, but most of us.
Bonus fact: The afternoon Prog Dane newspaper emblazoned Buzz Davis and the Wisconsin Impeachment Coalition's grab for glory on Page One on Tuesday. On Friday, the movement's crash and burn was buried at the bottom of the third page of the third section, next to the obits.
Happy 15th birthday, Progressive Dane
The French Quarter, New Orleans, August 1988, the Republican National Convention -- Humidity and temperature well into the 90s.
A deranged man wearing a sandwich board is venting an hallucinatory beef with, of all people, actress Debbie Reynolds. For all I know, the poor blibber blabberer could have been John Nichols. Like I say, it was hot and the Republicans had taken over the city. A group of GOP delegates gathered around this victim of the Great Society, thinking it might have been one of those impromptu examples of street theater for which the Crescent City is famed.
After much chin-stroking, one of the Republicans, a man in his mid-30s straight out of a J. Crew catalog, offers his prescription: "If we could just get you into a good mutual fund."
With their good deed done, the group of Republican made their way to Brennan's. Or was it Antoine's? And they say Republicans aren't compassionate!
In any event, that is my birthday wish for Progressive Dane as I blow out 15 smoke-free candles: invest in the American Dream through a professionally managed, no-load mutual fund. (My Vanguard Energy Fund is up an annual average of 34.3% -- that is for each and every one of the last five years! If you can't make money on oil with a Bush in the White House you just aren't paying attention.)
Comrades! Take advantage of the Republican tax cuts (may they ever be permanent) for -- to paraphrase Ronald Reagan -- it is happy hour somewhere in America.
Ruben, throw another log on the fire!
