Grothed out
After reading Jack Craver's fine piece ("The Agitator," 3/4/11) about the choleric Sen. Glenn Grothman (R-West Bend), I note what was missing was Grothman's reported attempt to enter the crowded Capitol through his office window.
The well-dressed Grothman, who referred to protesters as "slobs," apparently knocked on the window, but, as one source said, "his staff ignored him, thinking he was a protester."
Could it be that his staff knew exactly who was knocking?
Frank Ryan, Middleton
One cannot overstate how offensive Grothman is and the intolerance and contempt he projects in the Isthmus article and his recent TV appearances.
In his mind, there is no racism or inequality or bias in society. No one has any need for public services or public schools, not to mention trained teachers. Anyone who disagrees is denigrated as a slob or partying student. Never mind that public workers here are paid less than similar private-sector workers, and already pay 100% of their pensions as deferred compensation.
Rick Fairchild
So, the "likable...intellectual, friendly" Sen. Glenn Grothman thinks liberals are victims of unhappy childhoods, homosexuals are practicing a "lifestyle" they want to foist on everyone else's kids with the help of public school teachers, the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is just an excuse for public employees to avoid work, Kwanzaa is contemptible, racism is a myth, and single mothers stay single so they can game the welfare system.
If Grothman represents the friendly, intellectual wing of his party in Wisconsin, I sure hope the hateful and incurious faction never attains a majority.
Richard Betz
Kudos to Isthmus for its revealing piece. Grothman, like many of his right-wing colleagues, appears to suffer from an empathy deficit, and a corresponding inability to relate to people not like him. Among other claims, Grothman says gays and lesbians are "victims of a propaganda machine that...encourages them to live nontraditional lifestyles." This is bizarre and counterfactual.
Grothman reminds me of the angry and misinformed cousin everyone avoids at family gatherings. Sadly, Grothman is a state legislator, and will surely translate his empathy deficit into policy that causes real harm to those least able to protect themselves.
Ben Seigel
This is class warfare, pure and simple. The middle class no longer stands, Senator; it's dying out and Wisconsin is fighting back. The common ground we all have is this: The wealthy are attacking all of us. What are you going to do about that?
Gavin Langhammer
If I were Glenn Grothman, I'd be suing the doctor who performed his lobotomy. Every single thing he said and believes is wrong.
Joe Farrenkopf
Dishing it out
I loved Andy Moore's ode to washing dishes ("Close to Home," 2/18/11). When our house was being built, we almost had to arm-wrestle John the construction manager to keep him from installing a dishwasher. He finally gave in, but he assured us that the piping was there for "when you get the dishwasher."
That was 10 years ago, and the dishwasher space is filled with other kitchen essentials. After a heavy dinner, we get off our butts and do the dishes. We talk and listen to the news instead of the grunting and sloshing of the infernal machine.
Wayne Otto, Middleton
I had to chuckle at Andy Moore's piece on doing the dishes. Growing up in a family with five kids, we were all expected to help clear the table and do the dishes. My brother John seemed to always have to go to the bathroom (and stay there until he knew the dishes were done) when it was time for this chore. My sister Ellen also seemed to weasel her way out of the chore.
While we had squabbles over who was going to wash, dry and put away the dishes, I still hold fond memories of spending time with my brothers and sisters at the kitchen sink.
Vicki Halverson, Edgerton
All we are saying is give Perry a chance
The way Matthew Perry is portrayed in your article on his new show, Mr. Sunshine, doesn't give credit to a tough industry (Television, 2/10/11). Every show takes time to develop.
For example, Cheers was a cult classic and widely considered as one of the best [shows] ever. It was close to being canceled in the first year after receiving a last-place showing in the ratings.
Perry's character on Friends took a few years before he really settled down into a style of acting and the show took off. So maybe we should give him and his new show a little more time before we judge him.
Jeff Lindberg
