I have been angered and saddened by the misrepresentations of the protest in the capitol. The facts are; 7 days, no arrests. The group is loosely organized- the TAA (teaching assistants association) is "in charge" but most protestors are not associated with the TAA. Yet, this group is self-policing. There are yoga classes, nonviolence training, and the heart-wrenching testifying before assembly democrats -recorded on wisconsin eye- of individuals and their personal stories and their individual feelings on the budget reform bill.

I won't go into all of the inaccuracies and outright lies, but I want to show what I have seen, my personal testimony about the high quality of people who are participating in this action.

Here is the drum circle. People did this for a while, and after the national anthem and reading the names of those killed in the bay view rollermill shooting, several people got sponges and buckets and cleaned the floor. There is also a fund to clean the capitol after the protest is over.

This is an incredibly safe and secure place. There were a lot of people around this sign, it was on a pillar on the rotunda ground floor near the drum circle, but no one stole the dollar. WOW!

My fellow citizens are really smart and creative people.

The poster on the left is a play on the Anton Dodson "bed intruder" song.

I like the "He's a weasel not a Badger" idea. There is a tradition of social justice and worker rights in this state. We are the home of Battling Bob!

In addition to the usual compants, Scott Walker's proposed budget, It also seems very un-wisconsin. We are not willing to compromise our schools, we are willing to fund great libraries, and we like to have widllife preserves and wetlands. We like education and we like to help others. the whole world is watching but to me this is a very real battle for the Wisconsin I have come to love and the big business craziness that will earn Scott Walker street cred with the tea party.

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Peaceful Protest

He said that it wasn't the second coming, but it was important enough that he show up. I don't know what you can tell from the picture, but it was a really great costume.

This group meditated silently for several hours. Just a sign announced them.

A lot of signs appealed to historical themes. Likethis reference to animal farm.

I also saw a "What would Howard Zinn do" sign, referring to the author of the extensive

and accurate A peoples' HIstory of the United States" I suspect that Mr. Walker would be less willing to strip public employees of some collective bargaining rights if he knew more about the history of labor and worker rights in this country.

Some of our popular romaniticized view of history may be to blame.

This Sign reads "Democracy is 2 wolves and 1 sheep voting on what to have for dinner. Liberty is a well-armed sheep disputing the vote." The sheep has a 'peaceful protest' sign. The quote is attributed to Benjamin Franklin.

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People were allowed to sleep in the north and east wings, as the assembly and senate

were meeting the following morning in the south and west wings.

The view looking up.

Some firefighters joined the protest tonight, they informed us that the Governor had tried to get us to leave by claiming that we presented a fire hazard. However this capitol has no fire code, so he will have to do something else. Personally, I am willing to sleep outside.

a peaceful protest. Apparently our governor is "scared for his own well being". He is afarid of us "union thugs" who have taken over

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