tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34500266836080565102024-03-21T14:58:06.953-05:00Jill SixpackFiscal Moderate - Social LibertarianOrdinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.comBlogger479125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-13370395668013129252013-06-09T10:13:00.000-05:002013-06-09T10:13:30.285-05:00Unions Are Like VaccinesIn the years following World War II, the United States prospered. Our economy grew, and our life expectancy lengthened. Infant and child mortality plummeted. This era of improvement owed much to the rise of labor unions and the rise of vaccination. Polio was finally eradicated from the United States, and smallpox was eradicated from the entire world. Whooping cough and rubella became unknown to Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-88109311047187472012013-05-12T14:11:00.001-05:002013-05-12T14:11:36.993-05:00Is WEDC a Kleptocracy or an Idiocracy?The way I see it, there are only two possibilities:
1. WEDC was designed to be an opaque slush fund to transfer public dollars to Scott Walker's cronies in the private sector (in which case, mission accomplished); or
2. Scott Walker and his cronies in charge of WEDC are completely unqualified for such high-level positions of responsibility.
Either way, a lot of voters in Wisconsin ought to be Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-72114731366850837562013-02-03T08:31:00.002-06:002013-02-03T08:31:50.967-06:00The best quote about homophobia and misogyny that I've seen"We want to hit a homosexual in the mouth because we are afraid that we
might be homosexual; and we want to hit the woman or shut her up because
we are afraid that she might castrate us, or take the nuts that we
might not have to start with."
Black Panthers co-founder and open carry advocate Huey Newton, in a speech given in 1970. He was decades ahead of his time in so many ways.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-33374725844279473922013-01-27T08:33:00.002-06:002013-01-27T08:34:17.853-06:00Mal de MaliThe United States is providing aerial refueling for France's military efforts in Mali and may start transporting troops from other African nations to support the effort. The U.S. cannot provide direct support to Mali's government because it came to power in a coup, not through democratic means.
I find this deeply disturbing. The U.S. is once again helping France to re-take one of herOrdinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-77833460294676261212013-01-12T08:13:00.001-06:002013-01-12T08:13:08.538-06:00Quote of the Day"Why would we spend countless taxpayer dollars on a Death Star with a
fundamental flaw that can be exploited by a one-man starship?" - Paul Shawcross, Chief of the Science and Space Branch at the White House Office of Management and Budget, responding to a petition calling for the United States to build a Death Star. (h/t, Greenlee Gazette)
Making the most of the opportunity to trumpet the Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-5100321758132357322013-01-08T18:36:00.000-06:002013-01-08T18:36:38.570-06:00Schoolhouse RapMath teacher Jake Scott from Silver Spring, Maryland, has come up with some well-produced rap videos to help his students learn about quadratic equations and trigonometry. I suspect these kids are too young to remember Multiplication Rock.
h/t NPR.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-91549248960281984482012-12-21T17:25:00.000-06:002012-12-21T17:25:53.526-06:00The NRA Jumps the SharkOwning an assault rifle did not make Nancy Lanza safer in her home.
Having armed citizens in the crowd did not stop Jared Loughner's killing spree.
Yet, the NRA keeps peddling the same snake oil that an armed society is a safer society, this time washed down with a chaser of unfunded mandate for our cash-strapped schools.
Too many children are already killed accidentally by guns in their homesOrdinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-62228664135860891722012-12-09T09:34:00.000-06:002012-12-09T09:34:55.905-06:00'Tis the SeasonI've had this song stuck in my head since Friday, so I thought I would share it. It seems especially appropriate today, as Madison is seeing the season's first light dusting of snow (we had some flurries last month, but nothing that accumulated).
At first, I assumed the video creator was not from around here, since "ShopKo" (a discount store chain headquartered in Green Bay and found in the Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-45037776915153895582012-12-07T18:38:00.000-06:002012-12-07T18:40:04.267-06:00Bye Bye, BielemaI was almost giddy when I heard that Bret Bielema took the Arkansas job. If he lost a third Rose Bowl in a row, you know the boosters would have pressured Barry Alvarez to fire him, and the cash-strapped UW would have had to spend millions to buy out his contract, like 14 other schools that have collectively spent $31 million this year to fire their football coaches.
Instead, Arkansas willOrdinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-80182859822669429522012-11-24T09:11:00.000-06:002012-11-24T09:11:01.172-06:00RIP, Larry HagmanActor Larry Hagman has passed away at the age of 81. He was survived by his wife of 59 years, as well as their two children and five grandchildren.
As a child, I loved watching syndicated reruns of I Dream of Jeannie. As a teenager, my whole family watched Dallas on Friday nights. I don't really remember Larry Hagman playing any other roles than Major Tony Nelson and J.R. Ewing, Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-9617182551514972112012-11-23T09:03:00.000-06:002012-11-23T09:03:14.446-06:00Giving thanksI am thankful that we are able to see our parents on this holiday weekend. The prognosis is cautiously optimistic that we will be able to spend Thanksgiving 2013 with them as well.
I am thankful that my neighborhood retail establishments have mostly survived the Great Recession. I'll be doing some local shopping today (and avoiding the mall like the plague).
I am thankful that my own health is Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-61067413402316069562012-11-04T07:48:00.000-06:002012-11-04T07:48:56.984-06:00Good Riddance, OctoberLast month brought unexpected downsizing at my workplace and news of a parent's serious illness. I haven't been checking blogs (or blogging) much lately, and that will probably continue for a while as I concentrate on my family's well-being. If the Mayan Apocalypse-mongers are right, none of this will matter, but I suspect I should work towards a better 2013 instead.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-28477672286024466262012-10-01T06:38:00.001-05:002012-10-01T06:38:40.261-05:00Even the Real Refs Hate the PackersIn other news, the Packers defense still sucks, and Graham Harrell still isn't ready for prime time. We would have been better off putting an eye patch on Rodgers and keeping him in the game.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-59184797783632093952012-09-30T08:04:00.000-05:002012-09-30T08:04:11.280-05:00Quote of the Day
"The Onion freely shares content with Fars and commends the journalists at Iran's Finest News Source on their superb reportage," Tracy said in jest.
Onion editor Will Tracy's response to an Iranian news agency citing this Onion article as fact. Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-19883149386356617952012-09-27T07:18:00.000-05:002012-09-27T07:18:14.825-05:00Behold, the Power of TwitterTwitter has been credited by some for helping to boost the 2009 protests in Iran and the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, particularly in Egypt. Now, it may have hastened the return of the NFL referees. I doubt that the league offices would have received 70,000 voicemails if the phone number hadn't been tweeted (by Wisconsin State Senator and occasional Daily Show guest Jon Erpenbach, Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-50634111003090132962012-09-25T06:03:00.000-05:002012-09-25T06:03:05.793-05:00Return to OzI was shown up by a rookie
'Cause our O-line played some hooky
And left me in a bind.
We'd have beat up on Seattle;
I'd have won the Monday battle,
If I only had a line.
The Seahawks fans are noisy;
You can hear them clear in Boise,
And I thought I'd lose my mind.
I'd have had more of their silence
And less of Irvin's violence,
If I only had a line.
I hope those scab officials
Are choking on Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-79300545038028929212012-09-23T10:02:00.002-05:002012-09-23T10:02:55.962-05:00A Martyr for DemocracyFor some time before September 11, tension had been simmering between various factions in post-revolution Libya. The weak transitional government has abdicated responsibility for security to armed militias, many of them Islamist. One of those Islamist militias, Ansar al-Sharia, is widely held to be responsible for the attack that killed U.S. Ambassador J. Christopher Stevens.
Chris StevensOrdinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-89625742214975369872012-09-16T08:27:00.002-05:002012-09-16T08:28:08.721-05:00An Undeserved WinThe Badgers' offense looked terrible again yesterday. I can't remember seeing them look so bad as they did in the first half, and I'm old enough to remember the Don Morton era and the winless Jim Hilles season.
Putting Joel Stave in at quarterback was an improvement, but the Badgers only managed to move the ball when Stave was occasionally allowed to throw it. Giving it to Montee Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-77689734538985504432012-09-14T07:52:00.000-05:002012-09-14T07:52:01.565-05:00The Bears Should Develop Their Own Celebration Moves...instead of mocking those belonging to Packers' players. How many more times was Jay Cutler sacked by Clay Matthews after a Bears player mocked his beast move? Matthews didn't need to do the move again; his attitude was summed up when he nonchalantly examined his fingernails after sacking Cutler yet again.
The Lambeau crowd could be clearly heard chanting "The Bears Still Suck" (Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-42266766764712188062012-09-12T07:45:00.000-05:002012-09-12T07:45:30.984-05:00The Best Thing Since Schoolhouse RockI've long believed that we desperately need high school civics classes to teach students how to be informed consumers of political ads. Americans should view all of them skeptically, asking who is paying for them, what their agenda might be, and checking the veracity of claims.
However, in this age of SuperPACS that sprout like dandelions and have misleading names, it can be difficult for even Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-42381270852524514592012-09-09T08:29:00.004-05:002012-09-09T08:29:54.022-05:00Oh, Canada (sigh)The Badgers need a new Offensive Coordinator. Matt Canada clearly isn't up to the task.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-72016412211382502342012-09-08T08:21:00.000-05:002012-09-08T08:21:18.487-05:00Blast from the Past, UW Campus EditionWho knew that Tunnel Bob was still around? A whole generation of UW students probably thought he was just an urban legend.Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-70565984766342459982012-09-03T09:22:00.000-05:002012-09-03T09:24:50.356-05:00Paul Ryan's Delusions of GrandeurA couple weeks ago (I'm rounding), Hugh Hewitt interviewed Paul Ryan. While talking about the marathons that he used to run, Ryan said that his personal best was "Under three, high twos. I had a two hour and fifty-something."
The Fact-Checkers Who Shall Not Run the Campaign did a little research and discovered that this was, in fact, false. The one marathon that Ryan ran (at age 20) Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-999861484503262742012-09-01T08:51:00.000-05:002012-09-01T08:51:08.731-05:00For those who think government should be run more like a business...The Daily Show's news team illustrates what that would look like:
The Daily Show with Jon StewartMon - Thurs 11p / 10c
RNC 2012 - The Road to Jeb Bush 2016 - The Best F#@king News Team Ever Audits America
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full EpisodesPolitical Humor & Satire Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3450026683608056510.post-13229123684651090112012-08-31T07:22:00.002-05:002012-08-31T07:23:23.241-05:00Friday Morning QuarterbackingI am now less concerned about Graham Harrell's ability as a back-up quarterback than I am about our lack of depth on the offensive line.
Then again, maybe the difference wasn't so much playing with Green Bay's starters as it was playing against the Kansas City Chiefs. Height-challenged rookie Russell Wilson looked like a Pro Bowl contender against the Chiefs last weekend, prompting Ordinary Jillhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05967266466238236424noreply@blogger.com0