8 O'Clock Buzz

Join 8 O’Clock Buzz host Tony Castaneda as he gets the backstory on Tim Michels’ rise to GOP Gubernatorial candidate, his long-time business ties with Enbridge and his plans for the Wisconsin DNR should he be elected.

Guest Marc Rosenthal is is the co-chair of the People’s Green New Deal committee of Democratic Socialists of America and a member of Wisconsin 350 and of the State Wide Line 5 Coalition. He recently authored an opinion piece at the Capital Times, titled “Chase Bank and Tim Michels cashing in on polluters.”

Photo courtesy of Thought Catalog on Unsplash.

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Wisconsin Democratic Party Chair Ben Wikler shares his enthusiasm for possibly reversing the trend in midterm election results. During this upbeat interview with Tony Castañeda, Wikler describes how the Party’s focus on state-wide organizing and involvement of younger voters could increase the Party’s chance for success in this year’s midterm election. In the interview, Ben touched on the election’s hot topics such as inflation and crime, and emphasized the importance of campaigning throughout the entire state and not just in the large metropolitan areas.

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In the final days before the midterms, and as the top races in Wisconsin appear too close to call, host Tony Castañeda speaks with Mandela Barnes — current Lieutenant Governor of Wisconsin, and Democratic candidate for US Senate.

Photo courtesy of Parker Johnson on Unsplash.

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Aging? Sooner or later, it’s going to happen to all of us and our loved ones. And caregiving of a geriatric or dementia individual requires special tools and training — something that the “Aging Well Summit”, now in its 3rd year, strives to assist with. Fatou Ceesay, conference Organizer and President and CEO at Cairasu All Things Alzheimer’s talks about the two day conference, with the first day virtual and open to the general public (Saturday, November 12, 10am-4pm) and the following day for training of caregivers, in-person or virtual. Registration and more information is available on the website.

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Having bi-partisan support in Congress, the proposed War Powers Resolution to halt U.S. support of Saudi Arabia’s war against Yemen is poised to come to the floor in both the House and Senate, according to Hassan El-Tayyab, Legislative Director for Middle East Policy with the Friends Committee on National Legislation. El-Tayyab recently co-authored an article “How the US can easily alter its relationship with Saudi Arabia” which outlines the next moves.

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WORT 89.9FM Madison · Broom Street Theater’s “Totally Not Haunted” Backstage Tour

Broom Street Theater, Madison’s longest-running experimental theater is offering free tours of its backstage this weekend – tonight is the last night you can catch it.  Even though theaters are notorious for their ghosts and it’s Halloween, there’s no need to worry.  The Theater has billed this as a “Totally Not Haunted Backstage Tour, Where Nothing Can Possibly Go Awry.”  Still, can you entirely trust an institution that calls itself the “Broom Street Theater,” and yet is located on Williamson Street?  Doug Reed is the Artistic Director for Broom Street Theater and he joins us now with the totally-safe details.

Photo of Broom Street Theater, Corey Coyle, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

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WORT 89.9FM Madison · League Of Wisconsin Municipalities Wants The State To Share The Wealth

In July of this year, the State of Wisconsin government posted a record-setting four point three billion dollar budget surplus, along with another record one and three quarter billion in reserve funds.  At the same time, local governments across the state have cut back on fire and EMS service, have taken to plowing the roads only when the snow is at least three inches deep, cutting back library hours or going hat-in-hand with referendums to voters to help keep the lights on in City Hall.   With hard property tax levy limits and dwindling state shared revenue in place for over a decade, local governments are feeling the crunch.  At its most recent annual conference, the League of Wisconsin Municipalities decided it’s had enough, and it’s time for state government to share the wealth once again.  Jerry Deschane is the Executive Director for the League of Wisconsin Municipalities, and he joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on October 31, 2022.

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The Federal Reserve continues to raise interest rates in order to try to control inflation — but does it have to? Sam Pizzigati, Co-Editor of inequality.org, says “NO” in his recent article “The Fight Against Inflation doesn’t have to be Rich People Friendly“. This is a perfect point for an “excess profits tax”, an idea that was enacted by Roosevelt in 1942 and continued until the mid-1960’s, which resulted in equitable wealth distribution with a more than 90% tax on excess profits. The corporate profit rate for the 2nd quarter of 2022 was 15%, the highest since 1950.

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What does Wall Street have to do with rising food prices? Amanda Starbuck, Research Director for Food and Water Watch, says that “swaps”, that is, bets on whether the price of food will go up or down, are responsible for 10-25% of food prices: so while the grain stores were full and not in short supply when Russia invaded Ukraine, investors bet that grain prices would rise — and that swap raised the price of grain! Also, unchecked consolidation of groceries (73% in the top 4 companies) provides monopolies for large grocers. Food and Water Watch latest report gives the details in “The Factor of Food Prices: No one is talking about Wall Street“

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Do you like herbs? If so, mark your calendar for the 40th year celebration of the Madison Herb Fair being held on Saturday, November 5th, from 9AM – 3 PM at Olbrich Gardens. Along with speakers at 9:30, 11:30, and 1:30 there will be a bake sale and 22 vendors with creative ideas for displaying, preserving, and using herbs of all sorts.

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