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WISSUP - WISCONSIN SPEAKS UP


Copyright (c) 2009 Ginny Maziarka. All rights reserved.

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

West Bend CANDIDATES FORUM - TONIGHT

Candidates Forum
Public Invited!
CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS
6 P.M.
1115 S. Main Street
West Bend

An opportunity to meet the candidates and listen to their views.
Email your questions in advance to info@wbachamber.org.

Candidates Invited are:

Mid Moraine Municipal Judge
John Grundahl (I)
Steven Cain

Common Council
Nick Dobberstein (I)
David Krochalk (I)
Neil Narveson (I)
Michael Schlotfeldt (I)
Roger Kist
Steve Hutchins


West Bend School Board
Kris Beaver
Carl Knepel
Randy Stark
Tim Stepanski

"Drive-Thru" Signature at VFW SATURDAY re: PORN in WB Library

DRIVE-THRU PETITION SIGNING SLATED FOR SATURDAY
CITIZENS SAY NO TO PORN IN LIBRARY
VFW HALL
260 Sand Drive, West Bend
8 A.M. TO 2 P.M.
SATURDAY, APRIL 4

THIS Saturday, area residents and other concerned citizens will be at the local VFW parking lot from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Parents, taxpayers and citizens who would like the West Bend Community Memorial Library to adopt a number of policies that protect children from easy access to sexually explicit materials will be able to "drive through" and sign a petition that will be presented to the library board.

Monday, March 30, 2009

SIGNATURE DRIVE AGAINST PORN AT WEST BEND LIBRARY TODAY

TUESDAY, TONIGHT!
MARCH 31
5:30 TO 9 P.M.
STOP BY THE LIBRARY at 630 POPLAR AND
SIGN THE PETITION TO
PROTECT KIDS FROM PORN

Just drop in (we will be in one of the conference rooms with a sign on the door) and sign peacefully, then pick up a complaint form at the desk on your way out if you like!

We would like to get as many signatures as we can this week!
We will be hosting another drive from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the VFW Hall on Saturday.
More info to come!

This is a simple way to lend a community VOTE on this issue.

These are the requests on the petition:

1. Reclassification of Youth-Targeted Pornographic Books: We request that the Library Board adopt a policy to provide for the mandatory reclassification of any books in the youth sections of the West Bend Library (i.e., children's, young adult/YA Zone) that (a) are obscene, (b) child pornography, (c) appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; (d) depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; and that these books be reclassified to the
adult sections of the library.

2. Visual identification of explicit material: We request that the Library Board adopt a policy to provide for the labeling with a visible identification mark (similar to a RIAA or MPAA Parental Advisory warning) such materials targeted toward minors that (a) are obscene, (b) child pornography, (c) appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; (d) depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals;

3. Restrict Access to Library-produced Sexual Content Online: We request that the Library Board adopt a policy that any content and/or books promoted on a Library website that (a) are obscene, (b) child pornography, (c) appeals to a prurient interest in nudity, sex, or excretion; (d) depicts, describes, or represents, in a patently offensive way with respect to what is suitable for minors, an actual or simulated sexual act or sexual contact, actual or simulated normal or perverted sexual acts, or a lewd exhibition of the genitals; be either (a) removed from the library website; or (b) restricted to adults eighteen years or older using library card numbers
or similar technology as is currently used for the library computers.

4. Balanced Literature on Controversial Issues: We request that the Library Board adopt a policy to attain balance in the viewpoints of selections (both affirming and opposing) that the libraries carry in issues sufficiently controversial within the West Bend community (i.e., homosexuality). Specifically, we request faith-based and/or ex-gay books affirming traditional heterosexual perspectives be added to the library. A list of suggested books is attached.

5. Children's Internet Protection: We request that the Library Board adopt a policy to protect minors consistent with the Children's Internet Protection Act (required for libraries receiving federal funds) to implement technology protection measures with respect to any of its computers with Internet access that protects against access through such computers to visual depictions that are obscene, child pornography, or harmful to minors.

Saturday, March 28, 2009

West Bend School Board Candidates Q&A HERE

http://www.wbsbinfo.blogspot.com/

West Bend Library Board - Talk to 'em

Here is some helpful info, if you'd like to air your thoughts.

WEST BEND LIBRARY BOARD MEMBERS:


Kathryn Engelbrecht, President
1107 Hazelwood Ct.
West Bend, WI 53095

Tom Fitz, Vice President
1517 N. 10th Ave.
West Bend, WI 53090

Maryjane Burdge, School District Representative
120 Upper Woodford Circle
West Bend, WI 53090

Mary Reilly-Kliss, Co-Secretary
903 Mulberry Dr. E.
West Bend, WI 53090

Barbara Deters, Co-Secretary
1402 Decorah Rd. W.
West Bend, WI 53095

Patti Geidel, Financial Secretary
1527 Ridgewood Dr.
West Bend, WI 53095

Ald. Nick Dobberstein
1319 S. Indiana Ave.
West Bend, WI 53095

John Aynesworth
660 E. Tamarack Dr.
West Bend, WI 53095

James Pouros
O'Meara Law Firm, LLP
P.O. Box 348
West Bend, WI 53095

Random book banning thoughts and more...

From Illinois Family Institute

1) Book banning in the library is a myth and not at the door of school or public libraries. Banning begins at the door of the publishers. Publishers decide what will be printed and circulated on their publishers' book lists. Librarians simply buy what they want from the list. Since no library is exactly the same as another, all that occurs in any library is the choice in selection. Hence, censorship is a myth as the issue at hand is book selection and not banning.

2) When taxpayers' money is spent for library books/materials, taxpayers expect the best to be bought... They do not expect money to be spent on porn-laden reading material. Common decency demands such, as it is innate to all human beings.

3) Despite what is claimed, libraries do stand in "loco parentis " as do all other public entities serving children. We certainly expect the local park to take care of minors and watch out for them. To do otherwise is to neglect their duty to the taxpaying citizen. Staff is on hand to protect children from injury and assault, and not just let them play .

4)The public library has the same responsiblity to protect children from assault -- only in this case it is the assault of their mind as with porn-laden books like "Deal With It" or "The Perks of Being a Wallflower." When the state gives out driver's licenses, they have an obligation to protect us all on our streets and roads. The same is true with a child's library card, The library has an obligation to "Do No Harm" to young minds and emotions as they move around the library using their card as the right of passage to do so.

5) The issue in public libraries is not about parent rights. This pits one parent against another. The issue on hand is rather this important question: Is it right to sexualize children 11-12-13-14 years of age or younger and have taxpayer dollars subsidizing it?

Slinger school board "sees no evil" with teacher's terrorist assignment




Curtsy to Mark Belling:


And nearby in Slinger, the school board doesn’t want to do anything about a teacher who is assigning students to write papers that may include plots to commit terror. School officials tell me it’s an attempt to examine our vulnerabilities and why the terrorists hate us. I’ll teach the class in 12 seconds: They hate us because we’re not Muslims and our vulnerabilities start with all the terrorists Obama will let out of Guantanamo. Far be it from Slinger’s school board to dish out such common sense to the hack teaching his students how to think like jihadists.

Friday, March 27, 2009

West Bend Library Issue "Town Meeting"

I said I'd blog about the meeting later...and, well..it's later. So here it is.

I'd like to correct the WB News' recollection of the attendance. I helped set up the chairs. There were 40 to a rack and we used four racks of chairs and had the largest middle section of bleachers pulled out. The head count (yes, we actually asked someone to do that) was 137, which included media. The News said 50. I didn't get that, unless it was a typo.

We began the meeting with the Pledge of Allegiance. (I'd like to make a side note here and then we'll get on with the issue at hand.) A gentleman in the bleachers refused to participate in the Pledge of Allegiance. He sat, kept his hat on, and refused. Just one guy. And he was one of those who spoke, too....so it kinda makes you wonder...does he really believe in the freedoms that others paid the price for him to enjoy? Anyway, I better not get started on that....

We briefly explained the steps we had taken, then asked anyone 18 and under to leave for the short, 15-minute Power Point we had put together with photos of excerpts from some of the books we had discussed with the library. At first, we were met with strong opposition from some teens who had come to share their feelings at the meeting (and were more than welcomed to). Oddly, we had an adult join in the objection, though we had made it very clear that the materials we were showing were sexually explicit. It was our meeting, and we felt we would be doing the very same thing that we were asking the library NOT to do if we allowed the youth to remain, so we asked for ID if kids were staying. Three young men respectfully showed ID. The few that were under 18 got up angrily and stormed out. I thanked them for respecting our request, and let them know that their viewpoints were important and we would appreciate their return once the Power Point was finished. (More on this later - and it's worth the read..so keep on).

We showed the Power Point that we had prepared with my husband (VERY uncomfortably) reading some of the excerpts out loud. The youth were invited back in to the meeting and we continued on...

I read some basic "rules of etiquette" for the meeting, i.e., no personal attacks, strong opinions are fine, but no foul language, etc. Most everyone played very, very fair. It was actually very interesting and should be done more often!

First speaker up is the lady that was on the front page of the WB News today. Now, this is a head scratcher. Christina (not sure of spelling) Smithers stood and did a radio interview with us at the cancelled board meeting stating her agreement with our position. Last night, she was shouting out about homosexuality and book banning. Oh well. We agreed that everyone would get three minutes, and she got hers.

We had a "non-heterosexual" youth (his words, not mine) stand up and give a passionate dissertation on his lifestyle, what gays endure and how gay kids need books like these, so please don't ban them.

Lots more homosexual speeches.

Then lots of Bible quoters.

More homosexual speeches.

More Bible quoters.

A couple people got it right.

A pastor from a local church addressed the crowd and got it back on track as to the "real" issue at hand. (glad someone "gets it")

A few other gentlemen dittoed the above further on in the meeting.

One lesbian woman (self-identified) said that she signed the petition in agreement, as she thought the materials in the books were much too graphic for children, and could not understand what all the ranting was about homosexuality. She was actually quite honest as to admitting that she had come prepared to defend her lifestyle, as she was "told" that this was what we were meeting about, only to find out that she actually agreed with our presentation and petition. (courageous and humble)


Two people that were especially profound representatives of their community were two life-long residents that spoke separately during the meeting; one was an 82-year-old gentleman, the other, an 80+ woman (not together). Each said that they had lived in West Bend all of their lives and would have never thought a discussion about materials such as these would be taking place, and how sad it made them, and how they could not understand why anyone would disagree. Not exact quotes there, but close enough.

A powerful testimony came from an area police officer who spoke at the end of the meeting. She testified as to the sad, difficult and terrible consequences she had seen in the lives of children who had been exposed to pornography. What was unfortunate is that the media had left half-way through the meeting (probably tired of the homosexual/Bible quote bantering, figuring that was all they were going to get). So that is what the media reported, and that is what the media played. Too bad.

My husband and I stood and patiently listened to each speaker. We did not comment. We did not rebut. This went on for about 2 hours or so.

When everyone had taken their turn at the mic, we took a last turn before closing the meeting.

I explained that this was not a meeting about homosexuality, book banning or book burning. It was about pornography, homosexual OR heterosexual, on shelves where kids had EASY access to. It was about RECLASSIFYING books and placing them in the ADULT section of the library. We gave the five requests below and explained them. We made sure that everyone was clear as to what we were going to present to the library after last night's meeting.


1. Reclassification of Youth-Targeted Pornographic Books into the adult section of the library.
2. Visual identification of explicit material with a parental advisory.
3. Restrict Library-generated Online Sexual Content.
4. Balanced Literature on Controversial Issues including homosexuality.
5. Children's Internet Protection – require the libraries to implement technology protection to protect minors from internet porn on public computers in accordance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act.

Again, too bad the media did not stay. This is what took place after the meeting.

One of the youth that I mentioned above, who began the meeting with strong statements about homosexuality, in a very adult-like manner, came up to me, shook my hand and APOLOGIZED. He was very respectful and said that he had no idea that the meeting was about shifting the books with graphic sexual language in them to the adult side of the library and actually AGREED that much of the materials were probably not appropriate for children. We had quite a nice conversation actually. We talked a bit about why I had to ask him to leave for the Power Point, and he completely agreed we did the right thing. That was pretty humble, in my opinion.

Most of the crowd, from my own observation, had come to sign the petition and lend support, but not necessarily speak, as they already understood the issue and agreed.

We garnered 120 signatures. Considering there were 137 in the crowd, I'd say that is a pretty decent representation of the group that attended. Does it represent the entire WB community? Maybe. At least we offered the opportunity.

Like I said, we should do this more often. Perhaps next time, though, we could have it end with an ice cream social.

NOTE: I am sure some will be unhappy that I used the term "Bible Quoters", but my point is that there was dialogue that was OFF TOPIC going on for most of the meeting, back and forth, without ever really addressing the issue. We had asked that people present their opinion about the requests we were making, and the above persons used the mic to discuss things other than the requested opinion we were looking for. Not that anyone did something horribly wrong. It just didn't answer the question we were asking.

We closed the meeting in prayer. And everyone stayed for it.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

WVCY segment on FOIA regarding library issue - grab the popcorn

...and this is how the librarians and city attorney converse about the people and community they represent. Very caring indeed.





In Focus 3/25/2009: Vic Eliason, FOIA, West Bend Library from Crosstalk America on Vimeo.

Porn in West Bend Library? Citizens say NO

This meeting was held tonight.

Owen blogged it. Here it is.

I'll blog more tomorrow. Just feeling drained and, quite frankly, I gotta work tomorrow.

Petition for a Child-safe, Family-Friendly Library

Thursday, March 26, 2009

CITIZENS TO FILE PETITION FOR A CHILD-SAFE LIBRARY

WEST BEND, WI: Citizens in West Bend, and Washington County are signing petitions to request that the library board take a roll call vote to adopt policies to make the library child-safe and family-friendly. The petition includes 5 policies that the citizens want considered separately, and voted on separately for the public record.

“While much of this debate has focused on individual books, we want the library board to state on the record whether they believe that pornographic books should be in the youth sections of the library.” Ginny Maziarka said. “Filling out forms and arguing about whether or not a book meets some vague collection development and selection policy is pointless. We want to know if the library board will vote for or against targeting youth with pornography.”

The petition requests the board take a roll call vote on the following five issues:
1. Reclassification of Youth-Targeted Pornographic Books into the adult section of the library.
2. Visual identification of explicit material with a parental advisory.
3. Restrict Library-generated Online Sexual Content.
4. Balanced Literature on Controversial Issues including homosexuality.
5. Children's Internet Protection – require the libraries to implement technology protection to protect minors from internet porn on public computers in accordance with the Children’s Internet Protection Act.

Petitions are being signed at the public meeting tonight at Silverbrook Middle School, and can also be downloaded here

For more information call 1-866-910-2840 or visit http://wissup.blogspot.com.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

WVCY reveals FOIA from West Bend City Hall on Library Issue

We watched WVCY "In Focus" tonight. They had done a FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) open records request at the City Hall concerning the library issue yesterday and obtained nearly 400 pages of emails. What we heard them expose on the show last night was shocking, unprofessional, obstructive and, well, EMBARRASSING to the City of West Bend.

Emails exchanged between Mr. Tyree, the library board president Mrs. Engelbrecht, the city attorney, Mary Schanning, stated things such as:

What is the latest we have to announce the meeting date [with us}.... not ready to deal with the "media circus" (Board Pres. Mrs. E)

Contacted WBCC TV... "I am requesting the meeting NOT be taped.. " (Board pres. Mrs. E)

Referred to us and other complainants as "THOSE people" who go to CHURCH on Wednesday nights, so the meeting had to be moved to allow them to attend. (Really? I think people who are ATHEISTS would agree that PORN IS NOT FOR KIDS.)

LOTS MORE.

Will post the link once it is up and you can listen for yourself. (Tech probs...will be posted later, check back.)

The representation of West Bend by these people is an outrage. This is OUR hometown and they are poor representatives of this wonderful city and the residents and business owners that call this their hometown, too. This information brought disgrace upon us all.

A sad day...

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

West Bend School Board looking for a candidate, deadline nears

Anyone interested in joining the West Bend School District Board has until April 8 to submit an application.

Application instructions are available on the school district’s Web site, said District Superintendent Patricia Herdrich during Monday night’s School Board meeting at Decorah Elementary School.

Long-serving board member John Duwell recently announced his resignation from the board.

The board will interview candidates on April 27 and seat Duwell’s replacement at the May 11 board meeting, explained Patricia Herdrich, district superintendent.

The person selected will complete Duwell’s term and be able to stand for election in April 2010.
Applicants are asked to present to the board a letter of interest, resume and a written answer to the question: “The West Bend Joint School District is responsible for educating all of the students within our community well for their future. How will you ensure that your decisionmaking is based on the best interest of all of the students we serve?”

The West Bend School District Web site address is www.west-bend.k12.wi.us.

West Bend School Board Candidates Questionnaire On Line

An informational questionnaire that was given to the four school board candidates is now posted here:

http://wbsbinfo.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2009-03-24T09%3A34%3A00-07%3A00&max-results=7

The current candidates are:

1. Kris Beaver (incumbent)
2. Carl William Knepel
3. Randy Stark
4. Tim Stepanski


Be informed on April 7th!

West Bend Citizens go ahead with meeting despite refusal of Library Board/Director



PORNOGRAPHIC BOOKS IN THE WEST BEND LIBRARY MEETING BACK ON CALENDAR
THIS THURSDAY, MARCH 26, 6:30 P.M.
SILVERBROOK MIDDLE SCHOOL GYMNASIUM


WEST BEND, WI: Though the West Bend Community Memorial Library director, Michael Tyree, has cancelled the meeting to discuss pornographic books in the Youth section of the library, concerned West Bend citizens will still be holding the meeting at the same place, same date and same location.

Excerpts from the explicit, graphic, and pornographic materials will be read and displayed for parents and other taxpayers to see what is in the West Bend Library. Parents are strongly urged NOT to bring children to this meeting. We will be explaining what has taken place and what we are asking for in a very clear and concise manner.

Open mic time will be provided for any community members who wish to express their viewpoints, both for or against our complaint with the library, that being the offering of explicit, graphic, pornographic books for minor children.
Time will be limited to 3 minutes.

For more information call 1-866-910-2840.

West Bend woman shares opinion on library issue


Maria Hanrahan discusses her opposing viewpoint with Morning Show host Bob Bonenfant.



Listen to the interview on WBKV aired yesterday (03/23) here in its entirety:






******************************************************************************

Sunday, March 22, 2009

NY City pulled " DEAL WITH IT " book from 371 school libraries citing RACY, RAUNCHY

This is one book we are vehemently contesting at our public library:

(Curtsy to SafeLibraries)

The three R's in education were almost racy, raunchy and risqué.

Embarrassed city Department of Education officials yanked an eye-popping book from 371 middle and high schools because it contains sexually graphic material - including crude street language - that somehow landed on the recommended reading list for students.

The 300-page book - "Deal with It! A Whole New Approach to Your Body, Brain and Life as a Gurl" (Pocket Books) - has chapters called "The Boob Files," "What's Up Down There" and "Mystery in Your Panties."

Department spokeswoman Margie Feinberg said the sexual primer was mistakenly put on the list of suggested classroom library books and was delivered to schools. But she emphasized that the book was ordered removed before classes started last month because it was deemed inappropriate for adolescents to read.

.....

The authors call masturbation the "ultimate safe sex" and say while it's not talked about as much, girls play with their private parts as much as boys. There's also discussion of sex toys.
It tweaks the "double standard" in society that it's OK for boys to have premarital sex, but not girls.

Parents were outraged.

"Who was the genius who purchased this book? Didn't they look at the book before they ordered? This shows they don't know what the he** they're doing," said Queens parent Carmen Santana, whose 12-year-old attends middle school.

"It's disgusting. It's so insulting. It uses ghetto language."

Even students were surprised that the popular teen book made the public school reading list.
"Some of it is X-rated. Only mature people should read it," said Christina Rosario, 17, a senior at Stevenson HS in The Bronx who bought her own personal copy at a bookstore.

"It talks about sex and all the positions."

Saturday, March 21, 2009

SafeLibraries posts on broken trust in West Bend




The West Bend Community Memorial Library, West Bend, WI, has refused to honor its materials reconsideration policy in a possibly illegal manner. It agreed to review a citizen's complaint under that policy, the review was underway, then it stopped the review based on the recommendation of someone from the city government. The city attorney is not on the library board, yet the attorney claimed that certain statements made by the citizen outside the library were tantamount to a withdrawal of the request for reconsideration, and the library relied on that to stop the review midstream.


**********************************************************************





Found this interesting quote from the American Library Association:


"As for obscenity and child pornography, prosecutors and police have adequate tools to enforce criminal laws. Libraries are not a component of law enforcement efforts...." Source: American Library Association.


I see. Hmmmmm... So kids can't buy porn mags or step foot in an "adult" book store until they are 21 (in WI), but they can get it for FREE at our local library?


Makes sense to ME! :::::rolling eyes::::::


OR HOW ABOUT THIS?


"Parents who would tell their children not to read Playboy 'don't really care about their kids growing up and learning to think and explore.'"Judith Krug, ALA Director of OIF, Citizen, 9/18/95.


YIKES! :::::shaking head sadly:::::




________________________________________________________________

West Bend Library policy validates complaint


'TIS A PUZZLEMENT!

What I find interesting is that the only directive for a complaint is that it must be a "written explanation" - and that a form is available upon request, but not that the form is "required." This would essentially mean that when we gave the library our original letter (which we were told was not sufficient and required the accompaniment of the "official form") and additional information (trying to be helpful, giving good explanations and excerpts), this should have been totally acceptable, if we ARE truly following the policy. We are, aren't we? Or are we making up rules as we go along?

Friday, March 20, 2009

Citizen RESPONSE to WB Library

For Saturday morning West Bend News coverage, click HERE.

Dear Mr. Tyree,

We received your email with your requests to begin the complaint process over again as well as your cancellation of next week's board meeting on the 26th.

Let us reiterate:

To date, this is what we have done:

1. We sent an original letter outlining our concerns about the homosexual materials in the library as well as on the website.

2. You could not accept our letter as a complaint unless we filled out the "official form", so we complied and resubmitted the letter with the form. Keep in mind, we did not reiterate every point on the form as it was not possible. The letter with the complaint form should have sufficed.

3. We complied with Step 1 of the complaint procedure, meeting with the Young Adult librarian, Kristin Pekoll. We went over our complaints and brought along additional books that contained not only homosexual porn, but heterosexual porn. We explained that we additionally had issues with the list of books containing sexually graphic and pornographic. Attached is a copy of the minutes of our meeting with this librarian. Following that meeting, we were invited to move on to Step 2 off the complaint process.

4. We complied with Step 2 and met with yourself. We went over the same issues again with you. You explained to us that, while you understood our concerns, you could not really move the sexually explicit books to the adult section (as sexually explicit was our opinion and librarians do not have opinions). You also stated that you would not set the books in a separate section as no other library practiced that; therefore, you were not interested in that procedure, either. As for balance, we were of the understanding that you were presently looking into some books that we had suggested, but could not make promises. At the conclusion of that meeting, you told us that the next step would be to meet with the library board.

5. You obviously clearly understood our requests. Since that time, we sent an "addendum" that included other sexually explicit books to add to the original list we provided to you. We did not feel this "altered" our request, since it was the same issue, just more books.

6. We never withdrew our request. We do not consider our request withdrawn simply because the City Attorney feels we "omitted" something on it, only to start the process over again in a rather ridiculous manner, book for book.

7. We complied with Step 3 of the process and met with the board, only to have the meeting cancelled because of a very large turnout and a room that was beyond capacity.

We would like to clarify that our original request stands. We made them clear in the letter and email communications, as well as the required library complaint form. The purposes of meeting with library staff were to engage in dialogue, which we did, and we were asked to clarify our position from time to time as we went through the process. To date, all of our issues have been addressed by your staff. Based on your responses to our meetings, there is no reason for us to believe that going through more staff meetings a second time would yield any different response from the staff. There is no point in breaking up the request into sub requests and starting all over.

We have been through this process once now and we have not withdrawn anything. All we have done is respond to your requests for clarification and more specifics, which we have done carefully and thoroughly.

We insist on our appeal rights as we feel your withdrawal of our complaint is in gross error. We wish to proceed with the staff decisions that have already been fully discussed.

03/21/2009 TODAY'S COVERAGE in WB News:

In their responding e-mail Friday morning, the Maziarkas called Tyree’s decision “the library board’s attempts to unilaterally withdraw our appeal without our permission and duck the issue that has now garnered much public attention so as to maneuver the issue out of the public eye and scrutiny with delay and the use of more private meetings with staff.”

“They know what is in these books and they know they will be shamed by any public airing of it,” Ginny Maziarka wrote to the Daily News. “We would like to clarify that our original request stands,” the Maziarkas wrote to Tyree.

West Bend Library REJECTS citizen complaint/CANCELS BOARD MEETING

EMAIL FROM WEST BEND LIBRARY DIRECTOR:

I spoke with our City Attorney this afternoon about the Request for Reconsideration of Library Materials form which you submitted on February 12, 2009. The original compaint objected to all books in the "Out of the Closet" category listed in the Young Adult section of the Library website. It did not object to specific books, only to the genre of books. Since the cancellation of the March 3, 2009 meeting, you have stated to the media, in blogs and to the City Attorney via email that you do not want to ban all of the books in the "Out of the Closet" category. The City Attorney interprets this to mean that your original complaint has been withdrawn. Ms. Schanning's analysis of what has been in the media, in blogs and what you have emailed to her is that you are now objecting to specific books within the genre.

For the Library Board to fully understand your Reconsideration Request to be addressed at the Board meeting, you will need to file individual requests about specific books that you object to and state reasons for your objection. These complaints will go through the normal reconsideration process which involves two meetings with Library staff before your requests can go before the Board. Thus, in order to provide time for the new Reconsideration Requests to proceed through the process, the Library Board meeting will not be rescheduled at this time. Instead, the Library will wait for the complaints to move forward before the meeting is scheduled.

Regarding the other issues that you raised in your initial complaint (such as relocating books within the Library, adding books to the collection from the perspective of ex-gays and removing or password protecting the website link), the City Attorney stated these are issues that do not necessarily require action on the part of the Library Board. Under normal Library procedures, requests such as these are handled by the library staff and library director. We can meet again to discuss your concerns on these issues and I can report the outcome of these discussions to the Library Board. Should the Library Board wish to comment upon any of these subjects they can request that I have these issues added to a Board meeting agenda.

Essentially, what is being requested is that you clarify your complaint and work through the existing process regarding any specific books which you object to.

Personally, it's important that I contact you with this information before you heard it from any other person or source.

Sincerely,

Michael Tyree

Michael Tyree, Library Director
West Bend Community Memorial Library
630 Poplar Street West Bend, WI 53095
Voice: 262-335-5151, ext. 125
FAX: 262-335-5150

_________________________________________________

So we need to fill out a form for each and every book we are questioning. Again.

(View our response in next post.)

Thursday, March 19, 2009

It's Perfectly Normal - Or IS it?

Is this for your 3rd through 6th grader? Your West Bend Library thinks so.


WARNING: EXPLICIT!

It's perfectly normal : a book about changing bodies, growing up, sex, and sexual health 1st ed. Harris, Robie H.
1 copy available at West Bend Community Memorial Library in Non-fiction

http://www.myppmc.com/Books%20-%20Pornogrphic%20Sch.%20Library%20Pictures.htm

(Note: Books by this author actually suggest that the child use porn to become aroused, or to think "sexy thoughts" about their "geography teacher" while masturbating.)

One review reads "... librarians will find it well worth fighting for if, by some chance, the need arises."

Indeed.

West Bend Library - more imbalance - but we're not surprised

So, we found this intriguing...

The SHARE library system at the West Bend Community Memorial Library has books that shed positive light on Planned Parenthood (in the adult section), but.....hmmmmm....nothing that lends the truth to the PP agenda....

But we're not surprised.

An interesting article from Plan2Succeed.org -


Censorship- The ALA’s Bait and Switch Shell Game

Every fall the ALA has its annual “Banned Book” listing! Anyone who formally (meaning in writing) requests a book be removed and pursues this with the Library Board of Trustees is automatically labeled a “Censor.”

The ALA has in place the step by step procedures for handling these “censors.” By labeling a person, like me, a censor and making the issue a 1st Amendment question for debate and scrutiny in the public eye, the “censor” is locked in a fierce argument with the army of ALA backers including the ACLU, Playboy lawyers, average citizens, etc., who don’t want their 1st Amendment right stripped in the local library. This ploy leaves the inexperienced, lonely “censor” in the bait and switch game of citizens engaged in a “my rights vs. your rights” battle. As the argument makes the rounds on radio, TV, and newspaper, the library escapes the heat and the two sides become the issue …

When there is a justified reason to question a book (e.g., “Show Me”) for being in the children’s section of the local library, the heated debate may force the library to create its own in-house committee to review the material. (Note: There is never an independent review of the questioned material but the review is by librarians who are pledged to support the Library Bill of Rights. Once reviewed a recommendation may be given to the Board of Trustees for action. In our local library because of the books questioned while I was on the Board, the Trustees gave full authority to the hired Library Director to resolve the issue. But the end result predictably is: the material stays and is not removed unless there is a legal liability for the library, which is rare.

Ignored in the debate is the librarian who put the book on the shelf. The process of putting books on the shelf in library circles is called “Selective Review.” But in reality censorship may be taking place in the local library if the librarian is stacking the shelves with the ALA’s agenda. By labeling everyone who questions the “Selective Review” process a “Censor,” the librarian escapes the label and can continue to stack the shelves in favor of the ALA issues expressed at their annual meetings!

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Poll on local WBKV website reveals community's voice

The community speaks.

Local radio station WBKV has added the question below to their poll. (Left-hand side of home page near the bottom.)

As of 8:20 a.m. today.

Select a Poll Question Below

Should sexually graphic material available now to ages 11-17 at the WB Public Library be re-classified for adults?

Yes, plain and simple

93.33%

No, hopefully parents will do the regulating

6.67%

100%

CLICK HERE TO VOTE.

(Vote on the referendum issue here, too!)

Monday, March 16, 2009

Even the animals are waiting for their stimulus...


I know it's kinda cheesy, but I couldn't resist.
***************
Bearack Obearma -
___________________
Animals that were formerly self-sufficient are now showing signs of belonging to the Democratic Party... as they have apparently learned to just sit and wait for the government to step in and provide for their care and sustenance.

Links to websites concerning WB Library issue...

IF you live in West Bend, Germantown, Hartford, Slinger and Kewaskum, this meeting is for you. If you live in Dodge, Jefferson, Racine, Walworth and or Washington County - you are part of the shared library system. TAKE NOTICE.


LIBRARY BOARD MEETING IS THURSDAY, MARCH 26, AT 6:30 P.M.
SILVERBROOK MIDDLE SCHOOL

LINKS:
West Bend Library Home Page: http://www.west-bendlibrary.org/
Out of the Closet book recommendations on WB Library website: http://www.west-bendlibrary.org/yaglbtq.htm
ACLU statement: http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/03/aclu-we-are-not-afraid.html and http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/03/aclu-misinformed.html
WHY THE ACLU? http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/03/agenda-exposed-aclu.html
KEWASKUM STATESMAN statement: http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/03/kewaskum-statesman-refuses-to-share.html

WHAT WE ARE ASKING FOR: http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/02/west-bend-library-thumbs-nose-at.html

Our requests are three-fold:
1.
To bring balance to the YA Zone as well as the adult section of our library by providing faith-based and ex-“gay” books that oppose a pro-homosexual ideology .
2. That the book recommendation list under the name “Out of the Closet”, which brings a pro-homosexual connotation to the list, be renamed and include an equal balance of faith-based and ex-“gay” books that oppose a pro-homosexual ideology.
3. We are asking for the removal of “The Perks of Being a Wallflower” and “The Geography Club” for their explicit pornographic sexual nature. We have additionally requested "Deal With It!" be withheld, as it appears that it is in the works for our YA Zone.

Our Library’s policy, in part B, states that they will endeavor to acquire materials that “meet the community’s needs and interests.” We expect our public library to protect our children and empower parents to decide what their children can read.

EXCERPTS (WARNING! SEXUALLY EXPLICIT! Do not click on the "excerpts" links if you do not wish to view pornographic and sexually graphic material.)

1. The Perks of Being a Wallflower: The entire book can be found here: http://www.wattpad.com/112156-The-Perks-of-Being-A-Wallflower-Stephen-Chbosky or select exerpts can be found here: http://www.librarypatrons.org/book.asp?ID=56
2. Deal with it! : http://www.librarypatrons.org/book.asp?ID=24
3. The Geography Club: http://www.librarypatrons.org/book.asp?ID=31

POLICIES:
AMERICAN LIBRARY ASSOCIATION, policies 53.1.15, 53.9 and 53.12: http://www.ala.org/ala/aboutala/governance/policymanual/index.cfm#S2-53%20Intellectual%20Freedom
WISCONSIN STATE STATUTES: http://wsll.state.wi.us/topic/familylaw/childexpl.html


HELPFUL PARENTAL LINKS (gives excerpts of books that a parent may be questioning):
1. http://www.safelibraries.org/
2. http://www.pabbis.org/
3. http://www.librarypatrons.org/book.asp?ID=24 (our favorite)
4. http://www.coalition4families.com/site/ArticleComment.aspx?id=12045&rpid=4486

"How did we get here?" QUOTE read on the air by Dan Kleinman (view entire article here): http://www.metrovoice.net/www.metrovoice.net/2008/0908_stlweb/0908_articles/whos_controlling_county_libraries.html

STATEMENT FROM WISCONSIN FAMILY COUNCIL: http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/02/wfc-disses-west-bend-library.html

WBKV radio interview this morning




As promised, I'll be posting links to everything that was discussed about the West Bend Library issue on the WBKV radio show this morning with Bob Bonenfant. These links are for you to peruse and educate yourselves on the issue at hand.




Check back again in a little while for a new post.


Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Agenda exposed - ACLU

So why EXACTLY is the ACLU involved? Perhaps this will help..

The LGBT Project brings impact lawsuits in state and federal courts throughout the country— cases designed to have a significant effect on the lives of LGBT people.

The LGBT Project fights discrimination and moves public opinion on LGBT rights through the courts, legislatures and public education across five issue areas:

RELATIONSHIPS – Since the first marriage lawsuit for same-sex couples in 1972, the ACLU has been at the forefront of both legal and public education efforts to secure marriage for same-sex couples and win legal recognition for LGBT relationships.
SCHOOLS & YOUTH – The LGBT Project’s Schools & Youth program defends free expression in public schools, demands that learning environments do not encourage bullying and violence, and helps educators create an atmosphere respectful of students’ sexual orientation and gender identity.


KINDA OBVIOUS, ISN'T IT?

ADF puts WB Library issue on ** alert **

Alliance Defense Fund posts West Bend Library info...

Thanks for getting the word out, ADF! These materials, too, could be in YOUR library.

http://www.alliancealert.org/2009/03/11/wisconsin-aclu-watching-librarys-handling-of-gay-themed-books/#comment-64231

ACLU - We are not afraid

West Bend News today.

The Milwaukee chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union says that when the West Bend Community Memorial Library Board takes up the complaint filed over gaythemed books in the library’s young adult collection, it should follow young adult policies that ensure materials are accessible, inclusive and appropriate for young readers.

Emilo De Torre, ACLU of Wisconsin youth and programs director, came to West Bend’s City Hall last week to learn more about a formal complaint made by Ginny and Jim Maziarka of West Bend on what they called questionable materials within the library system. The meeting was postponed because the large crowd attending exceeded the room’s capacity and would have resulted in a fire code violation.

______________________________________

A friend of mine lent some info...

According to the ACLU's comments, parents are to protect their children from the library now, and apparently this is what the library recommends to children...

"Kids...stay out of the library!"

Here are some interesting WI Statutes on Crimes Against Children.

948.11 Exposing a child to harmful material or harmful descriptions or narrations ...... (2) Criminal Penalties (a) whoever...loans to a child any harmful material....

948.055 Causing a child to view or listen to sexual activity.... (See post below on the book "Deal With It." ) or http://wissup.blogspot.com/2009/03/west-bend-library-is-this-for-your-kids.html

948.05 Sexual exploitation of a child .... (1m) Whoever ....promotes...distributes, any recording of a child engaging in sexually explicit conduct may be penalized... (p) if the person knows the character and content of the sexually explicit conduct involving the child and if the person knows or....that the child engaging in the sexually explicit conduct has not attained the age of 18 years.

Then, there is this for libraries:

948.11 (4) Libraries and Educational Institutions.... (b) carry out the essential purpose of making available to all citizens a current, balanced collection of books.....that reflect the cultural diversity and pluralistic nature of American society.

We have very specific statutes guarding children with regards to what they see, read and hear concerning sexually explicit material. The library is not above the law.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Abortion - Just charge it?



I went to a Milwaukee abortion clinic today.


I had never been to an abortion facility. I had never seen one, either. I really didn't know what to expect. I thought it would be good to plug in a two-hour shift for the "40 Days for Life" project taking place right now. At the very least, I simply wanted to observe others, pray and offer information to help anyone who may consider another option.


This is what I learned:


1. You can charge an abortion on Visa or Mastercard. Weird, sick, disturbing, but true. How exactly does that look on your statement? Dead baby.......$1,000 (I have no idea what the going rate for killing kids is these days.)


2. You can pop a pill to rid yourself of that nasty child. The poster in the window calls it "Medication Abortion" and deems it 90 to 95% reliable. So what happens in the other 5 to 10% of the babies? Are they maimed and left for the abortionist to chop up and suction out? That was an odd statistic.


3. I got to meet the guy who counts the parts of the baby after it is murdered. Really, I did. Wonder what it is like to look at this EVERY DAY.

And now for the part that deeply moved me:
  • In the two-hour time span I was there, a total of approximately 10 women entered the facility. (I just can't call it a clinic. Something seems wrong with associating a clinic with a place that kills children. Seriously, wouldn't you say "clinic" when you talk about booster shots, ear infections, chicken pox...? Just can't do it.)
  • A beautiful young hispanic woman made her way to the door. She was offered a pamphlet with information, phone numbers and the like. She was asked to take time for a conversation, a cup of coffee, lunch....an opportunity. Her eyes pooled up and she spoke some gentle words in Spanish. Thankfully, the pamphlet was in Spanish, so we can only hope.... The abortion door opened and she was whisked inside.
  • Another sad-appearing, young and very pretty black woman came next. She got to the door, refused to speak, but turned around before entering and said, "It's too late. My baby is already dead." She began to cry, then went in. I'll never forget those big, beautiful, dark eyes filled with painful tears. I doubt she will ever forget her child's death day. Abortion doesn't just kill babies, it hurts Mommies, too.
  • An older couple, say late 30's, maybe early 40's, was next, holding hands, heads down. They appeared upset and afraid. No response. Also pulled in through the clinic door quickly by a worker.
  • Next, a black couple approached the facility. They took a pamphlet, saw a tiny model of a 12-week-old baby and were swept into the clinic. It was very quick and we could only pray. Approximately 45 minutes later the woman exited alone. My friend approached her to talk. She began to cry. She hugged, cried, sobbed on my friend's shoulder. She was devastated. She did not want an abortion, knew it was wrong, was afraid, and was confused. Shortly thereafter the boyfriend exited the facility. As he approached my friend, he began to break down in tears, sobbing uncontrollably. He, too, admitted he did not want his girlfriend to have the abortion, but he was feeling confused, as well. They both wanted desperately to find another avenue. They were given phone numbers of people to call for support. The woman was grateful and took information, and gave her phone number to us to follow up and lend help. This is what I call a "God thing", because it certainly didn't happen because we have these cool brochures or can offer some stimulating reward for choosing life. It was God, and God alone that worked that one out.
Others came and left, in and out....but the ultimate lesson was this:
It was worth it.
Former abortionist, Dr. Bernard Nathanson, who killed over 75,000 babies said this "It is clear that permissive abortion is purposeful destruction of what is undeniably human life. It is an impermissible act of deadly violence. One must concede that unplanned pregnancy is a wrenchingly difficult dilemma, but to look for its solution in a deliberate act of destruction is to trash the vast resourcefulness of human ingenuity and to surrender the public weal to the classic utilitarian answer to social problems."
Selah.

Monday, March 9, 2009

West Bend Library - Is this for YOUR kids?

***WARNING***

Before you go any further - offensive material below. Proceed with caution.

Offered in the Young Adult section of your West Bend Community Memorial Library:

http://www.sharelibraries.info/uhtbin/cgisirsi/ufPGimOcsb/WESTBEND/107910244/5/0

Deal With It ! : a whole new approach to your body, brain, and life as a gURL
Esther Drill
Pocket Books
309 pages
Copyright 1999
MCMLS Call No. YA – 305.235 - Dri
Library Catalog Summary: None given
Library Catalog Subjects: Teenage girls- Life skills
1 copy available at West Bend Community Memorial Library in Non-fiction

- A large portion of the book deals with sex instruction for girls. A FCPS library catalog review says this book is the translation of a website into print and "..a good deal of the text is made up of outtakes from girls' online dialogues culled from the site.." The review states the book is "happily nonphallocentric" and discusses "topics and details that more conservative guides might skip."

Well, if it is more conservative than Hustler or Playboy, I would have to agree.

- The book describes oral sex, anal sex, group sex, masturbation, orgasms, sex toys including dildos and vibrators, homosexuality, bisexuality, and other sex topics. The book has specific instructions for different sex acts along with cartoon images and "advice" from girls taken from the website describing their own sexual experiences and viewpoints.

And this advice came from minors FOR minors? This book has sex acts? FOR MINORS?

- The front cover has a girl in a flasher raincoat facing away from the reader flashing. The next page has her flashing the reader in a bra, underwear and boots. The back cover contains a plug for the book from Francesca Block, an author of many controversial books.....

- “MASTURBATION playing with yourself jerking off whacking off spanking the monkey jacking off jilling off buttering the biscuit So you get turned on. What do you do about it? ..do it standing, sitting, or lying down. ..use.. fingers (TOO EXPLICIT) a helpful way to get acquainted with your body… everyone is her own first and most efficient sex partner.. no risk, no pressure. ..ultimate safe sex. ..vibrator.. fingers in my XXXX.. rub your XXX with an ice cube.. feels great afterward.. put your hands or a blanket.. between your legs, squeeze.. rock.. apply pressure.. rub in a circle.. do it hard and fast. ..Many people get turned on by watching other people touch themselves. masturbating together is a fairly popular activity among couples who have sex on a regular basis.. Some people don’t start masturbating until much later in life.. whatever feels good to you is the right thing to do.”

- “ORGASM the big ‘O’ (EXPLICIT) getting off getting your rocks off the little death.. undeniably great.. pleasure center is the xxxx .. manipulating and stimulating.. sexual intercourse-inserting a (BODY PART).. moving it in and out-doesn’t pay much attention to the clitoris.”
- “My boyfriend wants to (EXPLICIT) me,..”
- “Hand job… Just squeeze and (EXPLICIT)… usually when I give a hand job, it’s after we’ve been making out for a while and we’re starting to take off each other’s clothes off.. seems to drive him crazy.. when it comes to me giving him (EXPLICIT).. he usually just stimulates himself by (EXPLICIT).. when he is about to go, I.. take over..”
- “dry sex.. felt his (BODY PART) through his pants..”
- “going down on him giving (EXPLICIT) oral sex on a guy..

and it only gets worse. I figured if they can offer this book to our kids, I should be able to post it here, right? Wrong. It is much too pornographic for me to put any more excerpts here. If you aren't concerned about this material being offered to kids as young as 11, then this post is not for you.

But you don't have to take MY word for it.

http://www.librarypatrons.org/book.asp?ID=24

Somebody ELSE can step up to the complaint file on this one. Won't you please join me?

Wikipedia erases Obama eligibility

Amusing....

Wikipedia, the online "free encyclopedia" mega-site written and edited entirely by its users, has been deleting within minutes any mention of eligibility issues surrounding Barack Obama's presidency, with administrators kicking off anyone who writes about the subject, WND has learned.

A perusal through Obama's current Wikipedia entry finds a heavily guarded, mostly glowing biography about the U.S. president.

...............

Indeed, multiple times, Wikipedia users who wrote about the eligibility issues had their entries deleted almost immediately and were banned from re-posting any material on the website for three days.


In one example, Wikipedia user "Jerusalem21" added the following to Obama's page:

"There have been some doubts about whether Obama was born in the U.S. after the politician refused to release to the public a carbon copy of his birth certificate and amid claims from his relatives he may have been born in Kenya. Numerous lawsuits have been filed petitioning Obama to release his birth certificate, but most suits have been thrown out by the courts."
As is required on the online encyclopedia, that entry was backed up by third-party media articles, citing the Chicago Tribune and WorldNetDaily.com

The entry was posted on Feb. 24, at 6:16 p.m. EST. Just three minutes later, the entry was removed by a Wikipedia administrator, claiming the posting violated the websites rules against "fringe" material.

..............

The entire Wikipedia entry on Obama seems to be heavily promotional toward the U.S. president. It contains nearly no criticism or controversy, including appropriate mention of important issues where relevant.

For example, the current paragraph on Obama's religion contains no mention of Wright, even though Obama's association with the controversial pastor was one of the most talked about issues during the presidential campaign.

.............

WND monitored as a Wikipedia user attempted to add Ayers' name to an appropriate paragraph. One of those additions, backed up with news articles, read as follows:

"He served alongside former Weathermen leader William Ayers from 1994 to 2002 on the board of directors of the Woods Fund of Chicago, which in 1985 had been the first foundation to fund the Developing Communities Project, and also from 1994 to 2002 on the board of directors of the Joyce Foundation. Obama served on the board of directors of the Chicago Annenberg Challenge from 1995 to 2002, as founding president and chairman of the board of directors from 1995 to 1991. Ayers was the founder and director of the Challenge."

Within two minutes that Wikipedia entry was deleted and the user banned from posting on the website for three days, purportedly for adding "Point of View junk edits," even though the addition was well-established fact.

Saturday, March 7, 2009

Daylight savings - set clocks ahead - reminder


Daylight savings starts at 2 a.m.


Set clocks ahead 1 hour.


Kewaskum Statesman refuses to share information with locals

And now, for the rest of the story.

Sent a letter to the editor of THE KEWASKUM STATESMEN with the information concerning the homosexual and pornographic books offered in the YA Zone of the WB Community Memorial Library. Parents can then choose to oversee their children concerning these books, or speak to their librarian directly.

This is Andrew Kuehl's response.


"I am writing to tell you, I will NOT be running your letter to the editor.

To tell my readers that they should avoid our wonderful community library would be in my mind very detrimental.

I think the library needs to carry books that will be enjoyed by all no matter what they are.

I think parents and whom ever should take responsibility and avoid the library if they think what is in the library has on the shelves is unappealing. There are plenty of Christian book stores where you can buy the books or materials you want before your children until they are 18 and not in your control any longer. I think it is completely outrageous that you think it's the library's job to tell us what we can and can not read. Whatever happened to taking r esponsibility? If you don't like what's at the library and you want to completely control what your kid reads then go and get a selection of books for he or she.

Furthermore, who are you to judge what's right and wrong. That's God's job. Yes, in the Bible is says homosexual acts are an abomination. It also says that you shouldn't eat certain things. If people want to live that sort of lifestyle, they eventually will need to answer to the one who judges us all. In the mean time, just take of your front porch and make sure that everything you or those with your mindset do you can answer for when your judgement time comes.

Please leave our Libraries alone. If I run a commitment ceremony notice in the paper I suppose you'll be writing me a similar letter. This is the society we live in. You can't avoid it. All you can do is take care of ourselves and make sure we do the best we can!

Andrew R. Kuehl
STATESMAN
Printing & Publishing LLC
240 Main Street
PO Box 98,
Kewaskum, WI 53040-0098
262-370-0831 Office/Mobile262-626-1382 fax
andrew@kewaskumstatesman.com"

NOTE: Mr. Kuehl accuses me of telling his readership to avoid the library. I did not. I gave him the same information I gave our WB Library. Nothing more, nothing less. It seems he is not comprehending the information that was within my letter to the editor.

Furthermore, we are not asking for all "Christian" books to be placed on the shelves. People leave homosexuality every day. The information should be there for those wanting it, seeking it, needing it. Our library needs to give everyone with UNWANTED SAME SEX ATTRACTION the resources needed in order to make an educated decision.

Mr. Kuehl goes on to say it is God's job to judge what is right and wrong, not mine, yet he continues on with judging me for what I feel is dangerous to the children in the communities our libraries serves. So how exactly does this work? He can judge me and make accusations that are faith-based, but I should not?

What is clear is this.

Mr. Kuehl would rather keep his friendships with the local libarian(s) than respect the parents/families in his community by giving them the opportunity to know what is available to their children on the bookshelves at their local library.

It also seems that Mr. Kuehl is more concerned about his readership than the children in the Kewaskum area who are patrons of the local library.

This editor refuses to run my letter on the grounds that he does not agree that the families deserve to know.

A sad statement, indeed.

ACLU Misinformed....

The West Bend Community Memorial Library Board on Tuesday evening postponed consideration of a complaint filed over gay-themed books in the library’s young adult collection. Over 200 people came to the board’s scheduled meeting, including a representative of the ACLU of Wisconsin. When the library takes up the issue, the ACLU of Wisconsin believes it should follow young adult policies that ensure materials are accessible, inclusive, and appropriate for young readers.

...


"The ACLU of Wisconsin will continue to monitor development in West Bend closely.”
_____________________________________________________________

The ACLU is misinformed about what our requests are pending before the West Bend library board.

In accordance with ALA policy, we are seeking more speech, balanced speech, not less. We are asking for inclusiveness of additional titles so that the entire collection regarding gayness is not gay-affirming or gay promoting. We are asking for critical literature about leaving the gay lifestyle and materials that explain the effects of the gay lifestyle.

We do not feel it is too much to ask that no books in the juvenile section of our library contain pornographic explicit descriptions of sex acts.

Every time a librarian makes a decision about what books to buy, keep and throw, they are part of the editorial decisionmaking, i.e., censorship, process. We expect our librarians to use wise editorial judgement pursuant to their own policies. If citizens have no input on this editorial process, then our library would be turned into a private library paid for by taxpayer money.

Just because a book is aimed at children does not mean it is appropriate for children. The publishers who are benefitting from the sale of these books have a biased interest.

If our librarians feel that homosexual books for our youth and books with explicit pornographic sex acts are appropriate for our youth, then we feel they are exercising poor judgement and should not be supported by taxpaye r money.

Accountability is the hallmark of government; therefore, we are holding our library accountable for the choices it is making for our youth and our community.

Friday, March 6, 2009

Sensenbrenner to do Town Hall Meeting Sunday in West Bend

Join ................
Congressman Jim Sensenbrenner
for a Town Hall Meeting
THIS Sunday, March 8, at 1 p.m.
West Bend City Hall
...................to discuss the issues on your mind.

Location: West Bend City Hall, Council Chambers (2nd Floor).
The address is 1115 S. Main Street in West Bend.

For the complete list of upcoming town hall meetings,
please refer to the website at http://sensenbrenner.house.gov

Obama to give the checkered flag on stem cell research

This comes as no surprise.

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is expected to sign an executive order on Monday reversing restrictions on federal funding of embryonic stem cell research. The long-expected move is likely to stir up not only the promise of scientific breakthrough but also the controversy over where government crosses a moral line.

'SCUSE ME? That line was crossed a long time ago.

...

Such research is controversial because embryos must be destroyed to obtain the cells; they typically are culled from fertility-clinic leftovers otherwise destined to be thrown away..


Interpretation: "Such research is controversial because babies must be murdered to obtain the cells; they typically are raped from the wombs of abortion patients, called leftovers by the killers, and otherwise demeaned into something less than a viable life form gift from God.
...

But leading researchers consider embryonic stem cells the most flexible, and thus most promising, form — and say that science, not politics, should ultimately judge.

Interpretation: "But professional killers consider gleaning what they need from dead babies, and thus they are the most promising form - and say that murderers, not God, should ultimately judge.

West Bend Hits All-Time Unemployment Rate in Decades

Keep this in mind with the upcoming referendum.... It's a reality check.

West Bend is one of six cities in Wisconsin where unemployment figures hit double digits in January.

Unemployment in West Bend is at 10.3 percent, according to statistics released Thursday by the state Department of Workforce Development. Only Beloit and Racine had higher than 10 percent unemployment the previous month.

“I think you have to go back to the 1980s to see unemployment levels as severe as this,” said John Heyer, chairman of the Waukesha-Ozaukee-Washington Workforce Development Board. He is president of Kettle Moraine Coating Inc. in Jackson.

There were periods of recession in 1992 and 2000 that increased unemployment figures, Heyer said, but neither of those lasted as long as this economic downturn looks like it will run.

A lot of people today have not experienced this before,” he said.

Heyer has worked with the W-O-W Workforce Development Board and its predecessor agency since the mid-1980s.

Local unemployment “is high and it’s been high for awhile,” he said. “A number of companies have had layoffs and it all added up.”

Also crossing the 10 percent unemployment threshold were Sheboygan, 10 percent; Green Bay, 10.3 percent; and Janesville, 13.1 percent.

Beloit and Racine continued to have the highest unemployment rates of the state’s cities: Beloit, 15.1 percent; Racine, 13.5 percent.

The Janesville area, including communities next to the city, had the highest metropolitan area unemployment rate at 11.6 percent.

The statewide unemployment rate is 7.6 percent.

Gina Ford Dashes Liberal Control Freaks

Whether the liberals are passing a stimulus bill that creates a new government agency to compile an electronic database of the medical records of every American, “stealing” a working man’s money and giving it to an illegal alien, or attempting to prevent a person from owning a gun to defend themselves, it is obvious that they are delusional control freaks.

Delusional liberals want to punish good, honest Americans. However, with their simpleton mindset they think that criminals will be controlled by taking guns away from law abiding citizens. They think it is wise to subsidize the unproductive in society by rewarding them with the fruit of another man’s labor. Liberals promote universal health care, yet they also think it is compassionate to ration this care and deny grandma’s heart surgery because it is not cost effective. This is not change—it is mob rule by the federal government.

...........

Free men do not have to report ownership of their guns, pay taxes for the right to own a gun, and submit to psychiatric evaluations. Only subjects of an oppressive government are forced to submit to this kind of treatment. As Thomas Jefferson wisely noted, “. . . no free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms.” This bill is un-American and unconstitutional!

The liberals who support this legislation want you to keep your gun unloaded and locked up. A lot of good this will do when you wake up to a burglar or rapist in your home. Whatever happened to women’s rights that the liberals are so committed to? Shouldn’t a woman have the right to choose to defend herself against a rapist? The liberal elites want us to believe that criminals will obey this law when criminals already ignore the numerous gun laws already on the books. Obviously, liberals’ brains are fried. The only global warming going on in DC is in their heads.

Brownback plays abortion card

A pro-life activist says Senator Sam Brownback's decision to support pro-abortion Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius for Health and Human Services secretary shows that his commitment to the unborn is merely political rather than a core value.

Kansas Republican Senators Sam Brownback and Pat Roberts issued a joint statement congratulating Sebelius on her HHS nomination, saying they "look forward to working with her on issues important to the state." Sebelius is a Catholic who says she personally believes abortion is wrong, yet has opposed restrictions on late-term abortions and is a friend and defender of notorious Wichita abortionist George Tiller.

Mark Crutcher, president of Life Dynamics, Incorporated, says Brownback -- a self-professed pro-life Catholic -- "abandoned" the unborn by backing Sebelius.

"I think it's typical of what we've seen over the years when somebody's commitment to the unborn is political rather than a core value with them," says the pro-life leader. "It's like the difference between a politician and a statesman." Crutcher says Brownback's desire to become the next governor of Kansas may be driving his support of Sebelius.

"All of Brownback's flowery words in the past don't really mean much," he says. "When push comes to shove, he'll throw the unborn under the bus for some political advantage -- and that's what's happened here."

And now, for a brief intermission. and an amazing feat..


So..my kids decided to experiment with cupcake batter last week. After using various colors, they layered and mixed, drew and swirled.


I was most amused by the "battered state of Wisconsin", pun intended. Nice job, kiddos!

Moonbattery lends 2 cents

For an appalling example of how the degenerate moonbat establishment is shaping the next generation in its image, check out the YA Zone for young adults (grades 6-12) at Wisconsin's West Bend Community Memorial Library. It features a large section entitled "Out of the Closet: Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Fiction and Non-Fiction."

..................

The list goes on and on and on. The intent to encourage children to experiment with homosexual depravity is glaring.

If we don't take our culture back, it's going to continue to be transformed into something so unhealthy and unclean, we'll thank Muslims for wiping it away.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

Wright State makes a mistake...

DAYTON, Ohio, March 2, 2009

—Wright State University has banned a Christian group from meeting on campus because of its requirement that voting members be Christian and its refusal to accept "nondiscrimination" language that would eliminate faith-based standards for its voting members. In response, the Campus Bible Fellowship has turned to the Foundation for Individual Rights in Education (FIRE) for help.


"A Christian group has the right to be Christian, a Jewish group has the right to be Jewish, and a Muslim group has the right to be Muslim," said FIRE President Greg Lukianoff. "Courts have affirmed this principle time and time again. It is shocking that in a free society, public universities like Wright State still don't seem to understand or respect this crucial component of religious liberty."

After more than 30 years of existence as a registered student organization at Wright State, the Campus Bible Fellowship (CBF) was prohibited from re-registering in 2009. On January 30, according to CBF representatives Joe Hollaway and Gary Holtz, CBF was informed by Wright State's Office of Student Activities that its registration was being denied for two reasons. First, CBF refused to adopt university-mandated nondiscrimination language in its membership requirements that would have stripped the group of the right to require voting members to adhere to religious and behavioral standards. (Nonvoting members did not have to meet these standards.) Second, Wright State objected to the requirement in CBF's constitution that voting members "accept Jesus Christ as their personal savior" and subscribe to the group's articles of faith. Strangely, however, Wright State has so far refused to put this decision in writing.
CBF, which has been unable to meet on campus since the decision, contacted FIRE for help. FIRE wrote to Wright State President David R. Hopkins on February 12, informing him of federal legal precedent setting forth the principle that "if Wright State is to allow expressive organizations to exist on its campus at all, it must allow religious organizations to exist, to define their missions, [and] to select their own members." FIRE also pointed to its victories in similar religious liberty cases at Ohio State University and at Tufts University.

"Wright State's demands are not only unconstitutional, they are nonsensical," said Robert L. Shibley, FIRE's vice president. "It makes no sense for the university to force a group that exists to communicate its version of the Christian message to accept voting members or leaders who reject that very message."

UW Hospital Board - Oppose the reelection of Abortion Supporters

There will be a Public Hearing on Wednesday, March 18, 2009 at 10:00 AM in room 411 South at the State Capitol.

The Senate Health Committee will be voting on the following appointments to the UW Hospital Board:
Roger Axtell - voted FOR 2nd TRIMESTER ABORTION at the Madison Surgery Center
Mike Weiden - voted FOR 2nd TRIMESTER ABORTION at the Madison Surgery Center
Pablo Sanchez - voted AGAINST 2nd TRIMESTER ABORTION at the Madison Surgery Center


Also being voted on:

Sheldon Wasserman (Pro-Abortion) for State Examining Board.

Contact the following members of the Senate Health Committee and urge a NO on Axtell and Weiden:
Senator Jon Erpenbach (Chair) (D) (608) 266-6670 Or (888) 549-0027
Senator Tim Carpenter (Vice-Chair) (D) (608) 266-8535 Or (800) 249-8173
Senator Judith Robson (D) (608) 266-2253 or (800) 334-1468
Senator Julie Lassa (D) (608) 266-3123
Senator Mary Lazich (R) (608) 266-5400 Or (800) 334-1442
Senator Ted Kanavas (R) (608) 266-9174 Or (800) 863-8883
Senator Alberta Darling (R) - 608-266-5830 or 262-250-9440