Some Chicago Boyz know each other from student days at the University of Chicago. Others are Chicago boys in spirit. The blog name is also intended as a good-humored gesture of admiration for distinguished Chicago School economists and fellow travelers.
Never go to Costco hungry. But if you do, a Leatherman tool works really well for cutting up the roast chicken you start eating in the parking lot. And you will be extremely grateful for that roll of paper towels you find in the trunk of your car, trust me on this.
BTW, this is why you always want to buy two chickens, to insure that at least one of them makes it home intact.
Compared to the ethnic mix of Chicago, where every race and ethnic group is visible in any crowd of any size, it is always weird to go to Wisconsin and see thousands of people who are all white on both sides of an issue. Not that there is anything wrong with that.
(Further observations and assessments of the protest / counter-protest in Madison below the fold.)
I just got back from the Capitol Building here in Madison. My thoughts below the fold if you are interested.
Madison — Law enforcement is now searching for Democratic senators boycotting a Senate vote on Gov. Scott Walker’s budget-repair plan Thursday in an attempt to bring the lawmakers to the floor to allow Republicans to move forward with action on the bill.
One Democratic senator said that he believed at least most of the members of his caucus are in another state. At least one, however, Sen. Chris Larson (D-Milwaukee) said he was still in his Capitol office listening to constituents.
In a press conference just off the Senate floor, Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald (R-Juneau) said that Democrats were “not showing up for work” and that police were searching for them to bring them to the floor.
“That’s not democracy. That’s not what this chamber is about,” Fitzgerald said of the boycott to reporters.
Sen. Tim Cullen (D-Janesville) confirmed Thursday that Democrats are boycotting the Senate action on the bill in efforts to block a quorum and keep the measure buylevitra from passing. Because 20 senators of the 33-member house are needed to be present to pass a fiscal bill, the body’s 19 Republicans will not be enough to pass the budget repair bill without at least one Democrat present.
“They can’t pass this bill if there’s not a Democrat in the chamber,” Cullen said.
Cullen said he believed at least most of the Democrats were now outside Wisconsin, though he declined to say where.
I literally cannot believe this. The Democrats got creamed in the last election, and they decide to skip out when it comes time to vote. I hope the state police find at least one of them to force a vote. If this doesn’t get resolved fast, I will be making a personal appearance at my state senator’s office demanding that he explain his actions. I am absolutely furious.
I gave a lecture last Fall at the Integritas Institute at UIC.
I manage to mash-up the Pope with some economics and history, and some war stories, and C.S. Lewis and I even get Hayek in there at the end.