Who says nothing good comes out of Chicago?
Some Brewers fans who got stuck next to Windy City blowhard Cubs backers at Miller Park this Easter weekend are probably wishing for a fence to be installed along the Illinois/Wisconsin border---the same kind they're talking about that'll shock those evil boat-jumping carp from vaulting into Lake Michigan.
Then again, there's Regina Bakala and Georgia Thompson, who both had life-altering changes handed to them in Chicago courtrooms the past few days. They probably have better things to say about our Big Shouldered neighbors.
Bakala and her husband, David, got the news this week that they can stay in the United States after living for years amid the threat of imminent deportation. Their struggle to flee oppression and possible death in their native Congo is rife with the kind of drama and legal courtroom wrangling you'd see on "Law and Order", only these weren't actors--these were REAL PEOPLE who wanted to start a new life in a new land.
Why this country makes it so hard for people like the Bakalas to do that is the stuff for other people's blogs--folks with a rudimentary understanding of immigration law. Honest, hard-working citizens who made the effort to do the right thing shouldn't be punished because legal t's weren't dotted and i's crossed.
The Bakalas no doubt have plenty to be thankful for, including the moment of clarity that came in that Chicago federal courtroom as the clouds cleared and common sense prevailed. They also are no doubt grateful for one Sister Josephe Marie Flynn and her band of activists at St. Mary's Catholic Faith Community in Hales Corners who tirelessly worked on the behalf of the Bakalas--raising funds and spirits when both needed to be. In the interest of full disclosure, St. Mary's is my parish and I'm damn proud of those who worked so hard on the Bakala's behalf.
Then there's Georgia Thompson--the former State of Wisconsin staffer who, in the words of one Federal Appeals Court judge in Chicago, got left holding the sack.
Thompson, too, is home for Easter, after getting sprung by the court a few days ago--a relatively unprecedented move according to legal observers.
Thompson got convicted of two felony counts in connection with the awarding of a state travel contract to a Milwaukee area company--one that lavished money onto Jim Doyle and his gubernatorial campaign. Doyle got cash, the company got the contract, and Thompson got 18 months in the pokey.
That, my friends, is the textbook definition of "the sack."
And, even though she's free, Thompson's a financial mess, having to spend tens of thousands of dollars on her legal defense. Her job? Gone, although there's talk of her returning with back-pay. Reputation? Well, acquittal helps, but life may never be the same.
It was hard listening to Doyle talk about Thompson being used as a political football in the hours after the federal court's decision--mostly because he didn't say squat when the case first broke. Following her conviction in June, Thompson resigned from her state job. The Wisconsin State Journal reports, "At the time, Doyle said, "I have zero tolerance for ethical lapses in government. When public servants abuse the public's trust, they forfeit their rights to continue in the state's employ." Within hours of the reversal, the Governor apparently discovered that he had grown a set of stones in the time Thompson sat in stir, calling what happened "a terrible injustice" that turned Thompson into "a political football" which he blamed in large part on "sensationalized media reports and partisan attacks."
Want THIS guy in your foxhole?
Republicans, who wanted something...anything...to stick to Doyle during his re-election battle with Mark Green, got their chance to do the "See,-we-TOLD-you-so!" happy-dance when Thompson got sent away. They also turned her into the subject of many a Green campaign ad.
So, you say you want a career in state government?
Two women, both home for Easter, both thankful in their own ways for the turns of events this Holy Week.
Even though it's Easter and not Thanksgiving, let us use the holiday to hope for more friends like the ones that stuck by the Bakalas, fewer like those who tossed Thompson under the proverbial bus, and more court decisions like the ones out of Chicago that are letting two women get on with their lives.
Some Brewers fans who got stuck next to Windy City blowhard Cubs backers at Miller Park this Easter weekend are probably wishing for a fence to be installed along the Illinois/Wisconsin border---the same kind they're talking about that'll shock those evil boat-jumping carp from vaulting into Lake Michigan.
Then again, there's Regina Bakala and Georgia Thompson, who both had life-altering changes handed to them in Chicago courtrooms the past few days. They probably have better things to say about our Big Shouldered neighbors.
Bakala and her husband, David, got the news this week that they can stay in the United States after living for years amid the threat of imminent deportation. Their struggle to flee oppression and possible death in their native Congo is rife with the kind of drama and legal courtroom wrangling you'd see on "Law and Order", only these weren't actors--these were REAL PEOPLE who wanted to start a new life in a new land.
Why this country makes it so hard for people like the Bakalas to do that is the stuff for other people's blogs--folks with a rudimentary understanding of immigration law. Honest, hard-working citizens who made the effort to do the right thing shouldn't be punished because legal t's weren't dotted and i's crossed.
The Bakalas no doubt have plenty to be thankful for, including the moment of clarity that came in that Chicago federal courtroom as the clouds cleared and common sense prevailed. They also are no doubt grateful for one Sister Josephe Marie Flynn and her band of activists at St. Mary's Catholic Faith Community in Hales Corners who tirelessly worked on the behalf of the Bakalas--raising funds and spirits when both needed to be. In the interest of full disclosure, St. Mary's is my parish and I'm damn proud of those who worked so hard on the Bakala's behalf.
Then there's Georgia Thompson--the former State of Wisconsin staffer who, in the words of one Federal Appeals Court judge in Chicago, got left holding the sack.
Thompson, too, is home for Easter, after getting sprung by the court a few days ago--a relatively unprecedented move according to legal observers.
Thompson got convicted of two felony counts in connection with the awarding of a state travel contract to a Milwaukee area company--one that lavished money onto Jim Doyle and his gubernatorial campaign. Doyle got cash, the company got the contract, and Thompson got 18 months in the pokey.
That, my friends, is the textbook definition of "the sack."
And, even though she's free, Thompson's a financial mess, having to spend tens of thousands of dollars on her legal defense. Her job? Gone, although there's talk of her returning with back-pay. Reputation? Well, acquittal helps, but life may never be the same.
It was hard listening to Doyle talk about Thompson being used as a political football in the hours after the federal court's decision--mostly because he didn't say squat when the case first broke. Following her conviction in June, Thompson resigned from her state job. The Wisconsin State Journal reports, "At the time, Doyle said, "I have zero tolerance for ethical lapses in government. When public servants abuse the public's trust, they forfeit their rights to continue in the state's employ." Within hours of the reversal, the Governor apparently discovered that he had grown a set of stones in the time Thompson sat in stir, calling what happened "a terrible injustice" that turned Thompson into "a political football" which he blamed in large part on "sensationalized media reports and partisan attacks."
Want THIS guy in your foxhole?
Republicans, who wanted something...anything...to stick to Doyle during his re-election battle with Mark Green, got their chance to do the "See,-we-TOLD-you-so!" happy-dance when Thompson got sent away. They also turned her into the subject of many a Green campaign ad.
So, you say you want a career in state government?
Two women, both home for Easter, both thankful in their own ways for the turns of events this Holy Week.
Even though it's Easter and not Thanksgiving, let us use the holiday to hope for more friends like the ones that stuck by the Bakalas, fewer like those who tossed Thompson under the proverbial bus, and more court decisions like the ones out of Chicago that are letting two women get on with their lives.
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