And if the unions had agreed to the concessions sought by Walker, as you claim, then could you please explain to us how AFSCME ended up with contracts containing stagnation or raises in places such as Janesville, as opposed to those concessions? The Janesville contract was approved by the board in late February. Given that proposing, introducing, vetting, and approving a labor contract is a multi-month long process because of the requirement for public notice and meeting requirements, that would mean that those contracts were introduced in either December 2010 or January 2011. Walker was negotiating in good faith with the unions ever since he became the Governor elect according to both NPR and the unions themselves.

So, apparently the unions were either allowing their locals to wild-cat without repercussion from the state leadership, or you are LYING with your current assertions to the contrary.

So which is it Mr. Mason? And please support your response with facts instead of more propaganda, as we're just not buying it anymore.

@JRH - we should have a more consistent method of classifying these op-eds since not the same editor posts the articles. Certainly I can go back and re-define Rep. Mason's columns as "opinion" as well as "government" since I think both are applicable. I can take this up with the rest of our editors to get a consensus for more consistent publishing.

Kind of ironic that Mason's "opinion" which appeared in the Opinion section of the Racine Journal Times, is still categorized under Government and Opinion on the Patch. And the story "Gov. Walker: More Job Growth" is categorized as Opinion on the Patch.

@mau - how it ironic? Did you not read my response to JRH?

This is totally opinion and not true facts.... There are many articles that can prove this person as false and just his emotional opinion... I to have to also wonder why messages from our elected officials would not be classified as Government....

*SIGH*

I've already answered the "opinion" and "government" question.

It comes with the territory Heather :) I was "screamed" at by the infamous conservative Vicki McKenna for asking a repeat question. You did change the title of the story but it is still under the categories Government and Opinion while some but not all of the stories about Walker are not.

Guys,

Heather A is not the only Patch editor. She agreed that there should be a consensus for uniformly classifying the op-ed pieces from our elected officials on Patch, and she is diligently working on that situation with other local Patch editors. The Walker pieces haven't changed their classifications yet because Heather A doesn't have direct control over those postings, other Patch editors do.

If you're still frustrated, you should address your concerns to the regional Patch editor, Mark Maley.

Heather A does great work and I appreciate her efforts in addressing this situation, knowing that she'll do her best to fairly rectify the situation if she can. But ultimately, and please correct me if I'm wrong on this Heather, I believe that the final decision would rest with Mr. Maley.

As to what uniform classification system should apply to the op-eds from our elected officials, I'm with Heather A on this one - they should all be classified as both 'Government' and 'Opinion.'

@JRH, I was worried about you. Glad to see you got out of that The Republican Party – Myths and Misunderstandings blog safely. I think they're after you :)

@mau -

Yeah, some of the posters over there are so quick to throw out the race card that it has impaired their ability to think logically and actually comprehend the words of others for how they were actually intended to be taken.

But that's the Patch and you gotta love it! :-)

I see a pattern with some of those posters. They want sources, you give it to them, then they tear it to pieces. I think they just want to agitate. But it is definitely entertaining. Where else but the Patch can you bear your soul without being driven out of town.

Mr. Mason, the days of old where civil employees can live large on the tax payer’s dime are dead. We must return to the days where responsible fiscal values reigned: Spend less then you earn, pay down/off any debt you have, and everybody works hard and pays their fair share. If the good hard working people of this great state can live by these values why can't the elected government of, by, and for the people do the same?

stay on subject please!

No compromise was the essence of Mason's reasoning for the recall and yet the leftists have no issue with Obama not compromising.

@tvan , your comments just prove that you can't think of anything that mason has done wrong, so you switch up to the national level. this discussion is about WISCONSIN POLITICS!

@SimplyMeg - you are correct this is a commentary and not a piece asking for discussion. I've changed the headline to read as "COMMENTARY: ..." Thanks for pointing that out.

I am concerned that you think this is a left-leaning news source since, and I think JRH and other readers can back me up, I try very hard to present a balanced approach to what's happening in our state. I know some readers are upset with our coverage of the recalls, but the recalls are news no matter if you agree with them or not. We are covering the recalls, however, from both sides and will continue to do so.

You might be interested in this.
http://caledonia.patch.com/blog_posts/the-republican-party-myths-and-misunderstandings

@SimplyMeg -

Both Heather A and Denise Lockwood are Patch editors of the utmost journalistic professionalism and integrity. Their coverage of the recalls have been extremely fair and balanced, otherwise they wouldn't be constantly taking hits, as they do, from both sides screaming bias, would they? They are also both very good about expressly distinguishing between hard news and opinion/commentary.

They also provide an equal opportunity for conservatives, liberals, and others to express their personal views in a blog format that is shared with the general Patch readership under the 'Local Voices' section. If you feel that the right isn't being properly or proportional represented, apply to become a Patch blogger!

But please don't confuse the hard news stories and the opinion/commentary pieces, as I believe you are doing. For the most part, the hard news coverage offered by these two editors is probably the fairest and most balanced that one can find today - and that's saying quite a bit when you consider the multitude of media outlets available to us, isn't it?

One last thing that both are most excellent about is giving us, the reader, the ability to comment and discuss the stories in the commentary section in as free a fashion as they've allowed thus far - there is very little moderating done and no pre-screening of comments before they are posted. What other mass appeal sites allow you this much freedom?

simply not true! it was local and state government who didn't want to settle contracts with public employee because they were banking on walker winning and the idn't want to get into a locked in contract before that happened. do some research and you will find out that most public employees were in fact working without a contract and municipalities were notorious for dragging out the process. it was commonplace for municipal workers to be working without a contract from 1 to 3 years! because they did not have the right to strike. and you see the unions as thugs? get real!

cynthia, my statement was 100% true! it comes from personal experience in dpw for over 25 years. municipalities are notorious for dragging out contract talks for 1-3 years of which their employees go on working and waiting to only see less then cost of living increases or even more common, wage decreases or freezes. if you think this is nonsensical, then you are sensibly challenged!

Sooooo jt is Corey mason?? Interesting.....

Jt Corey whoever..... Think about it.... You all state that your benefits package is part of your wages until it does not work in your favor... With the high increases in the cost of benefits you actally have seen very large increases over the years.. Now for the private sector, they are truly the ones that have suffered all these years... Many have had to cancel their medical and stop saving for retirement to make ends meet. Now really sit and think about your neighbor..... How are they doing and do they have medical, if they do, how much do they pay... Asking you to pay HALF of your 'fair' share of employee benefits is really not asking much at all... Later when I'm not on my iPad I'll posts a link of the msnbc article which reported the compromise on collective bargaining
'priviledges'.... I will also look for the dem response.

no cynthia i am not corey mason. i am only a 25 year veteran dpw worker! that is short for dept of public works. but thanks for the compliment anyway! you just proved that public workers are well educated on the issues and could run for office if need be.

Hummmm ya, that's why you direct me defending yourself about a comment not directed at you..........

BTW (that's short for By The Way) You are not very educated because you don't understand the cost of your contracts to the PRIVATE SECTOR that has been suffering for the past years while YOUR benefits have INCREASED in cost and you don't understand that the PRIVATE SECTOR has been paying YOUR percent of YOUR 'fair' share of employee benefits. You have been asked to pay HALF of YOUR 'fair' share of employee benefits. The PRIVATE SECTOR is STILL paying HALF of YOUR 'fair' share of benefits. That would be the definition of ungrateful!!

@cynthia, i have news for you! you know nothing about the details of my groups contract and your blaitantly arrogant towards public workers. so here are some facts for you! #1 i have not had a raise in 4 years
#2 the last raise we got was 1%
#3 5 years ago we moved to a cheaper insurance that saved our village $500 on average per employee
#4 that insurance was from our union and has locked in rates for 3 years at a time
so the village doesn't have to guess what insurance will cost from year to year.
#5 our premiums with that insurance actually went down this year!
#6 the village sat down and talked with us over 5 tears ago and we made several concessions by mutual agreement between the village and union..
#7 public workers do pay for your benefits also, because we buy the goods and services that your company sells! so the consumer is actually paying for your package just as taxpayers pay towards ours!
i really wish that you would have the guts to state what you do for a living!
instead of labeling public workers, maybe you should attend spme board meetings and actually learn something about what they do! we are not thugs as fox news would like for you to beleive!

jt,
I have not had a raise in 5 years.
I have had a pay cut.
I can no longer afford to pay for my health insurance, therefore I have none.
I have not been able to contribute to my 401k for 3 years.
I still pay my taxes which pay for your benefits and salary!
Do me a favor and STFU about having to pay for some of your benefits. It really is getting stinkingly old the crybaby attitude from the public employees.

Unless you are a fireman or cop, my job is more dangerous than yours. I should be paid more. I also have college degree, so I should get even more!

Well jt........ don't you think it's time the rest of the public sector in the State does the same? What does it matter what I do? You don't pay any of my benefits seeing as we had to cancel them because we could no longer afford to pay more then rent for our health insurance (that would be $1200 a month since you OBVIOUSLY don't know what the public sector pays ... so yes IT DOES piss me off how ignorant and ungrateful you are to be asked to pay HALF of your 'fair' share of employee benefits!!

@ tim and cynthia, tim i will tell you the same thing that so many others have told me. if you don't like it, find a different job! and cynthia, actually i do know that the public sector pays around $1200 a month on health insurance. and if you can't afford it, then i have to wonder why you are against national health care! i as an employee, just like you have to pay part of mine and that's fine. but why are you so against working people who don't get a free ride? i haven't heard you say anything about wealfare or illegal immigrants who get theirs for free! direct your anger at where it really belongs! those are also the people who are working for peanuts and ruining wages for the rest of us! but yet, you would rather villianize public employees who are just doing their jobs and trying to set the standard for all of us.
it pisses me off that every time i go through a wealthy neighborhood, i see people who say they are against illegal immigration, but yet, right there, they have contractors working on their houses or yards and not one of those people can speak english! and trust me, those are not union contractors!

jt........ Why does someone have to be FORCED to join the union........ Many public sector employees do NOT want to be in the union....... Why are you against your fellow workers choice? Apply your same statement... if you don't like paying HALF of your 'fair' share of YOUR share of employee benefits then find a different job... I would not recommend a Federal job because they pay their FULL 'fair' share of their share of employee benefits and obama just asked them to pay over 1% more.... Federal employees have also had very limited cb's if any at all for decades.... do you see them crying? You miss the point that the private sector has been suffering for many years and you don't seem to even care....

BTW.... when we hire employees they HAVE to have ID, SS and go through a background check.... We do our part of hiring legal and 'safe' employees.

cynthia, you have not been paying attention. no one is forced to be in a union. public works employees in wisconsin now have to recertify every year. so if the majority doesn't want to be union, they won't be.
pretty foolish move if you already have lots of years in your pension, but to each his own. plus, there has always been the option to opt out . you just don't get to be part of the bargaining unit if you don't pay dues. but you can work there .
your really not that well informed, and i don't have time to explain it all to you. so please get you info from credible sources. if you want to know how a union works, stop by a union hall and ask! you can't beleive everything that tv adds say during an election, you have to gather knowledge on your own.

Now with Act 10 yes they are NOT forced...... Have you noticed how many have dropped the union? Do you realize how many more want to but they are tied up in rushed contracts? As for opting out... do you realize how many people have tried and the union refuses? Have you ever read those lawsuits? I have been in both private and public sector unions..... I know how they work.... obviously you don't. Again....... why are you so ungrateful?

cynthia, if you were in both public and private sector unions, tells us who your reps were! i'll bet you really never were in any union. and if you were, you did something to get booted and the union wouldn't waste the time to save you. that's why your bitter.

http://mountpleasant.patch.com/articles/sturtevant-trustee-in-madison-to-support-state-insurance-bill

mason........ whatever...... ever hear of getting married to someone in the Military and moving? Sure I probably could have remained a Federal Worker if something was available in SC where we moved but there wasn't.... I got a private sector job and did quite well 'bargaining' on my own........ Especially doing utility construction work.... Then after Enron I went back to school and did a career change..... did well 'bargaining' for myself then also... So after all that we went all in and opened our own business......... End of story

I'm not bitter on unions....... Join them, embrace them, but DON"T FORCE THEM DOWN OUR THROATS.

well said rees!

@Rees, with all due respect, your call for getting along rings hollow, given the propaganda the author (Mason) spews in this forum. Rights? Retribution? (Mason) being bi-partisan? Who is he kidding? His constant whining since being out of power amuses me because the budget was deplorable under his parties' watch, and business could not pull out fast enough. 95% of business leaders now believe WI is on the right track, where less than 20% thought so before the election. Try as they might, his union buddies can't spin the immutable truth the budget has been fixed, and the systemic problem of union over-reach has been solved as well. Thank goodness. Mr. Mason and his close geographic collegue Mr. Barca are a poor example of anyone interested in working across the isle. They've long burned whatever bridge they had, rendering them ineffective... even though their union brethren applaud them. Just sayin'

@Rees: What WE say to each other is irrelevant, because WE don't have the power to tax and spend. And that is what this is about. Who do you want to have the power? The shellacking visited upon the Democrat party in WI at the local, Assmbly, State Senate, Congress, and US Senate represented a mandate to reverse course at local, state and federal levels. And yes, if memory serves me, a conservative Governor Walker was elected into office as well, thanks to voters like me.

They had a mandate to actually fix problems, instead of talking about fixing them. And they did so with aplomb. Bold, effective leadership for which they should be rewarded with another term, not getting cut off at the knees and thrown out of office, because of a union-lead hissy fit. Wisconsin has become a lightning rod for government reform in all the best ways imaginable, while Democrats bluster.

If you look around a little bit, you will find we have remarkable leadership at the local level. Vos, Wanggaard and Paul Ryan come to mind. If you haven't noticed, Mr Ryan has national recognition for his brave, bold willingness to take on problems everyone else sticks their head in the sand over. For that, idiots claim he wants to kill Medicare and Social Security, both programs which will bankrupt the country if left on their same track. This is the biggest eyes-wide-open fastball coming at us. Everyone sees it. Few have the guts to acknowledge it though.

I might add guys like Brian Dey deserve your support for the school board. He's been there, knows where the bodies are buried, and doesn't accept the line of crap that continues along the lines of prosperity is just around the corner as long as the next spending referendum gets passed.

I agree with you JW I am an Independent voter that votes on issues. I voted for Mason in the past but after this I will not vote for him again. I dont agree with the recall 25% can take away from the majority. He stated over a million people singed, Mr. Mason I think you jumped the gun on that one. Lets wait to see what is certified before you use talking points!

@hoffa
Indeed. He a clown in my book , but opinions vary.

Mr. Dey

I will consider only one cent of your view when you point out Mr. Mason has been in bed with the unions because to be really fair about it other conservative politicians are in bed with corporations. That would have been the other one cent.

In other words to just point out that one side panders to groups isn't the whole picture. They all do it. That needs to be changed. Period. So, from that point of view I agree with you.

I recognize representing RUSD is one heck of a thankless job. I do respect you for running.

I liked what I heard on the candidate forum from you. But do you promise not to take contributions from any groups? If so, I will vote for you.

Mr. Roberts- I have already put in writing to the REA and REAA that I will not except any contributions from them. I won't except contributions from either political party. This is a non-partisan election, so my belief is that neither party should have an influence in the campaign.

I will say this, elections cost money, and raising money in this time period is extremely hard. Any organization that wants to endorse must not be corporate or union. Others will be vetted prior to my acceptance. Any evidence of lobbying will eliminate them.

I want this to be a complete grassroots effort, even though I know the money will be pouring into the incumbents coffers. I have a target on my back because of my strong stance on Act 10 and school choice, but that is a risk I am willing to take so that no one, should I get elected, mistake votes I make as completely independent.

so now, michael, are you going to pay for the recall on bob wirch? and you also refer to the union. which union are you speaking of? there are many different unions in wisconsin, most of which also represent private sector workers. do you want them to pay too? and also, do you really think that consumers don't pay for your insurance or pension that is included in the costs of goods and services?
the cost of living is going up big time! could this be because the private sector workers make too much? or could it be corperate greed which is the main reason why workers join unions? THINK ABOUT IT! who are the biggest campaign contributors to the gop? big corperations and their ceo s. does the consumer pay for that? hell yes! remember that the next time you buy gas , groceries, and other goods!

I don't think Michael needs help, but lets for a second think about bob "run to Ill" wirch. He DID NOT do his job. He ran to Ill along with the rest of the democrat senators. He was lucky to stay in office because Kenosha is a union town. He garnered the union vote and remains in office.

Amen to that!

Thanks Heather. Consistency is the best policy. I appreciate that you follow through and do what you can to correct a situation and not just fluff us off.

@mau - thanks! It means a lot to have your comment.

@Heather -

No problem :-)

And thank you for your efforts in rectifying the situation - it is very much appreciated by your readers!