It's not Sex

Abuse of Power is the Problem

Meritocracy and Equality is the Answer

Sexual harassment and assault often take place when men in positions of power and authority come to believe that their lofty position entitles them to special treatment and physical pleasure from subordinate women. This behavior is just plain wrong, no matter what other positive attributes the powerful possess or the good works they have performed.

In recent weeks, many men in powerful positions have been brought to task by women who found the strength to come forward with descriptions of their abuse and the impacts it has had on their lives and careers. We see it in media celebrities like Matt Lauer of NBC and Garrison Keillor of Prairie Home Companion fame at Minnesota Public Radio. We see it in the halls of Congress from the likes of Rep. John Conyers (D. Mich) and Sen. Al Franken (D. Minn). We even see it in the White House from the most powerful men in our government in Pres. Bill Clinton and Pres. Donald Trump. We see it in political races from those like Judge Roy Moore (R. Ala) and others too numerous to mention.

Some of the men have come clean, admitting their transgressions and seeking redemption through admission and going into self-reflective treatment. Some have been fired by their superiors who raced to adopt zero tolerance policies to avoid further corporate embarrassment and the litigation that often follows disclosure of inappropriate and unacceptable behavior. Others have maintained their innocence, even in the face of numerous accusers with clear evidence of abuse, and kept their positions, at least temporarily.

The media and many activists focus on the sexual nature of the conduct, seeking to draw attention from the salacious. What these critics miss, distracted by the sexual taboos, is the whole point of the behavior. The point is not sexual stimulation and pleasure. The point of the bad behavior is the misguided entitlement the abusers believe is theirs by divine right and their power to make or break the careers of those below them in stature.

Women seeking a seat at the table of authority in workplaces dominated by these men do not get to compete with their male colleagues based on talent, intellect or ability. All too often, they are convinced that the only path to advancement and success winds through the bedroom. They all too often find that path never leads to the table or the Board Room, just to the boudoir.

These abuses of power and authority are rarely addressed as the abuses of those attributes, but merely as inappropriate sexual behavior. Until the roots of male power over women are exposed, examined and redefined, these abuses will continue unabated. We will continue to hear from those few important women who dare to come forward and challenge the power structure, but nothing will change.

What these latest revelations are calling for is the creation of a true meritocracy in the workplace and at home.

We need a world where children are taught that they will find success, not based upon which genital set up they have under their clothes, but on what is between their ears and how they are able to put it to productive use. Our sons and daughters must be taught to respect one another and that no one, under any circumstances, is intrinsically superior to anyone else. The motto must be that we all bring value to the discussion and have the right to express our feelings freely.

Workplace cultures need redefinition along the same lines. It is no longer acceptable for men to become leaders just because they are men. Male generated ideas are no more valuable or important than female ideas. “Mansplaining” that puts women down with patronizing commentary needs to go. Expectations that women in the office are automatically the ones who make the coffee or clean the bathrooms or just take care of the menial tasks have no place in the workplace. It is long past time when women get paid less for the same work done by a male colleague.

The days of Ozzie and Harriet at home are over as well. Life at home has changed, especially since few households can survive on just one income. The workload there needs to be redefined and redistributed so that no one feels like they are carrying the whole load with the kids, the cooking, the cleaning and the dog. No man is ever entitled to sex, just because of his gender or the size of his paycheck.

If we truly want to see an end to sexual harassment and assault by men in power, we need to rebalance the distribution of power so that men and women are equal partners in all the efforts we take together.

Waring Fincke is a retired attorney and serves as a guardian for the elderly and disabled.

Blue Tides Rising

Voters Speaking Up.

Cooperation and Compromise are Key

With each GOP governing blunder that comes to light, we see Democrats stepping forward to run and win in special elections across the land. The political pendulum often rebounds in off year elections as voters see first hand that one-party rule does not work so well. Between now and next November, we will see a much more pronounced pushback primarily due to the continuously outrageous conduct of our president and his cohorts.

Congressional republicans were unable to pass any significant healthcare reforms because they refused to work with Democrats to earn enough votes to secure passage of even modest changes. Tax reform, now being used as a stealth weapon to repeal Obamacare, appears headed down that same road. Republicans in the Senate can only lose two votes on their tax reform proposal and the inclusion of Obamacare repeal will most certainly cost them the support of more than two of their moderate members. Rebellion from the right and left flanks will further stall any meaningful legislative activity before the mid-term elections next fall.

Elections across the country for state legislative seats and local municipal positions are already showing clear signs of voter discontent about GOP inabilities to get anything done on the important issues like infrastructure repair, clean elections, tax inequality and government giveaways to the wealthy who need them the least.

Here in Wisconsin we are beginning to see voter push back against the backroom secret deals like Foxconn that will punish middle class taxpayers for most of the rest of their working lives. Couple the bad Foxconn deal with the bumbling leaders in the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation who cannot enforce any of their own lax rules and we will have an economic disaster that will take decades to fix. Wisconsin still lags far behind in job growth and business development even with massive corporate tax reductions and the lifting of regulatory burdens.

Wisconsin voters are also standing up for their local public schools. Over 70% of the public school referenda passed in the last cycle. These communities have had enough of GOP control from Madison telling them they cannot raise local taxes to support their schools. They are demanding return of local control to their elected school boards so they can provide the resources their educators need to prepare the next generation.

People are rejecting those who would impose outmoded religious beliefs upon their constituents through unconstitutional bathroom bills and gay discrimination laws by electing openly transgendered citizens who care more about fixing roads than which bathroom people use.  They are turning against those who would use their positions of power to sexually harass and assault those less powerful. Respect for women and protection of children are gaining political currency once more. Misogyny is on the way out.

As President Trump and his family continue to loot the treasury, his campaign staffers face federal indictments and industry insiders take control of the regulatory agencies that once kept them in check, voters are telling elected officials who support the Washington rulers that they made the wrong choice.

It is not about one’s political party; it is about the country and what America stands for around the world. With Trump supporting Putin and dictators in the Philippines and Saudi Arabia, American voters are demanding a return to measured diplomacy with our enemies and unwavering support for our friends. We cannot have a president who threatens nuclear war with North Korea in early morning tweets and cuddles up to Chinese leaders in hopes they will reign in North Korean nuclear ambitions. An America floundering about on the world stage with little apparent purpose does little to calm a jittery world already reeling from our withdrawal from climate change accords and trade pacts that stabilize international markets.

Average Americans who cannot reach out to their elected officials in any meaningful way to express their displeasure can only turn to the ballot box. In almost every one of those opportunities, we see rejection of the current status quo. Red seats are turning blue across the land. As the GOP digs in its heels and clings to it’s “my way or the highway, take no prisoners” approach to governing, the blue tide will continue to rise.

Look for leaders who will listen and ask, “what do you think?” These are the ones who can and will work across the ideas that appear to divide us to find solutions to the common problems we all face. These are the leaders and elected officials of our future, if we are to have one.

Waring R. Fincke is a retired attorney and serves as a guardian for the elderly and disabled.

When Tax Reform Hurts

GOP Tax Reform Helps the Wealthy

Not the Rest of US

The tax reform bill that squeaked through the House of Representatives this week drastically cuts taxes for the very wealthy and will add $1.5 Trillion to the federal debt over the next decade.  Those of us who work for a living did not fare so well.

People who use deductions and credits for housing state and local taxes, medical expenses and education costs will probably end up paying more in federal income taxes under the current plan.

Using old and unproven arguments, the GOP leadership cut the corporate tax rate on profits from 35% to 20%. Claims that this will lead to more jobs and higher wages do not hold water. What the corporate tax rate cut is much more likely to generate are increased dividends to stockholders and increased executive pay. Interestingly, about $70 billion a year, 35% of the benefits will flow directly to foreign investors who own shares in American companies, according to the Urban-Brookings Tax Policy Center.

Real estate partnerships, hedge funds and other business that pass profits through directly to owners untaxed will see significant benefits under the new bill. The GOP leadership wants those owners to pay just 25% on those profits instead of the ordinary income tax rates that go up to 39.6%. The Trump family is a prime example of the type of business owner invested in real estate that will see enormous tax cuts with this new benefit.

The secret backroom negotiations that led to the new code revisions hit middle-class families, especially those in high tax states, the hardest with the elimination of deductions for state and local income taxes, limiting the real estate property tax deduction to $10,000, capping the mortgage interest deduction at $500,000, elimination of deductions for medical expenses, college tuition and interest on student loans.

There are still more Trump family benefitting changes as well. The bill eliminates the alternative minimum tax now paid by wealthy people with lots of deductions. Trump’s leaked tax returns for 2005 show the vast majority of the taxes he paid in that year were based upon the alternative minimum tax. Of course, he has not revealed any of his other income tax returns so we can only speculate on the impact the new code provisions will have on his current business income stream based upon know investments. The other major benefit to Trump and his children is found in changes to the federal estate tax. That tax currently applies to inherited wealth over $5.5 million. The new bills exempt inherited wealth up to $11 million next year and phases out the tax completely by 2024. That single change will benefit just 0.2 percent of the people who die every year, but will cost the government $269 billion over a decade.

House Speaker Paul Ryan (R-WI) claims that a middle-class family of four earning $59,000 per year will see tax savings of $1,182 per year under the new plan. Tax experts at New Your University Law School sees the claim as illusory because the cut will evaporate over a decade as several tax credits in the plan expire and inflation indexing changes take place. It is estimated that Ryan’s hypothetical family will see a tax increase by 2024. If the bill simply cut income or payroll taxes for middle class workers and doubled the standard deduction for individuals and married couples, it would be easy for the GOP to make their case for middle class tax relief. They rejected that simple approach.

Another current middle class tax benefit will vanish. Now, parents can claim personal exemptions for themselves, their spouses and dependent children. The new bill eliminates these exemptions in favor of a $300 personal credit for each parent. Even that expires in five years. For larger families, this clearly increases their federal income taxes.

The elimination of the medical expense deduction hits those with chronic illnesses and lousy medical insurance incredibly hard. If you have or make lots of money and can pay out-of pocket medical costs, you win. If you cannot, more of your paycheck vanishes to pay the doctor.

New polling on public reaction to the new plan shows that it is in trouble. A survey by Global Strategy Group in key states show that sixty percent believe the plan favors the wealthy over the middle class. Twenty percent believed they would personally see a benefit. Those responding to the survey voted for Trump by a 13-point margin.

Republicans in key states with high state and local taxes are on the fence as are those aligned with the construction industry that views mortgage interest rate deductions and property tax credits as keys to home ownership. If more Americans see the bill as a gift to those who do not need it and little to no benefit to those that do, it should fail.

Waring R. Fincke is a retired attorney and serves as a guardian for the elderly and disabled.

We Need Bi-partisan Solutions

What’s wrong with bi-partisan solutions?

Compromise produces solutions.

Ever since Newt Gingrich instituted the current GOP “take no prisoners” political strategy, bi-partisan solutions to the nation’s problems have gone nowhere.

Healthcare is the latest victim.

After the Senate failed in several attempts to repeal and replace Obamacare, President Trump issued an executive order purporting to end the subsidies paid to insurance companies that enabled lower premiums for coverage. The resulting outcry was swift and merciless.

Without the subsidies to make premiums affordable for millions of middle class folks, many would have to go without coverage. It turned out that as many as 70 percent of those receiving the subsidized premiums live in states that voted for Trump. Betrayal is a brutal political move.

Part of Trump’s message when he issued his order was that it was up to Congress to fix the problem. Congress is stuck. Not enough republicans can come to agreement on a fix. Ultra conservatives are still holding out for Obamacare repeal. GOP moderates are willing to look reality in the eye and reach across the aisle for help. Many democrats are stuck on a single payer, Medicare for All, plan and oppose anything less. Some are willing to cross the aisle to forge a short-term solution that at least maintains the status quo until a more comprehensive fix can be forged.

Enter Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Lamar Alexander (R-TN) who put together a short term fix that would extend the premium subsidies for two years to keep people insured until a better plan can be enacted. It was a truly bi-partisan effort and gained co-sponsors from both parties, including one of our own Senators, Tammy Baldwin.

Trump initially supported the idea in phone calls with Sen. Alexander and public comments on Twitter, his favorite platform, and elsewhere. After pushback from those in the ultra-right like Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and others, Trump appeared to switch course, claiming he could never support bailing out insurers.

It remains to be seen if the Murray-Alexander bill will command enough support to get out of the Senate and over to the House for a vote where it will have a much tougher row to hoe for passage. It does represent, at least, a ray of hope that bi-partisan solutions can still be found.

Our government works best when the people we elect to represent us are willing to compromise. We have a lot more in common and than our leaders think and are willing to recognize. Ideological purity is the single biggest impediment to progress and the ability to find solutions to common problems.

No single bloc in the American body politic commands a sufficient majority to exert total control over the reigns of government. Even with simple voting majorities in both houses of congress and a president of the same political party, republicans cannot command enough votes to advance an effective agenda. There is too much of a spread in the spectrum of the conservative right to get it done. Even with extreme gerrymandered congressional districts to support continued GOP rule, the spectrum spread will prevent a totally unified response to the issues we face.

It is time to put aside the labels of conservative, liberal, republican and democrat and to ask candidates who want to represent us in the halls of government how they plan to govern. Are you going to hew the party line or listen to all the voices? Are you going to seek real solutions to our common problems or let your personal preferences govern your decisions? Are you willing to work with all of your colleagues or just those in your party?

Our new era needs leaders committed to public service, not personal aggrandizement. They need to listen to the diverse voices of the nation, not just their isolated constituents. The need to work to see   the pressing issues of our time, not merely to align them with their own world view, but in a way that allows for input from all points of view to find a workable solution.

It is easy to stake out a position and claim its validity to the world. It is much harder to consistently re-examine that position in light of new facts or arguments and to be able to admit you were wrong and change your mind. We deserve leaders and representatives who are up to that challenge and willing to embrace it wholeheartedly.

Waring R. Fincke is a retired attorney and serves as a guardian for the elderly and disabled.

Enough is Enough

Enough Carnage

Guns are a Public Health Menace

When is enough gun-inflicted carnage sufficient for American lawmakers to ignore the bribery from the NRA and other purist 2^nd Amendment groups and enact sensible reforms to limit access to firearms whose purpose is to kill people? 

To listen to most republican leaders and even some democrats, the answer is, unfortunately, not yet. 

As of October 1^st, data compiled by the Gun Violence Archive tells us that in the past 1,735 days there have been 1,516 mass shootings in the United States. That averages one shooting that injured or killed four or more people in nine out of every ten days. At least 1,715 people were killed and over 6,000 were injured in those shootings.

Is that enough? Evidently not.

Las Vegas is but the latest in the string of American mass executions that has failed to move Congress into action. The carnage inflicted by unregulated fully automatic weapons left 58 dead, the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. History. What we got from Congress were empty thoughts and prayers.

What do we know about American gun violence from a public health perspective? Very little. This is primarily because Congress, at the bidding of its death-dealing lobbyist masters, has prohibited the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) from conducting research on the pubic health implications of gun violence. 

The CDC can study and make recommendations on every other public health menace, but it cannot even look at why Americans are obsessed with guns or why so many are used to maim and kill. 

Studies conducted by universities and medical researchers shed some light on the death walking our streets untouched. 

The Guardian recently published 17 charts reflecting some of that research. Here are some of the important conclusions.

1. America has six times as many firearm homicides as Canada and 16 times as many as Germany. A Harvard study indicates the increased rate is primarily due to the number of guns in circulation in the U.S., 
2. America has 4.4% of the world’s population and almost half of the civilian owned guns on the planet. They have not made us safer.
3. Under a broader definition, there is more than one mass shooting each day in America. We are told in the aftermath of each that then is not the appropriate time to talk about gun violence. Under this rationale, it is never the right time to talk about gun violence. 
4. Multiple studies show developed countries and U. S. states with more guns have more gun deaths. 
5. States with tighter gun control laws have fewer gun related deaths. Epidemiologists looked at the worldwide research and concluded that with new gun regulations comes a drop in gun violence.
6. Even though mass shooting incidents are horrific and command attention, a majority of gun deaths are suicides, not homicides. Suicide researchers have demonstrated that greater access to guns dramatically increases the risk of suicide. 
7. The states with the most guns report the most suicides. Guns allow people to kill themselves much more easily. It follows that limiting access to guns reduces the number of suicides. An Australian study demonstrated that buying back 3,500 guns per 100,000 people correlated with a 50 percent drop in firearm homicides and a 74 percent drop in gun suicides.
8. In states with more guns, more police officers are killed on duty. The American Journal of Public Health study supports this conclusion. Every 10% increase in gun ownership correlated with 10 more officers being shot on duty.
9. Mass shootings have done little to change public opinion about gun ownership. Most still support gun rights. 
10. Specific gun control measures are fairly popular. 89% support preventing the mentally ill from buying guns. Over 80% support not letting those on no fly lists buy guns. Over 70% support background checks for gun show and private gun sales. More than 50% would ban assault weapons. A similar number support a federal database tracking gun sales. 

Other public health menaces that killed or maimed have brought swift legislative responses even though opposed by powerful lobbyists.

In 1980, the MGM Grand Hotel in Law Vegas caught fire killing 85 and injuring more than 500. What followed were stricter fire codes, improved construction and building safety regulations. 

The Tylenol tampering scare in 1982 led to and immediate recall and prompt implementation of sealing procedures we now take for granted even though far fewer were killed.

Horrific roadway accidents led to seat belts, automobile safety regulations, texting while driving laws and other highway safety measures. 

When is enough carnage enough? I’ve had enough. Have you? Call your lawmakers and write them letters. End it now.

Waring R. Fincke is a retired attorney and serves as a guardian for the elderly and disabled.