One of the more interesting side stories to come out of Madison in the past week is the doctors who were in the crowd on Capitol Square, handing out medical excuses to those who missed work to attend rallies protesting Gov. Walkers budget repair bill.
One of the doctors involved, Lou Sanner of Madison, said the medical excuses were legitimate: Some protesters are suffering a great deal of stress due to concerns over the potential end of collective bargaining rights and Walkers threat of impending layoffs if his bill is not approved.
Some people think its a nod-and-a-wink thing but its not, Sanner, a family medicine practitioner, told The Associated Press on Sunday. One of the biggest stresses in life is the threat of loss of income, loss of job, loss of health insurance. People have actually been getting ill from this, or they cant sleep.
Theres been some backlash against the doctors the Associated Press reports the doctors are getting angry phone calls and e-mails from critics saying they acted contrary to professional standards. UW Health, the doctors employer, is investigating the situation and the Wisconsin Medical Society has come out with a statement against the doctors, saying it does not condone their actions.
What do you think, readers? Did the doctors act appropriately by making these medical excuses available to protesters on the Square? If not, are their actions grievous enough to seek disciplinary action? Or is this just another tempest in a teapot? Submit your comments online at www.themonroetimes.com under From the Editors Desk.
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Next time youre watching TV coverage of the protests in Madison, keep an eye out for some of our local law enforcement officers. Area law enforcement agencies, including the Monroe and Darlington police departments, are among those from around the state that have responded to a request from Capitol Police for mutual aid.
Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley said his department has sent four officers each day for three days Sunday, Monday and today. Some of these officers were pulled from their regular shifts, while others were sent on their days off. They were there to assist during the day with crowd control inside the Capitol.
Chief Jason King of Darlington and two of his officers, meanwhile, helped out on a Saturday night shift in Madison. King said their job was to maintain watch over the governors office and Capitol rotunda.
Kelley said his understanding is that law enforcement agencies from throughout Wisconsin have been responding to the request, including officers from as far away as Vilas County.
The officers are there as a preventative measure because of the large number of people gathering in and near the Capitol. News outlets from Madison say the crowd which reached as high as 60,000 over the weekend are largely peaceful and orderly, with only a handful of misdemeanor citations issued.
For now, the cost of sending local officers is being absorbed by the local agency; Kelley said there has been some talk that at some point there may be some possibility of reimbursement.
Mary Jane Grenzow is the editor of The Monroe Times. She can be reached at editor@themonroetimes.com. To post a response to this column, click on Blogs at www.themonroetimes.com
One of the doctors involved, Lou Sanner of Madison, said the medical excuses were legitimate: Some protesters are suffering a great deal of stress due to concerns over the potential end of collective bargaining rights and Walkers threat of impending layoffs if his bill is not approved.
Some people think its a nod-and-a-wink thing but its not, Sanner, a family medicine practitioner, told The Associated Press on Sunday. One of the biggest stresses in life is the threat of loss of income, loss of job, loss of health insurance. People have actually been getting ill from this, or they cant sleep.
Theres been some backlash against the doctors the Associated Press reports the doctors are getting angry phone calls and e-mails from critics saying they acted contrary to professional standards. UW Health, the doctors employer, is investigating the situation and the Wisconsin Medical Society has come out with a statement against the doctors, saying it does not condone their actions.
What do you think, readers? Did the doctors act appropriately by making these medical excuses available to protesters on the Square? If not, are their actions grievous enough to seek disciplinary action? Or is this just another tempest in a teapot? Submit your comments online at www.themonroetimes.com under From the Editors Desk.
n n n
Next time youre watching TV coverage of the protests in Madison, keep an eye out for some of our local law enforcement officers. Area law enforcement agencies, including the Monroe and Darlington police departments, are among those from around the state that have responded to a request from Capitol Police for mutual aid.
Monroe Police Chief Fred Kelley said his department has sent four officers each day for three days Sunday, Monday and today. Some of these officers were pulled from their regular shifts, while others were sent on their days off. They were there to assist during the day with crowd control inside the Capitol.
Chief Jason King of Darlington and two of his officers, meanwhile, helped out on a Saturday night shift in Madison. King said their job was to maintain watch over the governors office and Capitol rotunda.
Kelley said his understanding is that law enforcement agencies from throughout Wisconsin have been responding to the request, including officers from as far away as Vilas County.
The officers are there as a preventative measure because of the large number of people gathering in and near the Capitol. News outlets from Madison say the crowd which reached as high as 60,000 over the weekend are largely peaceful and orderly, with only a handful of misdemeanor citations issued.
For now, the cost of sending local officers is being absorbed by the local agency; Kelley said there has been some talk that at some point there may be some possibility of reimbursement.
Mary Jane Grenzow is the editor of The Monroe Times. She can be reached at editor@themonroetimes.com. To post a response to this column, click on Blogs at www.themonroetimes.com
