By Jason Stein
Madison — The Dane County (click here) executive signalled Monday he might sue over Gov. Scott Walker's plan to drug test recipients of public health care, food stamp and jobless benefits.
Joe Parisi, a Democrat and head of the state's second largest county, has asked Dane County attorneys to review what legal options he'll have if the Republican governor's proposal is enacted into law this year as part of the state budget.
"People who fall on hard times should not be treated like criminals; they should be treated like people who have fallen on hard times: with dignity and respect. Requiring someone who has just been laid off from their job to pee in a cup is not treating people in a dignified manner; it is degrading and insulting," Parisi said in a statement.
A spokeswoman for Walker had no immediate comment....
This is exceptionally revealing. With a falling wage and employment in Wisconsin where are people going to find help with their monthly budgets? Unemployment, sure. But, also places like food stamps and Medicaid. How does a governor keep those people off social programs? This way when there are less people on social programs the cuts in employment and salary was a good thing without hurting any Wisconsinites.
Anyone working with statics has to take into account all the dynamics when looking for policies that work and policies that are political. This is a political policy. Statistics isn't just about obvious numbers, it goes past that.
