Sunday, March 24, 2013

Tourism Ad Is Perfect Example Of Waste And Fraud

Scott Walker's DNR paid an exorbitant amount of money to have David Zucker and Robert Hays make a series of commercials that are supposed to be promoting tourism in Wisconsin.

The business community and Walker's propagandists have been hyping it beyond belief, and to be honest, undeservedly so.

Here is the latest ad:



While the ad is slightly humorous, it is far from being memorable. Furthermore, it really doesn't do anything to make it uniquely Wisconsin. Change the wording at the end and it could be for any state with lakes, such as Minnesota which as more lakes (and jobs) than Wisconsin.

But not only is it a waste of time, money and talent, it is also fraudulent.

First of all, Walker and his Republican cohorts in crime against the environment just rammed through the mining law that will allow the mining companies to pump poison into a number of the lakes in Northern Wisconsin, despite the overwhelming opposition to this ceding of our land to out of state special interests.

If this law isn't defeated in court - as it probably will be - the fish in these lakes will be inedible due to the poison.

Then there is the fact that there won't be much in the way of walleye fishing this year at least:
The tribes Friday submitted their declaration to spear 59,399 walleyes in off-reservation lakes. The declarations by band were Bad River 5,609 walleyes; Lac Courte Oreilles 5,879; Lac du Flambeau 24,283; Mole Lake 15,060; Red Cliff 2,194; and St. Croix 6,374.

After calculating the potential impact to the lakes' walleye populations, the Department of Natural Resources on Monday announced the sport bag limits would be reduced to one fish on 197 lakes, two fish on 331 lakes and three fish on seven lakes.
The tribes are well within their legal rights to do this. The reasoning for these high declarations is also pretty clear, as blue cheddar succinctly points out:
Officially, the expanded spearing has nothing to do with mining next to somebody’s sacred rice beds.

Officially the expanded spearing has nothing to do with the law to allow hunting of Wisconsin wolves with dog packs (the only bloodsport wolf hunt of that nature in the U.S.)

Officially the spearfishing has zero to do with disrespectful treatment of native tribes by a certain bullheaded Governor.

Unofficially we know it has everything to do with those things.
Listening to talk radio, you could hear them already ripping out a page from Tommy Thompson's playbook, stirring up the racism that is innate to their base. They already had callers ranting about those "Damn Injuns."

I have also heard reports from my friends in Northern Wisconsin that the usual suspects up there are really starting to grumble about the fact that their white supremacy isn't being observed.

Not once have I heard a conservative make the connection between their own actions and these consequences for their poor behaviors. And no, that doesn't surprise me one bit.

If they had really wanted to make a commercial about tourism in Northern Wisconsin, they would have to show white supremacists fighting against the native tribes over fishing rights, by a lake with corporate special interests preparing to dump toxins into the lake, making the whole fishing argument moot anyway.

That would properly represent what people would find when they come to Fitzwalkerstan.

But we know that Walker and his ilk have such a strong abhorrence of honesty and reality that we won't be seeing that commercial coming any time soon.

15 comments:

  1. I wonder that Walker, et. al don't see the message in the commercial; the one that suggests Wisconsin is full of clumsy, stupid and horny older white men?

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    1. Oh-oh. Your comment might apply to me; however, the ad was humorous IF you want to attract that demographic. I'm pretty sure that Wisconsin is spending more money on the actors, writers, directors and the cost of placing the ads than will be generated by these 'tourists'. Beer drinking fishermen? Speedboats illegally operating too close to piers? High school girls in bikinis? Heard that the next campaign will show fat drunken Packer fans wearing cheese head hats and lighting farts for laughs.

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  2. The ad - still can't top my home state of Michigan and Tim Allen's voice-over. Not even close.
    Mining and Natives (fish and people) - I certainly hope this "law" is overturned by one of those damn liberal tree hugging judges! (My favorite kind.)

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  3. One correction: Wisconsin actually has 15,000 lakes. We're humble and don't brag about it.

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  4. Terrible ad - it mocks WI. Terrible waste of money.


    Really - broken piers?

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  5. Not only will there be no mining jobs but the income fishing guides and bait shops made will go down the tubes.

    More hate will be incurred.

    Divide and conquer is sadly working.

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  6. Horrible ad. Gratuitous boob shot at the end. It really disgusts me.

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  7. Well, David Zucker is a Republican and needed the work after his 2008 Conservative comedy "An American Carol" starring Kelsey Grammer played to empty theaters nationwide, before it was mercifully yanked from circulation. Because we all know how really really funny Republicans can be. His directing career was in the crapper, but not to worry, all the low-brow savant needed was a little wingnut welfare. Party loyalty is a beautiful thing.

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  8. When I viewed the ad, I couldn't help but notice the broken pier that the guy feel off of. Isn't that ad just portraying the future of Wisconsin's facilities, no money being allocated to maintain anything, so all of our infrastructure is falling apart.

    Actually, the broken launch ramp pier is a true reenactement of what happened with the Milwaukee County boat launch ramps when Walker was County Exec. Boat launch prices in Milwaukee County were the highest in Wisconsin AND the entire Great Lakes, with hundreds of thousands of $$$ generated. The conditions of the launch piers were downright dangerous as Walker diverted over 1 million dollars of launch ramp revenue to fund basic Parks dept operations.

    The problem with the diversion was that it was illegal under Wisconsin State law, but nobody in the WDNR had the guts to stand up to Scott Walker and force him to obey the law.

    Once Walker was elected Governor (and was out of Milwaukee County), the money was spent according to state law & Milwaukee County invested $300,000 in new launch piers.

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  9. Re: Spear fishing - Most people are unaware that the tribes stock the lakes with fish in the first place through the operation of six fish hatcheries.

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  10. Do you think they pee in the water?

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  11. Wingnut welfare lol that's good!

    This ad is not respectful or honest. Our state has so much to offer.

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  12. Maybe they could sell it to Arkansas with a different voice-over.

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  13. This new ad sucked, and so did the last with the winter orchestra...it does not make anyone want to come here and spend money, the ad is actually why people leave their neighborhoods, to come to a peaceful, gathering in nature...the real Wisconsin.
    Everything Walker sucks.

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  14. The ad was paid for through the Department of Tourism - not the DNR.

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