Others voting on war; Milwaukee should, too

While the Milwaukee Common Council considers whether to put a referendum on the Iraq war on the ballot, other communities in the state are moving forward to put the question to the voters on April 4.

Madison organizers collected enough petitions to get it on there (the petition drive fell short in Milwaukee, which is why it is up to the Council, which is to decide at its Tuesday meeting.)

Grassroots Shorewood filed 1105 signatures with the Village Clerk this week, which should be more than enough to get in on the ballot. The ballot question there is modeled on Sen. Russ Feingold's target date for withdrawal of troops by the end of 2006. There's more at their website.

In Whitefish Bay, organizers say they've contacted about half of the households in town and are close to having the number of signers they need by Dec. 19. The question there will be: "Should the United States now (which would be April 2006) begin withdrawing troops from Iraq, and continue steady withdrawals until all our troops are home?"

In Polk County, signatures have already been filed in Amery and will be in Frederic soon, organizers say.

Enough signatures have been filed in Algoma and Kewaunee, and it will be on the ballot in Evansville, too.

Still the works -- Sturgeon Bay, Osceola, Dresser, and a number of other bigger cities.

There are probably more. This is a grassroots effort organized in each community. The closest thing to a central information point is the website of the Wisconsin Network for Peace and Justice.

Milwaukeeans should get to vote, as I said before. If you live in the city, contact your alderman and ask him/her to vote Tuesday to let the people have a voice. Contact list.