Registration open for Annual Dinner, wedding barn warriors, too young for gunfire Viewpoint SNAP is a larded, sugary mess By Mike Nichols The subject line of the email from the disabled North Woods doctor receiving some temporary government assistance read “Food Stamps,” which is actually a misnomer. The federal program we used to call “food stamps” is completely electronic now, and the name was officially changed to the “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” — or SNAP — in 2008 during reauthorization of the federal farm bill. SNAP is a misnomer too, though — as the North Woods doc found out. “Our family recently started receiving SNAP benefits,” wrote the doctor, whom I also talked to briefly on the phone. “I had read the information prior to applying about how SNAP helped families to get ‘healthy’ foods. What a joke. I assumed that I would be able to get fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy — actually healthy foods — similar to what is allowed on WIC,” the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. “Sure, I can get those, but I can also get Monster, Diet Pepsi, Hershey's Miniatures, Doritos and Oreos.” Continue Reading Letter to Lawmakers Don’t snuff out wedding barns, Badger Institute and other groups tell Legislature A wedding barn is nothing like a tavern — especially in ways that matter for liquor laws. The Badger Institute is happy to join an effort to fill in Wisconsin lawmakers on why. The institute is part of a coalition of free-market organizations — led by the Wisconsin Institute for Law & Liberty — writing to lawmakers to warn them that proposed changes to liquor laws will put the burgeoning wedding barn industry out of business. The venues host private events, such as wedding receptions, at which caterers hired by the renters serve food and drink brought in from elsewhere. The proposed bills would require the barns either to get a liquor license — often hard or impossible to obtain in rural jurisdictions — or to limit their business to an absurd six events a year, no more than one a month. As the letter puts it, wedding barns shouldn’t be regulated as if they were public taverns because “weddings are purely private events. Read More The Killing of Milwaukee’s Kids Young kids in Milwaukee are being shot, and often killed, at an astonishing rate. It used to be that the shooting of a child was big news. Now, it’s almost daily news — if news at all. In 2022, 136 kids under 17 years old were shot in Milwaukee; 27 of whom died. As recently as four years ago, child shootings were much less than half as prevalent. Sadly, it appears Milwaukee has taken a permanent, tragic turn. There were 137 shootings of kids under 17 in 2021; 136 in 2022 and 61 through June 12 (the latest data available) thus far this year — the exact same pace as last year. Source: Milwaukee Homicide Review Commission While a surge in firearm homicides and non-fatal shootings is historically normative for the summer months of June, July and August, increased incidents of child victimization must always be a far cry from “normal.” For Milwaukee officials looking to reverse course and stop gun violence toward kids, the city must support the police officers and detectives who take criminal justice and public safety seriously. Related Reading: The Thinning Blue Line: Milwaukee Police Department’s Attrition Crisis Badger in the News On Protasiewicz... Read: Badger Institute quoted on Protasiewicz changing makeup of Wisconsin Supreme Court “Despite the protracted victory lap by progressives and the accompanying media cheerleading, a left-leaning majority on the state Supreme Court probably won’t mean much in the short term,” Mark Lisheron told The Center Square. Read More   Radio: The Meg Ellefson Show with Guest Pat McIlheran “By claiming that these maps were rigged, Protasiewicz is essentially working on the premise that the Legislature is illegitimate — and I don’t think that’s good for Wisconsin. [Because] once you start saying that the Legislature is illegitimate, then you can start to call into question everything the Legislature has done.” Listen Now   On the Kia Boyz crime spree... YouTube: The Jeff Wagner Show On the Monday, July 31 program, Jeff Wagner read and commented upon Pat McIlheran’s latest Viewpoint, chronicling his family’s personal experience with having a Kia stolen on the streets of Milwaukee. “I want to share with you a piece that’s just been published by Patrick McIlheran. I'm going to read it to you in its entirety...” Watch Now Badger Events Democracy, Freedom and a Massive Wake-up Call Regarding Communist China Registration now open Join us Tuesday, Oct. 3 as we welcome keynote speaker Mike Gallagher, U.S. representative for Wisconsin’s 8th congressional district and Chairman of The Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party. Sponsorship opportunities are available, along with general registration and VIP meet-and-greet tickets. Learn More Weekly Survey: Should wedding barns be required to obtain a liquor license in order to host private receptions? Answer below! Yes No   Previous Poll Results: What We’re Reading Tablet: The Culture of Transgression Cap Times: Wine at the brewery? A new bill could change Wisconsin's liquor laws City Journal: Birth of a Woke Myth Daily Caller: Milton Friedman’s Vision in Education Becomes Reality American Mind: Statism and the New Right Invest in the Badger Institute The Badger Institute, formerly known as the Wisconsin Policy Research Institute (WPRI), has long been at the forefront of the fight for school choice, right to work, welfare reform, tax restructuring, limited government, civil society and so much more. If you appreciate the Institute’s legacy and want to support free markets, opportunity and prosperity, please consider donating today. Your support will help the Institute continue to advocate for conservative principles now and in generations to come. Support Freedom   The Institute never has, and never will, accept government funding. 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