August 30 is the 243rd day of the year.

* Isthmus: Watching the local morning news (and, for that matter, the local evening news), it's pretty easy to tell which on-air personality is probably just biding her time in Madison, ranked number 85 among American TV markets, and which may be trying desperately not to be banished to somewhere even smaller.

* Nardi: Whether or not you agree with Wiley—and I made it clear in a testy phone call from the WMC that a column of opinion was not an editorial endorsement—the immediate and for the most part praiseworthy reaction to the article (I was told he received a standing ovation at this week’s downtown Rotary meeting) is an important signal to citizens, politicians and business leaders that we are indeed in a crisis and solutions need to come next.

* WISC: New UW Chancellor Reacts To Wiley's Column; Martin Says She's Eager To Work With WMC, Other Groups

* MJS: Support for Sen. John McCain's vice presidential pick from Wisconsin Republicans continues to pour in.

* AP: Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin would make a "pretty fragile" president, Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Barbara Lawton said Friday

* Rep. Baldwin: As we face serious global challenges and wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, John McCain has chosen someone with virtually no national security or foreign policy experience. This choice calls into question both Senator McCain’s judgment and a McCain administration’s ability to lead a nation in crisis.

* Dane101 Department of...well that's just neat: Operate Your Computer with Wii Controllers

Driving into work this morning, I came up with an idea on how I could write about Obama’s speech while still not putting much effort into it. Hey, what can I say? I’ve got a day job. My plan was to solicit reactions and responses about Obama’s speech from coworkers, then filter through the most interesting quotes and post them right here on dane101 for you all to read. After all, that was a special night and even my conservative brother and sister-in-law watched, understanding the historical significance of it all.

Mischaracterizing it as this generation’s moon landing, I assumed I would not have a problem finding people that watched it. But like my confidence that the knife juggling joke at the dane101 fundraiser would “kill”, I once again, was proven wrong.

Three years ago today you celebrated your birthday with George Bush in Arizona while New Orleans drowned (see picture to left). You are now preparing for another party, in the Twin Cities, just 10 miles from the site of another disaster, the bridge collapse of last summer. I'm sorry that disasters always get in the way of your birthday, hopefully Hurricane Gustav will pass by New Orleans this time, so you can enjoy yourself! You'll probably be keeping your distance from George Bush this year, but at least you've got Gov. Sarah Palin from Alaska to party with you, right?

This is our final entry of WWBASATDNC before we bring you WWBASATRNC next week. Last night was the big night with the Democrat's selected nominee giving his acceptance speech. How was it viewed by Wisconsin bloggers? Well, it depends which mental filter you have installed in your brain. Progressives were happy because Obama laid out policies and how he plans to pay for them, he built a bridge between progressives and conservatives and expressed that we may not see eye-to-eye, but we need to set aside partisan politics for the good of the country and try to find common ground, and he made it very clear that the election isn't about him, it is about the men and women of this nation. Conservatives, in Wisconsin at least, saw a Nazi (yeah, seriously), a Messiah (which is funny considering their party was the one that called on Christians to pray for rain in Denver and elected a man who said God chose him to be President), a boring speech that was short on substance, and a big meanie. Let's get into it...

Blogging Blue wrote:

August 29 is the 242nd day of the year. On this date in 2005 Hurricane Katrina devastated much of the U.S. Gulf Coast from Louisiana to the Florida Panhandle, killing more than 1,836 and causing over $115 billion in damage.

* TCT Editorial: Greed rules in Big TV/Charter pact

* AP: A body recovered from Lake Monona in Madison has been identified as that of a missing swimmer.

* TCT: County poverty rate rose in 2007

* TDP: A preview tour of the Goodman Atwood Community Center

* theCDP: An Open Letter To Milio's Sandwiches.

* Dane101 Better Living: Make a Comeback in a Stalled Job Search

The MadPubQuiz of Awesomeness tries out a new venue in September as we dedicate a full quiz to five decades of pop music. From Beatles to Britney, this quiz will start in the 60s and end in the aughts (so, technically 48 years of music, but who is keeping track?). One round dedicated to each decade with a special name that tune round in between. We are very excited to have a sound system and the ability to bring back the very popular name that tune round!

The event will take place at 7 p.m. at the High Noon Saloon on September 7. Maximum members per team is four and $3 per person (we have to pay the sound guy, but don't worry, we will have other prizes including tickets for shows). Please preregister with your team name ASAP via the Facebook wall or sending Jesse an email with "Music Quiz" in the subject line and your team name at

Rock on, Wisconsin!

As the Democrats prepare for act four of their big dance in Denver, we bring you all of the commentary by Wisconsin bloggers on Day Three. There appears to be much less commentary this morning then there was for day two, which is odd considering former President Bill Clinton and Vice Presidential nominee Joe Biden both spoke last night.

One of the biggest complaints about this convention is that there have been few moments of fire aimed at Obama's opponent Sen. John McCain, something the Traditional Media has come to call "red meat." Guantanamo, anyone? Bueller? Civility in Public Discourse curtly echoes those sentiments:

When you have a voice that sounds like a resurrected Johnny Cash dabbling in the forces of evil with Glenn Danzig, no one really expects songs about girls, cars and endless summers to come rolling off of your tongue. Indeed, Murder By Death’s Adam Turla is well-accustomed to narrating stories through song with heavier themes – sin, guilt, revenge, and (of course) death, just to name a few. However, the band’s most recent full-length release, Red of Tooth and Claw, is much more than an assortment of direction-less tragedy. Murder By Death bring the spirit of centuries old Americana to life with haunting, ragged tinged tales that instantly provoke brutal self-reflection. In anticipation of their Friday show at the Annex, Turla recently took the time to answer several questions about the band’s inspiration, and the art of storytelling. (cross posted at True Endeavors)

Tell me about how you all found each other and created the band.

We were drinking buddies at college in Bloomington, Indiana – thought it would be fun to have a different kind of band.

August 28 is the 241st day of the year.

* Nichols: Wisconsin allegiance to Obama is clear at Dem convention

* WSJ: Deaths of 3 UW students stun campus

* WSJ Editorial: The house of cards known as the state budget is predictably collapsing.

* TCT: Madison Alderwoman Seeks To Stop Police From Ticketing Homeless

* TDP: Bravo brings Top Chef: The Tour to Madison

* Isthmus: Water towers, morning TV, and Africana Restaurant in the August 29 edition of Isthmus

* Dane101 Green Living: Americans drove 12.2 billion fewer miles in June than in June 2007, a drop of 4.7 percent!

Growing up in a small town on the shores of Lake Michigan, local beach access in town meant walking a narrow path around a wastewater treatment plant. To this day, whenever anyone asks me to go fishing or out for a lake swim, my immediate Pavlovian response is some variation on the following: “Yuck”, “Hell no” or “You want me to grow a third eye?”

Given the environmental problems Madison’s lakes have been going through, I’m pretty sure that my usual response isn’t an overreaction. Swimmers and pets have fallen ill or died due to poisoning from blue-green algae in the lakes. Madison Environmental Justice Organization recently made local headlines when they released their study on the ignorance of people who regularly eat lake-caught fish on the subject of dangers of mercury and PCB contamination. MEJO’s report recommended putting up signs at 25 area fishing locations in English, Hmong, and Spanish, informing fisherman of the dangers of eating more than one lake-caught fish meal a week, as per recommended by the DNR. The DNR itself proposed a plan to force utilities to cut mercury emissions by 90% statewide, but the Republican-controlled Assembly Natural Resources Committee sent it back for changes.

Welcome to day two of WWBASATDNC and the flood gates have opened. No real need for an introduction, so let's get into the commentary starting with Sen. Hillary Clinton's speech:

Brazen Maverick says Hillary got the job done:

August 27 is the 240th day of the year.

* City of Madison: City Budget Looks To Be Toughest in Decades

* WISC: Charter Reaches Deal With Big Ten Network

* Critical Badger: Campus area high-rises, like Lucky, are good for all student renters

* theCDP: For about a decade now, and in virtually every coffee house, bookstore, food court and wi-fi compatible strip club, people are meandering out of their houses and surfing the web. "Why aren't these people at home?" I would always wordlessly mumble as I looked for a seat.

* Letter From Here: Recalling the "Three Moons Festival" at Orton Park

* Dane101 Audio Living: Host Your Own Music Playlist with Opentape

Welcome to "What Wisconsin Bloggers Are Saying About the Democratic National Convention" or WWBASATDNC for short. This daily feature will dig through the vast Wisconsin blogging ether to see what, if anything, Wisconsin bloggers are talking about in terms of the Democrat's event in Denver.

We start over at WisOpinion where they have a number of bloggers of various political caliber on the scene in the home of the Broncos. You can track all of their ongoing coverage here, but one particular entry of note for Madisonians is Wisconsin State Rep. Marc Pocan joining anti-war advocates and military families on the Colorado Capitol steps calling for legislation that "would allow states to pull their National Guard forces out of Iraq."