Good morning. 
Tuesday in Whitewater will be partly sunny with a high of 50. Sunrise is 6:49 AM and sunset 4:30 PM for 9h 40m 41s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 92.6% of its visible disk illuminated.
The Whitewater School Board’s Policy Review Committee meets at 9 AM and the Whitewater Common Council meets at 6:30 PM.
On this day in 1532, Francisco Pizarro and his men capture Inca Emperor Atahualpa at the Battle of Cajamarca.
Jennifer Rubin writes Journalists also have an obligation to fix democracy:
Looking back on the first 10 months of Joe Biden’s presidency, we see little evidence the media has examined its own role in Republicans’ assault on democracy. Indeed, one could argue mainstream media outlets have been complicit in the current crisis of democracy. The trivialization of coverage, default to false equivalency, amplification of GOP spin and habitual treatment of Republicans’ conduct as within the normal boundaries of politics have serious implications for a democracy that relies on an informed citizenry.
Journalism professor and media critic Jay Rosen observes that “the incremental coverage, the focus on the inside game, the notion of tactics and strategy, and the joining up of the political class with the information junkies” does little to inform voters about major pieces of legislation. We get nonstop coverage of the “sausage making” but little about the content of bills that cost trillions. We hear incessant chatter about the filibuster but little examination of Senate Democrats’ compromise voting-rights plan, while Republicans are rarely grilled as to the basis for their objections to common-sense measures (e.g. enhancing penalties for threats to election officials, requiring a paper audit trail, limiting wait times to 30 minutes).
Rubin is right, of course. There is a moral obligation to defend the constitutional order. That obligation extends beyond the District of Columbia, and beyond journalism.
And yet, and yet, on local boards, councils, and commissions, how many elected and appointed officials speak confidently in defense of liberal democracy? In Whitewater, Wisconsin and so many nearby towns, too many of those who took office democratically, and too many of those who were appointed to prominent positions under the law, are silent in the face of challenges to democracy and the rule of law. (There are a few notable and worthy exceptions, but they are notable and worthy as exceptions from the rest.)
The diffident majority of these officials will not change; if they’ll not defend now, then they never will.
A community that wishes to defend itself will have to rely on its own lawful efforts of advocacy and organization.
[…] Not Only in Washington, and Not Only Journalists (‘on local boards, councils, and commissions, how many elected and appointed officials speak […]