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Dear Editor,
On January 30th I attended a "listening session" held by Senator Howard Marklein and Representative Todd Novak in Cobb. It was well-attended; I'd estimate that close to 75 people were there-remarkable considering that it was held during working hours. Most of the comments dealt with the industrial wind turbines that are now being built in certain areas of Iowa County. The speakers expressed concerns about the medical, financial, environmental and aesthetic effects of the turbines. Several commented that their families had been farming their land for a number of generations and said that it was unclear whether present or future generations would be able or willing to continue doing so in view of the turbines.
The comments lasted for about an hour-and-a-half. Afterwards, the legislators took a few minutes to offer their reactions. The interesting thing is that while they spent time addressing the few comments that had been made on other subjects (revenue issues, etc.), they had virtually nothing to say about the wind turbines. On that issue their reactions were a model of indifference and timidity. One of them observed that it would make no sense to pass legislation against the turbines because any such bills would be vetoed by the governor. (In other words, we have a single­party government in Wisconsin.)
It's unclear what corporate or other interests these "representatives" are serving, but the one thing that became clear is that they do not represent the interests of their constituents.
Sincerely yours,
David E. Steuber,
Mineral Point, WI