Jacqueline Marie Captain, 1957 - 2024

Jackie Captain, one-year anniversary of her passing — One full year has passed since my wife, Jackie, died.
What a life; man, did Jackie love people.
I do not know if I could have made it this far without the showering of love and good will that came my way.
From our neighborhood alone, Jamestown, powerful emissions of peace arrived like explosions.
We are going to have a great Summer.
If folks ever feel down, I can tell you the basic decency of humanity is so immense, decency is axiomatic.
Count on it.
Happy Summer!

Jacqueline Marie Captain, 1957 - 2024

Jacqueline Marie Captain, 1957 - 2024

Happy Life, Happy Memorial Day

Fitchburg, Wisconsin — Jackie Captain passed away May 15, 2024. I love her, and long before we married.
It's Memorial Day weekend, Jackie's favorite holiday.

Jackie is a late convert to beer, brats, hot dogs, and burgers dipped in beer, butter, garlic pepper and onions that I made for us every Memorial Day weekend. Often, I would venture to Dane County's Brat Fest to throw em in the concoction, with some corn on the cob  on the side.

Perhaps because of her father, World War II veteran, Wesley Captain, Jackie was a patriot and anarchist, and an aesthetic.

One of Jackie's favorite quotes is from RFK's Statement on Assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr., Indianapolis, Indiana, April 4, 1968.

Said RFK, "My favorite poet was Aeschylus. He wrote: 'In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God.'"

Catholic agnostic Jackie would substitute the Universe, perhaps, for God. To a moral certainty, Jackie believed in human healing power and celebrating life through everyday acts of standing up for others.

Jacqueline Captain's Obituary from the Wisconsin State Journal is below.

Jacqueline Marie Captain, wife, neighbor, sister, daughter and friend to many passed Wednesday morning, May 15, 2024.

Jackie died of a long series of illnesses related to Sepsis, kidney disease and Crohn's Disease.

Jackie loved our neighborhood, now more than ever full of happy children welcoming Summer. Jackie loved kids running, biking down the street with dogs and wagons in tow.

Jackie loved her family, her community, her work and the giant family of which we and all life are members, Jackie believed.

Said a nephew of Jackie's this morning: "When I was a kid she was the funny, goofy aunt that always made time for family. She always had time for birthdays and came bearing cool gifts. She had a beautiful smile and laugh. I remember her knowledge of all music and movies and she would break into a verse of song lyrics often."

Jackie worked for peace, love and justice, trying, as Bertrand Russell wrote, using passion "making the world as a whole happier, less cruel, less full of conflict between rival greeds, and more full of human beings whose growth has not been dwarfed and stunted by oppression."

Jackie did PhD work on anti-fascist artists, Ben Shahn and Eugene Higgins before accepting positions that included a consultancy with the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum before it opened; editorships; Professional Project Manager at American Family Insurance; and Administrative and Research Assistant to Dean, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison. Jackie Captain did her graduate work under U.W. Prof. Jim Dennis, renown art history U.W. scholar, and Madisonian.

Jackie was born in Wisconsin Rapids August 29, 1957 to Wesley and Helen Irene Captain, a beautiful World War II family determined to spread peace.

Jackie is predeceased by Wesley Captain (Father); Helen Irene (Mother); Jan Captain (Sister); and Allen Braund (Brother- in -Law).

Jackie is survived by her husband, Michael Leon; her siblings; Jean (Sharon) Duluth, Minnesota; Joe (Margitta) Gulfport Mississippi; Pete (Sally). Wisconsin Rapids; Judy (Kate), Stoughton; Mary (Allen Braund, deceased) Wisconsin Rapids; John (Joanne) Antioch. Illinois; Jim (Mary), Plain, Wisconsin.

Jackie passed, saying she missed joking with her Aunt Sweet Loraine Weaver of Wisconsin Rapids who turned 103 last year, still spreading sweetness.

Jackie's husband is Michael Leon of Fitchburg, Wisconsin. Leon said of Jackie that he "has never seen a more beautiful soul betrayed to her core by injustice. I think Jackie sometimes suffered because of her commitment and sensitivity, but Jackie was not alone."

Jackie is survived by many cousins, nieces, nephews, and even larger numbers of other family members.

Jackie had many friends, and loved working at American Family Insurance, and missed seeing her friends after retirement.

Jackie's family and friends would like to thank the University of Wisconsin Hospitals and Clinics, especially folks at the ER, and Trauma and Life Support Center (TLC) units; as well as Ingleside Nursing and Rehab Center (Mount Horeb) and Nazareth Health and Rehabilitation (Stoughton). We would like to thank Bristol Hospice Madison for all their love.

Most of all Jackie was blessed by two forces of nature, family friends, So and Tina, whose reservoirs of love and intelligence appears endless.

Jackie loved them all.

Family and friends are welcome to bring outdoor plants to Jackie and Mike's front lawn to create an oasis of peace at 5767 Monticello Way, until June 15.
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Political Prosecution Links

Selective Prosecution: Majority Staff Report and Additional Letters

- Majority Staff Report on Allegations of Selective Prosecution and Additional Documents (April 17, 2008) - US Atty Biskupic's political persecution of the innocent Georgia Thompson, pp 19-23 -

- Letter to Justice Department OIG/OPR (April 17, 2008)

- Letter to Karl Rove (April 17, 2008)

- Letter to AG Mukasey (April 17, 2008)

House Judiciary Committee Demands Action on Political Prosecutions

via MAL Contends

The House Judiciary Committee is proceeding in investigating the Bush administration's political prosecutions.

Press Release from April 17

(Washington, DC) - Today, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. (D-MI) and Committee Members Linda Sánchez (D-CA), Artur Davis (D-AL), and Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) announced three critical actions in the Committee's investigation into allegations of selective or poltiically-motivated prosecution in the Justice Department.

The Members today invited Karl Rove to testify before the committee; urged the Justice Department's Office of the Inspector General and Office of Professional Responsibility to investigate those allegations; and demanded that Attorney General Michael Mukasey provide additional documents on this subject.

Today's actions result from the Committee's majority staff report, also released today, which details the cases, interviews and documents they have reviewed since the Committee began its investigation last year.

"There continue to be numerous complaints of selective or politically motivated prosecution since our investigation began last year," Conyers said. "The actions we are taking today, including calling Karl Rove to testify, are an effort to get to the bottom of this matter."

Today's announcement stems from the Committee's 2007 oversight hearing on selective prosecution, during which testimony was heard and documents were entered into the record regarding cases from Alabama, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Georgia, and Pennsylvania.

Since the hearing, majority committee staff has continued its investigation with interviews and document collection about additional cases across the country.

"While this report is extensive and significant progress has been made in our investigation, many facts remain unknown," Conyers said. "The Justice Department has simply not been forthcoming and I feel the only way to move this investigation forward is to seek further independent investigation and testimony from Karl Rove, who appears to be the missing link in a chain from the White House to the Justice Department."

The letters and the majority staff report are available below:

Selective Prosecution: Majority Staff Report and Additional Letters

- Majority Staff Report on Allegations of Selective Prosecution and Additional Documents (April 17, 2008) - US Atty Biskupic's political persecution of the innocent Georgia Thompson, pp 19-23 -

- Letter to Justice Department OIG/OPR (April 17, 2008)

- Letter to Karl Rove (April 17, 2008)

- Letter to AG Mukasey (April 17, 2008)