Unplugging – whether literally, figuratively, or both – is one way to demonstrate to others that we care about them and that we are listening. Building on that, if our family, friends, and colleagues benefit from uninterrupted time, does our inner self not deserve a little uninterrupted time as well?

As I retire after almost 25 years as President of the nonpartisan Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance, I can’t help but reflect on how Wisconsin government and politics have changed over the decades. Perhaps the most significant change that has occurred is the increasingly partisan and polarized nature of dialogue and decision-making in the public arena.

Now that 2017 is in the rearview mirror, it is time to look back on what was a wild ride when it came to transportation funding in the state of Wisconsin. Google Maps could not possibly have mapped this route.

Day in and day out, the industries, businesses, farmers, and workers that make Wisconsin what it is — including “America’s Dairyland” — rely on NAFTA to get the job done. It would be a profound mistake to abandon it.

All the faux outrage on the part of Wisconsin GOP kingpins these past several years has been a clever way to mask the obvious: Their operatives, especially Scott Walker during the 2012 recall election, brazenly skirted the state’s campaign finance laws and had the John Doe been allowed to dig deeper several may have wound up being indicted.

Gov. Scott Walker spent part of New Year’s Eve whining again about the remote possibility that he might be outspent in his re-election campaign. At 11:03 a.m., rather than having a mimosa or pickled herring, he tweeted: “In 2017, the Democrat candidate for governor in VA and his allies outspent the Republican candidate and his allies by about $30 million. We cannot let that happen in Wisconsin.” Of course, Walker is used to having a $30 million advantage himself.