
Bill Kaplan: Don’t avert your eyes or lose hope
Americans will never accept tyranny for long. America is a great nation and “we shall overcome.”
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Americans will never accept tyranny for long. America is a great nation and “we shall overcome.”

Unless we reestablish democratic accountability, unelected officials will continue to make de facto laws, shielded from both removal and review. That’s not what the Founders intended and it’s not what democracy requires.

The danger of apathy is real. When citizens stop believing in the fairness of the system, they stop participating in it. When law is seen as a weapon rather than a shield, civic life becomes a battleground of fear and resentment.

In just seven months the Republican majority in Congress gave away the Democracy that has served Americans for nearly 250 years.

While it’s being celebrated in some corners of Washington, here in Wisconsin, it spells trouble for everyday working families.

If he is serious about running for governor, Tiffany needs to demonstrate he knows how to navigate the Wisconsin system for making decisions like the power plant transitions. He can start by not prematurely blaming regulators for a problem that they have little power over.

Retired University of Wisconsin-Madison journalism professor Jack Mitchell doesn’t see the Corporation for Public Broadcasting closing as a death knell for public broadcasting.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson held a press conference on downtown violence on Aug. 8, but it was filled with ridiculous moments – and a lot of vagueness and blame-shifting.

Madison’s woke progressives invoke “economic justice, social justice,” and “racial justice” as phonetic talismans to justify redistribution, disorder, and race-shaming.

When radicals lose an argument, they try to silence the opposition. I was reminded of that simple truth yet again this week.

It showed how far he’s come — progress that, not long ago, felt out of reach. I made mental notes of the areas where we still need to do some work, but mostly I just sat with the joy of seeing comments like “participates well in class” and “a pleasure to have in class.”

Wisconsin’s 2025-2027 biennial budget includes several provisions aimed at improving the affordability of childcare in the Badger state, ending the misguided effort to directly support private childcare providers’ operating expenses with taxpayer dollars — and instead focusing on reducing costs for families through regulatory reform and targeted assistance.

Donald Trump’s conquering of the country is complete. The blows he’s inflicted on American democracy will take a lifetime to heal.

Caroline Grover, the gentle woman her family referred to as Mother Teresa, will be put to rest tomorrow in Gresham where she was born 86 years ago.

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza under Israel’s blockade is now receiving daily press coverage. But it was clear in March, after Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza, that conditions had become increasingly desperate.

The news this morning is unsettling. The FBI is forcing out more senior officials, including a former acting director who resisted Trump administration demands to turn over the names of agents who participated in Jan. 6 Capitol riot investigations and the head of the bureau’s Washington field office.

Chances are you have never heard of Cove, Mumbies, Service ID or Vitaminis, but if the owners and supporters of those four young companies are successful, those might be familiar names in the years ahead.

In this historical moment, as President Donald Trump and his fascist allies are dismantling American democracy, I’m frequently unsure what the best progressive strategy moving forward is. One thing of which I’m certain, though, is Democratic congressional leadership, in Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, must be replaced.

As I write this column, Wisconsin is in the midst of a severe air quality crisis, with alerts due to smoke from distant wildfires that have persisted in the “unhealthy” category.

For those who think only Wisconsin has confronted the corruption of gerrymandered legislative districts, look south across the border.

Americans will never accept tyranny for long. America is a great nation and “we shall overcome.”

Unless we reestablish democratic accountability, unelected officials will continue to make de facto laws, shielded from both removal and review. That’s not what the Founders intended and it’s not what democracy requires.

The danger of apathy is real. When citizens stop believing in the fairness of the system, they stop participating in it. When law is seen as a weapon rather than a shield, civic life becomes a battleground of fear and resentment.

In just seven months the Republican majority in Congress gave away the Democracy that has served Americans for nearly 250 years.

While it’s being celebrated in some corners of Washington, here in Wisconsin, it spells trouble for everyday working families.

If he is serious about running for governor, Tiffany needs to demonstrate he knows how to navigate the Wisconsin system for making decisions like the power plant transitions. He can start by not prematurely blaming regulators for a problem that they have little power over.

Retired University of Wisconsin-Madison journalism professor Jack Mitchell doesn’t see the Corporation for Public Broadcasting closing as a death knell for public broadcasting.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson held a press conference on downtown violence on Aug. 8, but it was filled with ridiculous moments – and a lot of vagueness and blame-shifting.

Madison’s woke progressives invoke “economic justice, social justice,” and “racial justice” as phonetic talismans to justify redistribution, disorder, and race-shaming.

When radicals lose an argument, they try to silence the opposition. I was reminded of that simple truth yet again this week.

It showed how far he’s come — progress that, not long ago, felt out of reach. I made mental notes of the areas where we still need to do some work, but mostly I just sat with the joy of seeing comments like “participates well in class” and “a pleasure to have in class.”

Wisconsin’s 2025-2027 biennial budget includes several provisions aimed at improving the affordability of childcare in the Badger state, ending the misguided effort to directly support private childcare providers’ operating expenses with taxpayer dollars — and instead focusing on reducing costs for families through regulatory reform and targeted assistance.

Donald Trump’s conquering of the country is complete. The blows he’s inflicted on American democracy will take a lifetime to heal.

Caroline Grover, the gentle woman her family referred to as Mother Teresa, will be put to rest tomorrow in Gresham where she was born 86 years ago.

The humanitarian crisis in Gaza under Israel’s blockade is now receiving daily press coverage. But it was clear in March, after Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza, that conditions had become increasingly desperate.

The news this morning is unsettling. The FBI is forcing out more senior officials, including a former acting director who resisted Trump administration demands to turn over the names of agents who participated in Jan. 6 Capitol riot investigations and the head of the bureau’s Washington field office.

Chances are you have never heard of Cove, Mumbies, Service ID or Vitaminis, but if the owners and supporters of those four young companies are successful, those might be familiar names in the years ahead.

In this historical moment, as President Donald Trump and his fascist allies are dismantling American democracy, I’m frequently unsure what the best progressive strategy moving forward is. One thing of which I’m certain, though, is Democratic congressional leadership, in Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, must be replaced.

As I write this column, Wisconsin is in the midst of a severe air quality crisis, with alerts due to smoke from distant wildfires that have persisted in the “unhealthy” category.

For those who think only Wisconsin has confronted the corruption of gerrymandered legislative districts, look south across the border.