Author Archives: dave cieslewicz

There is a growing backlash against the hard-left. The left-center is reasserting itself. For the last several years, the intolerant, illiberal hard-left has intimidated politicians, consultants, writers, many corporate leaders, much of the media and virtually all of academia. Not towing the hard-left line could get an editor or a CEO fired, a politician sackedContinue reading “The Left-Center Resurgence”

My own state representative, Shelia Stubbs, is working in the real political world to make progress on police reform. I wish her Democratic colleagues would appreciate what she’s accomplishing. In the year since the murder of George Floyd, not much has changed in Wisconsin. Gov. Tony Evers called a special session to deal with policeContinue reading “Stubbs Makes Progress”

I wish I could say that former House Speaker Paul Ryan spoke truth to power. But power won’t pay any attention. In a speech Thursday at the Reagan Library he called the Capitol insurrection “dishonorable and disgraceful.” “Once again, we conservatives find ourselves at a crossroads,” Ryan continued. “And here’s the reality that we have to face: If theContinue reading “Paul Ryan Speaks Truth Into the Wind”

On the surface it sounds like the same situation. But there are strong humanitarian and strategic reasons to stay in Afghanistan. Corrupt local officials. Demoralized, under-prepared and poorly led troops. An ambivalent local population. Complicated and ancient feuds where the combatants switch sides and the enemy is hard to define. The situation in Afghanistan soundsContinue reading “Why Afghanistan Is Not Vietnam”

Ya know, I’ve heard enough from Aaron Rodgers. The Pack should just trade him and move on. And, while we’re at it, can we all just toughen up a little bit? If you’re like me, you’re already tired of this. On the first day of the NFL draft, it’s reported that Rodgers wants out. ItContinue reading “Trade Drama Boy”

Liberals used to care about the rights of the accused. Now, they care more about identity politics. There isn’t much of anything that I agreed with the Trump Administration about, but I think they got at least one thing right. His Education Secretary, Betsy DeVos, rolled back Obama era “guidance” (read: “mandate”) to strip thoseContinue reading “The Presumption of Guilt”

Phil Mickelson won the PGA Championship yesterday. At age 50, he’s now the oldest person to ever win one of golf’s major tournaments. That got me to thinking about how powerful old people are these days. So, I looked up some numbers. Here are the ages of the most powerful people in our country. JoeContinue reading “Old People Rule (Literally)”

It’s Sunday, so let’s lighten up and talk baseball… as in baseballs slamming into the faces of batters. Getting hit by a pitch has always been part of the game, but this season has seen hitters get struck at a rate not seen since the 1890’s. When you add in the fact that pitchers areContinue reading “Hard Hits”

Not surprisingly, former Vice President Mike Pence is writing a book. Also not surprisingly these days, the staff at Simon & Schuster are in an uproar about it. But here’s something that really is a surprise: the publishing house’s management is staying the course. Good for them. It has become more or less routine. TheContinue reading “My Right Not to Read Pence’s Book”

Madison is experiencing a record number of shots-fired incidents. City streets and parking lots are littered with shell casings. The Madison City Council is responding with almost a quarter million dollars of poorly targeted programs that will likely do nothing to stem the violence. This week the council voted to spend $225,000 on a bunchContinue reading “Fighting Crime With Jello”