Like many of our readers, pondering politics leaves me with a sense of extreme frustration. The problems of the U.S. Congress, Senate, Supreme Court and President seem so large and looming, and I sometimes feel small and useless in my ability to effect any change. That is when I remind myself that big things often start small. In our political landscape, nothing happens by chance. Things happen by mindful, intentional planning. Do you ever stop and think about where Congressional and Senate Representatives get their start? Most of them don’t just decide to run for office right out of their office or manufacturing job. Most start at levels of school boards, city councils, county boards or government advisory committees. It begins innocently enough, with most local candidates just desiring to serve their local communities. But what is important is to take note of those who shift around. Those who seem to be on an upward trajectory from a committee to an elected office; from a village board to the county board. Those are the folks who often wind up in the state legislature and some, from there, to the federal level....

Update on Ongoing 2025 County Budget Plans The Rock County Board of Supervisors (BoS) are currently in the 2025 budgeting process. There is more work and discussions to take place between now and the November vote on the budget. So far, it appears the BoS’s have taken your Financial Freedom to heart as they appear to be much more focused on reining in tax levy spending (which is responsible for a significant portion of your property taxes), and not dipping into other pools of taxpayer money (i.e. the general fund or sales taxes, as they have the last three years) to fund their significant spending....

Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Really? The best our nation can put up for election to the highest office in the land are these two elderly men? How did we get here politically? Fear. I believe that, for decades, we’ve all been the unwitting participants in a social experiment that has crept into most levels of government. Think about the timeline of your life to this point. How many times have you handed over some kind of freedom in return for a promise that the government will protect us from a fearful circumstance that they are touting? Such protections always bloat the government and are rarely paid for, but instead increase spending and put more burden on taxpayers while often not delivering on their original promises....

Against the backdrop of the coming November elections, one might give an extra measure of consideration to this summer’s National holidays. On Memorial Day, we pause to consider the heroism and valor of those who gave the ultimate sacrifice to preserve freedoms for the U.S. Citizens and those living in Democracies throughout the world. July 4th brings celebration of the idealism of our great nation, formed by men who resisted oppressive leadership to the point of being declared traitors in order to establish a democratic republic. Even Labor Day celebrates freedom. Before these divisive times, the labor movement established a necessary balance in workplaces where corporate greed and power strove to create a new lower class in society; an effort the labor movement thwarted....

Education freedom is a concept that refers to the ability of parents to select the best educational opportunity for their children. It recognizes that all children are unique, full of potential, and deserving of a high-quality education that meets their individual needs. For someone to be truly free, they must receive a high-quality education that allows them to maximize their full potential in life....