Last week I told you I would look into the crystal ball to form some predictions for 2018. Instead, I spent most of the weekend sick and having to run back and forth from home to the Radio Ranch to let people into the building because the locks on the main door have frozen and don’t work when it is super cold–which is quite the hassle because it appears that “super cold” is pretty much the long-range forecast for this entire winter. But here are four predictions–that are sure to go wrong.
1–The remnants of Lakeshore Golf Course here in Oshkosh will not become a nine-hole course. I’ve got some friends trying to push this idea, saying creative designs can preserve some of the holes and add a couple of others to keep golf going at the site. But the simple truth of the matter is that the City does not want to be in the golf course business. It’s a break-even proposition at best in terms of operating revenue–and you are looking at additional expense to create new holes, a new clubhouse and perhaps new practice facilities–since the Oshkosh Corp building and parking lots are going where those current features are located. Plus, if the remainder of the Lakeshore site is kept as “green space” as the City is pushing for, it’s much easier to justify selling that off if another corporation comes along with a desire for a lakefront property to call home.
2–FoxConn will be the biggest drama queens in the history of the state. Whether it’s a lawsuit that threatens the legality of the straight cash payments that the Village of Fox Crossing is providing to the project, delays in upgrading the roads leading to the proposed plant site, struggles to hire enough contractors and sub-contractors to handle the construction, or bad-mouthing of the deal by Democratic candidates for all state and legislative offices, FoxConn will spend all of 2018 being “on the verge of pulling out of their deal”. I think the company knows they have the state over a barrel now and may try to squeeze every last incentive and concession out of us in a desperate attempt to “save the deal”.
3–Governor Scott Walker will win re-election with around 52% of the vote. Let’s face it, the Governor is employing the strategy made famous by former George W Bush advisor Carl Rove–find the minimum number of voters necessary to win every time and continually play to that base to keep them in the fold. And what has he done to alienate any of the people that have voted for him the previous three times? Add to that a Democratic field of challengers that will only provide “at least I’m not Scott Walker” as their main campaign theme–and it’s a recipe for a close–but still comfortable–win in November.
4–The Green Bay Packers aren’t going to get much better. It might seem like new hope is about to be born at Lambeau Field this week with the firing of Dom Capers and Ted Thompson stepping aside as General Manager. But as the Aaron Rodgers injury proved this season, there are far too many deficiencies to address in just one off-season in terms of talent and depth. A 9-7 wild card playoff entry may seem like an “improvement” over this year–but it will be just another year closer to the closing of the window of opportunity in Rodgers’ career. And then, the talk-show call-in “experts” will be calling for Mike McCarthy’s head.
So that is what we have to look forward to in 2018. Not really that much more exciting that what we lived through two days ago.
