Bill Barth

The late great Rock County Judge Edwin Dahlberg was known to say, “The court may be in error, but never in doubt.”

He also told this writer once that, when dealing with particularly difficult courtroom personalities, he sometimes began the day by scrawling “Patience” at the top of his legal pad.

Keep those thoughts as your guide while you digest the latest flailings of the notorious group known only as Forecasters Anonymous. Most of their names would be familiar to folks in  Wisconsin but are withheld here to spare embarrassment and save their reputations. Some may consider them highly successful and intelligent. Let us strive not to crack that fragile illusion.

Members gather annually at the close of December to boldly predict local, state and national affairs for the upcoming 12 months. Results over time have proven they truly are often in error, if never in doubt. So, patience, please. They gave their best effort, sad as it is.

Case in point: The individual whose 2025 predictions were correct more than anyone else scored 60 percent right. In school, that’s flunking. In Forecasters it makes you a star.

Let’s go through some of the 2025 predictions.

• Most believed Tony Evers would seek a third term as Wisconsin governor. He’s retiring.
• The group expected Giannis to leave the Milwaukee Bucks. He’s still here. For now.

• Members were convinced Donald Trump would never deploy military troops to the streets of American cities. Well, he did.
• Democrats would kick out Chuck Schumer, the group believed. The old coot is still there, unimpressive as ever.
• Members thought the Bears would win one from the Packers in 2025. Make that two.

The crystal ball for 2026 is murky as ever. At the risk of committing a generational mindset error — most Forecasters, after all, are quite, um, experienced by passing years — let us quote the esteemed philosopher Yogi Berra: “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.”

Here’s what to expect in 2026.

• Despite the federal government easing restrictions, Wisconsin will not legalize marijuana. Good news for keeping plenty of Wisconsin license plates in the parking lots of South Beloit dispensaries.
• Democrat Mandela Barnes or Republican Tom Tiffany will be elected Wisconsin’s next governor.
• In Illinois, Gov. JB Pritzker will win a third term.
• The Bears will win a playoff game. The Packers will not.
• The Rams — or maybe the Bears — will win the Super Bowl.
• Democrats may capture the U.S. House this fall, but Republicans will hold the Senate.
• The liberal candidate (read: Democrat, despite the supposed nonpartisan nature of the race) will defeat the conservative (read: Republican) in the spring Wisconsin Supreme Court election.
• The Dow will soar past 50,000.
• Gas will fall below $2.20.
• Much to the Kennedy family’s chagrin, cousin Bobby will keep his job in Trump’s Cabinet.
• Optimists prevail: There will be a peace accord, and it will hold, between Russia and Ukraine.

A final piece of advice seems warranted. Do not — repeat: do not — run to your favorite bookie and place bets on any of these possible outcomes, which are offered for entertainment and comedic purposes only.

(One hopes that disclaimer satisfies any watchful lawyers. You can never be too careful in our litigious society.)

And so we close the book on one more year for the hapless Forecasters. Best anyone can recollect, these useless predictions have been taking place for at least four decades.

Until this time next year, good day and good luck.

Bill Barth is the former Editor of the Beloit Daily News, and a member of the Wisconsin Newspaper Hall of Fame. Write to him at bbarth@beloitdailynews.com.