With the current effort of some Madisonians to recall Mayor Dave Cieslewicz, a rather simple principle of representative democracy is being brushed to the side all too casually: elections have consequences. The performance of Mr. Cieslewicz in office to date has in no way differed from the image he offered voters during his campaign; his philosophy has been consistent, his politics notably public and his regard for the city rarely in question.

Should the mayor have proved malicious, conniving, incompetent or unwilling to perform his job, a recall would be in perfect order. But such processes, while on the books, are things intended to only be summoned in the most dire of circumstances, and we simply do not see Mr. Cieslewicz's helmsmanship of Madison to be one such scenario.

To be sure, much of this city's agenda of late has been intellectually misguided. This board has vocally opposed both the increased minimum wage and smoking ordinance as being counter-productive molestations of market forces that only serve to harm business. That these prophesies have come true is tragic and that Mr. Cieslewicz never had the foresight to put his foot down and attempt to stop them is most disturbing. But these are issues that should be raised in the next mayoral election, not an ad hoc radical attempt at prying an otherwise sincere — if occasionally misguided — man from the city's top office.

We can only hope that this veritable fiasco will offer a wake-up call of sorts for both Mr. Cieslewicz and the city's various council members. To hear ultra-radical alders like Brenda Konkel, District 2, rush to the mayor's defense not on grounds that his policies serve a greater good, but rather, laughably, on grounds that his policies are not anti-business, is disturbing. The reality is that Ms. Konkel and some of her hyperbolic brethren governing the Common Council from within their own private bubbles of Debbsian utopia have been largely responsible for getting the mayor into this jam. And rather than circling the wagons and attempting to save face, they would do well to acknowledge the obvious errors of their policies — ideas perfect on paper and disturbingly flawed in implementation — and start back-pedaling toward a sensible stance for the business community.

While neither the mayor nor any of the city's alders should be recalled for these misguided efforts, we do sincerely hope they realize elections are a mere 18 months away.

After all, elections have consequences.