I have never won any elections, with the exception of somehow becoming President of the Concert Choir in 12th grade. The other two things I ran for did not go well.
It is very hard to lose. I’ve been there.
Today the primary election is over. It won’t be a happy day for everyone. My heart goes out to all the folks who fought the good fight, believed in something passionately, and did not see the result they had hoped for.
My heart does not go out to people who fought dirty, told lies, spread rumors, encouraged the basest kind of behavior, and did all they could to poison the local discourse.
- You and your candidate(s) did not win.
- You have damaged our community in a way that will most likely live beyond the primary season.
People used to use the expression, “We’re better than this!” when something troubling happened in Columbia/HoCo. Let’s be honest: clearly we are not. We are not “better than this.”
We could be a whole lot better than we have shown ourselves to be.
I don’t wish anyone ill, but I certainly do wish for a change of heart in our community. It is possible to have a strong vision and articulate it emphatically without doing damage to others. It is absolutely a good thing to have a variety of points of view in local discourse.
But if you and your supporters do not know the difference between that and the dishonesty and character assassination that has been on display then the very kindest thing that I can say is that you have lost your way. I hope you find your way back. I hope that, if there was ever anything good in your message to begin with, you will find a way to pursue it for the good of your community and your neighbors.
Going on in the same vein will heap more harm on the harm already done. So maybe take a breather.
I think we all need one.
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