Let’s stop yelling and start talking

Finding common ground will lead to better solutions

 

(Waring R. Fincke practices law and politics in the town of Barton and is vice chair of the Washington County Democratic Party.)


    Things electoral have settled down a bit. We face serious problems and concerns that we elect and expect our representatives to fix. Solutions cannot be found in further slash and burn, take no prisoners politics.
We want to believe Gov. Walker’s plea to end the partisan divide given in his election night acceptance speech. It will have meaning if he and local Republicans join us in repudiating the anonymous comments that were placed in the newspaper boxes and on the cars of Barrett supporters here in West Bend and mailed to several here and in Slinger.
The worst of the post-election anonymous notes reads:
“Scott Walker, Rebecca Kleefisch, the taxpayers of Wisconsin — the True Middle Class of Wisconsin have won a great victory. WE have taken back the state – from the greedy, corrupt public unions and their mindless minions (you).
“If there were any justice every idiot who signed a recall petition would be sent a bill for $25 to cover the cost of this stupid recall. However, it will be enough if you just crawl back under the rock you slithered out from and never see the light of day again. Go away. Move to Illinois or California and be among your own kind.”
The “Unionistas — A Poem” is almost as bad. The anonymous letter sent to a teacher in Slinger comes in a close third. The veiled death threat I received has no place in the public discourse.
Let’s leave campaign signs where they are placed and leave it up to the property owner to remove them. Yelling at us from passing cars accomplishes nothing. Swerving in front of our cars on the freeway and honking is just plain dangerous. We encourage our supporters to not engage in this kind of behavior. If we have a criticism or a suggestion, we urge people to sign their names and stand up publically for their beliefs.
We live here, own homes and pay taxes, just like you do. We want our kids to go to good schools that provide a great education, just like you do. We own businesses and work here contributing to our communities, just like you do. We want responsive government that solves problems in a fiscally responsible manner, just like you do. We want our property values to go back up, just like you do. We want to participate in public discussions about the future of our communities, just like you do.
We can and will disagree about lots of issues and the possible solutions to problems we face, but at least we hope that Gov. Walker’s words will lead to more serious discussion of the actual issues across the partisan divide. The time for demonization of those we disagree with has gone. Neither side is going away, we just have to find ways to share our ideas and learn to compromise again.
We exercised our legal right to seek redress of our grievances through the recall process, Republicans have done the same. The Republican get-out-thevote and fundraising efforts were superior and Gov. Walker won. So let’s stop the harassment and name-calling, get down to serious discussion of the issues and find the common ground necessary to find solutions.
How about some community forums to discuss issues of local importance like education or health care? Let’s explore the diversity of our communities by having a frank discussion about racial stereotyping and poverty. Let’s work together to clean up a park or the Milwaukee River. What about a discussion of the history of the labor movement and how it contributed to the quality of our lives? Let’s plan a festival to celebrate the value teachers bring to our children and communities. I am sure there are other ideas on how we can better understand our differing points of view. Let’s hear some. If you want to sit down and talk, let us know where and when.