Editor’s note: Wausau Pilot & Review gladly publishes commentary from readers, residents and candidates for local offices. The views of readers and columnists are independent of this newspaper and do not necessarily reflect the views of Wausau Pilot & Review. To submit, email [email protected] or mail to 500 N. Third St., Suite 208-8, Wausau, Wis. 54403.
Dear editor,
We’ve all heard the complaints, by both sides, about fraudulent elections—from tampering with results to unfair gerrymandering, and more.
But here’s the real fraud: We voters are not insisting that candidates address real issues and give us the opportunity to judge them on their merits and positions.
Instead, we are being deluged with attack ads from both sides, benefiting only the broadcast stations carrying the garbage and the ad agencies producing it.
We hear trumped up charges about tax evasion, sexual misconduct, crime, inflation, and any other scurrilous personal topic that can be dredged up and put on the air in the scariest formats imaginable.
Little, if anything, is discussed about the real issues facing our state and region:
How do we retain our young people and fill the jobs that are going begging?
How do we protect our lakes and rivers and overall water quality?
How do we fund the first-rate educational system Wisconsin has been known for?
How do we provide affordable housing when the press reports “the days of the starter home are over?”
How do we save Wisconsin’s wonderful set of small cities from economic ruin?
How do we provide adequate medical care for our citizens, and affordable health insurance?
How do we sustain our family farms?
The list goes on and on.
I realize the days when candidates might whistle-stop all over their districts are long gone, but can’t we have a campaign in which voters get a chance to see and hear where the various candidates stand?
Jim Force, Wausau
