Nov 6, 2019 2 min read

Condescension is insulting

As a consequence of being a super voter, each election cycle I am inundated with mailers from candidates of both parties for almost every office. Last week, I received two on the same day that, although formatted differently, carried an identical message – the incumbent is bad.

Both pieces attacked an incumbent Washington County commissioner with the same grainy photograph of a man on the phone, meant to convey an impression of political insiderism and corruption. Then, the mailer tried to imply that this man is unilaterally responsible for an issue that is completely outside his control.

As an average working-class voter, I found the whole thing insulting to my intelligence. Does the group sending the mailer think I’m incapable of reading a newspaper article or lack even the most rudimentary understanding of government? What I actually got out of it is that, in plain terms, it was a lie.

Although the mailer came from a political party and not a candidate, there was tacit approval at some point from the person seeking to unseat the incumbent targeted by the mailer, and that is what is most disturbing. It’s clear that, on the national level, the leaders of both major political parties are never going to cease this type of callousness, but at the local level, where government truly has the most impact, you would think that a sense of decency would prevail.

These aren’t images on television. They’re our neighbors.

Cynicism wages a battle with my optimism every day, but I still hold out hope that our civic life can once again be marked by mutual respect, that those seeking office will give us something to vote for and not against, and that the universal truth will prevail that you never raise yourself up by tearing someone else down.

Joe Manning

Washington

Manning is a member of Washington City Council.