Monday, November 5, 2012

A Live Debate

Thank you, Minnesota Public Radio.  Thank you, Gary Eichten.  And Kathy Wurzer. I listen to you pretty much every day, but until this live experience, I didn't fully appreciate the value you provide us...

It was a demonstration of how our democracy was built - the hard way, with face-to-face debate, and an insistence that tough questions get asked and answered.  It took just an hour, but the results were decisive.  Thanks to Kathy's insistence, evasive answers did not stand. 

Both participants came prepared, in their own ways.  One, however, thought it would be enough to be prepared to express personal opinions loudly and insistently.  That led to a few memorable moments...

...an insistence on hammering on something that appeared to be a non-issue, with countervailing facts in evidence from his own party's representative...

...a closing statement referring to "attacks on me" that never occurred, so obviously incongruous that it brought gasps from his own supporters...

...and, most striking of all, attempts to explain Climate Change as (1) an economic phenomenon, (2) a controversial issue among scientists, and (3) a matter of "belief" (religious?).

In contrast, we saw the value of a different kind of preparation demonstrated humbly by our Senator Amy Klobuchar, who chose the strategically (and ethically) effective route:  answering the questions honestly and directly, citing the evidence, stopping, and letting her opponent hang himself.

I have rarely been as proud of a politician - excuse me, a stateswoman - as I was last night of Senator Klobuchar.  If only 51% of our legislators could take their obligations to us half as seriously as she does, we would eliminate roadblock, talk through obstacles, handle tough issues with powerful common sense, and return to becoming the country we all thought America could be...