Negative campaigning not good for Whitefish

The next time you ask yourself why you don't see more good people run for office or our own Whitefish City Council, you can look to what we had happen this last week. The negative attack mailer that went out from Rick Blake is one of the reasons.

I had the thought this year I would remain on the sidelines and not become publicly involved in our council elections. After all, in the end I will be working with whomever takes a seat. This logic was what I thought best for all concerned..

After my mail arrived early last week, I could not remain silent. The slick mailer that Rick Blake mass-mailed to our community this week was in my opinion out of line, and I feel compelled to respond.

The implication in that mailer is that one of our councilors is so far out of touch that he deserved this personal attack. Nothing could be further from the truth. If you agree with his record or not, Frank Sweeney is a resident of Whitefish and willing to volunteer his time and effort to our city and community.

I did not know Frank before he arrived on the council. I can, however, today say without reservation that he has over the past few months earned my respect and trust. While we may not agree on everything, I know I will get a fair debate with an honest and forthright approach to every issue.

Yes, Frank still owns property in Texas. That, after all, is where he began his career. Whitefish is now home for him, and I applaud his willingness to get involved here even while he is trying to establish his practice here.

I say it often and I'll say it again — we need good people from all facets of our community willing to get involved and help us navigate this difficult process as Whitefish evolves as the fastest growing city in Montana.

If you attend city council meetings or watch on Channel 9, you will notice that I often begin the meeting with our adopted principles for civil discourse. Respect for others and their opinions are the cornerstone of any community dialogue. If we cannot respectfully debate the issues and positions and arrive at a conclusion, then we have lost respect for ourselves as well as our community.

It is also my opinion that attack politics such as mailed out last week have no place in our society or our elections. I can only hope that the majority of registered voters in Whitefish agree with me.

Mike Jenson is the mayor of Whitefish.