“I like to see a man proud of the place in which he lives. I like to see a man live so that his place will be proud of him.”
– Abraham Lincoln
Pride is an inherent emotion in all humans and extends to the things each of us says, does and experiences. It also extends to the place we call home.
While love for the community in which we live is certainly not unique to the citizens of Carmel, it perhaps takes on a different tone when it comes to sharing about those things we love about our town. Whether is be our excellent schools, well-maintained streets, low crime or many other things, we do have a lot to celebrate as “boosters” of our community.
However, when citizens of good intentions and character voice legitimate concerns about the manner in which Carmel is governed, they are almost immediately shut down as “haters” by those defending the status quo. It has nothing to do with a rational give-and-take discussion of the concerns, but rather slapping a label on anyone that dares to raise them in the first place. In the overarching view, it is politics of division.
Resorting to labels instead of rationally discussing concerns is indicative of lazy thinking, pure and simple. Let’s face it, it’s much easier to label someone than to back up one’s viewpoint with supporting facts.
Someone can love the place he or she calls home and still care enough about it to voice concerns and demand transparency in the manner in which official city business is conducted. It is because of this pride and caring the citizens Carmel are not willing to be told their concerns do not matter, are not worthy of respectful and open discussion or debate, nor are anything more than the rantings of a “naysayer” or a “malcontent” (terms actually used by incumbent Carmel mayor, Jim Brainard, in media interviews)
Ask yourself. If Carmel is as great as the incumbents at City Hall claim, why do they not embrace and practice full transparency and public discourse of those issues Carmel citizens are concerned with? Simply labeling someone as a “hater” is a coward’s way of failing to defend his or her own opinions.
brought to you by our friends at Essayists of Carmel, Indiana
