Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Open Thread

I've got a busy day of catching up with the big screen and renewing my license.

Props to Jeff Noble for his editorial this morning.
'Unnecessary name-calling'
As a Democrat in the 3rd District, I appreciate David Hawpe's frustration that a candidate has not emerged to his liking. After all, he was part of the group that endorsed U.S. Rep. Anne Northup two years ago. Anyone who endorsed her should be feeling some remorse.

While I share Hawpe's views on a variety of subjects, in his Dec. 14 column, perhaps out of frustration, he took an unnecessarily sarcastic swing at two of Kentucky's active and interested young Democrats, Dan Borsch, a 29-year-old worker's comp attorney trained in environmental issues, and Daniel Solzman, a 21-year-old undergraduate student at Northern Kentucky University, both Louisville residents. Ad hominem attacks from politicians and hacks are to be expected. From a journalist who probably neither knows nor has spoken to these men, I found the comparison to Rex the Wonder Donkey uncalled for and, frankly, juvenile. Hawpe must have been desperate for some joke, but it didn't work.

Solzman's Web-blog, "The Kentucky Democrat," was just one of a handful of groups that found a possible Borsch candidacy something to be praised, not ridiculed. I hope the unnecessary name-calling does not discourage future participation by youthful, intelligent people. Hawpe should address his remorse in a more positive way, encouraging those who wish to retire Northup from the Congress.

JEFF NOBLE

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