Censorship takes many forms. It has even woven its web of deception into our city government and specifically our elections. The current trend to curtail free speech and with that ever-important flow of information has, as usual, been wrapped up in a blanket of virtue and sold to the people of Laconia as the only proper way to have elections for the good of the city.
I present the “non-partisan” city election as evidence of my claim of censorship and breach of our public trust.
The argument for not placing a (D) or an (R) or an (I) next to a candidate’s name is a noble one. The aim is for the people to not get wrapped up in party politics which the purveyors of this practice would have you believe is a bad thing for everybody. Also, they believe it is more virtuous and correct to look to the individuals running and assess them on their merits as individual people.
I for one, think this is a great way to go and wish all political elections were viewed this way. I, however, do not live in a fantasy world and the reality is that neither does anyone else.
To pretend that political affiliation doesn’t matter is like telling kids at a tee-ball game that there is no score being kept. If you asked, every kid, parent, coach, umpire, and spectator knows exactly what the score is and who is winning. The fact is party affiliation does speak to a person’s character and beliefs and shows others that they share in those beliefs or not.
We want to thank NH State Rep Gregg Hough for this Op-Ed. If you have an Op-Ed or LTE
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To go back to the tee ball example one might say I point out that everyone knows so why advertise it. The answer is that the people who are involved know, but the people who are not don’t know. Much like your average citizen. They are busy living their lives and often the only source of information about a candidate is the day of the election at the polls in the voting booth when they look at the ballot for the first time. If they don’t recognize any names the only information, they might have to guide them on the decision on who to vote for is that letter next to a name.
The problem as I see it is that if a person is going to ask a voter for their trust and confidence by voting for them, then the least one could do is show the voter the same trust and confidence by not hiding who they are and what they believe in. This is bad policy to actively say to the people who vote that they can’t be trusted to make a good decision with the information they need for that very choice.
In the end it is not the government that should be deciding for you what you can use as information and whether it is proper or not. (censorship) That is for you the citizen to decide, and I for one, think you are all highly qualified to choose your own government. Unfortunately, your government doesn’t seem to share that view.
Rep Gregg Hough
Belknap County District 3, Laconia
Labor industrial and rehabilitative services committee
