Statesmanship gone missing

ANTICS ON THE COMMISSION

THE ANGER THAT ERUPTED among Shelby County commissioners Wednesday is about more than commissioners being unable to agree on a redistricting plan.

This is a commission that has too many members who have demonstrated a lack of statesmanship, decorum and civility to their colleagues and, on occasion, to members of the public who have appeared before the 13-member legislative body.

Longtime observers know that the core issues — race, partisan politics and a suburban-versus-urban divide — that sometimes underline deliberations on legislative proposals were just as much a part of previous commissions.

Yet, for the most part, those legislators were able to make their pro -and- con arguments with decorum and civility.

The current group has shown on too many occasions that they are not able to sit down and argue the meat of a proposal in some fact-based way.

And, frankly, that is what has been missing in their inability to agree on a redistricting plan. This is not meant to be a finger-wagging editorial. It’s a request for the benefit of the commissioners’ constituents, who are the ones who really lose when their elected representatives can’t deliberate issues with a sense of decorum and statesmanship.

Perhaps what is happening at 160 N. Main is reflective of what is transpiring on the national political stage: Politics has moved away from the art of compromise and, instead, has become combat.

Commissioners trailing other commissioners to speaking engagements, maybe hoping for a chance to publicly confront the speaker; one commissioner threatening to knock another out of a chair; disrespectful gestures toward commissioners while they’re speaking; unfounded accusations about commissioners’ family members, and the constant verbal knives some commissioners throw at each other make their meetings feel more like a professional wrestling match.

Such antics distract from the public’s business and make it harder for commissioners to compromise on contentious issues. Can you say redistricting? The verbal jabs, accusations and rudeness toward each other create a revenge atmosphere, in which those who are offended go into “I got to get him/her back” mode.

That burns energy and brain power that could be better spent on creative efforts to improve the lives of citizens. Misbehavior by some on the County Commission makes meetings seem like a professional wrestling match.