The national news was on edge, unfortunately, but predictably. The President had moved in. California’s Governor was not happy. Cars were burning; it was not a good look, it pointed at mistrust.
In the meantime, I am sitting at my first voter forum in Oxford, Maryland. It appeared that I was sitting with half the town. The Oxford Community Center was filled. The Community Center is, as one candidate noted, at the center of the community. The beating heart center.
In Oxford, the candidates were talking about how to make the town work better. In Los Angeles talk was canceled by yelling. In Oxford passions were translated into questions and the candidates got right to the point. Democracy was working, yes working. The questions and answers were well informed and rancor was missing.
I emphasize civility because after my wife and I moved to Oxford a question we frequently struggled to answer was are politics tense. Maybe, I said, but neighborliness is thick and we certainly felt welcome. At least for the most part.
Okay I know Los Angeles is big, diverse and filled with demanding egos. But as we all know family politics is sometimes rancorous and the players share blood. It’s not the numbers that count, it is the attitude. So Oxford’s 590 people have to respect differences; we live fence-to-fence. Yes, just across the fence difference is evident.
In a democracy we are always on a thin edge. We have to decide to disagree agreeably or suffer the consequences. Across quite a bit of America we are suffering the consequences of division. In Oxford, at least it seems to me, differences form the questions (along of course with budgets) and attitude finds collaborative work the best way.
There are of course challenges and differences. Flooding is not going away. Difference of opinions on how the shoreline called The Strand should be both accessible and protected were at the forefront. As is the question on funding to help raise vulnerable houses. My sense is that Tom Costigan and Dave Donovan, the two candidates for Town Commissioner, are likely to work to harmonize the expert opinion with doable options.
As the son of a former Mayor who was free with his opinions as I campaigned with him, my sense is that Oxford’s sails are up and the wind is favorable.
Al Sikes is the former Chair of the Federal Communications Commission under George H.W. Bush. Al writes on themes from his book, Culture Leads Leaders Follow published by Koehler Books.
