Ashe Mountain Times

ron.fitzwater@mountaintimes.com

I truly love this time of year. I really do: Political party convention season brings with it the hope of a better tomorrow ... and then you wake up and realize the speech is still going on.

One of the things that brought me to journalism as a second career was the access to politics that I wouldn't have were I doing something different and better paying.

But I love politics, and it's as simple as that. And Ashe County is one fun political place to be.

This year, I witnessed Ashe Republicans putting aside differences of opinion to set themselves for another run at control of the Senate and the White House while holding a majority in the House, and capping off the state hat trick by taking the governorship. Also, I witnessed Ashe Democrats pull up their bootstraps and set themselves to get back what was taken from them in 2010, which was just about everything. Sadly, they did it with a tackiness not expected from the source.

This is not unlike the way things were in 2008, except the parties' position was reversed. But, that's the way of politics in America: Sometimes you're up, sometimes you're down but you are rarely static.

Although it probably pains them to hear it about one another, Ashe County Democrats and Ashe County Republicans are pretty much the same at their core. If they ever attended each others' conventions they would see that. But, that's not likely to happen.

If you asked them they would say that they agree that people have a right to be healthy, that citizens shouldn't pay more in taxes than they can afford and the government absolutely needs, that our children should be educated to the highest degree possible and any of hundreds of other positions. They just see very different ways of making those things happen.

While it is true that I know many more Democrats that strongly support the Second Amendment than Republicans who support same-sex marriage, I don't know a single person of either party that doesn't support the Constitution and who doesn't cite from it to emphasize their points.

I do often see members of the parties mingle for causes and events. I have seen several Democrats hanging out with the Republicans and Independents at TEA Parties and I have seen Republicans and Democrats working together at events to save Mount Jefferson, the Upper Mountain Research Station and even strolling along at a few gallery crawls.

The point is that there is not so much separation between the people of the Ashe County parties as much as there is separation between the parties as institutions. This is something I hope will predominate the now encroaching election cycle. Last time, things got a little nasty at times. No need to rehash. I told you then we were better than that and we are; hope we show it this time.

All of you who are active in our local politics from elected officials, to prospective candidates, to the folks who do the hard work like cold calling and knocking on doors, are to be commended. Those of you not involved need to be quiet when things go another way than you like.

It's spring training for election season 2012, What are you doing to get ready?