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After all of the hype, all of the grandstanding, all of the mudslinging, and all of the baby kissing, it is finally time –– time for the politicians to see if their game plan had a positive influence on the voters or if it sent them running the other way. Next Tuesday is your chance to get out and vote. Next Tuesday is your chance to have your voice heard.

This campaign season, for whatever reason, seemed to be far more negative than races in the past. I guess one reason for that could be that most of the races are, in fact, much closer than either side would like you to believe. Why that would lead to negative campaigning is a head scratcher to me. There are a couple of races that when their commercials air, absolutely force me to turn off my television or at least change the channel to a kid’s show. Locally, we have for the most part had civilized races with the exception of one group overstepping the line of decency. But, if you know this group, you are definitely not surprised. Truth be told, this group is a lot like watching a kid’s show, only in the cartoons the characters know when they have overstepped the boundary of decency.

Yesterday I was asked why doesn’t the Chisago County Press endorse candidates like some of the big newspapers in the country. The answer is quite simple, when you are in the business of covering local government and that coverage is the heart of your paper, to single one party out as a favorite would not be wise. Besides, I really feel like our area has some very qualified, talented individuals running our local governments.

Congratulations to the Chisago Lakes Wildcat football team for their amazing victory over Spring Lake Park last Saturday. The Wildcats were expected by most everyone to roll over and let Spring Lake Park proceed to its next match-up with Totino Grace. The Wildcats had another plan. They put a solid whooping on Spring Lake Park and won 17-7. Now instead of the much anticipated game between Totino and Spring Lake Park, they will have to settle for the ho-hum Chisago Lakes Wildcats. That’s just fine, let them overlook the Wildcats. Hopefully next week I will be writing about another great win by our local team. Good luck to Coach Weiss and the Wildcats!

The Chisago County Press is still looking for a Taylors Falls City Council correspondent. If you or someone you know likes to write and enjoys keeping up on local news, I would encourage you to give us a call. The Taylors Falls City Council meets on Monday nights. You will be asked to attend regularly and submit your article by the next day. Please call Matt or Denise if interested at 651-257-5115.

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