Politics Doesn't Trump Civility, Bleckley Sheriff Answers Ads | News

In the past few weeks, on the national and local level, candidates and their supporters are 'pulling no punches' with maximizing every opportunity to encourage voters to choose them.

Even if it means slipping in a 'left jab' and a vicious 'right hook' in implications about your opponent, like the photo that was 'leaked' on social media in local circles supposedly of  current Bleckley County Sheriff Harold Lancaster asleep at the job.

The Tri-County Monitor did some research and discovered that the photo was actually an image that had been altered to make it seem like it was Lancaster, but in fact, it was not.  In fact, it was a cropped photo taken from another site that actually depicted an individual not even connected to anyone on the central Georgia area.

Lancaster was shown the image was astonished, “That is not me.”

As to the photo, he said, “That is just negative campaigning … and is often used in combination with false and/or misleading statements or depictions to bolster an opponent's position.”

The actual photo was used from a broadcast website, for a TV Station in Boston. See link at end of article for the actual picture.   It is of a transit worker who was allegedly caught sleeping on the job – not of Bleckley County Sheriff Harold Lancaster.

On his opponent's social networking pages, the picture is cropped and the words imply that it is Sheriff Lancaster sleeping on the job. It has also been spread throughout in this manner by a number of his supporters. According to legislation, such sharing could be considered as defamation of character toward Lancaster, but he said that all he wants is “the truth to come out.”

Early on in the campaign there were implications that Sheriff Lancaster or some of his supporters defaced two of Blash's signs with a racial slur, and recently, a photo has circulated of a campaign sign that was spotted face down after windstorms this week. Implications again, this time from Blash are that someone vandalized his signs again.

Lancaster himself in the last few weeks finally responded to the political ads and implications of Blash, and brought out some negative facts about his opponent. "I was just tired of it all ... People need to see the truth."

Lancaster said, “Change … seems to be topic of many political platforms this year. The problem with using change as a cornerstone of a political platform is the lack of structure and substantive ideas opponents have to support the proposed need for the change.”

“Political opponents employ negative campaign strategies to attack incumbents while using changes as the main focus of the debate … those negative ideas and thoughts often cloud the real issues and make it difficult to decipher between positive and negative changes – the difference between progressing forward and regressing backward,” Lancaster said.

Civility to us common folks and politicians should pretty much have a lot in common – having good manners, having respect for other people and others' feelings, and being willing to listen.  Civility in politics goes beyond just  being kind and respect, it should require all involved to have a willingness to work and live together, as well as a willingness to compromise on somethings were we differ fundamentally.

And that is not just nationally, but on a state and local level.

Civility doesn't exclude politics.

Here is the link with the actual picture. http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/boston/12007550849585
/transit-worker-allegedly-caught-sleeping-on-the-job/

Here is the link on Facebook where one of the  false pictures was spotted. https://www.facebook.com/blashforsheriff/photos?ref=ts/.

Vote smart in this election not because of emotions.

..... Tri-County Monitor