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Negative campaign bad for election

Carole Bennett-Simmons
Saturday November 02, 2002

To the Editor: 

 

I have lived and voted in Berkeley for 32 years and taught in the Berkeley public schools for 31 years. In that time, I have never received the kind of negative campaign literature for a Berkeley election than I have received for the Dean campaign this year. My family, neighbors and the people I have spoken with around Berkeley are disgusted and turned off by the personal attacks on, and the spreading of false information about, Tom Bates.  

One piece of literature sent out by Mayor Dean's campaign shows pictures of lots of lips and a picture of Tom Bates. The headlines say: “Talk is cheap” and “Tom Bates is all talk.” I think this tactic is a cheap shot and a look at Tom's record shows nothing could be further from the truth.  

Mayor Dean's literature belittles Tom Bates' call for an education summit. But I believe such a summit would be very useful. Many of the problems we face in Berkeley's schools are due to demands placed on the schools for programs that are mandated by state and federal laws, but which receive no funding for implementation. These are issues we cannot solve without developing a partnership with other levels of government and without help from a wide range of sources. Tom Bates has the ability and positive personal qualities to draw people together and build coalitions that can solve our city's problems in education and all the other areas of concern to us as Berkeley citizens. 

 

Carole Bennett-Simmons 

Berkeley