RESPONSE - Marty

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The favorite part of the campaign for Nancy Larson and me has been hearing
from so many individual Minnesotans.  Government really does work best when
there is an ongoing dialogue between citizens and their elected
representatives, No politician has a monopoly on wisdom and we need the
ideas of our fellow Minnesotans to govern well.

We can listen more and we can listen better by utilizing some of the new
communications technologies.  Electronic bulletin boards are an excellent
example of how we can exchange ideas and sharpen our own positions through
dialogue with one another.  Cable TV programming and call-in programs are
other examples.

I share the concerns that I have heard during this campaign about the loss
of community and the decline in our sense of civic values.  We should all
be concerned about a loss of shared values in our society because it is one
factor which leads to the kind of disrespect and loss of community that
results in hate crimes and violence.  Everyone has a role to play in
passing values such as honesty, respect and hard work from one generation
to the next.  Elected officials can help by setting a good example and we
have tried to do that with the high focus on ethics in our campaign.  The
most important source for values should be our families in all their forms,
as well as churches and synagogues, schools and the business community.  We
should all work together to promote greater personal responsibility but we
must also recognize that the social fabric knitting us together and
creating a common sense of values is important and it must be nurtured.

The question I would pose to Arne Carlson is based on his promotion of
Minnesota Milestones, a yearlong process of listening to the people of
Minnesota about what they want for their state.  I support the concept of
Minnesota Milestones but I have seen no evidence at all that Arne Carlson
actually listened.  Can the governor point to any tangible evidence that he
listened to Minnesotans and in some way changed the approach of state
government as a result of Minnesota Milestones?

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