Editor, Times-Union: I attended the candidates forum on Monday, primarily to hear the responses of the three candidates for state representative. In alphabetical order, as the moderator often reminded us, they were David Kolbe, Curt Nisly and Michael Stinfer. I am not a straight-ticket guy, so I like to know where the candidates stand on issues and how they got there. I also try to get an idea of how they might perform, if elected. As a transplant to the Warsaw area (we moved here 23 years ago), I am acutely aware that this area is heavily Republican. Interestingly, in a sense, there are three “Republican” candidates in this race. There certainly is no hard left candidate. I listened to each candidate’s responses for knowledge of the issue at hand, position on the issue, and evidence of whether or not the candidate would actually be able to engage in discussion at the state house, or would be more likely to just cast a party line vote (the easy way out, leading to more polarization). David Kolbe was clearly the most articulate of the bunch. He not only stated his position on each question’s issue, but gave a clear and concise reason for it. Also, from his answers, I got more of a sense that he would be able to work with others, from both parties, to reach the best solution. There were nods to reaching across the aisle in other candidates’ responses, but talking about it and actually having the knowledge and skills to do it are two different things. Originally, I was going to analyze and then rank the candidates (it’s the engineer in me), but in the final analysis, it came out: 1. Kolbe, 2. Kolbe, 3. Kolbe. So there you go! Please exercise your right, and vote on Nov. 4 (or earlier – early voting is now open). And also, if you are usually a straight-ticket voter, please seriously consider not casting a “party line vote” when you go to the polls. Hans Kusserow Winona Lake, via email
