Tomorrow, Dane County residents will have the opportunity to elect their county executive. The incumbent, Kathleen Falk, will be running for an unprecedented fourth term, while challenger Nancy Mistele is attempting to dislodge the resilient Falk. Unfortunately for Dane County, both Falk and Mistele are not particularly well-suited candidates for the position of county executive. However, if voters must pick one of them, we may as well pick the stronger of the two. Given their views and intentions, the better candidate in this race is Kathleen Falk.
Of course, a big topic in this election is public safety, namely the 911 Center. Public safety has been the cornerstone of Mistele's whole campaign, and by now most Dane County residents have heard at least a few of her shrill accusations against Falk and her handling of the 911 Center. Mistele is little more than an opportunist in this regard, attempting to capitalize on the Brittany Zimmermann tragedy.
On the other hand, it seems Falk has begun the process of fixing up the 911 Center far too late. However, Mistele is unlikely to really improve public safety, and is only using this topic as a means of turning people against Falk. Her vague promises tend to amount to little more than ""improving and restoring confidence in the Dane County 911 Center,"" though her proposed means of carrying this out are dubious at best.
Perhaps the only topic that Mistele is correct on is the proposed commuter rail plan. Although Falk supports the idea, it is a rather hefty burden to place on Wisconsin taxpayers, and even if federal money covers most of the cost, it is a lot of money that could be going into other programs to directly help citizens.
A better usage, for example, might be focusing on fixing up Dane County roads, as Mistele suggests. Yes, a commuter rail may give commuters more options, but will enough people actually use it to support it, or will it just become another money pit, sucking in more and more tax dollars? Falk says it's a good idea, but perhaps Mistele is right that we should be turning our attention to ideas and plans that do not have the possibility of turning into a massive waste.
Some of Falk's better investment ideas for the upcoming term are aimed at increasing green energy production through the use of manure digesters that will turn a pollutant of Dane County's many lakes into a clean energy source, as well as using a similar process at our landfills. This is a responsible and important route that will not only help clean up the environment, but also do so in a cost-effective way.
But what exactly does Mistele hope to invest in? A big new county jail is what, one that will cost Dane County millions to build and millions more a year to staff and support. According to the latest report from the Dane County Sheriff's Office, the average daily population of Dane County's jails has been relatively stagnant for the past few years, indicating no great need for a new prison facility within the next few years. Thus, such a facility would only add a greater burden to the county's taxpayers, one they do not currently need.
Mistele is running an extremely negative campaign, attempting to capitalize on a tragedy. She is scaring voters into believing Falk will not only destroy the Dane County economy but also stand aside as the 911 Center falls into disarray. She throws vague promises to ""clean-up"" county programs, but is seemingly more focused on attacking her opponent and simply slashing funding whenever and wherever she can. Although Falk herself is by no means an outstanding candidate either, she is at least more experienced, has a clearer picture of what Dane County needs and is an overall better leader than Mistele. In this particular race, Kathleen Falk is best for Dane County.
Ryan Dashek is a junior majoring in biology. We welcome your feedback. Please send responses to opinion@dailycardinal.com.
