Letter to the Editor: We in Decorah need to work on ways to respect one another while disagreeing

(The following Letter to the Editor has been submitted jointly by Ross Hadley and Paul Scott):

(ROSS): Recently I attended a meeting in Grinnell.  We told people we were from Decorah and they said, 'We love Decorah.  You're so lucky!'  They told me they wished their community had all of the advantages and attractions Decorah has.  I agree that Decorah is a very special place.

But I also believe we need to do a better job as a community in learning to disagree with one another while still respecting someone with a different point of view.  We fight about everything and getting consensus is very hard.  We're becoming a more diverse community, so it will be important to learn how to handle different viewpoints.  We need to take a step back and breathe.

(PAUL): As a news reporter, I'm used to being in situations in which there are disagreements.  It's tempting to let our own personal opinions influence how we act, but journalists are trained to believe in fairness, to listen to what people have to say and to accurately state what their opinions are.  I think these are useful skills for everyone and not just for journalists.

(ROSS): It's important to separate the opinion from the person.  Let's respect one another and "agree to disagree."  We're doing so many things right, that the small things that we're doing wrong, we have to remember our strengths.  Let's be thankful for where we live and try to find some way to find cohesion. Most importantly, let's remember how fortunate we are to live in a community like Decorah and see our different opinions as just one more sign of a healthy community.