Well, negative campaigning was started by Dan McShane within minutes of the first primary results. Dan said on KGMI radio that both he and Dan Pike favor change - he because he has articulated it and Pike because he’s from outside the city. So much for campaigning on the issues. So much for respecting your opponent. And an inside look at how his campaign manager, Lisa McShane, goes about winning campaigns. Spread the negative about the opponent. Fear, doubt and confusion.

Now, here is my position. Dan Pike and Dan McShane are both honorable and qualified persons and either of them will probably make a very good mayor. Each has the best interests of Bellingham as their guiding principle. One of them will be mayor. We are lucky in Bellingham this time around. We can hope for a spirited and informative campaign on their respective strengths and proposed solutions, and we can judge them as individuals. In my opinion, however, McShane is off to a bad start. Lets hope he quickly adjusts.

We have had a mayor - Mark - who was skilled at debasing those who disagreed with him. We want to leave that behind us. Tim Douglas has been a good caretaker for his year and we appreciate that from him. If Dan McShane is going to let Lisa run his campaign in a negative manner then this website will use a lot of space over the next two months exposing her tactics.

Dan Pike, in fact, lives in Bellingham. After years of working on our waterfront and earning a degree from Western, he went to Harvard and got a Master in Public Administration degree. He could not return to Bellingham because we do such a lousy job of creating a positive business climate that he could find no job. So he lived and worked in the Seattle-Tacoma area until he found a job in Skagit County and he moved to Sudden Valley. And he now lives in the Lettered Streets area of Bellingham. He knows and loves Bellingham. He brings a knowledge of how the world works and how normal cities get things done. We in Bellingham and Whatcom County could benefit greatly from his experience.

Dan Pike is an experienced and skilled administrator. We need that in our mayor. We need a mayor who can work positively with the department directors. We need a mayor who is used to solving problems. Dan Pike has a degree from Western - Huxley actually - in planning. He has spent the past few years solving transportation problems in Puget Sound for various government agencies. Hmmm - you know, we could use his skills in city hall. Solve problems so we can go on to new challenges.

Dan McShane has much to offer - and he should speak to that. We citizens of Bellingham are smart enough to make our own comparisons. And Lisa now knows I will be watching for the rumors - such as the false one from Tuesday night. Oh, by the way - both Dans first came to Bellingham in 1982 from Eastern Washington to attend Western. Yes, both. McShane and Pike.