The sound of music

The voters have spoken, and here's what we think we heard.

We think we heard resistance to change. Voters in Kootenai County rejected the changes to public education brought on by 2011 legislative decree. With one exception - a nonpartisan, unpaid position on the North Idaho College Board of Trustees - every local incumbent who sought office was re-elected. And one of the biggest bids for significant change went down hard: a proposal to change county government.

While Kootenai County leadership must continue to find ways to manage expense and improve efficiency, we likely have heard the last of current commissioners' call to change the form of governance. A proposal to hire a manager with the ability to appoint rather than have citizens elect several department heads was crushed at the polls. So be it. But let us note that finally, these commissioners fulfilled a promise to let the voters have their say. Two citizen panels had begged their predecessors to do so; this group should be commended for complying.

Resistance to change reached all the way to Washington, D.C. We think we heard President Obama promise to reach across the aisle and invest heavily in building cooperation to move America forward. During his rousing acceptance speech late Tuesday night, he pointed out that disagreements aren't just necessary, but can be healthy. "These arguments we have are a mark of our liberty," he said. We agree - as long as the arguments are part of a process and not the end product.

Now the question becomes, what will you be hearing in the weeks and months ahead?

If it's whining, if it's blaming, if it's groundless, if it's destructive, we admit we would rather not hear it. Our vote is for educators and legislators, for victors and vanquished, for old and for young, for left-leaning and right-leaning all to find middle ground and focus not on what's necessarily best for them or their political camp, but best for their community and their country.

That's what we'd like to hear. That would be music to a nation's ears.