Come on in, the water’s fine

It’s summer, it’s hot and many of us want to cool off with a little dip. But we have recently learned that there’s no swimming allowed in the newest of our public parks, the pond at Riverstone.

Don’t worry. I’ve got another way you can “get in the swim of things” — you can throw your opinion in the pool of public conversation.

In this column, I have often stated my goal is to promote open, public conversations about community issues. But, last week, a supportive reader e-mailed me with this question: “Where and how can we have a public conversation? Your archive Web site (www.thecityspulse.com ) is set up for access to your past columns but does not include a comments section.”

He’s absolutely right. I have been remiss about instructions for jumping into the conversation, and for that I sincerely apologize. So let me right that wrong by laying out the ways you can dive into the discussion:

• You can write a letter to the editor.
This can be the traditional method, written on paper and sent through the mail, or it can be by computer and e-mailed to The Press (send it to mpatrick@cdapress.com). This is your basic “stay dry” method because critics can’t respond as quickly. It does, however, get your opinion out to more people and it will also appear online so others can splash back comments, as I describe below.

• Or you can go to The Press Web site (www.cdapress.com) and read my column online. At the bottom of my column, if you keep scrolling down, there’s a “Comments” section. This is where many of you have been carrying on lively public conversations on all sides of the issues. Each week my column generates between 25-100 comments, so you are very welcome to wade on in with your viewpoint.

Almost all of the stories, letters and editorials in The Press have a comments section. To go directly to a list of all the active comment sites, start at the front page of the online Cd’A Press. On the menu, you will see “Story Comments.” Clicking there will take you to a list of all the busy conversations. Choose any of interest and you will also find that subject’s ongoing comment pool.

My caution to you is that it can get a little muddy in this pond of public ideas. You might want to stick a toe in first and get used to the water. The story comments are open to anyone, and you don’t always know who’s saying what. Some people use their real names, which is my preference, but others make up their monikers. Most of the remarks are reasonable, interesting and often downright entertaining; I learn a lot by reading them. Then, of course, you always have those that cannonball in with commentary that’s all wet.

There aren’t any lifeguards in these pools of thought, though other swimmers usually keep an eye on each other. Any serious foul play (language) is tossed out. My opinion columns are just a starting point, a mere drop in the bucket. If you are game for some adventure, please join in the fun. You can float your ideas to the surface, create some ripples or clear up some murky misconceptions.

Together, we can create a stronger stream of conversation in our city by the lake.