Let’s keep campaigns focused on issues, not personal attacks
Criticism of individual Council members or candidates based on their Council votes or professional conduct and actions as elected or appointed officeholders is completely legitimate and expected in a political campaign. Voters have a right to know, and an obligation to understand, how the votes and decisions of their elected officials may or may not impact their lives.
However, the line has to be drawn on “below the belt” personal attacks which flourish almost without check today due to the influence of social media. These type of attacks are reflected in online trolling, fake Facebook profiles and posts, rumor-mongering, and trying to dredge up dirt through Internet “intelligence” and Google searches which may be of dubious accuracy or otherwise offered to the public without context or explanation.
I pledge as a candidate for Milpitas City Council to focus only on the professional actions, conduct, and votes of our elected officeholders as they pertain to the issues I am emphasizing in my campaign. I will not join in on the ugly underworld of anonymous attacks and postings on Facebook and social media which serve to discredit our electoral process and insult the intelligence and values of Milpitas voters. I ask other candidates to sign this pledge today.
Suraj Viswanathan
This is a sponsored post.
So a sponsored post about a made up pledge signed by a candidate to ignore things on the internet about him. Not suspicious at all. Thanks for helping me learn who to avoid. Zero experience in government. No thanks.