No one should feel frightened to disagree in Wyoming

After spending a week in Cheyenne, I came away feeling fearful — something that has never happened before to me in this wonderful state of Wyoming.  There are legislators that, in my opinion, need to be taken to task for some of the things that they said and did during the session.
Normally, I don’t worry about disagreeing with someone. We were able to have our differing opinions and move on. That is the American way, that is the Wyoming way.
Over the years, nationally, we’ve seen that kind of understanding decline. People saying horrible things about each other, political signs getting torn down, outright lies, out of state money influences, and friendships/family relations lost forever. It is a tragedy.
While driving home I thought about writing an editorial that quoted some of the things a few of our legislators said. Things that were outrageous. Things that supported their own beliefs and wants but not necessarily what of most of their constituents believed and wanted.
As I thought of those people, there was a realization that I would become a target. A target they would try to discredit, name call, attack, and attempt to take me or members of my family down by any means possible.
You may think this is over dramatic. It isn’t. I have seen them do it to others that disagreed with them. People who ended up losing their jobs, not getting elected or reelected, ostracized. Not because of valid reasons but because of outright lies about them. Lies that too many people swallowed without vetting. Lies that were fueled by political action groups. We too easily believe rumors, acrimonious innuendos, and gossip because it is salacious.  
Mrs. Jeans, our high school government teacher, made a valid point. If a fight broke out on one end of the football field and a choir concert was on the other end, most people would gravitate towards the fight. She said this in the 1970s. I fear that this may be even more true today.
How did it become OK in Wyoming to attack versus respectfully disagree? This is shameful. This is not our way. Yet here we are.