LEARN ABOUT THE 2021 CANDIDATES
Links to third party sources of information
Riley County Senior's Service Center
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Watch the Board of Education Candidate Forum at the Riley County Senior's Service Center: https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=1001535897291311
See posts, photos and more on Facebook.
October 5, 2021
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KMan Radio News
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Listen to the League of Women Voters' City Candidates Forum
https://1350kman.com/league-of-women-voters-candidate-forum-city-candidates/
October 12, 2021
Click image to listen
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Listen to the answers that were given to a set of identical questions given to all the City Commission candidates and to another set of identical questions given to the USD 383 schoolboard candidates.
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These recordings are gathered into a browsable list titled "Meet Your Candidates"
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Various dates from July 14 to October 18, 2021
Peoples Forum MHK
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Watch the 2021 People's Forum for City Commission Candidates
https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?ref=watch_permalink&v=4407733482628980
October 13, 2021
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The Mercury
October 16, 2021
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October 16, 2021
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​Our Manhattan @our.manhattan.9 on Facebook
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Peruse at various dates and see posts, photos and more on Facebook. Are these the people you want running your city or your school board?
https://www.facebook.com/our.manhattan.9
2021 various dates
cjonline -The Topeka Capital Journal
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Read the OPINION piece by Sharon Hartin Iorio: "We want to take over the entire school board': 1776 Project PAC backing candidates in Kansas, other state."
September 23, 2021
Click image to read
In case you missed it
Weixelman Is Unable To Cite An Example Of A Past Compromise
From the Manhattan Mercury Voter Guide:
Q: What's a recent or notable example of your ability to compromise with people who hold an opposing viewpoint on a social or political issue?
(SOURCE: https://themercury.com/.../article_1edde81e-f6c0-5866...)
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We say:
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Does Weixelman not understand this simple question? If she is unable to understand a simple question, is she qualified to be on a local governing board?
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Is Weixelman unable to answer this question because she is incapable of compromise and therefore has zero examples to share? If so, this is not a sign of someone capable of good governance.
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Is Weixelman being flippant and snide? If so, is this someone who is capable of listening to the public?
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Or is this a dog whistle to beckon voters focused on a single issue?
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.
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Mattingly-Ebert Uses Gross Hyperbole To Fearmonger
Mattingly-Ebert: The long and the short of it is “no.” I do not believe that critical race theory or any program that is going to teach divisiveness
Producer Karen: Right
Mattingly-Ebert: and any kind of diversity belongs in our school district or any other. I think there can be a lot of mental issues brought along with that when you’re just pigeon-holing children simply based on their skin color
Producer Karen: Right
Mattingly-Ebert: and then when you get right down to it that’s what they are doing unfortunately.
Producer Karen: It’s rather like modern segregation.
Mattingly-Ebert: It is.
(Source: Our Manhattan Town Hall Political Action Committee June 24, 2021)
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We say:
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We do not need local governance from people who will look no further into issues than the talking points coming from right wing propaganda.
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We do not need local governance from people who choose to use inflammatory language in an irresponsible manner.
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Voters, when people show you who they are, BELIEVE THEM.
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.
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School Board Candidate Steve Ruzzin Tells Student 'People Have The Right To Offend Other People'
An MHS student who uses the pronouns they/them asked Steve Ruzzin what his stance was on other school boards that have passed LGBTQ+ curriculums and policies.
Ruzzin responded, "Requiring somebody else to use a term is different than being um...I guess forced speech is not necessarily free speech. So I think people have the right to offend other people, and that is offensive and they shouldn't do it. But they have the right to. So I would not go for any force of 'they/them' in the curriculum or anything like that."
Listen to Ruzzin here https://fb.watch/8VLm5yi727/
We say:
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We do not trust that Ruzzin is a steward of students' safety. Nor do we believe that he has empathy to enact policies that would address bullying and discrimination.
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Addressing a person by their preferred pronouns is nothing short of acknowledging their existence as a human being. It is a simple act that takes little effort and its consequences result in forging a human to human connection.
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Ruzzin's obstinate objection to this is a clear display of how unfit he is for school board.
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.
School Board Candidate Steve Ruzzin Puts His 'Personal Freedom' Ahead Of Students
In response to a MHS student's concern about discrimination towards LGBTQ+ students and students who use gender neutral pronouns Ruzzin said:
"My personal belief is that God created two genders: male and female. ... So while I don't agree with that side of it, I think that every person has the right to be respected. And the way that I treat you, although I would choose to not use 'they/them' ... I would just call you by your name to be polite. And I would avoid those for my own personal freedom, and I don't think that's necessarily wrong, I would try to treat you with all the respect I could while I disagree with that aspect of your life."
Listen to Ruzzin here: https://fb.watch/8VKXKRHLPB/
We say:
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School Board members have a responsibility to protect the students. By saying "I disagree with that aspect of your life," Ruzzin has essentially given license to others to disrespect and potentially discriminate LGBTQ+ students.
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We argue that the invocation of "personal freedom" in this case is outlandish. No one is asking Ruzzin to bake a cake for a LGBTQ+ wedding - they were requesting him to use a preferred pronoun.
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.
Weixelman Air Quotes The Words "Skin Color" At School Board Meeting
Weixelman: "I've spent the last 23 years raising three children into adults. Two of those are adopted. One of those has a different "skin color" than I do."
Listen to Weixelman here: https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=915303095756038
We say:
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We note this because skin color is a fact. People are NOT colorblind to skin color. And if Weixelman refuses to acknowledge this reality, we question her ability to empathize with others' realities.
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We note Weixelman's t-shirt, a choice she made to wear during her public comment at a school board that included a pitch for her campaign. In fact, on the same day as the June 2nd school board meeting, Weixelman proudly sent her picture to the merchant to be posted on social media.
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"Leviathan Mom" is a Biblical reference and piece of merchandise is proudly worn by "the mom who is committed to protecting her children against cultural indoctrination."(https://afastore.net/leviathan-mom-t-shirt)
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We stand for the freedom of religion. We stand alongside Christians and Jews and Muslims and Atheists.
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We stand for the separation of church and state, particularly in our public schools.
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS.
Betty Mattingly-Ebert Pushes For Cameras in Classrooms
Read Mattingly-Ebert's post on FB: https://www.facebook.com/BettyUSD383/2021
We say:
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How much would this cost the school district in hardware?
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Who would be in charge of watching every video from every classroom?
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And then what?
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Why? Why, Betty, why? Because you don’t trust the teachers? What do you think is going on in the classrooms that cameras are necessary?
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Is this the kind of leadership you want on the school board?
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS
Matta, Butler, James Invite Oklahoma Senate Candidate to Manhattan; Perpetuates Lies and Division
On Thursday evening (Oct. 28), Steven Ruzzin, Betty Mattingly-Ebert, Christine Weixelman, Wynn Butler, John Matta and Kaleb James --the candidates known as "The Six Pack" and endorsed by the Riley County Republican Party-- campaigned together, alongside Jackson Lahmeyer, a pastor and US Senate candidate for Oklahoma.
Lahmeyer took the stage and referred to the President as "Vice President Joe Biden," saying, "Stolen elections do not equate to legitimate presidencies!"
He preached, "This is not a battle between Republicans and Democrats. This is a problem between Good and Evil. And YOU pick which side you're going to be on."
Earlier in the program, Wynn Butler told the crowd, "It's gotta be a team. It's three," meaning, Matta, James and himself need to be elected as a package to City Commission.
Pastor Dave Fowler of Remnant Church endorsed the Six Pack, saying, "We gotta take the majority back. Majority rules!"
For sound bites, taken from a live stream of the rally, listen to https://www.facebook.com/rileycountydemocrats/videos/261966555860085
We say:
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We condemn the use of the word "evil" as a reference to Democrats and the Democratic Party.
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We question the judgment of these six people who chose to place themselves on a stage with such dangerous and egregious attacks on fellow community members.
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The so-called Six Pack have taken this election to such gross and dangerous levels that we call on Manhattan to reject this type of campaigning by not rewarding these six candidates with votes.
WE DESERVE BETTER THAN THIS
