In the current political landscape, the first order of business is to demonize the other side. It appears Mark Pearson is using this same playbook in his rants against Tri-State Generation and Transmission.

In his Dec. 16 Thinking Green column (“Change confronts rural electric co-ops”), he claims Tri-State is “unresponsive to the needs and wants” of its members. That it exhibits a “lethargic lack of response to desires by a growing number of its member cooperatives.”

Yes, in Mark’s world, the owners of Tri-State simply don’t care what you, the member, wants. But who are the owners of Tri-State?

Well, look around you and you see them in the face of every cooperative member.

Tri-State is owned and controlled by its membership through elected representatives. The truth is that it’s not some faceless corporation you’re dealing with. It’s other cooperative members who don’t always agree with your point of view.

But disagreeing with other partner cooperatives just doesn’t sound dire enough. That’s why it has to be spun as a David and Goliath fight.

So when you hear Mark claim that “Tri-State has us by the neck with its 31-year contract,” remember that contract was written by cooperative members sitting on the Tri-State board. No one had a gun to their heads or (in Mark’s own words) used Jedi Mind Tricks on them.

These extreme claims are designed to whip up his base and push his agenda.

Let’s drop the political maneuvering and get back to reality.

Barry Lausman

Ignacio