Give a man a fish, and he can eat for a day; teach him how to fish, and he can eat for a lifetime. Words to live by and appearing to be the motto of Sacramento Press..

Recently I read the article "Is the Sacramento Press Fostering Civil Debate -- Or Encouraging Hate Speech?", written by Steven Maviglio.. Maviglio writes, "There's some good back-and-forth, and we agree to disagree without name-calling or insults or questions about our motivation. It's free speech -- the kind of debate that is good for this website and good for our city."

I agree. The "back-and-forth" without insults or questions about our motivation is good. It is dialogue -- if we plan to only eat for a day, but many of us plan to eat for a lifetime. So our comments can go beyond simply agreeing to disagree and become passionate food for thought.

Maviglio also writes, "There are some who typically hide behind screen names, that think name-calling and obscenities are effective ways to make their point."

I'm no stranger to personal attacks by someone hiding behind a screen name. I know people can become frustrated when someone deliberately insults or underestimates their intelligence.

Having read many of Maviglio's comments I can understand the frustration community members can feel toward his attempts to sway public opinion. But two wrongs don't make a right.

I learned from Maviglio's article that I too should tone down my responses and try not to offend others even when I am offended. But I don't dwell in hate and nor do I see the comments of others posting on Sacramento Press toward Maviglio being written in hate.

I know I've become frustrated with him on more than one occasion. I've learned Maviglio is a professional campaign manager whose comments I've read, on Sacramento Press and other sites, appear to have a tendency to stretch the truth to get a desired effect. However, I can't put much weight on the argument in his article since I haven't read any obscenities.

I enjoy reading the Sacramento Press because I feel it can disarm hate by giving the people a voice.

Recently I read an article by Mayor Kevin Johnson, "It's all about accountability," in which Johnson writes, "I love accountability ... and I find it curious when elected officials and the media decide the moment has arrived to wrap their arms around the fundamentals of accountability for the time being. They demand accountability for everyone but themselves. They choose which rules they follow .... Let's talk about accountability. It's a subject I understand ... I demand accountability for myself, my staff and every employee in the city of Sacramento."

Surely we can see how community members can be frustrated when many feel the mayor hasn't been held accountable with mismanagement of St. Hope, with allegations of a relationship with minors, with the $25,000 loan to SAG which was forgiven and became a gift in the midst of controversy and other concerns.

Whether the allegations are true or not I do not know but I do believe where there is smoke there is fire.

I do know community members are frustrated by a mayor who doesn't appear to be accountable for his own actions or the actions of those he hires to protect and serve him. And people need an avenue to vent, they need to let their voices be heard to disarm hate.

I find it curious when our mayor, for the time being, has found the moment to wrap his arms around the fundamentals of accountability.

Does our mayor really demand accountability for his staff? Is his staff solely accountable only to him or can they be held accountable to the public? The mayor is a public servant so it would seem anyone employed or assigned a volunteer position by him should also be held accountable to the public and would face strong criticism by the public when it appears they are not truthful.

Both Johnson's article on accountability and his campaign manager Steve Maviglio's article on civil debate appear to be attempts to also sway public opinion and both articles can foster hate. I value the Sacramento Press for giving the community a chance to create a much needed balance and disarm political manipulation.

We could argue whether Johnson is fostering civil debate or hate speech with his article, in which he claims he is asking the city council for accountability.

Johnson -- a mayor who has failed to be transparent in other avenues -- calls out council members in a public forum on his blog rather than working directly with them to overcome this issue.

Johnson, who will meet in secrecy, without the public and without council members, to develop the SMP and who did not have the courage to hold community meetings prior to the Strong Mayor Proposal being written in stone, wrote, "... but they have no courage. And while I won't speculate as to their motives, their lack of courage and need for secrecy erases any legitimacy of their act."

Johnson, who took a "situation" and asked the City Manager to investigate how privileged city documents were being leaked to the media, writes, "Accountability is not situational. It can't be used for political convenience. You are either accountable, or you are not."

Without a public outlet the mayor's article can cause a great deal of frustration.

When you only have two minutes to address the mayor during council sessions and a mayor who has given you so much to complain about and will not acknowledge your complaints, you can begin to comment in an angry tone. Between Johnson's political swagger and his campaign manager's more than 125 comments on Sacramento Press and many other comments on other news sites regarding articles on the mayor, people can be frustrated with all the propaganda put before us.

We can agree to disagree to comments by community members, but when Mr. Maviglio appears to manipulate the comment site it becomes concerning.

I confronted the mayor at a city session and the man who claims to demand accountability for himself and staff, would not be accountable. Did he apologize? No. We know he's capable of offering an apology. He's apologized to Nestlé. The mayor's apologies as well as accountability appear to be situational.

When you have a mayor who appears to transform city hall into a castle and the city of Sacramento into his kingdom you have to expect public outcry.. When you have a mayor who appears to disregard the voice of the people raising concerns, questions and disapproval of his behavior and you have media outlets who will also disregard the voice of the people -- the people can become angry.

When you have a mayor who appears to create a moat around the castle (city hall) making it too deep for the public to simply wade through with special assistants, campaign managers, volunteers to defend him against the public the people can become angry. When you have a mayor who appears to begin warfare against his colleagues, the council members we voted into office, the anger can cause some not-so-kind remarks. But it is anger and disappointment and not hate speech.

Has Johnson ever apologized for the negative comments by those under his advisement toward the city attorney, opponents of SMP or attacks on council members? No. I stood in front of the mayor at a council session and was later laughed at. Did he apologize? No.

He laughed and with the assistance of an assistant, he mocked me. Does the mayor address the concerns of the general public when they are given two minutes to speak? No. He simply looks at their name on the speaker request form and says "thank you."

Johnson does not appear to foster civil debate and his deliberate attempt of dismissing the public concerns can foster anger, animosity, division and yes, sometimes hate.

It doesn't appear to be the Sacramento Press who is fostering hate. It appears to be the actions of our mayor and his campaign manager and the fact he is not accountable for his actions or the actions of his assistants which can and has frustrated a community and at times caused hate speech.

Fostering hate goes beyond comments some may write on a Sacramento Press site. In fact the site offers an opportunity for people, like myself, to air out our differences, concerns, complaints in a constructive forum. Sacramento Press offers an opportunity for us to have a voice and build a constructive bridge of dialogue.

The media is a powerful tool and a tool which it appears politicians, including our mayor, have found a way to manipulate. But on Sacramento Press (as well as SN&R) writers balance out the bull with the truth and the community responds.

On Sacramento Press, the community is given a forum to write and balance out all the political propaganda we're reading and seeing from press releases and actions constructed by political hired help to sway public opinion. I've seen this deception cause a great deal of anger. But I have not seen the tone of anger on Sacramento Press that I have seen on another site and I believe it is due to the fact the community has an input and direct ongoing dialogue with the writers.

I don't see Sacramento Press as fostering hate. I see it as a tool to remain in the spirit of love and overcome hate by giving a voice to everyone.

The mayor, in an effort to make himself look good by making the council look bad, writes "How did a majority of the city council respond? With disdain, ridicule and ambivalence ..." It seems disdain, ridicule and ambivalence goes beyond Sacramento Press commenters. It appears the common denominator to fostering hate speech, disdain, ridicule and ambivalence is Johnson and the fact that he is not so transparent and neither are his special assistants and campaign manager.

I've read hateful comments on Sacramento Bee where people wrote "get ready, your young butt will be raped in prison, hope you're found hung."

I've read truly disturbing hateful racial attacks on youth, hateful comments regarding low income community members when articles are written during budget times. I've read hate-filled comments from both some within the community toward law enforcement and some within law enforcement toward community members.

What I am reading on Sacramento Press is far from hate. Even the comments personally directed at me by one person, in my opinion, aren't hateful. They have grown to be annoying but I've learned now to dismiss it. We don't have to all like one another and that is what gives the debate substance. I learn from those who appear not to like me and I welcome the sometimes not-so-kind dialogue. Sacramento Press is a valuable tool to become a contributor by offering personal insight and a forum to learn and grow.

Mark Twain wrote, "Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry and narrow-mindedness, all foes to true understanding. Likewise tolerance, or broad, wholesome charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by bigoting in our little corner of the earth all one's lifetime."

I read the articles and comments on Sacramento Press to leave my little corner of the earth and learn to see and hear others. I know I need to travel outside my comfort zone to go beyond seeing so much prejudice, ignorance, bigotry and narrow mindedness.

I'm reading the comments to learn more about the city of Sacramento and its people. I read Sacramento Press comments so I won't be like our mayor and surround myself with people who only tell me what I want to hear or what they feel I want or need to know.

If I solely relied on media propaganda from political hired help I would have suffocated by their divide and conquer tactics of using prejudice, ignorance and narrow mindedness as a tool. I wish more who are oppressed would read the Sacramento Press articles, post comments and vent.

By venting, through writing, I was able to breathe through so much confusion, pain and anger. I once felt suffocated and angry but in writing I've learned to remain in the spirit of love and not foster hate.

I learned to overcome the hate caused by reading so many untruthful political propaganda news stories. I learned to have a voice by reading the comments of many who let their voices be heard. I learned to speak out by being embraced by those not experiencing the same pain as I but still experiencing pain.

I've learned to see the pain of others. I've learned by seeing others speak out about subjects which interest or affect them. I learned to look for the passion even if the comment or person making the comment is attempting to attack me. I've learned a great deal from readers of Sacramento Press and I look forward to learning even more.

If I relied on manipulative media releases or sway-public-opinion articles from our mayor and if I had not met so many writers within SN&R, SacBee, Because People Matter, Sacramento Observer, bloggers like JoeSacramento and writers within Sacramento Press, it's possible I would harbor anger.

And now reading comments from Sacramento Press readers such as Marion, bbbmer, Burg and others it's like the icing on the cake, it's like gravy over the meat, it's such a good feeling to see so much community involvement, insight and passion. On Sacramento Press you get a buffet of food for thought. On Sacramento Press you go beyond eating for a day and learning to eat for a lifetime.

In the words of Margaret Mead, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever does." And for goodness sake I see those small groups of committed citizens such as Marion Millin, William Burg, bbbbmer, fifthgensacramentan and others responding on Sacramento Press.

I attended the last two Sacramento Press workshops and I want to say thank you, Sacramento Press, for not only giving a man a fish to eat for a day but thank you, Sacramento Press and those who comment, for teaching more how to fish so we can eat for a lifetime.

The workshops are great. The people are great. The forum is great. So, to answer Steve Maviglio's question -- no, Sacramento Press is not fostering hate. It appears hate is fostered by a mayor who is not accountable and the political propaganda press releases. But fortunately hate can be overcome by Sacramento Press offering a voice for those without political hidden agendas and not swayed by special interest or greed.

Every now and then someone may criticize, argue or debate with a hostile tone but when it happened to me it didn't foster hate it actally gave me the ability to both look at myself and look at them. I learned some people are not really interested in the subject and can be a distraction as they redirect the focus and attention towards you. But I learned personal attacks can give us the ability to learn and to grow in understanding.

Any fight worth fighting is worth being criticized, sometimes attacked, and often disagreed with. I don't expect everyone to agree with me or my opinion. I don't expect to agree with everyone. But on Sacramento Press our similarities (passion) outweighs our differences of opinion.

On Sacramento Press I've learned not just the content of the material written but how it is written -- the force behind it. I've learned so many are fighting. I've learned how to make the pen mightier than the sword.

I'm learning we can disagree and not foster hate. I've learned if you're afraid of being wounded perhaps you should not come near the battle. I've learned hate is deep-rooted and not on the surface of a simple post. I've learned their is always one who will fight individuals rather than a cause.

Most importantly I've learned "Give a man a fish he can eat for a day; teach him how to fish he can eat for a lifetime."

Thank you to the readers of Sacramento Press who post articles and comments for the lessons I am learning and the hope I am receiving which will go beyond the moment -- but hope for a lifetime.

Thank you Sacramento Press for doing what it appears our mayor and his special assistants have failed to do and that is disarm hate by giving the community a voice. Sacramento Press and those who comment provide an all you can eat buffet of food for thought.

Rhonda Erwin