Can't we all just get along?

Ah, the beautiful sounds of spring. A couple of times we have been able to sleep with our windows open, and it's interesting to listen to all of the sounds. You can hear the cars on Main Street and the sirens as they fly by. You can hear the dogs barking, and you can hear the trains as they come and go through town. On Monday mornings I can hear the trash guy making his stop at Maplehurst Elementary. You can hear him drive by, then you can hear the beeping noise of the truck backing up, and the banging as he empties the load of trash. Does he really have to bang it that many times? It's so nice to open the windows and let the outside in. There are some sounds, however, that aren't so sweet. It's election time and we are in the middle of a nasty Republican race for the U.S. Senate seat that has been held by Rob Portman. The Reflector had a poll recently asking people who they would vote for in the May 3 primary and 1,162 votes were cast. Here is the question: If you are voting Republican, who will you vote for in the U.S. Senate Race? Matt Dolan — 6% Mike Gibbons — 14% Josh Mandel — 24% Neil Patel — 0% Mark Pukita — 0% Jane Timken — 19% J.D. Vance — 5% I'm voting Democrat — 23% No opinion — 9% This has been ugly at times, with candidates taking shots at each other. Throw out Patel and Pukita and it is really a five-person race. Before I knew much about any of the candidates I heard a lot about J.D. Vance. Not from his side, but from others who blasted him. In a race like this, name recognition is key and he got a lot of free publicity. They always say getting your name on the front page is great, no matter what they say, as long as you spell my name right. The first major shots were sent in an early debate where Mandel and Gibbons went nose-to-nose. In video from the Gahanna debate, former state treasurer Mandel stood up to challenge investment banker Gibbons during a heated discussion over a stock trade as the crowd jeered the confrontation and a debate official sought to separate the two men, Politico reported. "You don't know squat," Gibbons is heard jabbing at the former state treasurer's experience in the private sector, after which Mandel, a veteran, responds, "Two tours in Iraq, don't tell me I haven't worked." The men repeatedly told each other to back off before standing eye-to-eye for several seconds, while Dolan, Timken and Vance looked on awkwardly. Mandel eventually took his seat. Mandel and Gibbons continued their feud offstage, with Gibbons' team calling Mandel "unhinged" and Mandel further criticizing Gibbons' investment record. Gibbons, a self-funder, has spent millions of dollars of his own money to boost his standing in the primary, while Mandel has a long record in statewide office boosting his bid. And both men, along with Vance and Timken, are locked in a parallel, sometimes heated competition for former President Donald Trump's endorsement, which they believe could be decisive in the close and crowded primary. "Josh Mandel is unhinged, unfit and flailing — because he's losing. He is only a professional at one thing: running for office," said Samantha Cotten, Gibbons' spokesperson. "He is hellbent on lying because he is failing. He doesn't have the temperament, experience, or fortitude to be a U.S. senator and Ohio voters got a firsthand look at just how unprepared Josh Mandel is to be a leader and that will be reflected at the ballot on May 3." So here we have it. Dolan has taken his shots, along with Vance and Timken. Race, gender and experience have been debated. It's been ugly and sure to go down hill from here as the primary approaches. And not to be outdone, Democratic front-runner Tim Ryan is making some noise of his own. Ryan, who is the odds-on favorite to be the Democratic nominee, has watched all of this and has, apparently, learned that leaning into odiousness isn't a dealbreaker for voters in the Buckeye State. Last week he unveiled an ad in which he claims that "communist China" is to blame for the loss of American jobs, that "China's winning" and "workers are losing," and that "it's us vs. them." Enough. You can only imagine what we will hear between May 3 and the November election. Is there a way I can shut my window on all of this noise? Joe Centers is Reflector managing editor. He can be reached at jcenters@norwalkreflector.com.