One set of rules for everyone

I’ve been watching the reaction to Councilman Greg Doroski’s column about Legislator Catherine Stark’s DWI arrest and potential substance abuse issues. I don’t know whether to be bemused or saddened.

A decade ago, when I ran for Riverhead Town Supervisor, I had a DWI in my past. I pleaded guilty. I took my punishment. I changed my life. I moved on. That’s what accountability looks like.

Legislator Stark hasn’t done that. Two years later, Ms. Stark continues to abuse the courts by postponing her case and hasn’t told the public she’s stopped drinking. What substances or drugs she may or may not consume today is unknown—If her case were adjudicated, we’d know if she were monitored by a court of law—but most importantly, there has been no day of reckoning.

In some ways, that’s between Catherine Stark and her conscience. But as an elected official, she holds an office of public trust—and the public has a right to know the truth.

The bigger question, though, isn’t about Catherine Stark. It’s about us.

What does our reaction to this episode say about who we are?

The response to Greg Doroski’s column has been venomous. People aren’t debating the facts—they’re attacking the messenger. Problem is, many don’t want to hear the message.

When I ran in 2015, I faced the opposite treatment. I was hit with attack ads, fake mugshots, and endless negative mailers. I was mocked and shamed. Hey, don’t cry for me. Politics ain’t beanbag. I put my head down, took the knocks, and kept campaigning.

But now? Read social media and you’d think Greg Doroski is the one who did something wrong. The outrage is misplaced. People are bending over backwards to defend the indefensible. They’re crying that it’s “mean” to point out facts about Legislator Stark.

And that’s the real issue.

If we’re going to be the people we say we are—if we’re going to build the fair, honest community we claim we want—then there must be one standard. Not one for friends, high school chums, buddies and another justice for outsiders. Not one for Team Blue and another for Red. Not one for those whose families have long roots in town and another for those who came later.

You can’t pick on one candidate because you didn’t go to high school with him and his dad wasn’t Supervisor, then turn around and defend another for the same offense. It can’t be one set of rules for the “good ol’ boys and girls” of Riverhead and another for everyone else.

You may not want to hear it but it’s true and it’s simple: One set of rules for everyone—no matter who you are, or which political uniform you wear. It’s easy to say “no one is above the law”. The hard part is practicing it.

Anthony Coates was the Democratic Party’s nominee for Riverhead Town supervisor in 2015. He currently lives in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.