During my internship this summer, I was fortunate enough to cover the historic recall election between Governor Scott Walker and Tom Barrett.

The city I wrote in is very blue collar and incredibly passionate about its politics. Practically every day there were demonstrations and rallies for each of the candidates. Volunteers were aplenty and enthusiastic.

While it was a very rewarding experience, the way many demonstrators conducted themselves left a bitter taste in my mouth as the election grew closer.

As a society, we are obsessed with competition. Don’t get me wrong, I’m a competitive sports junkie. I get mad when I lose a game of bag toss on a Saturday afternoon. Heck, I get mad when I lose in rock-paper-scissors, and don’t even get me started on Madden. I’m a big fan of competition. With politics though, the competitive aspect of elections often becomes personal.

We were nearing the day of the election and the community was buzzing with anticipation. Barrett was making a visit to the area to campaign and Democrats gathered with signs and banners. Armed with my camera and recorder, I made my way through the crowd, gathering comments and taking photos. It was a genuinely authentic representation of what is great about politics and I was proud to cover it as a journalist. Then the songs started.

Some of the more zealous members of the crowd passed out lyrics to songs they wanted the group to sing. Some were about how great Barrett was, but most were about how terrible Walker is. I’ve got no problem with presenting the facts about a candidate, but when the conversation turns to an attack on a man’s character, any former validity flies right out the window.

I’m a Democrat. I don’t agree with a lot of Scott Walker’s policies, but that doesn’t mean I think he eats babies. I have no doubt that he loves this state and country as much as I do and is genuinely trying to represent us as best he can.

We’re finishing two weeks of political conventions, signaling the start of the true presidential election season. We will soon be barraged with more attack ads than we thought possible. It’s important to remember, though, that there are no villains. Obama is not a socialist. Romney pays his taxes. Neither wants to see this country fail.

Competition is a natural part of any election, and if you feel passionately about a candidate, pitch in. Do all you can to persuade potential voters to choose your guy, but know that there are plenty of people just as passionate about the opposition. That doesn’t make them evil. It makes them an informed voter.

I live in a house that consists of two Democrats and two Republicans and anticipate plenty of heated debates as the election nears. It’s important to realize that at the end of the day, a person’s political persuasion is a very small part of who they are and only defines them in the most minuscule of ways.

We can’t control how the television and radio personalities conduct themselves, but this election season, let’s set an example as voters and keep the conversation intelligent and civil.