In the golden era of politics, political campaigns were an opportunity for voters to meet the candidates and hear what they had to say about the major issues of the day. Citizens often voted for the candidate they thought would best improve their lives. Today’s campaigns are more like guerilla skirmishes where opposition research specialists mine an opponents’ history and relationships for whatever dirt they can find. In this year’s race to replace U.S. Rep. Cedric Richmond, candidates’ friends are also diverting attention away from the real issues. For example, why would City Councilman Jay Banks waste his time going over to the home of congressional candidate Belden Batiste even if he thought Batiste was “in crisis”? Batiste doesn’t even live in Banks’ district. Batiste criticized state Sen. Karen Carter Peterson earlier this week at the Alliance for Good Government forum. That’s politics.