This is the title I chose for my personal blog, which is meant to give me an outlet for one of my favorite crafts – writing – plus to use an image from my favorite sport, golf.  Out of college, my first job was as a reporter for the Daily Astorian in Astoria, Oregon, and I went on from there to practice writing in all my professional positions, including as press secretary in Washington, D.C. for a Democrat Congressman from Oregon (Les AuCoin), as an Oregon state government manager in Salem and Portland, as press secretary for Oregon’s last Republican governor (Vic Atiyeh), and as a private sector lobbyist.  This blog also allows me to link another favorite pastime – politics and the art of developing public policy – to what I write.  I could have called this blog “Middle Ground,” for that is what I long for in both politics and golf.  The middle ground is often where the best public policy decisions lie.  And it is where you want to be on a golf course.

Several letters to the editor of the Wall Street Journal caught my attention as they dealt with a major issue – the over-the-top conduct of some parents at youth sports games.

We’ve all seen or heard about this problem. But it is growing in scope and intensity.

Still, I heard and saw a bit of good news lately as I attended high school games to see my granddaughters play here in Oregon.,

In high school tennis, representatives of the Oregon School Activities Association did an excellent of providing instructions for spectators as they watched school district tournaments.

Root for your team, they said.  Don’t root against the opposing team.  And, be patient with officials who are trying to do a good job, often as volunteers.

In high school volleyball, my granddaughter plays for a league up in the State of Washington and officials from that league, as well, did a solid job of counseling good sportsmanship on the part of those watching a major event that drew 200 teams to Portland’s Expo Center.

In both cases, we saw almost nothing but solid, mature, credible behavior from parents and grandparents.

Back to the Wall Street Journal letters to the editor.  Here are copies of what readers wrote:

Letter #1:  I neatly solved the problem of nasty parents years ago when I refereed soccer for 15-year-olds in Massachusetts (“Why Did the Umpire Quit Little League? Nasty Parents,” Sports, May 5).  I told the coach of the team with an unruly parent that, if the parent didn’t stop, I would call the game in favor of the other team.  It worked beautifully the two times I needed to do it. — Tom Holzel, Litchfield, Connecticut

Letter #2:  My son was a youth soccer coach.  One season he had several unruly parents who shouted orders to their sons, often including curses, for bad plays.  He called all the parents into a meeting on the field before the next game, and quietly informed them that he was the coach, and he would be the only one instructing the team.  If any of the parents continued to yell orders and obscenities to a youth, he would bench the player.  He and his team weren’t harassed anymore that season, and they went on to finish at the top of their league. — Sheila W. Evans,  Charlotte, North Carolina

Letter #3:  I have coached youth and high-school sports for 40 years, and I wish I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard someone blame the umpires or referees for their team’s defeat.  Yet not once have I ever heard a parent, coach or player boast that they won because of the umps or refs.  Somehow the math doesn’t add up. — Paul McCarthy, Surfside Beach, South Carolina

Letter #4:  As a former Little League umpire, I would consider returning to the job only if I were assured that both teams came from an orphanage — Bob Spear, Coronado, California

Good suggestions, all, especially the point about orphanages.

But, what this comes down to is parent conduct.  Simple.  Just be mature, patient, and courteous.  Root FOR your kids.  Not against others.  And respect officials.