Anyone who attended last week's meet-the-candidates luncheon sponsored by the Tooele County Chamber of Commerce would have learned a great deal about what challenges are facing Tooele and Grantsville during this period of rapid growth. They may also have learned which of the candidates for the two city councils has past experiences best suited to the job, or which one appears to have the charisma and eloquence to lead. But one important thing they were unlikely to have learned is how any of the candidates' plans for solving those aforementioned challenges differs from those of any other candidate.

At last week's luncheon, 11 candidates politely agreed that future growth must be managed, infrastructure improved, water resources carefully husbanded and economic development encouraged. How many of the residents of the two towns wouldn't have agreed with those same objectives? But the devil is in the details, and those have been in short supply throughout this campaign.

For example, who would mandate that developers put in promised infrastructure before building the first house? Who would make the tough call to prioritize sewer and water systems ahead of road repairs? What types of businesses should not have been enticed here in the past, and what kind should we be enticing here now? Give us examples of developments you would not have approved or Mayoral decisions you would not have supported. Healthy government often comes more from a clash of ideas -- and a willingness to work toward reconciling and accommodating those differences -- than from singing out of the same page of the hymn book from day one.

Perhaps the Chamber of Commerce could have set up the luncheon as a sort of mass debate, but that format has proved unwieldy on a national level, and there's no guarantee it would have produced any livelier dialogue. In the end, it's the candidates -- particularly the challengers who comprised the majority and had much to gain -- who must share the blame for not specifically discussing past council mistakes and explaining how they would have done things differently. Or, even if this tact were considered too negative by some, to at least try to be specific enough to articulate a vision for their cities that went beyond what we all know to be right and true -- i.e., we must manage growth, we must improve infrastructure, etc.

With one week left before the general election, we encourage each of the city council candidates to show voters how they will do things differently. Past experience, charisma and public speaking ability are all important criteria in selecting a leader, but there's nothing like having a clear, specific plan.