On Monday, Cody said goodbye to Al Simpson. 

He has been remembered for many things, from his humor and wit to his insistence on standing up for what he felt was right, no matter the consequences or which way the political winds were blowing. 

He was also remembered for his civility and his work toward civil political dialogue. 

So, while he was a proponent of former Rep. Liz Cheney in her ultimately failed effort to defend her seat against Harriet Hageman, our current lone representative to Washington, people ought to remember his emphasis on civility during the current issue regarding Hageman’s disrupted town halls. 

Regardless of her policies, her insistence on holding town halls checks off a key box in my idea of an effective representative for Wyoming. 

However, over-the-top disruptive exchanges at her town halls, not to mention reports of death threats against Hageman, have caused her to suspend those in-person events in favor of virtual ones. 

While virtual town halls work, it’s not the same as being there in person, being able to shake the hand of the person representing your interests in our nation’s capital. 

Those who have caused the disruption and sent the threats are thus harming Wyomingites’ ability to be best represented, and Hageman’s ability to best represent us. It goes against the civil discourse our nation was founded on and harkens back to our lowest points. 

Prior to the U.S. Civil War, when a Southern senator was frustrated by the arguments of a Northern anti-slavery senator, the former whipped out a cane and severely injured his fellow legislator. 

That didn’t lead to an end to abolitionist rhetoric, but instead was one more break in the chain holding a fragile country together on the eve of the deadliest conflict in American history. 

Thankfully there were no reports of actual violence at Hageman’s campaign events, but threats of violence and her being followed after an event in Wheatland are very valid causes for concern that violence may not be far off. 

It’d be a shame if we in the Big Horn Basin don’t get the chance for an in-person town hall because of what people have done to disrupt town halls in the southern part of the state. 

If you disagree with Hageman’s policies or her support of the Trump administration’s decisions, that’s fine. You should go to a town hall with her, and talk with her civilly about your differences. 

As former Cody Enterprise publisher and Simpson friend Bruce McCormack recently wrote in a letter to the editor: Ask yourself, what would Al do?