It was a gorgeous Sunday afternoon as my kids and I demolished the back nine of a miniature golf course. Sure, I could’ve been home watching football, but instead I selflessly trudged the land of windmills and soda-stained carpet. I don’t want to make a big deal out of this, because I believe humility to be an important trait. Just thought you should know my values before considering future columns. And if you conclude that I’m a swell dad based on this unbiased glimpse, all the better. Just glad you didn’t witness the car fight on the way home.

Character, we’re told, is revealed when nobody is looking. How voters can discern that without looking is a challenge all politicians face.

Anyway, as I gazed to the north, my view was blocked by an enormous billboard picturing Spokane County Commissioner Todd Mielke and his daughter. A caption revealed that he’s proud of her. Now, Mielke and I are single fathers, so I could really connect. He could’ve used the billboard for a lot of other messages, such as his accomplishments or future plans in office, but he understands the power of imagery.

A lot of voters want someone who is like them and reflects their values. Those stuffy policy wonks who can drill deeply into issues and doctrines? Can’t relate. They want a candidate they can have a beer with or accompany on a helicopter hunt for wolves.

Mielke isn’t the only candidate flashing his parental badge. Cruising Internet sites, I found the 40th birthday cake for Brian Sayrs, a candidate for county commissioner. His two boys sure are cute. Legislative candidate Shelly Short’s daughter has been a princess and queen of the Springdale PeeWee Rodeo. Another legislative candidate, Kevin Parker, likes to take his girls to McDonald’s for pancakes on Saturdays.

You may not be convinced this matters, but did you see Sarah Palin and her clan on stage at the Republican Convention? Norman Rockwell would’ve wept. Palin, it seems, is a mother of five children. Did you know this? Yeah, the Obama children were also paraded on stage, but two is fewer than five (or is it six?), especially if one of them is a baby with Down syndrome (in case you haven’t heard).

You can be sure that if the Obamas had five children, including a pregnant teen, they would’ve brought them all up on stage – the boyfriend, too – and gotten the same glowing reviews from the folks who were cheering the Palin family narrative. OK, maybe not. But my point isn’t about racial attitudes and how they reflect personal values.

Now, some people have commented on teenager Bristol Palin’s pregnancy, and the backlash is fascinating. Can’t she have some privacy? That’s nobody’s business!

So where do people get the idea that a politician’s private life is a public matter? Hmm … it’s a puzzler.