Editorial: We could learn from Chilean rescue

Last week's successful rescue of 33 trapped miners from a collapsed mine in Chile was one of the more uplifting stories in recent memory.

People from all over the world watched the rescues taking place on live television, which broadcast unforgettable images of the miners emerging from a half-mile beneath the Earth's surface and their emotional reunions with their families.

We think there are several important lessons that Americans in general and our readers in Downstate Illinois, in particular, can draw from these events.

In our part of Illinois, coal mining is a tradition. Although many mines have closed in recent years, many families in our area have special empathy for the ordeal the Chilean miners endured. Downstate Illinois has seen its share of tragic mining accidents in its history, so the recovery of all of the trapped miners in relatively good health seemed little short of miraculous.

It's also interesting to note how the Chilean government and the mine operators there handled the situation, and contrast that to similar crises we've experienced in the United States.

In Chile, the government's efforts to rescue the miners largely were transparent. The media and the families were given remarkable access right from the start. By comparison, coal mine disasters during the last few years in Utah and West Virginia saw the mine owners trying to control information and access, which often resulted in confusion for reporters and anguish for the families of the trapped miners. The Chilean effort also compares positively to our government's response to this year's massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Whereas the U.S. government issued contradictory and incomplete information, and even helped BP and the other corporate entities involved to restrict access to the disaster scene, the Chilean government went out of its way to be open. That attitude paid off in positive public relations worldwide.

Finally, the Chilean experience is particularly worth noting when our own country is caught up in one of the most bitter and divisive election seasons in memory. Americans should reflect on how an entire nation pulled together and solved a difficult problem with a spirit of cooperation and unity.

As Americans, we are entitled to our own opinions and to disagree politically with our fellow citizens. But too often, we demonize each other for political purposes, and that rancor lasts long after the actual election. The truth is, the vast majority of Democrats are not wild-eyed socialists trying to take away our cherished freedoms as Americans, just as most Republicans are not greedy opportunists hoping to enrich themselves at the expense of the less fortunate. Whether we side with the Tea Party or support President Barack Obama, we're all Americans who just happen to have different views about many issues.

But in the end, if we truly hope to solve our nation's problems, we can learn a lot from the Chileans. No matter what the outcome of this election, Americans need to pull together and work toward a common goal of making our nation a stronger, better place to live for ourselves and our descendants.