My work can be incredibly rewarding. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not saving babies and puppies from burning buildings, or anything like that, but every now and then, I realize that what I do makes someone’s life just a little better.
But most days, my job makes me want to rip my hair out. There’s nothing more frustrating that working on a project for months, putting your credibility on the line, collaborating and bringing groups together to formulate policies that are in the best interest of the entire community, only to be told near the end of the process that you can’t go forward because some greedy developer (who doesn’t even live in our community) might not be able to make enough money off of his project this way.
In the most recent election, less than 13% of registered voters bothered to vote. Maybe you didn’t vote because the choices were Dumb or Dumber. Maybe you didn’t vote because you think local elections don’t matter. Well, they do. I guess most people either don’t pay attention to local matters until they have a problem that affects them on a personal level or else they are happy with the status quo.
When will our community learn that the old way of doing things will lead to our downfall? We can’t be so afraid of change that we unwittingly rob ourselves of what made us great in the first place. When will our elected leadership (AND our electorate) learn that you can’t always do what’s best for your cronies/uncle/golfing buddy?
The old boy network is alive and well.
Showing posts with label local issues. Show all posts
Showing posts with label local issues. Show all posts
Wednesday, November 18, 2009
Thursday, October 30, 2008
November 5th cannot get here fast enough. I'm not sure which is worse, that people are so fickle (or stupid?) so as to believe 15-second sound-bites equate to actual policy/decision making/reasons to vote for someone or that politicians and news media perpetuate the cycle...
I wish people would pay as much attention to local matters and local elections as they pay to national issues and elections. A person can affect the most change on the local level, do the most good (or the most harm). We have a global economy and instantaneous information at our fingertips and of course national policy is neccessary. Most, if not all, of our ills, however, can be cured at the local level...poverty, the environment, unemployment, housing, homelessness, energy, education, all of it. Improving social capital on the local level is the best way to improve our society on every level. One man in the White House, 435 men and women in the House, and 100 men and women in the Senate cannot do as much to better this country and the lives of our citizens as the indiviuals and families in our own communities.
As an ardent follower of local matters, I often find myself wondering if I am the only one paying attention to those...people...we've elected to run our city or am I just the only one who votes? Do people not realize the decisions being made and their impacts on our lives? Surely we are intelligent people and would not let this nonsense carry on? I'm not sure where the blame lies - with those of us who voted them into office or with those of us who do not bother to vote at all.
I am encouraged and impressed with voter turn out for this election. Already, even before election day, we have seen record nubmers of voters at the polls. I hear that it is expected that half of all eligible voters will be voting this year. How do we leverage this historic turn-out to improve ourselves on the local level? Afterall, true democratic decisions can only be made on the smallest level. "We the people" are not in Washington; we the people are here in our cities and towns, in our neighborhoods. All this talk about Wall Street and Main Street - Washington doesn't even know what Main Street is anymore.
I wish people would pay as much attention to local matters and local elections as they pay to national issues and elections. A person can affect the most change on the local level, do the most good (or the most harm). We have a global economy and instantaneous information at our fingertips and of course national policy is neccessary. Most, if not all, of our ills, however, can be cured at the local level...poverty, the environment, unemployment, housing, homelessness, energy, education, all of it. Improving social capital on the local level is the best way to improve our society on every level. One man in the White House, 435 men and women in the House, and 100 men and women in the Senate cannot do as much to better this country and the lives of our citizens as the indiviuals and families in our own communities.
As an ardent follower of local matters, I often find myself wondering if I am the only one paying attention to those...people...we've elected to run our city or am I just the only one who votes? Do people not realize the decisions being made and their impacts on our lives? Surely we are intelligent people and would not let this nonsense carry on? I'm not sure where the blame lies - with those of us who voted them into office or with those of us who do not bother to vote at all.
I am encouraged and impressed with voter turn out for this election. Already, even before election day, we have seen record nubmers of voters at the polls. I hear that it is expected that half of all eligible voters will be voting this year. How do we leverage this historic turn-out to improve ourselves on the local level? Afterall, true democratic decisions can only be made on the smallest level. "We the people" are not in Washington; we the people are here in our cities and towns, in our neighborhoods. All this talk about Wall Street and Main Street - Washington doesn't even know what Main Street is anymore.
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