Entry 136 of 206
By Carol Lindstrom On September 9, 2008 at 10:09 AM

"I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them." - Thomas Jefferson


Okay, I'm a tad bit angry, which for an old cajun like me, equates with a thermonuclear event! Some of you are already reaching for the old bottle of blood pressure medicine....if you're not, you should!

Like a lot of other people, I've been wondering why it is that the Town of Christiansburg doesn't do more to keep people informed of what government is doing. I've also been wondering why the elected officials are so scared of including citizens on committees. And, I have been studying real hard on why elected officials do not want the elections to be moved to November where it would be easier for voters and would encourage greater citizen participation.

Well, I think I've put all the pieces together and the puzzle isn't very pretty. Why would government want to keep information from being easily accessible to citizens, and why would government work so hard to minimize the amount of input that citizens have into the process? Quite simply, because to allow these to occur would enable citizens to fully understand the processes involved in local government and would be an acknowledgment of the citizens' worth and power. If you make that acknowledgment, you remove the efficacy of that old pattern of "don't you worry, we know more than you, and we'll make all of the decisions for you" and are forced to allow citizens to evaluate the performance of elected officials.

When one of the candidates spoke at a candidate forum this Spring of how we didn't want our elections to be in November like Blacksburg , because in Blacksburg, if they don't like what you do, they vote you out! I couldn't have been more stunned if you had slapped me. I mean, this is America, right? Isn't this the very reason why we have the right to vote? If you don't like what's happening, you vote for someone else. Hopefully, someone who is listening and doing what the people want.

It is unfortunate that this seems to exemplify the rationale Town Council has for keeping voter turn-out to a minimum by keeping Town elections in May. Include in that the issue that was brought up that the Town Council members would be seen as affiliates of political parties because they are voted on the same day as those elected officials that are affiliated with parties. Duh! Local elections are specifically excluded from the list in the State Code. Only those candidates for federal, statewide and General Assembly are required to show party affiliation. General Ballot information. No deep, dark secrets here. It isn't done because it isn't required. Just maybe, voters are not as ignorant as some council members would like to suggest!

In local elections where we SHOULD be able to see exactly what is going on in our government, party affiliation has little impact. We see what you are doing, we either like it or not, and then we vote accordingly. For that concept to be fully effective, it requires that government be transparent, not operating where we can only see what we are either allowed or demand to see.

What I find most offensive about all of this is the cultivation of a sense of powerlessness/helplessness that is promoted within the voting public. We do not need someone to tell us what to think, what is important, what we need. We need elected officials who will listen to all of those bits of information coming from citizens, and then have the courage to set aside their own fears, doubts, values, beliefs, and personal financial interests to represent the people!

(My thanks to the Town Council for pointing out that a petition could be used to move elections to November. It was not until I started researching that issue that I discovered the myriad of ways in which petitions and referendums can be used by the public! --- sigh--yet another future blog - my list keeps growing!)

We are not powerless or helpless. In fact, through petitions and referendums, "we the people" have the ability to drop-kick local government and the charter into oblivion and start ALL over. NO! I'm not saying we should throw out the baby with the bathwater. Just that the law does allow for citizens to take action when elected officials do not. In situations where government is not responsive to and respectful of its citizens, something needs to change. How that change occurs should be based on an evaluation of the performance of elected officials AND the wishes of the citizens that they work for!! When that fails, citizens have other methods at their disposal to get the job done. Petitions and Referendums are just the ticket for such situations!

A government that works in partnership, rather than dictatorship fashion, with the citizens it represents is the ultimate goal. It requires open government and active lines of communications. It requires mutual respect. It requires citizen participation. For those elected officials who do their jobs well and keep citizens informed, there should be no fear of moving elections to November. If they can stand the scrutiny that such open government provides, then they deserve to be re-elected. If not, then just having it so that your friends are the majority of those who vote will not carry you forever. Sooner or later, you will be held accountable. Unfortunately, by the time it gets to that point, the citizens may well be in that 'drop-kick' mode that I mentioned earlier.