EDITORIAL: Doing your full civic duty

While some towns and cities across America have a difficult time getting people to attend their monthly council meetings on a regular basis—without even imagining the quandary faced by larger bodies such as counties—it should be noted that merely showing up at such an event is not enough.

Like those who make it a habit of attending weekly religious services, most attendees hold just the slightest bit of contempt for those who head for the door before the priest, reverend, minster, rabbi or imaam has completed the ceremony.

Of course, emergencies do happen from time to time and the burning glances from the other service goers are not always justified, but that does not change the fact that it generally happens with each early exit.

At religious ceremonies, one might be hard pressed to refute that “putting in time” at mass, service, temple or mosque fulfilling the purpose of the occasion. Rather, those in attendance are hoped to—at the very least—engage in the service in one fashion or another and stick around for its duration so as to get the message in its entirety.

So it should be with town, city and county council meetings.

Often, citizens practice “cafeteria civics,” picking and choosing specific areas of policy or even individual events as they come up for discussion. There is nothing wrong with this. After all, a person cannot be expected to be an expert at all things brought before local council or board, but at gaining an understanding of the broad strokes of area politics and happenings is generally a good thing.

It for this reason that the idea of anyone leaving a meeting as soon as discussion on an individual subject has concluded is met with the same initial hostility of a person ducking for the door early during a religious ceremony.

Granted, individual circumstances and emergencies cannot be helped and many would argue with the pace of today’s world many people resort to attending only a portion of multiple events in an attempt to cram as many events in as possible. That is completely understandable.

That being said, given the direct effect local politics tend to have our citizen’s lives, it might behoove the greater population to stay for the duration of meetings and special sessions if at all possible.
It might not be easy, it might not be convenient, but most things worth doing rarely are.