Surprise, Surprise!!!!

I ran across a cable television access program.  The title if you go to the Cable on Demand site for the town is "DOR Informational Meeting".

First, if you suffer from insomnia here is your cure.  

Most importantly though, try and stay awake.  It is very important that you do. 

I have to admit that I must have missed the discussion and announcement during a selectmen's meeting that this was going to happen.  Seriously, you would think there would have been a discussion and a vote along the lines say of the new "mail" policy.  I am guessing I must have missed that meeting.  Perhaps it was discussed during one of the "working" meetings that weren't taped.

Anyway, it is important that you watch it and stay awake while you do.

It is important that you listen and think about what is being said.  It is just as important that you pause and wonder why many of the things recommended to be done haven't been done.  You have to wonder just why those things haven't been done.  

You have to think real hard if those who have been steering the ship, who have hired the crew and who have the ultimate responsibility, have allowed the ship to fall into disrepair and have ended up with a near mutinous crew are up to the task of repairing the ship and getting the crew back into shape.

But hey no need to dwell on the past.

Go to 51 minutes of the program and listen real carefully.  Listen for the term building a consensus.  Then listen to how we are going to put on paper the the process we have been following.   At 53 minutes in, we start to here the "foundation" being laid for the future, but just who has drawn the blueprint? And why hasn't the darn thing been submitted for review?

58 minutes in we hear about establishing guidelines.  It is beyond the midpoint on February, budgets have been prepared and submitted.  Budget hearings are being held by the selectmen and fin com.  Articles are being drawn and prepared for spending.  

All without guidelines that are going to be sprung upon us perhaps next week.

We are in my mind beyond the point of no return as far as getting anything meaningful started, never mind accomplished, and more the shame for it too.  

Pay a great deal of attention to statements made toward the end starting about 1:04 in.  

"All departments".  Listen for that.

You can put together the best game plan in the world, but if you don't get it out to the team in time before the game, you aren't going very far with it.

I suppose the best thing one can take from this little taping is that it appears that some of the town leadership are finally grasping the benefit of taking to the airwaves to inform the public.  Unfortunately, or very fortunately depending on where you stand, taping a show that is the equivalent of watching paint dry doesn't do much except reinforce some all ready held notations.

As the selectman noted (and why just one selectman speaking for the board?) the topics discussed are "sexy".  They are however extremely important.  As such, I am assuming that at some point we are going to see another show with actual details and explanations other than that's what's in the DOR report, or the MuniBank presentation or the Moody's letter.

All the lip service about lack of policies, procedure and internal changes won't erase the fact that those things should have been in place and those practices adopted ten years ago. While it is certainly time to get "proactive" about the lack of these things. the steps taken shouldn't be simple reactions to criticism.

You can't lay all the blame, or even the bulk of the blame for the lack of job description and employment policies on an ineffective personnel board.  I agree the board should be abolished.  But who allowed it to stagnate and become ineffective?

Didn't anyone every notice that very little had been done for years?  

I have to address the issues surrounding the appointment method for finance committee and number of members on the committee.  Let's talk about method of appointment.

Whether or not you might agree that perhaps the actual town provision giving the power to precinct chairs should be changed, ultimately town meeting will decide. But when you criticize a process, I think you best be able to look at how you yourself make appointments and be sure you are above the criticism leveled at others.

How much serious vetting is done to appointments made to committees by the selectmen?  Committee size never seems to be an issue, indeed the standard for many seems simply the more the merrier.  I am not going to get into specific appointments.  While such an action would certainly highlight the need for change on that front, it would also be completely unfair to a number of individuals.

As to the number of members, less does not automatically mean better.  My personal preference aside, the problems that arise with a 13 member committee can be solved just as easily by other alternatives as simply reducing the number.

No make up changes or size reduction is going to make the finance committee any more effective without significant changes in attitude, procedure and release of information from Town Hall.  you can scratch finance committee from that sentence and replace it with just about any town matter you want.

The nagging feeling, the perception about all the yet as exactly unknown proposals to be made is much of what will be proposed is needed, but the method and presentation will keep little from being accomplished.

No surprise there.