Days like yesterday are reasons why I should probably take the next day off from blogging. If I were to follow my own sage advice, I wouldn't be sitting here at the keyboard. Might turn out to be another case of if only I had listened. Of course the dilemma in that is I would be listening to the voices in my head, not necessarily a good thing either.
Time is running out. The clock is ticking on a lot of things. The election is Monday, April 2, 2012. We will all soon be sparred the rhetoric, the lofty ideals and the absolute hypocrisy of some, all being spewed in the name of electing the "best".
After the election, I intend to offer an admittedly personal opinion on just what I have been observing that would warrant the above statement, clearly meant to be critical. Some may ask why wait until after the election. Why not tell us now?
My intent in this blog is not to tell you who to vote for. Yes, one may be able to deduce certain preferences from the contents of past posts. What I have tried to do, however, is provide a certain amount of balance in everything written. You may disagree with the degree of balance obtained. But if you do, then at least you have read what was written, thought about it, and have come to your conclusions. In the end, it is the responsibility of each and every voter to gather the information necessary to make an informed decision.
To many people make a decision simply on what someone else says. There is no questing, no debate, no thought. Having an inkling of who actually follows this daily exercise, most of you would not fall into that category (be it you agree with me or not). I think that most of you agree with the premise that everyone needs to try and stay involved, and if one cannot be actively involved, every effort needs to be made to stay informed.
This is a pivotal year for our town. The people elected need to be the best ones able to effectuate the change many of us see as needed. I do in fact agree that change is needed, not in the manner nor the way some are proposing. Neither do I subscribe to the position of some that we simply base our decisions on who is support who. If that were the case, I submit that I would probably be left with no one to vote for.
I am not speaking of the Charter Commission here, although that is a necessary step in my mind. I am not also advocating everything being proposed by some presently, indeed I am against most of those proposals, certainly in the form being presented.
Wanting change, and being able to make it happen are two entirely different things. Having an idea and being able to implement it are two entirely different things. Wanting to serve and having the ability to do the job are two very distinct qualities.
Every candidate you are considering for office, should at least be measured by not only the the first parts of the above, but the second. Is what is being said needed, and can it be done and can they do it?
Every election season several things happen for me. I find people who get involved who I hope will make it. I find people who choose to run I would like to see elected. I discover people who may be running or have gotten involved who I would prefer not get elected, but hope they decide to stay involved in the "process".
I will leave out the negative "happenings" for right now.
Right after this election, those elected people will now face an extremely daunting task, some more than others, in dealing with the budgets their individual offices will have to operate with come FY 2013. Neither the "daunting", nor task usually perplex me. A problem exists, a solution must be found, we as a town have to deal with it. We roll up our sleeves and get to it.
The perplexing part now is the fact, I can't figure out just how big that problem is right now, and apparently, based on ever shifting numbers it appears I am not the only one.
I really hope everyone running is up to the task, because quite frankly since everyone has a chance at being elected, whoever it is is going to need to jump into the fray immediately.
In all honesty the fact that I am my less than sun shinny, optimistic self this morning is probably simply associated with the fact not enough time has transpired since yesterday.
Everyday though, it just seems the thought that "it shouldn't be so hard" gets more and more attention.
I suppose I could find this out myself, but I figured I'd ask it in public. It has been said--by you, I think--that Jeffrey Osuch has already stated his intention to retire in about three years. The term for selectmen is three years. Is the selectman we elect in April automatically going to be one of the people who hires the next executive secretary after Jeffrey retires?
ReplyDeleteTo the best of my knowledge there has been no official retirement announcement or time frame. Any statements made have been as a result of requests for funding which would indicate that the same will take place in three years or less. The issue of whether the new selectman will "automatically" hire the next executive secretary would be dependent on a number of factors, ranging from whether the "old" one leaves, when that would happen, when the time frame is established for seeking a replacement, when a replacement is needed, and when the decision is actually made, and last but not least, if the "new" selectman is re-elected in three years. Any and all of these tangibles would have a direct impact on what transpires and who is involved.
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