Editorial

Elections and retirements have changed the faces of local government in some of our municipalities this week.  Among their many duties and responsibilities, local government officials are in charge of providing services for the people of their communities and spending taxpayer dollars wisely.  Finding the balance between the two is sometimes a very difficult task.

Among the changes: In Berks County, Washington Township welcomed two new supervisors while Hereford welcomed one; Milford Township, in Bucks County, welcomed a new Secretary-Treasurer as a long-time public servant prepares for her retirement; in the Montgomery County community of Pennsburg the mayor and a councilperson switched seats and the borough of East Greenville welcomed two new council members and swore in a new council president.  Upper Salford also welcomed a new supervisor.

As you take your seat at the table of leadership, this newspaper wishes you well.  Remember that you were elected or appointed to represent the people and keep the best interests of them and the community at the forefront of all of your decisions.

Now that you hold the position of a decision maker, you’ll find all kinds of folks trying to curry favor with you.  Anybody who stands to make money from their advice, intended to guide your decisions, should be vetted properly so that they have your utmost support and confidence.  That’s what trust is built upon. 

Never, ever be afraid to ask questions and seek other opinions – especially in matters of disagreement.  Remember, you don’t know everything and neither do they.  If they feel your questions represent a lack of trust, then maybe you should be looking for another advisor.  Don’t spend money that your municipality doesn’t have on projects they don’t need.

Know when a compromise is the best solution to an issue and don’t be too proud or stubborn to do so when it is in the best interest of the people and the community, but not necessarily your ego.  Usually officials who already made promises to others find themselves to be the most inflexible when it comes to compromising.  Don’t make promises you can’t keep.  Local governments are made up of councils and boards and each official has a say in the final decision.

Don’t govern from a bully pulpit.  Loud voices and angry outbursts do nothing but display your weaknesses.  Waving your hands and stomping your feet just makes you look silly.  Resolve to listen to others, and most importantly, hear what they have to say.

Always be courteous to others.  The way you treat them is your message of how you want them to treat you.

You’re a public official.  Welcome to the leadership table – now make your constituents proud of you.

As we come to the close of 2009 some will spend time looking back while others choose to look ahead.

Terrorists are still trying to use the airlines to kill innocent people; military actions in the Middle East continue; stock markets continue their slow ascent from an abysmal low; and the economy shows signs of improvement among rising unemployment.

Our nation’s leaders are currently immersed in an overhaul of our health care, pushing through legislation, along party lines, that 53 percent of the American people oppose (according to the latest Quinnipiac poll).  It is just amazing that hundreds of millions of dollars were spent by Senators to buy the backing of non-supportive members of their chamber by allocating funds to special projects in the states or districts. 

Though there are plenty of arguments pro and con, the impact of the nation’s economic recovery efforts is still inconclusive, but hundreds of billions have been spent trying.

Meanwhile, back in Pennsylvania, the topic of table games at casinos in the Commonwealth still needs to be finalized so we can we can truthfully declare that our state now has a budget (six months late).

Narcissism still reigns in the minds of too many elected officials from the local level all the way up to the federal.  When will they realize that they’re only as important as the voters allow them to be and when will more voters choose to look beyond party lines to see the real value of a candidate?

But looking ahead we can have hope – remember progress, no matter how glacial, is still progress.

Terrorists are getting caught before the fact; although one did get through on Christmas Day.  Many people are saying we’re lucky the bomb didn’t go off and that’s true.  But remember, we have to be lucky with every attempt – a terrorist only needs to be lucky once.

Changes to the health care system will bog down just long enough between the Senate and House for money to be appropriated to the proper elected officials for their vote.  Some of the changes will be good and some not so good.  Let’s hope that our Congressmen will take the time to fix what will inevitably be broken before they move on to their next directive.

Maybe we should require government officials to learn the difference between getting something done and getting something done right.

Last week Pennsylvania legislative leaders were reported to have solved a key disagreement holding up a measure to expand casino gambling to include table games and, hopefully, generate enough revenue to keep the Governor from laying off more employees.

And finally, 2010 is an election year.  A chance for us to hang onto elected officials who put the concerns of their constituents ahead of lobbyists and special interests groups, and boot the rest out of office.  By the way, that’s also how you get rid of narcissists.

So now, from all of us here at the Town and Country newspaper, we wish you a happy and prosperous New Year.