Entries in City Officials Education (1)
Stupid elected officials
Every year, every local elected official has the opportunity to attend some kind of training session. A chance to network with other elected officials from around their state and learn how to do their job better.
Every year, some newspaper somewhere, thinks they have to do a "hit job" on their local officials for attending "training sessions". This year the story comes from the Niagra-Gazette.Com.
In a column the newspaper defended themselves.
The story, written by reporters Dan Miner and Rick Forgione, detailed the town tax money spent to send the officials to the Big Apple for the three-day conference...We published the story in the interest of those taxpayers. We felt people in those towns would want to know what it cost them to send those officials to Manhattan for three days. Is it worth it?
When some local officials defended themselves going to training to do their job better, the newspaper shot back.
It all demonstrates what could be called a political equation: The lower on the governmental food chain, the thinner the skin.
I wonder if the same newspaper would endorse a candidate for office who promised never to learn anything new.
"I have never ran for an elected office before. I am a rookie to this game. If elected I promise not to attend any training whatsoever over the term of my office. I promise not to learn from anyone else's mistakes. If elected I promise I won't even learn from my own mistakes."
Would that make them happy?
I often tell the story of being at a County Zoning Committee meeting. The discussion was if the County Zoning Administrator should be allowed to attend her yearly training conference. One of the members on this committee stated, "I don't want her going somewhere... learning something new... and trying to bring it back here."
Oh yes, we do get the government we deserve sometimes, don't we.
Al Arnold
in City Officials Education
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