It was with much chagrin that I read the article about the town advisory positions opening so that citizens can take an “active” role in town government.
Citizens must first fill out an application. Then, according to the article, they may be invited to interview with a subcommittee of the town council, which will then provide a recommendation to the mayor. I guess that, if you’re not invited to an interview, you’ve been rejected out of hand for some reason, no doubt in the “application.” Following the interviews, the mayor makes the final appointment at a council meeting with the council’s consent, according to the newspaper article.
What’s all that about? How about this instead: Fill out your name, address, age and verify with ID that you are a town resident over the age of 18. Put the names in a box and then have a lay citizen attending a council meeting blindly pull the requisite number of names from the box to fill the positions. End of search!
The way it’s set up now smacks of “stacking” the positions with persons who favor the mayor and her positions on town political questions. It appears that would be what the interview would be all about. What else would they ask? Do you speak English? Can you read and write? Do you like ice cream? What?
If people in town government want town citizens to take an active role, they should not pick and choose who gets to do that. It should be truly open to any citizen eligible by citizenship and age.
