We are afraid of turning into one of those “used to be” people.
You know… things used to be so much simpler when… things used to be so much better then…back when milk came in glass bottles delivered to your door; back when nobody got divorced and everybody smoked.
We like nostalgia as well as the next person but when it comes to town meetings, it really does seem like something is missing this year.
This is still town meeting season, sort of, anyway. Not too long ago, virtually everyone met in March. For us, the month was one long slog through budgets and ordinance amendments and various other issues of local concerns specific to individual towns in any given year.
March used to be the kind of thing that would bring on the journalistic equivalent of the 1000-yard stare.
In recent years, towns have moved their annual town meetings to coincide more along the lines of their fiscal year. As a result, these days town meeting season begins in March and ends in June. It’s easier on everyone, it seems, but it’s not the same.
Two local towns, Jefferson and Waldoboro, have even done away with the traditional town meeting format altogether. They vote by referendum, certainly a more time efficient model, but one we think takes away from the traditional town meeting.
Still it seems like we’re missing something this year as meeting after meeting ticks by with little debate, shrunken budgets and generally few complaints. It is so relatively stress free, it hardly feels like a town meeting season anymore.
The thing is, warts and all, town meeting is still the most important time of year. For all the squawking people do about government not caring, town meeting is absolute proof positive that Americans citizens are their own government.
As surprised as we are by the results of the Bristol validation vote yesterday, we commend all who voted this week and last, to express their opinion. It may be messy and it may not always be fun, but it is democracy in action and it’s vitally important we participate.
