All Politics Are Local

The Advocate today has an editorial complaining the public is too often keep in the dark by local government.

It's pretty common for citizens to complain that their government operates behind the scenes, that they don't find out about decisions that affect their lives until it's too late to do anything about them, or that when they are given the chance to speak up, it merely provides the appearance of open, responsive government, not the real thing.

The whole thing reads like an indictment of themselves to be honest. Who is better positioned to keep people aware of local happenings than the local paper.

It's also one more chance to trot out the cherry tree controversy. You know how I first learned about the Mill River restoration project and the removal of the trees? I read it in their paper two years ago. So much for a secret plan.