Some Pacific residents seem to be upset about the current chaotic conditions in their city government. Well, it took them long enough.
This is the town that tolerated racial profiling and a public safety director who proudly wore on his chest -- on the night he was arrested and charged with DUI -- a T-shirt that celebrated the Chicago police riots of 1968 and proclaimed, "We kicked your father's ass, now it's your turn." When I placed a photo of his DUI booking on a T-shirt of my own, a city councilman complimented him on the likeness, and another councilman berated me for wearing the shirt, while ignoring the dishonor the public safety director had brought on the city.
This is not a city that has been blessed with enlightened leadership. The elected officials have included alcoholics, an individual who used the advantage of public office to promote and benefit himself and individuals who encouraged the mentally ill to vilify their opponents. It takes a long time to close wounds like that, and the newest mayor shows no inclination to try.
I am absolutely convinced that at least eight out of 10 Pacific residents are disgusted with the kind of behavior I've mentioned here. And I understand why many haven't gotten involved. No intelligent person wants to hug the tar baby. But something has to be done and someone has to do it to move this city in a more positive direction. Either that, or get real and disincorporate.
Occasional feel-good stories about limited activities that warm the cockles of your heart aren't going to solve the problem. The turmoil is going to continue until a set of leaders emerge who understand what it means to operate a democratic government. Ignoring obvious abuses didn't cut it, and now the fat's in the fire, and rightly so.
It's going to take more than one or two leaders to get things back on track. It's going to take a village.
What has happened over the past 30 years is that the village has disappeared. When Pacific had 2,500 residents, people knew each other. There was a definite sense of community. There was a volunteer fire department that had a lot of local participants. People pitched in and paid attention. As the town became a city, things changed. For example, volunteer fire fighters were displaced by paid staff, many of whom didn't live in town and therefore didn't see residents as their neighbors. When your kids don't play together, that's a significant qualitative difference.
Twelve years ago, when I organized a small group of individuals into Pacific Candlelighters, we hoped we could launch projects that would attract Pacific residents in a community-building drive. But that got sidelined with the ongoing grudge matches in the city government and self-serving power grabs. Building community infrastructure became impossible.
It is no coincidence that "community" and "communication" are so similar in appearance. They rely on the reality that "community" depends on "communication."
And so I'm going to make an offer to this aggregation of individuals who live within the boundaries of the corporate entite we refer to as "Pacific". The numbers on this blog site indicate about 10 people visit every day. That's a lot for a city this size.
My invitation is for the village to emerge through these pages. People who have something to offer are invited to use the space on this site to share their ideas about what they think should be happening in Pacific. I don't care if you are 18 or 80, rich or poor, or who you are. What I want to know is what you think can be done to make this a better city. Let's start simple: An open letter of up to 1,000 words from anyone who wants to submit it. I'll proofread it for libel and decency, but otherwise I will run it as is.
This is not a city that has been blessed with enlightened leadership. The elected officials have included alcoholics, an individual who used the advantage of public office to promote and benefit himself and individuals who encouraged the mentally ill to vilify their opponents. It takes a long time to close wounds like that, and the newest mayor shows no inclination to try.
I am absolutely convinced that at least eight out of 10 Pacific residents are disgusted with the kind of behavior I've mentioned here. And I understand why many haven't gotten involved. No intelligent person wants to hug the tar baby. But something has to be done and someone has to do it to move this city in a more positive direction. Either that, or get real and disincorporate.
Occasional feel-good stories about limited activities that warm the cockles of your heart aren't going to solve the problem. The turmoil is going to continue until a set of leaders emerge who understand what it means to operate a democratic government. Ignoring obvious abuses didn't cut it, and now the fat's in the fire, and rightly so.
It's going to take more than one or two leaders to get things back on track. It's going to take a village.
What has happened over the past 30 years is that the village has disappeared. When Pacific had 2,500 residents, people knew each other. There was a definite sense of community. There was a volunteer fire department that had a lot of local participants. People pitched in and paid attention. As the town became a city, things changed. For example, volunteer fire fighters were displaced by paid staff, many of whom didn't live in town and therefore didn't see residents as their neighbors. When your kids don't play together, that's a significant qualitative difference.
Twelve years ago, when I organized a small group of individuals into Pacific Candlelighters, we hoped we could launch projects that would attract Pacific residents in a community-building drive. But that got sidelined with the ongoing grudge matches in the city government and self-serving power grabs. Building community infrastructure became impossible.
It is no coincidence that "community" and "communication" are so similar in appearance. They rely on the reality that "community" depends on "communication."
And so I'm going to make an offer to this aggregation of individuals who live within the boundaries of the corporate entite we refer to as "Pacific". The numbers on this blog site indicate about 10 people visit every day. That's a lot for a city this size.
My invitation is for the village to emerge through these pages. People who have something to offer are invited to use the space on this site to share their ideas about what they think should be happening in Pacific. I don't care if you are 18 or 80, rich or poor, or who you are. What I want to know is what you think can be done to make this a better city. Let's start simple: An open letter of up to 1,000 words from anyone who wants to submit it. I'll proofread it for libel and decency, but otherwise I will run it as is.
Replies and expanded dialog will be encouraged.
And I'd like to include a little bit of information about the writers, so that people get to know each other. You can even submit a photo of yourself, if you like.
Given the current rate of hits on this site, your message likely would be seen by at least 50 people over the course of a month. And if you strike the right chord, people may just share what you have to say with others.
You don't have to express an opinion. You might want to point out something you think has gone unnoticed in the town. Maybe there is a neighbor, a city employee or an organization that deserves some recognition. Or maybe you have an activity you would like people to participate in. It don't care what you have to say. It's what's important to you that's important. I would only ask that the contributions be thoughtful, constructive, and not self-serving.
What I'm hoping for is that this will begin connecting people who can feed off each other in a manner that will heal this community, and by which new leaders can emerge and be recognized who have the gumption to work on the city's problems and build community.
I believe it was President Harry Truman who believed that any community of 5,000 people could probably generate a man fit to be president.
It's not all that new of an idea. The Greek philosopher Plato said that the ideal republic would have 5040 citizens. (Athens had only about 20,000 people at about that time.)
Pacific likely has the human talent to address this city's problems and solve them, but it's going to take a village--and people who are committed to the concept of village--and open dialog.
Anyone who is interested may submit their statements to me at dancingpotter@gmail.com. I'll post them here.
Sincerely,
Robert Smith
And I'd like to include a little bit of information about the writers, so that people get to know each other. You can even submit a photo of yourself, if you like.
Given the current rate of hits on this site, your message likely would be seen by at least 50 people over the course of a month. And if you strike the right chord, people may just share what you have to say with others.
You don't have to express an opinion. You might want to point out something you think has gone unnoticed in the town. Maybe there is a neighbor, a city employee or an organization that deserves some recognition. Or maybe you have an activity you would like people to participate in. It don't care what you have to say. It's what's important to you that's important. I would only ask that the contributions be thoughtful, constructive, and not self-serving.
What I'm hoping for is that this will begin connecting people who can feed off each other in a manner that will heal this community, and by which new leaders can emerge and be recognized who have the gumption to work on the city's problems and build community.
I believe it was President Harry Truman who believed that any community of 5,000 people could probably generate a man fit to be president.
It's not all that new of an idea. The Greek philosopher Plato said that the ideal republic would have 5040 citizens. (Athens had only about 20,000 people at about that time.)
Pacific likely has the human talent to address this city's problems and solve them, but it's going to take a village--and people who are committed to the concept of village--and open dialog.
Anyone who is interested may submit their statements to me at dancingpotter@gmail.com. I'll post them here.
Sincerely,
Robert Smith
Thank you :)
ReplyDeleteAnne M
Pacific resident, Chicago Blvd South
Don't just thank me, Anne. Take advantage of the offer. There are people in town who want to hear what you have to say. The journey of 1,000 miles begins with a single step. And a community-building and community-healing dialog begins with a single word.
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