Resolution No. 8 Ask, and Answer

I was reminded of an interesting experience that occurred several years ago when I was culling my computer and rediscovering old memoranda. I came across a memo I distributed to my colleagues on the Pacific City Council pointing out that Pacific’s public safety department seemed to be one of the most expensive, if not the most expensive, among small cities in the region. 

I laid out the figures as well as I could, based on e-mail responses from the different cities. The first response I received from my colleagues were that these were LIES! They actually shouted this out. Yes, that's right. They shouted.

This was one of those poignant moments when pubic officials display true stupidity. If someone’s going to lie to you, they are not going to put the lie in writing and explain how they developed their information by specifically directing the reader to their resources. Anyone was at liberty to double check and determine whether the information was sound or not. (By the way, this is the scientific approach – say what you determined, and show how you arrived at that conclusion, so that people can double check and correct you if you are wrong. This is  not the approach that liars take.)

I point this out, because of a flap over whether Pacific Council member Clint Steiger unfairly acquired a truck from the City of Pacific. The story came up in e-mails from my friend, Jeanne Fancher, Pacific’s de-facto news medium.

Now first of all, there’s plenty of reasons to distrust Mr. Steiger. He pulled the wool over the eyes of several council members several years ago to trick them into illegally confirming a new city treasurer. He turned a blind eye to several glaring abuses by Pacific’s controversial Public Safety Director, John Calkins, who should have been dismissed years ago. No reason to trust Clint Steiger. But in this case, Ms. Fancher, whom I trust, said he acquired the truck on the up-and-up.

Well, OK. But let’s look at the experience I had. When I raised a question, I was called a liar.

How do you establish trust with the public , or anyone, if when they ask questions they are called liars? Or they are insulted, the way Prior Mayor Richard Hildreth would interrupt, insult and demean anyone who tried to speak to the city council?  How do you establish trust when you try to suppress a constitutionally-protected march to challenge the city’s policing policies?

Short Answer: You don’t.

What you end up with is people who disengage and then toss mud, frequently from behind the bushes.

There are many examples of why the City of Pacific has not earned the public’s trust.

Here’s how you establish trust: You welcome questions. You allow the public and members of the government to ask any question, no matter how uncomfortable it makes you feel. And you answer it cheerfully and courteously. You do this so effectively that they feel comfortable to ask follow-up questions. And when you make a mistake, you acknowledge it and you thank– that's what I said: thank – the person who discovered it. And when you do that, often enough, you will see the accusations disappear and the trust emerges. Imagine that!

New Year’s resolution No 8:  Ask questions courteously and fearlessly. Answer them courageously and patiently.

Build trust.