Some months ago, at the suggestion of a particularly sharp reader, I created a weekly feature called Prisoner Monday, in which I posted video excerpts from the British television series The Prisoner. The series describes the adventures of a man who finds himself in a mysterious place called The Village, and his quest to find…

Somewhere, there must be books that describe how one should properly and appropriately set table, with the correct and approved position of plates, glasses, knives, forks, and spoons. I have never read any of those books, nor felt that I should. When I go to a restaurant, I assume that the owner has figured all…

I have written a few overview posts, these past two weeks, highlighting unusual and curious aspects of life here. I will resume a more conventional posting schedule, with a daily morning feature, beginning next week. In the meantime, I will finish highlighting some of the ways that we’re just not the rural town that the…

Whitewater, Wisconsin has a common council form of government. There are seven members to the common council, five elected from districts across parts of the city, and two elected city wide, from across the town. Together, they are both the legislative, and executive, authority in town. We have not merely a common council, but also…

One of the attributes of many small rural towns is that they risk stagnation, and thereafter decline, either relative or absolute. For many in America, the idea of any decline seems absurd. Residents of a Maryland suburb may worry about too much growth, and crowding. Believe it or not, we have some who share the…

America is a dynamic and competitive place. The rise of America, from defeat of a haughty empire, her expansion across an entire continent, to her current prosperity owe to individual liberty, free enterprise, and a hope for peaceful commerce with the world beyond. A people with these values could not be expected to stand still,…

If you’ve read recent studies or articles about small town America, then you have read that many rural towns struggle to maintain residents. They find themselves shriveling and withering, unable to assure a prosperous future for the next generation of residents. It’s a hard problem, and efforts to overcome a decline in population – no…

Walk around Whitewater, and talk to those who are elderly, lifetime residents, and you’re sure to catch their nostalgia for an older Whitewater. About the Whitewater of their youth, and how the town has changed, I will comment later. For now, I’ll describe how the present day residents, often Scandinavian-American and German-Americans, among our town’s…

In 1837, a group of settlers left Milwaukee for the area now Whitewater, and arrived after little under a week’s travel. They were the first settlers to arrive at a place where only tribes had lived before. If you’re reading from the east coast, 1837 may not seem nearly as early or as hazardous as…

America began as a collection of villages and towns, of tribes, settlers, colonists, and later, citizens. We had no indispensable great city, no Rome or London, on which all depended. We still don’t. Yet, we have changed, so very much, and America is no longer a collection of small, rural towns. When we refer to…

It’s the season, across Wisconsin, for municipalities to present and approve their 2010 budgets. The process varies by city – some finish quickly, some extend the discussion from October into November. We are among that latter group – although we are a small town, our municipal budget is a big matter, with considerable discussion. Last…

There’s more than one way to change an organization. I’ve thought, over the years, that there were two principal ways: begin by shaping the attitude of employees, or by shaping their behavior. (I see that it’s possible to begin with both, but my point would be that one typically begins by emphasizing one over the…