Monday night, Whitewater held the first of two listening sessions on the 2010 municipal budget. It had an attendance of one person. That’s not surprising; the event received little advance notice. Part puzzling, and part funny, is how a local website, the (Whitewater Banner) covered the low turnout:
“(Sep 22) The first of two Public Special Listening Sessions on 2010 City Budget was held this evening. The one member of the public was thanked for attending. There was a note of disappointment in the lack of turnout. However, it did allow a “dry run” of the presentation and discussion effort. The effort to get more public participation and input on the City’s 2010 Budget will continue on budgetary issues on Tues. Sep. 29th—6-8 p.m. at the Cravath Lakefront Center (Hosted by the Whitewater Area League of Women Voters)….it is hoped the next listening session will be better attended…”
Who should be disappointed in whom? Suppose someone held a production of Cats: The Musical, and no one attended. Whose responsibility would that be? Would potential attendees have let the production down? Of course not. The event might be poorly attended for lack of publicity, for the poor choice of time, or for the good taste of those staying home.
I suppose a producer might complain that would-be attendees were vulgar, etc., but investors in the production would probably focus their review on the theater company, not the potential audience.
(I really like cats, and even I found one sitting of Cats more than enough for a lifetime.)
There’s also a bit of a scold in all this: “There was a note of disappointment in the lack of turnout” and “it is hoped the next listening session will be better attended…”
A city’s not a nursery; politicians are not nannies.
It’s so easy for those who choose a political office or career in bureaucracy to complain: oh my, no one seems to care anymore…
By the way, I am quite sure that the next session, scheduled for September 29th, will be better attended. The Whitewater-Area League of Women Voters is co-sponsoring the event, and I’d guess they’ll get the word out just fine.