I’m often asked “How come the city spent so much money on …..?” or “Why can’t the city fix my roads?” or “Why can’t we have better schools?” or “How come we spend so much and get so little?” or “Why do my taxes and fees keep going up?”.
Mixing lyrics from Bob Dylan and Michael Jackson: “The answer my friends, is the man in the mirror”.
Either you elected the people who make the decisions, or you didn’t bother to vote, or you didn’t spend the time to understand the issues and advocate your positions to those who vote on your behalf.
Only about 20 percent of eligible voters participated in the last citywide election. Out of those 20 percent, my guess is less than 5 percent actually new much about the candidates or the issues. Many of those elected are well-respected citizens or from well-known families. Their friends and family network is large. I hear people say “His mother was a wonderful person” or “I really like what her brother did” or “He was one heck of a football player back in the day” or “She was so nice to my family”. Being well-connected does not mean they are the most qualified, nor that they’ll use their votes to serve the best interests of the people.
Some don’t really care about your issues, nor want to spend the time to understand all the details or long-term ramifications. I know you’ll find this hard to believe, but in many cases, they use their votes to
serve the interests of their friends, family, and employers – the people who actually vote for them.
In order to make changes in the city, particularly with finances and debt, I believe we need to reach out to that 80 percent who didn’t vote. We need to move them from complaining about issues after the election, to getting involved before the election. We need to keep them engaged after the election. We need people to invest a little time looking at the issues and reaching out to the current elected officials and the new candidates.
This year it looks like we have quite a pool of candidates for the fall election. Many of the races have multiple candidates. Congratulations to everyone who is stepping up and running for office. Thank you to all of the volunteers who are helping them. I’d like to see every race competitive. Your job now, before the election, is to learn a little bit about these folks, and ask them about specific issues facing the
city. If you don’t have a lot of time, pick one issue, and ask all the candidates about it, or share your opinion with them. It will only take you about an hour to write up a letter and mail it, or email it, to each candidate or elected official. If you don’t want to talk with candidates, how about talking with your friends and neighbors and setting a goal of getting three more people to vote? One hour per week or per month really can make a difference.
If you need a mental trigger to encourage you to get involved, here are a few ideas: every time you hit a pothole, remind yourself that you have to reach out to the Massachusetts legislature, city council and
public works to improve funding for roads; every time you see a school bus, remind yourself that you should share a book with a child, volunteer to help the schools, or share your opinions on education
issues with the school committee; every time you drive by the green, remind yourself that you have some great ideas about parks, or feedback about spending, and that you need to reach out to decision-makers; every time you hear that clock tower chime, remind yourself that the city has massive snowballing debts and obligations, and that you need to get involved so that you don’t pass these massive burdens to your children and grandchildren; every time you drive by an American flag, remind yourself that we have many brave hardworking men and women serving the city and country, and that you really should take some time to say thank you, and ask how you can make a difference.
In closing, it’s Memorial Day weekend. I hope we all take some time to pay our respects to those who have served this country, and to remember family and friends who have passed away. Please attend the Memorial Day Parade on Monday. Travel safely.
Dave Flaherty
City Councilor
[email protected]
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not the staff, editor, or publisher of the Westfield News.
