[speedgibson] Speed Gibson: If you want it, Here it is, Come and get it

[Email subscription to blog articles]

Posted by Speed Gibson:
If you want it, Here it is, Come and get it
http://speedgibson.powerblogs.com/posts/1235110327.shtml


   I attended last night's District 281 Public Hearing on the Closing of
   Pilgrim Lane Elementary School, held at said school. I'd guess the
   attendance was just over 50, plus the Board, Superintendent and a
   number of District officials.
   I left after the formal meeting was adjourned, moving on to an
   informal session reserved for answering transition questions. I'd had
   my fill of slander, nonsense, unfounded accusations, and conspiracy
   theories, even a little bigotry.
   There wasn't much real substance to comment on. Instead, I'll note the
   repeated charge that the District was not being sufficiently
   forthcoming with information, too little or too late or both. This was
   generally expressed as "you didn't tell us" as opposed to "we didn't
   know" and there's a big difference. Who is responsible for that
   communication?
   Information is not free. You have to invest time and money to obtain
   it. You have to pick the mediums that suit you - mailings, broadcast
   TV, cable channels, newspapers, radio, the web site, and of course -
   blogs! Or you can do it the hard way like I have, by attending
   meetings and getting involved.
   The District conducts almost all of its business in public. You can
   obtain ten times that in detail for the asking. Other than for some
   specific cases like litigation and expulsions, there are no secrets
   that I'm aware of.
   That all said, it is totally unrealistic to think that the District
   can communicate in all the ways I listed, meeting the various
   expectations. They do some mailings, some Web publishing, some press
   releases, and so on, but it varies on a case by case basis as it must.
   Don't forget: it costs the District money to communicate, too - your
   money.
   Another unrealistic expectation is that everything will be said
   perfectly, every time, and that you'll understand it exactly right
   each time. Ask for confirmations and clarifications if something
   bothers you, when you first hear it instead of mistakenly complaining
   later on. And be a little forgiving when misunderstandings occur.
   If it's important to you, it's your responsibility to stay informed,
   like life in general.