has been the four days I spent in Milwaukee....
honestly...I felt like a hostage to the city as soon as the sun went down...I guess I've been living in rural Wisconsin for so long that I'm simply not accustomed to what is considered normal by big-city dwellers....
I suppose I could get used to it but for now I'll just kick back and pour a glass of wine, take off my shoes, put my feet up and relax.
As some of you know I attended the League of Wisconsin Municipalities Convention in 
Milwaukee. I usually don't attend but I wanted to see one of our favorite bloggers, Al Arnold, the self-appointed (not begrudgingly) Mayor of Commonsenseville, USA, who was conducting two of the break-out sessions of the convention. His first was based upon his book Moving Mountains and Molehills, Local Politics 101, and the second was on his newest project, Citizens against Apathy. He had some pretty good suggestions that I just might try locally but I'm not sure it's going to get off the ground....I'll give it a shot though.
Milwaukee. I usually don't attend but I wanted to see one of our favorite bloggers, Al Arnold, the self-appointed (not begrudgingly) Mayor of Commonsenseville, USA, who was conducting two of the break-out sessions of the convention. His first was based upon his book Moving Mountains and Molehills, Local Politics 101, and the second was on his newest project, Citizens against Apathy. He had some pretty good suggestions that I just might try locally but I'm not sure it's going to get off the ground....I'll give it a shot though.As far as the rest of the conference was concerned, I picked up some new information...primarily on the the new Open Meeting Law Rulings and also on the Public Records informationn. Also some info on Nuisance properties which may be helpful.
But
By-and-large, these conventions are not, in my opinion, a wise use of my time....I think I'll just keep corresponding with Al and skip the rest of the convention next time.
One of the most productive things that happened at the convention was a series of conversations with my counterparts in which I laid out my theory that, locally, we are in dire need of fundamental change in the way we do business. I know that it's not in vogue now, but the term, CHANGE OF PARADIGM, comes very quickly to mind. I feel that we are caught in a paradigm which is no longer useful or productive to the people we represent and we need to change course. My colleagues seem to agree and if there is any difference of opinion, then it is only on how quickly we need to change. Do we go for "evolution" or "revolution"? Good questions.
When I came back, however, there were several issues that seem to have grown from small brushfires to major conflagurations.... Here we go again...fight off the alligators but don't forget that the need is to drain the swamp!
