After several weeks of contemplation, we have decided to end Local Government Watch and State Government Watch. This was not an easy decision.
Our little business began with LGW. SGW followed soon thereafter.
But our business has grown, and growth has taken it in a different direction. Middle Tennessee Racing Scene long ago surpassed LGW in readership and revenue. MTRS has become the central focus of our company, as it has become a recognized player in the motorsports media industry.
While we were able to somewhat automate and streamline the process of gathering stories for LGW and SGW over the past two years, and readers kept us up to date on many stories, the fact remained that thousands of local news articles were pored over every day to find stories. This process consumed a large amount of time every day, with typical workdays lasting until two or three o'clock in the morning.
While the government watch sites plateaued, MTRS continues to grow at a rapid rate. Despite its specialized following, MTRS has been successful in attracting readers and advertisers, even in this economy.
MTRS also has a large following of regular readers, while readers of the Government Watch sites seem to come and go, as people read about what's happening in their community and then move on. That being said, several thousand of you read the Government Watch sites on a regular basis, and for that we are very grateful. Thank you!
I started the sites after spending ten years working for a municipal government and being disgusted by all the waste and incompetence I saw on a daily basis. I learned that most mid and upper-level managers in government are more concerned about self-preservation. I had this foolish notion that my priority was to serve the taxpayers, not insure the bosses looked good no matter what the cost.
Competence and hard work were often penalized while coffee drinking and incompetence was rewarded. After ten years, it was more than I could take.
I am proud that such organizations as The Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, CNN, CBS News and dozens of others found our sites useful enough to cite them, quote them or link to them. Several states even linked to SGW on their official web sites!
Over the past two years we have received dozens of e-mails from people wondering what to do about corruption in their communities. While unable to respond to each one individually, I do have advice for anyone wanting to change things.
One thing I have learned over the years is that the pen (or keyboard) is indeed mightier than the sword! Write letters to the editor. Start a blog. In this day and age, anyone can start a blog at no cost. Fill your blog with thoughtful articles about what you perceive the problems to be. If you keep writing, trust me, people will find you. Eventually the people you are blogging about will find you as well.
I learned this firsthand last year when a member of the school board in my community, and I live in a city of over 600,000 residents, decided it was worth an entire day of her time to hunt me down, then started pounding on my door because she took exception to something I wrote in Nashville Blotter. Yeah, she saw it when I called her a bigot. She didn't like that, but she got my point. If you are a school board member and your first reaction to a new superintendent candidate is that he is "another white male," there's a pretty good chance I am going to call you a bigot. You have made race a criteria when it should be ignored.
Yes, I will continue my activism via my blog, Nashville Blotter.
Use your blog to find other people who think like you. Get together for coffee at McDonald's to discuss what's going on in your community. You can take it a step further and organize an official group, but please be aware of the laws in your state for political action committees. If you are really getting to some government official, they will play hardball with you, so make sure your I's are dotted and your T's are crossed.
Go to meetings. That takes time, but remember, every government meeting is, or should be, open to the public. Follow their rules, but speak out. Get yourself appointed to a committee. Local governments are always filling committees for some purpose.
Of course, the ultimate thing to do is run for office. Keep in mind, that in either a big city or a small town, running for and holding office is a major commitment, so make sure you are ready to make that commitment.
And be patient. There is a group of crooked politicians I started dogging in the mid-90s. One was finally indicted for his dirty deeds recently. What goes around, comes around.
Not every teacher is a pervert. Not every cop is crooked. Not every politician is corrupt. Not every firefighter is an arsonist. But the truth is, some are. They're doing their misdeeds with your dime. And as we have shown over the past two years, it can happen anywhere. Big city or small town. Including where you live. Always know that.
- Editor Paul
