This past week, I studied transparency, whistle-blowing, and dissent in public administration. In addition, Dr. E. assigned us Letter from a Birmingham Jail as written by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in April, 1963. This week’s blog entry might seem a little disjointed to the reader, as I am going to discuss two different topics. First, I will give my thoughts on Dr. King’s letter and how aspects are sadly still alive today. Second, I will discuss transparency in government. My original blog was going to be focused on transparency, but Dr. King’s letter moved me to write on it as well, so please bear with me.
I have to admit that I have never read any of Dr. King’s letters, but when I read Letter from a Birmingham Jail, I could not stop. Dr. King’s writing is so eloquent, powerful, and moving to me. The letter
itself addresses the problems that occurred during the civil rights movement in the 1960’s, and addresses what was, and in many ways, still is to some degree, wrong with our society. Dr. King’s biggest disappointment was not only with those who proponents of segregation, but also with those who supported integration, but chose not to act on their support.
The words that struck my heart solidly was Dr. King’s exclamation that “we will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people” (King Jr., 1963). This really got me thinking about today’s society, and the complaining that people do for the sake of complaining. People become frustrated with government decisions and actions taken (or lack thereof), but generally their complaints are never followed through with any action. What does complaining do if it doesn't lead to action? Nothing. I see inaction in the workplaces. I see inaction in our homes. I see inaction in our marriages. This adds up to inaction in our society. It used to be that if something was broke, people would pitch in and fix it. Today, if people try to pitch in and fix a problem, there are more standing idly by and complaining about how the fix is now the problem, and how better it would have been if they would have fixed it. If that is the case, please stand up and act!
I have thoroughly loved this class, as well as writing this blog. It has brought out the idealist in me! I have worked in government now for almost twelve years. I have seen the worse as well as the best aspects of government. I can honestly say that every chapter I have read in Combating corruption, encouraging ethics: a practical guide to management ethics has spoken to me, and sadly enough, I have been able relate real-world examples to each subject.
In my job, transparency in government means that my books are open for public viewing (as they should be). This includes our budgeting process our financial reports, even individual transactions can be viewed if the public requests it. But, transparency does not only mean that our books are open, to me it also transcends into many other aspects of government through the sunshine laws that have been put into place. “Sunshine laws make meetings, records, votes, deliberations and other official actions available for public observation, participation and/or inspection” (Investopedia, 2014). An example of my government’s work towards transparency can be found in the publishing of our annual financial report, or CAFR, which can be
found at http://www.co.benton.or.us/finance/documents/benton_county_cafr_2012.pdf, our annual list of expenditures, available at: http://www.co.benton.or.us/finance/documents/transparencyreportFY2012-13.pdf, and our biennial budget document, which is available at http://www.co.benton.or.us/budget/documents/1315/documents/AdoptedBudgetDraftone-Finalwithblanksandfootersrevised8-7-2013wlinks.pdf.
An excellent example of government transparency can be found on a program titled “dashboard” that is available on the City of Albany, Oregon website at http://www.cityofalbany.net/departments/finance/budget-information/about-the-dashboard. The City of Albany provides this excellent tool that will allow a citizen to perform lookup functions of the City’s financial activities. “The Albany Dashboard is a new tool in providing up-to-date financial and performance data to the residents of Albany” (City of Albany, 2014).
Transparency does not only open the door to financial statements, but also to meeting minutes and calendars. Our County’s Board of Commissioners conduct their meetings in a transparent environment that allows for public viewing with in person or to read via published minutes. The only exception to the requirement for open meetings is in the case of “executive sessions”. Executive sessions are closed meetings where sensitive information (such as the hiring/firing of public officials, labor negotiations, etc) can be shared and discussed between the governing body. In Oregon, an executive session can be announced at the beginning of a public meeting so that the general public understands that a portion of a normally public meeting will be held privately. An example of the schedule of meetings is available at: http://www.co.benton.or.us/boc/meetings.php. Another great tool for transparency is available through the City of Corvallis, Oregon at http://www.corvallisoregon.gov/index.aspx?page=69. Here you can find videos of the City Council meetings from 2008 to present day. This gives the citizens of Corvallis a great option if they are interested in what is going on in their government, but either forgot or cannot attend the meeting at the scheduled time and place.
Is transparency of good thing? Of course it is. “Political scientists maintain that nontransparent institutions, low-paid public servants, and a shortage of independent and well-functioning market mechanisms are antecedents of corruption” (Luo, 2007, p. 75). Essentially, transparency helps make government accountable for their actions while minimizing the fostering atmosphere for corruption.
That is all for now. Have a great week, and go be part of the solution!
References
City of Albany, O. (2014). About the Dashboard. Retrieved from City of Albany, Oregon Government: http://www.cityofalbany.net/departments/finance/budget-information/about-the-dashboard
Investopedia. (2014). Sunshine Laws. Retrieved from Investopedia US: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sunshinelaws.asp
King Jr., D. M. (1963, April 16). Letter from a Birmingham jail. Retrieved from Historical Text Archive: http://historicaltextarchive.com/sections.php?action=read&artid=40
Luo, Y. (2007). Understanding fraud, waste, and corrupt practices. In W. L. Richter, & F. Burke, Combating corruption, encouraging ethics: a practical guide to management ethics (pp. 75-78). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
I have to admit that I have never read any of Dr. King’s letters, but when I read Letter from a Birmingham Jail, I could not stop. Dr. King’s writing is so eloquent, powerful, and moving to me. The letter
itself addresses the problems that occurred during the civil rights movement in the 1960’s, and addresses what was, and in many ways, still is to some degree, wrong with our society. Dr. King’s biggest disappointment was not only with those who proponents of segregation, but also with those who supported integration, but chose not to act on their support.
The words that struck my heart solidly was Dr. King’s exclamation that “we will have to repent in this generation not merely for the vitriolic words and actions of the bad people, but for the appalling silence of the good people” (King Jr., 1963). This really got me thinking about today’s society, and the complaining that people do for the sake of complaining. People become frustrated with government decisions and actions taken (or lack thereof), but generally their complaints are never followed through with any action. What does complaining do if it doesn't lead to action? Nothing. I see inaction in the workplaces. I see inaction in our homes. I see inaction in our marriages. This adds up to inaction in our society. It used to be that if something was broke, people would pitch in and fix it. Today, if people try to pitch in and fix a problem, there are more standing idly by and complaining about how the fix is now the problem, and how better it would have been if they would have fixed it. If that is the case, please stand up and act!I have thoroughly loved this class, as well as writing this blog. It has brought out the idealist in me! I have worked in government now for almost twelve years. I have seen the worse as well as the best aspects of government. I can honestly say that every chapter I have read in Combating corruption, encouraging ethics: a practical guide to management ethics has spoken to me, and sadly enough, I have been able relate real-world examples to each subject.
In my job, transparency in government means that my books are open for public viewing (as they should be). This includes our budgeting process our financial reports, even individual transactions can be viewed if the public requests it. But, transparency does not only mean that our books are open, to me it also transcends into many other aspects of government through the sunshine laws that have been put into place. “Sunshine laws make meetings, records, votes, deliberations and other official actions available for public observation, participation and/or inspection” (Investopedia, 2014). An example of my government’s work towards transparency can be found in the publishing of our annual financial report, or CAFR, which can be found at http://www.co.benton.or.us/finance/documents/benton_county_cafr_2012.pdf, our annual list of expenditures, available at: http://www.co.benton.or.us/finance/documents/transparencyreportFY2012-13.pdf, and our biennial budget document, which is available at http://www.co.benton.or.us/budget/documents/1315/documents/AdoptedBudgetDraftone-Finalwithblanksandfootersrevised8-7-2013wlinks.pdf.
An excellent example of government transparency can be found on a program titled “dashboard” that is available on the City of Albany, Oregon website at http://www.cityofalbany.net/departments/finance/budget-information/about-the-dashboard. The City of Albany provides this excellent tool that will allow a citizen to perform lookup functions of the City’s financial activities. “The Albany Dashboard is a new tool in providing up-to-date financial and performance data to the residents of Albany” (City of Albany, 2014).
Transparency does not only open the door to financial statements, but also to meeting minutes and calendars. Our County’s Board of Commissioners conduct their meetings in a transparent environment that allows for public viewing with in person or to read via published minutes. The only exception to the requirement for open meetings is in the case of “executive sessions”. Executive sessions are closed meetings where sensitive information (such as the hiring/firing of public officials, labor negotiations, etc) can be shared and discussed between the governing body. In Oregon, an executive session can be announced at the beginning of a public meeting so that the general public understands that a portion of a normally public meeting will be held privately. An example of the schedule of meetings is available at: http://www.co.benton.or.us/boc/meetings.php. Another great tool for transparency is available through the City of Corvallis, Oregon at http://www.corvallisoregon.gov/index.aspx?page=69. Here you can find videos of the City Council meetings from 2008 to present day. This gives the citizens of Corvallis a great option if they are interested in what is going on in their government, but either forgot or cannot attend the meeting at the scheduled time and place.
Is transparency of good thing? Of course it is. “Political scientists maintain that nontransparent institutions, low-paid public servants, and a shortage of independent and well-functioning market mechanisms are antecedents of corruption” (Luo, 2007, p. 75). Essentially, transparency helps make government accountable for their actions while minimizing the fostering atmosphere for corruption.
That is all for now. Have a great week, and go be part of the solution!
References
City of Albany, O. (2014). About the Dashboard. Retrieved from City of Albany, Oregon Government: http://www.cityofalbany.net/departments/finance/budget-information/about-the-dashboard
Investopedia. (2014). Sunshine Laws. Retrieved from Investopedia US: http://www.investopedia.com/terms/s/sunshinelaws.asp
King Jr., D. M. (1963, April 16). Letter from a Birmingham jail. Retrieved from Historical Text Archive: http://historicaltextarchive.com/sections.php?action=read&artid=40
Luo, Y. (2007). Understanding fraud, waste, and corrupt practices. In W. L. Richter, & F. Burke, Combating corruption, encouraging ethics: a practical guide to management ethics (pp. 75-78). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
I, too, had never specifically read Dr. King's work until this week either. I studied him, but never took the time to read Letter from Birmingham City Jail. It was not what I expected at all. It was neat to go to the King Center website and see his actual notes that were used to compose that document. I enjoyed the way you linked Dr. King and government transparency. I especially liked your call to action and hope we can get more people to stand up for what is right and work tirelessly for it. Great job!
ReplyDelete