The week between Christmas and New Year’s is, in the newspaper world, often referred to as “dead week.”
While it’s a happy time for most folks, it’s almost universally true that life slows down for these seven days, shopping centers and malls being the universal exception. People take vacations, travel to see family or are just plain checked out for a truncated work week. News makers don’t make news, and save for the sad fact crime and tragedy are omnipresent, there’s just not a lot going on.
Then, of course, New Year’s rolls around, and reporters dutifully travel to the swearing in ceremonies of local elected officials.
For us here at The Spotlight who speak with local leaders day in and day out, these ceremonies can actually be a refreshing bit of news, soft as it may be. The new year can really be about new beginnings, and so it’s nice to think for a moment that starting tomorrow, everything will be different.
That’s basically how a lot of people feel on New Year’s. Our oh-so-scientific polling over the past week reveals that most people don’t put too much stock in the New Year’s resolution tradition, but we think for our new public officials it most certainly a good practice.
In the Town of Colonie, we would first and foremost advise all those involved in town affairs to resolve to stick to the facts next year.
All too often in 2011 (and in years before) major issues were debated not on merits but on the basis of political showdowns. The never ending wrangling over the town’s debt is one such famous issue, as both sides in this debate have twisted what should be a straightforward matter to fit their purposes.
Similarly, we hope those in power are forthcoming with the facts. Oftentimes the best way to put forward ones case is to let others arrive to the same reasonable conclusion you came to, and this involves frank disclosure.
Which brings us to the Town Board of Colonie. Dan Dustin, the final Republican holdout on the Town Board, is leaving that governing body, meaning in all likelihood an entirely Democratic board will be cemented.
No matter what one might think of Dustin or the GOP in general, checks and balances tend to be good things. We’d caution the Town Board to give good and proper thought to its mandate and resolve to apply the same deliberate principle to the people’s business.
Unfortunately the resolutions most people make in the new year don’t really plan out. Sometimes they’re too ambitious or unrealistic. Let’s hope this is not the case in Colonie, and that we can look to a productive and prosperous 2012.
