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Most Public Engagement is Worthless
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Most Public Engagement Is Worse Than Worthless
I think most public engagement is beyond worthless. I think it actually corrodes the relationships we need in order to build a strong town. Most public engagement, as it is currently conducted, makes our cities worse places.
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Subsidiarity
The concept of subsidiarity can be a loaded one, but I thought this video was so good that I needed to share it. While I would not subscribe to the notion that, “subsidiarity is the answer to good governance,” I firmly believe that we could create healthier feedback loops if government policy was less centralized and provided far more flexibility and responsibility at the local level.
Subsidiarity comes formally from the Catholic church (of which I’m a member), an organization that is very hierarchical yet provides a lot of power and flexibility to local parishes and orders. I’m not going to pretend it works perfectly all the time, particularly with government, yet there are strong bi-partisan arguments to be made for swinging the pendulum in this direction, particularly in a world that is so hyper-connected.
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When “Eager to Help” Enables Neighborhood Dysfunction
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