Massachusetts Government Reaches the Masses
By Paul Jacob
A lot of people work what are called "regular hours." And for these people, it's not always easy to "interface" with government.
You probably just winced. "Interface" is such an ugly word. But you know what I mean: "to interact or coordinate harmonoiusly," as Merriam-Webster puts it. It's hard to interact with government if it means taking time off work and driving down to City Hall, or some obscure bureau miles and miles away.
Which is why it's great to see the everyday business of government go online. Everywhere. But as the Boston Globe recently noticed, it's happening more and more in the state of Massachusetts. On March 15, Common Cause Massachusetts honored 73 cities and towns within the state for their e-government efforts. At a state house ceremony the group praised governments for putting key municipal records onto their websites.
As more and more of the world goes online, such stories may seem old hat. But wait until you have to take time from your busy day just to get some information about your government. You begin to appreciate pretty quickly the info that can appear, as if by magic, on your computer screen.
And with information a few clicks away, it becomes easier for citizens to understand.
And what citizens understand, they can better control.
This is a very old idea, popular government. Now the idea is made more practicable -- and, I hope, more popular -- by new technology.
This is Common Sense. I'm Paul Jacob.
Visit the Common Sense webpage for audio from today's commentary and to browse through 8 years of Paul's commentary.
