With this weekend’s Fourth of July holiday, a lot of people traveling the path around the Falls were wearing their patriotism on their sleeves, backs, heads or any place stars and stripes apparel would fit. Flag-related items were popular at all of the family and community gatherings.
Born and bred in the USA was an important theme. Even the many parades celebrating the historic holiday featured a bigger percentage of Detroit iron than might be found in the typical Monday morning work day parking lot. American Made seems to be more important on this particular holiday.
The Fourth of July, or Independence Day, is a critical historic landmark for our nation. It recognizes the date our nation was born and the start of the struggles to keep our nation free. “Freedom is never free,” we have been told time and time again. We need to constantly be on guard to protect that freedom.
Winding back to the start of this observer’s tenure in Oconto Falls, there was an outspoken School Board member who on a regular basis offered critiques of the school district and the community in general. A number of others also were recipients of his barbs.
Often he prefaced his remarks by making reference to the community as Apathy Falls. It was his shorthand method of indicating that community members should have taken stands in support of his opinion, calling for action of one sort or another. It was as if he was suggesting that to do so was an obligation in American society in which freedom is valued. More about that later.
Many of the local parades featured elected officials who were back home to reconnect with their constituents. A number had spent the week in Madison deliberating on the state budget that was put into final form by the Joint Finance Committee at the end of the week.
The Joint Finance Committee had conducted numerous hearings and public forums to allow input on the budget. Countless Wisconsin citizens had shared their thoughts on the budget at those sessions or in individual communications with members of the committee.
In the last weeks leading up to the crafting of the final draft of the budget, the committee held no public meetings but did its business behind closed doors as a number of compromises on final sticking points were worked out. Late last week a package was approved for consideration by the full Legislature. Tossed in to the final packages was a lengthy list of last-minute items that previously had no discussion in the light of day.
One of those would have put major constraints on public access to communication between elected officials through public records requests. That attempt to put a thicker fog over how state government operates drew a quick and heated response from media sources and individuals concerned about clean government. The provision was such a hot potato that as of Monday noon, no legislator was taking credit for introducing it.
Legislators and the governor could quickly tell which way the wind was blowing and quickly backpedalled on that proposal. Late Saturday afternoon a joint memo from the governor and legislative leadership indicated the language on limitations on public access would be taken out of the budget bill. Clearly, there was no apathy on the part of media on this issue.
Apathy may or may not have been an appropriate criticism of the residents of the area, but if it once was, there is a lot less of it now. People seem much more involved than they once were when it comes to issues related to government and the freedoms we cherish. That spirit of patriotism and active participation in democracy is more than something worn on a sleeve. It is something that will wither away if not exercised.
Perhaps to pay tribute to that former board member, we should all take an Independence Day pledge to rid ourselves of all forms of apathy.
