Column for Jan. 22, 2009

I keep hearing "Selma has a lot of potential, BUT…"

I occasionally run across someone with whom I end up in a conversation about the town of Selma. Whether it is as a result of my writings here or on the internet, or in the course of conducting the affairs of life, I will find people who are genuinely interested in the town. This week I ran across a man who lives on the outskirts of town when I was shopping for my new car. He is a salesman for a dealership and when I told him where I live, he recognized my name and he began to say that "Selma has a lot of potential, but…" Alas, I hear that sentiment a lot.

When doctors diagnose disease, they start with exhibited symptoms. I often see symptoms in every organization, employer, and government. Some are good, some not so much. Just one symptom I always look for is how one esteems the time and effort of others. That tells me a lot about a person or group of people. It may seem to be nuance, but it is indeed telling.

When I have spoken with other men about Selma, to a person, they have wanted to see the town prosper. Some wish to find a way to get involved. I was one such person, hence my service on two town boards and being on the ballot for elected office. My tenure of service, however, has me a bit perplexed at times.

According to the town web site, "It is the Citizens Advisory Committee's purpose to advise the Town Council of the interests and grievances of individual citizens and citizens' groups. The Citizens Advisory Committee is also responsible for filling vacancies on all the other committees and boards and recommending them to Council for approval." Since being appointed to the Citizens Advisory Committee over two years ago, I have yet to be asked to attend a single meeting of the board. Yet in that time, we have gone through two town managers, the hiring of a new fire chief and its resulting aftermath, a planned ethanol plant and the subsequent protests, forced annexation and subsequent protests, extra-territorial jurisdiction expansion plans and subsequent protests, the writing and implementation of a Strategic Plan for the town, and several other things that come to mind.

Organizational methodology is often the result of one of three things. A. "That is the way we always did it." B. At the time, the circumstances dictated it be done a certain way. C. Efficiency. Our new town planner and town manager have been working to make things more efficient in areas wherein we were lacking. I appreciate these efforts.

It was not long before efforts at efficiency were thwarted with the call for a special meeting of the Planning Board for some minutia. Board members made plans for attendance and canceled life's plans. The meeting was not in compliance with public meeting laws, so it was postponed for a few weeks, though still abnormal in its schedule. Again, plans had to change to accommodate a seemingly capricious meeting schedule.

I mentioned the idea of symptoms of systemic problems, among them being the esteem of the time and effort of others. In one example, the Citizens Advisory Committee, the time and talent of its members are held in low esteem as they have never been asked to advise on anything. Perhaps the committee's apparent obsolescence should require its abolition. In the example of the Planning Board, its members' time and effort have been held in low regard for the sake of service at the whim of an oligarchy.

There is a paradigm in Selma about which I was warned long before I ever moved or worked here. A man who pioneered a church in this town relayed to me the difficulties he had with the town's culturally ingrained mindset. I have been attempting to pick away at that paradigm like a man swinging a pick-axe on a mountain. Alone, it will take a long time to tear down the mountain. With others' help, the mountain will be eroded faster.

I have been asked to possibly fellowship with other like-minded people here in Selma. I make this invitation to all those who think with a conservative mindset, who want to share ideas, or just want to work together to make Selma "A Charming Place to Be". If you have such a desire for fellowship, contact me through this newspaper, through troylaplante.com, at PO Box 822 in Selma, or at my email at the end of this column.

May we all work to change the sentiments of "Selma has a lot of potential, BUT…"