BOS email and web sites
Here is a discussion that took place at the last BOS meeting about selectmen giving out their email addresses and the prospects for a new town web site. The consensus seemed to be that selectman shouldn’t have to give out their “email web sites” and that the town web site will be wonderful someday, though not this year since we all know it’s impossible to do a web site without spending zillions of dollars.
Here is the text of an email I sent to the BOS for inclusion in their correspondence.
In the BOS meeting of February 2, 2009, there was a discussion about providing email addresses for BOS members. There was general agreement that this was a bad idea and that BOS members should not have to give out their personal email addresses.
There is a fundamental flaw in this logic. The town of Middleboro could easily provide an email address for selectmen. This could either be a “real” email address or an alias that forwards to the desired address. A selectman could also get a google, yahoo, or hotmail account to be used strictly for selectman duties.
In other words – having a public email address does not require that a person give out their personal one.
At any time, I can email Rep. Tom Calter, Sen. Pacheco, US Rep. Barney Frank, US Sen. Kennedy, Governor Patrick, and even the President of the United States. There is no credible reason that a selectman can’t or shouldn’t be accessible by email.
Themocracy
Painful discussion. Instead of getting email directly, lets have them run through another person who has already been working harder due to budget cutbacks.
Am I missing sonmething?
All Bridgewater Selectmen can be easily accessed via email through their town website. Just click on their names and an email appears with a name@bridgewater ma.org. Simple and easy to find. So what’s the big problem? What seems obvious is that the members of our BOS don’t want to make themselves available to residents. Why?
Disgraceful!
They are so clearly out of touch, it’s embarassing.
Gee, do you think they missed the email from a private citizen who offered to create a web site for free?
From Marsha’s comments, it’s clear that she is isolated in her understanded of email addresses and doesn’t know that web sites and email addresses might be different things.
When I watched this exchange, it was clear why the town is in the position it’s in.
Mr. Cristello deserves some kind of award because of his ability to refrain from rolling on the floor with laughter.
For those who have any doubts, a visit to Hingham’s site is revealing.
Maybe Marsha could have Roger strap an emailbox to their postal mailbox so the emailman doesn’t have to deliver to one of those email websites.
I’m pretty sure the procedure is in “IT Director for Dummies”
Watching this exchange caused my husband and I to discuss how the internet had changed our buying habits. We try to patronize local merchants for most things, but when we can’t find what we want easily, our first choice is the internet.
Sure we use it for emails which is basic, but the available information and resources creates an invaluable tool. An improved town web site that served the public and provided information should be a priority for all of the reasons you included in your Gazette article.
Since we’re both ‘seniors’ and have figured out how to use the technology (maybe not as well as our grandchildren), it’s painful to watch the Board of Selectmen who are clearly oblivious.
The night Steve Spataro couldn’t stop laughing at the auto dealer who sold his inventory online convinced us of the need to promote change in Mboro.
Whoever believes that younger people are savvy on the current technology hasn’t been to Mboro.
I just don’t get it. The BOS are public servants and they seem to isolate themselves from the public at every opportunity. They really are out of touch with “best practices” employed in other towns.
If they really do expect the casino to go forward, isn’t it in the town’s best interest to have a top notch website for all those out of town visitors that will be looking for information. Like places to eat, lodging, or area activities. Maybe they know Middleboro is not going to get any residual business from the casino because with a casino you actually get one stop shopping because all those things can be found right in the resort.
Seems to me that the people that are on this board are doing their personal best not to represent or to be held accountable to the citizens of middleboro.
Each BOS meeting contains painful moments such as this that publicly display the [fill in the missing word(s)] of this Board.
How much more clear could you have presented cogent arguments about the need for a usable site and the free options available than your Gazette article?
It sounded as if they haven’t seen the library site which is searchable, easy to use and contains a wealth of information.
This should put voters on notice of the importance of watching these meetings and the need to elect people who occupy the 21st century.
To Smoking Owl: casino or not, can you imagine what a functional web site might have accomplished in drawing people to various events, fundraisers, activities and businesses?
You’re comment was right on!
That’s why we need a new Board.
Maybe we’re being unfair to the BOS and they just aren’t tech geeks.
On the agenda for Mon 2-9, is a dog complaint.
When Neil Rosenthal argued against the new proposed leash law, didn’t he say that hearing animal complaints was one of the most important duties of the BOS or words to that effect?
This must be their opportunity to prove their importance to the town.
Instead of protecting us from dog bites, I wish they’d protect the town from getting bit in the ass by a casino!
But back to the website. You don’t have to be a tech geek to know how influential the internet is these days. If Middleboro had a modern website, imagine the impression it would make. If I was a CEO of a corporation looking to relocate my business or open a new facility and I browsed various town’s websites, what impression would I get of the Town of Middleborough from their website. A town out of touch, behind the times, backwards?
Anon 8:50,
A well planned and informative website could provide so much valuable information. Maybe fundraising events would garner a higher turnout. Maybe area businesses would see an increase in business. Maybe downtown wouldn’t have empty storefronts. Maybe we would have more than second hand shops downtown. Maybe emergency disaster information could reach us quicker. What if there was an emergency at the high school? Wouldn’t it be helpful to be able to send an emergency email alert to parents.
I don’t know what it costs to maintain a website, Bumpkin could answer that, but couldn’t the town charge a fee for local businesses to advertise on the website to help offset the costs?
There are so many possibilities and yet our BOS sit there with their eyes and minds closed to the 21st Century. Just seeing them sitting in the meetings rifling through a stack of papers is amazing. Couldn’t they have most of that information on laptops?
I think these current selectmen are a detriment to progress in Middleboro. They’ve gone “all in” on the casino so to speak and are incapable of multitasking on other issues to benefit the town.
The other day I saw Mimi with Spataro, who, to his credit, was walking and chewing gum at the same time.
But then Mimi tripped over the curb. Rogers said, see what happens when we try to walk and chew gum at the same time! Marsha Brunelle responded, yeah, we tried to do that back in 2003.
Then Mimi phoned Stephen Graham for a Band-aid.
[...] Rullo and McKinnon to be responsive. Even so, I can’t go to the town web site and get any email address or even phone number to contact my selectmen – and there is something very wrong with [...]