New year resolutions are overrated. In fact, in the end, they do more harm than good and I’ll tell you why. Because a resolution is merely another word for an expectation. And more often than not, when we expect anything, we inevitably set ourselves up for disappointment. So why lie to yourself? Let’s face it. That gym membership you just committed to contractually for 12 months will never be used in any month other than January. And really, if change was needed that badly that you consciously set out to “resolve” the matter in question, why would you wait until a new year to do anything about it? It couldn’t be that bad or need that much attention.
So here’s what I propose. Instead of making a resolution for yourself, make one about someone else or perhaps something else. For us in 2013, the News Enterprise resolves to hold the Los Alamitos city council more accountable for their actions, or should I say lack of action? After twelve months of witnessing and reporting the blatant partisanship and obstructive character that was this past year’s council, it got old real quick and most residents of Los Al soon realized nothing of any significance was being accomplished because of the constant bickering and obstinate nature of five people.
The last council meeting of 2012 summed up what I’m saying to a tee. Expecting to see cordiality and exchange of pleasantries reflective of the holiday season, I saw hostility thinly cloaked in procedural jargon. Expecting to witness the joyous celebration of the new, incoming council members along with all the pomp and circumstance that goes with such an occasion, I saw a lame-duck council gripping onto its last hour of authority, refusing to yield to the make-up of the new council early in the agenda. Wanting to feel the spirit of the season in our local government, we got five Grinches tossing lumps of coal at those of us seated in the audience. It was an embarrassment. I heard one audience member refer to them as the “city clowncil”. From the outset, it was clear my expectations were far too great. Even city residents in the audience exchanged petty bickering over the mismanagement of a local event.
It became very evident that the Los Alamitos City Council is a microcosm of the very problem that exists in Washington today. The petty, partisan bickering and obstinate behavior needs to end for our city to progress, move forward, and realize the promise of 2013. As the city’s only news reporting agency, the News Enterprise will stand beside that ideal, resolving to hold our elected officials accountable and do exactly what we elected them to do, govern effectively, not bicker.
For those of you who’ve remained “in the loop”, receiving your community based news and information throughout 2012 in the pages of the News Enterprise or on our news site, www.newsenterprise.net, we sincerely thank you for your continued readership and wish you only the best throughout the new year.
As always, feel free to forward your comments, observations, and suggestions to us anytime. Email me directly at: publisher@newsenterprise.net.