Cell vote exposes Town Meeting’s flaws
The hour grew late, and the crowd dwindled, concentrating the impact of the most passionate.
The vote on the cellphone bylaw change clearly demonstrates the flaws of Town Meeting as a modern method for making intelligent policy for an entire community. A single vote of the approximately 300 people left at the meeting on night two, at 10:30, determined the outcome.
The hour grew late, and the crowd dwindled (there were well more than 400 people earlier), concentrating the impact of the most passionate, and a very few ended up making a significant decision impacting the quality of lives of all of us.
Can anyone believe this wonderful-feeling but anarchical system is an intelligent way to make policy for a town of 18,000 people?
David Ropeik
Baker Avenue
