Patio Pondering: Mist on the Patio, Fog in the Meeting Hall
This morning it is really foggy off the patio. We have plans to bale hay, but with all the moisture in the air I don’t know if that will happen. For now, I’ll enjoy a hot cup of coffee and watch the mist drift across the yard. Last night’s township meeting felt a lot the same: thick with fog, not from weather but from words.
As I drove to and from the school drop-off line, I replayed the meeting in my head. I sat there silently, taking notes, absorbing words and attitudes. What struck me most was the playbook: bait-and-switch tactics, falsehoods shouted loudly, mottos repeated like magic spells, and the tired performance of martyrdom, painting themselves as victims while shouting about how they fixed all the problems. The trouble is, those “fixes” look a lot like mismanaging millions in taxpayer dollars to me and others.
In situations like that, when loud falsehoods go unanswered, they harden into “truth.” Throwing shade at dead officials, making baseless accusations about staff who aren’t allowed to defend themselves—it all becomes truth when shouted by the loudest, largest person in the room. It’s a strategy as old as time: distract with slogans and half-truths, drown out facts, twist silence into agreement.
I had questions. I had facts. I wanted clarification. But I also knew that speaking up in that room wouldn’t bring more facts, only more distortion. So I sat quietly, listening, absorbing. I thought my campaign to pull back the curtains on mismanagement had run its course. After last night’s theater, I know I was wrong.
Then again, maybe I do need to stop. Maybe the taxpayer doesn’t care—or has become numb—to the mismanagement of THEIR funds. Maybe they’re too tired of the lies, too ready to move on, just wanting this to be over so they can turn their attention back to easier things, like the next football game.
The fog on the patio will lift by midday. The fog of half-truths and shouted lies will only lift when enough people are willing to face it.