By Mary Welander
State Rep., D-114
Mary Welander
“Democracy is a slow process of stumbling to the right decision instead of going straight forward to the wrong one.” – Anonymous
Everyone I’ve spoken to about it agrees: this was the fastest summer that we could remember. Maybe it felt that way because, like us, many were counting down until our kids started college.
Maybe it’s the old adage coming true: The days are long, but the years are short. Or perhaps it was partially because everything seems to be moving quickly these days, including politics and government.
We’ve all bemoaned how slowly government moves, and that may still be true for Connecticut politics (we are “The Land of Steady Habits,” after all), but it does not universally apply to the federal government anymore.
I think we can all admit that things in Washington are moving very fast right now. When laws and policies that have stayed the same for a long time start changing quickly it can be hard to keep track of everything, hard to understand what all of the changes mean and easy to brush those changes off or get overwhelmed and intentionally turn away.
I know change is inevitable, and I know fear is being used as a tactic (by all parties) to feed reactions. So what I’ve personally started doing is thinking, “If this was happening in my town would we be okay with it?”
When situations feel removed from our day-to-day lives it’s easy to dismiss or ignore them. But when I imagine it happening here, in Orange, it helps me to see through the misinformation and inflammatory headlines more easily for what is really happening, and gauge whether I am reacting impulsively or recognizing right from wrong. I won’t pretend that I am not writing this thinking about the Trump administration and what it has done over the past seven months.
This might prompt some of you to say “Hey, every administration has done crappy things,” and I would agree with that. But I can’t remember another administration that has changed as many fundamental institutional norms so quickly, or that has led to such an increase in fear and chaos as this one. Speaking bluntly, I am really tired of all of it. I’m tired of the disintegration of political discourse. I am tired of the inability to admit or learn from mistakes. I am tired of creating contingency plans for when agreements are broken and promised funding is pulled from the state and our communities. Chaos and uncertainty are the opposite of what helps a government operate smoothly and serve the people as intended.
We have another three years of this administration, but we can start strengthening our local democracy and our state today, together. We can all act in ways that support each other and the community, or at the very least encourage politeness and decency. Volunteering is a great way to celebrate our strengths and commit to making them better.
Contact community services for more information at 203-891-4788, or my office is happy to help.