Lessons Learned

In the course of the last three weeks, we've learned a lot about how the system works.  Here are some lessons that probably apply across the board.

1.  No individual member of the public has any say in how the government works unless that person is willing to let his opinion be known and more importantly follow up and follow up hard.

A non lawyer district judicial performance commissioner wrote a letter input to the group a description of the brow beating he/she had endured from the four lawyers on the commission.  A copy was sent to Governor Ritter, presumably because that person had been appointed by Governor Owens.

Almost any non lawyer citizen would have found the contents of the letter disturbing.  Equally disturbing was that the House Judiciary Committee heard similar testimony from two citizens from different districts just before they spiked HB07-1227.

The group modifying the law was overwhelmingly lawyers.  They want the four lawyers to control the commissions, so they weren't disturbed.  Because the commissioner only wrote a letter and did not bother showing up, the input was ignored, and nothing will go into the new law to discourage lawyer browbeating.  (Well, one of the amendments this author submitted was intended to discourage browbeating by causing it to be reported, but it has a snowball's chance in hell of making it in).

2.  Individual citizens have little chance of being listened to, even if they do show up. 

While I won't write about what I had to do to have an opportunity to be heard, it would be more than fair to observe that had I not been a blogger who regularly writes on legal issues, I would have received no courtesy and no opportunity to be heard.

The lesson is that the government doesn't want to hear from individuals.  It may not want to hear from groups, but groups have a better chance of being heard and listened to than individuals.  Legislators can be quite rude about their power to ignore individual citizens. 

Legislative arrogance isn't limited to one party.  I once had a Republican legislator physically poke his finger in my chest while telling me that he was too busy even to read my letter, a letter that he answered in a way to make me believe he had read and was acting on it.  That conversation made me into an instant activist. 

Look at John Andrews as a model.  Even though he is a former State Senator and President of the Senate, he uses his various affiliations to push his positions.

3.  Showing up, even as a group, isn't enough.  Citizens have to follow up and follow-up and follow-up.

My experience with this group (it has no name) is illustrative.  I did show up.  I spent Thanksgiving weekend and the week after writing about the problems in the law.  I made a presentation and was treated politely.  When I got the draft for review, I discovered that I was just as politely ignored, except on one point.

Keep in mind that I was probably the only knowledgeable member of the general public present, and that my inputs weren't designed to treat the symptoms, but the disease itself, and yet I was politely ignored.

My decision to publish the things I have learned as well as my inputs is just another form of follow-up.

In conclusion, if you want to be ignored, write a letter.  If you want to have a real impact, put in the work and face time such that your opinions and inputs come to be respected.  Sometimes fear is as good as respect. 

Comments

[Estes Park]

Thank you for sharing this information. Don't be intimidated by bullying officials. Get informed and keep asking questions.
Voters in Estes Park recently submitted a petition with over 750 signatures calling for a citizen-initiated ordinance about the Stanley Hotel Historic District. After various of citizens spoke in favor of the ordinance, a Trustee pronounced that "no one" had asked him to vote for it. The entire meeting room was packed with people there to support the ordinance! The Trustees then voted 5-0 against it. In fact, not one citizen spoke against the ordinance. At least the ordinance will go to the ballot. With only 850 voters in the last municipal election, the voters have a good chance of prevailing.