First, I want to applaud Joey McNerney for his work leading the “Stuff the Bus” effort. He was featured in a previous issue of this newspaper. He is amazing and should be seen as a role model.

I also want to applaud George Bartlett, owner of the Busy Bee Laundry, for supporting him with the use of his vehicle and the kind of faith he has demonstrated in this young man. Finally, I think much credit needs to go to the REAL School. The staff, teachers and students there are tremendous. It is really one of the unheralded successes of this community.

As an alternative high school for students that have had a difficult time with regular high school it can be more than challenging. However, with very thoughtful and active faculty and students who are willing to step up and engage, more than a few lessons are occurring. These young men and women are becoming active, engaged and thoughtful citizens that believe in themselves and know that they can make a difference. It is something we can be very proud of.

A thanks also to Public Works for doing a remarkable job on our South Windham sidewalks and retaining walls. Too often, Public Works is completely taken for granted. This is regrettable, because as invisible as it is, it is critical to our public safety. There are no sirens and flashing lights, but good, safe, well-maintained roads and sidewalks save lives. However, there are some projects that can have a public benefit in addition to safety. The South Windham sidewalks are one such project. Not only do they make for a safer and more walkable village, they look great! It is this sort of effort that makes the village begin to shine in the way that it should. We have a lot further to go in revitalizing this diamond in the rough. With the great work and vision demonstrated by the public works director and all those that worked on the project, it is going in that direction!

On another minor note, a recent heated council discussion was put on YouTube. Since the clip was taken out of context it became a form of content manipulation. I am glad that that this was understood and removed. However, while this incident is regrettable, it does point to how our democratic process can be easily, quickly and without bias, expanded. Just put the meetings in total on the town Web site. If not the video at least the audio, for this is the most important. No policy is established by a facial expression. We have the technology, it is low cost and ultimately it is more democratic and would be less prone to abuse if it is done by the town and easily accessed. While we have come a good way with our Web site over the last few years, we can still, with little investment, go much further. In this effort we could become a model for technology use for other communities.

Finally, I want to say as we look back at the year there are increasing challenges we face across the local, state and national political landscapes. In my mind we have one overarching challenge: our democracy is in peril. Over the years too much control of our government has been taken over by too few in our society. Corporations have unprecedented influence and benefits, current campaign financing marginalizes the voices of ordinary people and cedes undue influence to the wealthy. Special interests have far more than they should and in the end it is common folks that take the hit.

If we want to address the impacts of rising costs on the people of this community, and nation, then we need to look at a lot more than town government and property taxes. We need to gain control of our democracy. With some very major decisions in the very near future coming our way, I urge all of you, no matter what party, to show up, bring ideas to the table and make your voices heard. Without that, we are sheep.

Michael Shaughnessy lives in Windham and is a former Windham town councilor.