FIXING A HOLE, Part 317 — by Steve Nadis
While rollerblading along the Charles River on Sunday, a friend and I came across a sinkhole in the middle of the street (Memorial Drive) that was a foot-and-a-half deep. An unsuspecting runner could easily break a leg, or worse, were he or she to land in it inadvertently. When I got home later that afternoon, I called the Cambridge Department of Public Works to report on the problem, which I considered to be my civic duty. I was told to call the state but was not given a phone number. I looked up the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation in the phonebook and dialed the main number. They were closed until Monday. Before starting work the next day, I called back and was given a different number to call, in a separate district. After finally getting through to someone there, I was told to call the “Charles District” at yet another number. That person, in turn, gave me a different number to call, which I did, phoning in the facts. And that’s the end of my involvement in this matter. But sometimes it’s surprising how hard–and time-consuming and exhausting–it can be to do the so-called “right thing.” It’s no wonder that many people don’t bother.
Posted by
at
21:57:34
I agree. And I applaud your efforts, most people wouldn’t have gone that far. However, reporting an issue is between zero and one on the scale of civic duty. Unfortunately, we as Americans seem to think that is what a concerned citizen does. We have several twenty-four hour news networks that do nothing more than report what is wrong without doing anything, and what’s worse, they feature about a hundred independant interviews with extremely influencial members of society, all of whom point out faults, but rarely are reported as doing anything. We are a society that points and complains. Our grandfather’s would ask just one question:
Why don’t you go get a shovel and fill in the hole?
I agree. And I applaud your efforts, most people wouldn’t have gone that far. However, reporting an issue is between zero and one on the scale of civic duty. Unfortunately, we as Americans seem to think that is what a concerned citizen does. We have several twenty-four hour news networks that do nothing more than report what is wrong without doing anything, and what’s worse, they feature about a hundred independant interviews with extremely influencial members of society, all of whom point out faults, but rarely are reported as doing anything. We are a society that points and complains. Our grandfather’s would ask just one question:
Why don’t you go get a shovel and fill in the hole?
…damn dial up… grr….
Good point, GS. And I would fill it myself except for the fact that I’d probably get run over in the process. it’s a damn busy street and the cars tend to go freeway fast. So I’m left with complaining (and doing nothing) instead.
okay, in that instance, I got you… but who’s running in a busy street?
You’re right GS, I didn’t explain: On Sundays, they shut down the street and leave it open to pedestrians & bicyclists, joggers, etc. Which means I could fill in the hole and run the risk of getting run over by a baby stroller.
Your blog is impressive,it is always in my mind after i read it.