It's hard to find politicians who will take responsibility

There used to be a sign an American president kept on his desk in the Oval Office. The sign read “The buck stops here.”
What it meant was if something was important enough to get to his desk, he would take responsibility for it, no matter how bad it got.
Ah, those were the days.
It’s hard to find politicians in this day and age who will take responsibility for anything. Just look at our local city council and the fallout from the recent fireworks fiasco they’re at the heart of.
Now, to listen to them talk last Monday, you’d think it was everybody else’s fault they dropped the ball on what used to be our annual fireworks display.
A lot of words were said, a lot of ideas thrown around the table, but nobody had the guts to say, “I’m sorry, I screwed up.”
Nobody expects politicians to be perfect. But we do expect them to at least try. These guys didn’t.
There was some talk about how the local merchants should get involved in paying for the fireworks and how citizens should volunteer their time to organize the event.
But, if local merchants and citizens are paying for and organizing events that used to be the responsibility of the city, what’s the point of having a city council at all?
I know you councilors are busy. Seriously, with all the council meetings you’re missing, all the flights across the country and around the world the taxpayers are picking up for you, who has the time to do anything so complicated as picking up a phone to hire someone to organize a fireworks display and signing a cheque to pay them?
Hmmm. That’s funny though, cause if I recall correctly, you guys were eager enough to burn through 50 grand in tax dollars to repaint council chambers last year before you were forced to change you minds.
People on the river are getting pretty sick and tired of being disrespected by you guys, the very people who are supposed to be working for them.
Citizens of Miramichi have very real concerns about their futures and the future of their city and it doesn’t bode well that the mayor and council can’t even organize a 15-minute fireworks display, let alone take care of the real business of the city.
I think what we need is a council that can take responsibility for it’s mistakes. Not having a fireworks display was a mistake. But trying to pass the buck is an even bigger one.
What we need is a council and a mayor who are willing to say the buck stops here. But fat chance with this bunch.
But don’t worry, cause from what I hear on the streets, with the next municipal election less than 10 months away, you guys won’t have a whole lot of say in next July’s fireworks display. Or the next. Or the next.