Water crisis evaluated
Marion County's water crisis has brought out the best — and the worst — in civic behavior.
Time will tell whether Hillsboro's approach or Marion's proves to have been the most prudent solution. Clearly, the approaches have differed. Perhaps each will end up having advantages.
Either way, public servants in both communities, at the lakes and in Peabody are to be applauded for their often heroic efforts.
Not to be applauded are those among us who attempted to instigate panic or who ignored voluntary guidelines on limiting water use.
Nor should we applaud occasional lapses in judgment, understandable and inadvertent as they might have been, that resulted in illegally secret meetings to discuss the situation. Excluding the public on issues of vital public importance can never be excused. Next time, at least, we all will know better.
We also would like to thank our own staff, which since June 6 has been providing free daily updates to an ever-growing number of online readers.
Indeed, crises bring out the best and worst in all of us. Fortunately, the "bests" have clearly outnumbered the "worsts" in this crisis. Let's hope it stays that way.
Eric Meyer
