JNL said:
What's with broadcasting city council meetings? Do many people actually watch them? Are they recorded rather than just transcribed so that all hand gestures and physical assaults are preserved in full colour in case of later prosecution?
I have been "televised" for over 10 years at 2 jurisdictions. So far, I have not had to explain what I do to my exterminator, hairdresser, neighbors, or any of the other parents and/or children at my son's school. They have all seen it! Of course, it is always "We were just flipping thru the channels and little Britney/Austin said, there's Conner's mom!". I still wonder who watches the meetings, do they have a real life?
My best county commissioner stories are: 1) During a public meeting on a rezoning, a commissioner put his cowboy boots up on the desk, leaned back, and said "Ya can't tell a man what to do with his own land..." (we were certain someone would report that one to the state, but nobody did); 2) The preacher who wanted to convert a house into a church and gave all sorts of promises about improvements. The P&Z chairman looked him in the eye and said "Yeah, and the road to you-know-where is also paved with good intentions" (church shot down); 3) During a huge public hearing where deputies were following all the citizen nutcases around and searching everyone at the door, the chairman pretended to drop the gavel to the floor, leaned over and made a motion absolutely nobody but the other commissioners heard, they voted, they left, and planning staff was abandoned to the crowd.