OPEN INSTITUTIONS ARE TO BE ENCOURAGED

GARY E. STOUT

ATTORNEY AT LAW

78 South Wade Avenue

Washington, PA  15301

TELEPHONE (724) 228-3871

FAX (724) 228-3871

Geslaw381@gmail.com

In the middle of a week of horrendous Penn State allegations, which challenged our views on trust and the importance of open, pliable, institutions, another public enterprise stood out for me on a positive note.  Two of the Washington County election results were too close to call on election night.  The final tally, based on absentee ballots was not completed until Thursday afternoon.  The Election’s Bureau opened the final counting process to the candidates and the public. By doing so, any appearance of impropriety was avoided and the messy business of democracy upheld without rancor or accusation.

I learned several lessons from the above two tax payer supported enterprises, one large (the University), one small (the Election’s Bureau), both organized for the sole purpose of serving the public. First, transparency is always preferable to shielding a public institution or function.  Second, when an institution or function becomes so insulated that it views itself as more important than the public it serves, whatever higher purpose may have existed, becomes an afterthought.  Third, the election process and the adulation of public universities are not larger than the voice and needs of each and every citizen.  Lastly, every vote and every act of reporting suspected child abuse matters.  In both cases, the individual does make a difference.  Close elections and child predators are more the norm than the exception in our society.

 Public institutions and offices from the Presidency to the local animal control bureau exist to serve each of us.  We should admire and support only those that let the sun shine in all the cracks and crevices and that encourage the individual citizen to look under the rug and to take part in as many operations as possible.  Public venues and offices that insist on isolation and secrecy should not receive public tax dollars or our vote of confidence.

OBSERVATIONS AT THE LAST STOP ON THE RED LINE, NEW YORK CITY

When I go to New York City, it always feels like the center of the universe. Last Friday, at the end of the red line, near Trinity Church, it felt like the soul of America.  The subway stop is still called the “World Trade Center.”  Leaving the dark tunnel for the bright afternoon sunshine, the new Freedom Tower looms overhead.  Three thousand construction workers raising steel around the clock to bring the phoenix back from the ashes.

Two blocks away is Zuccotti Park.  The Occupy Wall Street festivities are in full swing.  Media, tourists, and police outnumber the protestors.  There is more talk about the coming snow storm than taking over the stock exchange.  Surprisingly, the topic of the day appears to be gas drilling in New York State, not stopping the banks. I suddenly realize the park is privately owned by Brookfield Properties and that I own the stock, subtracting from my protest credentials. Nonetheless there is the energy of a mystical vortex, as the drums beat, the video feed goes out to the world and letters, food packages and clothing pour in from around the country.

We walk another block and around the corner to the 9/11 memorial. Admission is by free ticket, downloaded from the memorial website.  My spouse tracks down the name of her classmate, former East Washington resident and 9/11 victim, Angela Reed Kyte, takes a photo and says a prayer.  I simply feel the power of the size and splendor of the twin waterfalls and infinity pools.  I hope that the newly planted swamp oaks will survive the snow storm that will ravish the city over the weekend.

As the sun begins to set, we take the short walk to the Stock Exchange.  The large bull statute is heavily guarded by police.  Every Asian tourist wants a photograph.  Somehow this symbol of power and finance, highlighting the one industry in which we still excel, feels like the source of everything that is right and wrong with America.