WCNotes: Joys of small-town politics

Posted: March 3, 2010 - 6:21am
Linda Sickler, West Chatham Neighbor Coordinator
Linda Sickler, West Chatham Neighbor Coordinator

I don't care what anyone says. Small-town life is great.

You just can't beat living in a place where everybody knows your name. I'm including Savannah in this, because even though it's a city with the usual urban problems, it has a small-town feel.

I've always lived in small towns, some actually tiny. When you go back to any of them for a visit, even the smallest change jumps out at you, because small towns don't seem to change much.

With the exception of Pooler, that is. That is one hopping place, isn't it? New businesses are opening there, seemingly every day, and the air fairly crackles with growth and excitement.

I've always enjoyed covering small towns as a reporter, too. I think one of the biggest mistakes the large daily newspapers make is overlooking some of the really newsworthy things that happen, even in the smallest villages and towns.

No matter how contentious it can get, small-town politics are fascinating to watch. I started my career covering small-town city council meetings, school board meetings, county board meetings and other doings that were of interest only to the people who lived there, but wow, were they interested.

It seemed the smaller the town, the bigger the meeting. I once covered the village board of a place that had just 300 people, but you have never seen more drama that was experienced every other Monday night in that tiny village hall.

The board meeting room would be packed. People could still light up in public places 25 years ago, and before the night was over, the air would be blue with cigarette smoke.

In those days, women weren't as involved as men in the political scene as they are today, but they certainly turned out for the meetings. Anything was open for discussion, and you could learn a lot of fascinating tidbits, just by being in the room.

Tempers always flared during the meetings. There would be backbiting, name-calling, city officials blamed for this-and-that, arguments to the left and right.

The audience would lean forward, eyes glowing, noses fairly quivering, to see what would happen next. And just about anything could, including shouting to the point that the village's lone police officer would have to intercede.

But at the end of the evening (and the smaller the population, the longer the meeting lasted), all was forgiven. The combatants would lay their barbed words down, and everyone would head out together for a beer at the town tavern, conveniently located next door to the village hall.

I had a story to file, so I never got to go along. I have no idea what happened there, but I suspect all was low-key and mellow - until the next meeting, anyway, when all the fun would start up again.

Every small town has its eccentrics, especially Southern towns. There was an insane woman (I mean that literally) who lived in one town who would show up at the city councils and harangue the council for what seemed like hours.

The alderman would sit patiently and silently, letting her roll on. It was such a small town that I eventually encountered her neighbors, who said she harangued them, too. They couldn't go out in their own yards without her screaming, crying and raging at them.

Then one day, she was put away again, and all was quiet. The city council meetings got over much more quickly, and the neighbors celebrated with a block party.

How can anyone say life in a small town is boring? Just open your heart, your eyes and your ears, and soon you'll be discover why small-town life is the best thing America has to offer.

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