And Get Off My Lawn!

If I had any doubts about my impending old-man-ness I don't now. I'm well on my way to inch-thick glasses, a combover, and black socks with white tennis shoes. Why do I say this with such certainty?
   I involved myself with local government last night.
   My district - our district, I suppose, since I don't own it... yet - had a meeting about beginning re-work on Pasadena's General Plan. Since I'm 'between assignments' I decided to attend. Good way to kill a Tuesday night, if nothing else. Not only was I the only one wearing shorts, I was easily the youngest person in the auditorium by twenty years, not counting the city staffers.
   The attendees were not nearly as uniformly caucasian as I assumed they would be, but they were as old as I suspected they might be. I got more than one quizzical glance, then a second glance, and usually a third because I was wearing a t-shirt that had words on it. And you could see my sexy knees. Many of the 'community' knew one another by name and obviously from other city government functions, further cementing my iconoclasm.
   During the course of the hour-long meeting I was thoroughly impressed with those elected and appointed to our city government (go Councilman Tournak!!), people who are clearly not doing it for the money. But I realized during the inevitable 'question and answer' period that the main problem with community involvement is that it involves the community.
   Out of the twenty or so questions posed, only four of them were really questions rather than rambling manifestoes spouted by people who couldn't take the hint to shut the hell up. Our councilman and the city planner running the meeting were nothing but polite and deferential, which was a mistake in my opinion. Maybe I was just cranky - I really, really needed to cut one and couldn't in an auditorium full of geezers - but I felt like tearing my eyes out when some of the public were droning on and on and on and on without getting to the point. There are no stupid questions, just stupid people.
   Besides, if someone wants to make their point repeatedly and without interruption or consideration for others, they should start a blog.