At their last meeting, Rock County Commissioners voted to ask the state to take feedlot permit information off the public record.My internal alarm bells went off at the meeting, because open government is about half of what I spend my time trying to relate back to our readers.They didn’t propose to close the permitting process, where neighbors are informed about huge expansions, for example. Commissioners just wanted the permits off open files once they were issued.It’s not exactly the end of the "open government" world. It might not be fair to newcomers, though, who don’t know the size of feedlots near their properties. It might not be fair for other reasons, too. The biggest worry for me, is that once doors start closing, it gets harder and harder to keep them open and our entire system changes. But maybe the worst part about seeing the rubber stamp hit the resolution from the board, is that there was little discussion about the issue. They read the resolution, said they didn’t want terrorists around feedlots, and passed it.This week, the Commissioners talked about it again, and reaffirmed that their intention was to protect food supplies from bio-terrorism. Also, the business of raising livestock can be the target of animal rights activists. That said, neither have been demonstrated as a clear and present threat in Rock County.On the personal level, our Commissioners are an independent bunch of business people and farmers. Tuesday, one said it shouldn’t be possible for just anyone to walk into an office and ask to look at permits without giving a reason. But that’s against what much of public information is based on — you don’t have to prove a purpose to see information; it’s just there to be seen.While the Commissioner’s concerns may have some validity, they have to remember that we can’t close government files every time there’s a threat of a threat. If that’s the way things ought to be run, Commissioners should keep unlisted numbers and wear disguises to meetings. After all, in this year of budget cuts, an elected person is about as well-loved by the public as a rancher is by an animal rights advocate.Last word fromthe tightwadsI hope readers remember a few weeks ago when I listed money-saving tips that people had sent me. It was a fun thing to do, and interesting, because many people turned it into a tattling match — exposing others for their outrageous cheapskate tendencies. I did get one negative comment about the entire idea: "It’s not the ‘30s anymore. C’mon people, we don’t need to talk about reusing coffee grounds."Anyway, here’s the rest of the "frugal lifestyle" information I did get from other readers:oOne woman wrote about her grandma. She said, "Black oxfords with 1 1/2 inch heels were worn every day and also for dress up occasions. Always thrifty, Grandma carried frugality to the limit, when, in later years, she regularly put her shoes on the opposite feet to compensate for heels that were worn down on one side. Like a drill sergeant, she walked with back straight and head held erect, even as she wore the left shoe on the right foot."oPeople sure like to eat for free. Someone else told me a story about a man who would show up at Magnolia Steakhouse just as his friends were finishing their suppers. He would sit next to them and eat the fat off their steak bones and finish the leftovers on their plates, and he didn’t have to spend a cent. The submission said, "He died of a heart attack — too much fat."oA man managed to get free stuff off of others all the time. As a farmhand, he had two vehicles at a farm. He filled the tank of his Oldsmobile with gas from the farmer’s barrel. "Then he says, ‘Guess I’ll take the Ford. It runs cheaper.’ … Talk about cheap." He also would decline to pay for food if it was around, but he’d eat his half, anyway.
