Research Paper on:
Local Government and Council Member Ineffectiveness

Unformatted Sample Text from the Research Paper:
and by the people would promote both individual and political strength. The decision-making process was to be a combined effort of government officials and the people who elected them  into office. By reallocating the political power and distributing it evenly between both government entities and the voting public, there was created a greater sense of fairness, accomplishment and  "political vision of liberty" (Shanker PG). The extent to which such a system relates to a council/manager local government within contemporary society speaks to the successful vision of Americas  founding fathers. However, even with such a favorable system of government, there still exist certain drawbacks that serve to limit the capacity intended by this particular local government approach.  The ineffectiveness of council members in a council/manager local government is experienced on a number of different levels, inasmuch as certain situations exist that would otherwise not be allied  to larger, more formal governments. "Public decision making requires mechanisms to represent and reconcile conflicting interests. To what purpose and in whose interests decisions and actions are taken  in cities depends on the structure and operation of the political system, the relative power and influence of the actors involved, and the nature of the relationships between them" (Benjamin  55). Local governments that are run by council and/or manager are typically comprised of individuals whose political expertise does not reflect the position they hold. Council members are  often voted into office by popularity rather than ability, which lends itself to an uninformed collection of local residents who do not possess the knowledge of how to run their  city or town. This absence of political know-how can cause legal problems when unwittingly unlawful plans are enacted, with the consequences reverberating throughout the entire community. Another component of