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Twitter and forums

Tonight's local government forum at the Empire Room in downtown Greensboro featured Twitter as a main component of the event.

Some audience questions were sent through Twitter and through Action Greensboro's blog. Those people who were unable to attend (the event was capped at 250 people) could watch online and ask questions during a Q&A session with Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones, Dean of the UNC School of Government Mike Smith and John Alexander, professor of leadership at Elon University Law School.

And the conversation touched on issues such as turnover at the top administrative positions of Guilford County and Greensboro, how to grow wisely with neighboring towns and cities and what it means to have a separation between elected officials and government.

The speakers generally tended to agree that the separation between government and elected officials is a good thing and helps keep politics out of the day-to-day operations. Politics helps set policy that a county manager follows for a government's daily work.

"And you're taking better care of your resources," Smith said of the separation, "and less inclined to make decisions for inappropriate reasons."

And way down in big ol' Mecklenburg County, Jones has been paying attention to what's happening up here. He said that though he would never tell someone not to go somewhere for a job opening, he would suggest certain questions to ask of a community.

We've noted Guilford County's changes many times in recent months.

There weren't any major conclusions reached, and the language was mostly civil, for a civic process.

The overriding impression was that things here may not change drastically or immediately, but that maybe more people would be spurred to get involved in the community.

More community involvement by the people living here. Now that's something Scoop can get behind.