What is truth in municipalities? Especially in small town politics, where lack of honesty can become the degraded-ethos, unchallenged norm. It seems that half-truths, exaggerations, and the winner-takes-all, self-inflated “my truth” have all sullied the pure waters of truth into a murky mess. In my town, each employee or volunteer is required to sign an ethics policy. The substance of ethics is integrity. If asked to define integrity, the words honesty or truth would emerge. Integrity also presumes a person’s self-awareness of their own motivations and biases. If a person serving in a town government position lacks this introspection, then they cannot be acting with integrity.

So, it stands to reason that when a town government fails at transparent truth, along with a lack of motivational awareness from its principal players, then the town is not making decisions with integrity. Which is why truth matters in small NH towns. If municipal leaders are making decisions based on anything less than truths, then they are willfully compromising the foundational integrity of an entire town. Perhaps they can live with their own shoddy lack-of-integrity, but to impose spun truth, untruth and exaggerations on an entire town? That is one of the most selfish acts a member of a governing body can propagate. So, a suggestion and a hope to our NH small town governments: let’s make truth the harbinger of integrity in our towns in 2025.

Elizabeth “Lisa” Hoekstra

Sunapee