It's Sunshine Week!

So what is Sunshine Week? Per Wikipdia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sunshine_Week):

Sunshine Week is a national initiative spearheaded by the American Society of News Editors to educate the public about the importance of open government and the dangers of excessive and unnecessary secrecy. It was established in March 2005 with funding from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundati.

Sunshine Week occurs each year in mid-March, coinciding with James Madison's birthday and National Freedom of Information Day on the 16th.

During Sunshine Week, hundreds of media organizations, civic groups, libraries, nonprofits, schools and other participants engage public discussion on the importance of open government through news and feature articles and opinion columns; special Web pages and blogs; infographics; editorial cartoons; public service advertising; public seminars and forums.

Perhaps one of the strongest and most active believers in the principles of transparency in government is a woman in Union County, NJ, Ms. Tina Renna.

The following link to an excellent editorial by Mark Spivey on http://www.mycentraljersey.com/article/20130309/NJNEWS20/303090003/n: provides an very insightful explanation of what Ms. Renna does, why she does it, and the good things that have come from here efforts.

In the minds of many, Middlesex County, Woodbridge Township and other municipalities inn the county are in need of a sister organization to the one Ms. Renna founded, that being,http://www.countywatchers.com/

Anyone who has watched the very non-transparent, self-shielding, self-aggrandizing, McCormac administration domination going-ons at the Woodbridge Town Council meetings, may well under why laws that govern Open Public Meetings and provide the 'public' with access to government records, Open Public Records Act (OPRA), are essential to ensuring government remains transparent.