You might think that we have the craziest Board of Supervisors, what with them taking time off of their busy schedules to vote in support of breast feeding, but it's looking like the Board of Supervisors in Contra Costa might have them beat. Last Tuesday, they passed a resolution banning the use of bureaucratic jargon in hearings. The fine? $1. For now on, if any member of the Board says anything like "revaluating the LAFCO" or "EIP shows a 5% amortization of AFBAG" that member will have to fork over a buck. Money will be donated to charity. Says the measure's sponsor, Supervisor John Gioia of Richmond: "It really is about making government more understandable and user-friendly…when people can't understand what you're talking about, they can't feel involved."
Wow, just think how much better off this world would be if we forced politicians to actually try and talk like human beings instead of bureauctric robots. Among other things, we just might have a different President. Hell, just imagine how much better the world would be if we got rid of jargon in general. Like VP's of marketing getting fined for saying things like "leading edge"” or "solutions" or "synergize web-enabled e-commerce." Who knows, it might just be startin' something?
Image of SFist hero John Gioia from SFGate