Where does the buck stop?

I was looking though some old papers to figure out what my kids could use to line the bird cage (we have four parakeets amongst our menagerie), when I happened across the "Selectmen's Briefs" on page 6 of the Friday, August 3 edition of the Falmouth Enterprise. It noted that "The new Dunkin’ Donuts near the corner of Davisville Road received its common victualler’s license this week...the grand opening last weekend attracted many people..."

If you didn't know the details, you'd believe that this restaurant had only been open for about a week without a license. However, the new Dunkin' Donuts opened just days after the old location closed. That was during the first week in July, a full month before the selectmen's hearing.

Apparently there was some concern over the fact that this business was open for a week without a permit. According to the Enterprise, Chairman Murphy said the "selectmen rely on the Falmouth Board of Health to make sure such businesses have the proper permits..."

Wow...Could the selectmen pass the buck any faster?

Last I checked, the Board of Selectmen is the appointing authority for the Board of Health, which prompts the $64,000 question: Given that the Board of Health obviously failed (in a big way) to make sure a business had the proper permit, will the selectmen hold them accountable?

Perhaps a case could be made that a week is falling "through the cracks," as the selectmen suggested. But a month? That's a pretty big crack.

Aside from the obvious questions about public health and accountable government, there is a question here about fair government. If the Board of Health and the Selectmen are going to let this business operate for 30 days without a permit and with no reprecussions, does every business in town get a similar free pass? Government is fair only when it applies the rules equally to everyone. If someone or some business gets special treatment, then government is not fair.

President Harry Truman had a sign on his desk, "The buck stops here." It was a statement of responsiblity which made it clear that, ultimately, he was responsible. It seems to me that our selectmen don't understand that concept.