Powerful, because of the efforts of brave Flint residents to tell the truth about the end point of absolute systemic failure, and because of the reporting undertaken by a handful of dedicated journalists at a slew of statewide organizations. I’ll never forget meeting Flint moms struggling to care for their children without tap water, or their anger and frustration at the disregard they’d been subject to. Or kids whose futures might be shaped by circumstances they were too young to understand. Some of those children reminded me of my son, then 5. I had to not think about that part too much.
Frustrating, because the the failures that led to the Flint water crisis were all too clear, and none of it needed to happen.
Frustrating because of the lying.
People sometimes suggest that politicians and their representatives lie often. But with a notable exception or two, they don’t. Sure, politicians stretch the truth, shade things to flatter themselves and their interests. But to lie outright is rare, in no small part because it’s just too easy to get caught. Moral objections aside, it’s just not worth it.