Breaking Old Habits
Delegate Kenneth R. "Ken" Plum
 
Hoarding is a terrible condition; one that in its most serious manifestations can require therapy to cure.  Homes and families can be wrecked from an insistence on saving everything.  I am not a hoarder, but I am a collector of a few unusual things.  Magnets, for one.  I still remember the science experiments in elementary school making patterns with iron filings on a paper with a magnet behind it.  Rub a nail or the end of a screwdriver over a magnet a few times, and it becomes magnetized.  We never threw away anything magnetic when we cleaned out the home shop when I was young.
 
Some marketers got the idea of printing advertisements on the backs of magnets.  Suddenly magnets proliferated; refrigerator doors were covered with magnets for several plumbers, real estate agents, sports teams, Delegate Ken Plum, and others.  When we remodeled our kitchen a few years ago we switched to a refrigerator with a wood panel door.  The problem was solved:  I now throw away all the advertising magnets.  I still keep the magnets in my workshop.  You never know when you might need one, except I am not sure for what!
 
Return address labels are another problem.  Not many years ago I would periodically order stick-on return address labels because they were more efficient for personal correspondence and bill paying.  And then some fundraising expert got the idea of sending colorful, metallic and distinguished sheets of return address labels to entice us to contribute to a charity.  I already contribute to many charities, and they send me labels to encourage me to contribute more.  These charities tell others that I give money to good causes, so they send me labels to encourage me to contribute to their cause.  Remembering how scarce return address labels used to be, I save them all whether I contribute to their cause or not.  The result is that I have accumulated a stack of thousands of return address labels.  The problem is exacerbated by the fact that I use fewer labels than I did in the past.  I have envelopes with my return address already printed on them.  The checks I use to pay bills have my return address printed on them and can be seen through the window envelope.  And, of course, much bill-paying is now done online, eliminating the need for an envelope or a return address label.

As we undertake government reform, we need to examine established practices and old habits to ensure that they make sense in the current world or whether they are outdated.  We need to be able to throw out the old and start anew.  For some bureaucrats change can be difficult, but the executive and legislative branches must be willing to ensure that these changes occur when they contribute to greater government efficiency and improved constituent services.  I am willing as a legislator to contribute to these changes and to break old habits.
 
In the meantime, if you would like a Delegate Ken Plum refrigerator magnet, email me at kenplum@aol.com; or if you have suggestions on using up mailing address labels, please let me know at the same address.  I am always open for suggestions on how government can be run more efficiently and effectively.