Two Cheers for the USG

One of my most enjoyable pastimes is to go jogging in Rock Creek Park (actually, when a neighbor saw me strolling along, he said, without a hint of irony, "enjoy your walk").

In the Park -- the "largest urban park in the national park system" -- there is an area called Peirce Mill which accommodates picknickers: there's a grill, clean bathroom facilities, an open green space where informal, and small-scale sports can be played, often by children. The area has four large trash containers (usually full by the end of the week) and a recycling bin with three separate sections for aluminum, glass, and plastic.

I run by Peirce Mill almost daily and noticed that the recycling bin was not being emptied by the National Park Service, which is in charge of the area. After about three weeks, the bin was so full that trash could no longer be disposed into it.

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I decided to take action and called the National Park Service, National Capital Region around 10:00 am today, December 17. I left a message explaining the trash issue. Some two hours later, I got a call from a very polite National Park Service employee informing me that the recycling bin had been emptied. When I asked why cleaning out the bin had been neglected for so long, she apologetically explained (I am paraphrasing) that it was a problem that unfortunately had been overlooked.

Well, nobody's perfect. But I was very impressed by the quick response of the National Park Service. Somehow I could not help thinking, "two cheers for the USG." For all its faults, on occasion our government does respond to citizens' even minor concerns, and does its best to do things right.