Speak openly chapter 1

Who Did This?

One day, Tom, the newly – elected mayor of a small town in the United States, was extremely angry. Someone had sent an anonymous tip – off, which had shut down one of his money – making schemes.

Here’s what happened: A relative of his from the city had approached him not long ago, wanting to rent a piece of wasteland behind the town to set up an industrial waste decomposition site. The relative would transport the waste there, pick out the useful parts, and burn the rest. Officially, he would pay the town $1000 a month in rent. Unofficially, well, it was just between them. But as soon as the first truckload of waste arrived, the environmental protection department showed up, saying they’d received a tip – off from a local resident. After an inspection, they firmly prohibited the operation, and the plan fell through.

Tom felt that his first project as the mayor had been thwarted, and he didn’t know who the tipster was. He was so angry that he started cursing on the town’s streets. Whenever he saw someone, he’d spit and rant, “Which son of a bitch has the guts to do this secretly? If you’re a real man, come out in the open…” After he’d cursed like this many times, the townspeople were scared and would avoid him from afar.

One noon, when Tom saw a group of people standing at the town entrance, he walked over and started his usual rant. But this time, as soon as he opened his mouth, an old man named Jack, who was in his sixties, stepped forward and shouted, “Stop cursing! I’m the one who reported you!”

Jack was a bit educated and had served as a town official in the past. Now that his son was grown – up, he mostly stayed at home. He usually didn’t talk much, just chatting with other old folks about various things. His sudden appearance shocked everyone. Jack wasn’t finished yet. He then said to Tom, “Cursing like a mad dog every day. Is that how a town official should behave? You should think about whether what you did was right. If it was, the government wouldn’t have stopped you. What’s wrong with reporting? I’m standing right in front of you now!”

Jack’s words were so forceful and righteous that they left Tom stunned. He had thought no one would dare to come forward. He just wanted to intimidate the tipster and find out who it was so he could give that person some trouble later. But now, an old man twice his age had stood up and spoken so bravely. He was caught off – guard and didn’t know what to say. He stared blankly at Jack, stammered, “You… You’re tough!” and then rushed away.

The townspeople were worried about Jack. As the saying goes, “Don’t fight with those in power.” Tom was young and hot – tempered. Having been publicly challenged by Jack right after taking office, he surely wouldn’t let it go easily. They thought Jack was in for a hard time.

Jack’s son, Mike, was running a business in the town, renting a building from the town. He was in the process of expanding his production and had a lot of things to discuss with the town. Everyone knew that when a new mayor was elected, things often changed. Mike had been thinking about how to get along well with Tom. But now, his father had caused this big problem.

As soon as Jack got home, Mike started complaining, “Dad, why did you have to show off? You could have just reported the wrong thing quietly. Why did you have to admit it publicly?”

Jack replied, “Let him curse aimlessly every day? Does that sound good?”

Mike said, “Let him curse. It doesn’t cost you anything. He’s in the open, and you’re in the dark. He can’t do much to you. Now, you’ve made yourself a target!”

Jack said, “I’m in my sixties. What can he do to me?”

Mike almost cried, “You’re in your sixties, but I’m your son! You’ve really put me in a difficult situation!”

“What difficult situation have I put you in?” Jack was confused.

Mike said, “Dad, are you really that naive? I’m expanding my business. I need to use the adjacent wasteland. I also need to increase my electricity supply through the town’s transformer. There are so many things that need the mayor’s approval. If he gives me a hard time at any step, I’ll be in big trouble. Even if he just delays things by saying ‘let’s study it’ or ‘let’s discuss it,’ I’ll suffer!”

Jack jumped up, “I don’t believe that he’ll play dirty tricks secretly when I’m speaking openly!”

Mike shook his head and sighed, thinking that his father didn’t understand the real world. But what was done was done. Since his father had made his stand, there was no point arguing with him further.

A few days later, Mike had written a report asking to use the wasteland for business expansion, but he was too scared to approach Tom. He had met Tom several times in the past few days and had tried to greet him warmly, but Tom had just grunted and walked away. The sound of that grunt made Mike’s heart skip a beat. When Jack learned about this, he grabbed the report and said, “I’ll go,” then headed straight for Tom.

Tom was in the town hall office, with several other town officials present. Jack walked in, put the report in front of Tom, and said, “This is my son’s report. Because I reported you, he’s too afraid to come to you, worried that you’ll hold a grudge and make things difficult for him. I said that you’re the mayor, a public servant. You wouldn’t be so petty. Besides, I did it for the good of the town, and I spoke openly. Would you really be so small – minded…?”

Jack’s words cornered Tom. With so many people around, even if he was still angry, he had to show some grace. He laughed and said, “Mike really underestimates me! Do you think I’m that petty? I was just cursing a few days ago because I thought things should be said openly. It’s good that you stood up bravely. If I held a grudge, would I still be fit to sit in this office?” Then he made a cup of hot tea and handed it to Jack, adding, “Tell Mike to relax. Everything will be handled fairly. Under the same conditions, he’ll even get priority. Why? Because you care about the town and speak openly!”