Fourth, congressional offices must expedite the transition to operating efficient and responsive e-mail systems. Continuing to process incoming e-mail manually is a costly drain on office time and resources. Continuing to answer e-mail with paper fails to meet the timeliness and responsiveness constituents expect. Continuing to cling to misconceptions about e-mail causes congressional offices to appear behind the times and resistant to change. In this congressional e-mail standoff, there are no winners, only losers.
Electronic communication has the potential to strengthen our democracy.
It holds the promise of creating greater openness and a broader dialogue between Members of Congress and their constituents. To realize this potential, however, the public, activists, and Members of Congress must all become better users of the powerful tools they possess. Incorporated All Rights Reserved.