Recently, local public forums described as town hall meetings have received national attention.

The media seem attracted to the smell of blood, and local governments hope that one won’t occur in their community.

How has such a venerable institution, functional as a form of democratic government for centuries and a vital component of our democratic process, earned such a fearful reputation?

The answer, I believe, is that local governments have let their communities down. Rather than providing safe venues for their citizens to assemble and address their differences through civil discourse, local governments have treated such gatherings like underground rave events whose participants may not even be members of the community.

Now is the time for local governments to come out of the shadows and assert their leadership by facilitating open discussions of popular topics that, in the words of Henry David Thoreau, “by a few sensible words redeemed the reputation of the race.”

Now is the time to preempt the political rallies, vigils, club meetings and tea parties as the legitimate voice of the community.

As an administrative function, the comfort zone of local government, managing community meetings under a code of conduct with ample historical precedent should not be challenging.

Let’s not let open debate go the way of dueling as a means of addressing our differences. Nick Fotheringham Thousand Oaks