If William Shakespeare had lived in Nassau County, I suspect that one of his best known works, Much Ado About Nothing, would have a different title - Much Ado, Then Nothing.

Being a relative newcomer (six years now) to this area, I don't know if there's anything much different now about the way in which our county government operates than the way it's always been. County leaders seem to prefer to remain just below the public's radar for the most part when it comes to day-to-day operations. But every once in a while, someone takes notice or catches wind of a contentious issue, be it property development, road maintenance, tree ordinances, waste disposal, traffic and congestion, library funding, animal control - the list is seemingly endless. Experts are summoned, consultants are hired, studies and investigations are conducted, recommendations made ... to what end? The general consensus - that we've heard for years - is that "Something must be done!" Can you think of a better way to assure that not much will happen?

One of the most prominent stories and opinion pieces in this paper two weeks ago had to do with the deplorable conditions at the Nassau County Animal Control facilities, and what should be done to rectify the situation. Having been asked to consider taking over Animal Control, Sheriff Seagraves, with the blessing of the Nassau County Veterinary Association, submitted a proposal with a budget about 70 percent higher than the county had allocated - which county personnel refused to accept. Veterinarian Jim O'Brien was quoted as saying, "We haven't had an appropriate budget ever ... the old budget is a failing shelter."

O'Brien's comments got me thinking about how budgets are established in the first place, be it at the federal government level or right here in Nassau County. It's often the case that division chiefs or department heads - with the knowledge, experience and expertise to create and manage a budget - submit a figure for approval by the powers-that-be (usually politicians) that reflects their needs. Sometimes, the budget is accepted as is - with a little "pork" thrown in for good measure. But more often than not, especially at the local level, there never seems to be enough money to go around.

Politicians, for the most part, seem to do a fine job of spending, but many of our elected leaders have never had to create and manage a budget, let alone live within one. How can we expect them to know the true costs of essential services and prevent them from being substandard without the proper funding?

"But where will the money come from?" they will ask, when there's a mandate to cut tax revenue, and voters get up in arms at the prospect of tax hikes and demand better fiscal accountability.

The combination of difficult questions, no clear-cut answers and lack of non-confrontational dialogue usually accounts for going nowhere in a hurry. What will it take to keep the wheels from spinning and regain some forward momentum? Perhaps we need a dose of deprivation - it worked well for Burger King recently in an ad campaign that noted customers' reactions to being deprived of the Whopper. Joni Mitchell's lyrics come to mind: "Don't it always seem to go, that you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone. They paved paradise and put up a parking lot." I, for one, sure hope it never comes to that.