York Township Commissioner Paul Knepper seems to have gone on a paternalistic rampage at last week's meeting.

At one point Tuesday, he held up an Alcoholics Anonymous book to chastise a proposal that would allow alcohol to be served at the refurbished Queensgate cinema.

At another point, he proposed shaming people who ask the township for public documents by posting their names on the municipality's Web site.

Think of it as the modern-day equivalent of the Scarlet letter -- A for adulteress.

In this case, perhaps it could be B for Busybody.

Or how about C for Citizen?

Because, you see, that's what good citizens do.

They pay attention. They attend municipal meetings. They act as watchdogs -- the checks and balances our founders built into our democratic republic.

If they have a question or are concerned about how their tax dollars are being spent, they ask to look at government documents.