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Recently, according to e-mail etiquette expert David Shipley, Governor Jon Corzine has announced that he doesn't intend to use e-mail. In "Opting Out: New Jersey Governor Rejects Email," Shipley describes how elected officials are avoiding this important channel of electronic communication and articulates his own outrage at the proposition:

But abandoning email altogether doesn't sit well with me. Not for an elected official. It's vaguely undemocratic because email is so democratic — with a small d. It breaks down barriers. You can reach just about anyone. It's transparent. There's a digital record to hold you to your words. Plus, a lot of people don't have the luxury of forsaking email. Should our politicians?

Shipley's call for accountability is especially ironic, given how Corzine promised his supporters that they could "get email from Jon Corzine" as a candidate and how the "Contact the Governor" online form still asks for the "Email Topic" from constituents to direct their "electronic correspondence" with the state's highest elected official. I couldn't help but also notice the fact that Corzine is proclaiming the launch of a new website on state contracts to make the business of the governance "more open and transparent."