It’s not the mistake, but how you correct it that matters.

The Adams County Board of Supervisors has acknowledged that county cell phone usage wasn’t properly being monitored. Several of the supervisors have even publicly apologized for the lack of oversight and their initial response to the issue.

They’ve said the issue will be monitored going forward.

Now, it’s time for the community to accept the apology, promise to hold them accountable in the future, and let bygones be bygones.

Cell phones are certainly a necessary part of county government, and arguing over whether it requires a top-of-the-line smart phone or a lesser model probably isn’t worth the words.

But realizing that the bigger details will take involvement from all of us is essential.

The five men elected to govern our county aren’t supermen, and they can’t be expected to be perfect.

They can, however, be expected to take constructive criticism with an open mind from the community, the voters and the newspaper.

And the community, voters and newspaper must uphold our end of the deal.

More public questioning would likely turn up more cell-phone-like issues.

But wasteful spending in one or even more segments of the county’s nearly $30 million budget doesn’t necessarily mean we should call for the ouster of each every supervisor.

That type attitude will only continue a negative cycle of gotcha politics.

Instead, the key to the happy, healthy, growing community we all want is involvement from the general public. Our board needs attention, praise, complaints and calls from the public.