Hard not to agree with this observation by Alex Howard about the newly branded U.S. Digital Services.

Given the anger, doubt and frustration prevalent in the public discourse around government IT, the only way public trust in the federal government's ability to use technology well for something other than surveillance and warfare will be through the deployment of beautiful, modern Web services that work. Jen Pahlka has explicitly connected government's technical competency to trust in this young century.

"If government is to regain the trust and faith of the public, we have to make services that work for users the norm, not the exception," she told to Government Technology, after leaving the White House. Mayors, governors and presidents are experiencing the truth of her statement around the country, from small towns to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

The challenge here is to move beyond secure, mission-critical systems that work in insulated environments - but fail to provide high value - to focus on measurable outcomes, quick(er) wins, higher value services for citizens. This is the holy grail of digitization.