...and the livin' is easy.
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| Sleeping Rough |
...the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.
There's been a bit of point-counterpoint going on between the city's head cheerleader and one of the founding councilmen playing out in the blue bag rag. It is over the issue of property tax. The meaning of property tax is crucial to any reasonable comprehension of what is circulating, so we'll look at that later. First some context.
The head cheerleader, who is one of those politicos that loves to say "we didn't raise the property tax rate", is now saying "Dunwoody taxes to remain unchanged," with the assertion this is "No Spin." Now the context of this is property taxes, and as a revenue item, property taxes on homestead exemption eligible properties in the city is up this year over last, as it has been almost every year. This is the observation made earlier by the founding councilman, and it is absolutely true. However, if you close one eye, hold your mouth right and live in the alternate reality of politics, what the head cheerleader asserts can be viewed as true.
It all depends on your understanding of "property tax."
In the head cheerleader's world, "property tax" is yours, and if it is, then the taxable base value of your home is indeed frozen at the value in 2010 or at the time of your purchase. So how is it that the founding councilman can be correct?
It's actually quite simple. It is not your tax, because the city is taxing property, not you. That's why it is called "property tax." You may be deceived by the fact that you write the check and that makes it your tax, and some folks would like you to think that way. It isn't and it's actually quite easy to understand. First, you will find, if you try, that they don't care from where or from whom they get the money. Your rich mother-in-law could write the check and bet your bottom dollar, they will cash it. Or, if that doesn't convince you that this is not a tax on you, but instead is a tax on property you own, try this: don't pay it. See what happens. Do they garnish your wages? Nope. Do they dip into your accounts? No. Do they bring in the big guns, the IRS, to take your money that way? Absolutely not. So, what do they do? They will auction that property on the courthouse steps to get their money. That's what they do, because they are taxing the property. Period. Hard stop.
And that is why the head cheerleader can stand in front of folks owning homestead exemption eligible property and say "your property taxes remain unchanged," and it is true if you accept the [incorrect] notion that this is a personal tax. The fact (that must be disclosed by state law) that the city's property tax on homestead exemption eligible property increases without a milage rate increase casts an unfavorable light on "unchanged."
So who is winning the war of words? Well, if this were is a sporting event, the founding councilman looks like a veteran sports analyst and the head cheerleader looks like she'll shake her pompoms at whatever her team does on the field, no matter how bad that is.
Turns out you don't get your own facts, but you do get to spin your own truth.
It's not a bird. It's not a plane. And it certainly isn't Superman. It's some guy in a T-shirt and underwear standing on the fifth floor balcony looking down at your kids playing in your back yard. At least that is what the city's bureaucrats have in store for you. Yes, if you live near by the village they're going have their developer buddies build hundreds of rental overlooks ideal for destroying whatever privacy you thought you had.
Is this what you voted for when you said "yes" to creating a city? No? Then consider that next time you get a chance to vote.
Some of the city's founding fathers have become outspoken of late, decrying the dumpster fire they set alight. No, they're not apologizing, they are chastising the bureaucrats running this shit-show. Well, someone should. And there is much to worry about as well described elsewhere.
But it raises questions. Where are the other founders? Not just the locals currently playing but the two big hitters. Where are Fran and Dan? Are they proud of what's going on? Supportive? Is this what they intended? And let's be clear, this is intentional, just look at the city charter.
In this section we get:
This obstinate refusal to patrol our streets brings up another issue: they don't enforce the "no truck" zone either, even though it includes school zones. And then, if you've lived here long enough, it may occur to you that the repeated failures of this water main, started, and then picked up speed, once we had a city. Hmmm.... Perhaps there is a really good reason to NOT have heavy trucks frequenting this stretch of road. Possibly this is adding stress to subterranean infrastructure. Perhaps it is just the straw on the camel's back, or maybe it is more impactful.
Could the county recover maintenance costs from the city due to the city's negligence? Or perhaps the county should hold off on a proper fix until the city is under a court order to do their job. Regardless, the CEO should be looking into this. Lord knows lots of bad things happened when that city referendum was approved. Maybe she can step up, step in, and get some things fixed around here.
The Atlanta Board of Education has approved a budget that removes 135 positions garnering a $25M savings. Details, like hi/lo/median aren't available but this represents an average burdened cost of $185,185 per position. Assuming the burden, employer taxes, retirement contributions, health insurance, etc., is 50%these are positions commanding over $92K/year. On average. Some higher, some lower. All sizable paychecks. This rightsizing is justified as [re]focusing on the core mission, the obligations to the children and the community.
How much money could Dunwoody save were they to [re]focus on this city's core mission and promises made?
DeKalb's CEO recently reported that half, fifty percent, of residential water customers have bills in arrears. Some say that a crackdown on past due balances is somehow unreasonable. It isn't clear who these people are, what planet they live on, or how they've substituted emotions for character. Maybe they are the same [kind of] folks who think students, allegedly smart enough to get into college should have their debt erased because, well, they were actually pretty stupid. Somehow they think if you don't pay your water bill this month, well, it would be just wrong if you ever had to pay it.
These people are breathing our air.
Sandy Springs recently passed a "buffer zone" law seriously restricting in-your-face canvassing, proselytizing, and just general interaction in public. Yes, you would still be allowed to preach from the pulpit. In church. This passed with only two dissenting votes.
More recently, Sandy Springs rescinded that ordinance by a unanimous vote, with the city attorney's legal opinion also doing a 180. It's enough to make your head spin.
You gotta wonder why folks running the newish faux cities do the silly things they do.
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