It's Not Another Layer

It's not. It's Not! IT'S NOT!!!!

Or, so we're told by those who've foisted a new city upon us all.

But it is undeniably more government.

Before a City of Dunwoody, we had seven county commissioners, a CEO (they call him MISTER CEO) and quite a bureaucracy on our payroll. And these aren't just ordinary, run-of-the-mill elected officials. These are special. If we ever needed proof that elected officials are like diapers (needing constant checking and frequent changing--for the same reason), we need look no further than DeKalb County, Georgia.

Now we got ourselves a city. A mother-lovin' Georgia politikin' city. (apologies to fans of "In Harm's Way"). We now have expanded the taxpayer funded payroll to include six city council positions, a city clerk, a mayor and a police department. And we still have all those county yahoos.

But how can the police department be included as 'new' burdens? Aren't we just replacing the previous county police force with our own local police? Only in the twisted world of a Pro-Dun. When a major tactic for inciting voters was the proposition that Dunwoody paid for a police force that actually patrolled elsewhere, it is an insult to any intelligence to later propose that this shiny new Dunwoody PD is 'just a replacement'. Sorry folks. Cake. Eat. Pick one.

But at least it isn't a new layer. Right? Well mostly. There is that little bitty problem called 911. The Pro-Duns decided to pick and choose which services would be citified and which would stay with the county. Fire and 911 stays with the county. So now if you need a cop and call 911, that call has to be routed to the proper dispatch, when before it WAS the proper dispatch. There is no way around it, you must go through the county to get to the city.

Even though it is more government, the proposition is it is 'better' government because the city council and mayor are our neighbors. Though their actions in forming the city suggest otherwise, let us all hope neighbors really make better politicians instead of politics bringing out the worst in our neighbors.

TOD