Kinda Smarmy

So the city decided to throw the code book out the window by installing "art" in the windows of businesses in daVille in clear violation of city code. Now one might say they are following the larger blue trend of rules being "for thee, not for me" except they never enforce any rule that might be an inconvenience to Friends and Family. No consideration for residents whatsoever. At least one elected official justified these violations on the grounds that it served as an opportunity to add some art to the Village [bullshit], support local businesses [the real and only reason] and showcase student talent [really?]. This came up when a resident lodged a complaint which was challenged by the same official who questioned whether they had actually measured the windows [and coverage] or were they just presuming it was in violation? Whiskey. Tango. Foxtrot. Exactly who is supposed to be doing this measuring? Would that not be the city? Well, it would in any other city but in Dunwoody no rules apply when you're "supporting local businesses." And exactly how many of these businesses are owned by folks who live in Dunwoody? 

Ultimately the Truth Butcher was forced to fess up to the blatant violation and the offending signage was removed. But why is it a constant battle to get this city to do the right thing?

Misleading Headlines

A (fairly) recent dropping of the Blue Bag Rag sported an above-the-fold main headline of "Police get aid in behavioral health." Sounds great, right? Anyone who has been paying the least bit of attention knows that Police Command is a dumpster fire that seems fueled by an eternal flame. Everyone knows they need some professional help when it comes to behavioral (and mental) health. 

But this is not what is happening.

Rather than spend some money to put a lid on this raging fire and perhaps even slow the exponential rate of increase in legal and compensatory payouts, this money is to be spent because folks at city hall have determined real people in the Smart City need these services. Or, perhaps, this is just another budget and headcount expansion. These is another factor that seems rampant within the bureaucratic mindset: there is no such thing as community policing and this adds to the growing list of reasons that a cop will not respond.

Is that a Good Thing or a Bad Thing?

All Or Nothing

We live in a world where stupid knows no bounds and suffers no consequences. The current administration attempted to throw a sizable bone to the yellow-dog faithful only to have it soundly rejected. Apparently a $10K student loan forgiveness was totally unacceptable: seems like it is all or nothing as far as the overly entitled are concerned. These arithmetically challenged, intentionally ignorant "scholars" seem trapped in a never-ending pity-party of their own making. 

Well, mostly of their own making.

Even taking the "all" option will not address the fundamental problem and we'll only see wave after wave of the over-leveraged entitled. Like immigration amnesty without immigration reform this is kicking the can a very small ways down the road. Even public schools are over-commercialized expanding not the actual education services, hence the worthless degrees, but administrative overhead. This happened when the industry embraced the Oprah philosophy, everybody gets a degree, and to accomplish this a transition was made from an attrition model to a developmental model. This requires enormous expansion of wrap-around services, remediation (explicit or embedded), extended stays (outside of service academies graduating in six years is considered success) and exponential expansion of non-educational staff and administrators. Oh, yeah, and budget. 

Because when clear the mental fog you'll see that this is all about the money, not learning, not even credentials...just money. And until we, as a society, address these fundamental failures we will have nothing but a pipeline of the indebted ignorant.

City Escape

The East Cobb vote went down in flames with opponents touting the inevitable increase in taxes, perhaps having watched what has happened in Dunwoody. They also pointed out how the process seemed rushed, it was, making it clear something wicked this way comes. Perhaps they even read the charter and noted that their "representatives' would be legally prohibited from any activity that even looked like representation. 

Proponents pulled their social media presence like a turtle pulling back into its shell but make no mistake they will be back. There is serious power and money behind these cityhood movements and they will get what they want.

Being Kind

No. No. Not TOD. The author of a recent letter to the Blue Bag Rag regarding a tax hike. How was this author being kind? Because the author was actually referring to city bureaucrats' plan to increase the millage rate, because the fact is that the City of Dunwoody has increased taxes each and every year of its existence. Once and only once did anyone on city council dare to even suggest adjusting millage rates down to ensure a revenue neutral (no increase) tax level. That went over like a lead balloon and has never been mentioned since. 

But we need more residents, more voters like that letter writer who have had it with a bunch of unelected bureaucrats running amok.

Doubling Up

City bureaucrats are doubling up on financial pain inflicted on residents. They're going to take the city into debt AND increase the millage rate. Now the debt, bonds, is allegedly for "unfunded capital projects" but no one knows where these projects came from or why they are on any lists and are clearly out of budget. All we know is these did not come from the community. The millage rate increase is just another insult added to the injury of year-after-year tax increases. Each and every year. 

At this time these are being presented as "proposals" but make no mistake for these bureaucrats it is a done deal.

Butcher Eminent Evil

Looks like the unelected bureaucrats down at city hall have gone a bridge too far in trying to steal property from First Baptist Atlanta.  The Truth Butcher claimed the hasty retreat came “after First Baptist Church Atlanta shared new information about the history and plans for this property that had not been communicated to the city previously.”

We're gonna call BULLSHIT on that. It is their job to know what is going on in this community, what residents find important and the historical importance of all elements of Dunwoody, not just the things important to their developer overlords. God knows they have a large enough "chair force" to have someone stay on top of this and it is certainly the mayor and council's job to make sure this happens. That is a job that is not getting done. Perhaps even worse is what spewed out of the mayor's mouth: “The point of posting the notice [about eminent domain] on the property was to foster communications. Clearly this process worked because we heard from a lot of people.” WTF? Is she clueless or does she just think everyone in the "Smart City" is stupid? They were required by law to post the notice (or they wouldn't have) and what brought out the protests was a call from the altar. Period. Hard stop. Worst of all is the firmly held belief at city hall that if you do not, proactively, inform them of your history, the history of your property and your plans for same, then they'll just come steal it if it suits their mood. Is it city hall or a den of thieves?

Let's hope that our "city leaders" recognize this is not a one-off little fuquey uppey and that the rot at city hall is extensive and requires a hell of a lot more than virtue-signalling on social media.

Eminent Evil

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Less than a dime on the dollar. That's what our unelected city bureaucrats think they can get away with. They're offering under $400K on property that has an existing, arms-length, valid offer of just under $5M.Given the overtly cozy relationship these bureaucrats have with developers it is impossible to believe they didn't already know that, so this is premeditated. (Would anyone be surprised if they took it, had a change of mind and handed it over to a developer?) Given this is not anywhere on the approved Parks Master Plan, there is certainly some other plan at work. Something hidden. Something dark. Something rooted in greed. Something evil.

We gone from organized malfeasance to institutional evil.

You Can Never Go Home...

Local media is in a dry spell and have been re-posting (sometimes behind a pay wall) a story about "P-Diddy's abandoned Dunwoody mansion." To paraphrase Eddie Izzard, wir haben einen kleinen problemo. Turns out this property is in SANDY SPRINGS! If it were in Dunwoody, there would be no question about why it was abandoned.