Thaddeus Osbourne Dabell 1936-2009

During a recent trip to London, Thaddeus Osbourne Dabell died in his sleep.

Those who thought they knew T.O. often saw no more that an old cynic who outlived his time. Those who grew up in his company knew a man that was aware of a social and cultural change no lesser in scope and impact than the wave of technological changes that preceded it. He was also aware that one begat the other and greatly concerned that the current social and cultural transformation is the greatest threat this country has faced in its relatively short existence.

He knew first hand the role that technology played in dumbing down generations of Americans and often shared his concern that the average citizen's increasing lack of critical thinking and an intellectual context to reason about today's events is our democracy's Achilles' Heel. He knew that we have betrayed those who gave this country--gave us--that last full measure by abusing technology to foster hedonism over self-sacrifice and to substitute narcissism for character and integrity. He saw all too many young Americans choose permanent adolescence and was openly critical of the technologies and adults that encouraged them.

So it is no surprise that T.O.'s trip read was Bauerlein's latest book. It was a surprise, even a shock, to find that this blog even existed. We will never know why he did this. Perhaps he wished to address the inevitable but shallow "you don't know, you haven't tried it" arguments. Perhaps to elevate the quality of debate, or perhaps just to light that curse assuaging candle. But we do know this--we know what T.O. would say to you, the reader, right at this very moment:

"Turn off the TV, the cellphone and the computer and pick up a book and read it. Reading a book, any book, is better for you and better for America than what you are doing RIGHT now!"

Update: Keeping Dunwoody Safe

Dateline: April 17, 2009, 6:57 AM. Inner loop of I-285, between Ashford Dunwoody and Chamblee Dunwoody. Dunwoody patrol car, lights ablaze, Cobblodite pulled over.


Previously on DPD Green:

Dateline: April 5, 2009, 7:32 AM. Inner loop of I-285, middle of Doraville. Dunwoody patrol car on the shoulder, all lights blaring. No other car, no LEO in sight.

Dateline: April 9, 2009, 7:07 AM. Inner loop of I-285, Chamblee-Dunwoody exit. Dunwoody patrol car in "Speed Trap" mode parked on the grass shoulder between exit and I-285.

Keeping Dunwoody safe? From what? Falling tax revenues? Or perhaps they're looking for drugs? That could generate enough disposable income for that fourth star and some really cool uniforms.

Would someone please salt this leech before it gets ugly?

TOD

Too Easy Being Green

Smart growth is so last millennium. And it wasn't that smart as it was overrun by "Live/Work/Play" which is now très passé. Yes Dear Reader, if you've been focussed on the goings on in Dunwoody or the global financial meltdown you are forgiven for missing the new winners in Buzzword Bingo: "Green" and her twisted sister "Sustainability".

Big Green's church of choice is the House of LEED. The problems with LEED, from being a costly moving target, to its sometimes nonsensical system that encourages point-mongering, to susceptibility to third party Certification Charlatans is well documented. You win by scamming the scores, not necessarily building the Greenest Building. The bike-rack vs HVAC system is widely touted as a shining example of the stupidity of LEED certification, which can be obtained without implementing any energy saving measures in the building. Not very Green, eh? But consider this: suppose we were told to replace inexpensive, reliable, non-polluting devices with an alternative offering inferior operation, lower reliability and containing toxic chemicals. Which is Green? Well it should be no surprise in this post-Orwellian world that it is the toxic chemical (mercury, phosphorus) laden product--the Compact Flourescent light. Truly that is the light bulb of epiphany for the Green Movement.

But Green has become a branding exercise and a marketing success. Not just GE, a leader in green branding with its ecomagination, but all manner of brown businesses are green-washing themselves and their products in a feel-good effort to market to the green conscious (but not savvy) consumer. After all, the ultimate green is money.

And this has made Green a bit long in the tooth, so like Raúl taking over for an aging Castro, Sustainability is taking the reins. The benefit of Sustainability as a debatable concept is that it has a closed and easily understood definition:

"the consumption of resources at a rate equal to or less than the rate at which they are produced."

Simple. Grok-able.

Coal fired power plant--unSustainable. Internal combustion engine automobiles--unSustainable. Photovoltaics--unSustainable, unless you ignore the fact that they require more energy to build than they deliver in their operational lifetime.

Wind energy--Sustainable. Breeder reactors--Sustainable. Hydropower--Sustainable.

But sustainability is about more than technology and certainly more than energy. And thus it is a knife that cuts deep.

Ask yourself, is Dunwoody sustainable?

Are we financially sustainable? Do we spend faster than we can tax, or beg grants, or increase "fees"? Do we take money from others while offering nothing in return?

Are we oil hogs? Do we consume directly and indirectly more petroleum than average, or more than in times past? Are we even headed towards sustainability?

What about resources that should be truly sustainable? Do we consume more water than we return to the ecosystem via infiltration, runoff and sewerage treatment? Do we consume more oxygen than we replenish with our flora?

And what about infrastructure supporting growth which we all know is ultimately unsustainable? Take a close look at our schools. Do we at least have the infrastructure for those already here and are we adding more, or are the only trailers allowed by Dunwoody zoning located on school property?

And food? Where's the balance to that equation?

At the end of the day aren't we just "breathing other peoples' air" and shouldn't we stop? Or is Sustainability just another brand, like Green, to apply to products simply to increase profit?

TOD

Not Just Whistlin' Dixie

Recent City actions give the critical thinker cause to ponder where we're really headed. Dunwoody always had an intense reverence for the Farmhouse in spite of the fact that most of us aren't even sons of sons of farmers, and even more aren't better than first generation Dunwoodian. After all, how could we be since Dunwoody was mostly farms 50 years ago. But by golly, we'll have images of that farmhouse on the city logo and atop ever street sign in town. And that's OK, if that's all it were.

But that's not all.

Juxtaposed in time and space we have the Dunwoody Village Overlay District and associated ordinances mandating a strict adherence to a Williamsburg aesthetic. Dear reader, it doesn't matter what they want to call it, it is still Williamsburg, and to be fair, there is a Williamsburg, Georgia, but it is below the gnat line and not the Williamsburg afflicting Dunwoody. It is also interesting to observe that the beloved Dunwoody Farmhouse could never be built under these draconian restrictions. As popular as it is, if it weren't already there, it never would be.

What does this tell us?

Certainly that the powers that are have an almost perverse, conflicted affection for yester-year and yester-place. Not too surprising since many Atlantans who moved to Dunwoody in the early years were white flighters, joined later by folks from parts of the country where Williamsburg might well have been indigenous. And it seems they fit right in with that white flight mentality. So we shouldn't be surprised if Official Dunwoody seeks to spread homogeneity beyond the village and beyond architecture. In fact we shouldn't be surprised if Dixie is recognized as the de facto city anthem.

But there is a silver lining---a new game in town. When you're stuck in traffic around Mount Vernon and Chamblee-Dunwoody, don't curse the cars from Fulton, Gwinnett and Cobb clogging our streets. Put away that anger. Just look to the beloved farmhouse and find all the "Williamsburg Violations" you can. You will be surprised not only at how this helps pass the time, and how every time you play the game you find even more, but it won't be long before you're humming the tune to "Dixie". And if you have the courage, and your windows up, belt it out. Loud and clear!

"...in the land of cotton,
ole times there are not forgotten..."

TOD

What Homeschools Teach

If you believe that a school or teacher can and should be assessed by the educational outcome of the students, then we have a lot to learn from homeschools. There is a long, well documented track record of superior performance, but contrary to popular opinion (propaganda?) homeschool students are socially well adjusted, happier, and more likely to vote and engage in civic activities than regular kids. A further surprise to most is the reason why parents are choosing to homeschool. Less than 40% cite religious reasons, while almost 50% cite a superior education, and one in four cite a poor learning environment in schools.

So now we know a few things that really don't matter, that really don't work:

• Hyphenated half-and-half made up degrees: english-education, math-education, etc.
• Teaching in or out of your (made-up) field of study.
• Self-aggrandising certifications and awards.
• Pay.
  
• Expensive books and the marketing behind them.
• Constant curriculum churn.
• Capricious assessments and the companies making a fortune selling them.
  
• Expensive buildings.
• Expensive bureaucracy.
• Feel-good, make-it-fun paradigms.
• Osmosis.

We also know what does work, what trumps all else: hard work and commitment. On the part of the parent/teacher and the student. Nothing, absolutely nothing else matters as much as these characteristics and these individuals.

And this is significant to Dunwoody because much of our demographic has the resources to make this commitment and simply choose not to. This would require sacrifice, personal sacrifice, perhaps even significant sacrifice. But if you don't view parenthood as a life-altering event, why should we pick up the tab? There are all too many folks who could be homeschooling, who could be providing their children the best all-around education available, but instead place their desires, their pleasures, their toys above their children's welfare.

The challenge from The Other Dunwoody is simply this: while waiting for your buddy to tee off on the ninth or while daydreaming through your mani/pedicure, ask yourself why you're not doing the best you can by your children.

TOD

Learning from Pollution

They have a saying in wastewater treatment: the solution to pollution is dilution. Apparently if you flush effluent downstream with enough clean water it is not only less noxious but also less noticeable. Of course this works only when you have enough clean water.

It seems like public schools may operate on the same principle.

Suppose a system holds back one thousand students due to academic failure. Now that sounds like a lot. But what if you reported that only one percent of the students failed to advance while an overwhelming majority, ninety-nine percent, advanced and many excelled. You failed the same number of students, but now it isn't as noticeable.

Unfortunately, people are noticing. They not only see the "expected" failures (IE: someone else's child) they are beginning to understand that their children cannot compete with students educated elsewhere. Many are beginning to conclude that their children receive the "finest education available" solely because it is the only education available to them. Consequently many believe vouchers are the best way to fix this problem.

But not all agree. Dave Belton, a Republican Board of Education member in Morgan County, has written a point-counterpoint guest editorial against vouchers for the AJC. To be fair, the question put to the writers was "Will Public Schools Suffer Under Vouchers?" and the direct answer is obvious: anything which reduces the size of a mature bureaucracy is harmful to the bureaucrats and consequently to the bureaucracy. Our Public Schools are a very mature bureaucracy.

When you read Mr. Belton's op-ed piece, you can easily get lost in the usual educrat talking points: SATs are somehow flawed while self-assessments are not; social obligation to educate every child contradicting the depiction of parents as the ultimate shareholder; etc. In short, the Kool-Aid is talking. But then there is the territory all public school apologists approach but none fully explore:

"I have nothing against private schools. But please don’t pretend that poor kids are going to be able to use these small vouchers to get into the private school of their choice. Private schools only accept kids they want, and these vouchers won’t be nearly large enough to pay for good private schools. No, what will happen is that rich kids will use these vouchers to flee public schools in droves, leaving poor kids to wither on the vine —- unfunded and uncared for."

It appears Mr. Belton proposes to hide the pollution of the impoverished by diluting it with what he implies is the manifest superiority of the wealthy. He is saying what few in, or taking, his position will say: that poor kids, by and large, are doomed to failure in our Public Schools. Or perhaps he is suggesting that their success depends on the presence of the children of means more so than it does the teachers, administrators or board members. In fact, without these other, richer children, he claims the poor will be unfunded and uncared for.

Now the unfunded part is just nonsense. School funding is per full time equivalent student, which in DeKalb means "any student in home room on March 5th." Turns out they don't ask for a Parent Financial Aid Form, they just count heads.

The uncared for part is absolutely amazing. It says that the poor are neglected not only by their own parents but they are also uncared for by those underpaid, self-sacrificing professionals who toil tirelessly in our Public Schools. That teachers and administrators cannot choke down the Ripple without cleansing their palette with Perrier. He is also clearly stating that Public Schools fail the poor and the system needs the rich to dilute this failure. He has correctly concluded that subjecting Public Schools to objective measures of success and failure would reveal that Public Schools fail those who need them most and hide behind those who will succeed regardless.

While this particular component of his anti-voucher argument is repulsive, it remains difficult to support vouchers. After all, it really isn't the parent's money and if there is a societal obligation to educate there should be an equal, if not greater, parent-student obligation to learning--and this simply isn't there.

However, it is equally difficult to support Public Schools--if we didn't have them, would we create them and would they look anything like what we have now?

But Mr. Belton is right about some things. First, the ultimate shareholder is, or should be the parent, and the best way to hold a school accountable is to hold the parent accountable (IE: responsible) for their own children's education. And that starts with money. And second, a vast majority of our successful students will ultimately be in private schools, leaving Public Schools for children of those who cannot or will not meet their parental responsibility.

TOD

Millar Distances Himself

Oh, yesterday's over my shoulder
So I can't look back for too long
There's just too much to see waiting in front of me
And I know that I just can't go wrong

That's right Fran, you just can't go wrong, so it must be us. Or that's his story and he's stickin' to it.

In the latest release of the Dunwoody Fan Magazine, Fran opines that we, the voters, (OK, 35% of the registered voters) were simply brilliant in voting for cityhood based on his advice and the advice of shills for CH2M Hill and the wannabe politicos running the Citizens for Dunwoody, but not so smart when it came to electing a mayor and council. Turns out it turned out the way these things generally turn out: it didn't pass the smell test then and now by golly, as the sweet perfume of his salesmanship dissipates, it is really raising a stink. Seems folks, not just The Other Dunwoody, have begun pointing out to their fine Rep that this cityhood thing is not at all what he said it would be. In fact, it is beginning to look like this is a scam of Madoff proportions.

So what's a successful politician to do? That's right. Duck and cover. "Please remember that the City Council chose to go in a different direction of governance than anticipated by most people." Not exactly a mea culpa, but Fran does acknowledge things aren't going well: "I see attempts for no-bid contracts and possibly hiring employees and vendors primarily because someone worked with them before." Sounds like Fran is seeing what we in The Other Dunwoody have seen all along--more of the same old cronyism in politics, except this time it's the frat boys and not the good old boys.

And after all, just what was "anticipated by most people"? Well that would be what they were sold/told by the leaders who brought this upon us. After shenanigans to get SB82 through the house and a manipulative referendum in mid-July scheduled well before publishing Task Force reports and in a presidential election year no less, Millar lays the blame at the feet of other politicians and the voters that supported them. How quickly he went from "we did it the right way" to they went another way.

Well, "Please don't blame me when you go to the polls" may not cut it this time. When a building advertised as glorious, innovative and safe collapses on top of folks the architect and engineer should expect to be held responsible. And that's just what...wait...what's that sound? Is it? Can it be? Yes! It is! It's Fran! Fran jammin' to Boofay...

With these changes in platitudes, changes in attitudes
Nothing remains quite the same
With all of my running and all of my cunning
If I couldn't laugh I just would go insane
[everybody!]
If we couldn't laugh we just would go insane
If they weren't all crazy they would go insane

TOD

Spreadsheets to the Rescue, Part 2

Second in a two part series.

In the first of this series The Other Dunwoody challenged the citizens of Dunwoody to take the city to task just as they have the DeKalb County School System. In this, the second part, we will hop, skip and jump through the minefield known as Public Education. In keeping with the title, we'll focus on the financial aspects discussing the operational characteristics at a later time and leaving the more philosophical aspects of this great entitlement for your own discussion.

Some facts:

• 2009 DCSS approved total expeditures: $1,174,700,781 (That's right, 1.1 Billion USD)
• 2009 anticipated K-12 enrollment: 101079 students
• 2009 DCSS millage rate 22.98
• 2007 median household income for 30338: $111,884
• 2007 median house/condo value in 30338: $467,426
• State income tax rate is 6%
  

Some assumptions:

• the average family with children in public school is consistent with the above income and home averages
• one half of state income goes to support K-12 education
• a reasonable long-term rate of inflation is 4%
  

Now, the model requirements:

• determine the total education costs by number of children in the household (1,2,3,4,5)
• determine the DCSS property tax on the median home
• determine the state income tax on the median income (assume it is all taxed)
• determine the amount of state income tax dedicated to education
• determine the total annual household contribution to the education system
• calculate the number of years it would take the average household to pay back their children's education cost (for 1,2,3,4,5 children), assuming no interest, no inflation
  

In and of itself this is a pretty interesting model[1]. It provides some startling revelations:

• It is highly unlikely that anyone with children in DeKalb public schools pays the annual cost to the county.
• It is equally unlikely that anyone with two or more children in DeKalb public schools, even in upscale locales like Dunwoody, will ever pay back the cost of educating their children.
• Without adjusting for inflation (which only really counts after your children graduate since it applies equally to house values and education costs) it takes the average Dunwoodian almost 50 years to pay off their education debt.
• The per-student cost greatly exceeds any voucher amount proposed by politicos.
• These proposed voucher amounts, for a single student, greatly exceed the taxes paid.
• If it is this bad for the Dunwoody demographic, it must be much worse for some parts of DeKalb.
  

Regardless of your views on public education, the application of a little critical thinking reveals that it is the planet's largest entitlement program.

TOD

Notes:

1. This model is presented as an OpenOffice workbook. If you are not using OpenOffice, now is a good time to start.

Spreadsheets to the Rescue, Part 1

First in a two part series.

In Dunwoody and throughout DeKalb there has been quite an uproar over the way the DeKalb County School System spends its money[1]. The Other Dunwoody applauds the fact that citizens are engaged, and many are capable users of some powerful technology: the spreadsheet. Using this tool they've gained insight into the compensation and organizational structure of what in reality is the largest (some say most bloated) local government we deal with: the public school system. And they are madder than a wet hen.

The Other Dunwoody would like to present a new challenge to these engaged, intelligent citizens, especially those within Dunwoody:

Demand the same data from your city government and subject it to the same intense, critical scrutiny.

That's right, The Other Dunwoody challenges you to stop the pollyannish cheerleading and demand the same kind of transparency, the same kind of information at the same level of detail from your city as you are currently receiving from your county school system! We've voted in a city that has given a job or committee position to nearly every active member of the Dunwoody Homeowners association and they have paid us back with incompetence. Clearly these people, who seem to think three plus two be faux pas, need adult supervision.

It is time for everyone in Dunwoody, but especially the "winnning" 35%, to give them just that. Then we will have better informed citizenry and perhaps even live in a city with capable public servants. And when the inevitable debates about wresting our schools from the county bureaucracy begin we won't have to assume the City of Dunwoody will be better stewards of our[2] educational dollars---we'll know.

TOD

Notes:

1. We in The Other Dunwoody won't quibble here about the semantic. After all if the money our Mayor and City Council collect and spend is their money to spend, then we must afford the same courtesy to DCSS, mustn't we?
   
2. The main topic of the second part in the series--just whose dollars are these?
   

Favorite Whine In Dunwoody

Pouilly Fuisse? I could drink it all day!

No, no, NO! Not wine, WHINE!

After all, this is Dunwoody, and you should know by now you cannot drink wine without overbearing supervision from the church or the government. Or both. And isn't it interesting that both expect money? But we digress...

No, the favorite whine in Dunwoody is...drum roll please...TAXES! Specifically, property taxes, because you see, property taxes are about the only taxes the average voter is aware they pay to the City. And it certainly is the most direct. But not to worry, the political process and the politicians that drive it are quite adept at addressing the tax whiners.

How do they do this? Let's start with a look at some facts. Cold, hard, uncomfortable facts:

• Median Dunwoody 2007 Household Income: $111,884
• Median Georgia 2007 Household Income: $49,136
• 2006 Assessed Residential Property Value in Dunwoody: $1.5 Billion
• 2006 Assessed Non-Residential Property in Dunwoody: $1.0 Billion

"So what", you ask? Well dear reader, look at what these facts reveal:

• on average we make over twice what the average Georgian makes
• forty percent of our taxable property is non-residential
• only owner-occupied residences are eligible for Homestead Exemption
• home owners still get HOST

Bottom line is the wealthiest amongst us, home owners, get the most tax breaks and are in fact leaching off of those less well off, those denied a voice in Dunwoody and others through out Georgia.

Let's see how this all works.

The forty percent of non-residential taxable property will ultimately pay more per unit value in property tax than the sixty percent residential due to homeowner exemptions, yet business has no meaningful vote on city governance. Rental properties get no homeowner exemption so the added tax burden is passed on to the renter. While these renters do have a vote, again, based on per unit assessed value, they carry a higher burden than the homeowner, who is often far wealthier. Then there are franchise fees, totaling about $2.8 MILLION of the projected Dunwoody revenue stream, and except for a small portion of GaPower's fees, these come from the pockets of all rate payers across Georgia. You might observe that a family in Hall county, living on one third of our average income, is paying fees to support the rich folks in Dunwoody.

And what is the reaction from the citizenry--from city hall? Outrage! That's right, outrage.

Outrage at the possibility that the citizens of Dunwoody, the voters in this fair city might actually be called upon to pick up their own tab. After we've soaked the business community for property and revenue taxes, after we've bled just a little bit, a pin-prick mind you, from everyone in Georgia, we have the unmitigated gall to rail against "higher taxes." Even though these higher taxes pay for services that, well to be frank, only we get.

Here's what's missing in The Other Dunwoody. We're missing the Magic Pews. We simply don't know where to go---what seat in which church of what religion to hear that voice of moral authority tell us that actions so heinous when done unto us are now righteous when we do them unto others.

It appears to be the Church of the Self-Righteous, practicing the Religion of Politics and the only voice you will hear is the voice of Greed.

TOD