Camps Run Amuck

Camp season is in full swing with an enormous variety of camps based on day or stay, general activities, and affiliations. Dunwoody has a unique camp, because Dunwoody is unique despite the best efforts of some to force us into banality, and our camp is:

That's right! We have "Camp Carpool!" Your children will be introduced to backseat etiquette, how to pinch a sibling without being caught, license plate bingo, I Spy (with my little eye), and all the verses to 99 Bottles. The only restriction is that you cannot walk your child to camp. You must drive. 

QR Codes? Really?

Dunwoody Village tends to get littered with illegal signs, well, because, no enforcement. And they tend to hang around a while, sometimes literally. But there is something you may have noticed about these offensive signs polluting our community: they very often have QR codes. This is interesting because, as almost anyone without a sign knows, internet advertising is the way the world works these days. So why can't they get with the times? Plus, If you actually put up one of these illegal signs, QR code or not, you're just insulting folks who might have been customers. 

Let's look at a couple of examples stinking up the Village.

Really? HOW neighborly are you?

This is an astounding display of arrogance claiming status as a "neighborly company." Well, here's a clue "neighbor": this sign is illegal and that, around these parts, isn't considered neighborly. This alone is enough reason to never do business with your company. 

Look At Those Screws

This one is pole mounted, and these jerks were not just jerking around, they were screwing around. That's right, this bad boy is literally screwed to the pole. Hell, the city doesn't put up signs that securely. Once again, there are many folks who offer pressure washing services, and you're one that no one in daVille should ever consider.

Where Were You?

This is a party game: where were you when <fill in the blank> happened? You know, like 9/11, the shuttle disaster, the Kennedy assassinations, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King, or the fall of Saigon (or Kabul). But that's not today's diatribe. Today's question is put to the Fourth Estate: where were you, where the hell have you been and what have you been doing?

The AJC, given cover by the Grey Lady, is spilling ink ostensibly editorializing that Biden should step aside because of sudden onset age. Yep, he's an overnight octagenarian. To hear these two pontificate you'd think Biden went from the vim and vinegar of a mid-life crisis (he does own a Corvette) to full blown old-age senility. And the Fourth Estate? Well, they didn't see that coming. Really? 

To be kind, the AJC opinion piece is filled with merde de cheval, and predictably so, as it is consistent with previous behavior. By headline this is billed as a call for Biden to step aside. For the good of the country, wink, wink. But, as they always have, they digressed into a hit piece on Trump. This harped on the only thing the debate offered: CNN fact checkers accuse Trump of thirty prevarications. Not noted by the AJC are Biden's nine lies or his long history of a strained relationship with the truth. Not that one liar is better than another, but in their partisanship it seems the editorial board would have you believe one, their one, is better. Their argument against Trump is nonsensical and arrogant. Nonsensical in that they characterize their enemy as a pathological liar yet quote him suggesting those quotes are gospel truths. Arrogant in that they believe, and expect us to believe, that they are somehow the sole arbiters of truth, when all they really have is what we all have: an opinion. 

But they simply could not leave bad enough alone, they had the chutzpah to bring up George Washington's "farewell address," specifically in regards to partisanship. The AJC editorial staff is unashamedly leftist, AKA Democrat, and they are unrelenting in bashing Republicans. Exclusively. This is an Orwellian level of propaganda born of intense hubris. They claim to be our source of real news, of objective information, yet their leftward tilt leads them into biased reporting replete with misleading language and disinformation. 

And if we are to believe they are so damned knowledgeable how could they be blindsided? How could it be that they were surprised? Or, maybe they weren't. Maybe they knew all along, after all, anyone watching the D-Day ceremonies witnessed this same senility on parade. If they didn't know they should have. Either way they have violated a public trust and maybe, just maybe, they are the ones who have finally stepped aside.

Me-Oh, My-Oh, What About Ohio?

Due to Biden's incredible debate performance, Democratic movers and shakers are doing more shaking than moving, and any movement is in the direction of "anyone but Biden." And they don't even know who to replace him with.

Then there are the actual logistics. This is where Ohio comes in. See, Ohio had a nomination deadline for a candidate to appear on the ballot, and that deadline was before the Democrat's convention where Biden would formally become the nominee. Now some are saying that if Biden drops out, the delegates would be able to vote their conscience for a replacement. Problem is, the Democrats have already held a virtual nominating convention to ordain Biden in advance of the Ohio deadline. This makes Biden the official, the legal nominee, making the convention itself a charade.

If, and it is a big if, the DNC plays by the rules, their rules, it would fall to the DNC to select Biden's replacement. How democratic is that?

Stupid's Back

If you stroll the Knoll you have probably noticed a new addition to the Chamblee-Dunwoody intersection that cropped up overnight like some kind of mushrooms. Yep. Two new, pretty much unnecessary sources of light pollution. Remember when the city gave a hairy rodent's rectum about light pollution? Of course you do. But look, it gets better.

Here They Are

Not just two, but two different types, two styles. Let's take a closer look at the shorter of the two.

Oddly Familiar

Doesn't this look like the pole lights on Dunwoody Village Parkway? It does. Well, except for one notable exception. 

This is the one they replaced and this is where things get stupid. Again. The Knoll tells us that there are indeed replacement lights that are visually consistent with all the others on DVP, at least when it isn't lit, but Stupid chose this atrocity. But wait! It gets worse. Because this is what the not-so-long-ago city mandated residential streetlight looks like.

Hard to see, but notice the similarities: open frame; straight lines. Just like the DVP atrocity. 

So here's what happened. A DVP style streetlight was installed in a residential area where all the other streetlights are of a different, conflicting style, but a replacement light on DVP is in the residential style, conflicting with what was there and all the others that remain. How stupid is that?

Obits And Police Blotters

What do these things have in common? These are the two items in a newspaper that are generally published without a byline. The content is often sourced, in whole or part, from outside the news organization and while these are both legitimately news and informative they are not really products of the paper, though they may be edited for length and clarity. Or they may not. 

This week's Blue Bag Rag came with an interesting front page "news article." What makes it interesting? Not the content as it is politico boiler plate whenever the city commits the sin of omission by neglecting to  change to a roll-back millage rate. They continually harp on "we didn't raise the property tax rate" while standing idly by as the actual taxes go up. Nothing to see here.

To be fair, that is the actual fact. They didn't use the roll back rate, but they didn't increase it either, perhaps because they're at the legal limit. And if you look at their planning you will notice something of interest.

No Intention Of Reining In Costs

What residents, what voters, what taxpayers should be focusing on is not [just] the annual mandatory tax hike, but the profligate, ever increasing spending at city hall, staffed by bureaucrats who are completely out of control. Perhaps it is time to elect folks with the stomach, and the spine, to make the changes necessary to meet the original promise of financial responsibility.

Watch Them Tapdance

Property digest assessments are coming out and we get to watch the annual tap dance of our circus clowns as they flop around trying to convince taxpayers that they, these politicians, did not actually raise our taxes. Actually, they did. You see, in the absence of a "roll back millage rate" the total tax digest goes up, the government (pick one, city, schools, or county) taxes do go up. 

Now you can expect to hear either little or nothing from our local politicos, or perhaps you'll hear about an assessment freeze. This freeze only applies if you have a homestead exemption on your Dunwoody property, so if this isn't the case, your taxes will go up, perhaps significantly, every year. And, if you rent, well, that homestead exemption doesn't apply, and while you do not see the taxes itemized on your lease (perhaps you should) you are indeed paying these taxes and suffering from the annual increases. Given city hall's recent love affair with rental units, increasing by the hundreds, more and more voters are suffering from the city's annual tax increase. 

When properties sell, and they do, even in Dunwoody, the value marks to market so the purchaser is likely in for a hell of a surprise when they start paying two, three or four times in taxes above what the seller was paying. Oh, and for that, they still will not see traffic enforcement in our drive thru zones. They'll just pay more to not get the same services the seller wasn't getting. 

Welcome to Dunwoody.

Wally Whirled

The ethersphere is all a-twitter with the recent, somewhat sudden, announcement that the Wally World megastore on Ashford Dunwoody is set to close. Feelings are mixed. Some have been put out with the self-serve nature of this outlet. Others are confused by mens' underwear kept under lock and key. Given that, and all the other items inaccessible without an employee with a key, some suspect these are anti-theft measures (they are) suggesting Wally has a shrinkage problem. Maybe Dunwoody is urban after all. 

Some are even suggesting competition from the Publix across the street and the Target around the corner was too great. Given Wally's buying power and supply chain, that seems unlikely. Much more likely that Wally is making a clear statement about Dunwoody not being a place for their business. Is anyone listening?

Folks are already discussing how others can take over the location, and spend money to indulge their peccadillos. Silly, but that's probably a good place to start. How about one of those trendy food courts? Oops. Already have one that is in competition with the one in the mall. Indoor pickleball? Maybe. How about a flea market? Just think, if everyone can walk around with open containers it could be real fun. Or, kick it up a notch, and make it like the old flea market down on Piedmont where the MARTA headquarters is now. You know, eighty percent market booths with food stalls along the back. Best of both worlds: food court and flea market. 

Like they say, you can't be trashy 'til you spend a lot of money, and we know city hall is down with both. Wonder where they'll look for the grant money.

Makes You Wonder, Doesn't It?

Another Casualty

It makes you wonder who knocks these down. It makes you wonder who puts them back up. And then, this is where it rabbit holes, it makes you wonder why.

Why put up a sign that is nothing more than a testament to this city's failure to enforce its own laws? Why make this city a punchline more than is absolutely necessary? Why? Do you expect the new Top Cop to be any better than his mentor? Even if he wants to be, will the city manager allow it? Are we going to suddenly see traffic laws enforced in Dunwoody's residential areas? Will tickets be issued to trucks violating the zone this sign defines? Will red-light runners, and there are many, in the Village, and other shopping areas, be ticketed? Speeders? They all know that Dunwoody is the Atlanta version of a residential autobahn. And that shows no sign of changing.

A Real Unicorn

Tis the season for all things property tax with an Annual Notice of Assessment coming to a mailbox near you. It is worthy to note that these mailings generally arrive to the proper address in a timely fashion. But wait, there's more:

How Did THAT Happen?

You are reading that right. This year's appraised value is $46,300 LOWER than last year. That's a 7.9% decrease from 2023. If this happens very often, what will become of our politicians' favorite tax increase, where they stick it to you using the back door? Will the city file appeals? Other than losing, what are all their lawyers doing? Oh, that's right, they're pissing away our tax dollars.