Wiz Miller finally, after more than a year, addresses the morale problem of the department. He was just short of saying "be thankful you have a job!".
Miller's solution to the morale problem is more take home cars. Huh? More take home cars? Did he miss the part where Burrell Ellis rewards his staff with pay raises, take home cars and car allowances? At the same time thumbing his nose at us and the taxpayers by ignoring suggested cut backs in take home cars. He has cost the taxpayers $700,000.00 in take home car usage.
Where is the money coming from for these take home cars? Is he planning on giving every sworn officer a take home car? Sure we'll take one. What's the cost of giving everybody a take home car? 40 million dollars up front?
If everyone can't have a take home car, then just who will benefit from these take home cars? Some aide or assistant sitting in some 4th floor office?
Lee Mays is bound and determined not to raise taxes in 2011 even though the county is facing a 50-80 million dollar deficit. We just wish he was so hell bent on cutting waste through out the county instead of carrying the county on the backs of the employees.
So weak Wiz, really.
Watch the video to see "The Wizard" blow smoke.
Thursday, November 4, 2010
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Hey Whiz. I don't want a take-home car. Get rid of the furlough days. Is this really the grand scheme to improve morale??
I just caught the Channel 2 news story about "Dekalb Officers Morale" and what the plan is! When asked about the no raises, furloughs, etc, Wiz actually said "Nobody got into public safety to get wealthy"...well, he was right...obviously you have to be on the BOC to get wealthy...oh, yeah, and he also said they're working on more take home cars for officers! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You're right I didn't get into law enforcement to get wealthy. However, I do expect to be paid what I am due. I can understand taking one for the team of coming to work here was like working in Mayberry. But lets face it, working as a police officer in Dekalb County is probably the most dangerous police job in the state of Georgia if not the whole southeast.
You can get your law degree while working for the county. I wonder who was allowed to do this? I also understand he worked a short week , so he could study and go to school. I wonder if he was a chosen one back then?
Take Home cars, lets say it saves someone a hundred dollars in gas a week , since everyone lives outside the county. It must be nice to have a car and not be on call.
It's only going to get worst. I don't expect a raise during Lil Vernon term. I expect the county to bankrupt and look at who was in charge for the last 8 years.
I hear 17 furlough days next year. I bet they will keep this quiet until January 2011. Then they will slam us again. I hate hearing " at least you have a job".
Let the mass exodus begin! Who ever is last to leave, don't forget to turn out the lights!
@ Anon 9:59, we have a job alright! No License, No valid insurance, Suspended Reg. sure! Pull a 10-11, impound the vehicle and write him to shorties while his sister comes to pick him up!!! no more Dekalb making $2k off of that arrest!!!
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK GUYS!!! ONE DAY AT A TIME!!
BTW: Willzy dont have a freaking clue on whats going on!
A leader must identify himself with the group, must back up the group, even at the risk of displeasing superiors. He must believe that the group wants from him a sense of approval. If this feeling prevails, production, discipline, morale will be high, and in return, you can demand the cooperation to promote the goals of the community. "Vince Lombardi"
The order in which employees leave Dekalb directly correlates to their IQ.
What about take home cars for all of uniform, just like Gwinnett Police?
We could all be on call or NOT.
Then you can have my furlough days without any complaint from me.
I make more having a car than nothing to begin with.
Wiz you are a sell out...... YOU are getting rich from "Law Enforcement"!!!!! I used to respect you when you were at South and the comander. You really stood up..... Now you need to shut up and sit down..... Punk ass sell out...... O yea Frank,, that had to hurt HHHHaaa... M out of here soon. I have alot of years here but its not about how many years I have, not about money. Its about self respect now and the fact that I never feel safe working in Dekalb... I know the Officers will back me, its just the fact that they will have to hurry and get there from thier houses because they arebeing fur-low-ed. Hopefully they make it in time. This way a park doesnt have to be named after me... Rest in peace guys....
Got my paycheck. Damn that furlough day hurt.
Wonder what it feels like, rather than seeing "deductions" on your pay stub, you see "additions" for a car allowance?
Hey Wiz, since nobody got into public safety to get wealthy then why don't you cut your $165,000 a year salary. Sounds like you are doing pretty well. maybe its that you don't consider yourself public safety. I once had respect for this man but no longer. He is lip service and nothing more. Yes he is a puppet but if your not going to do anything then why do we need the position anyway. Maybe to halt any investigations into public corruption.
How many of you guys are taking Extra Jobs you never would have taken at rates you never would have accepted to make ends meet?
I'm thinking about taking (a second) EJ.
We need to unionize.
People are right no matter what they try to give you to make things better you are never satisfied.
Lee Mays stated to do things different from the last 20 yrs. He should of said to do things different from the last 10 years.
If he wants more take home cars for Pd what is he going to give Fire. We need to band together Fire and Pd and take it to this county.
Anon 9:48: Are you retarded or and aide to Miller or Ellis? Just exactly what have "they" given us or even tried to give us?
Miller says he is having the chief look at giving more take home cars and that is going to pay my bills?
Obviously you must worked for Ellis and have either gotten a raise or a car allowance, or both.
Bugger off!
Looks like everybody is coming on here and just blasting the director. Hey, vent all you want if it makes you feel better. But after yelling and screaming you'll still be in the same position you're in now. Maybe we need to take a look at the bigger picture.
The county is going to be short between 50-80 million dollars. Take a good hard look at that number folks. Thats a cold hard FACT! You could fire the director tomorrow but you'd need to fire another 300 directors just to make up that kind of money. It also equals out to 1000 officers at 50k a year.
I hate to say it but it looks like some people are going to be losing their jobs next year. We all look to Atlanta as being the model but they had to fire over 600 people if I remember correctly? Close to 900 people left last year and it still wasn't enough.
We can all come on here and talk about the director all day but it won't change a thing. Actually it deflects the attention to where it really needs to be. We need to stay focused on the CEO and BOC. They are the elected leadership of this county. They should have already had a plan in place to get out of this situation. They are the ones who see the real budgetary numbers, not the director or the chief. I wouldn't be suprised to see them start blaming the chief or director for this mess. Thats what good politicians do, they blame someone else for their mess. Hell, just look at Washington for a perfect example.
It's time for the elected officials to make some hard decisions. It's simple really, raise taxes or cut costs. You can bet on one thing though...it's going to hurt.
If you weren't living beyond your means you should be able to take the furlough hit. Yes, having kids you can't afford is living beyond your means. You should be investing more a month than what the furlough has taken. Be more responsible.
To Anon 1:37
Your correct in saying it's not the Director's fault for the money shortfall. It's the BOC and the CEO's mis-management of the county funds and budget that has caused this mess. There was a study done two years ago by a paid outside company that stated that Dekalb County Gov was bloated and had more than 800 positions it needed to get rid of. The BOC's solution was to offer early retirment to eliminate those positions. What they didn't think about in their grand wisdom was the people that left weren't the duplicated and useless positions, but a lot of your veteran police, fire and technical positions. Experience this county needed to get through these tough times. Now we have a leadership and experience vacum in the county that is assisting in the slow implosion of our government. Now the BOC decided to cut police and fire services to help make up the budget difference... which is the absolute worst thing they could do. They need to be drawing new business and residents to the county to bolster the tax base. The first things a citizen or business looks at when they are thinking of moving is the crime and insurance rates plus the school system. If you cut police protection your crime goes up... if you cut fire protection... insurance rates go up... and don't get me started on our soon to be decertified school system. People aren't going to move into this county and businesses aren't going to open here.. and our tax base is going to continue to shrink. They will then cut more services and and it will shrink faster. The county needs to cut the fluff... stop twice a week sanitation runs or make sanitation private all together like most counties do already. Renegotiate contrats with reputable companies and get rid of these "good ol boy" contractors that are bleeding us dry with poor services just because they have a cousin on the BOC or contributed to the CEO's election fund. Stop building libraries and civic centers that no one is using right now and fund your emergancy services. Our last police academy graduated 8 people... 8 freaking people! We need to be attracting good quality employees, citizens and business... not scaring them off.
Anon @1:37, you made some good points. While I think the Public Safety Director is a useless position, it one where we can start to cut. I would rather take his salary and bring on two or three new officers patrolling the streets, deputies serving warrants or new firefighters. It's time for Dekalb to be honest about its situation and stop avoiding the inevitable. It is time to make unpopular but necessary decisions. Do we really need PD and Sheriff? Does every Dekalb city need its own fire department (no city in Cobb has fire services except Marietta, they rely on the county). Do we need all of these people working in the offices? Why are we still in the sanitation business? Sure, having these conversations may make the unions or government employees not endorse you but its time for TEA (Taxed Enough Already)in Dekalb.
I'm calling on all my listeners of my show to protest any traffic citation from DKPD. Stop giving these bastards your money. Demand the officer call their supervisor, give them hell. Keep the pressure on them. We did in in Douglas County and the Sheriff calmed down on the ticketing. It can work again!
Dekalb needs to get its priorities straight and stop trying to buy votes and create jobs. This is what got us into this mess.
However, looking at the school board elections, the residents are not serious about these matters.
Exceptional Radio, while I understand and agree with your sentiment to not giving any more money to the county, calling on your listeners to protest every traffic citation at the scene (not that many tickets are being written) can have some unintended effects. The officer and their immediate supervisors are not the cause of the problem, any push for productivity comes from much higher in the food chain. My main concern is with how few officers are already on the road. If a supervisor is called to the scene for what is essentially a protest against the county government, this prevents the supervisor to not be available to back his/her officers, thus increasing the already high danger level due to manpower shortage. Protest to the highest levels of the department, the BOC, etc., but don't make it harder for the folks out there doing the best they can to make it home alive every day.
I don't appreciate the. comment that you are living beyond your means with having kids. be able to take a furlough day. you have never had a Special needs child that needs constant care. Hospital care 2 or 3 time a year . I don't wish that on anyone but until u experience that don't run your mouth about living beyond your means . no one asks for what God gives you in life. You deal with what you are given an go on. yeah insurance changing doesn't help so until u have to deal with if don't run your mouth about Something you have no idea about.
Thank God You are healthy and your children are healthy.
.
Anon 2:10,
I never post on here but your comments pissed me off so bad that I had to address it. Now, my true feelings would never be posted due to the foul language so I will clean it up. One, life is not fair, but we are dealt the hand God gives us. I work hard and try to live within my means but God bestowed a severely handicapped child upon me because he felt I was MAN enough to handle it. Lord knows I try every day to live up to that. BUT, with everything the County is doing I am forced to work extra jobs to make ends meet instead of spending time with my child who needs me. I do this because I have to provide for her and the rest of my family. I didn’t ask for this nor did I plan it but hey that’s what I was dealt and I Will do what it takes. I have given my entire life to this place and this is how they repay me for 20+ yrs of service. You say “ live within your means”? I was till the furloughs started and I'm facing the prospect of even more next year. Now I'm looking at possibly having to give up ever thing that I have worked so hard for. Granted I have insurance but what about the things insurance doesn’t pay for, ie, car seats, beds, modifying my house to accommodate this child and so on.
Now here is the real issue. The BOC and YOU do not take into account how these actions affect other people. If your “living with your means “ then I commend you. OUT *&^%ing STANDING! BUT, based on your comments you are no better than the corrupt politicians running this place. AND you are not nor will you ever be MAN enough to even walk a step in my shoes. My suggestion to you is find another profession because you are not a TRUE cop or parent.
Anon 1:37, your dead right on what you say. The problem is DeKalb's dreadful BOC, CEO's and elected officials that Dekalb has had for a decade and a half.
Let's just take one of DeKalb's politicians, D.A. Gwen Keyes. Gwen got herself elected on her political affiliation and skin-color. Her opponent was Jay Brickman, a white Republican appointed as DA by Governor Perdue. As DeKalb D.A. Brickman was highly regarded by his staff, LE, the lawyers and judges. As Solicitor General, Gwen Keyes record was poor. Convictions for the Solicitor office went down from 80 to 60 percent under Gwen's leadership. DeKalb citizens decided to elect an incompetent black Democrat over a highly effective white Republican. The decision was totally disastrous for DeKalb County Government.
CEO Vernon Jones ran amuck for 8 years with scandal after scandal going uninvestigated by D.A. Gwen Keyes. The city of Dunwoody was allowed to succeed from DeKalb government for purely racial issues. The DeKalb BOC lead by CEO Vernon Jones refused to even meet with Dunwoody citizens to discuss the issues.
D.A. Gwen Keyes could of stopped the whole mess by investigating any one of Vern's scandals or seating a grand jury to investigate DeKalb government operations.
Amazingly enough Gwen Keyes was appointed to the Federal EPA by the Obama administration after her record of failure as the DeKalb Solicitor General and D.A. This brings grave doubts to anyone with half a brain as to why a clearly incompetent official would be appointed to a federal EPA position. The EPA's loss is DeKalb's gain.
The point I am trying to make here is that while the CEO and BOC are the crux of the issues facing DeKalb citizens and employees. It is DeKalb citizens that continue to vote the unethical and incompetent in year after year. Until DeKalb citizen's start voting by truly keeping up with the issues of DeKalb government and the school system, and making their decisions on cold hard facts and logic instead of political party and skin color, DeKalb government and school system will go down in flames.
The School system that used to the pride of the south is facing disacreditation and DeKalb government is slowly imploding by poor leadership.
Unless DeKalb citizens start stepping up and offering ethical, competent and electable candidates for DeKalb political leadership, and then elect them, DeKalb County is doomed to failure.
Exceptional Radio, Welcome aboard and I appreciate your comments. I fear after viewing your website that we will disagree on many things, but I think we both can agree that civilized, intelligent debate is the foundation of western democracy. I welcome the opinions from yourself and your listeners.
Yep, it's definately time for the county to come clean. We all need to see just how bad things are with their budget. The numbers just don't seem to add up.
As for doing away with sanitation. One, I don't think the citizens want that to happen. Two, I thought that sanitation actually makes money and operates in the black. Their expenses are paid by fees and don't come out of the general budget. Maybe someone can shed some light on this subject?
Here's the thing about tickets. We don't have to write another ticket all of next year. But, that will reduce the county revenue even farther. So do you continue a ticket stoppage based on principle all the while YOUR paycheck decreases even more? That's the kind of tough decisions each one of us will have to make.
To the poster about the school system. You couldn't be more right. When looking for a place to live schools are a top priority. How many would pick DeKalb as one of the best in the state? Thats the problem with so many here, the county problems stretch much farther and go much deeper than who's the chief or director. This county needs a fundamental change and it has to start with the voting and tax paying citizens of the county. The million dollar question is are they up to the challenge?
Like I said in my previous post, times are going to be tough next year. I don't see how you can cut 50-80 million from a budget, lose millions in ticket revenue, and expect a pay raise all at the same time. Brace yourself now and prepare for the worst.
TO ANON 1:01AM
I COULD NOT HAVE SAID IT ANY BETTER. THANK YOU FOR PUTTING ANON 2:10 ON BLAST. I WAS GOING TO RESPOND, BUT IT WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN PRETTY!
Just wait, I hear the new A/C is going to start pushing tickets. The county needs the money and he wants to remain in his position for a few months. It will look good if he decides to go somewhere else.
Appointees that think CHANGE will make this a better place.
Well we got our motivational talk in our roll call yesterday. It didn't make much sense but I guess the intent was good. The discussion was what can make us more productive, in other words we need you to write lots of tickets to keep the ones above from coming down on them.
These people just don't get it! We are not tax collectors!
Stop taxing the working man through traffic citations!
Thank God I moved out of DeKalb County. Now, I only work here.
I feel this way because of the past week's election results from DeKalb County. For example, after Zepora Roberts on the DeKalb County School System is recorded on video/audio threatening Wendy Salzman from CBS-46 with "...I'm gonna slug g'you!", though she did not win outright and now there will be a run-off, why did she have the majority vote?!
DeKalb citizens, all of you, for your own sake you have got to start paying attention to who you are voting for. You need to consider records and behavior of incumbents. It requires some reading and research to make the best possible, informed choice when you cast your vote. You have to consider the QUALITY of the candidate to best serve the needs of the county as a whole. Nothing else.
DeKalb County government for years neglected public safety. And now DeKalb is what it is and will only get worse until public safety is made #1 again. Public safety is your foundation. Public safety is like the foundation upon which houses and buildings are constructed. Until you build it or maintain it, nothing else can be built or sustained upon it. It's that simple.
The tax base in DeKalb County has dwindled to alarming levels because of the neglect for public safety in DeKalb County. DeKalb citizens, if you want DeKalb County to some day rise again like the phoenix, then you are going to have to start voting better and putting the right people in office again.
Thanks,
AL
The breakdown occurs when the appointed elite tell Ellis and the BOC, "we can make it work with what we have" selfishly to preserve their OWN positions. If you are a career minded officer and plan on doing this line of work over 10 years you MUST go elsewhere. Don't allow your life and career to be consumed by this ongoing corruption.
It's funny that someone said we, the officers, need to learn to live within our means. To that person, shove a baseball bat up your ass, moron! The officers in this department didn't create the problem, but we've been asked to shoulder the burden for too long! What sacrifices have the BOC made?? Their little helpers get raises!! The CEO's little secretary got a raise!! What's she doing to deserve that?? How about , Ellis?? What's she so good at??
The BOC should learn to live within its means! That means, when consultants tell you that your county government is bloated with useless middle management that do absolutely nothing, you should get rid of them. The problem is, the elected politicians don't care at all about the people who actually make this county safe and work. They'll f*ck those people over time and time again! But they'll go out of their way to do favors and create useless jobs for their friends. This county is a f*cking joke.
Even with the turn for the worse in the economy, this county has plenty of revenue if it was managed properly and streamlined. If useless people and departments were done away with , this county would have more than enough money to spend where it needs to be spent!
Wiz Miller, I used to look up to you, but you're just a company man now. You haven't done a damn thing for the officers. You can get on the news and lie and say you've fought for us, but where are the results? No one sees what you're doing, so you're either doing nothing, or you're totally ineffective. You're not doing anything for the officers! How quickly you forgot where you came from! You've let us all down, but you've also let yourself down. You've become one of them. You're dirty and you know it!
@anon 1:16 AM try FODAC in Stone Mountain for free or low cost medical appliances for your disabled child. It is a great group.
!! News Flash !!
....The BOC is trying to keep this under their hat but come January your Pension contribution is going to almost double...take a look at your checks everyone...u see that pension contribution...calculate ur percentage of salary going towards the pension....yep is going up...not by a little but...well you may as well double that number....The county borrowed money from the pension to fund the early retirement and now the employees left working here will be footing the bill for all those that took it and ran....the only thing to worry about now is all that you are paying in ..will it be there when you get ready to go, who will be here left to pay this tab....the more people that leave the more expensive it's going to become because the county is no longer going to be contributing after January 2011...so get ready to pony up and take another big hit.
The employees of Dekalb County are the very ones who are carrying the burden of the county debt.. and the BOC knows this...just how much further will the employees allow them to push...this is not just a public safety problem. It's every employee working here's problem...Get ready not only are we getting hit with the increase in insurance, but now the pension....
This is no rumor folks...it's been done!!
How does this place have ANY employees remaining. What more can be done to make you leave and work ANYWHERE else?
Seems to me "the last 20 years" were funded and managed quite well idiot. Why can't YOU and your associates run ANYTHING successfully?
A few intemperate thoughts:
There is no ticket slow down. More long copies are written than warnings. You guys talk a good game, but the results do not back your lip service.
Dear Fire Dept,
Until you stand with Jeff Wiggs at a BOC meeting, go away. You are just riding the coattails of PD and all of our efforts. Again, lip service with no results.
Take home cars?? Really??
Until the County can pay its current officers, new officers should not be hired.
When will Sgt/Lts come to work with their nut sacks? Do you leave them at home?? Remember--you asked for the responsibility.
Dear bullies,
Management by fear is a failed theory. The harder you push, the more stubborn we become.
Dear BOC,
Until cuts are made in current services, there is really no reason officers should do more than respond to calls and put asses in jail.
To the people saying if you can't afford a furlough day, you live beyond your means. Are you kidding? How long have been a cop? No pay raises in 3 year, insurance premiums going up, holiday pay taken away. I don't live beyond my means but I expect to get paid for the job I do. I expect that my check won't continue to go down. That is not living beyond my means. I live within my means but shouldn't have to work extra jobs to make up what the county has taken. Take home cars are not the answer. We do not just sit and complain. Where is the county going to get money for the cars? They don't have it, it's another smoke screen so the public will think we just complain. Just like saying we were furloughed for holidays while they took 10% (16 hrs) out of my check. If you haven't lived it, don't comment because you don't know. Better yet, come work for Dekalb and get a first hand experience at putting your life on the line while having your pay reduced again and again.
542 your not worth commenting to anymore
We haven't had a pay increase in almost 4 years. Each of those years, the county has paid less and less for our insurance and our pension, while our contributions to both have had to go up. That means every year, we're taking home less and less. Now we can add furloughs to the mix. Plus, there's always inflation every year. The cost of living has been going up, up up, but our pay had been going down, down down.
The furloughs alone have even the newest police and firefighters losing at least $1500 a year. That's one whole paycheck. Now add to that how much less they take home each year because of health insurance and pension contributions. Now add to that their decreased buying power because of inflation.
I have been living within my means. It's hard though when the county keeps screwing over its most valuable employees, fire and police! Anyone pointing fingers at fire and police about this mess is an idiot. Look at all of the things the BOC has done wrong in the last few years:
Recorder's Court - we had employees fixing tickets and pocketing money. Judge Walker didn't want to appear mean because of her political aspirations, so she let thousands of people get away without showing up to court. Their fines, never collected. Auditors estimated DeKalb was missing out on up to $80 million. No one held accountable.
Tax Office - entry level employees not even authorized to refill the coffee maker were giving developers paperwork excusing them from paying taxes on their property. How many millions of dollars were lost there? No one held accountable.
Take how cars - How many millions were lost providing gas and maintenance on people who have 9 to 5 office jobs in Decatur? This was a huge problem under Vernon and Bolton. This is one thing that has improved a little under Ellis, but there's still a ton of people with cars who don't need them.
Sanitation - they need to go. Some people say they make they make the county money. Perhaps. But how much more could be made if this was privatized? Sell off all of the trucks and equipment. Rates stay the same for the public. Let private companies bid on how much they will pay the county to pick up our trash.
DeKalb police and fire have had to shuffle their home budgets too much for too long. It's time for the commissioners to start making tough decisions or they're going to find hundreds if not thousands of resignations.
The CEO and BOC are idiots. I live in Cobb and recently, my property taxes went up. Due to the fact that my property value went down so much I am paying less in taxes than I was last year. They haven't accounted for this shit and therefore, DeKalb County is seeing way less revenue. RAISE PROPERTY TAXES MORONS!
Anon 9:30, The county currently contributes 2/3 of the employee pension funding. So if the BOC stopped the county's contribution employee funding would have to increase by 200 percent.
We know from the April(?) pension board transcripts that the BOC reneged on a verbal agreement with the pension board to increase county funding of the pension by 1/2 percent to match the 1/2 increase by employees in return for the 40 million dollar loan to pay for the county's pension incentive on top of the additional increase of 828 new retiree's load to the pension.
Employee pension contributions will go from 2 1/2 percent to three next year. The county's contribution will remain 7 1/2 percent.
Silly pension board! A verbal agreement instead of a written legal document? What the hell were you thinking? To accept the considerable liability of the loan and the 800 new retirees without a written agreement with the BOC staggers the imagination. Is it any wonder that most of DeKalb employees now doubt the integrity of the pension board?
To the county BOC, your loyal employees know exactly what you did. Just as you have screwed your employees for the last decade and a half, you continue to lie and cheat DeKalb employees at every opportunity. Backing out of the agreement with the pension board is a fracken' BIG DEAL.
You call yourselves "progressive Democrats" but progressive Democrats love labor. WTF? Are not Dekalb employees laborers also? You are a bunch of fracken' liars and hypocrites that should probably be in prison instead of in control of a government with 800,000 citizens, 7000 employees and a 750 million dollar budget.
As a ex-DeKalb employee my reputation rested upon my word to get things done. If I said I was going to do something and didn't perform I would be fracken' hammered. I was accountable for my actions 100 percent of the time.
The BOC and CEO make employee policy that DeKalb employees are bound by law to obey. That means no fracken' pay raises and no 500 dollar a month "transportation" allowances that the entire CEO's staff mysteriously receives.
To incoming DeKalb D.A. James, this affects you too, mate! This is your pension that the BOC just screwed you on. If you value your pension then crank up a grand jury and start investigating the pension mess. While your at it, seat another grand jury to study DeKalb government operations. If Gwinnett county can do it, than so can DeKalb.
DeKalb government is in the big leagues, mates. It is past time to fix the obvious ethically challenged leadership in DeKalb Government.
LoFlyer - I support you in many ways, and agree with much of what you say. I admire your dedication to those whose feet we should be kissing, but instead are treated like crap.
But come on -
"The city of Dunwoody was allowed to succeed from DeKalb government for purely racial issues."
Where in the hell are you coming from in making this statement???
I defend your right to state your opinion, but I also defend my right to call you out on this unfair and grossly untrue generalization. (There was SOOOO much to dislike about Vermin - it ain't about his skin color brah...)
Would like to hear from you about what you think any other "purely racial issues" were?????
"No one got into law enforcement to get rich."
True enough. But we did get into it to support ourselves and our families. Prices for gas and groceries aren't going down, but our pay sure is. We haven't had a pay increase in over three years. The time I remember us getting an across the board raise, the county also decreased how much they put into our pension and increased how much we had to put in. We didn't get jacksh!t! That's called a Flim Flam! They aren't paying out anymore and we didn't end up getting anything more! This is the kind of nonsense they pull on us!
Have Wiggs contact Fire, before you get to unsettled about the fire dept remember your actions have actually cost us money as we would have lost less hours under the old plan than the furlough days.
Hey Capt. Porter, I will start writing long copies as soon as you park that TAKE HOME CAR, and start driving back and forth to work on your dime..JUST LIKE I DO..Come on lead by example, be a trail burner and be thankful you have a job...Who said the County has to take your car away, do it cause the county needs to save the money to make this a better place for it's employee's...Yea ok that's what I thought...See ya next week in that nice new black Chevy...Nothing but lip service and Kool Aid drinking...
Hey Anonymous 12:07 pm, get your own spokes person and stop riding on the coat tail of P.D. the more voices the better....
Anon 11:57. Thanks for your comment. I have been wrong before on this blog and will undoubtedly be wrong again in the future. I welcome your debate on the issue.
The reason Dunwoody citizens elected to succeed from DeKalb County was the fact that all the "goodies" or new county projects was happening down in south DeKalb.
Let us consider this, what new projects have been built in N. DeKalb in the last decade? Precisely two. The first was Brookrun park. I know the background on Brookrun because it was my first job in the IT business working for the state at Brookrun or Georgia Retardation Center as it was called at the time. After a series of nasty scandals the center was closed permanently by the state and they needed to get rid of it. The county didn't want it either but after some arm-twisting by the state legislature the county reluctantly took over the Brookrun complex just in time for the Dunwoody tornado where it was the county's base of operations for the clean up of the twister. The county refused to spend any money on the complex for the next five years and vandals trashed the main building, a huge facility with about as much space as the Courthouse and annex combined. What the vandals didn't trash DKPD SWAT and others finished off as a live training facility. The county then spent a half a million dollars to demolish the gutted building.
The county eventually did put some money into the complex and built a skate park there. So N. DeKalb got a skate park while S. DeKalb got the beautiful aqua-park at Browns Mill. Which one costs a hell of a lot more and better serves the needs of county citizens? The aqua-center of course. (Personally I think both are an unnecessary expansion of DeKalb government and should be sold to a commercial operator.)
The only other major project in the last decade in N. Dekalb is the new water treatment plant located adjacent to the old plant. This was a 200 million dollar project that had to be built in N. DeKalb for purely engineering reasons. The Chattahoochee river provides DeKalb's raw water intake and is located in Dunwoody, water supply works by gravity. N. DeKalb has the highest elevation in DeKalb except for Stone Mt. and it was simply unfeasible to build the plant in the S. DeKalb.
So lets take a look at a few facilities built in S. Dekalb over the last decade compared to N. DeKalb. The beautiful Performing Arts center on Rainbow Drive. The gorgeous Lou Walker Senior center. The Aqua park at Browns bridge, and several new recreation centers.
In comparison N.Dekalb received only Brookrun which the county never wanted in the first place and a skate park. The new water plant is irrevelant to the discussion because it had to be built in N. DeKalb because of the topology and engineering of the plant.
S. DeKalb has three senior centers. How many does N. DeKalb have? Zero. Basically nothing has been built in N. DeKalb in the last decade by the county except for Brookrun (which the county never wanted in the first place) and the water plant which had to built in N. Dekalb because of the engineering.
Dunwoody citizens took note of the lack of the counties inattention to their needs while S. DeKalb got all the new "goodies". They decided to succeed from the county.
Vernon Jones took the lead on the issue and in his typically vindictive fashion refused to meet with Dunwoody citizens and discuss the issue or rectify them.
Dunwoody succeeded.
So what is the difference between N. DeKalb and S. Dekalb? Dunwoody is almost entirely white or Hispanic while S. DeKalb is almost all black.
Racial politics are the driving force in the DeKalb BOC and government. Same for the school system. If you aren't a black citizen in DeKalb county, your not worth jack shit to the BOC.
That's just the way things are mates.
Oh my God this is driving me fracking nuts!!
Dunwoody SECEDED!! The word is SECEDE!! To SUCCEED means to accomplish something. To SECEDE means to break away or leave!
Dunwoody has SUCCEEDED because they have SECEDED!!
Following Lo-Flyer's lead, when is the "DeKalb Performing Arts Center" going to put on a single show that isn't Afro-Centric? They do realize there are people in this county that aren't African-American, right? Would it kill them to put on something that included at least one other culture in some way? It's that attitude that made Dunwoody leave with all of their tax dollars this county liked wasting!
FYI y'all, the City of Dunwoody didn not "succeed" from DeKalb County. The term you are wanting to use is "secede".
According to Wikipedia,
"Secession (derived from the Latin term secessio) is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Secession.
54 days until 2011 My Fellow DeKalb Officers:
It wont be like heaven for us in twenty eleven.....more like hell from the smell of all the bullsh!t excuses those useless people in charge will have to offer again as to why there is no money in the coffers for us and why once again we will have to pay up
Leaders should lead by example....but since Ive been at DeKalb all I've mostly seen in this "fine" county are leaderless "leaders" who do what their master tells them to do so they don't loose their precious take home cars, inflated salaries, inflated job titles, and the authority to push around those underneath them.
Hate to say it, but B.O.H.I.C.A....(Bend Over..Here It Comes Again)
Yep I agree with the poster at 11:18.
We need to fire every single person above the rank of Lieutenant. Higher ranks should never have more pay, take home cars or any benefits of promotion at all. Actually now that I think about it we shouldn't have a rank past MPO. Supervisors, we don't need no stinkin supervisors!!!!
Jeez why didn't anyone think of that before? Just keep on posting here like a bunch of uneducated idiots and we'll continue to be treated as such.
Flame away.
Please keep comments on topic.
Maybe I missed it. But it didn't sound like the Director was at all downing the Department. He said no one came here to get rich but you do expect to make enough money to take care of your family. I will admit, I am slow but what was so terrible about that. The bottom line is 50 million shortfall means things have to be done. The school laid off 12 officers. Something to think about. I know whats to come, "This aint the school, we have real crime over here". Say what ever you want people still lost their job. I will take a day off over a loss job any day, week, or month of the year.
The point is, and you did miss it, is had the money not been mismanaged to begin with layoffs would not be necessary. Imagine the chaos when they run out of fingers and toes to count.
Oh, Wizzie, baby. Where 'ya been all this time?
This take-home car idea thingie-
Not a good idea you weenie.
This is not the right plan my man -- Show us the green if you don't want us to be so mean.
Cause if things continue to suck
We're going to continue to not give a f%&k.
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