What the fuck is wrong with you, Austin?

[ztejas 43262]

1 hour ago, Tx74 said:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/austin-police-ask-robbery-victims-call-3-1-1-staffing-shortage-crime-crisis

The ruination of a once wonderful city continues. When will the madness stop.

Just call DPS instead. They won't investigate the robbery but they'll find something wrong with your car they can write you a ticket for. 

[PvilleStang 2844]

9 minutes ago, hornian said:

When the Austin Police Union stops using this straw man as a bargaining chip. 

 

Strawman Argument?!  We're in a city with increasing crime rates, reducing numbers in the police department, understaffed 911 call center (leading to exponentially increased call answering times), and they've put out a recommendation that they use 311...  Blaming the current situation on the Austin Police Union / Association and not City Hall is complete BS.  It's a delicate ecosystem that is in shambles due to many factors, but the blame cannot be placed on one entity.

 

Unless you put the blame on Casar / Adler, then I'll allow it.

[MissingInAction 24807]

I can tell you from personal and friends experiences with 911 that it is NOT a straw man argument. 

I waited on hold for 15 minutes to report a piece of fuck breaking into cars. I hung up to chase him off myself, and they never called back.

A friend's home was actively being broken into and she was on hold for 10 minutes after she ran out her back door. When they finally answered they told her police were on the way but they never showed up.

Austin is fucked in many many ways.

[texasdago 7552]

3 hours ago, Tx74 said:

https://www.foxnews.com/us/austin-police-ask-robbery-victims-call-3-1-1-staffing-shortage-crime-crisis

The ruination of a once wonderful city continues. When will the madness stop.

When will Fox News look at trend data and show that after the peak in 2021, murder rates are down in 2022 and 2023?  Its OK... you don't have to answer.  I know the answer.

 

[Orange&White 5516]

Now do all of the violent crimes that aren't just murder.

[crash_davis 23081]

1 minute ago, Orange&White said:

Now do all of the violent crimes that aren't just murder.

Aren't crime stats only those which are officially reported by APD? What if you call to report a crime, for example burglary of home, and 911 never fucking answers. Does that event go into the stats? I know the answer, I am just asking pointing out that not matter what the stats are, they under represent the true bullshit going on with this city.

[texasdago 7552]

Find me a reliable source and I'll be glad to look at cite the data.   Its harder to find good current trend data where as the murder rate info is updated as it happens by KXAN

Here's what I found so far...

https://www.kut.org/crime-justice/2023-04-14/apd-joseph-chacon-dps-patrol (Chacon discussing violent crime rate since DPS got involved)

https://ktvz.com/stacker-news/2023/01/31/safest-cities-in-america-2023-violent-crime-rate-increases-drive-per-capita-cost-of-crime/ (Austin listed as one of the safest top 15)

https://www.populationu.com/gen/most-dangerous-cities-texas Violet crime rate shows 2.55 per 1000 just below Mesquite and Waco and above Ft. Worth and Arlington.  

[Brisketexan 104537]

I absolve city management of very little, they bear plenty of mismanagement responsibility regarding our policing.

But if you don't think that APD and the union are ACTIVELY pursuing a functional "quiet quitting" campaign to let crimes go unanswered and unresponded to, in order to get the community to bend over to whatever demands the cops and their union make, you are paying ZERO attention.  This is a classic "fine, we won't do our job, then you'll beg us to come back and work, and yield to all of our terms" move.  It's a strike.  Call it what it is -- APD is functionally on strike, happily playing with the lives and property of Austinites.

We should hold them responsible for that, and call them the shitheels that they are.

[Bevo 13516]

Government employees are allowed to be in unions. I don't agree with it, but all I can do is vote. With that said, it is a shame that local government can't get along with its own employees.

[crash_davis 23081]

1 minute ago, Brisketexan said:

I absolve city management of very little, they bear plenty of mismanagement responsibility regarding our policing.

But if you don't think that APD and the union are ACTIVELY pursuing a functional "quiet quitting" campaign to let crimes go unanswered and unresponded to, in order to get the community to bend over to whatever demands the cops and their union make, you are paying ZERO attention.  This is a classic "fine, we won't do our job, then you'll beg us to come back and work, and yield to all of our terms" move.  It's a strike.  Call it what it is -- APD is functionally on strike, happily playing with the lives and property of Austinites.

We should hold them responsible for that, and call them the shitheels that they are.

It's not that simple. I hate defending the police but they have a thankless, no win job. We can get CR real quick but when the vast majority of the time they are dealing with dregs of society, assholes who prey on innocent people, I can see how the police become jaded and treat everyone as criminals. To that I'm sure the response is, then "quit." Well that's exactly what's happening and no one wants to be a cop because it's a job that sets you up for failure. You can only arrest assholes but not have final say in whether or not the DA presses charges. You are expected to act civilized and follow the letter of the law but the assholes you are trying to arrest have the benefit of public support so they can do stupid shit and not be held to any standard. The cops remaining are prob just going through the motions until they get their pensions. 

The losers in this are the tax paying citizens. The winners are the criminals who have freer reign to do whatever the fuck they want. 

 

[Brisketexan 104537]

2 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

I hate defending the police but they have a thankless, no win job.

It wasn't that way until the ubiquity of camera phones meant that they started getting called on their bullshit.  Cops very, very much want to be able to do their job EXACTLY the way they want to do it: outside the law, answerable to no one.  When they are told "yeah, you can't do that," the pitch a petulant fit and do shit like we're seeing here: go on strike.

Cops deal with a shitload of people who are not "the dregs of society."  But they've always treated most all of them as if they ARE the dregs of society.  Those chickens are coming home to roost.  I'll agree that we all (the people) are now paying the price.  But there's another set of winners, not just the external criminals: the cops who want to be able to do their jobs with impunity and disregard for the law will eventually win.  The people will bow, demand that their leadership give into the cops' demands, and actually start policing again.  We'll get policing back.  Along with all the baggage the cops want to bring with them.  Because a job where they can't beat the fuck out of an innocent civilian for not being respectful enough, well, that's just not a job worth having.

[MissingInAction 24807]

15 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

I absolve city management of very little, they bear plenty of mismanagement responsibility regarding our policing.

But if you don't think that APD and the union are ACTIVELY pursuing a functional "quiet quitting" campaign to let crimes go unanswered and unresponded to, in order to get the community to bend over to whatever demands the cops and their union make, you are paying ZERO attention.  This is a classic "fine, we won't do our job, then you'll beg us to come back and work, and yield to all of our terms" move.  It's a strike.  Call it what it is -- APD is functionally on strike, happily playing with the lives and property of Austinites.

We should hold them responsible for that, and call them the shitheels that they are.

I absolutely agree 💯.  I got thrown by the straw man comment because it's actually happening. These cunts are acting like a mob crew not getting their protection payments. It's straight up fucking extortion. 

Fuck the police... especially apd.

[crash_davis 23081]

1 minute ago, Brisketexan said:

It wasn't that way until the ubiquity of camera phones meant that they started getting called on their bullshit.  Cops very, very much want to be able to do their job EXACTLY the way they want to do it: outside the law, answerable to no one.  When they are told "yeah, you can't do that," the pitch a petulant fit and do shit like we're seeing here: go on strike.

Cops deal with a shitload of people who are not "the dregs of society."  But they've always treated most all of them as if they ARE the dregs of society.  Those chickens are coming home to roost.  I'll agree that we all (the people) are now paying the price.  But there's another set of winners, not just the external criminals: the cops who want to be able to do their jobs with impunity and disregard for the law will eventually win.  The people will bow, demand that their leadership give into the cops' demands, and actually start policing again.  We'll get policing back.  Along with all the baggage the cops want to bring with them.  Because a job where they can't beat the fuck out of an innocent civilian for not being respectful enough, well, that's just not a job worth having.

Cops deal with a shitload of people who are not "the dregs of society."

Have you looked at the APD booking thread? Those are just the anomalies which stand out. Look at all the pics in the booking website. The majority of the assholes in there look like it's not their first time to be featured in a mug shot. The "I'm sorry this shit happened to me" people are far outnumbered by the "ehh, they'll just add this to my rap sheet" assholes.

Now that the pendulum has swung all the fucking way to cops can do no right and asshole criminals have all the rights in the world including winning the court of public opinion, I'll gladly accept the bad cops if it means the asshole criminals don't have free reign and the tax paying citizens don't feel like the fucking losers in all this bullshit.

[Brisketexan 104537]

5 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Have you looked at the APD booking thread? Those are just the anomalies which stand out. Look at all the pics in the booking website.

Oh, they don't arrest everyone (shit, see the subject of this thread).  The people who aren't the dregs....they just abuse and harass.  Sometimes they arrest them.

And yeah, you just made my point:

6 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

I'll gladly accept the bad cops if it means the asshole criminals don't have free reign and the tax paying citizens don't feel like the fucking losers in all this bullshit.

....that's how the bad cops win.  It is their plan.  They are executing it perfectly, and you are already buying into it.  That's how we end up with cops who -- believe it or not -- are actually WORSE than before, because now they are emboldened and have renewed backing from desperate citizens.  You are rewarding their bad faith.  It's okay, I understand....your position will eventually win out, and that's how it's going to end up; we'll get policing back, but we'll also get back cops unfettered by the rule of law or any respect for the citizenry.  They will be gods walking the earth, answerable to no one.  And plenty of you will call that a "win."

I won't be joining you.

[crash_davis 23081]

2 minutes ago, Brisketexan said:

Oh, they don't arrest everyone (shit, see the subject of this thread).  The people who aren't the dregs....they just abuse and harass.  Sometimes they arrest them.

And yeah, you just made my point:

....that's how the bad cops win.  It is their plan.  They are executing it perfectly, and you are already buying into it.  That's how we end up with cops who -- believe it or not -- are actually WORSE than before, because now they are emboldened and have renewed backing from desperate citizens.  You are rewarding their bad faith.  It's okay, I understand....your position will eventually win out, and that's how it's going to end up; we'll get policing back, but we'll also get back cops unfettered by the rule of law or any respect for the citizenry.  They will be gods walking the earth, answerable to no one.  And plenty of you will call that a "win."

I won't be joining you.

Almost all PDs around the country are having serious issues hiring police officers. Bad cops has nothing to do with the issue that no one wants to be a police officer unless you think that only civil right abusing, racists assholes want to be police officers. I don't think we'll go back to cops "winning" because we won't have enough cops to "win" anything. This bullshit of having the inmates run the asylum is the new normal. 

If this is your definition of "winning" to keep the cops from "winning" then everyone except the dregs of society have lost.

[David Dennison 18646]

Some people must not remember crime in America in the early '90s.

 

Edited September 5, 2023 by David Dennison

[Brisketexan 104537]

2 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Almost all PDs around the country are having serious issues hiring police officers. Bad cops has nothing to do with the issue that no one wants to be a police officer unless you think that only civil right abusing, racists assholes want to be police officers. I don't think we'll go back to cops "winning" because we won't have enough cops to "win" anything. This bullshit of having the inmates run the asylum is the new normal. 

If this is your definition of "winning" to keep the cops from "winning" then everyone except the dregs of society have lost.

Now you're getting it, as to both bolded points.  There are only two kinds of cops: 1) civil rights abusing assholes, and 2) cops who will get in line to back the civil rights abusing assholes because "it's the code."  And yes, we all fucking lose.  That's the point.  There are no good choices.  You can have abusive cops, and maybe they'll answer a burglary call now and then, or you can have much smaller PDs that don't respond to calls, but also aren't out there to abuse citizens as much.  Cyanide or Strychnine, which do you want in your society cocktail?

[crash_davis 23081]

1 minute ago, Brisketexan said:

Now you're getting it, as to both bolded points.  There are only two kinds of cops: 1) civil rights abusing assholes, and 2) cops who will get in line to back the civil rights abusing assholes because "it's the code."  And yes, we all fucking lose.  That's the point.  There are no good choices.  You can have abusive cops, and maybe they'll answer a burglary call now and then, or you can have much smaller PDs that don't respond to calls, but also aren't out there to abuse citizens as much.  Cyanide or Strychnine, which do you want in your society cocktail?

Again none of this discussion matters. Hating cops doesn't matter. The situation with low staffed PDs and lack of response is the new normal, like climate change is the new normal. We aren't going back. Tax paying citizens are the most fucked. But at least the cops "lost", eh?

[Brisketexan 104537]

2 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Tax paying citizens are the most fucked. But at least the cops "lost", eh?

Again, you just keep capturing our choice.  We the taxpaying citizens can be fucked by not having cops actually policing....or we can be fucked by giving into the cops' demands of how the world should be, and have things back to where they can beat the fuck you of you for disrespecting their authority.  Either way, we get fucked.

PDs are poorly staffed because the sole attraction to the job: being able to be a god walking the streets, answerable to no law and no man, is now gone.  After that....it's just another mediocre government job that yes, often involves dealing with unpleasant people.

We COULD pay more money.  We COULD try to turn society a bit to fostering a desire to serve the people and the public.  But, I mean....we won't do either of those.  If you want to get more cops, you're going to have to give them what they want: let them be shitty, with no consequences.

[David Dennison 18646]

5 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Again none of this discussion matters. Hating cops doesn't matter. The situation with low staffed PDs and lack of response is the new normal, like climate change is the new normal. We aren't going back. Tax paying citizens are the most fucked. But at least the cops "lost", eh?

What would you like to see done?

[Deej 76524]

14 minutes ago, crash_davis said:

Tax paying citizens are the most fucked.

Not the rich ones. I still have yet to see homeless people camping in Pemberton or Tarrytown. 

[crash_davis 23081]

1 minute ago, Deej said:

Not the rich ones. I still have yet to see homeless people camping in Pemberton or Tarrytown. 

Looks like I need to up my insider trading game.

[David Dennison 18646]

3 minutes ago, Deej said:

Not the rich ones. I still have yet to see homeless people camping in Pemberton or Tarrytown. 

A point which begs some uncomfortable questions.

[Bevo 13516]

6 minutes ago, Deej said:

Not the rich ones. I still have yet to see homeless people camping in Pemberton or Tarrytown. 

Are there a lot of homeless people near Tarrytown? It seems like most homeless people terrorize the areas near where they are camping.

[Deej 76524]

6 minutes ago, Bevo said:

Are there a lot of homeless people near Tarrytown? It seems like most homeless people terrorize the areas near where they are camping.

Don't they just have to cross Lamar from West Campus to get to Pemberton (or just crawl out of Shoal Creek)?

[Bevo 13516]

Just now, Deej said:

Don't they just have to cross Lamar from West Campus to get to Pemberton (or just crawl out of Shoal Creek)?

I'm sure the homes closer to Shoal Creek have some issues with crime. But since I don't go that way often, is Shoal Creek by Tarrytown a cesspool these days?

[Deej 76524]

Just now, Bevo said:

I'm sure the homes closer to Shoal Creek have some issues with crime. But since I don't go that way often, is Shoal Creek by Tarrytown a cesspool these days?

Well, Shoal Creek doesn't run by Tarrytown. 

[Dbeasy 14961]

A lot of opinions, but what are the facts regarding the number of police officers per population covered over the last ten years? Is it more per officer? A lot more?

[PvilleStang 2844]

2 hours ago, texasdago said:

When will Fox News look at trend data and show that after the peak in 2021, murder rates are down in 2022 and 2023?  Its OK... you don't have to answer.  I know the answer.

 

Now, how many suspicious deaths have they come back and said they were not homicides?  I can think of a few drownings in town lake to start off with, a few fires around town. 

[Bevo 13516]

14 minutes ago, Deej said:

Well, Shoal Creek doesn't run by Tarrytown. 

I'm referring to your point, which I assume you were talking about the creek near Lamar between Windsor and Enfield and assuming that the homeless would cross MOPAC.

[Deej 76524]

I believe, much like zombies, the homeless would eventually cover every area of Austin, unless someone is making sure they don't. I imagine our fearless political leaders and the money behind them have somehow found resources to keep them out of the privileged areas. 

[Shaggy3.0 1695]

Hey Austin, this is how you bust a cap in dat criminal ass.

https://www.fox7austin.com/news/buda-officer-involved-shooting-i-35-main-street

[Bevo 13516]

12 minutes ago, Deej said:

I believe, much like zombies, the homeless would eventually cover every area of Austin, unless someone is making sure they don't. I imagine our fearless political leaders and the money behind them have somehow found resources to keep them out of the privileged areas. 

Personally, I would hire a security patrol if there was an issue in my neighborhood. 10:00PM-6:00AM. I think they only make like $30/hr. So splitting it between 60 people would cost $4 per day time 365 or $1500/yr.

[Texas Jeff 1932]

On 9/5/2023 at 3:29 PM, Deej said:

Not the rich ones. I still have yet to see homeless people camping in Pemberton or Tarrytown. 

IMHO they go where the bus lines go, and/or where they can camp out of the view of most folks.  There is little bus service in Tarrytown.  Used to be a nice loop route to downtown and campus, but no more...  Some stuff for students but that's mostly from married student housing and those apartments on Enfield to/from campus.

There are some homeless camped out under the highway, in the woods around 5th/6th and Mopac.  Easy to hide along the creek.  I tried hiking Shoal Creek a few years ago and ran into several camps along the creek.  The trail running under the street smelled so bad of urine and other fluids that I gave up and walked street side.

The parking lot by House Park is a mess.  Folks are car camping there overnight, which doesn't bother me, but there is a ton of broken glass and other trash all over the lot.

If you have bus service, some fast food or convenience stores, and greenbelt with shade, you're going to attract a homeless camp.

Edited September 6, 2023 by Texas Jeff

[Bevo 13516]

Brother charged with murder in sister's death at North Austin apartment

---

by Stephanie Becerra

Mon, September 11th 2023, 7:17 PM CDT

 

VIEW ALL PHOTOS

Booking photo of 21-year-old Wanya Kasean Smith (Photo: Travis County Sheriff's Office)

 

...

 

AUSTIN, Texas — A 21-year-old man is charged with murder in the brutal death of his sister at a North Austin apartment last week.

Wanya Kasean "Sean" Smith was arrested on Saturday for allegedly killing his older sister Precious Angel Rucker, 38.

The incident happened on Sept. 7 at around 5:17 p.m. at the Milan apartment complex located at 1720 West Wells Branch Parkway in Travis County.

According to the arrest affidavit, officers responded to the complex after the victim's employer requested a welfare check on her after not logging in for work remotely and not answering her phone, which they stated was unusual.

 

Deputies contacted the victim's brother, Runel Smith, by phone and stated he also had not been able to reach Precious by phone and that he also had been contacted by the victim's employer. Runel asked another brother, Rodrick, who lives near Precious to go to her apartment and check on her.

Deputies learned Precious lived with two additional brothers: Jonel Smith and Wanya Kasean "Sean" Smith.

Rodrick arrived at the apartment at 6:30 p.m. and found the victim dead on her bedroom floor. He alerted Jonel, who was asleep in his bedroom. Sean, who slept in the living room, was nowhere to be found.

At 6:45 p.m., deputies and EMS arrived and noted Precious had "obvious trauma" to her face. She was pronounced dead at the scene.

ALSO| Barton Creek Square Mall stabbing suspect says victim 'wronged' him

The affidavit says a search warrant was conducted and detectives noticed a section of the carpet near the victim's body looked as though blood had been cleaned up and blood spatter on the lower portion of the bedroom's door and wall, indicating Precious was involved in a violent altercation with Smith

A metal hand saw and a new box of black trash bags were also found in her bedroom and in the master bathtub laid a partially unfolded gray tarp, leading detectives to believe Smith was planning on disposing of her body. A broken glass candle jar was also located on the floor near the victim's body. Detectives believe the victim was struck repeatedly with it, causing it to shatter, and causing lacerations to her face.

The victim was also found with a white electrical cord that was cut from a clothes iron around her neck.

The autopsy was conducted by the Medical Examiner the following day and found the victim's cause of death was "likely due to strangulation." At this time, the cause and manner of death have not yet been finalized, according to the affidavit.

Detectives believe Smith intentionally and knowingly inflicted serious bodily injuries to his sister Precious, including strangling her with an electrical cord, which ultimately led to her death.

[Wally Pryor 5243]

We're in a drought. Do your part asswipes.

Quote

 

AUSTIN, Texas - A public utility has revealed that millions of gallons of water in the Austin area continues to be wasted by hundreds of residents in the Steiner Ranch area during drought restrictions. 

As a result, Travis County WCID No. 17 filed 232 water shut off work orders for customers who continued to violate Travis County’s Stage Two Water Restrictions.

Travis County WCID No. 17 told FOX 7 Austin water restriction violations have been a huge issue since the start of July. A spokesperson for the utility says more than 1900 violating customers were identified and responsible for nearly 9 million gallons of water waste each week.

 

https://www.fox7austin.com/news/steiner-ranch-residents-water-shut-off-ongoing-violations

[MissingInAction 24807]

[texasdago 7552]

On 9/6/2023 at 5:34 PM, Texas Jeff said:

There are some homeless camped out under the highway, in the woods around 5th/6th and Mopac.  Easy to hide along the creek.  I tried hiking Shoal Creek a few years ago and ran into several camps along the creek.  The trail running under the street smelled so bad of urine and other fluids that I gave up and walked street side.

I parked my car over on 29th once with the goal of walking along the trail all the way to Town Lake... right around the House Park area it got a bit sketchier along the creek.  I'm sorry but I know there are people who are legitimately struggling and need help getting back on their feet our need counseling but sometimes its hard to be empathetic.  When I see the piles of trash, the shopping carts... when you have a friend who just had his business impacted by a fire (no, not Red Ash) thanks to a homeless person grilling near his property... its not good. 

That said, I don't think Austin is as overrun as the Memorial-area Houstonians want you to believe but the city needs to get off its ass and do something legitimate.

[BabaYaga 15205]

On 9/5/2023 at 1:20 PM, texasdago said:

When will Fox News look at trend data and show that after the peak in 2021, murder rates are down in 2022 and 2023?  Its OK... you don't have to answer.  I know the answer.

 

Comparing murder rates during a pandemic and then after?  

[BabaYaga 15205]

2 hours ago, Wally Pryor said:

We're in a drought. Do your part asswipes.

https://www.fox7austin.com/news/steiner-ranch-residents-water-shut-off-ongoing-violations

Just shut off water to the golf courses

[PvilleStang 2844]

27 minutes ago, BabaYaga said:

Just shut off water to the golf courses

They're using reclaimed water (itspiss.gif).  The better part about the article they didn't post was they inadvertently shut off non-violators water, then the one guy who was on the news last night paid $600 to get his water back on, had to wait in a 2 hour line at the utility office, only to get a "we're sorry about that" email from the utility and a credit.

The PUC is going to be investigating them for shutting off water without a 10 day notice.  As much as I hate the clowns blowing through water like that, the water utility shooting from the hip like that and shutting down water to abiding customers is BS.

[BabaYaga 15205]

3 minutes ago, PvilleStang said:

They're using reclaimed water (itspiss.gif). 

Yep - but "reclaimed" just means it's been treated, but not enough for human consumption.  It's already passing through the treatment process as far as I understand, so once you are permitted to use it, it's just a cheaper alternative?

[Nicole44 22027]

3 hours ago, Wally Pryor said:

We're in a drought. Do your part asswipes.

https://www.fox7austin.com/news/steiner-ranch-residents-water-shut-off-ongoing-violations

Why doesn’t the WCID just shame the violators on the internet? I saw where some diner did that with dine and dash customers and it worked—-many showed up and paid their bill/tab. Just humiliate the violators online. Guaranteed most of the violators are on Instagram, FB and NextDoor. I get shutting off the water…but as a precursor to doing that while they are still violating it might curb some of that shit. 

[Orange&White 5516]

Oh look!!
 

https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2023-09-15/consultants-given-lucrative-city-contracts-without-council-approval/

 

 

[HenryJames 65884]

https://austin.culturemap.com/news/city-life/other-racquet-social-club-pickleball/

[Bevo 13516]

On 9/13/2023 at 11:18 AM, BabaYaga said:

Yep - but "reclaimed" just means it's been treated, but not enough for human consumption.  It's already passing through the treatment process as far as I understand, so once you are permitted to use it, it's just a cheaper alternative?

https://www.tceq.texas.gov/assistance/water/reclaimed_water.html

There are different levels of treatment, but yes, the water has been treated to some extent to limit the spread of pathogens and in some cases to limit dangerous chemicals. Interestingly, at Santa Fe's nicest golf course, once they went to reclaimed water there was a big increase in the number of flies - like from zero to a pain in the ass. But since that is anecdotal, you would have to do more research on the actual level of treatment at Steiner Ranch. Preserving Edwards Aquifer is a big deal here so the level of treatment may be higher.

[LCHorn 2585]

1 hour ago, Orange&White said:

Oh look!!
 

https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2023-09-15/consultants-given-lucrative-city-contracts-without-council-approval/

 

 

Not sure if you're intending to promote the position of the Chronicle, but this kind of thing validates my vote for Watson. 

The council and it's core constituencies have allowed (I don't think anyone directed it, rather it's grown organically and seen in quite a few other cities) a bureaucracy to grow that spends more time self-perpetuating or protecting legacy interest groups than in defining what policy adjustments it needs to make to meet the challenges of tomorrow ( @Bozo_Casanova would probably jest "or meet the challenges of 2015").  In the grand scheme of things I'd far prefer hiring a couple of experienced professionals whose acumen and experience demands a premium over a government salary and whose status as contractors allows them to be fired without cause.  Why the fuck would I (as Watson/Garza) want to give those ten council morons the potential to veto hiring two consultants lacking any decision making authority at all?

[Texas Jeff 1932]

CM Leslie Poole has passed a resolution to direct the city to create code amendments that will allow RV's on single family lots as housing.

Austin, Texas ... where the shitter is about to be full.

Edited September 15, 2023 by Texas Jeff

[Orange&White 5516]

10 hours ago, LCHorn said:

Not sure if you're intending to promote the position of the Chronicle, but this kind of thing validates my vote for Watson. 

The council and it's core constituencies have allowed (I don't think anyone directed it, rather it's grown organically and seen in quite a few other cities) a bureaucracy to grow that spends more time self-perpetuating or protecting legacy interest groups than in defining what policy adjustments it needs to make to meet the challenges of tomorrow ( @Bozo_Casanova would probably jest "or meet the challenges of 2015").  In the grand scheme of things I'd far prefer hiring a couple of experienced professionals whose acumen and experience demands a premium over a government salary and whose status as contractors allows them to be fired without cause.  Why the fuck would I (as Watson/Garza) want to give those ten council morons the potential to veto hiring two consultants lacking any decision making authority at all?

I am far less concerned about the costs/"salaries" as I am that they are trying to obfuscate and hide the process and skirt the legal means to hire people. Sorta like the council did with hiring of Cronk.

[LCHorn 2585]

11 minutes ago, Orange&White said:

I am far less concerned about the costs/"salaries" as I am that they are trying to obfuscate and hide the process and skirt the legal means to hire people. Sorta like the council did with hiring of Cronk.

What are they trying obfuscate?  It doesn't appear that conspiracy mastermind Watson went to much length to hide anything. 

Surely you must realize that terrible article is full of mischaracterizations and fully rooted in preserving a status quo that provides most of the grist for the previous 45 pages of this thread? 

The reality of maneuvering in a bureaucracy requires exploiting the system (without breaking the law) to get pretty much anything done, particularly quickly (and not picking on CofA government alone here, my wife works for big tech now and it's remarkably similar).  Watson was hired to do just that.