Table Pounding in Ringgold, GA

Some officials in Ringgold again showed their manifest disdain for the rights of property owners and our nation's founding principles. The rhetoric didn't work this time.

“People tell you who they are, but we ignore it because we want them to be who we want them to be.”

The quote is from Don Draper, a character on the AMC series Mad Men. I've thought of it often over the years. Rather than inane Hollywood style dialogue, it carries weight and makes sense in real life. It came to my mind recently when Ringgold Mayor Nick Millwood took to his soapbox on Facebook to decry the treachery and betrayal, as he saw it, perpetrated by four corrupt and cowardly Catoosa County Commissioners. The screenshot of his post is below.

Given the tone of the post, I was eager to learn more about the chicanery at work in Northwest Georgia. However, a closer look shows that the truth is far less dramatic and far from being sinister as Mayor Millwood implied. A property owner requested de-annexation from the city. Clearly, this bothered Mr. Millwood greatly. In spite of its abundance of rhetoric, his post is wholly devoid of valid reasoning. A property owner does not have to explain his reasons for wishing to de-annex from the city, nor should the Catoosa County Commission bend to the will of long winded municipal leaders short on evidence. Opinions and distortions do not justify their desire to curtail a property owner's freedom of self determination.

In the event the properties are de-annexed, they will not affect service delivery, credit ratings, or the joint comprehensive plan. Mr. Millwood cited the loss of tax revenues as his major reason for opposing the de-annexation. This is curious since revenue gain cannot be the primary reason to seek an annexation. It seems to me that revenue loss should not be the primary reason to deny a de-annexation petition. In any event, he also claims that the city is losing money on infrastructure investments, a claim that I have been unable to verify. In the case of clear evidence, let it be shown, and a process exists to compensate the city. On the basis of the map below, illustrating Ringgold’s illogical boundaries, it appears the city has abused annexation to fill city coffers instead of to grow naturally along its boundaries. Maybe the mayor and council ought to be cautious in venting about betrayals and such given that many annexations over the years appear to have been primarily for revenue purposes.

Considering these facts, the mayor and others would also be wise to temper their invective in suggesting that property owners are buying elected officials. Libel protection may be on life support in America but it's not dead yet.

When Mayor Millwood and the Ringgold City Council trampled on individual rights last year, he claimed that they were "under pressure", though the forces were not named. The narrative from the mayor remains one of victimhood, but this time it is an oppressive county commission as the villain. According to him, a band of bought-and-paid-for politicians betrayed the fair city of Ringgold. This is simply untrue. Much to the benefit of their constituents, the county commission prefers facts to opinions as the basis for making decisions. This meant that the mayor and city leaders could not pontificate endlessly at the meeting. If a valid case existed for denying the property owner his rights why has it not been shown before or since the meeting?

It has become obvious to me that Mayor Millwood's preferred method of getting his way is not rational negotiation and well-reasoned persuasion grounded in evidence. He prefers the victimhood narrative. Perhaps you've heard the term before. In recent years, it has become increasingly popular with leftists, particularly in academic circles. Pretend to be victimized, no matter what the facts suggest.

There is a saying among lawyers that when you have the law on your side, argue the law. When you have the facts on your side, argue the facts. When you have neither, pound the table. 

Mayor Millwood can pound the table and call for voters to oust county commissioners as much as he wants. If his city is so cash strapped as he claims, there is a practice known as limited government he might wish to try out. Our nation's founders were rather fond of it.