Hey, Daytona Beach Shores, welcome to the club!

Last week, we added the citizens in the condo canyons of Daytona Beach Shores to the long list of hapless victims who have had their lunch money stolen by their elected and appointed officials in Volusia County government – the proverbial Scut Farkus of political bullies.

Officials in the Shores were banking on using their limited supply of beachfront property for additional vertical growth to support the communities tax base.  You know, the whole idea of managing local resources to meet the collective needs of residents?

The quaint notion of controlling your own destiny through self-governance might work elsewhere, but not in Volusia County.

That concept is as outdated as a creepy Norman Rockwell painting.

Somewhere along the way, We, The People, were out bid.

Here, the ulterior motives of a powerful few trump the needs, wants and desires of local government – and the long-suffering citizens who pay the bills – every time.

For the last several years, county manager Jim Dinneen, with the acquiescence of our elected officials, has been spending public funds to purchase incredibly expensive parcels of beachfront property (both east and west of A-1-A) like a drunken sailor.

Literally.

In fact, he spent all he could from the county’s general fund, then tapped into our ECHO monies – you know, the program that taxes county residents for “cultural, historical and outdoors projects,” but now serves as Jim Dinneen’s real estate slush fund?

(Which is just one reason no one in Volusia County should ever trust a tax initiative again.)   

Last July, the county purchased the Surf N’ Sand Motel in Daytona Beach for $2.7 million.

In May 2015, Volusia agreed to a $1.7 million price for property adjacent to the former Desert Inn (which is undergoing an endless renovation project).

A month earlier, the county bought the former Ellinor Village Shopping Center in Ormond Beach for $1.8 million.

In addition, Volusia County also bought property on Hiles Boulevard in New Smyrna Beach for $370,000; the Argosy Motel in Ormond-by-the-Sea for $1.25 million – along with a lot, and the Jasmin Motel, in Daytona Beach Shores for $2.95 million and $1.4 million respectively.

In total, the county has spent some $12.1 million of our money on seven beachside properties since 2013.

These lands are set to be turned into ‘off-beach’ parking lots – the precursor to eliminating beach driving and parking once and for all.

Look, you can’t offer the Big Enchilada of “economic incentives” – a traffic-free beach – to every foreign speculative developer who blows into town if the lumpen masses keep driving up and down the strand.

Won’t work.

They must make it so onerous for residents that we simply give-up and go away.  You know, like our visitors did. . .

It looks to me like Jim Dinneen and Company have determined the time is nigh to end the public pleasure of beach driving and set the stage for implementing the wants of the High Panjandrums of Political Power – the uber-wealthy insiders whose mere presence direct our elected representatives and control virtually every aspect of our lives here on the “Fun Coast.”

Per a recent report in the News-Journal, Daytona Beach Shores officials hoped to modify the county’s plan to pave some of the most valuable real estate on the east coast of Florida and put up parking meters.

Apparently, the residents of the Shores had the audacity to request some amenities – a playground, fitness areas, and a picnic facility – in exchange for their collective financial sacrifice.

“We are not crazy about having a parking lot on that parcel,” Shores City Manager Michael Booker said, calling one of the parcels, across from the Red Lobster, “one of the most valuable properties in Volusia County.”

In some weird sleight-of-hand designed to delay the inevitable (while still appearing to give a shit), Jim Dinneen pulled the controversial item from last week’s county council agenda, assuring us that he wanted to give staff more time to listen to “new ideas” from the city.

My ass.

In this first skirmish over beach access issues since our new council took office, our chairman, Ed Kelley, and council member Billie Wheeler – both former municipal representatives – should have used this opportunity to stand up to Dinneen’s aggression, slap his nose with a rolled-up agenda package, and say enough is enough!

Instead, they telegraphed which side of the ball they plan to line up on when it comes to protecting our heritage of beach driving – or mending fences with the cities, for that matter.

Most smart people could have called this one in November.

Last week, Jim Dinneen explained to us (and our elected officials) exactly what the councils “plan” will be when it comes to beach access issues:

“Our goal is to look long term for the entire county,” Dinneen said. “The key is making sure long after we are gone that people have access to the ocean. That’s the plan of the council.”

And by access, Little Jimmy is referring to hauling your kids, chairs, umbrellas and beach gear across four lanes of Atlantic Avenue from a scorching metered parking lot.

Unfortunately, Ms. Wheeler has already caved to Dinneen’s entrenched “Us vs. Them” stratagem for steamrolling the municipalities.

While stating that she “cares deeply” about the needs of Daytona Beach Shores residents from one side of her mouth, Wheeler immediately agreed with Dinneen’s “100-year beach access plan,” stating that she met with city staff just last week to “communicate and try to get them on our side.”

Our side?  Really?

That didn’t take long.  You learned your role quick, Billie.

Thanks for nothing.

Want to speculate on which way Chairman Kelley will lean on this one?

Come on, Ed.  Surprise us.  Do the right thing, for the right reason, and stop Dinneen’s belligerence against your constituents.

After all, wasn’t repairing relationships a core plank of your campaign?

Yeah.  Right.

Do you ever feel like you’re just along for the ride?

Because you are.

While Ed Kelley struggles to get his sea legs, this ship of fools remains tragically adrift – and the bilge rats still control the wheelhouse.

Right before our eyes, Dinneen and his lock-step elected lackeys are ramrodding their “vision” of traffic-free (read: private) beaches to encourage “additional development” – even if it takes castrating the growth and stability of every municipal tax base on the beachside.

Trust me.  All the pieces are falling into place nicely – this council will take more of our beach –  and they will do it using our own tax dollars.

If you don’t like it, talk to County Attorney Dan Eckert.  He’s the muscle.

The council’s cheapjack thug.  A mean-spirited prick who’s made a cottage industry out of suing his own constituents whenever they dare raise issue with Dinneen’s avaricious beach policy.

At the end of the day, there’s not a damn thing you or I can do about it.

The fix is in.

Unless and until the cities make it abundantly clear that we will no longer tolerate this unchecked aggression from Deland, then we are doomed to remain victims of a system that neither wants or needs our input – only our money.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Mr. News-Journal, meet Mr. Reality.  I’m so glad you guys finally had the chance to get acquainted.”

I thoroughly enjoyed reporter Seth Robbins’ excellent piece, “Money Game” – “Six wealthy donors gave large infusions of cash in record-setting Volusia race” – in Sunday’s Daytona Beach News-Journal.   

For the first time, in a long time, the News-Journal peeled back the gauze on the singular issue that has plagued Volusia County politics like a festering chancre for years.

We ill-fated masochists who observe regional politics with a critical eye have long understood that the Volusia County economy is essentially based on the same tight group of uber-wealthy power brokers passing the same nickel around.

Unfortunately, with increasing frequency that nickel originates from our tax dollars.

Last October, just before election day, I wrote that the outsized influence of the economic elite on Volusia County politics is best exposed during periods of transition.  In times of political change, the behind-the-scenes work of cheap fixers and bagmen, like county manager Jim Dinneen, are more difficult to conceal.

By all known metrics, the 2016 election season was arguably among the weirdest on record, but it confirmed my suspicion that Volusia County truly is a mini-oligarchy, controlled exclusively by a core of powerful insiders who buy and sell political candidates – and ultimately shape public policy – through unnatural infusions of cash and personal influence.

What mystifies me is why we continue to tolerate it?

Clearly, there are many residents who have, over time, given up and come to accept this bastardized form of governance – and still others who simply owe their soul to the company store.

Let’s face it, a significant number of people either work directly for companies under the control of the Volusia Triumvirate of Mortenza “Mori” Hosseini, Lesa France-Kennedy and J. Hyatt Brown – or are employed by their subsidiaries and contractors.

That list includes, but is not limited to, Daytona State College, Halifax Health, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, ICI Homes, International Speedway Corporation, and a host of insurance, banking and financial services corporations.

This insidious influence begins each election cycle when Hosseini, France-Kennedy and Brown – joined by other wealthy players like Consolidated Tomoka, George Anderson and Theresa Doan – inject huge sums of money into the campaigns of hand-select candidates for local offices through their countless corporate interests, political action committees, and often shadowy business alliances.

In some instances, they hedge their bet by donating simultaneously to different candidates in the same race.

Now, why would someone do that?

Look, these individuals did not accumulate massive personal wealth without the ability to control their environment, and that is exactly what the political influence they purchase provides.

It also places them at the very nexus of public funds and private interests, and buys them a chip in the incredibly lucrative game of corporate welfare masquerading as economic development enticements.

In the News-Journal’s article, my old friend Mike Scudiero – a highly respected hand whose understanding of the art and science of political campaigns is infinitely more advanced than my own – is quoted as saying it was “baseless speculation that the large infusions of cash seen in the District 4 race were intended to sway council votes.”

Sorry, Mike – I did a spit-take with my Folgers Breakfast Blend when I read that one.

“People should not expect that it is going to be the new norm,” he said. “What happened is that it became an arms race between a couple of well-to-do business folks.”

 I disagree.

You don’t need an MBA from the Harvard Business School to understand that one does not invest large sums of money without expecting a return.  After all, the road to the poor house is paved with the bones of those who ignored the simple analytical formula – Net Profit v. Cost of Investment.

No, these individuals have not become incredibly successful by shoving money down a rabbit hole expecting a bean stalk to rise into the heavens where the golden goose resides.  These are extraordinarily smart and savvy businessmen and women who are very adroit at building – and keeping – personal and corporate wealth.

In short, they understand that you don’t last long in business throwing good money after bad.

Now, I don’t have J. Hyatt money, but when I spend what little I have, I expect something in return.

I’m funny that way.

How about you?

Let’s face facts:  The local donor class make massive campaign contributions with the full knowledge that their personal, civic and professional interests will outweigh those of John Q. Public every time.

In the end, that is what they consider an appropriate return on investment, and given the astronomical amount of “economic incentives” that our elected officials have showered upon this exclusive group in recent years, I would have to say they’ve done extremely well on the risk/reward scale.

Is what we experience in Volusia County quid pro quo bribery – dollars for political favors?

I don’t know.  But it has a whiff of shit about it.

What I do know is that when these very same powerful insiders appear – individually or en masse – in the Volusia County Council Chambers, invariably – and I mean 100% of the time – the issue, project, or development they support is handed to them on a gilded platter.

Now, I may be crazy, but I’m not a fool.  And neither are you.

Why would a few uber-wealthy power brokers spend a small fortune to support select candidates for local elective office?

In my view, that question was best answered by the Brennan Center for Justice, a law and policy institute at the NYU School of Law that seeks to improve our democracy and system of justice:

“There is a growing disconnect between average citizens and elected officials.  Part of the blame lies with a campaign finance system that unfairly stacks the deck in favor of the few able to give exceptionally large contributions.”

 Sound familiar?

A frequent complaint from the “movers and shakers” in the Halifax area – often repeated by the Daytona Beach News-Journal – concerns the prevailing sense of base pessimism and cynical distrust that seems to possess the local narrative like a diseased dybbuk.

Do alternative opinion outlets like Barker’s View contribute to that?  Guilty as charged.

Let’s face it, blowing smoke up the collective ass of our local elected and appointed “leadership” is not my bailiwick – and I’ve seen far too much with these jaundiced old eyes to buy into the Regional Chamber of Commerce’s syrupy “everything is beautiful, in its own way” prattle.

In a recent op/ed, the News-Journal finally recognized that the long-suffering residents of Volusia County come by their sense of skepticism honestly.

Unfortunately, the newspaper then attempted – once again – to pitifully fan some fleeting spark of optimism over a plan by a mysterious Russian developer, Protogroup, to construct two 300-foot (plus) convention hotel and condominium towers, cleverly named, well, “The Daytona Beach Convention Hotel & Condominiums.”

Great.

Happy Days are here again.  Again.

Not since those heady days before the Hard Rock deal collapsed like a cheap beach chair – and the resulting blame game by the Canadian developer – have I heard such jubilance and positivity over a speculative development.

Not since the intoxicating reign of Bray & Gillespie – or the Ocean Waters Development saga, the slow downward spiral of the promised Main Street upgrades, the expensive (and now shelved) “E-Zone Master Plan,” etc., etc. – have I heard such rich enthusiasm swirling in the salty air of Daytona’s Beachside.

Tragic.

The powers-that-be are still giving mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to their horribly failed notion that a “Grand Hotel” can be the panacea for all our ills – the mythical regenerative Phoenix rising from the sandy ashes to magically heal the decades of blight and inattention that have left our core tourist area a virtual wasteland.

Stop shitting on our dreams, Barker.  You Debbie Downer.

After all, the Russkie’s put up a parking garage – what more assurance do you need?

At the risk of sounding like a typical east Volusia cynic: Now that we’re back at square one, it appears to me our politicians are reluctant to give up on the “cure all hotel” strategy because they know speculative property developers will throw money in all the right places, and pockets, while actual revitalization efforts require an investment of blood, sweat, and tears – hard work – and a commitment to the important ideals of perseverance, vision and collaboration.

I’ll be damned if I can figure out why ostensibly smart public officials keep dragging the lifeless corpse of this failed approach around like some weird scene from Weekend at Bernies.

It just doesn’t work here.

Why is it so difficult to understand that, generally speaking, most people don’t want to vacation, or invest, in a blighted shithole?  (It really is that simple.)

What about code enforcement, reinvestment, strategic demolition and remediation, “cleaning and greening,” subsidies for citizens and organizations with a proven track record of revitalization, changing the current culture that permits vacant and neglected properties, and embracing practical efforts to stop the adverse effect of blight on the health, welfare and economy of the beachside?

Why don’t our elected representatives get it?

In a recent letter to the editor published in the News-Journal, a member of the Daytona Beach-based grassroots initiative Citizens 4 Responsible Development, wrote:

“…I and a few others took a walk down Main Street, two blocks from the Ocean Center and the Hilton. Here’s what we saw: Temporary banners tacked up over many establishments. Lighted neon signs saying “Open” in the windows of locked-up stores. A parking lot littered with broken bottles. Dirty store fronts. Lovely planters filled with weeds. Store windows plastered with over-sized signs. Harley logos on the asphalt street. Crumbling stucco facades. A discarded organ sitting under a canopy. A glass case displaying event information from 2015…”

Our representatives could learn something from that.

 Sadly, in their recent editorial, the News-Journal made the analogy:

“For more than a century, “Wait til next year!” became the annual rallying cry for Chicago Cubs fans after season after season of failure. Just as the Cubs finally broke through with a World Series title in 2016, Daytona Beach appears to be on a winning streak with the opening of the Tanger Outlets mall, the first phase of One Daytona taking shape, (yawn) and now the Protogroup project about to launch. It’s enough to make optimism fashionable again.”

 There is another old rallying cry: “Don’t piss down my back and tell me it’s raining.”

It’s high-time our elected officials stop this exercise in repetitive denial and begin the difficult process of building a strong foundation for real, long-term, economic redevelopment in the Halifax area.

 

(Photo Credit: Twentieth Century Fox Entertainment Corporation)

 

Meet the new boss.  Same as the old boss.

It’s true – the more things change, the more they stay the same here on Florida’s “Fun Coast.”

Earlier this month, in a retrospective on the year that was, I wrote that Volusia’s half-cent sales tax issue would soon be resurrecting itself – like some macabre ghoul crawling out of a misty cemetery where government money-grabs go to die – right after the elections had been decided.

After all, no one wants to run a heated political campaign while lashed to the ball-and-chain of rising taxes, eh?

Like clockwork, now that our anointed monarchs have been enthroned, county and city officials are once again trotting out the sales tax increase as the magic potion for our crumbling ‘transportation infrastructure.’

Yep.  According to Jim Dinneen and Company – we’re going broke when it comes to road funds (not executive salaries, thank God) and its past time for you and me to pay up.

According to the Daytona Beach News-Journal, County Engineer Jerry Brinton put a “real-world” spin on the problem for all us yokels:

“Think of it like this: You’re an employee who has never gotten a raise, while rent, the cost of goods and utility bills continue to increase. Meanwhile, appliances start to break (roads or bridges) and family members (the taxpayers) keep asking for stuff.”

“Your kids want those new sneakers,” Brinton said. “What do you do?”

 Hey, Jerry?  With all due respect – shut the fuck up.

Your condescending bullshit is not what the long-suffering taxpayers of Volusia County need right now.  Okay?

The County Engineer’s half-baked analogy would work – I suppose – if the individual referenced wasn’t spending someone else’s money like a drunk methamphetamine addict on a crack cocaine binge.

(Quick question – who is responsible for managing media communications for county department heads?  Anyone? I guess in an organization that abhors responsibility as much as it does accountability, well, anything goes.)  

Interestingly, our own Master of Diplomacy and imminently self-important doyen, County Council Member Deb Deny’s, used the occasion to once again deflect blame while openly bashing the cities, “I think the public will buy in once their elected leaders have a clear vision,” Denys said, something that’s been lacking in the past. “There has been no clear vision.”

This from one of the “visionaries” who just voted for outrageous salary increases for Jim Dinneen (who, with benefits, is currently shoveling over $350,000 of our tax dollars out the door annually – even as our transportation infrastructure apparently crumbles around us?) and County Attorney Dan Eckert – who spent most of last year suing you and me, you know, his constituents. . .

At a recent “roundtable discussion” between Volusia’s municipal officials, Deland Mayor Bob Apgar, normally someone who shows leadership and good judgment in these matters, suggested forming a “committee” – with a seat for every city – you know, sort of like the meeting they were all sitting at (?) – that will come up with a plan the “public would be willing to vote for.”

The committee, of course, will be comprised of non-political types with very familiar names who will naturally suggest some scary potential funding sources and chilling doomsday scenarios – then settle on recommending the half-cent tax increase, like they are throwing us a collective bone.

On the bright side – the “committee members” will fade the political heat for our elected officials – so, ultimately, no one is answerable!

Wah-lah!   

As if by magic, an additional $43 million dollars of our hard-earned money will transfer from our bank accounts to government coffers annually – while our elected and appointed officials continue to piss good money after bad.

Food for thought:  What will the next emergency be?

In a January 2016 Barker’s View piece on this very issue entitled “Cui Bono?” I asked the malignant question on everyone’s mind:

“The Volusia County Council’s inability to sell the half-cent sales tax initiative last summer is indicative of a larger problem.  In my view, our elected officials are missing the key element of any successful marketing strategy – or tax proposal:  Trust.

 Oblivious to the fact that they have lost basic credibility, County officials are once again staging their tired Kabuki, dramatically performed with equal parts apocalyptic prophecy, name calling, and threats against the municipalities, all designed to wring additional dollars from a tax-weary constituency.

 Given the number of grassroots efforts seeking accountability, it is increasingly clear to everyone but County officials that they no longer have the consent of the governed.

 I believe the seeds of this institutional distrust germinate in the county manager’s office.

 In my view, Jim Dinneen’s mismanagement of this and other important public policy issues best exemplify all that’s wrong with county government.  Team Dinneen wants higher taxes, because they need higher taxes – and spending cuts, the reduction of exorbitant executive salaries, or curbing insider handouts are inconceivable. 

 A bureaucracy – especially one as bloated as this – requires tax dollars like a parasitic insect needs the blood of its host. 

 It’s very life depends upon it.

Public confidence in county government has been slowly eroded by the steady flow of missteps, bullying and legislative sleight-of-hand that invariable benefits a privileged few while laying the financial burden squarely on the back of Volusia County residents.

 As a result, we no longer assume council decisions serve the common good. 

 Now, we instinctively ask ourselves the darker question, “who benefits?”

Ladies and Gentlemen of the jury who decides the fate of this insane money enema – the case is clear:

In my view, common sense – hell, common decency – demands that We, the People, not permit one more penny of our hard-earned money be sent to Deland unless and until our current elected and appointed officials stop the life-draining hemorrhaging of public funds in the form of ridiculous salaries, “economic incentives,” half-price land sales, open cash giveaways, and back-handed corporate welfare checks to Forbes-listed billionaires and multi-millionaire land developers.

Look, if Volusia can’t do it for $850+ million annually – in a county where most municipalities provide their own core services – they can’t do it.  Period.

The fact is, Mayor Apgar and the rest of these lily-livered municipal officials damn well know that it is high-time they stand up to county government’s insane arrogance – and hyper-spending – to demand accountability, reallocation, collaboration, and respect.

Enough is enough.

 

 

 

 

 

Last week, my best friend of over 50-years and I lit out for the territory on a great adventure to explore the incredible beauty of the low country sea islands and marshland between North Myrtle Beach and Jekyll Island – with stops to enjoy the rich history of Charleston and Savannah.

A wonderful trip.

Trust me, the comparison between the vacation destinations of Myrtle Beach and Daytona Beach wasn’t lost on me.

The similarities are unmistakable – and the differences in the way the two entities have dealt with the unique challenges of an aging beachside tourist community are equally striking.

I hope to bring you some observations on that later in the week.

They say, “You can’t make old friends.”  That’s true.

I haven’t gotten a lot right in my life, but having the privilege of a lifelong friend is something I consider more important than gold.

Friendships are vital because they require that you put selfish needs aside and elevate another person’s feelings and interests above your own.  And when someone reciprocates that generosity of spirit – you have the foundation for something very special.

The effort required to build trust and cultivate a true friendship can’t help but teach you something deeply important about yourself – and the subtle, esoteric things that make life so rich and rewarding.

Professional relationships are important too – especially when you serve in the public interest.

Last week, I read an interesting article by the intrepid Lyda Longa, writing for the Daytona Beach News-Journal, regarding the escalating feud between our new Sheriff Michael Chitwood and County Manager Jim Dinneen.

Well, that didn’t take long.

I know something about both of these incredibly strong personalities, and I can assure you, this spat isn’t going away anytime soon.

During my working life, I had several occasions to interact with Sheriff Chitwood during his tenure as Chief of Police for the City of Daytona Beach.

I found him to be incredibly passionate, hardworking, and someone who kept his own counsel.

However, as chief of the second largest agency in the county, in my view, he didn’t take the time to develop professional relationships with his colleagues in the local law enforcement community.

I hope that changes now that he holds all the cards.

Many police department’s in Volusia County rely on the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office for specialized equipment and services – such as SWAT, K-9 and explosive ordinance disposal.

To his credit, Ben Johnson was incredibly open, cooperative, and supportive – always willing to lend personnel and resources in support of law enforcement operations, regardless of jurisdiction.

I am sure the nagging question among area police chief’s right now is what level of cooperation they can expect from our new sheriff.

And that’s a legitimate concern.

It’s no secret that Sheriff Chitwood and I have had our differences – never personal, always professional.

When big egos work in close proximity, there will naturally be the occasional jurisdictional argument or difference of opinion.  I have always felt the honest debate of competing views makes for good public policy – and I know Sheriff Chitwood does too.

But it also helps to have a strong, collegial, relationship as well.

Let’s face it, Mike has the work ethic of the Amish.  He truly loves the law enforcement profession – and the men and women who pin on the badge and serve in an incredibly difficult and dangerous environment.

Most important – he leads from the front.  I respect that.

However, I also know that he can be extremely unforgiving with those who cross him – something he will need to work on going forward.

Clearly, Sheriff Chitwood is not afraid to mix it up, or challenge the status quo, to get the best possible results.

In my view, our new Sheriff’s passion, strength of character, and strong leadership will serve all of us well as he takes the agency to new levels of professionalism and service delivery.

Now, Sheriff Chitwood is coming to the difficult realization that his authority – and independence – as a duly-elected official is purposely limited by the strict provisions of the County’s home rule charter.

This puts his progressive programs and aggressive crime fighting plans at the mercy of the butcher, the baker and the candlestick maker on the historically dysfunctional County Council – and worse yet – subject to the petty-minded machinations of Little Jimmy Dinneen.

Regardless of your thoughts on the merits of the charter, in my view, the elected High Sheriff shouldn’t be required to come before Dinneen and the council with his hat in hand every time he needs to fund a project.

In a very telling aspect of this mounting dust-up, Sheriff Chitwood described how, in 2010, he learned that Mr. Dinneen attempted to have him fired from the City of Daytona Beach after the now infamous exchange in which he referred to then Sheriff Johnson as a “moron” during a dispute over a county anti-theft ordinance.

This weasel-shit behavior by a political hack like Jim Dinneen is eerily familiar.

You see, in 2013, Dinneen called my former boss to make issue of the fact that a police vehicle I was driving for official business had been paid for with Community Redevelopment funds.

Perfectly appropriate, given the policing provisions of the CRA – and our focus on problem-solving initiatives in the Ridgewood Avenue commercial corridor.

Mr. Dinneen demanded that I – as chief of police – find another vehicle to operate while on-duty.

Naturally, my immediate reaction was to ask Mr. Dinneen to mind his own fucking business – and I expressed this sentiment to my city manager.

After all, why would the county manager pee on my rug?

I was the little guy in the sandbox – I couldn’t help him, or hurt him, if I wanted.

So why rough me up just because you can?

At the end of the day, I’m not sure it ended the way Jimmy intended.

You see, my wife, Patti – in her own inimitable way – immediately made a series of targeted public record requests for information relating to the cost of Mr. Dinneen’s office renovations – and the ugly (and as yet fully explained) theft of his county-issued SUV during which his golf clubs were stolen.

After that, the whole tempest in a teapot just seemed to evaporate.

Fast.

It seems Little Jimmy didn’t want to answer the type of questions my wife was asking – and he backstroked faster than Michael Phelps – later claiming the issue had been brought by an unidentified county council member – and assuring that he wouldn’t presume to tell me what vehicle I should drive. . .

At least that’s what I was told.

Still, I never received an apology for his outrageous bullying.

Now, I can assure you this, the one thing you will never find in Sheriff Chitwood’s issued vehicle is a set of golf clubs. . .

To hear Mr. Dinneen tell it – the confrontations that Chitwood so intricately described to the News-Journal – well, never happened.

 “I told him about the past and he said if this is going to work, we have to work together,” Chitwood said. “I had to let him know that I’m not going to sit in the sandbox and play nicely with everybody. I’m gonna do what’s best for my deputies.”

Said Dinneen: “I would never allow anyone to lecture me like that. He never said those words to me ever, I would have taken offense to it.”

 Hummmmm. . .

Jim Dinneen just called Sheriff Chitwood a bald-faced liar.

The gauntlet has been thrown.

The tale of the tape?

Mike Chitwood has proven that he tells the truth.  Even when it hurts.

Conversely, Jimmy Dinneen will lie to us when the truth would serve him better.

This is going to be an interesting Battle Royale.

Love him or hate him, despite his sharp-edges, Sheriff Chitwood is a highly driven, alpha personality with a proven track record of serving honorably in the public interest.

In my view, Jim Dinneen is a mean-spirited asshole with a God complex who has proven – time-and-again – that he best serves the self-interests of a few well-connected insiders above those of his constituents every time – all the time.

In this Clash of the Titans, my moneys on Mike.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird.”

 –Revelation 18:2

I am prone to saying that we live in interesting times.

And by that, I mean we live in perhaps the most fucked-up and totally insane epoch of repugnant treachery and open deceit ever perpetrated in the history of the Union – if not the world.

“Now, get a grip, Barker. Don’t go off the deep end, you crazy bastard – here, have a drink – it can’t be that bad?”

Look, don’t take my word for it – open any newspaper in the Free World this morning and let me know what you think.

During the 2016 Presidential campaign, I wrote extensively how our once venerated media compromised themselves in an almost universal frenzy to delegitimize the frontrunners – with specific and near constant emphasis on now President-elect Donald Trump.

I opined that all it cost us was the collective loss of any real confidence in the national press – and our democratic process.

Well, gird your loins, folks – it’s gotten worse.  As if that were possible. . .

This morning, as good people throughout the nation awake, brew the morning joe, and tune in to their favorite talking heads, they are learning the ugly pseudo-facts about an incredibly salacious story that has been quietly making the rounds of Washington media-types, politicians – and the intelligence community – for months.

It seems that an oddly written, and completely unverified, 25-page dossier allegedly compiled by a former British intelligence officer – hired to develop opposition material on Trump – was obtained by Florida-based GOP political operative, and confirmed hack, Rick Wilson; who then trotted it around to anyone, and everyone, who would read it – including, apparently, the Central Intelligence Agency.

(You remember Rick Wilson.  He coined the phrase “Cheeto Jesus” – and led the ‘Never Trump’ movement from the very point of the spear – then spent the better part of last year viciously trashing the Republican nominee while serving as a “top GOP consultant”?)

To take this absurdity to its ragged edge – this morning we will also learn that top officials of our intelligence community used this unconfirmed “report” to brief both Mr. Trump, and President Barack Obama, as hard evidence of the width and depth of Russian involvement in our 2016 election.

On a more nefarious – and completely over-the-top – note, the report cites information from unidentified covert ‘sources’ that Russian intelligence is currently in possession of extremely embarrassing material that could be used to compromise and blackmail Mr. Trump – also suggesting Russia has been “cultivating, supporting and assisting” Trump in the years leading to his candidacy.

The report – parts of which sound like an old Penthouse Forum segment – include a weird story of Mr. Trump hiring Russian prostitutes to engage in “golden showers” on a bed once occupied by Mr. & Mrs. Obama in the Presidential Suite of the Moscow Ritz-Carlton Hotel.

As I understand it, Wilson took the bait – hook, line and sinker.

In turn, Wilson turned the report over to the Central Intelligence Agency, who quickly shared it within the intelligence community, before adding it to briefing materials presented as a fact-based intel product to the highest officials in the United States government.

Frankly, it reads like some perverted twist on a John le Carre novel – where clandestine dead drops and secretly palmed Minox cameras are replaced with tawdry piss-play. . .

Then, in some onanistic frenzy to break the next big Washington “Got’cha!” the online “news” source Buzzfeed – a strange hybrid website composed of hard journalism and pop culture bullshit – actually ran the raw dossier (complete with Sharpie highlighted passages) last night for all to see.

Understand, the material was billed by Buzzfeed as an “unverified memo” – but the damage was done.

They know it, and you know it.

Now, the rest of the story.

Although this is an actively developing disaster, as the hours pass it is increasingly clear that this dubious “intelligence report” – the contents of which made it all the way to a presidential briefing – originated as a bogus troll post on some obscure online bulletin board (4chan.org).

This morning, the site posted a claim that the “infamous golden shower scene” in the unverified dossier was a hoax, fabricated by an anonymous member of the chatboard as “fanfiction” – then sent to Rick Wilson – and ultimately, the CIA.

Is it possible that the most sophisticated intelligence agencies on earth – along with some of our nations most seasoned journalists and outlets (read: CNN) – have been shamefully duped by the proverbial 300-pound dude sitting on a chat forum in his mother’s basement?

You bet it is.

In a chock-a-block attempt to explain the matter, zerohedge.com summed things up better than I can:

“From here on out, assuming this is all true – it doesn’t matter how “legit” any report, document, or declaration is from any agency regarding Russian involvement in the US elections.  Even if there is credible evidence in the case (there’s not), it simply won’t matter after today.”

 Indeed.

We are witnessing the death of trust.

I hope, in the end, our two corrupt political parties – with the full support and acquiescence of our now defiled media establishment – realize the depth of harm they have done to our great nation with their detestable machinations.

Earlier today, President-elect Trump took to Twitter and denounced the report as “fake news,” stating, “Intelligence agencies should never have allowed this fake news to ‘leak’ into the public. One last shot at me.  Are we living in Nazi Germany?”

Given the malevolent fallout and internal treachery we’ve seen in the wake of Mr. Trump’s electoral victory, I’m afraid I can no longer answer that question with any degree of certainty.

Can you?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“What is to become of an independent statesman, one who will bow the knee to no idol, who will worship nothing as a divinity but truth, virtue, and his country? I will tell you; he will be regarded more by posterity than those who worship hounds and horses; and although he will not make his own fortune, he will make the fortune of his country.”

 John Adams–

Florida’s new House Speaker Richard Corcoran is a man after my own heart.

If you are reading this, I suspect he’s your kind of guy as well.

For the first time, in a long time, we have a leader in Tallahassee who is taking the ethical high road, and dragging his fellow elected officials along with him – kicking and screaming.

Last fall, Speaker Corcoran announced a series of reforms that he hopes will make Florida, “the most open and accountable legislature in the entire country.”

That’s a tall order.  Especially here in the moral wasteland of the Sunshine State.

I recently watched a riveting movie about a young, idealistic FBI agent who is drafted into the shadowy world of the escalating Mexican drug war.  The protagonist, a soft-spoken CIA contractor with a mysterious motive elegantly played by Benicio Del Toro, remarks: “You should move to a small town, somewhere the rule of law still exists.  You will not survive here.  You are not a wolf, and this is a land of wolves now.”

 Unfortunately, Florida is a land of wolves.

Hell, it’s the original den of apex political predators.

 It takes a special courage and inner strength to stand against corrupt systems; to make right that which is wrong and expose the entrenched self-enrichment schemes of those elected and appointed to represent the public interest.

Many of the changes outlined by Corcoran can be found in an incredible (given the times) white paper, composed in 2012 by Corcoran and some two-dozen Republican lawmakers, entitled “Blueprint Florida.”

Trust me.  This is a must read for anyone interested in good governance.  Anywhere.

Called “The Manifesto” by members of the media, the blueprint points the finger of reform squarely at a system that has allowed self-interest to triumph over public interest.

I encourage you to read it here: http://miamiherald.typepad.com/files/2012-blue-print-florida.pdf

In a 2015 piece in the Tampa Bay Times, Mr. Corcoran addressed the many cynics and naysayers who will no doubt have a field day with what many insiders and special interests will see as perhaps the first real barrier to maintaining the status quo at the State Capital.

Still, Corcoran believes there will be many legislators who will welcome fresh air, “It’s confront the brutal fact, and the brutal fact is – man is flawed, and if left to their own devices, they’re going to seek their self-interest.”

I think the Speaker is on to something.

After a life spent in municipal government, I have some solid ideas about how our democratic system – at all levels – became such a squalid, self-serving cesspool of base corruption – but, to be honest, I’ve never truly understood it.

It’s like one of those cruel and disturbing stories where a parent turns on their own children – the very ones they trust and depend upon for protection.

In my view, the strength of our system begins and ends with the moral character of those we elect to serve in the public interest.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not naïve (unsophisticated maybe, but not naïve) and I am not suggesting that all public officials are dishonest shitheels – I’ve worked with some incredibly bright and forward-thinking civil servants who set the gold standard for ethical conduct.  I have also been forced to suffer a few of the most unethical frauds ever to disgrace local government.

Fortunately, Mr. Corcoran’s efforts appear to be gaining some traction.

I thoroughly enjoyed Daytona Beach News-Journal editorialist Scott Kent’s recent illuminating piece on Corcoran’s one man frontal assault on “business as usual” in the halls of power.

Now, it’s one thing to champion transparency and basic fairness in the public interest – but more than one “reformer” has been left tilting at windmills when they suddenly discover they are a lone voice in a fetid swamp of graft – or get caught in the, “if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em” trap.

The tale of the tape will be when Corcoran’s transformational policies meet the immovable object of Governor Rick Scott’s unique brand of hazy governance.

I don’t think it’s any secret that Mr. Corcoran is planning a run for governor – and if he proves that his heart is truly in the right place – I can’t think of anyone more qualified, or welcome, to serve the long-suffering citizens of Florida.

For instance, per Mr. Kent, Corcoran has, “butted heads with the governor over state subsidies to private businesses.”  He also said that it is a “disgrace” that local governments use tax dollars to hire professionals to lobby the legislature – asking, “Shouldn’t legislators be aware of the needs of governments within their districts and do the lobbying for them?”

What an interesting concept?

The thought that a politician should understand the needs of his or her constituents, then actually work in the best interest of the communities that sent them to Tallahassee – or Washington – or Deland.

Interesting, indeed.

 

(Photo Credit: The Miami Herald)

 

Please join Barker’s View on GovStuff Live with Big John on WELE 1380am today at 4:30pm!

On the second Monday of each month, Barker’s View joins Big John to discuss topical issues in Volusia County government – keeping you up-to-date on the news and newsmakers of the day.

Please listen in – or join the discussion by calling 386-523-1380.

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Thank you!

And I thought I was the biggest windbag in Volusia County. . .

On Thursday, I caught part of the first County Council meeting of 2017.

In all honesty, I waited until the coronations were complete.  There are certain things my old tum-tum just can’t handle anymore – like Nachos Bell Grande and political acceptance speeches.

They repeat on me something terrible.

But, hey, it’s a new day – I get it – and by all accounts everyone who is anyone is extremely positive about the state of county government going forward.

There’s something about a swearing-in ceremony that drips optimism, and I see why most people get caught up in the cheerful pageantry and infectious enthusiasm of the moment.

Unfortunately, I no longer possess those emotions.

The sanguine part of my cerebral cortex has been scoured away by the near constant assault of open depravity and gutter sleaze that is Volusia County politics.  Sometimes I feel like the character in that M. Night Shyamalan film who see’s dead people – except, my sixth sense is the ability to perceive political horseshit.

Talk about a nightmare.

Like many of you, on Thursday I was hoping against hope that newly seated Chairman Ed Kelley would live up to the hype, courageously take the reins in his teeth, and seize control of these runaway meetings, as he promised.

In fact, I was giddy as a kipper as I anxiously waited to see Eddie finally bring county manager Jim Dinneen to heel, then publicly castigate him for orchestrating those exorbitant annual pay increases (like he promised).

And who among us didn’t light-headedly mince about the room, eagerly anticipating the exact moment Chairman Kelley would unlimber his gavel and curb the cheap political pap and fluff that has historically made these meetings so interminably long (like he promised)?

Finally, after years of stagnation and open dysfunction, the power brokers had bestowed upon us a strong, decisive statesman to provide the stewardship we, the unwashed masses, so richly deserve.

As Steinbeck observed, “The world was spinning in greased grooves.”

Now that Big Ed’s in the catbird’s seat, things are gonna change, baby!

Then, suddenly, everything went sideways.

Like watching the ball skip through Buckner’s knees.

I sat in stunned silence as our own Rip Van Winkle of county politics, “Sleepy Pat” Patterson – in an unusually animated moment (and by animated, I mean like the woozy groans of Frankenstein’s monster in an electric storm) – put the absolute smack down on Mr. Kelley, right out of the chute.

During a drawn-out exchange between Mr. Patterson and County Attorney Dan Eckert regarding the infinitesimal details of exactly which events and functions council members would be reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses – Chairman Kelley finally saw the opportunity to flex his new muscles and explained to Sleepy Pat that he had droned on entirely too long.

Let’s head ’em up and move ’em out.  Time’s a-wastin’.

“I heard the answer twice.  Let’s move on,” Chairman Kelley asserted.

What a ballsy move, I thought, as I hunched closer to the monitor.

Then, Mr. Patterson – no doubt anxiously waiting for this very moment – suddenly transmogrified into this horribly indignant Werewolf-like creature, sprouted blood-tinged fangs, and seethed at the visibly recoiling Chairman, “That’s Rude.  You’re here to run a meeting – not sit here and shut council member’s discussions down.”

 Whoa.

In other words, “Know your role – and quit interrupting.  Traditionally, the Chair sits there quietly and entertains himself by playing with the shiny buttons on his vest.  Get with the program.”

Our once proud trailblazer was left sputtering and apologizing for his insolent behavior like some doddering old fool who just spilled his soup and made a mess.

In the end, Eddie assured us – and Mr. Patterson – that his boorish outbursts won’t happen again.

But it wasn’t over.

When he was done politely disemboweling the chairman – Mr. Patterson’s tag team partner, our new Vice Chair, Deb Deny’s, continued to publicly spank Kelley like a recalcitrant child during her remarks.

In her typical slightly exasperated, yet infinitely self-important style, Deny’s gave Ed one last throat punch, “This isn’t the Ormond Beach City Commission, with all due respect.”

Meaning, “You’re not in tiny town anymore, Dorothy.  Welcome to the NFL – now get your head out of your ass and follow our lead.”

 Deny’s then joined her fellow council members in a long-winded discussion on when it is appropriate to have discussions, exactly what should be discussed, and when, and why some discussions should be held in a workshop – while other discussions should be held at the end of the regular meeting.

As discussions go, it was quite a discussion.

It also served the purpose of publicly tamping the dirt down on Ed Kelley’s aspirations to shorten county council meetings.

Fortunately, throughout the tut-tutting from the seats of power, we had Mr. Dinneen on hand to explain to us – and the council members themselves – exactly what each of them were trying to say, as though they had been speaking in some obscure Bantu dialect.

Weird.

But, Thank God, we have Little Jimmy to interpret.  That’s what you get for $375,000 annually.

He tells you what you want to hear.

Look, I understand there’s a learning curve.  I mean, Chairman Kelley has only been participating in or presiding over public meetings for, well, the past eight-years.

So, let’s cut him a break.  Okay?

And Councilwoman Heather Post, too.

God Bless her.  She crackled and popped through “you know, ah” her first meeting with a relatively good showing.  Probably just first-time jitters.

I’m sure she will find her way – as we all do.

I, for one, am pulling for her.

So, let’s all just calm down.  Eventually, someone on the dais will find a way to fill the leadership void left in the smoldering remains of Ed Kelley’s best intentions.

And if not, we always have Jim Dinneen to lead us deeper down the garden path. . .

In coming weeks, the ‘movers-and-shakers’ of the Halifax area will host several gala dinners and cocktail parties, all designed to remind themselves how important they are to our collective progress here on the “Fun Coast.”

These include the annual Daytona Beach Regional Chamber of Commerce mutual admiration event, and Team Volusia’s yearly celebration of frivolously pissing away tax dollars for dubious returns.

The tables will be set just-so, and the ‘complementary’ beer and wine will flow.

As the evening progresses, well-dressed speakers with recognizable names will take the podium to congratulate each other’s achievements, drone on about all they have done for us – and, most important, tout their big plans for our communal success in the year to come.

Comments from the well-heeled dais will include terms like “Buoyed Optimism,” “Failing Forward” and “Big Wins!” and we will hear how Team Volusia is “punching way above its weight.”

Sadly, they will believe their own quaint euphemisms, even as they struggle to convince themselves that – with enough of our money – they can actually make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.

In a recent article by the Daytona Beach News-Journal’s Clayton Parks, it was announced that Team Volusia – one of the myriad “public/private” partnerships that serve as a conduit for funneling public dollars to private businesses – will be hosting a three-hour soiree at the elegant, and appropriately named, Mori Hosseini Center.

Mr. Parks began by reassuring us that, although the engraved invitations don’t specifically say it, members of the public are welcome to attend the $75 per plate buffet – resplendent with white bean hummus crostini and Charleston crab cakes with remoulade.

While the News-Journal may not come right out and say it, the invitations were correct.

Team Volusia neither needs, nor wants, your attendance on their big night – all they need is our money.

You see, nearly half of Team Volusia’s $1.4 million annual budget comes from you and me.

Something else they won’t tell you:  Although the invitations specify ‘business attire’ – because our tax money is involved, the law classifies this gala as a public meeting.

You can wear bib overalls and a corncob pipe and they can’t exclude you.

Our friends at Team Volusia plan to use this glorious event to trot out their brand new “three-year strategic plan” – cleverly entitled, well, “Strategy for Success” – which, by the way, was cobbled together by two folks from a consulting firm out of Little Rock, Arkansas.

Little Rock.

In keeping with their publicly-funded mission to generate economic development and build the tax base in Volusia County – Team Volusia sent $55,000 (not counting travel costs) of our money to Little Rock, Arkansas – for two people who don’t know Mason Avenue from the Port Orange Causeway.

In return, the consultants (who bill themselves as former economic development ‘practitioners’) wrote our “strategic plan.”  (Team Volusia couldn’t find anyone local to bang-out a “tell ‘em what they want to hear” manifesto for fifty-five grand?)

Hell, I’m just sitting on my ass.  Maybe I missed the call?  Probably napping.

In my experience, strategic planning is normally performed internally as a management and team building tool.

It is very effective when all stakeholders are involved in setting common goals, evaluating current and future needs, soliciting internal and external suggestions, analyzing strengths and weaknesses in the marketplace, and developing a comprehensive focus – a road map, really – for achieving objectives over time.

When done properly, the exercise can build consensus and enthusiasm, set internal priorities, and allocate talent and resources toward achieving collective goals.  Obviously, the process is most effective if the resulting blueprint is exercised and implemented by everyone as a means of focusing energy and ensuring that each element of the organization is pulling in the same direction.

However, if management simply places the binder on a bookcase in the executive suite, We, the People, who paid for it might as well have wiped our collective bum with the $55K.

For instance:

You might remember that in 2013 the Volusia County Council took delivery of a $100,000 report on the future of Volusia’s tourism industry.

In the final narrative, the county’s consultant – another out-of-towner from something called the “Strategic Advisory Group” – described a meeting with Team Volusia wherein it was acknowledged that tourism is the number one industry in Volusia County.

Per the much-heralded report (which is no doubt collecting dust on county manager Jim Dinneen’s credenza), “The Team Volusia website lists “high impact” industries in the section on potential financial incentives. Tourism is not listed as one of these industries and there is no section for tourism investment.”

It still isn’t.

In fact, in nearly four-years, I haven’t seen any substantive changes to the Team Volusia website at all.

Just like Daytona Beach itself, it’s the same tired shit, rehashed in some weird exercise that involves doing the same thing over-and-over while expecting a different result.

Or maybe their web presence is just there to camouflage the fact that Team Volusia is simply another ineffectual, and overvalued, tax funded boondoggle?

I mean, we spent $100,000 hard-earned taxpayer dollars for a tourism study – not counting all we gave away in terms of beach access, incentives, and stomach acid – to lure a panacea theme hotel to the area.

Is it too much to ask that someone, anyone, on the payroll take the personal initiative to put the word “tourism” on the Team Volusia website’s business & industry priorities section?

You know, just shoehorn it between Team Volusia’s main thrusts of ‘Film Production’ and ‘Headquarters/R&D’?

(Film production?  Really?  I mean, a movie hasn’t been made here since the De Niro flop ‘Dirty Grandpa.’  Oh, wait, that wasn’t actually filmed here – the producers just took advantage of our seedy reputation to enhance the plot line…)

I don’t make this shit up, folks.

As I write this, my stomach churns and my chest tightens remembering the countless hours of my life spent trapped at ‘gala dinners,’ and seemingly endless breakfast meetings, listening to overdressed economic development types drone on about how wonderful things would be if we could just shovel more tax money at parasitic businesses who consistently factor our money into their bottom line.

I should have had the moral courage to stand up and shout, “Stop lying to us, you treacherous bastards!” – but that would have been considered inappropriate, given the setting and circumstances.

I would have been dismissed as a mad man – or terminal drunk – or both.

In retrospect, I can’t think of anything more appropriate.