The greater fool theory.

The citizens of Smyrna do not vote. The smallest minority of voters cast their vote for Bacon. There are no large number of voters. That fact has already been established. You keep repeating a lie with the hope that people will eventually believe it.

He will not speak to any group that asks him. He will not speak to the citizens of Smyrna. If he were in the private sector he would be fired.

30080, out of the entire pool of Smyrna citizens who either were driven by sense a civic duty or could otherwise be bothered to get out and vote, a significant majority voted for Mayor Bacon. No amount of whinging can alter that fact, regardless of how you feel about his performance in office. "By large numbers" means the margin of votes, ie a percentage. If only 10 people voted, and 8 vote for Bacon, then he still won by large numbers when comparing the difference between 8 and 2. That's 6, or 80% to 20%, in case you're having difficulty doing the math. Mayor Bacon won his last election with 75% of 5,501 votes (out of a total of 26,223 registered voters). That means more than 4,000 people voted for Bacon. While that may only be approx. 16% of the total registered voters, it's still a large number compared to the number of votes the other candidates received.

If you're so bothered by this, instead of demonstrating a lack of understanding of basic math, perhaps you should make a greater effort to rally more support behind an alternative candidate, or even simply inspire more people in our community to get out and vote. However, be warned, such actions take more effort than typing comments into an internet forum.

He has no record to speak of.

About JV. He said it's "slow go" & the city is still working with Publix. In 2008 city signed contract with them. Hopefully within 2 yrs. something will happen. City owns 2 tracts of land at JV.

"Slow go". No it's "dead stop". Publix not building four years after signing a contract. The problem is with the city not Publix.

30080, the reason that JV isn't built is because people rejected the latest plan that Branch properties came out with, and Branch withdrew it. The reason people rejected it was concern over the fact it was really just a stripmall with mid-rise apartments over a parking garage next to it, which wasn't really the idea people had of "mixed-use". People also had concerns over the fact that the city had just purchased and torn down older apartments. However, I think we could have gotten past that had JV's new plan not been more of a glorified stripmall. Keep in mind the original plan prior to Branch buying it was something that would have been nationally recognized, like West Village or Ivy Walk. I don't think citizens were willing to drop their standards that much. Yes, because of the market density has to be lower, but citizens are hoping for the same kind of spirit of the original plan, just scaled down.

You're called the great unwashed masses.

Funny how the "unwashed masses" can at least show up to vote.

Strange how people are supposed to be swayed by folks who have nothing better to do than post insults on the internet. Great tactic you've got there. How is that working for you?

Apathy is a symptom of a dictatorial regime.

Lack of reading comprehension capabilities aside, why aren't you doing something constructive about it? Please, by all means, provide some concrete, documented examples of the dirty things Mayor Bacon has done to get elected. I'd be open to reading more than armchair internet whinging from people with a severe lack of basic education skills and nothing better to do with their time.

As Chris Long said...I've "heard" about the meth lab in your basement, but until someone offers up proof, it's just hearsay.

Ahh, the same tired refrain of, "We're just exercising our 1st Amendment rights, & evil people are trying to silence us." What was that you said about growing up?

You can be "so sick & tired" of this situation, but it's one of your own creation. As much as you & the rest of the "Smyrna Sux" crowd loves to make yourselves out to be martyrs, nobody is telling (or ever has told) anyone to leave Smyrna "simply for exercising their 1st Amendment rights". What you view as a witch hunt to drum dissenters out of town are a legitimate questions/statements based on your own postings.

The reason people question why the "Smyrna Sux" crowd would stay in Smyrna is b/s they've been reading countless whining & complaining posts for months upon months. Just about every post states or implies impropriety &/or malfeasance on the part of the city & its employees, & criticizes every decision/action made by the same. & pathetically, too posts have been demonstrably false &/or misleading. (Note: if Smyrna was that bad, no exaggeration or falsehoods would be necessary to get the point across.) All this w/o offering anything constructive or productive...just ceaseless whining & complaining. Being dissatisfied & voicing your opinion is great, but doing so repeatedly & never taking action is a waste everyone's time. & no, "venting" on the Internet is not "action".

The Smyrna that the "Smyrna Sux" crowd depicts is one that is corrupt & hopelessly circling the drain. So, this does beg the question of why you people would want to stay in such a ****hole. Location isn't the reason. There are plenty of places in the Metro area that are "great locations", & any of them would have to be better than the Smyrna you depict.

I'm starting to believe that you people have nothing better to do but complain, & will do so no matter what is going on...b/c complaining is easier than doing. Quit complaining & start doing. Run for office, start a civic group, or anything else. Otherwise your "venting" is a fruitless exercise that just creates a crappy atmosphere for everyone.

Good Luck with getting a response Amy H. It seems that every time specifics or proof are asked of this particular group, they never come back with that information. Oh, occasionally you get the personal attacks on private citizens, but not once have they ever provided specifics...nor have they ever followed through with any type of solution or action on their part to actually help our city. Oh wait...there are the random post about other cities and what they are doing, but usually those can be countered with facts that support our city either is doing something like it, have discussed it or have directly been impacted (like the rest of this world) by the economy so it is not a viable option....at this time. Some of us have even asked for them to join us in even the smallest of opportunities to help our community, but we were criticized on that effort too, so much for the olive branch. Oh well, they say there is one in every crowd....it just appears we have a few extra. Fortunately, we have many more citizens who are passionate about positive change and are willing to actually do something about it. :)

Michelle: With governments, it's all about asking the right people and right questions. There is a place called Community Development. It's in the Taylor Brawner House. They usually know what's going on and follow process versus being encumbered with politics.

Thank you for your own thought provoking and merited comment. You mention that you know the answer. Please share with the rest of us that apparently are in the dark. Wisdom is powerful and you seem to have it, so enlighten the rest of us. Thanks. :)

Michelle, while I agree with you that wisdom is indeed powerful, I feel it need be obtained by the individual through their own means & not through the collective. I also know, that any answer I give that doesn’t align itself with the wisdom of the collective, will be met with serious doubt. And that’s perfectly acceptable to me for anyone to doubt my answer. We ought question what were told & by whom we’re told. So while me giving the answer would be easiest, I feel it better if people go look for themselves. I’m left scratching my head when I read about national firms that bring quality jobs relocating to other Cobb cities & not Smyrna, when Smyrna offers considerably more in terms of housing, quality of life, municipal services, etc.

Well Alex, I guess many of us will continue to be with out the answers or continually make false accusations about the problems. I personally was hoping to hear a different perspective and one that would come from somebody who ran for council - that may have a different perspective. Oh well. As for businesses not coming here....you and I have exchanged our feelings on this topic, so there is no need to recap that. :) BTW....we are looking for dedicated volunteers at Brown Elementary if you would like to come help.

Michelle,
Maybe I'm misunderstanding you, but I don't recall ever making any type of accusation against anyone here on Patch (other than calling out the childish behavior) or against a member of the council. And if I ever were to do that, I certainly wouldn't do it on Patch. And I'm pretty sure most everyone here knows exactly where I stand when it comes to Smyrna, both good & bad, and why I ran for council. And thank you for the invite.

No misunderstanding Alex, nor were you accused of anything (the comment was based on "others" that post false information or accusations and may have benefited from your knowledge)...you mentioned that you knew the answer...I was just hoping to hear it. You feel otherwise. No worries. It's all good. :) Hope to see you around Brown. :)

As for your "food for thought" question, you know there isn't going to be a lot of industry/commerce locating in Smyrna, & you know why...& you know it doesn't need to for Smyrna to thrive.

There are plenty of metro locations that already have real estate parcels well suited for industrial/commercial ventures, whereas they'd have to retrofit/build from scratch here in Smyrna. You also know that nobody is going to build speculative industrial/commercial parks in this economic climate. So, unless the city builds these things, it's highly unlikely to happen. & you know that if that were to happen, you'd be one of the loudest voices complaining that the city was misuing tax dollars.

The kicker is, Smyrna doesn't need these things in our backyard to thrive. We are right on I75/I285 & can be anywhere in the Metro for work in a reasonable time. For example, I've worked in Norcross for the last 5 yrs, & it takes me 30 minutes or less to make the 19 mile trip (occasionally 40-45, but that's rare). People can work anywhere in the metro, & come home to a quaint community. All we really need are enough good restaurants/retail/service/medical businesses to support our community & improve the quality of life.the rest. & we can repurpose existing vacancies for these things. This is exactly what happens in East Cobb & areas like it. If they can thrive, we can do better b/c they don't have the luxury of our location.

Chris, what agitates me is this. There are those who bring ideas to the table to fix a problem they see in our city & those who vocalize a concern about something they feel could harm the city’s interest. However, what has, is, and will continue to happen is that those ideas and concerns will be drowned out by this tiresome shouting match between those who continually make assertions that our gov’t leaders have committed a crime and by those who go around thumping their chests because they do this or that for the city. Why can’t someone like Oscar come here and say he feels the city isn’t being led in the right direction without someone snarling at him with claws demanding he give his reasons? And why can’t someone like Sean M (sorry dude, I can’t keep up with all your handles) come here and share his support for an idea or person without someone berating him for being this or that?

Alex, you're absolutely right, ad hominems often derail many discussions nowadays. Too much emotion & not enough logic. Ad hominem arguments are easier than actually having a thoughtful debate, & sometimes the only recourse when someone cannot make a substantive (or factual) point. You're also right in that not everyone sees the problems (some deliberately overlook them), & not everyone has the answers, so voicing opinions/concerns is necessary. All this being said, there's a big difference between voicing opinions/concerns & constant, unproductive complaining for the sake of complaining. There's an even bigger difference between voicing opinions/concerns & spreading lies or misinformation that is only loosely based in truth.

The problem here for the most part is that there is a certain group continually parrots the same tired tripe over & over, even though it's been addressed &/or debunked ad nauseam. They have no interest in discussion, they just want to push a "Smyrna Sux" agenda. You've been on this site at least as long as I have, so you've seen it. These are the same people who routinely go after Sean or anyone else they perceive as a supporter of the city. & occasionally new people will stop in & think that that group is being persecuted b/c people won't put up w/their crap, but they quickly notice the pattern for what it is.

As for those who just gripe, there's nothing necessarily wrong w/this. However, it doesn't surprise me that people take swipes @ posters like that b/c griping continuously w/o recognizing anything positive gets old & irritating. Constantly cheerleading for Smyrna w/o recognizing its problems would have the same effect. The difference is, there isn't anyone here who thinks that Smyrna is w/o problem--even the biggest supporters know that this city needs work. & in the end nobody has to provide justification for their opinions, but not providing justification invites blowback (especially if the opinions are provocative).

Alex:
I think the issue here is that one group pretty much comes on here and in most cases post completely erroneous information, insinuations and false accusations. I mean the very first post brings up the "Exchange Bank". Then Freya says "dirty tactics" in reference to Bacon. Yet not one time has any of these posters provided proof of anything they have claimed.
The other group simply calls them out for it. Then those that are just asking for proof pretty regularly get personally attacked for asking for facts and called "stalkers" or "paid employees" or "mouth pieces" for the City. Like S. Murphy did here on this very thread (below)
The problem as you put it here, is that people do read these silly threads and if they are not as informed as you or some of the others are they go looking in these threads to see what the consensus is and then they see all this garbage and start thinking there might be some truth to some of the ridiculous claims. Next thing you know the editor starts taking them seriously and giving them editorial space and then we start hearing questions at public meetings that are just plain ridiculous.
I think that those calling these posters out for comments without merit are helping keep this site from becoming one huge negative for the City's image.

Smyrnan, name one person that Sean Murphy has gotten banned from the Patch. You cannot. If anyone has gotten banned from the Patch it's been b/c of their own behavior. As for SM working for Smyrna, he doesn't, & that's been discussed ad nauseam. He has an affiliation w/the city b/c he serves on an advisory board (which is not secret & he's spoke of many times), but this does not put him on the payroll. A not-so-subtle nuance that is apparently lost on you. & as far as his "job" being to "shut us up & shut us down", I don't believe I've ever seen "Goon Squad Henchman" listed on any city job posting. Heck, even if he were in the city's employ, he IS a citizen of Smyrna, so as you say, giving his opinion is no problem.

I'm not surprised that you're struggling for words that you are "attacked" for asking our leaders to lead, b/c it's hard to quantify something that is not happening. Nobody's being "silenced", & nobody's ever been "attacked" for asking. This ridiculous hyperbole serve no one...least of all you. If you want to be taken seriously, stick to reality. You'd find that you may have a more receptive audience that way.

Then some complain the city's not removing eyesores and planting trees fast enough, quite to the contrary of those complaining the city is spending too much.

The reason that smyrna was not mentioned because the Cumberland CID is interested in moving into the Powers Ferry Rd area which is not in Smyrna. Also, the areas of Smyrna that border the Cumberland CID in the northern sector are all residential.

Are you suggesting that Smyrna begin to annex areas of unincorporated Cobb County in the Cumberland mall area? Neither Cobb or the CID would let that happen.

MS: There is no mention of Smyrna in that article and you spout things as if it's a quote from the article with no basis. I consider this borderline trolling.

You know, Sandy Springs borders the CID almost kitty-corner to Smyrna. Did they talk about considering expanding into the part of Sandy Springs right across the river in the article? No. So can you say the same thing about Sandy Springs? I imagine you won't. How about East Cobb or Vinings? So why are you picking solely on Smyrna?

Please stop trolling. There's a difference between offering useful comments and input and just constantly beating something into the ground on a certain position without providing facts, and objective viewpoints. These seems like more of a personal attack on the mayor than anything useful. I don't see one fact in this whole comment. These posts are distracting to people that are trying to have a valid dialogue.