Rumor Has It...Not Everything Belongs on the Internet

If there is anything we have learned from the explosion of the Internet in 1995, it's that no matter how much technology is created, people - human beings - don't change.

The utopian ideal promoted when email services began, both at home and at work, was that faster communication would make the world "smaller" and make it easier to share ideas and information.

However, not all ideas are benign and not all information is reliable.  It is the human part of us that has to discern the difference.  Then that same human part has to decide whether and how to distribute it.  That requires turning off the machines.

My old medical research job trained me for that kind of discernment.  All of us in hands-on clinical research were required to take an intensive seminar in medical ethics with an extensive history component.  

The VP of Translational Research, who was always the "go to" person for international media contacts, summed it up thusly:  "If you're not sure about whether a decision is right, whether it's in research, or a pharmaceutical company in your stock portfolio, think about how it will look on the front page of the New York Times.  Because that is where it is going to end up."  

It's more than just print media and television now.  It's more than just journalists who may or may not take heed of the ethics and standards they learned in journalism school.  Now everyone is their own journalist and standards vary with the individual.   But the majority of the machines that store and transmit the information belong to someone else.  

Take Facebook for example.  Read their terms of service some time.  Everything you post on Facebook, they own and can do with it whatever they wish.  Some acquaintances who have been working with Facebook's marketing leadership had some disturbing opinions about them.  Such as "generation y-ers who have all of this data and little idea what to do with it and shaky ethics on the best of days."

Google seems to be more benign - they don't claim ownership to any posted content.  But they have streamlined the cross-referencing of content across platforms (Google Checkout, YouTube, Blogger, etc)  So they may not claim ownership but they've made it easy for someone else to exploit what you add to it.  I'm not one for conspiracy theories but that one scares the hell out of me.

So when the Internet is used to transmit evolving information - especially in legal cases - the consequences can be more severe.  The ability to be objective and treat all parties fairly fades.  There is potential to violate civil rights.  Notice it's not the machines that make information more deadly - it's the people using them.  People using machines rather than their own discretion and the oft-ignored "Power" button.

Yes, I'm leading up to last night's City Council meeting and the surrounding media.

No one is going to be served best by manipulating evolving information on this case on the Internet.  Within moments of John posting the agenda item (with no commentary, just the text of the resolution) there was speculation on the reason for the resolution (which was confirmed at last night's meeting) and conclusions drawn that the City Attorney had already been fired (which was untrue.)  See how fast a single fact was spun out of control?  

I'm not going to opine over who to trust, because I still don't know.  I'm not privy to the facts involved, by choice.  But I do think this is one for the human beings to work out in real time, with face-to-face consequences, to protect the rights of all involved and leave the machines out of it.  Use some human discretion and the "Power" key, at least until the scenario has played out.

(Good commentary from Kerry DeVallette on this issue last night.  He points out some reasons that I think this process should remain offline.)

Dunwoody Marketplace - Critical Mass

I called it.  I SO called this one....

From Dunwoody Patch:  Dunwoody Green Market Seeks New Home

From the article:

The U.S. Postal Service has told the Dunwoody Green Market that it needs the parking lot where vendors operate on Wednesdays eight months of the year and that the market will have to find a new home.
The financially troubled agency is closing the Dunwoody Carrier Annex at 4444 North Shallowford Road and is moving those operations to the Dunwoody Post Office. That move will begin on Friday, May 18, according to a supervisor at the North Shallowford Road address who referred further questions to the main Atlanta Post Office. Officials at the main branch did not return a call requesting comment.

Back in August 2011 - almost 9 months ago - I posted this article:

Opportunity Knocking:  Dunwoody Needs a Permanent Community Marketplace

From the blog post:

US Post Offices are by definition federal land. City ordinances don't apply. So while the DGM is in the Post Office's good graces, the market opens every Wednesday - legally. 

How lucky do you feel existing at the whim of the Feds? I wouldn't. The USPS can revoke its permission at any time. They can close that location and sell the land, which they routinely threaten to do.

The land isn't going to be sold, but it is going to be used by the rightful owners.  The article from Patch goes on about how vendors were told casually by federal employees that they are going to be evicted in just under three weeks and that city officials are taken by surprise.  You can moan and complain to the sky about how slimy and uncouth that (lack of) legit communication is.  You'd be right.  But here's the problem:  the USPS has every right in the world to do so.  The DGM has been operating at the feds' pleasure and pleasure time is up.  IMHO, no one has any right to be surprised.

So the recommendation from August 2011 is more urgent than ever:  a landlord or other entrepreneur has a huge incentive to open a permanent community marketplace where the farmers, artisans, other businesses can pay a proportional rent and set up shop weekly.  The blog post above had the complete list of advantages.

So what have we learned here?

• Don't rely on the feds or other government agency to just *give* you what you need to run your business.  The USPS scenario is Exhibit A.  The land the DGM was camped on was considered a long-term solution rather than a short-term stopgap.  Big mistake.  Always have a plan in place for long-term land/property use.  If your Plan B involves continued squatting, you're setting yourself up for scrambling again and again.
  
• Take your business sense seriously and work accordingly.  Microbusinesses, home businesses, family farms, artisans, other sole proprietors, are all part of the legitimate business community and all have a legitimate role to play in the economic development of Dunwoody.  If you want Dunwoody and your customers to take you seriously, you have to act the part.  Get a license.  Pay your share of taxes.  Find a venue that can accommodate the amount of business you conduct.  Pay your rent to the landlord, if it isn't you.  Or buy the property you want to operate from.  DGM has been dragging their feet on this one and now they're in a panic.  Will history repeat itself or will a permanent market be established?  Stay tuned.

I'm a little concerned about DGM proprietors discussing their future in terms of "we'll just see where we land".  How about "let's decide where we will go"?  I don't know of any successful business plan that leaves their location up to the four winds and the good will of government.  Even food truck operators have a route and location plan mapped out in advance.  Choose a location, negotiate a price, and work to build it.

Although I prefer to have as few strings as possible attached to free enterprise, the City of Dunwoody government can play a role in acknowledging the contributions uber-small businesses make to the community.  I can't imagine too many people would be upset if Dunwoody provided city-owned land for a market.  (I can think of a spot on North Shallowford that's open at the moment.)  Conversely, the City also has to hold these businesses responsible for paying their share of revenue just like any other business.

New Additions to Our Family!

Mr. & Mrs. Brown Thrasher of Briers North announce the recent hatching of four two chicks in their lovely, spacious nest inside the Duncans' backyard rose bush.  Mrs. Brown Thrasher would like to state that she will give the stink eye to anyone visiting while she is warming the babies.

Mom & Dad are gathering food.

If you look really closely and at the right angle, you can see one of the parents in their nest  

What?  What did you think a "new addition" meant??

*No one touched or disturbed the chicks.  The first picture was pure luck when I held my camera phone over the rose bush and hoped for the best.  The one below was trying to get a shot of the adult on the nest from the side.  Mom is back on the nest (with stink eye) and a handful of birdseed was tossed in the area so there's no danger of the adults leaving.