12 FEB 06: THE MAN WHO TALKED TOO MUCH

When the phone rings at 6:40 in the morning at home, it's a little bit alarming. Is there a family emergency? Have I lost track of time, and am late for work? Did a telemarketer in India miscalculate the time zones?

It turns out a phone call at 6:40 a.m. Friday was none of the above. A Columbus man wanted me to monitor a call he was about to make to the 911 center -- because he claimed someone there had threatened to kill him. This certainly would be the wrong way to make your "response per shift" quota.

The story really goes back to Thursday night, when the man says someone called him at home and threatened to kill his sister. He claims he called 911 and asked for a police officer to come investigate - but no one did. I suppose I should have asked if police went to the sister's house....

This man became so annoyed by the lack of police response that he called 911 back Thursday night to complain - and he says that's when the supervisor threatened to kill him. Yet police still didn't come out to his house, to actually do it?!

So the man called 911 again, first thing Friday morning. But this time he says it was a conference call, with someone from the Sheriff's Department listening to the conversation. I don't know how that turned out - but he didn't mention any Sheriff's deputies coming to his house, with arrest warrants.

This man apparently wanted another witness of how 911 personnel were treating him - so he called me away from breakfast to monitor another call. He asked if he wanted me to tell the operator I was listening. If only President Bush's wiretaps worked this way....

No, I told the man - I did NOT want 911 to know I was listening in. This way, I would only speak up if the supervisor made any threats. In journalism, this is called an undercover investigation. On MTV, this is called "Punk'd."

The 911 operator answered the phone, and the man reporting the death threat asked for a supervisor. Then followed a wait of about two minutes. Maybe the supervisor was on the phone with other complainers - since someone else with a conference call can make two death threats at a time.

At last the 911 supervisor came on the line, and the man asked for a police officer to come out about the death threat. "I have the caller ID number," the man said.

"Can you give me the number?" asked the supervisor.

"I'll give it to the officer when he gets here."

"But I can look it up while he's en route."

"Ma'am, I know who made the call." The man refused to provide the phone number over the phone -- as if making up for last night's bad service was more important than arresting a suspect.

The 911 supervisor was polite and patient, never threatening the man at all -- even after the man accused her of making her own threat against him the night before. "That was someone else last night," she insisted. But the man didn't believe it. If Bobby Peters would please bring out the 911 tapes, like he did a few years ago....

After a couple of contentious minutes, the man promised he'd call back later. Perhaps he has other bloggers on his speed dial, so he can pile up the witnesses....

I concluded the man calling 911 was more uncooperative than the 911 supervisor. He wouldn't provide information to help solve the telephoned death threat. And he was calling so often, he was becoming what's known as a "nuisance caller" - a bit like the spammers offering the same tip 20 times for a stock I've never heard of.

I've only needed to call 911 a couple of times from my home, during my years in Columbus. The staff seemed helpful to me - and as I recall, police DID come out each time. But that was back before all the talk of budget deficits, and cutting 150 jobs....

When I've needed to call 911, I've needed help - and I was prepared to accept whatever approach the operator took to get it. Calling to ask for help YOUR way is a bit like asking for gas money in a parking lot, and refusing to show you have a car. Regular blog readers know I understand that well....

Oh yes - I should add this man who called 911 about the death threat is the same man who called police last weekend for help, when his KFC chicken order was wrong [6 Feb]. Officers showed up then, when they probably weren't needed. Perhaps this man needs to review the story of "the boy who cried wolf."

YOUR ABSOLUTELY BEST LOCAL BLOG WINTER OLYMPIC COVERAGE: No one from Columbus competed in the Winter Olympics Saturday. But boy, that title makes me feel like I'm competing with the TV stations.

But seriously: NBC's depiction of speed skaters on a little track Saturday night reminded me that no local station carried the NASCAR Bud Shootout -- on TV or radio. How annoying....

BLOG UPDATE: Well, what do you know - the Georgia House member who's sponsoring bills for Coretta Scott King Day and Franklin D. Roosevelt Day is none other than Columbus's Calvin Smyre. I didn't think his district included Warm Springs, much less Atlanta.

Calvin Smyre told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution the push for a Ronald Reagan Day by Republicans "opened up a Pandora's box," and makes such days "insignificant because everybody wants one." Then there's a simple answer to that. Who told Rep. Smyre to introduce his bills in the first place?

State Senator George Hooks of Americus called the push for a Ronald Reagan Day "just stupid." He says the Georgia Legislature has more important things to discuss, such as being "first in high school dropouts." At least all those special days might turn around the history scores.

BLOG CORRECTION: The date being proposed for Coretta Scott King Day in Georgia is actually April 27, NOT the 26^th. But considering Martin Luther King Day usually is celebrated after the actual birthday, Calvin Smyre might consider an early celebration a good way to make up for that.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Speaking of corrections -- the resignation of Northside High School's football coach brought a response. It's not about where he's been, but where he's going:

Richard,

Please don't butcher my alma mater - It's McIntosh, not MacIntosh after the infamous creek Indian Chief William McIntosh - hence, the McIntosh Chiefs....

But, I've been guilty of a typo here and there myself. Happy Blogging!

Regards,

Hippity Hop!

Oh dear -- my apologies, Mr/Ms. Hop. But in these days of schools meeting performance standards, a high school might not mind having an extra A.

I lived in metro Atlanta for more than 12 years, and never realized McIntosh High in Peachtree City was named after a Creek Chief. I thought it was named for the developer of the McIntosh apple - and apples were mixed with peaches in some kind of fruit cocktail.

Having learned my lesson, let's see what we can learn from other events of the weekend:

+ A strong storm brought snow flurries to parts of east Alabama. Before your children ask: all schools are closed today - because it's Sunday.

+ Two Democrat state representatives held a forum in Columbus on high natural gas prices. The Democrats want natural gas regulated again in Georgia, arguing competition has made prices soar. So how do they explain the increases in Columbus - where it's either Atmos Energy or electric blankets?

(My latest Atmos Energy bill was a pleasant surprise - less than 50 dollars. If this is global warming, I may buy some cans of spray paint and keep it going.)

+ A ribbon was cut for the "grand opening" of a new McDonald's, near the Phenix City Wal-Mart. So? I picked up dinner there weeks ago. Is this restaurant not officially open until Ronald McDonald shows up?

+ On down Highway 280, your blog confirmed Cadillac Jack's nightclub no longer exists. It's now "Club Roc" with a "Latino night" every Friday -- and I guess you can show up in a car other than a Cadillac.

(The flyer I received for Club Roc calls it an "Atlanta-style club in the tri-city area." What's that supposed to mean? Are professional athletes going to drive down every week, looking for dates?)

+ Back up the highway, Auburn's City Council reached a settlement to release City Manager David Watkins. Given what he liked to post on the city web site, it's tempting to brag that I've outlasted another blogger.

(Did you see the comparisons of City Manager pay around the area? David Watkins in Auburn made $174,500 a year - nearly $70,000 more than Isaiah Hugley in Columbus, for a city with one-fourth the population. You almost get the feeling former Fire Chief Roy Waters moved to the wrong city.)

+ The Columbus State baseball team opened its home schedule by ambushing Anderson College 9-2. Playing baseball when it's about 45 degrees F. outside is as silly as..... well, as playing the World Series in that weather in late October.

+ Instant Message to First Baptist Church: OK, I'm stumped. That Sunday sermon title: "Do You Have One?" - are you going to be fundamentalist, and say I should NOT have one? Or are you going to be like some preachers on TV, and say I should have ten or 20 of them?

SCHEDULED MONDAY: Strange circles on Ninth Street....

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