The Roar Of The Greasepaint...

Oh what lovely political theater.

Crowded rooms, critical votes and to top it off, a hallway scuffle which resulted in the detention of a state Senator.

Since no correspondent from the Drift was present, let's go to the screed masters in the local press to see if we can dope out what happened.

First the AJC:

Tensions flared when coalition members, led by state Sen. Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta), were barred from the small Grady board room before the meeting and were offered instead seats in the lobby with audio from the meeting. But Fort refused to give ground and was handcuffed by security for a short time. There was a scuffle between security guards and several public observers before the meeting was moved to a larger auditorium across the street.

And from Atlanta Progressive News:

Atlanta Police officers physically wrangled with State Sen. Vincent Fort (D-Atlanta), former Atlanta City Councilman Derrick Boazman, and two other activists, during a confrontation with protesters shortly before the 10-member Fulton-Dekalb Hospital Authority unanimously approved a resolution to privatize Grady Hospital.

They report, you can decide. But to provide a little context, APN is the outlet who described the ridiculous incident involving Andrew Meyer as "police at the University of Florida tackled, then Tasered -- or shocked with high-voltage electricity -- a journalism student last week, renewing a vigorous debate in the United States and abroad on police abuses of power and the struggle to preserve free speech." (emphasis added)

After the opening round of Commedia dell'arte, the Grady board got down to the serious meat of the performance. The members unanimously voted to move to a 501(3)c non-profit structure, but with a few conditions.

The new board would be appointed by the current board and would contain at least four current members. The new board would then appoint the subsequent board thus providing a transition phase. However, by leaving in place artifacts from the previous administration, the board has already received criticism of not really changing anything.

The board also demanded written guarantees of funding from both the business community and the state government. Naturally, the politicians, who fear promises in writing like moles fear daylight, cried blackmail.

So where does this leave us?

Despite the hue and cry, Grady continues to lurch incrementally towards both restructuring and state funding. Whether publicly stated or not, most agree both will happen. It's just a matter of everyone having their say in the final act.

In the flashbangs, smudge pots and fog machines, many may have missed the most critical soliloquy in yesterday's performance. Like a barker announcing to the audience the next act will start in 15, Pete Correll illuminated the real deal.

...the Grady board has taken a "courageous first step," he anticipates further negotiations between Grady and some of the parties".

In other words, we ain't done yet.