Morning, y’all! Hello from the Online News Association Conference in Chicago. I made it here because the staff working the long security lines at Hartsfield-Jackson were on top of it Sunday. They essentially treated travelers like kindergarteners, and at 5 a.m. wandering disoriented through unfamiliar routines, that is exactly what we were. “EYES ON ME, EVERYONE.” “OK, WE’RE GOING TO FOLLOW THE PERSON IN FRONT OF YOU.” Gentle parenting, airport-style.
Let’s get to it.
SINCE WE’RE TALKING AIRPORTS
The security line situation could be tapering off. TSA wait times in Atlanta dwindled to almost nothing as Sunday went on, and TSA agents could be getting paid again soon.
- Last Friday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order mandating the Department of Homeland Security pay TSA agents immediately.
- Notice, I didn’t say the situation is suddenly over. Delays and waits at peak times may persist as staffing gets back up. Given that 500 TSA agents have reportedly quit over the last few weeks, that could take a while.
- The ICE situation is also open-ended. White House border chief Tom Homan said ICE agents deployed to assist with airport wait times will be there as long “as they need us.”
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EASIER, BREEZIER BREEZE CARDS
New, improved MARTA Breeze cards are now available, and they’re supposed to help with two of the transit agency’s biggest challenges: broken fare gates and outdated payment systems.
- The cards will work with new fare gates and fare boxes being installed across the system.
- MARTA has been installing the new equipment at train stations and updating its buses with the payment equipment for several months. It’s not all complete yet, so riders will have some, let’s say, hybrid experiences for a while.
- The new cards also have a critical payment change. Money on the card will now be saved in an account, rather than on the card. They’ve also added other payment options.
- Are the new Breeze cards ugly? Discuss.
🔎 READ MORE: More info about new Breeze cards
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
🪧 Crowds gathered in downtown Atlanta for a “No Kings” protest, one of thousands across the country this weekend. Attendees described their personal reasons for participating, from the Epstein files to the treatment of immigrants to rising medical costs.
🗳️ The Georgia House wants to postpone any legislative decisions about transitioning the state to paper ballots until after the midterm elections to prevent a rush and widespread confusion. The Senate voted and passed a paper ballot measure anyway, trying to get it across the line before the end of this year’s session.
OH, BATS!
Aw, bats are good little critters. Did you know it’s illegal to kill bats in Georgia? However, bats can carry rabies, and a majority of human rabies cases are from bat encounters.
That’s tough math when you have a bat infestation — a not-uncommon problem in Georgia. But all that extra work of closing off a building, safely relocating the colony, and sanitizing absolutely everything is worth it to save the bats, right?
Of course. The only alternative is killing hundreds of bats.
- St. Marys Elementary School in Camden County recently had to close its campus and relocate hundreds of students to a nearby college to deal with a bat infestation.
- The cleaning and de-battifying cost the school $2 million.
- Could it happen to you? Yes! Sorry to scare you. Here’s how to avoid an unwanted bat house party.
NEWS BITES
Taste test: The AJC chooses the best lemon pepper wings in Atlanta
But first, see which fine wing purveyors made the test list.
Braves win their first series, already have a walk-off grand slam in the books
Only two games into the season? That’s gotta be a record.
Nestlé says 413,793 KitKat bars stolen on European truck route
“Candy smuggling” is the only logical explanation here, and Nestlé says it’s the right one. (Also, what precise inventory on those bars.)
Buzzer sounds nonstop for 7 minutes, causing delay in March Madness game
If I were caught in that arena, it would be my villain origin story. I’d be broken in ways that could never be fixed.
ON THIS DATE
March 30, 1990
Final Four fever: Wanna bet? Not Gov. Harris. Gov. Joe Frank Harris remains true to his no-gambling stance. Today, the governors of North Carolina, Arkansas and Nevada made a friendly wager on the Final Four. The ante is food — deviled crab (Duke), barbecued ribs and chicken (Arkansas) and shark steaks (UNLV). From Georgia? Not a peanut.
Maybe the governor was simply ahead of his time, holding out for our lemon pepper wing taste test — only the best from Georgia.
ONE MORE THING
Seeing the word “breezier” written down reminds me of one of my most feared word pairings: brasserie and brassiere. Why are they so close? Whenever I think of one, I think of the other. Awkward.
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
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