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- Sunday, May 19, 2013 DAWSONVILLE, GA
Archive By Section - Opinion: Letters/Columns
Former coach talks football, family, history
I called Hall of Fame football coach Vince Dooley this week to get his perspective on UGA's heart-breaking loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship game. There are few people more qualified to comment than Vince Dooley. Let's start with the fact that he won 201 football games, six SEC championships and a national title during an illustrious career that stretched from 1964 to 1988.
More about that other hidden treasure
When I wrote a column about the Old Courthouse's decorations, including new lights around the square, one of the main purposes was to also tell about the hidden treasure inside that building. Obviously, my memory trail of the Historic Courthouse-Woman's Club relationships became so winding that it had to stop before it led to the Historical and Genealogical Society office.
A Dawson treasure hiding in plain sight
If you haven't been in downtown Dawsonville within the last week, you haven't seen the Historic Old Courthouse in its Christmas finery. When you do, be sure to notice the new (old-fashioned) lights around it. Members of the GFWC-Dawson County Woman's Club spent hours getting decorations ready and the Dawson County Public Works Department put them up.
Random thoughts on random subjects
Georgia Sen. Saxby Chambliss is catching heat from right-wingnuts for doing exactly what he should be doing - trying to help the federal government find a way out of the financial morass the country is in. The wingnuts want him to honor a 20-year-old no-tax pledge. The senator says he is not talking about tax increases, but tax reform and cites loopholes that need to be closed, like the current $6 billion annual tax credits ...
Property tax relief for seniors is a good old American principle
Getting meaningful ad valorem property tax relief for our senior citizens was a major promise I made to voters when I first ran for the Georgia House of Representatives in 2000. Eventually, I came to understand that ad valorem property taxes were the most hated taxes by Georgians. And, after 12 years of writing weekly columns in the local newspapers, I have written on this subject more than any other.
If you don’t secede, why try again?
In case you have been busy doing mundane stuff like eking out a living, you may have missed the news that there is a petition going around that would allow Georgia to secede from the union. As of this writing, there have been 24,579 signatures to the petition. The impetus for the secession drive is a White House Web site that encourages We the Unwashed to petition the Obama Administration to hear our concerns. (Insert joke here.)
Leave and let die
My father had some medical issues in the '60s that sent us to Corpus Christi, Texas. While he received his treatments at the Naval Hospital, I joined other young kids playing in a turquoise swimming pool at a nearby motel. We got to play for endless hours in the summer sun, swimming, splashing and just enjoying ourselves without a care in the world. It was an idyllic moment.
We are all to blame for decline
A recent study from the Pew Forum on Religion and Life reveals that for the first time in our history, fewer than half of American adults say they are Protestant (48 percent). This marks the first time in Pew Research Center surveys that the Protestant share of the population has dipped significantly below 50 percent. There are now more than 13 million self-described atheists and agnostics (nearly 6 percent of the U.S. public), as well ...
Yes, indeed, we should be
Thankful. Although we specifically focus on being grateful for our many blessings at Thanksgiving, neither the blessings nor our awareness of them are limited to this time. Veterans Day gave us opportunity to say "thank you" to our military protectors and to people like Pam Hamalainen whose planning brings such opportunities to the forefront.
Thankful for many things
During this season of thanksgiving, Ben and I reflect on many blessings we have had. Certainly one of the greatest of these is having shared the life of a devoted and loving husband and father, Charles Finley.
Thank you to the community
Thank you Dawsonville for displaying your patriotism during our Veterans Day Parade last Saturday. Your "Welcome Home" signs and "Thank you" signs meant more to our veterans and active military than you will ever know.
Ordinary routine can be a blessing
In case anyone missed this column for several weeks, it was because I spent a delightful two weeks at our family's beach house, and then it honestly took almost a week to sort out mail, e-mails, etc., and to catch up with bills and other responsibilities. If I were a 21st century business person instead of a "plugger," some of that could have been done online.
Junior talks election results
I have just received Junior E. Lee's analysis of the recent elections. Junior, as you know, is general manager of the Yarbrough Worldwide Media and Pest Control Company, located in Greater Garfield, Georgia, and a certified pest control professional. When not trying to get rid of termites in Arveen Ridley's barn, Junior manages one of the most highly respected polling organizations in the country, Round or Square Polls Inc. His motto is, "We will cook ...
You can accomplish much with no credit
It's time to look back on some of the more important pieces of legislation I've had an impact on over the last 12 years before my retirement as your House District 9 State Representative takes effect in January. This will be the first in a series of columns analyzing some of those pieces of legislation that I feel have had a positive impact on the lives of my constituents.
The truth and nothing but
The Russian Tu-154 bumped hard on the runway in a jolting announcement to all onboard that we had arrived in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. I worked my way through the customs and immigration lines wishing that the late-night processing would go quickly. A warm hotel bed awaited.
Articles by Section - Opinion: Letters/Columns
Knocking down the silos
I stood on an oil rig miles off the coast of Africa as the final pipe joints were pulled from a just completed well. The mood was somber because we had not found oil. The following week I sat in an uncomfortable meeting where our corporate vice president declared my efforts had resulted in the driest well in years. Back in my office overlooking the beautiful San Francisco hills I pondered what to do next with the project.
Skeeter not impressed with reform
When the phone rang, I knew who was on the other end: Skeeter Skates, owner of Skeeter's Tree Stump Removal and Plow Repair in Greater Metropolitan Pooler. I can't tell you exactly why but the phone always sounds more urgent when Skeeter calls. One thing about Skeeter Skates. He gets right to the point. Niceties aren't his style.
The final countdown
In January, the Georgia State Senate started the first term of the 152nd legislative session of the Georgia General Assembly with a challenging task list. We were asked to find a way to fill a large anticipated Medicaid shortfall, evaluate the ethical behavior of elected officials, do more with less in the state budget, revamp the state's juvenile justice system, clarify points from 2012's tax code overhaul and find ways to expand access to higher ...
Some more learnings to share
In my last column, I shared some observations about current happenings and promised some more. So here they are. As Christians observed Holy Week leading to Easter, one of the emphases has been on service and sacrifice.
Honoring District 51
One of the best parts about serving in the Georgia State Senate is the ability to honor groups and individuals in the Senate chamber. I am proud to represent District 51 at the State Capitol, and I am even more proud of the efforts that keep our district one of the best places to work and raise a family in Georgia. While the work we do in the Senate is great, it pales in comparison to the way each of you represents the pride and labors of our communities.
Some things I have been learning
It is IRS time and I've been putting together information to take to the CPS who has figured Taylor taxes for decades (one thing I have not completely learned). Surprisingly, I admit my gratitude that, even with a limited income, I usually must pay some extra dollars. That means that I have had money to live well enough and have something left. Fortunately, I don't have huge medical bills or credit interest payments and I ...
From the mountains to the ocean
It is a theological fact that God really likes Georgia. That is why He put mountains in north Georgia and the Golden Isles smack up against the Atlantic Ocean and added a bunch of lakes and parks and historical sites in between. Otherwise, we could have been Iran. Or Detroit. I stopped by last week to visit the man who is entrusted with these assets, Commissioner of the Department of Natural Resources Mark Williams, to ...
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