I’m hoping that we will see many smiles this Christmas season. Though the economy is not recovering as soon as we had hoped, it appears to be slowly improving. Many continue to believe the country is going in the wrong political direction, as indicated in our recent mid-term elections. For the first time in my memory we have less than our parents had in a monetary sense.
Let’s turn our attention to why we should be smiling. It may be because of the economy. We’ve learned to do more with less during the past two years, and maybe that’s a good thing.
I was thinking just yesterday of my growing up time. We didn’t have computer games, and if you can believe it, we didn’t even have a TV set for much of my youth. But we did have radio—and I listened to it a lot on Sunday afternoons. Good serial shows like “The Shadow” and the “Lone Ranger”. Yes it took a little imagination—but we could imagine being “20,000 Leagues” under the sea or way out in space at Mars with “Flash Gordon”. Don’t be surprised if your children or grandchildren ask about these programs and names. They well may not know of them. My parents didn’t make much money in my early years (and they were frugal savers who lived through the Great Depression of the 20’s and 30’s). But there were lots of conversations, reading, imagining—and lots of smiles. So maybe our smiles are because we have more time with our families right now.
Just think of Christmas Dinner and smile. Perhaps we are smiling because we are sure that our family get-together will be well attended this year.
Perhaps it’s just because of the season. Thinking about the aromas of the kitchen during Christmas, brings a smile to my face. What could be better than three holidays, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year, within just a little more than a month.
Of course, the anticipation of little children looking for a visit that brings them a gift will bring smiles to their faces. And those little smiles should put a great big smile on our faces as well.
I’ve often thought about the Biblical story of the birth of Christ. Most of us have heard the story from childhood, but it still affects me. I think about the shepherds looking after their sheep up in the hills near Bethlehem. Think about that dark night—no electric street lights in Bethlehem. Maybe there was a gentle glow off in the distance. Remember there were many people in Bethlehem on that night because of the census procedure.
Shepherds settled down with their flocks were startled and scared when an angelic messenger appeared to announce God’s gift to people. Can you imagine the brilliance of that moment? Light like no living man or woman had ever seen. Scared them out of their minds almost. God’s announcement came to men who were consider ritually unclean by religious people of Bethlehem because of their job. Why them and why an angelic announcement? I leave that thought to your understanding.
Tuesday, December 7, 2010
Monday, December 6, 2010
Support Charlotte Nash for Chairman
I wanted to recommend Charlotte Nash as our next Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners Chairperson. I've known and worked with Charlotte for many years. I cannot think of another person who is better qualified to lead Gwinnett County in this horrific economic time. Her financial experience and sense of ethics is what we need in Gwinnett County at this time.
Please support and vote for Charlotte Nash during the Special Election on March 15, 2011.
Please support and vote for Charlotte Nash during the Special Election on March 15, 2011.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
A Valuable Resource - Hudgens Center for the Arts
Submitted by Hudgens Center for the Arts
November 30th brings the exciting culmination of a nearly two year long process to choose a winner for the $50,000 Hudgens Prize visual arts competition. The competition was announced by the Hudgens Center for the Arts last January, causing quite a stir in the state, as this is one of the biggest cash art awards in the nation, and open only to Georgia artists.
Artists around the state quietly got busy, choosing and creating works in a very wide range of media, from drawings and paintings, to sculpture, installations and photography. Three hundred and sixty-nine different artists entered over 2,000 individual works of art. The jury truly had their work cut out for them!
The jury is made up of three well-known figures from the national and international art world, including David Kiehl (Curator of Prints at The Whitney Museum of American Art); Sylvie Fortin (Editor in Chief of ART PAPERS Magazine); and Eungie Joo (Keith Haring Director and Curator of Education and Public Programs at The New Museum). The Hudgens Center was very fortunate to be able to put together a jury of such standing, and it was an added benefit to all entering artists that their work was seen by these three individuals.
The Hudgens Center itself has been a hive of related activity for well over 18 months, since it was first chosen by an anonymous foundation to be the facilitators of the competition. Employees and board members have been working hard behind the scenes, forming a Prize Committee, planning the competition, inviting jurors, publicizing the competition through a coordinated media blitz and live press announcement, accepting and carefully logging in each entry, uploading each electronic image for the jury to view as anonymous entries, meeting with the jury to facilitate their deliberations, and then announcing the five Finalists in another statewide media blitz.
The committee and staff are currently deep in preparations for the Finalists' Exhibition and for the announcement of the prize winner, to be made on November 30, and it won't end there: the prize winner will also be offered the opportunity for a solo exhibit at The Hudgens, to take place in December of 2011.
The five finalists, Ruth Dusseault of Atlanta; Hope Hilton of Winterville; Gyun Hur, Scott Ingram and Jiha Moon of Atlanta, are currently completing and choosing works to be displayed in the Finalists Exhibit, from which the prize winner will be decided. The jurors will again gather, this time to preview the Finalists' Exhibit and see the artworks in person, and the announcement will be made during theOpening Reception on November 30th, in a special Award Celebration. The Reception is an invitation-only event.
The Finalists Exhibit will be open to the public from December 1 until February 19, 2011, and will include a looping video slideshow of works by all of the artists who entered the competition. Be sure to come see the fascinating works by the Hudgens Prize finalists, and pick out your own favorite artist or artists.
In addition, as a special gesture of thanks to the community for its support, the Hudgens is temporarily waiving the normal admission fee to the Exhibit. Admission is free during the month of December.
About The Hudgens
The Hudgens Center for the Arts is a non-profit organization that has been focused on supporting the arts in Georgia since its establishment in 1981. The Hudgens presents fine art exhibits year round, and offers art classes for adults and children through its Fine Arts School. The Hudgens supports local community-based arts organizations through its programs, exhibits and partnerships. The Hudgens' mission is to bring art lovers, leaders and learners together through quality programs and exhibits.
The Hudgens Center for the Arts is located at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Bldg. 300, in Duluth, in the Gwinnett Center complex. For more information about art exhibits, events and classes at the Hudgens, please visit the website at www.thehudgens.org or call 770-623-6002.
November 30th brings the exciting culmination of a nearly two year long process to choose a winner for the $50,000 Hudgens Prize visual arts competition. The competition was announced by the Hudgens Center for the Arts last January, causing quite a stir in the state, as this is one of the biggest cash art awards in the nation, and open only to Georgia artists.
Artists around the state quietly got busy, choosing and creating works in a very wide range of media, from drawings and paintings, to sculpture, installations and photography. Three hundred and sixty-nine different artists entered over 2,000 individual works of art. The jury truly had their work cut out for them!
The jury is made up of three well-known figures from the national and international art world, including David Kiehl (Curator of Prints at The Whitney Museum of American Art); Sylvie Fortin (Editor in Chief of ART PAPERS Magazine); and Eungie Joo (Keith Haring Director and Curator of Education and Public Programs at The New Museum). The Hudgens Center was very fortunate to be able to put together a jury of such standing, and it was an added benefit to all entering artists that their work was seen by these three individuals.
The Hudgens Center itself has been a hive of related activity for well over 18 months, since it was first chosen by an anonymous foundation to be the facilitators of the competition. Employees and board members have been working hard behind the scenes, forming a Prize Committee, planning the competition, inviting jurors, publicizing the competition through a coordinated media blitz and live press announcement, accepting and carefully logging in each entry, uploading each electronic image for the jury to view as anonymous entries, meeting with the jury to facilitate their deliberations, and then announcing the five Finalists in another statewide media blitz.
The committee and staff are currently deep in preparations for the Finalists' Exhibition and for the announcement of the prize winner, to be made on November 30, and it won't end there: the prize winner will also be offered the opportunity for a solo exhibit at The Hudgens, to take place in December of 2011.
The five finalists, Ruth Dusseault of Atlanta; Hope Hilton of Winterville; Gyun Hur, Scott Ingram and Jiha Moon of Atlanta, are currently completing and choosing works to be displayed in the Finalists Exhibit, from which the prize winner will be decided. The jurors will again gather, this time to preview the Finalists' Exhibit and see the artworks in person, and the announcement will be made during theOpening Reception on November 30th, in a special Award Celebration. The Reception is an invitation-only event.
The Finalists Exhibit will be open to the public from December 1 until February 19, 2011, and will include a looping video slideshow of works by all of the artists who entered the competition. Be sure to come see the fascinating works by the Hudgens Prize finalists, and pick out your own favorite artist or artists.
In addition, as a special gesture of thanks to the community for its support, the Hudgens is temporarily waiving the normal admission fee to the Exhibit. Admission is free during the month of December.
About The Hudgens
The Hudgens Center for the Arts is a non-profit organization that has been focused on supporting the arts in Georgia since its establishment in 1981. The Hudgens presents fine art exhibits year round, and offers art classes for adults and children through its Fine Arts School. The Hudgens supports local community-based arts organizations through its programs, exhibits and partnerships. The Hudgens' mission is to bring art lovers, leaders and learners together through quality programs and exhibits.
The Hudgens Center for the Arts is located at 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway, Bldg. 300, in Duluth, in the Gwinnett Center complex. For more information about art exhibits, events and classes at the Hudgens, please visit the website at www.thehudgens.org or call 770-623-6002.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Our Troubling Time
Halloween is coming and as the witches in Shakespeare’s play say—“Double, Double Toil and trouble” and troubles are evident in politics nationally, at the state level and certainly at the county level. Mud slinging in the Georgia governor’s race seems especially vicious this year. Unfortunately, this isn’t confined just to Georgia. Whether you consider the electorate justified in its apparent anger, I often wonder if that justifies the antics of candidates
As I write this we are about a week out from the November 2, 2010 General Election Day. I hope you to found candidates you could support and voted for them. Elections most certainly have consequences.
Gwinnett County has been rocked by public unrest about many of the Board of Commissioners’ decisions. Most of the unrest seems to center around the “mystery” of decisions made with limited or no public input. Then there is the resignation and the indictment of board members. Take that with the election of two new members to the Board of Commissions, and I think the public has reason to be wary—and angry and double troubled.
Job ONE of the Board of Commissioners is to win back the confidence of Gwinnettians. They must make board decisions open and accept public input about those decisions. Now don’t take this wrong, but sometimes the public is off-base and wrong too. Then the Commissioners must make the case that their decisions are based in fact and not just opinion.
The person who wins the race for the unexpired term of the chairman must be ready for critical observation in season and out. That person should have thick skin and be prepared for oblivion at the end of the term.
To win tax-payer confidence and to provide transparent government, this leader must opt to set aside some of the past practices adopted by the Board of Commissioners. The chairman, when elected and seated, should suspend the practice of “consent agendas” and bring all decisions to the full board for discussion and open vote. The chairman should suspend, even the idea, of “district courtesy”. District courtesy is the practice of voting "AYE" and with the district commissioner on every item the district commissioner wants passed or "NAY" if the person wants it killed. This practice in effect disenfranchises three quarters of the public. It leads to decision-making by one person rather than the whole board.
The election cycle will soon be over, and we will have some idea of how our country, state and county will be affected and fences nationwide will begin to mend. Those who are serious about running for chairman will be on the campaign trail shortly for the Chairman post.
If there can be an upside to this troubling time, it is in the fact that the general public will be better served by its Board of Commissioners in the future.
As I write this we are about a week out from the November 2, 2010 General Election Day. I hope you to found candidates you could support and voted for them. Elections most certainly have consequences.
Gwinnett County has been rocked by public unrest about many of the Board of Commissioners’ decisions. Most of the unrest seems to center around the “mystery” of decisions made with limited or no public input. Then there is the resignation and the indictment of board members. Take that with the election of two new members to the Board of Commissions, and I think the public has reason to be wary—and angry and double troubled.
Job ONE of the Board of Commissioners is to win back the confidence of Gwinnettians. They must make board decisions open and accept public input about those decisions. Now don’t take this wrong, but sometimes the public is off-base and wrong too. Then the Commissioners must make the case that their decisions are based in fact and not just opinion.
The person who wins the race for the unexpired term of the chairman must be ready for critical observation in season and out. That person should have thick skin and be prepared for oblivion at the end of the term.
To win tax-payer confidence and to provide transparent government, this leader must opt to set aside some of the past practices adopted by the Board of Commissioners. The chairman, when elected and seated, should suspend the practice of “consent agendas” and bring all decisions to the full board for discussion and open vote. The chairman should suspend, even the idea, of “district courtesy”. District courtesy is the practice of voting "AYE" and with the district commissioner on every item the district commissioner wants passed or "NAY" if the person wants it killed. This practice in effect disenfranchises three quarters of the public. It leads to decision-making by one person rather than the whole board.
The election cycle will soon be over, and we will have some idea of how our country, state and county will be affected and fences nationwide will begin to mend. Those who are serious about running for chairman will be on the campaign trail shortly for the Chairman post.
If there can be an upside to this troubling time, it is in the fact that the general public will be better served by its Board of Commissioners in the future.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Hope you voted in the Run-Off Election
The primary elections are over and run-off elections are imminent. I hope you were one of the about 20% who voted in the primary, and I encourage you to find someone you can support in the run-off election. The go to the polls and VOTE! A twenty per cent turnout isn’t something to brag about.
I’ve heard more than just about any other election in my memory, and still we only get 20% of the registered voters to vote. Wow! By the time you read this we may have settled who will be our state leaders, our congressional representative, and our county commissioners. Let complaining be proportional to your vote. By the way, I noticed that Judge Fuller threw out the recall petition against Chairman Bannister. No election there.
Economic development in the Dacula area seems to be strengthening in some segments of the economy while getting progressively weaker in others. Foreclosures of residential properties continue, but some new housing stocks are being built. Commercial foreclosures loom, but entrepreneurs continue to begin and strengthen new business in our area. In this economic downturn, I wish them well.
By the time you read this, the suit by Gwinnett County against her Cities may well be complete. We go to judicial trial beginning August 2, 2010. As you may be aware, the intergovernmental agreements among Gwinnett County and Gwinnett Cities expired about 3 years ago. Rather than negotiating in good faith and creating the agreements required under Georgia’s Service Delivery Strategy Act, the Board of Commissioners sued each City and is attempting to rely on laws passed prior to the SDS Act to maintain funding sources for providing services within Gwinnett County.
If you have been following this judicial opera, you will remember that Judge Barrett ruled early on that without the required agreement, the SDS Act provided the default funding mechanisms for delivering services. Gwinnett County attempted to counter the ruling by appealing to the Georgia Supreme Court which refused to hear the appeal.
At the heart of the case is the manner and nature of funding local governmental services covered by the SDS Act. The SDS Act is a piece of tax reform legislation designed to help eliminate double taxation and to provide tax equity among unincorporated and incorporated taxpayers within the same county. Gwinnett County and all the Cities are spending your money to see if the law is really the law, and if the law is really the law who must abide by it.
Such is the joy of living in a constitutional republic. Remember all this when it’s time to vote again. Maybe you’ll be one of the 20 per cent who will.
I’ve heard more than just about any other election in my memory, and still we only get 20% of the registered voters to vote. Wow! By the time you read this we may have settled who will be our state leaders, our congressional representative, and our county commissioners. Let complaining be proportional to your vote. By the way, I noticed that Judge Fuller threw out the recall petition against Chairman Bannister. No election there.
Economic development in the Dacula area seems to be strengthening in some segments of the economy while getting progressively weaker in others. Foreclosures of residential properties continue, but some new housing stocks are being built. Commercial foreclosures loom, but entrepreneurs continue to begin and strengthen new business in our area. In this economic downturn, I wish them well.
By the time you read this, the suit by Gwinnett County against her Cities may well be complete. We go to judicial trial beginning August 2, 2010. As you may be aware, the intergovernmental agreements among Gwinnett County and Gwinnett Cities expired about 3 years ago. Rather than negotiating in good faith and creating the agreements required under Georgia’s Service Delivery Strategy Act, the Board of Commissioners sued each City and is attempting to rely on laws passed prior to the SDS Act to maintain funding sources for providing services within Gwinnett County.
If you have been following this judicial opera, you will remember that Judge Barrett ruled early on that without the required agreement, the SDS Act provided the default funding mechanisms for delivering services. Gwinnett County attempted to counter the ruling by appealing to the Georgia Supreme Court which refused to hear the appeal.
At the heart of the case is the manner and nature of funding local governmental services covered by the SDS Act. The SDS Act is a piece of tax reform legislation designed to help eliminate double taxation and to provide tax equity among unincorporated and incorporated taxpayers within the same county. Gwinnett County and all the Cities are spending your money to see if the law is really the law, and if the law is really the law who must abide by it.
Such is the joy of living in a constitutional republic. Remember all this when it’s time to vote again. Maybe you’ll be one of the 20 per cent who will.
Monday, July 12, 2010
Please Take Time to Vote
The Georgia Primary is July 20th. Early voting at satellite polling places is underway. Please take the time to find candidates that mirror your desires and then take the time to vote in the primary.
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
The Supreme Law of the Land
The supreme law of the land is the Constitution of the United States, along with federal laws made under constitutional authority, and treaties of the United States.
Why then do we have five Supreme Court justices who cannot read the supreme law of the land, "...the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed." and decide that gun control laws are unconstitutional, void and unenforceable? Obviously, because these Supreme Court justices, who should be the brightest and best, have their own agenda, and it ain't the agenda of the people.
Just another reason not to appoint lawyers to the Supreme Court. What we need is not liberal, northeastern university ivy-league lawyers or ex-judges, but we need people at the supreme who have common sense and understand it is their job to determine the CONSTITUTIONALITY of laws and not to make law.
I'm all for a constitutional amendment that limits the terms of Chief Justice and Supreme Court justices to not longer than 10 years or when they reach the age of 79.
Why then do we have five Supreme Court justices who cannot read the supreme law of the land, "...the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed." and decide that gun control laws are unconstitutional, void and unenforceable? Obviously, because these Supreme Court justices, who should be the brightest and best, have their own agenda, and it ain't the agenda of the people.
Just another reason not to appoint lawyers to the Supreme Court. What we need is not liberal, northeastern university ivy-league lawyers or ex-judges, but we need people at the supreme who have common sense and understand it is their job to determine the CONSTITUTIONALITY of laws and not to make law.
I'm all for a constitutional amendment that limits the terms of Chief Justice and Supreme Court justices to not longer than 10 years or when they reach the age of 79.
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Who reads Dacula: On Track
I've attached a web link to a very short survey in this blog. Please take about 10 seconds to open the survey and respond.
Click here to take survey
Click here to take survey
Monday, June 14, 2010
US Rep. Bob Etheridge (D) Dist 2, NC goes wild
Check out US Representative Bob Etheridge manhandling a student. Just what we need in Washington, another dummy who should be in jail for assault--but is making laws that he will not repect nor obey. Check it out on the web.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Father's Day, Mentors, Change in Dacula
First let me thank all the folks who made Memorial Day 2010 special in Dacula. Thanks to the sponsors of the beauty pageant, the 5K, the parade, and the festival. Special thanks go to the Gwinnett County PD for their assistance, and for each of you who attended. I hope you were as amazed at the outpouring of feelings for our young men and women who gave their lives for the Nation. Thanks parents for bringing your children to the Memorial Day celebration. They need to know that freedom is not free; it is bought with a price--sometimes an ultimate price.
As I was thinking about Dacula, I wondered at the way thing have changed---and yet they stay the same. The street layout of Dacula hasn’t changed much. Sure there are more houses and businesses, but if you visited after an absence of say fifty years, I bet you would know about where you were on any of our major routes. The historic downtown area hasn’t changed much. Yes the depot is gone, some buildings have been renovated and other spruced up, but essentially it is the same as when the buildings were built. If you were on your 50th anniversary visit, you would recognize downtown because it has been resistant to change because it is cramped between the railroad, schools and residential areas.
When I was growing up here during the late 1940’s and early 50’s, one of my favorite things was visiting the local barber shops. Back then there were only two in Dacula and both were in the historic downtown area. The proprietors were George Lee Tanner and Will Walls. Tanner’s barber shop was a men-only shop, but Mrs. Walls also provided care for the ladies in the Walls’ shop. Now we have about six barber shops or hair salons, one of which is located downtown in the old Tanner’s spot.
When I was a youngster, my grandfather went to the barber shop every other day to get a shave. I suppose it was easier than soaping up, stropping your straight razor, and trying to keep from nicking yourself. I learned a political lesson early on—Granddaddy always alternated between shops.
I enjoyed the preparation for his shave. First came a hot damp towel wrapped around his face. Then Mr. Tanner or Mr. Walls would strop the straight razor on a long leather strap (I might mention that my father had such a razor strap—but he had quit using it for its designed purpose—though he had another use for it.). Then came the lather and the careful use of the razor. Finishing off was with some kind of after shave preparation—maybe witch hazel, as I recall. All this service for a single quarter dollar. Wow!
Now we’ve gotten away from using straight razors for shaving. I shave every day, but I use a safety razor and only go to a barber shop for a hair cut. We also have gotten away from the barber shop as community central for men. I think women’s hair salons are better at that, from my experience in carrying and waiting for my mom to get her hair done.
As I waited for my grandfather, there wasn’t a TV set playing. There were no magazines or newspapers (except maybe once per week). But there were people from the community. They were sharing farming news, politics and other things. Yes, let’s face it there was also lots of gossip. Don’t believe that men don’t gossip. They do or at least they did at the barber shop. A young lad could learn a lot from the men at the barber shop.
Now, we go to the barber shop. Sometimes they are called salons, and “GASP” some of the barbers are ladies! The sad part is that sometimes we don’t know anyone else but the barber. The TV is playing, or you can lose yourself in a magazine. There isn’t much interaction among the customers. A young lad today may not learn anything at the barber shop. Sad!
I think I remember paying thirty-five cents for the first hair cut that I paid for myself. The last hair cut I have paid for was $15. That’s a big change.
Still things change, and they stay the same. Put down you magazine and join in a conversation with you neighbor. You never know what a young lad may hear and learn about being a man. Be a role model. That’s what my grandfather, Mr. Tanner, and Mr. Walls were.
As I was thinking about Dacula, I wondered at the way thing have changed---and yet they stay the same. The street layout of Dacula hasn’t changed much. Sure there are more houses and businesses, but if you visited after an absence of say fifty years, I bet you would know about where you were on any of our major routes. The historic downtown area hasn’t changed much. Yes the depot is gone, some buildings have been renovated and other spruced up, but essentially it is the same as when the buildings were built. If you were on your 50th anniversary visit, you would recognize downtown because it has been resistant to change because it is cramped between the railroad, schools and residential areas.
When I was growing up here during the late 1940’s and early 50’s, one of my favorite things was visiting the local barber shops. Back then there were only two in Dacula and both were in the historic downtown area. The proprietors were George Lee Tanner and Will Walls. Tanner’s barber shop was a men-only shop, but Mrs. Walls also provided care for the ladies in the Walls’ shop. Now we have about six barber shops or hair salons, one of which is located downtown in the old Tanner’s spot.
When I was a youngster, my grandfather went to the barber shop every other day to get a shave. I suppose it was easier than soaping up, stropping your straight razor, and trying to keep from nicking yourself. I learned a political lesson early on—Granddaddy always alternated between shops.
I enjoyed the preparation for his shave. First came a hot damp towel wrapped around his face. Then Mr. Tanner or Mr. Walls would strop the straight razor on a long leather strap (I might mention that my father had such a razor strap—but he had quit using it for its designed purpose—though he had another use for it.). Then came the lather and the careful use of the razor. Finishing off was with some kind of after shave preparation—maybe witch hazel, as I recall. All this service for a single quarter dollar. Wow!
Now we’ve gotten away from using straight razors for shaving. I shave every day, but I use a safety razor and only go to a barber shop for a hair cut. We also have gotten away from the barber shop as community central for men. I think women’s hair salons are better at that, from my experience in carrying and waiting for my mom to get her hair done.
As I waited for my grandfather, there wasn’t a TV set playing. There were no magazines or newspapers (except maybe once per week). But there were people from the community. They were sharing farming news, politics and other things. Yes, let’s face it there was also lots of gossip. Don’t believe that men don’t gossip. They do or at least they did at the barber shop. A young lad could learn a lot from the men at the barber shop.
Now, we go to the barber shop. Sometimes they are called salons, and “GASP” some of the barbers are ladies! The sad part is that sometimes we don’t know anyone else but the barber. The TV is playing, or you can lose yourself in a magazine. There isn’t much interaction among the customers. A young lad today may not learn anything at the barber shop. Sad!
I think I remember paying thirty-five cents for the first hair cut that I paid for myself. The last hair cut I have paid for was $15. That’s a big change.
Still things change, and they stay the same. Put down you magazine and join in a conversation with you neighbor. You never know what a young lad may hear and learn about being a man. Be a role model. That’s what my grandfather, Mr. Tanner, and Mr. Walls were.
Wednesday, May 5, 2010
Dacula Memorial Day Celebration, May 31, 2010
December 7, 1941, some sixty-nine years ago, the United States was attacked at Pearl Harbor bringing our nation into the Second World War. Dacula citizens answered the call to military service once again, and for four cruel years Dacula and Gwinnett County men and women carried out their military duties as Americans have when called upon. I often wonder at the bravery of these 17-18 year old men and women fresh from the farms and families here in Dacula. There have been minor and major wars since 1941 but none that has affected our community like WWII.
As that “greatest generation” slips away, we need to RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER their service and sacrifice and those of the families they represent.
I invite you to join us here in Dacula as we celebrate the life, service and sacrifice these men and women gave for us. Join us for the 17th Annual Memorial Day celebration.
This year’s celebration theme is RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER. We will begin our day here in Dacula with a 1-mile Fun Run at 8:00AM closely followed by the 5-K Run at 8:30 AM. The Memorial Day Parade will begin at 10:00 AM. Our Dacula Festival will also start around 10 AM. Prior to Memorial Day, a Miss Memorial Day Pageant will be held on April 24, 2010. You can find information and entry instructions at the web site for our Memorial Day activities, WWW.DACULAMEMORIALDAY.COM.
For the first time there will be awards for Best Marching Band, Most Original Theme Float, and Most Patriotic Float. As you can imagine there are deadlines for each event. Please refer to the web site for addition information, entry information and entry forms. Please register early, Dacula Memorial Day events are large.
We expect to have fun at the celebration, but we want to also show respect for our veterans. I encourage you to come, join with us and celebrate. Show you patriotism in ways that are respectful to our currently serving military personnel and our veterans.
As we join together as a small town, let’s remember that traffic will be bad—so be careful, come early, stay late and rejoice that we have the opportunity to remember. Have a wonderful Memorial Day.
RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER
As that “greatest generation” slips away, we need to RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER their service and sacrifice and those of the families they represent.
I invite you to join us here in Dacula as we celebrate the life, service and sacrifice these men and women gave for us. Join us for the 17th Annual Memorial Day celebration.
This year’s celebration theme is RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER. We will begin our day here in Dacula with a 1-mile Fun Run at 8:00AM closely followed by the 5-K Run at 8:30 AM. The Memorial Day Parade will begin at 10:00 AM. Our Dacula Festival will also start around 10 AM. Prior to Memorial Day, a Miss Memorial Day Pageant will be held on April 24, 2010. You can find information and entry instructions at the web site for our Memorial Day activities, WWW.DACULAMEMORIALDAY.COM.
For the first time there will be awards for Best Marching Band, Most Original Theme Float, and Most Patriotic Float. As you can imagine there are deadlines for each event. Please refer to the web site for addition information, entry information and entry forms. Please register early, Dacula Memorial Day events are large.
We expect to have fun at the celebration, but we want to also show respect for our veterans. I encourage you to come, join with us and celebrate. Show you patriotism in ways that are respectful to our currently serving military personnel and our veterans.
As we join together as a small town, let’s remember that traffic will be bad—so be careful, come early, stay late and rejoice that we have the opportunity to remember. Have a wonderful Memorial Day.
RESPECT, HONOR, REMEMBER
Monday, March 29, 2010
Have You Been Counted?
Have you received you Census2010 package?
The goal of Census2010 is to have each person residing in the United States counted by April 1, 2010. If you haven't received your package by mail yet, you may need to stop by City Hall and pick up a package.
I didn't received my package (guess that may have to do with the fact that you are counted at your physical address and I get my mail at a post office box), so I picked up one, filled it out today and mailed it. The questions are really simple and not very intrusive as I remember the 1990 questions to be.
If you have questions, please call 1-866-872-6868, 8:00AM to 9:00PM daily for more information.
The goal of Census2010 is to have each person residing in the United States counted by April 1, 2010. If you haven't received your package by mail yet, you may need to stop by City Hall and pick up a package.
I didn't received my package (guess that may have to do with the fact that you are counted at your physical address and I get my mail at a post office box), so I picked up one, filled it out today and mailed it. The questions are really simple and not very intrusive as I remember the 1990 questions to be.
If you have questions, please call 1-866-872-6868, 8:00AM to 9:00PM daily for more information.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
As we get closer to SDS Litigation
As we get closer to the bench trial on Service Delivery between Gwinnett County and the Cities of Gwinnett, I thought it might be helpful to revisit Mr. Goodman's opinion piece from the December 17, 2006 AJC.
How Gwinnett handles its cities will affect its future
By Dick Goodman
For the Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/17/06
Like the ghost of Christmas future, today in South Florida stand two alternative
ghosts of Gwinnett County future.
Each is starkly different, and which one foretells the future of Gwinnett will
be determined by the choices made by voters and Gwinnett County commissioners.
According to the October draft of the Joint County-Cities Community Assessment
Summary Report, the proportion of Gwinnett's population living in its cities was
only 15 percent in 2000. As the county's population grows over the next two
decades, it's expected to decline to 14 percent. Not a good omen.
If this continues, the future Gwinnett may mirror Florida's present-day
Miami-Dade County. Despite the glamorous images seen on TV, this is not good
news.
If we want Gwinnett to be a thriving, desirable community, the county should
encourage the creation of new cities within its borders and the annexation of
unincorporated areas by existing cities. Present-day Miami-Dade County stands as
a cautionary tale for why.
A half century ago, nearly every one of the 250,000 residents of Dade County
lived in one of two dozen cities —- Miami, Miami Beach, Hialeah, Coral Gables
and others.
As the population grew, a few pioneers settled in the county's unincorporated
areas. As more joined them, a centralized county government was established to
manage the surge of new residents. The expectation was that new cities would
form, or existing cities would annex the newly settled areas.
As the population swelled over the next five decades to 2.3 million, instead of
the cities growing, the centralized county government grew and grew. Today, for
more than half the population of what is now Miami-Dade County, their closest
government is a bureaucratic behemoth that administers an area larger than the
state of Delaware.
The result is unresponsive and distant government. Commission hearings are
daylong affairs that for the average citizen require a time commitment few can
afford and are as impenetrable as they are Kafkaesque. The 13 county
commissioners, elected in single member districts, trade votes with their fellow
commissioners to approve projects in neighborhoods about which they know little
and for which they care little. Each chairs a powerful committee controlling
millions of dollars of county money. Consequently, the county office tower is a
nest of lobbyists that makes the U.S. Congress look like a kindergarten. For
individual citizens to be heard requires stamina and resolve few possess.
For 28 years I lived in Miami-Dade and witnessed the decline of neighborhoods
because of governmental indifference or ineptitude. To create parking,
homeowners stripped once-beautiful suburban streets of their trees and lawns.
Attached garages became extra rooms or illegal apartments. And, despite an
ordinance that made it a crime to remove a shopping cart from a store, carts
littered every neighborhood. All this happened under the watchful eye of a code
enforcement system that behaved like Sgt. Schultz in the old "Hogan's Heroes" TV
show, "I see nothing. . . . I see nothing."
County government thwarted attempts by communities to incorporate by
gerrymandering tax-revenue-rich industrial centers or shopping malls out of
proposed new cities and by imposing new fees to compensate the county for "lost"
tax revenue.
This was not an inevitable consequence of population growth. It resulted from
decades of inbred greed and a lust for political power. Just across the county's
northern border a different story had unfolded.
Broward County, home to Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood and 30 other cities,
experienced the same growth but addressed it quite differently.
The population of Broward is 1.6 million, but only 23,000, barely 1.4 percent,
live in unincorporated areas.
In Broward, residents have access to government that is close to them and
responsive. City commissioners are their neighbors. Cities compete to be the
most livable and attractive. The county government's activities are limited to
those beyond the budgets of individual cities, or those it can provide more
efficiently —- not that will yield the greatest power or payoff.
By 2006, I'd had enough of the decay I saw in Miami and left. I came to
Gwinnett, specifically to the city of Suwanee. I vowed never again to live where
government could become distant and unresponsive.
As a Suwanee City Council member explained, "We listen to our constituents. They
know where we live." It was meant literally. And it mattered.
Unless Gwinnett changes direction, it risks becoming more like Florida's stolid
and praetorian Miami-Dade County than responsive and enlightened Broward County.
For residents of unincorporated Gwinnett that's not good news. The county is
already struggling to deal with neighborhoods adrift and in decline.
If we want Gwinnett to be a desirable place to call home, with communities that
compete to attract residents with quality services and attractive neighborhoods,
the county should follow the model of Broward, not Miami-Dade. It should commit
to encouraging the creation of new cities and set as a goal that every Gwinnett
resident live in an incorporated city.
> Dick Goodman is a freelance marketing and business communications copywriter
who lives in Suwanee. He lived in Miami-Dade County for 28 years.
How Gwinnett handles its cities will affect its future
By Dick Goodman
For the Journal-Constitution
Published on: 12/17/06
Like the ghost of Christmas future, today in South Florida stand two alternative
ghosts of Gwinnett County future.
Each is starkly different, and which one foretells the future of Gwinnett will
be determined by the choices made by voters and Gwinnett County commissioners.
According to the October draft of the Joint County-Cities Community Assessment
Summary Report, the proportion of Gwinnett's population living in its cities was
only 15 percent in 2000. As the county's population grows over the next two
decades, it's expected to decline to 14 percent. Not a good omen.
If this continues, the future Gwinnett may mirror Florida's present-day
Miami-Dade County. Despite the glamorous images seen on TV, this is not good
news.
If we want Gwinnett to be a thriving, desirable community, the county should
encourage the creation of new cities within its borders and the annexation of
unincorporated areas by existing cities. Present-day Miami-Dade County stands as
a cautionary tale for why.
A half century ago, nearly every one of the 250,000 residents of Dade County
lived in one of two dozen cities —- Miami, Miami Beach, Hialeah, Coral Gables
and others.
As the population grew, a few pioneers settled in the county's unincorporated
areas. As more joined them, a centralized county government was established to
manage the surge of new residents. The expectation was that new cities would
form, or existing cities would annex the newly settled areas.
As the population swelled over the next five decades to 2.3 million, instead of
the cities growing, the centralized county government grew and grew. Today, for
more than half the population of what is now Miami-Dade County, their closest
government is a bureaucratic behemoth that administers an area larger than the
state of Delaware.
The result is unresponsive and distant government. Commission hearings are
daylong affairs that for the average citizen require a time commitment few can
afford and are as impenetrable as they are Kafkaesque. The 13 county
commissioners, elected in single member districts, trade votes with their fellow
commissioners to approve projects in neighborhoods about which they know little
and for which they care little. Each chairs a powerful committee controlling
millions of dollars of county money. Consequently, the county office tower is a
nest of lobbyists that makes the U.S. Congress look like a kindergarten. For
individual citizens to be heard requires stamina and resolve few possess.
For 28 years I lived in Miami-Dade and witnessed the decline of neighborhoods
because of governmental indifference or ineptitude. To create parking,
homeowners stripped once-beautiful suburban streets of their trees and lawns.
Attached garages became extra rooms or illegal apartments. And, despite an
ordinance that made it a crime to remove a shopping cart from a store, carts
littered every neighborhood. All this happened under the watchful eye of a code
enforcement system that behaved like Sgt. Schultz in the old "Hogan's Heroes" TV
show, "I see nothing. . . . I see nothing."
County government thwarted attempts by communities to incorporate by
gerrymandering tax-revenue-rich industrial centers or shopping malls out of
proposed new cities and by imposing new fees to compensate the county for "lost"
tax revenue.
This was not an inevitable consequence of population growth. It resulted from
decades of inbred greed and a lust for political power. Just across the county's
northern border a different story had unfolded.
Broward County, home to Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood and 30 other cities,
experienced the same growth but addressed it quite differently.
The population of Broward is 1.6 million, but only 23,000, barely 1.4 percent,
live in unincorporated areas.
In Broward, residents have access to government that is close to them and
responsive. City commissioners are their neighbors. Cities compete to be the
most livable and attractive. The county government's activities are limited to
those beyond the budgets of individual cities, or those it can provide more
efficiently —- not that will yield the greatest power or payoff.
By 2006, I'd had enough of the decay I saw in Miami and left. I came to
Gwinnett, specifically to the city of Suwanee. I vowed never again to live where
government could become distant and unresponsive.
As a Suwanee City Council member explained, "We listen to our constituents. They
know where we live." It was meant literally. And it mattered.
Unless Gwinnett changes direction, it risks becoming more like Florida's stolid
and praetorian Miami-Dade County than responsive and enlightened Broward County.
For residents of unincorporated Gwinnett that's not good news. The county is
already struggling to deal with neighborhoods adrift and in decline.
If we want Gwinnett to be a desirable place to call home, with communities that
compete to attract residents with quality services and attractive neighborhoods,
the county should follow the model of Broward, not Miami-Dade. It should commit
to encouraging the creation of new cities and set as a goal that every Gwinnett
resident live in an incorporated city.
> Dick Goodman is a freelance marketing and business communications copywriter
who lives in Suwanee. He lived in Miami-Dade County for 28 years.
Friday, March 12, 2010
Worrisome SDS Update
Are you worried about the direction our County seems to be going? Do you worry that we are headed for a government directed cradle to grave society? Are you concerned at the lack of respect for and adherence to the Constitution of the United States of America?
I am. I am fearful for our Country and the lack of leadership in Washington. But I am equally worried about the lack of respect for and adherence to the Constitution of the State of Georgia and the laws of our State. The lack of leadership of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners is shocking and sickening. The state Constitution forbids double taxation, and the Service Delivery Strategy Act forbids the use of funds for the provision of services among cities and counties except in certain areas unless an SDS Agreement between the Cities and County allows for other choices. There is no disputing the fact that there are tax inequities in Gwinnett County. Less clear is how much that inequity has cost the taxpaying public who live in Cities. Over the life of the past ten year Agreement, the tax inequity is something on the order of $20,000,000 to $120,000,000. The Cities’ position is that this tax inequity cannot be extended to another SDS Agreement period.
The Cities of Gwinnett and Gwinnett County have been debating, arguing, fussing, and litigating about the SDS Agreement renewal for nearly three years. But nothing has been settled even though the Cities and County agree on all points but about three or four major points of contention. Now we have missed date of the judge’s ruling for settling our differences of February 1, 2010, and we are in the throes of sanctions against the Cities and County. That means that neither of the groups will be able to receive state grants, spend state grant money on projects, and this will affect you, the citizen, adversely. Roads will remain unrepaired and unpaved, sidewalks will not be repaired nor new one begun. There are a plethora of areas in which you will be affected.
I encourage you not to blame the Cities for this stalemate. The Cities have presented offer after offer to settle, but the Commissioners have ignored or refused all offers of compromise, intent on keeping the previous tax inequities and spending service funding the way they want in contravention of the Constitution, State Law, and court rulings.
City Mayors or representatives and the Board of Commissioners met jointly for a meeting on January 19, 2010. This was the first time since the actual inception of the talks some 6 or 8 months ago that all the County Commissioners heard the same presentation even though correspondence for some thirty months prior had been distributed to each commissioner. The upshot of this meeting was everyone heard our latest offer of compromise, but NOTHING else was accomplished. Obviously, the ball is in the Commissioners’ court. I believe, that the judge’s ruling on how funds that are collected by the County must be spent in accordance with the SDS Act for providing services, is the correct one. The Georgia Supreme Court agrees with that view in that they refused to hear the County appeal of Judge Barrett’s ruling. My understanding is that the Cities have the moral and legal high ground in this matter. You should not have to pay for services you don’t receive from Gwinnett County just because you live in an incorporated city.
We folks who live in Cities are a part of Gwinnett County. The Cities and the County agree and work together on many issues. As an entire County, we need to settle this SDS issue. Jointly we need to stop spending your money on legal fees, get sanctions lifted, continue to provide excellent services at the lowest cost available, and move on.
Remind members of the Board of Commissioners that they are the decision makers in this matter. They should determine how compromise with the Cities is to be obtained, and instruct County staff to implement their decisions. Remember, lessening the tax inequity will mean money in the taxpayers’ pockets not in any City coffer. As long as the Board of Commissioners can string this out, they will be collecting somewhere around $1,000,000 per month of city taxpayer money without providing the corresponding services.
Let’s get on with it. Just because the County is the 800 pound gorilla in the room, doesn't mean that what they are doing is legal. We have spent enough time and your resources on this issue. If jointly we do not reach an Agreement, a judicial rule will ultimately determine how much taxes you pay each year for services you receive from Cities or the County. By the time you read this the Cities and the County may be trying the suit to determine service delivery methods and means. You will not be pleased with a judicial decision, of that I am certain.
I am. I am fearful for our Country and the lack of leadership in Washington. But I am equally worried about the lack of respect for and adherence to the Constitution of the State of Georgia and the laws of our State. The lack of leadership of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners is shocking and sickening. The state Constitution forbids double taxation, and the Service Delivery Strategy Act forbids the use of funds for the provision of services among cities and counties except in certain areas unless an SDS Agreement between the Cities and County allows for other choices. There is no disputing the fact that there are tax inequities in Gwinnett County. Less clear is how much that inequity has cost the taxpaying public who live in Cities. Over the life of the past ten year Agreement, the tax inequity is something on the order of $20,000,000 to $120,000,000. The Cities’ position is that this tax inequity cannot be extended to another SDS Agreement period.
The Cities of Gwinnett and Gwinnett County have been debating, arguing, fussing, and litigating about the SDS Agreement renewal for nearly three years. But nothing has been settled even though the Cities and County agree on all points but about three or four major points of contention. Now we have missed date of the judge’s ruling for settling our differences of February 1, 2010, and we are in the throes of sanctions against the Cities and County. That means that neither of the groups will be able to receive state grants, spend state grant money on projects, and this will affect you, the citizen, adversely. Roads will remain unrepaired and unpaved, sidewalks will not be repaired nor new one begun. There are a plethora of areas in which you will be affected.
I encourage you not to blame the Cities for this stalemate. The Cities have presented offer after offer to settle, but the Commissioners have ignored or refused all offers of compromise, intent on keeping the previous tax inequities and spending service funding the way they want in contravention of the Constitution, State Law, and court rulings.
City Mayors or representatives and the Board of Commissioners met jointly for a meeting on January 19, 2010. This was the first time since the actual inception of the talks some 6 or 8 months ago that all the County Commissioners heard the same presentation even though correspondence for some thirty months prior had been distributed to each commissioner. The upshot of this meeting was everyone heard our latest offer of compromise, but NOTHING else was accomplished. Obviously, the ball is in the Commissioners’ court. I believe, that the judge’s ruling on how funds that are collected by the County must be spent in accordance with the SDS Act for providing services, is the correct one. The Georgia Supreme Court agrees with that view in that they refused to hear the County appeal of Judge Barrett’s ruling. My understanding is that the Cities have the moral and legal high ground in this matter. You should not have to pay for services you don’t receive from Gwinnett County just because you live in an incorporated city.
We folks who live in Cities are a part of Gwinnett County. The Cities and the County agree and work together on many issues. As an entire County, we need to settle this SDS issue. Jointly we need to stop spending your money on legal fees, get sanctions lifted, continue to provide excellent services at the lowest cost available, and move on.
Remind members of the Board of Commissioners that they are the decision makers in this matter. They should determine how compromise with the Cities is to be obtained, and instruct County staff to implement their decisions. Remember, lessening the tax inequity will mean money in the taxpayers’ pockets not in any City coffer. As long as the Board of Commissioners can string this out, they will be collecting somewhere around $1,000,000 per month of city taxpayer money without providing the corresponding services.
Let’s get on with it. Just because the County is the 800 pound gorilla in the room, doesn't mean that what they are doing is legal. We have spent enough time and your resources on this issue. If jointly we do not reach an Agreement, a judicial rule will ultimately determine how much taxes you pay each year for services you receive from Cities or the County. By the time you read this the Cities and the County may be trying the suit to determine service delivery methods and means. You will not be pleased with a judicial decision, of that I am certain.
Monday, January 4, 2010
Happy New Year!
What can be better than a couple of months that include Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year celebrations, and what’s better all the meals, family gatherings and presents that go with these joyous occasions. You’ll hear “Happy New Year!” for at least a couple of weeks as 2010 gets going. Remember this is also the start of the second decade of the twenty-first century.
The celebration of a new year is, perhaps, the oldest of all holidays, celebrated in Babylon about 4000 years ago. Our calendar month, January, is named for the Roman deity, Janus, often depicted with two faces—one looking forward to the new and the other looking back on the old year.
Traditions are associated with the day include making resolutions to do better in the New Year than we did in the past. Many make resolutions, but like me, few keep them. In modern times, we associate parades like the Tournament of Roses Parade with New Year’s celebration. Babies are often symbols of the New Year with an old, bearded man as the past year. We celebrate the New Year with football games. The ancients may have had other practices like chariot races.
We traditionally celebrate with foods also. We try to encourage money and good luck to stick with us in the New Year by eating greens to signify paper money and black-eyed peas as representing coins. Others insist that these foods ask for good luck more than money in the New Year. In other parts of the world, rice is considered to be the good luck food.
Perhaps the most recognized New Year tradition is singing the song, “Auld Lang Syne” at the stroke of midnight to usher in the New Year. “Auld Lang Syne” means the “old long ago” or the “good old days”. The song helps us remember the past even though we are entering a new year and a new decade.
Traditions help us keep alive, in the human sense, celebrations of what may be possible and help us remember the good things of the past.
Amazing isn’t it. Thanks for the past at Thanksgiving. Celebration of a holy infant at Christmas. Resolutions to do better in the New Year.
Happy New Year!
The celebration of a new year is, perhaps, the oldest of all holidays, celebrated in Babylon about 4000 years ago. Our calendar month, January, is named for the Roman deity, Janus, often depicted with two faces—one looking forward to the new and the other looking back on the old year.
Traditions are associated with the day include making resolutions to do better in the New Year than we did in the past. Many make resolutions, but like me, few keep them. In modern times, we associate parades like the Tournament of Roses Parade with New Year’s celebration. Babies are often symbols of the New Year with an old, bearded man as the past year. We celebrate the New Year with football games. The ancients may have had other practices like chariot races.
We traditionally celebrate with foods also. We try to encourage money and good luck to stick with us in the New Year by eating greens to signify paper money and black-eyed peas as representing coins. Others insist that these foods ask for good luck more than money in the New Year. In other parts of the world, rice is considered to be the good luck food.
Perhaps the most recognized New Year tradition is singing the song, “Auld Lang Syne” at the stroke of midnight to usher in the New Year. “Auld Lang Syne” means the “old long ago” or the “good old days”. The song helps us remember the past even though we are entering a new year and a new decade.
Traditions help us keep alive, in the human sense, celebrations of what may be possible and help us remember the good things of the past.
Amazing isn’t it. Thanks for the past at Thanksgiving. Celebration of a holy infant at Christmas. Resolutions to do better in the New Year.
Happy New Year!
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