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TODAY'S ISSUE
Jack Webb's private viewpoints were often quite frank
By Johnny Lawler
Norcross
Special to GwinnettForum.com

APRIL 29, 2003 -- Lifelong Norcross resident James Howard (Jack) Webb died Monday morning, April 21, after a brief illness.

I knew Mr. Webb because I have worked for his wife, Lillian, during both of her terms as Mayor - in the mid-1970s and currently.

Jack and Lillian were a great team. They knew each other since early childhood and enjoyed each other's company for most of their lives. Lillian supported Jack as he became successful in the adhesives business. They, raised four children---two sons and two daughters.

When Lillian's avocation (Republican politics) became her vocation and she served as mayor of Norcross and then as Gwinnett Commission chairman, Jack wholeheartedly supported her. Being married to arguably the most politically powerful woman in Georgia at the time must have had its challenges. (During this time Lillian also chaired the Board of the Department of Community Affairs, served on the Atlanta Regional Commission, and was president of the Georgia Municipal Association.)

The fact that Jack shared his wife's commitment to the same political views and to participatory politics no doubt helped make his answering of endless phone calls and Lillian's evenings away from home bearable. Many times over the years I was the one calling.

When Mr. Webb would answer the phone, he would offer his succinct and emphatic take on the latest political topic. He did not mince words. Because I work in an environment where points of view are often couched in diplomacy, and partly because I so often shared Mr. Webb's view, I thoroughly enjoyed hearing him and his frank remarks.

The Rev. James Lowry mentioned at the funeral that Jack and Lillian endured the hardest thing a parent could ever experience: the loss of a child. Their daughter, Judy, passed away in 2001. The Rev. Lowry said that he was humbled in Jack's presence as Jack grieved his daughter's death in quiet strength.

Jack was a strong, good man. He was a fixture in Norcross for 74 years. We will miss Jack Webb and we will pray for Lillian who has lost her teammate and best friend.

ELLIOTT BRACK
Loganville council outlaws smoking in public places
By Elliott Brack
editor and publisher
GwinnettForum.com

Locally, give the Loganville City Council credit. This council realized the importance, and outlawed smoking in pubic places on April 10. The new law goes into effect on May 10, 30 days after passage.

What's included? "Restaurants, workplaces and within five feet of doorways to those such places."

The new rule allows smoking in "free standing bars and tobacco stores," but there are none in Loganville.

Loganville took an unusual stance in its ordinance: saying that second-hand smoke "creates a violation of the Americans With Disabilities Act, which deems impaired respiratory function to be a disability."

Council members amended the original proposal, changing the distance from public doors prohibiting smoking from 25 to five feet.

Former Mayor Mike Jones, who introduced the idea last year, was present to see the new ordinance come into force.

The new rules for smoking in Loganville will become more standard throughout Georgia, we predict. The growing awareness of not only the dangers of smoking, but also of secondhand smoke, will cause more citizens to demand this protection for themselves.

In Moultrie, the Colquitt County Commission has prohibited the re-location of mobile homes older than 10 years into the county. Good for them.

Gwinnett has been blessed with forward-thinking leadership for years. Back in the early 1960's, Gwinnett drastically limited the placement of any mobile home, new or used. As a result, Gwinnett has not seen the proliferation of these homes, which are a pox on the tax digest.

Here's why: mobile homes immediately begin to depreciate once placed, where a conventionally built home is far more likely to appreciate. The upshot is that many counties with mobile homes see the tax revenue from mobile home properties less than the cost to maintain county and school services.

Hold to your decision, we urge the Colquitt County Commission. You've made a step in the right direction for your county's future.

In Glynn County, news is positive: the new bridge linking Brunswick and the road south toward Jekyll Island, is finally open. No longer will motorists be held up by ships or even sailboats going under the old Sidney Lanier Bridge, while the roadway span was raised.

The new bridge can allow ships as tall as 185 feet to pass underneath. The width of the span is 400 feet, with the overall bridge some 7,776 feet long. It cost $110 million, $50 million more than first estimates. Vacationers in the Golden Isles areas from Gwinnett will appreciate the scope, size, beauty and convenience of this new, long-awaited bridge.

Private girls schools across the country are concentrating some of their curriculum on finances for the future. They learn about mortgages, credit cards, investments, compound interest, living on a budget and other parts of personal finance.

After all, goes the thinking, women outlive men, and will be "on their own" more than many realize. (Women spend one third of their lives alone, statistics show.)

A study of financial literacy in high school students showed that while girls and boys had no gender difference in knowledge, the boys were more confident and more likely to master skills as they needed them.

During one class in personal finance, some students learned of a hypothetical $1,000 credit card debt, with an interest rate of 16.5 per cent. A minimum payment of $20 a month ... would result in $13.75 each month in interest, and take more than seven years to pay off the debt!

Girls were also told that saving $100 a month between ages 20 and 30 would result in far more savings than saving $100 a month for life after age 30.

FEEDBACK
4/29: Dixie Chicks interview made her question her views

Editor, the Forum:

I watched Diane Sawyer's interview with the Dixie Chicks last week, and I came away feeling sorry for those young performers --- especially the two who didn't make the remark.

When I first heard the remark I was angry for two reasons: 1) because I support the President, his policies, his decisions and his public profession of God; and 2) because I felt it was nearly treasonous for a public figure to make such a statement in a foreign country as the nation is poised for war.

But, I began wondering how many people have ever made a remark in a moment of excitement that they later regretted. I thought of a passage from John: "He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her."

I really feel that the President may not be as unforgiving as the throngs of Dixie bashers. After all, he is a Christian, and Jesus said in Matthew 5:44 "Bless them that curse you." I feel the singer should apologize for the choice and timing of her words, but she should not have to apologize for her feelings.

-- Pamela Wilson, Lawrenceville

4/29: Enjoyed article from Ports Authority

Editor, the Forum:

Enjoyed Doug Marchand 's ports authority story. Many years ago on one of my first trips to Savannah several of us took a boat cruise up the river. While everyone else was enjoying the cruise, I was absolutely fascinated by the container transport facility and how it all worked. It's something of which Georgia should be very proud!

-- Katherine Sherrington, Snellville

UPCOMING EVENT
"Jazz in the Garden" on May 4 at Hudgens Art Center

Enjoy a late afternoon of jazz in the Weeks Sculpture Garden on May 4 from 4 to 6 p.m. Bring your own picnic, and relax in the cool and calm of the Garden as the music plays.

"Jazz in the Garden features Urban Blu, a jazz band of eight musicians. The event is a part of the Atlanta Jazz Festival that features music events around the area for the month of May.

Urban Blu consists of three female singers and five professionally seasoned players. They are led by Dez Billingslea, a Macon native, and feature a touch of Caribbean jazz flavor.

A suggested donation of $5 for everyone over age 7 is requested.