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TODAY'S ISSUE
If visiting in Michigan, Henry Ford Museum is good choice
By Charles Summerour
Duluth
Special to GwinnettForum.com

JULY 11, 2003---A visit to our daughter, who had recently relocated to Dearborn, Mich., turned up an attraction not on the normal path of Southern vacationers.

Our visit came just at the end of Ford Motor Company's celebration of its 100th Anniversary, which was an event that encompassed and embraced the automotive history of Ford, including over 600 vehicles from all eras. Even though we passed on the celebration for family considerations, we were able to visit "The Henry Ford"---a permanent and remarkable collection of American history it calls "America's Greatest History Attraction."

Centerpieces of the complex are the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village. The museum covers over 35 enclosed acres, with much resemblance to the Smithsonian, and covers much, much more than automotive history. Its focus is the innovation and creative spirits of America and includes exhibit items from the Kennedy Presidential Limousine, the Rosa Park's bus, to furniture, technology, television and many other parts of American life. Pieces from Henry Ford's personal collection include the chair in which Abraham Lincoln was sitting when he was shot. Henry Ford originally established the museum in honor of his friend, Thomas Edison, with the name of the museum being changed after Ford's death.

Greenfield Village is a sprawling 90 acre site which recreates much of America history by rebuilding various parts of the past including craft works such as sawmills, pottery shops, railroad stations and much more. Greenfield was begun by Henry and Mary Ford in the 1920's and has grown to include tributes to all areas of American life. It includes buildings that have been relocated from all parts of the country and are exhibited in period format staffed with craftsmen who relate to the visitors well.

American families represented include Firestone, Edison, Burbank, Wright and of course, Ford. Georgia connections include the Mattox Family Home, relocated from Bryan County, which depicts a rural farm house from the past, including the chickens in the back yard. (Ford had a home on the Georgia coast, hence the link.)

No one is left out. Farmers will enjoy a working farm with all the trappings. Sports enthusiasts can enjoy a baseball exhibition daily and in August, they plan to recreate the 1867 World's Tournament of Baseball, which will host 24 matches of baseball played by the same rules as the original tournament.

For moviegoers, there is a separate IMAX theatre with state of the art films shown. In spring of 2004, the Ford Rouge Factory Tour will allow you to go behind the scenes of the world's largest automotive complex.

Tickets are sold per event with one-day passes and season passes available. Our cost for a one -day pass to Greenfield Village and the museum was $22 each. If you are real history buff, allow more than one day and certainly wear your walking shoes. There are many attractions for children including a carousel, boat rides, and Model T rides, which are priced separately. Adults will definitely enjoy the attractions more than the little ones!

ELLIOTT BRACK
Adams and Bush both need to have exit strategies
By Elliott Brack
editor and publisher
GwinnettForum.com

JULY 11, 2003 --One is a Georgia problem, the other is international. Both need exit strategies.

The morass at the University of Georgia came after its president inexpertly tangled with the athletic director, creating a controversy that just will not go away.

We think, too, of the American military success in Iraq, which has spiraled down into a continuing questioning of the Bush Administration and their management of the after-war. It's becoming a quagmire that could politically topple the guy who toppled Saddam Hussein unless we develop a better way to handle the awkward and explosive situation in Iraq.

Michael Adams is an astute operator, schooled in leadership, a marvel at raising big monies, and even someone with a political background But somehow, he apparently missed the course in everyday getting-along at the University, which includes adroitness in handling personnel.

His handling of the Dooley affair is a model of how not to relieve someone of responsibilities. With Dooley almost an icon of Bulldog fanatics, any change would have produced some fallout. However, the manner in which President Adams handled it is what wrankles most alumni and followers of the University. Many accept that Vince Dooley had a contract which was expiring. Many do not object to Dooley retiring. It's just the way Adams handled it.

What's to do? Try to keep the lid on the affair as long as possible, which seems harder each day.

We'll make a prediction: about next spring, President Bush will reward his GOP buddy Adams with an ambassadorship to some country. And while President Adams will regret leaving the University, he will admit that he has always had a yen for the diplomatic corps, and will reluctantly resign. About that same time, Dooley will see the end of his service to the University, and the state can get on with other matters. Only time will tell.

More difficult, far more difficult, is the military situation in Iraq, becoming more and more similar to the United States needing to extract itself from Viet Nam.

The military occupation has not gone well. Pockets of loyalists to Saddam continue to create trouble. The Iraqi people's problems with everyday activities---- running water, electricity, governmental civility---is all being blamed on the occupying Americans.

As bad as all that is, the sporadic incidences of Americans being randomly attacked and sometimes killed by insurgents, is causing fear and consternation in America. It could lead to more and more political unrest, casting new questions on the Bush Administration ability to lead.

Where at one time, the second Bush Administration team seemed a shoo-in for re-election, what with its popularity and the lack of leadership among the Democrats, now doubt is being injected into the Washington scene.

The war is won. The aftermath is alarming. The worries persist. The Bush team sweats. No one seems to have a clear path toward solution.

Time is running out for a change in the momentum of Iraq, as the next election draws nearer each day, now just 16 months away.

Until the Bush team formulates a better occupation strategy, and then a clear path for exit in Iraq, the pot will continue to boil.

Mr. Bush might can solve Mr. Adams' exit. But who will solve Mr. Bush's problems?

McLEMORE'S WORLD

Another timely offering from cartoonist Bill McLemore:

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FEEDBACK
7/11: Build outer Loop or not, but put indecision behind

Editor, the Forum:

"The Outer Loop, Outer Perimeter, Northern Arc, Gwinnett Loop!"

All are names of a proposed road that passes nearby where I live. If it's built, it might increase my property's value; it might not.

It it's not built, it might increase my property's value; it might not. Unlike many, I'm not opposed in principle to the road, nor do I strongly favor it.

However: do it or not! Decide. Kill it forever or build it now. This road has been in planning for over 20 years and now has reached a point where the uncertainty is causing more problems for me and my fellow property owners than building it will. I've had to put plans for my property and my life on hold because of corrupt, namby pamby politicians and NIMBY subdivision homeowners. Build it or don't: I don't care. But put it to rest one way or the other.

-- Lee Hutchins, Hog Mountain

NEWS
7/11: Corporate Challenge registration deadline is July 16

Deadline is July 16 to register your team in the fourth annual Gwinnett Corporate Challenge. This annual event brings together businesses for two weeks of sports competition to raise funds for youth recreation scholarships.

Organizations compete in 15 activities, including horseshoes, swimming, golf,
softball, trivia game night, 5K run, bowling, two-ball basketball, billiards, tennis (men's, women's and coed), table shuffleboard, tug-o-war and sand volleyball.

The event is sponsored by Gwinnett County Parks & Recreation, The Gwinnett Alliance with Youth, Gwinnett Parks Foundation and Nextel Communications. The event:

Businesses can get involved as sponsors or by signing up a team or several teams. The entry fee is: $1,000 for companies with 100 or more employees and $600 for companies with 1 - 99 employees.

Call Mariann Brown at 770.822.8862 or e-mail her at brownma@co.gwinnett.ga.us to sign up

7/11: Technology Forum to hear CIO of Gwinnett schools

Scott Futrell, Chief Information Officer for Gwinnett County Schools will address the Gwinnett Technology Forum Meeting July 15 from 7 until 8:30 a.m. at the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce in Duluth. He will present the technology architecture of the school system, which serves over 100 physical locations and over 150,000 users daily. He will also share how the Gwinnett County Public School System is a leader in the use of technology for teaching, learning and running the business processes of the largest employer in the county.

The Gwinnett Technology Forum is free of charge and is held every third Tuesday of the month. Networking, mentoring, and interchange of innovative business development strategies and other ideas are all part of this interactive group.

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
Psychiatrist compares dogs and people

"Dogs love their friends and bite their enemies, quite unlike people,who are incapable of pure love and always have to mix love and hate."

-- Sigmund Freud

FORD MAP