TODAY'S ISSUE
Calls upcoming amendment deceptive ballot measure
By Rep. Karla Drenner
Campaign director, Georgians Against Discrimination
Special to GwinnettForum.com

(Editor's note: Dr. Karla Drenner is from Avondale Estates, and has served in the Georgia Legislature for four years, and was recently elected without opposition. She offers her thoughts on an amendment facing Georgia voters in the coming election. -eeb)

Drenner

OCT. 1, 2004 -- I ask my colleagues in the Legislature to tell the truth: if you really only want to stop gay marriage, then distance yourself from the proposed amendment which reaches far beyond that. Many, including religious leaders, who do not support gay marriage, support gay couples being able to protect their families and have access to the courts to enforce their legal agreements: if you truly only want to prevent gay couples from marrying, join them in opposition to the measure.

It's clear that proponents are reaching for more than marriage: it's clear by the full language of the amendment, which ordinary citizens read and are appalled at; clear by their candidate surveys and those they support; clear by their refusal to remove the most harmful part of the bill.

Actions always speak louder than words… Consider:

Why keep Section B in the Bill?

The proponents of the bill keep changing their story, now even saying they're not trying to prevent civil unions or domestic partnerships. But that's not what they said during the legislative session: they rejected Sen. Sam Zamarripa's amendment to state that this bill would not impact civil unions or domestic partnerships.

A representative of the Alliance Defense Fund (which also represents the Georgia legislators who attempted to fight against the lawsuit to stop the amendment) says the passage of the Louisiana bill adds to his argument that "a domestic partnership is substantially similar to marriage," and that he will use it to challenge New Orleans' domestic partnership ordinance (Associated Press, September 23, 2004).

What's the Real Agenda?

The Christian Coalition's candidate survey asks about views on the overturning of the sodomy law, hate crimes legislation, civil rights protection based on sexual orientation and domestic partner status, and adoption by gay couples.

While the leader of the Georgia Christian Coalition says she does not oppose partner benefits or legal protections for same-sex couples and doesn't want to dictate how people live in the privacy of their own homes (Marietta Daily Journal, September 13, 2004), they evaluate candidates on the basis of their support or opposition to those very things.

Why is the ballot language so different than the impact?

Georgia voters deserve to know what they're voting on. Why don't the proponents want voters to know that this ballot measure goes beyond defining marriage?

Perhaps it is because they know that as Georgians realize that a beloved family member or respected co-worker is gay, they want to see some sort of protection for that person. Maybe not marriage, but some sort of legal arrangement to protect their partners, their children, their families.

Again, I ask my colleagues in the Legislature to tell the truth: if you oppose gay marriage and also support gay couples being able to protect their families, then say so. Say so to your constituents and tell them what this bill would really do. Say so by stating your opposition to this deceptive ballot measure. Say so by urging people to vote "no."

ELLIOTT BRACK
Thirteen straight division titles; same score on one day
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
GwinnettForum.com

OCT. 1, 2004 -- "How 'bout them Braves!"

Thirteen straight division titles!

We'll admit it up front: this year early in the season, the team looked like they would never return as division champions. But they put on a torrid pace in mid season, resulting in winning the division.

Thirteen straight? Who would have thought?

Not only that, who would have thought that both the Braves and Atlanta Falcons would both win on Sunday…..and can you believe….by the very same score of 6-3? Talk about your coincidences!

That's about as far out as the thoughts of winning 13 straight titles.

One common thread that is obviously key to winning 13 straight titles: the leadership exhibited by Bobby Cox in guiding a bunch of overpaid, young and highly-emotional athletes. Years from now people will be talking about the Cox era, and his management skill. It is the one continuing factor you can count on, a rather quiet, un-assuring and solid leadership.

A statistic from the recent week made us think of the Cox Formula for winning. If you look at the individual leaders in the National League in several different categories, you are struck by one thought: for home runs and runs batted in, plus pitcher's earned run average, victories and strike-outs…..there is no individual Brave listed among the top five in these categories.

What this says about Cox is that he wins as a team, not led by any one or two individuals!

So, hurrah for the Braves and yet another division title. And hurrah for the Cox leadership. Now, good luck to the Braves in the playoffs….the one spot where a hot team has seemed to catch them often, resulting in the Braves having not done as well in playoffs in these 13 seasons.

Go Braves!

* * * * *

Now to an item about traffic:

Atlanta gets a black eye, you know, continually around the country about our traffic. And while not trying to polish the apple too much, and recognizing that Atlanta traffic is often bad, here is another way to look at traffic.

Atlantans spend an average of 60 hours a year tied up in traffic jams. While that may seem a lot, the worst at traffic jams in the country is Los Angeles/Long Beach/Santa Ana, Calif., where they are tied up in traffic an average of 93 hours. That's far worse than second worst, San Francisco/Oakland, Calif., where they spend 73 hours in traffic jams.

This comes form the Urban Mobility Report, out of Texas A&M University, from its Transportation Institute. Other cities ranking above fifth-place Atlanta are Washington/Virginia/Maryland suburbs, at 67 hours; and Dallas, 71 hours.

Others in the top worst include Houston, 58 hours; Riverside/ San Bernardino, Calif., 57; Chicago/Northern Indiana, 56; Boston/New Hampshire/Rhode Island, 54; and San Jose, Calif., 53.

Atlanta's traffic jams are bad, but only fifth worse!

* * * * *

From Georgia School Council Institute:

Since the ACT scores do not attract the same rabid attention as the SAT scores, it may surprise some to discover that Georgia students ranked higher in Math when compared to the other states. Georgia ranked 43 out of 51 in Math and 47 out of 51 in the other subjects.

In Math, Georgia came in ahead of Oklahoma, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Arkansas, New Mexico, West Virginia, Louisiana, South Carolina, Mississippi, and the District of Columbia. In Reading and Science, Georgia was ahead of Louisiana, South Carolina, Mississippi, and the District of Columbia. In English, Georgia tied with Colorado to place ahead of New Mexico, North Carolina, Texas, Mississippi, South Carolina, and the District of Columbia.

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McLEMORE'S WORLD
10/1: Poll positions

Another cartoon from Bill McLemore:

FEEDBACK
10/1: Wants people to check facts, not leat haranguers dictate

Editor, the Forum:

After reading Roy McCreary's statement (Sept. 28 edition) about President Bush being the ONE candidate that is concerned about the security of our nation, it got me thinking.

Are we really a nation of people that lets guys like Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity and Neil Boortz tell us what to think? I think what Mr. McCreary and other like-thinking citizens need to do is take a little time and actually investigate what the talk show hosts are telling them.

One way is to utilize the NON-PARTISAN web site, FactCheck.org. Or, just ask yourself, should we trust our security with the President that promised to get Osama bin Laden "dead or alive", but instead invaded (against the guidelines of the U.S. Constitution, after misleading the Congress - which, in my opinion, was an impeachable offense) Iraq? Or, should we entrust the president with the security of the nation when he didn't mention bin Laden (without question one of the most dangerous enemies of the United States) during his acceptance speech at the RNC?

Is the real enemy Bush is seeking to destroy Osama bin Laden or John Kerry? Saying Kerry is not at all concerned about the security of our nation is obviously an out and out falsehood, but one that is continually implied by many conservative talk show hosts, and unfortunately, one that is accepted as fact by millions of Americans.

It is clear that Bush has gotten us into a real quagmire in Iraq - under false pretenses - costing over a 1,000 American lives, while Osama bin Laden remains alive and well and drug lords rule in Afghanistan, and he is the one we should trust? Not in my mind, not based on the FACTS.

-- Scott Tuggle, Lawrenceville

10/1: Liberals remember where they come from; conservatives?

(Editor's Note: A GwinnettForum reader sent this to us for re-publishing, saying it is that good. It was first printed in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution letters section on August 14, 2004. The reader adds: "….and this guy is from conservative Cobb County."-eeb)

Editor, the Forum:

It's time to inject a dose of reality and history into the liberal vs. conservative discussion.

The fact is, most Americans, except for recent immigrants, are only a couple of generations removed from the farm. Most of us today enjoy a better quality of life as a result of programs and policies initiated by liberals and Democrats, including the New Deal, the Great Society, universal public education, fair labor practices, Medicare, Medicaid, the trade union movement, and on and on.

Thanks to these liberal policies and programs, our parents and grandparents were able to pull their families into the middle class. Liberals remember where they came from and how they got here, while conservatives delude themselves that they made it entirely on their own.

-- John Thomson, Marietta.

10/1: Questions that vast majority of people are against smoking

Editor, the Forum:

It would seem to me that your assumption that the vast majority of Gwinnett citizens wanted a smoking ban is far off base. If only four of the fifteen Gwinnett cities have enacted a smoking ban, perhaps that's because those city commissioners respect individual freedoms and the rights of business owners.

The Gwinnett County smoking ban was not "passed," it was ramrodded down the
county's throat by the personal agendas of some of the commissioners, to a situation that didn't need governmental interference. Perhaps that contributed to the mighty Wayne Hill's recent defeat.

-- Tony Rivera, Suwanee

Dear Tony: If every single person living in Gwinnett cities was for smoking, that would only be 20 per cent of the county population. We suspect Gwinnett city residents are much like the rest of the country, where 75 per cent of the people don't smoke. People across the country, and even whole nations like Ireland, understand the dangers of smoking, and don't associate governmental interference with it, unless they are mainly bar patrons or owners. --eeb

CALENDAR
10/1: United Way mini-grants available for community projects

Twice a year the United Way offers a small grant ($500-$1,000) opportunity to neighborhoods, communities or organized groups who have small budgets and have limited access to other funding sources.

The fund provides small grants for groups who have a "great idea" that supports and strengthens their community. It is important to involve those who will benefit from this great idea from the planning stage to delivery of the "great idea". This is a one time grant.

Previous recipients have included:

• A group of teachers from a local elementary school who needed paint supplies to have a "Graffiti Paint-Out" near their school.
  
  
• A group of Latino ESOL students who wanted to purchase books of interest to start a library at their local ESOL center.
  
  
• A group of high school students who started a club and needed materials to be able to give presentations to neighboring middle school and elementary schools on the importance of non-violence and decision making.
  
  
• An apartment complex in Norcross that needed supplies to start a weekend study/play group for their kids to keep them off the streets and safe.

For more information please contact Debbie McMinn, United Way in Gwinnett at 404-527-8806 or email: dmcminn@unitedwayatlanta.org. Applications are available on-line at www.unitedwayatlanta.org. The deadline for applications is October 29, 2004.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION

• An invitation: What books have you enjoyed? Send us your best recent book along with a short paragraph as to why you liked it, plus what you plan to read next. --eeb
  

ENCYCLOPEDIA TIDBIT
10/1: History and nature meet in coastal town of Darien

Founded in 1736, the tidewater town of Darien, the seat of McIntosh County, offers visitors glimpses into the past, as well as stunning vistas of salt marshes, barrier islands, and magnificent live oaks festooned with Spanish moss.

Blessing of the Shrimp Fleeet in Darien, photo courtesy Charlie Williamson Jr., The Darien News.

Visitors can dream of days gone by-when the lighthouse on nearby Sapelo Island helped ships find their way into the mouth of the Altamaha River and to the once-bustling port town. They can relive past traditions by attending a ring shout, a blend of song and dance developed during the days of slavery and still performed by the McIntosh County Shouters, or by celebrating the annual tradition of the Blessing of the Fleet. Whatever one chooses to do, Darien, on scenic U.S. Highway 17, is sure to provide an unforgettable experience.

• To access the Georgia Encyclopedia, go to http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
  

THOUGHT OF THE DAY
A new way to look at the profession of architecture

"Architecture is the art of how to waste space."

-- Philip Johnson (1906 - )

• Another invitation: What's your favorite saying? Share with others through GwinnettForum. Send to elliott@gwinnettforum.com.
  

MORE: Contact Gwinnett Forum at: elliott@gwinnettforum.com

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