Free
automatic delivery. Click here to subscribe.
|
Free
automatic delivery. Click here to subscribe.
|
|
Issue 9.38 | Tuesday, August 11, 2009 | Forward to your friends! |
|
|
FEEDBACK UPCOMING NOTABLE ALSO INSIDE _::
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Meet a sponsor |
ABOUT US GwinnettForum.com is a twice-weekly online community commentary for exploring pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA. Contact us today. SEARCH GWINNETT FORUM |
|
TODAY'S
FOCUS
MAGGIE VALLEY, N.C., Aug. 11, 2009 -- The voice of the American people to be heard in major decisions was eternally silenced by the Revolutionary War. American capitalism prospers on its war economy that first developed during the Revolutionary War. Casualties of war are inconvenient consequences. Warhawk Patrick Henry cried "Give me liberty or give me death," which was more appropriate for his slaves since Henry was free as a bird and rich like Thomas Jefferson and Samuel Adams. These warmongers paid fewer taxes than Englanders and still wanted a better tax break than wealthy Americans savor today. Colonial speculators wanted to revoke the Indian treaties and seize their lands. Other mutineers wanted to continue the smuggling trade with the mother country's enemies. Bootlegger John Hancock freed and liberated himself from paying duties on countless gallons of smuggled molasses. Freedom and liberty fit any bill in 1776. England had protected the colonies with sacrificed soldiers, sustaining a sizable deficit and needed help paying it. While England was distracted by European conflicts and King George's dementia, the founding fathers started a war justified with feeble excuses. America's advocate, Prime Minister William Pitt, who was ill, couldn't have dissuaded the colonists since emerging corporate America had already decided on warfare, behind closed doors. Shortly thereafter, Benjamin Franklin went to Paris and solicited French leaders to support the seditious revolution. During and after the war, Loyalists, abused by rebellious colonists, migrated to Canada, which became independent in 1867, opting for a parliamentary democracy.
The new American republic that touted equality quickly disfranchised Native Americans and intentionally destroyed their culture. Other destructive events were the declared and undeclared wars that occurred like clockwork from 1775, even to 2003. Worst was the Civil War that wasted 630,000 lives over states rights and tariffs, which an undivided British nation would have precluded. Slavery, the secondary reason for the war, wouldn't have existed, since it was abolished by England in 1833. Choosing war is swayed by the people's will in a parliamentary government. After the American Revolution, parliamentary governance was doomed by the Federalist Papers beguiling the states to decline British parliamentarianism. Instead, they chose constitutional government that today the World Bank reports is prone to corruption by special interests. Within the authoritative hierarchy of the three-branch system, presidents have prosecuted wars against the people's will. Some suspended habeas corpus, which safeguards individual freedom. Presidents have been elected without a majority vote. It's harder dumping incompetent presidents than dumping failed prime ministers. Further, the Supreme Court can sidestep the elective process and choose a president. Unlike the English Parliament, the U.S. Congress dawdles in negotiating equitable health care for Americans, but provides its own members with inclusive coverage while funding an offensive war machine. The worst feature of a dominating regime is the weakness of the people's voice in major decisions. Their ignored wishes encourage politicos to kowtow to big business and dilly-dally in resolving the escalating energy catastrophe. Consequently, the military-industrial complex compels its puppets to engage in petroleum wars that could break America's back permanently. Undoubtedly,
Americans need a government wherein everyone participates. That's a tough
task, for the root or all evil is as irresistible today as it was in colonial
times. EEB
PERSPECTIVE AUG. 11, 2009 -- Sometimes things are not what they seem, and may be even more than they seem.
Take the case of communities which have farmers' markets. We have found that they are much more than they appear. Several area communities have the markets. Suwanee has had a Saturday market now for several years, and Lawrenceville started last year, running from June through September across from the Historic Courthouse on Crogan Street. (At one time, Duluth and Suwanee had markets on alternate Satudays, but now only Suwanee has the market. It is every Saturday from May 2 until October 17, except for Sept. 19, which is Suwanee Day.) This year Norcross began to have a farmers' market adjacent to Thrasher Park on Tuesday from 4-8 p.m. Both the Suwanee and Lawrenceville markets are on Saturday mornings. That's why we were somewhat skeptical when the Norcross market began on a Tuesday afternoon. The day the first Norcross market was open, we were present, and got our mind changed about when to have a market. After all, the beans and tomatoes and peaches continue to ripen every day. With a Tuesday market, we can almost guarantee fresher produce than one where the produce was accumulated all week. A few weeks later, we found another important facet about a farmers' market. The night that the Norcross market is open, local restaurants do a jam-up business. Therefore, holding a market is very much an economic development tool. Not only that, but the market is a natural gathering spot for people of the community to see one another. It's a happy, friendly place, and simply brings people together in a friendly way.
As Lynne
DeWilde of Suwanee says, "The market gives our community another
reason to come together at Town Center Park. It provides a means for our
community to access fresh, healthy, local food and to support local growers.
The market is another means that we strengthen the sense of community
in Suwanee." The other day we stopped at another farmers' market which is in an additional, new location this year. This is a market in Gainesville, on the city square, on Fridays from 4-7 p.m. Hall County Extension Agent Billy Skaggs says that for years Gainesville has had a state-run Farmers' Market site on Jesse Jewell Parkway near I-985, running on Tuesday and Saturday mornings, as early as 6 a.m. This year the downtown location has been a big success, with Skaggs seeing an entirely different group of eager buyers. He also points out the impact on the community: "The buyers get good, fresh produce, grown locally. They pay local farmers, who buy their materials, their seed, their fertilizer, at local stores. It's a community helping itself. And we have heard that the eateries around the market on Friday afternoon have done much better than before." So next
time you see a farmers' market, realize that customers are getting local-grown
goods, and that the gathering contributes to the overall good of the community.
Farmers' markets are much more than they seem. ABOUT
OUR SPONSORS
The public
spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you
at no cost to readers. Mathias Corporation is Duluth-based professional
construction firm with the expertise to complete virtually any project
with quality and precision. Begun in 1995, Mathias provides experience
in construction with the service and personal attention of a small firm,
each year building on a reputation for high quality and timely delivery
of projects within budget. From small commercial renovations, to very
large and complex facilities, Mathias delivers "on time-every time."
Notable recent projects include the new Duluth City Hall and the current
parking deck and facility expansion of the Gwinnett Arena. Mathias has
also just moved to its new building it constructed at 3150 Main Street
in Duluth, across from the new City Hall. Mathias provides design-build,
construction management and development assistance programs, in addition
to traditional general contracting. For more information, go to http://www.mathiascorp.com.
FEEDBACK Editor, the Forum: Great editorial ("Commission action is raising doubt about future of Gwinnett") in the latest issue. As I e-mailed Tim Eberly (the AJC reporter who broke the front page story in last Sunday's issue) and Danny Porter (Gwinnett County district attorney), by all means, let's get to the bottom of this mess. Some of the commissioners may well be exhibiting questionable behavior, but I think the relatively well-to-do land developers/speculators deserve being investigated for the "game" of routinely threatening law suits when they don't get their way on zoning issues. But there is no denying that thet sequence of moves (zoning change request denied, lawsuit threatened, county buys land it does not need at what many appraisers feel are inflated prices to obviate legal action) has become a recurring pattern. I would just like to see all the facts out in the open, and to have an official determination of whether any laws have been broken or ethical codes violated.
UPCOMING The final Symphony on the Green summer concert will star the Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in a combined pops concert on Friday, August 21 at 7 p.m. at the Duluth Amphitheatre. The free, outdoor Symphony on the Green concert series is sponsored by the City of Duluth.
This family-friendly concert will be enjoyable for all ages, featuring popular music such as themes from the Star Wars movies and Pirates of the Caribbean, as well as Saving Private Ryan's moving 'Hymn To The Fallen.' The equally stirring 'Polovetsian Dances' by Borodin and 'Jupiter' by Holst round out the program. The Atlanta Percussion Trio, an electrifying percussion group, will join the Symphony Orchestra for this thrilling performance. The Atlanta Percussion Trio has been performing for audiences for the past twenty-six years. The group is comprised of three of Atlanta's finest professional musicians, with a total of more than eight decades of music making between them. From the ancient sounds of Australia and Africa to the recycled sounds of the "kitchen samba" and the modern sounds of the steel drum and electronics, the APT covers the gamut of "sound opportunities." Led by Music Director/Conductor Robert Trocina and co-Founder/Choral Director Rick Smith, the GSO&C has been performing in the Gwinnett area for over 11 years. It is a non-profit organization and exists to bring quality classical music to Gwinnett and surrounding areas. For more information about the Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra & Chorus or the Symphony on the Green concert series, please call the New School of Music at 770-925-8900 or visit www.gwinnettsymphony.org. "Survivor Man" to speak at Aug. 20 Sierra Club meeting Have you seen "Survivor Man?" Learn from Jerry Hightower, a National Park Service ranger, how you can survive on the river by dining in the marsh or along the banks of our own Chattahoochee at the Sierra Club meeting on Thursday, August 20. The group meets at Berkmar High School at 7 p.m. with the program beginning at 7:30pm. For more information, contact Tom Morrissey at thmorrissey@bellsouth.net or call (404) 513-4069. NOTABLE The long-awaited relief road and bridge around heavy traffic at the Suwanee exit of Interstate 85 is moving along with a contract let by the Georgia Department of Transportation recently. The 2.6 mile four-lane extension of McGinnis Ferry Road from Georgia Highway 317 (the Lawrenceville to Suwanee Road) to Satellite Boulevard, including a bridge over I-85, has been awarded to E.R. Snell Contractor Inc. of Snellville for $20,406,795. The project also extends Northbrook Parkway, east of I-85, to Lawrenceville Suwanee Road, completing the four lane parallel road east of I-85 that begins as Shackleford Road at Beaver Ruin Road. The completion date of the two roads is Sept. 20, 2011. Work should begin in September on the projects. The project are part of three federal stimulus program contracts let recently in Gwinnett County. The other two projects include:
A total of 97 highway system stimulus projects - valued at a combined $258.6 million - were awarded in Georgia during ARRA Phase One implementation, which focused on those projects ready to begin construction immediately. Phase Two, which begins with the Department's August 21st letting (prospective contractors' bids opened), will pump some $500 million more into the state's economy through the remainder of 2009 while allowing Georgia DOT to continue to make important safety, maintenance and capacity infrastructure improvements. County seeks temporary collection order for 2009 taxes The dispute between Gwinnett County and its cities has caused a delay billing of county taxes. As a stop-gap measure, Gwinnett County is seeking a Temporary Collection Order (TCO). The TCO hearing will be August 11 at 1:30 p.m. in Gwinnett Superior Court. The TCO is a remedy of law for local governments that allows the billing of property taxes to occur without an approved tax digest from the State Revenue Commissioner. The State Revenue Commissioner cannot certify Gwinnett's tax digest since the county government has not set a formal millage rate. The TCO only allows the billing of 2009 taxes based on a temporary millage rate. Ultimately, the Board of Commissioners must adopt the final millage rate, and the tax digest must be approved by the State Revenue Commissioner. The millage rate contemplated in the TCO maintains the revenue neutral status previously contemplated by the Board of Commissioners, meaning taxes collected in 2009 will yield the same revenue as the County received in 2008. Once a final millage rate is set by the Board, the 2009 property taxes will be reconciled and taxpayers will receive an adjustment. RECOMMENDED
MYSTERY
"Spy novelist extraordinare John LeCarre's second-ever book, A Murder of Quality, was a mystery, yet the guy solving the case was no one less than genial George Smiley, the rotund and quiet British agent of World War II and later the Cold War. The setting is a British public (private) school, and the faculty intrigue is deep. Called in quietly to help a friend, Smiley visits the school and town seeing items that no one else notices. LeCarre's early work is superb, keeping you turning the pages of the recently-reissued 152 page book until the very end. Beautifully written, with sharp, detailed sentences, it shows that the early LeCarre was as good as he is today. And as ever, watch out for the British wit." -- eeb
GEORGIA
ENCYCLOPEDIA Philanthropist Elena Diaz-Verson Amos, a Cuban immigrant, was active in educational, philanthropic, and political causes and dedicated to increasing intercultural understanding. Her husband, John Amos, founded the American Family Life Assurance Company (Aflac) in Columbus in 1955. In 1997 the publication Hispanic Business called her the wealthiest Hispanic woman in the United States.
Amos was born in 1926 in Havana, Cuba, whose father, at one point, was chief of Cuba's national police. In 1944 she came to the United States as an exchange student at the University of Miami, where she met John Amos. The couple married and had two children, John Shelby and Maria Teresa. In 1954 the Amos family moved to Jacksonville, Fla., where John Amos, an attorney, was a partner in the Presidential Insurance Company. Shortly thereafter, he decided to start his own company, and in 1955 the Amoses moved again, to Columbus, Ga., where John Amos and his brothers founded Aflac. Throughout her husband's career, Amos was an active corporate spouse and community volunteer. She hosted many business and social gatherings at their home and served on numerous boards, including those of the Girl Scouts, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Springer Opera House, and State Botanical Garden. Amos also engaged in educational activities in Columbus, particularly those that increased knowledge about Latin America, and participated in a study group based at Columbus College (later Columbus State University). With her husband, she lobbied the U.S. Army to relocate the School of the Americas, a training center for Latin American military officers and police, to Fort Benning. In 1989 she founded the Atlanta-based Latin American Association's annual black-tie fund-raising event, Latin Fever. She was also active in the commemoration of the Christopher Columbus quincentennial in 1992, commissioning a memorial statue that stands along the Chattahoochee Riverwalk in Columbus. After her husband's death in 1990, Amos became increasingly involved in anti-Castro advocacy and humanitarian causes involving Cuba. She served as a director of the Cuban American Foundation of Miami and the Valladares Foundation, a human rights organization. In 1992 she financed the illegal flight of Major Orestes Lorenzo Perez, a Cuban exile, to Havana to rescue his wife and children. Amos died on May 3, 2000, of complications from a stroke. The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer eulogized her as "an angel to many in [the] community." CREDITS GwinnettForum is provided to you at no charge every Tuesday and Friday. If you would like to serve as an underwriter, click here to learn more. Send
your thoughts, 55-word short stories, pet peeves or comments on any issue
to Gwinnett Forum for future
publication.
© 2009, Gwinnett Forum.com. Gwinnett Forum is an online community commentary for exploring pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA. |
TODAY'S
QUOTE "Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts."
MORE RECENT COMMENTARY
MODERN HISTORY OF GWINNETT
NOW IN STORES! You can purchase the book now at several locations:
Or order directly from elliottbrack.com and get a signed copy. The book consists
of 850 pages, including more than 143 demographic and historic tables,
with more than 4,000 names in the index, and 10,000 names in the appendix. Here are some other good reads that you might want to consider reading:
FOR CHARITY. You can give "A Gift of Laughter," a great book of cartoons by Bill McLemore, to help raise money for Rainbow Village. At just $20, it's a fun way to help. To order, call 770 840 1003, or 770 446 3800, or email to info@gwinnettforum.com. SISTER PUBLICATIONS We encourage you to check out our sister publications:
© 2001-2009, Gwinnett Forum.com is Gwinnett County's online community forum for commentary that explores pragmatic and sensible social, political and economic approaches to improve life in Gwinnett County, Ga. USA. PHONE:
770.840.1003 |
|
