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Issue 10.10 | Tuesday, May 4, 2010 |
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TODAY'S FOCUS DULUTH,
Ga., May 4, 2010 -- The entry deadline for The Hudgens Prize visual arts
competition and juried show is just one month away, on Friday, June 4.
The competition offers one of the largest art awards in the nation, $50,000,
and is open to Georgia residents only.
The
Juror Panel for the competition consists of 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 exhibitions and public programs at the New Museum in New York. EEB PERSPECTIVE MAY 4, 2010 -- A loyalty oath may be the factor on which the 2010 General Election in Georgia turns. That's one way to look at the Republican Party refusing the candidacy of Ray Boyd, who was seeking the GOP nomination to run for governor. The party's rejection of the Boyd candidacy could give the governor's seat in the 2010 election to the Democratic Party.
Granted, that's far-fetched, and several factors would have to be aligned to see it happen. State laws allows political parties to require candidates sign an oath of allegiance to the party, The Republicans like the idea, and require it for all candidates. But Ray Boyd of Madison County balked at the oath, and Republicans would not allow him to be a candidate for governor. Democrats, meanwhile, have had their own problems with loyalty oaths in earlier years, and now do not require it of their candidates. Charles Weltner, a sitting Congressman in 1966, had first signed such an oath, but when he found that Lester Maddox would be his party's nominee for governor, he withdrew from the race for re-election on principle, rather than ignore the oath and appear to support segregation. Later, Democrats, realizing the problems with such oaths, scuttled the idea. What makes the candidacy of Ray Boyd so important for the Republican Party is that Boyd, a virtual political unknown, had put up $2 million of his money to run for governor. Now that the Republicans won't allow him to run, Mr. Boyd may try to launch an independent bid for governor, which is no easy task. He must collect more than 51,000 signatures from registered voters by July 13 to win a place on the ballot as an Independent in November. While difficult, with a $2 million war chest, it's possible.
Interestingly, had the GOP accepted Mr. Boyd as a candidate, he would not have had the notoriety that he now has as an Independent. He may have been less a threat to the Republican Party as one of their own than he is as an Independent candidate. Let's suppose that Mr. Boyd gets enough signatures to be an independent candidate. The thinking is that with his independent and conservative views, he would win votes of conservative Republicans, thereby hurting the Republican nominee. Boyd's very candidacy as an Independent could hurt the Republican nominee so much that it would allow the Democratic nominee a virtual pathway to election. What is so unusual about such a scenario is that it would come at a time when you would think the Republican Party would be their strongest. After all, they have had a sitting governor for two terms, and have control of both the Georgia House and Senate. The GOP also has a majority among Georgia Congressional members, and holds both Senate seats. They ought to be celebrating their zenith as a party in Georgia. Yet this effort of Mr. Boyd could really upset the Republican applecart. Should he run strong, he might get enough votes to knock the Republican nominee out of the runoff for governor. The best hope for Republicans, and Democrats too, is that their nominee would get enough votes in the General Election to win the race without a runoff. With Mr. Boyd in the race, that is not likely for Republicans. If Mr. Boyd cuts strongly into the Republican nominee, it could be that Mr. Boyd and the Democratic nominee would end up in a run-off. In this scenario, if Mr. Boyd got strong runoff GOP support against the Democratic nominee, this unknown could be Georgia' next governor. Ah, the twists and turns of the political scene. No telling what blockbuster will fall next! ABOUT OUR SPONSORS
The public spiritedness of our underwriter allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today's spotlighted underwriter is Brand Banking Company, headquartered in Lawrenceville, where it has three offices, with additional branches in Snellville, Grayson, Buford, Duluth and Flowery Branch. It is the largest privately held bank in Gwinnett, with assets of $1,250,000,000. The bank's main office is in Lawrenceville on the Historic Courthouse Square, plus there is another branch on Hurricane Shoals Road. Member, FDIC and Federal Reserve System. For more information, go to http://www.thebrandbank.com.
FEEDBACK
UPCOMING The Southeastern Railway Museum in Duluth is marking the third annual National Train Day by offering free caboose train rides with admission to the museum. The event will be Saturday, May 8, from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. National Train Day celebrates America's love for trains with events around the country. This year, National Train Day marks 141 years of travelers connecting coast to coast by rail. For more information on National Train Day visit http://www.nationaltrainday.com. The Southeastern Railway Museum has been in operation since 1970 and is "Georgia's Official Transportation History Museum". The museum has over 80 other pieces of retired railway rolling stock. The museum is located at 3595 Buford Highway in Duluth.
Hamilton Mill Library to mark grand opening on Saturday Gwinnett County's newest library, the Hamilton Mill Branch, will have its grand opening on Saturday, May 8. Ceremonies begin at 1 p.m. with the ribbon cutting and welcoming ceremonies. This is an inside view of a reading area. The library is located at 3790 Braselton Highway in the Hamilton Mill area. Gwinnett Symphony plans spring concert Monday The Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and Chorus will present its next concert on Monday, May 10, at 7 p.m. At the Gwinnett Performing Arts Center. The Symphony is under the direction of Conductor Robert Trocina and Chorus is directed by Rick Smith. The program will be composed of Mozart's Requiem Mass, K. 626; Piano Concerto No. 23, K. 488, featuring GSO Rising Star Concerto Competition Winners; and Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C minor, Op. 67. Tickets are $15 and $22, and are available from Ticketmaster or at the Gwinnett Center Box Office in person (open Monday until Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.). The Gwinnett Symphony Orchestra and Chorus is comprised of talented adult and youth musicians, and has been providing outstanding educational performances of classical and popular music for the diverse metro Atlanta community for over 11 years. Ghost Tours back for another year in Lawrenceville Lawrenceville's Ghost Tours returned to the historic square for a sixth year last weekend. The Ghost Tour highlights the most vivid stories of the strange and supernatural as a costumed guide will lead ghost tour groups on a 90-minute adventure through Downtown Lawrenceville. Those on the tour will see the old jail, show where the corpses flew down Honest Alley and hear chilling tales that will send a shiver down your spine. Tours will run every Friday and Saturday night at 8:30 through September with an expanded Halloween schedule that will include tours every night in October. Groups pricing is available for reunions, Scout troop and, other groups including neighborhood associations. Dress appropriately for the weather and wear comfortable shoes, as this is a walking tour that begins and ends at the Aurora Theatre, 128 Pike Street. Ticket prices are $12 for adults and $9 for children. NOTABLE Dacula is at work planning its 17th annual Memorial Day Parade. This year the theme will be "Respect, Honor and Remember." The parade begins at 10 a.m. on May 31 and in the past continued for about an hour and a half. Vendors will be present for a day-long festival that starts at 9 a.m. Grand marshals for the 2010 parade will be Waves (Women Appointed for Volunteer Emergency Service) of World War II. Already three WAVES, from the Metro Atlanta area, have agreed to be in the parade and serve as grand marshal. They are Kathleen Edison, USMC; Marie Lawrence, USN; and Leah Vaughn, USN. The parade is dedicated to all veterans of wars, says Marvin Atherton, who had a vision back in 1993 to have a parade in Dacula. The parade forms at Hebron Baptist Church, proceeds down Dacula Road, turns right on Second Avenue, and comes through town and ends at Dacula High. Among the bands confirmed are the Georgia State Defense Force Band and Dacula High School band. Other activities during the day will include a one mile fun run which starts at 8 a.m., and a 5K run which starts at 8:30 a.m. Entry fee for the one mile or 5K is $15 per runner if sent in before May 19, and $20 the day of the race. Entry forms are available at www.daculamemorialday.com. Engage Gwinnett brings recommendations to county After six
months of study and debate, the 42-member Engage Gwinnett citizens committee
presented its final recommendations to the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners
on April 27. The committee delivered the report with two sets of recommendations.
First,
73 "status quo" recommendations that economic conditions will
remain pretty much the same in the next few years and further reductions
in Gwinnett County government services or increases in revenues will not
be needed. Many of these recommendations are detailed and indicate ways
of improving service delivery while reducing costs. These are things the
County should do simply because they make good sense. Engage Gwinnett began its work last year with the charge of answering basic questions about Gwinnett County government and the services it provides. The final report is available online at www.engagegwinnett.com. RECOMMENDED
"Reading prior to dinner in the New York Times a review of a nearby Atlanta restaurant, a quick decision was made, and we visited Crawfish Shack Seafood at 4337 Buford Highway, near Peachtree DeKalb Airport. The chef is an Atlanta native, born of Vietnamese parents, who with his wife says "seafood is our only business." The food is fresh...and we found out, really tasty, and most reasonable in price. I had the crawfish ($5.99 for pound, served with two sides), and my wife had the shrimp po' boy ($8.99.) Both were delicious. Next time my choice will be fried shrimp ($6.99), which gets good reviews."
GEORGIA ENCYCLOPEDIA
(Continued from previous edition) In the 1980s, Georgia's chicken processors turned to a new source of labor: migrants from Latin America. During the 1990s the Latino population of Georgia increased by 300 percent. In the same period Hall County's Latino population grew by nearly 500 percent.
By the opening of the new millennium, the overwhelming majority of production workers in Georgia's processing plants were immigrants from Latin America, mainly from Mexico. To integrators, these workers appeared to provide a more stable, reliable work force, and turnover rates dropped. For immigrant workers, poultry plants provided unheard-of high wages and benefits. From its humble barnyard beginnings the Georgia poultry industry has grown immensely. The industry directly employs more than 47,000 Georgians. Another 77,000 state residents work indirectly for the industry---at the University of Georgia, the Georgia Institute of Technology, pharmaceutical companies, equipment suppliers, and county agricultural extension offices. Because of its global reach the Georgia poultry industry is intimately tied to the world economy and international politics. The Russian ban on chicken imports in March 2002 hit Georgians hard. Suspicions of ties to "international terrorism" led federal investigators to a Gainesville poultry plant. In 2001, in an attempted unionization bid, nearly a quarter of the largely immigrant Guatemalan production workers at Gold Kist in Ellijay voted for a union. Whether these events represent a foretaste of future trends or are only incidental growing pains remains to be seen. 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
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TODAY'S QUOTE "The unmulched garden looks to me like some naked thing which for one reason or another would be better off with a few clothes on."
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