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Issue 12.36 | Tuesday, Aug. 14, 2012 TODAY'S FOCUS ELLIOTT
BRACK'S PERSPECTIVE FEEDBACK UPCOMING NOTABLE ALSO INSIDE IN
THE SPOTLIGHT RECOMMENDED GEORGIA
TIDBIT LAGNIAPPE GWINNETT
CALENDAR TODAY'S
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TODAY'S
FOCUS
LAWRENCEVILLE, Ga., August 14, 2012 As the plane lifted off from Atlanta's airport for Rhode Island, I thought of what we hoped to find in this very historic section of our country. It took only one and one-half hour to fly to Providence, Rhode Island from Atlanta. It was in Rhode Island that the nation's oldest lending library, the Redwood Library, could be found and also the oldest synagogue in the country, the Touro Synagogue. Not only this, but we had wondered how the rich and famous, like the Morgans, the Vanderbilts, and Dukes, made it their own summer playground. They built the most opulent and extravagant houses in the country at the turn of the 19th century in Newport. They were called their "summer cottages.
For example, the Rosecliff, built 1898-1902, by the daughter of the Irish immigrant who discovered the Comstock Silver Lode in Nevada, has 40 foot ceilings. Mark Twain, who coined the phrase, "The Gilded Age," visited these over-the-top homes. For you to see how they lived, watch the movie The Great Gatsby with Robert Redford and Mia Farrow. All of this opulence and wealth came to an abrupt end when Congress passed the first Income Tax law in 1913. Then, the very rich could no longer afford the upkeep of these homes patterned after the great palaces in Europe. Another element I was seeking was to find a two-mast schooner, like the one that carried my ancestors from Ulster, Scotland to Charlestown in 1784 . Newport is a charming city by the sea with its many ships and rich colonial history. I picked up a newspaper called The Mercury and was astonished to find that it was started by James Franklin, Benjamin Franklin's older brother, and is still being printed today, the longest continuously printed newspaper in the country! It was FREE locally, but I noticed that the mailed subscription rate was $140 per year. Go figure!
One of the other reasons we wanted to visit this historic town was to walk The Cliffs. This is a scenic trail in behind the "mansions" on the bluffs overlooking the sea for 3 1/2 miles. I was able to capture our walk and put it on YouTube. It was a wonderful walk with all the wild flowers showing their rich colors with the very blue Atlantic waters as a backdrop. We visited five of the mansions with a combination ticket and the discount coupon from our hotel for about $5 per mansion. We also drove to Mystic Seaport in Connecticut to visit the largest maritime museum in the world. Here I was able to find, then board and tour, a two-masted fishing schooner, The L.A. Duncan. Undoubtedly, it was a cargo vessel like this that brought many to freedom and a new life. Visiting the ship was close enough for me to get the feel of what my ancestors experienced. So I returned to the Peach State a happy tourist having found a two-masted schooner, and thus completing this part of my family history.
ELLIOTT
BRACK AUG. 14, 2012 Place is important to many of us. For instance, Ive always wondered just exactly where is the ridge where the West commences, (from the song Dont Fence Me In). Best I can figure is this ridge is some north-south crest maybe in Missouri, Iowa, Kansas or Oklahoma where once you top the hill, you can see for perhaps 100 miles, mostly of the plains. In the great distance, you might could see even higher land, all with no trees. We suspect there are cowboys are out there somewhere.
Perhaps someone reading this will know specifically, in their estimation, where the West commences. If so, please let us know. We would not mind going there and seeing for ourselves. And if that area of the country is not promoting itself as the gateway to the West, their Chamber of Commerce should be. I know of at least one tourist who would pay to go there. However, far more important a Place for me is the north-south divide in Georgia, particularly the Fall Line. In Georgia, most people put the Fall Line as basically zig-zagging from Columbus to Macon to Augusta, a line above which the rivers become mostly non-navigable. To me, the Fall Line was more south and east of Macon. And it had special meaning for me, particularly since I was born just about right on top of what I consider the Fall Line. For it was what is now Georgia Highway 112, east of Allentown, Ga., in Wilkinson County, the place I was born. Being specific, it was about a mile and half to two miles on this road, east of Turkey Creek. Heres why I have always thought of it as the Fall Line: to a young persons concept of the topography of that area, it seemed to me as if everything south of Georgia Highway 112 was flat, sandy soil (the Coastal Plain) and great for row crops. Everything north of that same road was hilly, red clay and difficult to plow, essentially the Georgia Piedmont. It is far better for grazing cattle than trying to break the ground and raising any crop in the mostly red-clay soil.. This dividing line was, to me, a sharp deviation in the lay of the land, north to south, similar to that ridge where the West commences. It puts my mind at ease about matters in general. Yes, though I seldom get back to this place, it is from where my Brack family is descended. (My mothers family, Collins, was centered about 10 miles north in the red clay area). We get back now to these places mostly for funerals or family gatherings. And Ill spend my last road trip when a hearse takes me back to be planted in the cemetery at Walnut Creek Baptist Church. Its about another two miles east from my birthplace on Georgia Highway 112. Weve already got a plot in the cemetery waiting for us. Since the church is on the north side of the highway, Ill be buried in the red clay soil of the Piedmont of Middle Georgia. Had it been on the other side of the road, to me that means I would have been in the sandy soil of the Coastal Plain. With modern backhoes, the grave diggers wont have much difficulty in opening up the soil in the place they will be putting me. ABOUT
OUR SPONSORS
FEEDBACK Editor, the Forum: My topic
is immigration. The issue has become a hot button topic that is widely
abused by most politicians lacking real or accurate information.
Treaties
were used and broken over and over through the migration west of the European
descendants and new immigrants throughout the so called "manifest
destiny" of the U.S. government. Even recently, the Oglala
Lakota tribe of the Dakotas successfully sued in court to gain their lands
back. The court decided to award a financial settlement, which the
tribe has refused to accept stating the desired return of their lands
as defined by the first treaty the government entered into with them in
the mid 1800s. In the first year of its passing, crops literally rotted on the vine because of a lack of labor willing to be paid piece work for their efforts. Those who did try to take agricultural jobs quit after just a few days. Most did not last the first day, while a few did make it a week or so. Workers are paid by the number of "pieces" they pick or gather which rarely equates to minimum wage. The pay rate works out far below minimum wage, if you cannot pick enough vegetables or gather enough chickens in a hen house fast enough to make a meager living. It is also fair to question the legality of states passing laws that impact or change Federal jurisdiction and policies such as immigration.
The continuing problem of throwing trash out of the highway Editor, the Forum: Years ago, my son was working for Athens/Clarke County, and observed kids in an recreational vehicle just ahead of him toss a big drink container out the window. They were stopped at a light. My son, Anthony, got out, picked up the drink container, threw it back into the RV and told the kids "Don't do this in my city. I'd love to see more actions like this.
UPCOMING Gwinnetts
2012 property tax bills will be mailed to Gwinnett County taxpayers by
August 15. All bills will have a single-installment due date of October
15.
For property
owners with an escrow account, tax information will be made available
to the mortgage company; however, it is ultimately the responsibility
of the property owner to ensure taxes are paid by the due date. If there
are questions about who will pay the taxes, homeowners should contact
their mortgage company directly, especially if their mortgage company
has recently changed. Registration deadline approaching for Suwanee Day Classic Registration is now available for the annual Suwanee Day 5K and 10K Classic, to be run Saturday, September 8. Participants also may choose to take part in a non-competitive 25-mile bike ride or 1K kids' fun run. Hosted by BodyPlex, all Suwanee Day Classic activities will begin and end at Town Center Park.
The fee for the 5K/10K or bike ride/10K combo is $40. The 5K
race route takes participants through historic Old Town, while the 10K
route is along the Suwanee Creek Greenway. Pre-registered runners/riders
may pick up race packets the morning of the event or at the Runners Expo
from 4:30-8 p.m. Friday, September, 7 at Suwanee City Hall, 330 Town Center
Avenue. Late registrations will be accepted at the Runners Expo and on
race day beginning at 6:30 a.m. Participants are encouraged to wear pink
on race day in honor of those who have been touched by breast cancer.
This year's events will benefit The Second Basemen organization. NOTABLE Gwinnett Tech's Respiratory Care program recently received the Distinguished Registered Respiratory Therapist Credentialing Success Award, one of only 32 programs in the nation to earn this designation.
Bob DeLorme, program director of the Respiratory Care program, says: We are so pleased to have earned this benchmark, and believe it reflects the excellence of our program. Were committed to providing exemplary respiratory care education and training. I'm proud of each of our student's accomplishments and I know they are well-prepared as graduates to provide outstanding care to their patients. Gwinnett
Techs Respiratory Care program prepares graduates to obtain jobs
as respiratory therapists, who care for and assist patients that struggle
with breathing difficulties. Classes focus on the areas of pulmonary and
cardiac pharmacology, advanced critical care monitoring, mechanical ventilation,
pulmonary function testing, neonatal pediatric respiratory care and more.
GTC offers an associate degree in Respiratory Care and a certificate as
a Polysomnography Technician. Bakers are parents to 100,000th birth at Gwinnett Med Center Gwinnett
Medical Center (GMC) recently announced the 100,000th baby has been delivered
at the Womens Pavilion located in Lawrenceville. GMCs Womens
Pavilion first opened its doors in April 1991 and each year since, has
averaged approximately 5,000 births. The Womens Pavilion was developed to address the evolving needs of women over their lifetime, including advanced mammography and imaging services and extensive classes and education outlets for every stage of pregnancy. GMCs Level III neonatal intensive care unit, also housed in the Womens Pavilion, is staffed by specialists and staff members. Suwanee again cited for superior performance management
Jurisdictions meeting the qualifications have demonstrated leadership in continuous improvement and community engagement, and they serve as examples for other governments to follow, says Wayne Sommer, acting director of the Center for Performance Measurement. In order to earn a Certificate of Distinction, jurisdictions must:
According to ICMA, the certificate program assesses a local governments performance management program and encourages analysis of results by comparing to peers and gauging performance over time. Performance management aids in cost reduction, program prioritization, and quality improvement while encouraging accountability and transparency. RECOMMENDED
GEORGIA
ENCYCLOPEDIA Georgia's caves host many troglobitic organisms (those living only in caves) and troglophilic organisms (those capable of living entirely in caves). These include various flatworms, isopods, amphipods, pseudoscorpions, crayfishes, spiders, millipeds, springtails, cave crickets, flies, beetles, fishes, and salamanders.
Georgia's
caves are also home to many of the state's 16 bat species. Bats use caves
as hibernation Caves and their wildlife enjoy some legal protection in Georgia, although implementation is largely at the discretion of landowners. The Cave Protection Act of 1977 makes breakage, burning, defacement, or destruction of a cave surface, artifact, or speleothem (cave formations, such as stalactites) without consent of the cave owner a misdemeanor in Georgia. The sale or export of a speleothem without consent of the cave owner is likewise a misdemeanor. Storing or dumping hazardous chemicals, garbage, or animal remains in a cave is a misdemeanor, as is killing, disturbing, or removing wildlife from a cave. Because landowners determine the fate of caves under this law, caves can be stripped or even completely destroyed by quarrying at the discretion of the owner of the land or the owner of the mineral rights to that land.
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TODAY'S QUOTE "Aim above morality. Be not simply good, be good for something."
RUNOFF:
AUGUST 21 You can read their
answers below by clicking on the links. Candidates with no primary opposition
are not listed. Those with opposition in the General Election will be
asked questions, which we'll publish before the November election. PROFILE
KEY
2012 COUNTY CANDIDATES Gwinnett County Commission, District 3
NON-PARTISAN JUDGESHIPS Superior Court State Court MORE COPIES AVAILABLE
You can also order
books through the Internet. To do that, go to www.elliottbrack.com
to place your order. For mail orders, there is a $5 shipping and handling
fee. Purchases are also subject to the 6 percent Georgia sales tax. SEARCH GWINNETT FORUM Loading
IN THE COMING WEEK Business After Hours of the Buford Business Alliance: 5:30 p.m., Aug. 14, Ivy Springs Manor, 3177 Gravel Springs Road in Buford. (NEW) Brian Gregory, Georgia Tech basketball coach, will speak noon Aug. 16 at the Rotary Club of South Gwinnett. Meetings are held at Northwood Country Club, 3156 Club Drive. (NEW) Second Annual Chili Cook-Off, downtown Duluth: 6 p.m. 7o 9 p.m., Aug. 16, Town Green, 3142 Hill Street. Come taste what council members cook, cast your vote for whos best, and hear live bluegrass music by Smokeys Farmland Band. There will also be family-friendly games, including tug of war, sack races and other activities .plus trivia. Councilman Billy Jones is defending champion. MORE EEB PERSPECTIVE
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