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Ann Coulter makes her think, "Must be a different Jesus"
By Vally M. Sharpe
Special to GwinnettForum.com

TUCKER, Ga., Oct. 19, 2007 -- There Ann Coulter goes again. All liberals are Godless, John Edwards is a "faggot," the families of 9/11 casualties are opportunists, and now Jews need "perfecting."

I've been a Christian for a long time. Even at age seven, I thought Jesus was a pretty cool guy. Still do. At least the one I know. I was the Southeastern Baptist Bible Drill champion of 1971. Along with a local pastor and a group of my friends, I organized a daily prayer group that met before class in the library of my high school . We even had our picture in the yearbook that year. While in college, I sang in a group every other weekend in churches all over Georgia. And I read the Bible several times, particularly the "New" Testament, because I was Christian, and for the record, that's where He comes into the picture.

I remember, as a kid, when we sang Just As I Am and The Old Rugged Cross and Jesus Loves the Little Children (you know, "red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in his sight"). I was confused when I heard someone say, "As long as I'm here, no [black person] or hippie will darken the door of this church." "Hmmm," I thought, "Must be a different Jesus."

When we started the group at school, we half expected the police to show up and take us to jail. Jesus said, "Where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." That's what prayer in school meant to me, not school assemblies or invocations at football games. Again, I was confused. "Hmmm," I thought, "Must be a different Jesus."

When the elders of a church cancelled the appearance of our group when they learned there was a young black woman among us, I remembered the parable of the "Good Samaritan," where "neighbor" had nothing to do with skin color or nationality or religion. Under duress, that girl left the group, and I was confused again. I thought, "Must be a different Jesus."

In 1996, a friend of my sister's told her that a "true Christian" wouldn't vote for Bill Clinton because of the Monica Lewinsky thing. I heard Jesus saying, "Who among you is without sin, cast the first stone," and I was confused. "Must be a different Jesus," I thought.

Now we've been at war in Iraq for four years and counting. Some think it was our "Christian" duty. Yet when Pilate asked Jesus if he was the King of the Jews, Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my disciples would have fought." And they didn't. It may have been our American duty to topple Saddam, but given what Jesus said about loving our enemies, I still doubt attacking Iraq was what He had in mind.

And now there's Ann Coulter, who calls herself Christian while burning at the stake the reputations of any who would dare to remind us that God is love, and the decision to seek heaven or hell is a personal choice, not a political one.

My Jesus said, "Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye."

Wayne Shackelford Interchange honors key Gwinnett citizen
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
GwinnettForum.com

OCT. 19, 2007 -- Wayne Shackelford ought to be proud of the new Interstate 85-Georgia Highway 316 interchange named in his honor this week by the Department of Transportation. It's a stunning display of engineering, has a touch that is both functional and beautiful in design, and could also help save lives at this busy intersection. At one point, it is 22 lanes wide.

The DOT Board named the intersection for the former DOT commissioner in a ceremony at the 1818 Club on Thursday. Wayne was there, along with his wife, Anna, two children, Larry and Carolyn, and one grandson, Matthew, to accept the honor.

Shackelford said: "I am humbled and overwhelmed" at getting the distinction. As usual, he deflected the accolades, saying that "We stand on the shoulders of those who preceded us to make the progress we have in this county and in the state."

The new intersection bridges, after more than two years of construction, will begin to gain traffic on Saturday, and ought to eliminate many of the traffic snarls that have been part of the westbound highway commute for years, and especially during the two years of construction.

Sometimes Saturday the DOT will remove the barriers and allow westbound traffic on Highway 316 to "fly over" Interstate 85 on two bridges. One bridge allows motorists to merge in a safer traffic lanes from the right lanes of I-85. Meanwhile, westbound 316 traffic heading for Pleasant Hill Road will find an individual bridge for that lane of traffic which will keep them out of the Interstate 85 traffic altogether. There will be no more westbound 316 traffic having to enter the busy interstate from the left, and those headed for Pleasant Hill Road to have to shift to the right over all the lanes of the interstate. You can almost hear motorists signing, "Whew!"

The entire $147 million project will not be finished for another year, but the major improvement will be complete. Work will begin now on keeping traffic headed north from Pleasant Hill Road out of the Interstate 85 traffic until after the intersection. That in itself has been a traffic hazard, and will be eliminated when the entire project is finished three months ahead of schedule in the fall of 2008.

Media were invited to the bridge Wednesday morning. Guided past the barrels, a few members of the media parked on the yet-unopened bridge to check progress. We saw workers putting finishing touches, such as painting and sealing expandable joints in the concrete, on the bridge. At the highest point, the main bridge is 70 feet above I-85 traffic, and measures 1,161 feet long. More than 100 concrete beams, some 132 feet long, were used. Meanwhile, the bridge for the Pleasant Hill lanes is 49 feet above traffic, and measures 2,602 feet in length -- a half mile.

Altogether the project consists of 13 individual bridges, including three new bridges, with 10 bridges being re-constructed.

Wednesday about 9:50, we asked the DOT's Crystal Paulk-Buchanan of Atlanta how to get off the bridge, thinking we would have to turn around and maneuver into facing traffic on the east side of the bridge. "Just drive straight ahead and merge into I-85, around the barrels. You will be among the first, if not the first, from outside DOT to use the bridge." The DOT's Josh Cofer of Flowery Branch, a Gwinnett Tech graduate who oversaw construction of the bridges, suggested: "But stay within the lane lines, for that is fresh paint and some lines may not be dry yet."

Like a kid with a coloring book, we kept within our lines, and were pleased at the ease, even with barrels still up, of merging into I-85 from the right. You'll feel it too when you drive on the bridges any time after about noon Saturday.

The Shackelford Interchange is a great improvement for motorists, and a singular honor for the former DOT commissioner, Gwinnett's own Wayne Shackelford.

The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today's sponsor are Hayes Family Dealerships, offering Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep, Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac, GMC and Cadillac vehicles. Mike, Terry, Tim and Ted Hayes with Robin Haynes of Baldwin and Stan Roberts of Toccoa invite you into their showrooms to look over their line-up of automobiles and trucks. Hayes has been in the automotive business for over 35 years, and is North Georgia's oldest family-owned dealership. The family is the winner of the 2002 Georgia Family Business of the Year Award.. Check their web sites at: www.hayeschrysler.com or www.hayeschevrolet.com or www.hayesgmcars.com.

Thanks for your recent piece about water conservation. Let me mention another small step. When possible, during some of the day's multiple hand-washing, instead of using the sink water and soap, use the waterless hand sanitizers (Purell and so forth).

You can keep one unit at work in the restrooms and one at home by each sink. Just think how much less water would be used if everyone did this in Gwinnett County!

I got an email the other day that caused me to pause. This friend was coming out of the doctor's office Monday morning in Sandestin.......waiting outside for a ride to his home, he assumed, was a very clean cut black man.........50's he guessed.............in a wheel chair, legs gone around his crotch, left arm gone at his shoulder, only had right arm and hand remaining............had been in the dialysis center.

My friend got to thinking about the old adage, "We think we have it tough, but always someone out there in worse shape than we are"......and wondered, what happens if he loses his right arm and hand?

As he pulled away, he looked back at him sitting there and wondered how the rest of the day might go for this gentleman.....and he has thought about him several times since then.

I have always wondered why the Three Stooges are popular with men, but seldom with women. Also, comedian Rodney Dangerfield seems not to be popular with women. Maybe women are more serious minded?

Perhaps your readers have an idea on this. Maybe a psychology professional would have an idea on this. I used to work with one lady about 15 years back who liked the Stooges and Rodney and I told her it was unusual to find a female who liked them.

There is a good story on the Internet about Moe Howard of the Stooges and a young fan from Dallas, Texas who finally got to meet him in 1973. Just search "My pal Moe" and the article will come up. It is a nice story with photos of Moe at his house. Moe invited the young fan to his house in California after corresponding with him by mail, exchanging letters written by hand with the young man, reproduced on the site.

Work by Gwinnett photographer on display at Callanwolde

"The Human Pulse" is a photographic show on display through October 26 at the Callanwolde Fine Arts Center in Atlanta. It is the work of John Elliott of Gwinnett. The images are an "enlightening insight into the human experience, even at a distance, so close." Admission is free. Callanwolde is located at 980 Briarcliff Road in Atlanta, with viewing from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Saturday. For more information call Callanwolde at 404.872.5338 or see the website at www.callanwolde.org.

On Saturday, October 27, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation will bring the past to the present by sponsoring FarmFest at McDaniel Farm Park. The day will include a variety of events designed to show what farm life was like in the early 1900s. Blacksmiths, quilters, wool spinners, hayrides, farm tours, and a bluegrass band will be on hand to help visitors experience the day-to-day life of a farmer in the 1930s. Live animals, including an exhibit of the native snakes of Georgia, will also be a part of the day's festivities. "Admission to FarmFest is $3 per person. Those under the age of 3 are free. Visitors should enter the farm from the McDaniel Road entrance off of Georgia Highway 120 west of Interstate 85. For more information call 770-814-4920.

The eight annual Buford ACE Classic Cruise-in and Auto Show will be held on Saturday, November 3, beginning at 10 a.m. and continuing until 2 p.m. The show is at S&S Ace Hardware, on Georgia Highway 20 in Buford.

Autos on display will include vintage and modified cars, street rods, classic vehicles, muscle cars, motorcycles, and rare rides of many kind.

The show will benefit the North Gwinnett Food Bank Co-op. For more information, contact John Vanek, at 770 932 1458, or email at jvanek@ssacehardware.com.

Gwinnett County can move forward with a pipeline to return reclaimed water to Lake Lanier. The Board of Commissioners this week accepted an easement from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Mobile, Ala., which will allow the County to build a pipeline to and into the lake from the F. Wayne Hill Water Resources Center.

Commission Chairman Charles Bannister says: "When I came into office, the permit for the discharge into Lake Lanier was at an impasse with the Lake Lanier Association and the other petitioners and Gwinnett County. State Rep. John Heard and I were able to work out a compromise that allowed this important project to move forward without additional litigation. Now we can move forward with bidding and constructing the pipeline."

Construction will proceed in two contracts and will take about two years to build. Gwinnett County should be returning reclaimed water to Lake Lanier in late 2009 or early 2010.

One new park and expansion of another came out of the Gwinnett Commission meeting this week. The county approved buying 56 acres for a new park in the Lilburn area and expanding South Gwinnett Park near Snellville by nine acres.

The new Bryson Park is named for the family selling the land on U.S. 29 near Lilburn. The County is combining this land tract with another 11 acres to create a 67-acre active community park. The comprehensive master plan for parks and recreation identifies a need especially for soccer facilities in the area.

The public will be invited to participate in creating a master plan for the park next year, according to District 2 Commissioner Bert Nasuti. "The parks and recreation comprehensive master plan confirmed that this area of the county has a high need for park land," said Nasuti.

South Gwinnett Park on McGee Road in the Snellville area was acquired by the county in 2006. The expansion of the park comes through a land exchange. "By approving this exchange, we are enlarging the park to 32 acres and bolstering our support of youth sports programs in the Snellville area," said District 3 Commissioner Mike Beaudreau. "Best of all, this is being done at no cost to the taxpayers."

A new library branch for the Hamilton Mill area moved a step closer Tuesday when the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners awarded a nearly $400,000 design and construction administration contract to Precision Planning, Inc., funded partially by SPLOST at a $5 million cost.

The facility will house up to 75,000 books, audiovisual materials and other items for circulation. It will include reading and quiet study areas, adult, teen and children's collections, and information and circulation desks plus employee offices and work areas.

Gwinnett's 15th full-service branch library will be built at the intersection of Braselton Highway (Georgia Highway 124) and Pine Road, sharing an entrance with the new Duncan Creek Park that is slated to open next spring. Library construction should begin late next year with expected completion about a year later.

The design is expected to meet LEED energy-efficiency standards and will include an Art-In-Architecture feature where an artist's input to an element of the building will incorporate an artistic vision implemented in construction.

Snellville Parks and Recreation Department has been honored by the Georgia recreation and Parks Association as the Class C agency of the year. The award came during a meeting in Gainesville recently. From left are Police chief Roy Whitehead; Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer; City Manager Jim Brooks; Parks Director Cyndee Bonacci; Program Supervisor Kathi Cotfelter; and Councilman Robert Jenkins.

Located in Pooler, just minutes from downtown Savannah on Interstate 95, the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum is a nationally significant military history museum that documents the role of the Eighth Air Force in the defeat of Nazi Germany.

The Eighth Air Force was organized in Savannah on January 28, 1942. The largest force of its kind at the time, the Mighty Eighth comprised 48 bomber groups, 21 fighter groups, and three photo reconnaissance groups. Later in 1942 the Eighth's headquarters, as part of the U.S. Army Air Forces (USAAF), moved to England, where its base of operations remained until the war's end in 1945. The mission of the Eighth Air Force was the heavy bombardment of strategic and military targets in Nazi-occupied Europe and Germany. The Eighth benefited from such outstanding generals as Carl Spaatz, Ira Eaker, and Jimmy Doolittle and at its peak numbered 200,000 officers and enlisted personnel.

The Eighth flew its first bombing mission over Germany in the summer of 1942. By August of that year, the Eighth had begun to operate with Boeing B-17 Flying Fortresses and later supplemented its strategic arm with Consolidated B-24 Liberators. Fighters also operated as part of the Eighth.

Flying a lumbering bomber was no easy task either; brute strength often was needed to move the control column and rudder pedals, especially when an engine went out. Flying in close formation through low-visibility weather conditions made midair collision a constant hazard, particularly over England. Though B-17s and B-24s routinely operated above 20,000 feet, where temperatures plunged below zero, their cabins lacked heating and pressurization. Flight crews did wear electrically heated suits, but these frequently malfunctioned.

Because the attrition rate for bomber crews was so high, the odds that a flight crew would complete the twenty-five-mission requirement in 1943 were very slim. The museum is a testimonial to that heroism and an important collection that documents the service history and stories of Americans who made up "the last great generation."

"A good novel tells us the truth about its hero; but a bad novel tells us the truth about its author."

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