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Global fear-mongering wasted; get on
with real innovations!
By
Roger Hagen
Special to GwinnettForum.com
LILBURN, Ga., Jan. 25, 2008 -- I read Buck
Lindsey's piece in the January 11 Forum. I see and feel his
lament, though I have only been a resident Gwinnettian for six years.
When I drive by an old farm off Five Forks Trickum Road north of
Killian Hill, which has lain bare and open for months now, the red
clay looks like a scar on the earth. There are other old, now unused,
farms around Gwinnett---evidence of a rural past.
For the past 30 years I have listened to this group and that group
pontificate about the ills or the myths of pollution and climate
change and man's impact on the environment. We live in scary times
yes, but we have always done so.
The archaeological records of civilizations which have fallen are
many. Yet here we are, another relatively new civilization. We have
only survived this long as a species by cooperation. We have survived
because we come together to be one group---"human"---to
become our brother's keepers in times of need and hardship.
Our society lives by a set of laws whose basic premise of right
and wrong were based upon not harming others, or ourselves. Today
our laws allow for predatory lending and organized deception. It
is legal, not right of course, to deceive someone with a verbal
promise and hand them a written one of a different nature. Did you
agree to this? It will take courage to stand up and remind those
around us that we already have the things we need to make the changes
necessary to continue to survive and more. It is going to take courage
in the face of fear to remind people that we can return to doing
the right thing and stop masking lies and wrong with "legal."
We can now mass produce electric cars that operate like all cars
but give off no emissions. General Motors has already done this
by legal mandate from 1996 to 2006 in California. We could build
solar and wind powered seawater desalinization plants for coastal
cities, and high speed rail systems between major cities. We can
create mass transit systems that are effective in moving people
around cities without becoming crime magnets while being easily
accessible. Other people have already done this, here and elsewhere.
Gwinnett County is recycling waste water into drinking water already!
We cannot do this based upon the economy we currently have. This
economy is based upon the increasing of profit margins for shareholders
by any means necessary. Most of us have retirement funds investing
in our own demise. We can create a sound and local US economy based
on real sustainable growth which does not harm the environment.
We merely have to change the way in which we think.
Times are scary yes, but they are different too. Success requires
innovative thinking for different solutions to our problems. Our
problems are not new; they are the same as they have ever been.
How best to survive in an ever changing environment while making
sure the least of us can come along for this journey called Life?
Those who choose to give up, cannot hope to succeed.
* * * * *
Editor's Note: Thanks, Roger, for that breathe
of fresh air. We need more like you to encourage those with the
talents to make our earth more liveable. -eeb)
With little fanfare, Gwinnett medical college
growing quickly
By
Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher
JAN. 25, 2008 -- Quietly, almost unnoticed, Gwinnett has been growing
a private medical teaching college, with little fanfare, and no
governmental financing. It's an amazing story, as the Philadelphia
College of Osteopathic Medicine opened in August 2005, on a 19 acre
campus in Suwanee on Old Peachtree Road.
Brack |
That means that in June 2009, it will graduate its first class
of doctors of osteopathy, producing more doctors for an area of
the country, the South, where there is a shortage of trained physicians.
Now this week comes another announcement from the College Board
of Trustees, that the College will open a School of Pharmacy at
the Suwanee campus. The first class of 75 pharmacy students will
begin in August 2010, and the class size will grow by 15 students
each year until in six years, there will be 150 students of pharmacy
in each class thereafter.
The Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine is a 109 year
old college that has more 1,700 graduate students on its Pennsylvania
campus. The College saw the need for more doctors in the Southeast,
and once the College announced it would be opening in Suwanee, 1,682
applications poured in for the 86 slots in the first class.
Since that first announcement, the College has taken other expansion
steps, including beginning a graduate program offering a one year
certificate or two year master's degree in biomedical sciences.
That brought 51 more students to its campus.
In December 2007, Brenau University of Gainesville approved a Physician's
Assistant joint degree with PCOM. That first class is to begin in
August 2008, and is expected to have 75 students in this specialty.
Within six years, this program should have 150 students in each
class also. These students will be in a five year college program
and earn a M.S. in Physican Assistant Studies from PCOM and a B.S.
degree in biology from Brenau.
 At
the start of the 2007-08 school year, the Georgia campus of PCOM
had 340 full time students on its Suwanee campus. By 2016, when
this new Pharmacy program will begin and other programs expanded,
it will have more than 1,000 graduate students enrolled in studies.
The Philadelphia campus of the College has been chartered since
1899. Today it has more than 48,000 of its graduates in medicine,
as it carries out its goal of educating primary care physicians,
and other graduate medical programs.
Since it is private school, PCOM moved quickly when deciding where
to locate a second campus in the South. From its Trustees approving
a strategic plan in 2002, to its first class starting in Suwanee
in 2005, that fast start-up of a new campus is something that government-related
schools can only envy. And Gwinnett and the South is the beneficiary
of a spectacular quick-start.
Since then, the campus has continued to grow, and the number of
programs that the PCOM-Georgia offers is expanding, and is anticipated
to expand more in the future.
So a big ATTABOY! to the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine,
for its vision of what can be achieved in medical training for the
future, right here in Gwinnett County.
 The
public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com
to you at no cost to readers. Today's sponsor is the Aurora Theatre,
Gwinnett County's first choice for professional theatrical entertainment.
Celebrating their 12th year and inaugural season in Gwinnett's crown
jewel for the performing arts located on the square in Downtown
Lawrenceville, Aurora Theatre is committed to producing quality,
professional theatre for all of North Georgia. The 2007-2008 Season
continues with the classic thriller Dial M for Murder through February
10. Remaining performances include: The Dinosaur Musical and Noises
Off. Aurora Theatre also brings club comedy to the Lawrenceville
square with the series Funny Fridays on March 21. For young children
ask about the Saturday Children's Playhouse: 19 unique productions
on select Saturday mornings at 10 a.m. To purchase individual tickets,
season tickets or for more information, visit their revamped new
website at www.auroratheatre.com
or call 678-226-6222.
He's
about ready to thank dark forces and night riders
Editor, the Forum:
I read with great interest Frank Norton's forecast for northeast
Georgia. Number five interested me greatly as it said, "Dark
forces of local government have been quietly conspiring against
the growth industry......Watch these night riders for anti-growth,"
as they need to unshackle regulations of government."
All I can say is, I don't know about night riders, but good for
them if they are going to unshackle regulations of government against
future development. Gwinnett County is a poster child for unshackled
overdevelopment. The streets, schools, and water supply are inadequate
for the existing population and yet the county and cities continue
to issue building permit after building permit.
As for the water supply, I can only echo what one person sent in
to the AJC's Vent column. "When they stop issuing building
permits because of inadequate water, that's when I'll believe there's
a drought. Until then, drink up!"
-- Bob Hanson, Loganville
(Dear Bob: No doubt you are pleased that building
permits in Gwinnett County most recently have really been falling.-eeb)
Wonders if schools
teaching the use of the apostrophe
Editor, the Forum:
The ubiquitous Walgreens drugstore chain, has 5,222 locations in
45 states and Puerto Rico (as of 7-12-06), and plans to have 7,000
stores by 2010. Several corners in Gwinnett still contain no drugstores.
But the big question is, why is there no apostrophe in Walgreens
?
Have you noticed - people throw in an apostrophe where it is not
needed. I saw a sign today near Chastain Park reading: "Condo's
Available." Why the apostrophe?
And you see it at many other points, in the city, on line, and
lamentably, often in print. Does the educational system no longer
teach the use of the apostrophe?
-- Marshall Miller, Lilburn
(Dear Marshall: Another error you also see is
the use of the apostrophe when it's not needed, like in it's.
Should mean "it is" and all too often doesn't. -eeb)
Credit
woes
Another great cartoon from Bill McLemore:
Gwinnett's Northeast
Ballet offers Sleeping Beauty in March
When many professional ballet companies are fading away with live
music, the Northeast Atlanta Ballet has signed on with the Gwinnett
Community Symphony Orchestra for the next five years.
Come and see the classic "Sleeping Beauty," being performed
for the first time with our new resident orchestra. Ticket prices
are $12 in advance and $15 at the door. Tickets are available through
the Lilburn School of Ballet (770) 921-7277 and all Ticketmaster
outlets.
The performances are March 21-22 at the Gwinnett Center. There
are two performances on Friday, at 2 and 7:30 p.m., and three performances
on Saturday, at 10 a.m. and 2 and 7:30 p.m.
The Sleeping Beauty blends the music of Tchaikovsky played by our
resident orchestra with sumptuous costumes and scenery making the
imaginary world come to life on stage. Filled with fairies, a fairytale
princess and her handsome prince, the Sleeping Beauty is a magical
story of love conquering all.
Gwinnett is home of
metro Atlanta Indian radio station
Metro Atlanta is getting an Indian-formatted radio station. It's
"Spice Radio" at 1040 AM, with morning and evening drive
time shows, reporting news, weather, and traffic. It will operate
out of studios at 5675 Jimmy Carter Blvd., Suite 670, in Norcross.
The station began broadcasting on January 14.
Spice Radio will present entertainment from the Indian subcontinent
in the afternoons and weekends. Among shows known to native Indians
will be special editions of "Sangeet Ke Sitaron Ki Mehfil"
by the Ameen Sayani, India's Top 40 Countdown and Bollywood News
and gossip in syndication with Mumbai's top radio stations, along
with news and music from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and West
Indies.
Spice Radio will also be available at any time online at www.spiceradioatlanta.com.
For more information, call 770-242-1221 for requests and dedications.
City
of Suwanee launches re-branding of its Gateway
The Suwanee Gateway, an area of largely industrial, retail, and
office uses surrounding I-85 at Georgia Highway 317 (Exit 111),
is about to get an attitude adjustment. At the January 24 State
of the County presentation, hosted by the Gwinnett Chamber and Council
for Quality Growth, Suwanee launched its Gateway branding campaign,
which includes a new logo, tagline, and host of marketing strategies.
The branding campaign is a component of the Suwanee's efforts to
revitalize this key commercial area, which was the first such area
to be developed in Suwanee more than 30 years ago.
Notes Economic Development Division Director Denise Brinson: "The
Suwanee Gateway is a main entrance into our community. Frankly,
it has not been making a very good first impression lately. As a
City, Suwanee is focusing its energies here, working to transform
and brand the area as a vibrant, sustainable mixed-use center and
a distinctive entryway into the City of Suwanee."
Late last year, Suwanee City Council adopted a redevelopment plan
for the area. The plan calls for investment of millions of dollars,
both public and private, in the area, with public funding to come
primarily through creation of a tax allocation district. (Suwanee
voters approved a redevelopment powers referendum in November. Creation
of a tax allocation district does not increase tax rates.)
The Suwanee Gateway redevelopment plan recommends:
- improvement of the area's transportation infrastructure;
- strategic streetscape improvements that will better accommodate
pedestrians;
- creation of additional office and commercial sites to attract
new private investment;
- public safety and other infrastructure improvements that will
enhance the safety and appeal of the area;
- bold, new development that will serve as a catalyst for additional
complementary development;
- elimination of eyesores and underperforming, obsolete use;
- cooperative branding and marketing.
To help it create and market a distinctive, consistent image for
the Gateway area, Suwanee turned to Redpepper, a Lawrenceville-based
marketing firm.
City of Suwanee officials will meet with Gateway area businesses
in February to share the new brand and marketing materials as well
as provide more information about redevelopment plans.
Snellville hospital
wins award for preventing infections
At its annual Patient Safety Summit last week, the Georgia Partnership
for Health and Accountability (PHA) presented its prestigious Patient
Quality and Safety Award to Emory Eastside Medical Center in Snellville
for its project aimed at preventing health care acquired infections.
The medical center's project titled, "Improving Healthcare
Associated Infections: Methicillin Resistant Staph Aureus"
won first place in the health systems category as well as a second
place Josh Nahum Special Achievement Award for Infection Prevention
and Control. These annual awards recognize Georgia health care organizations
for achievement in reducing the risk of medical errors and improving
patient safety and medical outcomes.
Traditionally, the prevention of health care-acquired infections
has been managed by individual facilities through implementation
of the guidelines from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC). The director of the executive team of HCA, Eastside's parent
organization, armed with a vision to become the "cleanest and
safest hospitals in the world," worked with a senior organizational
workgroup to develop goals for achievement. One goal was aggressive
infection control measures to reduce occurrences of Methicillin
Resistant Staph Aureus (MRSA). Each individual facility in the health
system was responsible for implementing its own objectives and processes.
Through interdisciplinary task forces, the Eastside team put the
initiative into action. Objectives included active surveillance
screening to determine colonized patients (those with MRSA) in those
admitted to critical care, those transferred from other health care
facilities, those undergoing select cardiac, joint, open spine or
hemodialysis and those with history of this. Part of the initiative
was to identify MRSA in patients and quickly take action to protect
other patients. Electronic communication helped alert infection
control staff areas where intervention was needed.
Results showed prompt action taken for patients identified as colonized,
thus decreasing the risk of MRSA transmission to other patients.
The electronic communication ensured timely isolation precautions
for colonized patients. Overall, a significant reduction in the
rate of health care-acquired infections caused by MRSA is anticipated.
- An invitation: What
Web sites, books or restaurants have you enjoyed? Send us your
best recent visit to a restaurant or most recent book you have
read along with a short paragraph as to why you liked it, plus
what book you plan to read next. --eeb
Abbott
Turner becomes central figure in Columbus, state
For more than 60 years, D.
Abbott Turner was a central figure in Columbus and the larger
Georgia business community. As the son-in-law of W. C. Bradley and
the heir to the W. C. Bradley Company legacy, he was also active
in philanthropy and community leadership. He built on the W. C.
Bradley model of business integrity that is still associated with
the Bradley family and business enterprises today.
Turner |
Don Abbott Turner was born in Macon in 1892, but his roots in Columbus
were deep; he was descended from ministers Lovick Pierce and George
Foster Pierce, both of whom pastored at St. Luke United Methodist
Church.
Turner moved to Columbus in 1913 to work as a private secretary
for the local manager of Stone and Webster, a Boston, Mass.-based
firm that was acquiring water power and electricity generation facilities
in several southern cities.
In 1917 Turner married Elizabeth Bradley, the daughter of W. C.
Bradley. At about the same time as his marriage, Turner assumed
management of the steamboats that were owned by W. C. Bradley. Turner
said that he "got his education" by running the steamboats.
(He had not attended college.) Over the next 30 years, Turner worked
in various capacities within the Bradley empire. Ultimately, he
became president and chairman of the boards of the W. C. Bradley
Company and of the Columbus Bank and Trust.
Turner also served in other business leadership capacities, including
as a board member for Coca-Cola, Georgia Power, the Central of Georgia
Railway, and the Bibb Company. In volunteer capacities, he was a
trustee for Emory College and Wesleyan College, and he was influential
in the development and support of the Epworth by the Sea retreat
center on St. Simons Island.
The Turners were early supporters of efforts to build the Columbus
Museum, and after the death of his wife, Turner established the
Center for Continuing Education at Columbus State University, which
is named in her honor. In 1943 W. C. Bradley created a foundation,
which Turner administered after Bradley's death. In 1961 Turner
created the D. Abbott and Elizabeth Bradley Turner Foundation, and
in 1982, upon Turner's death, the two foundations merged to form
the Bradley-Turner Foundation.
After Turner's son, Bill, became chief executive officer of the
W. C. Bradley Company in 1973, Turner retired, although he continued
to visit the W. C. Bradley Company and Columbus Bank and Trust daily.
He took Thursdays off for hunting and fishing, pastimes he pursued
until his death. Turner died on August 11, 1982.
You can find courage
on more than one front
"Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is
also what it takes to sit down and listen."
-- Sir Winston Churchill, (1874-1965), via Roy McCreary, Dacula.
Send your thoughts, 55-word short stories, pet peeves
or comments on any issue to Gwinnett
Forum for future publication.
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