Newspaper Page Text
The ADVANCE, Februory 24,2021/Page 2A
51ie Aiiuancg
Toombs Commission Hears
Report on Plant Hatch
By Rebekah Arnold
Contributing Writer
A Nuclear Regulatory
Commission inspector
updated Toombs County
commissioners about op
erations at Southern Nu
clear Plant Hatch during
the commission’s regular
session on February 16.
Richard Smith has
served as Nuclear Regula
tory Commission’s (NRC)
Senior Resident Inspector
(Rl) since October 2020 at
Southern Nuclear’s Hatch
power plant near Baxley.
Smith, along with the
other RI at Plant Hatch,
John Hickman, is not an
employee of Southern
Nuclear, but of the federal
government.
RIs serve as the agen
cy’s “eyes and ears at the
facility, conducting inspec
tions, monitoring major
work projects and inter
acting with plant workers
and the public.” (www.nrc.
org). Smith described his
work as the nuclear police:
he issues violation tickets
on activities that, if left
unchecked, could result in
more serious public safe
ty issues. The inspectors
with the NRC represent
the American people who
do not have the technical
knowledge, nor can they
observe at the plants, to as
sess nuclear operations.
Smith reported that
an inspection assess
ment completed in 2020
found seven violations at
Plant Hatch. These viola
tions were not severe and
Please see TCC page 10A
Bill to block defunding police in
Georgia advances in state House
By Beau Evans
Staff Writer
Capitol Beat News Service
A bill aimed at pre
venting Georgia city and
county governments from
making deep cuts in the
budgets of their local po
lice agencies advanced in
the Georgia House of Rep
resentatives Tuesday.
Sponsored by state
Rep. Houston Gaines, R-
Athens, the bill would limit
local governments from
reducing funds for police
by more than 5% over a 10-
year span. It includes ex
emptions for smaller juris
dictions and for spending
on equipment purchases.
Gaines highlighted
recent failed attempts by
some Athens and Atlanta
elected officials to slice
millions of dollars from
their police budgets amid
protests over police brutal
ity and racial injustice that
swept across Georgia and
the country last summer.
“These efforts are un
derway in our state and
certainly something I think
we need to fight against,”
Gaines said. “We all rec
ognize that supporting law
enforcement is of the ut
most importance and, in
my opinion, the most im
portant role that our local
governments have.”
Gaines’ bill cleared the
House Governmental Af
fairs General Government
Subcommittee on a party
line vote. It heads to the full
committee for another vote
before potentially moving
to the House floor.
The bill comes after
last summer’s protests fol
lowing high-profile killings
of Black men by police of
ficers, including the deaths
of George Floyd in Minne
sota and Rayshard Brooks
in Atlanta.
Property destruction
and violence at some of
those protests sparked a
backlash from conservative
leaders over a push by some
progressive officials to curb
police funding, dubbed
“defund the police.” The
subject took center stage as
an issue for both political
parties in the 2020 election
cycle.
Opposition to the bill
came Tuesday from the
Georgia Municipal Asso
ciation and the Association
County Commissioners of
Georgia (ACCG), which
represent city and county
governments. Decisions
on police funding should
be left to local officials, said
Todd Edwards, ACCG’s
deputy legislative director.
“Police power is one
of our inherent or supple
mental powers under the
constitution,” Edwards
said. “We’d like to main
tain our flexibility to fund
and manage police forces
how our local elected offi
cials — those accountable
to the public — feel is the
best use of taxpayer dol
lars.”
tveTeo.ckcx.ble MorvieKfc
Why is “TheMuppet Show”getting a
content disclaimer on Disney+ ?
Disney-t has added a content
disclaimer to the beginning of 18
episodes of “The Muppet Show,”
which started streaming on the
platform on Friday. The disclaimer
appears at the beginning of the epi
sodes for 12 seconds
and reads: “This pro
gram includes nega
tive depictions and/
or mistreatment of
people or cultures.
These stereotypes
were wrong then and
are wrong now. Rath
er than remove this
content, we want to
acknowledge its harmful impact,
learn from it and spark conversa
tion to create a more inclusive fu
ture together.”
The label has been added to
each episode for a different reason;
for example, during Johnny Cash’s
episode, he sings in front of a con
federate flag. The disclaimer has
been added to a total of 18 episodes
throughout the show’s five seasons,
including those guest hosted by Jim
Nabors, Joel Grey, Steve Martin, Pe
ter Sellers, Cleo Laine, James Coco,
Spike Milligan, Crystal Gayle,
Kenny Rogers, Beverly Sills, Jona
than Winters, Alan Arkin, James
Coburn, Joan Baez,
Johnny Cash, Debbie
Harry, Wally Boag and
Marty Feldman.
A statement on
Disney’s website says:
“As part of our ongo
ing commitment to di
versity and inclusion,
we are in the process of
reviewing our library
and adding advisories to content
that includes negative depictions or
mistreatment of people or cultures.
Rather than removing this content,
we see an opportunity to spark con
versation and open dialogue on his
tory that affects us all. We also want
to acknowledge that some commu
nities have been erased or forgotten
altogether, and we’re committed to
giving voice to their stories as well.”
LIBRARY EXPANSION FUNDS RECEIVED FROM DOT - The Vidalia branch of the Ohoopee
Regional Library System is currently in a 3-year project to expand the building on Jack-
son Street and to incorporate the Ladson Genealogy Library into that location. The
Renovation Committee received $3500 for the project from DOT Foods, Inc., given by
DOT Fluman Resources Manager Gaylon Ryan, Pictured with Ryan, left to right, are
Toombs County Library Board members Rebekah Arnold, Ryan, Carol Rice and Lisa
Chesser.
“We are ONE team with ONE mission,
to serve you! Contact Johnson &
Johnson Transport at 912-594-1812
fora ride above the rest!”
Johnson
“When Life Calls for an EMT,
We will Get You Through.”
Licensed & Approved by
the State of Georgia
(912) 594-1812
Johnson Transport, LLC
210 S. 1st Street, Uvalda, GA 30473
-
