Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4A
BARROW JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2011
Opinions
Georgia Press Association Best Editorial Writing 2010, 2011
Best Serious Column Writing 2011
National Newspaper Association Best Editorial 2011
our views
County manager government better than what Barrow has now
O N NOV. 8, Barrow County
voters will make one of the
most important decisions
they will ever face at the ballot box. On
the ballot will be a proposal to change
the structure of Barrow County’s gov
ernment to a county manger system.
Currently Barrow County has an elect
ed chairman who is also the desig
nated person to run the county on a
day-to-day basis.
The ballot proposal would be a huge
change in Barrow County and merits a
lot of thought and reflection. At the end
of the day however, the idea deserves
voter support.
There is no perfect system of local
government. No matter what kind of
government is created, it will be flawed
because it is run by human beings.
And while we might like to think of
government in some ideal sense, the
foibles of those elected and appointed
to public office will always govern the
overall success or failure of a govern
ment.
A little review.
The move to change Barrow County’s
government stems from the controver
sies that have come from current BOC
chairman Danny Yearwood. It’s impos
sible here to really capture the level
of ineffectiveness and useless contro
versies of the Yearwood administra
tion and the temperamental chairman
himself. Although the board has faced
some issues not of its own making, the
BOC has been needlessly embroiled in
bad decisions and controversy. Most of
that can be laid at the feet of Yearwood,
who has proven to be less than what
was needed for the job he was elected
to do.
Indeed, it’s almost impossible to
imagine a scenario where anyone in
Barrow County would have both the
technical skills and the political acu
men to run Barrow County on a day-to-
day basis. The job is too large and the
county’s leadership pool too shallow.
If there’s someone out there who does
have the skills, they
certainly aren’t run
ning for the job.
So the fundamen
tal issue here is
really much bigger
than Yearwood.
Before him,
there was BOC
chairman Doug
Garrison whose
administration was
also embroiled in controversy. But the
Garrison years were troubled by at
least one thing that serves as a cau
tionary warning about the impending
proposal for a county manager.
Unlike Yearwood, whose hands-on
efforts have proven inept, Garrison was
largely hands-off, turning over the day-
to-day duties to a hired county admin
istrator. But that unofficial experiment
with hired management was also a
disaster. The administrator got caught
up in the glories of the job, hired too
many people too fast and raised local
government salaries to inane levels.
Many of today’s problems, in fact, stem
from that hubris of government largess
and the lack of BOC oversight.
Still, there is much to be said for
having a hired county manager over
having an elected chairman running
the county. For one thing, the county
government has grown so large and
complex that very few laymen would
ever be able to figure it out. That’s what
Yearwood has faced, a depth of com
plexity that far exceeds his manage
rial abilities. A trained manager should
have the kind of skill set needed to
manage hundreds of people and mil
lions of dollars.
But perhaps an even bigger advantage
of the manager form of government is
that it encourages better candidates to
run for BOC seats, especially the chair
man’s seat. Having a full-time manager
takes a lot of pressure off the board. It
sets a higher level of professionalism
than the current crazy quilt system, a
direction that more people are likely to
want to be a part of.
That’s especially true in the chair
man’s position. As a full-time job, few
qualified people would ever run for
that seat. But as a part-time position,
more qualified people would seriously
consider running.
If the current proposal to change
the government passes on Nov. 8, sev
eral quality people will likely consider
running for chairman, including for
mer Braselton Mayor Pat Graham and
chamber of commerce CEO Tommy
Jennings.
That would change the dynamics of
the entire Barrow BOC. With a stron
ger, better-quality chairman in place,
stronger, better-quality district candi
dates are likely to run to replace the
current pile of deadwood that domi
nates that board.
The manager system, however, isn’t
foolproof. As other nearby counties
have learned, for a BOC to be success
ful, it has to hire the right person for
the manager’s job and the board has
to make darn sure that person is doing
what he or she is supposed to do. Just
because a manager is hired doesn’t
mean the BOC turns off the lights and
goes home. The board still has to
be engaged with what’s happening in
county government.
But even with that concern, Barrow
County will be better off in the future if
it moves to a county manager govern
ment today. There is no prospect that
the current system will ever work in
the future for Barrow County, but there
is some hope that by professionalizing
the administration, better leaders will
step forward.
It’s not a silver bullet or a magic for
mula. But a county manager system of
government would be better than the
broken, ineffective and embarrassing
government that rules Barrow today.
Mike Buffington is co-publisher of the
Barrow Journal. He can be reached at
mike@mainstreetnews. com.
Lorin’s first column three years ago...
Lorin is on vacation this week.
This is a rerun other column from
Oct. 31, 2008 — the first edition
of the Barrow Journal. Lorin is
happy to report that Mr. Clark is
now employed and all is, once
again, well.
MY HUSBAND handed out the
Halloween candy tonight, for the
first time in years. It’s not that he’s
some kind of Halloween Grinch.
It’s just that up until this year,
he’s been away on business for
Halloween.
He missed all the years when I
took our little witch and mummy, or
bride and devil, or cheerleader and
football player Trick-or-Treating.
He missed the later years, when
our kids and their friends would
gather at our big, old, scary (yes,
it is actually haunted...) house to
bob for apples, watch scary mov
ies and play Hide-and-Seek with
all the lights off.
Most recently he missed sitting
with me on the front porch to
hand out candy to all the little
witches and mummies and brides
and devils that still come by. For a
few of those years Holly - our old,
but still very spry Cocker Spaniel
- would sit next to me, wearing a
Halloween headband or collar,
enthusiastically wagging her little
bump of a tail as the kids petted
her head and
told her how
cute she
looked.
When Holly
died, Grade —
our old but still
very friendly,
black Mutt
mix - would sit
with me, also
wearing some
goofy head-
band or collar. She, too, would
thump her long fluffy tail enthusias
tically while all the little ghosts and
goblins made their choices from
the candy bowl, then thanked us,
and yelled “Happy Halloween!” as
they ran down the walk into the
scary, wonderful, treat-filled night.
The past few years I’ve handed
out the candy alone. The new
dogs are too rambunctious to join
me on the porch — and besides,
these evenings belong to Holly
and Grade, who sometimes, I
sense, make their way back, how
ever briefly, to sit next to me on
the porch and greet the kids as
they present their pillow cases and
pumpkin buckets, yelling “Trick-
or-Treat!” - those wild, expectant,
excited smiles on their bright little
made-up faces.
Yes, this year, Mr. Clark was with
me to hand out the Halloween
candy. You see, he was laid off in
early July, after years of successful
work in homebuilding software.
Although it was a step down from
his past “jet set” or at least airport-
filled life, he seemed to enjoy ask
ing the kids what they were, and
helping them pick which “just one”
candy they could take from the
bowl. He complimented almost
each and every one of them on
how wonderful their costumes
were. He (and the thumping
tailed ghosts of Holly and Grade)
had a pretty good time.
In years past, I’ve left the porch
lights on as long as trick-or-treaters
have continued to come to the
door - giving out bags and bags
of candy, long into the night. This
year we had to turn the lights out
around 8 because the two bags
of candy Mr. Clark bought were
gone. Initially, we weren’t going
to buy any Halloween candy this
year - unemployed times being
what they are. But Mr. Clark lob
bied heavily to “celebrate this holi
day “just a little bit - with a couple
of bags of candy.”
“You can’t give out no candy on
Halloween,” he said. “What kind
of a deal is that?” And, he’s right.
What have times come to when
you can’t find it in your heart (and
budget) to greet the little things
that go bump on a Halloween
night with a treat of some type?
After all, in the words of good ole’
Abe Lincoln - who did actually
make one appearance at our door
last night - “...let us confidently
hope that all will yet be well.”
Lorin Sinn-CIark is features edi
tor of the Barrow Journal. She
can be reached at lorin@barrow-
journal.com.
The Barrow Journal
Winder, Barrow County, Ga.
www.BarrowJoumal.com
Mike Buffington Co-Publisher
Scott Buffington Co-Publisher
Chris Bridges Editor
Susan Norman Government News Editor
Lorin Sinn-CIark Features Editor
Susan Treadwell Advertising Manager
Susan Mobley Office Manager
Jeremy Ginn Marketing Manager
Jessica Brown Photographer
Katie Cofer Reporter
POSTMASTER: Send address changes
to: The Barrow Journal, 77 East May
Street, Winder, Georgia 30680
Published 52 times per year by
Mainstreet Newspapers, Inc.
Periodicals Postage Paid at Winder, Ga.
Email: news@barrowjournal.com
Phone: 770-867-NEWS (6397)
Fax: 678-425-1435
SUBSCRIPTIONS:
Inside Barrow County $15.50/yr
Senior Citizens in Barrow $13.50/yr.
Surrounding Counties $19.75/yr.
Other In-State $38.85/yr.
Out of State $44.50/yr.
Military/APO $42.50/yr.
Out of county Senior Citizens Deduct $2
Three years old
and growing
THE edition of the paper you are now
holding in your hands marks another
milestone for the Barrow Journal.
We are now
three years old
and continue to
grow in all ways.
In fact, our paper
last week was
one of our big
gest issues yet.
In a time when
many news
papers (large
and small) are
struggling or out
right dying, the
Barrow Journal — thanks to you —
continues to grow. Like anything you
accomplish, it has been a team effort,
not only from the hard-working and
dedicated staff we have, but to our
readers.
I have a pretty strong hunch that there
were many who felt we wouldn’t be
here today. Three years is a long time
for any new business. And the econo
my remains tough and all businesses
are struggling in the private sector.
That’s why I am proud of the fact we
are still here. We are still growing and
we are looking ahead to even bigger
and better things. It’s been a ton of work
(as my aching back and head can testi
fy), but there’s still nothing like holding
a new edition in your hands and seeing
all the news of our community.
While some political leaders have
cussed it, the readers tell us they like
being informed of what’s really going
on. Gone are the days when local
elected officials received a pass from
the local press.
“We are a real newspaper and we
report the news like one,” is what I’ve
told many throughout our three years.
I cringe to think of what has gone on
in Barrow County before we started.
A true newspaper is supposed to be
the watchdog for the citizens, not a
tool to cover up for the misdoings of
elected officials because they might be
your friend, or they might belong to the
“Sacred Cow” club.
Making it to this point wouldn’t have
been possible without the contributions
of our staff, which remains largely in
place since our first day of operation.
In the newspaper business, even that’s
an accomplishment. It’s a tough way
to make a living. The rewards you take
from it are often personal rather than
financial. To those on the outside it
can seem glamorous (and it is in some
ways), but it is also grueling work that
never ends. You feel good about an
issue for one evening, and then it’s
back to work again.
Our lead reporter Susan Norman can
uncover facts as well as anyone at any
paper. Katie Cofer has quickly become
a valued member of our staff. Jessica
Brown has grown from a shy teen
ager to a young woman whose photo
skills continue to be unmatched. Susan
Mobley and Susan Treadwell have
made their home in Barrow County all
their lives and their insight and knowl
edge is extremely valuable. (Kudos as
well to Susan Mobley for keeping me
in line, which is no easy task for sure
and has her pulling her hair out each
week.)
Our talented staff also includes Lorin
Sinn-CIark, who contributes photos and
features and helped start our popular
Pet of the Week feature. Tyler Rollason
is helping our sports section become
even stronger. Helen Person and Shelli
Bond Pabis are popular, local colum
nists. Blair Spiva Rivkin helps with our
feature articles with quality writing.
I would go to bat for any of these
dedicated people any day. They are
the best.
Stay tuned as we continue to bring you
the news that really matters. Reporting
what goes on “without fear or favor” is
more than a slogan for us. It’s some
thing we take very serious and we have
shown people who don’t like it when
we shine light into those dark corners
that complaints only make us buy a big
ger and brighter flashlight.
Again, we thank you and appreciate
your ongoing support each week. It’s
because of you we are still here and still
reporting the tme news in Winder and
Barrow County.
Chris Bridges is editor of the Barrow
Journal. You can reach him at cbridg-
es@barrowjournal. com.
chris
bridges