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♦ WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 12, 2007
4A
Daniel F. Evans
President
Editor and Publisher
Julie B. Evans Foy S. Evans
Vice President Editor Emeritus
Don Moncrief
Managing Editor
Preparedness Month a
chance to do just that
In case you haven’t heard, Gov. Sonny Perdue
announced this past week that September has
been designated National Preparedness Month.
“Federal, state and local officials, along with
the volunteer community and the private sector
continue to work hard to prevent and respond
to emergencies,” Perdue said in his release.
“I encourage every Georgian to support these
efforts by developing a family disaster plan that
best suits their needs.”
No, this is not something you haven’t heard
before. But, if anything, it - along with Tropical
Storm Gabrielle, which at least looked in our
direction for a bit before washing ashore Sunday
in North Carolina - serves as another remind
er.
Perdue - rather those who work for him
- encourage us to create a disaster supplies kit
with at least a three-day supply of bottled water
and non-perishable food; a battery-powered
radio and flashlight, first aid supplies, and other
vital materials. They also tell us, if we haven’t
already, to develop a family disaster plan includ
ing evacuation and reunification plans.
And, here’s something not new but you prob
ably haven’t hear in a while. Perdue and those
under his direction also recommend we look for
ways we can help our community in times of
emergency.
“Complacency is our greatest enemy, but
National Preparedness Month helps us to
focus on personal responsibility,” said Georgia
Emergency Management Agency Director
Charley English. “Right now we are in the
middle of hurricane season, but emergencies
and disasters can occur at any time, and we all
need to be ready.”
Here’s hoping, if we haven’t already, we all
take those words to heart.
Letters to the editor
'Wait and see’ not the best approach
Foy Evans’ editorial in the Saturday Sept. 8 Houston
Home Journal stated that he thought it was a good idea to
wait and pass judgment on Proposed House Bill 900. The
problem with a wait and see approach to the proposed leg
islation is that voters in Georgia will not have time to react
to whatever provisions are finally voted on by the state leg
islators with the shell game now being played by Speaker
Glenn Richardson.
The provisions of the proposed law are being kept under
wraps. How are the citizens of the state of Georgia going
to evaluate the pros and cons of actual legislation when,
even three months before the commencement of the 2008
Legislative Session, the actual terms and mechanics of
such a significant change is being withheld from the vot
ers.
It is easy to sell a significant change in the law if
See APPROA CH, page $A
A vote for Ron Paul
It is very exciting to hear that Ron Paul is running for
President. It is even more exciting to learn that more than
40,0.00 people have volunteered to help him get out his
message of bringing our troops home from Iraq, ending the
IRS, and returning our government to the bounds of our
Constitution.
It is so refreshing to hear Ron Paul’s message of free
dom, liberty, and much smaller government. The best part
is: you know he means it. This is the first time since I have
been old enough to vote, that I have an opportunity to vote
for an excellent candidate.
Every other election over the last 20 years, I’ve
See PA UL, page $A
HOW TO SUBMIT:
Letters should not exceed 350 words and must include
the writer’s name, address and telephone number (the
last two not printed). The newspaper reserves the right to
edit or reject letters for reasons of grammar, punctuation,
taste and brevity. We cannot guarantee that a letter will be
printed on a specific date. There are three ways to submit a
letter to the editor: E-mail it to hhj@evansnewspapers.com,
mail it to The Houston Home Journal at 1210 Washington
St., Perry, GA 31069, or drop it off at the same location
between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.
On global warming, other notes
These items in the news recent
ly got my attention and jump
started some opinions of my
own:
■ The entire world seems to be going
nuts about global warming. Though
I am turned off by all the predictions
of doom, a la A 1 Gore, I see reliable
scientific information that the earth
really is warming a little. How about
1 degree Celsius over the past decade?
What turns me off is placing all the
blame on the United States. Whether
we earthlings are causing the global
warming is debatable.
Many outstanding scientists say this
a normal cycle, pointing out that not
many years ago there were predictions
that we were entering another ice age.
Anyway, if humans are causing the
present global warming it is all of
the industrialized nations, not just
the United States. And that is why it
would be equivalent to national suicide
to destroy our country with unrealistic
restrictions while the rest of the world
- notably industrial giants on the move
like China and India - would accom
plish nothing. Before our leaders do
anything rash they should think this
through. The earth and the universe
are much greater than all of us and for
millions of years have found a way to
work out their problems.
■ Democratic members of congress
have more than 100 investigations of
the president and other agencies in the
administrative branch of government
underway. The members of congress
grill and do their best to embarrass
witnesses, including senior members
"Of course I look a lot younger in the picture.
It was made right after the Voter ID bill first passed!"
Looking to the future
Is marriage destined for failure in America?
It probably wouldn’t take a social
scientist to convince most of us
that marriage in America is fac
ing some big challenges these days.
And it’s likely that each of us would
only have to look to a close friend, a
relative or even ourselves to see a mar
riage that is on the rocks, sinking or
already sunk.
Still, it is helpful to see the informa
tion researchers produce to help us
quantify the changes we are seeing to
the American family - and to try and
understand why they are happening.
One of the best publications on the
state of marriage is an annual report
published by the National Marriage
Project at Rutgers University. This
year’s “State of our Unions” report
featured an essay written by David
Popenoe, Ph.D., one of the nation’s
foremost family experts.
His assessment of the future of mar
riage is, shall I say, sobering at best.
The institution of marriage in
America, he says, is getting weaker and
if current trends remain in place will
increasingly resemble Northwestern
European nations where cohabitation
and out-of-wedlock birth rates are
high, and marriage rates Eire low.
Evans
« ragrajl,. Igljpip
Columnist SSL
foyevansl9@cox.net
"II humans are causing
the present global
warming it is all ol the
industrialzeil nations, not
just the United States.
And that is why it would
be equivalent to national
suicide to destroy our
country with unrealstic
restrictions while the
rest ol the world would
accomplish nothing."
of the military.
Congressmen are arrogant and
obnoxious. I just wish that one witness
could forget about his career and turn
on the congressmen with the kind of
answers they deserve.
■ Speaking of investigations,
wouldn’t it be fun if President Bush
Columnist B Jkß
Georgia Family Council iPH liSI
Those trends include more couples
living together and fewer getting mar
ried. More children in this country are
being born out-of-wedlock and living
in homes with cohabiting or single
parents, and fewer are growing up in
homes with their married mother and
father.
Popenoe points out that much of the
change occurring in family structure
can be attributed to the rise in “secular
individualism” - the move away from
traditional religious beliefs toward
“expressive” values that emphasize
personal independence and fulfillment,
as well as alternative family structures.
He points out that the more prevalent
secular individualism is in a society
the more likely family breakdown is
to occur. And America has moved, and
continues to move, in this direction.
HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
could convene some investigative hear
ings and subpoena members of con
gress as witnesses? Most Americans
would enjoy and applaud this.
■ Maybe the smart thing to do is buy
a home you cannot afford, then count
on the federal government to bail you
out.
■ Incidentally, I am writing this col
umn in Centerville, Mexico. Didn’t the
president of Mexico say that anywhere
there was a Mexican was Mexico? I
believe we have a few of his citizens
here, so maybe I should go out and buy
a Mexican flag. On a serious note, he
may Jae closer to the truth than we like
to believe. ,
■ I read and hear news stories about
crimes that are committed. I am told to
notify the authorities if I see the crimi
nals or have any information. What I
miss is a more inclusive description of
the criminals. All news stories should
report the race - white, black, Hispanic
- of criminals so that we can get an
idea who the criminals are and find
out if our jails have a disproportionate
number of prisoners by race in propor
tion to the number of crimes they com
mit, as Jesse Jackson claims.
■ Developers of land complain that
local regulations are too restrictive.
Citizens show up at meetings to pro
test developers’ plans. It happens in
Houston County. It happens all over
the state. A legislator halis suggested
that the state should adopt uniform
standards for development, which
would apply throughout the state. Is it
a good idea?
See EVANS, page *4
Not a very rosy picture is it?
I think Popenoe’s evaluation is impor
tant and helps us to see where things
are going. And in many ways I agree
with what he has said. Yet I think it
is helpful to point out that there are
good reasons to be optimistic about the
future of marriage too.
Today, more than in the recent past,
leaders are recognizing the problem
of family breakdown and ar§ facing
it head on. They know the costs and
know something must be done.
Here in Georgia, Chief Justice Leah
Ward Sears of the Supreme Court
of Georgia has created the Georgia
Supreme Court Commission on
Children, Marriage and Family Law to
study the legal and social consequences
associated with the growing break
down of Georgia’s families, and make
recommendations for addressing their
root cause.
Across the country, there is an entire
marriage movement at work mani
fested in many dozens of national,
state and community-based organiza
tions (like Georgia Family Council)
that are committed to promoting
strong, healthy marriages. There have
See HICKS, page $A