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SHE H HI OH B| W vH 9| R 9| SB H| .*fT ,j,. ()/re roue (//// nu/fe </ c/i/fere/ic e 4A SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2007 Daniel F. Evans President Editor and Publisher Julie B. Evans Vice President Don Moncrief Managing Editor Proceed with caution Two rules are often cited when it comes to financial matters. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. At first glance, the “Great Plan for Georgia” being proposed by Georgia House Speaker Glenn Richardson looks like a real break for property owners, because it would abolish all ad valorem taxes. However, the burden would then fall on the sales tax to make up the revenues. Additionally, a number of local leaders have spoken up against it, primarily because of the risk to local control of funds. These include Mayor Jim Worrall of Perry, Superintendent of Schools David Carpenter, County Commissioner Tom McMichael, who is this year’s president of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia, Board of Education Chairperson Pam Greenway and Board of Education member Skip Dawkins, who heads the Georgia School Boards Association. We’re not taking a stand yet except to say, “Slow down and proceed with caution.” If this proposal reaches the ballot as a referen dum question, we all need to know what we’re really getting into. In need of a sign Few subjects have gotten as much attention in Perry as the dream of upgrading Gen. Courtney Hodges Blvd. as a corridor to downtown Perry. However, while the talk and planning go on, there is one simple step that nobody seems to be taking. Newcomers and visitors on Courtney Hodges have absolutely no way of knowing where down town Perry is when they reach the big intersec tion near Mossy Creek where Main, Carroll, Commerce and B.F. Ragin all head off like so many spokes on a wheel. Where’s the sign that points to Downtown Perry? See SIGN, page 8A Letters to the editor Time for Georgia to follow suit Last week the Florida Supreme Court ruled unanimously (7-0) that local governments may not use ad valorem prop erty taxes to obtain bond financing through Community Redevelopment Agency/Tax Increment Financing schemes without public approval via a ballot. While Florida politicians are choking, screaming and yell ing, “Lawsuit stalls progress” - the taxpayers are cheering. Simply put, this ruling will no longer allow politicians aligned with special interest developers to use property taxes to subsidize their selfish profiteering. In Florida it was ruled unconstitutional - it’s time for Georgia to follow suit. Bill Davison, Warner Robins We can afford healthcare for all The American Cancer Society’s chief goal this year is a campaign for universal healthcare to include our 47 million Americans without health insurance and those who are under insured. These folks don’t usually get regular screenings for cancer and are more likely to be afflicted at an earlier age. Their quality of life is less and they are less productive members of our society. If we can afford to waste a trillion dollars on the war in Iraq which General Petraeus publicly admits cannot be won militarily, then we can afford univer sal healthcare for every one of us. Frank W. Gadbois, Warner Robins 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. Foy S. Evans Editor Emeritus Good luck fashion police I must have been in about the eighth grade. I was just getting interested in girls, and at least one girl had a little interest in me - at least 1 thought she did, and I still think I was right. Let me start over. I still remember, and in my mind, I am walking down Swift Street in Perry, Georgia, and am in front of Malissa Tucker’s house heading toward the National Guard Armory and Saturday night’s, Teen Town. And, I have it on: A round, cloth hat - either pink or orange, although I think it was pink - with a black band and I ♦ had it turned up in the front and back. Kinda’ like Hep Cat’s hat. The girl that I sorta’ liked and whom I think liked me, didn’t care for my hat and told me so. I wore it anyway. Perhaps it had more to do with defi ance than style, but sometimes I think the two - defiance and style - are relat ed. And, sometimes not. Hopefully, all of this gets me to my points. I see where some councilmen in some cities are proposing ordinances for bidding the wearing of pants below a certain level (undefined, I assume) and where the derriere or the derriere cover shows. Good luck and may the fashion gods be with you! Let me say this: I abhor (which, knowingly as used by me, means to “regard with extreme repugnance”) pants almost down to the knees. When I see young men attired in this fashion, my inclination is to grab the back of the pants and snatch them to the ground (which would be easily done, save what might happen to me thereafter). I w uSi GQ-. Interagency cooperation benefits us all Interagency cooperation benefits us all I often wonder why we can find fault with many of the things our elected or appointed officials do, but we just seem unable to give them credit for the good things they do. Most of them are good, dedicated public servants, especially in Houston County. They make decisions and sometimes we disagree with them, but the decisions do not include personal gain. What officials in Houston County offer is transparency that we should applaud. We do not see actions that play one segment of the population against another. There seems to be a sense of feeling that all of us are in this togeth er and more can be accomplished by working for the common good. These thoughts come to mind as I look outside Houston County. Peach County passed an educational SPLOST not too long ago. Residents of Byron, who feel estranged from the rest of the county, supported the SPLOST because they were promised a new school. Now the school is being built somewhere else and people in Byron are angry. The issue has resulted in acrimonious public meetings. Lawyers are being brought into the fight. Bibb County, too, is having trouble deciding where to build new schools Columnist lwalker@whgb-law.com "But, my sense Is that legislating style is doomed to failure." But, my sense is that legislating style is doomed to failure. If the courts won’t let you prohibit tinted windows in cars without great specificity, they are not going to let city councils determine how low a man can wear his pants without great specificity, and I don’t think lawmakers want to go there. Try if you will, but by the time you get it right (if you ever do), style will have changed, and it will be something equally repugnant. Probably those councilmen introducing these proposed ordinances are trying to get attention just like the low hung pants crowd! Now, let me move from something universally despised by those in my circles to a fashion that is probably accepted with approval by most, if not all of my friends. But, I don’t par ticularly like it, and this is where I will probably get in trouble for expressing my views. When did feet become objects of and many parents are unhappy. Houston County’s board of education and superintendent have done a good job of anticipating where growth will be and have purchased land for new schools well in advance. Some par ents don’t like where they are zoned, but we have to admit that ours is a rather tranquil situation where deci sions are not based on territorial wars or race. School officials probably make mistakes. All of us do. The important thing, in my opinion, is that they keep in mind their responsibility of provid ing schools and teachers and a good educational environment under great pressure. The sheriff and county commission chairman in Clayton County don’t get along and have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars of taxpayer dollars fighting each other in court. Our county commissioners work well together and with other departments in the county government, includ-. Yeah, Mom, I'm learnyng lots * at tech school. Like, just now, I got a real lesson in economics! HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL beauty to be displayed on all occasions - church, weddings, funerals, etc.? I’ve never seen so many toes in my life: Polished toes, manicured toes, crooked toes, hairy toes, shaved toes, toes with corns, unpolished toes, toes with jew elry, etc. You see them everywhere. Actually, you see more women’s toes than men’s; but, you are beginning to see toes of both genders at all gather ings. It’s a toe craze! But why should I be concerned about people showing their toes at churches and weddings and so forth? For after all, from what we’ve been told, Jesus wore the kinds of shoes that would have let people see his toes. In the final analysis, I guess it’s just fashion. Then, there is the current cleav age style. But, I best leave this sub ject alone. And, I will, except to say that sometimes it’s Marilyn Monroe, and sometimes it’s Mia Farrow. Wasn’t Frank Sinatra close to both of them? The point of all this is that styles change and pass, just as my pink hat did. Remember hiney binders or butt buckles? What about ducktail haircuts and bee bop shoes and peroxided hair? Hems go up and hems go down. Hair is long. Hair is short. Caps on straight. Caps on backwards. Caps cocked to the side. I could go on and on. It comes, it goes. And, best that the government stay out of it, for government intervention is doomed to failure. But, then again, certain failure has never stopped the government before. So, go at it law makers and get those pants pulled-up. But, how far? And, could too far up also be offensive to some of us? ing the sheriff. City officials in Perry, Warner Robins and Centerville have good relations with the county com missioners and their representatives meet regularly to look at ways they can improve service to taxpayers by work ing together. It took many years for it to come about, but something worthy of praise is the way the cities and the county are working together here. They share responsibilities on many projects, espe cially roads. They even share equip ment when it makes sense to do so. This kind of cooperation benefits all of us. Can we agree with every decision every elected body makes? Hardly. Those of us on the outside may believe things could be done differently or bet ter. But we do not have the responsibil ity of governing, nor do we have the responsibility and ability to govern. Someone has to make decisions. I learned this many years ago when I was a mayor. I also learned that the public appreciated what you did as long as you trusted them and kept them informed, and they felt that you were doing the best you could. Despite the carping about elected officials that occasionally arises, it is my opinion that most people want to trust the people they elect to See EVANS, page