Newspaper Page Text
♦ WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 7, 2007
4A
Daniel F. Evans
President
Editor and Publisher
Julie B. Evans
Vice President
Georgia moves forward
It was announced this past week that Georgia
now ranks second in the nation as a place to do
business.
According to the announcement, made by
Gov. Sonny Perdue’s office - and probably else
where as others rush to take credit - Georgia
also ranked third in a survey of corporate site
seekers across the country. That, particular cat
egory, according to Perdue’s office, makes up
50 percent of the site selection’s total score.
The group reportedly based its scores on fac
tors such as availability of desired work-force
skills, efficiency of the permitting/regulatory pro
cess and land/building prices and supply.
The other 50 percent of the annual business
climate rankings was determined by states’ per
formances in the company’s new plant database,
which tracks new and expanded business facil
ity activity. It should also be noted that Georgia,
once again according to Perdue’s office, has
never ranked lower than 10 (2000 and 2001) in
the national poll, and has been among the top
four for the last four years.
In a separate study, it was also reported that
Georgia was ranked number 12 in the nation
by the Small Business Survival Index for its
entrepreneurship climate in the Small Business
Survival Index. That represented an increase of
13 spots from where it was in 2006.
The Small Business and Entrepreneurship
Council also reportedly noted that the rate of
job creation during the period was 70 percent
faster in the top 25 states in the index versus the
bottom 26. The population growth of the top 25
states is also double the rate of the bottom 26.
Wow! This - all of this - is obviously great
news for Georgia. This represents a lot of hard
work by a lot of people - from the governor on
down to the small businessman or business
woman.
We salute all of you and hope you will continue
- with the added caveat/hope you will strive to
also keep who we are intact - with your tireless
efforts. We anticipate by the time the next report
comes out it will be as we as already know: The
only place for Georgia is at the top of the list.
Letters to the editor
Centerville issue a ‘stealth’ item
Many people moved to Centerville in recent years
because of an age exemption in city taxes. We the
seniors of Centerville deserve and should have been noti
fied in advance that a referendum would be on the ballot
for the Nov. 6 election to reduce this exemption. It is a
stealth presentation. To reduce this exemption to $25,000
of assessed value is bushwhacking many elderly - the
least able to pay.
I plead with Centerville voters to understand what is hap
pening. Vote “NO” on this initiative.
If Centerville mayor and council wish the effective tax
on elders raised they should have informed the seniors of
Centerville of their intentions. Why not grandfather in those
seniors who are already living in Centerville?
Alicia Callahan, Centerville
‘Fair Tax’ is anything but
The so-called “Fair Tax” is being promoted locally to
Republicans as a financial panacea for our finan
cially bankrupt nation. This is a misnomer if ever and a
good example of “Voodo Economics" that has never been
adopted by a nation anywhere. If it sounds too good to be
true, then it usually is. This Ponzi scheme would fail to raise
adequate taxes to fund modern America and our president
has refused to endorse it. This scheme would bankrupt
Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. U.S.Rep.Jim
Marshall, D.GA., is against the Fair Tax.
So is our GOP candidate, Rick Goddard, willing to
lose the support of thousands of Middle Georgians on
See LETTER i, page $A
HOW TO SUBMIT:
There are three ways to submit a letter to the editor: E-mail it to
hhj@evansnewspapers.com, mail it to 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. 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.
Foy S. Evans
Editor Emeritus
Don Moncrief
Managing Editor
BELIEF
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Halloween a bit of a mixed bag
Election participation light again; address-telephone anomalies
I keep thinking about Halloween
night. The doorbell rang and
rang and rang. Clearly, we are
not gong to run out of children soon.
I enjoyed sitting by the door and
greeting them. Some were cute. Some
were shy. Some were dressed in fright
ening garb. Some wore outfits that
demanded a lot of imagination. Some
said, “Trick or treat.” Most reflected
the new America that is so easy to
dislike. They came to the door, held
out bags, confident that they deserved
something just for showing up, accept
ed their “treats” and moved on without
saying a word.
Occasionally, one of the youngsters
said, “Thank you” and it made you
proud that their parents had taught
them those two words.
I realized that some of the children
were not from the area where I live
and I asked them where their homes
were. Some had been hauled in from as
far away as 10 miles to collect the loot
available in a relatively new neighbor
hood of nice homes.
Disgusting was the appearance of
numerous boys and girls who were
in their late teens and acted as if the
Halloween trick or treat was for them,
too. They should have been ashamed
of themselves, but were aggressive
and almost insolent in the way they
acted. I do not recall one of the older
boys and girls wasting time speaking a
single word. They just stuck out their
Jjlvx Ox.
"No wonder they agreed...
there's not enough water left for them to fight over!"
Urn, we need to talk... about... you know
Parents and their teenagers see
things differently.
I know what you’re think
ing. It’s something along the lines of
“Duh.” But in the particular instance
that I’m going to bring to your atten
tion, I think you’ll be pleased that you
and your teens may be at odds.
How would you answer the following
question: “Who most influences your
teenager’s decisions about sex?”
If you’re like most parents, you’d
say their friends. Now, who do teen
agers themselves say most influences
their decisions about sex? Surprise!
The answer is not the media, MTV or
peers. Teens themselves say that it’s ...
parents.
That’s right. According to an annu
al survey conducted by the National
Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy,
teens look to their parents more than
they do any other potential source
of information regarding sex. More
importantly, 87 percent of teens say it
would be easier for them to postpone
sexual activity and avoid teen preg
nancy if they were able to have more
open, honest conversations with their
parents.
Put more simply, that’s essentially
nine out of 10 teenagers who are look
ing for their parents to help them
navigate the issues and challenges
related to their sexuality. Chances are,
if you’re a parent of a teen or pre-teen,
that’s your child.
The problem is that 37 percent of
Y)//r von e can make a ci/ffc j rence
Foy
Evans
Columnist
foyevansl9@cox.net
sacks for the loot that they obviously
believed they deserved.
Overall, though, it was an interest
ing evening in which I got to share the
excitement and joy of small children
without venturing out into the night.
Halloween still is for children and
it was good seeing attentive parents
standing in the background making
sure their offspring was safe.
■■■
Elections were held yesterday and,
as usual, there is an outcry demeaning
the fact so few people exercised the
right to vote.
It does not bother me that the turn
out at the polls is light. It means
that candidates who were elected and
important decisions were made by
people with an interest in their gov
ernment. In my opinion, often many
of the people who vote have no idea
what they are voting on or the issues
involved. I would rather that a small
number of informed voters make the
decisions at the polls.
This kind of thinking is contrary to
Randy
Hicks
Columnist
Georgia Family Council
teens say they haven’t had a single
such conversation with their parents.
That is due in large part to the fact
that nine out of 10 parents of teens
who believe they should talk to their
kids about sex say they often don’t
know what to say, how to say it, or
when to start.
You probably know where I’m headed
with this. No one has a greater impact
on the decisions children will make
about sex than parents - I’m remind
ing myself, a father of five children,
even as I remind you. It’s for this rea
son we need to take the time to listen
and talk to our kids about the subject
that occupies so much of their think
ing, conversation and the entertain
ment choices.
So, where do we parents start? First,
recognize that regardless of what you
feel are your shortcomings or your past
failings, you are qualified as a parent
to speak on the subject of sex. In some
ways, your personal failings may give
you more credibility with your kids.
After thinking through this issue for
HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
the popular belief that better govern
ment comes from larger numbers vot
ing. I just see it differently.
Candidates who were elected and
decisions that were made yesterday are
what we deserve. It is probably better
than we would have if several times as
many people went to the polls.
A popular comment goes like this:
“If you didn’t vote you have no right to
complain.” Maybe not, but complain
ing is not as dangerous as uninformed
voters swayed by emotions or promises
of something for nothing.
Where do you live? I have heard
people complain because where they
live, their mail address and telephone
number are at different locations.
One family with which I am famil
iar lives in Peach County, receives its
mail at a Periy address and has a Fort
Valley telephone number. Families in
Hayneville live in Houston County and
have a Hawkinsville address. Houston
Lake Country Club is “in Kathleen.”
Hundreds of families live in Warner
Robins and have a Centerville or Perry
telephone number.
This anomaly has gone on for years
but is becoming more pronounced as
more and more subdivisions pop up
between Warner Robins and Perry.
It is confusing but there is no way to
coordinate mail routes, telephone ter
ritories and city limits. So we just have
to live with it.
years and culling through many pub
lications on the topic, I would like to
offer the following suggestions.
Be positive
Let them know that the desires,
impulses and curiosity they have are
quite natural. Children need to know
that sex is a good thing; if they view
sex in and of itself as an inherently
bad thing, they’re more likely to have a
difficult time viewing marital sex with
the appropriate sense of respect and
wonder.
Also - please don’t miss this - be
positive about your child’s ability to
abstain until marriage. If you’re nega
tive and cynical in your expectations,
they will sense this and reduce their
own expectations. Be clear about what
your expectations are.
Be honest
Sex is good, yes, but the preponder
ance of evidence tells us that sex out
side of marriage can be terribly risky,
often destructive. It may help to share
with your children that you remember
the desires of adolescence. And they
need to know about the real and shat
tering results many kids experience
from pre-marital sexual activity in the
form of sexually transmitted diseases,
out-of-wedlock pregnancies, emotional
pain, and so on.
Be inquisitive
Ask frank questions about your
kids’ views on sex - and even about
their activities. “What do you think is
See HICKS, page 6A