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PAGE 4A
BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 14, 2016
Opinions
“Private opinion is weak, but public opinion is almost omnipotent. ”
~ Henry Ward Beecher ~
Lessons from
Charleston
Reading the news coverage over the past week of
the federal trial of Dylann Roof, the white supremacist
who senselessly gunned down nine black people
during Bible study at Mother Emanuel AME Church in
Charleston, has brought back memories from when I
had an upclose view of people affected by the mas
sacre.
On the evening of June 17, 2015, 1 was at a library
two hours away from Charleston in Bluffton, S.C. (the
mainland across from Hilton Head Island), where I was
living and working at the time.
I covered a town hall meeting on a controversial
proposed extension of a parkway returned home, filed
a story and heard for the first
time reports of a shooting at a
church in Charleston.
Unfortunately in today’s
world, shootings in public
places that lead to the deaths
of numerous innocent people
have become too frequent—so
much so that most of them
tend to get lost in the shuffle of
a 24/7 news cycle. But this one
immediately had my attention
as I watched the first police
news conference in the imme
diate aftermath.
A reporter on the scene asked the law enforcement
official if he could confirm that state Sen. Clementa
Pinckney had been in the church at the time of the
shooting, and my jaw dropped. When I read at the end
of a Charleston Post & Courier report that Pinckney had
not returned phone calls, my heart sank.
A native son of Jasper County, which neigh
bors Beaufort County the one I lived and worked
in, Pinckney was first elected to the South Carolina
General Assembly in 1996 at just 23 years old. He would
become a state senator four years later.
I met Pinckney a couple of times in passing while
covering local legislative delegation meetings. As some
people would later describe him, I can confirm that
he commanded the attention of the room with his
presence whenever he walked in. He had a calm
demeanor, but his deep, booming voice left an impres
sion on me.
After his death, Pinckney’s colleagues from both
sides of the political aisle described him as “the best
among us.” A fierce advocate for the poor in his district
— one of the poorest in South Carolina — Pinckney by
all accounts, embodied everything a public servant
should strive to represent.
He gave back to his community particularly through
his work in the church. He had been head pastor at
historic Campbell Chapel AME Church in Bluffton prior
to taking over at Emanuel in 2010.
He was the first of the “Charleston Nine” to be killed
there on June 17, 2015, in a place that is supposed to
provide sanctuary for all, by a cold-hearted killer who
was welcomed inside by the victims and survivors with
open arms less than an hour earlier.
When I think about the greatest virtues of being a
public servant, Pinckney always comes to mind. That
was also hue of everyone else I talked to the morning
after the shooting. From his legislative colleagues and
local government officials, to friends and former fellow
church members, there was a profound sadness and
sense of loss.
Most of all, as a young father, I thought about
Pinckney’s wife and two daughters and the void that
could never be completely filled by his loss.
In the wake of such a tragedy though, came hope.
Two days after the shooting, a memorial service for
Pinckney and the other victims was held in Campbell
Chapel. The service, attended by numerous local
church leaders of different faiths and denominations,
along with local government representatives, provided
a chance for a community to begin to heal.
Its message was one of hope and concluded with a
unison singing of “This Little Light of Mine.”
In his writings prior to the shooting, Roof said he
hoped his actions would ignite a race war.
What I saw in the church that Friday morning instead
was people of all races, ethnicities and backgrounds
coming together in a display of solidarity. It was triumph
of light over darkness.
The sense of community I felt that day still sticks with
me. It’s regrettable that we sometimes, absent a tragedy
forget about the ties that bind us as people.
But what a wonderful world this would be if we could
show the same sense of unity and spirit when tackling
the many issues we face today.
Make no mistake about it. There should have been
painful lessons learned from the shooting, which could
have easily been prevented if it weren’t for egregious
clerical errors that led to Roof being able to legally
obtain a firearm he had no business possessing (anoth
er issue for another column).
Part of coming together is taking meaningful action
to prevent as many of these acts of violence from
happening again as possible. We cannot stop all acts
of violence, but that’s no excuse not to try. It starts with
showing empathy for everyone.
I’m optimistic about our chances.
As the wheels of justice churn toward Dylann Roof,
the fundamental decency of humankind is still evident
all around if you look close enough.
It thrives through the legacy of those like Clementa
Pinckney who sought to build something in this world
and not destroy it.
Scott Thompson is editor of the Barrow News-
Journal. He can be reached at sthompson@barrow-
journal.com.
f
scott
thompson
It’s a very merry Christmas
for Speaker David Ralston
It isn’t quite Christmas Day, but Rep.
David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge), the
speaker of the Georgia House, has
already received probably the best
gift he ever got in his life.
The present was delivered last week
by the Georgia Supreme Court,
which handed down a ruling
that allows Ralston, who is a
lawyer, to continue working as
an attorney despite admitted
violations of two rules of pro
fessional conduct.
Ralston got into this predica
ment quite a while back when
he represented a couple, Paul
and Shanda Chernak, who
were suing for monetary dam
ages from an auto accident
that had injured Paul Chernak.
The civil lawsuit languished
for several years without going to
trial. At one point, Ralston’s clients
appealed to him for financial help in
paying their bills. Ralston advanced
them $22,000 from his trust account.
When you’re a lawyer, the rules of
professional conduct require that you
be diligent in representing your client
and not let a case drag on for an
unreasonable period. You are espe
cially required not to not to advance
money to a client from your own trust
account.
The State Bar of Georgia filed a civil
complaint against Ralston more than
two years ago over these issues and
the case has been a political quag
mire ever since.
Ralston, you see, is not just a law
yer, he is also one of the most power
ful men at the state capitol.
He presides over the House of
Representatives, the legislative cham
ber that originates the state budget
each year.
If the House and Senate don’t agree
to put money in the budget for a
specific project, that project doesn’t
get done.
This matters to the Supreme Court,
because the justices and their col
leagues on the Georgia Court of
Appeals are on the verge of getting
a new judicial building that would
be constructed on the site of the old
state archives near the capitol.
Money has been allocated in pre
vious budgets for the site plans and
demolition of the archives building,
but the largest portion of the project
has yet to be approved.
It will cost an estimated $100 million
or more to erect the judicial building,
an amount that Ralston and other
House members will have to agree to
put in the budget.
I’m sure the Supreme Court jus
tices would enjoy having a shiny new
building for their offices. Ralston, for
his part, doesn’t want to be bothered
with a politically embarrassing penal
ty for violating the rules of profession
al conduct.
You can see where this is going.
The justices ended up giving Ralston
one of the lightest penalties possible
for his transgressions: a public repri-
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mand. Ralston will not lose his ability
to practice law, even though he had
indicated he would accept a three-
month suspension.
It is worth noting that the maxi
mum punishment Ralston could have
potentially received was
disbarment.
He got a tap on the
wrist instead.
The justices cited
several factors to justify
their decision: Ralston
had no previous disci
plinary record; there
was no selfish or dis
honest motive in his
actions; he fully dis
closed what he had
done; he was coopera
tive with the court; and
he had a “lengthy career in public
service as a legislator and legislative
leader.”
“In light of all of these circumstanc
es and mitigating factors,” the court
said, “and in particular the absence
of any apparent harm to a client or
benefit to Ralston from the violations
... we agree with the special master
that a review panel reprimand is the
appropriate sanction in this matter.”
Ralston did make a substantial
financial sacrifice as a result of this
affair. He won’t ask for the $22,000 to
be paid back and he gave up any fee
he might have claimed from the even
tual settlement of the Chernaks’ case.
He also paid for some expensive
attorneys to represent him in this mat
ter, including former governor Roy
Barnes.
Barnes is a talented courtroom law
yer who charges a considerably high
er hourly fee than your local plumber
or electrician.
This is the way the political process
works. If you’re a powerful politician,
you will often find yourself on the
receiving end of some nice gifts and
perks.
None of them could be nicer than
the one Ralston received from the
Supreme Court.
Tom Crawford is editor of The
Georgia Report, an internet news
service at gareport.com that reports
on state government and politics.
He can be reached at tcrawford@
gareport.com.
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Winder, Barrow County, Ga.
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Editor
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Also covering beats is Alex Pace.
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A few slices of
political nonsense
There was a lot of grumbling about how
the Georgia High School Association
moved the recent playoff game involving
Jefferson High School’s football team.
Despite the fact that JHS officials had
made plans to put additional seating in
place for the game at home, the GHSA
denied that effort, forcing the game to go
out-of-town.
The GHSA is a
private organiza
tion, but is woven
into the fabric of
the state’s public
schools and their
athletic programs.
It has long used a
heavy hand in its
decision-making,
often making deci
sions that defy
common sense.
For those who
say they like “pub
lic-private partnerships,” the GHSA is an
example of how that kind of thing can
sometimes fail the sniff test.
• • •
Speaking of football, some Commerce
school system leaders are reportedly
upset that the football program there
isn’t getting enough funding. At a recent
school board meeting, one official said
some “commitments” regarding the foot
ball program had not been fulfilled.
Nobody seems to know what those
“commitments” are since they were
never discussed in a public meeting.
The Great Recession really hammered
the Commerce City School System and
the construction of a new high school
facility also has hit the system’s finances.
That some athletic needs have been put
on the back burner isn’t too shocking.
But Commerce has long been a foot
ball crazy town and whatever those
“commitments” may have been, they will
likely see funding soon. Just to make it
clear, one BOE member pointed out that
athletics in the town are just as important
as academics.
That was true two decades ago, but I’m
not sure the tail wags the Tiger as much
today. Times have changed.
• • •
The recent deal supposedly crafted
by president-elect Donald Trump to
keep some air conditioning production
jobs with Carrier in Indiana was initially
hailed as a great boon to Trump’s prom
ise to “make America first” in jobs.
But now we know the rest of the story.
The deal was really just crony capitalism
where the state of Indiana gave Carrier
$7 million in incentives to keep the jobs
from leaving for Mexico. Some would
call that political bribery by shaking
down taxpayers.
In addition, it turns out that Carrier will
now do a lot of automation in its Indiana
plant so that the 750 or so jobs Trump
allegedly “saved” won’t really be saved at
all. They will be phased out as the auto
mation takes over.
Here’s a thought: Let’s keep the federal
government out of the private sector and
let businesses make decisions based on
their needs and market demands, not
political manipulation and deception.
The Carrier deal was nothing but corpo
rate welfare.
That may play well with Trump’s pop
ulist core, but it’s bad policy and bad
economics.
• • •
You mean I spent the Cold War worried
about the Ruskies for nothing?
It appears now that we’re going to
give the U.S. interests away to our long
time mortal and ideological enemy
because our president-elect is in love
with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. The
CIA thinks the Ruskies even tried to help
The Donald get elected.
It was Khrushchev who said history
was on the Soviet’s side and that one day
“We will bury you.”
Seems he was right. I just thought
they’d do it at the point of a gun not in
our own ballot boxes.
• • •
If you believe:
The Holocaust didn’t happen;
That 911 was planned by the US gov
ernment;
That President Obama was born in
Kenya;
That the moon landing was a fake;
That Ted Cruz’s father was part of the
killing of JFK;
That there is a “shadow” government
waiting to turn the U.S. over to the United
Nations;
See Buffington on Page 6A