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PAGE 14A
FORSYTH COUNTY NEWS WadnMday, Novwnbw 29, 1998
Opinion
Keep safety in mind
this holiday season
The official holiday shopping season has arrived. But, unfortunately, that s not
the only season that’s here. Along with the holidays also comes the season for
crime.
Although local law enforcement officials will be keeping extra watch on busi
nesses and residences during the holidays, it’s also important for individuals to know
what to do to keep themselves safe at home and while shopping.
Here are some suggestions on what you can do to keep yourself and your family
safe.
-When shopping, shop with a friend. Park close to lighted areas. And, if you
don’t want to walk out of a shopping mall or department store alone, ask for a secu
rity person to escort you. Extra security is usually hired during the holidays for this
purpose.
-Be aware of your surroundings. So many times, people are busy talking or
putting the kids in the stroller, or trying to handle too many packages at one time.
Remember to take your time and be aware. Watch the persons walking out of the
store with you. Be aware if there are strange cars traveling in your neighborhood.
Pay attention to where your children are when visiting a store. Don’t let them run
around a store unsupervised. Unfortunately, this is also the season when the opportu
nity for abducting children presents itself.
-Take care of your home, too. Burglars are just looking to do their Christmas
shopping at someone’s home instead of in a store. Leave lights on and cars in the
driveway, even when you’re away. Have neighbors keep a watchful eye on your
home if you’re going to a party for the evening or visiting relatives for the holidays.
The bottom line over this holiday season is that although this is supposed to be a
time of giving, some people see it as the opportune time to take. Don t let yourself
and your family be a victim. Take the extra precautions and the extra time to be safe.
On Your Payroll
CITY COUNCIL
Mayor, H. Ford Gravitt, 212 Kelly Mill Road, Cumming, Ga. 30130
Mayor Pro-Tern, Ralph Perry, 1420 Pilgrim Road,
Cumming, Ga. 30130
Lewis Ledbetter, 205 Mountain Brook Drive, Cumming, Ga. 30130
Quincy Holton, 312 Samaritan Drive, Cumming, Ga. 30130
Rupert Sexton, 705 Pine Lake Drive, Cumming, Ga. 30130
John Pugh, 108 13th Street, Cumming, Ga. 30130
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS
David Sexton, 5330 Dahlonega Hwy., Cumming, Ga. 30103
Ron Seder, 6355 Barberry Hill Place, Gainesville, Ga. 30506
James Harrington, P.O. Box 305, Cumming, Ga. 30130
John Kieffer, 4403 Pine Tree Close, Cumming, Ga. 30130
Lamar Suddeth, 3145 Pleasant Grove Rd., Cumming, Ga. 30130
BOARD OF EDUCATION
Eddie Taylor, 4195 Morningside Drive, Cumming, Ga. 30130.
404-887-4405.
Sherry Sagemiller, 1460 Squire Lane, Cumming, Ga. 30130.
404-887-8388.
Arthur Wright, 4200 Oaktree Lane, Cumming, Ga. 30130.
404-887-6883.
Ben Benson, 1265 Dahlonega Highway, Cumming, Ga. 30130.
404-889-9892.
Don Hendricks, 5985 Polo Drive, Cumming, Ga. 30130. 404-889-2909.
NATIONAL REPRESENTATIVES
•U.S. Senator Sam Nunn
303 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510.
Telephone: 1-202-224-3521, Atlanta 404-331-4811
Fax: Washington, 202-224-0072; Atlanta, 404-331-5439
•U.S. Senator Paul Coverdell
200 Russell Senate Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20510
Atlanta: 100 Colony Square, Suite 300, 1175 Peachtree St.,
Atlanta, Ga. 30361
Telephone: 202-224-3643;Atlanta 404-347-2202
Fax: Washington, 202-228-3875; Atlanta. 404-347-2243
•U.S. Rep. Nathan Deal, 9th District
1406 Longworth House Office Building, Washington, D.C. 20515
Gainesville: P.O. Box 1015, Gainesville, Ga. 30503
Telephone: 202-225-521 l;Gainesville, 770-535-2592
Fax: 202-225-5211; Gainesville, 770-535-2765
STATE REPRESENTATIVES
• Senator Clint Day, 48th District
121-1 State Capitol, Atlanta, Ga. 30334
Telephone: 404-656-0048 (office) or 770-446-1500
•Senator Casey Cagle, 49th District
303-B Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, Ga. 30334
Telephone: 404-656-7580 (office) or 770-532-2768 or 770-287-0374
•Rep. Mike Evans, 28th District
18 Capitol Square, Legislative Office Building, Room 604,
Atlanta, Ga. 30334
Telephone: 404-656-0250 (office) or 770-889-4512
•Rep. Keith Breedlove, 85th District
Legislative Office Building. Suite 412, Atlanta, Ga. 30334
Telephone: 404-656-0137 (office) or 770-945-1579
Gov. Zell Miller 203 State Capital, Atlanta, Ga. 30334
Telephone: 1-404-656-1776
Street talk
Do you think Christmas is too commercialized?
MF' i wSKik.
Michael Cleveland
I think it is. Most people have forgotten the
true meaning of Christmas and that is giv
ing.
Tilly Hester
Yes I do. They have taken Christ out of it.
" "Po^tU~
"I don't mind the chase, but what do we do if
we catch up with it?"
Coach Ray Goff’s goodbye gift
Attorney General Mike Bowers doesn’t
understand much about college football. At
least not the way it is administered at the
University of Georgia, his law-school alma
mater.
Bowers is the first to admit it. That is
why he has ordered UGA President Charles
Knapp to submit to him every scrap of paper
involved in the firing and rewarding of
Coach Ray Goff. He wants to scrutinize the
agreement for a better understanding of the
arcane business of football.
Goff, you may recall, is the 40-year-old
head coach who will receive roughly
$70,000 a year for life for a seven-year
career that produced only four Georgia vic
tories against its football peers.
“I hate to think what they would have
paid him if he had won six games against
Florida, Alabama, Tennessee and Auburn.
This is the epitome of the good old-boy
deal,” says Bowers. He wonders why Dr.
Knapp and Athletic Director Vince Dooley
did not have the university’s lawyer present
when Goff’s severance pay was worked out.
Bowers is the university’s attorney.
Another leading alumnus of UGA tried
to explain the arrangement to Bowers: “This
was not the University of Georgia’s doings.
This was the athletic associations decision.
These are not public monies being paid to
Coach Goff. These are athletic association
funds.”
Bowers is not impressed. “It doesn’t
matter. The imprimatur of the University of
Georgia is on this agreement. Chuck Knapp
is the president of the university. He agreed
to this. It sends the wrong message.”
Goff may have come up short in the
Angie Rigney
I think it is what you make it. In your own
house it is only as commercial as you let it
be.
| ; f Q-||
football-coaching department. But he is a
likeable cuss. Goes hunting and fishing with
the right people.
House Speaker Tom Murphy made a
couple of phone calls to try to save Goff’s
job.
House Majority Leader Larry Walker, D-
Perry, was Goff’s lawyer in the goodbye
negotiations.
“I represented him because he is my
friend,” says Walker. He adds that press
accounts of the severance pay are not quite
accurate. He declines to specify the errors,
and finally concedes: “We are satisfied that
the terms were very equitable.”
Come to think of it, Walker and Murphy
may be the unsung heroes of this affair.
Murphy could have saved Goff’s job by
simply ordering that he be kept on the pay
roll. To his credit, the speaker restrained
himself.
Walker could have demanded SIOO,OOO
a year or even $150,000 and Dr.
Knapp and Mr. Dooley would have agreed.
The speaker and the majority leader have
nearly life-and-death powers over the bud
get of the University System of Georgia,
Cynthia Darnell
In a way I guess it is. it should be more
towards Jesus' birth.
including UGA.
Does anyone believe that Knapp would
have stamped his foot and said, “Nuts!” to
lawyer Walker’s proposed goodbye gift for
Goff? Of course not. Knapp has problems
beyond football. The university is slipping
in its commitment to research. Not enough
money. Enrollment is exploding. A legal
challenge to the school’s minority-enroll
ment practices is waiting in the wings.
He needs the help and goodwill of both
Murphy and Walker. Securing the future of
a fired football coach is a small price to pay
for help in keeping UGA moving in acade
mics and research.
Knapp, however, has offended other
political powers. Bowers, a likely candidate
for governor in 1998, is angry and dis
mayed. Lt. Gov. Pierre Howard, once a ten
nis star at UGA, also is upset. As Knapp and
Dooley were giving away the store to Goff,
they were giving the bum’s rush to retiring
Coach Dan Magill, who built Georgia into a
tennis powerhouse. Howard, another possi
bility for governor, has harsh words for the
way his old coach was treated.
Postscript: Goff may not have won many
football games, but he succeeded in raising
markedly the grades and scholastic achieve
ments of his players. He certainly deserves
recognition for that. Still, $70,000 a year for
not coaching seems a bit much. As for
Walker, he is an accomplished lawmaker
and probably the next speaker of the House.
Even so, his role in the Goff affair raises
questions of propriety.
Bill Shipp is editor of Bill Shipp’s
Georgia, a weekly newsletter on government
and business. He can be reached at P. 0.
Box 440755, Kennesaw, GA 30144 or by
calling (770) 422-2543.
Leo Nahllk
I think it is too commercialized. People are
too greedy.