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THE JACKSON HERALD
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 10, 2008
Named the best weekly editorial page in the nation for 2007, 2008
Opinions
“Private opinion is weak, but public opinion is almost omnipotent. ”
- Henry Ward Beecher ~
Mike Buffington, editor • Email: Mike@mainstreetnews.com
our views
Redlight
cameras need
more debate
A PROPOSAL before the
Jefferson City Council
to install cameras at
some traffic signals needs seri
ous debate.
Like most “redlight camera”
plans, this one is being pitched
as a measure to increase “safe
ty.” But also like most of these
plans, redlight robocops end up
being all about money and how
much a town can get in new
fine income.
There are some dangerous
intersections in Jefferson, espe
cially around Hwy. 129 and 1-85
where the state DOT designed
a confusing traffic pattern that
defies common sense.
Still, research on redlight cam
eras is mixed as to whether
they increase or decrease safety
at intersections. Some studies
suggest that the cameras cause
more wrecks because drivers
slam on their brakes at the last
second to avoid getting a ticket.
But increased safety questions
are overshadowed by two other
concerns. First, there’s some
thing Orwellian and un-Amer
ican about Big Brother hand
ing out traffic fines through an
automated camera system that
photographs car tags, searches
a database and generates a bill.
But even a larger problem is
the money and greed that can
follow such a system. Redlight
robocops can generate a lot of
fine money and that induces
some to abuse the system. Need
more revenues? Well, let’s just
shorten the yellow-light timing
to create more redlight-runners.
And for Jackson County
Robocop cameras along Hwy.
129 could be another black eye
for the community. Pendergrass’
traffic trap along Hwy. 129 that
stops motorists for petty window
tint violations to raise money for
that town is a statewide joke.
And until recently Arcade ran
an aggressive speed trap in an
effort to raise revenues for that
town’s bank account.
Jefferson’s idea of putting
redlight cameras between those
two towns would just reinforce
the image to motorists — and
prospective businesses — that
Jackson County is just one
big traffic trap of greedy towns
hijacking drivers for money.
Before Jefferson becomes
another Big Brother camera
cop, city leaders need to debate
the issue thoroughly. Is the issue
really about public safety or is
this just another way to gener
ate income for the city on the
cheap?
The Jackson Herald
Founded 1875 • The Official Legal
Organ of Jackson County, Ga.
Mike Buffington Co-Publisher & Editor
Scott Buffington Co-Publisher &
Advertising Manager
Postmaster: Send Address Changes To:
MainStreet Newspapers, Inc.
PO Box 908
Jefferson, Georgia 30549-0908
Web Site: www.JacksonHeraldTODAY.com
Email: mike@mainstreetnews.com
Voice: 706.367.5233
Fax: 706.367.9355 (news)
Periodical Postage paid at Jefferson,
GA 30549 (SCED 271980)
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in state; $44.50 out-of-state; Sr. Citizens’ and
college students $2 off; Military $42.50
letters
Says logo was a good idea
Dear Editor:
I just don’t get it. Sometimes 1 read the editorials
and I think Mike Buffington is out there fighting for the
good of Jackson County. But when I read last week’s
editorial concerning the new county logo, I thought...
Mike Buffington....What a waste of good newspaper
space for the tirade I read.
I personally work in a business where we have to
market ourselves each and every day. And so far in
this economic suffering we are going through, our
business is not only holding its own, it is growing.
I think Mr. Buffington knows a lot about the newspa
per business, but judging from what I read, it looks as
if he knows very little about marketing.
Take the statement he made. “And at S1,000 per
word plus two squiggly lines, it was an outrageous
price to pay for a 30-minute typesetter. A high school
graphics class could have done the same thing for
free. ”
Well fine and dandy, why don’t we just add all the
professionals working for marketing companies to the
growing unemployment list and allow high school
students to replace them. Now we are really talking
about saving some money. Anytime Jackson County
needs some marketing advice, just dial up one of the
high schools. We will use high school students while
all of the surrounding counties continue to waste their
county budget on professional graphic designers.
Those two little squiggly lines that you have to
“squint’ to see have an ultramodern innovative style.
Personally 1 don’t have to squint to see the “J” and the
“C”. It is very obvious to me.
There is just not enough time or enough space in
this newspaper for me to address all the nonsense
Mr. Buffington espoused in his editorial. He did say
something that was tme though when he said that
some fancy sounding words like “marketing”, “pre
sentation”, “image”, and “branding” would be used
to explain how important that $4,000 was to spend.
Fortunately or unfortunately, whichever way you see it,
those are the words of today’s business world. Also, I
can assure you $4,000 was a good deal. Living Media
Group provided Jackson County a beautiful logo at a
very fair price.
Mr. Buffington also made the statement, “Monday
night, six lucky homeowners had their property taxes
pay for a new Jackson County logo.”
No one called me to let me know, but I really hope
I was one of those lucky homeowners. I don’t know
who the other five are, but 1 would like to congratulate
them for having the pleasure to provide the funds to
help keep Jackson County in the game. You might not
realize it folks, but for any business to excel during the
next few years, it needs to be willing to be progressive
and to literally fight to stay afloat. Thank you very
much to the three county commissioners who have
the foresight and the fortitude to be willing to partici
pate in this fight.
So Mr. Buffington, how about taking the same space
your 760 words took last week and donate this space
to some of the other important things this county
needs to address, such as a county animal shelter. I
would like to contribute my property taxes next year
towards that cause. If I could influence the other five
lucky homeowners who won the privilege of paying
for the new logo to contribute their property taxes
next year, we would have a great start for a county
animal shelter.
P.S. If I “squint” and look really close I can see an
“M” in the new logo. Thanks BOC for acknowledging
my contribution.
Sincerely
Sylvia McCart
Nicholson
(Buffington responds: Perhaps the “AT you ses
stands for Mike?)
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Chambliss had history on his side
THERE WERE many explanations being floated for
Saxby Chambliss’ smashing success in last week’s
runoff election for the U.S. Senate.
He raised a lot of money. Even with a late surge of
funds to Jim Martin from Democratic party leaders
in the Washington, D.C. area,
Chambliss still had nearly
three times as much money
for his reelection campaign.
He realized after the close
call in the general election that
he needed a ground game and
beefed up his get-out-the-vote
operations for the runoff.
Chambliss and a host of
independent GOP commit
tees ran wave after wave of
TV attack ads that hammered
Martin during the runoff.
He utilized the star power
of celebrity Republicans like
Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin and presidential nominee
John McCain, who campaigned for Chambliss and
energized Republicans who weren’t enthused about
the senator’s record and voted for a Libertarian can
didate in the general election.
He also capitalized on the success of Democratic
candidates in Senate races in other states. Chambliss
argued that electing Martin would enable national
Democrats to get dangerously close to a filibuster-
proof majority of 60 seats in the U.S. Senate. The
voters responded well to this “firewall” argument.
All of those factors played a part in helping
Chambliss win another six-year term, but the simplest
explanation for his runoff victory can be summed up
in one word: history.
In all of Georgia’s general election runoffs over the
past two decades, history shows that Republican vot
ers do a better job of coming back to the polls than
do Democrats. That pattern held true in this election
as Chambliss and Lauren “Bubba” McDonald, a GOP
candidate for the Public Service Commission can
didate, both enjoyed landslide runoff victories over
their Democratic opponents.
There are strong historical parallels between 2008,
when Chambliss held off Martin, and 1992, when
Republican Paul Coverdell came back in the mnoff to
topple Democratic Sen. Wyche Fowler.
Both elections were held in the same year that a
Democrat was elected president (Bill Clinton in 1992,
Barack Obama in 2008). In both elections, the voter
turnout for the runoff amounted to about 56 percent
of the number who voted in the general election.
In both elections, the president-elect tried to help
the Democratic candidate. Clinton came to Georgia
to campaign personally for Fowler. While Obama did
not travel to Georgia, he did radio commercials and
robo-calls for Martin, and also dispatched staffers
from his presidential campaign to help with get-out-
the-vote efforts.
In both elections, Republican voters were anx
ious to push back against the election of a popular
Democrat for president and turned out in heavy
numbers for the runoff.
Coverdell trailed Fowler by 35,000 votes in the
general election, but he won the runoff by more than
16,000 votes, a turnaround of 51,371 votes. Chambliss,
who finished just below 50 percent in the general
election, increased his advantage over Martin from
109,671 votes to more than 318,000 votes, a huge
improvement.
Republicans had the added incentive of pushing
back against a president-elect who was not only a
Democrat but the country’s first African-American
president as well.
“The Georgia electorate is easily the most racially
polarized of any state we polled regularly during the
2008 election cycle,” said Tom Jensen of Public Policy
Polling (PPP), one of several firms whose runoff polls
underestimated the turnout by white Republicans.
You could predict the outcome of the runoff elec
tion by comparing the early voting statistics.
In the general election, nearly 35 percent of the
early ballots were cast by black voters who were obvi
ously enthused by the prospects of voting for Obama.
That heavy turnout helped Obama run a closer-than-
expected race against McCain (he lost by only 5 per
centage points) and enabled Martin to finish within 3
points of Chambliss.
The early voting for the runoff election was another
story entirely. The percentage of black voters dropped
to less than 23 percent. The proportion of white male
voters, who are more likely to vote Republican than
any other group, increased from less than 30 percent
to nearly 36 percent of the early vote. Those were all
signs that Chambliss was headed for a big victory.
In the end, Republican voters came back to the
polls and Democrats didn’t. With that bit of history
on his side, it would have been hard for Chambliss
to lose.
Tom Crawford is the editor of Capitol Impact’s
Georgia Report. He can be reached at tcrawford@
caDitolimDact.net.
Two Southern
Gentlemen gone
T WO “Southern Gentlemen,” both
named “Mac,” died this week.
They were the last of a breed of
men that we may never see again.
Mac Barber of Commerce embodied the
air of a courtly gentleman during his long
career in various public offices. While his
politics and management often came under
fire, few would argue with his manners.
Mac was kind to a fault. As one observer
said, he didn’t
see issues, he
saw individuals.
When someone
on the down-
and-out couldn’t
pay their medi
cal bills when
he was head of
BJC Hospital,
he’d let it slide.
And when he
was mayor of
Commerce,
he’d do the
same thing with
utility payments.
That didn’t do
much for the financial stability of those
governments, but it endeared him to those
he helped.
Mac was also an odd duck, a quirky indi
vidual whose antics gave rise to a number
of funny stories. While serving on the state
Public Service Commission, Mac some
times left his office through the window to
avoid being seen.
And Mac had friends all over. Back
in the 1970s, I once went to his house to
photograph him with a visitor from the
then-popular Hee Haw television show. I
don’t remember which actor it was (maybe
Archie Campbell?), or how Mac knew him,
but the two sat in Mac’s house swapping
stories.
Someday, Hollywood should base a
movie character on Mac Barber — courtly,
kind, soft-spoken, eccentric. He was one of
a kind.
The other “Mac” was perhaps less
famous than Barber, but Durwood “Mac”
McAlister was a much-beloved newspaper
man in Georgia and was well-known in our
profession.
An editorial page editor for the Atlanta
Journal, Mac had long been retired when
he died last week while playing golf.
Truth is, Mac was my motivation to give
up the game of golf. Way back in the late
1970s, while I was still in college, I got put
on a foursome with Mac at a state press
meeting being held at Jekyll Island. Mac
had suffered a heart attack a couple weeks
earlier and was still very weak from the
ordeal.
But he was at the convention that summer
and he loved golf. So Mac had his wife drive
him around the course in a cart. She’d pull
up close to the ball and he’d take a slow,
tentative step out onto the grass, make his
swing, then sit back down.
At the time, I was a young man, still rather
fit and in shape. But Mac beat the hell out of
me on the golf course that day.
I decided if an old guy who’d just had a
heart attack could whip me, then golf prob
ably wasn’t my game. I haven’t picked up a
golf club since.
A lot of people have stories like that about
Mac. And he loved to tell stories in a raspy
Southern drawl that he could command
with his soft, kindly voice.
Among press and political sorts, Mac
was probably best known for his rendition
of Herman Talmadge at the annual press
Cracker Crumble. The event used to be a
spoof on current political issues held as a
fundraiser each winter.
Mac was a major part of the show for
many years. Wearing red suspenders and
sporting a trademark cigar, Mac would
take to the stage to parody “Humman”
Talmadge’s latest political antics. If you
didn’t know better, you’d swear Mac really
was Herman Talmadge.
One of my colleagues observed this week
that dying while playing golf seemed fitting
for Mac. “If he had a forbidden cigar in his
hand, he had a perfect passing,” she said.
These two Macs were indeed the last of
their generation, the last of a kind.
I don’t know if Durwood McAlister ever
wrote much about Mac Barber when they
were both in the thick of state politics, but
my guess is that they’re now sitting around
the big golf course in the sky, swapping
stories and having a good laugh at we mere
mortals whom they’ve left behind.
Mike Buffington is editor of The Jackson
Herald. He can be reached at mike@main-
streetnews.com.
mike
buffington