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Common Sense
The Progress
Editorial
February 18,2021
From the Staff
Where are those audits?
In two separate cases last year our
county government pledged audits of
government departments.
In the spring, in the magistrate court,
the county government/ criminal investi
gators called for a full “forensic” audit of
the court’s operation in light of financial
charges against the chief magistrate. This
audit has not been started, but is expected
- perhaps it will still be of some value if
finally done.
Regardless of how the trial of the for
mer chief magistrate for financial crimes
goes, the investigation revealed shocking
examples of lax oversight of the county
credit card.
When you have resort hotel stays and
personal purchases show up on credit
card bills there was clearly a problem,
and the public has the right to know that
the county has closed whatever loophole
permitted that spending to go unabated
for at least the past two years.
Every year the county pays for an out
side audit of ah their finances and gets an
annual glowing report, but if month after
month of irregular purchases go unde
tected, one questions the usefulness and
integrity of the yearly checks? Those au
dits will be defended as not designed to
look at items like credit card purchases,
which leads us to question what good are
they at all? We certainly won’t rely on
them as any indicator of good steward
ship any longer. Heck, the suspicious
items - mattresses, toys, clothing - stood
out like a sore thumb when an average
citizen filed an open records request.
We were hoping the forensic audit
promised by the county would shed some
light on how the thousands in question
able purchases slipped by month after
month. And we wonder whether other
parts of the court operation may have
been similarly pillaged?
In April, 2020 the Progress reported
that a full forensic audit of the magistrate
court had been ordered by the county
government. At that point the county at
torney said the audit had gone no where
due to COVID restrictions on auditors
travelling here for face-to-face interac
tions. Let’s hope it really is still in the
works.
In August 2020 the board of commis
sioners announced their intention to have
a basic audit of the tax commissioner’s
office completed so the new head of that
department (which is charged with col
lecting all property taxes, car tag pay
ments and more) could get a fresh start
after numerous complaints arose about
his predecessor who had resigned sud
denly.
An audit of what happened in the past
term may seem like water under the
bridge at this point, except for the fact
that in December our county marshal
said he would finally be able to collect
past due permit fees on mobile homes.
The marshal said that for much of 2019,
they couldn’t go after delinquent mobile
home owners as the prior tax commis
sioner had used a software program with
so many problems that the marshal didn’t
feel comfortable pursuing cases. The
billing was so inaccurate that writing a
citation with them “would make us all
look foolish,” the marshal reported to
commissioners.
The marshal commended the current
office-holder for straightening the mess
out.
So, that problem is fixed, but are there
others? When the board of commission
ers holds a special meeting to address the
situation and calls for an audit, the public
rightly expects it to be carried out and re
leased at some point - even if it is just to
give an ah clear.
We would suggest that our new com
mission chair put assessing the state of
those audits high on his priority list.
The sheriff’s office, where Commis
sion Chair Kris Stancil came from,
wanted the court audit back last year to
see how widespread the problem was.
Well now that Mr. Stancil is on the job,
it’s high time they got it.
In both instances, the public has a
right to know that problems have been
corrected. The audits should proceed
with haste and transparency.
Tell us your thoughts with a letter to the editor. E-mail to news@pickensprogress.com
See letter submission guidelines on the Letters to the Editor page or call us 706-253-2457.
Ponderings of a Simple Man
Py Caleb Smith
The Dogma
of Dogs
There are many different
ideals as to what constitutes a
‘perfect’ life. Many people
yearn for the simple and un
complicated. A house in the
woods, surrounded by nature
and tranquility seems to be
growing in popularity as evi
denced by the approximately
15,000 shows on TV about
Alaskan bushpeople.
Some people simply wish
to be rich, to jet around the
world in expensive planes
and visit exotic locales. Ex
pensive cars, expensive
homes, and expensive foods
all seem to be their ultimate
goal. Both sides have their
pros and cons, with most
people ultimately falling
short of their intended goal.
As for me? I think I would
like to be a dog.
I have been studying my
dogs extensively over recent
months. I’ve observed their
eating and sleeping habits,
their interactions between
themselves and my wife, and
have come to the conclusion
that your average housedog
has a better life philosophy
than all the theorists, ethi-
cists, or philosophers of the
last thousand years put to
gether.
The average Yorkie gets
up at the same time each day,
that is to say, they get up pre
cisely when they wish and
not a moment sooner. They
yawn, stretch, then go about
their busy of schedule of eat
ing, napping, and occasion
ally protecting their owners
from dirty socks left lying
around.
Their food is brought to
them at set intervals, unless
they get hungry and whine
until the owners cave and
give them an extra portion (a
daily occurrence). When they
want, they sprawl out on the
softest item within easy reach
and sleep with the peace that
only the knowledge of total
superiority to all other life
forms can bring.
Then, after a long day
spent snacking, napping, and
playing, they march to the
bedroom and growl at the
owner until they turn the light
out and go to sleep.
As I said, the American
housedog has its priorities
straight.
I explained this theory to
my wife. I went into detail
about how everyone should
strive for such an easy, glut
tonous, carefree existence.
She mulled it over for a long
moment, then congratulated
me for already taking such
large strides towards accom
plishing my goal.
I was still trying to decide
if she had insulted me as she
brought me my dinner. I was
still thinking it over as I fin
ished eating, and would have
questioned her about it, but
by that point I was so tired
from all the meat and pota
toes, I fell asleep in my arm
chair, Yorkie on either side.
I’ll ask her about it tonight
for sure. Just as soon as she
finishes up in the living room
and makes it to bed. That
should be any time now. I’ve
been growling at her for 30
minutes already.
[Caleb Smith is a long
time, award-winning, colum
nist for the Progress. Look
for his books at the Progress
office or on Amazon.]
(USPS 431-820)
Published by Pickens County Progress, Inc.
94 North Main Street, Jasper, GA 30143
(706) 253-2457 FAX (706) 253-9738
www.pickensprogressonline.com
DAN POOL
Publisher/Editor
Published each Thursday at Jasper, Pickens County, Georgia. Entered
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i he House of representatives?
P\l\M stuff up bn'the Senate
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OTHER VOICES
Celebrate Arbor Day by planting hemlocks
Hemlocks are easy to plant, surprisingly adaptable and
a great choice for Arbor Day as they are threatened by an
invasive species.
From Save Georgia’s
Hemlocks
Now that Arbor Day (Fri
day, February 19) and spring
are just around the comer, the
conditions will be perfect for
planting new evergreen trees
in time for them to establish
their root systems before the
summer.
Eastern hemlocks are a
great choice for our area. Na
tive to the entire Appalachian
Mountain chain, they are the
signature tree of our north
Georgia communities,
adding beauty and privacy
around our homes, providing
cooling shade for trout
streams, supporting animal
and plant diversity in the for
est, and creating a healthy,
almost charismatic environ
ment for those who live,
work, and visit here.
Eastern hemlocks are also
a choice with special signifi
cance because they’re being
threatened by an invasive in
sect called hemlock woolly
adelgid that’s killing them by
the millions in our forests
where their numbers and
physical access make it diffi
cult to find and treat them. So
it’s all the more important for
property owners to plant
them in residential settings
where they can be looked
after with just an inexpen
sive, easy-to-do soil treat
ment every five years to
protect them.
Able to grow in settings
from deep shade to full sun
provided they have adequate
soil moisture; hemlocks are
highly versatile and serve
well as wonderful specimen
trees, thick hedges, or grace
ful forest and streamside
WEATHER
By William Dilbeck
HI LOW RAIN
Feb.
02
61
40
.00
Feb.
03
67
40
.00
Feb.
04
57
43
.59
Feb.
05
44
34
.20
Feb.
06
47
34
.05
Feb.
07
42
35
.02
Feb.
08
45
20
.20
trees. And once established,
they are very low-mainte
nance, adding beauty and
value to the property year
after year.
Planting them is really
simple. Dig a hole just a cou
ple inches deeper than the
root ball but three times as
wide. Mix some good quality
soil amendment with the na
tive soil and put three inches
of this mix back into the hole.
Place the tree in the hole
and refill with soil mix just to
the top of the root ball. Press
the soil down firmly until the
tree is sitting level with the
surrounding area. For the
first watering, it’s a good idea
to add some liquid root stim
ulator. After that, just water
once a week for the first three
months.
To adopt healthy hemlock
saplings or ask any hemlock-
related questions, contact
Save Georgia’s Hemlocks at
706-429-8010. And for more
detailed planting instruc
tions, including illustrations
and some important helpful
hints, visit www.savegeor-
giashemlocks.org.
Pickens County Head Start/Pre-K
Applications begin Monday,
March 1, 2021 for
the 2021-2022 school year.
Children must be 3 or 4 years of age
on or before September 1, 2021.
★ ★
K.1 QUALITY'
V? RATED
Office Hours
Monday thru Friday 7:00 AM - 3:30 PM
Call 770-735-3434 for more information
and to schedule an appointment.
Free Early Childhood
Education Program 4
Hiring Substitutes