Newspaper Page Text
THURSDAY. NOVEMBER 25. 2021 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 5A
Letters to the- Editor
Letters welcomed - No letter more than 450 words; Send
to news@pickensprogress.com or Pickens Progress 94 N.
Main, Jasper, Ga. 30143; All letters must have a full name
that will be published, and contact info. (Email Address or
Phone Number), which will not be published.
To the Editor:
Population Growth
[In response to the
Growth point/counterpoint
editorial in the 11-11 edition]
One of the unanswered
questions raised by the idea
of growth of any kind is the
final end state of any system.
Grow anything too much and
it makes a mess.
Your Momma was right,
there can be too much of a
good thing.
Take any geographic area
and keep putting people in it
and at some point it results in
a place that is almost impos
sible to enjoy. Many of the
major cities of the world are
getting to that point. Con
sider Atlanta. Even planet
earth is approaching the
breaking point caused by the
continuous increase in popu
lation and fulfilling the basic
needs of zillions.
Ask yourself this basic
question, "How many people
do I want to live in Pickens
County before I want to
move somewhere else?"
Twice as many?
Under our current national
and state and county and city
laws, there is no possible way
to limit the population to
whatever number you picked.
The local governments
can impose limited impact
fees [cost of construction aid
in the city of Jasper] for new
buildings and houses and
they can impose some lim
ited density zoning rides.
That is all. And none of those
steps have stopped rapid pop
ulation growth to our south.
So if developers come to
Pickens by the hundreds and
build thousands of dwellings
and apartments stretch to the
horizon and people move
here by the thousands, it will
be what it will be, and that is
a lot like Forsyth or Chero
kee. All the county and city
governments can do is try to
build infrastructure fast
enough for the growth.
The only stopping this is a
depression or a great war.
And consider our own wide
open southern border, where
even now, millions of people
from the failed governments
of Central and South Amer
ica are pressing north to
come here. We are likely at
the edge of rapid change in
our quiet little rural county.
Pickens County is distinct
from the other mountain
counties in North Georgia be
cause it has very little green
space land set aside by the
feds or the state. There are a
few land tracts now in con
servation trusts but most of
the land is open to develop
ment.
Gary Pichon
To the Editor:
The American Middle
Class is no longer in Amer
ica
60 or 70 years ago, the
USA had a robust middle
class. Manufacturing was
everywhere! We made cars,
trucks, tractors, tires, batter
ies, plumbing fixtures,
clothes, shoes, sporting
goods; we made everything!
If it was stamped "Made
in the USA" , it was the best
in the world. But today, all of
those good jobs have moved
to communist China, Japan,
So. Korea, Germany, Mex
ico, and other places where
most of the workers can't
read or write any language
and they are paid practically
nothing.
But our American corpo
rations are greedy at the ex
pense of our workers and
economy, we citizens are
greedy too; we want cheap
prices, so we buy non-Amer
ican goods.
Next time you're in a big
parking lot, look at the cars.
Nine out of ten are foreign.
Y'all pay premium prices for
Audi's and Porsche's. Do you
know they are Volkswagens.
Lexus's are Toyota's. Ferrari's
and Lamborghini's are Fiat's.
Ford and General Motors ve
hicles are the best in the
world. My 2005 Chevy, 4-
wheel drive pickup has
360,000 miles. I can afford
anything I want, but I like
this one; it's just getting bro
ken in.
This country was made
great by our middle class and
we MUST get it back! Our
corporations gave the Chi-
coms their technology, and
now they know about our
stuff.
They are using American
dollars to build aircraft carri
ers and space stations. WE
gotta stop buying from them.
The gap between the
haves and the have-nots is
widening and that is sad and
dangerous. Those homeless
people we see living in tents
and cardboard boxes should
be working at good American
middle class jobs. Let's pay a
little more to get great Amer
ican products. We'll be glad
we did!
Dan Darrington
Ferst Readers recognized as 4-star charity
Program has provided 145,000 books to young readers
Wf
ML
150 RAILROAD AVENUE, MINERAL BLUFF, GA
For information-call-
423-299-3914 or visit www.tsmri.org
A 5-Mile Trip by Open Air Railroad Motor Car
Ferst Readers has attained
the coveted 4-star rating by
Charity Navigator for
demonstrating strong finan
cial health and commitment
to accountability and trans
parency.
The nonprofit sector is ad
vancing and expanding. As
our organizations evolve, so
do the desires and interests of
our supporters. Astute donors
are yearning for greater ac
countability, transparency,
and for concrete results from
us. With more than 1.5 mil
lion American charities,
Charity Navigator aims to ac
centuate the work of efficient
and transparent organiza
tions. The intent of Charity
Navigator is to provide
donors with essential infor
mation to give them greater
confidence in both the chari
table decisions that they
make and the nonprofit sec
tor.
Based on the most recent
information available, Char
ity Navigator (www.charity-
navigtor.org) issued a new
rating for Ferst Readers.
They announced that Ferst
Readers has earned their
sixth consecutive 4-star rat
ing. This is the highest possi
ble rating and indicates that
Ferst Readers organization
adheres to sector best prac
tices and executes its mission
in a financially efficient way.
Attaining a 4-star rating ver
ifies that Ferst Readers ex
ceeds industry standards and
outperforms most charities in
their area of work. Only 11%
of the charities Charity Nav
igator evaluates have re
ceived at least 6 consecutive
4-star evaluations, indicating
that Ferst Readers outper
forms most other charities in
America.
This exceptional designa
tion from Charity Navigator
sets Ferst Readers apart from
its peers and demonstrates to
the public its trustworthiness.
Ferst Readers of Pickens
County has been part of this
program since May of 2009
when the first two books
were mailed to Pickens
County children under the
age of 5. Since that time over
145,000 books with literacy
support materials have been
put into the hands of our
youngest children. The local
Ferst program is maintained
by volunteers with no em
ployees and no office. There
fore, when donations are
made all money stays local
and goes to fund the Pickens
County program. Donations
and registrations for the pro
gram can be made at
www.ferstreaders.org being
sure to designate Pickens
County. Thanks to our great
community support we are
able to continue registering
children and funding the pro
gram locally.
m
Friday, Nov. 26th and Sat. Nov. 27th
(Next event: Saturday, May 28 & Sunday, May 29, 2022
Trips from 10:00 am thru 3:00 PM
SUGGESTED DONATION
$15 for Adults* • $5 youths 2-17 years old
Hand Car Rides - $2 donation per person/ per trip
to benefit the Tri-State Model Railroaders and the Mineral Bluff Depot
Georgia jobless rate reaches historic low
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA - Georgia’s un
employment rate dipped to
3.1% last month, the lowest
in the state’s history, the
Georgia Department of
Labor (GDOL) reported
Thursday.
October joblessness in
Georgia was well below the
national unemployment rate
of 4.6% and slightly below
September’s 3.3%.
"We have seen continuous
Small
ads
big
results
Progress classifieds
706-253-2457
job growth this year as we
have gained back 90% of the
jobs lost during the pan
demic,” state Commissioner
of Labor Mark Butler said.
“The continual increase in
employment opportunity,
particularly in those areas
hardest hit by the pandemic,
reinforces the critical need
for encouraging available
Georgians back into the
workforce.”
Jobs in Georgia have in
creased by 117,400 since last
May, and October’s growth
of 21,000 jobs marks only the
fifth time since 1990 that
over-the-month job growth
for that month exceeded
20,000.
The administrative and
support services, transporta
tion and warehousing, and re
tail trade job sectors have all
recovered the jobs lost during
the pandemic and added to
their respective totals.
However, sectors includ
ing accommodation and food
services, local government,
and religious, grants, civic,
and professional services
continue struggling to fill
jobs.
Jobs in Georgia were up
21,000 last month and are up
4.5% over the year to more
than 4.6 million.
But the labor force re
mains down 32,000 com
pared to March of last year,
just before the coronavirus
pandemic struck Georgia.
The sectors with the most
over-the-month job gains in
October were transportation
and warehousing, which
gained 3,600 jobs; retail
trade, which gained 3,000
jobs; and the 2,500 jobs
gained by the health care and
social assistance sector.
First-time unemployment
claims last month were down
1,525 from September to
27,310, a 5% decline. For the
year, initial claims fell by
86%.
More than 208,000 job
openings are posted online at
Employ Georgia for Geor
gians to access. Market
salaries range from $23,000
to $103,000 with a median
salary of $42,000.
“The GDOL is working to
ensure that every Georgian
who wants a job can find a
job,” Butler said. “Our Busi
ness Services Unit is helping
the state’s employers find
employees that meet their
business needs, and we are
scheduling in-person ap
pointments across the state in
our career centers to make
sure jobseekers have the sup
port they need to successfully
find employment.”
This story is available
through a news partnership with
Capitol Beat News Service, a
project of the Georgia Press Ed
ucational Foundation.
o
Good Samaritan
HEALTH & WELLNESS CENTER
Restoring Health. Saving Lives.
All kinds of care for all ages.
All types of payments.
All under one roof.
Medical • Dental
Behavorial Health • Pharmacy
Open Monday - Friday.
Call 706-253-4673 for appointments.
75 Samaritan Drive • Jasper GA 30143
goodsamhwc.org
We accept a wide variety of insurance: Blue Cross Blue Shield,
Cigna, United Healthcare, plus Medicare, Medicaid &Veterans
Choice. Plus, we have a low-cost sliding fee scale for
individuals without insurance.
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205 Sawyer Farm Road
Waleska, GA 30183
PICKENS COUNTY, GEORGIA
FISCAL YEAR 2022 (FY’ 22) BUDGET REVIEW & ADOPTION
(January 1, 2022 - December 31, 2022)
PUBLIC HEARING ON THE FY ‘22 BUDGET: A Public Hearing on the
FY ‘22 Budget for Pickens County, Georgia is scheduled for December
2, 2021 at 5:30 p.m. in the Pickens County Government Administration
Building located at 1266 East Church Street, Jasper, GA 30143. At this
meeting, the Pickens County Board of Commissioners will receive both
written and oral comments regarding the County’s FY ’22 Annual
Budget.
THE CHAIRMAN’S RECOMMENDED BUDGET AVAILABLE FOR
REVIEW: The Chairman's FY '22 Recommended Budget is available
for public inspection during normal office hours at the following loca
tion: County Clerk’s Office, Room 189, Pickens County Government
Administration Building, 1266 East Church Street, Jasper, GA 30143.
Information on the Chairman's FY '22 Recommended Budget is also
posted on the County’s’ website, www.pickenscountyga.gov.
BUDGET REVIEW: The Pickens County Board of Commissioners is
scheduled to review the Chairman's FY ‘22 Recommended Budget on
the following dates:
December 2, 2021 [Thursday] [4:30 p.m. in the Commission
Board Room at the Pickens
County Government Administra
tion Building located at 1266 East
Church Street, Jasper, GA 30143]
[4:30 p.m. in the Commission
Board Room at the Pickens
County Government Administra
tion Building located at 1266 East
Church Street, Jasper, GA 30143]
Public Comment will also be taken at these meetings.
BUDGET ADOPTION: The Board of Commissioners is scheduled to
adopt the FY ‘22 Budget at its regular monthly meeting on December
16, 2021. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. in the Commission
Board Room at the Pickens County Government Administration Build
ing located at 1266 East Church Street, Jasper, GA 30143.
December 16, 2021 [Thursday]