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Page 4A - Pike County Journal Reporter - Wednesday, January 13, 2021
Opinions
Vaccination decision was not an easy one
1 rolled up my sleeve
and got the first
injection of the
Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine
Monday. The second
booster shot is due in
three weeks and 1 will
get it as well.
Making the decision
on whether or not to get
vaccinated was not an
easy one. 1 admit 1 was
initially a C0V1D con
trarian. I was absolutely
opposed to shutting
down the country and
remain so. Joe Biden
best think long and
hard about instituting a
second one. After nearly
half the country voted
against him, he has no
mandate to begin with
and will face extreme
backlash should he at
tempt it.
At first, 1 scoffed at
masks and seldom wore
one unless 1 was in a
place that required one
for entry.
1 got the look so
many of us who do (did)
not wear masks got
from those who did. 1
did try to maintain my
distance from others
and 1 did sanitize my
hands often. That has
become a habit.
1 started writing
about COV1D in Feb
ruary last year. In
late March, 1 started
compiling stats for
the COVID-19 Monitor
on barnesville.com.
1 thought that chore
would last a month or
two and the virus would
die out. I was wrong.
People, lots of them,
have died out instead.
In the first detailed
post on the
Monitor,
Lamar had
three cases
and no deaths
while Pike had
no cases and
no deaths.
Statewide
there were
1387 cases
and 47 deaths.
Sunday after
noon those
numbers were
Lamar 952
cases and 28
deaths and
Pike 744 cases
and 15 deaths.
Statewide the numbers
were 636,373 cases and
10,282 deaths.
Over the past two
months COV1D has
spread rapidly. On
Nov. 10, Lamar had 462
cases and 21
deaths while
Pike had 408
cases and 12
deaths. So,
our area has
recorded 826
new cases
over the past
60 days.
These spik
ing numbers
got my atten
tion. 1 started
wearing my
mask more
and started
debating
getting the
vaccine when
it became available.
On Dec. 15, District 4
public health epidemi
ologist Alex Wood spoke
to the Barnesville Ro
tary Club. For the first
time, 1 heard straight
talk about coronavirus
and the vaccine from a
trained, reliable source.
Wood told us that she,
too, was skeptical about
the vaccine until three
weeks earlier. “1 did
a lot of research on
it. That’s what 1 have
trained in. Now, 1 am
confident and will be
vaccinated when it is
available,” Wood added.
Then, on Dec. 21,1
watched as the fine folks
at the Lamar County
Health Department
thawed the vaccine (the
Pfizer vaccine is kept at
73 degrees below zero
prior to use), recon
stituted it and then
administered the first
vaccinations done there.
The administrators and
nurses, who have seen
this virus and its ugly
consequences up close
and personal, were ab
solutely giddy to finally
have a weapon they
could fight back with.
That made up my
mind and Monday 1 got
my first shot. It did not
hurt at all. Through
these long months as
COV1D has ravaged the
world, 1 managed to
not contract it and now
1 feel better about my
chances of keeping it
that way.
1 will keep you up
dated, especially if my
inoculated arm falls off.
In the meantime, if
you need to find me, call
Bill Gates.
Walter Geiger is editor and
publisher of The Herald Gazette in
Barnesville and the Pike County
Journal Reporter.
GEIGER’S
COUNTER
Walter Geiger
Editor & Publisher
Foster families needed in Pike
NAVIGATING LIFE’S CURVES
amnesia reverberates in today’s society
Did you know that
when a child enters fos
ter care they are often
not alone? Many chil
dren enter care along
with a brother or sister
or have a sibling who is
already in care.
“Our community
needs foster families
who will take a family of
children, small or large,
so that siblings can be
together,” said Aaliyah
Shakir. “Currently, Pike
only has 12 caregiver
homes. The children in
The Pike County Jour
nal Reporter welcomes
letters to the editor
from local citizens.
For a letter to be
consid
ered, in
clude the
writer’s
actual
name, ad
dress and
telephone
number.
We will
publish
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only. Let
ters from
individual authors will
be published no more
often than every other
week.
Limit letters to 250
words or less. Shorter
letters are appreciated.
All letters to the editor
are subject to editing.
need of foster homes
range in ages from 7
to 17 years old. Help
brothers and sisters in
your community stay
together.”
For more informa
tion, contact Aaliyah
Shakir, DFCS regional re
cruiter at 678-544-6631,
via email at aaliyah.
shakir@dhs.ga.gov or go
to FosterGeorgia.com
to learn how to become
a foster or adoptive
caregiver today.
Personal attacks on
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publica
tion.
Drop
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office
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square,
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them
to P.O. Box 789, Zebu-
Ion, 30295, fax them to
770.567.8814 or email
them to news@pike-
countygeorgia.com.
For more informa
tion, call 770.567.3446
or email news@pike
countygeorgia.com.
Educational
BY BARBARA LATTA
kbkj@bellsouth.net
An
article ap
pearing in
the October
28, 2019 is
sue of The
Washing
ton Times
stated that 70% of polled
millennials would vote
for socialism over capi
talism.
“The historical amne
sia about the dangers of
communism and social
ism is on full display in
this year’s report,” said
Marion Smith, executive
director of the Victims
of Communism Memo
rial Foundation. “When
we don’t educate our
youngest generations
about the historical truth
of 100 million victims
murdered at the hands
of communist regimes
over the past century, we
shouldn’t be surprised
at their willingness to
embrace Marxist ideas.
We need to redouble
our efforts to educate
America’s youth about
the history of communist
regimes and the dangers
of socialism today.”
These statistics are
due to the lack of educa
tion of facts over opin
ions. Certain groups suck
up the lie that something
like socialism will give
them free stuff and the
freedom to do whatever
they please, which basi
cally they are already
doing. They jump on the
bandwagon of selfishness
which has skewed their
worldview.
A Fox News interview
of people on Long Island
during a July 4, 2015 holi
day resonates with the
result of removing true
history from schools.
When questioned about
the simplest facts of
America’s founding, the
answers these people
gave was appalling.
When asked what coun
try we declared inde
pendence from, some
answered with France
and America, although
there were a few who got
it right and said Britain.
Beachgoers said we de
clared independence in
1947, the war was called
the Civil War, the first
president was Lincoln or
Franklin, and the gen
eral who won the war
was Patton or Grant. To
name one of the original
colonies, interviewees
chimed with Oregon,
Alabama, Arkansas, New
England, Kentucky, and
America.
The educational
amnesia that reverber
ates in American society
is the reason little value
is placed on why this
country was founded and
what it cost for all of us
to have the comfortable,
free lifestyle we now
enjoy.
Which brings us to to
day. The fraud that took
place during the presi
dential election echoes
the thought processes of
too many who promote
the lie that capitalism is
evil and racist. The word
FREE attracts millions
without one thought of
the consequence. The
result of socialism and
communism in other
countries is discounted
as not a true reflection of
how that ideology would
work in America.
Cheating, lying, and
voter fraud all came
about because of self
ishness. People want
something for nothing,
but who will be com
plaining the loudest
when the money runs
out, when businesses
fail, taxes rise, and gas
prices go out of sight?
How will they feel if they
are ever the victim of a
brutal crime committed
by a person who entered
this country illegally?
Already, cities who want
to defund the police have
experienced a rise in
violence. And guess what
happens when those
same people want police
protection?
Why do the students
who want college loans
forgiven seek a college
education? So they can
go out and get a career
with a high paying salary.
Where will the business
es be that could pay the
salaries to these I-want-a
job-that-doesn’t-really-
require-work people?
The socialistic policies
predicted in America’s
future will eliminate a lot
of businesses. And if stu
dent loans were forgiven,
these college graduates
would need to pay higher
taxes to fund the free
education of those com
ing behind them. People
who aren’t trained to
think, don’t think about
that.
Political correctness
stemming from social
media and the entertain
ment industry has edu
cated the last few gen
erations with a “gimme”
attitude.
1 have spent the last
few months in South Ko
rea. A country that lives
daily with the threat of a
rocket flying through the
air from the despot who
lives up north. China sali
vates at the thought of
sinking its teeth into an
other nation. The South
Korean people appreci
ate freedom more than
all those ballot-stuffing
Americans who have the
distorted thinking that
these types of policies
make everything equal
for citizens. South Kore
ans know how close they
came to living like the
North Koreans do. They
thrive in a free govern
ment now because Allied
forces pushed Chinese
and North Korean armies
out of the southern part
of the peninsula. They
don’t want communism,
and it defies the imagina
tion that some Ameri
cans do.
So, for those who
think this is what you
want, don’t cry when you
get it.
Barbara Latta is a freelance writer
who posts online articles at barbara-
latta.blogspot.com and contributes
to the devotion website Christian
Devotions.
Pike County Journal Reporter's
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Pike County
Journal
Reporter
www.pikecountygeorgia.com
P.O. Box 789
16026 Barnesville St.
Zebulon, Ga. 30295
770.567.3446
The Pike County Journal
Reporter is the official
organ of Pike County, the
cities of Zebulon, Molena,
Meansville, Williamson
and Concord. It is
published weekly by
Hometown Newspapers
Inc. Second class
postage is paid at the
Zebulon, Ga Post Office.
Publishers: Walter and
Laura Geiger; staff:
Jennifer Taylor,
Brenda Sanchez and
Rachel McDaniel.
AT PIKE
BY DWAIN W. PENN
100 YEARS AGO
January 14, 1921: On Friday night the William
son Woman’s club gave an oyster supper at the
library. There were several features of entertain
ment and besides oysters were homemade candy
and other good eats for sale.
75 YEARS AGO
January 17, 1946: Report of the final war bond
drive showed Pike exceeded the E bond quota
by a mere 1%. Final tally of the sale of all bonds
exceeded the quota by 180%,
50 YEARS AGO
January 14,1971: The Pike Homemakers Council
met in the new extension building with home econo
mist Judy N. Reid, approving to buy tables and
chairs for a new room in the building and host the
February 4-H banquet. Homemakers were urged to
use the building and attend workshops led by Reid.
25 YEARS AGO
January 17, 1996: Zebulon acquired a new
mayor at the January council meeting when
former mayor David Garner swore in new mayor
Larry Lynch. Although Lynch served extensively
on council, it was his first term as mayor.