Newspaper Page Text
Page A— Wednesday, April 20, 2022, The True Citizen
OPINIONS
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LOOKING BACK
{this week in Burke County history}
10 YEARS AGO - APRIL 20,2012
Lisa Smith, who had served as Georgia Power’s area man
ager for the past three years, took a new position in Newnan
overseeing external affairs in Coweta and Fayette counties.
Sixth grader Mark Black received congratulations from
Mayor Pauline Jenkins as the winner of the “If I Were Mayor”
essay contest. In his essay, Mark said he would set up a blog
on the city’s website and try to create jobs that would entice
college graduates to move here.
Burke County High School’s varsity ladies golf team won
the region championship for the second year in a row. Senior
Tiffany Farmer was low medalist with an 87 on the Waynes
boro Country Club course.
25 YEARS AGO - APRIL 23, 1997
Jurors were being selected for the murder trial of Willie
Palmer, accused of the 1995 deaths of his estranged wife,
Brenda Jenkins Palmer and her daughter Christine Jenkins.
Kenneth Breeden, commissioner of the state Department of
Adult Education, scheduled a visit here to inspect the 64 acre
site of the proposed Waynesboro campus of Augusta Tech.
Paul Dye Jr. and Don Cowart were selected by the Grand
Jury to serve on the Burke County Board of Equalization.
The panel hears appeals from residents who question their tax
assessments made by the tax assessors office.
50 YEARS AGO - APRIL 19,1972
J.C. Palmer Sr., chairman of the Richard B. Russell Memo
rial Fund drive in Burke County, said that almost $5,000 had
been raised for the fund here. The fund will ultimately be used
to fund a library at the University of Georgia.
Burke County School Superintendent M.W. Sessions said
that nine of the ten schools in the county had been considered
fully accredited by the state. The only unaccredited school
was Gough Elementary.
Leroy Turner, 6’7” former standout for Waynesboro High
School, signed to play college basketball at Middle Georgia
College.
70 YEARS AGO - APRIL 24, 1952
Frank Griffin led the Waynesboro High School track team
to a seconf place finish in the region track meet. Griffin won
first place in the 100 and 220 yard dashes and first in the relay.
Other track team members were Heyward Gnann, Marcus
Borum, Bobby Glover, Benny Kissam, James Cochran and
Johnny Davis.
“American in Paris” starring Gene Kelley and Nina Foch
was playing at the Waynesboro Drive-in Theatre.
Parker-White Motors offered a 1941 Ford two-door for
$195.00 and a 1946 Chevrolet four-door for $650.00.
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Waynesboro, Georgia 30830
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Bird Dog
Politics
BEN ROBERTS
benroberts@bellsouth.net
Gregory Carswell is Waynes
boro’s mayor no more.
Fifteen months after being
indicted on four felony counts
and not quite a year since he
quickly stepped down as mayor
- to beat a coming suspension
by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp
- Carswell pled guilty to three
of those charges in a Bulloch
County courtroom last week.
While he avoided any jail
time, according to a True Citi
zen story in last week’s paper,
Carswell was sentenced to 10
years of probation and ordered
to pay $11,920 in restitution
and a $1,000 fine.
Carswell initially claimed
he was the victim of iden
tity theft and that the cops had
the wrong guy. He vowed to
fight the charges and prove
his innocence. Unfortunately,
for himself and the people of
Waynesboro, this fumed out to
be untrue.
Carswell was a good talker
and, at first, it seemed he was
going to make a good mayor, as
well. Then came the “misuse”
of his city vehicle and credit
card. In hindsight, Carswell, a
part-time preacher, was nothing
but talk.
He had already proven him
self to be a conman and a thief.
Last week, he finally publicly
admitted it.
So, Waynesboro is without
an official mayor. At Monday’s
regular city council meeting,
city attorney Randolph Frails
told council that by his inter
pretation of the law, the earliest
date for an election to choose
Carswell’s replacement would
be Election Day, Nov. 8,2022.
Vice-Mayor James “Chick”
Jones has been serving in the
position of mayor in Carswell’s
absence. There is no official
word yet whether Jones or any
other current city council mem
ber is planning to throw their
hat in the ring to be Waynes
boro’s next mayor.
Monday’s meeting also had
an update regarding the city’s
first licenses for a “package
store” to sell liquor by the bot
tle. According to assistant city
manager Trinetta Skinner, there
are currently four applicants vy
ing to open four different stores.
Some in attendance imme
diately questioned whether
Waynesboro needs or can sup
port four liquor stores.
The public will have the
chance to voice their opinions
regarding the four applications
at a public hearing during city
council’s next regular meeting
on Monday, May 16, at 6 p.m.
Council also voted unani
mously, 5-0, to approve a reso
lution to apply for a 2022 Com
munity Development Block
Grant (CDBG) through the
state’s Department of Commu
nity Affairs.
The resolution calls for
Waynesboro to commit to
spend $550,000 on a “commu
nity center” to be built adjacent
to the city’s 6th Street Park.
According to a cost breakdown
included in the agenda packet,
the total cost of the project is
estimated to be just over $1.5
million with one million being
awarded through the CDBG.
Interestingly, the resolution
says the city “provided citizens
an adequate opportunity to
participate in the development
of the application by holding a
public hearing ...” The main
notification for that public
hearing appears to have been
a flyer included in city water
bills in February announcing
the city’s intentions to “build a
youth community center.”
There was also a committee
meeting held at 10 a.m. on a
Tuesday in March where the
project was discussed but the
minutes provide few details
about the project or its exact
purpose.
I suppose we should ask one
of our council members since
they all voted in support of the
project Monday night.
For more Burke County po
litical news, follow Bird Dog
Politics on Facebook.
Well, it happened again.
It’s happened a few times
over the past fifteen years and
I’m always a bit taken aback
when I hear it.
I’ll never get used to it.
Another reader friend said
that I reminded him of Lewis
Grizzard.
I love that.
And I hate that.
I love it because it’s as high a
compliment as can be paid to a
writer from the Blessed South,
because Mr. Grizzard set the
standard for all other Southern
humorists.
I hate it because it’s an ex
tremely high bar to attempt to
reach.
I’m always grateful to hear
such high praise but I know in
my heart, I ain’t ever going to
be Lewis Grizzard.
Lewis left us with quotes that
have become iconic.
“If you ain’t the lead dog, the
scenery never changes.”
Or this one:
“I know lots of people who
are educated far beyond their
intelligence.”
And my favorite:
“It’s difficult to think any-
Don Lively
thing but pleasant thoughts
while eating a homegrown
tomato.”
Lewis Grizzard left us way
too soon.
It’s been said by lots of dif
ferent folks that Southerners
are just naturally funny due to
having lost the War Or Northern
Aggression, thus the need to
laugh to keep from crying.
I don’t know if that’s true,
but I do know that Southern
Humor, the same genre that I
try to accomplish, is unique and
different.
As a young man, just off
the farm and aching to see the
rest of the world, I spent many
hours listening to the 8 track
tapes of Justin Wilson as I
aimed my Dodge van westward
and traversed the fruited plain.
Mr. Wilson was a real Cajun
and his accent and his stories
about life in the Louisiana
swamps kept me entertained
for hours.
He once described the rabid
ity of the LSU Tigers football
fans:
“Them folks believe in the
Tigers so much that they bet on
the instant replay!”
Jerry Clower was another
very funny Southerner. A for
mer fertilizer salesman, Mr.
Clower would salt his sales
presentations with hayseed sto
ries that were so well-received
LEWIS AND ME
that he became one of the most
sought-after speakers in Amer
ica. His humor was decidedly
Southern and always clean. Mr.
Clower’s tales about coon hunt
ing , or dirt farming, or about his
extended eccentric family were
ones that most of us in our neck
of the woods could, and still do,
relate to.
Of course, in more recent
times, Jeff Foxworthy’s name
comes up when you think of
Southern humorists. His “Blue
Collar Comedy Tour” also
featured Larry The Cable Guy,
Ron White and Bill Engvall,
but it was Mr. Foxworthy, a fel
low Georgian and fellow rabid
Bulldawgs fan, who brought us
sidesplitting jokes and stories
about “rednecks”, a term that
was once an insult but now is a
badge of honor for many of us
down here below the Mason-
Dixon Line.
According to Jeff, you might
be a redneck if:
“You’ve ever made change
in the offering plate at church.”
Or, if,
“You’ve ever financed a tat
too.”
And my favorite of all time,
“If you go to the family re
union to meet women.”
All stereotypical, but all
hilarious.
Right here in the same pag
es where my scribblings ap
pear, we have one of the most
delightfully humorous, yet
thought-provoking Southern
writers the South has ever
produced. Ronda Rich brings
her Appalachian roots and her
Christian faith into her writing
and I’ve never read one of her
pieces that didn’t move me in
some way or remind me of my
own life. She’s an extremely
talented woman.
The South has produced lots
of those.
Fannie Flagg is one of the
wittiest and most beloved of
all Southern writers. She, of
course, wrote Fried Green
Tomatoes, but she was very
successful even prior to that
best-selling book and the sub
sequent movie.
My favorite Fannie quote:
“People can't help being
what they are any more than a
skunk can help being a skunk.
Don't you think if they had their
choice, they would rather be
something else?”
That little adage has helped
me deal with difficult people
for many years.
Miss Fannie also gave us this:
“If you do everything within
your power to avoid writing,
and still can’t (avoid it), then
you must be a writ
er.” SEE
I understand that. LIVELY,
There are days 6