Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4A
^Reporter
August 13. 2008
Opinion
Declare among the nations,
and publish, and set up a standard;
publish, and conceal not;
Jeremiah 50:2
OUR VIEW
The right thing
W e commend Forsyth’s city council
for doing the right thing last
Tuesday by re-zoning five proper
ties along College Street for high
way business use.
You may remember the story in the Reporter
back in January about how a cluster of small
businesses in the area found themselves the vic
tims of a busybody city government. Businesses
like Etheridge Heating and Air and Forsyth
Glass had operated in the area, located just off
the interstate, for years. It looked like the kind of
bustling business district Forsyth should wel
come.
Instead, trouble began last year when a new
business, Simple Air Solutions, bought property
next door, moved in and applied for a city busi
ness license. The city rejected it flat out. Why? It
seems none of the property owners were aware
that in 2006, the city had re-zoned all the proper
ty in the area as institutional, intended for
church or school use. No new businesses allowed.
In fact, in a heady stroke of master planning, the
city had created a dozen different zoning classifi
cations for the little city of Forsyth. As often hap
pens in government, the city hired someone from
the outside. And rather than finding out how
properties were actually being used, city planners
seemed simply to throw darts or stickers onto a
map and then tell people how they ought to use
their property.
It’s not clear why city fathers felt that the exist
ing three classifications weren’t sufficient.
Whatever the reasoning, the new zoning map left
property owners with land and buildings that
couldn’t be used for the purpose for which they
were purchased.
At first, the city bowed up, refusing to grant
business owners’ request that the city correct the
2006 rezoning. But finally, last week, the city
relented, and rezoned the properties for business
use.
There’s a valuable lesson in this. Too many peo
ple these days seem to think that growth and a
community can be centrally planned and con
trolled. This model has been tried. It’s called the
former Soviet Union.
In the United States, we have long recognized
that a free and unfettered economy, where people
enjoy the liberty to provide good and services
with minimal intrusion from the government, is
the best gaurantor of prosperity. It’s called capi
talism. Yes, there have to be a few rules and regu
lations. But by and large, people and money will
flow to those places where government resists the
urge to tax and regulate its citizens and busi
nesses into oblivion.
Tuesday’s city council vote was a small victory
for the American way, and we hope represents a
new appreciation by city government that in most
cases it should be a neutral observer, not the
strong-armed central planning unit for the polit-
buro.
is published every week by The Monroe County Reporter Inc.
Will Davis, president
Robert M. Williams Jr., vice president
Cheryl S. Williams, secretary-treasurer
OUR STAFF
Will Davis
Publisher/E ditor
publisher@mymcr.net
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Reporter
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Webmaster
webmaster@mymcr.net
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Business Manager
business@mjmicr.net
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Advertising
Manager
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Denzil Hansford
Graphics Artist
gr aphics@m jmicr. net
Wendell Ramage
Contributing
Writer
wendellram4@
bellsouth.net
Laura Thackston
Editorial Assistant
50 N. Jacksqn Sk, Forsyth, GA 31029
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Publication No. USPS 997-840)
Point Blank: Monroe County’s only and best cartoon
...Another Episode of Keystone Coppers in:
POINT, plant:
Hey Mister, why did you choose to
come to FORSYTH to commit a
...I knew that in FORSYTH an arrest
warrant simply means ! get to talk to
the Honorable Tommy Wilson*..
Lassitude delinquencies as brought to you by: WiCheCm !Neaf, VEsQ
On the Porch
The spirit lives at Dairy Queen
H ere at the
Reporter the
weeks fly by, so
we’re given to
remembering
each edition of the paper by
the big story on the front
page that week.
As in, “Gina, hand
me that issue over
there on the book
shelf, the Tift edi
tion,” that is, the one
with the story above
the fold about the
state approving more
money for Tift
College.
Well, it does
n’t take an
investigative
reporter to fig
ure out that this week’s is
the Dairy Queen issue. It
may have been that way
before the weekend, given
that the Forsyth DQ sold
1,400 Blizzards last
Thursday to raise money for
the children’s hospital at the
Medical Center. But then
Sunday’s shooting solidified
DQ’s top billing for the
week. I am sure it’s not the
publicity DQ owner Ronnie
Daniel, or our town, wanted.
What Ronnie does want, I
have learned, is to be a posi
tive influence on his commu
nity. Ronnie let me sit in on
his staff meeting Monday
morning as the DQ team
tried to recover from the
shock of Sunday night’s
shooting. I asked Ronnie if
anything like this had ever
happened at his restaurant.
He said no, that he always
thought he was exempt from
anything like it because
Forsyth is a small
town, and because
they don’t stay
open that late.
Then he started
talking about his
employees and how
proud he is of their
response, and the
floodgates
opened.
N The tears
' k * 4 ’ fell as he
described
his staffs wise
response to the shooting:
four calls to 911, an immedi
ate lockdown to secure the
restaurant, and care and
concern for the shooting vic
tim bleeding in the parking
lot. ‘Wall did a great job,”
says Ronnie. “We’ve got so
much to be thankful for.”
And when Ronnie cries, his
employees start to weep
with him. They testified that
Ronnie’s training prepared
them for how to respond.
Sunday night was scary,
but Ronnie is quick to point
out how much worse it could
have been.The gunman
could have entered the
restaurant. A birthday party
of some 30 kids and adults
had just left the patio a few
feet from the shooting only
minutes before it happened.
Ronnie told his staff he
has two desires now: to see
Zapareo Glover recover from
his injuries, and to see the
bad guy captured.
In fact, Ronnie says he
wants to talk to the young
man who shot his customer
and stole his car Sunday. He
said he wants to tell him
that he needs to get right
with the Lord, and to
encourage him that God will
forgive even would-be killers
and robbers.
“That’s the kind of Jesus I
serve,” says the Rev. Ronnie.
Ronnie notes it’s been a
roller coaster ride for the
DQ staff lately. On
Thursday, they enjoyed the
store’s biggest day ever, sell
ing 1,400 Blizzards and rais
ing $5,000 for the children’s
hospital in Macon. Then
Sunday, the store’s first-ever
shooting, severely injuring a
well-liked former MP foot
ball player.
“We’ve been on top of the
mountain, and we’ve been
deep in the valley,” Ronnie
tells his staff. “But some
times God does that. He
tests us.”
Even before recent events,
Ronnie says he’s been
undergoing a spiritual
awakening, drawing him
closer to God. He hosts a
men’s prayer group on
Wednesday mornings on the
DQ patio, where about a
dozen guys talk about the
Bible and pray for Monroe
County.
And so Ronnie Daniel
demonstrates how the spirit
of Jesus can have a positive
affect on Monroe County.
The spirit causes business
owners to have a concern
not only for profits but for
people. The spirit reminds
us that every person in a
company is important and
valuable, and that co-work
ers are in a sense family.
The spirit causes us to pray
and care for our community.
The spririt leads us to make
excellence a goal in our busi
ness, to demonstrate the
goodness of God by serving
people well. The spirit urges
us to reach out to enemies,
even would-be killers, with
mercy. Ronnie’s not perfect,
but in people like him we
can see the spirit at work.
Folks have a lot of ideas
about what Monroe County
needs: infrastructure,
restaurants, etc. I would
suggest we mostly need
more people opening them
selves to the spirit of Christ.
Just imagine the world of
difference that would make,
one business and one family
at a time.
Email Will Davis at pub-
lisher@mymcr. net.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Bib overalls: The perfect uniform
To the editor:
T he school uniform permits so many
options that an insecure adolescent
can express their individuality by
wearing exclusive clothes. This can
not be a uniform when everyone
dresses differently.
A uniform has many advantages.
It can mean that you have made
the team and are part of some
thing greater than you would as
an individual. A uniform helps
to keep a low profile. It is dif
ficult for a coach to determine
which athlete mooned him
when everyone is dressed the
same.
A teenager proudly showed
off her brand new distressed
jeans. She paid $45 for more
holes and rips than my britches,
which had seen 10 years of hard
service. Distressed clothing is
County commissioner Jim Ham in his trade
mark bib overalls. (File photo)
unacceptable and should not be allowed in school, how
ever honest wear has a patina which shows character.
This is a sign of a thrifty person and should be
encouraged.
Bib overalls are not allowed. This is an outrage.
They are our tradition. Bib overalls were the school
uniform a few years ago. Every boy wore
them. Often they were handed down or
not bought to fit so the kid wouldn’t get
oo big for his britches. Boys played
marbles and mumble peg at recess.
This activity wore out the knees.
The lower part of the pants leg
would be ripped away when the
holes got too big.
It’s a mistake to outlaw bib
overalls. They would be per
fect school uniform. Shirt tails
would always be tucked in, no
belt loops to check and it would
be impossible to bust slack.
Joe Akin
Forsyth
Water situation getting desperate
To the editor:
t is Saturday afternoon and I
am sitting here in my home
without water. After washing
two loads of laundry and tak
ing a shower, there is NO
water. Maybe it will build back up
later this evening so my husband can
shower, if we’re lucky.
After attending the county commis
sion meeting a few weeks ago, I left
feeling as if I had attended a four-
year-old’s birthday. The commission
members did not pay any attention
to the guests because they were too
busy arguing with each other.
The water situation is becoming
desperate. It was so apparent after
watching and listening to the argu
ing that the commission members
were not voting on the water issue,
they were there to vote against each
other. This is not children’s play.
Have the commission members for
gotten they are elected officials voted
by the people to serve the people?
Renea Fossett
Heritage Farms