Newspaper Page Text
June 20, 2018
Page 5A
ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN by Don Daniel
Commissioners: Not by
the people but by “us”
W ell once again, us taxpayers are on
the hook for the failure of a couple of
county employees obviously not only to
comprehend what their jobs were but
also attempting to blame everyone but themselves for
their incompetence. As the front page story explained,
those responsible have again failed in their job per
formance and responsibilities to pay federal and state
payroll taxes resulting in us taxpayers being fined over
$50,000 in interest and penalties to the federal gov
ernment.
As Will, Richard and I have observed and writ
ten, the five throne occupiers are the epitome of
micro-managers and have costly failed in their ruling
wisdom either out of ignorance or by being paci
fied in their opinion, justifying all is well. Three of
the commissioners own their own businesses, which
brings me to wonder if they in their businesses had
not paid taxes would they not fire the employee who
had the responsibility to make sure the taxes had been
paid? And even more serious, would their business be
tarnished beyond credibility?
There is some “good” news, the county manager
has been demoted and the “finance” officer fired. Just
wonder how the county manager survived and is
now the county zoning officer, getting a new office,
computer, furniture and desk. The coffee shop and
on-the-street question is why was she not fired? The
good news is the commissioners hired a local Forsyth-
based account firm to assist in county bookkeeping to
the tune of $2,975 a month. A day late and $100,000
short!
How bad has it gotten in the commissioners’ realm?
Try this on for comment. But first this background.
Commission Chairman Greg
Tapley at the June 5 inti
mated he wanted to adopt
the Monroe County Board
of Education’s policy to give
advance notice to speak, even
attempting to prevent For
syth/Monroe County Cham
ber of Commerce Chairman
Nipper Bunn from speaking
and emphatically stating that
public comments were not
that night’s agenda and de
claring he intended to revise
the county’s policy that allows
citizens to speaking without
getting on the agenda.
Is Chairman Tapley afraid of losing whatever power
over citizens he thinks he has? Obviously in his arro
gance he forgot the quote and declaration by Abraham
Lincoln used in the Gettysburg Address: “Govern
ment of the people, by the people, for the people”.
Obviously the Monroe County School Board is just
as afraid of government of the people, by the people
and for the people. They and Chairman Tapley imply
they are the government and the citizens be should be
quiet.
Commissioner Tapley’s business partner Forsyth
Mayor Eric Wilson has the following at the end city’s
agenda at each council meeting: “Public Comments
(Mayor Wilson To Review Rules for Public Com
ments) thusly giving the citizens an opportunity to
make comments or whatever”. Hope Chairman Tapley
doesn’t attempt to convince his business partner to
change. Maybe over a beer or a couple of beers at The
Pickled Okra, Mayor Wilson can convince his partner
to keep county business open to citizens they serve.
GOT this reply from Forsyth City Manager Janice
Hall in response to my open records request in re
gards to how many “warning tickets and real tickets”
had been issued for parking closer than twelve inches
to the white line designating parking spaces: “Since
January 1 of this year there have been 10 citations
issued for improper parking. The report does not
distinguish between ticket or warning.”
NO CORRECT answer to last weeks’ The Question
which was “15 Burial Plots”. So here’s The Question
for this week: Who was named Monroe County’s
Father of the Year for 2018? First correct answer
after twelve noon on Thursday gets a certificate for a
dozen Dunkin Donuts, Dairy Queen Blizzard, Jonah’s
cookie, slice of Shoney’s strawberry pie, sandwich,
chips and drink at The Pickled Okra, Whistle Stop
fried green tomato appetizer and Forsyth Main Street
t-shirt.
RIGHT down the road from us, Dublin has been
ranked number three in a list of twenty best towns to
visit in 2018. A local business owner commented, “last
year we saw an immense amount of what I call way
ward travelers, people who are just going on tours”. I
thought that to be an interesting comment and related
it to Forsyth. Dublin is about three miles or more off
1-16 and downtown Forsyth is less than a mile from
1-75. Don’t know how many motels are in Dublin but
we have fourteen and over 70,000 vehicles come right
through almost downtown Forsyth every twenty-four
hours, stopping for gas, a whopperdiddlydoodly-
queeniemac and a commode. Wonder if Forsyth will
ever be ranked as one of the best small towns to visit?
I am sure Gilda Stanberry with the Forsyth Conven
tion and Visitors Bureau and Chamber of Commerce
President/CEO Cheri W. Sparks are working on that
goal.
LISTEN to The Reporter On The Radio on Majic
100 on Sunday mornings at 7 a.m. and watch Will,
Richard and Don on Forsyth Cablevision. Contact
Don at tullaybear@bellsouth.net.
Don Daniel founded the Reporter in 1972. Email him
at mediadr@bellsouth.net.
^Reporter
TAKING A LIKENS TO YOU by Dale Likens
God's word needed in today’s America
W hile visiting our
hometown of Hart
ford, Ohio two weeks
ago my wife and I
decided to drive 10 miles north to
another small town named Kins
man, Ohio.
It is the
same town
where our
two children
graduated
from high
school.
Once again
there are
no street
lights in this
town and
very few
stop signs.
It is truly a
farm town
where one might find more people
go to bed before 9 p.m. than not.
More importantly, I suppose, it is
also where the skeleton of a the once
well-known Octagon House still sits.
The Octagon House once was the
office building where the famous
attorney, Clarence Darrow, resided
in the late 1800’s. A historical mark
er in front of the Octagon House
explains that Clarence Darrow
was a prominent trial lawyer of
the 20th century. He lived here,
in the Octagon House, from 1864
to about 1873. He later moved his
office to Ashtabula, Ohio and then
to Chicago, Illinois. From Chicago
he traveled to Tennessee where he
championed the famous “Monkey
Trial” in the year 1925 that tested
the legality of teaching the theory of
evolution in public schools.
A few years ago my wife and I
visited the town of Dayton, Tenn.
where a young school teacher by
the name of John T. Scopes sup
posedly taught evolution to his high
school students. While some in
the community believed he really
hadn’t broken the Tennessee law
which forbade teaching evolution
to his students, many of his stu
dents claimed he had. Either way
Dayton broke into a frenzy and the
argument began. William Jennings
Bryan, known as “The Silver
Tongued Orator,” who had run for
president of the United States three
times, had been brought in to rep
resent the state of Tennessee while
Clarence Darrow had been chosen
to defend Scopes.
While in Dayton, it was natural
that we would ask questions about
this famous trial that was first
known as
the “Scopes’
Trial,” but
suddenly
became
more
famously
known
as the
“Monkey
Trial.”
Though
the trial
was many
years
before,
many of the people of Dayton were
never short on words to describe
the excitement that once filled
their town. One man enthusias
tically explained that his father
was a young boy at the time and
his father told him of the many
times he skipped school to sneak
upstairs in the building where the
trial was being held to listen to
the “hollering” that went on dur
ing the trial. He laughed as he told
us that Dayton became known as
Monkeyville. “Reporters from all
over America were here for that
trial!” His father had told him. “It
was the greatest of times!” he said.
History has long since recorded
the truth this man revealed to us
that day. Peddlers roamed the
streets of Dayton daily. Thousands
of visitors surged through the
streets. Some sold souvenirs; pins
that read “Your old man’s a mon
key!” Some wore short-skirted
flappers. Farm women wore ging
ham dresses and sunbonnets. Men
came down from the forks of the
creek with squirrel rifles on their
shoulders. A circus man roamed
the streets offering two live chim
panzees to testify for the prosecu
tion. Fiddlers played their fiddles
and danced down the streets. “Holy
Rollers,” as one reporter called
them, preached on the corners of
each street. People carried signs that
read, “Prepare to meet your maker!”
and “Sweetheart-Come to Jesus!”
No doubt, it was the greatest of
times for a town named Dayton.
Clarence Darrow questioned wheth
er William Jennings Bryan truly
believed in the Bible. “Every word!”
Bryan stated.
“And you truly believe that this
God of yours created man?” Darrow
asked sarcastically. “I certainly do!”
Bryan declared.
The crowd began to laugh as
Bryan nervously fanned his face.
Some newspapers mocked him
for his uncompromising belief in
the Bible. Knowing he could not
win this case, Clarence Darrow
explained to the judge that he would
not request a jury. The verdict
would be entirely up to the judge.
In 1927 the famous “Monkey
Trial” of Dayton had ended. John
T. Scopes was fined $100. Five days
later William Jennings Bryan took a
Sunday nap and died peacefully in
his sleep.
Clarence Darrow once said,
“Someday I will become lawyer,
wear nice clothes and avoid work.”
His humor continued throughout
his entire life. But as an attorney his
goal was always to help the poor
and powerless person.
Most people from Kinsman,
Ohio may not agree with Clarence
Darrow and his agnostic beliefs, but
still they proudly claim Clarence
Darrow as their favorite son. If
you ever care to travel that far
north someday, or if you’re sim
ply lost in never-never land you
might find yourself in a small town
named Kinsman. Stop and visit the
Octagon House where Clarence
Darrow once lived and held his
much-loved and earliest office. The
people of Kinsman would be glad to
share their stories of a man named
Clarence Darrow.
Learning of Clarence Darrow and
his significance in American history
was very interesting to me. Knowing
I once lived near a town where his
life began is somewhat inspiring.
However, I am not a fan of Clarence
Darrow. Perhaps because of this
famous trial evolution is now being
taught in our schools today. Where
is God? Need I say more?
America was changing in 1925.
The fire that had begun in the small
town of Dayton has spread rapidly
across our nation. Until we become
bold as William Jennings Bryan, it
may continue to grow. God bless.
Dale Likens is an author who lives in
Monroe County.
ON THE PORCH
Continued from 4A
the current campaign that he should
not have run again.
And he complained at a recent
school board meeting that a railroad
guy (Howard’s former opponent Matt
Morris) and a heating and air guy (his
runoff opponent Greg Head) don’t
know anything about school policy.
It’s rather condescending really.
The voters apparently recognize that
change is needed. Howard’s challenger
Matt Morris has only lived in Monroe
County for six years, and works in
Atlanta so has had limited chance to
get to know the community. Yet he
won four out of six precincts in the
district and only Howard’s neighbors
and family at his home precinct saved
him with a 16-vote victory.
Meanwhile, Greg Head won the
most votes in his race but was forced
into a runoff. Head is Monroe County
born and bred. He’s built his business
here, invested in a new office in our
industrial park and now serves well
on our Development Authority. Head
was part of a progressive group of new
leaders on the authority who removed
a long-time and largely unsuccessful
chairman and installed a new one, a
move that is already bearing fruit in
new businesses coming to town.
More importantly, Head is a Chris
tian and a conservative who will bring
his faith and beliefs to bear on school
policy. His beliefs reflect those of the
majority of Monroe Countians. And
when long-time school board mem
ber J.P. Evans demands that someone
be hired simply because they’re black,
Head has the courage to counter that
we should hire the best candidate
available, not the one with the right
skin color or family connection.
Monroe County voters have an
important opportunity in the runoff
to remind top school officials that
they work for us. In the July 24 runoff,
voters can tell the cabal to take that
jar of pimentos, and stick it where the
sun doesn’t shine.
Austin (not long in) City Limits
Monroe Countys congressman Austin Scott (R-Ashburn) held his
last Town Hall with his constituents in Forsyth (at right) on Aug.
20, 2014. Scott defeated Congressman Jim Marshall in 2010 after
Marshall went several years without hosting a Town Hall meeting
with constituents in Forsyth. Scott did attend a chamber event on
May 1 but did not take questions from constituents and therefore
cannot be considered a town hall meeting. If you want an oppor
tunity to let Scott know what you want him to do in Congress, call
his Washington office at (202) 225-6531 and let him know.
Kemp dawdles on county line
When Brian Kemp became secretary of state on Jan. 8, 2010, Terry Scarboroughs
survey of the Monroe-Bibb county line was on his desk. The law says it s his job to
do something with it. But Kemp, an ambitious politician who announced on March
13, 2017 his intention to run for governor, punted. He announced on Aug. 23, 2011
that he was rejecting the Scarborough survey because he can t be sure it s the origi
nal line. Unfortunately, the law gives him no such option. So on March 10, 2014, the
Supreme Court ordered him to set the line and resolve the dispute. That was three
years ago. The Reporter is devoting this space each week to counting the number of
days Kemp has been on the job, and yet not done his job. If you want Kemp to do
the job which hes sought three times before he gets a promotion to governor, call his
office at (404) 656-2817 and let them know.