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Declare among the nations, and publish, and set up a standard;
publish, and conceal not. - Jeremiah 50:2
2019, 2018, 2017, 2016 winner: Editorial Page excellen
2019, 2018 winner: Best Headline Writing
2019 winner: Best Community Service
2019 winner: Best Layout and Design
2019 winner: Best Serious Column - Don Daniel
ON THE PORCH by Will Davis
Sticks in the mud?
T ears were shed over Mary Persons Homecoming
weekend.
No it wasn’t the football game. The Bulldogs
trounced the Columbus Blue Devils.
It was that school administrators refused to allow MP
students, including some senior girls, to attend Saturday
night’s Homecoming Dance. They had not bought tickets
by the required deadline.
Some of those late students were even given tickets by
others who had them but decided not to attend. Evidently,
that was not good enough for school administrators. They
were forbidden entry, and sent away to outer darkness as
tears fell on their new dresses.
And so some of the senior girls, for whom their senior
homecoming dance is a milestone event, for which dresses
are bought and preparations made, missed out in their big
night. School administrators were so adamant about stick
ing to the rules that they even refused entry to the daugh
ter of the head football coach.
And that wasn’t the only controversy over MP Home
coming weekend. For some reason administrators also
imposed restrictions on the MP student section at Dan
Pitts Stadium during Friday night’s contest. Students show
support for their classmates by dressing up for games,
making signs and setting theme nights to encourage atten
dance and participation. The kids stand the entire game in
front of the band. And the stands at Dan Pitts Stadium are
so close to the field that the players and coaches can hear
their words of encouragement and cheers.
But apparently that went sideways on Friday night. After
some kind of confrontation with an administrator, many
of the students went to the visitor’s side of the stadium.
Eater they returned to their usual
spot.
I emailed new Mary Persons princi
pal Tammy Marion for a comment on
the student section and homecoming
dance controversy. I did not hear back
from her by press time.
Just out of World War 2, my grand
father was the head football and bas
ketball coach, assistant principal,
math teacher and bus driver at
Mary Persons for 5 years. It was
the favorite time of his life. When
I hear stories like this, I wonder
what would Barney Davis do?
Being a former tank commander, and the father of four
boys, he wasn’t real soft and tolerant. But things were
different back then. The school was much smaller. Being
in his 20s, Coach Barney was not that much older than
his pupils. He got many of his football players involved in
the National Guard so they could have some income and
begin a career.
After leaving MP, Barney eventually became a principal
at Norcross High School. When he first moved to town,
some seniors decided to drive by the Davis home on Red
Oak Road and “welcome” him to Gwinnett County. Four
of them piled into a car, loaded up on toilet paper, and
headed to the house for their mischievous mission. But
somehow word got back to Mr. Davis (Davises always
have really good sources). So he sat in a chair in the dark
and awaited their arrival. They got out and began gleefully
hurling toilet paper into his trees. Ole Barney waited, and
waited, and then he pointed his shotgun into the air, and
pulled the trigger.
Those Norcross boys dropped everything in their hands
and sprinted to the getaway car. One didn’t make it in time
and was last seen running down Beaver Ruin Road look
ing for cover.
I don’t know whether MP administrators made the right
calls this weekend. But I know this: if parents had a choice
about where to send their child to school, as Arizona has
just done by adopting a voucher program, they would
probably get a lot better “service” from those well-paid
school administrators than they currently do.
is published every week by The Monroe County Reporter Inc.
Will Davis, President • Robert M. Williams Jr., Vice President
Cheryl S. Williams, Secretary-T reasurer
DRAWING ON THE NEWS by AF Branco
8MD
Americans for Limited
Government
©2022Creators, com
DOESN'T ,
THE emperor^
new economic
RECOVERY CLOTHES
LOOK GREW?/
REECES PIECES by Steve Reece
No government aid for first workman
W hen Adam and Eve
were evicted from
the Garden of Eden
and found themselves
homeless, they needed not only a place
to stay but also food and something
to wear other than those scratchy
fig leaves. Unfortunately for them,
there was no government assistance
available. No EBT cards to apply for.
No grants, student loan forgiveness,
nor PPP loans. Poor Adam had but
one choice in life: go to work. There
was also no such thing as childcare
assistance so once Cain and Able came
along, Eve also had her hands full.
Adam’s employment was easier dur
ing his brief residence in the Garden.
According to the Book of Genesis, he
was appointed by God only to dress
the Garden and keep it. After the Fall
of Man, he was sent out to “till the
ground.” That is a nearly an impossible
job for one man without tools. Adam
must’ve been exceedingly intelligent
and creative as well as a hard worker.
Like everyone on their first day
starting a new career, the world’s first
worker was probably quite nervous
and unsure of himself. Unlike us, he
had no one to explain what his duties
were and there were no how-to You
Tube videos to help get him started.
The only good thing old Adam had
going for him was that he had no boss
to answer to except for his
wife. I like to imagine when he
returned home after working
that first long day with meat
under his arm and maybe a
new dress for Eve, he must’ve
felt pretty good about himself.
No doubt he was still
remorseful for his great
sin but at least he had the
satisfaction of a job well
done.
Mankind was forced to follow Adam
in this life of labor, but we became
inventors to make our work easier
and more efficient. We still must till
the earth, but we went from wooden
c
Technology has made work easier,
notes Steve Reece.
plows dragged behind domesticated
animals to heavy machinery such as
John Deere tractors pulling plows
made of tempered steel. We found
ways to build great cities made of rein
forced concrete with wide highways to
connect them. Goods and produce of
every kind from around the world are
easily accessible by nearly everyone.
Each generation has worked hard to
make life better than the one before it
to get us where we are now. Advance
ment has occasionally sputtered, but
humanity has always managed to
move onward. It was either that or all
of us would have surely starved and
died.
For a variety of reasons, some of us
are unable to work and are dependent
upon others just to survive. They can
be sick or disabled in some way that
sadly forces them to miss the blessings
that come to a person’s life when they
are productive.
There were many social
programs in the U.S. before
the Great Depression such
as church charities and some
state-supported social pro
grams that helped needy
people with basic needs such
as food, clothing, and shelter.
There are still many
churches and groups
such as the local Circle
of Care and the Anchor
of Hope that continue to help those
less fortunate. During the 1930s,
private charities and local communi
ties were overwhelmed by the growing
need among the American public.
Great poverty of the masses made it
necessary for the Federal Government
to act quickly.
First came loans and then grants to
states to pay for direct relief and work
relief. Cash payments were made to
those in immediate and desperate
need. (Much like the PPP loans so
many businesses, not all legitimate,
recently received.) Later, government
projects were initiated in a program
called the Civilian Conservation
Corps, or CCC, and hundreds of
thousands of young men were put to
work on environmental conservation
projects and regained the dignity of
putting on their work boots and work
ing for a living.h
In Georgia, according to my online
research, in 2021 there were 1.3 mil
lion food stamp recipients, which
equals 12.44% of the state’s population
carrying an EBT card in their wallet.
The amount spent using EBT cards
came to almost $2.5 billion of taxpayer
money in our state.
Most of those receiving the benefits
legitimately qualify for assistance.
Others abuse the system. Around $7.2
million was spent by Georgia investi
gators in 2019 to investigate claims of
fraud and found that $8.4 million in
food stamps was wrongly obtained in
2,985 cases. Offenders can receive up
to a year in jail and pay a hefty fine.
Retail stores as well as private citizens
were among those caught abusing the
system.
I’ve done a fair amount of time pro
cessing EBT cards while standing be
hind a convenience store cash register.
Nothing irks me more than a person
paying cash for a handful of scratch-
off tickets then buying an armload of
junk food with an EBT card obviously
fraudulently obtained. I can only shake
my head as I watch them drive away
with a tankful of expensive gas in a car
much nicer than mine.
Steve Reece is a writer for the Reporter
and a known crime fighter. Email him
at stevereece@gmail.com.
CAROLYN S CORNER by Carolyn Martel
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Publication No. USPS 997-840
The value and importance of prayer
Wi
en it comes to
prayer, have you ever
thought or
said, “I believe
God will answer his prayer,
or her prayer, but I’m not real
sure if He will answer mine”?
This kind of mindset
equates to doubt, and doubt
is the opposite of faith.
Charles Spurgeon
said, “If you believe
in prayer at all, expect
God to hear you.”
Hebrews 11:6 says, “...
he that comes to God must believe
that he is, and that he is a rewarder
of them that diligently seek him.”
God wants us to diligently seek
Him each day. He knows that we
need His guidance, strength, hope
and peace. But, have you noticed
that the devil will do everything he
can to distract you so that
you neglect prayer?
When we look at the life
of Jesus we see that He
was a man of prayer. Jesus
prayed to God the Father
for the strength and power
I ( He needed each day. He
was able to
perform miracles,
heal the sick and
face the agony of the
cross, because prayer
was an intricate source of strength
for Jesus. In Hebrews 5:17 we read,
“In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered
up prayers and supplications, with
loud cries and tears...” If Jesus made
prayer a priority, shouldn’t we do the
same?
What does the Bible say Jesus is
doing today? It says He is still pray
ing! God’s word tells us that Jesus is
our High Priest and “that He ever
lives to make intercession for His
people” (Hebrews 7:25). We are
constantly on His mind and in His
heart. What an incredible Savior!
Jesus has and continues to model
the value, importance and power
of prayer! So my friends, let’s pray
like never before. When we humbly
come before the Throne of Grace, Je
sus lovingly says, “Welcome. What’s
on your heart today? Let’s talk.”
Carolyn Martel of Forsyth is the re
tired long-time advertising manager for
the Reporter. Email her at carolynmar-
tell@bellsouth.net.