About The Islander. (St. Simons Island, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2008)
PAGE 4, JULY 21, 2008, THE ISLANDER D BILIIC M Letters to the Editor and Opinions Publisher's Statement THE ISLANDER (USPS 002430), A member of the Georgia Press Association and Glynn County’s only weekly news paper is published 51 weeks a year for $17 per year in Glynn County; $19 per year in the United States outside Glynn County; $25 per year outside the US by Permar Publications, Inc., 3596 Darien Hwy. Suite 6, Brunswick, GA 31525. Periodicals postage paid at Brunswick, GA. Contents of The Islander, including advertising, may not he reprinted or reproduced in any form without written permission of the publishers. POSTMAS TER send address change to The Islander, P.O. Box 20539, St. Simons Island, GA 31522. Publication Deadline Publication Date: Every Monday Deadline: Thursdays, 12 PM for ads and news copy for the following Monday’s edition. Holiday Schedule On Monday Post Office holidays, The Islander is printed on the Friday before. 2008 Post Office Holidays Tuesday, January 1 - New Year's Day Monday, January 21 - MLK Birthday Monday, February 18 - Presidents Day Monday, May 26 - Memorial Day Friday, July 4 - Independence Day Monday, September 1 - Labor Day Monday, October 13 - Columbus Day Tuesday, November 11 - Veterans Day Thursday, November 27 - Thanksgiving Day Thursday, December 25 - Christmas Day Holiday Deadline: Wednesdays, 12 PM for ads and news copy for the following Monday’s edition. Mission Statement: to publish the truth without fear or favor. Established 1972 Matthew J. Permar - Publisher Elise J. Permar - Publisher 1972-2003 Gertrude Bradshaw - Co-Editor 1972-1991 Managing Editor & Advertising Manager Pamela P. Shierling 912-265-9654 Staff/Production Assistant Sarah Banks Long Church News Patty Gibson - 912-638-8844 Contributors Dave Barry, Clark Gillespie MD, Sonny Doehring, Roland Willis, Diane Bowen MD Phone Numbers 912-265-9654 • Fax - 912-265-3699 entail: ssislander@bellsouth.net Award Winning Newspaper 1975 1980 1985 1976 1981 1992 1977 1982 1999 1978 1983 2002 1979 1984 2007 Letter to the Editor Dear Editor: The large turnout to witness the recent release of Dylan the turtle gives some indication of how benefi cial eco-tourism can be. There were widely varying estimates, but my guess would be at least 300 people were there, as well as local, state, and national media. With the slowing economy, and the increasing competi tion for the tourist dollar, I believe that more attention should be paid to this aspect of the hospitality indus try. Of course, that is assuming that our local officials manage to retain enough "eco" to allow such activities to viable. A case in point is the plan to construct a solid, concrete barrier down the middle of the F.J. Torras Causeway. As this roadway is not elevated, as would be required today, a host of wildlife is forced to cross this busy road, as they follow their natu ral movements and migrations. Even with no barrier, many of our local creatures are killed by drivers either too careless or uncaring to avoid such needless death. Even if one accepts the position that a barrier is needed, why does it have to be a barrier which is solid all the way to the ground? This will make it impossible for wildlife to cross the roadway, and lead to their inevitable slaughter in significant numbers. What kind of a welcome to our community will it be for visitors to view the dead carcasses of our wild animals on the most prominent road in the county? Solution? Simply, construct a raised, metal barrier instead, simi lar to that used in many locations, including our interstate highway sys tem. This would both provide pro tection to automobile traffic and to Glynn County wildlife. And I suspect it would be less costly to the taxpayer than the solid, concrete proposal. I hope it is not too late to make this change. Please contact your County Commissioner if you agree. Sincerely, Dick Wiederhorn □ Heller Continues to Roil Landscape The legal landscape may appear changed since the Supreme Court's rul ing that the Second Amendment does, indeed, cover an individual right to own firearms, but the political land scape seems determined to maintain the status quo. In other words, the poli ticians and organizations that hysteri cally decried the decision continue their ranting today. Just in case there were any doubts about where they were ideologically con cerning firearms, we offer these quotes from notable anti-gun politicians: "President Bush's radical Supreme Court justices put rigid ideology ahead of the safety of communities in New Jersey and across the country. This decision illustrates why I have strongly opposed extremist judicial nominees and will continue to do so in the future." Sen. Frank Lautenberg, D-N. J. "While the Supreme Court has ruled, not unexpectedly, that individuals have a right to bear arms, the court clearly allows for reasonable regulations like the Brady law and the assault weapons ban. It is my hope and belief that the ruling will not change much in terms of how the states and the federal govern ment are allowed to regulate guns." Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. "I am profoundly disappointed in Justice Roberts and Justice Alito, both of whom assured us of their respect for precedent. With this decision, 70 years of precedent has gone out the window. And I believe the people of this great country will be less safe because of it." Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif. "While it ruled that the D.C. gun ban went too far, Justice Scalia him self acknowledged that this right is not absolute and subject to reasonable regulations enacted by local communi ties to keep their streets safe." Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill. In other words, the more things change, the more they stay the same. It appears some politicians believe that they know better than the people, the courts and anyone else what is best for the United States. In their statements, it is obvious they are not going to fol low the Supreme Court ruling because they believe it is wrong. In that respect, these Senators are worthy the same amount of respect accorded those politi- By Jim Shepherd dans who stood firmly against deseg regation and women's rights. Their constituencies, rather, comprise those liberal areas whose residents claim to be champions of civil rights. Those same civil rights - and their alleged champions - don't appear so important if you're talking about law- abiding citizens who want the same right in Washington, D.C. (or Chicago) as anyone else in the United States. And the anti-gun hysteria went even beyond my imagination this weekend as the Chicago Tribune called for a repeal of the Second Amendment. In their editorial, the Tribune called the Second Amendment an "anachronism" that should be repealed. In its argu ment, the Tribune quoted the 1939 case, U.S. vs. Miller. In that ruling, the Tribune said the amendment was established as a "collective right" that applied only to service in some form of militia. The fact the majority of the Justices of the United States Supreme Court felt otherwise, apparently had no bearing on the Tribune. Neither, incidentally, did the fact that there was never a clear ruling on the Miller case. That 1939 case involved a pair of moonshiners charged with violating the National Firearms Act (NFA) by transporting a sawed-off shotgun across state lines. By the time the case had come before the Supreme Court, Miller had been killed and his co-defendant had made a plea bargain, so there were no claimants to continue the proceeding. Ultimately the Court reversed the claim that the NFA was in violation of the Second Amend ment and remanded the case back to the lower courts. There, it, like Miller, expired. We're nowhere close to seeing, hear ing or ending the arguing about this landmark decision. At this point, it is clear, however, that those questions Justice Scalia chose not to clarify in his majority opinion will quickly become front-burner issues with anti-gun groups. The Shooting Wire - Monday, June 30. a FL, GA, SC LAND SALE River, creeks, hardwoods, natural pine, planted pine, some with development potential, all have excellent hunting! View our website for maps, timber data, etc. www.stregispaper.com St. Regis Paper Co. 478-987-9700 A Safeguard Worth Noticing In this country, politicians understand that the more you know about government, the better offwe all are. So, they created public notices to be printed in the newspaper. Georgias newspapers go one step further and also make public notices, from all 159 counties in the state, available in a free and searchable database online. It’s fast. It’s easy. It Serves The Public’s Right To Know. GeorgiaPublicNotice.com Georgia Statewide Database of Public Notices
