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PAGE 4A —THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL. THURSDAY. OCTOBER 1.2009
Opinions
Frankly
Speaking
frankgillispie671@msn.com
By Frank Gillispie
Playing in
the mud
Most news reports on the Internet are followed
by a “Comment” section where readers are able
to respond. If you read these comments regularly,
you find a theme developing. One of the most
common themes continues to be, “It’s George
Bush’s fault.”
Typical of these comments is the following
posted by someone who identifies himself as
ronnierayjenkins who was responding to a story
about growing anger among Americans: “So, the
Republicans are mad as hell. Where was their
anger when GWB and Dick Cheney set out to
destroy America?”
There are two major flaws with this argument.
First, many, if not a majority of the people show
ing up at the Tea Party protests are independents
who have never before taken part in political
activities. To make a blanket statement that all
these people are Republicans is simply wrong.
Secondly, the suggestion that Republicans
did it first does not justify political abuses by
Democrats. They sound like a bunch of kids who
were caught playing in the mud.
"What happened to you Harry,” asks his mother.
"You are all covered with mud.”
"It's not my fault,” little Harry answered. “Nancy
fell in the mud first, and I tripped over her.”
"Why were you and she running through the
mud to start with?” his mother asked.
"Well, George and Richard were wading in the
mud hole and we were running to get ahead of
them,” he answered.
"What was so important about getting ahead of
George and Richard?” she asked.
"Barry was standing on the curb telling us to
run faster. So we were running as fast as we could
until Nancy fell in the mud and I tripped over her.
So, you see, it was George and Richard’s fault that
I got so muddy.”
"Did Barry get muddy as well,” asks his moth
er.
"No,” Harry answered. “He just stayed on the
curb telling us to outrun George and Richard.”
People like myself have been protesting the
government’s power grab for many years now.
We protested Republican overspending well
before the Democrats took power and dramati
cally increased the abuses. The problem is that
too few people took notice. Now that the present
government’s radical spending programs are too
obvious to be ignored, people are finally speak
ing up.
People in America have become angry about
government over spending. They are concerned
for the future of their children who will have to
pay these bills in one form or another. And it is
not just Southern “white rednecks.” People of all
races, economic levels and regions of this nation
are realizing that the current crop of politicians
is leading us all into the swamp and if we all get
mired up in the quicksand, there will be no one
left to pull us out.
So I say to all of the "blame-Bush” crowd: You
are doing nothing more that blindfolding yourself
with this argument. And we all know what hap
pens when the blind lead the blind.
Frank Gillispie is founder of The Madison
County Journal. His e-mail address is frank@
frankgillispie.com. His website can be accessed at
http:/Avww.frankgiUispie.com/gillispieonline.
The Madison
County Journal
(Merged with The Danielsville Monitor
and The Comer News, January 2006)
P.O. Box 658
Hwy. 29 South
Danielsville, Georgia 30633
Phone: 706-795-2567
Fax: 706-795-2765
Email: zach@mainstreetnews.com
ZACH MITCHAM, Editor
MARGIE RICHARDS, Reporter/Office Manager
BEN MUNRO, Reporter/Sports Editor
MIKE BUFFINGTON, Co-publisher
SCOTT BUFFINGTON, Co-publisher
FRANK GILLISPIE, Founder of The Journal.
Jere Ayers (deceased) former owner
of The Danielsville Monitor and The Comer News
Periodical postage paid at Danielsville, Georgia 30633
SUBSCRIPTION RATES:
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A publication of MainStreet Newspapers, Inc.
Away from family and into the fire
The presidential election held
our attention for nearly two years.
The economic collapse consumed
our thoughts. The swine flu has
scared us. The health care debate
has raised our blood pressure.
Meanwhile, men and women
have continued to cross the ocean
on their way to two wars. We
hardly seem to notice except for
ceremonial occasions. When sol
diers in fatigues pass by at the
Atlanta airport, they get obligatory
applause from those waiting in the
latte lines.
It's hard to believe we are still
engaged in two armed conflicts. The
wars have gone on so long they’ve
lost their immediacy in our lives —
that is, unless you are immediately
affected, such as having a loved
one a world away or gone for good.
Then, the wars mean everything.
And the public indifference must
surely be a source of blinding rage.
Of course, the war headlines
are still there. They're just buried
beneath other pressing matters, like
unemployment figures or health
care town hall gatherings.
But the war debates will liven up
again. Too many questions remain.
What is our overall purpose, our
strategy? What is “success?” Can
we achieve that success with our
current numbers? When can we
leave Iraq or Afghanistan?
In the
Meantime
zach@
mainstreet
news.com
By Zach
The focus has clearly shifted
from Iraq back to Afghanistan. It
makes sense for us to try to keep
Afghanistan out of Taliban control.
A1 Qaeda attacked us. And the
Taliban and al Qaeda are closely
allied.
Our military quickly drove the
Taliban out of Afghanistan in 2001,
but the success of that was compli
cated by the fact that the Taliban
and al Qaeda took up safe haven
in a neighboring, nuclear-armed
Islamic state, Pakistan. So, the ter
rorists essentially traded one patch
of protected dirt for a more pro
tected patch.
When it comes to pursuing bin
Laden, both the Bush and Obama
administrations have had to deal
with Pakistan. And this has proved
very difficult, whether you're a
Republican or Democrat. I think
Iraq split this country on partisan
lines, with many in the GOP think
ing it was a wise action and more
Democrats thinking it was a bad
move. But getting the folks who
hit us on 9/11 — bin Laden and al
Qaeda — has never been much of
a political fight. People on the left
and right can agree that this is a
proper goal.
But the pursuit of killers into
Pakistan comes with numerous
complications. Is Pakistan our
friend or foe? They appear to be
both at times.
They say they are committed
to getting bin Laden and fight
ing the Taliban. Then again, they
have a clear incentive to string
us along, getting U.S. support as
they “search.” Likewise, if they
make too big a show of fight
ing militants, they risk alienating
many in their country who support
them and facing a violent backlash.
The continued U.S. support for
Pakistan in fighting Islamic mili
tants also means that Pakistan's
biggest enemy, India, must accept
an alliance between the U.S. and
Pakistan, which strains U.S. rela
tions with India. Pakistan has much
of its armed forces committed to its
eastern border. They seem to fear
India more than the Taliban. And if
there is a nuclear catastrophe in this
world, it seems a high probability
that it will be a blowup between
these two nations. That’s why the
attacks by Islamic extremists in
Mumbai, India, were particular
ly scary. If India perceived those
attacks as state-sanctioned by the
Pakistani government, then what?
Yes, here’s where some folks
respond to complications with sim
ple answers. They inevitably jump
in with "nuc’ em’ all” rhetoric. If
that's your belief, there’s no argu
ing you back from that. I won’t try.
I’ll just say that I’m glad you don’t
have access to the button. And
I believe that the indiscriminate
"exterminate-them-all” attitude is
why we call a terrorist a terrorist. I
don’t want to share that bond with
them.
No, there are no simple answers.
The best hope for "success” is
helping both Iraq and Afghanistan
become self-sufficient societies
where terrorists don’t have any
hope of taking root, because their
own governments prevent it.
But how in the world do you
make that happen? That’s a ques
tion meant for a greater mind than
mine. Such questions stretch over
many years and many conflicts.
In the meantime, our troops will
quiedy pack their bags to fam
ily tears and little fanfare, trudging
through the airport terminals away
from their loved ones and into those
faraway fires.
Zach Mitcham is editor of The
Madison County Journal.
Government is bad - except when we need it
One of the themes underly
ing this year’s waves of political
protests - whether anti-tax, anti-
Obama, anti-healthcare reform,
whatever - is that government in
all its forms should be abolished.
I have some Libertarian friends
who consider it a bedrock princi
ple that government never works
under any circumstances, so the
sooner we get rid of it and stop
collecting taxes, the better. I have
no doubt that they are sincere in
their beliefs.
We have seen a milder varia
tion of this anti-government view
point during the healthcare reform
debate from Georgia congressmen
like Tom Price, Saxby Chambliss,
Paul Broun and Johnny Isakson.
They have strongly opposed pro
posals for a government-funded
“public option” or similar form of
federal health insurance program
modeled on Medicare.
“As a physician, I can attest that
nothing has had a greater negative
effect on the delivery of health
care than the federal government’s
intrusion into medicine through
Medicare,” said Price, who was
an orthopedic surgeon before run
ning for political office.
“I will not be a part of driving
Americans to a government-run
health care system that we can’t
afford,” Isakson said.
The congressmen, like my
Libertarian colleagues, are clear
about it: government has no role
The Capitol
Report
tcrawford@
capitol
impact.net.
By Tom Crawford
to play in helping its citizens.
As one Internet pundit expressed
it: “The free market always can
solve problems and produce what
people need better than govern
ment. There are no exceptions.”
I thought of these folks as
Georgia was being inundated with
a series of rainstorms that dropped
a record amount of water on the
northern part of the state: 20 inch
es or more in some counties.
The historic floods that overran
the state and killed at least nine
people were a leading story for
the national media, which broad
cast stark images of bridges and
subdivisions under water, roads
buried under muddy runoff, and
schools that would not reopen for
a long time.
There were heart-warming pic
tures as well of courageous emer
gency workers who piloted their
boats through the most dangerous
areas to rescue people from the
rising waters.
Many of these rescue workers
were government employees like
police and firefighters whose
salaries are paid with taxpayer
funds. I didn’t hear any of the
rescued flood victims protesting
that government ought to keep its
nose out of their affairs.
In Georgia, as in New Orleans
after the devastation of Hurricane
Katrina, the situation was the
same. When you’re standing on
the roof of your house and the
water is lapping at your feet,
there isn’t much chance that the
forces of the free market are going
to magically come to your rescue.
You’re not going to complain if
some government-paid employee
in a government-provided water
craft saves your life.
It is interesting to me that the
same politicians who oppose the
expenditure of government funds
for health insurance were clamor
ing for boatloads of federal dollars
to help the areas that were ravaged
by the flooding.
Said Johnny Isakson: "I fully
support the governor’s request
for federal disaster assistance for
communities in Georgia affected
by these devastating storms and
floods, and I hope the president
will approve this request quick
ly”
Said Saxby Chambliss: “There
are many areas that are going
to need a helping hand and it
is imperative that the president
approve this request.”
Even Tom Price, who opposes
government funds for a program
like Medicare, wanted those tax
payer dollars: “Governor Perdue
has asked President Obama to
expeditiously declare a major
disaster in Georgia. Today, I, along
with Georgia's entire congressio
nal delegation, sent a letter to the
president in support of Governor
Perdue’s request. It is essential
that the appropriate resources get
to where they are needed so the
recovery process can begin.”
It’s one thing to have an abstract
debate about the feasibility of
eliminating taxes and govern
ment, but real life tends to be a
lot messier.
In real life, people get sick and
need medical care. They need
roads to drive on, water that is safe
to drink, and sometimes they even
need to be rescued from floods.
I understand why people feel
aggravated by the government.
I feel the same way whenever I
try to renew my driver’s license
or pay my property taxes. As the
flooding showed, however, there
are times when we all need a help
ing hand that only government
can provide.
Tom Crawford is the editor of
Capitol Impact’s Georgia Report,
an Internet news sendee at www.
gareport.com that covers govern
ment and politics in Georgia. He
can be reached at tcrawford@
capitolimpact.net.
Love of animals comes naturally
It’s a regular farmyard at our
house. We have chickens, rab
bits, cats, dogs, ducks, fish, a
horse and a mule. My oldest
nephew, Jake, loves animals
and keeps asking for more.
A recent addition to our fam
ily is Jake’s puppy, Lace. We
adopted her at the Commerce
Vet Clinic after finding her
photo on the Humane Society
of Jackson County’s website.
She is a good-natured dog who
is perfect for children. Jake
and his little brother, Grayson,
both love to play with her.
The Beta Fish, named
Swimmy, is another new addi
tion to our animal family. The
boys can’t pet the fish and run
around the yard with him like
they do with Lace, but they
still enjoy having him as a pet.
Jake feeds her every morning
My
View
By Angela Gary
and both boys love to watch
her swim around in her small
aquarium.
Jake also loves to go the
pens and check to see how the
rabbits are doing and whether
the chickens have any eggs
for him to gather. He also
loves playing with the baby
rabbits. He brought a few up
to the house Saturday and he
and Grayson had lots of funny
playing with them. The adults
enjoyed watching the boys
laugh and enjoy the bunnies.
Jake and Grayson get their
love of animals naturally.
Our family has always had
four-legged friends around
the house. I’ve written many
times about my cats, Missy
and Quincy. Both lived long
lives and I have many won
derful memories of them. We
also had rabbits and chick
ens. I remember a big white
rabbit, named Bunny, that we
had as children. One of our
first dogs was named Big Red.
We also had a dog for many
years named Pooh. Children
will always remember those
early pets and how special they
were. Animals are wonder
ful for children to have. They
teach them responsibility,
compassion and love, among
other things.
If you are looking for a pet,
check out the website for the
Madison Oglethorpe Animal
Shelter at www.moaspets.org,
or visit the Humane Society
of Jackson County website
at www.hsjc.com. It’s always
great to adopt an animal from
the humane society. They have
many great cats and dogs to
choose from.
I adopted Quincy many years
ago from the Athens Humane
Society. This was before
Jackson County had an orga
nization. He was such a loving
cat and important part of our
family.
Angela Gary is associate edi
tor of The Jackson Herald and
editor of The Banks County
News. She can be reached at
AngieEditor@aol.com.