Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 4A —THE MADISON COUNTY (GA) JOURNAL THURSDAY. AUGUST 4. 2016
Gospel according
to Mark
mark@
mainstreetnews.com
Mark Beardsley
A century of
observing
nation’s treasures
The National Park Service is celebrating the
100th anniversary this month, although the United
States created its first national park —Yellowstone
National Park — in 1872. The Park Service is
responsible for maintaining and protecting the 58
National parks in America.
By my calculations, I’ve visited only nine of the
national parks, but you don't have to visit them to
realize what treasures we've wisely set aside.
Chief, for me, is the first. I’ve been to Yellowstone
twice, spending nearly two weeks in or in the
immediate vicinity of the park in 1971 and return
ing with Barbara 10 or so years ago for a much
shorter visit.
Coming from Florida, Yellowstone in 1971 was
a revelation. Sadly, my focus was entirely on trout
fishing and while my cousin Bruce and I managed
to see a wide variety of animals and natural phe
nomenon in the course of fishing, we made little
effort to see the park. Still, we encountered elk
and bison even as we fished. Naturally, we saw
Old Faithful and another geyser or two, marveled
at the geyser basin around the Firehole River (our
favorite fishing venue), witnessed traffic jams due
to sightings of moose, elk or bears (no grizzlies)
and enjoyed the endless western panorama visible
beyond the tips of our fly rods.
The later visit was shorter. Barbara and I drove
the main circuits and explored some easy-to-reach
and best-known sites and marveled at the construc
tion of the Yellowstone Lodge, but in those two
visits I could not have seen close to one percent of
what Yellowstone has to offer.
On the other hand, I did catch a lot of trout on
that first visit.
It is the most amazing place in the lower 48
states, one of the most geologically interesting
(and important) sites in the world and is host to a
biodiversity that boggles the imagination. I long
to return.
My son Steven recently sent along a copy of
the May National Geographic Magazine featuring
“YELLOWSTONE Battle for the American West,”
perusing of which reminded me of what a treasure
the park is and depressed me by reminding me of
all that I did not see in my two visits there. It also
served as a reminder that there are 49 other national
parks I need to put on my bucket list, 49 additional
treasures preserved by national leaders much wiser,
it seems, than those now employed.
Interestingly, the most-visited national park in
America is relatively close by — Great Smoky
Mountain National Park. That was a destination
for my family during summer camping vacations;
Shenandoah National Park was another, and if I
hold fewer fond memories of Everglades National
Park in Florida, attribute it to mosquitos, swamps,
snakes and my ignorance of the importance of the
‘glades at the times I visited.
In today’s climate, we can easily become obsessed
with what’s wrong with our country. The National
Park Service and our national parks are examples
of what this country does right. Protecting the nat
ural wonders of America against development and
exploitation, giving safe refuge to plants and ani-
— See “Beardsley” on 5A
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: 800-795-2581
E-mail: zach@mainstreetnews.com
ZACH MITCHAM, Editor
DALLAS BORDON, Sports reporter
MARGIE RICHARDS, Reporter/Office Manager
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:
$25/year
POSTMASTER: Send address changes to:
THE MADISON COUNTY JOURNAL
P.O. Box 658, Danielsville, Ga. 30633
A publication of MainStreet Newspapers Inc.
- The Official Legal Organ of Madison County, Georgia
- Periodicals postage paid at Danielsville, Georgia 30633 (USPS
011-097; ISSN 1074987X)
Trump has brought America to a crisis of conscience
The 2016 election has
brought us so many new low
points in American politics.
And at this point, I don’t even
feel like it’s about red and
blue anymore. It feels like it’s
about our conflicting ideas
of what constitutes a base
level of decency. We are truly
divided on our basic moral
outlook. One believes he sees
up. The other sees down.
One sees nighttime, where
another sees day. There’s no
argument or convincing the
other side that they’re closer
to the true reality. There’s
only shouting. When shout
ing fails, violence awaits.
I’m probably one of the
few people who doesn’t have
strong feelings about Hillary
Clinton, no great affinity or
hate. Yes, I’m troubled that
she seemed to believe herself
beyond the law in regards to
handling classified informa
tion in a reckless manner.
The email issue could be a
disqualifter for me at another
time. Still. I don’t hold her
clear ambition against her,
which seems to be perhaps
her most off-putting trait for
many. The wide-eyed ambi
tion so obvious in her face is
viscerally too much for many,
something unlikable in her
persona. But if ambition is a
disqualifter. then should we
recruit pot-smoking couch
potatoes to run for president?
Aren’t all people seeking
national office ambitious?
Likewise, I don’t see Clinton
as a devil, like so many seem
to. But I certainly don’t see
her as revolutionary in a good
way either. She is surely a
big-money politician with too
many Wall Street connections
to seem at all pure. She’s far
from it. But I don’t think she
is fundamentally unhinged
emotionally. I think as a pol
itician, she is pretty run of
the mill in terms of what she
will bring. She is more status
quo, than revolution. I don’t
expect much, good or bad.
I think she will work really
hard to keep things steady,
which isn’t always good, but
not usually disastrous.
And I say that as someone
ready for a type of politi-
By Zach Mitcham
cal revolution. I want real
change, something that
breaks the mold of what
we’ve been mired in. And
no, I don’t think Clinton will
bring that. I’m disappointed
in that. too. Really. I don’t
like the status quo. I think
our political system is broken
in a profound way. I want
something new.
But the middle finger vote
— Trump — is simply a
request for chaos. The mid
dle-finger candidate promis
es nothing but middle fin
gers, not anything else. For
many, it’s so satisfying. And
the specifics of what he says
or does are “trumped” by
the symbolic, in-your-face,
cathartic “take this and shove
it!” Support for the man
comes with the full-throated
“hell yeah!” from the chest as
opposed to a quiet golf clap
for yet another milk-toast
candidate. I get the emotional
appeal of the middle finger. I
do. Give me the right person.
And I’d be ready to raise my
hand too. There are some
needed revolutions on the
issues in this country. If you
don’t recognize real prob
lems right now, you’re not
looking.
But what Trump is bring
ing is not a political revolu
tion, but a moral one. What
we "re witnessing is a sharp
downward turn of civility, a
chest stab to basic decency
in public debate. And Trump
is leading that charge. For
sure, he has entertained many
with his outright disdain for
any political correctness.
But here’s the thing: it can
be morally right to refute
political correctness, or it
can be morally repugnant. It
depends on the situation. And
a true leader must have the
wisdom to see the difference.
Sometimes political correct
ness carries a type of oppres
siveness and you’re right to
buck it. Sometimes you’re
just being an awful human
to take the inflammatory
politically incorrect jab. He
doesn’t seem to understand
any distinctions on this point.
And what’s more: his talk
of the wall is absurd because
of one word: tunnels. Did
Trump not notice how the
Mexican Sinaloa cartel
broke out its leader, Joaquin
Guzman, “El Chapo,” from
prison with a nearly mile-
long tunnel exactly to his
cell? Does he not realize
there are currently tunnels at
the border and that the cartels
are obviously masters at this?
A wall would do nothing to
stop this. Seriously, why no
talk nationally about tunnels
and what they would mean to
his wall? A wall would only
work if you also bury the wall
beyond the cartels’ ability to
tunnel. And how much would
that cost? Ugh!
A leader must also have the
wisdom to see political fights
for what they are — politics,
an important aspect of life,
but not the essence of life.
So, sometimes, your human
ity should be more signifi
cant than your political team.
And sometimes, you accept a
political loss and move on. If
politics is a big poker game
of strategy and risk assess
ment, you don’t bet all in
with every hand. If you do,
you’re stupid.
No doubt, Trump is com
pletely all in with every polit
ical wager. He is an epic gam
bler as a businessman and as
a politician. And it makes
him totally newsworthy, more
worthy of cameras than any
candidate in my lifetime. But
it also makes him vulnera
ble to profound missteps. For
instance. Trump’s response
to the parents of a fallen sol
dier showed a fundamental
lack of empathy and political
wisdom. Think about it, what
is the most dreaded aspect
of human existence for most
people: losing a child. That’s
my number one worry in
life. Number two is nowhere
close. And so. whatever I feel
about anyone politically is
irrelevant when I hear that
they’ve lost a child. I want
to be a source of comfort for
that hurt, for anyone with
that pain, whether they’re
with me or against me polit
ically. We can debate issues
later, but my empathy matters
more in the engagement than
my argument. My humanity
trumps my politics.
Trump doesn’t see this, not
at all. He lives by the mantra:
attack, attack, attack. And he
failed to even acknowledge
that couple’s hurt, instead
throwing barbs back at them,
trying to belittle them. Who
does this? A person with one
tiny bit of political wisdom
would recognize that this is
a no-win fight. Just express
some condolence, whether
it’s sincere or not, for their
profound loss and move on
to the next issue. Don’t fight
them. Only a loser — not
just politically, but human
— fights with the parents of
a fallen soldier on a nation
al stage. For me. this epi
sode has cast a darkness over
what held a certain laughable
aspect to me.
This man is dangerous.
And the fact that I’m reading
Christians online trying to tie
him to Christ is both nause
ating and severely depress
ing. Would Christ belittle the
mother of a fallen soldier or,
instead, seek to comfort her?
Sickening! This candidacy is
different than anything I’ve
ever seen. And I am down
right horrified and angrier
than I have ever been polit
ically. I would prefer not to
say anything on this, because
I see all that bile and don’t
want it slung at me, which,
of course, it will be. But I
also don’t want to cower in
the face of looming tragedy
for the country I love. I want
to speak my conscience and
know later that I wasn’t too
afraid to do so. That may
be my only consolation. It’s
what my conscience requires.
Zach Mitcham is editor of
The Madison County Journal.
What color will your state be?
As the last of the two con
ventions finished its business of
nominating a presidential can
didate last week, the Clinton
and Trump campaigns were
quickly shifting into high gear.
Before all of the balloons in
Philadelphia had been picked
up, Donald Trump supporters
were already chanting “Lock
her up, lock her up” at a cam
paign event. Meanwhile, the
Hillary Clinton campaign was
embarking on a bus tour of
the key states Pennsylvania and
Ohio.
As the nominees light their
way through a grinding, nasty
campaign, the question we've
heard so much in recent years
is again being raised: Is this
the year when Georgia makes
the transition from red to pur
ple and becomes a battleground
state?
The answer to that question
since 1992 has been no. That
was when Bill Clinton became
the last Democratic presiden
tial candidate to take Georgia’s
electoral votes. Clinton lost the
state in 1996, finishing 27,000
votes behind Bob Dole, and
Republicans have had a tight
lock on Georgia ever since.
Georgia Democrats have
been like Chicago Cubs fans,
responding to their long title
drought with, “Wait ‘til next
year.”
Democrats are expect
ing things to be a little more
The
Capitol
Report
tcrawford@
capitol
impact.net
By Tom Crawford
competitive this year and kept
making that point throughout
their convention. Jason Carter
opened his introduction of his
grandfather, Jimmy Carter,
with these words: “Greetings
from the battleground state of
Georgia!”
Several recent polls also
suggest that the race between
Trump and Clinton is close
enough that the state could be
considered a tossup.
Republican pollster Mark
Rountree made the same obser
vation as other political analysts
when he noted: “Georgia has a
larger minority vote than almost
anywhere else.”
As with California, Texas,
and Florida, Georgia's popula
tion is steadily becoming more
diverse because of a growing
black population and a steady
influx of Asian and Latino res
idents.
It was not so long ago that
Georgia's pool of registered
voters was more than 80 percent
white; today, it’s barely above
58 percent and keeps dropping.
Basically, the state’s percent
age of white voters declines
by about a percentage point
each year while the portion of
non-white voters increases by
a point.
“Georgia demographics con
tinue to change,” Rountree said.
“But so many GOP activists
are blind to this and simply
assume that since the GOP has
run things here for a decade that
they are a lock to continue to do
so. No.”
Voter registration statistics
and poll numbers are obviously
indications that a state could be
more competitive, but they are
not a guarantee that it will be.
The real marker of a state
that has attained “battleground”
status is that both of the pres
idential nominees are bathing
for it. That isn’t happening here
just yet.
When Trump and his aides
met with GOP congressmen in
Washington prior to the national
convention, they disclosed that
the Trump campaign would be
targeting a total of 17 states
this fall.
The remaining 33 states
were considered to be either
so Republican in their polit
ical leanings (like Utah and
Oklahoma) or so Democratic
(like California and New York)
that there was no point in devot
ing campaign resources to them.
One of the states on Trump's
list was Georgia. After going
Republican in five consecu
tive presidential elections, you
would think that Georgia was
one state a GOP candidate
could safely assume would be
in the red column again.
The fact that Georgia is on
Trump’s fist tells us that his
campaign is concerned about
the state’s growing diversity, or
has seen polling numbers that
show it really could be up for
grabs. Otherwise, why spend
a penny of scarce campaign
money here when there are so
many other competitive states?
Hillary Clinton’s campaign,
on the other hand, has not yet
committed to the possibility that
Georgia could be in play. If
that were the case, they would
be dispatching campaign oper
atives here and opening up field
offices to work on get-out-the-
vote efforts. So far, that hasn’t
happened.
The Trump campaign is plan
ning to go to war over Georgia,
but the Clinton campaign is
holding back. Since you can’t
have a battle unless there are
two sides to fight it out, Georgia
is still not quite a battleground
state. Perhaps that will change
in a few weeks.
Tom Crawford is editor of The
Georgia Report, an Internet
news service at gareport.com
that repons on state govern
ment and politics. He can be
reached at tcrawford@ gare-
pon.com.