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Viewpoints
Our Opinions
The Fourth of July should be
celebrated with fireworks
Samuel Adams wrote to his wife some 218 years ago that the Fourth
should be celebrated with fireworks and speeches, that the day should be a
national birthday.
And, what a nation the day gave birth to. On July 4,1776, who could
tell that the 13 colonies that gathered together to throw off British rule
would one day surpass the British Empire, rescuing the motherland twice a
century-and-a-half later. Then there was no great indication of the new na
tion’s future glory, with a untrained citizen army facing down the army of
one of the world’s superpowers. But, with the help of our French allies,
the nation did survive. Since then, we have grown to be the world's only
superpower.
A new nation was bom that July 4th, a nation bom as an experiment in
the social contract between the citizen and his government. And, although
the nation has been through many troubling times, the experiment contin
ues, and continues strong. Today, more people want to live in this nation
than in any nation on earth. Even with all of its troubles, people are called
by the freedom of this land, by the social contract that allows men and
women to realize their full potential.
Come out and celebrate America. Although the private use of Fireworks
is banned, the Georgia Fairgrounds and Agricenter will sponsor
Big*Bang*Boom all day today, July 2nd. The celebration will conclude
like Adams envisioned, with fireworks announcing again to the world that
a nation established in freedom can be strong.
Deadlines For Submitting News
Articles and Photographs
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To: Editor
Houston Times-Joumal
P.O. Drawer M
Perry, Ga. 31069
Houston Times-Joumal
P.O. Drawer M • 807 Carroll Street • Perry, Ga. 31069
Phone: (912) 987-1823
Member Georgia Press Association-National Newspaper Association
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Your nght to read this newspaper is protected Py the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
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The Houston Times-Journal is published proudly for the citizens of
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Ga. Our goal is to produce quality, profitable, comm unity-oriented
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Bob Tribble Daniel F. Evans Julie B. Evans Mitch Tribble
President Vice-President Treasurer Secretary
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This Paper
A Small
Gift To The
Earth
The decay in family values is affecting our schools
Mike Royko, a columnist for
several large daily newspapers, has
hit another homerun, this time in
an article concerning test scores in
Chicago schools.
He writes about how depressing
the scores were from his old
grammar school when the test
results were published in the local
paper. And the fact that the scores
from the school his sisters and
brother attended were just as bad.
Mike points out that there was a
time when all three Chicago
schools did well. The kids in class
could all read and write, and
students were able to get the basics
our of the schools. But today the
kids are barely learning to read a
street sign, he wrote.
Pondering for the reasons why
his old school had changed so
drastically over the past few years,
his first though was the economic
level of the students. “True,
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Perry Scrapbook
Twenty-three PHS seniors enjoyed a cruise on the T.S.S. Carnivale in 1991, traveling to
Nassau, Bahamas. Seniors traveling were: Travis Bennett, Cassie Bisbee, Robin Bryant,
Samantha Buchanan, Donna Brackett, Shannon Bridges, Becky Cotton, Donna Doherty,
Amy Ellison, Shannon Fullmore, Tiffany Glass, Tracey Hemphill, Sandy Johnson, Jenny
Kelly, Stephanie Leonard, Trent Malone, Tracy McCarter, Randy Mizell, Stoney Pitzer, Ken
Sikes, Chris Stone, Brandi Taylor and Candy Thompson.
STREET TALK:
Monday is July Fourth-Independence Day in America! This week, we asked six lo
cal residents just how they plan to celebrate this national holiday.
- ~ ). 'i \
Lena Wynn
“Me and a couple of
friends are going to cook
out at my house and have
some fun together."
'a i i
frlTr,
George Neal
“I have to work Saturday
for the Big * Bang * Boom
event at the Agricenter.
It’s supposed to be really
good, so I guess I’ll just
enjoy that.”
Houston limes-Journal
children going to those schools
today are from poor families. But
that was also true when we were in
the same schools,” Mike wrote.
His sisters graduated during the
Depression, and most families of
his fellow classmates were below
the poverty level by today’s
standards.
Then Mike stumbled upon what
he sees as the major difference.
“It’s called family,” he wrote. “The
families weren’t perfect, but in
most there was a resemblance of a
family life, even if the parents
spoke broken English or none at
all.”
One superintendent in Illinois
pointed out that one third of his
kindergartners don’t speak English,
but the kids score above average.
The reason, “We get parents
involved, that’s really where it’s all
at,” he said.
Another superintendent said,
r * j
Denise Fluellen
"I plan on celebrating July
Fourth by getting together
with my friends and family
to celebrate my grand
mother’s 94th birthday.
Happy Birthday, Grand
mama-Eliza Holmes!”
ft
Wayne Hinson
"I’m going to Stone
Mountain with my family.
We’ll probably have a
picnic and then stay for
the laser show."
- Saturday, July 2,1994 "Houston Tlmes^Journal
Page 4A
“The parents get involved in our
reading contest, listening to kids
read at home and verifying what
they’ve read. Parents are an
extension of the school, just as we
here at school are an extension of
the parents. We have similar
expectations and the children know
it.”
More money for Chicago’s
schools isn’t the answer, since
money can’t replace a family
structure that isn’t there, Royko
wrote. An eighth grade teacher in
an inner city school said, “I try to
teach, but it isn’t easy when my
smartest student is a girl who is
already pregnant with her second
child.”
Without doubt the decay in
family values in this country over
the past 30 plus years is the major
problem we face in our school
system, and in many other places.
From this decay has come one-
twPjS--
plr^
Joanne Wells
"I’m thinking about having
a picnic with my family."
, M i , 0 I
Mh W
, I *
WW
Jim Ferguson
"I’m going to relax at my
cousin’s home in Hi
awassee, Georgia.”
Bob |
Tribblel
parent families that over trie years
has bred violence and crime. And
most of this decay began with
Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society
Program that was supposed to be a
way to lift people out of poverty.
Our pastor has said on more than
one occasion that most forms of
welfare today are things that the
churches and Christian people once
took care of. I think he is right,
especially if we will add a line that
says families should do more to
take care of their own. But they are
not going to do that until our
people realize the importance of
strong, moral family values.
Remembering the
values that make
America great
Independence Day is a day to
reflect on America’s history and
present situation. If we follow the
politicians, special interest groups
and the news media we could be
convinced that America is sliding
into oblivion.
Here are some of their bleak
snapshots:
A recent survey of our criminal
justice system showed the average
convicted murderer serves only 16
years in prison. The average
sentence for rape is 60 days and the
average criminal commits 186
crimes before his or her first
conviction.
On other fronts, America’s
students aren’t keeping up with
their counterparts worldwide.
American technology has been
surpassed by Japan and Central
Europe. Our health care is
inadequate and unavailable to those
who need it most. American
workers aren’t productive and
quality is below world standards.
The Rest of the Story
If we listen only to these
sensational stories, it can become
pretty depressing. Fortunately, the
facts don’t support all this gloom
and doom.
The United States continues to
be the world’s largest producer of
goods arid services-66 percent more
than Japan and equal to all the
European nations combined.
American workers still have the
highest output per person. Our
unemployment is currently one of
the lowest in the world. Japan,
Germany, Great Britain, Canada,
and others are in recession.
Concern over health care has
skyrocketed since the Clintons took
office. But the fact is American
health care is the envy of the world.
We spend 14 percent of our nation’s
economy on health care. Canada
and Sweden spend only 9 percent,
Japan 7 percent, and Great Britain
only 6 percent on health care.
What about our education
system? Foreign nations still
consider our university system to
be the best in the world. Our
universities provide over one
million basic researchers-more than
Japan, Great Britain, Germany and
France combined.
A greater percentage of American
children are in school than in any
other nation. Foreign leaders and
those of means send their children
to be educated here.
Veterans Still Care!
America’s veterans and their
families have paid a heavy price for
this nation’s freedom and
prosperity. We still have much of
which we can be proud.
We will not stand idle and watch
our nation be sold out by those
who constantly tell us how badly
we’ve messed up.
This July 4th, take time to
remember the heritage of family
unity and traditional values that
have made America great.
Perpetuate these values in your
family and community and America
will continue to be the greatest
place to live in the world.
(George R. Cramer is
National Commander-in-
Chief, Veterans of Foreign
Wars).
