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Wednesday, September 21,1994, Houston Times-Journal Page 4A Viewpoints Houston Times -Journal P. O. Drawer M • 807 Carroll Street • Perry, Ga. 31069 Phone: (912) 987-1823 The Houston Times-Journal (USPS 000471) Is published semi-weekly for SIB.OO per year by Houston Publications, Inc., 807 Carroll Street, Perry, Ga. 31069. Second Class Postage paid at Perry, Ga., POSTMASTER: Send address changes to the Houston Times-Journal, P. O. Drawer M, Perry, Ga. 31069. ISSN: 107 S-1874 Bob Tribble, President Jim Kerce, Editor and General Manager Eddie Byrd, Advertising Manager News: Jimmy Simpson, Pauline Lewis. Sports: Veto Roley. Composition: Lori iimpson. Classified Advertising: Melanie Buliington. Bookkeeping: Judy Morrow. Public should have access to lake, if taxes fund new dam At this point there seems to be little question that somehow Houston County officials will prove ownership of, and thus responsibility for, the area that encompasses Houston Lake dam. When that is accomplished the county apparently intends to rebuild the dam at a cost to federal and state taxpayers of up wards of $3-million. The money, according to officials, will not come out of local taxes. Rather, funding will come from U.S. and Georgia disaster aid moneys. We certainly would like to see the dam rebuilt in order to re form one of middle Georgia’s most scenic lakes. We agree that the present dry lake bed, surrounded by expensive homes, poses a threat to the tax base through devaluation of some of the most expensive residential property in Houston County. However, there is a serious flaw in the thinking of politi cians who are backing an effort to establish ownership and re sponsibility for the washed out dam in order to use tax money to rebuild the structure —the lake is not a public body of water. Houston Lake is private property—all of it. The land around the lake, the lake bed itself and the water in it are off limits to residents who do not have a financial stake in the property. For that reason we question spending any tax money on re building the dam, unless the question of public access is ad dressed. Before any tax money from any source is spent on the re building project there should be assurances that all taxpayers will have access to the lake for recreational purposes. This could easily be accomplished when the present dam is rebuilt if the county built a small beach and dock adjacent to the dam, which would allow the public access to the lake. Although some property owners bordering the lake may be opposed to the idea of public access, the trade-off certainly seems reasonable, since our tax money may be used to insure property values remain high in the area. Reader's reactions... •v J.C Brunson ;; McDowell Should taxes fund dam? The hike at Houston Lake Dam remains a sea of tree stumps and weeds while county, state and neighborhood residents wrestle with the idea of who should actually foot the bill to repair the dam. There is a possibility that a county maintainance agreement exists from years ago. If that is the case, then state monies could be appropriated to pay for repairs. If not, then monies would have to come from another source. This week, we asked residents, "Do you believe taxpayers' dollars should be used to rebuild the dam?" Here are their responses: Marvin Lester: ‘‘No. The (home) owners should, but only if it is concluded that the county doesn't have an agreement to maintain it.” Ronnie McDowell: “I think people who own the houses out there (at Houston Lake) should pay for repairs instead of the poor folks in the county.” Joy Johnson: "1 don't think the taxpayers' dollars can be stretched any further thtui dtey already are. We're being taxed to death.” Willie Brunson: “No. Because we work too hard for our money. (Residents living at lire dun) should have money already set aside for that.” James Taylor: “If 1 were a homeowner out there, I would probably want it to happen, but 1 don't think it should be fully funded by taxpayers." John Stinson: "I feel like if the dam is accessable to any Houston County residence, then we should (help pay). If not, then, no.” Our Policies • Signed Letters to the editor welcomed. Please limit to 300 words and include address and phone number. • Liability for an error will not exceed the cost of space occupied by the error. • We cannot be responsible for return of pictures or material unless stamped return addressed envelope is included. Our Gosi The Houston Times-Journal is published proudly for the citizens of Houston and adjoining counties by Houston Publications Inc., Perry, Ga. Our goal is to produce quality, profitable, community-oriented newspapers that you, our readers, are proud of. We will reach that goal through hard work, teamwork, loyalty, and a strong dedication towards printing the truth. Member Georgia Press Association-National Newspaper Association “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the ( .ovemmenl for a redree of grievances. Your right to read this newspaper is protected by the First Amerdment ol the United Slates Constitution. l® jr '.y Hf- Taylor w& *~*** %s \ Lester Stinson WT • MMki W ~ J&jS - Hk wkd Johnson Let the WR band play Dixie! Students at a Warner Robins high School want to keep “Dixie” as the school’s football fight song. In fact, a group of sixteen students, eight black and eight white, voted to retain “Dixie” as die fight song as long as the entire student body was behind it. “It’s our fight song until further notice,” said band director Charles Westman. The entire student body at the high school also voted on the issue with 53 percent saying they wanted to keep only Dixie as the fight song, while the c-ier 47 percent voted to add a second fight song along with Dixie. The above sounds all well and good, but it is not that way. The NAACP has been die motivating force to bring die issue to light in an effort to stop the band from PThe peanutgallep-Y FANS TO bASEBALL - J "THAT GOFS (%) \ FOIL THE, YLAYEtS AAo THE OuJHE&t — G/mim'*'*- Houston County teachers learn new ways to teach math (The following information was compiled by Pauline Lewis, Society Editor, from the Houston Home Journal’s files.) 25 Years Ago * Houston Teachers Study Math Teaching Methods. David Perdue, Houston County School Superintendent, announced that 265 elementary teachers, 11 junior high teachers and 2 supervisors participated this summer in a cooperative college-school mathematic project at the University of Georgia for the purpose of inproving teaching and curriculum at elementary and junior Did it really have to come to this with Haiti? On Saturday, two seemingly dis similar events were happening hun dreds of miles apart. Auburn was playing LSU and former President and Georgia Governor Jimmy Carter was playing diplomat in Haiti. One was a game that really meant nothing, other than a step forward to the end of Curly Hallman's stay at Baton Rouge. The other was a game that involved dozens to hundreds of lives, and, therefore, had some real signifi cance. In (hat, diey were dis-simi lar. But, undemeadi the surface, there is a great similarity. Auburn, if you remember, won die game against LSU on the strengdi of Uiree inter ceptions returned for touchdowns and fumble recovered by the de fense in die LSU endzone for a touchdown. Driving from Montezuma to Warner Robins, I caught die end of die game Saturday. The Aubum an nouncer was going wild with praise for die Aubum team, crediting diem with winning the game. After all, the Tiger offense had managed a measly 16 yards and two first downs in the second half, and the defense had scored 27 points. Bob I f TVibble I playing Dixie. And before it is all over, they will probably succeed. Remember, a few years back the Georgia Bulldog Red Coat Band used to play Dixie, but no more. The band in Warner Robins plays Dixie before the game, following each score and at the end of its halftime show. The song is considered offensive to some blacks. The NAACP mounted a letter writing campaign to die Houston Remember when? News items from past issues high school levels. * City of Perry Audit showed a surplus balance on Jan. 1, 1969 of $990,885.78. Surplus Balance as of June 30, 1969 was $1,077,180.66. 10 Years Ago * Perry gears up for its annual Farm City Day festival and parade. 1 Veto Roley Staff Writer What the announcer neglected to mention was diat the same defense that scored 27 points had been ripped all day long by LSU for 26 points. Maybe die Aubum defense could take credit for die win; but, diey never should have been in the position of having to score 27 points to scratch by with a win. The coup scored Saturday and Sunday by Clinton and his negotia tors was a great victory. By sitting down and negotiating with force, die United States was able to land its troops without opposition. But, like die Aubum-LSU game, die brinkmanship shown by Carter, Perry Senator Sam Nunn and Colin Powell should have never been needed. Last week started out with Clinton's back to (he wall. For months he had blustered ;uid blowed about using force to get the Haitians out. The Haitian military triumvirate repeatedly called his bluff, so much so dial the only way 4A —Houston Times-Journal County Board of Education, and the board passed the decision on to the school, as they should have done However, this did not please the NAACP as they felt die students “don’t have enough information ot life’s experience to make such a difficult decision.” Folks, die sooner we all realize that history cannot be changed, die better off we all will be. Soudiem people are proud of their heritage and die song Dixie goes way back. We who are native Southerners should all be proud to have our heritage and we all should be proud to be from die south. Running die words of die song dirough my mind, it escapes me as to how diey could be offensive. It refers to the “land ol cotton which we sdll are, and to “live and die in begun six years ago. ♦llervia Ingram to run for City Council; one concern for him will be recreation. ♦Westfield’s new High School building is completed and students moved in August 10. The 13,500 square foot building cost $431,721. Current student enrollment is 759; the new building will allow Westfield to have a student body of up to 975 people, I leadmaster M;dcolm Mosley said. ♦Public Notice: The Houston County NAACP is sponsoring a Voter Registration Drive at Ted Wright Park on Moody Road in Clinton could have any credibility widi his threats was to actually carry out die invasion. Many times over die last week, Democrats have used Haiti in the same sentence as Panama, Grenada and die Persian Gulf. However, a close inspection of Uiose situations shows major differences. First, in each situation, there was a real national interest, although some might argue the significance of the issue. In Grenada, communist rulers were building a runway capable of sup pordng long-range Soviet bombers, in Panama there was the base we have there and the Panama Canal and in Kuwait there was oil, a commodity that our nadon can not do widiout. But, more importantly, all three of diese above situations were done with minimal threats. Neither Presidents Ronald Reagan or George Bush engaged in the empty bellowing Clinton engaged in over Haiti. Reagan and Bush saw the si tuation, decided what needed to be done and did it. This was true even in Kuwait where it took the United Slates sev eral months to gel into action. It look those months not because Dixie”, which we certainly hope we do. Someone needs to slap me up side the head I guess on this one before I can understand the protest Add the objection to Dixie, t 0 the objection of our State Rag, and you will soon see objections to the carving on Stone Mountain, and Confederate memorials at many of our courthouses. Maybe if we took the word Dixie, Confederate, Rebel, or other similar words, out of our vocabularies, some folks would be pleased. The sooner we lay down this black-white thing, recognize and honor die history of both races, and move forward into die future united, die better off we all will be. And if we do diis, we all can walk hand in hand as the band plays Dixie and God Bless America! Warner Robins on Saturday, Sept. 29, 1984, Time: 9:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m. -Houston County Board of Elections’ notice. 5 Years Ago * Hundreds of people from Savannah, St. Simons Island and other areas of the coast of Georgia, funnelled into Perry Thursday. They were trying to escape Hurricane Hugo, the eye of which was thought to be tracking directly for Savannah. ♦ The October 6 homecoming of Westfield High School will mark a milestone of memories and achievements for the school. Bush was not willing to act, but because the minimum Firepower to act was not on the ground. As soon as American commanders felt they had the troops to act, they did. I remember a few months ago, an American warship sailed into Port-au-Prince, prepared to re-install the Aristide government. But, that warship was met at the dock by armed thugs. Instead of acting boldly when he had the chance then, and putting an end to the mess, Clinton showed he was just bluster ing and left. One other note about the Haiti situation. Did the scenes from Port au-Prince showing American troops landing remind you of another "peace-keeping” mission? Were those scenes from Port-au-Prince, or were they overdubbed file prints from Mogadishu? It was a whole lot easier to leave Somalia than it will be to leave Haiti. The last time we were in Haiti, we stayed from 1915 to 1934. Also, I thought that Clinton wanted Raoul Cedras and his fellow generals to leave. But, not only will they not leave; but, they will remain in power through Oct. 15. Perhaps the lessons of the Somali warlords are so quickly forgotten.