About Flagpole. (Athens, Ga.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (April 13, 2011)
Today, more and more people arc choosing cremation as a way to honor the memories of those they love. Numerous differences can exist among cremation providers, making it difficult to choose the right provider for you and your family. At Bernstein Funeral Home, we are committed to helping all families with compassionate, understanding service. Our years of experience have made us Athens’ respected cremation leader and have given us a unique perspective on what it means to choose cremation. Our caring staff understands the delicate subject, as well as the importance for surviving loved ones to have a permanent place to visit, reflect and heal. To accommodate all families, Bernstein offers a range of affordable cremation services that are tailored to each individual family’s needs. We are available anytime to answer any questions you may have. Call or visit us at u’UKv.BemsteinFuneralHome.com to receive more information and a free Dignity Memorial* Personal Planning Guide. Dignity Omimjuai / A Auuy From Home Protection* 12 bHour Compulsion Helpline* National Transferability I Bereavement Trawl I Personal Planning Services Grief Support I Veterans Benefits I Child & Grandchild Protection Proud members of the Dignity Memorial* Network. BERNSTEIN FUNERAL HOME AND CREMATION SERVICES 3195 Atlanta Highway I Athens, GA 30606 I 706*543-7373 u/wiv. BemsteinFuneralHome. com Athens’ Respected Cremation Leader ——...\\ l1 {ton Counlv Public Schools Teach er Job Fair www.waltoncountyschools.org Walton County Public Schools is seeking outstanding candidates for certified positions. The Spring 2011 Teacher Job Fair is a drop-in-format. Please bring multiple resumes. F.vcry school in the Wjlton County Public School System will be represented by administrators with the authority’ to extend job offers. In order to be considered for hire, candidates must have completed an on-line application. Your application file must include three reference forms, transcripts, GACE or Praxis assessment scores, last two years' annual evaluations and a current teaching certificate. Provisional candidates should provide verification of successful completion of subject assessment. : ;■> - - jK. Swrir v^-sv. 4863 Guthrie Cemetery Road • Loganville, GA 30052 Far additional information and directions, please call 770-266-4467 April 16, 2011 9:00 a.m.-12:00 pan. WE OFFER: • A generous local supplement and benefits • Mentoring support lor new teachers • Professional learning opportunities • Easy access to many urmwltie* k colleges for graduate study • Ouse proximity to Metro Atlanta • A family friendly atmosphere 17 SCHOQ15: • • N Elementary Schools • 3 Middle Schools • 3 High Schools •’ Perfomtance learning Center/Alternative Center STUDENT ENROLLMENT: • Appro* ! "Together Everyone Achieves More" We look forward to seeing you on Saturday; April J6th! LOST AT THE CAPITOL The Greek philosopher Diogenes was known to walk around Athens with a lamp, telling people that he was "looking for an honest man." Diogenes would be looking tor quite a while in some areas of the state Capitol, where facts are bent, twisted and mutilated in the pursuit of a political goal. He might have paused, however, if he had cast his lamp light on A. D. Frazier, who has emerged as one of the most honest people in Georgia politics. Frazier has had a distin guished career in business that includes stints as head of the Chicago Stock Exchange, chief operating officer of the 1996 Olympic Games and as a top executive with several companies in the financial arena. He was a fitting choice last year to lead a Tax Reform Council created by the Legislature to analyze the state's tax struc ture and recommend changes to improve it. Frazier, along with the other business leaders and economists on the tax council, spent six months holding hearings around the state and reviewing the provi sions of the state's unwieldy tax code. They put together a set of recom mendations that would give Georgia a flatter tax system. One of the major recommendations was that legislators eliminate the dozens of special-interest tax breaks they have doled out over the years. Legislative leaders had asked • the Tax Reform Council to reduce the corporate income tax rate and spread the sales tax over a wide range of services. This lower income tax, they said, wouid result in more businesses moving to Georgia instead of to other states. When lawmakers gathered in Athens, GA last December for their Legislative Institute, Frazier stood before them and said something they didn't want to hear: the truth. While the Tax Reform Council'^plan included the lower corporate income tax rate they had requested, Frazier told legislators it would have very little impact on the state's ability to attract new business. "It's just not a factor," Frazier said of the corporate tax. "Taxes are not among the top five reasons why businesses move here." Such things as public education, infrastruc ture and quality of life are factors that figure more heavily into corporate relocation deci sions, he said. Frazier reminded legislators that Georgia currently is "49th in the country in terms of state taxes per capita." If 48 other states already impose heavier taxes than you do, how much of a difference will it make to lower your rates more? Frazier also criticized the special-interest tax breaks and exemptions that legislators adopt with such frequency. "Anytime you give someone a busi ness tax credit, someone else is paying the tax that business does not pay," he said It's important to remember that Frazier is not some left winger who wants to redistribute all the wealth. He's an experi enced business leader with an impressive resume of achievements. He knows how business people think, because he is one. Frazier's message fell on deaf ears. When the current legislative session convened, most of the recommendations from the Tax Reform Council were quickly abandoned. Lawmakers will vote instead on a tax bill that was hastily drafted behind closed doors by the leadership and then tossed out for legislators to adopt without a lot of time to study it. In other words, business as usual. Frazier is said to be not very happy with the way the Tax Reform Council's recommenda tions were tossed into the trash. He tried to give the political leaders an honest business assessment of what the state needed to do, but honesty is a quality not much in demand these days. Diogenes would sympathize with that. Tom Crawford tcrawford@gareport.com THIS MSHM WSIM Irms wee*: avpocT rattle RorAiit 1 [l[tII \ 1lii L J lii J1 IN THE. INTERESTS Of BIPARTISAN COMPROMISE, X CAN AGREE TO TEN BILLION COLLARS in PAINFUL BUDGET CUTS/ X WONT seme for ANYTHING LESS THAN THIRTY-TWO Billion/ WITH A GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN LOOMING,-MIDDLE-MAN CONFRONTS HIS ESTEEMED ARCH-RivAL, CAP TAIN ORAN6E! by TOM TOMORROW HOLD fT RIGHT THERE. Ml DOLE-MAH/ DID HE SAY THIRTY-TWO BILLION? HE MEANT SIXTY-ONE BILLION/ [ X DID? X MEAN, UK RIGHT—X Old Suddenly—th£ TEA PARTY PA TRIOT JUMPS INTO THE FRAY/ HOLD IT RIGHT THERE, MIDDLE MAN/ WE’RE NOT SETTLING FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN THE COM PLETE REPEAL of health cake REFORM— AND DEFUNDING OF PLANNED PARENTHOOD—AMR— ALL RIGHT, CAPTAIN ORANGE—X INSIST You accept THIRTY- THREE billion Dollars in PAINFUL BUDGET CUTS/ IF MY ESTEEMED ARCH-RIVALS ARE GOING TO MOVE THE 60AI POST IN THE MIDDLE Of OUR NEGOTIATIONS, THERE'S ONLY ONE THING TO QO-- CURSE YOU. MIDDLE-MAN/ YOU'VE DEFEATED ME A6AIN! WHAT CHOICE Do X HAVE BUT TO ACCEPT— UK MICHELE—A WORD, PLEASE? MEET THEM HALFWAY MIDDLE-MAN RETREATS TO HlS SECRET UNDERGROUND HIDEOUT the PRE-EMPTIVE CAVE... Bur THEN 6 FLAGPOLE.COM APRIL 13,2011 ”f®M f«MoRfl*W©20 11 ...www thiimodcmwofld.com...t>.Itter.com/tomtomorrow
