Newspaper Page Text
NEW YEAR!
THIS WEEK???S ISSUE:
IMIMS (ia ^EATUKIS
City Dope 4
Athens News and Views
Were ACC officials good boys and girls? Athens tennis players might not think so.
What will it bring? We can only guess, though some things
we already know: more student apartments downtown, the
Selig development bringing more (probably chain) shops,
stores and restaurants adjacent to downtown, the new,
improved Classic Center and the beginning of its next-door
new hotel, further cuts to the University of Georgia and to our
public schools.
Will we get a new privately owned charter school pulling
our scant tax money away from our public schools, or will the
private schools we already have turn themselves into charter
schools in order to get the support of our tax dollars?
We can assume that we'll get a new master plan for down
town, but will it be implemented? Will it make any difference
to downtown, where the massive developments are already dic
tating the shape of downtown for decades to come?
Will Caterpillar create living-wage job-growth with spinoff
industries, or will growth be through more low-wage jobs such
as the custodial and graduate assistant positions at the univer
sity that hold down local wages rather than raising them?
Will Congressman Paul Broun run for the U.S. Senate? Who
will take his place as our 10th District congressman? Will
our new representative be even further to the right than Dr.
"Straight from the Pit of Hell" Broun? Will we talk about the
good old days when Congressman Broun represented us? Will
State Senator Bill Cowsert,
thwarted in his reach for
power in Atlanta, turn
his eyes toward the 10th
Congressional District?
Will the Republican
Georgia legislature find new
ways to redraw district lines
here so as to split up our Democratic vote even further, or will
their fiasco in trying to draw a safe district for Rep. McKillip
convince them that they have sliced and diced us to the point
where it's counterproductive? Will local Democrats fight back
and use their strength in District 119 to go after Rep. Chuck
Williams' seat, or will new Rep. Regina Quick succeed in return
ing Rep. Williams' district to the safety of Oconee County?
Will the Republican legislature finally back off on trying to
get guns "carried" into every public place, including schools?
Will the Athens-Clarke County government figure out any
thing to enhance the Atlanta Highway corridor's ability to do
business, or will what's left there be sucked into the vortex of
the constantly expanding Epps Bridge nexus in Oconee County?
Will Five Points get the kind of parking relief that down
town merchants demanded? A parking lot? A parking deck?
Where would you put it?
Will anybody park and ride at the park and ride lot at the
intersection of Lexington Road and Loop 10, or will that
expanse of concrete become a monument to then-Congressman
Max Burns' unwanted largesse? Will Burns' successor, John
Barrow, get redistricted yet again by the Wile E. Coyote
Republicans in the Georgia legislature, who just cannot toler
ate the fact that this Road Runner is the last white Democratic
congressman from the Old South?
Will construction finally begin on the start of what is now
the Firefly rail-trail path that could traverse the level ground
between here and Winterville and on to Union Point? Is there
any hope in hell that the trail will include the famous old rail
road trestle in Dudley Park, or will walkers and skaters and bik
ers have to climb that steep hill to get around the trestle?
Will anything be done about raising wages for the working
poor here in Athens? Can the Athens-Clarke County govern
ment, the Chamber, the University of Georgia, federal and state
government offices and area manufacturers and businesses get
together and agree that the solution to Athens' poverty lies
in higher wages, and that better wages, in reducing poverty,
will lift us all? Is that so crazy? (Okay, I know that state law
prohibits local government from doing anything about a "living
wage," and I know that doing something about poverty here
might necessitate a tax hike, but can't we see how much that
would help us all?)
Well, I've stopped preaching and gone to meddling. Suffice
it to say, as the Bible puts it, "Boast not thyself of tomorrow,
for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth." I guess you
can say the same for a year.
Pete McCommons editor@flagpole.com
Will we talk about the
good old days when
Congressman Broun
represented us?
Looking Back on 2012 6
Downtown Development, Darwin and More
Walmart, Caterpillar, Paul Broun, Charles Darwin, Legion Pool, budget cuts and
some surprising election results were among the big stories in Athens in 2012.
Movie Dope
Capsule Movie Reviews
Drew Wheeler???s lowdown on local cinematic offerings.
8
MUSH??
Ring It In
Flagpole's New Year???s Eve Concert Guide
What to do in Athens on the biggest party night of the year.
SLMMtPCDU
Blackballed
A Short Story from Phil Williams
Blessings are where you find them.
Braving the Broad River. .
Some Things Just Get Lost in Translation
A newbie hits the Broad River and loves it.
9
24
26
CITY DOPE 4
CITY PAGES 5
YEAR IN REVIEW 6
MOVIE DOPE 8
NEW YEAR???S EVE SHOWS 9
THE CALENDAR! 11
BULLETIN BOARD 18
ART AROUND TOWN 19
CLASSIFIEDS 20
CROSSWORD 21
SLACKP0LE 23
??? BLACKBALLED 24
???BROAD RIVER 26
???SEVEN STARS 27
???NATIVE TREES 28
???BOULEVARD! 28
???POETRY 29
???OUT OF THE BOX 30
???BLUER GEORGIA 30
??? WORD SEARCHES 31
EDITOR & PUBLISHER Pete McCommons
ADVERTISING DIRECTOR & PUBLISHER Alicia Nickles
PRODUCTION DIRECTOR Larry Tenner
MANAGING EDITOR Christina Cotter
ADVERTISING SALES Anita Aubrey, Melinda Edwards, Jessica Pritchard Mangum
MUSIC EDITOR Gabe Vodicka
CITY EDITOR Blake Aued
CLASSIFIEDS, DISTRIBUTION & OFFICE MANAGER Jessica Smith
ASSISTANT OFFICE MANAGER Sydney Slotkin
AD DESIGNERS Kelly Hart, Cindy Jerrell
ADOPT ME Special Agent Cindy Jerrell
CONTRIBUTORS Dulce Brousset, Nathaniel Burkins, Liz Conroy, Russell J. Edwards,
John Gaither, Nina Kelly, Dawn Lilypond, Blane Marable, Carl Martin, Chatham Murray,
Randall Ramirez, BertO. Richmond, Charley Seagraves, Drew Wheeler
CIRCULATION Charles Greenleaf, Will Donaldson, Matt Shirley, Emily Armond, Jessica Smith
WEB DESIGNER Kelly Hart
CALENDAR Jessica Smith
ADVERTISING INTERNS Claire Corken, CD Skehan
MUSIC INTERN Jennifer Barron
COVER OF COVERS by Kelly Hart
STREET ADDRESS: 112 Foundry St., Athens, GA 30601
MAILING ADDRESS: P.O. Box 1027, Athens, GA 30603
EDITORIAL: (706) 549-9 5 23 ??? ADVERTISING: (706) 549-03 01 ??? FAX: (706) 548-8981
ADVERTISING: ads@flagpole.com
CALENDAR: calendar@flagpole.com
COMICS: comics@flagpole.com
EDITORIAL: editor@flagpole.com
LETTERS: letters@flagpole.com
MUSIC: music@flagpole.com
NEWS: news@flagpole.com
WEBSITE: web@flagpole.com
Flagpole, Inc. publishes Flagpole Magazine weekly and distributes 14,500 copies free at over
275 locations around Athens, Georgia. Subscriptions cost $70 a year, $40 for six months.
?? 2012 Flagpole, Inc. All rights reserved.
VOLUME 26
ISSUE NUMBER 51
O) ?? ??
Association of Alternative Newsmedia
$7.
CIRCULATION
Bct/p'Ci
jewelry &
wedding rings
. . .U16,
locally handcrafted
in recycled gold and silver
fuiiure-
BethCyr.com
706-548-1115
1037 Baxter Street, Suite A
Open Monday through Saturday
HEIRLO??M
cafe & fresh market
Closed for the Holidays
through December 31 st
New Year???s Day
Champagne Brunch
TUESDAY, JANUARY 1
10:30am-3:00pm
For reservations email
Jessica@heirloomathens. com
Second Tuesday
Wine Tasting
Winter Whites
TUESDAY, JANUARY 8
706.354.7901
Corner of Chase and Boulevard
DECEMBER 26, 2012 & JANUARY 2, 2013 ??? FLAGPOLE.COM 3