Newspaper Page Text
Viewpoints
Our
Views
Giveaway problems
Editor:
Below is an editorial from the
Charleston Gazette newspaper. It tells
1 iow the state of West Virginia gives away
millions of dollars in tax breaks, tax
incentives
and so
forth.
Like West
Virginia,
Geor g i a
gives away
millions.
When the
state gives
away mil
lions of dol-
Letters
to the
Editor
p.o.
Drawn M
Perry, 6a.
lars there
should be some form of accountability.
That accountability starts with the news
media publicizing this type of activities.
Unfortunately, the news media in Georgia
is not doing their job. Not one time have I
seen any information about the amount
of tax dollars given away. These "give
aways" should be reported in the news
media. Presently, there is no accountabil
ity. It is time to have some form of
accountability.
When is the news media going to start
doing their job and report this informa
tion?
Ronald L. Cain
South Houston County
Giveaway
Saturday September 4, 1999
Did you read the good news? The give
away from West Virginia's treasury finally
has dropped below SIOO million a year.
The state Tax Division reported that all
types of tax credits fell from $lO3 million
in 1997 to the mid-S9O million range in
1998.
71 lit* liiCcUib umt UUiCi Wctot ViigiiUc*
) axpayers must cough up only about $95
million to make up for the writeoffs given
to special investors.
"Super tax credits" and other such
incentives are offered to firms that make
new investments, supposedly creating
jobs. But it doesn't always work.
After Gaston Caperton became gover
nor a decade ago, he discovered that
credits can be a sham. At that time, sev
eral coal companies were ducking about
S6O million a year in taxes, on grounds
ihat they had created new jobs - but the
firms actually had laid off 1,300 miners.
Apparently, they won the credits by
investing in bigger machines, which elim
inated workers.
After that unpleasant discovery, the
legislature cracked down on tax give
aways - but not enough. The public still
can’t learn the exact amount given to
companies (credits are revealed only in
broad categories) and can't learn how
many jobs supposedly were created.
As long as this secrecy continues, West
Virginians' may suspect that other
employers are doing what the coal’firms
did: claiming credits for "creating jobs"
vhile actually eliminating workers.
Even when a firm publicly announces
i he number of jobs it will create (usually
upon getting a huge government grant).
Ihe jobs may not materialize. Charleston
researcher Wendy Radcliff went to the
state Development Office to find reliable
numbers, but nobody knew any. In fact,
she found that one firm s promised jobs
went to another state.
In effect, tax credits are a bribe given
by the state to industries to gain more
employment. If the bribe really works,
and more jobs result, perhaps it's worth
the $95 million price.
But with employment figures hidden,
West Virginians can't know whether
' hey re getting anything for this expensive
giveaway.
Concern for family
Editor:
Nearly two weeks in the small bedroom
community of Cochran, a 64-year-old
business woman was attacked in an act
>f violence that was senseless.
She was working alone in her place
of business Aug. 23, when a temporary
See LETTERS, page 5A
Houston Home Journal
P.O. Drawer M • 807 Carroll St. • Perry, Ga. 31069
email homeJrn@hom.net
(912) 987-1823 (voice) • (912) 988-1181 (fax)
Bob Tribble President
Jj Johnson Editor and General Manager
Ellen T Green Advertising Director
Phil Clark Sports
Joan Dorsett Lifestyles
Torey Jolley News and Classified
Alline Kent Sports
Pauline Lewis Lifestyles
Kob Mead News and Circulation
Charlotte Perkins News and Composition
Paula Zimmerman Bookkeeping
171
Yard sale-itis strikes the Home Journal staff
Joan Dorsett and I went
“yard saling” last Saturday
morning. My goal was to take
some pictures and write a stoiy
about yard sales. Since Joan
and I had another project set
for a little later in the morning,
she offered to help me find
those addresses under the
Home Journal’s “Yard Sale" list
ings.
I’ll admit I've avoided yard
sales most of my life partly, I
think, because I tend to avoid
doing anything before 10 a.m.
on Saturday morning except
drinking coffee and reading the
paper but also because the
word “yard sale" has automati
cally brought visions to my
mind.
These are visions of shade
less lamps, toasters which
don’t work and odd little fig-
The peanut gallery
WHO NOT
ME!
I J \ Vj 6HAG
r~fj m yotJ L
4 Grandma , you are beautiful V
I have made a tremendous
discovery —and it only took 15-
plus years to achieve this suc
cess. The amazing thing 1 dis
covered is (drum roll, please)
I can go to a water park and
not feel stupid.
OK. That may not seem terri
bly important to some; howev
er. 1 have not been swimming
(or even owned a bathing suit
for that matter) in more than 15
years. I could not imagine
myself out in public in a
bathing suit. 1 just avoided my
favorite sport.
A few months ago, 1 went to a
new store in town and pur
chased a bathing suit. I admit 1
didn't look like Tyra Banks or
Claudia Schiffer but I was
passable. I don’t know why I
bought it. I was too shy and
uncomfortable to put it on at
home or even go to a pool. (I
think it was on sale and. like
my mother, I couldn’t resist a
bargain).
However, this past Saturday
was a turning day in my life.
My husband, my daughter, her
husband, and I took my grand
son, Dylan, to White Water in
Atlanta (OK ... Marietta to be
exact). 1 put my bathing suit on
under my shorts and shirt to
, Our Policies
Unsigned editorials appearing in larger type on
this page under the label Our Views reflect the posi
tion of the Houston Home Journal Signed columns
and letters on this page (and elsewhere in this news
paper) reflect the opinions of the writers and not nec
essarily those of this newspaper.
Signed letters to the editor are welcomed. Please
limit letters to 300 words and include addresses and
a telephone number for verification purposes. Letters
are not published without verification. Letters
should be sent to P.O. Drawer M. Perry. Ga., 31069
or brought to the newspaper office at 807 Carroll St.,
Perry.
Our liability for an error will not exceed the cost
- Wed., Sept. 8, 1999
Page 4A
Charlotte
Perkins
■ ■
novncs
Journal
Staff
urines that cost $1 to start with
and are now on sale for 50
cents. My visions include bed
spreads with torn fringes and
large collections of Reader's
Digest “condensed" books.
Was I wrong? Well, yes.
In fact, I could probably
become a yard sale addict in a
matter of weeks.
In the first place, the people
are fun. I mean the people who
Torey
Jolley
Home
Journal
Staff
travel.
The closer we got to the park,
the more unsure 1 began feel
ing. When the time came to put
the shorts and shirt in the lock
er, I began to get paranoid.
Negative thoughts began,
such as: Suppose someone
laughs at me? I look awful. I
cannot believe I came here. Oh,
goodness. What was I thinking?
Then something miraculous
happened. My five-year-old
grandson said. “Grandma do
you have a bathing suit?"
I said, “Yes.” He asked to see
it.
When I took the shorts and
shirt off. Dylan said. “Oh,
Grandma, you are beautiful."
My husband and my daughter
quickly exclaimed how nice 1
looked too. I felt so much better
and the negative images
of space occupied by the error.
We cannot be responsible for the return of pictures or
submitted materials unless a stamped, return address
envelope is included.
Our Goal
The Houston Home Journal is published proudly
for the citizens of Houston and adjoining counties bv
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 this goal through hard work, teamwork
loyalty and a strong dedication toward printing the
truth
Member of Georgia Press Association and Nation
al Newspaper Association.
ceased.
Oh, I had a tinge or two of
worries pop up throughout the
day. but I quickly realized 1 was
just fine great, in fact. No
one made fun of me. No one
really cared I was in public with
a bathing suit.
I had a grand time. I swam. I
played with Dylan and the oth
ers. 1 cannot remember the last
time I had such fun. I had given
up going swimming or to
amusement parks • for fear of
not fitting in.
But I think I finally figured it
out. Life is a one shot opportu
nity. You live it to the fullest,
doing the best you can each
and every day. If you let life
pass you by without trying
things because of silly
thoughts, ideas, or such
well, you only have yourself to
blame.
1 will never again avoid doing
something I want to try, or love
doing, because 1 am afraid of
how others will perceive me.
1 have one life and will enjoy
each day making memories.
And whenever 1 am feeling a lit
tle scared or unsure, 1 will
remember Dylan’s words,
“Grandma, you are beautiful."
% s-V
Houston Home Journal
hold the sales and the people
who come to check out the bar
gains.
Our first stop was at an
indoor sale held by Susan
Strickland across from the
Perry Hospital. That's where
Joan found a smokeless grill
and I talked her into buying it.
Then we went on to the old
Shelton home along Main
Street where Nancy Shelton
McLendon had a big sale going
on under the trees in the front
yard.
I met Becky Sheffield and
Jessica Wright there. Both are
preteens who got permission to
walk to the sale, and they were
having a great time poking
through things.
Also, I talked with Harold
Ross, who told me that he was
there mainly because his wife
was there. (She's the one who
doesn't miss a yard sale, but he
admitted that he's found a few
bargains himself over the
years.)
I found I had to have the set
of six rainbow-striped, hand
sewn place mats that were on
sale for $1 not to mention
the painted wooden basket 1
intend to repaint.
Alter that, we headed on to a
big family-style sale being held
by Lea Rogers and Donna
Hardage both of whom, like
me, are originally from Macon
County. These are two young
moms and they had a great sale
going on for other young moms.
You never saw so many cute
clothes for little kids , so many
toys or so many kitchen items.
See PERKINS, Page 5A
Bob
Tribble
Home
Journal
President:
Golf score is
higher than temp
My golfing game has really
hit rock bottom lately. I don’t
know if the problem has been
the hot weather, growing older
or just plain inability to swing
the club properly. What I
should do is take 30 days off
and then quit.
Recently, I had the opportu
nity to play on a nice course
near Bessemer, Ala. It was a
long, 6.300-yard-plus course,
so knowing my 150-yard drives
wouldn't get it done. I decided
to play my partner’s drive,
which is usually around 250
yards.
That helped some but my
final score was still about 102,
the same as the temperature
was wiien we teed of in the late
afternoon. Maybe that is the
problem. I have been shooting
to beat the temperature rather
than playing to beat the
course.
Speaking of golf, the story is
told about this guv who hated
to hit over water. As he
approached each water hole he
would pray asking God to help
him get over the water. When
he arrived at the next water
hole he pulled out an old water
ball, teed it up, and said a
short prayer.
God said, “If you want me to
help you get over the water, put
a new ball on the tee." which he
did. Then God said. "Now, step
back and take a practice
swing." The guy stepped back,
took a practice swing, and God
said. "Take that new ball off the
tee and put the water ball back
down there!"
Sounds maybe like my
swing.
Another story is told of a
golfer who w r as playing with a
friend one day. As they got to a
tee box near the road, they
looked up and saw a funeral
procession coming. The golfer
took off his hat, bowed his
head and stood in silence as
the procession passed by.
After the last car passed by
the guys friend said. “You
must have known the deceased
very well."
To which the golfer replied,
“yes, 1 lived with her for 40
years.”
Then there is the story about
the preacher who made a hole
in-one on a Sunday and eould-
See TRIBBLE, Page 5A
"Congress shall make no law respecting an estah
lishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise
thereof; or abridging the freedom ol speech, or of the
press, or of the right of the people peaceably to
assemble, and to petition the Government for a
redress of grievances." Your right to read this news
paper is protected by the First Amendment to the
United States Constitution.
The Houston Home Journal (USPS 000471) is
published weekly for $21.40 per year (including
sales tax) by Houston Publications Inc., 807 Car
roll St.. Perry. Ga., 31069. Periodicals Class
Postage paid at Perry, Ga. POSTMASTER : Send
address changes to the Houston Home Journal.
P.O. Drawer M, Perry. Ga. 31069 ISSN; 1075-1874.
|k j