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♦ TUESDAY, JUNE 6, 2006
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OPINION
Daniel F. Evans
Editor and Publisher
Julie B. Evans
Vice President
Don Moncrief Foy S. Evans
Managing Editor Editor Emeritus
irs June And Very Hot
It’s June.
It's hot. Very hot.
If we’re not in a drought, we are in the closest
thing to a drought.
It seems the weather never is normal anymore. Or
is there such a thing as normal weather?
A year ago rainfall for the year was ahead of aver
age. This year we have had about half as much rain
as we should have.
Extremes. Nothing but extremes.
A near record in tornadoes for the country was
set not long ago. Fortunately, Houston County was
spared.
Hurricanes destroyed New Orleans and much of
the coast of Mississippi. There were more devastat
ing hurricanes than normal and damages were so
great that Floridians are being abandoned or they are
being treated shabbily by the insurance companies.
Insurance premiums are being doubled in many parts
of Florida and some homeowners along the Gulf of
Mexico coast are finding that no insurance company
will cover them.
To top it off, strong hurricanes are being predicted
for this season, which began Thursday.
New Orleans remains vulnerable to a hurricane of
Category 3 strength, we are told. Extensive plans are
being made to evacuate New Orleans if it is threat
ened this year.
Some weather experts predict it is time for the
Atlantic Coast to bear the brunt of some devastating
hurricanes. Remember what one did to Charleston a
few years ago?
The weather is unpredictable. We are at its mercy.
All we can do is wait and watch and hope that we do
not become victims of something over which no man
has control.
It Is Just Mind-Boggfing
Robins Air Force Base’s economic impact on
Middle Georgia is mind-boggling.
No wonder it is referred to as the economic
engine of this entire area.
The economic impact, according to base estimates,
is $4.2 billion,
Without the base, where would we be?'
What is now Robins AFB was farmland in 1941,
when the Army decided to construct a materiel air
base, thanks to the powerful influence of Carl Vinson.
Farmland was turned into a base, which peaked
during World War II at approximately 25,000 military
and civilian personnel.
Constructed as a temporary installation to close
down at the end of the war, the base was down to less
than 5,000 total personnel when it was needed for
the Korean War. Ever since, the base has grown in
significance and size.
For decades the payroll and economic impact of
Robins have fueled the economy of Middle Georgia.
Warner Robins would be a ghost town if the base
were closed. Even a marginal reduction in size would
have people scrambling to get out of town like drown
ing rats on a sinking ship.
Fortunately, Robins survived BRAC this year and
the future is bright. The base is headed for further
expansion. Houston County is in the midst of a con
struction boom.
Things never looked brighter.
We all should be grateful.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Positive story appreciated
I just wanted to say thank you for your article ‘A reason
to fight’, sharing the story of Staff Sergeant Wood.
It was so refreshing to hear an encouraging story about
our military serving in the Middle East. It seems that the
fnain-stream media would like nothing better than to print
negativity regarding the war in Iraq. All wars are ugly, if
they weren’t we’d go into battle more often, but there is a
lot of good going on in Iraq too. Those stories are not being
told enough.
I have received e-mails from friends returning from the
war, sharing the good things, the running water for vil
lages that have never had it, the young girls who are being
allowed education in schools where they weren’t before,
the families that no longer live in fear of a dictator.
Ignorance to facts is what spawns the negative stories.
Most Americans don’t fully understand why we are there,
or what is being done there. So they easily believe all of
the criticism about the war. It would be to there credit to
objectively research what Iraq was before we declared war,
and what Iraq is now that the dictator has been taken out
power.
Like many Americans, I have not served this great coun
try in the armed forces, but my husband has, as did his
father and my father. It is for them that I must give the
benefit of the doubt, for the sacrifices made by every man
and every woman who’s ever served America. If they are
willing to lay down their lives for another’s freedom how
can we, as a nation, tell them what they are doing doesn’t
matter and will have no benefits?ln the meantime we
should take the time to thank those who are serving, who
have served and who will continue to serve in the face of
our adversaries. And thank newspapers like HHJ that are
not afraid to share the truth with their readers.
Kellie Day, Fort Valley
X-Men no good, other observations
Iwas out of town. I had
time on my hands. I
read that the new X-
Men movie had set a record
of more than $l2O million
in ticket sales opening
weekend. I went to see the
X-Men movie. I walked out
after an hour. It has to be
one of the worst movies I
ever tried to watch.
* * *
Global warming is on
the front burner again.
I’m from the school that
believes global warming
and ice ages come in cycles
and we have no control
over it. However, there is
momentum for the belief
that human beings are
responsible for the minus
cule warming of the atmo
sphere that is going on now.
And, unbelievably, there are
people who believe that the
U.S. can solve the problem
by putting a damper on
business in this country,
while the rest of the world
does nothing. If the U.S.
should comply with the
requirements of the Kyoto
Treaty (both congress and
the president have rejected
it) China and other emerg
ing industrial giants would
not have to comply with the
same rules. It would be eco
nomic suicide for the U.S. to
tie its industries this way.
* * *
A political activist in
Arizona wants the state to
a conduct a lottery like sys
tem to increase voter turn
out, with one voter winning
$1 million at each election.
No doubt it would increase
/ ...Its amazing how \
time flies when )
V ou re Moving
celebration
of Georgia's State Parks
(t||
Paper choice at work a pain in the ...
It will be painful in more
ways than one, but I’m
going to have to report
my employer to OSHA for
operating a hazardous work
place.
Naturally, my employ
ers will see me as a pain in
their backsides, but that’s
the problem.
For delicacy’s sake, let me
say that it’s a paperwork
problem.
In fact, it’s their very
choice of paper that has
caused the problem.
Paper cuts are the least
of my worries, but occasion
ally, I find a need for a cer
tain products advertised on
television by bears.
Alas, my employers don’t
invest in such delicate
refinements; thus, complet
ing the project that necessi
tated the paper in the first
place becomes an unbear
able task.
I ask you to wipe that
smile off your face. My
pain should not be your
pleasure, but my posterior
tissue fares poorly when
attacked by the tissue
issued at my work place.
I fear that I’m not alone
in my pain. Although I try
to keep my personal busi
ness at home, physiological
Foy Evans
Columnist
foyevansl9@cox.net
voter turnout, but it would
mean that more people than
ever, who know nothing
about the issues and never
should vote anyway, would
influence the outcome of
elections. What we need
is fewer voters, who are
informed, going to the polls,
not more of them.
* * *
Will the U.S. ever stop
finding ways to spend
money defending countries
that do not defend them
selves? The latest crazy
idea is a proposal to spend
billions of dollars install
ing anti-ballistic missiles
installations in Europe,
even though Europeans
don’t want it. Our govern
ment should stop trying to
be mother hen to the rest
of the world. If Europe sees
no need for anti-ballistic
installations, that should be
good enough. If they decide
they want that kind of
defense, let them pay for it
themselves. It’s about time
we start minding our own
business. The latest news is
that the U.S. will patrol the
borders of European coun
tries with robot spy planes.
Joe Sersey
From Left Field
eleanorjoe@att.net
needs don’t recognize loca
tion.
Since the job’s not done
until the paperwork is
complete, I find that many
public facilities refuse to
acknowledge the delicacy of
the situation. Airports, bus
and train stations, retail
stores, or any place that
provides sit-down reposito
ries, purchase their tissue
from the same supplier.
Sandpaper might not be
more effective during clean
up operations but wouldn’t
be less painful.
I’ve known hardship.
During my formative years,
I lived on a farm that
lacked indoor plumbing.
I’ve faced alternative
sources: corn cobs, catalogs,
leaves and sundry other
options required for after
action cleanup operations. I
111
We pay. They benefit.
* * *
Do you believe that
Congress and the President
will come up with a solution
to the illegal alien prob
lem? I don’t. They’ll play
politics with the issue as
long as they can and jockey
for what they believe is a
political advantage in forth
coming elections, which are
more important to them
than actually solving any
problems.
* * *
Vision 2020 has a vision
of consolidation of the
city of Warner Robins and
Houston County fire depart
ments. On the surface it
sounds good, but when
residents of unincorporated
Houston County learn how
much they will have to pay
for the service it will be a
hard sell ... if it will sell at
all.
* * *
Doesn’t it frost you when
a business advertises an
attractive special and you
learn that since you already
are a customer you do not
MT if
1
know about absorption, dis
comfort and outright pain.
Has corporate America
become so indifferent to the
needs of its customers that
it denies them the comfort
they would find at home?
Have CEOs become
absorbed with their power
to the point they fail to
provide the absorbents nec
essary for successful cleans
ing?
Since I spend more time
at my job than at home, I
feel my work place could
provide some reminder
of the place where the
Charmin resides.
My pain isn’t restricted
to the physical anguished
caused by using materials
that literally draw blood.
There’s mental anguish
involved. I’ve tried to train
my body to perform certain
THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
qualify? Common sense says
that a business should nur
ture the customers it has,
but nowadays showing con
tempt for them seems to be
the norm. At least, I have
found it that way recently.
* * *
Notices have been sent
out by the Houston County
tax assessors. I’m hearing
some screams of anguish
over increased values being
put on homes and vacant
lots. The tax assessors
have a mandate from the
state to assess property at
“fair market value” and it
sometimes hurts when val
ues go up. All of us should
be happy we do not live in
Bibb County, where assess
ments have gone up tre
mendously, sometimes more
than $75,000 on a single
home. Higher assessments
do not necessarily translate
into higher taxes, though
they can. It depends on the
millage rates adopted by the
school board, county com
missioners and city councils
after they see the total
value of the county digest.
* * *
The cry that goes up
from most people on whose
homes the assessment has
gone up is, “My home is
not worth that much. I’ll be
glad to sell it for what they
say it is worth.” Truthfully,
few, if any, of us actually
would sell for the assessed
price of our homes, with the
possible exception of new
homes, where the assess
ment reflects the price paid
by the first owner.
functions at specific times,
but there are outside forces
at work.
Mexican restaurants, chili
dogs, and other sources can,
and have, reacted adversely
to my physiology.
Real estate agents mea
sure value with the chant,
“location, location, loca
tion.”
That’s a multifaceted con
cept when discussing the
human body and its method
of cleansing and recycling.
My mind knows what I
want, but my body knows
what it needs, thereby
forcing me into locations
that provide materials that
replace my sudden sense
of relief with the reality of
self-inflicted pain.
I don’t wish to foul my
own nest by complaining,
but I’ve reached a painful
end. The political correct
police have made sure that
all publicly accessed facili
ties meet the needs of the
handicapped, but these
same do-gooders have failed
to take the additional steps
to protect everybody from
potential harm.
That makes me want
to shoot a spotted owl. At
least the feathers would be
softer.