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4A
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 21,2006
if Houston Horn* 4
m\t jjmmtal
OPINION
Daniel F. Evans
Editor and Publisher
Julie B. Evans
Vice President
Don Moncrief Foy S. Evans
Managing Editor Editor Emeritus
Mudslmging underway
Duck. That’s about the best advice we can
give in regard to some mudslinging going
on between some candidates for political
office.
One says one thing about the other, the other
retaliates and before long it looks more like a
snowball (with a mud-caked center) rolling down
hill and building up steam.
Before long one’s crying out: “He started it,” and
the other’s responding: “No, she did,” and on an on
it goes.
The thing of it is, is it doesn’t matter who threw
the first dirt clod held together by spittle (and a
little venom).
Once it’s start
ed, it has to run
its course.
Why? Because
research has
shown one
particular study
comes from
the University
of Oklahoma,
which had stu
dents studying
a number of
political cam
paigns through
the years and reaching the same conclusion every
time once a person is attacked, if they do not
respond, they lose points with the voters.
It becomes a show of strength. No matter how
ludicrous the accusation, if left unchallenged, it left
one candidate looking weak.
It’s all part of the process, so we might as well
get used to it.
Our challenge as voters is to do our best to sift
through the rhetoric and it’s entirely possible
there may be some truth to the volley of daggers
being thrown back and forth and seek out the
facts. Where do the candidates stand on issues that
will affect us and/or our children?
It’s a tough process but in the end, how they will
truly act if given the position will determine where
we go as a state or as a country.
LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Singing the praises of Hillary
I heard some ol’ boys talking “politics” last week at a
table in a local fast-food restaurant. Some of the stuff
they were saying was simply that “stuff.”
Most of it was amusing. And, they were all rather
calm (or laid back) until some introduced Hillary into
the melee. Then the “discussion” got ugly. Not a single
one of the bunch caree one whit about her. In fact, to
them, it seems, she was/is indeed the devil’s apprentice
and is thus everything that good ol’ boys and girls from
the South have been taught to despise. I left before I
had to laugh out loud. So, to all their bashing Hillary, I
submit the following. To take the edge off the diddy, it
can be sung to the tune of Wabash Cannonball.
Oh, she glides through the halls of Congress
She’s confident and sassy
She’s strong and intelligent
She’s everything that’s smart and classy
She's the junior New York senator
She’s a good wife to Bill
She’s the best of a sorry lot
She's the wonder of Capitol Hill
Republicans are scared to death of her
They will hardly say her name •
And every sorry one of them
Knows she knows how to play the game
As she goes around our great country
She speaks words of truth and pride
And no one can point to a single thing
That might give her reason enough to hide.
Oh, she glides through the halls of Congress
She’s strong and confident
She’s the best hope to clean up W’s mess
When she becomes our next president.
Dawyn Border, Warner Robins
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The thing of it is, is it
doesn't matter who
threw the first dirt clod
held together hy spittle
(and a little venom).
Once ITs started, it has
to run its course.
The leader as hypocrite, deceiver
Just last week, my col
umn was on the leader
as role model and men
tor. Shouldn’t we expect our
leaders to be role models
when it comes to living by
appropriate values?
Sure. But leaders are
human beings. Therefore,
you can expect them to be
hypocritical and deceptive
on occasion. Is that desir
able? Of course not.
However, it is realistic.
Now this is probably not
news to you. You likely
already know that your role
model and mentor is not
flawless.
Don’t expect this to be
a verbal version of Scott
Adams’ “Dilbert” cartoons
that are so popular, at
least partially because they
expose the hypocrisy and
deception of some leaders.
I’m not trying to bash lead
ers. Instead, I want to help.
My desire is also to help
those who have to live with
leaders who are sometimes
all too human. Yep, leaders
are human, which means
they are sometimes ignorant,
selfish, greedy, vain, lazy,
impatient, ambitious, jealous,
judgmental, or (add the word
that completes the descrip
tion of someone you know.)
Do leaders have favorites,
to whom they give spe
cial privileges? Do leaders
sometimes take shortcuts,
' | C-3BKHTI
’Comity' covers legals issues from state to state
Dear Mr.
Rockefeller, We
have recently
moved to the area from
Florida, as a lot of
people have been due
to hurricanes etc, and I
was wondering... does
Georgia recognize a
Florida will?
Dear Reader: Great ques
tion! Law students spend
hours struggling with this
issue in school and in tak
ing the bar exam.
“Comity” is the legal term
relevant to your question.
It describes the extent, and
under what circumstances,
states recognize a sister
state’s laws. Two of the
fundamental strengths of
our federal system of gov
ernment collide with comity
principles; e.g., federal law
preempts state laws and no
state can pass a law inhibit
ing an individual’s right to
freely travel from state-to
state.
Especially in‘the past
70 years, thanks to a flex
ible interpretation of the
“commerce clause” in the
constitution, Congress has
been given itself preemp
tive rights to legislate over
a multitude of commercial
interests. However, issues
such as wills, are generally
left to the individual states
to legislate. An interesting
departure from this defer
ence is the “Defense of
Dennis Hooper
Leaders Building « >
dhooper2@juno.com
bypassing the complete and
proper procedure? Do lead
ers sometimes blame others
and sidestep responsibility?
Are they sometimes arro
gant or boastful? Do they
make promises and some
times fail to keep them?
We all struggle between
spirit and flesh, between
good intentions and the all
too-real stresses and temp
tations of life. Sometimes
we say we value certain
things, yet our behaviors
are quite inconsistent. Oh,
how we are open at those
times to allegations of
hypocrisy.
Sometimes when a leader
is criticized for being
hypocritical or deceitful,
the allegations are justi
fied. Sometimes, however,
unjustified criticism from
an alienated constituent
reveals more about the one
doing the judging than the
leader being judged.
Jim Rockefeller
Ml.
Columnist ji3
ajr@rockefellerlawcenter.com
Marriage Act.” Because it
is such a unique extension
of congressional preemp
tion authority, it remains to
be seen whether or not the
commerce clause reaches so
far.
“Choice of law” is a
related legal principle. It
assists courts in deducing
which state’s laws apply to
a particular issue. Typically,
this legal conundrum arises
in contract scenarios, but
even personal injury cases,
such as where you sue a
defendant outside of where
the injury occurred. Thus,
for instance, Georgia courts
would apply Florida’s per
sonal iiyury law to a lawsuit
involving an automobile
wreck from Florida.
Turning to your question
... wills are a “domestic”
probate matter varying
from state-to-state and a
Florida will may, or may
not, be fully enforced by
Georgia courts; or the
What’s a leader to do?
Organizational val
ues. Every individual and
organization has values,
but many are not able to
articulate them. Taking the
time to express the organi
zation’s values allows those
who are making decisions to
have something tangible for
evaluating options. Public
declaration of the organiza
tion’s values helps to keep
the leader on track. The
values become an objective
set of criteria by which to
judge the leaders’ behaviors
and choices.
Being approachable
and receptive. Every lead
er needs feedback and the
opportunity to reflect with
others on the progress that
is occurring. Some leaders
remain open, encouraging
individuals to tell them the
truth. They welcome ques
tions about why they’ve
made the choices the have,
same language might be
interpreted differently in
Georgia versus Florida. For
example, in some states,
writing a surviving spouse
(or a biological child) out of
will is a tricky process and
how you do this might vary
depending on the laws of
the resident state (where
you were living at the time
of death).
Another area of concern
would be the right to refuse
treatment. considered
legally “competent,” we
each choose what medical
treatment we will submit
to when faced with a life
threatening condition.
But what happens if were
are rendered incompetent
to do so from disease or
iiyury, such as a person
suffering from advanced
Alzheimer’s or locked away
in a coma? A “living will”
explicitly anticipates such
an event and provides spe
cific instructions as to what
THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL
recognizing the opportu
nity to influence others
in their decision-making
process and to reinforce the
organization’s values. Many
accountability relationships
help to keep the leader hon
est and avoid the seduction
that increasing power can
have on individuals.
Humble attitude of ser
vice. Ego can overwhelm
otherwise rational individu
als. Some leaders recognize
that blessings are provided
only for the purpose of serv
ing others. They use their
position of authority to help
others in the organization
excel, providing opportuni
ties and resources for grow
ing the skills and talents
of those individuals whose
potential has not yet been
fully tapped. The effective
leader is continually seek
ing to clarify and meet the
needs of those who are
serving the organization’s
customers.
We have no leaders on
earth who are all-knowing
angels or gods. None are
programmed robots devoid
of feelings and exempt
from the frailties of human
nature. Every leader is a
human being. We need to
accept those limitations
and provide them grace and
forgiveness, feedback and
encouragement, and occa
sionally, a second chance.
extraordinary efforts shall
be made to sustain life and
who decides.
Having a living will
acceptable to the probate
laws of the state in which
you live, is an impera
tive gift we give to our
surviving loved ones. We
are all watched the pub
licly uncomfortable saga of
Terry Shiavo and the battle
between her husband and
her family for control. Her
tragedy would have been
very private, if she had only
used a living will to clearly
delineate who made this
type of decision and under
what circumstances.
Thus, there is no impera
tive requiring Georgia
courts to enforce a Florida
will, as written. The smart
thing to do, then, is to have
your will looked at by a
Georgia estate attorney
to assure it complies with
Georgia law as to your
intent.
Warner Robins attorney
Jim Rockefeller is the for
mer Chief Assistant District
Attorney for Houston
County, and a former
Florida State Attorney.
Owner of Rockefeller Law
Center, Jim has been in
private practice since 2000.
E-mail your comments or
confidential legal questions
to a]r9mckefelleriawcenter.
com.