Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page.

4A ♦ SATURDAY, JULY 1, 2006 (TTf If "Houston 3fCnmc f ( h\\t fltmxxml OPINION Daniel F. Evans Editor and Publisher Julie B. Evans Vice President Don Moncrief Managing Editor Limits needed on growth Thursday, the Georgia Department of Community Affairs presented 74 cities with awards for their downtown develop ment programs. They ranged from Cordele to Valdosta to Fort Valley to Cochran, the last one of only five to be singled out as Better Hometowns. “For most communities, the downtown offers the most visible indicator of community pride, eco nomic and social health,” said Georgia Department of Community Affairs commissioner Mike Beatty in bestowing the awards. “A downtown can be either an asset or a liability in the effort to recruit new residents, new businesses and keep those you already have. “Over the years, many of our nation’s downtowns have experienced peri ods of decline. Some communi- ties have allowed that decline to become disrepair. The communities being recognized today decided to take action and combine the energy of government, elected and community leaders to revitalize their downtown areas.” Unfortunately, none in our local area made the list. While Perry has at least made a conscious effort to move in that direction we may yet see them on the list in the near future and Centerville has made that an agenda item, Warner Robins remains an "unknown." Most parents can remember a time when they used to “cruise” up and down Watson Blvd. as teenagers back when there were only two schools and you were either from one side of town or the other. Now, the International City is spreading like wildfire to the four corners of the world so to speak or as far as its borders will allow (while at the same time passing the torch to places like Kathleen and Bonaire), while Watson Blvd. seems more of an afterthought (for months the intersection between it and Davis Dr. was nothing but potholes and there are plenty of buildings that would qualify for Beatty’s description of “disrepair”). The point is: Growth is good. But at some point we need to stop, take a breath, and think about where we’re headed. Roots are good provided they’re not spread too thin. LETTER TO THE EDITOR (In response to a letter to the editor in Wednesday’s Houston Home Journal ) I might think this Voting Rights Act is a good thing for the country if it pertained to all states. The only reason it passed 25 years ago is because it was directed at a few southern states and had no effect on the great majority; therefore, the esteemed Congressmen from all those states had nothing to lose, vote wise, and probably relished at the opportunity to keep on punishing the south for things they, themselves were doing. The 21st century carpetbagger from Warner Robins should return to whatever section of the country in which he hatched out of since he likes the wording of the Voting Rights Act. Glenn Hitchcock, Centerville HOW TO SUBMIT LETTERS We encourage readers to submit letters to the editor. Letters should not exceed 350 words and must include the writer’s name, address and tele phone number. All letters printed in The Houston Home Journal will appear with the writer’s name and hometown - we do not publish anonymous let ters. The newspaper reserves the right to edit or reject letters for reasons of grammar, punctuation, taste and brevity. Letter writers are asked to submit no more than one letter per person per week. We cannot guarantee that a letter will be printed on a specific date. The Home Journal prefers that letters be typed. Letters to the editor are published in the order they are received as space permits. A Journal employee will call to verify the author of each letter. There are three ways to submit a letter to the edi tor: E-mail it to hhj@evansnewspapers.com, mail it to The Houston Home Journal at P.O. Box 1910, Perry, GA 31069, or drop it off at 1210 Washington St. in Perry - between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Foy S. Evans Editor Emeritus The point is: Growth is good. But at some point we need to stop, take a breath, and think about where we're headed. Mayor stands up to citizens I like two things that Mayor “Bubba” Edwards of Centerville told citizens at a public forum to discuss the city’s 100 per cent property tax exemption for senior citizens and using the Bible when discussing a proposal to permit sale of mixed drinks on Sunday. At a previous forum, which the mayor had to miss, senior citizens gave council members a hard time and there were threats they would be voted out of office if they did not keep the 100 percent exemption for seniors 70 and over. The mayor said he “didn’t like what I read in the newspaper about the tone of the meeting.” Then he said, “You can vote us out of office, but I won’t be intimidated.” He also took on critics of Sunday alcohol sales. He said, “I know the Book. I read it every day,” while challenging critics who pointed to the Bible at the previous meeting as a rea son not to allow'Sunday sales in Centerville. Whether you agree with Mayor Edwards or not you have to admire the fact he takes charge and lets you know where he stands. We need more politicians who have convictions and stand by them regardless of j o?ooe creators syndicate, inc | Democracy and freedom depend upon families I’ve always looked for ward to the Fourth of July. I loved it as a child for its pageantry. As an adult, the lure of the pageantry , of Independence Day cel ebrations waned and was replaced by a more basic source of appreciation - it’s a day off. Unfortunately, I find that (like so many people I know) I am prone to keep my nose to the grindstone, as they say, and then take my holiday celebrations off without remembering their significance. Oh sure, my family puts the flag out, attends holiday cookouts and watches the most spec tacular fireworks show we can find. But most often, I fail to reflect on the mean ing of it all. That’s very sad. The reason our nation’s ability to sustain the meaning and importance of Independence Day is dependent on us. We are most responsible for embracing in our own lives and transmitting to others the virtue and character that gave life to the Declaration of Independence. Around the Fourth of July, it helps me remember the significance of the holi day by revisiting great and patriotic statements made by our founding fathers. So often, I can see their respect for faith and family in their writings. For example, James Madison, the princi pal author of our country’s other great founding docu ment, the Constitution, put it this way: “We have staked the whole future of our new nation not upon the power of government; far from it. We have staked the future of all our political constitu tions upon the capacity of each of ourselves to govern Foy Evans Columnist foyevansl9@cox.net the political fallout. * * * If you have any doubt that many young people are so concerned about their parents becoming bored in their old age, consider this fact: In Georgia there are more than 165,000 children being raised by grandpar ents and more are on the way Now isn’t that thought ful of children to go to the trouble of having children just for the benefit of their parents? * * * If you don’t own a com puter you are missing something. It’s hard to get along without one, but they’ll drive you crazy when things go wrong. I’m still not convinced that they are anything short of the Devil’s work. Randy Hicks Ga. Family Council ourselves according to the moral principles of the Ten Commandments.” John Adams echoed those sentiments, saying, “Our Constitution is designed only for a moral and reli gious people. It is wholly inadequate for any other.” Adams also said, “Public virtue cannot exist in a nation without private.” In essence, both men rec ognized that the Founders had done something bold and unprecedented. Specifically, they had cre ated a government that allowed for so much free dom that the potential for abuse even anarchy was high. They knew that the freedom afforded by our form of civil government required a people who could govern themselves person ally, keeping their selfish impulses in check and culti vating their altruistic ones. Perhaps even more strik ing was their understanding of what would transpire should the citizens of this newly formed country fail to exercise virtue and self restraint. One of the stron gest warnings came from Benjamin Franklin. “Only a virtuous people are capable of freedom,” asserted Franklin. “As nations become corrupt and vicious, they have more need of masters.” Those who can’t master themselves, will be mas- jfr * '* jkJII * * * The Houston County Commissioners have been asked by District Attorney Kelly Burke and a represen tative of the Georgia State Patrol to purchase 10 of the new 800 megahertz radios. They would be installed in State Patrol vehicles so that the sheriffs department and the State Patrol can commu nicate with each other while in their cars. Presently officers patrol ling for the two law enforce ment agencies must commu nicate through base radios. This can take time. Failure to communicate in the past has created some serious incidents. You would expect the state to buy the radios. However, the money is not available unless the county can get a state grant. Maybe yes, maybe no. Anyway it seems that the high frequency radios. M 9 1> i HL v 7 IB I w tered by others. People who can’t govern themselves require the heavier hand of law and judgment. Do you ever wonder why we pass more and more laws every year in Washington, Atlanta and other state cap itals around the country? I believe Franklin would argue that it’s because we’re having a harder time governing ourselves. This is illustrated in the rearing of children. As chil dren grow older and, hope fully, more mature, we par ents have fewer rules and restraints, believing that we have imparted the knowl edge and virtue needed for making sound decisions. This is where the family comes into play, not only in perpetuating the prin ciples of the Declaration of Independence, but also in preserving liberty and our very form of government. I beat this drum on occa sion and I’ll beat it here: The home is the incubator for tomorrow’s citizens. It’s worth noting that in 1881, 55 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence, a young French aristocrat named Alexis de Tocqueville came to the United States to investigate our country’s prison system. Instead, he wrote of American democ racy in its infancy. One of his observations was "... the American derives from THE HOUSTON HOME JOURNAL which have eliminated dead spots around Houston County, would be a good investment in better law enforcement in our county. * * * Question: Do you believe that the right of The New York Times to print classi fied information pertaining to the war against terror is a form of subversion? Do you believe that’s how our government goes about fighting our enemies should be exposed for the enemies to see? Twice in recent months The New York Times and a few other left-wing newspapers have printed information that has, without doubt, aided the enemy In my opinion, they are wrong. National security should supersede a newspa per’s right to print anything it wants to, regardless of the consequences. President Bush has point ed out that what they did has hurt the fight against terrorism and I agree that they must be brought to task. Left-wing, liberal newspa pers, some of which we read here, are circling the wag ons in defense of The Times, which is reason enough to believe that what The Times did was wrong. his home that love of order which he afterwards car ries with him into public affairs.” It’s in the home children learn to trust, live in com munity and, most impor tantly, sacrifice for the betterment of the larger community. In the case of a child, that larger com munity starts out being his or her family. The values it takes to live peacefully and healthily in a family are the same ones that allow one to enter into the world as a responsible adult and citizen. It’s in the home a child learns to consider the needs and interests of other fam ily members; to contribute to the order, stability and household economy of the family by performing house hold chores and responsi bilities; and to live in a com munity (family) where her ideas don’t always prevail and desires can’t always be accommodated. You can see how what I just described trans lates into citizenship. The responsible citizen whether a soldier in the service of his country over seas or an employee in a factory contributes to the social, political and econom ic stability of our communi ties in much the same way an individual contributes to a stable home life. It takes hard work, sacrifice, under standing, empathy and a host of other virtues that are cultivated in the home. Parents have our work cut out for us, don’t we? Frankly, I’m kind get kind of tired just thinking about it. But it’s a glorious responsibility and privi lege. We’re not just raising children; we’re raising the guardians of democracy and liberty.