Column
By Mike Buffington
Obama should have been a Methodist
Obama should have been a Methodist. If he’d been a Methodist, he’d never kept the same nutty minister for so long and wouldn’t be watching his presidential ambitions go up in flames today. (Methodists change ministers about every four years whether they like it or not.)
Funny how politics works. Bill Clinton got tagged by a woman with big, uh, assets; Obama is getting burned by a minister with a big ego. Both wanted their 15 minutes of fame.
Both had an impact on Hillary.
All of which proves the old saying, “You’re judged by the company you keep.”
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Oconee County, be careful. The letter this week from Jackson County concerning the Bear Creek water was just a shot across the bow.
But with another drought likely, Jackson County will be very motivated this year to defend what it believes is its interest in the Bear Creek resources. (This kind of thing is why regional cooperation on big projects is more of a problem than many “regionalists” think. Regional cooperation can be good, but it can also be like walking around in a snake pit.)
That Jackson County got high-profile attorney Mike Bowers to represent its interest in this issue should be a hint.
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Under the heading of “you reap what you sow,” the Wall Street Journal had a article last week with this stat: From 2000-2007 personal income went up 28 percent, home values went up 48 percent but local government property taxes went up 62 percent.
The WSJ said that rapid growth of local government taxes has planted the seeds of a tax revolt. In Georgia, it also gives an excuse to state lawmakers for their desire to “reform” property taxes by, in effect, taking control of local government dollars.
That’s a bad idea, but local governments shouldn’t blame anyone but themselves for creating this backlash. The problem: Local government wages and benefits are often way out of proportion to the private sector. Locally, too many governments have used the area’s rapid growth as an excuse to raise taxes and they’ve become addicted to double-digit growth in revenues.
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A lot of North Georgia real estate people have been speaking out recently in an effort to discredit “negative” news about the housing slump and economic downturn.
But it’s difficult to spin the economic news into a positive light. The nation may be in the throes of the worst economic downturn since the 1930s. Housing is down; gas prices are skyrocketing; food prices are soaring; retail sales are in a slump; the dollar is so weak it needs crutches; and some major financial institutions are hurting with too many bad loans from inane lending practices and bad credit card debts.
The only positive data is for companies that export (their goods are now cheaper overseas and offshore sales are up) and for corn growers who are benefiting from the food shortage and increase in ethanol use.
The economy works in cycles. We’re in a downturn. It will take time, and patience, to work out of this.
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County officials appear to have had some fairly solid reasons for its recent firing of the county’s animal control officer. But the timing couldn’t have been worse. With the puppy mill case in the limelight, many will connect the dots between the firing and that case.
County officials say that isn’t so and some of their records appear to back that up.
Still, in politics, timing is everything. If you don’t believe me, ask Obama about his preacher.
Mike Buffington can be reached at mike@mainstreetnews.com.
Bar dispute is no ‘Cheers’
An ongoing dispute in downtown Jefferson over the sound of music wafting from a local bar late at night has reached a low note.
An obscene message was painted on the bar’s building and the owner told a 911 operator he did it to send a “message” to one of the citizens who has repeatedly complained about the noise, trash and other activities coming from the business.
This issue has long been a thorn in the side of Jefferson leaders. It has been argued before the city council and policemen have wasted a lot of time over the years attempting to mediate the complaints.
This was bound to happen when the city approved a bar in what is otherwise a quiet commercial/residential area. No good can come from that mix.
It may appear nostalgic to have a local bar “where everybody knows your name.” But this is no “Cheers” sitcom and this week’s incident was not funny.
It’s time for cooler heads to prevail in this matter and for the city to revisit how it licenses bars and places of entertainment in the downtown area.
Clayton County: Stupidity at work
And you thought local politics was bad. While Jackson County has its share of disputes and corruption, it doesn’t compare to the antics the state is witnessing in Clayton County south of Atlanta.
The Clayton school system is close to losing its accreditation, yet school leaders continue to bicker and have just hired a new superintendent the accreditation agency said wasn’t capable of fixing the problems. Then they gave their new leader 107 leave days and a $285,000 salary.
Brilliant.
Maybe this issue doesn’t appear to affect Jackson County, but such unsavory antics give ammunition to state leaders who will use it to bolster efforts to put more state control over local school systems. Clayton County is quickly becoming their poster child to push state control over local schools.
As Forest Gump would say, “Stupid is as stupid does.”
