Editorials
The Jackson Herald
October 20, 1999
A hit and run
society?
Tuesday's tragic death of a 9-year-old
child by a hit and run driver leaves all of us shaken. It is
made even worse by the fact that the driver didn't stop to offer
help, but rather continued on his way.
And now we hear from other witnesses that a number of cars passed
by the scene without stopping to give aid. Some reports indicate
that other cars may have also hit the child before traffic finally
came to a halt.
We'd like to think that because the morning was dark, many of
those didn't realize they were passing by an injured child. But
surely some of those passers-by should have wondered why people
were in the road trying to stop traffic.
Have we become a hit and run society where our rush to get to
work is more important than helping a hurt child? Have we become
so callous to tragedy that we no longer recognize it when we
see it?
This hit and run death was also amplified by a new program Tuesday
night in which many youngsters in nearby Rockdale County were
portrayed as being "lost." No, these middle-class kids
had homes, but for all practical purposes had been abandoned
by parents too consumed with their own selfishness. They were
left to run and roam as they pleased, the result being a huge
outbreak of sexually transmitted diseases from after school group
sex parties.
It's a cliché to suggest that our society is damaged and
broken, even amid our economic wealth and well-being. Yet that
is exactly what we see when a number of people appear uncaring
and insensitive about a child lying hurt in the road.
We hope those people didn't realize what they were swerving to
miss in the early Tuesday darkness.
God help us all if they did know, but didn't care.
Letters
October 20, 1999
Wants
to 'set record straight' on youth football
Dear Editor:
I am writing in response to the letters from the last two weeks
regarding youth football and to set the record straight.
On Saturday, October 2, a pair of assistant coaches from an 11-12
year-old football team was involved in a physical and verbal
confrontation with each other. Profanities were used and the
two men nearly came to blows, bumping chest to chest, grabbing,
shoving and shouting at each other. A parent assisting the team
helped break up the scuffle until I arrived from the score booth.
Once play on the field had been halted by a time out, the head
coach assisted in ending the scene and used his off field authority
to assure that the confrontation would not escalate.
While on the sideline after the confrontation, the two assistant
coaches involved in the scuffle apologized and seemed to be in
control. With the game nearly over and the coaches calmed down,
they were allowed to remain on the sideline rather than make
another scene in front of the kids. Although no actual punches
were thrown, the incident was one of the worst displays from
adults or youth that I have seen in recreational sports. Consequently,
both coaches have earned themselves suspensions from coaching
for the remainder of the season. The message: there is no place
for displays of unsportsmanlike behavior or violence in youth
sports, especially from grown adults who are supposed to be setting
an example for our children.
I also want to respond to comments on kids' playing time. This
is an issue that is a constant concern in recreational sports.
All participants at this level are granted an opportunity to
explore their ability and desire to participate in activities
and to do so in a safe and relatively controlled environment.
Our department has made large strides over the last two years
in setting standards for minimum and maximum playing requirements
for participants in all programs to assure this opportunity and
fairness. When introduced, these standards were very unpopular
and were met with substantial resistance. However, most of the
initial opponents now agree that these requirements are a necessary
and important component of recreational youth sports. These standards
are still being fine-tuned and no system is perfect.
Tackle football, in particular, requires more effort from coaches
when it comes to giving playing time for participants, especially
teams with large numbers of players. Having been a coach myself,
I know personally how difficult a task it can be to play all
players as much as possible, especially when factoring in some
unique characteristics inherent to tackle football. In addition,
during the heat of a game, honest mistakes are easy to come by
and things can be unintentionally looked over. Our department
steps in when it appears that there is a deliberate or unjustified
exclusion of a player from participation, or if there is a failure
to adhere to safety or playing requirements. Fortunately, this
is a rare circumstance.
Since the first game of the season, the coaches who have been
criticized (and several other coaches in similar situations)
have done an excellent job of giving substantial playing time
to all players, as was evidenced in recent games.
Coaches should be praised and supported for the time and energy
they put in with our children. There are times when there are
legitimate concerns about coaches' actions. When brought to our
attention, or to the coach in a constructive manner, they are
addressed appropriately. However, many times complaints and criticism
come hastily and too often in the wrong way, at the wrong time,
or without full understanding of a situation. Because of all
these elements, coaching youth sports can be one of the most
difficult challenges an adult can face. It can also be one of
the most rewarding.
Sincerely,
John Hoos
Director, Jackson County
Parks and Recreation
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Column
By Mike
Buffington
October 20, 1999
 Hoschton candidates should support
SPLOST
Last week, I again had
the pleasure of moderating the Hoschton forum with those running
for the town's city council. Sponsored by the Hoschton Womens'
Club, the forum is a chance for citizens in the town to question
candidates about various local issues. It's also a chance for
me to get a good feel for the public mood on issues.
Perhaps not surprisingly, water, sewer and other infrastructure
to handle growth were at the heart of the discussions. Citizens
complained about water pressure and quality and about the lack
of sewage capacity. Residents of Panther Creek Subdivision again
demanded that the city fix their sewage system. Just in case
any candidate missed the point, a bucket of the raw sewage was
brought in as evidence.
In addition to the infrastructure discussions, there was also
a lot of talk about wanting to keep the small town's charm in
the face of growth. Four of the six candidates are relatively
new to Jackson County, having located here from Gwinnett County
or other more densely populated areas. Several had ideas for
making Hoschton a pedestrian town of small shops to lure tourism.
But while the candidates were generally in support of improving
the town's infrastructure and appearance, they were less united
when asked whether they support the special local option sales
tax that will appear on the Nov. 2 ballot. One candidate said
he was for it. Another candidate said he was against it. The
others sent mixed messages and appeared to be on the fence.
Frankly, I can't understand the fence-sitting, especially after
all the talk of infrastructure needs. It's one thing to point
out the problems that need to be fixed - that's the easy part.
What's not so easy is finding a way to pay for fixing those problems.
It's interesting to note, however, that just about every problem
discussed by the Hoschton candidates could be addressed by using
SPLOST funds. The town would directly get around $736,000 over
a five-year period from the funds. That's a lot of money for
a town whose budget is under $450,000 per year.
For example, the city would get around $523,000 in SPLOST money
to be used for water and sewer upgrades. That would be money
that could go toward fixing the city's water and sewer problems
and for expanding the system to handle the growth all the candidates
said was coming.
Another $172,000 would go to Hoschton for roads and other street
improvements. If the vision for Hoschton is to be a pedestrian
town, those funds would go a long way toward putting the streets
and sidewalks in place to accomplish that goal.
On top of these funds, the town would get another $41,000 for
recreation, parks and green space. Again, it is money that could
be used for improving the quality of life in the town, a goal
every candidate espoused.
Those are funds that would go directly to Hoschton and don't
include money slated to be used at the county level that would
also have an impact on Hoschton.
What's also interesting about the SPLOST and Hoschton is that
many of those living in the town already pay the tax - to other
counties. Because Hoschton is close to three county lines and
because it lacks a major retail center, many people in Hoschton
shop in Barrow, Gwinnett or Hall counties, helping those communities
with their infrastructure payments. Jackson County's SPLOST income
mostly comes from other areas of Jackson County that have larger
retail stores, such as the outlet malls around Exit 53.
Of course, getting SPLOST money is only part of the battle. Those
funds have to be put to use if they're to do any good. In the
past, Hoschton has raided its water department funds by transferring
money from it into the general city budget. Those funds, if left
in the water and sewer budget, could be useful in expanding the
city's infrastructure. (Surprisingly, no candidate mentioned
this during the forum.)
Given all the various needs Hoschton has, every candidate should
not only like the SPLOST, they should be out working to get it
passed.
So here's a final rhetorical question for Hoschton's slate of
candidates: If you're lukewarm on the SPLOST vote, then how do
you plan to pay for all the things you want to do?
Mike Buffington is editor
of The Jackson Herald.
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