Strange question: If every sporting event could promise flawless officiating by robots, would you be OK with that?

Dear Editor: Access this YouTube link — https://youtube.com/shorts/XlbcgSdCVD8?feature=share — and listen to what we heard from Wednesday, Sept. 15, at 1:15 a.m. until dawn.

Since they were first discovered in 2013, East Asian Joro spiders — which are native to China, Korea, Japan and Taiwan — have shown up in force in Northeast Georgia. In the eight years since that first siting, Joro spiders have been found in 23 Georgia counties and South Carolina. Named afte…

I’m excruciatingly tired of two things right now: covid and our political divide.

The third wave of COVID came and went in early 2021. With the advent of highly effective vaccines, we all hoped COVID would be contained for good. Everyone wanted life to go back to normal. Much of Georgia’s populace attempted to do so, but enough people have not yet gotten a vaccine that we…

I have been with the University of Georgia Extension for 15 years and in that time, I have had the opportunity to travel and visit with cattlemen from around the state and country.

Dear Editor: Legislative district maps are being redrawn for Georgia, based (supposedly) on the results of the census.

Want to know how to improve your retail operation?

Dear Editor: Regarding Ted Fowler's letter (August 12, 2021) about Georgia Renewable Power's operation in Colbert, these people have suffered long and horribly!

I remember before the housing crash in 2008, there were two groups in Madison County with differing views on the future of the county. One was Property Owners for Common Sense Growth (POCSG), and the other was MCCEC (I can’t recall the exact name and didn’t find it in a quick search of files…

Radon is an odorless gas that seeps out of soil and rock and into the air. It is formed when uranium that is found in soil and rock, breaks down, emitting radon gas. While radon is not dangerous outdoors, if it emerges under a home it can seep in and reach dangerous concentrations. The only …

Dear Editor: Since there have been no articles complaining about the noise from Madison Biomass (GRP), I would imagine the rest of the world may think that everything is just fine. Those of us that live close to the plant, like myself about a half mile are still having to listen to the noise.

I remember being really little and having an angelfish in an aquarium by my bed. Then it died. I wasn’t attached to the fish, which we buried by a tall tree in the back yard, but I remember a real sadness that I couldn’t articulate at the time except through tears, the realization that a thi…

Dear Editor: Have you ever had to call 911? Have you ever been pulled over by police for speeding or something worse? Have police ever come to your house and knocked on your door? These incidents happen to almost all of us at sometime in our lives and they tend to be memorable. We remember t…

Dear Editor: I agree with Zach Mitcham’s complaint (8/05/21) about no requirements for accountability by online providers of information content.

Dear Editor: This morning I read Zach Mitcham’s "Time to end the perverse incentives of the online information economy," and the section about dwindling geography-based journalism being tied to rabid partisanship particularly resonated with me. I think we are all suffering from the loss of c…

Did you know that between 75% and 95% of all flowering plants on the earth need help with pollination?

The law of weather averages finally caught up with us the last week of July. After an abnormally cool and wet first three weeks of the month, the last week of July was more like a typical Georgia summer.

After the Oklahoma City bombing, the death threats came by phone to Kenneth Zeran. He had done nothing to deserve hostility, but an online troll posted terrible, pro-bombing messages on AOL with Zeran’s name and phone number.

Dear Editor: A recent letter from Gary Harvin of Comer made some good points related to county planning. I don’t know Mr. Harvin, but I suspect he is a person with common sense and a good understanding of the game of politics. Taxpayers of Madison County would do well to pay attention to wha…

When I was a small child I remember my parents both accompanying me to the old Danielsville Elementary (now the county complex) and waiting in a line to get the oral polio vaccine and the small pox bifurcated needle vaccine on my upper arm. My daddy didn’t like crowds and rarely went anywher…

I agree with Mr. Gary Harvin. Very good opinion, Mr. Harvin. It seems that the Northeast Georgia Regional Commission is just another layer of bureaucracy. Private companies would do a better job, because if they don’t they go out of business.

Dear Editor: I appreciate the zeal of letter writer Gary Harvin (7/22/21 edition) who wants to see well-written and executed comprehensive planning for Madison County.

We sit on the balcony of a high-rise, beachfront condo for about a week once a year. It’s vacation. We get in the water, eat seafood, enjoy the sun. When I have moments alone on that balcony, I can’t help but look out at the ocean and think about life and time and all sorts of big-picture things.

Dear Editor: As a new resident to Madison County in June of 2019, I have decided to slow my land surveying business down from a regional company to a local company. With this needed slowdown, my wife Stephanie and I have had a chance to get involved in local issues and the direction of our c…

Despite all-time record heat in odd places last month, so far summer 2021 has been positively benign in most of North Georgia.

Forget Superman or Aquaman. There are people in the world with a real-life superpower, those who basically don’t forget anything. It’s called “Hyperthymesia,” which is a condition that leads people to remember an abnormally large number of their life experiences in vivid detail. Only about 6…

Bermudagrass decline is a term that broadly describes the gradual thinning and sometimes the outright loss of pasture grass stands over time. The term is broad because the problem is often linked to several different causes. These primary causes are often exacerbated by extreme environmental…

Many millions are generated each year off of the talents of college athletes, and it’s fitting that players should share in the revenues.

I laid back on a big, mossy rock and felt the falling water on my feet. A woman was taking pictures of the waterfall, and I wondered if my rapidly graying self was in the way of the pretty nature shot. I don’t think I’d make a good addition to Watson Mill wall photos or screen savers.

Dear Editor: “If a person sins because he does not speak up when he hears a public charge to testify regarding something he has seen or learned about, he will be held responsible” (guilty) Leviticus 5:1 NIV.

I have recently received numerous calls about problems with tomato plants. This time of the year we typically see issues start to arise in our flourishing gardens. Two of the most common problems are leaf spots and blossom end rot.

Dear Editor: The Madison-Oglethorpe Animal Shelter (MOAS) Board of Directors (Board) has been following the developments in Oglethorpe County closely as the Oglethorpe County Board of Commissioners (BOC) has worked to create and implement local ordinances regarding the control of animals. Wh…

Happy Birthday USA!

Last week, my husband Charles and I celebrated our 42nd anniversary. It seems like a long time, but in some ways it’s gone by in the blink of an eye. We were such kids when we married and you might say we grew up together. It’s been quite a journey, one that I hope is far from over.

Dear Editor: On May 26, I had a health problem at the Bread Basket in Colbert. Shortly after, an ambulance arrived with paramedics and they were wonderful, as well as some customers who helped also.

Dear Editor: A recent Madison County Journal story tells of an application for rezoning that seeks to expand a “grandfathered” use.

Dear Editor: A recent Madison County Journal story tells of an application for rezoning that seeks to expand a “grandfathered” use.

The aliens-visit-earth talk, well, that doesn’t do much for me. Ancient Aliens on the History Channel? Nope, I want actual history programming. Don’t get me wrong. I’m very interested in space, but the speculation of UFOs from other worlds, terrible probes and Roswell, doesn’t entertain me v…

Dear Editor: There is a transportation bill in Congress making available $138 million for Georgia projects upon request by our U.S. representatives. The 9th and 10th districts, however, will not be receiving funding for roads, bridges and other projects our districts need because U.S. Reps A…

Flies can be a pesky pest, especially indoors. Although they may occur year-round, the usual abundance of ripening produce this season in many homes tend to attract more fruit flies. Fresh fruits and vegetables are an important part of a healthy diet, so don’t let fruit flies deter you from …

How should small companies handle a data breach?

A marriage cannot work if one or both people are constantly questioning whether the other is cheating. That’s what our current political climate feels like to me.

To answer that question we have to go back to compare to just last year. As you may remember 2020 was a rough year on many fronts, not the least of which was the deadly and destructive record-setting tropical season in the Atlantic basin.

If you have never perched in a canoe and dipped your paddle into the Okefenokee Swamp’s blackwater, you’ve missed an unforgettable adventure.

When I look at the low covid vaccination rates, I’m reminded that most of this area doesn’t feel like I do. I was so relieved to get those two shots in the arm and to see my family members who are eligible get the shots, too.

Dear Editor: Not long after the repeal of Glass-Steagall, when the banks rolled out the Ponzi scheme called “mortgage-based derivatives” in the early Y2K years, and the building boom with its cheap and easy money swept across the land, Madison County leadership showed the foresight to bring …

We might not have quite made it to the first official day of summer, but temperatures have certainly reached into summer levels. High temperatures, combined with dry weather, pose a threat to home landscapes. Vegetable gardens, lawns, and even trees and shrubs are all susceptible to the effe…

Dear Editor: Governor Kemp’s elimination of the $300 payment for unemployment insurance is cruel punishment for people who are looking for employment.

Last Friday morning I was at the high school to snap a picture of two lovely young ladies — this year’s valedictorian Teresa Vu and salutatorian Macy Mullis. It’s a task I’ve done many times and one I always enjoy.

Dear Editor: I wrote last about land use approvals and a screening process, according to the Madison County zoning ordinance that should guide those in seats of authority on how they might determine compliance.

I presented my friend this question Monday: Would you rather me sucker punch you in the gut or sneak a spoonful of mayonnaise into some of your food?