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SOME LEGISLATORS WANT TO SPEND TAX DOLLARS, NOT PAY THEM Let me say unequivocally that Rep. Al Williams, D-Midway, and I are on the same page regarding the fact that the Georgia Department of Revenue says Williams and about 10 percent of his colleagues in the Georgia General Assembly are delinquent in paying their taxes. Williams, who reportedly owes the state $42,672 in back … [Read more...] about Mar. 9, 2009: Some Legislators Want To Spend Tax Dollars, Not Pay Them

DALTON AREA FRUSTRATED WITH POLITICIANS’ LACK OF COMMUNICATIONS With apologies to Cool Hand Luke, what we have here is a failure to communicate. The people of Dalton are sorer than a carbuncle at the perceived lack of interest by elected officials in their time of economic suffering. Metro Dalton, which includes Whitfield and Murray counties, has seen its unemployment rate … [Read more...] about Mar. 2, 2009: Dalton Area Frustrated With Politicians’ Lack Of Communications

NATIONALLY CERTIFIED TEACHERS DESERVE BETTER FROM STATE GOVERNMENT How would you like to work in a business with 236 CEOs telling you what to do, but with only a few having the foggiest notion what your job entails and no responsibility for what happens? In other words, how would you like to be a public schoolteacher in Georgia? The 236 CEOs are the members of the Georgia … [Read more...] about Feb. 26, 2009: Nationally Certified Teachers Deserve Better From State Government

CASEY CAGLE TALKS ABOUT DOWNSIZING, EDUCATION AND LEARNING CURVES I stopped by Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle’s office the other day to talk about what’s going on in the state these days. I found him refreshingly candid. Actually, I came to complain. State government is a columnist’s dream when you have the Speaker of the House accusing the governor of “showing his backside,” the House … [Read more...] about Feb. 23, 2009: Casey Cagle Talks About Downsizing, Education And Learning Curves

TRYING TO FIND SOME GOOD NEWS ISN’T EASY THESE DAYS As I was writing this column, the Woman Who Shares My Name wanted to ask two questions. First, would I please talk about positive things this week? “Surely,” she mused, “there has to be some good news you can share with readers instead of your usual gloom and doom.” I told her she was meddling in my business. This space … [Read more...] about Feb. 8, 2009: Trying To Find Some Good News Isn’t Easy These Days