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Publisher DAVE CAUGHMAN T H E C H E R O K E E LEDGER-NEWS Editor GERRY YANDEL Assistant Managing Editor ERIKA NELDNER ©2009 Lakeside Publishing Inc. All Rights Reserved. Articles and advertisements may not be reprinted in whole or in part without the expressed written consent of Lakeside Publishing Inc. The Cherokee Ledger-News, published weekly on Wednesday by Lakeside Publishing, Inc., 103 E. Main St., Woodstock, GA 30188-4908. Periodicals postage paid at Monroe, GA and additional post offices. USPS 021-137. Postmaster: Please send address changes to The Cherokee Ledger-News 103 E. Main St., Woodstock, GA 30188-4908. Phone (770) 928-0706 • Fax (770) 928-3152 Send e-mail to: editor@ledgernews.com Write us at P.O. Box 2369, Woodstock, GA 30188-1379 Disclaimer: The views expressed on the Opinion page are not necessarily the views of the publisher or the staff of the Cherokee Ledger-News LEDGER-NEWS OPINION 6 THE CHEROKEE LEDGER-NEWS MANAGING EDITOR: GERRY YANDEL MAY 20, 2009 CHEROKEE VOICE ■ ISSUE: With school ending May 29, summer vacations are right around the corner. QUESTION: What is your favorite beach to visit? “Panama City. I went there on spring break.” Chris Green Canton “I haven't been in years, but I used to spend a lot of time at Lake Allatoona. There was a beach with a place for the kids.” Emmer Lee Price Cherokee County “Destin.” Sondra McKernan Waleska “Destin.” Debbie Mack Woodstock “Myrtle Beach, because I haven't been there, and I want to go.” Deidra Brewer Woodstock “Up in Bartow on the other side of Lake Allatoona.” James Couch Canton W e’ve Political posturing at our expense all heard the old saying “Never look a gift horse in the mouth,” and it comes to mind when I consider the Cherokee County Commission’s dawdling over whether to accept the $3.1 million federal handout of the Neighborhood Stabilization Program (NSP). The program is a federal gift to local governments, allowing them to buy foreclosed properties, fix them up and make them available to eligible families through affordable mortgages. The idea is, as the name says, stabilizing neighborhoods that have been hit by foreclosures against becoming blighted and run-down, a condition that could burden surrounding properties with decreasing property values. The program has built-in safeguards against allowing real estate professionals from buying the properties and “flipping” them for profits. An added benefit off the NSP is that it would allow some of our local employees on the lower end of the pay scale, such as firefighters, police officers, teachers and civil servants, to help weather the terrible economy. The $3.1 million would be enough to turn around about 25 foreclosed properties, and, because the money from the sale of the homes goes back into the program, there is a potential to provide homes to 75 families by the time the program’s Sunset date takes effect in five years. (The enddate also eliminates the need for conservatives to fret about a scary entitlement program taking hold.) The NSP comes at an especially opportune time: Foreclosures in Cherokee County, which typically run to about 300 a year, reached about 2,000 in 2008. Unfortunately, it looks like the NSP in Cherokee County is dead. As of late last week, Post 1 Commissioner Harry Johnston was strongly in favor of taking the funds; Post 2 Commissioner Jim Hubbard, Post 3 Commissioner Karen Bosch and Post 4 Commissioner Derek Good were firmly opposed; and Commission Chairman Buzz Ahrens was on the fence. Back in November, the county commission voted unanimously to apply for the NSP money. As recently as May 5, they voted 3-2 to send out a request for proposals (RFP) for a company to administrate the program – which, by the way, is paid with up to 10 percent of the NSP funds allotted and doesn’t cost the county extra money. As of May 14, no RFP has been issued, and our “public servants” now seem content to let this juicy $3.1 million fruit die on the vine through lack of action. That’s a shame. I realize there’s also the old saying, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch,” but the NSP is also about as close to a free lunch as anyone will ever get from Uncle Sam. While I respect and support our elected officials’ right to vote as they think their constituents want them to vote, I have some trouble getting behind their reasons. “I don’t want the federal governmentsticking their fin- DIALOGUE Gerry Yandel gers in our business,” Good said. “This program is not conservative; it’s not Republican, and it’s not appropriate.” On the contrary, the NSP money is a no-strings-attached handout that doesn’t need to be paid back. If you think Cherokee County is doing its part to keep down the growing national debt created by digging ourselves out of this economic mess, think again. If we don’t use the money, it gets redistributed to other local governments. Cherokee taxpayers are on the hook for it already and risk paying for some other county to reap benefits Cherokee families should have had. Furthermore, the NSP is part of the National Economic Recovery Act of 2008 signed by former President George W. Bush, and that’s about as conservative and Republican as it gets. As far as it not being appropriate, let me reiterate, Cherokee County had about 2,000 foreclosures in 2008. Here’s what’s not appropriate: Playing partisan poli- ■ ■ ■ tics while Cherokee County residents are losing their jobs and homes in record numbers. Bosch’s reasoning for opposing the NSP is that, as a federal program, NSP documents might have to be translated into other languages, which is, apparently, counter to county law. That raises two questions: • Are we going to divest ourselves from federal Community Development Block Grants, HUD money for seniors and other federal giveaways, too? • Are we really more willing to maintain some irrational fear of other cultures instead of taking care of our own? (I’ll bet recipients would be more than happy to say, “gracias,” “merci,” “danke,” “grazie” or even learn to express gratitude in that tongue-clicking African Bushman language.) Hubbard’s opposition to the NSP is, “It has the potential for the government to change the rules and cost our taxpayers money.” While it’s true that possibility may exist, it’s a mistake to worry about the “What if” scenario when the “What is” scenario of foreclosures and job losses is here right now. If the rules change, quit the program; I’ll be happy to throw in a couple of personal tax dollars to make up the difference … if any. The same is true of the viewpoint that the county has no business being in the real estate business. If we can afford to shell out $3.7 million for 98 acres of spec land for an airport expansion that might benefit residents indirectly at some unknown point in the future, can’t we afford to use a $3.1 million federal handout to directly help struggling families today? The view that private investors can accomplish the same goals as the NSP without affecting taxpayers is also a red herring. Investors don’t have the same stake in helping out Cherokee residents as the county government does, and flipping property for quick profits is what got us all into this mess to begin with. Relying on investors to bail us out of this mess is foolhardy, at best, but if they help out, it should be in addition to the NSP. There is no good reason for rejecting the NSP. Looking this gift horse in the mouth makes Cherokee County look like the other end of the horse. LETTERS ■ Tea partiers were regular people Dear Editor, In regard to the letter from Mr. Thompson (“The bitter taste of tea,” April 29), the Tea Party participants were not scripted as he said and were not attended by only mega-media outlets or paid for by any corporations. The party that I attended were senior citizens truly concerned with the state of our nation ... a nation that has lost sight of what our Constitution stands for and for the hard-working American who actually works for a living and pays his taxes and doesn’t expect the government to take care of him. The group we had were not millionaires and were expressing their disgust at the overspending and pork projects the administration has signed into law without regard to what Americans want. It’s a sad day when the government has to bail out banks and automakers because of poor leadership and greed of the people who ‘Americans need to wake up and realize the current administration is spending more than any other ....’ run them. The result is imposing higher taxes on those of us who pay our portion but do not wish to pay for corporate bailouts. Americans need to wake up and realize the current administration is spending more than any other, and we will pay for the trillions of dollars in taxes. Most of the people I saw at the parties were Americans having a peaceful demonstration expressing their views and opinions of the poor representation from all members of our government who have no regard for the American people and only for their own political gain. Mr. Thompson might want to attend a Tea Party on the 4th of July and see for himself that most people attending are just average Americans not millionaires or big corporations. Kim Guinn Canton
MAY 20, 2009 OPINION THE CHEROKEE LEDGER-NEWS 7 LETTERS ■ HOAs are misusing their authority Dear Editor, I am appalled by the practice of some homeowner associations of publishing the names and addresses in their “newsletters” of their members who are delinquent in the payment of their association fees. I know there will always be deadbeats, but I’m concerned about the good people who have been impact- Thank you, planning commission Dear Editor, I would like to express my gratitude and sincere appreciation to the members of the Cherokee Planning Commission for their recommendation of denial for the Etowah Valley rezoning case. As someone who attended every work session and planning commission meeting for this case, I witnessed their diligent efforts reviewing the mountains of ever-changing information associated with this proposal. This case presented many challenges for commission members, and each member handled them with the utmost professionalism. It was apparent from their questions to the developer and county staff that they had carefully studied all of the information presented to them. After weighing all of the facts of this case, the commission members publicly went on record with detailed comments on the issues they found to be adverse to the best interest of the county. They expressed concerns, including the financial burden the development would pass on to Canton, the school system and Cherokee citizens, the impact of the development on the city of Canton – which had previously Tell Cherokee what you think. Letters to the Editor may be submitted by fax to (770) 928-3152, by e-mail to editor@ledgernews.com or by regular mail to 103 E. Main St.,Woodstock, GA 30188. All letters must be typed or e-mailed and must include a phone number to verify authenticity. We reserve the right to reject publication.We reserve the right to edit for libel and brevity. ■■■ voted to deny the project – the massive budget shortfalls of the Georgia Department of Transportation and Cherokee County to fund the necessary transportation improvements, the impact on an environmentally sensitive area, the erosion of the county’s ability to uphold its ordinances if they granted the large numbers of exceptions being requested, and the proposal’s radical departure from the Land Use Plan. We are fortunate to have such dedicated individuals willing to serve our community. Dislike of Obama isn’t racism Dear Editor, The recently published letter by Uche Amanambu (“Griping about Obama has grown old,” May 13), while well-written, was based on faulty premises. The differences conservatives have with President Obama have nothing to due with race. I don't care about his race, sex, sexual preferences, or anything else. I do, however, care very dearly about the direction he is trying to take the country. The letter’s author said he is 16 years old. Does the writer realize that the $1.7 trillion deficit that Obama is running up this year alone will be his responsibility to pay back over his lifetime. His taxes will be paying for the the failure and bailout of companies like AIG, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Citibank, Merrill Lynch (taken over by Bank of America), and many more financial institution that had bad business models. Someone has to pay for this, and unfortunately, when the letter’s author leaves school, gets into the real world, and starts working, he will receive his check from his employer and take a look at all the taxes seized. Then he will realize that he has been had. The Republicans lost the last two elections mainly because they failed their conservative base. They were elected to reduce the size of government, but they hugely increased it. While everyone else in the country is trimming back expenses and spending less, Obama is going on a spending spree, like a teenager with Momma's credit card. However, our children will be getting the bill. Is this “hope for the future?” The federal government is bailing out failed businesses at the expense of successful ones. Is this what we want? Does it help or hurt the economy to take money from successful ventures to prop up bad ones? Is this the change the letter’s Linda Flory Ball Ground author wanted or that America needed? When he sees the president of the United States going to Europe and apologizing for how arrogant we have been, does it make him proud? For those who lost fathers, grandfathers or any loved ones during the World Wars, how does this make them feel? Obama wants more government involvement in health care, possibly a complete nationalization of it. Is it comforting to think that some bureaucrat will be taking care of his medical needs? The letter’s author is obviously an intelligent young man, but I implore him to check his premises before accusing critics of the president of being bigots, or racists. Our differences, or gripes, are on important issues and the direction of our country. Chuck Hillegass Canton Gripes are about policies, not race Dear Editor, In response to the May 13 letter “Griping about Obama has grown old”: You have got to be kidding me. Democrats hammered George W. Bush since his first day in office. Eight months into his first term, we were attacked by Muslim radicals intent on bodily harm to civilians. We were thrust into a war with no boundaries, and, for the next seven years, liberals and Democrats did everything within their power to undermine Bush’s authority. The letter’s author claims that Republicans are complaining about Obama because of his race. We conservatives are not the hatefilled people liberals make us out to be. Regardless of race, we would treat any Democrat with policies ed by the extraordinary economic downturn. These are folks who normally honor their obligations but now find themselves without jobs or income. Do these petty bureaucrats of the homeowners associations think that embarrassing these people will solve the problem? Has anyone consulted with the homeowners to find a way to help similar to Obama’s the same. We don't like what Obama stands for, much like the liberals didn't like G.W. and his policies. The taxes the letter spoke of have more of a direct effect on the “poor” than they do for the “rich.” As a cigar-smoker, I can tell you that this doesn't affect my bottom line. However, my cigarette smoking friends will see about $40 a month added to their habits. As for SCHIP, it was not intended for families making over $50,000 annually. Obama wants to not only include this group but add to that. Allowing families that make $85,000 to enter kids into SCHIP is not good medicine – it's socialized medicine. Can you hear Canadian residents laughing at us, yet? Their system has absolutely failed them solve their dilemmas? Webster’s dictionary defines the word “association” as “an organization of people with a common purpose …” and “friendship: companionship.” The HOAs seem to think that “shaming them into it” is the same thing. Ron Taylor Woodstock and we're on the same path. Moving on to TARP funds – we have a chain of events that our great-grandchildren will still be paying for. Businesses come and go. These “too big to fail” companies should be doing just that. It's not the “Imperial Federal Government's” job to fix that. The same thing goes for the mortgage industry cave-in. These uneducated people that signed these loans were too ignorant to figure out that they had loans they couldn't afford. Oh, well, move and rent. That's why we have apartments and mobile homes. So, please do us a favor and leave your hypocrisy at the door. Kirk Harrington Canton • Where were the Woodstock police when all the drunk drivers were driving through Woodstock downtown neighborhoods and using the street signs and shrubs as urinals during and after the concert? Instead of watching the concert, please, police the area. • Why do Republicans always have to resort to sneering, sarcastic, name-calling ridicule when rebutting liberal viewpoints? Are they that insecure about the disgraceful mess Bush left the country in catering to the right-wing lunatics? Do they realize when Obama fixes things, they will be better off, too? • What the government gives back in our paychecks, the gas companies take away. • In 20 years, the most lucrative business you can be in will be hearing aids … and tattoo removal. • The people with the car warranties keep calling me, too, and I don’t even have a car. I have a horse. • People, please, if you can’t do more than one thing at a time, please don’t talk on the telephone and drive. • The city of Canton said it had enough money to run things, but a millage increase was a possibility because they don’t want to be left flat. Well, we don’t want to be left flat, either. Don’t raise the millage rate; we need to eat, too. • Where is the outrage? Dr. P is planning on cutting expenses by firing half of the special needs and kindergarten parapros. These children need their parapros more than any others. Parents, you need to contact the school board before it’s too late. • Has anything ever been done to the gas stations that were doing the price-gouging when gasoline $4plus per gallon? • This is the language police, and I do want to thank your first Soapbox reader who corrected me. I did, indeed, have a run-on sentence. Mea culpa, I’m sorry. • Here’s a message to the oil companies who think they’re going to charge $3 a gallon this summer: All your wells are built on government-subsidized money and tax deductions. If you go up to $3 a gallon, we’re gong to put some kind of moratorium on petroleum products and we’re going to stop this gouging. You’re just stealing from America is all you’re doing. • I recently saw a vehicle with Florida plates on it with a bumper sticker for a student of the month at Bascomb Elementary. Now, that’s paying some taxes in Cherokee County. • If the county commissioners don’t accept the Neighborhood Stabilization Program money, they’re just playing politics and not concerned with helping people. • Yep, another non-Cherokee County police car racing through the city of Canton. This time: Dunwoody Police car running red lights and racing through our city. What about our laws? •To the person who runs the stop sign on Santa Fe Trail: Be glad it was my dog you killed and not my child. • It’s no wonder they can’t repave 575 through Cherokee County; they’ve blown the budget by working on all the exits for the new Ga. 20 mall. • Just who is responsible for this horrible hit-or-miss repaving of Towne Lake Parkway? How does it invite new families to move here when the main access road looks like Morse code? • Stop lying. I don’t think any Democrat ever protested a funeral for a soldier that passed away in the service of his country. • I love turtle and albino squirrel soup. SOAPBOX ■ • I have an American right to complain. If I knew your name, I’d complain about you, too. Give me your name. • Cherokee County rubberstamped another great shopping center so the good ol’ boy network could sell their property. Now, we’re stuck with Canton Marketplace, a traffic nightmare. • The albino squirrel sure is a traveler. He’s just been seen in downtown Canton with a nut in his mouth. • God bless the person whose son is going into the Army. We thank you. • The car warranty people got hold of my cell phone number. I’ve tried to put a stop to it, but I can’t because it’s a computer call. What do I do? Does anybody know? • Those Gateway computers that were thrown away by the city of Canton are trash. We don’t want to give trash to our school kids. They need better stuff than that. • The Republican states have the lowest test scores because leadership like Chip Rogers doesn’t believe in public schools. Doesn’t Sen. Rogers know that by failing to fund education he is only helping to grow ignorance and hate? •My comment wasn’t printed, either, and I called two times about the same issue. I’m wondering if all this Soapbox stuff is not real. Soapbox people, are you for real? • Forget the albino squirrel. Forget the homeowners association. The country is fixing to fall. How are you guys fixed for food, water and ammunition? • I haven’t seen an albino squirrel, but I have seen a Sasquatch in the Buffington community. • They can’t make any more speed traps in Holly Springs; the whole city is a speed trap. • I must be a neocon, too, because I haven’t been brainwashed by ABC, CBS, NBC, MSNBC, the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the AJC, Time magazine or any of the other liberal rags that have influenced those out there. • To be honest with you, I’m kind of happy with my satellite dish. • It’s not an albino squirrel; it’s a fox squirrel. It comes in different colors, that include white, black and white, sometimes black with a black head and white body or black body and a white head. Anyway, fox squirrel is what it is and it’s native throughout the area. • I’m 76 and the other day a 50year-old man told me I’m responsible for this debt Obama’s putting us in and my kids and grandkids will have to pay it. I said, “You’re certainly right, my friend. My kids and grandkids put him into office, and they should have to pay it.” • I think the Woodstock police should hire more nice, friendly officers, like the short, bald one they have. He’s really nice. • Are you sure you’re not talking about George Bush not allowing pictures of our men coming home from Iraq in caskets to be seen on TV? You people are really scary. • The seating order in hell will be as follows: lawyers, No. 1; doctors, No. 2; dentists, No. 3; TV preachers, No. 4; and people who run over possums, No. 5. The Ledger-News reserves the right not to publish Soapbox items based on libel or other considerations the editor and publisher deem valid. Comments may be edited for brevity. Please keep comments as brief as possible. If you have a lengthy opinion, please submit a letter to the editor. To submit a Soapbox, call (770) 928-1055
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