August 21, 2019 Page 5A
iR orter
ON THE OUTSIDE LOOKING IN
by Don Daniet
Lbast week, I was honored to be the guest speaker at
a Rotary Club up in North Georgia. There were
out 40 members of the 60-member club at the
reakfast meeting. Before I began my talk, as with
other clubs and groups I have spoken to, I ask for partici-
pation in a News Media Survey. It is a good tool to use for
interaction between me and the audience.
With the public attitude towards the news media bounc-
ing up and down from negative to positive, I just ask a
couple of questions in the sur-
vey. The answer to one question
i!i!~ :iiii!!:
response stands outlike a sore
thumb answering "Overall what
is your opinion of the news
media?", choosing between very
positive, good, average, poor,
15 out of 30 answered that their
opinion of the news media was
poor.
The other question, "What
is your, main source of daily
news? the internet got the most
responses.
The response to the last survey
question, "In your opinion, has
the quality of news coverage im-
proved, declined or stayed the same over the last decade?"
was an overwhelming declined. When we discussed this
question in the question-and-answer time, the adamancy
of not being happy with the news media became very
evident with some comments being hostile.
The survey reveals a lot about the news media and
across the board, some opinions are the same and others
are off the charts. Let me know your answers/opinion to
the three questions.
THERE ARE two issues that I hear quite often from
Forsyth residents and out-in-the-county residents: park-
ing in downtown Forsyth is often as hard to find as a
four-leaf dover and a by-pass. Forsyth's mayor and council
attitude seems to be "Let 'em walk. Park down at Ingles.
On the way back you can get you a cup and sip on your
beer during the hike or walking around town looking for
your vehicle is good for business". Of course a dog park,
skate park and a splash pad have more voter appeal, or so
they think.
Then there is the by-pass which has been discussed very
quietly, behind the scenes, behind dosed doors, forgotten
then arisen when a local politician or wanna-be politician
brings it up as a campaign issue.
The reason I am kicking the dead mules (parking and
by-pass) is because of a post on Facebook by one of our
state representatives, Susan Holmes. Susan was the mayor
of Monticello and got elected to the Georgia House of
Representatives several years ago and has become a well-
respected legislator even getting her Son appointed to
some high-muckety-muck position in state government.
Now, back to the story: According to Susan's Facebook
post and photo, "Great meeting with Governor Kemp
yesterday regarding the Monticello truck route. He is very
aware of the dangers of congestion on our square and is
committed to getting this project started".
Here is more from Rep. Holmes: "we desperately need
the truck route. Committed to referring it as a truck route
as we are hoping trucks mainly use it and tourists will
come thru and spend money. Gov. Kemp has agreed to
work with us to begin construction before the 2023 date.
First segment was built in 1970. My daddy was a primary
proponent back then! Four major state highways converge
on our square and it's getting more dangerous every day.
Guv is familiar as he travels thru here frequently"
Forsytth has four state highways that pass through
downtown according to the official Georgia DOT map
and we also have four merging state highways which are
compounded by interstate trucks. I think Gov. Kemp
would be insulted if our local elected guvmint boys asked
him for anything. He didn't make a decision on the county
line as secretary of state, didn't win Monroe County in
the GOP primary for governor and if you think he would
help us with a by-pass/truck route, then you believe turtles
have wings!
THE CHURCH being organized in the Piggly Wiggly
strip mall is Momentum Christian Church and Kimberly
Banks was the first to answer The Question. She gets a cer-
tificate for a dozen Dunkin donuts, Dairy Queen Blizzard,
a single dip at Scoops, slice of Jonah's pizza, Whistle Stop
fried green tomato appetizer, slice of Shoney's strawberry
pie and a Forsyth Main Street t-shirt.
Herds The Question for this week and the answer is in
an ad: The Monroe County Sheriff's Office is now accept-
ing applications for what positions? (Hint: the ad is on
page 1C of last weeks' paper). First correct answer after 12
noon Thursday gets the goodie certificate.
JUST IN case you are not yet aware, Monroe County
will be celebrating its Bicentennial in 2021 to observe
the 200th anniversary of the creation of Monroe County.
There is already a Monroe County Bicentennial Commis-
sion appointed and will have their first meeting next week.
Here's a footnote: on the front page of the first edition of
The Monroe County Reporter, November 8, 1972, there
was a picture of the sesquicentennial committee all who
have died. After all that was 50 years ago and some were
old back then.
ON THE lighter side: I finally did it! Bought a new pair
of shoes with memory foam insoles. No more forgetting
why I walked into the kitchen. Herds another: You never
appreciate what you have till it's gone. Toilet paper is a
good example. FYI, months that begin on a Sunday will
always have a Friday the 13th.
GOT SOMETHING you want "aired out"? Then come
join us on The Reporter On The Radio. Listen to our
commentary on Majic 100 Sunday mornings at seven and
watch the show on Forsyth Cablevision.
Don Daniel is the founder and former publisher of The
Monroe County Reporter. Email him at mediadr@bellsouth.
net.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
| e
To the Editor:
ead your On the Porch
column from the Aug.
14 Reporter, ' kn on-line
after it was placed
on www.instapundit.com. I was
raised, like most of my peers, to
have compassion for those who err
knowing we all make messes, and
respect ach other not because we're
good, but because God created us in
his image. Somewhere those basic
life guides were tossed aside by more
and more of our populace and re-
placed with a puritanical judgmen-
talism, that sorts us into tribes of
those who are the 'pure and award
(woke) and those who are malignant
and unworthy of participating in
society and our polity. A lot of this is
founded on ignorance and colossal
lack of self awareness. Southerners
aren't immune but ironically often
have more acceptance of others than
their puritanical mostly agnostic
friends in blue states up north or
anywhere else. We live in Texas and
New York City and generally, our
Texas friends and acquaintances
rarely delve into these nasty political
judgmental rock throwing matches.
It's a waste of time and we'd rather
talk about those things that bind us
together, like we were taught as kids.
Sadly a lot our brethren have lost
that ability and they are worse off
for it.
Lark Mason
New York City
JUST THE WAY IT IS by Sloan Oliver
"1" A "rhenever this country
I/I ! has a political dis-
I/ V agreement, instead of
a calm and reasonable
debate among those with whom we
disagree, the new norm is to name
call, to disparage the other group,
and never address the issue being
discussed. This "new norm" is taught
and encouraged by the liberal media
and Democrat politicians who attack
anyone who criticizes the politics
of their heroes such as Obama (or
Hillary or any other leftists), yet
they call Trump the most evil, vile
names imaginable. This name calling
is directed at conservatives and has
been ongoing for decades; Bush 41
was called a racist; Bush 43 was called
a racist; Romney was
going to "put y'all back
in chains" - meaning
Romney's a radst; Mc-
Cain was a racist; Sarah
Palin was a racist; and
every other conserva-
tive gets labeled a racist.
It's gotten to the point
where we no longer
have civil discourse,
and that's by design. It's
called "misdirection7
Our focus is misplaced;
it's on each other when
we should be focused
on politicians and the
media.
PEOPLE HAVE always disliked
politicians and the media but, in
recent years, the dislike ( .closer to
hatred) has gotten worse. We dislike
politicians because they say what-
ever it takes to get elected, and once
elected they act like unaccountable
kings and queens completely ne-
glecting those who elected them. In
short, politicians lie and their lies
have gotten worse. They all go to
Washington and quickly become
embedded in elitist circles, becoming
a part of the Deep State. The Deep
State's mission is to keep and expand
the powers (and wealth) ofthose in
Washington at the expense of the rest
of the country. Here's proof." The four
wealthiest counties in the entire na-
tion, measured by household income,
surround Washington D.C. Further
proof- most Washington politicians
become millionaires after just a few
years. Then, they all stick around
as lobbyists to make millions more.
So, politicians get elected by lying;
they go to Washington and get rich;
they embed themselves in the power
structure; and they neglect folks back
home. Both Democrats and Repub-
licans are equally guilty; and they do
whatever it takes to get re-elected and
to remain in power. (Proof of this
is that over 95% of incumbents are
re-elected.)
THE WORST thing about politi-
cians is, after being dected, they
completely neglect the issues they
campaigned on. Education, poverty,
immigration, gun control, crime,
abortion, taxes, the economy; etc.
- name one issue that has gotten
fixed or the problem solved. You
can't because nothing ever gets fixed.
That's by design. Politicians don't
want problems solved;
] instead, politicians want
to use their pet issues
to raise donations and
to demand your vote to
"fix" the problems once
re-elected. Herds proofi
Anytime there's a mass
shooting the gun-control
politicians use that shoot-
ing to raise mone ; and
the 2nd Amendment
politicians use it to raise
money as well. Or any-
time there's a court sling
on abortion, both sides
use it to money.
Regardless of the issue, politicians ask
for more money and then never solve
the problem.
THE REASON we increasingly
dislike (or hate) the media is because
most of the media is completely dis-
honest. I've written numerous articles
using dozens of examples about the
fake news media. It's gotten to the
point where anyone who believes the
media, without checking numerous
sources, is ignorantly stupid. Today's
media is wrong and misleading more
often than not. The media has taken
sides, and having done so, they dis-
tort stories and ignore relevant infor-
marion in an attempt to further their
agenda and their narrative. Perfect
example was the recent mass killings
in Dayton and E1 Paso. The El Paso
killer appears to be a "right-wing nut"
whose manifesto furthers their narra-
tive that President Trump encourages
these killers and thus is responsible
for the El Paso shooting. While the
partisan media reported endlessly
about the E1 Paso killer's manifesto,
they said nothing about the intent
and political leanings of the Dayton
shooter. The Dayton shooter appears
to be a hard core Democrat leftist,
a follower of Elizabeth Warren, and
has extreme radical, leftist ideologies.
Additionally, the Dayton shooter
was often spotted at leftist/Democrat
rallies, yet the media has been silent
about him because he doesn't fit their
narrative. So, the media has become
dishonest; they advance extreme
leftist ideology; and they demonize
those who disagree with them. In
short, most media is fake news.
KNOWING ALL of the above, if
you've been paying attention, anyone
could have seen someone like Donald
Trump coming along. Trump is not
a politician. He's a businessman. He
makes deals, builds things, and buys
and sells stuff. To make deals and
build things, a businessman must
solve problems and get things done
or nothing happens. Zoning issues,
labor problems, and engineering is-
sues are all encountered and must be
solved immediately. Non-politicians
solve problems much differently than
do politicians. Non-politicians iden-
tify problems and solve them; politi-
cians identify problems and never
solve them. That makes the non-pol-
itician a threat to the political elites
who must keep problems unsolved
and festering to keep themselves
relevant. Also, ifa non-politician
can waltz into their arena and play
the game better than they, then why
do we even need those politicians?
Answer - we don't and that's why
the Dems and the never Trumpets
want to destroy President Trump.
He's beating them at their own game
and it drives them bonkers. We knew
what we were getting with Donald
Trump - a politically INCORRECT;
tell-it-like-it-is businessman who is
an equal opportunity offender - of-
fending people regardless of their
gender, race, color or creed. Lies and
threats don't intimidate him. I'm
amazed how President Trump drives
the narrative and drives the thinking
of those who hate him.
WEEKLY THOUGHT: It's fun to
watch how Donald Trump lives "rent
fred' in the heads of those who detest
him.
Sloan Oliver is a retired Army of-
ricer who writes a weekly column for
the Reporter. Email him at sloanoli-
ver@earthlink, net.
Continued from Front
was a large limb down over several
graves.
Edge said that he was upset when he
and his wife, Gaff, visited the cemetery
and saw tire tracks on Vernon O'Neal's
grave and saw that O Neal's foot stone,
which prodaims him as a Purple Heart
recipient, was knocked off its place.
Edge said he is a Vietnam veteran and
a Bronze Star redpient and is hurt by
the lack of respect for the Purple Heart.
"It broke my heart ' said Edge. "I like
to broke down and cried. I don't know
who keeps it up, but you need to ad-
dress the issue?
Edge commented that the small
town of Roberta keeps up its city cem-
etery well and that Spanky Beck keeps
his cemetery in Forsyth maintained
well. Edge said that the first impression
the city makes, possibly with its cem-
eter) is what visitors will remember.
Council member John Howard said
that he was concerned when the dty
was not keeping up the cemetery as
well as it should several years ago and
hates to hear there is still a problem.
Council member Greg Goolsby said
that one thing that defines a dty is
how well it takes care of its cemeteries,
"We've got to do a better job?
City Manager Janice Hall said that
she talked to dty workers about the tire
tracks on the grave, and they said they
didn't do it. A prison crew weed-eats
in the cemetery, but only dry workers
operate mowers in the cemetery. Hall
said dty workers told her they never
ride over grave slabs, and they have
been told not to do so. She said vehides
drive through the cemetery at night.
Haft said she does not know how
to get the black marks off the grave.
The city cuts grass and maintains the
landscape in the cemetery but doesn't
usually do any work on grave markers.
Although BamesviUe Marble has done
some work for the city on markers,
Hall said many of the markers are quite
old and she is afraid the city could do
more damage than good to them.
Mayor Eric Wilson said he rode
through the cemetery the preceding
day and most of the grass looked like
it had been cut during the preceding
week. He said grass in the upper sec-
tion of the cemetery hadn't been cut.
W'flson said he did not look at indi-
vidual graves.
"The bottom line is it's ours to
maintain; we own the cemetery ,' said
Goolsby. "I'm all for putting gates up. If
we need to dose the street, we should.
I don't care if they get to the football
game?
"It's a sacred place ' said Howard.
Council member Chris Hewett mo-
tioned to put gates on all city cemeter-
ies, and Howard seconded the morion.
Council member Julius Stroud said the
gates should be of appropriate design
so that they add to the appearance
of the cemeteries, and Howard said
council needs to set hours for dosing
the gates.
Police Chief Eddie Harris said he
thinks it is a great idea to dose the
cemeteries to unregulated traffic but
that dosing the cemetery road near
Mary Persons is going to affect the
school system so the city needs to work
with the school system. Goolsby said
the road through the cemetery is not a
public road. Stroud said the city needs
to look at how the dosing will affect
others, including emergency vehicles.
Council amended the motion to put
up gates at the cemeteries to a mo-
tion to have Hall bring gate designs to
council and make contacts about the
impact of dosing roads in the cemeter-
ies at night.
