Articles by Section - Columnists
Yarbrough: Not impressed with ethics reform
When the phone rang, I knew who was on the other end: Skeeter Skates, owner of Skeeter's Tree Stump Removal and Plow Repair in Greater Metropolitan Pooler. I can't tell you exactly why but the phone always sounds more urgent when Skeeter calls.
Travis: Grandmothers grow up, too
I spent two days with my Macon grandchildren in Macon last week while they were on spring break and their parents were working. It was a thoroughly enjoyable experience, but different.
McCoy: The joys of a garden
Spring is here, and after we sailed past Good Friday and the risk of frost, it is now planting time! I've bought seeds and pots and I'm ready to plant something.
Holt: A view from the House
Last week saw the conclusion of this year's legislative session. In three all-day floor sessions, we considered 22 bills and resolutions, and also worked through more than 40 reviews of amendments and compromise positions between House and Senate versions of bills.
Golden moments in unlikely places
I heard the whoosh of a sliding door and the hurried clip-clop of a man's shoes on the tile floor, but I couldn't see him as the elevator doors closed across my view.
Are we really equal?
Are women equal to men? Are Jews equal to gentiles? Are blacks equal to Italians, Irish, Polish and other white people?
Morgan: Re-living the past good for the soul
We are constantly admonished to live in the moment and decried if we appear to be living in the past. The past is behind us and cannot be changed. The future lies ahead, unpredictable and out of our control.
Cushman: A much welcomed return to modesty
Just last week, I was commiserating with other moms of middle-school teenage girls about the lack of appealing clothing available to teenage girls and the appalling state of girl teenage fashion today.
Burnham: Why would Jesus come to earth?
I want to suggest to you that there are at least four good reasons why Jesus came to earth.
Precious pet gets princess syndrome
My erstwhile outdoor cat Julianne has gotten used to the good life with a vengeance.
Holt: A view from the House
Last week saw the House closing in on the end of this year's legislative session - we only have one week to go. The committees were working through Senate bills, so we had more to consider on the House floor. We voted on 38 bills and resolutions during the week.
McCoy: Have a great mid-life crisis
I decided to let my remaining hair grow a lot longer than it normally does, and someone suggested I "must be in a mid-life crisis." Well, yeah! I've been in a mid-life crisis for at least 12 years now, and I have no intention of ending it anytime soon.
Williams: Intellectuals and race issues
After reading Dr. Thomas Sowell's latest book, "Intellectuals and Race," one cannot emerge with much respect for the reasoning powers of intellectuals, particularly academics, on matters of race. There's so much faulty logic and downright dishonesty.
Carter: Relief and resignation
Sigh… It's a word to describe a sound we make. But, the meaning can only be discerned by listening closely to the sound.
A hero on and off the field
There are many heroes walking among us. Sometimes we know them, but many times we don't. And even if we know their names, we may not realize why they are heroes and how our community is better because of them.
Archive By Section - Columnists
Understanding Gas fees can be taxing
A lot of press, including this publication, has been dedicated to trying to figure out why gas prices, already high, are headed further upward due to an increase in state and local sales taxes, effective Sunday.
Mystery gives way to merriment
The ghostly visage of a grand four-columned, two-story home alone in a broad field of alfalfa appears in a photograph likely taken sometime in the first quarter of the 20th century. It sat beyond the eastern edge of Covington, now at the end of Floyd Street and behind the Newton County Library, but at the time the house was built -sometime between 1910 and 1918, it is thought - Floyd Street went only as far ...
Yarbrough: Happiness a state of mind
I feel like a failure. For years, I have told you what a privilege it is to live in Georgia. We have beautiful mountains, pristine beaches, the oldest state-chartered university in the nation, Vidalia onions and more concrete fishponds than you can count. And we are unhappy. Where have I gone wrong? A survey by Gallup-Healthways called the Well-Being Index released last month says Georgia is only the 31st happiest state in the nation. For ...
Giddens: An ode to Oxford
Our cottage in Oxford is once again a woodsy retreat, lush with fresh greenery and new growth.
Tread lightly when stepping into local affairs
In case you missed this, there is a bill calling for the governor to be able to remove members of the Atlanta School Board if they keep chicken fighting among themselves rather than doing their job.
Holt: Legislative session a wrap
This year's legislative session is at last over. We saw the usual surge of bills and resolutions in the last week, as well as many reconciliation reports between House and Senate versions of some of those. Overall, we voted on 99 measures. SB 33 is the Senate's version of zero-based budgeting. Zero-based budgeting requires that an agency justify its budget request from the ground up, rather than simply requesting a continuance each year and merely ...
Mathews: Professional Learning Communities needed
If change were the criteria for judging school improvement, many school systems would be way down the road towards greater student learning. And, while "first order change" (an extension of the past consistent with existing knowledge and skills) is hardly the same as "second order change" (a break from the past requiring new knowledge and skills), both types are at work in Newton County School System as we seek continuous improvement.
Harwell: You can't make this stuff up
Settle back friends, 'cause I'm about to tell you a story that may leave you slack-jawed and dumbfounded.
Economics almost as simple as pie
Economics is much simpler than many highly-paid pundits would like you to believe. At the same time, it's also much more complex than it might appear. For instance, why are there so many economic pundits when all they do is make predictions that often prove wrong (see nearly any of the reporting that preceded the Great Recession)? Are they really adding value? Not all forecasts are a waste of time. Forecasting and tracking of ...
Let’s get on track for railroad buy
My head spins. My eyes cross. My neck tightens. I find it hard to draw a deep breath, and my hands tremble uncontrollably.
Giddens: What we learned doing our homework
Donna and I have seen a lot of Newton County and environs in the past few weeks. We're looking for a home to buy, and we've been looking at properties all around the county. The good news for us: There's a lot to see, and a lot of bargains out there. The bad news for us all: There are way too many homes that have been turned over to the bank or are in ...
Yarbrough: Dubious achievements in state government awards
Ladies and Gentlemen, the Yarbrough Worldwide Media and Pest Control Company is pleased to recognize members of the 2011 General Assembly who gave so much so that we could get so little.
Revere, Doolittle, Yamamoto and me
Upon occasion, when meeting someone for the first time, I've fielded queries about my last name. A knowledgeable baseball fan, for instance, might ask if I were related to the late, great Ernie Harwell of Detroit Tigers broadcasting fame.
No firearms needed for this hunt
Ice cream hunting season is almost here. I'm so excited! During winter, all the ice cream migrates down to Miami where it congregates in retired autoworkers' refrigerators until it's safe to return home. Sadly some of the ice cream will never make it to Georgia. If you wonder why that happens, just look at the average retired autoworker's stomach. Mother
Seasonal challenge to looking fine
If there were a Vogue magazine for cities, Covington would have been on its cover Wednesday. There couldn't have been a finer day for showcasing our little burg to 50or so state officials, downtown professionals, developers and foundation representatives who arrived for the Heart and Soul bus tour.
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