12 MAY 08: BOOM TOWN

So there I was Friday, doing some necessary shopping at a big department store - and I find a big surprise near the checkout lines. Boxes of fireworks are on sale. What better way for a guy to mark Mother's Day, than to go out in the backyard and blow things up in her honor?

It was Target where I made this checkout-line find. While some stands in Lee and Russell Counties sell loose fireworks off the shelves, Target is selling boxed sets -- looking a bit like boxes of cheeses or fruit in December. Except with these boxes, the damage would be done to parts of your body besides the waistline.

Fireworks sales were illegal in Georgia for decades -- but that changed in 2005, when the legislature legalized sales of sparklers. Target actually began selling them in that first year. I suppose it was an upscale alternative to Wal-Mart stores selling shotguns.

I admittedly don't know much about fireworks, but the boxed sets being sold at Target don't have what I consider sparklers. Isn't a sparkler something that glows and burns while you hold it in your hand? I mean, without any tobacco filling inside?

Instead, the boxes of fireworks have several long cylinders. The boxes never identify exactly what they are -- but a close check at the Georgia law shows they still might be legal. Small-scale "fountain" fireworks are allowed. And it appeared for a while they might be the only fountains operating in Columbus this summer.

We checked the Target web site for "fireworks" Sunday night, to see if these boxed sets were on sale online as well. They weren't. Instead, we found everything from balloons and party invitations to a "Vintage 4^th of July Fireworks Skirt." It's a good argument for why bottle rocket sales aren't legal in Georgia....

So let's assume the boxes of fireworks at Target are legal. Isn't Mother's Day weekend a bit early to be selling them? For one thing, I don't think firing them at cemeteries on Memorial Day will awaken any bodies.

(Yes, I know those Russell County fireworks stores have billboards up. But some of those billboards are up all year long - probably making Wanda the "Bang Bang Lady" a more familiar face than any county commissioner.)

This is another case of a department store rushing the seasons - putting anything "seasonal" on display, even if the next big holiday is weeks away. It explains Xmas trees being sold in October and Valentine's Day items on sale December 26. One of these days, they'll have "back-to-school" specials on sale at the Columbus Civic Center on graduation weekend.

But in this case, selling fireworks in the middle of May only risks weeks of disruptions in some neighborhoods. High school graduates will be celebrating with noisy late-night parties. And we'll know who to blame for this - well, other than the rock-and-roll and hip-hop radio stations....

E-MAIL UPDATE: Now from fireworks to the fire department. Our Sunday review of the Zachary Allen investigation brought this response....

Hi, Richard --

I don't mean to prolong the stories about the Zack Allen case, but I do want to clear up some misunderstanding about the use of the term "non-negative" when it comes to the drug testing that was done. When the test is done, the immediate results are considered to be "negative", in which case the matter is ended, or "non-negative" which means the sample must undergo further testing because there is something in the sample that leads the technician to believe there may be drugs present. Once those further tests are done (and that may take several days), if there are drugs in the sample, it is labeled "positive."

So when Allen was tested, there was something in the sample that showed the possibility of drugs. That's why it was called "non- negative". A negative results could not be ascertained, so further tests were done that showed "positive" for drugs.

Hope this helps!

Maybe Mayor Jim Wetherington can apply this terminology to the upcoming one-percent sales tax vote. Don't vote yes - decide to be non-negative about it, because there just might be something there you'll like.

We'll see if this day finds a new and improved Jeff Meyer in the Fire Chief's office. If I worked at a fire station, I would have spent the weekend making the ladders on the trucks as bright and shiny as possible.

There's apparently speculation inside the Columbus Fire Department that Friday's fallout will lead to Mary Simonton becoming a Deputy Fire Chief. The opening could come from another deputy being demoted. And of course, anyone who volunteers for this should be subject to a polygraph test....

. We didn't start this fire, so we'll stop it now by turning to other Sunday items:

+ A line of dangerous storms dropped more than four inches of rain at the Columbus airport. Big tree limbs fell on streets around Lakebottom Park - but morning exercisers didn't mind, and welcomed the chance to practice their hurdling.

+ WRBL showed an infomercial at 6:00 p.m. for the second Sunday in a row - leading me to believe it's no longer doing early-evening news on weekends. Either that, or the health experts in Iceland are even more "on my side" than the news team....

(Then when the "Nightwatch" came at 11:00 p.m., Steve Ring had to double as news AND sports anchor. I suppose weeknight news anchor Phil Scoggins has the right to a full weekend off.)

+ Columbus State University's baseball team received a #2 seed in the NCAA regionals. Instead of playing the regional tournament at home, the Cougars will have to play at Mount Olive College in North Carolina. The lesson here is obvious: prevail over the "Peaches," and you don't have to face the olives.

+ Instant Message to whomever torched three cars in the Historic District in the last week: Talk about mixed emotions. I mean, part of me wouldn't mind exchanging my 14-year-old car for something newer. It would be paid in large part with insurance money -- and it might impress the relatives on my next road trip.

BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $3.61 a gallon at Dolly Madison on Victory Drive.... greeting cards for 20 cents at the Fred's "going out of business" sale on Airport Thruway.... and a run on one-cent stamps today at local post offices, due to higher postage....

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 714 (- 17, 2.3%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

11 MAY 08: VALLEY SALVAGE MISSION

Think about it for a minute - would you want a well-known local personality to declare you "salvageable?" In front of the entire city? Especially when you've never spent one day in a rehab clinic?

Yet there was Mayor Jim Wetherington at a Friday news conference, describing Fire Chief Jeff Meyer as "still salvageable." It came as the mayor released a report on the.... uh.... well, WRBL's Jennifer Serda called it at 5:00 p.m. the "Zach Wages case." Those police lie detector tests and interviews were even more thorough than I expected....

Other reports correctly said it was the Zachary Allen investigation. An internal police report found Allen did have cocaine in his system, when he wrecked an EMS vehicle near Cross Country Plaza in late 2006 -- but it was only a trace amount. We will resist the temptation to say it was Kenneth Walker-sized.

Mayor Wetherington says the police report found NO evidence that Zachary Allen received special treatment from the Columbus Fire Department, because he's the son of Councilor Gary Allen. Be watching this week's Columbus Council meeting, when Bill Madison claims the special treatment had another basis - and it's not Allen's white shirt.

Yet the conclusion that Zachary Allen received no special treatment is based on his "test scores and training records" for becoming a firefighter. It says nothing to that crash on Macon Road -- and Allen resigned from the fire department one day after the collision. So he actually left too quickly for a cover-up to be started.

Documents filed after the November 2006 wreck indicate Zachary Allen tested negative for drugs, when he actually tested positive. Oops, I'm sorry -- the mayor's statement on the investigation first calls it a "non-negative drug test." I guess there are times when you're not supposed to say positive words about someone.

The final report indicates the mistaken drug report was a paperwork error, which was resolved after someone made an anonymous phone call to City Manager Isaiah Hugley in December 2006. In a way, this is refreshing - as someone tipped off a city official first, instead of a blogger.

Perhaps the biggest surprise in the police investigation involves a Deputy Fire Chief. David Starling denied writing a recommendation letter, when Zachary Allen applied to work with the LaGrange Fire Department. But it turns out two Columbus Fire Department secretaries wrote and initialed the letter for Starling.
I didn't realize Allen looked that attractive to the ladies....

Mayor Wetherington says Deputy Fire Chief David Starling underwent a polygraph test in mid-April about that letter of recommendation - and the examiner concluded Starling "was deceptive in his answers." What IS the legal definition of "recommend," anyway?

But the police report notes it's not unethical for Fire Department personnel to write letters of recommendation. So David Starling isn't even being reprimanded by Mayor Wetherington -- but Starling is hoping no one tries to drag him onto that Fox show "Moment of Truth."

The only person who seems to be directly punished for the Zachary Allen case is a Fire Department investigator. Monica Carstarphen presumed Allen's drug test was negative. For doing that, she's received a "Letter of Counseling." What does that mean - that she can share her story with troubled middle school students?

Yet Mayor Wetherington chose to issue what he called a "very serious" letter of reprimand to Fire Chief Jeff Meyer. He says there were "many mistakes made during this incident...." But based on the mayor's statement, none of those mistakes can be pinned on the chief. There doesn't even seem to be a Karl Rove here, to conspire a cover-up.

The mayor is leaving it to the Fire Chief to discipline members of his own staff. So Jeff Meyer may order David Starling to "fall on the sword" for the Zachary Allen case - or perhaps a Captain who let Allen drive a vehicle he wasn't trained in driving. That doesn't seem to stop some of those salespeople, who try to sell cars.

It turns out the reprimand for the Fire Chief goes beyond the Zachary Allen case. The mayor's letter reveals Mary Simonton was interviewed for a Deputy Chief position in a parking lot -- and while Chief Jeff Meyer was smoking. At least he didn't conduct the interview for a government job in some smoke-filled room....

Mayor Wetherington declares it "inappropriate" for the Fire Chief to be smoking during a job interview, because it showed "a disregard for Captain Simonton." I can't wait to quote the mayor at my next poker night -- and see if the cigarette puffers around my table have a response I can write in a G-rated blog.

THE BIG BLOG QUESTION will stop right here, and ask what you think about this. Is it appropriate for an employer to smoke, during a job interview? Should a boss be reprimanded if he does it? Does it show disregard for an employee? Or does it give someone in the Fire Department a taste of what he or she could face during an emergency in the middle of the night?

There's a third issue in the mayor's letter of reprimand, which admittedly is vague to me. Sergeant John Thomas apparently won a legal settlement from the city, because he didn't receive a job promotion in a proper way. The city had to "expend funds to make Sergeant Thomas whole." You simply don't call someone Johnny unless he specifically says you can.

The police investigation apparently did NOT get into the latest complaint against Fire Chief Jeff Meyer - that he offered an upset employee a job which didn't exist on the city payroll [18 Apr]. Perhaps it was the chief's first case of a "false alarm."

Mayor Wetherington's letter declares the Fire Department management's handling of policies is "entirely too lax." Yet the mayor told reporters he still has a "high level of confidence" in Chief Jeff Meyer. As long as he cracks the whip, and the whip isn't a gift from Marlboro....

The mayor admits he considered firing or demoting Fire Chief. But he concluded the Columbus Fire Department is "very knowledgeable in dealing with fires." That's nice to know - but the handling of personnel firestorms is something else.

There are many other questions we could ask about Mayor Wetherington's decision, and we still might if there's interest. But I'm admittedly surprised that Jeff Meyer escaped with only a reprimand. I suspect many people who voted for Wetherington are surprised as well. They wanted justice, not mercy -- forgetting his time as headmaster of a Christian school.

But as we suggested in April, this reprimand brings another issue into play. Will Columbus voters be less likely to vote for the one-percent sales tax in July, after seeing how Jeff Meyer and his aides were disciplined here? Will skeptics a new game of "cover-up" is under way - with the mayor covering the Fire Chief's, uh, you know? Instead of kicking that, uh, same place?

E-MAIL UPDATE: The message was titled, "That Kansas Coach..." This Kansas grad wondered which one....

Looks like he ate all those former Bama coaches that you mentioned and maybe a couple more from another conference!

OK, I think which one you mean -- since Kansas doesn't have a wrestling program, even for super-heavyweights.

Yes, Kansas head football coach Mark Mangino could be described as hefty. In fact, there were concerns about his health in the last year. But until the recent NCAA basketball program, there was little doubt he was the "big man on campus."

But there's a long summer ahead before college football season, so let's move on to other weekend news:

+ Who left a campaign sign for Russell County Commissioner Johnnie Robinson flat on the ground - at Fourth Street and Second Avenue in Columbus? Did someone decide against throwing it off the Oglethorpe Bridge, because that new dive team might find it?

+ WRBL showed Phenix City grade school students at Garrett-Harrison Stadium, for what was called a "wet fest." When Auburn has a water park and this is the best the Columbus area can do, the Chamber of Commerce's work still isn't done.

+ The Columbus Civic Center hosted an Aflac employee appreciation party in the morning, then turned around and held a Columbus Lions football game at night. I guess Dan Amos isn't making enough money yet to buy an N.F.L. franchise, and move it here.

+ Russell County School Superintendent Yvette Richardson said the high school baseball team will receive "clinics," in the wake of being placed on probation. Aw, c'mon -- do you really need a clinic in counting to 18 regular-season games?

+ Shaw High School opened the Georgia state baseball playoffs by sweeping Ola. Ola?!?! It seems more like adios to me....

(I had to go online to figure out where Ola High School is. It's a new school in the Ola community of Henry County -- but I couldn't find a good explanation for that name. You can't even blame it on that old Beatles song, "Obra-dee Obra-dah, life goes on.")

+ Instant Message to Yellawood's Jimmy Rain: You were kidding, right? I mean, when you talked about the Johnny Mack Brown Western Festival in Dothan -- and said the "good old-fashioned fun" included shootouts? There are some Columbus neighborhoods which might have a different opinion of that....

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 731 (- 18, 2.4%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

9 MAY 08: BUBBLE UP AGAIN

We knew the watering restrictions in Columbus were ending. We knew people could start running their sprinklers next week. But one big question regarding the drought was still unsettled - until Thursday. Thank you WRBL, for resolving what sort of plastic jugs we can use to catch water from our neighbor's sprinklers.

No wait -- there was an even bigger issue on my mind. Would the change to "level two" watering rules mean the fountains could come back on? Columbus is still the "Fountain City," after all. And losing that title even faster than we did the "mill town" label would be an even bigger shock.

But there's good news about this question. Columbus Water Works Vice President Jim Patterson said Thursday fountains CAN come back on Monday, when drought restrictions for Muscogee County are eased. So please do NOT throw in your pennies for a few days - not until the water is refilled.

Fountains across Columbus were turned off last October, because of the severe "level four" drought restrictions. Some familiar local landmarks suddenly looked very different. The empty pools at Heritage Park on Broadway could have been mistaken for the new skate park.

A new pastime quickly sprang up developed in Columbus, to spot the watering violators. We noted one or two here -- as Cheddars restaurant kept its fountain on for several weeks, and even on holidays when it was closed. I don't recall any staff member ever declaring it a public drinking fountain.

In fact, there's one Columbus fountain that I don't think ever was turned off at all. It's inside a homeowner's courtyard, in the 600 block of Broadway. And I'm still not sure which Columbus Water Works employee lives there....

But enough rain fell across Columbus during the winter that the watering rules could change. In fact, another line of storms moved across the area Thursday night -- with high winds drying off the grass first, as if to make it need the rain that much more.

If Columbus Water Works is planning some kind of big ceremony next week to mark the return of flowing fountains, I'm not aware of it. Perhaps some small signal is planned instead. If you see water running outside the facility on River Road, it's a bit like seeing white smoke at the Vatican to proclaim a new pope.

You'd think this return to running fountains would call for a big celebration. Take the Columbus Chamber of Commerce, which has a dry fountain outside its office on Sixth Avenue. Have Mike Gaymon step outside, with a ceremonial magic cup....

(Of course, the Chamber of Commerce forgot to turn off its fountain last fall for several days. So after Mike Gaymon pours that cup, someone should arrest him -- to do a "jail and bail" fundraiser for a low-income assistance program.)

A map posted on the Columbus Water Works web site shows Harris County also will be on "level two" watering rules next week. But Troup County is still at the toughest "level four," even though it's the county with West Point Lake. It's as if people in LaGrange have giant swimming pools in their backyards, for fishing practice.

Yet here's the thing: a federal report released Thursday shows Muscogee County still is in a "moderate drought," and most of Harris County is considered in a "severe drought." So why is the watering restriction really changing? Did Georgia state officials get tired of Columbus executives calling them and lobbying -- a sort of Water Works torture?

E-MAIL UPDATE: Someone else wants to take on the questions a reader asked here Thursday....

Hi, Richard --

I just read your blog today with the e-mail from "John" who has such a long list of complaints. I'd like to address only two of them and try to clear up some of the misinformation he put out there.

The City Council, Mayor and City Manager have absolutely no control over the School Board, the Superintendent nor any function of the Muscogee County School District, and vice versa. The Council, Mayor and School Board are all elected officials, and the Council and School Board each has its autonomy. City Manager Isaiah Hugley (in an appointed position) might be able to talk with his sister Pat Hugley Green, and might be able to convince her to do whatever it is he may want her to do, but I doubt it. If you've ever had a sister or a brother who has some power (even if it's just the power of being the oldest kid or the youngest kid), you know that it's mighty difficult to get him or her to do anything they don't want to do!

And just one other piece of misinformation: If the voters approve a SPLOST, the proceeds cannot be used to pay salaries. The only way you can hire the police officers the Mayor is proposing is to have a LOST. As for the sunset provision called for by John: Do you also want the employment of these officers to have a sunset? Without the money from the LOST to pay salaries, you'd have to lay them off. That's even if the state law allowed a sunset date for LOST, which it doesn't. The LOST is adopted by referendum of the voters and can be removed by referendum of the voters.

Thanks, Richard. I didn't mean to "run on".

Columbus Council and the Muscogee County School District tried to have some "unity meetings" a few months ago. I don't know whatever happened to those. Maybe someone with the Council threatened to declare war, and stage a takeover of the new school administration building.

I have an older brother - and yes, he had some clout over me when I was young. But I'd better not say much more than that right now. I'm going to a family wedding in two weeks - and he might make me sleep on a couch in his home, instead of a bed.

Now let's see if other Thursday news inspires any questions or answers....

+ Columbus Police were called to a reported break-in at the new skate park in South Commons. C'mon, folks - I really don't think the rails on the stairs will be made of solid copper.

+ Mayor Jim Wetherington called a Friday morning news conference, to provide an update on the Zachary Allen investigation. This police probe was supposed to take 30 days - back in December. Even the Georgia Legislature could squeeze in a 40-day session in that time.

+ Alabama's state school board voted to change the rules for high school graduation. Students no longer will have to pass all five sections of a graduation test. They now can get a diploma merely by passing three. This is what happens when you have a string of Alabama college football coaches named Dubose, Franchione, Price and Shula.

+ WRBL reported the Russell County High School baseball team is being put on probation, because it played too many games. Yeah, right. Something tells me other coaches complained in recent years, because this team was scoring too many runs.

+ Australian Christian singing star Rebecca St. James performed at Cascade Hills Church. It was billed as a concert for "mothers, daughters and friends" - which is a pretty clever way of getting around the city rules on Ladies' Night promotions.

+ Instant Message to Arnold Middle School student Jack Hooper: Congratulations on being named this year's "Georgia Reader of the Year!" Some of your classmates probably even you, and couldn't even finish a "Weekly Reader."

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 749 (+ 38, 5.3%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

8 MAY 08: WHEN HAWK SQUAWKED

It's not clear who spilled the beans. It's also not clear why it was let out of hiding. But word spread via e-mail Wednesday about a voice-mail message, which a Columbus Police officer left on the phone of a Georgia state trooper. And it wasn't even a challenge to a bowling showdown, at the Georgia Police and Fire Games.

You may recall Captain J.D. Hawk was arrested last October for driving 103 miles per hour on Manchester Expressway [4 Jan]. After that arrest, word surfaced that Hawk called the State Patrol officer who pulled him over. Hawk's purported voice mail message was passed around town by e-mail. Imagine if the Ledger-Enquirer's Sonya Sorich did this, with calls from guys looking for dates.

J.D. Hawk called state trooper J.D. Perry, because a mix-up over court appearances led to Hawk being charged with contempt. So it was a message from one J.D. to another, when both could have used help from a different J.D. You know, a "doctor of laws."

Your blog has listened to the one-minute voice-mail message from J.D. Hawk. He tells J.D. Perry: "I don't have a problem with the citation, but I do have a problem with the contempt of court." As if the state trooper demanded that from a Recorder's Court judge? For all we know, the judge might have been surly from drinking burnt coffee all morning.

J.D. Hawk goes on to tell the trooper to defend himself on the contempt of court charge, he'd "have to bring some stuff out which is probably going to embarrass you and the court -- IN court." Hawk never explains what that stuff is. But wouldn't J.D. Perry have to go above the speed limit a little, to pull Hawk over?

J.D. Hawk was placed on administrative leave, because some people thought he had threatened the trooper. But Police Chief Ricky Boren revealed Wednesday the Georgia State Patrol and District Attorney decided it was NOT a threat. So that "stuff" may have been nothing more than photos of J.D. Perry on the beach, wearing only swim trunks.

Because the voice-mail message was declared non-threatening, J.D. Hawk has been allowed to resume his normal duties with Columbus Police. He's a patrol supervisor - and until that one-percent sales tax comes up for a vote, he probably doesn't want any officers driving 103 miles per hour in a patrol car.

So why would someone bring out the voice-mail message now? Could it be because J.D. Hawk was honored Wednesday, at a police awards ceremony? It's not like Hawk won a prize, for having the fastest car on the force....

The late-night news noted J.D. Hawk was honored for his years of service with Columbus Police. He could have moved out of town for higher pay, you know -- and become an Atlanta Hawk.

Speaking of that ceremony: congratulations to Columbus Police Sergeant Harvey Hatcher. He was named "officer of the year," for helping with the arrest of Courtney Lockhart. It's too bad Hatcher couldn't give an acceptance speech, because of that Lee County court gag order.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Someone apparently tuned in to the WDAK radio talk show "Viewpoint" this week, and didn't like what he heard. A copy of his e-mail to the station was passed on to us:

Gentlemen:

I have been listening this morning and it seems you have been either replaced by non newsworthy personnel or the Manager is intimidating you.

Why is he being pandered to?

Why are you not asking any real questions?

Did he write your questions for you?

1. Ask him where has the money from recycling that Goodwill claims it has paid every year to the city but is not listed on the budget? at least $150,000 in 2006.

Pam hodge wont answer, 311 wont answer, he has not returned calls, and Ron Smith wont answer

2. Why do we not offer a modification to the property tax, He as well as you admit we have grown and changed our requirements and have serious needs for revenue but we have over 15,000 homes paying less then $50 a year and another 1,000 + paying nothing, why not at least have a cost of inflation adjustment? The property tax was last voted on in 1993 when our budget was $50 Million, our budget is 10 times that but not change to the tax law. In 1983 and 1993 it was also a trick campaign against changing it to a fair tax system.

3. Why is he or the city council not doing anything about the outrage with the School board? too Many things to list...

4. Why are we losing the new industry battle to Auburn/Opelika, Harris County, Alexander City, Lagrange, Valley, West Point etc.... Business and Entrepreneurs have told me the council does not want too much competition in the Job/HR market driving up wages and requirements? (as in the councils friends and campaign supporters)

5. Why are we playing these games with library's and School buildings in one of the most prime retail/ central locations of the city? Parks, or something that might generate revenue could go there instead of a Admin Castle that is not for students.

6. Planning Zoning Board allowing builders and developers to exploit the city and its people for insane profits while they use illegal immigrant labor, don't believe me go to a site I do and I never see him. Why not make these developers more responsible for the infrastructure instead of making more millions?

7. Sidewalks, why not by schools, instead of by friends.

8. Gas insane prices but we collect trash twice a week? conserve some fuel and go once a week.

9. Public transportation, maybe rail network to Atlanta, Macon, Lagrange etc... (be creative) come one I thought he worked at MARTA

10. Rail to Trail, yeah nice plan but again is that what we need right now before we fix schools, fix police, fix the prison, fix blighted areas, create jobs, attract industry, fix the drug problems, clean out the corruption, etc.... Come on, complain about 1 thing but spend on another?

11. LOST is lost,

a) we could put writting to make it specifically the 70/30 rule

b) we could put a sunset provision on it to avoid violations and include check and balance

c) we could make a SPLOST to differ some money from the General Fund to the things needed for the Mayors plan

12. Why is the civic center so inefficient?

a) the city of Savannah, Knoxville, and Jacksonville are using the Civic Center as examples of what not to do, how not to run it, and where not to build it? What do you think we should learn from that?

13. How about the cover ups of council member's family, friends, and church leaders in the city? What about his controversies and alleged favoritisms?

14. Why did we build a skate park in an area plagued by drugs and crime? A place with insane traffic paterns and congestion? A place children can not get to easilly? A place with out suppervision? A place with any possibility of generating revenue? A place that is a half answer to the problem?

15. Why do we not create some creative solutions, ie cameras at stop lights, cameras in parking lots, doing something about the drugs from the powerfull in Columbus.

16. What about the divisive attitude of the community and city officials, ie continual Racist preaching in churches, racist speech at the NAACP, and the community, and city officials (to include you) support of Reverend Jeremiah Wright and his profane divisive speech?

Just a few things a reporter might ask not what I heard today from propaganda coffee talk commercials you guys asked him.

John

John may not realize who the host of Viewpoint is. He's Columbus Chamber of Commerce President Mike Gaymon -- and he's "newsworthy," but normally it's when he's being interviewed about local business.

When I talk about the lack of a local radio talk show in Columbus, I leave out Viewpoint on purpose. Every time I hear Mike Gaymon's show, the information isn't really "news." It sometimes borders on "schmooze."

I didn't hear this interview with (I assume) the Columbus City Manager. But I assume Mike Gaymon asked what he considers some tough questions -- like who Isaiah Hugley thinks should win American Idol.

John has brought a couple of these questions to this blog already, so we'll pass on those today. But as for Columbus Council not doing anything about the Muscogee County School Board -- City Manager Isaiah Hugley has a relative on the board. Maybe Patricia Hugley Green should drive to Phenix City, and join him for a church dinner.

It seems to me there's a good reason why other cities are gaining new industry. They're a lot closer to the Kia plant in West Point. But at least we now have three free-standing Starbucks coffee shops.

Uh-oh - John wants to put something that "might generate revenue" around the central library. That's the very thing the Education Park Coalition was concerned about, in its lawsuit against the school district. It feared "greenspace" might turn into stores handling greenbacks.

Which local schools are lacking sidewalks? As I recall, an effort was made in the last ten years to build new sidewalks around Muscogee County schools. Sad to say, the most recent mishap involved a walkway some think is too close to the river.

The sales tax resolution approved by Columbus Council this week gives John what he's demanding. It says: "To the extent permitted by applicable Georgia law, we hereby express our intent to use 70% of new LOST proceeds for enhancements to public safety and 30% for roads and other infrastructure improvements." Please note not one penny is promised for a park....

I don't have a clue about this allegation of a "cover up" involving a Columbus Council member. Mike Baker is so quiet that he seems to be in hiding, but I don't think that's a crime.

As for the skate park being built in South Commons, this may come as a surprise to many people - but young skateboarders already are there. I've seen them turn and jump around the Olympic monument from time to time for months, if not years. And if all else fails, they probably can find the park through Google Maps on their iPhones.

Several Columbus intersections have "red-light cameras" now - but police have promised NOT to use them to catch traffic offenders. And J.D. Hawk was pulled over on Manchester Expressway last fall without one....

And which Columbus churches already have "racist preaching?" The ones which marked African-American History Month in February, and not Confederate Heritage Month in April?

With a reminder that the City Manager has NOT paid me to be his spokesperson, let's check other Wednesday headlines....

+ Columbus Water Works announced drought restrictions in Muscogee County will be eased next week. People will be allowed to water their lawns ten hours a day, three days a week. It's not yet clear if the fountains will come back on - just in time for high school seniors to soap them as a graduation stunt.

+ WRBL watched a Russell County Sheriff's Department dive team stage a training exercise in the Chattahoochee River. The team found four handguns in water under the Oglethorpe Bridge. Those "Help the Hooch" cleaning crews need to work a little harder next fall.

+ Sonny Coulter announced he'll run for Phenix City Mayor -- the job he gave up four years ago, citing health problems. There's nothing like a new hospital in town to make you feel better....

+ Former President Jimmy Carter told NBC's "Tonight Show" he'll announce which presidential candidate he's supporting after the final round of primaries 3 June. But the Democratic Superdelegate noted his 15 children and grandchildren all support Barack Obama - so they must not think Grandpa would be a good compromise in a deadlocked convention.

(Jimmy Carter toured Los Angeles to promote his new book "A Remarkable Mother" - but he told PBS's Tavis Smiley he spent Tuesday morning on his Plains farm. Why do I have this feeling he's yet another potential customer avoiding the Columbus Airport?)

+ The NCAA accused Alabama State University of sports rules violations - not merely one or two, but 668 of them. Roger Clemens would like to thank this school, for making him look like a model citizen.

+ Atlanta Hawks general manager Billy Knight announced he'll resign in July. Knight wanted Coach Mike Woodson fired last winter - but he stayed, and the Hawks made the N.B.A. playoffs. If Knight can judge talent that well, maybe he should clean out his desk right now.

+ Instant Message to Joe Williams: Best wishes on your retirement from Randolph-Clay High School. Very few basketball coaches have the school gym named after them, as you do. Columbus State University hasn't even named a golf course the "Herbert Green."

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 711 (+ 21, 3.0%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

7 MAY 08: BADDER OR BETTER?

The e-mail was short, to the point, and puzzled me at first:

Are we sure Bad Company is coming? See http://www.badcompany.com

I realized some people are skeptical about the new Kia plant, but really....

But no, this was about something else. A rock band called Bad Company is scheduled to perform 17 May at the Phenix City Amphitheater. But if you click on that link above, you'll find a large statement declaring: "Bad Company is not touring." Of course, the copyright on the home page is 2004 - so maybe they've held surprise reunion concerts in small nightclubs since then.

The web site warns of "cover bands attempting to pass off as Bad Company." See, that's how you can spot the legitimate rock band. The sentence left a word out - "themselves."

The Bad Company web site also promises to take legal action against anyone misusing the band's name - including "musicians, promoters, agents and sponsors." That's why you should notice carefully what the Phenix City Parks Department's web site has done. That misspelling of "Bad Comany" must be an intentional legal defensive measure.

The Phenix City Parks web site tries to put an important distinction on who's performing in mid-May. It's "Bad Company featuring Brian Howe." Howe was not an original band member, but he claims on his web site he was the lead singer for ten years. Isn't that long enough to escape the statute of limitations?

Rebecca Harris with the Phenix City Parks Department certainly knows what she's getting in ten days. Harris admitted to me Tuesday there are plenty of bands with similar names. And she knew the original lead singer of Bad Company now performs mostly in Europe. Except Paul Rodgers is performing 17 May at Miami's main sports stadium -- and probably for more than ten dollars a ticket.

But Rebecca Harris defended the booking of Brian Howe, saying Phenix City still is getting a quality concert. In other words: she got something "Bad," and she thinks that's good....

The Phenix City Parks Department promotes Brian Howe as a rock singer who performs sold-out shows around the world. Sure enough -- one recent entry in Howe's online diary indicates he plans to move to Guatemala. That gives a completely new meaning to "Southern rock."

(Scroll down in Brian Howe's diary, and you'll discover he speaks openly against President Bush during concerts. The Third Brigade is coming home at a perfectly wrong time for him....)

Brian Howe's online calendar doesn't mention the Phenix City concert. But his diary says he's coming, to join "my Radio pal Chris Chaos." Chaos's blog at the WVRK-FM "Rock 103" web site doesn't seem to mention "Bad Company" - but his blog is so filled with pictures of nearly-nude women that I was a bit distracted.

In fact, none of the three FM radio stations welcoming the Brian Howe concert list it online as a coming event. Are they all scared of a possible lawsuit? Do they fear being known by the "Company" they keep?

I neglected to ask how ticket sales are going for the Brian Howe concert. But if he's really bringing an old-style rock band to Phenix City, I'll make a prediction right now. Plenty of fans will sit along the Columbus Riverwalk -- where they can smoke, drink and hear the loud music for free.

So to answer our original question, is Bad Company coming - the answer seems to be "yes and no." The Phenix City Parks staff should bring in The Original Drifters and the Coasters as well, so we can play a mass pop-music version of "To Tell the Truth."

By the way, is the Phenix City Parks Department missing on a good marketing opportunity? With so many concerts planned at the Amphitheater this year, the staff should sell the venue's name to Amp energy drinks.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Sunday's look at the campaign qualifiers in Columbus brought a comment about a race for judge....

Don't forget that Judge Turner no only pulled a gun on the highway,but he also left the bench while sentencing some of the School of the Americas protestors and sat with them in the courtroom gallery.

And looking back at those cases, how many Fort Benning supporters wish Haywood Turner had pulled out his gun THAT day?

Richard Hyatt's web site reminded me that Judge Haywood Turner made his second political switch during qualifying week. He first ran for judge as a Republican, then ran as a Democrat - and this year he's a Republican again. This is one creative way of illustrating a balanced judiciary.

Speaking of the campaign, it appears State Rep. Calvin Smyre in Columbus will face a challenger in November after all. Zeph Baker plans to announce his campaign next week, apparently as an independent. Baker says he's a "proven community leader" in his church. Now will he please name his pastor, so we can review all those sermons?

Now for another local issue, and a reader who's still not satisfied:

Mr. Burkard:

I was wondering if you have any follow up on the recycling program in Columbus.

I have been out of town and have sort of followed along and would like to commend you on what you had found [24 Apr] but it still seems incomplete.

As you stated there should have been about $150,000 paid from Goodwill to the city government some time in 2006. This of course is only one year and does not explain why we do not collect cardboard (which Benning sells for large amounts of revenue) or other plastics etc... according to the personnel at the Landfill tires, and most metal are not sold either.

Pam Hodge, Ron Smith, and Columbus 311 did not answer my or some other people's questions and Mr. Davis, Mr Barnes, Mr Allen, Mrs. Woodson, Mr. Mcdaniels, or Mr. Hugley were not available by phone.

+We are already spending money for collection, and Goodwill is selling the items. Why can +we not collect additional items to sell?

+Where is the money from the sales and what is it spent on?

+Why do we collect twice a week in such high gas price times?

+Busy work for prisons is not good enough we can be more efficient than a Pre-K teacher's answer for nap time.

+This would help the landfill, help the environment, and raise revenue.

+So what is the counter argument I really would like to know.

Goodwill is not repairing and becoming picky, what? [1 May] I thought the old saying of beggars can't be choosers stood for them. (I donate all of my use stuff, no yard sales, or trash I donate)

How much did Goodwill spend on Butterflies, seriously that makes me think twice about donating to them anymore. A company like goodwill I would expect to be frugal, and practical like my 91 year old depression era Grandmother. So why would they spend money on something like that? There are other things they could have used to be symbolic of creating jobs and training. Obviously they have too much money and good times, maybe they have extra from recycle sales kickbacks?

John

John may be able to get some answers, as Columbus Council goes through its budget review. Three public hearings on a "Taxpayer Bill of Rights" are planned in early June. And three new hearings on the proposed one-percent "streets and safety" sales tax are coming in two weeks. But even then, some questions might not be answered. Bill Madison with the NAACP has come to expect that.

But hold on -- John wants the city to collect more recyclable items, but do the collections less often? This could risk an additional expense he might not have considered. Extra repeated lifting could injure some inmates.

How much should Goodwill Industries spend on 2,035 butterflies? The Ledger-Enquirer beat me to this punch line last month, when it reported on an Oxbow Meadows program. Of course, butterflies should be free....

But we checked the web site of a northwest Georgia "butterfly farm" Tuesday night, and found you can buy 2,000 low-priced "painted lady" butterflies at a regular price of $5,900. Goodwill Industries used a Florida company, so its price might be lower - or perhaps it was a barter deal, for three racks of dress shirts.

We thank all of you who take time to write. Now let's write a little bit about Tuesday's top stories....

+ Columbus Council finally approved a resolution, to put the one-percent sales tax proposal on the 15 July ballot. This might lead to some unusual ticket-splitting. Voters could in effect mark a NO ballot against Mayor Pro-Tem Evelyn Turner Pugh - then turn around and vote her husband Reginald into the State Senate.

+ City Manager Isaiah Hugley proposed creating a "night court" for youth offenders, which would meet two evenings a month. Apparently the original night court isn't completely working - the court used for midnight basketball.

+ Smiths Station advanced in the Alabama high school softball playoffs, mauling Montgomery Jefferson Davis by a combined two-game score of 35-2. If it wasn't for "mercy rules" ending games early, a second Jefferson Davis might have unconditionally surrendered.

+ Instant Message to WRBL: Misspelling the Key Elementary School Principal's title as "Principle" is one thing. But showing on the screen "funeral arraignments" for those two drowned boys - four times?! Do you want the father and grandmother arrested, too?

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 690 (+ 6, 0.9%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

6 MAY 08: THE DUCK'S BILL

The Columbus Museum apparently was the happiest place this side of Orlando Monday. Aflac shareholders gathered for an annual meeting. They gave the company's top executives a big vote of confidence. And I doubt a single person demanded foie gras -- you know, duck meat.

Aflac pumped up the media volume for weeks, promoting the big "say on pay" vote. Shareholders could have decided the executives are overpaid, and called for a cut. But think for a minute - if they really felt this way, wouldn't they have sold their Aflac stock and moved on?

The "say on pay" vote was described as a ground-breaker in the corporate world, and a first of its kind for big business. But when the results were announced at the Aflac annual meeting, 93 percent of shareholders supported the pay structure -- making this big moment for democracy land not far from a Cuban national election.

Aflac's latest annual report shows the insurance company has about 80,000 "registered common shareholders." Out of that number, only 2.5 percent were opposed to the executives' pay. C.E.O. Dan Amos can expect a call today from Mayor Wetherington, asking how he can do that well with a sales tax vote.

(Why do you think that 2.5 percent is opposed? Are those the people dying of something besides cancer?)

WLTZ reported the shareholder vote means a total salary of $13.8 million for Dan Amos. That means he could become the last person in Columbus driving a gas-guzzling Hummer or SUV.

Dan Amos briefed shareholders on Aflac's financial condition during the annual meeting. Based on the annual report, the company's stock dividend has doubled since 2004. It's now 80 cents a share - which I think is a better deal than one slice of a large pizza from Domino's.

Here are some other interesting things we discovered in Aflac's report:

+ The company now is selling cancer insurance inside Japanese post offices. So you should think about more than having your stamp canceled....

+ The company paid $865 million in income taxes last year. So every little grant to a public library goes directly to Schedule A.

+ While Aflac has a lot of sales in Japan, it has a "penetration rate" in the U.S. of only seven percent. People may know the ducks, but they're not handing over the bucks.

E-MAIL UPDATE: The Aflac shareholders meeting may have caused the Columbus Museum to make some surprise adjustments....

Richard ,I told you last week I was going down to the Columbus Museum this week end to see the Phenix City display..It consisted of the blood soaked suit that Albert Patterson was wearing when he was murdered. A security guard told me it was being removed ahead of schedule for an event in that area of the museum. I don't think I would want to view it during a reception..The log book of the jail showing the arrest of Hoyt Shepherd and movie posters of the "Phenix City Story."...I was disappointed after all the publicity...



However,I was thrilled to view a collection of old black and white photos of the Columbus and Phenix City areas.This was part of a show of collections of area citizens. What a surprise to see people I recognized. The owner of the photos was there showing them off to friends. He said come to the CVS on Summerville Rd near the Publix and look at others on the walls..



The Columbus Museum is a real treasure for this area..I hope Ft.Benning visitors are told about it at local hotels.

Well, it's no wonder that bloody suit was moved. Aflac sells supplemental death insurance, after all....

Another good spot to see old photos of the Columbus area is at the Burger King on Wynnton Road. One of them shows a group which came to Broadway from the Butler area for a parade in the 1910's. Their "float" was pulled by a horse - and there were no Circle K's to fuel that motor on the long path home.

Even though this is supposed to be a humor blog, readers want to keep commenting on two drownings:

Richard, The TV news did in fact interview the father of the two boys that drowned near Oxbow Meadows and I saw an unusual interview with their father. He was smiling and also chuckled as he spoke of his sons in the midst of this tragedy. The newspaper said that he was a truck driver for Dolly Madison and was in New York. There is no other way to say it but these kids were not properly supervised. If they lived with their Dad's grandmother she is probably a senior citizen and shouldn't have that responsibility in the first place.

The grandmother said Monday she warned the two boys not to go farther than a park. Yet somehow they wandered down the Riverwalk to an off-limits area for swimmers, even though they couldn't swim. Something like this happened when I was young - and I actually believed a neighbor boy, who said my nice shoes wouldn't get muddy in his wet backyard.

The father, grandmother and their neighbors are talking about starting a petition drive, to make the area of the drowning more secure. They think the answer could lie in barriers along the riverbank. But have you noticed how tall fences along the Rio Grande don't seem to keep illegal immigrants away?

I hear a voice of grief in the family's calls for the city to do something in terms of prevention. The emotion of grief naturally wants to blame others, when catastrophes or deaths occur. But sadly, a shooting occurred Monday night between youngsters at an apartment complex playground. Metal detectors at playground gates would get expensive after awhile.

We'll have to hold a couple of other messages for another day, and now move to other Monday headlines:

+ Muscogee County Sheriff Ralph Johnson told WXTX "News at Ten" he's looking for high school graduates, to work at the county jail. Get those budding football players ready for college, by having them shove inmates around for a summer.

(Sheriff Johnson says he decided to recruit high school graduates for jail jobs to "think outside the pool." And the pay IS probably better than a lifeguard would make....)

+ The grand finale of "Walk Georgia" was held at Lakebottom Park. There were souvenir bottles of water to drink, and fresh fruit for munching - but who decided to bring in barbecue pork sandwiches? Was this a plot to make people fat again, in time for the fall walking drive?

+ The "SEC Celebrity Golf Classic" golf tournament brought famous football names to Columbus. One of them was Auburn quarterback Brandon Cox, who's wrapping up his senior season by playing in six charity golf events. When you're ignored in the National Football League draft, there's not much else you can do.

+ The "Ask Men" web site ranked the Atlanta Hawks the eighth worst pro sports franchise. Wow - imagine if the series with Boston had NOT gone to seven games.

+ Instant Message to St. Patrick's School in Phenix City: It's nice to see you earned "honorable mention" in that "Drive for Green" contest. But I wasn't really surprised by that. With a name like St. Patrick's, "thinking green" probably is expected.

(And how nice to be honored on Cinco de Mayo -- and show how green-gos can go green.)

BUT SERIOUSLY: When I started working in radio news during college, one of my role models was Paul Harvey. So it was sad to learn Monday that his wife of 68 years had died -- a woman who quietly wrote a lot of his scripts, and came up with ideas such as "The Rest of the Story." Considering all she did behind the scenes, it's no wonder Paul called her "Angel" all the time.

The funeral for Lynne Cooper Harvey is today, in suburban Chicago. My sympathies are with the family - and even with this loss, may Paul Harvey still have many "good days" to come.

To offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation, advertise to our readers or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 684 (+ 26, 4.0%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

5 MAY 08: TORO-IFIC?

¡Hola! Today is Cinco de Mayo. Yet the Columbus Civic Center closed "Fiesta Columbus" as scheduled Sunday evening -- as if organizers feared the conservatives who wanted to protest Jeremiah Wright might come after them today instead.

It's traditionally one of the biggest days of the year for Mexican restaurants. So I decided to beat the crowd, and visit one Sunday - but don't worry, I didn't diminish the margarita supply at all....

The place I visited was one of the newest Mexican spots in Columbus. Viva el Toro sits on Macon Road, between a Waffle House and Interstate 185. Its ads emphasize "karaoke, dating, comedy" - but if they're not bragging about the food, should you really trust it?

I arrived at Viva el Toro around 11:00 a.m., and found a work crew roping off part of the parking lot. The goal apparently was to seal some of the asphalt, by using noisy industrial blowers and fans. People staying at several motels a short walk away wouldn't need a wake-up call this day.

Things seemed to calm down as other members of my group arrived -- but there was only one lane in and out of the restaurant, while the sealant dried. People who spot a long line there tonight might take the easy way out, and pick up dinner up the hill at Taco Bell.

Viva el Toro looks very different from other Mexican restaurants, because of its bar area. It's in the middle of the dining area, with small tables surrounded by round purple lounge chairs. It's as if the restaurant was waiting for a Spanish-language version of "How I Met Your Mother" to break out.

Big-screen TV's were on at the "purple pods" -- but on sports channels such as ESPN, not Univision. Shouldn't a true Mexican restaurant have a soccer game on from somewhere, on a Sunday lunch hour?

While Viva el Toro has a full menu of traditional dishes, our group went en masse for the $5.99 lunch buffet. For some of us, it was the first time we'd gone through a Mexican buffet -- and I should note there's one big difference from a Chinese buffet. The little signs above the options all were spelled correctly.

The Viva el Toro lunch buffet allows you to build fajitas, tacos, tostadas or taco salads, with a variety of toppings. But it also has a few surprises, which apparently are aimed for diners who don't like Mexican foods. In fact, one member of our group joked about eating "Mexican french fries."

(The buffet also appeared to have breaded okra - but for all I know, that could have been cleverly-disguised bite-size jalapeno peppers.)

The lunch buffet also has a dessert counter. I went for the chocolate bundt cake, but one member of our group complained the "confetti cake" didn't have enough confetti for her liking. Are you actually supposed to throw that stuff in the air, to signal your server to bring the bill?

The only other complaint I heard from our group was one person asking for a replacement for sweet tea, because it didn't taste right. Hopefully the server didn't misunderstand the order, and think "tea" stood for tequila.

With a drink and 15-percent gratuity thrown in, I enjoyed Viva el Toro's lunch buffet for less than ten dollars. It certainly isn't a traditional Southern "Sunday dinner" - but hey, at least they have chicken fajitas.

Oh yes, I almost forgot - Instant Message to the Viva el Toro staff: Please let me know when you're having an amateur comedy night. I can try out some of these jokes in front of a live audience. And afterward, I can decide whether to add a laugh track button to the blog.

BIG PREDICTION UPDATE: I was right about Sunday's seventh-game showdown for the Atlanta Hawks. But c'mon - losing to Boston 99-65?! Hawks announcer Steve Holman couldn't even resort to his usual excuse, and blame it on cheating referees.

ABC sportscaster Mike Breen called Boston's 34-point win in the N.B.A. playoffs a "good old-fashioned blowout." Talk about bias! If you're an Atlanta fan, it certainly wasn't good. And if you're like me, it wasn't good - someone who was jealous of all those Celtic championships years ago, and felt they had all those losing seasons coming.

A dramatic moment occurred in Sunday's seventh game when Atlanta's Marvin Williams grabbed Boston's Rejean Rondo in the air, and seemed to horse-collar him to the court. Williams was ejected for a "flagrant two" foul. In Muscogee County Court, Williams might have been allowed to plea-bargain his way down to a simple personal foul.

Mock the Atlanta Hawks all you want - but no other major pro sports team from Atlanta has reached the playoffs in the last 12 months. I'm not really counting the Georgia Force of arena football, but you can't hear their games in Columbus. Oh wait - you can't hear the Hawks, either....

E-MAIL UPDATE: A reader is concerned about one of the most serious stories of the weekend....

Where were the parents or adults in the lives of the two young brothers who drowned in the river? I can't image letting a 7 and 9 yr old ride bikes to the river much less play in the dangerous waters. These parents should be held accountable.

WRBL talked with the father of the victims Sunday. Arthur Rozier cried a bit as he described the boys as willing to take chances. But if you want Nancy Grace to come down from Atlanta and browbeat the man into surrendering to police on live TV, I'll leave that to you.

To offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation, advertise to our readers or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 658 (- 27, 3.9%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

4 MAY 08: WRIGHT - HIM OFF

They'll have a celebration this evening at St. John A.M.E. Church on Steam Mill Road. But the person being honored apparently will NOT be there -- which isn't really that unusual, if you consider how many churches celebrate an empty tomb every spring.

Dr. Jeremiah Wright's appearance at the St. John A.M.E. Church revival surprisingly was canceled Friday. We were first to report on his planned visit to Columbus [22 Apr] -- so we should apologize for not revealing his cancellation first. But the church pastor still hasn't my phone call, after almost two weeks. Good thing I don't need emergency marital counseling....

St. John A.M.E. Pastor Debora Grant released a statement saying Jeremiah Wright's "public schedule is under review and has been placed on hold until further notice." This apparently means Wright will only speak at places where he can draw a lot of attention, like the National Press Club.

The statement from Debora Grant also noted Jeremiah Wright's Columbus appearance has been delayed "due to the current environment...." Hmmmm - do you think that means the controversy surrounding presidential candidate Barack Obama? Or has the air in Columbus become as smoggy as Chicago's?

While other speakers are coming to Columbus for the St. John A.M.E. Church revival, a scheduled celebration of Jeremiah Wright still will go on tonight. Saturday's Ledger-Enquirer called it a "service.... of prayer, healing and reconciliation...." You know, maybe that explains Wright's absence. Some of his comments last week could have divided magnets from refrigerator doors.

The newspaper dared to ask local officials whether they had planned to stop by Jeremiah Wright's revival services. Councilor Glenn Davis could not be reached for comment. But then, Wright was staying at the Hilton Garden Inn -- so as part-owner, Davis could have delivered him room service in the morning.

Isaiah Hugley admitted he planned to attend the revival with Jeremiah Wright. But keep in mind, the City Manager lives only a few blocks away on Steam Mill Road. And until the splash park opens at Shirley Winston Park, that street won't have many big events.

(It was surprising for me to read the Columbus City Manager is a member of a Phenix City church. Is Dr. Raymond Cochran of Franchise Missionary Baptist that superior a preacher? Or does this keep Isaiah Hugley unbiased, in determining which churches receive city assistance?)

True confession: I had made tentative plans to attend one night of Jeremiah Wright's revival, and report on it here. But I wasn't planning to show up until late in the week - after the news media grew tired of searching for good quotes about the book of Matthew.

If anyone was planning a picket or protest outside St. John A.M.E. Church this week, no one had told me about it. Perhaps the revival would have proceeded peacefully either way. But without Jeremiah Wright on hand, one thing is sure - anyone who faints in the church aisles won't do it because he said something strange.

BLOG UPDATE: The first round of qualifying is over in Georgia's state elections. The Muscogee County Election Board counted ten Democrats filing papers, compared with three Republicans. The lack of a daily radio talk show based in Columbus appears more obvious than ever.

An election board staff member tells me there's only one race where two Democrats have filed against each other. It's the contest for Coroner, with incumbent Bill Thrower against Ricky Weeks. Why should a race about dead bodies have the liveliest primary?

There's already a sign up near downtown Columbus backing Ricky Weeks for Coroner. It was posted by the manager of Tire Masters on Veterans Parkway. If the sign was outside Sconiers Funeral Home, I might be concerned....

The usual incumbents filed for assorted Muscogee County offices. But Municipal Court Judge Haywood Turner will be challenged in November by Democrat Stephen Hyles. I didn't realize Turner was a Republican - which explains that gun he showed on the J.R. Allen Parkway, but not his handling of SOA Watch suspects.

John Darr filed as a Democrat for Muscogee County Sheriff. Incumbent Ralph Johnson traditionally runs as an independent - and the election board tells me he's already submitted the required petitions to do that. If someone else hands you a petition to sign in the next few weeks, remember: it might not be to lower gasoline prices after all.

Candidates for District Attorney have to file for office in Atlanta - and in 2008, Muscogee County's Gray Conger is taking a different approach from four years ago. This year, he did NOT change parties in the middle of qualifying week.

Republican Gray Conger will be challenged in November by former Assistant District Attorney Julia Slater. Slater has set up a campaign web site -- although a check Saturday night showed it's only a "shell" right now. Yet it already has a copyright on it. And "This is some filler, the copy will go here" is one unique campaign slogan.

It appears everyone in Columbus likes their state representatives. Debbie Buckner, Richard Smith and Calvin Smyre are all unopposed for re-election -- even though Muscogee County Republican Chair Josh McKoon criticized Smyre in recent weeks for missing a lot of votes in Atlanta. Apparently local Republicans are even busier, and don't have time to run.

Ed Harbison will be challenged a second time for State Senator by Reginald Pugh of the Columbus Urban League. And Seth Harp will have Democratic opposition this fall from Evelyn Thompson Anderson. She's a registered nurse in Grantville - so she can tell you how many could get sick on Sunday afternoons, after buying beer at grocery stores.

By the way, the Ledger-Enquirer noted the Hamilton Police Chief is challenging Mike Jolley for Harris County Sheriff. Jolley cut off a one-year growth of hair Friday night, at a "Relay for Life" event - but if the pictures with a ponytail wind up all across the county, you'll know who to blame for it.

BIG PREDICTION: The Atlanta Hawks surprised me by merely reaching the N.B.A. playoffs. But winning a seventh game in Boston today? There's no way that will happen -- unless the team can sneak Michael Vick out of federal prison overnight, and put him in a uniform.

Now for other events from the first weekend in May....

+ The Phenix City Police Department treated graduates of its DARE program to a celebration at the Amphitheater. I jogged by as this was being set up -- and I can assure you the officers are NOT against all forms of smoking. Not based on that barbecue grill, which was heating at 9:00 a.m.

+ The Fred's store on Airport Thruway began a "going out of business" sale. If there wasn't Interstate 185 dividing Wal-Mart from The Landings shopping center, half the stores in that center might do the same thing.

+ Phenix City State Senator Leslie Vance called for a one-year moratorium on Alabama's 16-cent state fuel tax. So if Jeremiah Wright doesn't come to this area, Hillary Rodham Clinton might....

(Leslie Vance is close enough to Columbus that he should remember the 30-day Georgia fuel tax suspension of 2005. Governor Sonny Perdue has NOT suggested that idea come back - which may explain why no one is suggesting Perdue as a running mate for John McCain anymore.)

+ Columbus native Keni Thomas sang the national anthem, before a baseball game at New York's Yankee Stadium. This performer has come a long way from the "Cornbread" days at The Loft - but you'd think he would have waited until Oakland brought Frank Thomas to town.

To offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation, advertise to our readers or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 685 (+ 31, 4.7%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

3 MAY 08: CURSE THE GIRLS AND MAKE THEM CRY

(BLOGGER'S NOTE: You may find this item humorous, serious, or a little of both - but we offer these thoughts from time to time, as we keep a seventh-day Sabbath.)

It was a recruiting day at Columbus State University -- but the students being recruited were quite young. Fifth-graders were on campus the other day, being taught the importance of staying in school through college. Those TV commercials with children promoting the HOPE scholarship apparently aren't getting through.

But the recruiting day reportedly had an unhappy ending for some children. I'm told some fifth-graders encountered a loud preacher walking around campus, who scared them with warnings about burning in you-know-where - and I don't mean the sunbaked pavement of South Commons during Fiesta Columbus....

One fifth-grader reportedly became so distressed by the preacher's "campus ministry" that she broke down in tears, and needed a parent to come and calm her down. If this preacher was trying to scare young people to attend the Christian competition at Beacon University, I don't think it worked.

Outgoing Columbus State President Frank Brown has been an advocate for free speech on campus. So church groups can reserve buildings for seminars, as the Seventh-Day Adventists did in February - and even "street preachers" can cry out to anyone who will hear them. Well, as long as they don't drown out the bell at the clock tower....

I don't recall encountering any campus preachers like this during my years in college. But they would have had plenty of competition. One of my college friends became a Unification Church "Moonie." Another followed an Indian guru, and eventually was rescued by family intervention. And the stories about funny clouds in the attic of my residence hall were legendary.

Some people say the only way for ministers to "get through" to college students is to be loud, firm and threatening -- basically declaring them all sinners. This approach might appeal to some teenage students. For instance, the ones who enjoy being reminded of their nagging parents....

But the Bible says "to every thing there is a season" - or as another translation puts the verse, "a time for everything." Is a scary lecture about God's wrath the proper thing to present to fifth-grade children? Especially when they're at a college campus for a completely different reason? It's a bit like warning about beach erosion from global warming in the middle of Nebraska.

Make no mistake - the Biblical book of Romans shows we're all sinners. (Yes, even me.) But to borrow an old phrase, you're probably more likely to attract flies with honey than vinegar. If someone's life is bad, explain how the way of Jesus is much better. It's supposed to be "good news," after all - as opposed to having churches filled with seemingly dissatisfied customers.

E-MAIL UPDATE: The Bible also says Jesus is "the truth." But about the new local radio station claiming that name....

Hi Richard,

I'm looking forward to hearing the music on the new 103.7. What I see as lacking in Columbus is a Christian music mix somewhere in between what's on 89.5/90.5 and 96.1/93.3. My favorite stations are WMSL "the Great 88" in Athens and WMVV "NewLife FM" in Griffin, and they program a lighter sounding Christian format with less emphasis on the Christian rock/pop charts.

By the way, J93.3 has an application with the FCC to move to another tower and increase power, thereby restoring Columbus coverage. The app was submitted back in Oct. 2005, so I don't know if they intend to build the new facility.

Thomas

Even Christian radio stations can reflect the "honey and vinegar" debate over how to preach about Jesus. Consider the fundamentalist stations - which don't always sound very fun, and want your worship to be mental.

I can appreciate both the stations playing traditional hymns, as well as more "contemporary Christian music." A lot depends on the mood I'm in when I'm near the radio. But remember: Jesus said his "burden is light." Our lives tend to be rather heavy - which may explains why some churches offer diet plan seminars.

SCHEDULED SUNDAY: A church's surprising announcement.... and whether there were any surprises from qualifying week....

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BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 654 (- 63, 8.9%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

2 MAY 08: SMALL GROUP MEETINGS

None of the TV stations were there. From what I could tell, no local politicians were there. There wasn't even a candidate there, wearing a button about this election year. Has everybody decided the Christian voters are going to stay home this year in protest?

About 50 people gathered at the Phenix City Amphitheater Thursday, for this area's annual "National Day of Prayer" event. Every time I go to this, the turnout seems too small. This is a "Bible Belt" area, after all. But then again, the special day is always on Thursday - and the churchgoers may assume they did their duty on Wednesday night.

The Phenix City Amphitheater used to be THE place to be for a National Day of Prayer event. When Peggy Martin was Mayor, she welcomed the crowd at least once. With Jeff Hardin as Mayor - well, maybe he was stuck in Streetscape traffic.

I tried to recruit some people to join me for prayer Thursday at the Phenix City Amphitheater. A couple of Jehovah's Witnesses came to my door during the morning. They had suits on. They carried Bibles. All they had to do was keep their copies of The Watchtower in their pockets, and they would have fit right in.

(No, the Jehovah's Witnesses did NOT want to join me at the National Day of Prayer. I suppose they were like many people -- too busy "working" to take time to pray.)

When I'm able to attend the National Day of Prayer event, I traditionally walk to it. The Phenix City Amphitheater is about a 20-minute walk from my home. It appears no one else did that - not even bringing out that giant cross on wheels, left over from Easter.

The Phenix City prayer event is organized by the Russell Baptist Association -- and this year, nearly all of the ministers were from Russell County Baptist churches. The Fort Benning chaplain on the program must have been their small attempt at world reconciliation.

But seriously: the National Day of Prayer event was a meaningful half-hour service. Ministers led prayers for our country, government leaders, families, the military, churches - as well as God's strength to live our days. Those extra-strength pain relievers they sell on TV only go so far, you know....

Groups of four people formed "prayer circles" at the end of the service, and we said prayers for various people. The leader asked us to pray for a church leader, and a woman next to me mentioned "Reverend Wright." Was she talking about Jeremiah Wright, who's coming to Columbus next week? I'm not sure - but no one in our group prayed for John McCain to be elected.

I walked to and from the prayer event via Broadway - so I never knew until the evening news came on that Columbus had its own National Day of Prayer event outside the Government Center. It certainly didn't seem to get much publicity, and the crowd shown on TV didn't look that large. Maybe the ministers should have illustrated our freedom, by releasing thousands of butterflies.

Perhaps an evening prayer walk around a Columbus church had a better turnout than the midday services. Or perhaps this is yet another case where local residents are too busy making a living to spend time at special events. If big employers such as Aflac and TSYS weren't mostly closed on Sundays, many local churches might be empty.

BLOG UPDATE: Uh-oh - the Thursday evening news revealed Columbus police officer Brent Rollins is on administrative leave. He's accused of hitting a pedestrian with a police car on Torch Hill Road last October. The fact that this was kept quiet for six months makes the firefighters working with Zachary Allen look like blabbermouths.

If this officer's name seems vaguely familiar, it should. Brent Rollins wrote the long series of "Is Our City Safe" e-mails, which were sent around Columbus before the 2006 city election. Our records show we hadn't heard from him since last summer. Now Rollins may be asking a new question - are our city vehicles safe?

We'll certainly pay close attention to this investigation - and now let's see what else had people talking (or even praying) Thursday:

+ Qualifying week for Democratic and Republican candidates headed to today's final day, with Rep. Calvin Smyre and District Attorney Gray Conger running unopposed. Both officials have been criticized in e-mails to our blog in recent months - yet the critics seemingly can't afford the gas money to drive to Atlanta and file papers themselves.

+ A Fort Benning Third Brigade soldier admitted to the evening news it feels "weird" to be home from Iraq, because she doesn't have to carry a gun every time she travels. If Governor Perdue signs the bill allowing weapons in restaurants, this soldier won't feel so weird anymore.

+ Wynnton Arts Academy drama teacher Melissa Wilks was named Muscogee County's Teacher of the Year. Does this officially make her a drama queen?

+ A nursing supervisor at Phenix City's Jack Hughston Memorial Hospital revealed to WLTZ there are plans to add a fifth floor eventually. You knew Columbus Regional would make some reductions after buying other hospitals -- but cutting off an entire floor and moving it seems like a bit much.

+ Fiesta Columbus opened at South Commons, featuring four days of carnival rides. But did I see it right on TV - one of the rides is called "1001 Nachts"?! Either tape a sign saying "Noches" on that ride, or rename The Greater Columbus Fair "Oktoberfest."

+ Instant Message to the web site which keeps up this blog for us, Blogger: Thank you! Now we can post items in advance, and schedule them to appear at a later date. I might be able to last three full days of vacation, without searching desperately for a public access computer.

To offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation, advertise to our readers or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 717 (+ 24, 3.5%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and Perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.

1 MAY 08: ALL A-FLITTER

"We hand-packed them this morning." So said a Goodwill Industries employee Wednesday. And amazingly, she was NOT talking about the ice cream at the Ben and Jerry's "scoop shop...."

The staff of Goodwill Industries in Columbus hand-packed 2,035 butterflies in boxes, and released them at a midday open house on Veterans Parkway. Each butterfly a person who gained a job through Goodwill last year. So it was interesting to see many butterflies cling to the onlookers, like they didn't really want to leave.

Goodwill Industries opens a new "retail store and training center" today on Veterans Parkway, where the West Point Stevens outlet store used to be. I saw construction there months ago, and thought Muldoon's at the end of the strip mall was adding a wide new dance floor. Instead, it's getting a new second floor -- which probably won't have nearly enough soundproofing.

The new store on Veterans Parkway will be the only Goodwill store in Columbus, in addition to one in Phenix City. A store on South Lumpkin Road was closed a couple of years ago -- and I can remember when Goodwill had a store downtown on Broadway. Back then, you could cut through the middleman and give clothes directly to beggars.

Invited visitors to Wednesday's open house were given a tour of how Goodwill Industries works. "We really need donations," an employee said to the group I was in -- but a sign said the center wants "gently used items." So much for my plans to donate old running shoes....

Amanda Lester of the Goodwill Industries staff says contrary to what you might think, less than five percent of all donations wind up at the landfill. Does this mean local residents are wise, in donating quality items? Or do homeless people wander by donation sites on weekends, and take the junky stuff?

There was a time when Goodwill Industries provided jobs for workers, by having them repair and refurbish donated items. Amanda Lester says that doesn't happen anymore. So I suppose you should shop with care at the new store -- because Goodwill usually doesn't sell sewing kits with buttons at the checkout.

Amanda Lester said Goodwill Industries's goal is to put items on sale in the store within 24 hours of their donation. The longer the wait, "the less value they have." I'm not sure I agree with that. If your plaid dinner jacket is ten years out of style to begin with, one or two more days really shouldn't matter.

A box lunch was served at the "V.I.P. Luncheon" for the new Veterans Parkway store, including ice cream samples from Goodwill's "PartnerShop" with Ben & Jerry's. This came one day after the annual Ben & Jerry's "free scoop" day - so there may never be a better time to stop by Bruster's and avoid a line.

I don't recall ever eating Ben & Jerry's ice cream before - and the "vanilla fudge chip" flavor was thick, creamy and good. I reached that table as the "Phish Food" flavor ran out. I'll stick to tuna on my sandwiches, thank you....

But back to those butterflies: Kari Finley of Goodwill Industries told me there's a company in Florida which breeds them for special events. Sometimes they're released at weddings. And if anyone leaves the doors open too long at Callaway Gardens, there's a backup plan ready.

The staff packed 2,035 butterflies in big boxes - and at the right moment, officials ranging from Mayor Jim Wetherington to State Senators Ed Harbison and Seth Harp opened the boxes to let them out. As the insects swarmed around the crowd, I couldn't resist telling people around me: "It's a Hitchcock movie!"

Just because butterflies are free does NOT mean they want to soar into the atmosphere. Dozens of them settled on the pavement outside the store, and people had to be careful not to step on them. But as someone told me, it probably beat releasing 2,035 doves -- especially when you consider all the cars parked nearby.

So if you have items ready to give away after spring cleaning, keep the new Goodwill Industries store in mind. And if you're looking for good values on clothing and other items, consider it as well. But at least one person in this shopping center might not like the selection and the low prices -- the manager of the Dollar General store next door.

BLOG UPDATE: "The Truth" should officially begin playing music today, at 103.7 FM. But the station's program manager didn't quite speak the truth Wednesday, when he told WLTZ contemporary Christian music is in Columbus for the "first time." If he can't hear WBUE-FM, maybe he's like his station - based in Cusseta.

Contemporary Christian music actually was on Columbus AM radio about ten years ago. A satellite service was tried at 1270 AM for awhile, but it didn't last. That station turned into "Unforgettable 1270" - which has been forgotten for about seven or eight years now.

Now let's see what we can remember from the Wednesday news....

+ Columbus had a record low temperature of 42 degrees F. Keep that in mind, the next time Columbus State University brings in a guest lecturer on global warming.

+ The Georgia Secretary of State's web site showed Newnan attorney Stephen Camp has filed to run against Congressman Lynn Westmoreland. Trouble is, the web site on Camp's application leads to a bunch of links for everything from summer camps to timeshares. Now that's a unique way to raise campaign funds....

+ The commander of Fort Benning's Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation told WRBL he will retire in July. If Col. Gilberto Perez can't wait until November, this year's God Bless Fort Benning party may have to be moved up.

+ Alabama Attorney General Troy King announced Stanley Boone has pleaded guilty to stealing copying machines from several East Alabama locations. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's a copy-cat criminal....

+ Columbus High School won the first ladies' lacrosse playoff game in city history. The team eliminated Pope 16-8 - and while I didn't see the second half, you have to wonder if Pope was pooped.

(If you think about it, only a local public school could have won a lacrosse game over Pope High School. A team from Pacelli would have felt too guilty about it.)

+ Asheville burned the Columbus Catfish 5-3, in a baseball game played at 11:00 a.m. It was justified as a school "field trip," because Oxbow Meadows had animal life on display -- but if the turtle was kept off the field, does it really count?

+ Instant Message to the people in Junction City who are complaining about noisy freight trains: How do you think Junction City got its name? Maybe you can get the CSX railroad to change its schedule, by holding "Petticoat Junction" beauty pageants in the middle of the day.

To offer a story tip, make a PayPal donation, advertise to our readers or comment on this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

BURKARD BULK MAIL INDEX: 693 (+ 30, 4.5%)

The views expressed in this blog are solely those of the author -- not necessarily those of anyone else in Columbus living or dead, and perhaps not even you.

© 2003-08 Richard Burkard, all rights reserved.