15 OCT 08: KNOW YOUR BLOGGER - YEARS IN THE MIDDLE


(BLOGGER'S NOTE: This blog is on vacation for several days. In the meantime, we offer this "Know Your Blogger" series -- excerpts from our autobiography, in the shadow of our 50th birthday in August.)


We pick up our story with the start of fifth grade, and a teacher named Mr. Davis. He was a bland glasses-wearing man, who reminded me a lot of Jack Benny. Except instead of telling jokes, he threatened our class with no story-reading if we didn't behave.


I spent first through fourth grade the same shell group of students, which some people considered the brightest group. But for some reason, I was "sent down" a notch for fifth grade -- as if all the others in the class would be inspired by my example. But not even the in-school handout of Gideon New Testaments seemed to do that.


Mr. Davis quickly decided he had someone reliable and trustworthy in me. When he left class and assigned two students to "take names" of the talkers, I was often the first person picked. Too bad he didn't organize the kickball teams at recess....


But other fifth-grade students decided Mr. Davis was playing favorites, and they didn't like it. One of them was a notorious troublemaker named Bill. One day he stormed back from the school library after hearing I'd taken his name down, and shoved my desk on its side with me still sitting in it. Then he saw I'd crossed his name off the list -- and he became like the Soviet Union under Mikhail Gorbachev.


I had my first crushes on girls in fifth grade. Diane in the next row wasn't interested. So I kept the second one quiet -- for about two years.


When spelling bee time came, I won the grade for the second year in a row. And I moved up seven spots to eighth place in the school bee -- moving up faster than a team which beats Georgia in college football.


I also was named to the school "Honors Chorus" in fifth grade -- and director Mrs. Wooten sparked my first real interest in politics, when her husband ran for the school board. I kept asking my Mother if she voted for Mr. Wooten. Finally she caved in and said she did. But she wouldn't tell me any more, saying the polling place was a private matter. Of course, back then so were candidates' tax returns....


Our grade school held Kindergarten through sixth grade, so I ended the elementary years back at the "top level" under Mrs. Ware. She actually led the class every day in not only the Pledge of Allegiance, but the Lord's Prayer. I didn't realize the local Catholic schools were stealing so many children.


With school crush #2 kept a secret all year, I admittedly did some strange things with other girls. I pulled up one girl's elastic headband during class (no, I wasn't punished for it) -- and organized a group of guys to pick on another one during recess. I stood quietly alongside, and felt for a moment like a good Mafia boss.


But I still had friends in sixth grade -- especially when recess was approaching. I was recommended by other students, when there were two minutes left to read aloud an article from "My Weekly Reader." Moments like that helped fuel my dream of becoming a play-by-play sportscaster.


I spent a second year in the Honors Chorus -- and that led to a tough decision one spring evening. I either sang with the chorus at a concert, or played on an off-school basketball team in a playoff game. I chose music, primarily because I was a substitute on the basketball team. Of course, that was the night the team would run short on players due to foul trouble....


I became a music sensation in sixth grade, but in a bizarre way. For a PTA talent show, I put on a long wig and grabbed a toy ukelele to imitate TV phenomenon Tiny Tim -- singing his one hit, "Tiptoe Through the Tulips." It brought me an appearance or two at downtown dinners. So how did he wind up married, while I'm still not?


Reviewing my sixth-grade yearbook, one boy wrote a rhyme: "Roses are red, your face is black, you'd look better with a knife in your back!" How innocent the times were back then....


I entered Coronado Junior High School several weeks late, because a urologist finally figured out the source of my bladder control problem. All sorts of different pills had failed, but this doctor said surgery would solve things. My mom later admitted she was ready to take me to the Mayo Clinic -- since Marcus Welby M.D. simply didn't bring this topic up on TV.


The source of the problem wasn't really discovered until after a first round of exploratory surgery. The second operation followed a night of comforting in my hospital room by a minister named Mundinger. That seemed like a silly last name to me -- and I fear I actually told him that.


The big day came for the second operation -- and I recall screaming very loudly until the sedatives took effect. Some people in Columbus could learn from this example....


The second operation worked, but I needed an incision in my "secret parts" to gain the victory. Doctors said I could NOT run or exercise for about a month. When I was allowed to join other children on a K.U. Medical Center playground one day, my mom said the words which make doctors quake in their shoes -- malpractice suit.


But the suit was never filed, and I actually got along well with the doctors who handled my case. One day I complemented a doctor for writing a prescription that I could actually read -- and the lead urologist shook his hand to congratulate him on the spot.


With a mix of intensive care and IV fluids, art therapy and homework assigned by junior high school teachers, I made it through what I called in a freshman college essay "The 30-Day Lifetime." A life of shame over wetting my pants suddenly was over. Now all I had to do was get through junior high school....


Entering junior high several weeks late didn't stop me from doing well in my classes. But for awhile, I could only walk at school -- with running still not allowed. I became a master of "super-slo-mo" football practice in my bedroom.


(The exception was third-hour "shop." I still have a couple of leather coasters I made in that class -- but my skills were so faulty in General Shop, I wouldn't even qualify for Private.)


To help with the late arrival, I was enrolled in a lunch-hour study hall. That became a problem when other students decided I was an easy target. For several days, they gave me their used lunch trays and make me take them back to the counter. I'm not sure even those Greensboro college students in 1960 had to do that.


The study hall teacher finally intervened. Then my mother intervened, deciding I didn't need study hall anymore. I was moved to a choir class in the second semester -- while I switched in another to physical education. Awkward moments in the locker room led to a couple of students challenging me to a fight. Once I agreed, but didn't show up -- but the opponent at least had enough sense not to punch me out later.


But someone down the block from me decided to make me a target as well. He went after me for weeks, during the two-block walk home from the bus stop -- several times with fists. Trying to outrun him failed. Talk of carrying a hidden glass soda bottle was discouraged. He finally stopped after my parents visited his parents. Hmmmm -- did they threaten a lawsuit, too?


I had weekly Monday counseling sessions at the Medical Center during seventh grade -- supposedly because my father thought part of my bladder control problem was mental, not physical. My parents were in simultaneous support group counseling, too. A check of the records showed my dad talked openly about divorcing my mom. They stayed together largely because of me -- as if two bowling nights a week by my dad meant "together."


Seventh grade also introduced me to Saturday night "Teen Town" dances at the junior high school. The bands were 1970's rockers which could ruin your eardrums, but the only dance I knew how to do was the Russian saber dance kind.


At one Teen Town night, I finally revealed Crush #2 -- but indirectly, asking someone else to tell a girl named Martha about my interest. She wasn't interested in me. And that was a relief, because I honestly didn't know what to do next.


That opened the door for a friendship with a girl who actually admired me, and I admired in return. Teresa signed her name "JG73T" -- as in Jolly Giant, 73 inches tall.


(Teresa eventually went to medical school, and I've lost track of her. She wanted to be friends, but nothing more -- and time has shown deja vu really DOES happen.)


As seventh grade ended, my older brother graduated from the University of Kansas. I was so thrilled that I called him "The College Graduate" for almost a solid year afterward -- just like years before, I declared him "Mr. President" for leading the high school German Club.


Eighth grade was a bit calmer for me, as the counseling sessions and the picking-on stopped. I didn't even get in trouble for enrolling in a "Chef's Class" with a home economics teacher.


In fact, my most memorable moments of eighth grade occurred away from junior high school. In youth league basketball, there was a consolation playoff game where my team rallied from ten points down with two minutes to play and won third place. I had such a great seat on the high school gymnasium bench for that....


Late in the fourth quarter of an earlier game, the son of Kansas City "All-Star Wrestling" broadcaster Bill Kersten drove toward the hoop. I was the only player in his way -- and I stopped his lay-up with a hand-on-ball clean block, which left him called for traveling! Add that to the two baskets I made all season, and it was quite a year.


I also played on a youth softball team for years -- but there was a falling-out during this time, when I quit the team largely because of parental pressure to have the manager play me. At least I THINK that's what happened. You always blame the agents, not your own actions....


We received no certificates for graduating grade school or junior high. But I received a two-part lapel pin of sorts from the junior high school. I think it was for good grades -- but if I really was that smart, I'd remember the reason for getting it.


(Our series will continue in our next post on Friday)

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: Suspended for vacation

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.

13 OCT 08: KNOW YOUR BLOGGER - THE EARLIEST YEARS

(BLOGGER'S NOTE: This blog is on vacation for several days. In the meantime, we offer this "Know Your Blogger" series -- excerpts from our autobiography, in the shadow of our 50th birthday in August.)

Well, Doctor, it all began at 10:48 p.m. on 4 Aug 58. At least that's what the birth certificate says. I wasn't doing real-time blogging from the womb, the way some young people seem able to do now....

I don't remember the moment of my birth. But I vaguely remember being carried out of the old Providence Hospital on 18th Street in Kansas City, Kansas. My older brother says there's no way I could remember that. At least I don't remember if I was crying or not.

The family gave me a crib spot in the bedroom -- and one afternoon there when I was around two, I started thinking about Jack Paar [28 Jan 04]. Something about the talk show host must have stuck. A couple of years later, I pretended to do talk show interviews at my Father's Odd Fellows Lodge meeting hall.

I've been told I showed an interest in reading, even before entering Kindergarten -- especially in reading aloud the weekly listings in TV Guide. In 2008, of course, this would be dangerous. Titles like "Dirty Sexy Money" probably should bring immediate parental intervention.

Perhaps because of this interest, I was a very early TV viewer. A primitive black-and-white set in the playroom allowed me to watch my version of "prime-time" programs on NBC around 4:00 p.m. -- Shari Lewis with Lamb Chop, then Kukla and Ollie. No, I did NOT have a crush on Miss Fran.

The local stations in Kansas City offered their own children's shows in the early 1960's. A puppet named Charlie Horse presided over "High Noon Cartoons" on one station, while "Cousin Ken" with his carnival didn't thrill me on another. A third presented Whizzo the Clown -- whose loud outfit practically demanded children lobby their parents for color sets.

Yet while I wanted to read TV Guide, my eyesight wasn't very good. I simply couldn't stand flash photography, and started wearing glasses before I was five. In fact, I was the only person in my Kindergarten class who did -- so years before I thought of dating, I already felt like a loser.

I reinforced that image several times during afternoon-only Kindergarten at Hazel Grove School. When "The Farmer in the Dell" record was played, I wound up being the "cheese stands alone" more than once. And no one had thought of "Cheese-Heads" to give away as prizes, to make me feel better.

To be blunt, there was one other issue which kept me feeling ashamed throughout my grade school years. To avoid being TOO blunt by using 2008-speak, I had a bladder control problem. That meant wet beds, wet pants in public -- and the creation of Depends still at least 30 years away.

Yet there were moments of accomplishment during Kindergarten. My teacher Mrs. Scherer marveled at how well I could tell time. We're talking a round clocks with 12numbers here -- as someone actually had to invent the dumbed-down digital kind.

But I wasn't an absolute genius in Kindergarten. For some reason, the grade school moved the classes around one weekend during the year -- and on Monday, I walked into the old room like nothing ever happened and took about the only open desk in a class of third graders. It felt brilliant for about 30 seconds....

Yet I survived Kindergarten with its mid-session naps and lessons about the Three Billy Goats Gruff. Looking at the yearbook now, I was in a class with two very bright girls. One is now an assistant professor of microbiology in Colorado, while another became a Phillips Petroleum engineer. I do well simply sorting through campaign fliers and poker hands.

(Only one person left an autograph in my Kindergarten yearbook -- and wow, my older brother had some stylish handwriting when he was 14.)

My neighborhood school had first and second grades in a separate building, which seemed to be a half-mile away. No, you Southerners -- that other building was never used to hold the African-American students.

First grade with Mrs. Brashears admittedly was a blur. On the first day of class, she quickly said something like, "Let's get down to business...." That set a very serious, high-pressure tone.

By comparison, second grade felt much easier for me. Mrs. Filmer showed a sense of humor at times. When the last member of the class marked a birthday in 1965, she said: "Now everybody's seven except me."

In either first or second grade, our class conducted a science experiment. Each student was given a small plant in a box, to care for along the window sill. Guess who was approached first with the dreaded words, "Your plant's dead!" Yes, I related well to those "Charlie Brown" cartoons....

Related to that, grade-school "recess sports" began during first and second grade. Most of the time, the captains chose me last. A couple of times I was taken "mid-list" -- which only proved which captains didn't know me very well.

We returned to the main school for third grade, and a teacher with plenty of enthusiasm and personality. Mrs. Snyder talked often about her children, and had a feud with a fifth-grade teacher over "Osage oranges" and hedge apples. Strangely, I've never heard of any apples being found around the hedges at Georgia's Sanford Stadium.

Mrs. Snyder got the class thinking with regular games of "Got It." Teams of rows (yes, we sat in old-fashioned rows) would send one person at a time to the chalkboard (yes, an old-fashioned chalkboard) to work complicated multi-digit math problems (yes, no calculators were around).

Now this was a game I could play well -- and classmates wanted what Mrs. Snyder called the "Walking Adding Machine" in their row, because I frequently did the math and "Got It" faster than anyone else. No wonder years later, a book on "talent discovery" said I missed my calling and should have become a bank teller.

But one day our row was badly lagging behind the others -- and when I came up later, I'd already done the math and figured we couldn't win. So I slowed down on purpose and let someone else in. No, I wasn't really being charitable -- I was acting more like Randy Moss in his days with the Minnesota Vikings.

Mrs. Snyder asked what happened to me. I explained with "full disclosure." She stopped the game right there, for a lecture on always giving your best. And we didn't even have to take CRCT exams in those days....

Third grade also found me in a few sessions away from class with Mrs. Dreiling, the school speech therapist. I forget now what my problem was -- but maybe it's come back, because no church has asked me to preach in years.

My fourth grade teacher was a stern disciplinarian named Mrs. Ducret. She insisted you pronounce Connecticut with all three C's, as in "connect-a-cut." Yet you didn't dare pronounce the T in her last name -- that was silent.

Mrs. Ducret had several moments where she ground the class to a halt for minutes at a time, to fill in a blank properly in a sentence. One memorable case involved "scouring powder" -- as too many of us had watched the TV commercials, and called it Comet.

That fourth-grade class marked the only time I've ever played the violin. A music teacher tried to inspire students to try out for the school orchestras, and took my hands in his to play a short piece of music. If he had called it a "fiddle," my country music-loving Dad might have accepted it.

Fourth grade also introduced me to the big-time competition of spelling bees. The future assistant professor and I were tops in the class, and she prevailed in a couple of "heads-up" meetings. But when all four fourth-grade classes came together, I was the champion! I was only 15th in the building bee -- but hey, I was a rookie.

But no, I was not always the perfect little boy. If the lunchroom became too loud, a teacher would blow a whistle and everyone would have to be silent from then on. I whispered too loudly to a girl one day and wound up "on The Line" -- staring away from everyone during midday recess. We only heard rumors about the Principal's paddle back then....

(Our series will continue in our next post on Wednesday.)

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: Suspended for vacation

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.

12 OCT 08: SLOWLY DOWN THE ROAD

"This is one of the worst intersections in town," a man in a back seat said. We were on Whittlesey Road, approaching Veterans Parkway - but I suppose things could have been a lot worse for a Friday afternoon. We made it through the intersection in only two traffic lights.

And here's another thing which eased the headache - neither that man nor I were driving. We were aboard a METRA bus, on the "Rose Hill/Columbus Park Crossing" route. The fact that one bus takes you through both locations shows you how tight the public transit budget is....

It had been years since I climbed aboard a METRA bus. But I did it Friday, to pick up a rental car for my vacation (more on that below). A bus ride costs $1.25. A taxi ride from my home to the airport might cost 10 to 15 dollars, would have no other passengers - and might be such a wild ride that I wouldn't dare read a magazine en route.

The Uptown trolley arrived to pick me up around 1:30 p.m. - and I made two mistakes immediately. I stepped aboard, not seeing an older woman stepping down. That's complete discourtesy on my part - and I can't exactly blame it on youthful enthusiasm anymore.

The second mistake came when I paid the fare. The trolley driver tried to tell me I only needed to pay 55 cents in the Uptown area. But I paid $1.25, which the METRA web site shows is the regular fare. I was heading well away from Uptown, so I think it was actually.... well, you know.... much more fare.

(I joked to the trolley driver that I was leaving him a tip. He certainly didn't try to unlock the box to give me a refund.)

The "Uptown Express" trolley sounds fast, but the title is misleading. It takes you to the METRA Transfer Center on Linwood Boulevard, but via a meandering route. And the route doesn't even go down Broadway - as if Streetscape left the road too narrow for an old-fashioned-looking trolley.

I'd call the Uptown Express the "scenic route," but some of the trolley stops aren't really all that scenic:

+ Fifth Street and Fifth Avenue. It's helpful for residents of the Booker T. Washington Apartments -- but you probably shouldn't tell tourists the stop is named after the victim of an unsolved homicide.

+ Tenth Street and Sixth Avenue -- as in the Public Safety Center. Suspects who post bail at Recorder's Court have to take a one-block "walk of shame" there to board the trolley.

+ 14^th Street and First Avenue. You miss TSYS by one block, but Downtown Elementary doesn't need as many school buses.

It took about 23 minutes for the Uptown Express to take me from Fifth Street to the METRA Transfer Center. This is why the people in Columbus don't dare borrow the Atlanta title, and call it RAPID transit.

At the Transfer Center, I switched to the Rose Hill bus - but you have to choose the bus carefully. That route now alternates between an Airport Thruway course and a Columbus Park Crossing course. It made for a dramatic moment at that busy intersection of Whittlesey and Veterans. If the driver had not turned right, I might still need to call that cab to pick up my car.

After 40 minutes on the Rose Hill bus, I reached the place I wanted - a rental car office on the other side of the Airport Thruway Wal-Mart. A trip I could make by car in 20 minutes wound up taking me 70 minutes on METRA. And I can't really say I took the "green alternative," since the bus runs on diesel fuel and not natural gas.

The long slow ride reminded me of several reasons why most Columbus residents don't seem to take METRA seriously. There's no bus stopping inside the gates of Columbus Airport. Routes miss prime locations like the Civic Center and Trade Center by a block or two. And there's no service today, on a Sunday - deferring to church buses, which might deliver passengers faster.

Have you visited our other blog? It starts with poker, and adds much more. Check out "On the Flop!"

E-MAIL UPDATE: With the Hurtsboro city election settled, guess who has emerged from seclusion....

"Sir" Richard:

Well, another election day has come and gone in "Hurt'sboro with the expected results. Teutonia Burns put up a token struggle, but Ray Tapley prevailed. He will take the "throne" in November.and I expect Burns to fill one of the vacancies on the town council.

"Mare" Yoba has already spoken for the position of Mayor Pro-Tem That means that she will only be a heartbeat away from regaining control.

Ray Tapley isn't new to "Hurt'sboro politics, he is married to former mayor Mary kate Stovall, and held the position of Clerk Magistrate for several years. He and "Judge" Ken White were an unscrupulous duo, and ran the "court" in contempt of Alabama law!

Now, another group has reared its head within our boundaries. A group calling themselves HELP is trying to establish a hysterical (oops! I mispelled historical) district in our garbage strewn town I guess they have been sharing a "Pipe" with our Mayor-Elect

I don't know what he's smoking - but he has conjured up quite a scenario to reincarnate "Hurt'sboro.

This effort aimed curtailing individual rights in the inerests of emminent domain is being met with strong opposition. But, in "Hurt'sboro nothing fails to amaze me!

Constable R.J Schweiger

We admittedly did NOT have time Saturday night to do any fact-checking on this message. But I noticed the outgoing Constable on WRBL the other night, saying Hurtsboro should set a good "foundation" of local services before pursuing Historic District status. Which is weird, because I think Robert Schweiger is still trying to find the right dynamite to blow up the town.

(You'd think Robert Schweiger would want to help with a Historic District project in Hurtsboro. After all, he seems so knowledgeable about local scandals and closed businesses....)

BLOG SPECIAL EVENT: Oh yes - why DID we pick up that rental car? Because we leave today for our annual religious conference, based on the Biblical Feast of Tabernacles. We'll be away for more than a week - yes, during "prime time" for local political campaigns. So if you have something juicy to offer in the next ten days, you might try contacting "Saturday Night Live."

This year's conference promises to be the most unusual we've ever attended. We're heading to an event called Season of Our Joy, at a Tennessee state park. It promises Hebraic dances and "Torah studies" as opposed to the Bible - but strangely, this outdoor setting in Tennessee is NOT offering a raccoon hunt.

We'll be staying in the nearby city of Paris - a place made famous years ago in a country song by George Jones and Tammy Wynette. They sang about the charms of three famous cities. But in their case it was "Rome, Georgia; Athens, Texas; and Paris, Tennessee."

I've actually visited that OTHER Paris once, during a fall church trip. That overnight stop in 1996 included a sunset ride to the observation deck of the Eiffel Tower, "gendarmes" with machine guns at the main rail station - and a traveling companion who had her choice of wonderful restaurants, but insisted on finding a McDonald's for dinner.

In recent years, we've invited guest bloggers to fill in during our vacation. But this year, we're doing something different. I turned 50 in August, without doing the golden anniversary "retrospectives" TV stations or newspapers often do. So we'll offer excerpts from my life story in the days to come. Don't worry, I'm NOT attaching any boring Powerpoint slide shows.

Look for pieces of our autobiography here, beginning Monday. Now before we fill the car with luggage, let's get caught up on some last-minute headlines:

+ Just in time for vacation, gas prices dropped sharply across Columbus - down as low as $3.25 a gallon at Marathon on Second Avenue. But then, many of us don't have enough money left in the retirement account to fill up SUV's now....

+ The Columbus Police Department began a new billboard campaign to fill its upcoming 100 open positions. The "Protect Columbus" signs show how times have changed. The last time billboards were put up about public safety, people were told to call Columbus Councilors and complain about it.

+ Columbus Police reported two young men were arrested at Kendrick High School on "peeping tom" charges. These guys must not have heard about that magazine cover with Angelina Jolie....

+ Tuskegee topped Morehouse 42-27 in their annual college football classic at A.J. McClung Memorial Stadium. Cars filled the South Commons parking lot during the afternoon - yet somehow the skateboard park was as busy as ever. Mom and Dad must drop the teens off at the Villa Nova package store across the road.

+ Arkansas ambushed Auburn 25-22, for the Tigers' third conference loss. Whom does Coach Tommy Tuberville fire now -- both his rotating quarterbacks?

+ Georgia Tech escaped with a 10-7 win over Gardner-Webb. The close score probably shouldn't be surprising -- since the Yellowjackets obviously played two colleges with combined teams.

+ Instant Message to the Alabama Public Service Commission: Did I read that right - you ordered Alabama Power to get rid of the commercials with the talking birds? Simply tell them to wear the rainbow-colored wigs all the time, and viewers will pay attention.

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 980 (+ 25, 2.6%)

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 OCT 08: THE ROMAN ROAD

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

We only have time for a quick item from a reader. It's a response to our "homecoming" to a church congregation, which we mentioned here Friday:

MR. MO JO,

I am worried that the religious sect you discuss in your terrific blog is maybe a little "off beat".

Jesus died for the sins of all.

For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith.



This was to demonstrate His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed; for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.



Romans 3:23-26 NASB

He is Omnipotent!

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.



Romans 8:38,39 NIV

My pastor would be unafraid to quote these verses. But he'd probably add verses from Matthew 5, where Jesus said He came to "fulfill" the law and the prophets instead of destroying them. Since Jesus hasn't made the second coming yet, the pastor would say the law still applies. And you'll notice most mainstream churches are still against stealing....

(P.S. If I ate the buffet lunch at Howard Johnson's downtown, would that also make me Mr. Ho Jo?)

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 955 (- 151, 13.7%)

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.

10 OCT 08: CELEBRATE ME HOME

"WELCOME GAITHERS" said the flashing sign at the entrance to the Columbus Civic Center Thursday night -- a sign directing traffic to Lumpkin Boulevard for parking. I didn't realize the Gaither Vocal Band had so many members....

A big crowd showed up at the Civic Center for Thursday night's "Bill Gaither Homecoming" concert. But earlier in the day, I had a much smaller homecoming -- one that was a bit dramatic, because I wasn't sure what would happen. I might be welcomed. I might be told to leave. And I wasn't even asking about withdrawing my investments.

Regular blog readers know I took a leave of absence last October, from the church congregation I attended for years. But Thursday, I decided to return there for the "Yom Kippur" Day of Atonement service. If Bill Gaither's team had scheduled a 3:00 p.m. sermon by Jake Hess's preacher son Chris, things could have been different....

To my knowledge, no other location in Columbus offered a Day of Atonement service - well, except for the two Jewish synagogues. But I'm not Jewish. And I'm not sure what I would have done if someone ultra-Orthodox had shown up, and offered a live goat to be sacrificed.

I should explain here the background of my church congregation. It's part of a sect with a history of being fundamentalist and restrictive. Some branches won't even let you attend a worship service without an invitation - as if they expect Monty Python's Spanish inquisition to show up at any moment and start taking names.

The congregation I attended for years doesn't tend to be that restrictive - but the ministry has made it clear that loyalty is critical. When our report here on the annual church picnic brings a long corrective session with the pastor, you can guess how critical it is....

A small spinoff group in Montgomery welcomed me for a few special services during the year. But I decided to stay at home Thursday, and see what would happen. I might receive a friendly welcome, be told by a minister to leave - or the congregation would have decided the U.S. is doomed to collapse, and fled to the Middle East.

To make sure my return didn't cause a major stir, I timed my arrival at the meeting hall for about 15 minutes before service time. No one was outside to welcome anyone. Of course, that also meant no one was outside to see if I was on the list of approved members.

I opened the door, and things started well. An older woman remembered me and shook my hand. Her infirm husband who requires a walker blocked my path for a moment, but he eventually recognized me and shook my hand as well. He is NOT used on security detail....

Then came the best handshake of all - as the deacon who happened to be presiding over the service was glad to see me. The Local Elder was away. And in an unusual turn, the Pastor was away as well. The two men who might have been most concerned about me were missing - proving in church as in the markets, timing is everything.

Several regular members came over to my chair and greeted me. One or two wondered if I had been attending other congregations. I told them yes, but didn't get into too many details. They might have given me on-the-spot lectures on all those groups' doctrinal errors.

The service was short, by this association's standards - as we watched a DVD sermon, and finished in 75 minutes. DVD sermons aren't really unusual for this sect. And unlike Cascade Hills Church, someone other than the regular pastor is trusted to present them.

I tried to quietly walk out after the service, much as I did coming in. But an older man raced over to stop me. Sometimes you can be too quiet for others' good....

The older man walked outside with me, and talked about my year away from the congregation. He admitted he's felt something wrong with the group. "The love's not there anymore.... not like it used to be." Did you notice I shook hands a lot, as opposed to hugging people?

I told the older man his concern might be due to the fact that the ministers define "love" solely as the Ten Commandments. While the commandments are good, you have to do more than stop stealing or murdering in front of a woman to have a real romance with her.

At that point, another man walked outside - and he shook my hand in friendship as well. That man had a stern e-mail exchange with me last fall, after I decided to take a leave of absence. For one thing, he correctly noted the phrase "leave of absence" isn't in any translation of the Bible.

So did we talk about the sermon or the meaning of the special day? Nope - this third man wanted to talk presidential politics. He doubts Barack Obama will win. And he says even if the Democrat does win, some people will be disappointed if the Obama cabinet isn't filled with African-American people. I can hear the talk show hosts now, calling it the Black House....

After that brief chat, I walked to the car and drove home. To borrow that old phrase, sometimes you really can go home again. At least, as long as the pastor isn't there to ask a set of doctrinal questions along the lines of a junior high school confirmation class.

With peace prevailing for one day, let's send some Instant Messages -- and to save gas, they're all heading to The Landings shopping center....

+ To the Edward Jones investment office: Thanks for making me feel a bit better. I noticed you have NOT installed a diving board on the roof.

+ To Caffe Amici: How did you get that veal selection you boast about? Are those the calves which are too puny for Cowboys Steak Saloon?

+ To Stevie B's Pizza: Aw, c'mon. ESPN is about to show a college football game - and you switch the TV set to Wheel of Fortune?! I mean, just because the analysts were questioning the firing of Auburn University's Tony Franklin....

BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $3.45 a gallon at Zelmo's on Weems Road.... Southern Kitchen chocolate chip cookies for $1.89 at Piggly Wiggly.... and the stock market to have an up day sometime this month....

COMING THIS WEEKEND: We announce our latest Blog Special Event, that's been years in the making....

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1106 (+ 57, 5.4%)

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.

8 OCT 08: WORKING THE SOIL

"Is that cotton?" a woman in my complex asked the other day as she pointed toward the courtyard. Now don't get the wrong idea - no one had left an old T-shirt there to dry out.

"It looks like it to me," I told her. Two sprigs were about ankle-high, with white fluff attached to them. But why would someone want to grow their own Q-Tip swabs?

I correctly guessed which person in the complex planted those sprigs, so I asked him about them Tuesday. Sure enough, he's growing cotton in the courtyard -- after developing a small garden near the apartment wall, which seemed to have collard greens. Well, we ARE close to the Uptown Farmer's Market....

This led to the obvious question - why? The neighbor told me the cotton plants were a matter of nostalgia. "I used to pick those things all the time, where I used to live." I can relate to this a bit. It took years of adulthood, before I appreciated raking leaves in the fall.

The neighbor used to pick cotton in a very appropriate place - the Russell County town of Cottonton. I assume the people who wanted to work with peach orchards went down the road to Pittsview....

My neighbor admits he doesn't have big plans for the harvest from his two cotton plants. I doubt they'll provide enough fabric for a simple pair of socks. But some area mills are so desperate to stay in business that they might actually accept walk-in customers.

This bit of urban agriculture may seem unusual - but consider what Columbus Council considered Tuesday night. Mayor Jim Wetherington offered a resolution to support a Cesar Chavez national holiday. Chavez organized the United Farm Workers, with their protests of table grapes. Leaving them on top of the refrigerator probably wasn't allowed, either.

Nine states currently recognize the 31 March birthday of Cesar Chavez as a holiday. The mayor's resolution called on the Georgia Legislature and U.S. Congress to do the same thing - but for some reason, it did NOT establish a Columbus city holiday for Chavez. Talk can be a lot cheaper than a paid day off, you know.

This resolution from the mayor certainly was a surprise to me - and I wondered if it was introduced quietly on purpose. For one thing, some people believe there are too many federal holidays now. Some of them even want to revoke one - the one Mayor Wetherington is making sure the city marks next Monday. Would Columbus still have Columbus Day, if no one else keeps it?

For another thing, some people might protest the idea of honoring a man who organized migrant farm workers -- including possibly illegal immigrants. But Cesar Chavez was born in Arizona, not Mexico. And he served in the U.S. Navy during World War II - so Columbus veterans won't feel compelled to go out and buy Mexican flags to wave.

(Oh yes, I almost forgot -- does this resolution for a man devoted to "union rights" prove to the critics Mayor Jim Wetherington really still is a Democrat?)

The proposed Cesar Chavez Day has struck me as an effort to give Hispanic-American people a "holiday of their own," similar to Martin Luther King Day. But of course, the idea is to open Chavez's vision to a wider audience -- as the mayor's resolution calls for a "day of service, learning and action." For instance, El Vaquero could require all its customers to speak in Spanish....

WRBL reported Columbus Council voted for the Cesar Chavez Day resolution. So will there be citywide celebrations next 31 March? And will local "gringos" be tempted to call it the start of Cinco de Mayo season?

Now for other items from the Tuesday news:

+ Evening rain fell on Columbus, for the first time in about three weeks. We'd like to thank all the meteorologists for resisting the temptation to call it "the wet stuff." After all, some detergents can be wet stuff - not to mention beer and wine.

+ Fraternal Order of Police President Randy Robertson scolded Columbus Council, for last week's public apology over the detention of Wallace Davis. Robertson said not all the facts are known about the case. But Chief Ricky Boren joined in the apology - so Robertson may have to save the details for an upcoming tell-all book.

+ WRBL reported two Fort Benning drill sergeants were reprimanded, for what a Jewish soldier called discrimination. If someone requests a kosher Meal Ready to Eat, I don't see the problem with it....

+ A laid-off worker in Las Vegas filed a class-action lawsuit against Bill Heard Enterprises. The suit claims under federal law, employees should have been given 60 days' notice before the dealerships were shut down. That's funny - Bill Heard barely gave customers seven days to return clunker used cars.

+ Phenix City voters removed two incumbent Councilors in a runoff election. Jimmy Wetzel won by a two-to-one margin over Ray Bush - which means Bush will have more time to handle lawsuits by disgruntled city employees.

(The runoff race for mayor of Hurtsboro was won by Rayford Tapley. If he's smart, he'll organize a victory parade with several brand-new garbage trucks.)

+ The Chattahoochee River Watch announced it's moving away from a building on Broadway, to save money. The new location will be on 12^th Street - which is curious, because I figured a house in Bibb City would also cost less money, and let members actually watch the river.

+ Richard Hyatt's web site disclosed the Macon Telegraph is now handling inserting operations for the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer. Maybe now the Sunday store ads will be in alphabetical order, so we can find the ones we really want.

+ The Alabama Public Service Commission granted Alabama Power an eight-percent rate hike, BUT on the condition that no increases would be allowed next year. Yet the utility already has filed a request to start assessing late fees on bills

+ Instant Message to the Troy University football announcers: I didn't watch Tuesday night's game on ESPN -- so what is this "NASCAR set" the Trojans are using on offense? Does it start three-wide, then have the receivers collide with each other?

(BLOGGER'S NOTE: We will take Thursday off to mark "Yom Kippur," the Biblical Day of Atonement. Our next scheduled post should occur Friday.)

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1049 (+ 25, 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.

7 OCT 08: BANKS FOR NOTHING?

Aw, c'mon! Wall Street is handed this big $700 billion package to prevent an economic collapse - and then the stock market falls 800 points for a while during Monday's session?! Is this all the thanks Congress gets? Or did stock traders realize they're out of money for lobbying Congress any more?

The President of Columbus Bank and Trust tried to reassure people about its stability Monday night. Steve Melton told WLTZ that CB&T is A-OK. And due to the FDIC and the new O.F.S.... oh wait, I forgot. We don't send out this blog by text messaging yet....

Steve Melton reported CB&T is marking its 120^th anniversary this month, with $700 million in capital. That means it's gained almost six million dollars a year -- which makes the payoffs for those Lehman Brothers executives look even more ridiculous.

Steve Melton added CB&T has a "loan loss reserve" of $62 million, and has NO "toxic loans or investments." Hmmm -- if his bank has no toxic loans, does that mean city landfill money is kept somewhere else?

(And beyond that -- does this mean Bill Heard Chevrolet used some other bank? Based on the bankruptcy filing, maybe it was CB&S of Huntsville....)

Steve Melton also declared CB&T has a "stable deposit base." I think that's banking jargon for "no long withdrawal lines at the ATM's."

Steve Melton expressed confidence CB&T will survive the current shakiness in financial markets. He added: "There's not an alternative." There isn't?! Wachovia Bank seems to have found at least two - Citigroup and Wells Fargo.

My bank has morphed over the years from SouthTrust to Wachovia, and soon apparently to something else. I guess I'm leaning toward Wells Fargo - if only because the old westerns with that title might return to Columbus television. I've forgotten who played Mr. Fargo 50 years ago....

The Monday afternoon news offered a web site for checking the viability of your bank. Wachovia earned only two stars out of five, which means it's below its peer group. Tell me about it - my latest checking account statement provided me only 11 cents in interest.

The Bankrate.com rating tool shows CB&T with four stars out of five. But Columbus Community Bank only received two - a score the president seemed to blame on how new the bank is. Why, it's hardly had time to find many people demanding sub-prime mortgages.

But back to the rescue plan: Alabama Congressional candidate Joshua Segall came to Phenix City Monday, and said he would have voted against it. He argued the $700 billion plan will NOT help people in our area. Shame on Mike Rogers, for not sneaking in some tax breaks to help Auburn University.

E-MAIL UPDATE: With four weeks left to play before Election Day, a reader has a question....

I've been reading your blogs for time to time.I was just wondering why to you bash Mark Lajoye so much? Here is a canididate that is not wrapped in the " good old boy" system; he has served his country proudly in the armed forces, been a columbus police officer, a strong family man and has been living in columbus for 22 years and wishes to step up and get the sheriff's department back friendly with columbus.I have friends that work at the jail and a lot of the times they really hate to go in to work.Some are hanging to see who gets elected, and if ralph or john get in the seat they will be looking for work else where.i told them if they do leave to look toward Phenix city and harris county for law enforcement career.And if john elected well that's from worse to bad. Have you even thought about sitting down with Mark Lajoye one on one ,maybe have a cup of coffe at waffle house and ask mark what his goals and plans are if he is elected? if that sounds fair then reply back to me and i will set a meeting up with you and Mark.

i know you don't repost all the comments to your blog site so i;ll check and see if you post this.

Happy NiteMares

Columbus, Georgia

Ronnie

We actually DO post most of the comments we receive. I'm not sure what evidence Ronnie has to the contrary - unless one of his "nightmares" involves tapping into other people's e-mail accounts.

But what about this - are we bashing Sheriff candidate Mark LaJoye that much? We checked the archives, and this is the 18^th entry to mention his name. In 12 of the 18 posts, LaJoye's name came up through e-mails to the blog - and at least eight times, HE sent them. If I'm bashing, who keeps opening the door?

In fact, we went six weeks without mentioning Mark LaJoye at all -- from 17 August until 29 September, when we referred to an e-mail he sent us in July. We actually were prepared to stop mentioning the Sheriff's race completely, since LaJoye was finding fault with nearly everything we wrote. But then his messages stopped arriving at the end of July....

In contrast, incumbent Ralph Johnson and Democrat John Darr have not written us at all. Perhaps their campaigns have advised against it - or they're waiting for Josh McKoon to write us in their behalf.

Mark LaJoye suggested a meeting for coffee several weeks ago [22 Jul] - but with four weeks left in the race, I'm already under time pressure. My schedule's quite busy for the next two weeks (details on why upcoming). And if I can't sit down with the other candidates, I'd look a bit like Sarah Palin talking with Sean Hannity instead of Keith Olbermann.

Now a quick check of other Monday headlines....

+ WRBL reported private meetings began with candidates for Muscogee County School Superintendent. In Russell County, they hold public meetings for the finalists where residents can ask questions. In Columbus, we're waiting for a coronation date to be announced.

+ The Georgia Department of Natural Resources announced Shane Wilson of Cataula set a state record by catching a 13-foot-long, 680-pound alligator. I assume Wilson already has an invitation to visit Athens in late October, and inspire the Georgia football team.

+ Instant Message to the people claiming Kroger plans to build a supermarket in Phenix City: The city planning department knows nothing about it. The Chamber of Commerce knows nothing about it. So how do YOU know so much about it? Did someone named Mr. Kroger come up to you and break the news?

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1024 (+ 31, 3.1%)

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 OCT 08: LOVE CAN BUILD A BRIDGE

(BLOGGER'S NOTE: Our Angelfire pages refused to load properly Sunday evening, including our blog multimedia page. We think the problem is on Angelfire's end, and we've reported it to them.)

The 14^th Street Bridge across the Chattahoochee River has almost 100 years of history. But it's probably never been used in the way it was Sunday -- as the area's biggest buffet restaurant. I mean, the line for food was longer than the line to get funnel cakes at the Greater Columbus Fair....

BLOG EXCLUSIVE: Several area churches joined forces Sunday to hold the "Banquet on the Bridge" - a luncheon for homeless people, staged on the 14^th Street Pedestrian Bridge. There was plenty of food to enjoy. But I'm pleased to report the crowd was scattered sufficiently so that the bridge did NOT collapse.

The Banquet on the Bridge took several weeks of planning. I heard one pastor predict to his congregation a weekend in advance it would be "giant." Well, I wouldn't go quite that far -- but setting up dining tables halfway across the bridge qualifies as large-sized.

In the spirit of Hands On Georgia Week, we agreed to provide some support for the Banquet on the Bridge. That led to a scary moment, when our phone rang Thursday night. It was an automated call from one of the organizers - but we didn't realize that, and tried in vain to shut him up while our kitchen sink was filling with dish water two rooms away.

We committed some drinks to Sunday's banquet, as well as help with the set-up crew. The heavy lifting began around 9:00 a.m., and thankfully plenty of young people were available to help. Several stunned me by wearing Auburn University T-shirts - as if they went to bed so early, they didn't know about the loss to Vanderbilt.

A storefront church in the Phenix Plaza shopping center served as a storage center for the banquet. One classroom was stacked to the ceiling with hundreds of folding chairs. But I was curious about an adjacent room marked as "WAR ROOM." Is this where soldiers have Bible studies - or lawsuits are planned involving the Ten Commandments?

Thanks to some trucks and plenty of workers, the folding chairs were moved to the 14^th Street Bridge in about an hour. So were a tall stack of bread trays. The banquet tables were set up not merely with slices of bread - but several unopened loaves per table. So if food pantries wonder why donations have been down for the last week, this could explain it....

We went home after the set-up was finished, and returned to the start of the banquet around 12:45 p.m. A long line of people was waiting to eat, on the north side of a bridge where a homicide occurred in January. Only this time, homeless people seemed to be outnumbered by church people by at least five to one.

The homeless and needy people seemed fairly easy to spot in this crowd. I think one of them walked by holding a 12-foot-long stick in one hand, and a plastic cat litter tub in the other. If his job was to provide fish for the banquet, I didn't see any at the serving tables.

Some people made sure the Christian theme of the Banquet on the Bridge was not overlooked. One man handed tracts to homeless people, explaining they would tell how "Jesus is the answer." But if these people are chronically unemployed, are that many churches and ministries hiring these days?

I noted to a man behind me a sign at the west end of the 14^th Street Bridge, marking the Phenix City limits. It clearly looked like it was painted over, with the exact same words as before. I wondered why it was done - to which the man answered: "It's Alabama. They're liable to do anything."

As I walked toward one of the two long lines of dining tables on the bridge with my lunch, a young man explained on a loudspeaker what the Banquet on the Bridge was about. "In the first century, the church had what's called a love feast or 'agape feast.' We're trying to reincarnate that." Reincarnate?! This was being put on by Christians, not Buddhists.

Pieces of paper taped to the Phenix City Riverwalk marker also explained the Banquet on the Bridge was about tearing down community barriers. I was prepared to help with that - but when I sat down, no homeless people came around me. Instead, two young church women decided to ask me all the questions. Were they ever stunned when I talked about driving with no cruise control....

Here's hoping the Banquet on the Bridge accomplished its goal, and helped homeless people feel appreciated for at least one day. Someone even swept away a cracked glass bottle at one end of the bridge, which I'd spotted while jogging there more than a week ago. The only thing which might have been left behind were chalk messages on the sidewalk.

All in all, the event called a "Feast" for short was a very nice day. But if didn't live near the 14^th Street Bridge or attend one of the churches involved, would you have known about it? I probably would never have known -- and it appears others didn't, either. The only pseudo-politician I noticed there was a Peggy Martin look-alike.

Hoping your Sunday was very nice as well, let's see what else was going on....

+ Which woman walked into a convenience store, claimed she had just received her "allowance" from Florida, and proceeded to buy at least 40 dollars in scratch-off lottery tickets? This is what happens when the stock market becomes too unstable....

+ Columbus Police disclosed someone robbed a Taco Bell on Macon Road. The Ledger-Enquirer's web site reports the criminal ordered food first - so those 79-cent items on the value menu must not give him enough change.

+ Two companies returned to Fort Benning from a mission in Iraq. A vote for U.S. Senate candidate Jim Martin could mean ALL companies come home from Iraq - including the most controversial one, Halliburton.

+ The Greater Columbus Fair ended for another year. I found a woman selling funnel cakes outside the fairgrounds - on the other side of Victory Drive, outside the Villa Nova package store on Second Avenue. No, I didn't ask her if she was caught using tainted milk from China.

+ The Atlanta Falcons grounded Green Bay 27-24. It was quarterback Matt Ryan's first win on the road - and now I fear the Falcons will consider offers to trade him to Green Bay, so it becomes his last.

+ Tony Stewart won the NASCAR race in Talladega, amid some controversy. Regan Smith's car actually crossed the finish line first, and Smith's team argued Stewart forced Smith's car below the infield boundary line. But it appears a pinch is still allowed in NASCAR - simply not as a tobacco sponsor for your car.

(Regan Smith's team also argued in pre-race meetings, NASCAR officials say "anything goes" on the last lap. If that's true, Tony Stewart's crew should have given him a cup of nails to blow up the other racers' tires.)

+ Instant Message to everyone complaining about campaign yard signs: Look on the bright side. It's almost impossible to fit a negative "attack ad" on them.

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 993 (- 59, 5.6%)

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 OCT 08: BALLOT BOX BUSTERS?

This may be an ignorant question - but whatever happened to the Russell County NAACP? There was a chapter there several years ago. Does the Martin Luther King Day march double now as a reunion meeting?

I ask this question because Columbus NAACP President Bill Madison spoke at a Friday news conference in Phenix City. If anyone from a Russell County chapter was there, WLTZ didn't mention them. But then again, Madison wore his usual bright yellow jacket - and he DOES happen to be up for chapter re-election in November.

The Phenix City news conference concerned an investigation by the Russell County District Attorney. Prosecutors are doing another check of absentee voting - this time apparently involving the recent city election. Some people will stop at nothing to get Councilor Ray Bush arrested again....

Bill Madison complained prosecutors in Phenix City are trying to "open up the sacred ballot box." Sacred?! Let's see Madison try to make such a statement in the heart of Chicago....

Bill Madison says there should be a federal investigation, into why Russell County prosecutors are probing absentee voting. Hasn't he been paying attention to Alabama news? State Attorney General Troy King also wants a federal investigation - into why other counties haven't probed it enough.

It turns out Phenix City Councilor Arthur Sumbry already has contacted the Justice Department. He claims prosecutors and police officers are scaring voters, by knocking on their doors and asking questions. As we all know, these scare tactics should be left to the candidates....

Arthur Sumbry complains Phenix City officials and law officers are asking voters whom they supported and why, when it isn't any of their business. I can see his point about the privacy of voting. The questioning should be left for the news media pollsters, standing outside the Central Activities Center.

It was interesting to see Ronnie Reed standing in the background at Friday's news conference - because he's probably at the heart of what prosecutors are doing. You'll recall they tried to review all the absentee ballots Reed received to win a County Commission race in June. Did those voters organize a second Sunday picnic, to vote for Arthur Sumbry?

Yet Russell County prosecutors probably are trying to avoid what's happened in other Alabama counties. The state Attorney General has intervened in several cases where the voting seemed suspicious. If the District Attorney sits back and does nothing, Troy King could change his status from "accuser" to "accused."

This activity happens to come only days before the Phenix City runoff. Incumbents Ray Bush and Gail Brantley were runners-up in the first round of voting. If they fall short Tuesday, it probably ends their chances of having parking benches named after them on the renovated Broad Street.

Challenger Jimmy Wetzel openly declared on Friday's evening news the Streetscape work on Broad Street is a waste of money. In fact, Broad Street is closed all weekend for construction - well, except for business traffic. I think there's an auto parts store along that rough road, and it must be doing record business.

We moved up poker night to Wednesday again this past week. How did we do? Check our other blog, "On the Flop!"

E-MAIL UPDATE: Now to the Columbus election, and a response to the "debate" we mentioned Friday....

No need to have Lexis! The Court in Davis v. Zant found that the prosecutorial misconduct rendered the trial fundamentally unfair.

Davis v. Zant, 36 F3d 1538

The Court in Collier v. State found that the prosecutor's statements were improper and insinuated to the jury that it had a duty to protect the community from any future danger of Collier. "The prosecutor blatantly misused such evidence focusing the jury's attention on the fact that he had participated in a negotiated plea with Collier with respect to one of the transactions . . ." the prosecutor here blatantly misused such evidence by focusing the jury's attention on the fact that he had participated in a negotiated plea with Collier with respect to one of the transactions, by then pleading to them for forgiveness for his
"taking that plea bargain," and finally, by rallying them in what seems to have been his personal campaign to rectify in the instant case his actions in that prior case.

Collier v. State, 266 Ga. App 345

Duhhhhh - which candidate do you think this writer is supporting in the District Attorney's race?

The writer attached summaries of these two cases. Billy Collier was convicted of two stabbings at a bar in 2001. The Georgia Court of Appeals reversed that verdict in March 2004 - but the summary says it was due to "ineffective assistance of counsel." Collier's lawyer never objected to anything District Attorney Gray Conger said. So Conger's words may have been wrong, but the defense attorney saying nothing apparently was worse.

The words Gray Conger said in 2001 went back to a 1988 case, where Billy Collier received probation. During closing arguments, the prosecutor told jurors: "I want to plead and I want penance and I want forgiveness for taking that plea bargain...." Maybe Conger needs to make a similar plea at an upcoming campaign forum....

The Davis v. Zant case is a federal appeals court ruling of 1994, from a late 1983 homicide. The court granted John Michael Davis a new trial, based on "prosecutorial misconduct at trial" and misstatements by Gray Conger during closing arguments. Davis's attorney was Richard Hagler - who somehow has seen the light since 1983, and now defends accused law officers.

These two cases are eye-opening - but they also raise questions. Why were they not brought up in Gray Conger's other campaigns for District Attorney? Was his opponent in 2004 too busy trying to figure out why Conger switched to the Republican Party?

Another question is who's doing the deep digging into Gray Conger's legal record. This is the sort of stuff you'd only expect an attorney to do -- unless perhaps someone suggested Conger become John McCain's running mate.

We have one other e-mail, which doesn't seem political at all:

I just wanted to remind people to check the little box on their power bill to help others less fortunate to pay for their winter heating. This little chill in the morning air feels wonderful to us who don't fear the winter coming up. However,to the poor elderly and children it is an omen of what is to come...

My September bill from Georgia Power didn't seem to have that box. Neither did the Atmos Energy bill -- but the natural gas company does allow you to put payments on your credit card now. So you might not have to pay for a January cold snap until March or April, when you can't remember why the bill was so big.

Now for other quick notes from the weekend....

+ The evening news revealed the cook who was stabbed at Millie's Market on Independence Day is suing the store's manager. Lefty Incarnacion says he might countersue, because the cook errantly left the back door open for criminals. Are young people paying attention to this? You can get somebody's money without using weapons -- simply hire a good lawyer.

+ AAA advised NASCAR fans to fill their gas tanks well before reaching today's race at Talladega. Aw, c'mon! A few drivers probably are going to crash early - so have an open pit lane after the race ends, and give away the leftover fuel.

+ Vanderbilt was victorious over Auburn in college football 14-13. Auburn radio announcer Stan White called the Tiger offense "pathetic" -- and somewhere in Memphis, DeRon Furr may be considering a second college transfer.

(How about 5-0 Vanderbilt, off to its best start since 1943! Back then, a "Commodore" was an actual Navy rank - not a band name which only made sense with the song "Sail On.")

+ Georgia Tech downed Duke 27-0. So much for Duke trying to turn around its football legacy, by borrowing uniforms from the Indianapolis Colts....

+ Instant Message to Tyler Perry: Congratulations on opening your new studios, near Atlanta's Greenbriar Mall! I couldn't make the event - so did you dress like a man or a woman?

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1052 (- 130, 11.0%)

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.

3 OCT 08: YOU MAY CROSS-EXAMINE

There actually were two debates on Columbus television Thursday evening. But since this is isn't The Blog of Washington, I admittedly didn't pay attention to the second one. Besides, we all know what most people tuned in to see - whether Sarah Palin wore her hair up or down.

The first TV debate was a meeting between the candidates for Muscogee County District Attorney. Someone asked me Thursday if there might be any "gray area" during the presentation. I told him yes - there probably would be a Gray Conger area, and a separate Julia Slater area.

But some people may have been disappointed, because the "D.A. Q&A" ended much too soon. Each candidate only had to answer two questions, and there was no interaction between them. Isn't the Miss Georgia pageant a bit more challenging than this?

All the questions in the "debate" came from TV viewers. Incumbent Gray Conger was asked first about his recent comment that he wished three convicted murderers could be "shot on the courthouse steps." If we moved the courthouse to some mobile home parks on Farr Road, he might get his wish....

But anyway: the real focus of the question was why District Attorney Gray Conger put the three Hampton Inn murder suspects on trial together, instead of separately. Conger admitted under Georgia law, suspects CANNOT be tried in groups in death penalty cases. Of course, this proves the old adage about having safety in numbers.

But the incumbent explained some witnesses in that murder case might not have been able to wait for one capital murder trial, much less three separate ones. That's what happens when a crime takes place at Hampton Inn, instead of an extended-stay lodge.

Gray Conger's tongue was challenged in the other question he faced. It involved the case of "Collier vs. The State" from 2004 -- a case I'd never heard of, and one which baffled Conger for a moment. And you wondered what attorneys do, when they don't have any big cases to prepare....

In the Collier case, the District Attorney was accused of being reprimanded by an appeals court for some comments he made during trial. Gray Conger said he doesn't recall the appeal turning out that way. The only way to find the truth might be to conduct a "Lexus" search - something normally done by people who can afford to drive such things.

Gray Conger admitted there are times in a courtroom when it's "easy to get in the argument.... say things you sometimes wish you didn't say...." Of course, Conger's critics were hoping he'd do the very same thing right there on TV.

But the District Attorney made a surprising additional comment -- quoting an old F.B.I. agent he knew, who preferred to work with someone "with a letter of censure in his file." Didn't this kind of approach get Bill Heard Chevrolet in trouble?

Opponent Julia Slater faced two probing questions of her own. The first involved rumors that her law firm was under a federal investigation -- something legal partner Mark Shelnutt addressed here a few weeks ago [21 Aug]. About all that's missing is someone connecting Slater to the Harris County Sheriff....

Julia Slater declared the rumors of a federal investigation "not true." That's a bit different from Mark Shelnutt's comment to us that nothing had been confirmed. Perhaps the F.B.I. saw what Mayor Jim Wetherington said to Wallace Davis the other day, and decided to do the same thing.

Julia Slater insisted she's "never been accused of wrongdoing" - not as an Assistant District Attorney, and not in her private practice. This may give us a clue about which member of her household is responsible for taking out the garbage.

The other question for Julia Slater involved the "low bond" controversy for Griffin, Georgia Rotary Club President Frank Stuart Thompson. Make that FORMER President, as someone else was inducted in the office in September. The club bulletins don't explain what happened - which is a sure way to keep the weekly attendance high.

Julia Slater turned the bond obtained for Frank Stuart Thompson into a complaint against her opponent. She said over the last 12 years, the District Attorney's office has had "no consistent presence" in Recorder's Court. I have this funny feeling the bail bonding companies take a different approach....

With four questions answered, the debate suddenly ended. One other big case of recent years never came up - but when we checked our InBox Thursday night, there it was:

Our son Richard was murdered in Columbus July 2003: a trial and convictions followed but justice was not served. Before you think to yourself that it's our grief making us feel that way, here are some details: As a retired military policeman, I investigated many crimes during my career and I never saw a case handled like my son's. Basic evidence was kept out of court. Items from the scene was never tagged as evidence. Statements revealed that my son was placed in the trunk of the murderers car, yet the car was never examined. I asked the District Attorney, Gray Conger to have this done. I even offered to pay for it. It fell on deaf ears. We spent years begging for Richard's remains. Conger kept them in a cardboard box while telling us the reason was about DNA for future appeals. We told him we would agree to him keeping a small portion. He never responded. Finally in 2007, he released them for burial but only after my family launched a petition forcing the issue. The coffin was exhumed and it was discovered that a portion of his femur bone had been removed for DNA in November 2003. So his flimsy DNA excuse was never true. It was also discovered that one of his rib bones recovered from the crime scene is missing. We've asked for answers. As always, Conger doesn't respond. We don't live in Columbus, but we like the town and its citizens and thought you should know how victims are really treated. When you cast your vote for District Attorney, for your own well-being you should think about getting someone new. Pick someone who cares about justice not just fast tracking cases off the docket to give the illusion he's doing a good job.

LANNY AND REMY DAVIS

APPLE VALLEY, CALIFORNIA

So with this e-mail which is also being sent to the Ledger-Enquirer, Julia Slater gains a de facto endorsement from the West Coast. At least it's from the opposite direction of Joshua Segall, with his checks from New York City.

Lanny and Remy Davis continue to oversee the Richard Davis Foundation for Peace, named after their late son. One of its latest projects is a fund-raising drive for an "Iraq War Veteran Memorial," which it wants to locate in Columbus. If anything moves those Saturday anti-war protests off Veterans Parkway, this could do it.

Now for other sights and sounds from an outstanding October day....

+ Which guitar player was caught singing contemporary Christian music on the sidewalk, outside a restaurant on Broadway? Were any customers convicted enough to avoid buying tickets to comedy night at The Loft?

+ A new government map showed Columbus has returned to a "severe drought." Now this isn't fair. September and October tend to be our driest months of the year. What are we supposed to do - drain all the swimming pools on nearly farms?

+ A registered nurse gave a presentation at Brookstone School, on the dangers of drinking and driving. Hopefully students got the message - and if Brookstone wins the Brocelli Jug over Pacelli tonight, they'll fill it only with apple cider.

+ Several former employees of Bill Heard Chevrolet revealed their final paychecks have been returned. Wow - I didn't realize the managers kept "Repo Joe" on the payroll a few extra days....

+ Instant Message to National Public Radio reporter Jim Zarroli: I see you got the word -- you weren't quite right in the 4:00 hour Thursday. Bill Heard Chevrolet was NOT "based in Atlanta." Columbus isn't quite a suburb yet. But considering the bankruptcy filing, the managers must somehow think Decatur, Alabama is a suburb of Columbus.

SCHEDULED NEXT WEEK: Sunday dinner - not along the river, but over it....

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1182 (+ 22, 1.9%)

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 OCT 08: MADE FROM SCRATCH?

"Now taking applications in back" said the sign outside a restaurant Wednesday. And you thought the only place doing backroom deals these days was Capitol Hill....

The restaurant taking applications Wednesday was Wendy's on Wynnton Road. And that seemed strange, because the restaurant shut down only nine days before for remodeling. Construction workers have stripped the place practically to the bare walls - leaving me to wonder if the applications really are for interior designers.

But with local unemployment at a 15-year high, isn't this good news? Isn't any business taking applications for workers a good thing? Yeah, I suppose so - but part of me said something didn't add up here. Who was serving Wendy's customers two weeks ago, before the remodeling started? Who was so insistent on people having their money ready that signs were posted along the drive-through lane?

Wendy's on Wynnton reflects a trend I've been seeing across the area. A fast-food restaurant closes for several weeks of renovation - then people are hired in time for the grand reopening. What happens to the old staff members? Is this a stunt to "lay off and rehire," with a cut in pay? I've heard of airlines doing this, only they've kept the same planes.

The most recent example of this approach which I noticed was the KFC in downtown Phenix City. It shut down for a few weeks to convert to a "Colonel's Buffet" - and did it so quickly, drivers wondered if the renovation crew could finish the Streetscape project on Broad Street while they were at it.

(Then there are the restaurants where the entire building is leveled, and a new one is built. That's happened on Airport Thruway, at both Hardee's and Taco Bell. Apparently the Taco Bell corporate executives take that "why pay more" idea only so far....)

That was another restaurant where people were hired before the reopening. So is there a plot here? I walked over to Wendy's Wednesday afternoon to find out -- and found the renovation is so extensive, they've torn out part of the parking lot. Is the grease from the fries draining to a science lab at Columbus High School?

Construction workers pointed me to an entrance at the far back corner of Wendy's. But when I walked in, I was told the people taking applications were out until about 4:00 p.m. Well, I did show up well after lunch hour - but I think Minnie's Uptown Restaurant still would have served me.

I asked one construction worker if he might know what happened to the old Wendy's workers. It turns out he did. They were sent to other Wendy's restaurants across Columbus. So their jobs are safe - unless the construction crew comes to their new location next.

Perhaps a wave of workers is building here - with restaurant staff members moving back and forth across town, as their chains get new looks. My only remaining question at Wendy's on Wynnton is this: which employee won the right to keep the picture of Dave Thomas?

E-MAIL UPDATE: It's time to play rumor control again. This one came in two parts....

Can you possibly find out about the increase in car jackings the past 2 weeks....an email is traveling around mentioning the Ussery family and Windsor Park areas................I wish a crime report was in our ledger enquirer like in most cities. Much more valuable than "read more at LedgerEnquirer.com" Thanks....

Anyway in our Sunday school class we were talking about it yesterday and Wesley, an assistant DA, was saying that there were 5 car-jackings Thursday night. Most, if not all, were after 9 with women driving by themselves or looked like they were by themselves. They are thinking it may be a gang initiation thing. The cops told Teddie the best thing to do is to drive past, throw it in reverse, or start honking, basically do anything to avoid them getting you. Anyway I just wanted to let you know that so y'all would be careful and make sure your doors are ALWAYS LOCKED!!

Apparently Wesley didn't know what he was talking about. Lt. Steve Cox with the Columbus Police Department's Robbery and Assault Division told me Wednesday there was "one isolated incident" last Thursday night, and there's NO wave of carjackings in Windsor Park. Cox said he's received "37,000 e-mails" about this -- which, of course, may be an exaggeration in the other direction.

But yes, you should lock your car doors. Especially if you're going to warm up your car in the driveway on the next few cool mornings - or are gas prices now so expensive that people are willing to shiver for a few miles?

Since we've determined this is a humor blog, I suppose it's my duty to come up with a carjacking joke. So this guy walks up to Teddie and says, "Gimme your car!" And Teddie says in response - "You don't know jacking!"

We moved up poker night to Wednesday again this week. How did we do? Check our other blog, "On the Flop!"

OVERHEARD OVER HERE: The man stood at a Wachovia bank teller window, talking about the pending takeover by Citibank.

"Does my home loan payment stop, when Citi takes over? I thought maybe they might give me a bailout."

We think that man was joking, so let's joke a bit more about the Wednesday news....

+ Car dealer Carl Gregory issued an updated statement, saying his buyout plan for Bill Heard Chevrolet appears to be dead. He stopped short of saying it's as dead as the battery on a used Chrysler LeBaron.

+ The evening news checked to see if local businesses had reduced their city sales tax. Firehouse Subs at Cross Country Plaza was caught still charging seven cents on the dollar - with the staff explaining only the managers could reset the registers. Then do the right thing -- and donate those extra pennies to a REAL firehouse, say in Harris County.

+ Instant Message to Domino's Pizza: Why? Do you really need to add sandwiches to your menu? That sounds as silly as expecting Subway to sell pizzas, and they.... oh wait, they started doing that last year....

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1160 (+ 18, 1.6%)

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 OCT 08: BARGAIN TOWN

The front page of Tuesday's Ledger-Enquirer was a bit scary - with the number "777" in red ink. People who didn't know better might have thought the newspaper was taken over by Victoryland.

We all could use a bit of good economic news - so I'm pleased to offer some. As of today, items in Columbus stores cost a little less. To borrow from the commercials, it's a limited-time offer. But you don't have to hurry, as if you're buying a Bill Heard Chevrolet or something.

As of midnight, the 1999 city one-cent special purpose local option sales tax expired. So now, shoppers in Columbus only pay six cents of sales tax on the dollar instead of seven. That's a 14-percent decline - which makes Monday's drop in the Dow Jones Industrial Average look downright ordinary.

The SPLOST will be replaced by the LOST, the one-percent city local option sales tax for streets and safety. But that doesn't take effect until January. Remember how city officials explained this during the summer -- the LOST is NOT a new tax. So consider the expired tax on an extended vacation....

(The city LOST will replace the school district's one-percent SPLOST in January. So where's the talk about putting THAT up for renewal at the polls? Do we need to do months of surveys about that first, like we have for finding a Superintendent?)

The Columbus Finance Department sent reminders about the tax change to about 8,000 city businesses. But we remember what happened in July, when we caught a big-name store ignoring the Georgia sales tax holiday [1 Aug]. So for the next few days, you might want to pull an old-fashioned pocket calculator out of the bottom of your desk drawer and carry it around.

So what will cost less today, with the sales tax dropping one percent? Items in department stores will, and so should other things....

+ Gasoline prices should drop, presumably by three or four cents a gallon. Now that's progress - as Columbus draws within about ten cents a gallon of Montgomery.

+ Natural gas bills will go down - which almost makes you long for a December cold wave, so we can get winter out of the way early.

+ My local phone bill stands to drop about ten cents. I can remember when that would have earned me a free call from a pay phone.

If you really want to save some money, wait to shop until Thursday. That's when the Georgia "Energy Star Sales Tax Holiday" begins. And no, that title does NOT apply to energy drinks named after NASCAR drivers....

A four-day state sales tax holiday will apply across Georgia to energy-efficient items, ranging from light bulbs to air conditioners. And for the first time, a tax break also will apply to water-saving items. So buy a low-gallon toilet, and you'll be flush with extra change.

But critics say it's ridiculous to Georgia to have sales tax holidays, when the state has a big budget deficit and the Governor is ordering departments to make cuts. Some local lawmakers called Tuesday for a special session of the state legislature on the budget. But Sonny Perdue hopes to elect Republicans who want cuts along the lines of a Fort Benning barber shop.

We're spreading the word about our latest blog, which deals with poker and much more. Visit "On the Flop!"

E-MAIL UPDATE: As we get caught up from the last couple of days, we have responses to Monday's topic on elections and families....

Richard,

Your take on Gil McBride is off the mark. He is a good person and a respectable man. Talk with him.

If I need to talk with the candidate for Superior Court Judge, I will. But so far, no one's accused him of doing anything low-down or dirty. Of course, I haven't noticed any Gil McBride campaign billboards on Victory Drive, either....

We referred to more than one candidate on Monday:

Richard,

Once again you are trying to lay out a trap out for some unsuspecting Political Candidate to fall into. As for my political agenda in concerned, you should come out to one of those forums and check it out for yourself. I'm sure you would be able can sneak around the room without anyone seeing you." Good Luck and Happy Hunting" www.marklajoye.com

Who, me -- set traps?! If I really wanted to set a trap, I'd arrange a Tupperware party and invite every single woman I know....

Several candidate forums are being held across Columbus. But most of them have been timed badly for my schedule, due to religious observances. And this year, I'm not attending any churches which seem to make politics a big deal. I've seen more political activity by employees wearing buttons at Wal-Mart.

Our last e-mail goes back to a topic of 24 September:

Richard,

The only thing I do not understand about this entire green space mess is why we are still on this issue. The money that has been wasted legally debating on this issue alone outrages me and many others. I am certain the city and the school will work together to do something that is both appeasing to the eye and bring joy to the residents of the community. With all the problems we are facing in this community as well as our country as a whole, I think this issue is a very small one and we should be looking at the bigger picture right now, like how we intend to turn this country around.

Latin or English whatever the writing, we need to be focusing our efforts and our energy towards something that does matter to the people like fixing this economy and ensuring our city lives up to its promise regarding fund distribution of the safety and infrastructure tax the citizens approved earlier this year.

Live Well and God Bless.

Jeremy Hobbs

I guess the Education Park Coalition is pushing this all the way to the Georgia Supreme Court because members see a bigger issue at stake. They contend Columbus city officials promised them a park, then went back on their word. And in doing this, they're trying to show someone besides Paul Olson actually cares about such things.

We thank all of you who write us -- and now let's write some more about the last couple of days:

+ Columbus city officials publicly apologized to former Carver High School football coach Wallace Davis. Davis says officers mistakenly detained and handcuffed him during an undercover drug bust. So why haven't the mistakenly detained bank robbery suspects from Buena Vista Road gone before Council? Is this a case of Davis "working the officials" for one more call?

(WRBL noted the mother of Kenneth Walker was at Columbus Council, in Wallace Davis's behalf. It's almost as if she's becoming the person hearing police complaints - and if she's not careful, she could put the Columbus NAACP and Rainbow/PUSH Coalition out of business.)

+ A Harris County Commissioner confirmed there's NO evidence of any violations by Sheriff Mike Jolley. The next step should be for Jolley to call a public hearing at a Catholic church -- so everyone who spread rumors about him can go to a confessional and apologize.

+ Former Bill Heard Cadillac manager Chris French (apologies for the earlier misspellings) confirmed he's preparing an offer to buy the local dealerships. But is this the right person to head this ownership group? Rumors will spread that all the cars are French, and Iraq veterans might start a boycott.

+ The owners of Atlanta's weekly newspaper Creative Loafing filed for bankruptcy protection. After loafing for all these years, it was only a matter of time....

(The web site of Creative Loafing doesn't seem to mention the chapter 11 filing. Perhaps it's buried in the classified ads, reading something like this: "Single Tabloid Weekly seeks Sugar Daddy to fulfill dreams; long-term relationship optional.")

+ Columbus High School's volleyball team swept matches against both Carver and Northside. There's one big reason why more high school boys don't show up to watch these matches. They're not played on a beach, with the "uniforms" Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor wear.)

+ Auburn football coach Tommy Tuberville told reporters he's trying to win games, "not make friends and run for office." That big sigh of relief reporters heard next came from State Representative Mike Hubbard....

+ Instant Message to the Chicago White Sox: How did you do that? You asked the fans to dress for a "blackout" Tuesday night - and you won! This makes the Georgia football team look even worse.

Our number of unique visitors is now up 31 percent from last year. To advertise to our readers, offer a story tip 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: 1142 (+ 33, 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.