The Blog of Columbus, Georgia

Sunday, September 17, 2006

for 18 SEP 06: PILING ON

"Does anybody plan to clean that up?" I asked a neighbor Sunday as I approached a shady tree at our apartment complex. A group of men spent most of Saturday afternoon there, and left beer cans scattered all around the tree - almost as if they expect them to grow into kegs in a few years.

"The Can Man will get 'em," my neighbor who looks 60-something answered. The Can Man?! To some people, this might sound like an industrial version of the tooth fairy.

Does your corner of Columbus have a Can Man? It turns out my neighborhood actually does - a man or woman who goes around picking up discarded aluminum cans, presumably for the recycling money. Come to think of it, there's also a bird feeder in the middle of my apartment complex. Except sometimes, men fire pellet guns at the birds....

I think I've seen the Can Man visit my complex from time to time in recent months. Someone walks up to the trash cans near the curb around pickup day, and probes around inside. Either he's looking for aluminum to recycle, or the convenience stores down the street should start offering inexpensive hot breakfasts.

Several years ago, a Can Woman roamed around the Historic District. My late next-door neighbor quietly left aluminum cans in a bucket outside the back door, and the Can Woman picked them up every week or so. Considering my 70-something neighbor sometimes asked me for loans to make it until payday, I wonder why she didn't go roaming herself.

There was a time long ago when I was a Can Man - not because I had to, but because I wanted to. When I went running in Oklahoma, I'd pick up recyclable cans left along the roadside as I jogged/walked home. It was an experiment in environmentalism - and in a big surprise, at summer's end the soda cans won more nights than the beer cans.

But I've never thought of intentionally leaving aluminum cans outside, for a Can Man to pick up. I suppose some people actually throw trash along the side of a highway as well, so those "adopt-a-mile" groups feel like they're accomplishing something....

Call me greedy, but for years I've saved aluminum cans in a giant trash bag and taken them to a recycling center myself [11 Apr]. It doesn't bring in a lot of money - but if I leave them in the city's blue bin along the curb, I don't get a penny. For a single guy, every free dinner at McDonald's matters.

And that's another thing - my "blue bin" for Columbus curbside recycling has been ignored by city collection crews so often, I don't leave it out anymore. I think it's because the recycling is aimed at homeowners. As if apartment dwellers and renters need to deposit our stuff outside Goodwill Industries, then shop there for low-budget clothing.

But while my neighborhood has a Can Man, it doesn't seem to have anyone picking up the other recyclable items for money. At least I've never noticed a Paper Boy - and Plastic Man is still merely a comic book character.

THE BIG BLOG QUESTION returns from a long absence, to ask what you think of this. Should we leave aluminum cans out and about, for a "Can Man" to collect -- perhaps to make some extra money? Should we simply handle the cans ourselves? And should I go out to the shady tree, pick up the cans myself and see if the men will learn a lesson about sloppiness?

While we're "trash talking," we have good news and bad news for Columbus Riverwalk users. The good news is that the section near South Commons Softball Stadium is open, after weeks of sewer construction. The bad news is that a collection of tires was left behind, near a giant piece of heavy machinery. Maybe those are waiting for Tires First on Miller Road to pick up.

I counted about 20 tires stacked up near the Riverwalk over the weekend. My only conclusion is that the sewer workers found them, while doing their construction over the last several weeks. How some of those big tires wound up fitting in a sewer line, I have no idea....

We can only guess how those tires wound up along the Riverwalk. Some people may have carelessly dumped them in the Chattahoochee. Others might have in practice - dreaming of the day they can row their own kayaks through whitewater rapids downtown.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Our e-mail writers seemed to be in a surly mood Sunday. We'll start with a message about a longtime lawmaker:

Why is Synovus allowing Calvin Smyre to used their money to intimidate, influence, and attack other African Americans in the Columbus community? This behavior is morally wrong, and does not represent good cooperate citizenship.

"Smyre needs to Go!!!"

Ms. Chakunna S. Motes

I'm not sure what sort of intimidation Ms. Motes is describing. Synovus donated money to help parents of the Northern All-Stars attend the Little League World Series - but the team was still all-white.

If Synovus is donating money to political candidates, the company isn't doing what any other company or individual can't do. The old phrase says, "Put your money where your mouth is." In this case, Calvin Smyre is the mouth in the Georgia Legislature....

There's one other big problem with Ms. Motes's message. Rep. Calvin Smyre can't go in this year's election. He's running unopposed, Burt Coker decided to stage a write-in campaign for Mayor instead -- and I'm not sure if Reginald Pugh would have to change his home address.

Here's an e-mail which seems related to that....

Have most Black preachers lost their moral compass? several months ago many of then allowed their names to be placed on a list supporting a local political candidate, I've never seen a list of white clergy doing the same. Saving souls and helping the needy is what preachers should be doing rather than allowing themselves to be used as ponds by politicians. I wonder will the black preachers be selling there godly influence in the November elections.

Maybe the "white clergy" are supporting candidates in a more secretive way, as opposed to putting their names in the newspaper. It's called prayer....

Pastors of all skin colors take active community roles, in political and non-political offices. Joseph Roberson of South Columbus United Methodist Church is a Muscogee County School Board member. Jimmy Elder of First Baptist Church serves on one of the library boards. But I haven't checked to see if Senator Johnny Isakson still is teaching Sunday School somewhere.

Our last e-mail deals with Columbus city business:

Unscripted:

If you want to see the best comedy on the TV just check out your Columbus Council. Hollywood could not write a script this good.

What was saved?:

We now have to hire outside accounting firms to audit ourselves when we just got rid of folks who did that. I guess no matter what it costs, the council will say it was cheaper than keeping good folks working full time.

Are they serious?:

How can council, with a straight face anyway, appoint anyone to interim responsibility who was an assistant to anyone embroiled in the Finance Department situation?

Do the books:

First it was the city landfill fees, now it's the installment fines. I don't know what the city administration is good at, but it sure aint proper accounting and collecting money.

It sounds to me like all of the councilors better start looking for another part-time job because the citizens are getting tired of their inability to run our city. Bob is going to be the first one out and the rest of you are next.

Concerned citizen, tax payer, and registered VOTER.

Brent Rollins

So it's a battle for best comedy between Columbus Council meetings and Rivertown Ford infomercials [18 Aug]. If the Council brought in the Cottonmouths' mascot to compete with the Ford dancing turkey, I might be persuaded.

Is Brent Rollins being a bit inconsistent, with accusations about "outside accounting firms?" If it wasn't for an outside pay study, the Columbus Police Department he loves so much might not be receiving nice raises right now. Those officers would be calling the Russell County Commission instead, and pretending they live in Seale.

Whether Mayor Bob Poydasheff is voted out will be decided in 50 days. But Columbus Council as a whole?! I'd remind Brent Rollins that two current Councilors are unopposed in the November election [2 Jul] -- one of them for a city-wide at-large seat. Talk is cheap. Campaigning for office -- well, that starts with a filing fee.

We thank all of you for writing us - and now let's check some Sunday headlines:

+ The Shrine Circus finished its annual weekend at the Columbus Civic Center. A few people stood outside again this year, claiming the circus animals are abused. It would be nice to know how many of them drove across town, for the Muscogee County Humane Society "adopt-a-thon...."

(These protesters of circus animal abuse have become almost commonplace. But why don't you ever hear them express concern about how risky the trapeze act is?)

+ The Atlanta Falcons stayed unbeaten by topping Tampa Bay 14-3. The two field goal kickers went a combined 1-for-7 -- leaving me to wonder if they've been watching tapes of Shaquille O'Neal shooting free throws.

(The Atlanta defense knocked down several pass attempts by Tampa Bay quarterback Chris Simms. For awhile, I thought the Falcons might wind up with more "batted balls" than baseball's Tampa Bay Devil Rays.)

+ Instant Message to whomever left a cigarette butt straight up in the middle of an ant hill, along the Chattahoochee Promenade: Do you plan to check on that in a few days? You know, to see if the nicotine or second-hand smoke killed any ants?

SONG OF THE DAY: A Pacific storm moved across Mexico's west coast Sunday - a storm called Hurricane Lane. We offer our sympathies to the families of the victims. But it's quite tempting to combine the name of the storm with an old tune about Santa Claus....

Here comes hurricane, here comes hurricane,

Here comes Hurricane Lane!

Spreading debris from its strong winds

And flood water caused by rain.

If you're in the path of this storm,

You'd better take cover real quick!

Hurricane Lane is a storm so strong

It might hit you with a brick!

People across metro Columbus and around the world read this blog every day. To advertise to them, 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.

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17 SEP 06: THE DAYS TIME STOOD STILL

We hope the visitors attending the Georgia Conference on Tourism enjoyed their time in Columbus this past week. I think I jogged past some of them the other evening on the Chattahoochee Promenade at Fifth Street - because why else would anyone be there carrying clipboards?

But there's one attraction I hope the tourism conference visitors didn't see. It's at the corner of Tenth and Bay Avenue, where construction continues on the Columbus State University "Riverpark Campus." It's in plain sight, inviting you to stare at it -- and no, it's not a beggar wearing slacks down around his knees.

Remember how Columbus marked "Y-2-K" almost seven years ago? A "millennium clock" was dedicated near the Riverwalk, complete with a time capsule and sponsorship bricks. I suppose we should have expected the bricks to last the longest -- and thankfully, the StreetScape construction crew hasn't cut corners and stolen any....

But the four-sided millennium clock at Tenth and Bay seems to have been forgotten since 2000. I noticed several weeks ago it had stopped running. Then this past week, I checked it twice to confirm it still wasn't working right. I mean, it can't even illustrate the song "It's Five O'clock Somewhere" when three sides show the time as 6:30.

At least the time on the side facing Phenix City has changed a bit. My first picture from Independence Day showed it stuck at 1:05. When I checked again a few days ago, it showed 6:30. Did some drunk C.S.U. student climb the clock somehow, and try to set the time himself?

Yes, I've read the old saying that "even a stopped clock is right twice a day." That's nice positive thinking - but if you're visiting downtown Columbus and you're on a schedule, the millennium clock could be quite annoying. Especially when it's showing different times on two sides, and neither seems to be Eastern and Central Time.

So where do you go to report a problem with the millennium clock? That's a very good question, and I still don't have a definite answer:

1. The clock says "Uptown Columbus" on one side, so we called the Uptown Columbus office. No, they're not over it. They're tearing up entire blocks of Broadway, but they're not touching Bay Avenue.

2. Uptown Columbus people say the Historic Columbus Foundation is over the clock. No, they're not - or at least they denied it when we called. Apparently January 2000 isn't historic enough.

3. The Historic Columbus Foundation referred us to the Columbus Parks Department. So apparently that grassy oval next to the clock is a park?! It's covered with a seven-foot-high pile of dirt at the moment -- too tall even to use as a pitcher's mound.

4. The Parks Department's main number directed us to "Parks Services." But when we called that office, everyone was out of the office for the day. Maybe they were making sure the "Tourism Works Here" lawn signs weren't being replaced by ones for political candidates.

We were told to call Parks Services back Friday for an answer - but when we did, we were told they still didn't have an answer yet. We were told to try again "next week." It's a good thing we weren't reporting stolen nets from tennis courts.

A side point here: when we canceled the Power Frisbee season two weeks ago, only one city out of 14 had NOT given us a firm commitment on a field. Can you guess which one? Yup, our home town of Columbus. The Parks Department still was waiting for school district permission about McClung Memorial Stadium on Labor Day weekend -- as if some high school would want to suddenly play on Sunday.

The Columbus Parks Department kept us waiting since April to book a Power Frisbee field -- and the Parks Services office is showing that same level of "customer service" when it comes to the millennium clock. Maybe the staff is waiting to confirm it's in charge of the clock until we go back to standard time in late October....

I've lived in other cities where landmark downtown clocks fail to work properly. East Point had one like that for years, after its MARTA station opened. In such cities, the clocks become running local jokes - and of course, the jokes keep running even when the clocks don't.

But shouldn't Columbus be better than this, when it comes to "what progress has preserved?" Or has all the emphasis on improving Broadway caused people to forget the landmark clock on Bay Avenue two blocks away? When the time comes to open that time capsule under the sidewalk, will people still be able to know what time it actually is?

E-MAIL UPDATE: It's always nice to have new readers - not to mention fan mail from them:

I live in Columbus Georgia and I LOVE this blog!!! I just discovered it online tonight and have been laughing ever since :-)

Keep up the good work!

April W

Thanks so much, April - and perhaps I should say congratulations to you. It takes some new readers several weeks to figure out this blog is supposed to be funny.

Now for topics and tidbits from the last weekend of summer:

+ Which local charity recently held Sunday night bingo games, had only 13 people show up, and took home less than 60 dollars in proceeds? Perhaps I shouldn't point fingers, though - that charity still raised more in one night than Power Frisbee did in three.

+ The price of gasoline in Columbus took another big tumble, falling to $2.30 a gallon at many stations. For those of you grumbling about it being an election-year ploy - maybe you need to celebrate Thanksgiving two months early.

+ WRBL reported on a memo from the Russell County Administrator, saying a 20-percent raise for the Sheriff's Department would require that department to lose nine positions to keep a balanced budget. That gives a whole new meaning to the two-way radio phrase "over and out."

+ The Phenix City Amphitheater held a Saturday night "street dance" concert. I didn't catch which band performed - but I have to wonder about its first song, "Rock Around the Clock." Didn't Phenix City ban that, back in the 1950's?

+ Auburn edged Louisiana State 7-3 in an important Southeastern Conference football game. It was the lowest-scoring game at Auburn since 1973 - way back before anyone started yelling for Pat Sullivan to become head coach.

+ Instant Message to my church congregation: It's too bad we called off the "sit-down dinner" this weekend. But you'll be pleased to know when I brought home a Saturday night meal from Church's Chicken, I went ahead and ate it sitting down anyway.

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Friday, September 15, 2006

for 16 SEP 06: HA!-LELUJAH

(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.)

We return today to an e-mail from earlier in the week [12 Sep]. Here's part of what the reader said about our blog:

You talk a great deal about being a Christian and what not, yet some of the mean things you say seem very un-christian like. Of course, I am not a church-goer, so I might be a bit off on that, but for a man who is as seemingly religious as you are, some of your jabs come as a surprise.

Maybe I should write more uppercuts than jabs - because the swing of the uppercut might remind someone of a smile.

At the core of this comment is how to define "Christian humor." There's been a growing number of Christian comedians in recent years, including Christian stand-up comics. One of the best-known ones talked about going to a church, claiming to be a Christian comic, and being told in response: "Great! Where's your puppet?"

You may have heard preachers say words such as, "I believe God has a sense of humor." But you don't need to speculate about that. You can know - and before I started LaughLine for a national audience several years ago, I did a Bible study on the subject. You may be stunned to learn not once in the Bible does anyone get a pie in the face.

The Bible study on humor became a "witnessing statement" of sorts on the LaughLine web site, so I'm calling on that for a response to this e-mail. I was surprised by some of the verses I found, and you might be as well:

"The One enthroned in heaven laughs...." (Psm. 2:4) What's God laughing about? Believe it or not, rulers who try to take a stand AGAINST Him (2:2)! God also laughs at wicked people, who plot mean things against righteous people (37:12-13). He even finds it funny when people have DISASTERS in their lives, after rejecting Him (Prv. 1:24, 26)!

The point: if you're doing something against godly people or principles, God may be laughing at you - because at death, He'll have the last laugh.

So is God some sort of sicko? No, because there are other things that give Him joy, pleasure and delight - such as obedience to Him (I Sam. 15:22), mercy (Mic. 7:18) and upright living (Prv. 11:20).

And if that's not enough, God took pleasure in adopting believers as His children (Eph. 1:4-5). In fact, He did that before we were even here!

Even though the day's news may be grim, God promises to bring Jesus Christ back to earth in the nick of time -- to set up a kingdom that will last forever! It's something He's "pleased" to do (Lk. 12:32) - and no doubt we'll be pleased to be there.

Indeed as a Psalm says, "The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy" (Psm. 126:3). And if your children happen to find a two-humped camel funny-looking, the Lord might not mind at all.

COMING SUNDAY: A place the Georgia Conference on Tourism hopefully was NOT shown....

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15 SEP 06: MILLION-DOLLAR MILGEN MYSTERY?

What do Clint Eastwood and Bobby Peters have in common? We're breaking news about both well-known names today -- and both men have connections to the same Columbus murder case. But no, Judge Peters has NOT been hired to be the next "Dirty Harry."

BLOG EXCLUSIVE: Muscogee County Judge Bobby Peters confirmed to your blog Thursday he's assisting with a book project about the killing of a Fort Benning soldier. It's the case of Captain Richard Davis, who was stabbed dozens of times in woods along Milgen Road in 2003. If only they had clear-cut the land to build college apartments sooner.

Judge Bobby Peters told me the book about the death of Richard Davis is only in the research and planning stages right now. He noted it does NOT have a publisher yet. But if John Mark Karr can have a book deal already....

Judge Bobby Peters told me he believes the full story of the death of Richard Davis has not been told - even though CBS News reviewed the case on "48 Hours" four months ago [21 May]. But we shouldn't be surprised by this. A former attorney knows about how to find different angles - it's called the appeals process.

I didn't realize until Judge Bobby Peters mentioned it that he was the attorney for one of the suspects in the Richard Davis case. He defended Mario Navarrete before he was elected judge in 2004. Now that I know this, I'm not sure Judge Roxann Daniel knew -- because surely she would have brought it up in that nasty campaign.

Judge Bobby Peters says he can't quite accept the claims that Captain Richard Davis was killed by fellow Fort Benning soldiers simply because Davis threw coins at a Platinum Club dancer. Perhaps so, but this is Columbus -- where it didn't take much to start gunfire outside the old Boom Boom Room.

Judge Bobby Peters says he's heard stories that Richard Davis was contacted by a "Mexican gang" - only the gang didn't realize Davis was Filipino-American, not Hispanic-American. How far have we fallen in this country when even the gangs are guilty of profiling?

You may recall we received e-mail last week about Bobby Peters meeting with Richard Davis's father [5 Sep]. The Judge told me Thursday he now believes District Attorney Gray Conger will agree to release Davis's remains to the family, after three years of waiting. Your tax dollars are paying for cold storage, whether you realize it or not.

Judge Bobby Peters is quick to point out he is NOT assisting with this book project during office hours. In fact, he admits he has trouble finding time to help -- because his duties as a judge have him working from 8:00 a.m. to about 5:15 p.m. five days a week. Why, he barely has enough time to write temporary restraining orders....

Judge Bobby Peters explained he's providing only "technical help" with the book project, while Cilla McCain is doing the bulk of the writing. She's a Columbus native who now lives in the north Georgia mountains -- one of those places where she's probably already unplugged the air conditioner for the season.

Cilla McCain told me Thursday night she'd love to have Bobby Peters coauthor her book about the Richard Davis case. But we'll have to wait for the Judge to write a book of his own. Should he write about his years in public service in Columbus -- or would a book about his dating history sell better?

Cilla McCain revealed she's not the only one interested in the Richard Davis story. She said screenwriter Paul Haggis of "Million Dollar Baby" fame is writing a fictionalized version of the case, and hopes to have Clint Eastwood play Davis's father. Hmmm - so Hilary Swank might play Bobby Peters's law office secretary....

And that's not all - as Cilla McCain told me CBS News plans to do a "48 Hours" follow-up program about the Richard Davis case, with material not shown in May. This is what happens when Katie Couric changes networks in the middle of the year.

Cilla McCain says she has her own theory about why Richard Davis was stabbed in 2003, but she's not ready to reveal it yet. So who knows? She might attempt to blame it on a Mexican gang - or she might have evidence that a convoy of Platinum Club dancers followed Davis, seeking at least a credit card.

Cilla McCain told me her goal in this book is to provide "justice for the family" of Richard Davis. She explains father Lanny Davis can't believe three suspected soldiers received plea bargains, while the main culprit in the killing did not receive the death penalty. This wasn't traditional "Southern justice" - it was more like a federal appeals court in San Francisco.

In fact, Cilla McCain expects Mario Navarrete will receive a new trial for his role in the killing of Richard Davis. Not because Bobby Peters was his lawyer - but because the attorney who replaced Peters after the 2004 election was weakened by cancer. So if this case didn't have enough famous names already, Eve Tidwell might show up in court.

Cilla McCain has written novels and short stories, but never a nonfiction book project like this one. She says it's kept her busy all summer, and a book proposal won't be ready for publishers until October or November. This proposal will be so large, it might be mistaken for a suspect's appeal brief.

Cilla McCain says she hopes to focus her book on the effects of Richard Davis's death on his family. She notes there's never been a killing like this, with members of the same Army platoon turning on one of their own. Not in the U.S. Army, at least. Maybe when Saddam Hussein ruled over Iraq....

E- MAIL UPDATE: Yet another message about the late Dr. Eric Buffong? Yes, one more....

I wanted to speak to you earlier but I was was busy celebrating [smiley face] , I would not mind talking with you again in ref to the Good Doctor!!!!!

Who would have sent this message? A woman who claims Dr. Buffong abused her in his office - a woman we interviewed for this blog earlier this year and called Gina [9 May]. For her, the only "good" about the doctor may have to do with good riddance.

The woman called us at home the other night, and didn't have anything more to add to her e-mail. From a base human standpoint, I can see why she might celebrate Dr. Eric Buffong's death. It's a bit like the way many Atlanta Falcons fans felt, when owner Rankin Smith died. After years of losing, I almost expected a celebration on Peachtree Street.

Yet looking at this from a distance, I'm ashamed for this woman "celebrating" Dr. Eric Buffong's death in a car crash. Death should be a sober subject - unless maybe you've played those Columbine video games I saw on TV Thursday night.

Next we move to the Muscogee County schools....

What? King Phillips is going to build himself a royal palace with millions of tax dollars while our kids are still in old portable buildings and 10' wide trailers that if on a residential lot Special Enforcement would have condemned..

Well! I think I see your point. If the school district is going to have a new main office, the staff should work in trailers for a year or two first. It's called "feeling your pain."

There's been talk in recent weeks about possibly building a new main office for the school district on the grounds of Columbus Public Library. From what I understand, there's NO final decision yet. They could be creative, paint the new building green and try to disguise it as a park.

The Muscogee County School District was a front-page topic in the Ledger-Enquirer Thursday, but for another reason. The schools have a shortage of 2,710 textbooks. I never realized Columbus had so many hungry dogs....

The Muscogee County School Board will vote next week on replacing the missing 2,710 textbooks. They'll cost about $149,000, which computes to about 55 dollars a textbook. Our schools don't need desks for those books - they need fancy coffee tables for displaying them.

As for Muscogee County School Superintendent John Phillips - and by the way, I don't refer to him as "King;" I tend to call him "Papa John...." as in pizza....

But anyway: Dr. John Phillips will make another trip to Washington next week. He's still trying to gain money from Congress for expansion required by base realignment. Maybe he should take Northern Little League baseball players with him - because they're becoming selling points for almost everything else in Columbus.

Now for other notes from a warm Thursday:

+ A twilight run down Broadway revealed WRBL didn't quite tell the full story with its Wednesday "StreetScape" update. The west side of the STREET is now open in the 1000 block - but the SIDEWALK isn't completely open yet. And the street isn't quire wide enough anymore for me to share the path with a wide-body pickup.

+ The Russell County School Board interviewed three finalists for Superintendent. One of them is 37-year-old Robert Griffin, who told WRBL he's "not going to retire in two or three years." That's nice to know - but in Russell County, he might be more likely to face arrest in that time.

+ The Columbus Convention and Visitors Bureau reported tourists spent about $291 million in the area last year. I'm not sure how the bureau figures out this number. Maybe restaurant owners are keeping secret logs of all the diners who don't have Southern accents.

+ Samsung pledged one million dollars to the new National Infantry Museum. Samsung is a South Korean company - so maybe the large green space on the museum grounds will include a demilitarized zone.

+ Top-ranked LaGrange jolted Jordan in high school football 45-0. I don't want to say this was an ugly game - but Jordan's red home uniforms disguised the blood stains very well.

+ Online reports indicated the band Green Day will perform at the Atlanta Falcons' upcoming game in New Orleans. They've stumped me with this one. Shouldn't Green Day appear at a Philadelphia Eagles game -- or at least the Tulane Green Wave?

+ Instant Message to the big rig driver who honked his horn, as I turned onto U.S. 431 northbound. I was about four seconds ahead of you. You had a left lane available, from what I saw. Was your speeding truck lacking both brakes AND steering?

COMING SATURDAY: Who's laughing at some people's disasters? You may not believe the answer....

Today's main topic was the result of a blog reader's tip. To offer a story tip, advertise or comment on
this blog, write me - but be warned, I may post your e-mail comment and offer a reply.

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Thursday, September 14, 2006

14 SEP 06: THE BIG BROTHER HOUSE

Dateline NBC began showing the results of a Harris County child predator sting Wednesday night. We're now waiting to learn whether anyone has gone to the undercover house in Fortson, and put up a "Tourism Works Here" sign.

News of the child predator sting came out in late July, when 20 suspects appeared in Harris County court [30 Jul]. Dateline NBC's Chris Hansen said it happened in "rural Fortson, 90 minutes south of Atlanta." We thank him for not undoing all the good publicity from the Columbus Northern Little League team.

Only eight of the 20 Fortson suspects were shown on Dateline NBC Wednesday. The others will be shown on three upcoming Friday nights. I haven't seen these "To Catch a Predator" shows before - so does the audience vote on which one gets the death penalty?

The Perverted Justice web site and the Harris County Sheriff's Office arranged meetings in Fortson through a Yahoo! Chat room, then printed out logs of the rather steamy conversations. I've never even been able to save Yahoo chats on my hard drive - so how did the law officers do it? Was their "Active X" turned into "Active XXX" for cases like this?

Harris County Sheriff Mike Jolley made a short appearance during the Dateline NBC program, more than halfway into the hour. Yes, he was seen in that dress uniform with four stars on each side - the sort of outfit I don't think Muscogee County Sheriff Ralph Johnson even wears on Patriots Day.

But the political winner of the night was NOT Sheriff Mike Jolley. That prize goes to Harris County School Board member Karen Hopkins, whose reelection commercial appeared on WLTZ three times before and during Dateline NBC. Yet Hopkins never said how she would improve the education of 14-year-old decoys -- which I think her drop-dead gorgeous blonde daughter could be.

(Isn't that amazing -- Karen Hopkins appearing three times during a child predator sting hour? You'd think that crime-fighter Mark Taylor would have shown up at least once....)

But let's get to the real alleged "stars" of the show. Dateline NBC began with an Atlanta construction worker with the online name "Scooby Doo at 101." That must be the cartoon character's age in dog years now....

Scooby Doo at 101 asked several leading questions of an online decoy. For instance, he asked if the girl "knows how to ride." He must not have realized this weekend's big rodeo is in Hamilton, not Fortson.

When Harris County Sheriff's officers arrested Scooby Doo at 101, the suspect said: "Why don't you just shoot me?" Once again, we see the Kenneth Walker case was an exception and not the rule....

The next guest in the Fortson house was "Zavior 01," who is a volunteer "media director" at a church. I guess that means he's in charge of radio and TV broadcasts - and I wonder if those broadcasts talk more about donating money than avoiding sin.

Zavior 01 asked a decoy during an online chat if the presumed teenage girl was wet. That is SUCH a Southern thing. If we're not divided over racial matters, we're divided into wet counties and dry counties.

Then came "Need a Friend to Talk to 2005," a carpenter from the Macon area. He actually showed up at the Fortson house with an overnight bag - so perhaps after molesting the teenage girl, he was going to offer cigarettes to smoke the next morning.

Need a Friend to Talk to 2005 happens to have a MySpace section in which he declares, "Jesus rocks!" OK, but did he bother saying that prayer about "lead us not into temptation"?

During his online chat with a decoy, Need a Friend to Talk to 2005 asked: "Can you do deep throat?" Huh?! I haven't even heard anyone imitate Richard Nixon in years....

Another suspect at the Fortson house was "Broken Empires" - only he drove up as an arrest was in progress, and decided to drive away. Sheriff's officers tracked him down and arrested him on Interstate 185. For what reason - a broken speed limit?

The chat log of Broken Empires shows he asked for a teenage decoy's bra size. So apparently it's against the law even to shop at Victoria's Secret, before you date a teenager.

Then there was "Hold You Closer 2003," who wrote online if he met a teenage decoy, "my tongue would be all over you." If this man was trying to get people to adopt animals at the Humane Society, that sort of language might be acceptable.

A man named "Perfect Buddy Georgia" admitted to Dateline NBC he was desperate for a girl in his life. In fact, he was SO desperate that he sent a teenage decoy eight pictures of his (ahem) secret parts. I never watched "Sex and the City," but I don't think they went even that far....

Another visitor to the Fortson house was "SW GA Male Yess" - who admitted to detectives he's a former Baptist minister. He reportedly proposed a threesome with the teenage decoy and his current girlfriend. Once and for all: this is NOT a proper way to illustrate a trinity.

SW GA Male Yess actually tried to run from the Fortson house and elude arrest. But a Harris County Sheriff's officer stopped him with a stun gun - the closest this Baptist minister probably wants to come to a lightning bolt from the heavens.

The last suspected predator to visit Fortson was "Tunnels 12000" - a single father of two who actually builds tunnels. Thankfully, the house in Fortson didn't have any where he could hide....

Tunnels 12000 admitted to Dateline NBC he's a lonely 38-year-old man. So why go online, to find friendship with a teenage girl? Whatever happened to the good old days - when lonely old men went to the end of the bar, like Norm on "Cheers?"

One issue Dateline NBC did not address was the complaint some attorneys of the suspects have raised - that the men are victims of entrapment. For instance, I couldn't help noticing how the decoy girl inside the house in Fortson invited so many men to have "sweet tea." In my case, fudge brownies would have served about the same purpose.

I was a bit surprised Dateline NBC put "To Catch a Predator" in the so-called "family hour" of prime-time TV, at 8:00 p.m. ET. But then again, it must have been a tough decision -- either to show that crackdown early, or that blonde schoolteacher accused of seducing a teenage student. NBC decided to keep the guys watching as long as possible....

District Attorney Grey Conger told the Ledger-Enquirer the other day he plans to get a copy of the Dateline NBC tape, and use it in trying the suspected predators. If the arrests and explanations of the suspects don't convict them, the grim-looking face of Stone Phillips just might.

E-MAIL UPDATE: Our dumpster discussion on Wednesday brought this comment, which is similar to one we received a few weeks ago [4 Aug]:

there is a noise ordinance on what time dumpsters can be dumped...get the name off the dumpster call the company ..tell them you will call special enforcement if they violate this ordinance...I think is says they can't be dumpted between 10PM and 5AM..I'll look it up in city code book and let you know correctly..My neighbor has handled the one for my neighborhood..Even went to AL to talk to company home office..."Dumping the dumpster" was curtailed about a yr now has started back at Fri 4AM....This was reported to special enforcement..A Mr Green told me he came out at 4AM caught truck issued a warning..I talked to a supervisor at special enforcement there was no record of the warning..Mr Green told me a little green lie to get me off his back..

Thanks for the update - and remember: it's not easy being Mr. Green.

(Maybe this should be the next Dateline NBC project: "To Catch a Noisemaker.")

Now for some quick highlights from the Wednesday news:

+ WRBL reported panhandling is increasing in the 1000 block of Broadway. What makes this so surprising is that the beggars are NOT business owners, who lost sales to the "StreetScape" work.

(Business owners told WRBL some of the beggars are moving south of Broadway, into the Historic District. Well, I wondered where they'd been all summer. Maybe it's already too cold to work in Minnesota and Michigan.)

+ The Columbus Chamber of Commerce introduced a new program for small businesses called "iWOW." Please don't be confused. That's short for "Incubator Without Walls" - it is NOT what people say when pictures of Eva Longoria show up on their iPods.

+ The owner of Valdosta's Wild Adventures theme park filed for bankruptcy protection. Apparently this was done to avoid a wild adventure by the company's accountants....

+ A Zogby poll showed Libertarian Garrett Hayes receiving eight percent of the vote in the Georgia Governor's race. Does this mean Georgians are fed up with the two main parties - or does it mean Sonny Perdue and Mark Taylor's commercials are so bland that few people care about them?

(Meanwhile, aides to Secretary of State Cathy Cox say she'll miss this weekend's state Democratic convention in College Park - because she'll be out of the country. When she's going that far to avoid Mark Taylor, Georgia Republicans may have found their next Zell Miller.)

+ Instant Message to the board of Hewlett-Packard: What's all this stuff I'm hearing about your company and "pretexting?" Is that where you write out a text message, before you send it?

BURKARD'S BEST BETS: Gas for $2.39 a gallon at Spectrum, Wynnton Road and Brown Avenue.... 20-ounce sodas for 50 cents at Walgreens.... and the Mayor's "Patriotic Blood Drive" from 10:00 a.m. - 3:00 p.m. today at the Government Center, to learn if you're red or blue-blood....

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Wednesday, September 13, 2006

13 SEP 06: DOWN IN THE DUMPSTERS

One of the topics at Tuesday's Columbus Council meeting was dumpsters. That upset business owner Frank Comer, who said the Council should be discussing prostitution instead. But if you're going to clean up Columbus, doesn't the trash have to go somewhere?

Columbus Council decided to review city rules on dumpsters. Under rules adopted last year, they're supposed to be surrounded by walls on three sides, with a gate on the fourth side - you know, a bit like the city limits....

The goal of the city rules is to make dumpsters outside businesses less of an eyesore. Besides, they reinforce a great Columbus tradition -- of keeping trashy little secrets hidden and out of public view.

The city dumpster rules are expected to be followed in all new developments. But some Columbus Councilors believe it's time to crack down on unsightly dumpsters in established businesses -- or as some might call them, the "has-bins."

Frank Comer, who owns Chapman's party shop on Wynnton Road, was one of the major critics of the dumpster rules at Tuesday's Columbus Council meeting. In a way, this seems strange - because Chapman's sells all sorts of colorful paper and balloons, which could make waste bins look bright and attractive.

The owners of businesses such as Chapman's argue it costs too much money and time to put walls around their dumpsters. Of course, they missed a great opportunity to save money a few weeks ago. There were free bricks available, after a storm damaged the wall at Golden Park.

The business owners also claim that even if walls are built around dumpsters, some areas still will look messy and trashy. This is where employers should use some common sense - and have the trash taken out by aspiring basketball players.

Councilor Evelyn Turner Pugh told WRBL all sides of Columbus should have uniform dumpster rules so they look nice. In fact, a nightclub one block from my home has a wide-open dumpster now. Perhaps with three soundproofed walls around it, the 3:00 a.m. pickup times wouldn't be so noisy [4 Aug].

(At least most of the dumpsters in Columbus are painted green, so they can blend in with landscaping. Imagine how many beggars would find them and look for dinner if they were bright yellow.)

The Columbus Council will examine the dumpster issue in-depth at a work session in two weeks. In the meantime, businesses should be thankful they're not in a college town like Athens - where students probably would demand a second bin in the back, to keep recycled white paper.

Columbus isn't the only place where trash is a touchy topic. Some Marion County residents said Tuesday night they may go to court, to stop new rules requiring them to pay for curbside garbage service. The county actually is buying residents giant trash cans - so how many citizens are lining those cans with campaign posters?

Marion County will switch in October from free trash disposal at a county dump, to curbside collection costing $15 a month. It's no wonder some residents are upset about this -- especially the men. They can't use "I'm taking out the garbage" as an excuse anymore, to make side trips to bars.

I served as a "housesitter" several years ago for a suburban Atlanta family, which went on a cross-country vacation. One of my tasks involved taking trash to the town dump - but I had to drive the family's spare car to do it, because it had a city sticker making me legal. How embarrassing it would have been, to be caught holding the bag....

E-MAIL UPDATE: Now to Tuesday's Ledger-Enquirer, which one of our readers may feel like throwing in a dumpster....

Well, after reading Ms. Sledge's newest article "Heroes come in all colors" I now feel that being racist must be hereditary in her family at least. I vowed to myself that I would quit reading her article since all it does is give her a voice for her thoughts regarding her recist views but I slipped up today. There are more important things to reflect on when remembering 9/11 and the color of someones skin rates zero in most peoples books. Even when all of 9/11 was going on everyone near that was gray from the events.

Now, now! Kaffie Sledge could have gone even farther -- but she stopped short of declaring Kenneth Walker a hero.

I'd think the e-mailer at least would agree with the headline of Tuesday's Kaffie Sledge column: "Heroes come in all colors." You'll notice in the last few weeks, many Columbus residents have decided heroes can wear light blue baseball uniforms....

Kaffie Sledge talked to her aunt for Tuesday's column. Alma Brown is quoted as saying: "Black people are sick of hearing the same stories about 9/11." In fact, a pro football game Sunday night almost had more viewers than the two "9/11" movies on other networks combined -- so this may not be a racial thing.

If you think back a few years, the September 11 attacks exposed some racial issues - not in Columbus, but the Northeast. Remember the picture of the three firefighters raising a flag amid the rubble in New York? That was all the photographer's fault, you know -- for not finding a diverse group of stand-ins on the spur of the moment.

(And what about the stories some groups spread, claiming no Jews or members of other ethnic communities died in the September 11 attacks? The list of victims read every year should teach us better than that. Or maybe we should borrow a baseball statistician for a day - to break down the list not only by skin color, but how many people lived in New Jersey.)

Can we accept the fact that some journalists act as watchdogs for certain groups and causes? Kaffie Sledge has her main issues, just as Lou Dobbs and Bill O'Reilly have theirs. The difference is simply that Tavis Smiley and "Air America" radio don't seem to have discovered Sledge yet.

And if you don't like one journalist's point of view, there's a very simple answer - stay away from him or her. As some people like to say: if you ignore something long enough, it will disappear and never.... oh wait. The September 11 attack disproved that, didn't it?

Now for other things which appeared before our very eyes on Tuesday:

+ A fraternity alumni house caught fire on Second Avenue in the Historic District. Firefighters blamed it on vagrants, who were spending the night in crawl space under the building. I didn't realize all the bed and breakfasts were taken, for that Georgia Conference on Tourism....

+ Sheriff Tommy Boswell went before the Russell County Commission, with his request for a department-wide 20 percent raise. Commissioner Peggy Martin admitted to WRBL she'll have to do some "soul-searching" about it. Not because of the Sheriff, of course - because of how State Senate opponent Ted Little might twist her vote in the campaign.

+ A.L. Dowdell won a runoff for a seat on the Auburn City Council, even though opponent Verlinda White claimed Dowdell really lives in Columbus. Hey, that reminds me - has anyone seen State Senator Ed Harbison since he won the Georgia Primary?

+ Instant Message to the Opelika Middle School student who called in bomb threats on September 11, whomever you are: If you don't like the way the renovations look, your parents should have complained to the school board a couple of years ago.

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Tuesday, September 12, 2006

12 SEP 06: WHO'S GOT GAME?

The operators of an Internet Café in Phenix City agreed to shut down Monday. For some reason, the District Attorney's office was suspicious about it. Any café that dares to name itself "Sweepstakes" takes that chance - especially when the nearest dog-racing track is more than an hour away.

Prosecutors said the Sweepstakes Internet Café on the 280 Bypass wasn't really about the Internet at all. They claimed it was really about video gambling - and we don't mean watching "YouTube" clips of World Series of Poker bloopers.

Russell County prosecutors suspected for weeks the Sweepstakes Internet Café actually was a front for video slot machines. Don't you wonder how they were tipped off to this? Did some weirdo go there to look at X-rated web sites - only to see nothing but cherries and lemons?

The evening newscasts reported the Sweepstakes Internet Café "agreed" to shut down, but that may be misleading. Manager Georgia Russell told WRBL the whole thing was "unfair." And if anyone should know the meaning of unfair, it's the operator of video gambling machines....

Georgia Russell of G&R Enterprises claims similar Internet cafes are opening across Alabama - apparently doing the same sort of thing her café on the 280 Bypass was doing. She wouldn't comment on camera beyond that. But apparently "free wi-fi" is a scarce commodity outside Auburn.

But if it's so unfair, why is the Sweepstakes Internet Café agreeing to close? Did Georgia Russell expect better treatment, because she has the same name as the county?

The "agreement" to shut down the Internet café was announced by Russell County assistant prosecutor Buster Landrieu. The managers also promise never to open a similar café in the county again - so Buster Landrieu's nickname should be "Move."

(If the Internet café is leaving Russell County for good, I think there's a message here - the business rental cost in Smiths Station is lower.)

It's a tough time for game operators of all kinds. Someone tried a short time back to open an old- fashioned game room in the Oakland Park Shopping Center on South Lumpkin Road in Columbus. It had barely opened when the "for sale" sign went up. The storefront churches in that center must have noticed the Ms. Pac-Man game, and decided that was one sin too many.

"The Game Room" (as it was called) seemed like a great old-school idea - giving young people a place to have fun after classes and on weekends. I can only assume it didn't catch on. Maybe the young people along South Lumpkin Road have found the one boy with an X-Box....

To be honest, it's hard for me to imagine ANY game room succeeding in 2006 - even the borderline legal ones. Adults can go to gambling web sites in the privacy of their homes nowadays. Or they can do some even wilder wheeling and dealing online -- and swap fantasy football players.

On top of that, many children have video games in their homes these days. Why walk or pedal down a few blocks to be a "pinball wizard," when you can zap space aliens from several galaxies without ever getting off the couch?

Meanwhile, the latest entry in Columbus's biggest game room officially introduced itself Monday. The new team in the World Indoor Football League will be called the Columbus Lions. Isn't this inspiring - named after a National Football League team which hasn't won a championship since 1957.

Lions co-owner Zach McDonald declared Columbus is a "football town," as long as a team plays "quality football." There's one good way to find out if the new indoor football team does that - schedule a pre-season game against Troy University.

E-MAIL UPDATE: We have several messages to consider today, starting with one from a relative newcomer:

Dear Sir,

I moved to this area at the beginning of this year and discovered your blog a few months ago. I check your page most days. It helps keep me up to date on some of the goings on around town. I have one question though: Do you have something against the CBS station here in town? Over the past few weeks, I've noticed quite a few jabs thrown their way. Some of them, downright mean. I don't know what the history is with the TV stations in this area, but I happen to enjoy watching Channel 3. It seems unfair that you pick on them so much. I think the people who work there do a fine job of reporting the news. Much better than the ABC station in Columbus. (And the NBC channel doesn't even have a news program -- I found that shocking!). I guess I would let your comments slide, but they seem almost hypocritical. You talk a great deal about being a Christian and what not, yet some of the mean things you say seem very un-christian like. Of course, I am not a church-goer, so I might be a bit off on that, but for a man who is as seemingly religious as you are, some of your jabs come as a surprise. Why aren't you an equal opportunity offender? I'm sure there are things you can talk about when it comes to the ABC channel. If you can't come up with any, I can help. The few times I've watched their news, I felt as if I were in Mayberry. Snooze! I guess this isn't a big deal in the grand scheme of things, but I've just noticed a pattern of this in your writing and was curious to know why. This is in no way "hate mail" or anything like that, just merely an observation.

Yours truly,

T. Jackson

Columbus, GA

First of all, thank you for not writing hate mail. I'm still trying to clean the scarlet L off my chest - from being a business loser.

If Mr. or Ms. T. doesn't mind, I'd like to save the section about "Christian comments" for our Saturday religious discussion. But as for all the notes about WRBL - well, let's put it this way. Mr. "Hey Lee" at that other station is really powerful. One mention of this blog in an editorial, and I could be out of business in no time.

Someone actually tried writing a blog taking aim at WTVM several months ago. But after a few entries, it stopped. Maybe the writer decided that station really wasn't all that bad. Or maybe he's now turning to WLTZ NBC-38 to watch "Girlfriends" at 6:00 p.m. - although he'd better not take Persia White, because I saw her first.

On the other hand, some of the best story tips your blog has received over the last few years actually have come from WRBL. We've heard from staff members, both past and present. And we were in federal court for the station's discrimination trial last year -- although thankfully, no one called me to the witness stand to disclose my sources.

(By the way: we now understand several WRBL staff members actually try to be perfectionists. That's nice to know -- but I'd point out when Tammy Terry said she was, she quickly added she was "recovering" from it.)

T. may not realize NBC-38 has a "news program" of sorts. Two years ago, "Rise and Shine" at 6:00 a.m. had the most talked-about debate of the local campaign season. So far this year, all I've noticed are competing Bob Poydasheff and Jim Wetherington campaign signs in front of a refrigerator.

Our next e-mailer may have noticed something missing here in recent weeks:

Can you give us the latest Arbirton Ratings for the Columbus radio stations.

I wish I could give them to you - and I've been waiting to report on the spring ratings for about a month. But the Arbitron rating service has put an "embargo" on the numbers, in Columbus as well as other cities. That means they're not available to the public - at least until some White House official leaks them to Robert Novak.

It's not clear why Arbitron is holding the release of the Columbus radio numbers - but I'm going to take a guess. I've been told the spring ratings showed WRCG ahead of WDAK in the morning, even though WRCG still has a weak signal. Is WDAK challenging the numbers? Or are "TalkLine" hosts Antonio Carter and Robbie Watson simply that loud?

Today's last e-mail is short and to the point:

Just don't give up writing the blog.I look foward to reading it ever day.

Well, thank you. I'm finding blogs tend to get much more distance than frisbees do.

Now for some quick closing thoughts from a sober and quiet Patriot Day, which felt a bit to me like a Christmas Day:

+ I was waving a little U.S. flag in front of the TV set at the end of the national evening news - when the flagstick broke off in my hand. Given what happened to me with Power Frisbee, we all may have only a few weeks to flee to Canada.

+ WGSY "Sunny 100 FM" played a strange September 11 tribute, with President Bush talking about "defending freedom" while John Lennon sang "Imagine." Really now -- can you imagine those two people sharing the same side of the table, when it comes to the fighting in Iraq?

+ Alabama Governor Bob Riley announced the introduction of "God Bless America" license plates, to go on sale in October. This is what makes our country so great - because you never see a car in other countries with "Allah Loves Iraq" bumper stickers.

+ Instant Message to Britt David School counselor Dr. Bunny Chapman: Oh dear, how do I ask this - are the students allowed to call you Doctor Bunny? Or is that reserved for your husband, late at night?

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Sunday, September 10, 2006

for 11 SEP 06: WHEN THE WORLD STOPPED TURNING

The lead story was Michael Jordan. At least it was for me. Hot rumors about Jordan coming out of retirement were the top item in my LaughLine edition of Tuesday, September 11, 2001 - and I mean to play basketball, not to play baseball in Birmingham.

I used to spend some very late nights writing LaughLine, and e-mailing it to subscribers across the U.S. So I went to bed after sending the September 11, 2001 edition around 3:00 a.m. It was after 10:00 that morning when I woke up and offered my usual morning prayer, as if it was another ordinary day. Perhaps this will teach me to pray, before hearing any news to pray about.

After the morning prayer, I turned on what used to be "ESPN Radio 1270" - and heard the voice of Peter Jennings instead of talk show host Tony Kornheiser. This seemed unusual, especially since Jennings wasn't talking at all about ice hockey.

Wondering what was up, I turned on TV - and then I learned it wasn't what was up, but what was down. ABC News showed a replay of one of the World Trade Center towers, collapsing before my very eyes. You don't really see that tape on newscasts today, even five years later. So you see - some journalists do have a little heart and compassion for viewers.

In that moment, as I watched one of the towers topple, I sized up what must have happened. An organized group must have come together after I went to bed, just as I'd heard ministers predict for years would someday happen. It was the great attack by the European Union - "so fast it will make your head spin," as one Pastor would say. Only here I was staring, more than spinning....

The church denominations I attend have warned for decades that someday Europe will attack the U.S. and win, taking the people of our country slaves. So this HAD to explain what happened at the World Trade Center. The church group which claimed to have a "more sure word of prophecy" called it, right? Well, uhhhh - nowadays I read more about the U.S. government plotting September 11, than I do the European plots.

No, my church denomination never prophesied that the September 11 attacks would occur the way they did. In fact, it occurred to me only recently that the ministers have never apologized for getting it wrong. They've plowed right on, explaining how current events somehow will make their prophetic views turn out accurate. Yet still, no angry French leaders have taken President Bush hostage.

But there was little time to analyze such things on September 11, 2001. A local TV station needed me to work that day. I had inside information that a news producer was about to be fired, and I'd be filling in for him -- only I was called in early for other duties. That producer still may not realize his job was extended one day by a bunch of radical terrorists.

We noted here from court documents last year how the September 11 attacks wound up saving Phil Scoggins's job at WRBL [7 Feb 05]. It also created some new jobs in Columbus as well - as security personnel were added to places such as the Government Center. And in true Columbus fashion, those people actually are friendly and smile at you once in a while.

This fifth anniversary of "Terror Tuesday" is a time to think about how much has changed since the attacks. You can see the evidence of it across the Columbus area....

+ Concrete barriers are in place in front of the main entrance to the Civic Center, along with a giant U.S. flag. Yet Sunday night cruisers still party in other parts of the parking lot.

+ One of the gates entering the Columbus Water Works plant on River Road is permanently closed. I'm not sure what happens if you try to enter through it. I'd guess giant water cannons are sprayed on you.

+ A small marker at the south end of the Phenix City Riverwalk remembers those who died in the September 11 attacks. If only they had been military veterans - things would be much more elaborate.

+ Fort Benning soldiers don't receive scoffing from some people, the way they did early in 2001. Now the thought of young men signing up for basic training actually has some logical sense behind it.

+ The presence of white powder can evacuate post offices, or even floors of the Government Center. Sales of talcum powder may never recover from that.

+ Gas prices are well above two dollars a gallon, even with the drop of recent weeks - but oh yeah, that has nothing to do with terrorism, does it?

If there's a memorial service planned in Columbus to mark September 11, I haven't heard it announced anywhere. I went to a couple in 2001, then to anniversary services in 2002 and 2003 - but was disappointed in 2004, when our weekly church service fell on that date and the Pastor decided to give a sermon on food. [True!]

The evening news Sunday noted how the fervor to attend church services jumped after September 11, 2001, but has come down since then. I guess that's why I was disappointed with the turnout at that Lakebottom Park prayer event over the weekend. More people seemed to be talking to the dogs they were walking.

Here's hoping you take some time today to think about the events of five years ago, what's happened since -- and how things might someday end. U.S. generals are calling this "The Long War." And if it's the religious war some say it is, Someone bigger than we are will have to intervene -- and tell us once and for all which group was right. If any.

COMING TUESDAY: An e-mailer wants equal time, to pick on WTVM....

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10 SEP 06: THIS OLD HOUSE?

Did we forget to celebrate something in Columbus this year? The Civic Center just marked its tenth anniversary. You might be able to fill it halfway, simply with the sports teams which have come and gone since it opened....

I was reminded of the Civic Center's anniversary the other day, as I considered a surprising comment by the owner of the Atlanta Falcons. Arthur Blank told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution it's time to plan for a new home football stadium, to replace the Georgia Dome. What does he propose doing with the dome - filling it with aquarium water, too?

The Atlanta Falcons open a new season today, and will play home games in the Georgia Dome for the 15^th year. Yet Arthur Blank says it's already time to plan for a replacement?! Does he realize how many of those seats went unused for several years, when the team had losing records?

Arthur Blank explains domed stadiums get more of a workout than other football stadiums, so the Georgia Dome is rather old at 14 years. Maybe it's needed more Billy Graham campaigns, and fewer appearances by T.D. Jakes.

I went to the Falcons' final game at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium in December 1991. The Falcons beat Seattle, getting a safety on quarterback Kelly Stouffer. And I had field-level seats in a corner of the end zone - which allowed me to see part of the game, once the people in the rows in front of me finally decided to sit down.

The Georgia Dome was built in part to remove bad sight lines from the old baseball/football stadium - and in part to keep former Falcons owner Rankin Smith from moving the team to Jacksonville. I suppose nowadays, Arthur Blank could threaten to move the Falcons to Los Angeles. Uh-oh -- come to think of it, there's already a stadium there with the "Home Depot" name on it.

The Atlanta Falcons are under contract to play in the Georgia Dome until 2020, or until the bonds for the stadium are paid off. After that, Arthur Blank wants a new downtown stadium with a retractable roof. I remember the August night when a thunderstorm put a hole in the dome's roof - but no one was forward-thinking then.

(In fact, I noticed the hole in the roof as I went to work at CNN Center on a Sunday morning, and told the newsroom staff about it. But it wasn't considered a network news story until an Atlanta TV station showed up to shoot videotape of it. They handled anti-war protests outside CNN Center the same way -- too busy watching the world to notice their own neighborhood.)

Philips Arena opened near the Georgia Dome only seven years ago, replacing the Omni for basketball and hockey. Now Atlanta needs a new football stadium?! Why not simply hire a firm full-time, to keep building sports complexes? Football first, then baseball to replace Turner Field, then basketball again....

I mention all this to wonder if Columbus city officials are thinking way ahead, as Arthur Blank is. Has any thought been given about the next generation of sports arenas and stadiums? Do we have to wait for the Cottonmouths to threaten a move to.... well, the AF2 league moved to Albany, and is doing all right....

Some people say while "historic Golden Park" is historic, it's in a bad location at South Commons. Should a new baseball stadium be built on the north side of Columbus? Should it be built on the grounds of the Northern Little League - so that organization doesn't threaten to move to Marion County?

At ten years old, the Civic Center doesn't seem that ancient. After all, it was used this weekend for something quite young - the Junior League Attic Sale....

But recall a few months ago, when the Columbus Civic Center tried to sell sponsorship rights - and no one was willing to make the minimum bid. Does that make the arena a liability? Or is everyone waiting for Councilor Jack Rodgers to leave office, so it can be named after him?

Arthur Blank says it takes years to plan and build the next generation of a sports stadium. So do we need to start planning now, for the Civic Center's successor? It could have a new "Jumbotron" scoreboard - or even a scratched or dented big-screen TV from Best Buy.

The Civic Center's successor could be along the lines of what they're talking about building at Auburn University - a successor to Beard-Eaves Coliseum. We noted here earlier this year how far-fetched that idea seemed. But with enough reserved skyboxes, I suppose anything is possible....

E-MAIL UPDATE: Speaking of allegedly old things....

Mr. Burkard,

To answer your question on how old the picture of my grandfather is, assuming it was the same time we took the family picture that is on the website, I believe it was about 6 years ago during the summer. I might be mistaken, but I also want to add that the family picture of the Wetherington family on Mr. Wehteringtons website doesn’t seem to be recent either. I just graduated with two of his grandsons and obviously, the children in the picture don’t seem to be very old.

Always,

Poydasheff's Grandson

Take that, you scoffers! Mayor Bob Poydasheff really hasn't aged since 2000. But maybe all the candidates need to arrange Annie Liebowitz photo shoots, at Tom Cruise's secure undisclosed location....

What does it say when eight weeks before the Columbus mayoral election, the big debating point is the campaign pictures of the candidates? Instead of looking over the paragraphs of their platforms, we're analyzing the lines around their eyes and on their foreheads.

Here's one more e-mail, which came from someone at WRBL about something we wrote Friday:

Dearest Richard-

In response to "it's clear which station the boys are watching" comment: They are 12. Do you really think they're watching news? No insult taken.

Well, why wouldn't the world champion Northern Little League team be watching the evening news? Their parents probably have shelves filled with videotaped highlights already.

I was watching the evening news before I turned 12, but admittedly that was a different era. At the risk of showing my age, I only had about four TV stations to choose from at 6:00 p.m. - and that was in Kansas City, where there should have been more money and viewers interested in something else.

Watching the local evening news in my youth actually made me interested in a journalism career. So I don't think the age of the Little Leaguers has anything to do with this. The fact that they're baseball players might, though -- because I have yet to see one of them try to imitate Skip Carey, or even Dave Platta.

That reminds me: the Northern All-Stars traveled to Turner Field in Atlanta Saturday. They met major-league players, and even took the field with them. And here's what made things even more amazing - this year, Northern has a much better winning percentage.

Did you hear about the Northern All-Stars hiring a public relations firm? WRBL reports the team has hired Marquette McKnight's "Media, Marketing and More," because it's getting so many requests for appearances. At this rate, the team won't need to raise money for its next trip to the Little League World Series - the appearance fees already will be in the bank.

(I would make one suggestion to the team, though. If you're asked to appear with Terrell Owens or his agent, run as fast as you can.)

Now let's put our bats and gloves back in the closet, and send some Instant Messages....

+ To the organizers of that "community prayer" event at Lakebottom Park: Fewer than 15 people showed up. The people in charge apparently were late. And the main musician lost track of time, rehearsing two students in singing "The Greatest Love of All." If this was a really campaign event for Charles Weaver, the standard DOES need raising.

+ To Brookstone School: About that "Magazine Drive" sign on the fence - are you going to have a Newspaper Avenue as well?

+ To the Bavarian House restaurant on Weems Road: It's nice to see Wally and Mike are together again, performing music this weekend. Was some extra money exchanged to ensure this - such as a Mike Check?

+ To WRBL morning anchor Tammy Terry: I appreciate the fact that you call yourself a perfectionist. It's a relief to know at least one person there is.

+ To the grounds crew at Auburn's Jordan-Hare Stadium: Your field markings are confusing me. The other night, I thought running back Kenny Irons had crossed the 150-yard line....

+ To South Carolina football coach Steve Spurrier: Ouch -- shut out 18-0 by Georgia, at home!?! I'm reminded of that song from the musical "Chicago": you had it comin' , you had it comin'.

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Friday, September 08, 2006

for 9 SEP 06: TO DREAM THE IMPOSSIBLE DREAM

(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.)

Our thanks to those of you who have written us about the end of Power Frisbee of Georgia. Here's one of the e-mails, the sort you hold close to your heart and treasure for years to come....

Your dream is dead. Get over it and get a life you loser. Nobody cares about your stupid game or your loser personal life. Stick to the news or shut it down.

If you think we make up these e-mails -- no way. This is real, and unsigned. So I don't know which friend of Dr. Eric Buffong sent it....

To be honest, I could have written much of this e-mail myself over the last couple of weeks. After more than 25 years of dreaming about starting a new sport, I thought this would be like the John Feinstein bestseller: "A Season on the Brink." Now my working book title is, "A Season Over the Cliff."

Yes, I was a loser. Yup, I failed. In fact, I told a teller at the bank with the Power Frisbee account I felt like putting a big scarlet letter F on my chest. At least some people might misunderstand, and think I'm a graduate of Florida.

When I went to church last weekend and people asked how my week was, I responded to all of them: "Failing." Most of those people went right on, not seeming to notice what I said. But a visiting radio news reporter from Jacksonville did - so there's still some hope for journalism in this country.

An old quote says it's "better to have tried and failed than never to have tried at all." Whoever said that obviously didn't have to pay the bills associated with a failed business.

While I know you should "never say never," the chances are very high that I'll never dream about running my own business again. All my great ideas built over decades have run out. And wouldn't you know it - just as they do, all these mills start closing....

In fact, Sunday will feel very strange for me. Not only will we NOT go to Macon for Round 4 of Power Frisbee, I don't plan to go to a field and throw frisbees at all. The dream is THAT dead - and that disc I threw into the storm drain in late August [24 Aug] was as symbolic as I feared it might be.

I can't resist comparing what I've been through with what WRCG's Antonio Carter is doing. He announced the start of the New Joshua Generation only three days before Power Frisbee's opening night [22 Aug]. Last time I checked, his project was still going - but unlike me, Carter has a board of directors. Maybe he's borrowing money from them to keep things going.

There's been a lot of free time over the last two-plus weeks for me to think about this. My big dream melted down before my eyes, literally within hours of it coming to reality. If a planet had feelings, I would have been Pluto.

But then I remembered I've passed this way before. A few years ago, I did a Bible study on failure when another business idea died. In fact, I posted it online to share with others. But I don't recall anyone ever e-mailing me about it, so maybe it was a flop as well.

One point of that article is that even if God blows up your dream (and He has the power to do that), you're not supposed to "blow up" toward Him. Instead, you're supposed to rejoice in God even when you fail -- but of course, that isn't easy. Wal-Mart's smiley faces are only so big, for disguising your emotions.

While the Power Frisbee dream is dead, not all my dreams are. And if Katie Couric is reading this blog, I invite her to contact me this weekend -- dinner's on me.

But seriously: the biggest dream of all involves being with God in a coming glorious kingdom, described in the Bible. If the ministers I've heard are wrong about that one -- well, then maybe the Muslims and Christians should quit fighting each other, and achieve a REAL dream of peace.

If our title today sounds familiar, it's the first line of a key song from the school musical in my senior year of high school -- "Man of La Mancha." I happened to have the starring role in that production, eating out the good-looking tenor in the school choir. At last report, he was selling cars for a living in southwest Missouri.

The lead in "Man of La Mancha" sings "The Impossible Dream" during act two. It's a showstopping number, which the audiences at our high school musical seemed to like. In fact, it even earned me a surprise tearful hug from a senior cheerleader after the Friday night performance - something that never seemed to happen again.

I don't sing that song much anymore, perhaps because I sang it so much preparing for the musical. But the words still offer something about the hope I have in Someone planning things much bigger than a frisbee game:

And the world will be better for this -

That one man, torn and covered with scars,

Still strove with his last ounce of courage

To reach the unreachable star.

COMING SUNDAY: Questions about aging, involving a building and the candidates for mayor....

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8 SEP 06: THE BADGES ARE BACK

So whatever happened to former Muscogee County Marshal Ken Suddeth? Thursday's Ledger-Enquirer provided the answer. He's found a new job, as the first Chattahoochee County Police Chief. So once again, he'll face officials who want to see his job abolished....

You may remember Ken Suddeth survived a citywide referendum on abolishing his office, when he was Muscogee County Marshal. Now he's becoming a Police Chief, and a potential rival for the Chattahoochee County Sheriff. So which leader do you think will investigate the other one first?

Ken Suddeth is taking over what essentially is a brand-new police force. The Chattahoochee County Commission created it, while slashing the budget for the Sheriff's Department. Perhaps someone forgot to tell the commissioners that Suddeth turned in all those souvenir marshal's badges last year....

We actually joked in this blog two weeks ago about Ken Suddeth possibly moving to Cusseta [22 Aug]. Now here he is, becoming Chattahoochee County Police Chief - but come to think of it, maybe he'll have his own squad to commute to and from Columbus.

Someone told me Thursday the Chattahoochee County Manager lives in Columbus. Now Columbus resident Ken Suddeth is becoming Police Chief. Well, at least they can promote car pooling....

Someone else wondered what it says about Chattahoochee County to have the county manager, and now possibly the county police chief, living outside the county. But things could be worse. Former Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge just took a job advising the government of Albania. [True/Marketplace!]

Another issue involving Ken Suddeth is where he's going to find officers for his new police force. Columbus is trying to fill dozens of police openings. So what can Chattahoochee County offer than Columbus can't - except maybe that Bojangles chicken stand on Highway 520?

(Before you get big ideas: no, I can't see Ken Suddeth offering a job to David Glisson. Glisson shares the same attorney as the Chattahoochee County Sheriff - and if that sheriff hasn't hired him, maybe Glisson should try working as a private investigator.)

Meanwhile, Thursday's paper also reported there's still no budget agreement between the Chattahoochee County Commission and the Sheriff The Sheriff says the future of his department is at stake - and you might have to add an extra ten percent gratuity, for attorney Richard Hagler taking the county to court.

BLOG UPDATE: The coaches of the Northern All-Stars gave the team a surprise Thursday - driving the players to metro Atlanta to meet President Bush. The coaches say they kept it a secret from the players. Considering WRBL mentioned the trip during Wednesday night's news, it's clear what stations the players are watching.

President Bush went to Cobb County for a speech, but the Little League champions did NOT attend it. WRBL showed them in a waiting room at Dobbins Air Force Base. When you win a world title in baseball, you don't want to be bored with something as mundane as stopping terrorism.

The Little Leaguers lined up to meet President Bush, as he arrived at the air force base to fly to Savannah. Instead of baseball uniforms, they wore Columbus championship T-shirts - with a Russell Athletic logo VERY noticeable on the back. Apparently the candidates for Mayor didn't want to pay a little extra....

The President posed for a group photo with the world champions, and signed autographs for some of them. Mr. Bush told Josh Lester he could NOT hit the Little Leaguer's pitching. This may explain why they play T-ball games on the White House lawn during the summer.

Both children and adults seemed wowed by their moment with the President. Northern Little League's President called it a "once-in-a-lifetime experience" to meet a President. Well, unless you donate $10,000 like the Republicans near Savannah did....

The Little League champions head back to Atlanta this weekend, for V.I.P. treatment at Turner Field. Perhaps in their honor, the "Francoeur Franks" will dress up for a day as Northern light bulbs.

(But hold on here - two trips to Atlanta in three days?! Why not save on gas, by taking a few substitute teachers along on the trip and having class today in a motel?)

E-MAIL UPDATE: Speaking of education....

Are kids counted absent when their bus never arrives to pick them up for school? Thanks to the parent who rode the neighborhood picking up HHS students when the bus never came..Also, thanks to the policeman who broke up the fight of middle school students at the bus transfer behind the library.These kids sit on busses up to 30min awaiting the arrival of busses that are hemmed in by parents at Blackmon Rd. Hey,Principal at Blackmon...do your job and move those parents this is getting old...

OK, I give up - which school board candidate is this e-mailer trying to endorse?

The long wait for Muscogee County school buses apparently is due to more students riding them, but fewer adults driving them. Ridership seems to have increased this term, perhaps because of high gas prices. It's nice to see so many parents thinking of their children first, in planning budgets.

But as we noted here Thursday, the Muscogee County School District has about 30 openings for bus drivers. Who knows how many convicted sex offenders heard that news and said, "I wouldn't go within 1,000 feet of a job like that."

I haven't confirmed whether there actually was a rumble behind the Columbus Public Library, involving middle school students. But maybe this will inspire the library to show "West Side Story" in its theater one of these weekends.

Maybe this e-mailer wants to see more of what a Columbus police officer did Thursday. WRBL showed a fifth-grade student being handcuffed, outside River Road Elementary School. If this seems unusual, remember - most grade schools don't have lockers, for locking up children inside.

Muscogee County Superintendent John Phillips said the fifth-grader's parents actually asked for police intervention, because the child was acting dangerously in traffic. But he suggested River Road School did NOT ask police specifically to use handcuffs. So what's the second choice in a case like this - a billy club or pepper spray?

Let's all line up single-file now, and look at other Thursday news items:

+ A three-day conference ended in Phenix City, on improving law enforcement relations with the news media. I personally think local law officers do a good job now - because I hardly ever hear one on TV or radio describe a criminal with the word "perpetrator."

+ The Ledger-Enquirer reported the former managers of The Fire House club are trying to take over Club Roc in Phenix City. There's one small advantage to this move across the river. Club Roc is located across the street from a 24-hour pharmacy, for treating the injured.

+ The Columbus United Way had a kick-off luncheon, for this year's fund-raising campaign. The 2006 goal is $6.4 million - so if you stumble upon executive Guy Sims buying a Mega Millions ticket today, that's the excuse to expect.

+ Instant Message to All-Pro Muffler and Tire on Crawford Road in Phenix City: That's a new one on me. When did your car repair shop start selling pottery? Do you plan to go all the way in challenging Wal-Mart, by selling groceries?

COMING THIS WEEKEND: An e-mail about Power Frisbee you have to see to believe....

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