Oconee County, GA Politics

Jay sent me an email to clarify some of my ponderings: I have just come across your blog post of November 11, 2007 on my Facebook Exploratory Committee for County Commission. This group/committee was created in April at which time I was considering a run for county commission. However, I decided several months ago that I will not be a candidate for county commission in 2008. I have concluded that, at this time, I am better suited for a "behind the scenes" role in a campaign rather than being the candidate myself. I am not ruling out another run for office in the future. To answer your pondering on the posts up for election, all Commission and Board of Education posts will be up in. On the BOC, Chairman (Melvin Davis), Post 1 (Jim Luke) and Post 4 (Chuck Horton) will be for four year terms and Post 2 (Don Norris) and Post 3 (Margaret Hale) will be elected for two year terms. On the BOE, Post 1-Chairman (Christine Franklin), Post 4 (David Williams) and Post 5 ...

Farms are something I hold dear but really do not have all that much experience with except detassling corn as a 14 year old kid in Iowa and various relatives and state fair type things. Essentially I am a city kid, but farms and agriculture are something I hold near and dear to my heart. Sometimes I think they are rapidly disappearing from our lovely county, so any time local land is set aside to be used in perpetuity as agriculture , I applaud. Many of the reasons I am Democratic and will be the rest of my life sprout from my agrarian roots. Here is some interesting local news that really has nothing to do with the above article but is indeed agricultural in nature: reetings everyone, With Thanksgiving this week, I want to take a moment to thank all those people who have been making the choice to eat locally and support our local farmers, our local economy, and our community. Thank you. This movement cannot move forward without you...or the hard work of amazing farmers having to endu...

The Oconee County Democratic Committee has once again entered the Watkinsville Christmas Parade and needs people to help them march 10 am - 12 noon Saturday, December 1 on Barnett Shoals Road in Watkinsville to hand out Christmas cards to the large gathered masses for them to go mail them to deserving Veterans back from Iraq and Afghanistan in Augusta and elsewhere stateside. Congressional candidate and Iraqi war veteran Bobby Saxon helped a great deal with this effort, and I would sincerely invite all interested people from Jackson and Oglethorpe counties (and anywhere else for that matter) to drive over Saturday morning and help out in our effort. Our own Rita Bennett is trying to get an accurate head count as to those who will or will not be participating in this event. Please try to let her know via either the listserv or an email or even a comment here if you cannot reply otherwise. "I need to know who will be present at the parade. We are # 41 out of 106 entries. Please l...

Upon a recent tour of the Oconee Jail, Sheriff Scott Berry said the facility was not yet ready to handle the supposed massive amounts of illegal aliens and become a half way house for deporting foreigners back to their country of origin, but it could happen in the future. Does this enter in to the equation of why twenty something people who were detained while seeking work , of that I am not certain. Oconee County had kind of reached an odd detente with the day laborers by building them a shelter and providing a port-a-potty for the workers to use and wait for the various developers, landscapers and others who employ them, generally off the books. Even homeowners needing a ditch dug or some other

Local Republican stalwart and former state senate candidate Jim Ivey accepted a plea deal from Judge Lawton Stephens to avoid a much harsher sentence in a deal that had been in the works long before Thanksgiving . Ivey, who maintained his innocence, copped to the plea to hopefully avoid jail, although District Attorney Ken Mauldin will oppose the first offender status for the former financial officer for the Veterans Memorial who finally acknowledged his guilt to embezzling money from the charity. He claims it is in the best interest of his children. I still say he ought to be sentenced to chisel the unexpected bedrock under the Oconee County Complex where the Veterans Memorial is going to be across from Herman C. Michael Park in the Eastville community near Butler's Crossing.

Come one, come all and join Oconee Democrats as we celebrate the season! Sunday, December 2 6:30 pm 1030 Meriweather Dr . (Jennings Mill-second house on the right off of Jimmy Daniell Rd.) Bring an hors d’ouvre or dessert to share. This is a great opportunity to invite someone who might be interested in being part of Oconee Democrats . Please RSVP by email or phone (706.354.8861)

Come one, come all and join Oconee Democrats as we celebrate the season! Sunday, December 2 6:30 pm 1030 Meriweather Dr . (Jennings Mill-second house on the right off of Jimmy Daniell Rd.) Bring an hors d’ouvre or dessert to share. This is a great opportunity to invite someone who might be interested in being part of Oconee Democrats . Please RSVP by email or phone (706.354.8861)