I will resist "The List" and insist you assist
Once again former Oconee County Board of Commissioners chair Wendell Dawson scooped some political delight tonight by setting his sights on an anonymous tripe being pedaled as "The List" on his AVOC.info blog. The only rumored sighting of the poorly worded memo has been at the Shell Station down yonder on 15 in what I reckon is South Watkinsville, and I would well imagine that those will disappear not long after the first or second B.O.C. or B.O.E. candidate comes over there for breakfast Saturday morning and reads right through the blatant attempt at retaining the status quo.
People are angry and ready for a change of direction in their government at the local level. The first and most obvious target is current Oconee County Board of Commissioners chair G. Melvin Davis and his cadre of developers and wealthy business owners. Chairman Dawson does a fine job of naming names there, but Tom Little and Larry Benson seem to be at the top of the list. They have some serious investments along Daniells Bridge Road and are running to protect their interests. It is completely understandable why they choose to continue their power grasp, but it is time to repudiate such brazen tactics as the list and what it represents. It seems to be an attempt at guiding weaker minds to find our success in becoming another Gwinnett County.
It is politically expedient now to vote for the new park to be renamed Veterans Park, but most of these same Board of Commissioners members made various citizens groups waste an amazing amount of time and energy coming up with a huge list and narrowing it down. Even before that, yours truly made the motion and Al Cuming seconded the proposal to call it Veterans Park right out of the gate on the Historic Sites and Tourism side of the committee more than three years back.
While I thank them for their years of public service, I really do think it is time for some new blood on the Board of Commissioners. My list is much less vindictive and more indicative of how the county really is in 2009. Time to say goodbye to Jim Luke, Don Norris and Melvin Davis.
We will see a new Board of Education. We may or may not have charter schools. We will know a whole lot more inside of a fortnight. We may someday even see a new or at least reconstituted Planning Commission. It is time to recognize we cannot solve any problems paving over the past without planning for the future. We need sidewalks and bike paths connecting the schools with the neighborhoods and not put our kids at risk on the sides of our busy roads. When our government fails us, it is time to replace it. May we all be much better off for our decision to remove the current leaders.
People are angry and ready for a change of direction in their government at the local level. The first and most obvious target is current Oconee County Board of Commissioners chair G. Melvin Davis and his cadre of developers and wealthy business owners. Chairman Dawson does a fine job of naming names there, but Tom Little and Larry Benson seem to be at the top of the list. They have some serious investments along Daniells Bridge Road and are running to protect their interests. It is completely understandable why they choose to continue their power grasp, but it is time to repudiate such brazen tactics as the list and what it represents. It seems to be an attempt at guiding weaker minds to find our success in becoming another Gwinnett County.
It is politically expedient now to vote for the new park to be renamed Veterans Park, but most of these same Board of Commissioners members made various citizens groups waste an amazing amount of time and energy coming up with a huge list and narrowing it down. Even before that, yours truly made the motion and Al Cuming seconded the proposal to call it Veterans Park right out of the gate on the Historic Sites and Tourism side of the committee more than three years back.
While I thank them for their years of public service, I really do think it is time for some new blood on the Board of Commissioners. My list is much less vindictive and more indicative of how the county really is in 2009. Time to say goodbye to Jim Luke, Don Norris and Melvin Davis.
We will see a new Board of Education. We may or may not have charter schools. We will know a whole lot more inside of a fortnight. We may someday even see a new or at least reconstituted Planning Commission. It is time to recognize we cannot solve any problems paving over the past without planning for the future. We need sidewalks and bike paths connecting the schools with the neighborhoods and not put our kids at risk on the sides of our busy roads. When our government fails us, it is time to replace it. May we all be much better off for our decision to remove the current leaders.
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