Oconee County, GA Politics

The Oconee County Historical Society hosted free tours of three structures including the breathtakingly well preserved school house with new tin roof and a fresh coat of paint at Heritage Park Saturday during the Oconee County Recreation and Park Department's extremely successful "Touch A Truck" event Saturday below Farmington.  Tractor rides were given with large donation buckets not seeing nearly enough action for this history minor's preference. At one time several years back I was on a volunteer residents Historic Sites and Tourism committee tasked to find the perfect footprint for this school's relocation, which made national news coverage at the time. There were all kinds of hassles over methane pipes from former landfills as to exactly where and how close to the road and I am glad we are not still in meetings trying to figure out the best place to leave it. The Oconee County Historical Society gave tours of the three structures at Heritage Park in Sou...

Raw, seething racial hatred exposed the Teabagger mobs in Washington DC today as the bigots they are as Georgia congressman John Lewis was called "Nigger" at least 15 times outside of a Congressional hearing as the Nation awaits an historic healthcare vote tomorrow. What is next? Lynching the President? I think there are some dumb ass redneck peckerwoods in need of some serious mental healthcare who will probably be amongst the the 34 million eligible tomorrow. Raucous, ugly build-up to House health care vote  | ajc.com Posted using ShareThis

State Forestry Commission Charles “Chuck” E. Williams, 54, Watkinsville –  Williams is president and chief executive offcer of North Georgia Bank. He is a member of the University of Georgia Alumni Association Board of Directors and Finance Committee, the Board of Directors of the Oconee County Rotary Club and is chairman-elect of the Georgia Bankers Association. He is also a member of the Georgia Forestry Association and Forest Stewardship Steering Committee. He was named Tree Farmer of the Year in 2005 and is a member of the Georgia Tree Farm Advisory Committee. Williams is a member of the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Advisory Council, the Clarke- Oconee Cattlemen’s Association, and the Oconee County 4-H Program Development Team. Williams earned an associate’s degree from Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Georgia. He is married to Beth Williams.

Boo on this proposal and anyone who suggests it should happen. 4-H could fall under ag agency || OnlineAthens.com

Friend -- This is it: After months of hard work, the final vote on health reform in the House of Representatives is expected Sunday. It's a chance to make history and finally give Americans control over their own health care -- but it's shaping up to be incredibly close, and every member of Congress will play a critical role. So we're aiming for as many calls to Congress as possible from your area before offices close this evening. Whether you've called your representative before or haven't yet spoken out on health reform, it's now time to raise your voice. As an active constituent, your voice has particular weight with your representative -- so all those who share our commitment to reform are depending on you to speak up. Click here to look up your representative's phone number and make a call. After a century of false starts and a year of grueling negotiations, we may be just hours away from real health insurance reform in America. ...

Small Town Politics - North High Shoals: Park Work Day Posted using ShareThis

G. Melvin and the Oconee County Board of Commissioners answer activist Russ Page about an Elder Mill Covered Bridge park.

My Grandmother correctly called it The War of Northern Aggression

The second tier talks taxes amidst the scent of teenage sex scandal in the air, on both sides. Do any of the candidates realize we are fiddling around while Rome and Athens burns? Frontrunners skip debate at UGA || OnlineAthens.com

Nice new logo for the Oconee County School system. Now about that North Oconee visitor's changing room for football games..... By design, Oconee student makes his mark on district || OnlineAthens.com

Georgia Democratic candidate for Secretary of State Michael P. Mills , former hockey player from Hobarth College in New York, impressed a packed room of enthusiastic and curious voters Thursday evening at Watkinsville's Governmental Annex building in heavily Republican Oconee County, Georgia. Mills made an impression he would fight for our voting rights against the GOP's registration suppression tactics of the last two Secretaries of State. Michael P. Mills addressed a meeting of Oconee County Democratic Committee members Thursday evening in Watkinsville. (Photo by Daniel J. Matthews, Jr.) Mills commented at length but succinctly about how Democrats can come back to win at various levels in Georgia, "by meeting people knee to knee" and answered many questions about his office and the crowded Secretary of State race. He impressed the gathering with his direct answers and understanding of the various complexities of the office. Mills moved to Georgia more than 13...

So if you are not coming to the Oconee County Democratic Committee meeting this evening to hear Michael Mills speak, then go to the Chapel on campus at UGA for this debate at 6. I think the Ox is staying away as is Roy Barnes and Thurbert Baker. Woven brightly,  Daniel J. Matthews, Jr. Subject: CCDC FW: gubernatorial candidates debate TONIGHT March 18 Dear CCDC members and friends, Please see the email below that was just received this afternoon about tonight's debate. This email is for informational purposes only, and the CCDC's forwarding of it does not indicate endorsement at this time of this or any other Democratic candidate.   Sincerely, Karen Solheim CCDC Vice Chair for Communications =================================== The sponsor of tonight's debate is Pi Sigma Alpha, the political science honors society. Carl Camon, Dubose Porter, and David Poythress are the only democratic candidates who have confirmed. Barnes and Baker will not be represented. The...

Friend -- "I'm here for Natoma." That's what President Obama wrote us yesterday about Natoma Canfield, an Ohio woman whose story helped inspire the President and the nation to keep fighting for reform. As we speak, each member of Congress is preparing to cast their last vote on health reform, while insurance-company lobbyists bombard D.C. with a million-dollar-a-day campaign of distortions and threats. To break through in these final moments, we must show Congress why we'll never forget the choice they make: Because we're fighting for the people who matter most in our lives. So today, we've launched a new tool to help OFA supporters show Congress the names of the people who drive us to support reform. It might be a sick father. Maybe it's a friend who lost her job. Or maybe it's a daughter who simply deserves to grow up knowing that affordable care is always within reach. Whoever you know that's inspired you to fight for reform, the ...

North Campus pigs have ruined tailgating at UGA | The Junkyard Blawg Posted using ShareThis

Two candidates for governor had teacher certificates suspended — for misconduct with female students Posted using ShareThis

Friend -- I wanted to take a moment to thank you directly for the outstanding work you've been doing as part of Organizing for America's Final March for Reform. I can tell you that your voice is heard in Washington every day. I see how your efforts are moving us toward victory. But I also know that with just days remaining, the final vote is shaping up to be extremely close. Everything we've worked for is on the line, and your voice is needed now more than ever before. Raise your voice today: We must all speak out together to finish the job. In these final, crucial days, much more will be asked of us. Our resolve will be tested. During moments like this, I believe it's important to remember why we have worked so hard for so long. That's why I spoke to the country Monday at a gathering in Ohio and said it plainly: I'm here for Natoma. Natoma Canfield is like most of us: She works hard, and tries to do what's right. Years ago, she had battled back...

In a Barnum and Bailey world, CNN hires a circus act Posted using ShareThis

Want to learn about how to monitor water quality here in Oconee County? The Upper Oconee Watershed Network is putting out feelers about training volunteers to do exactly that. Dear Friends, The Upper Oconee Watershed Network has put out a special call for volunteers who are interested in monitoring water quality in Oconee County as part of the 13th Annual River Rendezvous scheduled for March 27. The group hopes to gather data on water quality of Rose Creek, Barber Creek and other streams in the county depending on the number of volunteers. For details and contact information, go to my blog: http://oconeecountyobservations.blogspot.com/2010/03/waterproof-shoes-upper-oconee-watershed.html Thanks Lee -- Lee Becker Blog: www.oconeecountyobservations.blogspot.com Web: http://lbbecker48.googlepages.com/

The Oconee County Historical Society needs our support, donations and attention. Please consider taking your children to the Touch a Truck event this Saturday at Heritage Park and tour the three historic buildings on the grounds as well. Subject: minutes of last nights meeting MINUTES 2010 March 15 ATTENDANCE:  Sheila Jackson, Linda Bernard, Melissa Piche, Dory Brown, Lisa Douglas, Ben Jackson, Richard Pendergrass, Peggy Sommer OLD BUSINESS: Grant application:  Richard reported that he did not sent in a grant application to the Watson-Brown Foundation this year because he could not find some old pot belly stoves that matches what was already available in Central Schoolhouse.  It was decided that we would all keep an eye out for some and maybe try again next year. Meeting location:  We agreed that we would continue to use the OCAF facilities for meetings in the future. History   Village   Planning:  The next meeting of the Rec. Dept committee o...

A case of when life gives you lemons (or in this case when you bite down too hard on a lemon), you make lemonade. Osborne pursues new learning venture || OnlineAthens.com

Congrats again to Lee Becker, my 2009 Oconee County citizen of the year as well. Professor chosen as river network's volunteer of 2010 || OnlineAthens.com

Please attend or lend a hand or donation to this Oconee County Historical Committee endeavor with the open house at the Central Schoolhouse, tenant house and Rose Hill home in Heritage Park in southern Oconee County. Subject: Saturday Hi,             We have agreed to hold an open house of the 3 buildings that are currently part of   Heritage   Park .  We agreed to gather at 9:30 so we could get organized before the event started at 10:00.  If you can come join us for any part of the day it would be very much appreciated.  The event ends at 1.             According to my notes from last night here is a list of things people have agreed to do:             Richard will print out more copies of the flyer about Central Schoolhouse and fix a bucket and sign for collecting donations for the hayride. ...

Another overview of our allegedly corrupt GOP polling practice. I guess time will only tell if Nate Silver is correct or not. Embattled pollster wades back in - Josh Kraushaar - POLITICO.com

Visioning projects can be an exercise in futility or a basis with which to engineer a new schematic for a city's survival. Watkinsville has been lucky to get a group of UGA students to design and dream what could be for our small town. Bruce Ferguson is a professor from UGA who went on some of the Saturday Strolls last year to bolster his Environmental Design students and their curriculum. Come see some of the results of their imagination and planning Monday of their semester long projects. A lot of time these plans are kind of like concept cars that look really sleek and cool but have almost no practical applications.  My sister Sarah who is in Atlanta right now has helped with some ideas along this line in Des Moines where I grew up. Some ideas will never happen, others happened right away because the city flooded 15 years ago. Woven brightly,  Daniel J. Matthews, Jr. Date: Tue, 16 Mar 2010 08:17:43 -0400 Subject: [oconee] Downtown Watkinsvile -- student projects ...

The Ray "States Rights" McBerry saga gets stranger by the second, but hey, it is the Georgia GOP, so anything is possible. The Republican candidate for Governor of Georgia just needs to go ahead and secede from the United States since he does not recognize the vast majority of states. GOP Gov Candidate Admits Refusing To Salute Flag -- Denies Hitting On Campaign Manager, Sex With Underage Girls | TPMMuckraker Posted using ShareThis

Friend -- Great news: This weekend's events were a huge success. OFA volunteers all over the country helped tens of thousands of voters in key districts speak out for reform. Phones have been ringing off the hook in Capitol Hill offices for days, but with everything on the line and so little time left, we have to bring our voice to Congress through every possible channel. So today, OFA supporters are taking the next step in the Final March for Reform: Writing to Congress. Using our online tool, it just takes a few minutes to write and send your own letter directly to your representative. Right now, Congress is under attack from insurance lobbyists who are trying to drown us out, so we're aiming to flood Capitol Hill with letters to make sure our message breaks through. Can you help? Get started here. In the days ahead, we'll keep you up-to-date on the latest news on health reform as it breaks -- so keep checking your email. In the days ahead, we'l...

Oconee Democrats are organizing a couple of interesting events in successive Thursday in Watkinsville, Georgia. Please attend either or both if you can. Woven brightly,  Daniel J. Matthews, Jr. Date: Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:39:37 +0000 Michael Mills and Elder Mill Bridge Forum   Please don't forget that Secretary of State candidate Michael Mills will be attending our meeting on Thursday, March 18, 7:30 pm at the Government Annex. I encourage you all to attend. Michael has some interesting ideas about election reform and attracting business to Georgia. Also, it is a gutsy move for him to come into Brian Kemp's backyard. Let's give him an audience. Also, please don't forget to promote and attend the Elder Mill Bridge Forum on Thursday, March 25th at 7 pm at the Library. Confirmed panelists include Dr. Russell Page who leads the Farm Land Protection Program, and tourism director Peggy Holcomb. I am working on getting someone from the government side of things to at...

Looks like the soon to be former Insurance Commissioner is looking for another person to blame for his horribly run campaign. Local conservative activist and TeenPAC promoter Tim Echols will work on ways to make Georgia even more backward in the eyes of America instead. John Oxendine installs another campaign manager | Political Insider Posted using ShareThis

Glad to see that Oconee Veterans park and their mile-plus (?) lap around the park will play host to these folks and their all night fundraiser. Walk MS preparing for annual fundraiser || OnlineAthens.com

So does this mean that State Representative Bob Smith, who may indeed have a future as a washing machine repairmen advertising star, could not sell some of his considerable property holdings to the Oconee County Government?  I commend his attempts at reform, but I think this is a misguided attempt at making a blanket "solution" to a problem that does not really compare to oh, say, the budget, or water, or education, or 4-H, or traffic or the brain train. Smith tries to cut off 2nd government check  | ajc.com Posted using ShareThis