Oconee County, GA Politics

Important News: Georgia Delegate Selection INTRODUCTION On Saturday, April 19th, 2008, the Democratic Party of Georgia will conduct caucuses in each of Georgia's 13 Congressional Districts to select Delegates to the 2008 Democratic National Convention. Between January 26th - February 23rd, 2008, Georgia Delegate Candidate Training Workshops will be held throughout the state in all Congressional Districts. Attending the Delegate Candidate Training workshop in your District is not required to stand for election, but it is recommended. At the training, you will learn more about the Delegate selection process and what to expect once you arrive at the convention, should you be elected. If you would like to stand for election as a Delegate to the 2008 Democratic National Convention, please review the date, time and location information for Candidate Workshops in Congressional Districts comprising Fulton County ...

Dear Friends, This is a reminder about our Democratic social (which we're dubbing a "homecoming") to be held at Watson Mill Bridge State Park on Saturday December 15 from 2p to 5p. We're specifically inviting Democrats from Madison, Oglethorpe, Athens-Clarke, Elbert, Hart, Franklin, Wilkes, Barrow, Jackson, Oconee, Walton and Greene counties, as well as the UGA Young Democrats -- though any Democrat in Georgia (or beyond) who is willing to make the drive is welcome to join us that day! We're also encouraging you as county leaders to invite and encourage candidates and elected officials to attend. Please emphasize that this is not a campaigning event, and we won't allow stump speeches, but this is an excellent networking opportunity for candidates, elected officials and all of us in the Northeast Georgia area! The event is being hosted by the local Democratic committees from Madison and Oglethorpe counties, and, depending on the how it goes, may become an annu...

I got a big kick finding out about this through my healer/singer friend Wilma who is playing at the Melting Point Sunday night with a child friendly event you should all attend, but she is also going to be Dancing with the Athens Stars on Sunday, March 2, 2008. Wilma just received the proclamation from the city of Winterville for her song and video of the same name. She is amazing individual and talented singer/songwriter/guitarist/massage therapist and one of my favorite people. I can not yet personally vouch for her dancing talents but I am sure she will be one of the best people in this event and worthy of your donations. The description made me smile and want to attend. I think Project Safe is very important and well worth supporting. By then I should have enough $$ to contribute more than I can right now because of the season for giving to our family gifts, etc. I think dancing is one of the most interesting of the performing arts, and while I was not a big fan of the TV show, ...

Coaching is the most thankless task known to mankind. Parents have nothing but venom to spew your way if you are not playing little Johnny enough. That said, Coach Nick Saltaformaggio came to Oconee County after Hurricane Katrina scattered many people from New Orleans a couple of years ago. He deserved much better treatment than what he received around these parts. But no coach is ever going to take Oconee County back to the promise land of football State Titles as long as the current principal remains in power at the High School. I only heard random fragments of disgruntled statements from the kid across the street who is not yet old enough to play for him, but would hear about how various threats were made ostensibly by him. Locker room chatter is something better left to the locker room. I would like to thank Coach Salt for his considerable efforts with a great QB who will be signed by some Division 1 team next year as well as his work with Oconee County Warriors football.

Please take advantage of one of the upcoming opportunities on December 5th, 10th, and 11th to learn more about the draft Statewide Water Plan. Your involvement is needed to create a plan that works for all Georgians. Details on the meetings may be found below. Georgia’s rivers, lakes, and streams are the lifeblood of our state. A draft Statewide Water Plan was released this summer and Georgia’s Water Council is working to finalize it January. However, there are serious flaws in the draft plan that must be fixed now to ensure there will be enough clean water for all Georgians. We Want a Water Plan That : · Protects downstream communities · Is adequately funded · Requires efficient water use everywhere, always · Ensures water clean enough to drink and fish safe enough to eat · Provides for public input and local action The Current Plan Does Not Meet These Goals Because: · It cannot require the Metro North Georgia Water Planning Distric...

Visitors to Watkinsville who choose to drive down narrow School Street to events at OCAF and Rocket Field will have sidewalks and new street lights to help guide the way . The Streetscape repaving of downtown Watkinsville has been a long time coming, and it is refreshing to see the Federal Government cooperating with this effort. I think in general the city of Watkinsville needs to widen several of the very narrowest streets, including School Street and Wilson Road. The city also needs to continue to make the sidewalks safe and have curbs that are graded instead of sharp.

Here are some photos from yesterday's Watkinsville Christmas parade. For another 270 something images go here :

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)

Oconee native and 10th district Democratic congressional candidate Bobby Saxon helped county parties in Oglethorpe and Oconee counties this week with an appearance scheduled in Lexington Thursday and used his Veteran experience to good work by directing the Oconee County Democratic Committee where to properly address their Christmas cards to get them to our troops in hospitals in Augusta and elsewhere. The Oconee County Democratic committee intends to hand out pre-addressed Christmas cards to parade attendees to mail at home or at the post office during the Watkinsville Christmas parade Saturday morning along Barnett Shoals and Main Street past the Eagle Tavern.

OUR XMAS PARTY HAS MOVED From the Sanctuary in Watkinsville to First African Baptist Church in Monroe, GA Directions from Athens-Clarke/Oconee: head west on Hwy 78 to Monroe area, take second Monroe exit on Hwy 11, turn left and head south over bridge towards downtown Monroe. After only ¼ mile, turn left on Tyler St (Churches Chicken on right corner). First AB fellowship hall is one block on left. If lost, call 706-202-7802. Directions from Atlanta: head east on Hwy 78 to Monroe area, turn right on Hwy 11, same - OR - head east on 1-20, then northeast on Hwy 138 to Monroe area. After merging with Hwy 78, turn right on Hwy 11, same. From Madison & South Georgia: head north on Hwy 441. Before getting to Madison, GA, turn left and head west approximately 16 miles on 1-20 towards Atlanta, then turn right at exit 98 and head north on Hwy 11. Go straight through Social Circle, then stay north on Hwy 11 to Monroe. After passing county courthouse on right in downtown M...

Oconee Democrats invite county residents to remember a veteran at this special time of year. Contact: Becky Vaughn becky@beckyvaughn.org At the Christmas parade in Watkinsville on December 1st, the Oconee County Democrats will be handing out to parade spectators Christmas cards that have been pre-addressed to reach veterans at V.A. Hospitals in Augusta and Atlanta. The cards include instructions the hospitals require to ensure delivery to patients. Becky Vaughn, the chair of the Oconee Democrats, said, "We wanted to make it easy to send a note of thanks and good cheer to the men and women who have served our country so bravely. The theme of the parade is 'We wish you a Merry Christmas,' and we hope that people along the parade route will take this opportunity to extend their wishes to veterans hospitalized during the holidays." For more information, contact Vaughn at becky@beckyvaughn.org .

Rich Rusk, son of former JFK and LBJ Secretary of State Dean Rusk, and the fine folks at the Moore's Ford Memorial Committee made massive inroads into the solving of the lynching of four people at the border of Walton and Oconee counties; now they want to solve another riddle of racist past around these parts with the site of a grave of seven slain prisoners incarcerated only a century ago in Watkinsville. This will not be an easy task to accomplish, and I hope they do solve it soon . Anyone who knows anything about this prison lynching or the whereabouts of their mass grave please let us know as soon as possible. The Moore's Ford group is to be applauded for not stopping with just the deaths, no matter however tragic, of four African-Americans in 1947, to help ameliorate the wounds from earlier times in our recent past. This murder of nine prisoners occurred when Watkinsville was still the county seat of Clarke County.

This represents from whom the donations are coming in the political season including our recently completed special election cycle. So it seems Dr. Paul Broun, Jr. is popular with his homies and Barack Obama will face off against Mitt Romney a year from now if our donations are any bell weather for what the rest of the nation is going to do. I have seen a bumper sticker for Mitt in my neighborhood and a Kucinich bumper sticker on a car from Barrow county.