The following is a WNEG Editorial. Your response is welcome. You may mail your response to WNEG Radio, 116 Alexander Street, Toccoa, GA 30577, email it to Editorial Response, fax it to 706-282-0189, or bring it by our studios on Alexander Street.  Properly identified Guest Editorials of an appropriate nature are also welcome for broadcast or inclusion on our web site.

WNEG EDITOR

WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF May 5, 2008

When commissioners from Toccoa and Stephens County gather for their joint meeting tonight, it will be interesting to see what is said about the Chamber of Commerce's suggestion that the two governments hire a full-time grant administrator for the community.

In concept, it's a hard idea to argue against. When you think about how many local projects are either being funded by grants or have pending grant applications attached to them - and when you think about how much more money there is out there at both the state and federal levels - it's not hard to see how a grant hunter could pay for him- or herself many times over every year.

The devil, as always, is in the details. Who, exactly, would pay the grant administrator's estimated salary of $40,000 to $50,000? Where would their office be located? Who would they answer to? What, exactly, would constitute the criteria for success? What about Martin and Avalon? Would they benefit?

Fortunately, this proposal is coming at a time when relations between the city and county appear to be far more cordial than they have historically been. The very fact that there is a joint city/county meeting tonight bears out that fact.

If the city and county decide that they want to move forward with the grant administrator's position, it seems to us that the most logical entity to house them, so to speak, would be the Stephens County Development Authority. The grant administrator's mission would fit hand-in-glove with that of the authority, and the executive director of the authority seems like the best person to oversee the grant administrator on a day-to-day basis. By law, the authority includes representatives from the city, the county and the chamber, so all of the major entities would have some say in the grant administrator's efforts.

If that's the general direction the city and county chose to go, it would still leave a lot of details on the table to hash out. But it would make a good starting point, one that wouldn't force either body to reinvent the wheel. And if all the details could be hashed out to the satisfaction of all parties, we'd be interested to see how effective a grant administrator working on our behalf could be.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 28, 2008

Like many people, we're still digesting the City of Toccoa's proposed budget for Fiscal Year 2009. City Manager Billy Morse presented it to the commissioners and to the public April 21.

At a little over $34.3 million, the proposed budget represents an increase of 2.7 percent over last year. To make that work, Mr. Morse and City Finance Director Emory Stephens are proposing a 4.3 percent increase in water, sewer and solid waste fees. That will mean an average monthly increase of $2.77 for rate-payers living within the city limits.

If nothing else, it offers a glimpse at just how many different ways increased fuel costs are going to hit local taxpayers above and beyond what they're already paying at the pump. If you think about how many city services are gasoline-intensive - the Police Department, the Solid Waste Department, the Public Works Department, and so on - it's not hard to see why Mr. Morse and the city staff are feeling the fiscal heat.

But it also offers a glimpse into the city's long-standing philosophy about responding to rising costs. That is, the city commission has been historically reluctant to raise property taxes, but not nearly as wary about raising rates for service. This year is no different.

Perhaps these challenging times may present an opportunity for this relatively new commission to re-examine that philosophy. After all, the city mill rate, which currently stands at 7.19 mills, is something which can be adjusted upwards or downwards relatively easily as circumstances change. In contrast, we can virtually guarantee you that if the proposed water, sewer and garbage rate increases are adopted by the commission, they'll never go away, regardless of whether gas prices ever climb down from the stratosphere. No, $2.77 a month doesn't sound like much, but when you compound those increases year over year for a decade or two, it's startling how much more the city is charging for services now than even a few years ago.

Yes, covering this year's budget gap through property taxes instead of rate increases would require some speculation on the commission's part. Are high fuel costs a temporary thing, or are they something we all need to get used to in the years ahead? There's no shortage of differing opinions out there, and the commission would have to pick one before moving forward. But, really, doesn't every budget have a speculative dimension? How is this year that different?

In any case, the budget - and the rate increases it calls for - are now on the table for everyone's review. We'd encourage all our listeners in Toccoa to do so, and to make their opinions known if they feel strongly about it. The first public hearing on the budget is at 5 o'clock on May 12 at City Hall. We hope to see you there.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 21, 2008

It will be interesting to see how gender-divided classes at Stephens County Middle School work for our seventh graders next year.

It will be an interesting experiment, for sure. Those behind the initiative point to a significant body of research suggesting that males and females process information differently, especially in adolescence. Locally, teachers and administrators hope that in addition to shoring up seventh grade test scores, single-sex classes will help curb some of the discipline problems they've observed at that grade level.

Reactions to the plan have been mixed. Some parents say that in addition to "the three R's," school is about learning to work and learn with people of all backgrounds - and all sexes. They worry that single-sex classrooms will deprive students of that kind of social interaction.

We're not sure that the so-called "socialization argument" is all that strong at this point. After all, we're not talking about sending these children to boarding school. Something tells us that our seventh grade boys and girls will find a way to mingle with one another, single-sex classes or no single-sex classes.

No, what we wonder about is what will happen next year and in the years after that. If this first year doesn't produce the kind of results the school system is looking for, will they abandon this immediately, or will they wait several years to collect enough data to truly show a trend?

Conversely, if there's a marked increase in academic performance for our seventh graders next year, what implications will that have for the school system as a whole? Will other grades adopt a single-sex model? After all, we've seen the logistical adjustments necessary to do this for just one grade. And if other grades and other schools decided to go in that direction, would it begin to lend more credence to that "socialization argument?"

We're just not sure, but we're willing to take the leap of faith with our teachers and administrators. We don't believe that separating our children into single-sex classes in one grade is going to hurt them, and it may very well help them.

Only time will tell, of course. And we will, of course, keep you posted as to how it turns out.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 14, 2008

Of all the races we'll be watching unfold in the run-up to the November general election, none will likely be more interesting than the county commission races in Stephens County. Instead of voting in two races, local residents will be able to vote for four commissioners for the first and only time in the county's history. This after local voters approved an initiative to expand the commission from three to five members.

Talk about wide open. Those considering a run for a commission seat won't have to worry about districts or residency requirements, as all five posts will be elected by a countywide vote. All they'll have to do is say which post they want to run for.

That's not to say that the political calculus will be simple for those considering a run. Imagine for a moment that you're a potential candidate. Do you run against one of the two incumbents, Rex Anderson and Kenneth Peeples? After all, both men have their core constituencies as well as those who may not like them. Assuming that they run again, would you take your chances against either of them or bet on one of the open seats, where you wouldn't have to contend against an incumbent? It would make a considerable difference to the winner, as he or she would have four full years in office; those running for the new seats will have only two years before they'll have to run for re-election.

Regardless of who eventually comprises the Stephens County Commission come January, it will be a different body for sure. We would expect the interpersonal dynamics of a five-person board to be completely different than it has been with a three-person board, and that's a good thing. Yes, we are concerned that some commissioners might take advantage of the five-person structure to hold private, two-person bull sessions outside of public earshot, since such conversations will be legal once we move to a five-person structure. But now that the decision has been made and we're moving forward, we can only hope that at the end of the day five heads will be better than three, and that the positives of a bigger board will outweigh the negatives.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF APRIL 1, 2008

If you either have children in the Stephens County School System or pay taxes to support it, you owe it to yourself to go to www.stephenscountyschools.com and click on the link titled "2006-2007 Annual Report" on the home page. The 16-page document contains a wealth of information on everything from funding and awards to all our local schools' test scores. When we looked, the test scores piqued our interest most.

Now, we know that test scores can't possibly tell the whole story about a school system and the students which comprise it. But for better or worse, they are the numbers by which many people at the local, state and federal levels keep score. So while they may not tell the whole story, they are nevertheless important.

The story told by our numbers is an awfully good one, at least when it comes to grades one through eight. Out of the 13 counties in our area, Stephens County is number one in terms of overall CRCT scores for grades one through eight in math, science and language arts. In reading, we are second only to Union County.

Among our elementary schools, all of which posted excellent scores, Big A Elementary set the standard with 100 percent of all student meeting or exceeding standards for reading in grades 1-4, and 97 percent meeting or exceeding those standards in fifth grade. In math, 99 percent of all Big A third, fourth and fifth graders met or exceeded standards for math. Those scores were enough to earn the school special recognition from the Governor's Office of Student Achievement. Stephens County Middle School stands atop the rankings in all categories - language arts, math and reading.

While the CRCT is the apples-to-apples measure used in the elementary and middle school grades, the Georgia High School Graduation Test serves that purpose for grades nine through twelve. And once you get to the high school portion of the report, that's where you might begin scratching your head a bit. On that test, Stephens County High School ranked 14th out of 18 area high schools in language arts, seventh out of 18 in math, 11th out of 18 in social studies, and ninth out of 18 in science. When it comes to end-of-course testing, the high school's passage rate has fluctuated wildly from subject to subject over the past three years, sometimes improving slightly, sometimes dropping precipitously, and sometimes just moving around without any clear trend in sight.

This disparity between grades one through eight and nine through twelve is one that deserves attention. Yes, we realize that the tests in question are quite different, but the children are the same. Given that fact, why the decline in our rankings compared to other schools once our students get to their senior year?

There may be some simple, reasonable explanation that a row of bars and numbers on a graph simply cannot represent. If that is the case, then we're certain many local parents and taxpayers would love to know both the explanation and how teachers and administrators at the high school intend to address it. We'll never have true top-to-bottom excellence in our school system without it.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 25, 2008

If I Were Mayor
By Richard Hobbs

If I were Mayor of Toccoa, my focus would be improving community pride. I would support all community activities. Since downtown Toccoa is currently being restored, I would encourage the public to support this project. I would encourage the public to take pride in their town.

If I were the Mayor of the commission, I would encourage businesses to display "Take Pride" signs. I would also partner with industry to provide a free American flag for every citizen. This would be great to show town visitors the unity of our community.

We could combine "Take Pride" with a "Shop At Home" campaign that would encourage citizens to buy here to help the local economy. This campaign would accomplish three things:

    1.    bring back pride in our city

    2.    encourage unity

    3.    help the economy of local business and the city.

This is how I would make a difference if I were Mayor.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 11, 2008

It appears Stephens County voters will once again have a wide array of choices in front of them as they cast their ballots this coming November.

The 50th District Senate seat now occupied by Nancy Schaefer will be up for grabs, as Senator Schaefer will be seeking to unseat Paul Broun for the 10th District congressional seat. Two Habersham County residents - Terry Rogers of Clarkesville and Habersham County commissioner Jim Butterworth - have already announced that they'll be running for the 50th District seat as Republicans. Also, Jeanette Jamieson has announced that she will run for a 13th term representing Stephens County and part of Banks and Franklin counties. Michael Harden has announced that he will run against Jamieson, as he did two elections ago. No doubt several more candidates will be throwing their hats into the ring very soon; once that list becomes final, we expect to see a good mixture of familiar names and newcomers.

Not too many years ago, local and even state elections were relatively sedate events. Candidates were content to shake voters' hands, offer friendly words at civic meetings and events, and run ads that essentially said "Vote for me on election day" and little more. Back then, vagueness seemed the order of the day. Candidates rarely acknowledged their opponents at all, and if they slung mud, they usually did so in private, one-on-one conversations.

Those days are gone. The aggressive tactics which have long been a part of the national political scene have trickled down to the state and local levels. Candidates no longer have any qualms about calling out their opponents both publicly and in the starkest terms possible. For instance, once upon a time Rep. Jamieson's tax problems would have been an unspoken issue, a white elephant in the room that her opponent probably wouldn't have mentioned - at least not on the airwaves and in the public prints. If you think her opponents won't try to beat her brains out with it, then we have some oceanfront property in the northern end of the county we'd like to sell you.

Regardless of whether you like this change or not, you may as well get used to it, because the days of friendly, genteel campaigning are long gone. All we can hope for now is that once the mud stops flying, the best candidate prevails.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF MARCH 4, 2008

We would be remiss if we did not stop and say a few words in memory of one of the finest men who ever lived in Stephens County. We speak, of course, about the late, great Jack Stovall.

Though his record of public service to this community is well-known through his work for organizations like the Airport Authority, the Courthouse Restoration Authority, the Chamber of Commerce and many, many others, it is impossible to gauge the true impact Mr. Stovall had on Toccoa-Stephens County. That's because he was a man who never sought public acclaim or accolades for his many acts of individual kindness and public service. In a newspaper interview published several years ago, he was quoted as saying that it was amazing what one could accomplish if one didn't care who got the credit for doing it. He was a man who lived his whole life by that one simple creed.

Mr. Stovall was one of those rare men who managed to be successful in business without making enemies. He recognized that a truly successful business person was one who recognized the value of giving back to a community as well as receiving from it. His many donations to projects benefiting Stephens County and its residents stand as lasting tributes to this rare and wonderful attitude.

His devotion to and love for his family was legendary, from the band scholarship he established in memory of his son Steve after the young man's tragic death from a freak lightning strike in the 1970s, to the daily visits he paid to his mother and many others at the Toccoa Nursing Center.

Mr. Stovall was a man who saw the bright side of every situation. Where others saw problems, he saw opportunities for improvement. Where others saw conflict, he saw opportunities for new partnerships. Where others saw ugliness, he saw opportunities to bring new beauty into the world.

Jack Stovall, in short, was a gentle giant of a man. He was the kind of man who had a calming influence on those around him. When he spoke, people listened, because the words were always both gentle and wise, and because those around him knew that he always spoke with the community's best interest in mind.

You don't meet many men like Jack Stovall anymore, and the world is poorer for it. And as we pause today to pay him this small tribute, we recognize that in his life, there is a lesson for all of us.

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WNEG EDITORIAL FOR THE WEEK OF FEBRUARY 26, 2008

Rep. Jeanette Jamieson may have settled her problems with the Georgia Department of Revenue, but it may very well be that her problems with voters here in the district have only just begun.

In case you haven't heard, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Saturday that Rep. Jamieson owes the state of Georgia nearly $46,000 in back taxes. According to the article by AJC staff writer Ann Hardie, she owes eight years' worth of state taxes going back as far as 1998. The state has given her until March 15 to pay up.

Jamieson, who was quoted in the article, didn't dispute any of the facts in Ms. Hardie's report. She said, in essence, that it was an oversight, and that she had, quote, "dropped the ball." She added that the whole matter had taught her a, quote, "valuable lesson."

When politicians make mistakes, sometimes a simple apology is enough to satisfy voters, who are willing to forgive and forget. Unfortunately for Rep. Jamieson, we doubt she's going to get off that easy on this one.

First of all, she does people's taxes for a living. That makes this oversight especially embarrassing.

Second, she serves on the House Ways and Means Committee, which handles tax laws for the House. That's also embarrassing.

Once upon a time, Rep. Jamieson's grip on her seat was ironclad, and for a long while she rolled over any token opposition the Republican Party offered up at election time.

That was then, this is now. Today, her grasp on the seat she's held for more than two dozen years is far less certain. Georgia is a certifiably Republican state now, and state Republicans have been far more aggressive in terms of mounting vigorous challenges against lawmakers who formerly seemed unbeatable. Rep. Jamieson has been squarely in the state GOP's crosshairs for the last two elections.

Given the tenor of the last two House races in this district, you'd best believe that this isn't the last you'll hear about this delinquent tax business. And it will be interesting to see what the local reaction to it will be.

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Any time a municipality applies for a state or federal grant, it always pays to keep your fingers crossed. After all, the competition for those funds is fierce. After all, what city or county wouldn't like to pay for large-scale projects with something other than local tax and service revenues?

Even so, we're going to be holding our fingers together even more tightly when it comes to the City of Toccoa's application for a Community Development Block Grant to revitalize the so-called Trogdon Mill Heritage District, which encompasses the old Trogdon manufacturing plant.

Anyone who's ever been to the Elberton Street area of Toccoa knows that the old Trogdon plant is both hard to look at and hard to miss. Nothing is sadder than seeing a former epicenter of local industry fall into such complete ruin. It is the very definition of "urban blight." There's little wonder that every time the Toccoa City Commission has made an effort to get city homeowners to clean up their property through statutory force, the Trogdon district has consistently been thrown in the city's face by some citizens as a counter-argument. In terms of city-sponsored beautification efforts, it has become our equivalent of that old Bible parable about seeing the splinter in your neighbor's eye and failing to see the log in your own.

Downtown, generally, is moving rapidly in the right direction. While there was once some disagreement as to the streetscape improvements in downtown proper, we seldom hear anyone complaining anymore. It's hard to argue that the work done downtown is not, in fact, a vast improvement.

If we could find a way to pay for similar improvements for the Trogdon district - even if those improvements were just limited to tearing down the building and sowing it in grass - it would go a long way toward improving the appearance of - and the overall outlook for - that part of the city.

That's why we're keeping our fingers crossed for the Community Development Block Grant application. If you care about Toccoa living up to its nickname, "The Beautiful," then you ought to have yours crossed, too.

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When it comes to positions in local government, an "interim" anything is seldom the ideal. An interim person is by definition temporary, a caretaker, someone who can keep things between the ditches until a "permanent" person can come along and take the reins long-term.

But Interim Development Authority Director Bob Evans is a different story. Seldom have we been so happy to see an "interim" person come along.

For those of you who are longtime Stephens County residents, Bob Evans needs no introduction. As the longtime executive director of both the Development Authority and the Chamber of Commerce, he was at the helm of those organizations during Stephens County's "golden age" of development that began in the late 1960s and continued well into the 1980s. It was a time when Toccoa-Stephens County was an island of progress in a sea of otherwise sleepy, rural mountain and farm communities. Bob knew the value of relationships - with the state, with Georgia Power, with industrial site hunters, with companies, and with local leaders - and this community reaped the benefits of his skill.

It was no fluke, either. After retiring here in Stephens County, he went to work part-time for Hart County in a similar capacity, and they, too, saw a period of rapid, healthy growth that any full-time industrial development director would have been proud of. They miss him there, and we've missed him here, too.

In Bob Evans, we have an "interim" director that can not only keep the county's development strategy from stumbling, but one who can actually move us forward even as the Development Authority searches for his successor. With Bob, the board can take its time and find the right person, since they have a proven quantity manning the fort, one whose love of this community is as well-known as his industrial development skills.

Welcome back, Bob. We feel a lot better knowing you're here. And though we know it's only temporary, we sure are looking forward to seeing you do what you do best while we have you.

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After the longest presidential primary campaign in American history, the day has finally arrived for local Democrats and Republicans to have their say as to who their candidates will be in the 2008 General Election.

Though the campaign has raged for so long that virtually everyone who is not a political junkie is probably sick of it all, that campaign fatigue does not negate the importance of today's vote - in Stephens County, in Georgia and in every other Super Tuesday state.

For the first time in recent memory, both parties have truly contested primaries. No sitting president or vice president is running, and on both sides many polls have the leading candidates in a statistical dead heat.

It is an exciting time to be a registered voter, because no matter who wins - today or in November - we will have a new government in this country come this time next year. And it is doubly exciting that, again, for the first time in recent memory, there's a range of ideas on the table that span the political gamut from far-left to far-right - and a few which don't even fit anywhere on that scale.

Many of you have already cast your votes through the early balloting process. Many more of you will head to your polling places today and cast your vote the old-fashioned way, albeit on newfangled machinery.

When you go to the polls today, take a minute and thank the poll workers who are there to help you, and please have some respect the role they play in the process. If you think it's an inconvenience to stand in line for a minute or two, just stop and think what it must be like to deal with that from seven in the morning until seven at night.

And while you're saying thanks, you might also want to stop and thank your Creator for giving you a life in a country where you have a say in how your government is run. It is a blessing that far too many of us take for granted.

And as far as the campaign itself goes, may the best person win. We can scarcely think of a time in our history where the best person was needed more in the White House.

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In a vote that wasn't even close in the end, both houses of the Georgia General Assembly approved a statewide water management plan earlier this month. Our delegation was split on it. Senator Nancy Schaefer voted with the 39-12 majority in the Senate. Representative Jeanette Jamieson voted against it, with the final House vote standing at 131-37.

Senator Schaefer said that she voted on the plan knowing that it was imperfect, but stressed that time was of the essence when it came to water management, and that flaws in the document would be worked out over the next three years.

Representative Jamieson, on the other hand, has been speaking out against this plan for months. She says that it places all of the state's water resources under the ultimate authority of the Environmental Protection Division, and that regional water advisory groups would be essentially powerless in terms of an actual decision about re-allocation of water. She says that the basin boundaries contained in the plan are political rather than in keeping with the flow of the actual watersheds. She says that it benefits Atlanta in ways that could ultimately come at the expense of those communities, like Stephens County, who have good water systems and supplies. And, finally, she says she's learned the hard way that promises to iron out flaws in legislation too often aren't kept under the Gold Dome.

Only time will tell what this statewide water plan will ultimately mean for Stephens County. Will the tendrils of Atlanta one day snake through Banks and Habersham and tap into our water supply whether we want that to happen or not? Will the concerns of Stephens County and other communities in similar circumstances be addressed during the revision process? Or will it turn into one of those great money holes of endless study, occasional debate, and plentiful litigation the state is so good at creating? We look forward to seeing where this plan will go over the next three years.

Only time will tell. We'll keep you posted.

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While traveling down Big A Road recently I noticed a message on Stephens Federal Bank’s brightly lit message sign. It was short, maybe not sweet, but reeked of what could be the most fundamentally sound- advisement to our citizens. A message that if not heeded could cost us future growth in new industry and new citizenry. The message…DO NOT THROW TRASH OUT OF THE WINDOW!

We have witnessed lately a general concern and effort by our commissioners to "clean up" our city and county. We have witnessed the use of prison detail plucking trash from our streets and roadways. We have heard that our City Marshall has asked convenience store owners to limit their signage and most have complied. We have had citizens volunteer, plan, and get their hands dirty. All of these efforts are for naught if we don’t get the message…DO NOT THROW TRASH OUT OF THE WINDOW!

We have spoke of this on this forum before and will continue. Will it ever be totally stopped, probably not. But, for you that are listening now-maybe even some that have come from a long line of window tossers-could just stop and think before you lower that window and fling that can, or let that cheeseburger wrapper "accidentally" fly out maybe one day we can all say in unison…DO NOT THROW TRASH OUT OF THE WINDOW!

Now that would be short and sweet.

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While 2008 is looking to be an outstanding year for Toccoa and Stephens County in terms of job growth, we sure were sad to report the departure of Development Authority executive director Mitch Griggs. As much as anyone, he's the reason why the year ahead looks so bright.

Though he was with us two and a half years, it certainly didn't seem like that long. Time flies when things are happening. New life at Hayestone-Brady Industrial Park, new alliances with entities both public and private, more sewer capacity … it's a long list, and one we can build on in 2008 and beyond.

If there is a clone of Mitch Griggs out there, we hope the Development Authority will find them and hire them. Someone who will know how to navigate the industrial recruitment system, both in terms of government agencies and private concerns. Someone who will recognize and appreciate the fact that most job growth comes from existing industries rather than new ones. Someone who will recognize just how well-situated Toccoa and Stephens County are in terms of both resources and geography. Someone, who recognizes the proper relationship between an executive director and his or her governing board. Someone, in short, who's ready to take this community to the next level. Jeanette Jamieson said it best in remarks she made here in Stephens County recently: This is our time. And it will be a great opportunity for someone.

As sad as we are to see Mitch go, we remain optimistic. We have a solid Development Authority board right now, and Bob Defenbaugh is an excellent chairman. We hope they're left alone to find the best candidate possible. Once Mitch's successor gets settled in, we hope the county continues to support the programs Mitch and the board laid the foundation for over the past two years. We've said it before and we'll say it again: Expenditures on industrial development programs are dividend-paying investments, not costs. The county needs to keep that in mind moving forward.

Mitch, we wish you the very best in Union County. You will be remembered well here, and we know you'll do well wherever you go.

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Copies of this editorial are available at the WNEG Studios, 116 N. Alexander St., Toccoa, GA during regular business hours.