Wednesday, May 8, 2002

Wow, everything and anything is being built in our county these days. New businesses are cropping up faster than Braves' losses. So to follow my personal mantra, "Anything worth doing is worth overdoing," I suggest a theme park: a traffic-enticing, acreage-engulfing farm of fun.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

'Zero tolerance' policy is now 'zero intelligence'

At the moment I am, to put it mildly, seething.

Student in machete arrest not exactly chain saw murderer

I do not know this young man or his family, and I do not have children in the school system, although I did several years ago. I do have immediate family in law enforcement, though not in this county.

Arrest of good student makes county, schools look stupid

As a parent residing in Fayette County, I am appalled at the recent arrest and suspension of James Gilman. It certainly appears that the Fayetteville Police Department and school administrators ignored the facts of the investigation that showed that the machete was mistakenly left in the student's vehicle after being used in the course of his part-time landscaping job.

Far from 'pork,' Falcon Field grant came from taxes on aviation consumers

Re Mr. William Fielder's May 1 letter concerning a recent grant received by Peachtree City Falcon Field Airport: Mr. Fielder was concerned that this grant was an inappropriate use of U.S. taxpayer funds.

Don't malign South Fulton

In the May 1 edition of The Citizen, Mr. John Nance of Fayetteville wrote a letter to the editor regarding the recent fatal traffic accident and subsequent arrest of two individuals who were involved.

Infertility treatment has risks

I want to make sure that anyone who participates in [an infertility] program is given all the information concerning this procedure. This includes the lifelong effects your mind and body will experience once you have completed the program.

'Out' brother used same arguments as columnist

I squirmed as I read the words on the page as written by Mr. Thompson. My brother has recently "come out of the closet." Understand that I and he are both "born-again Christians." When he told me of his new lifestyle, I tried to be as receptive and understanding as possible. The funny thing is, he used the exact same arguments that Mr. Thompson used in his article. Trying to be open-minded, I went on a mission to find out for myself wether or not these arguments held any truth to them.

Homosexuals have an equal share in Christ's redemption

I would like to thank Jeff Ellis for his letter to your newspaper. I would also like to assure him there are Christians in Fayette County who know and love gays and lesbians. Christians like myself, m who believe that homosexuals have an equal share in the redemptive work of Jesus Christ.

Read those scriptures again: It's hard to mistake meaning

This is in response to comments made by Judy English and M. D. Phillips, in their recent letters to the editor on this subject, as well as comments made by columnist John Thompson in his article, "Gay rights: The agenda is fairness."

Statistics reveal depth of bias against homosexuals

This is in response to the letter published by Keith Turner on May 1. He gave many statistics on how unhealthy it is to be a homosexual. I would like to present some other scary statistics, which describes the horrible way that the gay community can be treated.

Gay activists, not cultural conservatives, pushing issue

Last week's lead [column] would have been humorous if it hadn't been so sad. Mr. John Thompson seemingly wants us to believe that the Bible has no problem with homosexuality. He found some writer who believes that he has the "secret" meaning to the writings in Genesis 18, Exodus 20, Leviticus 18, Romans 1 and 1 Corinthians 6 and finds that, surprise, the Bible has no problem with homosexuality.

I can't choose to be gay, so how can gays choose not to?

A different perspective on choice:

Why 'pump and pile'? Seek alternate methods

Did you know that 22,000 cubic yards of silt will cover one acre of land to a height of 13 feet? I'm commenting on your May 1 article about Lake Peachtree dredging andthe statement by Jim Mallet,"We need an acre or so to pump this stuff out (silt) and let it dry out ... It's not going to look pretty."

Drama teacher Buckner has made the arts come alive

Where do I begin to tell you about the wonderful drama teacher at McIntosh High School, Steven Buckner? He is the epitome of what a teacher should be. He is a caring, nurturing, dedicated and committed person to the profession he has chosen. He is a rare and most remarkable young educator who loves what he does, does it with all his heart, and cares deeply about the young people who pass through his classes and his drama program.

Please don't honk at bikers

"With all the miles of cart paths here, do you have to ride [your bike] on the road at 5 p.m.?" the middle-aged woman in the white sedan shouted out her window at me. I was too shocked to say anything before she drove away.

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