What our Readers Are Saying

Letters to the Editor

Story misrepresented position on signs

I am writing to inform you that in your article last week concerning Fayette’s sign ordinance giving a “Free Pass” to political signs, the article gives many isolated quotes from my letter to the county manager concerning my legal position on the applicability and enforceability of Fayette’s sign ordinance.

However, the article states that I suggest in that letter that signs should be left in the “right of ways.” This statement misrepresents not only my position, but is absolutely wrong. I have never made such a statement.

I have attached a copy of my letter so that in the interest of accuracy you may review it and perhaps publish it so that the people will know the truth. You should print a correction.

Has any Fayette citizen ever read our sign ordinance? In addition to trying to limit political speech, it also limits expressions of opinion and faith. “God bless America” is just as subject to limitation as a politician’s sign.

Our ordinance also prohibits, among other items, any printing on the sides of garbage cans, (Sec. 1-3, Sec. 1-5(A)(5), any printing on satellite dish antennas, (Sec. 1-5(A)(4), and umbrellas (Sec. 1-5(A)(12).

Some people, including some in elected office, take the position that if the commission passes an ordinance and if it is on the books, then it should be actively enforced and prosecuted. This type of arrogance is born of the belief that our rights exist as a result of the generosity of government.

This philosophy is written in the sign ordinance when it states, “All signs not expressly permitted under this ordinance or exempt from regulation hereunder are prohibited.” (Sec. 1-5)

Nothing could be further from the truth. Our founding fathers gave a strong statement concerning their belief on the nature of our basic rights. The Declaration of Independence states, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness.“

Our rights are endowed by our Creator; that is, by God. Government’s role with respect to these rights is to secure and protect them, not to grant them or take them away. Since God indeed gives us these rights, then no power other than God Himself can infringe upon them or take them away. Our Constitution, which was designed to safeguard our rights from government intrusion, needs to be protected jealously.

My oath of office was to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States and of the state of Georgia. It was taken before God and man. Therefore, regardless of political consequences, I will fulfill my oath to both God and man.

Steve Harris
Solicitor-General
State Court of Fayette County

These 2 politicians should get retired

Election day is very near and we voters need to know everything about the candidates. Let me start with Lynn Westmoreland running for the U.S. Congress.

Several months ago, I wrote Mr. Westmoreland concerning the price gouging of natural gas suppliers. Mr. Westmoreland contacted me, [but] his explanation on this subject made me wonder if he is qualified for public office.

He stated that he realized now that deregulation was a major mistake, but it was too late to correct the problem. I must ask just when did it become too late to correct legislative errors, especially those allowing gas suppliers to freely price gouge the public.

About 25 percent of my gas bills are for actual gas, and 75 percent for extraneous charges such as using the pipe running to my house that has been in use for 30 years.

It is time to put Mr. Westmoreland out to pasture along with others in the state legislature responsible for natural gas deregulation.

I sent another letter to Mac Collins concerning the pollution caused by diesel engines used on large trucks.

He returned a two-page letter stating that Cummins and Mack had developed such an engine, but it would require two years road testing, and “are the new standards being applied with common sense.” He continued with more gobbledygook including a price increase of $9,000 for these engines.

Considering that a tractor costs about $100,000, is the increase too much to pay to help clean the air we breathe?

Mr. Collins introduced, and managed to get passed, legislation delaying the date requiring trucks to comply with clean air standards. This action, on his part, is a conflict of interest.

Mr. Collins claims that he no longer is in the trucking business, but it is my understanding that his two sons operate his former business. Also, according to a newspaper, Mr. Collins receives a payment each year from the business. Can you imagine how much damage Mr. Collins can do as a member of the U.S. Senate?

John Regan
Fayetteville, Ga.

Columnist Hatcher’s views on Southern Baptists miss the mark

Dr. Hatcher may have misled readers with his article “SBC...Taking their marbles and going where?” For instance, he stated that a small group of fundamentalists took over the Southern Baptist Convention 30 years ago by organizing and busing in thousands of messengers to vote for the fundamentalist candidate for president.

He seems to give the impression that fundamentalist churches loaded up their buses, with as many members as possible, and sent them as messengers.

In reality, the most any one church can send is 10. The SBC bylaws state that a church can only send up to 10 messengers: one messenger from each church for every 250 members, or for each $250 given to the work of the convention (10 maximum). This ensures equal access for small and large churches alike.

Southern Baptists are the largest non-Catholic denomination in the United States with over 16 million Southern Baptists in 42,775 churches in all 50 states. There are over 20 SBC churches in Fayette County, and 3500 in Georgia.

If no church could send more than 10 messengers, how could a small group of fundamentalists “take over” the convention?

In the mid-1900s, SBC seminaries began to move to the left, under liberal leadership. The average person in the pew began to see this liberal drift as seminary professors departed from what the Bible actually taught.

In 1979, the Southern Baptist Convention messengers voted for a conservative president to help get the denomination back on course. Since that year, SBC messengers have voted 25 consecutive years for a conservative president. Presidents are voted on annually, and can serve no more than two terms. It seems to me that the majority of Southern Baptists have spoken.

Also, I think it should be understood that SBC churches are autonomous. The denomination has no authority to tell an individual church what to do. Each church is free to determine its own membership, writes its own bylaws, purchases its own property, hires its own pastor, and spends its own money. Unlike other mainline denominations, the SBC has no say-so in these matters.

In very rare instances, the SBC may disfellowship a church, but that church is still free to go on with its business, but not as a member of the larger Baptist body.

Decisions made at the annual convention are not binding on local churches. Resolutions are simply made to express the viewpoint of messengers at that particular convention.

Further, it should be understood that messengers may vote their own conscience, unlike delegates of other denominations that must vote according to the dictates of the sending church.

The SBC is primarily a group of churches that voluntarily pool their funds together for the purpose of sending missionaries in the U.S. and around the world. Presently, there are over 5,000 home missionaries and over 5,000 missionaries in 153 countries around the world.

Additionally, these funds are used to support hospitals, children’s homes, homeless shelters, homes for unwed mothers, disaster relief, water projects in third world countries, feed the hungry, educate the illiterate, house the poor, minister to the sick, etc.

In another statement, Dr. Hatcher referred to “the big shots” of the SBC as though they were the ones making all the decisions. As you learned above, there are no “big shots” in the SBC. No one has the authority to dictate what the denomination does. Policies and programs cannot be established, or changed, without majority consent of Southern Baptists at the annual meeting.

Southern Baptists are far more diverse than Dr. Hatcher would have you believe. This Sunday, Southern Baptist churches in the U.S. will worship in 110 different languages and dialects. Southern Baptists baptize over 1,000 new Christians a day in the U.S. and begin nearly five new churches a day!

Here is a list of Southern Baptist churches in Fayette County: First Baptist Fayetteville, Peachtree City First Baptist, First Baptist Tyrone, Woolsey Baptist, New Hope Baptist North, New Hope Baptist South, Flat Creek Baptist, Braelinn Baptist, Harp’s Crossing Baptist, Lisbon Baptist, McDonough Road Baptist, North Fayette Baptist, Rivers Edge Community Church, Rolling Hills Baptist, Sandy Creek Baptist, Whitewater Baptist, Greentree Baptist, Antioch Baptist, His House Community Baptist, Olivet Baptist Church-Christ, Brooks Baptist, Fairview Baptist, Pine Grove Baptist, Liberty Baptist, National Heights Baptist, Southside Baptist, Korean Mission, Peachtree City Japanese Mission, and Harps Crossing Baptist Chinese Mission.

I hope this helps your readers to have a more fair and balanced view of who Southern Baptists are and how they govern themselves.

Keith Turner
Fayetteville, Ga.
kturner@harpscrossing.com

Hatcher’s way of worship not the only ‘biblical’ way

The Rev. John Hatcher’s assertions about the right way to worship were well-intended, but I believe rather insulting and not as biblically based as he might think.

To recap, the Rev. Hatcher insisted that unless there are ”claps” and “shouts” during a worship service, it is invalid because the Psalms tell us to clap and shout to the Lord.

Granted, the Psalms do say that, but where is written that the Psalms are the definitive standard for determining a worship service? Is the Psalmist saying that we must clap and shout during the Sabbath “gathering”? No.

In fact, if you want biblical guidance on how to worship, I suggest you consult Exodus, Deuteronomy, and Leviticus. In those books Moses was given very specific directions as to how to properly construct and outfit the worship tabernacle. No where in those books are “clapping” and “shouting” required. Instead, fine cloths, metals, and woods are to be used to create a worship space worthy of the various bloody sacrifices to be made in expiation of Israel’s sins.

Since the Rev. Hatcher is so insistent that the Old Testament is a literal authority on these issues, should we start collecting the heifers and sheep for ritual sacrifice this weekend? I think not.

Rather, the Old Testament is to be regarded as a moral and practical guide to living God’s law. We no longer have to adopt specific statutes or provisions, but the spirit and morality behind the various laws and pious practices are valid as ever.

Plus, the Psalmist is not necessarily prescribing how to worship in his Psalms as much as he is simply expressing his joy and love for the Lord.

The Psalmist in fact takes us through a wide, wide range of emotions, from absolute despair to ecstatic joy. In doing so, he uses various metaphors and symbols to express his state of mind. One would be stretching it a bit, I believe, to take some of those expressions as literal prescriptions for how to worship on Sunday.

If one wants to know how to worship, if that is the goal, then I would recommend reading about the Church of the first two to three centuries. For those early Christians, the Sabbath service followed very much the old synagogue pattern of having readings from scripture, followed by reflection, and then in place of the Jewish sin sacrifice came the re-presentation of the sacrifice of the body and blood of Christ, or the “breaking of the bread,” as Paul refers to it.

Again, there is no mention of shouting and clapping, but rather of reverential reception of the Word of God in both audible and physical forms (this was the consistent tradition of all of Christianity until 500 years ago).

So when the Rev. Hatcher dismisses such services as “funereal,” not only is he admonishing the vast majority of Christians worldwide in how they worship, but he is also demeaning the practices of our earliest Christian ancestors.

I’m not saying that clapping, and shouting are out of place when praising and worshipping God, by the way. Rather, I would say that such celebrations can just easily occur outside of the formal worship service on Sunday. Heck, you can even do so while reading this column if you like!

So, let’s get rid of this silly litmus test for true worship and respect each other’s methods of worship instead of dismissing them.

Trey Hoffman
Peachtree City, Ga.

Change commission to end sheriff feud

As a 26-year resident of Fayette County, I find it absurd that the commissioners feel that they can criticize and condemn the men and women of the Sheriff’s Department. Every day these underpaid, working-class citizens go to work to protect us. I have to ask, has Greg Dunn ever thought about attending the Police Academy?

These men and women have chosen to put their lives on the line for each and every one of us for a salary that is not comparable to their duties.

After reading the latest article that discussed the reasoning behind not allotting more positions for the Sheriff’s Department, Dunn referenced the fact that areas are being annexed into the city, therefore the Sheriff’s Department has less to patrol.

I cannot believe that the citizens’ safety is determined by a group of commissioners who obviously have a serious issue with the sheriff himself. As far as areas being annexed into the city, I can think of six new subdivisions being built from Ga. Highway 92 North to Brooks; I can guarantee that these areas will not be annexed into the city.

It is time that the citizens of Fayette County come together and make drastic changes to the Board of Commissioners. I, for one, appreciate the effort that the Fayette County Sheriff’s Department puts into this community.

If you ever lock your keys in the car (let’s face it, we all have or will at some point) at the Pavilion, it will not be the city of Fayetteville police that come and let you back into your car. It will be the tan and brown that comes to your rescue.

It is time that the commissioners grow up and let the Sheriff’s Department function on its own. I believe that Randall Johnson has done a superb job since 1976. How long has Greg Dunn been in office? I am sure it has not been since 1976.

L. Roberson
Fayette County, Ga.

Bicyclists have road rights, paths or not

As an avid bike rider for more than 30 years, I must say that I have never encountered as much animosity from people driving vehicles as I have while cycling throughout Peachtree City. I have competed, toured, and trained throughout Georgia, and it seems that much of the population is not well-versed in the laws as they pertain to cyclists. It is especially evident here in PTC. It seems as if because our community has cart paths, that mentality is such that I, as a cyclist, has no rights on the roadways. Quite the opposite is true. In Georgia, the bicycle is legally a “vehicle” in its own right.

From Georgia code, section 40-6-294:

(a) Every person operating a bicycle upon a roadway shall ride as near to the right side of the roadway as practicable, except when turning left or avoiding hazards to safe cycling, when the lane is too narrow to share safely with a motor vehicle, when traveling at the same speed as traffic, or while exercising due care when passing a standing vehicle or one proceeding in the same direction; provided, however, that every person operating a bicycle away from the right side of the roadway shall exercise reasonable care and shall give due consideration to the other applicable rules of the road.”

(b) Persons riding bicycles upon a roadway shall not ride more than two abreast except on paths or parts of roadways set aside for the exclusive use of bicycles.

(c) Whenever a usable path has been provided adjacent to a roadway and designated for the exclusive use of bicycle riders, then the appropriate governing authority may require that bicycle riders use such path and not use those sections of the roadway so specified by such local governing authority. (Since PTC paths are not “exclusively” used by cyclists, but have numerous joggers, walkers, golf carts, children, dogs, etc., this deems them practically unsafe for the cyclists using the roadways who are usually riding racing bikes traveling at training speed of 16-21 mph. As stated, they are not required to ride on the paths, nor, I believe would the recreational jogger or dog walker appreciate that type of cyclist approaching them on the path.)

(d) ... such paths shall provide accessibility to destinations equivalent to the use of the roadway. (The majority of the paths do not run the full length of a roadway providing access to enter and exit the road.)

This great community of ours supports many recreational and athletic pursuits. Peachtree City and Fayette County is in fact unique in that we have such a multitude of cyclists, runners, and gifted athletes. I hope that this information herein enlightens the general public of the rights of cyclists not only in our area but throughout the state of Georgia. I hope that this will generate respect for another’s endeavors and pursuits, and end the harassment that I as an individual have experienced.

Amy Stitt
Peachtree City, Ga.

Friday paper all wet; same themes dominate

The unexpected torrential downpours last Friday ruined a great many people’s copies of The Peachtree Citizen. As a public service for those whose paper was ruined, I’d like to provide brief synopses of the myriad editorials contained in that soggy edition.

Walter E. Williams: America needs fewer social and economic safety nets if we are ever going to catch up with Africa.

Mark Shields: A lot of people in America are coming around to the idea that George W. Bush cannot tell the truth.

William Murchison: It would be intellectually dishonest to compare the hand-picked members of the new Iraqi government to America’s Founding Fathers. But I am going to do so anyway.

Linda Chavez: The Supreme Court still won’t outlaw pornography. Can’t they just repeal this quaint and outmoded First Amendment thing?

Bill O’Reilly: Michael Moore is an obnoxious pedantic overbearing no-class rabble rouser who has an odd idea of what constitutes the truth. In other words, he’s a left-wing version of me.

Matt Towery: I searched long and hard and finally found a poll that did not have Bush losing to Kerry, from some third rate organization no one has ever heard of. Bush supporters are going to have to get more obnoxious or Bush may not win in November.

Cal Thomas: Dick Cheney said a bad word. He’s a Republican, though, so he should be forgiven. Distraction shields to full power! Bill Clinton! Al Gore! Adolf Hitler!

Thomas Sowell: Hey, it’s a holiday weekend and I’m too lazy to write a coherent column. I’ll just take 12 random paragraphs of unrelated vitriol, title it “Random Thoughts” and pass it off as journalism.

Michelle Malkin: Urban middle school students are reading contemporary black poetry instead of Shakespeare. Gosh, I loathe minorities, even though technically I am one myself.

Marvin Olasky: Thomas Jefferson was a master of finding the common ground between politics and religion. Moderate Republicans and conservative Christians must similarly find a common ground if they are to annihilate the godless liberals in our lifetime.

Robert Novak: A moderate Republican is single-handedly preventing the Christian Coalition from transforming America from a democracy to a Christian-based theocracy. Shame on him!

Larry Elder: One of my colleagues wrote a book saying there are WMDs in Iraq. This proves that there are WMDs in Iraq, because my colleague said so. Pay no attention to that government commission’s finding, because my colleague wrote a book saying that there were, in fact, WMDs in Iraq.

And finally, Father David Epps: I love America. I hate terrorists. Did I tell you I used to be a Marine? I tell everyone that I used to be a Marine every other week, and dagnabit, I can’t recall if I reminded you folks last week or not.

Robert Jensen
Peachtree City, Ga.

Filmmaker Moore could teach Soviets a lesson

I am disgusted at the obvious anti-Bush mentality of the partisan media. The old Soviet Union had TASS, a state-run propaganda news agency that only printed what the government allowed it to. The partisan media that is prevalent in America prints only what their beloved Democrats want printed. The New York Times slants every story to benefit John Kerry and hurt President Bush. So does CBS’ 60 Minutes, CNN and most other major news outlets. What a dastardly dereliction of duty by these so-called objective independents.

Now here comes the propagandist tub of lard, Michael Moore, and his obscene falsehood-filled diatribe, “Fahrenheit 911.” The partisan media has come out raving about the popularity of the film.

Its $21 million opening weekend puts in precisely in 222nd place of all films in their opening weekend. Wow! It ranks just ahead of the “Laura Croft, Tomb Raider” sequel.

Ken Burns is a documentarian; Michael Moore is likely the most despicable human alive on the planet today. He is no documentarian. He is a propagandist much in the same vein as Joseph Goebbels, who did the same task for Adolf Hitler.

Moore did a documentary about the evils of capitalism called, “Roger and Me.” It really took a shot at those who make money.

Moore had imbedded reporters that had film of an Iraqi civilian being abused by American soldiers back in December. Being the great humanitarian that he is, he told no one about the abuse. He didn’t care about the Iraqi people. He didn’t care about stopping the abuse. He told no one in order to make more money off his film.

What a hypocrite. He fits right in with the Democrats. Whatever is good for America is bad for them.

NewMax is reporting that Moore is registered to vote in Michigan and New York. That is probably normal for a Democrat and especially for one as big as Moore is. The relationship between Moore and Goebbels reminds me of a brand of dog food Kibble and Bits and More. In their case and due to his size, it should be Goebbels and Moore and Moore and Moore.

Kevin D. Arnold
Fayetteville, Ga.

Harris victim of politics in county sign controversy

I appreciate [Fayette State Court Solicitor-General Steve] Harris’ integrity as always. I am proud to have my political sign in my yard and am willing to risk citation to support Mr. Harris and his position.

I hope your readers see the politics of this story and the others like it, and how Mr. Harris doesn’t falter when his course is being clouded by pettiness.

Rhonda Rabbitt
rhonda@MDPublishing.com