As I was deciding what to write this week, fellow Republican legislator Jeff Brown (R-LaGrange) shared some of his thoughts with me, and when I saw what he had written, I decided to reprint his words. These are some strong insights of which I completely and wholeheartedly agree.

"The great success of the Atlanta Falcons' season was tarnished by the sexual pursuits of Eugene Robinson and possibly other players. Mike Bowers would probably be governor had it not been for his adultery. President Clinton has disgraced the presidency with his sexual exploits. Meanwhile, we see rampant teenage sexual activity that creates unwanted children and often leads to governmental support for both the child and the mother. Adultery is the number one cause of divorce which many times leads to permanently scarred children, deadbeat parents, welfare, etc., all of which generally involve government.

"What can government do? For starters, elected officials should be role models. Second, we should not create laws that result in unwanted behavior, such as the penalty on marital deductions on income tax, burdensome taxes that force a parent into the workplace versus staying at home, etc.

"For example, a recent study showed that 10 percent of teens were sexually active when a mother stayed at home full time, whereas 14 percent were sexually active when the mother worked full-time. Another disturbing inconsistency involves the current law that requires teachers and counselors to report any signs of physical abuse in children to the authorities, yet the discovery that children under 16 years of age are engaged in sexual activity, which is statutory rape in some cases, does not have to be reported to anyone.

"Third, should we fund programs that involve activities that studies show to be counter to desired results, such as clinics that dispense contraceptives and sexual information to teenagers without parental involvement, let alone consent? One such study showed that when no birth control information was distributed, 10.8 percent of teenagers were sexually active, versus 23.1 percent who were active when birth control information was readily available."

The power of money is a second theme that became evident at the Capitol this week. One columnist claimed that Gov. Roy Barnes increased the budget request for nursing homes by $26 million two days after he took office, in repayment for $242,000 in campaign contributions from the nursing home industry. The budget request amount was four times more than what the Ga. Department of Human Resources requested. In the Senate, there seems to be a fairly blatant assignment of committee chairmanships by Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor based on monies raised by the appointees.

Just this past week, the senate's passage of a bill granting optometrists more prescriptive rights could well have been influenced by disproportionate contributions to Democrats by optometrists. My Health and Ecology subcommittee of professions will most likely be hearing this bill within the week. I hope we will determine the bill on its merits, but I suspect that the same contribution influence may be present there as well.

Speaking of money, residents in 25 metro counties, including Coweta (and Fayette), will be required to purchase only gasoline that has 50 percent less sulfur from June 1, 1999 to Sept. 15, 1999, in an effort to reduce pollution. This requirement will cost some consumers as much as six cents more per gallon.

I suspect that in the not too distant future, Troup County will be included, and that the 3.5 months requirement each year will be expanded. We've heard a lot about water pollution, and now we'll be hearing a lot about air pollution. These concerns plus traffic congestion are the penalties of uncontrolled growth.

On a final note, don't forget that under new state law, you must purchase your automobile tags before your birthday.