Hey, look, if the City Council puts the Kohl’s big box on Ga. Highway 54, we’ll eventually end up with big boxes on every busy corner. How are they going to stop them when they say the big box ordinance isn’t relevant? The Goodwill Thrift Store situation was a serious warning we shouldn’t ignore.

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Those of you fighting the development of big boxes in Peachtree City might as well forget it. Possibly, you might get somewhere with “where” they are built, but never “if.” Every big box built brings in tax dollars every year to support the same town officials voting on whether to have these stores or not. Since we don’t like to have our home taxes increased, then they will get the tax money from big boxes. There is no way that these officials will even consider, ever, cutting back overhead and head count to live within their means. They always say it can’t be done. It can be, and has been done. However, if you worked at City Hall, would you vote to cut jobs and expenses there? Of course not.

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I am extremely disturbed at the current pitch for a Kohl’s on Hwy. 54. Am I the only one here who thinks this is the worst idea ever? I don’t understand how the Planterra subdivision can actually agree with this. So you want more traffic through your neighborhood? So you want to wait at a light for five hours before finally getting out only to be stopped again at another red light? I don’t understand. Not to mention the Line Creek nature preserve is going to be disturbed even more. Just what we need. For a city that wants to keep its picture-perfect identity, this whole pitch would seem like it would be hugely opposed. Only to my surprise and dismay, it’s not. On top of that, who thought that we would even NEED a Kohl’s? Do we not have one at least 10 miles either way? You don’t like the Newnan one? Well, go to the Fayetteville one. Oh, you don’t like either of those? Well, then suck it up and go somewhere else. Just because it’s in Peachtree City doesn’t change what it is. Also, I’m so glad we’ve now got a PetSmart, too. Gosh, PetCo just a few miles down the road in Kedron was too far away. Get with it and make good decisions, Peachtree City. I had more faith in you than this. This coming from a 21-year-old who actually enjoys the quietness and uniqueness of the city I grew up in and plan to live in.

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If I wanted to live next to a Kohl’s store, I would have moved to Coweta County. Harold Logsdon and his must-have TDK, annexation and big box stores are the biggest blots on Peachtree City. It’s like he enjoys the city being in a blasted free-fall. While we’re getting more like Coweta, the developer’s lapdog just sits there panting away while things get worse.

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I can not see why the mayor and the City Council were given any credit or praise regarding the actions of Kroger in regards to Goodwill. After all, the mayor claimed to have no prior knowledge of the intentions of Kroger subletting their space to Goodwill. But isn’t it so that if anyone desires to do business in this city that they need to apply for and receive a business license? Tell me how didn’t the mayor know. The praise for blocking the Goodwill fiasco for now goes to the citizens who exercised their rights as to what this city is to be made up of, not what the mayor and his crew decide it should be. Next order of business for the PTC citizens is the impending Kohl’s fiasco. Why should we as citizens turn over any property that “WE” taxpayers own so that a developer has enough land so he can go forward with his proposed project because he doesn’t have enough property to make it work? Let’s go, citizens. After this challenge is met, there will be others, and I am sure that we are all up to the task.

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I went into a Fresh Market in Atlanta recently and what a lovely experience. Fresh produce, wonderful deli and old-style butcher shop, friendly people and high-quality products. It had a neighborhood grocer feeling and a pleasant atmosphere similar to European markets. I thought a Fresh Market is needed in Peachtree City. I called the corporate headquarters and spoke with a gentleman in charge of new stores and expressed my opinion about the Fresh Market in Peachtree City. He said funny I called because he and some Fresh Market executives were coming to PTC the following week to check out locations and the main location he had in mind was around the small Kroger store on Hwy. 54. Then news broke that Kroger had leased its space to Goodwill. Not anymore. Maybe a Fresh Market. Who knows? It would be great. Peachtree City needs a unique specialty grocery. Go, Fresh Market!

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Although Kroger caved in and Goodwill will not be coming to Peachtree Crossings East, it’s obvious that they did so only after a threatened boycott that would affect the economic bottom line, not because they are interested in being a good neighbor in Peachtree City. As a result, I’ve already cut up my Kroger Plus card and will be driving past two Krogers on my way to shop at Publix.

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Well, thank goodness the “holier than thou” crowd in Peachtree City managed to keep out the Goodwill. I mean what would happen if just ANYONE was allowed to work and shop here? The fair citizens of PTC may turn to salt if they get within 15 feet of anyone who has a few less dollars than they do. “Do unto others” and “what goes around, comes around, ”probably in the form of higher crime and big box stores. Both of which are already here and growing by the day. So, PTC citizens, enjoy and sleep soundly knowing you kept out the awful Goodwill store.

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I am disgusted by my neighbors in Peachtree City. Why so much backlash against Goodwill? Do you have no concern for other people who could benefit from this type of facility? What about our fixed income population who could greatly benefit from Goodwill? And do you have no concern for your own planet? You know, reduce, reuse and recycle? Or is that something your ministers haven’t discussed at church on Sunday morning? I do wonder if most of you are Christians. My hope is that you are not because otherwise you are setting an extremely poor example. A real Christian would welcome the opportunity to help others, to be generous to those people in need, not scoff because said people are less fortunate or worse, refer to them as “riffraff.” And then to complain that Newnan gets a Dillard’s and Peachtree City gets a Goodwill? Please enlighten me; how do you reconcile that type behavior in your Christian hearts and minds? Do you think Jesus would actively campaign to remove the “riffraff” from His village?

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I’m writing in Steve Brown’s name in every election slot in Peachtree City. He’s got a brain and he’s not afraid to use it. The Kohl’s is the TDK thing all over again. We need to stop letting the developer bullies kick us around.

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Candidate Don Haddix has my family’s full support in his City Council race. At least he has the backbone to stand up to the Kohl’s developer. The mayor’s new councilman, Mike Harman, is spending most of his time trying to sell our sewer away. We need to kick him out of office in November. We don’t need some Osama Bin Laden developer guy forcing big stores on us. The Peachtree City officials seem content trying to screw our city up. Thank God the people of Peachtree City started calling into Kroger by the hundreds or Mayor Logsdon would have been doing a ribbon cutting for the Goodwill store.

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Wieland wants to urbanize Centennial. Have you seen how urban Southampton is? Yikes! No, thanks, Wieland. Keep your urban plans for your own neighborhood.

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I love living in Peachtree City. Though I am teased unmercifully by my Fayetteville friends about riding around in one of those golf carts. These and the paths made for them make this a place like no other. Our own little utopia in the chaotic metro region. The amenities are great, [but] the people you meet? These people are so afraid of all that is going to invade their paradise. The stores that can add diversity and more convenience are opposed so vehemently by the hypocritical well-to-do of this city because it is going to bring in the “undesirables” into this “perfect” city. These are the same people who own all of the low-end housing and rent it out to druggies who neglect their children or immigrants that somehow squeeze a dozen people into a three-bedroom house. If you are going to fight the “undesirables,” start with your own real estate portfolio. Start checking up on your rental properties and see what you have really rented out to. I have worked too hard to be able to afford my American dream of owning a house in a nice city only to have the house next door “go rental” and the upkeep on that house go to pot.

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Planning workshop at Braelinn Village: If you were there last week, you saw first-hand how the city plans to do business in the future. First, look out, Braelinn Village homeowners, who enjoy not having any restrictive covenants in their subdivisions. I am sure Rast and Co. have lots of ideas up their collective sleeves for us. The key word Rast used is “control,” a word not to be taken lightly. As a resident of Braelinn Village, I have spent a lot of time looking for that “pink” house. Up to now the residents of this village seem to be doing a good job of controlling what goes on in their own neighborhoods without someone forcing their will upon us. Also what I got from the workshop was that once these meetings are over, the Planning Commission and the City Council will review and adopt what they see the city needs. Truth is, these plans are already drawn up and etched in stone, and the village meetings are just some more smoke and mirrors to make you feel like you are involved. Case in point: What’s going on with Huddleston Pond or where will be the next proposed site for Goodwill. We have to stay on top of everything that goes on around this town. Finally, make sure you all get out and vote for someone who will hear your concerns.

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I’m new to PTC. My family and I moved here just over a year ago. I researched the city for six months before we decided to relocate here. I was overjoyed for the first two months. Then Harmony Village and Wynnmeade became a reality. What in the world is the management and/or Realtors thinking when they allow just about anything or -body to move in? Don’t get me wrong; good hard-working people live there, too, but they know I’m not talking about them, and I’m sure they are just as shocked as I am at the crime and run-down look. The only thing I can think of is [that] the management and/or Realtors must not live in PTC. PTC is a wonderful, family-oriented town. But it is going downhill fast with crime and just plain ol’ people who don’t care about the integrity of the city, themselves, education or anything. I moved here for a better life for myself and my children. Like it or not, homeowners’ tax money is what really keeps the city and schools going. If you’re going to live in PTC, take care of it or move.

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To the girl driving her rude mother around on their six-seater golf cart Tuesday night on Hippocket and Pebblestump Point, here is a little golf cart etiquette: Move over! Just because there is a little dip on the side of the cart path doesn’t mean you don’t move over. Thanks for hitting the side of my golf cart. Next time, if you have something to say, stop, turn around and talk. Don’t just yell and drive off. Looks like you were in a bit of a hurry, huh?

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Who else is annoyed and inconvenienced by the extreme measures they are taking at the back end of Martial Arts America? We loved to golf cart there or walk there. First, there was a fence of some sort, where you could barely walk on each side to get to Martial Arts. Then that wasn’t good enough. Now there is a huge mound of dirt with hay on top. What is next? A concrete wall? Why is it better that we get into our car (wasting gas and polluting Peachtree City, too) just to drive a few minutes? Why won’t you let us just golf cart there?

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We have several good candidates representing the city of Tyrone for both council and mayoral slots. I have since been jaded after the recent letter rubber-banded to my mailbox advertising Don Rehwaldt for mayor. If you advertise yourself as part of the Tyrone Neighborhood Alliance, I let you go faster than a bad habit. This lets me know that you care only about revenge, not what is best for Tyrone. If you think that advertising you affiliation with the Police Department will enhance your appeal, so sorry. This too changes my perspective. Kudos to Eric Dial showing up to both the Tyrone Founder’s Day race and the Tyrone Founders Day Fair. This is true commitment. You have my vote. Not to mention, you are a true believer, unlike Mr. Rehwaldt. Thanks for showing your genuine support for the town I live in.

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Seen in Fayetteville: Man driving $50,000 Hummer dropping off his baby’s momma at the Fayette County Health Clinic.

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To the assistant superintendent and the Elementary School Redistricting Committee: Two vacant tracts of land have recently (or are about to be) rezoned for higher density residential use. The tract across from Fayette Middle School and the tract between Quail Hollow and Lakemont could add 150-plus homes to Spring Hill Elementary. Please take this into account or Spring Hill could see some serious overcrowding. And then the lines would have to be redrawn again.

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Four kids. Paid $200 to play [recreation league] football. Come to practice everyday. What is winning if you aren’t really included? Is this the NFL, NCAA, high school, middle school football? Now, not as motivated to come to practice because they just stand. A lot of standing at the game too. Why are the same players out on the field the whole time? Throw them in the game for two to four plays (30 seconds of playing time). They mess up, pull them out. They should have practiced harder. Could of, but they were standing to the side while the team was practicing. Scrimmaged a team, 30-40 plays. They played in a combined number of four. Two of them played zero plays. Isn’t this a time for everyone to practice? Was this a team practice? Not one coach (of five present) talked to these two kids during that hour. You are only as good as your worst player. Who probably needs to practice the most. I believe each kid should receive equal amount of coaching and practice time. Why is there a prejudice towards other players? The best player cannot get as good as the team. The team makes the good player better. What else is there to say? What if this was your kid?

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Attention, middle school football parents who think that just because their son decided he wanted to play football means that he is physically and mentally ready. It would be a big mistake for the coach to put a boy on the field to play against stronger, more experienced players who at this level can be overwhelming and dangerous physically. This game is violent and that is the nature of the sport. I’m sure you do not want your child put in harm’s way just to soothe your or his ego. Some of these boys have been playing for some time now and will not care on the field if your son is not prepared when play begins. These coaches play the boys that are ready and can contribute to winning and at this level that is what is expected of them. Now, you can believe this or not, but if your son will put in the effort and weight training (which most if not all are participating in) and you can be a little patient, I’m sure your son will be given every chance to participate. But just because he wants to play football does not mean he is physically able to. The first thing he needs to learn is he needs to fight his own battles and Mommy and Daddy need to let him stand on his own two feet and quit teaching him to blame others for his opportunities, whether it be football or any other interest he might have. Let me tell you that just being a part of a football team is rewarding and a great benefit for him. That’s why they stay on the team regardless of playing time. Get your egos out of the way, and if he is not enjoying being part of this group, then he will quit. Now that would be a shame.

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To all you parents upset over the unfair practices of school coaches, I’m here to join your club. How about watching your kid sit on the bench all year while (1) one of her teammates is not a Fayette County resident and the coach knows it; (2) the coach informs your kid they’re going in and then changes the lineup because a player starts crying that she wants to play. How about watching your kid ride the bench just to hear the coach say, “She’s got a killer serve, I wish I could figure out how to work her in.” Well, here’s a novel idea: Let her serve now and then (surely she couldn’t be as bad as all the missed serves your stars serve up). Play her in the position you trained her for once in a while. And when other players are injured, crying, or just plain blowing it, give someone else a chance. That’s not quite rocket science, now is it? Oh, I guess we’ll chalk it up to the animosity between the JV coach and the other two coaches, since the team was informed that the other coaches keep her (the coach) out of the loop and she felt uninformed and left out. Way to go on that whole “our team is a family” theme that was preached at the parent meeting. I did just as I was asked at that meeting: Leave the coaching to the coaches and watched my kid sit out while whining and non-residents dictated play, instead of sound coaching. Yes, I was completely sold on the whole “you’re part of a team and what’s best for the team dictates who plays,” and “playing is a privilege, not a right, blah, blah, blah,” but the coach didn’t hold to her end of that bargain at all. We were severely lectured about the lessons we could teach our kids through a GOOD sports program. Now let me see, I guess those lessons were: Whining and crying are the best tools to get you what you want, keep quiet when people are doing illegal things as long as it benefits you, and when players’ personal feelings dictates who plays, it’s easy to tell whose feelings count and whose don’t. Come on, coach, how are we supposed to feel like our team is a family when animosity is being fostered by the magnate?

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To the individual who suggests our board of education have parents on the committee to set guidelines for learning strategies and materials in Fayette County: Interesting concept — it does! Only to a certain extent, however. Your board of education is the overseer which governs individuals who govern individuals, etc. In other words, the board does NOT micromanage, as the letter writer seems to think they should. As for parents to set these guidelines, the letter writer would do well to conduct a review of literature in “learning strategies and materials” as the evidently unfit teachers of this system have done and continue to do in order to implement best practices in education for the children (not necessarily the parents; sorry, they’re here to teach your children, not you). Most revealing was the statement: “One more way to put the burden of learning on the children.” I hope you’re either embarrassed or have since realized what you suggested (that the burden of learning should NOT be on the children!). Learning occurs in the brain of the learner; that individual is responsible for her own learning. That’s just a basic, but one that many students and parents have evidently discarded as irrelevant. Teachers in my school provide study guides, relevant homework, web- and school-based homework assistance, multiple representations of math concepts, etc., but frequently hear, on test day, “I had football practice/church/another test; I couldn’t study,” “I forgot we had a test,” “My dad didn’t know how to do this.” Fayette County schools are putting the burden of learning on the children? Tsk, tsk! I wish you luck in your search for a school system that will do all the learning for your child.

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I have two children, each in the regular eighth and ninth grade math curricula. I extend my support to the new GPS curriculum adopted by the state of Georgia and the teachers of Fayette County. The teachers’ and students’ hard work over the past two years speaks volumes to my wife and myself when our eighth grader can teach our ninth grader how to graph slope-intercept equations, explain the meaning of each variable, and interpret information using multiple representations. Why didn’t Georgia do this years ago? I feel as if my high-schooler has been slighted by not experiencing this new way of learning. If math had been taught to me “the new way” when I was in middle and high school, maybe I would have understood and remembered more and be able to help my children now. Unfortunately I was taught only enough to pass the tests, and then I forgot it. As a parent, I trust these trained math teachers, math coordinators, and county superintendent that they are educated and knowledgeable to educate our children in the best way possible. After all, I don’t have advanced education degrees like they do. I certainly don’t have the experience to tell them how to best do their job. However, I have read the research about the new curriculum and textbooks and I see the same positive results in my own eighth grader as reported in the research. For those of you who have negative comments about your children’s education in mathematics, I encourage you to do your own research and actually witness the actual ”teaching” that is occurring in the classrooms. Or you can obtain your own graduate degrees that entitle you to be experts in teaching mathematics to middle grade students.

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For all Fayette County parents that thought they had seen enough for math with their children, check out the new requirements for graduation. You can thank Kathy Cox and her administration for this one. Now our children must have four years of math to graduate in Georgia schools. Check it out on the Georgia Department of Education’s website.

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Even if you have a real emergency, the local emergency rooms may or may not treat it as such depending on their judgment, which has proven to me not so reliable. I am highly allergic to bee venom and have come close to dying from bee stings previously. I was hit by a wasp as I walked across the parking lot at Braelinn Shopping Center last summer. I drove directly to the emergency room at Fayette County Hospital and told the ER nurse that I had been stung by a wasp and my medical history on the subject. Five hours later as I sat in the waiting room with my arm three times its normal size and looking like a clear plastic balloon and having difficulty breathing they took me in. After another hour in a patient waiting room a doctor came in and took one look. “Oh, you are having an allergic reaction.” Duh. She gave me a prescription and walked out. The two-minute doctor visit and the six-hour wait for treatment was billed at just over $600. I have the best medical insurance money can buy, much money in fact. We would be just as well off without an emergency room as far as I am concerned.

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Last week was a rare ray of sunshine in an otherwise dismal year for extremist Republicans. First, Alan Keyes announced his third bid for the presidency. His message that “No problem is so great that it cannot be blamed on gay marriage” will resonate especially well with the hardcore lunatic fringe of Fayette County. Secondly, Democratic front-runner Hillary Clinton finally unveiled her proposed health care plan. The cries of impending socialist doom from the misogynistic Republican nay-sayers were both loud and long. Ironically, many of the critics of so-called “socialist” government-provided medical care in Fayette County are retired military folks with access to veterans hospitals. “Fine for me but not for thee” should be the official motto of Fayette Republicans.

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As a parent of a cheerleader at a local middle school, I was appalled to hear that after a football game during the week a waitress from a local restaurant emailed the principal at our school to complain about the behavior of our children during our restaurant eating experience. We have always gone [there] after our games, along with several other schools, and all the kids have been known to be very loud, sometimes rowdy, and I think it’s pretty normal to have a group of 40 or 50 people coming from a winning game to be that way. To get a letter stating how unruly we were and basically saying, “Get out of here,” was sad. We have since moved our group to [another restaurant] and have asked some others to do the same so this little waitress will no longer be bothered by our loud children. I have been in there on several other occasions with other kids/teams and they are louder, cheering out loud and more. Most every single waiter and waitress are more than patient with us as well as laugh along with us, but evidently this one moody one is ruining the experience for the local schools. I say get rid of her instead of losing all your local school business. No one ever has done this before and a little fun after a game should be worth the business we bring in that restaurant.

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Boy, oh, boy! Look at Commissioner Pfeifer squirming like a worm on a hot frying pan. First, he took off his conservative clothing and voted for his tax increase. Then he goes and votes to cover up an open record violation which he has to confess to because it was caught on video tape and broadcast on www.YouTube.com. The score is Internet 1 and Pfeifer 0. Hey, too bad, no one thought of taping Mayor Logsdon telling his lies and posting them. Politics has hit rock bottom in Fayette County.

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To those of you turning left from the right turn lane onto Peachtree Parkway from Hwy. 74 North, those little white stripes indicate where your lane is, believe it or not. When you put all four of your tires in the left turn lane, don’t be surprised if I sit on my horn and give you half of the peace sign.

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I am a veteran of both the Korean and Vietnam conflicts. I had an especially difficult job in the military and I came out of the service with a severe emotional problem which I have lived with and carried on a normal life without complaining. I am treated for this problem at the veterans hospital. One of the effects of this disability is extreme anxiety at times. When this occurs I can still function under normal circumstances but with great difficulty. However my blood pressure goes very high and my face becomes flushed and my eyes become bloodshot. I cannot drink alcohol because of the medication I take. Not long ago while in this state of anxiety I saw a city police officer on the parking lot and I struck up a conversation with him. I like to talk to police officers as I had a career in law enforcement after the military and this would be a good opportunity to easy my anxiety. The officer was very cordial and we were getting along just fine when a second officer came on the scene. Probably because of my flushed appearance, and very poor judgment on his part, he accused me of being intoxicated. When I protested that I did not even drink, he called me a liar and said I was in no shape to drive. He then ordered me to take an alcohol breath test. I had no problem with that other than it was uncalled for. I blew into the test apparatus over and over with negative results. He kept telling me that because I was a former law enforcement officer I knew some trick and was fooling the breath tester and that I was lying about drinking. The fact is I was a federal law enforcement officer specializing in fraud and white collar crimes and had never used a breath tester in my life. Finally after getting negative results over and over, he conceded but did not let me go until he called me a liar one final time. I have never been so humiliated and enraged in my life. This kind of arrogant idiot could cost a man his life. I was on the verge of losing control and the consequences could have been tragic. This type of poorly trained people in law enforcement wearing uniforms and carrying badges and guns nowadays are a menace to society.