I work at a busy restaurant on the corner of Ga. highways 54 and 74. The city sent our manager a letter saying residents had complained that the lights in our parking lot were too bright, especially by the dumpsters in the back and by the back door. NO DUH! They are called “security lights” for a reason. These are the two most vulnerable parts of our parking lot. The lights were dimmed on a Monday afternoon, per city orders. That Thursday night, a server that I work with had her passenger-side window in her car shattered and her purse was stolen. She is a single mother of three very young children, and her insurance did not cover the expense of having the window fixed. The police officer who found her purse in another parking lot said that four other vehicles had been broken into within the past hour. So my question is why are citizens complaining about our lights, which are nowhere even near a residential area but were bright to ensure the safety of not only our customers, but employees as well? Now I have to leave after midnight with a pocket full of cash into a now dimly lit area, because of petty gripes from people who obviously have more spare time than good sense. I think the city should reimburse this young mother for not only her purse contents and window, but come back out and turn the lights back up. I know that some residents live in a bubble in PTC, but the reality of 2008 is that crime is everywhere, and we need to be as proactive as we can.

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Do I understand this correctly? Our state and local government says, “Filling of installed pools is permitted,” but hand-washing a car is not permitted. It takes approximately 25,000 gallons to fill a backyard pool. That’s okay. It takes about 25 gallons to wash a car. That’s not okay. A car would have to be washed 1,000 times to use the same amount of water required to fill a swimming pool. In order to wash a car 1,000 times in a year, you’d have to wash that car three times a day, but you’re not allowed to wash it once a year. This is a ridiculously discriminatory policy. Now get this. We are allowed to water plants for 25 minutes. The policy says, “The hose must be hand-held during watering and equipped with a standard spray nozzle that automatically turns off when not hand-held.” Let me see if I’ve got this right: As of July 1 I can carry a loaded gun into a public place, but I can’t carry a water hose in my own yard, unless it is equipped with an automatic shut-off device. I apparently own a non-standard spray nozzle. It is not automatic. It is the twist-to-close type. I bought it, legally, over the counter right here in Fayetteville. It takes about two seconds of twisting to stop the flow. Now my spray nozzle is illegal. I’m a criminal if I use it. Talk about stupid people making stupid policies. What’s next? Is the watering Gestapo going to require us to register our spray nozzles? People, we are electing absolute morons to run all levels of our government. Shame on you, shame on me.

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Pet owners need to take more responsibility for the safety of their pets. After all, there is a leash law for dogs and cats and had the owners taken better care of their animals, they might be alive today.

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Dogs and cats lying in the road, swimming pools and being shot by someone. Who is at fault here? Surely not the irresponsible pet owners who let their animals roam freely through the neighborhood tearing up plants and leaving their souvenirs in their neighbor’s yard.

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Regarding the cat that was shot with an arrow (letters to the editor 5/14/08 edition): Don’t forget most serial killers start out in adolescence torturing or killing animals before they grow up and move on to humans. Assuming this is a young kid, the cops should get involved, but more importantly, psychiatric treatment is in order. Anyone older than 15, lock them up.

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I would like to thank the city of Peachtree City for giving my children an opportunity to see science at work. I have had occasion to drive my kids south on Hwy. 74 for the past three weeks, and each and every day we pass a dead deer on the side of the road just north of the Baseball and Soccer Complex. I made the mistake of pointing it out on the first day, so now they are enthralled each time we pass to see how much more decay has taken place. It’s like a “body farm.” OK, I’ll admit it, my daughter is a little freaked out, but pish-posh, just think of the education she’s getting. I know, I know, I should have called the city to remove it, but honestly, I was curious to see how long a dead animal (especially a big ol’ deer) would sit on the side of the most heavily traveled road in town before the city would take it upon themselves to clean it up. Apparently it’s three weeks ... and counting.

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It takes 21 pages of paperwork, two to three weeks, and approval from Environmental Health, Planning and Zoning, and the Building Department in order to get a permit to build an addition in Fayette County. And beginning July 1, the builder must have a state license to acquire the permit. For those who didn’t bother to get “grandfathered in” for a license, (the paperwork and experience requirements were overwhelming for many), the process to get a license will be lengthy. Now, given all the above, do you really think my competition will bother getting permits? Buyer beware!

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George Wingo’s antics are just the tip of the iceberg. Never give the person who handles the money too much unsupervised power. Their greed and political maneuvering have already landed us in the mortgage crisis.

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The cost of day to day living is rising as a result of out of control fuel prices. As we choose carefully on what we spend our hard-earned dollars, the operating expenses of government is being directly affected. We can expect in the near future that those governments will be attempting to make up their lost revenues by reaching into our pockets. I have taken a look at the discretionary spending of our local governments so that the public will be aware of the spending for “general government” per year per person. These figures do not include the basic premise of government, which is to provide for basic services such as water, public works, public safety or judicial services. These dollars are for the “all other” and based upon their approved 2008 budget (if published, most recent if not published), Fayette County with a population of approximately 100,000 spends $9,844,422 on general government ($92.28 per year per person), Fayetteville with a population of approximately 15,000 spends $1,800,754 on general government ($120 per person per year) and Peachtree City with a population of approximately 34,500 spends $2,666,123 on general government ($77 per person per year). Perhaps government should look at operating more efficiently.

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I am writing in response to the writer who has obviously never been to a lacrosse game to write such an ignorant blanket statement. I am so glad we have moved away from PTC and stupid people like you. By the way, my son plays both football and lacrosse. I suggest you go to a boys lacrosse game and rethink your comment.

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You must not know what your yapping about. [I’m a] mom of a daughter who played three years on the outstanding McIntosh lacrosse team, who have been at the top of their game since the program first started. For the player this physical sport calls for great strength, endurance, and skill and like football you can’t compare the two. Go watch McIntosh boys play a game and tell me they’re frail, or maybe try your hand at the sport and see for yourself. The ball IS smaller but it as hard as a rock, and the guys or girls running at you have a BIG stick. Enjoy.

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I played football, baseball and basketball in school (lacrosse or soccer was not available), but I would have probably have played them too. One of the greatest lacrosse players of all time and is in the Lacrosse Hall of Fame is the great football player Jim Brown. He said lacrosse was his favorite sport. To say this is a sport for girls or boys too frail to play football is someone who has never played the sport. My son played soccer, and anyone who has played that sport would tell you that the conditioning, beating and contact they take is as hard as football, and they have no pads. You should not judge a sport until you have done it yourself, and I think it an insult to the kids that play it to say these kind of things.

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I would much rather deal with the “stupid lights” than the stupid drivers. The lights that are set up correctly will change if you will stop at the “stop bar” — the bold, solid white line — instead of pulling up to the crosswalk. There really is a reason why the stop line is away from the crosswalk: So people can walk.

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To the cyclist-swiping name-caller who makes great leaps to connect bicycling to Kroger parking violations, I must ask you if the extra 30 seconds you save by running bikers off the road will be worth it? It is real smart to try to prove a point with an automobile. Just share the road, judge your passing distance instead of running up on the cyclist while another car is coming towards you, and try leaving on time. Main issue, just relax. Ride your 12-speed hybrid to rid yourself of some of this anger.

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With the high price of gas these days we need the commissioners to approve and see that sidewalks, bike paths, and bike lanes become a normal part of Fayetteville development. We need bike lanes to encourage people to ride more in our community. Why are schools built in residential areas with no sidewalks for children to walk to school? It works in Peachtree City. Fayetteville, Tyrone, Brooks and the state, for that matter, need to wake up; gas is nearly $4 a gallon. Everyone is screaming conserve energy. Help us out here: Give us bike lanes on our roads, sidewalks and bike paths in our communities. In the meantime, I guess we will all have to start riding scooters as they do in other countries around the world. Scooters get generally about 60-70 miles per gallon and are street-legal and fun to drive. At $4 a gallon, sounds good to me.

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To person calling others “moron” and giving their interpretation of the law about double yellow lines. The law states that you are prohibited from passing others’ vehicles on a double line. If you must avoid an object or person, then you may cross it temporarily. Are you telling me if a mailman or garbage truck on Ga. Highway 92 is delivering mail or picking up trash, you are not going to go around them? Give me a break.

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About two years ago a group of Tyrone citizens attempted to recall the former mayor for not living up to her campaign promises. The leaders of this group have now been elected to office but have not lived up to a single campaign promise they made. Strange as it may sound, there does not appear to be any talk of recalling this group for not living up to their campaign promises. Is this simply an oversight, a double standard, or has this group just been lying to the voters of Tyrone for over two years?

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Councilwoman Grace Caldwell apparently wants Tyrone to be the resting place for discards from Fayette County. First she masterminded the ouster of the previous town manager to be replaced with the discarded former County Manager Chris Venice at a much higher salary. Next Grace masterminded replacing the town attorney with another county discard, Bill McNally, again at two to three times the costs. Now she is proposing that the town acquire the existing county fire station. That’s the one that has septic problems, which, with no method to dispose of its sewerage, will render the property unusable. It is amazing how when the county practices fiscal responsibility and makes changes to insure that the taxpayers receive a fair return on their tax dollars, Grace Caldwell is always waiting in the wings to pick up what the county discards to burden the taxpayers of Tyrone with exorbitant costs. But then isn’t Grace also a county discard?

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No, no, no to increased business taxes. Our mayor of Peachtree City advocated and got through an increase in business taxes. What short-term thinking! All it will do is further the exodus of small business out of our city. Apparently it’s not enough to have less than 50 percent occupancy in some of our village market areas. Granted, it may not be a large increase, but precedent has been set. It says to any new business considering PTC to beware of the future. Instead of tax increase, it should be tax reductions. What would that tell future businesses about PTC? Think long-term, city council, long term.

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For School Superintendent Kathy Cox, the only honorable course of action would be to resign her commission. She had several years to implement the necessary radical change but she has proven herself to be just another inconsequential, get-along, go-along politician. She has had five full years and our state still has the worst schools in the country. While Georgia schools continue to decline and students with them, developing countries around the world are graduating highly motivated students with keen intellects. For a very frightening exposition of horrors that await the current attendees of Georgia public schools, read the book, “The World is Flat.” There is nothing but bipartisan shame on this issue. On one of the very most central roles of government, Governor Perdue and Mrs. Cox have failed miserably.

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To the 73-year-old who saved and invested your money and lives just fine under Mr. Bush, kudos to you, buddy. Way to go. But did you ever stop to think that maybe the 74-year-old who had to go back to work to survive under Mr. Bush didn’t have the same opportunities in life that you had? Did you wonder if that person had a great life like you and lost it due to layoffs or other personal tragedies, and is now having to work to survive? That would probably be a no to each question. You don’t sound as smart as you evidently think you are. Lots of people are suffering financially now because of the economy. Has your man Mr. Bush done anything about it? Oh, yeah, he did borrow billions from China (with interest), and then spend untold fortunes on sending out letters to let you know you’re getting the rebate, and then sending out an other letter saying when it would be delivered to you. What a waste of taxpayers’ dollars just on postage alone. Maybe Mr. Bush should have asked you for financial advice.

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I repeat myself. There is always some character that has more money than brains and they think everyone else is incompetent. When the truth is known, this type almost never earned their money but got it by various other means. Hard-earned money invested in 401K, IRA and government bonds is not bad investments. That money either disappeared or become worthless under this administration, so who is to blame?

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For my Democratic friends here in Fayette County, not everyone who thinks that Obama should not be our next president is a Georgia Republican conservative. In my 20 years of adulthood, I have never voted for a Republican candidate for any office. I have cast my votes exclusively for either Dems or Indi’s (which is to say I have backed a LOT of losers). But, if our party shows themselves as a majority to be the self-flagellating and self-righteous twits that I am seeing this year, then this year will be the year that I move over to the “dark side.” Enough is enough. Ms. Clinton has every right to feel that this nomination has been pulled out like a rug from under her feet. As the year started she was the most viable candidate that the Dems had to offer, and nothing has changed in that respect. In every swing state she wins, most recently in West Virginia by 40 points (and now let’s hear the left wing intelligentsia crow about all of those uneducated, racist rubes in that state). Obama sweeps Southern states: go figure; who cares? Georgia will go Republican, as will Virginia and South Carolina, etc. He won big in some rural Midwestern states; again, who cares? They will likewise go McCain’s way. Mrs. Clinton has the experience. Don’t fool yourself into thinking that she was not neck deep in almost all of the goings-on in the Clinton White House. If you believe that, you are either a man who has never been married (or are divorced because your ex-wife gave more advice than you wished to hear) or you are a woman who lives under the rule of a tyrant husband or are having an affair with the pool boy. Obama has never held a position of executive authority and barely has his feet wet in national politics. Can the Dems ever figure out again how to win the White House? He is a wolf in sheep’s clothing; all you have to do is watch the eyes of his proper wife to see the reality. The Clinton politics have always leaned towards the center. Obama’s politics are further left than we have seen in 30 years, and yet he talks like he is the pro-business man of the people. Be real with yourself: what the fine lady from San Francisco said was true and remains true, Obama would not be where he is now if he were white. Can you imagine a young white man with no military experience, no executive experience, less than two years of national experience, charisma, a message of “Hope” AND a 20-year relationship with a publicly white separatist church having a snowball’s chance with the Dems? It is true; deal with it. This is a big sarcastic, “Great job!” to all of those young and inexperienced voters, all of those self-loathing and over-educated leftovers from the ‘60s, and the 90 percent of the black Dem voters for ensuring that we will see at least four more years of a Republican White House, and at least four more years in Iraq. Don’t you feel good about yourselves?

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I am disgusted by the poster last week who wrote, “We’re not looking for equality, we’re looking for revenge.” It’s people like you who give all races a bad name. I’d think twice about voting for Obama just because he’s a black man. His interests may not lie in advancing YOUR people like you think he will. If it weren’t for people like you trying to play the race card all the time, this country could have healed many decades ago. It’s people like you that makes me not want to have anything to do with YOUR people. And believe me, there’s one like you in every race. You should be glad that you live in America where you can say things like that and face a firing squad or be beheaded. But if you don’t like it here in America, and just in case you haven’t figured it out, Delta’s ready when you are. I’ll even chip in a few dollars for your one-way ticket.