So if I contributed to Robert Horgan’s campaign for Fayette County commissioner, would that make me a horgan donor?

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Last night I was outside talking on the phone with my sister at about 11 when a truck pulled up to our driveway. It stayed there for a few minutes, as I began to walk into my garage for safety, still watching the truck. The occupants got out of the truck and back in, and eventually drove off, after visiting several of the houses on my street in this manner. Very shady. When my family woke up this morning, I realized what had been done. Many of the political signs on our street had been stolen and the candidates’ opponent’s signs put in their places. This is low. Too low. Not to mention illegal. Although many people argue that the political yard signs are ineffective, they are expensive and essential. So not only is stealing people’s personal signs out of their yards childish, but it verges on theft and trespassing. On top of that, I happen to be probate court candidate Ann Jackson’s daughter, and it happened to be one of her opponents’ signs that replaced all of my mom’s. Now things like this happen a lot and aren’t necessarily associated with the person’s campaign at all. It could be some jokesters playing a prank, or very enthusiastic candidate supporters, but the fact that our home was not targeted leads me to assume the latter. These people knew what they were doing, and intentionally skipped our house. Did they think our friends and neighbors wouldn’t notice? Was it to rub it in our faces that they also had signs? Anyway, as my mother is too kind to take any action against this and would rather just accept what I see as someone’s huge character flaw with a grain of salt, I would like to let everyone know that this is not OK or funny. This is foolish and immature and we do NOT need this in what should be a fair, mature, democratic process. If the person whom you support cannot win without you making a mockery of the respectable candidates and political system, then perhaps you should reevaluate something in your own priorities, not in other people’s yards.

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Come on people ... there is NO Friday outdoor watering at any time. Don’t ruin it for the rest of us that are abiding by the rules and trying to conserve.

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When will the parents in Peachtree City learn the rules of using a golf cart? I am sick and tired of seeing 7- and 8-year-old kids driving golf carts around with Mom or Dad grinning from ear to ear next to them. You have to be 12 to drive a golf cart and then only if a parent is with you. I wish the police would issue more tickets to these parents. Just please don’t stop me as I drive by drinking a beer with a cooler in the front seat.

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I want to thank the two men who helped me push my golf cart out of a ditch by the lake on the Fourth of July. Thank you!

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I’d like to ask the powers that be to consider grading the 100 feet of bumpy dirt cart path leading from the trail on the west side of the Ga. Highway 74 cart bridge to the soon-to-be additional housing behind Wal-Mart. I realize this might not be an “official” path yet, but it’s probably in the top 5 percent of path usage in the city. A nice job on this would do well for public relations. If by chance the job cannot be done by the city because it’s not city land or an easement or something, I’ll gladly organize a Saturday morning, with coffee and donuts, to encourage perhaps five or six citizens to bring pick axes and shovels and we’ll do the job ourselves in about two hours. Anything the city can do to help would be appreciated.

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To comment on the citizen’s remarks concerning kids and golf carts, boy, am I with you. Come to the Target Shopping Center and you will really see some out of control teens and adults. There are stop signs, but no golf cart driver adheres to these. Teens pile on these carts “hanging out” literally and in numbers (six to seven people in one). Are the parents complete idiots, or is it just our city that doesn’t enforce the rules and laws? What really needs to happen is to make new ones. Children/teens should NOT be able to drive golf carts, even if a licensed driver (unless there is an adult in the cart, and I mean sober adult). And have you noticed at the Kroger in the same shopping center, golf cart parking spaces are up front right beside handicapped spaces, and you want to consider bringing a skate rink AGAIN to Peachtree City? That was tried before; it was shut down because of the drugs, drinking and out of control teens. Our police force can’t/don’t enforce the lax laws on golf carts now. The biggest abuse is not on the cart paths; it’s right out in the open. Why don’t you enforce the laws, Peachtree City?

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Thank you, Peachtree City! Everyone writing into Free Speech complains. I’m tried of hearing people complain about rising taxes, over-development, schools, I could go on forever. We have wonderful schools; that is why we live here in the first place. We have also many community parks, lakes and green spaces that are perfectly maintained. A friendly path system that is convenient to everything and comparable to no other city. Yes, we paid more to buy our home in Peachtree City; yes, taxes go up every year like they do in every city; BUT here we see the money go back into the amenities we use everyday but sometimes take for granted. Remember to enjoy our town to the fullest: watch the sunset at the park at Lake Kedron or Lake Peachtree, always wave to others on the golf cart, walk Line Creek or just love the amazing fireworks we just had on July 4th.

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I won’t get into the specifics of my stressful jostling for space to watch fireworks (anyone who has lived here a while seems to have a story like mine). I would, however, like for this city to take a hard, honest look at this activity. Many cities publish lists of places to see their fireworks displays or, better yet, hold them in a stadium with ample room. When I phoned the Peachtree City Recreation Department to ask about this, I was told, “We do not give recommendations on where to go but I can tell you, the crowds are terrible.” When I asked if there was someone else I might discuss this with, I was told, “No. There is no one else to call.” Meanwhile, tarps are put down days ahead, blankets are thrown in the lake, and tempers rise. Let’s face it, Peachtree City hasn’t enough space for its citizens to enjoy the expensive fireworks display it puts on every year. Until we figure out a solution to this problem, it is my opinion that this event should not be held at all. I know we are Peachtree City and therefore entitled to everything under the sun, but maybe the time has come to live within our means, and we do not have the means for this event.

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Jeers to the Kedron Kroger for discontinuing enough of my favorite products (and being unwilling to special order them) to force me to start shopping at Publix. Cheers to PTC for another awesome fireworks display on the 4th! Oh, and that dead deer I mentioned on the side of Hwy. 74 by the Soccer Center? 12 weeks and counting!

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Mr. John E. Jones, president of the Fayette County NAACP, you’ve got to be kidding me. The problem with you, the NAACP and the black community is that you see the racial issue one way: white against black. You need to admit truth: there is a huge problem with racism from the black community toward the white community that you and your organization don’t want to admit. Don’t try and call it reverse discrimination either, because there is no such thing. Discrimination is discrimination, no matter white or black. You are not wanting district voting for the good of Fayette County. Why change it? Because for you there is not enough black influence among our board of commissioners and school board. That’s a racial statement to me. You are condemning the white community and the great service they’ve done this many years on the board of commissioners as well as the board of education to make this county one of the best. I know I’m racist because I’m going to vote NO on district voting, and you’ll vote for all black people in the next elections, but you’re not a racist. Go figure.

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This is a preemptive note to those who covet the Peachtree City disc golf course land near City Hall; namely our good neighbors, the churches nearby. Yes, additional parking was installed on the other side of Willow Bend road, but it’s clearly still not enough. Parking on Sundays and special occasions rears its ugly head several hundred yards up Flat Creek Road at times. The disc golf course land would be an easy solution, wouldn’t it? “Keepa your handsa offa this landa.” This is public property that is part of our environment and needs to be kept that way. Heaven help any council person who sponsors any kind of use permit or giveaway in an effort to get reelected by the hundreds of forever grateful church-goers. Many hard questions will be asked of the mayor and anyone else who proposes such an idea. And don’t try using the old reliable, “It’s a safety issue,” on us. You’ve already got public-funded police officers acting as crossing guards at the intersection of 54 and Flat Creek.

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Peachtree City raised taxes on business a few weeks ago to generate a whopping extra $20K. Wow, that’s really great going. Now we can have a few extra hours of pool recreation? How about reducing the recent City Council pay raises to generate the extra 20K? How about firing (oops, “letting go”) some dead weight, no-value-added folks? I’m sure if asked, your own employees could point them out. I’ll dare say it: there’s likely a 20 percent headcount reduction that could be made by putting the remaining good folks to work eight hours a day while letting go those who work six hours (or less) a day work while paying them for eight. But then, we’re talking government bureaucracy. Lifers on the public dole have this attitude that if you pay less, you won’t get qualified people to do the work. Balderdash! If you need someone to come in and tell you where the dead weight is and who needs to be let go, give me an indication of your willingness to follow through on it and I’ll gladly review your books and if needed, do the dirty deed myself. Let’s get lean now before the financial crisis is on top of us.

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Fayette County schools, if you really want to save funds or cut back, start moving the empty trailers out of the schools’ property. I know PCES has more than they are using.

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Did you ever think that maybe the reason your daughter is struggling in math is that she isn’t the sharpest tool in the shed? Fayette County schools, and particularly Peachtree City schools, are the best in the state and well above the national average in all categories, including SAT scores. I graduated from here back when there was only one high school in the whole county. I make two bills and a half a year and my math skills are just fine, thank you. Even then I was well-prepared for college and beyond. I have a son that just graduated from McIntosh and two still in the school system and I can tell you the math curriculum here is tough. Spend more time working with your challenged math student at home and less time soliciting Kathy Cox for help. She is right: we don’t need it.

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Regarding the murder at the Red Room bar recently, some questions surface: Could we have a police car stationed outside this lowlife thug joint from midnight until closing? Better still, can we just pass an ordinance that will force their closure at 11 p.m.? Until proven otherwise, the PTC Police usually “get their man,” so let’s give them time to “round ‘em up.” Will this be classified as a hate crime with all the penalties involved or does that not count when it is black on white? Could we just stop development in PTC so more of these lowlife thugs do not continue to “filter down” from cities to the north? Will all eight of these lowlifes be charged with murder or will some bleeding heart liberal just say, “They are good boys” who were in the wrong place at the wrong time (that is what most of the mothers of these types say on TV). Where is the media from the “big city” to the north? If these had been white guys murdering a black guy, they would be here from Atlanta and New York and every other bleeding heart liberal press city. Could we hear from the mayor and the police chief regarding the severity of this crime and what the city plans to do about granting licenses to these type of “thug joints”? There is no good thing coming from these types of establishments and they only serve to give our city a bad name. Is there not some way to just close them all?

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There is only one person who could have written in favor of the SMHS basketball program last week and that’s the coach himself. I am not an “embarrassingly whiny” parent nor have I ever threatened to “get a lawyer.” My son has come to every summer event and has NEVER quit a team of any kind. He has a good work ethic and has continually put up with the absurd, ridiculous behavior from the coaching staff simply because he loves the game of basketball. This is NOT about wins and losses. It’s about being a good example of what we would like our boys to become. Certainly there is someone in administration that recognizes these guys deserve so much more.

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I am offended for the dedicated student athletes and their parents at SMHS. The ludicrous suggestion that ”lazy kids” and “whiny parents” are the reason SMHS has had an unsuccessful basketball program is an insult to reasoning people. SMHS has seen much success in all other sports. That simply cannot be done without a terrific work ethic and the retention of senior leaders. The test scores of students at SMHS show an extremely high level of work ethic among the entire student population. Good work ethics start at home and are cultivated by dedicated teachers and coaches. That nurtured ethic is reflected in the academics and all other sports programs at SMHS. Knowing that, how could anyone seriously claim that it does not exist in basketball? Blaming the kids and parents is just insulting. It’s like resorting to calling names because the facts do not support your cause. Most of the parents and fans know that those kids who want to play basketball have had their spirits squelched by ineffective leadership. Maybe the school administration and the person who suggested that lazy kids are the problem should ask themselves why so many players who have proven their work ethic in other sports for SMHS have left the basketball team?

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Most parents try to teach their children to choose wisely and be responsible for their actions as it will make their life better in the long run. Why can’t our legislators do the same thing when it comes to the mortgage companies who have made bad home loans and to their customers who took out these unwise loans? This would require all involved to accept the responsibility and the consequences for their bad decisions. Over time, this will strengthen our country’s values and make us a better people. Giving into the politically expedient cry to use taxpayer money to bail out the irresponsible institutions and their equally irresponsible customers will weaken us. Unfortunately, our capitalist economic system requires us to accept the bitter with the sweet; but it has proven to work and push us ahead for hundreds of years. Now is the time for our legislators to use tough love and do the right thing.

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What is going on in Fayette soccer? I have heard that the recreational program has been taken over by Lighting. Does that mean that my kid no longer can play in a noncompetitive environment? I will take my kids elsewhere and will tell my friends to do so also. Can someone tell me what is going on?

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I stand by my assertion that ANWR is an acronym and Anwar is a name AND it “can be used to refer to ANWR” (Google’s words, not mine). While you’re at it “google” acronym. Anyway, who cares? While we are being held hostage by Achmed Anwar in the Middle East, we don’t want to destroy the mating habits of a few wild animals that breed like rabbits in ANWR. Sorry, I’m all for the environment, but if it comes down to $10 a gallon versus Bullwinkle being satisfied, that moose is the “special of the day” at Eskimos “R” Us. Now for your assertion: what makes you think I’m a “he”?

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To the female police officer at the chiropractic office off Hwy. 74 on July 3 at approximately 5:40 p.m.: If it was an adjustment, would you please do that on your own time from now on? If not, could the police department let us all know what the stop/call was about? It was there for all of us to see as we drove by. On the bright side, at least it wasn’t a doughnut shop.

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I have enjoyed living in Fayetteville. However, the rise in crime rates within just a few miles’ radius of my home has caused me concern about the safety of my children and my wife. As nice as it is to have all the shopping and dining so close to home, I would rather have my family live in an area where I don’t have to worry more about my children’s safety than I do about my bills and how I will pay them. Goodbye, Fayetteville, I wish I could say you’ll be fine, but I’ve seen Riverdale, and you’re headed that direction.

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Is it just me or is there something happening that should send a message to the American people? As you watched the flooding in the Midwest, did you notice that there were no farmers running around with stolen plasma TVs or cases of liquor over their heads? There’s no yelling, “Where’s Bush?” or “Where’s FEMA?” or “Where’s my check?” or “Why isn’t the government out here saving me and my farm?” Likewise, I’ve noticed there are no reports of any other country coming to help or sending aid. Quite a contrast, isn’t it?

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For your fall victory garden, now is the time to start broccoli seeds indoors. In fact, if you start broccoli seed every two weeks for three plantings, you will have a long harvest season of fresh broccoli to enjoy. Broccoli seeds will sprout in a few days. Give the seedlings lots of light, and of course don’t over-water the seedlings. Transplant the seedlings a month after you plant the seeds. Sure, it will be hot when you transplant the seedlings, but the broccoli will mature in the cool nights of fall.

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Thank You, Target, Kohl’s and Wal-Mart (to name a few) for requiring a picture ID for credit card purchases. I had my wallet stolen at Wal-Mart recently. This person hightailed it to Best Buy in Morrow and purchased $8,000 in computer notebooks. This was without a picture ID. He also purchased $900 in merchandise from Macy’s. This should never happen. Someone should lose their jobs on this. I am an elderly man in my late 60s and the person who stole it was an African-American in his late 20s or early 30s. Do not be upset when this ID is asked. These stores are doing us all a favor even though a slight inconvenience.

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Okay, enough with empty strip malls and Chinese and Mexican restaurants, dry cleaners and nail salons. Come on, commissioners, we need some more family eating establishments in Fayetteville and Peachtree City. In addition, could you please make it a requirement that the fast food chains send their personnel to Chick-fil-A school? I’m getting tired of going to chains with attitudes. They ALL need to learn how Truett Cathy trains his people. But then again, I guess that’s what religion will do for you.

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There are actually people in this town who drive their high schoolers to school every day even though a school bus goes by their house in the morning. I have also noticed that many of these families seem to think we need more oil. Don’t they realize the impact they are having on the situation? The funny thing is some of these people are airline employees. Wonder if they realize they are driving themselves right out of a job?

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Let’s face it: more drilling for oil is not the answer. Americans have 5 percent of the world’s population and we use approximately 25 percent of its oil. We use way more than China, which has over three times our population. How much oil is enough for us? Let’s conserve now.

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Okay, I’m tired of all the name calling and whining from all the candidates; enough is enough. Let’s get on with it so that Free Speech can get back in the paper. As for me, I’m voting against everyone who holds office, except, of course, for the two that are running for office that were voted out last year from the county commission. I’ll write in Charlie Brown if I have to. It’s a shame we don’t have any more people running for office than we do. It’s like voting for president. There’s not anybody running I’d care to vote for anyway, but I just want the ones in office out. Bob Barr’s looking better and better.

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Money-saving tip for Tyrone: eliminate the mayor and three council positions. They do nothing but Grace Caldwell’s bidding. In fact, Grace would probably work for free under a single councilwoman form of government.