Parents of kids in a certain second period American Literature class at Whitewater High School: ask your child how they felt about the teacher calling them racists on Tuesday, Inauguration Day. To preface this, let me say that the teacher was an emphatic Obama supporter during the election, and before the nominees were elected, opened discussion of which candidate the kids liked. The kids overwhelmingly supported McCain, and the teacher obviously took great offense to it, as you’ll see. Race was never part of that discussion. So the teacher picks the very moment that our country is jubilantly celebrating a long-awaited historic moment to give the kids a writing assignment about the day, saying, “Leave your racist comments out of it. I don’t care what you write. I’m not even going to read it. Just keep it to yourself.” My child was hurt and offended by the teacher’s remarks, but smartly kept quiet. Anyone that just showed such pettiness and poor judgment surely wouldn’t take kindly to being informed of their insulting behavior, and would most likely use their position of authority to pay back anyone that dared offend them. To the teacher: No matter which candidate anyone supported during the election, it’s over. President Obama is OUR president: mine, yours, and all other Americans. He won by over 50 percent, but enjoys an 80 percent approval rating. Translation: even people who didn’t vote for him are supporting him now, because he is OUR president, and all our hopes and well wishes are upon him now. It is not your job to campaign at school, instruct with political bias or intimidate and name-call your students into sharing your political views. But to your own point of racism, this: It is exactly people like you that keep racism alive and well. Even where there is no reasonable hint of it, you inject it into any situation you can and cause further divides. Did you not read “The Crucible” along with the children? Did you not hear/read/see the papers they wrote about how a soiled name meant social death? Are you willing to be the antagonist, assigning judgments on your students that they have to carry and suffer from? You need to apologize and set a good example for them. And parents: say something. Don’t keep staying quiet while our kids are indoctrinated in public school. Primary schools that indoctrinate young children into political ideology are found in communist countries and madrases, all of which instill in their children a deep hatred for America.

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I have a laundry list of pet peeves, like driving in the left lane slower than everyone else, but one of those is just simply following the rules. What makes parents think it’s OK to drive the wrong way when dropping their kids off at Crabapple Lane Elementary? Almost every morning I get in line to drop my son off on my way to work, and many parents ignore the one-way sign and play chicken with oncoming traffic just to save a few seconds — yes, seconds. They speed down the parking lot to walk their kid across the “drop-off line,” which by the way slows down that traffic. Oh, and I love this — some even park in the handicapped spots. If you need to walk your kid in, walk them all the way in, not just halfway across the road and say, run for it. I realize that some kids need to be walked in and some of those cars could be faculty, but, really, is it worth it to play chicken with oncoming traffic? Just this morning, I was almost hit by a silver minivan; wish I could have gotten the tag so that I could add to this letter. I guess the dad was late for work and didn’t realize that every morning the school traffic backs up. I have actually timed the cars that could have been behind me, and if they would have just gotten in line like the rest of the rule followers, they would have saved a few seconds. It just amazes me that these parents think they are better than everyone else and there is no need to follow the rules. You are doing a disservice to your children; have you ever wondered why they are disrespectful to you and others? Probably because of the example you are setting for them. Try being a good example for your children and teach them to follow the rules of life.

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We pay our city manager over $100,000 a year, and he can’t make the simplest decisions: i.e., the layoff of city employees to meet budget adjustments. After all, the 23 workers involved are less than 10 percent of the city workforce. The number should be 46 people. This city has been so mismanaged for so long. We need to make the hard decisions and go on. The easiest decision we can make is to find a city manager that can manage. If he were any kind of manager, he would see for himself if he travels through the city how many city workers are just standing around and collecting salaries and not producing. Of course, the supervisors constantly plead for more people and machinery and less and less gets done. How productive is it to have two workers in every truck? It’s good for the workers because they have someone to talk to while they are on the side of the road.

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I’m 20 years old and have been working in Peachtree City restaurants for four years. What I really don’t understand is how a good portion of residents have $500,000-plus homes but still can’t tip their waitresses appropriately. Even if you aren’t as wealthy as other residents, why would you go out to eat when you don’t have the money for a tip or the sense to understand that we are working members of society, too, and $2 tips aren’t going to pay the bills. Maybe some of you are ill-informed: Waitresses only make $2 an hour and we don’t get paid extra to clean up after your kids who you let make a complete mess. I understand the economy and money is tight, but if you are hurting so bad, take your money elsewhere and spend it on a couple of double cheeseburgers at McDonald’s. All I’m asking is a bit of consideration for the people who make your dining experience as pleasant as possible.

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One of the reasons that our schools are having a financial problem is the total exemption from school tax for those over 62 that have a taxable income of $15,000 or less on their Georgia income tax return. This was reasonable until Georgia started giving those over 62 a $35,000 retirement income exclusion. The definition of retirement income is very liberal. Also, no part of Social Security is taxable to the state. A senior couple can have retirement income of about $95,000 plus Social Security and pay no school tax in Fayette County. Remember, we will depend on today’s school children to help support us by paying into Social Security and Medicare. Also,they will have to pay the tax to support items like our extravagant senior citizens center that seems to exist only to furnish unneeded jobs. Probably, all politicians will bow to senior citizens and the AARP and ignore this very unfair law.

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As was mentioned in last week’s Free Speech, for some reason the Department of Transportation has the most incredible propensity for misspelling street names. The sign on Ga. Highway 74 at 54 says, “Tyron 6.” The last time I checked the name was Tyrone, but as Jeff Foxworthy says, “If you refer to the fifth grade as ‘My senior year’ ...”

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Sheriff Hannah, I have lived in Fayette County for 40 years and I campaigned and voted for you. It was wrong demoting Captain Babb to deputy and promoting your wife to captain. I will not vote for you in the next election.

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Okay, Sheriff Hannah, you want the citizens of Fayette County to get involved, so I will. On Wednesday, Jan. 21 at 1 p.m., I followed a Fayetteville City Police K-9 unit #605 all the way from Peachtree City to Fayetteville on Hwy. 54. He cruised in the far left lane all the way. He was obviously in no hurry nor on a call because he hugged the left land all the way and went directly to the Fayetteville police station. When people put on a uniform and a badge they should set a good example. They are not the law, they are public servants who work for the taxpayers and are sworn to uphold the law.

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For all those who have been voicing complaints about the high-handed way the local police in PTC and Fayetteville go about business, you can rest assured it is not just in this area. In South Dakota recently two retired Customs agents were attacked by a Hell’s Angels gang in a bar. The retired Customs agents shot the attackers. They were immediately arrested by the local police and charged with assault with a deadly weapon and carrying a concealed weapon in violation of state law. Like most local police being ignorant of the law for the most part, they did not recognize the fact that these were retired federal agents with the right to carry a concealed weapon under the “Federal Law Enforcement Officer’s Safety Act of 2004” (LEOSA), regardless of state law. When they went to trial, the judge promptly dismissed the case and reprimanded the prosecuting attorney and the arresting police and apologized to the retired Customs agents. Being a retired Customs agent myself, I have found local law enforcement goes out of their way to show their authority and be as verbally abusive as they can when confronted with retired federal agents. I guess it’s an ego thing because they know the feds are so much more professional and well-trained than they are.

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Last week America celebrated the peaceful transfer of power. You’d have never known that from reading the dyspeptic commentary in the editorial pages of The Citizen. Columnist William Murchison in particular seems to need to be placed on a suicide watch. Dick Morris and Thomas Sowell appear to be gearing up for a four-year pity party, with Father David Epps serving up premium offerings from his extensive personal whine cellar. Lighten up, guys!

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It’s the dead of winter, but as gardeners, we’re already looking towards spring. Now is the time to plant seeds for both broccoli and cabbage. For cabbage, go with a faster maturing variety such as “Copenhagen Early Market,” which will be ready to harvest before it gets too hot in the summer. “Packman” broccoli is a great variety and does well here in the spring. Start your seeds under lights in the house and they will be ready to set out in the garden by mid-March.