Many school systems are furloughing teachers and can't provide a 180-day school year for their students. Our elected leaders at the Capitol say they just don't have the money to spend on public education.
When the phone rang, I knew who was on the other end: Skeeter Skates, owner of Skeeter's Tree Stump Removal and Plow Repair in Greater Metropolitan Pooler. I can't tell you exactly why, but the phone always sounds more urgent when Skeeter calls.
This year's General Assembly session was noteworthy as much for the bills that did not pass as for the ones that did.
I always read the Rev. Billy Graham's column when it appears in the paper. He is about as fundamentalist as they come, but I find I often agree with him, if I translate his statements from his simple one-dimensional language to something deeper and more universal.
I have a good idea what Daniel felt like when he was tossed into the lion's den way back yonder. I found myself last week on the floor of the state House and state Senate, looking eyeball-to-eyeball with some of the very folks I have cuffed around in this space over the years.
One of the major questions still to be answered in this year's legislative session is whether the House and Senate will actually agree on some kind of bill to limit what lobbyists can spend on lawmakers.
At CPAC, Rand Paul announced that the Facebook generation is ready for the message of freedom. He is absolutely right, but does the Republican Party really understand how most of the Facebook generation view Republican policies relating to freedom?
It is a theological fact that God really likes Georgia. That is why He put mountains in North Georgia and the Golden Isles smack up against the Atlantic Ocean and added a bunch of lakes and parks and historical sites in between. Otherwise, we could have been Iran. Or Detroit.
The last week of the General Assembly session is fast approaching and you might think the state's lawmakers would be concentrating on major issues that are truly important to constituents back in their districts.
Our culture is making us sick. No, this is not another rant about toxins in our food, pathogens in the water or cancer-causing radiation in the environment. I'm talking about our social behavior. It's dysfunctional, and it's making us ill. The other day I was pushing my grocery cart toward the check out line when a man moved in front of me. He had been standing in the adjacent lane and got tired of waiting. ...
Let's face it. Judges can be pretty scary folks to We the Unwashed. About the only time we ever see them is when we are called for jury duty or when - Heaven forbid - we are a plaintiff or defendant or a witness, wishing we could be anywhere but in the courtroom.
Being a lifelong fan of football, I have never had a problem with NFL instant replay. I'm in my early 40s, so I can remember well the days before instant replay. Whatever the shortcomings of instant replay, to me, the benefit of the official getting the call right has always trumped any inconvenience that might result from a video review of a play.
One thing I have always noticed about politicians is this: For almost anyone in elective office, hypocrisy is like heroin. It's so addictive that it's nearly impossible to resist it.
Birth control access can cut abortion rates On Feb. 27, my wife and I legally adopted our two children from the state. We chose to adopt for a variety of reasons. The United States has more than 120,000 kids up for adoption. We could talk about it or we could do something. We also want to reduce suffering and promote a culture of compassion and adoption. I dislike abortion. There is suffering behind each one. ...
The Georgia House of Representatives has passed an ethics reform bill and has sent it on its way to the Senate for its consideration and action.
The Republican Party delegates who gathered in Athens for their annual state convention heard a cautionary message from Gov. Nathan Deal about the future of the GOP.
The surest way for sin to prosper is for a culture to stop calling it sin. Given the rapidly decaying culture in the U.S., I could proceed in a myriad of directions following such a conclusion. However, in America the foremost example of the rotten fruit born of neglected sin is Kermit Gosnell.
David Pennington, the mayor of Dalton, is making noises about challenging incumbent Gov. Nathan Deal in the 2014 Republican primary.
This week, I have my first opportunity to cast a vote to repeal Obamacare. While I have been working to stop Obamacare since I came to Congress, including my efforts to pass the Defund Obamacare Act with fellow Georgia Rep. Tom Graves, I'm looking forward to fulfilling my promise to support full repeal on the House floor.
Until last week, Georgia had been one of only three remaining states that put absolutely no limits on how much money lobbyists could spend to influence the passage or defeat of legislation in a General Assembly session.
During the 2013 session, the Georgia legislature tackled a variety of issues ranging from the budget to ethics reform. One of the most notable debates revolved around whether Georgia should take action in correcting our northern boundary line along the Tennessee River.
Last week, NPR announced that a bullet had been successfully fired from a plastic gun. The big news is this: The gun came from a 3-D printer. So much for gun control, for background checks and any other measure to reduce the number of easily available handguns in the nation.
This is the story of courage. This is a story of tenacity. This is the story of Hill Daniel.
Over time, I've fallen into a morning routine that has become invariable. I wake up, feed the animals, make coffee, read the headlines on gainesvilletimes.com and then log on to Facebook.
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