I am still highly agitated by the action of our Congress toward our fuel problems, coupled by the action of our senators, Isaakson and Chambliss. The cavalier attitude adopted by all is a bitter pill to swallow.
They say the first step in resolving a problem is to admit there is a problem in the first place. Our elected officials make a multitude of mistakes but never have the fortitude to admit it.\

The party involved in our fuel crisis is not important, because there is a problem and we will never solve it if we get caught up in finger-pointing.

Our problem evolves around U.S. oil, its drilling and production. The drilling was halted by an administrative order and our legislature has refused to reopen discourse. Now it wants to get caught up on how long would it be until we see benefit. However long is delayed day by day more while they argue. Get on with it!

In my business experience, we used to play "what if?" what would be the result if we did this, and we would do that for every alternative we could think of. Then we would plug in the answers to the worst-case scenario. We have encountered a lot of events resulting from our oil problem, inflation, fuel costs, dollar value and bankruptcies to name a few.

But to me, the worst case has not yet hit home. Once we are totally out of Iraq and our sphere of influence is drastically reduced, I would classify an oil embargo as the worst case. The last time that was applied as a diplomatic endeavor was in 1941, when we froze the assets of the Japanese and a trade embargo resulted. The result: Japan went to war. I don't know that war would follow an oil embargo, but I'm sure retaliation of some sort would. We were saved in World War II by the fact that we were self-sufficient.

Our candidates today say, forget history, quit living in the past, get over it! Great.

History is a file of all endeavors, good and bad, and their results. What hurts is the lack of any long-term looks forward or back. We don't learn from our mistakes, and we are paying the guys Congress is supposed to protect.

Value your vote and use it!

George Koesters
Gainesville

Justice or revenge? I'll take either one
A response to the anti-death penalty article recently written by Roley and Heather Faubion of Flowery Branch. The Faubions used the term "redemptive violence" in describing the death penalty and said "A death penalty trial is nothing more than premeditated murder."

Many people who know me would be surprised to learn I was and continue to be a foe of the electric chair. I hope it will never be used again. Instead I desire the use of an electric couch or sofa. Why not get three at a lick? electricity is expensive.

Even better would be the use of electric bleachers. I would support electric stadiums and happily pay the taxes to build them. Wouldn't it be wonderful to see the oxygen-wasting scums like Gary Michael Hilton be marched into the stadium and take their reserved seats.

By the way, if all the liberal bleeding heart, ACLU or otherwise anti-death penalty, lawyers and judges were to wander into the stadium when the switch was flipped, I would lose zero sleep. As far as I'm concerned, they are almost as culpable as the animals they protect.

A closing thought. How many good men and fathers of daughters who know of Hilton and his evil deeds wouldn't like to have him to play with for a time? Speaking for myself, I would like to enjoy his company for at least 30 days. At the end of the 30th day and upon his arrival in hell, he would find little difference.
Call it redemptive violence or pure old revenge, so be it. Justice would be served.

Calvin Stewart
Clermont

Commissioners, act on assessors' pay issue
I recently read the holiday pay article published in The Times on Aug. 1 showing the tax assessors listed 44 holidays on their pay sheets as days worked.

The two assessors still working (Vaugham and Gaines) speculated that someone accidently marked a holiday in place of a day worked (The Times Aug. 16). Gentlemen, not 44 times surely?

These assessors then said they do not believe they received more money than they deserved. Over the last few years, it is evident these two men will not deal with the issue and simply issue a statement admitting their accepted pay for the listed holidays and then pay back the money as requested by Commissioner Bobby Banks and commissioner to-be Ashley Bell.

I am almost 75 years old and have been a life long citizen of Hall County, and have never seen a situation before like what is going on with the tax assessors. It appears something is drastically wrong in this office, but our commissioners do not seem to have a desire to get involved. Could they not, at the very least, ask the three current board members to resign and put new faces in this office in their place?

Doug Aiken, President of the Hall County Taxpayers Association hit the nail on the head when he said that the public sees the commissioners as the boss. So if the commissioners are quiet and don't do anything, they are not part of the solution but part of the problem.

The outcome of this embarrassing situation is in the hands of the Hall County Commissioners. Only they have the power to decide if they want to bring this matter to an end.

W.J. Butterworth
Gainesville