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Last week, by a vote of 219-212, the Democrats passed a bill in the U. S. House of Representatives that takes a giant step at the elimination of free local government. Amendments to the bill were delivered to representatives at 3:09 a.m. on the day of the vote.
Most of your property including your home, your car, your stove, washer and dryer, refrigerator, heat and air conditioning and any other device using water, power or fuel will be selected by the federal government. All items will have to conform to whatever is selected by the federal government as "energy efficient."
Construction codes will be furnished by Washington. Hordes of inspectors will be dispatched the length and breadth of the United States of America to make sure your home meets specifications far removed from local conditions. If your home fails their "survey" and you fail to make the changes demanded, you may be fined or have your utilities turned off.
The man who would be God, President Barack Obama and his Democrat party mullahs, have made a massive power grab soon to be followed by a Washington-controlled national health program and a program to remove the secret ballot from labor negotiations. This Republic is destined to soon be called by another name: socialist, communist or perhaps fascist.
Any pretense of "states rights" as guaranteed by the constitution is rapidly disappearing. What are we going to do about it?
Bruce W. Hallowell
Clarkesville
Boat traffic leads to many violations of dock proximity
Your article on lake levels, headlined "Wake Up," was a timely and very important contribution. Let me add to Mr. Zumwalt's report of bass fisherman exceeding reasonable limits near neighborhood docks.
Pleasure boating and skiing near docks has increased. If there truly is a 100-foot proximity law for boat traffic near neighborhood docks, it is completely ignored, and if it is enforced, it is too rare to do any good.
If this law is enforced, how about giving a report on citations involving neighborhood docks? I can view about a mile of lake in the cove I have lived on the lake for 26 years and I have never seen a bass boat, a skier or a joy rider being cited. A law is absolutely useless unless it is enforced.
How about some figures on enforcement other than around business docks?
Ben White
Gainesville