CAMPERS from this summer’s Vikings and Celts Camp at the Gwinnett Environmental and Heritage Center show off their shields as they prepare for battle. Visitors to the Leif Erikson Day Festival on October 10 will have the chance to participate in a mock Viking shield wall battle. For more information on the Leif Erikson Day, see Upcoming below.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Does Our Nation Want a Leader Who is a Bully and a Con Artist?
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Maybe Baseball Suggests Better Way of Picking Political Candidates
SPOTLIGHT: Gwinnett Medical Center
UPCOMING: Heritage Center Plans First Leif Erikson Day on October 10
NOTABLE: Gainesville Hospital System To Purchase Barrow Medical Center
RECOMMENDED: Stone Mountain Highland Games
GEORGIA TIDBIT: Siege of Savannah Was Second Deadliest Revolutionary War Battle
TODAY’S QUOTE: Weakness Is Often Hidden in Bluster and Boasting and Rashness
MYSTERY PHOTO: Another Beautiful Vista for You To Guess Where It is
CALENDAR: Several Authors To Visit Gwinnett Soon
Does our nation want a leader who is a bully and a con artist?
By Alvin Leaphart, Jesup, Ga. | My grandmother, Florence Gibbs, a former United States Congressman, taught me “Noblesse oblige,” a French phrase meaning “nobility obliges.” It is the concept that nobility extends beyond mere entitlements and requires the person who holds such status to fulfill social responsibilities, particularly in leadership roles. She fervently believed that this applied to everyone in government, from the bottom to the top.
Leaphart
The Oxford English Dictionary meanwhile says that the term “suggests noble ancestry constrains to honorable behavior; privilege entails to responsibility.”
“Noblesse oblige” is generally used to imply that with wealth, power, and prestige come responsibilities. It also implies that the rich and powerful should set good examples of behavior and to exceed minimal standards of decency.
Donald Trump is rich and has power over ordinary people with whom he deals and is in a position to mistreat and abuse them without recourse. He has the power, because of his wealth, to uplift or destroy.
How he has used his position? Has he used his wealth, power, and prestige, not to uplift, but to humiliate and destroy?
He tried to publicly shame a Miss Universe beauty queen for gaining weight, calling her “Miss Piggy” and “Miss Housekeeping” because she is a minority, and Hispanic. After he received some flack for his statements, he has tried to further bring shame upon her by claiming there are videos of her having illicit sex.
Trump developed numerous real estate projects and has stiffed his contractors and employees, some of whom lost their homes and life savings. Trump University was another of his enterprises where students paid tuition but never received viable instruction or training and the University is now defunct, leaving a horde of disillusioned young people who admired and trusted him. From his various defaults there have been 3,500 lawsuits and four bankruptcies, in which he left people who trusted him, some of whom invested their life savings, penniless while he strode by with millions in his pockets saying “It’s just good business.”
Just before he went to Mexico, Trump made all these bravado statements as to what he was going to say and demand. When he got there, he was meek as a lamb and hardly opened his mouth. But, when he got home, on safe ground, surrounded by a protective flock, he was all belligerence as to what he had said and what he was going to do. He cannot face an equal with courage. The only time he has any courage is when he is in a position to browbeat and demean someone he knows is weaker.
Trump is a coward, a bully, a mentally deranged, psychopathic liar, a sociopath — and, a con artist who will sell this country down the drain in a heartbeat, out of fear and greed.
I cannot understand people, especially those who profess to be Christians, who want a callous, dangerous, mentally ill clown with no knowledge of life, except what he sees through a pair of rose colored glasses, and absolutely no knowledge of government or foreign policy to be the President of the United States.
My grandmother, a strong determined, aristocratic woman, would have been aghast at the idea of someone like Trump being the President of the United States or in any other position of power in the country.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Maybe baseball suggests better way of picking political candidates
By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | What if qualifying to run for president of the United States was as tough as becoming a major league baseball player? That’s the feeling we got when reading about the way baseball executives select their future players these days.
Where once all that was required to become a professional baseball player was just a good hitting average, or be able to slug home runs, or having a superb pitching record, these days that is old hat to the people who guide the major league baseball clubs.
It all started years ago out of Oakland, Calif., when a former major leaguer devised his own system for selecting players, not relying upon so much good statistics, but looking deeper at what the player could contribute in an overall manner to the club. The guy who began all this was Billy Beane, still the general manager of the Oakland Athletics. He called it a “sabermetric” approach, using statistics newly available working through the computer. Beane “demonstrated that on-base percentage and slugging percentage are better indicators of offensive success, and the A’s became convinced that these qualities were cheaper to obtain on the open market than more historically valued qualities such as speed and contact.” (from Wikipedia).
All this was thoroughly explained in a book published in 2003 by Michael Lewis, entitled Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, which was later made into a movie. Many of you may have read or seen it. He describes Beane’s methods which made him a genius among baseball execs.
Pretty soon other baseball executives adopted this tactic. One of the most successful is Theo Epstein, who employed the base idea of Moneyball and brought two World Series championships to the Boston Red Sox. Then he left the Red Sox to become the top executive at the Chicago Cubs! What! Left the successful Red Sox program to take on a sad-sack baseball team that hasn’t even been in the World Series since 1945! And a club that has not won the event since 1908, the most of any team!
Yep, Epstein left for Boston realizing this,. And his tactics are working, since this year the Chicago Cubs have so far the best record in baseball (103-58, a .640 percentage), though their many years-long suffering fans must still question if they can even make it to the World Series this year. Last year though they won the pennant under Epstein’s oversight, they were eliminated in the first round of playoffs by the New York Mets.
Cubs fans can hope. At least they have Epstein on their side this year.
In selecting players, Epstein looks even past the Moneyball technique. For he seeks to sign players to his team who are not only good statistical players, but is “Scouting the person more than the player.” By this he wants to know how any potential player handles adversity, not just on the diamond, but in everyday life. He wants to know “What are their backgrounds, their psyches, their habits and what makes them tick.” He wants his baseball scouts to give him three examples of how the player faced adversity off the field.
So though routine statistics matter, Epstein wants to know much more.
So we wonder: what if we citizens knew more about how our presidential candidates handled adversity off the political spectrum. Perhaps that’s what we find out in the long campaigns, as certain matters come to the surface.
As it is, we are finding out that it takes no prior real qualifications (other than age 35 and older) to run for the presidency. Just offer, and hope that the people will accept your line of operation.
The candidate’s “psyches, habits and what makes them tick?” That’s could be a real insight into who we should be voting for in this or any political campaign.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
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Heritage Center plans first Leif Erikson Day on Oct. 10
“In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue . . .” For many, this poetic line gives the impression that Columbus was the first European to come into contact with the New World. However, archaeological and literary evidence indicates that the Vikings were on North American soil some 500 years before Columbus.
Join the Environmental and Heritage Center (EHC) as it celebrates those erstwhile explorers from the North Sea at its first Leif Erikson Day Festival on Monday, October 10, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. This living history festival is a celebration of and investigation into the customs and legacy of the Vikings of Scandinavia, as well as the Scottish Highlanders, who were among Georgia’s earliest settlers.
Participants will test their brawn and bravery in a mock Viking shield wall battle as well as demonstrate their skills in traditional and family friendly Highland events like the caber toss, sheaf toss and hammer throw. Guests will also enjoy Scandinavian games such as King’s Table and Kubb, as well as explore the footsteps of legendary Viking Leif Erikson with a life-sized board game. They will also learn to write in Old Norse runes and decorate their own rune stone.
Additional activities include a competition to build and race your own small Viking ship, a challenge to slay a dragon, the opportunity to build your own Scandinavian stave structure and much more.
The festival will take place at the EHC’s Festival Field, located next to its main campus in Buford. Program fees for the event are $8 per person. EHC members and children age 2 and under are free. Guests are encouraged to pre-register online at www.gwinnettEHC.org but can also pay at the gate on the day of the event.
Lilburn seeking items to place in time capsule in new city hall
The City of Lilburn is creating a time capsule to commemorate the opening of the new Lilburn City Hall-Library at 340 Main Street. Individuals and organizations throughout the community are invited to contribute memorabilia for possible inclusion.
The 50-year time capsule will be a large safe that will reside in the clock tower of the City Hall-Library. The contents of the capsule will reflect the accomplishments, traditions, and pastimes of Lilburn residents at this time.
Donations will be accepted until the city’s open house at the new building on Saturday, October 29. The open house from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. will be the last opportunity to submit items and view the contents of the time capsule before it is sealed.
Where to bring items:
- (Until October. 14): Lilburn City Hall, 76 Main Street;
- (On or after October 19): Lilburn City Hall, 340 Main Street.
Items will be accepted at the reception desk on the first floor from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday. To arrange an alternate time for delivery, please contact the time capsule coordinator, Nikki Perry, at 678-551-1196 or nperry@cityoflilburn.com.
- See the online donation form for more information about submission: www.cityoflilburn.com.
Gainesville hospital system to purchase Barrow Medical Center
Northeast Georgia Health System in Gainesville (NGHS) has signed a definitive agreement to purchase Barrow Regional Medical Center (BRMC) in Winder, according to a joint announcement by both hospitals.
Carol Burrell, president and CEO of NGHS, says: “We are excited to expand our footprint in Barrow County. We have physician services already located in this market – primary care, orthopedic and sports medicine services provided through Northeast Georgia Physicians Group and cardiology services provided through The Heart Center of Northeast Georgia Medical Center. The purchase of Barrow Regional Medical Center will further increase our system’s coordination of care for Barrow County residents.”
NGHS opened a new hospital in nearby Braselton in April 2015.
Chad Hatfield, CEO of BRMC, says becoming part of NGHS will benefit the operations and financial stability of the Barrow hospital. “There are ever-increasing financial pressures on small hospitals as our state and national healthcare landscapes evolve. Infrastructure requirements are increasing and payment models are rapidly changing, especially as we look to a future of population health management. Joining a system like NGHS, that has a regional service distribution and sophisticated infrastructure already in place, is critical.”
Transitional teams will work over the coming months to align operational systems in anticipation of a January 2017 effective date. Both organizations anticipate no immediate operational service changes at the hospital.
Georgia Gwinnett College wins $1.6 million national science grant
Georgia Gwinnett College is being awarded $1.6 million by the National Science Foundation to continue and replicate a program that’s been shown to boost student interest in the sought-after STEM fields. One of the college’s largest grants to date, it is being funded as part of a National Science Foundation (NSF) initiative to improve undergraduate STEM education. The grant will be spread over four years.
“This important grant recognizes a game-changing curriculum project envisioned by Dr. Thomas Mundie, dean of GGC’s School of Science and Technology (SST),” says Dr. Stas Preczewski, president. “A multi-disciplinary team is making research part of the classroom experience for all science and technology majors from their freshmen through senior years. This is an innovative approach that sets GGC apart, even from most research universities.”
Dr. Judy Awong-Taylor, professor of biology and project leader, says: “The problem with the traditional faculty-mentored undergraduate research model is that students typically take it in their senior year and work one-on-one with their faculty-mentor. But not every student has the opportunity or confidence to do that, We want all SST majors to have the research experience, and we want them to have it every year.”
Numerous studies show that students who conduct research as undergraduates have greater success with their studies. That’s relevant to the worldwide demand for STEM skills and data from the National Academy of Science showing 25 countries rank higher than the United States in the percentage of undergraduate degrees in science and engineering.
The NSF grant will allow GGC to continue offering these course-embedded undergraduate research experiences. A new component to this NSF grant is to collaborate with faculty from other colleges and universities to recreate the pilot on their campuses and raise the retention rates of their STEM majors, including those in underrepresented groups, such as women and minorities, Awong-Taylor said.
Another objective will be to reduce the dropout rate for GGC STEM students in the “gateway” courses that introduce them to their majors, Awong-Taylor says.
In addition to Awong-Taylor, the project team includes Dr. Clay Runck, assistant professor of biology; Dr. Tirza Leader, assistant professor of psychology; Dr. Allison D’Costa, associate professor of biology, and Dr. David P. Pursell, professor of chemistry.
Volunteers pull 3,400 pounds of trash from Yellow River basin
Volunteers gathered at Yellow River Park to participate in the first Yellow River Trash Bash recently. The river cleanup was planned and implemented by a cooperative partnership of the Yellow River Water Trail, Gwinnett County Department of Water Resources, Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation, Gwinnett Clean and Beautiful and DeKalb Watershed Management.
Volunteers on foot spread across the watershed, covering tributaries, bridge crossings, Yellow River Park and adjoining roadways. Participating groups included Boy Scout Troop 553, Couch Middle School Beta Club and Discovery High School Environmental Club. In only three hours, the volunteers removed over 3,400 pounds of trash, including 20 tires, from the river and adjacent areas.
The Yellow River Water Trail would like to make this year’s Trash Bash the first of many. Marcie Moore, Greenspace Planner with Gwinnett County Parks and Recreation, said what everyone was thinking, “This was such a fantastic event. Everyone put in so much effort and the piles of trash proved it. The annual Yellow River Trash Bash is off to a great start!”
Stone Mountain Highland Games
Recommended by Susan McBrayer, Sugar Hill: While October may bring to mind a vision of autumn leaves to you, to me October conjures up the swirl of colorful tartans and the sound of bagpipes. If you have even the slightest notion that someone in your ancestral background came from Scotland, you may enjoy the 44th annual Stone Mountain Highland Games Oct. 14-16. Thousands attend one of the nation’s premier Scottish festivals right here in our own backyard! Don’t like bagpipes? No problem. There are all sorts of other musical entertainments. I rarely even watch the games because there is so much else going on! There are Scottish shops, British food, travel and educational talks, falcon demonstrations and dancing. Don’t know your clan? There are folks who can help you find it. My favorite part is hobnobbing with the other Scottish enthusiasts in the nearly 90 clan tents! Word of advice: Get there early!
- For details see http://www.smhg.org.
An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (100 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next. –eeb
Siege of Savannah was second deadliest Revolutionary War battle
The siege of Savannah, the second deadliest battle of the Revolutionary War (1775-83), took place in the fall of 1779. It was the most serious military confrontation in Georgia between British and Continental (American revolutionary) troops, as the Americans, with help from French forces, tried unsuccessfully to liberate the city from its year-long occupation by the British.
The Continental army’s failure to recapture Savannah marked a signal British victory in a distinctly international affair. Among the senior commanders fighting with the American revolutionaries (or Whigs) were Count Charles Henri d’Estaing of France, Arthur Dillon and his “Wild Geese” of Ireland, and Polish aristocrat Casimir Pulaski. Together, they faced the Tories, composed of British and Scots regulars joined by German mercenary troops (Hessians), American Loyalists, American Indians, and armed slaves.
On the night of October 8, with more bad weather closing in, d’Estaing ordered his assault, which he intended to carry out as three coordinated attacks. A diversionary column of 500 South Carolina and Georgia militiamen, commanded by General Isaac Huger, made a feint—a false attack—toward the White Bluff Road redoubt in an attempt to draw British attention away from the main objective. The British met them with musketry and music, forcing Huger to withdraw.
Meanwhile, Whig-allied colonel Arthur Dillon’s Irish battalion moved secretly around to the northwest and conducted a second attack, aimed at the British right flank near the Sailors’ Battery. D’Estaing chose Major Charles-Noel-François Romand de l’Isle, the French officer who earlier had commanded Georgia’s Continental artillery, to guide Dillon’s command through the British defenses. The British had altered their fortifications, however, and Romand de l’Isle became confused, losing his way in the swamp. When Dillon’s assault force finally emerged in plain view of the British, his troops met with heavy fire and were driven back.
The Whig allies executed their main attack exactly where Prevost had predicted they would—against the Spring Hill redoubt on the Ebenezer Road, a sector of the British lines commanded by Maitland. Fully alert, the defenders awaited the allied forces in the redoubt.
(To be continued)
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia online, go to http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org
Another beautiful vista for you to guess where it is
No doubt this isn’t in relatively flat Georgia. But even is it in the USA? Take a guess and send in your thoughts to elliott@brack.net and be sure to include your hometown.
Several people right-off recognized last week’s Mystery Photo. One guy who didn’t get to guess last time was George Graf of Palmyra, Va., who sent in the photo. First in was Bob Hanson of Loganville: “Unless I’m badly mistaken the photo is of Henry Flagler’s Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine, Fla. If it is not, it is a dead-ringer for it. When I worked in the headquarters of the Florida East Coast Railway in St. Augustine, I could look out my office window diagonally across the street and see this building.”
Annette McIntosh of Lawrenceville sent this in: “This is the Hotel Ponce de Leon opened in 1888. Now it is home to Flagler College in St. Augustine. In its heyday as a hotel it hosted five presidents. The college has restored the hotel, which was originally worked on by Louis Comfort Tiffany and Thomas Edison.”
Patty Clemmons of Lawrenceville wrote: “The picture is of Flagler College in St. Augustine. It was the first hotel built by Henry Flagler, an oil and railroad baron. The original name was Hotel Ponce de Leon. My home town is Lawrenceville, but I was born and raised in St. Augustine.”
Ross Lenhart of Pawley’s Island, S.C.: “This was an easy one for me since I worked with colleges and Flagler College was a client of mine. It is Ponce de Leon Hall of Flagler College.”
Others recognizing the photo were Bob Foreman, Grayson; Tim Sullivan, Buford; Frank Kellert; Mike Sweigart of Duluth; Michael Wood of Peachtree Corners; and Harriett Nicholls, Trickum.
Author Karin Slaughter will be at the Norcross Cultural Center for a program and book signing on Tuesday, October 4, at 7 p.m., hosted by the Gwinnett County Public Library. This program is free, and books will be available for purchase and signing courtesy of Barnes & Noble. Guests who purchase books at the event will get signing line preferential treatment. Her latest Will Trent novel is The Kept Woman. For more information, visit www.gwinnettpl.org or call 770-978-5154.
Flowering Bulb Growing Workshop presented by the Gwinnett County Public Library on Thursday, October 6 at 6:30 p.m. at the Collins Hill Branch Library, 455 Camp Perrin Road in Lawrenceville. Taught by Timothy Daly of the Georgia Extension Service. To attend, RSVP at events@gwinnettpl.org.
Open House at the Georgia Campus – Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine will be Friday, October 7 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Faculty members and students will be on hand to discuss the programs offered at the Suwanee campus including Osteopathic Medicine (DO), Pharmacy (PharmD), Biomedical Sciences (MS), and Physician Assistant Studies (MS). The Open House will include a tour of the campus. In addition, information about the curriculum, the application procedure and the financial aid process will be available. Those interested in attending the open house are encouraged to register here or call the Admissions Department at 678-225-7500.
40th annual Lilburn Daze Arts and Crafts Festival will be October 8 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. in Lilburn City Park. It features more than 150 arts and crafts vendors, a variety of food vendors and a kid zone featuring free art activities, a train ride, pony rides and lots of other fun for the children. Lilburn Daze is hosted by the Lilburn Woman’s Club and co-sponsored by the City of Lilburn. Visit www.lilburndaze.org for more information.
Panel Discussion at a meeting of the Snellville Historical Society, October 9 at 2 p.m. at the Snellville City Hall. The program will be a panel discussion by several members of South Gwinnett High School’s First (1958) Graduating Class,” led by Clark Britt. For more information, call 770 633 1737.
Fall Challenge at the Tannery Row Artist Colony in Buford is continuing through October 10. This art exhibit is at the historic Tannery building at 554 Main Street in Buford, the home of 16 artist studios. Donna Biggee of Snellville has created a 30×30 inch painting, as a feature of the exhibition. The art center is open Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m.
Auction at Southern Wings Bird Club meeting, October 10 at 7 p.m. at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center in Lawrenceville. Bring new gently used items for the auction, with proceeds benefitting the club. More info: southernwingsbc@yahoo.com.
(NEW) Author Visit: Best selling Author Kyle Mills will be at the Norcross Cultural Arts and Community Center, on Friday, October 14 at 7:30 p.m. for an appearance, presented by Gwinnett County Public Library. The Center is located at 10 College Street in Norcross. This program is free, and books will be available for purchase and signing courtesy of Books for Heroes. For more information, visit www.gwinnettpl.org or call 770-978-5154.
(NEW) Join Gwinnett County Public Library for a book discussion and signing with Gelia Dolcimascolo on Saturday, October 15 at 2 p.m. at the Collins Hill Branch Library, 455 Camp Perrin Road, Lawrenceville. This event is free and books will be available for purchase and signing. The first five teens to arrive at the event will receive a copy of the new book courtesy of the Friends of the Library. For more information, visit www.gwinnettpl.org or call 770-978-5154.
Annual Car Show at St. Matthew’s Episcopal on October 15, 2016, from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m., rain or shine. This is a judged show for cars, trucks and motorcycles. Besides vehicles, there is fun, food and prizes for the whole family. Location: 1620 Oak Road, Snellville.
8th Annual Frontier Faire at Fort Daniel in Hog Mountain, Saturday, October 15 from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Admission is $2 a person or $5 a family. Co-sponsored by the Fort Daniel Foundation and the Gwinnett Archaeological Research Society, the faire is located on the site of a frontier fort dating back to early 1800s. For more information, visitthefortdanielfoundation.org.
(NEW) Co-Authors Nathalie Dupree and Cynthia Graubart will be at the Taste of Home Cooking Show on October 20 at 5 p.m. at the Infinite Energy Forum Ballroom, 6400 Sugarloaf Parkway in Duluth, hosted by Gwinnett County Public Library. Dupree is the author of 13 cookbooks, and has hosted more than 300 television shows. Graubart has a column in Southern Living and is the author of Slow Cooking for Two. Tickets are $15 at infiniteenergycenter.com and $20 at the door. Books will be available for purchase and signing courtesy of Old New York Bookshop.
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