GwinnettForum | Number 20.30 | May 5, 2020
AMERICA STRONG FLYOVER: The Air Force Thunderbirds and the U.S. Navy “Blue Angels” paid tribute to medical workers in a fly-over of Atlanta last weekend. However, as one Gwinenttian put it, “Somehow, Gwinnett was the redheaded stepchild again. The focus was downtown, Dunwoody, Sandy Springs, then to Coweta County. Was it so hard at those speeds to take a loop over Gwinnett County?” The photographs come from Eric Bowles of Bowles Images of Morningside in Atlanta.
TODAY’S FOCUS: Gwinnettian Arriving at Dallas Airport Finds Himself Quarantined
EEB PERSPECTIVE: Former Gwinnett Police Chief Switches to New Post Within the County
ANOTHER VIEW: Recent Letter from Herschel Walker Concerns the “Right Reasons”
SPOTLIGHT: United Community Bank
FEEDBACK: Never Say “Yes” When Getting Those Annoying Spam Telephone Calls
UPCOMING: Commission Continues Meeting While at Social Distancing
NOTABLE: Duluth Resident Is New Owner of Gwinnett Daily Post
RECOMMENDED: Arguing with Zombies by Paul Krugman
GEORGIA TIDBIT: “Georgia Platform” Helps Bring About Nationwide Compromise in 1850
MYSTERY PHOTO: Identify the Person Depicted In This Statue in Mystery Competition
CALENDAR: Hear Author Virtually through Gwinnett Library on May 15
Gwinnettian at Dallas airport finds himself quarantined
(Editor’s Note: This item from Rob Ponder of Duluth shows some of the problems of travel during the virus pandemic. –eeb)
By Rob Ponder
DULUTH, Ga. | Quarantined in Texas!
The flight arriving in Dallas Fort Worth was met by two armed Texas State Troopers. They told us we had to be quarantined the whole time we were in Texas because we came from Atlanta.
Ponder
We were given a document that said that the state troopers could come to our quarantine site at any time, unannounced, and, if we were not there, the penalty would be a $1,000 fine and/or 120 days in prison. They were dead serious during the entire encounter.
I had to be in Texas since their state law requires that the architect of record check for handicapped compliance within 14 days of a building getting a certificate of occupancy.
After two days, I was able to return, but had to go straight from the hotel where I was working back to the airport with no other stops. When I realized that I wouldn’t be allowed to leave the unopened hotel to get meals, I stopped on the way to the job site and got peanut butter and jelly, bread, cereal and milk for the six meals that I would need for the two days.
We were working on an extended stay hotel, so I mistakenly thought there would be plates, bowls and silverware somewhere on premises. Bad assumption! I ended up digging a used spoon out of the trash and having to make a bowl out of duct tape (above) to be able to eat the cereal. (It only leaked just a little, see photo). The good news was you could use the back of the spoon as a “knife” to spread the peanut butter and jelly. There was no soap, either.
The construction company warned me that the quarantine was possible, so I brought sheets, a blanket, and a pillow with me in my carry on. The twist on this one was that I was not allowed to take the plastic wrap off of the mattress that I slept on because it would void the hotel being able to use it when the hotel opened. (They have to put a waterproof liner underneath the sheets before a guest can use the mattress). I never knew plastic could be so noisy!
The last joy was the realization that the hotel did not have telephone, television, Wi-Fi, or any other low voltage service. The bummer…the season finale of my favorite television show, The Curse of Oak Island on the History Channel, was on Tuesday night. I ended up having my daughter, Isabelle, set up her phone in front of the TV with the app “WhatsApp” on so that I could watch the show on the TV from our bedroom in Georgia remotely to the hotel room in Texas.
Two days later, boy! Was I happy to walk off of that airplane in Atlanta and not see any armed State Troopers at the top of the ramp!
The flight itself was quite a bit different. I sat in the first row and felt isolated. The pocket in front of me only had the airplane safety sheet, no Sky Magazine and no “barf bag.” The flight attendants were not wearing masks and only about a half of the passengers were. During the almost two hour flight, there was no drink cart, and almost no travel of the aisle by the flight attendants, except to hand out water and snacks twice.
I would be willing to fly again soon….but, maybe not to Texas until they lift the quarantine mandate.
Quite an eventful trip!
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Former Gwinnett police chief switches to new post in county
By Elliott Brack
Editor and Publisher, GwinnettForum
MAY 5, 2020 | Former Gwinnett Police Chief A. A. (Andrew Arthur) “Butch” Ayers didn’t remain inactive long after he retired in mid-November as head of the 878 sworn officers of the Gwinnett Police Department, plus 274 civilian staffers.
Six weeks later, on January 2, he was named the executive director of the Georgia Police Chiefs Association, based in Duluth. The 600 member organization has an eight person staff which coordinates and directs the mandatory training required of Georgia police chiefs.
Wesley Walker, Lyons Police Chief, is president of the Chiefs Association. He says: “We did a nationwide search of more than 30 candidates, and there was stiff competition, but Butch just outshined them all in what he had done in his career. Plus, we wanted someone if possible from Georgia. We’re excited about him being our new director.”
Ayers says: “Looks like the stars were lined up for me to get this job. If I had waited another year to retire, the opportunity would not have been available. It was a sweet spot and I feel very fortunate to land where I did.”
Ayers
The Dacula resident, 58, joined the Police Department in 1984….and has been with the Gwinnett police his entire life. He was the fourth consecutive person to be named chief who started out as a rookie with the Department. The new and current chief, Tom Doran, is the fifth person in a row to go from rookie-to-chief.
Chief Ayers was interested since age 16 in wanting to be a policeman. “I saw the police were doing something to make a difference, and that attracted me.”
Ayers was born in Hollywood, Fla. but lived most of his life in Georgia. He graduated from high school in Jefferson, attended Gainesville Junior College before majoring in political science at the University of Georgia. He holds a master’s degree in public administration from Columbus State University. He’s also attended the Law Enforcement Command College.
He is married to Leisa, a stay-at-home mom, and the couple has two adult daughters.
The former chief’s law enforcement career saw him moving quickly up the ladder in a variety of positions, starting out in the Uniformed Patrol Division at the West Precinct in Norcross for two years, followed by a year at the Buford Precinct.
He headed the Fraud Unit for two years. Meanwhile, he had two additional jobs, as head of Special Weapons for four years and as chief of the SWAT team for five years. “These duties were in addition to my regular jobs,” he notes. Altogether, he was with the Department for 36 years.
Of his new role, Ayers, now a registered lobbyist, says: “I was surprised at how busy the Association is in monitoring the Legislature, and working with the Sheriffs Association, the Association County Commissioners, and the Georgia Municipal Association. We’re watching which bills are presented, and see how they affect law enforcement. Even the shortened session so far has been an eye-opening experience for me.”
Meanwhile, the Chiefs Association continues to work on conferences and training for its members, which is an ongoing process. New chief training requires 60 hours, which takes place over one and a half weeks in the Duluth offices. The Association has four sessions a year, each consisting of up to 40 officers.
And the Association constantly works on its twice-a-year training conferences in Savannah and Jekyll Island, which will see 600 in attendance.
It’s good to have the Chiefs Association headed by Gwinnett’s own Butch Ayers!
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
Recent letter from Walker concerns the “right reasons”
By Jack Bernard, contributing columnist
PEACHTREE CITY, Ga. | Recently, I received a fund-raising appeal from University of Georgia’s (UGA) great football player, Herschel Walker: “Like President Trump, David Perdue is a political outsider and businessman. He’s not cut from the same cloth as career politicians in Washington. He got involved for the right reasons.”
Really, Herschel? Do you even know his record? Have you been drinking the Kool-Aid?
When Walker was at UGA in the 80s, I was already long gone from UGA and working. But I kept up with my Bulldogs. And, Herschel was spectacular. He was from Johnson County, Ga. My wife is from neighboring Wilkinson County. In the early ‘70s, I worked in the poverty program in both of these depressed counties. Plus, Walker’s daddy worked side by side with my wife’s good ol’ boy Uncle Fred in the local chalk mines. In his mumbling way, dressed in his coveralls, Uncle Fred told me Herschel’s Daddy was a good guy.
I followed Walker through the years. I was aware that Walker was a Republican, as was I when I lived in Wilkinson and Jasper Counties. But I thought it strange when he endorsed Trump in 2016, saying: “I’m tired of people taking advantage of this country.” I’ve heard that a lot from people who don’t like people of color being Americans, but never from anyone black. Further, at the time I wondered if Walker knew about the Trump Organization’s long history of proven discriminatory practices in New York City housing. Or of Trump’s past bigoted statements about the Central Park Five?
In 2018, Walker endorsed Brian Kemp over Stacey Abrams, a well-qualified, moderate black woman. At the time, Walker stated “He is the clear choice for a stronger, safer and a more prosperous future.”
To refresh our memories, when he was Secretary of State Kemp dropped over 500,000 voters from the voting rolls, including a disproportionate number African Americans. How did that unethical, self-interested action make him a “clear choice”? How Walker could endorse someone who clearly suppressed the black vote to win the election had me shaking my head in disbelief.
However, Walker’s views never fully sunk in until I got his latest Perdue email. Why is Walker helping Perdue, a clearly unethical insider who sold his stocks because of inside information about COVID-19 while telling his constituents everything was OK?
Even though I’m a fiscal conservative, I left the Grand Old Party because of Trump’s racism and the GOP’s other questionable state actions. For instance, Kemp and the Georgia legislature prohibited the removal of Confederate monuments, frustrating the efforts of Georgia’s larger cities to relocate them. I’m still hoping that Herschel Walker will someday look at the record of these GOP office holders and at long last, wake up.
- Have a comment? Send to: elliott@brack.net
United Community Bank
The public spiritedness of our sponsors allows us to bring GwinnettForum.com to you at no cost to readers. Today’s underwriting sponsor is United Community Bank, with 30 offices within Metro Atlanta. Headquartered in Blairsville, Ga., it is the third-largest traditional bank holding company in the state with more than 150 locations throughout Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee and South Carolina. Since 1950, United Community Bank has been dedicated to providing platinum-level service to its customers as the foundation of every relationship. Known as The Bank That SERVICE Built℠, it is committed to improving the lives of residents in the communities it serves through this philosophy of delivering exceptional banking service. In Gwinnett, the bank has offices in Lawrenceville, Snellville and Buford.
- For more information, visit https://www.ucbi.com or call 770 237 0007.
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Never say “Yes” when getting annoying spam telephone calls
Editor, the Forum:
Good article, Raleigh! My iPhone alerts me to possible scams in red letters above the calling number. It also gives me the option to scroll down and block future calls from that number. Unfortunately, these callers usually have several numbers so I go through the same procedure repeatedly.
If you should pick up one of these calls from an unfamiliar number, answer “Speaking.” Never, never say “Yes.” In fact, except for familiar calls, train yourself to answer “speaking,” when they ask is this…? Do not say “Yes” at any time during the call. Scammers can lift your “yes” and paste it into another part of the conversation and use it against you.
Also, delete those advertising emails or move them to junk…don’t open them. If you do, you’re on their list (and everybody else they sell your address to). A friend of mine accumulated 21,000 of these lovelies! Funny? NOT! Thanks for your important commentary.
— Keni Woodruff, Lithonia
Rants about people protesting about having to stay home
Editor, the Forum:
May I rant too? Can I ask those who are in the streets protesting, not those who limit their time out or staying at home, why they are in such a hurry to open everything? Are they not giving thought as to who they may contact and either get infected or pass the infection on to others? Are they that selfish and bored?
Are they really that concerned about our economy? I think each and every one of us needs to take a step back, meditate on why we are so restless. Or are we being egged on by those who are selfish and greedy? Does everyone who protests have such a herd mentality that they just allow themselves to follow bad advice because they are bored by staying home?
I’m bored too, but I’m not going out just to be going out to prove a point that I can go out. When I do go out, I’m wearing a mask. I do not want your germs. And that is what this virus is, a germ, a mean nasty germ which doesn’t care who it infects and possibly kills.
— Sara Rawlins, Lawrenceville
Dear Sara: “Thank you for your rant. You may now sit down.”–eeb
Anticipating long-term global consequences from pandemic
Editor, the Forum:
Some 184 countries have been contaminated by the COVID-19 virus. Imagine the lawsuits; many countries have announced actions. If only the Wuhan regime had shared knowledge weeks earlier, some maintain that 95 percent of the damage would have been avoided. Trillions of dollars are lost…oil falls to a negative value…recognize that Russia needs $50/barrel to support its economy. The Middle East is collapsing with oil its only product. Fracking contracts in America will find bankruptcy without support.
Immense pressure of all types sweeps aside past constructs and open doors to new alliances. With things opening up here, the North American regional agreements may serve well to reclaim important manufacturing that is strategic to all the countries involved.
China, on the other hand, may find itself in a crossfire of problems of existing companies and a legal quagmire. Europe may rethink that 5-G deal. The World Trade Organization may see some alterations. Internal problems may begin here.
Regardless of what actually happens, we should expect change and volatility.
— Byron Gilbert, Duluth
Send us your thoughts: We encourage you to send us your letters and thoughts on issues raised in GwinnettForum. Please limit comments to 300 words. We reserve the right to edit for clarity and length. Send feedback and letters to: elliott@brack.net
Commission continues meeting while at social distancing
Despite the challenges associated with COVID-19, the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners is continuing to conduct its business remotely. Commissioners have held regular work and business sessions to approve projects, sign off on contracts, and set policy, while complying with social distancing recommendations.
For work sessions and business sessions, some commissioners are at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center while others connect by computer or by smartphone. The board canceled evening public hearings to limit in-person gatherings.
On March 17, the board approved a $17 million resurfacing contract and accepted $7 million in state grant funds for resurfacing. The board also approved contracts to build the Lloyd Harris Trail at Harbins Park and the Water Tower Global Innovation Hub at Gwinnett. On April 7, they approved a transit plan to be submitted to The Atlanta-Regional Transit Link Authority. Then on April 14, the board met virtually to discuss upcoming budget priorities.
Three Gwinnett cities halt big gatherings through July 10
In an effort to further reduce the community spread of COVID-19, the cities of Duluth, Lawrenceville, and Suwanee have collectively agreed to halt hosting large-scale public events on city properties through July 10, 2020.
Nancy Harris, Duluth Mayor, says: “With summer quickly approaching, we have to make hard decisions regarding large scale events now. We hate to cancel our July Third celebration, but for an event of this scale the planning needs to happen now and there are simply too many unknowns.”
City Manager Chuck Warbington of Lawrenceville and City Manager Marty Allen of Suwanee both had similar thoughts. “Should circumstances change we will respond appropriately and adjust accordingly,” Allen added.
City officials continue to closely follow events associated with the outbreak and spread of COVID-19, as well as recommendations from public health officials and state and federal government.
Duluth resident is new owner of Gwinnett Daily Post
The Gwinnett Daily Post now has a Gwinnett owner.
Veteran newspaper executive Mike Gebhart of Duluth has purchased the majority ownership in Southern Community Newspapers Inc., parent company of the Gwinnett Daily Post and six sister newspapers, and digital operations consisting of a number of related websites.
Gebhart
Gebhart purchased the newspapers and web operations from a New York-based private equity firm that has owned the majority stake in the company since 2008. He lives in Duluth and works out of the Lawrenceville office, where SCNI headquarters is based.
Gebhart has been chief operating officer and executive vice president of SCNI since 2007. Other newspapers in the group include the Albany Herald, Clayton News-Daily, Henry Herald, Jackson Progress-Argus, Newton Citizen and Rockdale Citizen.
Gebhart is a native of St. Louis, Mo. He graduated from Missouri Baptist University in 1978 and did graduate work for an MBA at St. Louis University and Webster University prior to beginning a professional career in the newspaper industry with the Suburban Journals in St. Louis. His career took him to senior-level positions at media outlets in New Jersey, Connecticut, Philadelphia, Michigan and Georgia. Gebhart and his wife Nancy, also a native of St. Louis, have three children and nine grandchildren.
Gebhart moved to Georgia in 2004 when he joined the Albany Herald as vice president and general manager. He was promoted to president and publisher Oct. 1, 2005. In November 2007, he was named the COO and executive vice president of SCNI, with responsibility for the entire media division consisting of seven newspapers and several websites. He also serves as treasurer of the Georgia Press Association.
Jackson EMC Foundation announces emergency food grants
The Jackson EMC Foundation board of directors awarded a total $100,000 in emergency funding grants to organizations responding to the impacts of COVID-19 during its April meeting, including $40,000 to organizations serving Gwinnett County.
- $20,000 to Atlanta Community Food Bank, in Gwinnett, to purchase food.
- $20,000 to North Gwinnett Cooperative to purchase food and provide assistance with medications for Gwinnett residents.
Jackson EMC Foundation grants are made possible by the 195,551 participating cooperative members who have their monthly electric bills rounded to the next dollar amount through the Operation Round Up program. Their “spare change” has funded 1,524 grants to organizations and 386 grants to individuals, putting more than $15.6 million back into local communities since the program began in 2005.
Arguing with Zombies by Paul Krugman
From Raleigh Perry, Buford: I like Paul Krugman. Therein lies my bias. The book is divided into 18 topics and each is expanded by articles that he has written over a period of years that relate to the individual topic. I like the format of the book. It is easy to read one topic, put the book down, and then read the next one on the next day, if you want. Krugman writes OpEd articles for The New York Times. His style of writing is not the normal style of an economist, which can easily be boring. His style is much more lively. The book is published by Norton and should be available at your favorite bookstore.
An invitation: what books, restaurants, movies or web sites have you enjoyed recently? Send us your recent selection, along with a short paragraph (150 words) as to why you liked this, plus what you plan to visit or read next. Send to: elliott@brack.net
“Georgia Platform” helps bring about compromise in 1850
With the nation facing the potential threat of disunion over the passage of the Compromise of 1850, Georgia, in a special state convention, adopted a proclamation called the “Georgia Platform.” The act was instrumental in averting a national crisis. Slavery had been at the core of sectional tensions between the North and South. New territorial gains, westward expansion, and the hardening of regional attitudes toward the spread of slavery provoked a potential crisis of the Union, which in many ways portended the tragic events of the 1860s. In 1850, however, compromise and conciliation remained viable alternatives to secession and war.
There were many southerners in the decades before the Civil War (1861-65) who preferred disunion over any concessions on slavery. These radicals, often known as “fire-eaters,” called on the South to reject the Compromise of 1850 as an assault on the constitutional right of slavery. As in the nullification crisis of 1832, South Carolina led the protest. Immediate secessionists were numerous throughout Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. Georgia was best prepared to respond to events, having established a provision for a special convention to deliberate alternatives; the convention, held in Milledgeville, would be a testament to the skill and moderation of a handful of Georgia statesmen.
Howell Cobb, Alexander Stephens, and Robert Toombs represented Georgia in Congress and wielded a great deal of political influence within the state. Their roles in these events not only aided the passage of the Compromise of 1850 in Washington but also ensured the defeat of the radical secessionists in Georgia. The culmination of their efforts was the Georgia Platform.
The November elections for the special convention to be held in December 1850 demonstrated an overwhelming support for the pro-Union position in Georgia. Of the 264 delegates to the convention, 240 were Unionists. In a five-day session the convention drafted an official response to the tensions threatening the Union. Only 19 delegates voted against the Georgia Platform. The genius of the document lay in its balance of Southern rights and a devotion to the Union.
The platform established Georgia’s conditional acceptance of the Compromise of 1850. Much of the document followed a draft written by Charles Jones Jenkins and represented a collaboration between Georgia Whigs and moderate Democrats dedicated to preserving the Union. In effect, the proclamation accepted the measures of the compromise so long as the North complied with the Fugitive Slave Act and would no longer attempt to ban the expansion of slavery into new territories and states. Northern contempt for these conditions, the platform warned, would make secession inevitable.
This qualified endorsement of the Compromise of 1850 essentially undermined the movement for immediate secession throughout the South. Newspapers across the nation credited Georgia with saving the Union. Nevertheless, the conditions upon which the Georgia Platform rested would fail the tests of time, bringing in the next decade a replay of events with different results—secession and war.
- To view the Georgia Encyclopedia article online, go to http://georgiaencyclopedia.org
Identify person depicted in statue in Mystery competition
Today’s Mystery Photo is of a man sitting on a statue. Your job will be to tell us where this photo was taken, and the significance of the person. Tell us where it’s located by sending to elliott@brack.net, including your hometown.
Allan Peel of San Antonio, Tex. gave the most complete and best answer to the recent Mystery Photo. The photograph came via Susan McBrayer of Sugar Hill, while the photo was taken by Sylvia Elliott of Winterville, Ga., when she was in Edinburgh recently.
Peel wrote: “This photo contains two separate historical landmarks in the Old Calton Burial Ground in Edinburgh, Scotland. First is a statue of Abraham Lincoln, called the Scottish-American Soldier’s Monument (also called the American Civil War Memorial) while the second, circular structure is the David Hume Mausoleum.
“The Scottish-American Soldiers Monument was dedicated on August 21, 1893 to all of the Scottish-American men who fought and died in the American Civil War. Depicting a standing figure of Abraham Lincoln, with a freed slave giving thanks at his feet, it is a focal point of the Old Calton Burial Ground. The sculptures were by George Edwin Bissell and the stonework by Stewart McGlashan & Son. This memorial has a number of unique attributes: it is the only monument dedicated to the American Civil War outside the United States; it was the first statue dedicated to a US President outside of the USA; and it is the only statue of Abraham Lincoln in Scotland.
“Also visible to the left in the mystery photo is the David Hume Mausoleum by Robert Adam. David Hume (1711–1776), was a historian and philosopher and the author of ‘Treatise of Human Nature’. He was well known across Europe in the 18th century, and a critical figure in the intellectual and scientific accomplishments of the ‘Scottish Enlightenment’. According to Wikipedia, Hume had requested in his will that a “Monument be built over my body … with an inscription containing only my name and the year of my birth and death, leaving it to posterity to add the rest.” The tomb, a large cylindrical tower, was located at a non-denominational site since Hume was a self-declared atheist. Because of his lack of religious beliefs, his grave had to be guarded for eight days after burial, because of strong public hostility towards him at the time of his death.”
Also getting the mystery correct were Jim Savadelis of Duluth; Tom Fort of Snellville; and George Graf of Palmyra, Va.
Gwinnett library presents author Danler in virtual talk
The Gwinnett County Public library is presenting novelist Stephanie Danler in a virtual talk on May 15 at 7 p.m. She is the author of the international bestseller, Sweetbitter. Her latest memoir, Stray, is a lucid examination of what we inherit and what we don’t have to, of what we have to face in ourselves to move forward, and what it’s like to let go of one’s parents in order to find a peace – and family – of one’s own. To join the talk, click here (Stephanie Danler) and use the password 476777
To view previously recorded author and speaker programs, please visit the GCPL Virtual Author & Speaker Series. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday a different video will be featured. Check back to virtually meet the authors and speakers that have visited GCPL over the years. Episodes cover a variety of subjects including fiction, non-fiction, fantasy, thrillers, romance, cooking, sports, and more.
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