Elliott Brack’s Perspective
BRACK: Tragic accident near Savannah raises questions of student travel
By Elliott Brack | The tragic April 22 vehicular pile-up on Interstate 16 near Savannah where five Georgia Southern University nursing students were killed has shocked our state, and has caused concern on the national stage. It may even lead to new legislation regulating heavy transport rigs to push safer highways.
BRACK: Without good people involved, bad government will erupt
By Elliott Brack | All most citizens want in their life is to do their job well, enjoy their family, hopefully take a vacation from time to time, and be a good citizen. All most want out of their government is for it to work in the background by delivering services efficiently, and not cause a stir. That will make them happy.
For the most part, except for some recent exceptions, Gwinnett County governments pretty well do that. Yes, there are from time-to-time some headlines that make the county citizens unhappy, and yes, there are some frictions in one or two municipal governments.
Unfortunately, many citizens don’t involve themselves much with government. Most governments chug along trying to do a good job, and staying our of the headlines when it comes to shenanigans.
BRACK: Unexpected poll on transit gives hope to early test of sentiment
By Elliott Brack | The results of a poll concerning public transportation in Gwinnett, and showing support for MARTA in particular, by the Chamber of Commerce last week, should come as no surprise, though the poll was unexpected. We commend the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce for undertaking the project.
BRACK: Unexpected find turns out to be great book
We stumbled upon quite a treasure the other day, something we did not know was there.
It was a large-format book, in a box of textbooks and other literature, probably from one of our children. Going through this box to help re-stock our Little Free Library (see this archived issue), here was this older book with 86 stunning black-and-white photographs.
BRACK: Loganville retiree writes novels about the South
By Elliott Brack | Who would have thought that years in corporate America would be the business background of a newly-published Gwinnett author?
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Michael Brown, a Loganville resident, has now had two books published. We read his Somewhere a River, a 268 page novel from Deeds Publishing of Atlanta, and found it most enthralling. It is set in Alabama, the story turning around growing up in the South, high school and college football, and the entanglements we can get ourselves in both when younger and afterward. Later parts of the story take place in a different setting……Wyoming, of all places, as a struggling Southerner finds redemption and contentment where he does not expect it. It’s a story, somewhat haunting, that develops out of, and makes sense in, the modern world.
BRACK: Empty rail flat cars, legislative dress, more
By Elliott Brack, editor and publisher | At the rail crossing, I was about six cars back as the Norfolk Southern train rambled southerly. Before the train cleared the crossing, there were about six cars behind me. I was at the crossing about 4-5 minutes, for it was a long train.
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Watching the train glide past the crossing from afar, suddenly I realized that all the rail cars were low, in fact, all were empty flat-bed units. These are the rail cars that haul the multi-modal containers. But why were all the rail cars empty?
Gwinnett Forum | Jan. 3, 2025
“I have learned that our greatest blessings come when we are able to improve the lives of others, and this is especially true when those others are desperately poor or in need.”
–The 39th president of the United States, Jimmy Carter (1924-2024), via Cindy Evans, Duluth.
Continuing objectives
Gwinnett Forum publisher Elliott Brack suggests Gwinnett County needs a long-range list of continuing objectives for improving the county. His 2025 list:
- Move statewide non-partisan judicial and school board elections to the date of the General Election.
- More creative efforts to support the arts in Gwinnett.
- Advancement and expansion of city historical societies.
- Require establishments that serve alcoholic beverages to halt sales of such products at 1 a.m., and close by 2 a.m.
- Require the Georgia Legislature to meet only once every two years.
- Eliminate single-use plastic packaging and straws in Gwinnett and require instead the use of paper products.
- Gwinnett planners to encourage condos and townhouses instead of apartments.
Interested in Gwinnett history?
Now re-printed in its third edition, Gwinnett: A Little Above Atlanta, the award-winning history of Gwinnett County, is once again available for purchase. It sold out of its first two printings. The book won the 2010 Award of Excellence in Documenting Georgia History from the Georgia Historical Records Advisory Board. The book is available at Old Town Antiques at 93 Main Street in Lilburn.
- The history of Gwinnett is also available as an e-book from Amazon or Barnes and Noble for $9.95.
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