By Heather Loveridge, Dacula, Ga. | The third annual Christmas in Dacula, to be held on December 3 from 12-8 p.m., will be hosted by Hebron Church, located on the corner of Fence and Dacula Roads. The 2016 Christmas promises to provide even more family fun than last year’s event. Presented by the Dacula Business Association and the City of Dacula, the 2015 Christmas in Dacula drew close to 10,000 attendees.
By Andy Brack, Charleston, S.C. | Wasn’t the presidential election supposed to be rigged?
Had Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton, who garnered just over 350,000 votes more than the GOP’s Donald Trump out of 120 million cast across the country, won the electoral college, we wouldn’t hear the end of the election being rigged.
By Pat Boone, Duluth, Ga. | A resident of Gwinnett for three years, here are the three suggestions I have for improving the county.
First, the county should raise the littering fine, and make it a dollar amount or as an alternative, allow the litterer to pick up trash. For example, let them decide to pay $1,000 or 10 hours picking up trash. It’s been my experience that people who pick up other people’s trash stop littering.
By Peter Boyce, Dacula, Ga. | Law enforcement has been thrust into a role of crisis intervention when confronted with persons suffering from mental illness and/or drug induced behavior.
The media now asserts that the police, as first responders who frequently confront individuals with severe mental illness or who are under the influence of drugs, must fulfill a legal obligation to protect the safety and welfare of the community as well as assess and safeguard the rights of people with disabilities such as mental illness or drug induced behavior.
By Chelsea Bohannon | A holiday classic fit for the entire family, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol returns to Aurora Theatre this holiday season, November 25 –December 23! The timeless tale of miserly Ebenezer Scrooge (Anthony Rodriguez) and his quest for forgiveness unfolds in an unforgettable journey of transformation through Christmas past, present and future. Deemed one of the greatest Christmas stories of all time, audiences of all ages will delight in the spirit of the season as they revisit the splendor of what makes this production a holiday tradition.
By Renee Unterman, Buford, Ga. | On October 18, the FBI announced over 239 arrests for trafficking and prostitution as part of Operation Cross Country X, a nationwide initiative conducted in partnership with local law enforcement agencies. Nearly 70 of those arrests were from locations in Georgia including Alpharetta, Marietta, Dunwoody and Gwinnett County.
By Dick Goodman, Lilburn, Ga. | There is one thing the other speakers this afternoon didn’t mention: the important role of libraries in our community and in our definition of who we are as Americans.
Libraries were not always as convenient as they are today, but we all have memories as children of going to a library. But libraries weren’t always accessible. In some communities they just didn’t exist, or they weren’t open to ordinary people.
By Melita Easters, Georgia’s WIN List, Atlanta, Ga. | As citizens vote early in record numbers, women will be the deciding factor as polls and political pundits increasingly predict Georgians will vote blue for the first time since 1992.
This shift is not entirely unpredictable. Legislative seats and private sector leadership positions held by women are leading indicators for a strong Georgia progressive streak. This is obscured by the fact that all statewide offices, the majority of congressional seats and House and Senate majorities are held by Republicans, who in Georgia are predominantly pale and male.
By Alan Chapman, Director, Gwinnett County Department of Transportation | The Citizens Project Selection Committee (CPSC) has recommended funding allocations for 10 categories of road improvements to be funded by the proposed 2017 Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax.
Developing these allocations was the initial task of the newly formed CPSC. If the SPLOST is approved by voters on November 8, the CPSC will reconvene to discuss project priorities to recommend to the Board of Commissioners. Projects will be selected from the list of potential projects developed in conjunction with update of the County’s Comprehensive Transportation Plan.
“We are born charming, fresh and spontaneous and must be civilized before we are fit to participate in society.”
– Etiquette Authority Judith Martin (1938 – ), also known as Miss Manners.
Gwinnett Forum publisher Elliott Brack suggests that Gwinnett County needs a long-range list of continuing objectives for improving the county. His list:
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