opinions
Hazlehurst 2030 — By John Reed
Hazlehurst 2030 I’ve mentioned before that next year will mark our 150th anniversary. There was a big hoopla in 1995 for the “Cen-Silver” 125th, but very little seems to be planned for this next milestone. Since there’s less interest in the past, let’s look at some potential headlines from the next decade. 2021: The Weatherly…
Read MoreHazlehurst Needs A City Manager
The Mayor paid me a visit last week after I wrote my column about the coming traffic light at the intersection of Miller and Coffee streets. I ended the column by saying the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) would not pay the $150,000-plus cost of the traffic light. I was wrong. While GDOT, from 2001…
Read MoreTraffic Lights Are Not Safety Devices — By Tommy Purser
There was much hullabaloo several years back from people who wanted a traffic light installed at the intersection of Miller and Coffee streets. Concerned citizens came to a City Council meeting to lobby for the light when I was a member of the City Council. I explained to them that a traffic light is not…
Read MoreWhat If? — By John Reed
What If? What if the Democrats get their wish and succeed in unseating President Trump? Vice president Mike Pence would then move up. Those folks should be careful what they wish for: Pence is even more conservative than Trump. What if our local school board passed a single mill additional property tax, and applied it…
Read MoreYou Get What You Pay For — By John Reed
You Get What You Pay For I spent a long weekend in Boston recently, and came away impressed. Folks who don’t hail from the Northeast tend to think of the cities up there as dirty, crime-infested hellholes. While I’m sure there are sections of town where it wouldn’t be wise to hang out alone after…
Read MoreDeer Hunting — By Tommy Purser
I haven’t been deer hunting in years. As a younger man, I was consumed by it, getting up well before daylight, tromping into the woods, climbing a stand and rarely having any luck. I remember my first two deer kills in particular: one was ugly and the other dumb as dirt. The ugly deer might…
Read MoreWhich English Is Correct? — By John Reed
Which English Is Correct? Those of you of a certain age will remember the newscaster Edwin Newman. In addition to a long career in radio and television, he wrote books and columns on the proper use of the English language. During his time, there were few disagreements about what was meant by “proper English.” These…
Read MoreThanks To Emergency Personnel — By Tommy Purser
It looks like we’ll be spared extremely bad weather from Hurricane Dorian. I stopped by the local Emergency Management Agency office Tuesday to get an update on what to expect and my friend David Miller jokingly asked me to put something good in the paper about them — meaning the emergency responders of which David…
Read MoreLooking Back — By Barnie O’Quinn
Many of my travels across the South I go through small towns. One thing i have learned to look forward to is their old (deserted) 1929 era water tanks. Those tanks are approaching 90 to 100 years old. Some cities (Folkston) have theirs on the city’s historic tour, well kept in appearance. Generally, they “tell”…
Read MoreMedical Minute — By Dr. Kirk Munsayac
I pride myself in being a “man.” Thusly, I never imagined being an owner of a dog species that ended in the word “doodle.” Yet here I sit, owner of a doodle dog. My “Hazel” is a high energy doodle dog (and a gorgeous pretty lady) that knows no stranger and because of that personality…
Read More