Tag Archives: Economy

How did we get here? —JC Cunningham

Received Friday. -jsq
Things really have not changed have they? There are still people out there who believe they can force their will on the people regardless of the circumstances. I still cannot believe that we are here. Consolidation, Unification, where did this come from? What mind first came up with this idea and what is the real motive behind it?

Eight months ago when I heard that Rusty Griffin and his merry band of followers were once again trying to force unification down peoples throats, I never thought it would catch on and would just fizzle away. Oh, how wrong.

Over the months this consolidation issue that I thought would never gain steam is now on the ballot and could possible pass this Nov. 8th.

I have seen this thing divide friends, families, co-workers and even

Continue reading →

Consolidation has nothing to do with improving our children’s education —Etta Mims

Received Thursday. -jsq
I know that there are many “newcomers” to the area which supported consolidation until they connected the dots and realized this has nothing to do with improving our children’s education.

See also Valwood, CUEE, and the Chamber.

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Solar: Infinite and Clean —Michael Noll

In today’s VDT. -jsq
If we are to believe Fox News and the Tea Party, solar doesn’t work because the solar panel manufacturer Solyndra went belly up, despite the fact that it received $535 million in subsidies. While wasting an enormous amount of tax dollars on a company with a flawed business concept should raise everyone’s eyebrows, the conclusion that the Solyndra mess means “solar doesn’t work” is mind-boggling. It’s like saying “cars don’t work” because Chrysler went bankrupt in 2009, or “T-shirts don’t work” because Fruit of the Loom filed for Chapter 11 in 1999.

Solar is one of the most attractive renewable sources of energy throughout

Continue reading →

…to give to somebody who didn’t work —Nolen Cox @ LCC 27 Sep 2011

Nolen Cox seems to think CHIP grant recipients don’t work.

Chairman Paulk declined to let Mrs. Cox speak because he said in a letter to the Commission she called them idiots. When he let Nolen Cox speak, Cox said:

I think it’s interesting that the comments about the CHIP grant comes after the vote. Y’all must be an all-wise group.
Chairman Paulk referred to that as sarcastic. Cox disagreed. Paulk said it was in his opinion and he decided such things there.

Cox asserted that:

to get a $300,000 grant it takes about $420,000 of tax money accumulated from citizens.
He didn’t cite any source for those figures. He did claim the Commission was luring people into homebuying while home prices are going down.
Somebody had to work for the money that they didn’t get to give to somebody who didn’t work.
Sounds like he was saying CHIP grant recipients don’t work. I wonder how they pay their mortgages then, since CHIP grants as near as I can tell only help with down payments?

I guess he didn’t hear Carolyn Selby’s point that CHIP grants turn renters into property tax-paying owners. Seems like that would help keep Nolen Cox’s property taxes low.

Here’s the video: Continue reading →

Thanks for accepting the CHIP grant —Carolyn Selby @ LCC 27 Sep 2011

Carolyn Selby stood up to thank the Commission for accepting the Community HOME Investment Program (CHIP) grant.
This grant will serve people who are in the 80% or below median income bracket. These people probably would not be able to afford purchasing a house without down payment assistance. And especially in today’s economic times these people need a hand up. Instead of renters, they become taxpayers, and that certainly helps our economy.

Here’s the video:


Thanks for accepting the CHIP grant –Carolyn Selby @ LCC 27 Sep 2011
Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 27 September 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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CHIP Grant: Twice Ashley Paulk Broke the Tie @ LCC 27 September 2011

Twice Tuesday Ashley Paulk broke a tie to vote for assistance state-funded assistance for poor people for affordable housing. Joyce Evans made the motion, Crawford Powell said nothing, Richard Raines was absent, and Paulk seconded and broke the tie for.

Tuesday the Lowndes County Commission considered a routine acceptance of a Community HOME Investment Program (CHIP) grant. The previous morning at the work session, Commissioner Raines had (according to the VDT) said he was against it. (This is the same Richard Raines who thought NOAA Weather Radios were “wasteful spending” back in March.) However, Raines was not at the regular session Tuesday; presumably he was on one of his many sales trips. Twice, Commissioner Evans made a motion related to CHIP, and Commissioner Powell did nothing. Twice, Chairman Paulk exercised his privilege in such a case and broke the tie, seconding and voting for the CHIP grant.

The first CHIP vote was 9.a. Resolution of Intent to Submit a 2012 CHIP Grant Application and Commitment Letter

Here’s Part 1 of 2: Continue reading →

Commission votes to subsidize saddle club

Tuesday the Lowndes County Commission voted to renew a land lease contract with a saddle club for I’m pretty sure they said $100 a year. Commissioner Powell made the motion. Yet he said nothing at all a few minutes before and after when two votes came up about routine acceptance of a Community HOME Investment Program (CHIP) grant to help relatively less affluent people afford housing. Commissioner Raines, who grandstanded about CHIP the previous morning at the work session, apparently had no problem with the saddle club subsidy. He didn’t show up Tuesday to vote for or against either.

Now I have nothing against the saddle club; I know little about it. It’s the double standard that bothers me.

If you have trouble hearing what is said in this video, thank the Commissioners for the award they gave LAKE.

Here’s the video:


Commission votes to subsidize saddle club
Regular Session, Lowndes County Commission (LCC),
Valdosta, Lowndes County, Georgia, 27 September 2011.
Videos by Gretchen Quarterman for LAKE, the Lowndes Area Knowledge Exchange.

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Valwood, CUEE, and the Chamber

This interesting graphic found on 2 is better than 1 illustrates that the connections between CUEE and Valwood go beyond what Annie Fisher pointed out,
“The members of the CUEE, they send their children to private schools.”
Beyond what Alex Rowell pointed out, that several CUEE board and supporters are Valwood trustees or donors. The Chamber is also closely tied to Valwood.

The Chamber and Valwood are actually even more tightly coupled than the graphic indicates. According to Valwood’s own website:

Valwood Board Elects Officers and Trustees
May 27, 2011

Valwood’s Board of Trustees is pleased to announce that it has elected the following officers who, along with Tom Gooding as Immediate Past Chairman and Dutton Miller as “Chairman’s Choice,” will serve on the Board’s Executive Committee for the coming school year:

Terri Lupo – Chairman of the Board
Billy Tidmore – Vice Chairman/Chairman Elect
Jack Henry – Treasurer/Chairman of Finance Committee
Jim Godbee – Secretary
Also, the Board of Trustees has re-elected the following Trustees to 3 year terms beginning July 1:
Brooks AkinsLaura Perlman
Mike GodwinSally Querin
Tom GoodingApril Scruggs
Bill Peeples

Now let’s look at the Chamber’s board. Tom Gooding is the Chamber’s Chair, and Terri Lupo is on the board, and is the Chamber’s immediate past Chair. That’s right, Gooding and Lupo just switched spots (Chair and past Chair) with both the Chamber and Valwood.

Plus as the above graphic points out, there are further intersections between the Chamber board and CUEE supporters. So the Chamber, CUEE, and Valwood are tightly intercoupled.

It seems we have a group of private school supporters trying to take over both the local public school systems. Does that seem right to you?

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Local leadership nets $1.5 billion solar project

That’s 400 MW of solar power in twenty 20 MW PV plants, just across the state line in Gadsden County, Florida. Plus ongoing jobs, expanded education, private sources of investment, and customers for the electricity.

According to SolarServer quoting a National Solar press release yesterday, National Solar Power chooses Gadsden County, Florida for 400 MW PV project

The company estimates that the 400 MW project will create 400 jobs during the five-year construction phase and up to 120 permanent operations jobs.
And that’s not all. According to Solar Energy News today, Plan to build $1.5bn solar farm in Florida, Continue reading →

18 years later in Troup County

“Unification” of LaGrange City and Troup County schools was in 1993. Eighteen years later, it’s still a mess.

Natalie Shelton wrote March 2011 for LaGrange Daily News Online, Parents: Seek other options to school consolidation

In considering the change at West Side, officials noted in last year’s budget proposal talks that about 73 percent of its students are bus riders, brought from all parts of the county. The school posts a per-student transportation cost of $1,198, more than twice the zone average of $529.

“Why is West Side so important to the county?” parent Brandi Kennedy asked. “You have buses picking up kids all over the county to go to West Side.”

Because children are chosen to attend the magnet school through a lottery, Kennedy said she couldn’t understand funding the fine-arts focus of the school when it is not more prestigious than other county schools.

There are some unhappy parents and students: Continue reading →