Oh Lord! I'm going to be in trouble with some folks over this one.  Here's what they'll say: "How can we offer the kinds of services the community wants by having lower taxes? We NEED tax revenues to pay for the government we've already got!" Of course, my first reaction is "Well, we've already got more government than we need and can pay for!" BUT, I won't even go there. Let's stick with premise that Cobb Countians actually WANT all the government we're having to rob Peter to pay Paul for. Listen up! If we do this right, we'll never have to sneak another $20 million tax increase hidden in …

Did Tim Lee cause the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus to snub the Walton High School and Lassiter High School choral programs? Why would I ask such a preposterous question? After years of routine inclusion, the ASO Chorus has excluded these two outstanding choral programs. Granted, the ASO has come back and "clarified" its action. Apparently it didn't REALLY mean Walton and Lassiter were not "diverse" enough, it just wants to "include" a school from the inner city.  Still, the original statement is usually the closest to the truth and everything else is spin or CYA. If you've been around …

Bill Byrne's proposal to create a City of East Cobb is about as bad an idea as I’ve heard from a Cobb County politician in years, maybe decades. Why in the world would the residents of East Cobb want to incorporate their own city? Sure, I’ve seen the trend over the last few years of voters in unincorporated Fulton and DeKalb counties choose to incorporate their communities as cities separate from the behemoth Governments of their respective counties.   And for areas like North Fulton, especially, I have seen the absolute disconnect and lack of concern for anything but the tax revenues …

To hear supporters of the T-SPLOST speak, if the T-SPLOST does not pass, not only will the Atlanta area no longer be attractive to companies looking to relocate, we'll actually start running companies off that are already located here. How preposterous! For decades now, the Atlanta REGION has been a destination for companies to locate facilities here. Several have even relocated their corporate headquarters here. Many of those, though, have located regional offices here, primarily in Atlanta's suburbs. Over all those years, there has NEVER been rail transit EXCEPT in Fulton and Dekalb …

OK. This will be my last mention of the upcoming TSPLOST vote on July 31. Throughout the whole campaign for the TSPLOST, we've been told that regional cooperation is needed in order for all of us to prosper and thrive. In other words, those of us living "outside the perimeter" should buck up and vote in favor of TSPLOST because if we don't, it could mean lost jobs and economic development opportunities. To which I say "Baloney!" Just this week, the cable TV business network CNBC rated Georgia as the 9th best state in the country for business partly BECAUSE of infrastructure and transportation…

It's the weirdest phenomenon I think I've ever seen. We set goals, make plans and work hard to create a life that is simple and as stress-free as possible. Yet it seems like the same things that we thought would set us free actually enslave us over time to a life of strife, worry and fear.Who knows when or how or where it starts? You see it as early as elementary school. Kids compare what they have or wear with their classmates. By the time they're in high school, it's cars and clothes. Then, it's getting into the best college. It seems to take a break when we get our first full-time job. …

Over the last few years, we’ve seen unprecedented drops in property values and depletion of tax revenues generated from property taxes. I guess there are many reasons for this, including the crash of an over-inflated housing market, incredible foreclosure rates and a recovery that has never really happened.   So communities find themselves with millions of dollars of real estate without owners who are not paying income taxes AND a tax base that is literally shrinking before their very eyes. Because communities are generally not allowed to run a deficit, many opt to simply raise taxes instead …

So much has been said recently about the upcoming TSPLOST referendum that would raise sales taxes for 10 metro Atlanta counties under the guise of providing a "regional solution" to Atlanta's traffic congestion. Obviously, everything we hear from the proponents of the TSPLOST is positive both in terms of its projects and its effects.  Not only are we supposed to believe that all of the metro area's economic problems are because of our "traffic congestion." Not only will this proposed $18 BILLION dollar solution solve all of our traffic problems, it will provide "thousands" of jobs, improve …

He doused himself with gasoline and emptied the rest of the can on the floor around him. Then, set himself on fire. He died several hours later but not until his youngest son saw him rolling on the carport floor in agony.  Five years later, she died of liver failure caused by chronic alcohol abuse. Five years apart. Both 43 years of age. How tragic were these two lives. How tragic, too, that three children had to watch these two destroy themselves. It’s been nearly 40 years since my dad killed himself and almost 35 since my mom died of cirrhosis. Over that time, I’ve given lots of thought to …

"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness."  Obviously taken from America's Declaration of Independence, this statement embodies the spirit of East Cobb. "Hokie" you say? "Not at all" say I. I grew up in South Cobb and moved to East Cobb on returning from military service. The East Cobb phenomenon had just begun.  Indian Hills and Parkaire Mall were brand new. We even had an ice skating rink! A short time later, the original …

I work on Good Friday. As long as I’ve been self-employed, I have. I’m also a practicing Christian. An unashamed evangelical Christian at that. So you may ask, “Why in the world would you work on Good Friday and not observe its significance?” But I DO observe the significance of Good Friday by working on that day. I try not to wear my Christianity on my sleeve. Not trying to be self-righteous here. But I know plenty of folks who show off their religiosity like crazy in public and make up for it when no one is looking. Don’t get me wrong. I’m far from perfect and would not want anyone to use …

Funny being a throwback to the days when girls didn't play baseball just to have a daughter who insisted on doing just that. By the time Megan was seven years old, she had watched her brother play baseball for five years. When she said she wanted to play ball, her mom and I signed her up for softball at Terrell Mill Park in East Cobb. If you know anything about Terrell Mill, you know they have a great softball program there, especially girls softball.  Anyway, after one year of girls softball, Megan had decided she'd had enough. At the level she played the girls got five strikes before being …

Man. I miss these late winter days with baseball tryouts and practices. My son is in college now and my daughter quit playing when she turned 10. Since then, I've been consigned to listening to guys at the gym talk about tryouts and their own youth baseball war stories. It seems so long ago that we signed Chris up for baseball at Sewell Park. That's the home of East Marietta National Little League and the 1983 Little League World Champions. I loved it!  We (funny how even the parents are considered part of the team) played there for seven years. It started out with the pitching being done by …

The problem with apologies is that they're simply too late. There's a story about a little boy and his grandfather. It seems the boy had a habit of just saying whatever popped into his consciousness regardless of how it affected others. Over time, the youngster realized he had fewer and fewer friends until one day he found that he had no friends left. As every boy knows, the wisest person in the world is your Grandpa. So, the boy asked his grandpa why none of his friends wanted anything to do with him. Grandpa asked "Why do you think that my be?" The boy pondered the question for awhile. …

All right. Here it is the new year already. Lots of folks are sitting down making resolutions like losing weight, getting organized, blah, blah, blah. Been there. Done that. Didn't even want the T-shirt. While keeping resolutions is not really one of my strong points, I AM pretty good at prognosticating. So I'm going to give it a try. And just to hold me accountable, I'd like for one of you to hold on to these predictions. I'll buy one of you a steak at the end of the year to go back over them. First prediction: Nearly 100 percent of New Year's resolutions will NOT be kept. How's that for …

Over the last two decades, I've played Santa Claus in a variety of situations, mostly for kids at family and office gatherings. One thing I've always found is that Santa always makes people (big and small) loosen up and smile. Certainly, there are those little kids that are scared out of their wits at this odd looking creature with white hair and a bright red suit trying to get them to sit on his lap. It must be like seeing a spaceship land in your yard and being open to an invitation to come on board.  Anyway, I've come to learn that you can't force them to overcome their natural fears. But …

It's looking like economic reality might be the death knell for the proposed TSPLOST measure to be decided by metro Atlanta voters next year. Not only are Cobb voters skeptical of Cobb Commission Chairman Tim Lee's efforts to have us pay for a commuter rail line from Cumberland Mall to Midtown, I-75/575 commuters will soon be enjoying the benefits of variable toll HOT lanes.   While I do believe that tolls and gasoline taxes are the best way to fund road construction, having I-75 and 575 join the HOT lane movement can only hurt the effort of those wishing to impose a sales tax on Cobb County …

It almost seems trite in the midst of hard times to tell folks to be thankful for the small things in their life. Seems kinda like offering gravy without the turkey, dressing or potatoes. These are tumultuous times in America and throughout the world. Even more so are they hard on individuals and families. Many Americans have not seen times these hard in their lifetime. And while appreciating even the small things can offer comfort, it seldom offers the hope, strength and endurance needed to not only survive the hard times but to thrive despite them. Certainly, I’m glad for those things that …

Every three months, I attend a gathering of several hundred of my chiropractic friends to help us stay focused on our mission to help improve the lives of as many people as we possibly can. Since I’ve been doing this for over twenty years, you can imagine that it’s both enjoyable and inspiring. The world can wear you down and drag you down if you let it. Knowing that what we do as “DE chiropractors” can have profound effects on people’s lives way beyond back pain should be enough to keep you going. But, it can be tough. Anyway, at a recent DE meeting a friend from Canada used a metaphor that …

It's funny how you sometimes meet people. Last week, I was having lunch at a local hibachi buffet. As I was enjoying my freshly cooked chicken and veggies, I overheard a conversation at a nearby table. Someone mentioned chiropractors and, of course, my ears popped up.  So as I was leaving the restaurant, I dropped off a card offering a free adjustment for everyone at the table. About two hours later, this elderly gentleman walks into my office and introduces himself. I hardly recognized him because I had only gotten a slight view of his face at the restaurant. Anyway, we exchanged …