To the Editor:

To the EMTs, Fire Department Personnel, First Responders and Volunteers:
The Thrasher Family at 1200 Shake Rag Road on Thursday the 21st of February would like to give them all a “Big Thank You” for the response time and great service that was given to our mother after her fall in her home and when she went into shock!
Thank you,

Ernie and Theresa Thrasher
Mike and Star Huff
Buckhead
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Printed in the March 7, 2013 edition

To the Editor:

Response to Dr. Jim Malanowski's statement in the article "95 percent pass state high school writing test” dated Dec. 13, 2012:
I graduated from the former Madison County School, Pearl High with honors and I’m now a retired school social worker. I was pleased to see that Morgan County High School has continued to be a high-performing institution with 95 percent of the students passing the state’s high school writing test. However, I am appalled by comments from the now-principal, Dr. Jim Malanowski, who said he initially thought the discrepancy between scores for male and female students was the result of “an African-American situation."
It is infuriating that in this day and age an educator would jump to such a conclusion without any proof and perpetuate the theory that African-American males are not high achievers and are most likely to have lower test scores than white students. Has he checked out who’s in the White House lately?
And if the test discrepancy had been the result of an “African-American male situation,” what would Dr. Malanowski be willing to do to change the outcome?  Based on his comments, I think the principal is surely in need of cultural competency training. Parents should be outraged that the school leadership would have the audacity to make such a statement and apparently thinks it is OK. 
These types of statements heighten my concern regarding the lack of black teachers and administrators in Morgan County High School. Parents and students deserve a faculty that reflects a diverse community and works to support all students from all backgrounds.
Concerned Citizen,

Gerri Franklin Williams
Madison
Via e-mail

Printed in the March 7, 2013 edition

To the Editor:

This is for all Morgan County Citizens: Concerning the two proposed school calendars put forth to the BOE. These proposals have been put together by a Task Force of mostly people who work for the school system, with a few parents and business leaders, these people govern over when our children start school, how many breaks they get, and when school ends. As a Morgan County taxpayer, I believe we should have a say in this. I am against the two proposed plans that begin the school year way too early, and have devised my own proposal to have the students begin after the Labor Day Holiday. This plan will not interfere with any of the standardized testing that the kids are required to take. If you agree with the children starting school after Labor Day, I am suggesting you e-mail school board member Dave Belton and let him know you would like to have this third proposal heard. His e-mail is davebelton6@bellsouth.net. If you want to hear my proposal, please contact me; I am in the phone book, e-mail address is kacres42@bellsouth.net, and I will be happy to share with you. I will also be making calls to the good citizens of our county. Thank you.

Kim Acres
Buckhead
Via e-mail

Printed in the February 28, 2013

To the Editor:

I took my 13-year-old daughter to Morgan Memorial yesterday, 2/22/13, at 4:10 p.m. She had come home in severe pain in the ear, neck and head. She was taken back, but no weight was taken, just BP and oxygen levels. The "doctor" came in the room, looked in her ear and wrote a script, as well as telling me to give her four to six ibuprofen every four to six hours. My daughter was in visible pain, crying, on the verge of screaming. Nothing else was done. No pain meds were given, no comfort by the staff, NOTHING. As a mother it infuriated me that this "doctor" didn't care that she was hurting. A CHILD WAS HURTING. The prescription that was given was given on a guess for weight. This in itself is dangerous along with the ibuprofen which, had I not known better, would have caused her liver damage. Why is the care at a hospital we are supposed to trust and our tax dollars support so bad? I took my daughter to her primary care physician today who was appalled and furious at how my daughter was treated. He fixed the prescription and, with a shot of penicillin, she should be better soon. I am sure I am not the only parent who has gone through this at this hospital and won't be the last.

Miriam Goodman
Madison
Via e-mail

Printed in the February 28, 2013

To the Editor:

Paul Ryan and Marco Rubio’s mouths’ got dry while telling lies. Ryan during the vice presidential debate with Joe Biden, where he kept stuttering and sweating and drinking copious amounts of water. Rubio was constantly licking his lips during his Republican response to the president’s State of the Union address and had to use a water bottle to keep from choking on his lies. Actions speak louder than words and body language says a lot. People get hung up on words and ideologies and political and social views believing those things have real substance. But why get emotionally caught up on words when the truth is starring you in the face?
If your child is lying to you and you’re a good parent it doesn’t matter what you feel or think about your child. They’re lying and that’s all that counts. You can’t allow strong feelings for that child to cloud your judgment. If they keep lying eventually they loose your trust. How is that any different than politics or social issued? Bad parents ignore all the danger signs and make excuses for their children’s bad behavior just like voters make excuses for their own parties’ bad behavior. But in the end you’re only hurting your child, yourself and your country. So when the truth gets you down and excuses don’t work and your mouth gets dry and sticky do like Ryan and Rubio take two lie pills and drink plenty of water.

Christopher Murray
Madison
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Printed in the February 28, 2013

To the Editor:

If Chris Murray has fired the M-60 and M16A-2 in the military, he should know that those weapons are machine guns that fire more than one bullet out of the barrel with each pull of the trigger. He claims that these military only guns are what gun enthusiasts are wanting to protect from proposed bans on “assault weapons,” such as Sen. Diane Feinstein’s (Dem. Calif) S150 bill.
Mr. Murray is either horribly confused on this or is trying to confuse the readers. Machine guns have been under strict federal control since the 1930s and the days of  Al Capone and Bonny and Clyde.
Some of the current crop of civilian legal assault guns that you may purchase at Franklin’s Sports in Athens or at Walmart may look like machine guns, but are semi-auto only, firing just one bullet for every trigger pulled.   
Mr. Murray can learn about this technical difference by ordering a free manual published by ATF, (Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms), entitled Federal Firearms Regulation Reference Guide, ATF pub. 5300.4

George H. West
Madison
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Printed in the February 14, 2013 edition