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Georgia Air National Guard unit called up for Gulf duty
About 250 citizen-soldiers of the Georgia Air National
Guard have been called up for deployment to the Persian Gulf
region and a possible showdown with Iraq. Augusta
Chronicle, Savannah
Morning News
E-voting leads to surge in voter confidence,
survey shows
Apparently, those dangling chads really were a problem. Voter
confidence in Georgia skyrocketed after electronic voting
was implemented last year, according to a new survey. Savannah
Morning News
- Voters like new machines
Georgians seem to like and trust the state's new touch-screen
voting system, according to a poll recently released by
the University of Georgia. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Antismoking measures gain in tobacco country
Governors, lawmakers and even chambers of commerce are calling
for increases in cigarette taxes — not only to close
gaping state budget deficits, but also to help prevent smoking.
New
York Times
Mississippi flag vote has lessons for Georgia
Mississippi leaders have some advice for their Georgia counterparts
who want a state banner without a prominent Rebel emblem.
Run an aggressive campaign. Make it very public. Get churches
involved. And by the way, they caution, you could still lose
badly. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
* Savannah Chamber
holding off taking position on state flag issue
As prominent businesspeople in Atlanta warn public officials
and citizens about the negative effects Gov. Sonny Perdue's
state flag referendum proposal could bring to Georgia industry,
leaders of Savannah's business community say they intend to
take a public stance once the General Assembly, Perdue and
others figure out a final plan. Savannah
Business Report
Democrats on Hill split on agenda
Nearly four months after unexpected election losses prompted
a reevaluation of their priorities, congressional Democrats
are conflicted over their party's direction, deeply divided
over Iraq and struggling to agree on a domestic agenda. Washington
Post
Bill Watch:
Scitrek could lose state funding
State School Superintendent Kathy Cox recommended to legislators
Monday that they cut all state funding for Scitrek and Fort
Discovery in Augusta for the fiscal year of 2004. WXIA-TV
Senate bid tempts House GOP leader
Some Republicans are courting state House GOP leader Lynn
Westmoreland to run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated
by Democrat Zell Miller. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Donkeys dead? Zell says Georgia Democrats still strong
Despite being dealt crushing blows in the midterm elections,
Sen. Zell Miller said the Georgia Democratic Party is far
from dead and noted Democrats have a good chance of retaining
his seat when he retires from public office next year. “I
don’t think you can count 10 over the body of the Democratic
Party in Georgia,” Miller said in a recent interview
in his Washington, D.C. office. BillShipp.com
Senate ethics panel votes to raise gift cap to $100.
Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Deal puts Columbus' TSYS in new territory
With pressure mounting to land that next prized contract,
TSYS executives didn't pull any punches Monday during their
announcement at the company's headquarters in downtown Columbus.
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer, Atlanta
Business Chronicle, WTVM-TV
Local bank takes on big boys
A new locally owned bank in western Gwinnett intends to take
on Nations Bank, Wachovia and the other big names in the banking
industry. Homestead Bank, launched by a group of local business
people, opened a temporary branch last week in Suwanee at
1380 Peachtree Industrial Boulevard. Led by principal stockholder
J.B. Fuqua, Homestead Bank has $12 million in capital and
plans to open a 9,000-square-foot building at the same location
in about six months. Gwinnett
Daily Post
ARRIS plans to acquire Fremont, Calif.-based
Atoga Systems. Atlanta
Business Chronicle
BioLab acquires Lime-O-Sol Co. Atlanta
Business Chronicle
BellSouth fires back at exec
BellSouth on Monday asked a Fulton County Superior Court judge
to keep a temporary restraining order preventing Vice Chairman
Gary D. Forsee from joining rival Sprint as its chief executive.
Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
California names Mirant in price-gouging
accusation
California, armed with what it calls hard, new evidence of
rampant power market manipulation, handed federal regulators
the names of about 60 energy companies it alleges were behind
the state's 2000-2001 energy crisis, Reuters reported. Atlanta
Business Chronicle
Parent of Holiday Inn spurns $8.8 billion
takeover attempt
The owner of the Holiday Inn and Crown Plaza hotel chains
rejected an unsolicited $8.8 billion takeover bid Monday.
Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Despite problems in Sturgeon Bay, Palmer
Johnson Savannah healthy
Reports of financial woes and threats of eviction at Palmer
Johnson Inc.'s facility in Sturgeon Bay, Wis., have no bearing
on the health of the yacht builder's newly expanded facility
in Savannah, a top PJ official said Monday. Savannah
Morning News
Re/Max Neighbors merges with Re/Max of Atlanta.
Atlanta
Business Chronicle
AirTran will fly to Los Angeles. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Coke's problems in Japan mount
Sales are sluggish, prices in stores are falling, and bottlers
are making less and less money. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Grocery chain to return
SuperValu, one of the nation's largest food wholesalers, is
pushing into the metro Atlanta market again. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Georgia consumer have lost that shoppin'
feeling
The confidence level for Georgia consumers has sunk to the
lowest point in eight years, torpedoed by gloomy expectations.
Savannah
Morning News/Morris
Cathy: Vision, hard work make good business
The most successful business leaders not only have a lofty
vision for their companies, they are willing to roll up their
sleeves and get into the trenches, said Dan Cathy, president
and CEO of Chick-fil-A.
Rome News Tribune
Blank: Home Depot is in capable hands
Home Depot's co-founder and former chief executive, Arthur
Blank, is warming up to his successor, Bob Nardelli. Blank,
now owner of the Atlanta Falcons, said Monday he expects the
changes Nardelli has made at the Atlanta-based retailer ultimately
to work. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Design plans unveiled for two new schools
It's cheaper to buy in bulk - that's what architects and Clarke
County School District administrators are hoping as they prepare
for the simultaneous construction of two new elementary schools
this fall. Athens
Banner-Herald
Bibb BOE OKs dress code
The Bibb County Board of Education has approved an elementary
school dress code for next school year. Macon
Telegraph
School closing plan not final, officials
say
While a proposal to close Marietta’s Hickory Hills Elementary
has sparked controversy among parents at the school, those
who put the proposal together reminded those parents Monday
night that nothing has been set in stone. Marietta
Daily Journal
Atlanta seeks audit of schools
The Atlanta Public School System is seeking an outside auditor
to conduct a sweeping review of the district's entire operations,
from its spending practices to the quality of its academic
programs. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Critics lecture DeKalb board about schools
DeKalb County community members told the board of education
Monday that they believe the school system --- beset with
troubles in leadership and safety --- is in crisis. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Wanted: Teachers to fill 1,400 jobs
The Gwinnett County public schools are in a better position
this year to hire teachers, but comfort is relative in a system
in which even modest turnover means recruiting 1,400 people
by August. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
3 UGA professors get call to hall of fame
Three professors in the University of Georgia College of Education
will be inducted into the International Adult and Continuing
Education Hall of Fame on Thursday at the University of Oklahoma
at Norman, Okla. Athens
Banner-Herald
* TIC bridges
gap with interaction at UGA
As another round of freshman applications are filled and black
admissions drop again at the University, some campus groups
have taken the diversity initiative upon themselves. The InterGreek
Council (TIC) has reached the one-year mark of its formation,
and, with the recent selection of the first officers, it is
really starting to move forward. Red
& Black/Monday
Life loses court ruling
Life University lost a crucial court battle Monday when a
judge granted class-action status to a lawsuit filed against
the school after it lost its chiropractic accreditation. Marietta
Daily Journal Judge OKs class-action status for Life
U suit. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
College delays signing contract for disaster medicine
institute
Medical College of Georgia officials said Monday that they
didn't agree to start a disaster medicine institute based
in Augusta because a firm involved in the project didn't want
the Georgia Institute of Technology to be involved. Augusta
Chronicle
MCG's dean of nursing resigns
The dean of the Medical College of Georgia School of Nursing
has resigned after being asked to step down. Augusta
Chronicle
Researchers say phosphorous danger to marsh life
Researchers are warning about the dangers of phosphorous on
water quality, especially in coastal marshes that are breeding
grounds and nurseries for a range of fish, shrimp and other
commercially important sea creatures. Augusta
Chronicle/AP
* County sees green even
if state goes color blind
Bartow County will be able to continue its greenspace program,
even if the General Assembly does not fund the program for
the rest of the fiscal year 2003 budget. Cartersville
Daily Tribune
Riverkeeper seeks to hold those responsible
for pollution accountable
Having won a $1 million judgment against an industry that
polluted the Ocmulgee River before closing in June 2001, Altamaha
Riverkeeper will now set its sights on holding someone responsible.
Macon
Telegraph
* Southwire
challenges area leaders
Southwire Co. is offering to fund city and/or county investigations
into its own research on dioxin emissions and potential health
risks, the company said during a press briefing Monday. Carrollton
Times-Georgian
* Bowen's pollution
control systems on target
Georgia Power's Plant Bowen is working out the last of the
kinks in its new pollution control systems and will be ready
to go by the state-mandated deadline this May. Cartersville
Daily Tribune
Scaling down
Americans are obsessed with weight, but experts caution that
weight alone is not a true measure of good health. Columbus
Ledger-Enquirer
2 metro nursing homes to close
Two metro Atlanta nursing homes are closing, with their owners
citing cuts in Medicaid reimbursements as a factor in the
shutdowns. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
TB cases fell 9 percent; above national average
Tuberculosis continues to be on the decline in Georgia, but
the state still has the second highest number of cases in
the nation, state health officials said Monday. Athens
Banner-Herald
EPA moves to guard kids from cancer
The government proposed tougher guidelines Monday for evaluating
cancer risks to children on grounds the very young may be
10 times more vulnerable than adults to certain chemicals.
Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
* Glynn ranks among top in
tobacco use
In fact, when it comes to tobacco use, the southern seaboard
of Georgia ranks at the top — the second-highest —
among the state's 19 health districts. Only the Clayton County
Health District ranks higher, says Martha Dismer, tobacco
use coordinator for the Coastal Health District. Brunswick
News
Cancer coalition emphasizes cooperation to build regional
system of care
The Central Georgia Cancer Coalition aims to fight a leading
killer on all fronts. To help make fighting cancer a collaborative
effort, former Gov. Roy Barnes set aside $400 million during
the next 10-year-period from the state's tobacco settlement.
Macon
Telegraph
- Middle Georgia Cancer Coalition funding up in the air
With funding for the statewide Georgia Cancer Coalition
in limbo, Middle Georgia's program already is months behind
the state's other regions. Macon
Telegraph
Glynn readies for mosquitoes
Glynn County officials are gearing up for the annual war against
potential disease-carrying mosquitoes. Florida
Times-Union
Commuter rail would close track crossings
Something's coming down the track, bound for Barnesville,
Forsyth, Bolingbroke and downtown Macon. But before a commuter
train from Atlanta can speed down the "S" line,
state rail officials want to limit the places a vehicle can
cross over it. Macon
Telegraph
* Funding questions remain
in ARC transportation plans
While a resolution approved by the Atlanta Regional Commission
(ARC) calls for a long-range planning approach that will identify
the region’s transportation needs, the manner in which
future programs will be funded remains a mystery. Rockdale
Citizen
Arena traffic better Friday
Traffic kept moving. The concert went off without a hitch.
Bruce Springsteen's fans were pleased. Now, the big question
for Arena and county officials scrambling to keep traffic
jams and delays to a minimum: Can this much devoted manpower
and effort be sustained? Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
* Racial gridlock holds leadership
of Augusta in its grip
The merger six years ago of the city and county governments
has created a new sort of division along racial lines, with
the five white commissioners and the five black commissioners
deadlocking over everything from renaming streets to hiring
a new fire chief. Rockdale
Citizen/AP
Atlanta mayor speaks of collaboration with Marietta
Speaking to a packed audience at the Cobb Chamber’s monthly
breakfast on Monday, Mayor Shirley Franklin expressed her
desire to “leave a legacy” behind by completing
Hartsfield Atlanta International Airport’s $5.4 billion
expansion and dealing with the regional community on transportation
issues. Marietta
Daily Journal
* 'Ice' hot in drug trade
If methamphetamine was not bad enough, there is a stronger
version with a more intense high, but the same severe side
effects. Known as "Ice" or "Crystal Meth,"
it costs more and is becoming more prevalent, said Capt. Brenton
Garmon of the Bartow County Sheriff's Office. Cartersville
Daily Tribune
Yellow River set to round up the animals
Liberty Development Corp. plans to build roughly 300 homes
and townhomes on the 80 acres that include the Yellow River
Game Ranch, home of the furry forecaster named Gen. Beauregard
Lee. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Savannah alderman's ad deal with CAT questioned
Before it could even be officially recognized by the state,
Savannah Alderman Tony Thomas' Renaissance Advertising landed
a contract to sell ads on Chatham Area Transit buses. Savannah
Morning News
* County waiting for response
on Sullivan Road
Before allowing the closing of a road in northern Clayton
County to make way for expansion of Hartsfield Atlanta International
Airport, county officials wanted some sign that the city of
Atlanta was dedicated to building a replacement road on an
accelerated schedule. Jonesboro
News Daily
County asks stadium name cost
Faced with a rash of questions about the price for naming
the new baseball stadium, Floyd County officials have asked
the Rome Braves to reveal the terms of their contract. Rome
News Tribune
No injuries in explosion at Valdosta ADM plant
A minor explosion occurred at the ADM Processing Plant located
at 1841 Clay Road Monday evening, but no injuries were reported,
according to officials with the Valdosta Fire Department.
Valdosta
Daily Times
Adult material law to change
A federal court ruling that permitted an adult bookstore to
open its doors off Gordon Highway also left the city with
an unenforceable adult entertainment ordinance, a city attorney
told the Augusta-Richmond County Planning Commission on Monday.
Augusta
Chronicle
Project's fate up for vote
Harris County commissioners are poised to make one of their
most significant zoning decisions tonight when the rezoning
of 541 acres for the World Children's Center comes up for
a vote. Columbus
Ledger-Enquirer
* Private business led to
planning director's resignation
Jeff Watkins never imagined that looking for a little “side
work” would cost him the position as the county’s
director of planning and zoning, which he had held for four
years. Forsyth
County News
UGA Basketball: NCAA starts probe
It's unusual for coaches to teach classes at the University
of Georgia. But assistant UGA basketball coach Jim Harrick
Jr. taught UGA's Coaching Basketball course two years ago,
with former player Tony Cole as one of his 35 pupils - a scenario
that is part of the focus of an NCAA probe into the school's
basketball program. Athens
Banner-Herald
State agency says Columbus short its dues
Of the 25 area governments with membership in the Lower Chattahoochee
Regional Development Center in Columbus, only one has not
paid the full dues established by the center board: the Columbus
Consolidated Government. Columbus
Ledger-Enquirer
MARTA board looks at limiting travel costs
The MARTA board of directors is reviewing its travel expense
policy, with an eye toward belt-tightening, in response to
media reports about spending. Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
Setback or disaster?
"Did the Medical College of Georgia spoil an opportunity
for Fort Gordon to get a new mission when a deal with the
North Carolina-based Research Triangle Institute fell through
last month? There are economic development interests in the
community who are very disappointed and think that MCG dropped
the ball. The plan called for establishing a national disaster
medicine institute at the fort - the first of its kind, according
to RTI spokesman Robert Helms, that would focus on disaster
medicine and encourage industrial development." Augusta
Chronicle
Smart flag move
"In what may be the smartest move of his young administration,
Gov. Sonny Perdue has arranged to bring former President Jimmy
Carter into the state flag controversy. Former Gov. Roy Barnes
led a successful effort to change the 1956 flag two years
ago. Many political observers say the flag issue was what
lost Barnes his bid for re-election. It was certainly a prominent
plank in Gov. Perdue's platform." Columbus
Ledger-Enquirer
While far from reality, GOP's congressional map has some
appeal
"In what is likely an exercise in futility, state Senate
Republicans recently unveiled a map showing how Georgia's
congressional districts would look if they led redistricting
two years ago." Athens
Banner-Herald
UGA should act quickly to clear air on allegations
"Consider this the calm, clear voice calling on the University
of Georgia, its president, athletic director and basketball
coach to explain quickly and convincingly what, if anything,
transpired with former basketball player Tony Cole. The stories
the embittered Cole is telling are head-spinning." Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
* The shady bunch
"In the real world, U.S. citizens are supposed to be
innocent until proven guilty. The University Athletic Association,
however, doesn't seem to believe in this American ideal. Assistant
basketball coach Jim Harrick Jr. was suspended on Friday after
former player Tony Cole accused him of several activities
which violated NCAA policy." Red
& Black/Monday
Problems at UGA are just the tip of iceberg
"The winds of trouble are whipping around the University
of Georgia and its basketball team. Former player Tony Cole
accused assistant coach Jim Harrick Jr., who just happens
to be Head Coach Jim Harrick Sr.'s son, of arranging the payment
of a $300 phone bill and setting up academic credit for a
junior college correspondence course and one he taught at
UGA." Macon
Telegraph
* Cell phone use not top
priority
"Georgians concerned about cell phone conversations in
motor vehicles wouldn't get relief from proposed legislation
before the General Assembly. The bill, which would make holding
a cell phone and talking on it while driving a misdemeanor,
could possibly create a greater nuisance than what it is intended
to solve." Albany
Herald/Monday
EPD caves on water
"Georgia environmental officials did a good impression
of a cave-in last Friday when they collapsed and granted a
permit to Richmond Hill, which now has permission to pump
an average of 1.33 million gallons of water per day from the
Lower Floridan Aquifer. Drilling, in fact, could begin in
30 days." Savannah
Morning News
Council takes up smoking concerns
"We're sorry that cigarette smokers have come to feel
like social pariahs, but we're happy to see Valdosta City
Council start talking seriously about ways to further limit
or ban smoking in restaurants and inside other public places."
Valdosta
Daily Times
Jim Wooten: Governor's voice should hold sway
"It's far from being a constitutional crisis, but the
Georgia Supreme Court does need to decide whether Gov. Sonny
Perdue or Attorney General Thurbert Baker is entitled to direct
the state's legal affairs." Atlanta
Journal-Constitution
* Elliott Brack: Fat Tuesday,
German-style: Mainz good spot for research on German Fassenacht
"With today "Fat Tuesday" on the Mardi Gras
schedule, the topic is our recent trip to Mainz, Germany.
It was purely for research on the German version of Mardi
Gras, called, depending on where you are in Germany, "Fasching"
or "Fassenacht" or "Karneval." The areas
along the Rhine River, and in Munich, are centers of this
celebration." GwinnettForum.com
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