Kenneth Johnson, a sociology professor at the University of New
Hampshire, believes that 2010 could be the year in which
`minority` births outnumber those of whites for the
first time in the U.S.
Non-white births reached 48% of the total in 2008. Part
of the change is a matter of definitions. Demographers
are calling mothers of Hispanic origin, `minority` mothers.
At this point, they are believed to make up the single largest
group of women of prime childbearing age in the U.S.
The 2010 Census has two questions that pertain to
`race.` Question 8 tries to define Hispanic, breaking the
category into the sub categories of `Mexican, Mexican American,
Chicano, Puerto Rican, Cuban, or some other kind of
Hispanic.`
Question 9 then asks about `race` in general, including
`White, Black, American Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian Indian,
Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, some other Asian,
Native Hawaiian, Guamanian, Samoan, some other Pacific
Islander, and other.`
Most past census counts have been criticized for failing
to accurately count many non-majority populations.
Since census numbers are used to to distribute federal money
as well as set up Congressional districts, the issue
is very significant for states, localities, and political
parties.
Census forms should be in the mail shortly. The Census
Bureau is also is the process of hiring close to a
million temporary workers.
Rome Unemployment Nears 11%
- The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) is reporting that
the preliminary unadjusted unemployment rate in metro Rome
rose to 10.9 percent in January, up from a revised 10.4 percent
in December. The rate for Northwest Georgia is much
worse, at 11.6%.
Soldiers Return Home to Rome and Calhoun
- After months in Afghanistan Rome`s Company A returned home on
Tuesday. The soldiers arrived in Floyd County just after 1:30.
They gathered at Wal-Mart on Hwy 411 and then proceeded en-route
to the National Guard Armory base on Wilshire Road for a
ceremony. Gordon County also held a ceremony for it`s soldiers that
were apart of the Georgia National Guard`s 108th Calvary.
Pictured: Calhoun - top left, Rome - top right, Calhoun - bottom row
2nd Arrest Made in Rome Electric Works Fraud Case
- William Hunter Hackworth, 55, of Ringgold, was arrested this week
and charged with felony theft by deception. Hackworth allegedly
took over $100,000 over a two year period from Rome Electric
Motor Works. The warrant said that he facilitated and received
fraudulent payments `for which no goods or services were received.`
Berry Ranked Tops for `Green` Colleges
- Berry College has been ranked 4th among small college in the
southeast for their `green` programs by Blue Ridge Mountain
Outdoors` magazine. Schools honored on the list included
scholls in Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Virginia.
Moon Gallery Host Marty Kahnle Exhibition
- Berry College’s yearlong focus on the artwork of talented alumni
artists continues in March with an exhibit by Marty Kahnle. Moon
Gallery hours are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, or by
appointment. The exhibition will be displayed through April 2.
Call 706-236-2219 for more details.
Barnsley Gardens GM Wins Top Award
- Barnsley Gardens Resort General Manager Scott Mahr was named an
outstanding general manager by the Georgia Hotel & Lodging
Association during the group’s annual Stars of the Lodging
Industry Awards recently.
RACA and Oak Hill to Host Spring Festival
- Oak Hill and The Martha Berry Museum will partner with the Rome
Area Council for the Arts (RACA) to present `Arts in the Gardens
at Oak Hill,` a special day of arts, music and garden events is
scheduled for Sunday, May 2 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.. Tickets for
the festival are $10 for adults, $5 for students and free for
children 6 and under.
Open House Held for Parkinson Disease in Rome
- An open house was held for at Riverwood Retirement Life Community in
Rome to help the community learn more about Parkinson Disease
on Monday. James Trussell, Chief Volunteer Officer,
The Northwest Georgia Parkingson Disease Association, said, `The
support group aids in helping not only people with the disorder,
but their families.` Trussell added, `We have a data base of
over 300 people who have contacted our group in the Rome area.
However, we suspect that close to 5,000 people around
the Coosa Valley are affected with the disease.`
Concert Series to Close with John Howell
- The Berry College Concert Series’ inaugural season will draw to a
close Thursday, March 11, with a 7:30 p.m. performance by
alumnus John Howell in Ford Auditorium. Admission is free and
open to the public. Call 706-236-2289 for more information.
With the Georgia legislature returning to session after
two weeks of difficult budget sessions, they got some
bad news. According to the Georgia Department of
Revenue, net revenue collections for the month of
February 2010 were down by 9.9% from the already
depressed numbers in 2009.
Collections totaled $567,251,000 compared to $629,448,000 for
February 2009. On the plus side, sales tax revenues
were only down by 1.6% compared to `09
Year-to-date revenues are down 12.7% or over $1.3 billion.
Legislators, including Rep. Mike Cheokas (D-Americus)
were hoping for good news. Cheokas said, `I am very anxious
to see the February numbers because that is going to determine
our course for the rest of the session.`
With revenues continuing to sag and unemployment at
an all-time high, the Legislature won`t have any easy
answers.
NW GA Unemployment Jumps
- The Georgia Department of Labor (GDOL) is reporting
that the number of unemployed workers in Northwest Georgia
increased by 2,754 in January. The preliminary unadjusted
unemployment rate rose to 11.6%, up seven-tenths of a
percent.
$1.1 Million in Recreational Trails Grants for Ga.
- The Georgia Department of Natural Resources recently awarded $1.1
million in Recreational Trails Program grants to 12 government
agencies. The grants will assist with the construction and
maintenance of trails and trailheads throughout the state.
Recipients include:
Bibb County, Arrowhead Park Multi-Use Trail
Chatham County, Lower Ogeechee Trails Project
DNR, State Parks & Historic Sites Division, Cloudland Connector Trail Section 2
DNR, Wildlife Resources Division, Ohoopee Dunes Interpretive Trail and River Access
City of Ellijay, Harrison Memorial Park Trails
Haralson County, County Canoe Trail
City of Holly Springs, Downtown Multi-Use Trail Phase 2
City of Kingsland, Harris Peeples Nature Trail
Oconee River Greenway Authority, Lower Fishing Creek Trail
City of Screven, Martha Frazier Fisher Park Trail
City of Statesboro, Luetta Moore Trail Phase I
City of Vidalia, Vidalia Recreational Trail
Assisted Suicide Group Charged in Forsyth County
- Four people, Thomas E. Goodwin, Dr. Lawrence D. Egbert, Nicholas Alec
Sheridan,and Chaire Blehr, all memebers of an assisted suicide
group who authorties said aided in the deaths of dozens of
people, were indicted by a grand jury in Forsyth County on Tuesday.
The four were arrested in February of last year and charged
with assisted suicide.
Ga. Could Restrict Sex Offenders from Network Site
- Georgia Rep. Rob Teihet introduced a bill this week that would
allow officials to send social networking sites such as Facebook
and MySpace sex offender`s information. The sites could then
remove their profiles, ban them and then notify authorities of any
suspicious activity.
Smokers Protest New Tax Proposal
- The Georgia House of Representatives is moving to increase state
excise taxes on cigarettes by 270 percent and pipe and smokeless
tobacco by 150 percent that the International Premium Cigar &
Pipe Retailers Association and Americans for Tax Reform are
having none of. The group of close to 100 people held a protest on Tuesday on the
state Capitol`s steps.
House Bill 39 aims to increase state cigarette taxes from the
current $.37 per pack to $1.37 per pack and state taxes on loose
and smokeless tobacco would go up 150 percent from 10 percent of
wholesale value to 25 percent of wholesale cost.
Dalton May Have to Cut $8 Million from Budget
- Dalton Public Schools Superintendent Jim Hawkins told board members
this week that he may have to cut up to $8 million from its budget
by July 11 or the district may risk running out of money.
Misser Boater Found Dead in Chattahoochee River
- Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources
Division law enforcement officers have recovered the body of Ira
Braitsch,64, of Lawrenceville from the Chattahoochee River in
Suwanee. Braitsch had been missing since Sunday, March 7, 2010
when the aluminum jon boat capsized while he was boating with a
friend, Michael Boyle. Boyle, 67, also of Lawrenceville, was
rescued on Sunday and taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital in Atlanta.
He is currently still in the hospital.
Georgia`s Winter cold and Expensive
- This past winter was unusually cold and wet across Georgia,
causing the heating demand for buildings to soar. Climatological
winter runs from December 1 to the last day in February. This
winter was typical of an El Niño one for Georgia -- but on
hyperdrive. The average mean daily temperature was extremely
cold statewide. The daily mean temperature is calculated by
taking the daily maximum temperature plus the daily minimum
temperature then dividing the sum by two.
Georgia to Launch Fight Meth Campaign
- Georgia officials announced on Monday that they are starting a
campaign to fight methamphetamine use in the state. The campaign
will feature television, radio, newspaper and Internet
advertising, as well as billboards throughout the state.
A new study estimates meth abuse costs Georgia $1.3 billion
annually in social services, health care and law enforcement
expenses.
The Shorter Lady Hawks are part of the National Association of
Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) 32-team tournament field for
the 2010 Division I Women`s Basketball National Championship to
be held March 17-23 at Oman Arena in Jackson, Tenn.
Shorter` 22 victories are the program`s most since the
1999-2000 season, earned an at-large bid and is the third
team representing the Southern States Athletic Conference
in this year`s national tournament.
The Lady Hawks are embarking on their second trip to the Big Dance having last qualified for the field in 2001-02. Shorter heads to Jackson on the heels of its third consecutive 20-win season, a feat that had never been accomplished in the program`s 37-year history.
Shorter certainly made a strong case for an at-large berth.
The Lady Hawks played arguably the toughest non-conference schedule in the country, welcoming the likes of defending NAIA national champion and top-ranked Union University (Tenn.) and then No. 12-ranked and eventual Mid-South Tournament champion University of the Cumberlands (Ky.) to the Winthrop-King Centre.
Of Shorter`s nine losses, seven came to ranked opponents. The Lady Hawks dropped a pair of close decisions to Lee and lost their two regular season tilts with Southern Poly by a combined four points - the last of which came by one in overtime in Marietta.
Shorter lost in the SSAC Tournament semifinals to Poly, but was the only team in the SSAC to sweep every team below them in the standings. The Lady Hawks finished 12-4 in a league that is sending three teams to Jackson.
Shorter features a talented trio of athletes in its starting lineup, one that has helped replace the likes of post Nicole Frechette and wing Katarina Martinovic, who last season earned the SSAC`s Defensive Player of the Year and Player of the Year honors, respectively.
Senior Holly Bawden, who transferred from Mercer University over the season, was an All-SSAC performer this season and is averaging 9.6 points and a team-high 7.0 rebounds per game. She has posted six double-doubles and despite being a post player, leads the team in three-point percentage at 42 percent.
Sophomore Kelly Ellison, who came to Shorter from Stetson University, has been the Lady Hawks` top all-around performer from her guard position.
Ellison, also an All-SSAC selection, leads Shorter in scoring (10.7), assists (4.6) and steals (1.6). She ranks second in the league in helpers and averaged over 12 points, five rebounds and four assists in her four regular season games against Lee and Southern Poly this season. She also dished out 10 assists against Union.
Freshman post Shelby Farrer has served as that pivotal third scorer for head coach Vic Mitchell. Farrer, a local Rome product out of Model High School, was named the SSAC Freshman of the Year after putting up 9.2 points and 4.9 rebounds per game.
The wiry, 6-foot-2 Farrer was inserted into the Lady Hawks` starting lineup on Jan. 14 and has produced well since, averaging over 12 points per game over that 16-game span.
Still, the true meddle of a tournament team is measured in its senior leadership, and the Lady Hawks boast a pair of four-year players that serve as their heart and soul.
Wing Tamara Weatherby, who missed significant time this season after a torrid start that saw her lead the Lady Hawks in scoring, has battled through injuries to both ankles and feet to bring toughness to the Shorter lineup.
Weatherby, who opened the year by scoring in double figures in eight of her first 11 outings - including a 17-point effort against Union and 15 points against Cumberlands - continues to serve as one of the Lady Hawks` top defenders late in the year with the emergence of Bawden, Ellison and Farrer offensively.
Point guard Whitni Tucker, one of the most decorated student-athletes to go through the Lady Hawks` program - she is a perennial NAIA Scholar-Athlete and SSAC All-Academic honoree and the winner of the 2008-09 NAIA Emil S. Liston Award - has increased her role statistically in Shorter`s last few outings.
Tucker, who averages just over four points per game, went on a scoring binge in the Lady Hawks` final five games of the year, scoring in double figures in three of those games - including a career-high 13 points on Senior Day in a win over Brenau University - and averaging nine points per game in the SSAC Tournament. She is shooting 10-for-19 from three over that five-game span.
Shorter Gym Set for Face Lift
- When it was built in 1993, the Winthrop-King Centre was the pride
and joy of Shorter College`s athletic department. As the new
home for the college`s basketball teams, the spacious facility
easily became the epicenter of sports for Shorter`s program, one
that included six teams. But since Winthrop-King first opened its
doors 17 years ago, Shorter`s number of sports teams has more
than tripled. Space, to say the least, has become a premium
commodity and nearly every inch of the structure has been
utilized.
The `grand old lady,` however, has proven that she can adapt and
over the next several months will undergo another change for an
ever-growing athletic program as the College moves to expand its
department offices.
`When they built Winthrop-King, they certainly didn`t anticipate
21 sports,` Shorter Athletic Director Bill Peterson said about
the upcoming renovation that will use one of the two classrooms
on the facility`s third and top floor for six badly needed
offices. `Somehow this facility has handled it and handled it
well. This is an amazing facility in that it`s handled the
growth and at the same time still looks good.`
Phillies Top Braves
- Philadelphia`s new star, Roy Halladay, pitched three shutout
innings and struck out five as the Phillies topped the
Braves 7-4 on Tuesday.
Nashville Extends Thrashers Slide
- The Nasvhille Predators extended Atlanta`s losing streak
to three as they edged the Thrashers 2-1 on Tuesday.
Football Drills Bring Smiles to Shorter Coach
- The tone of his voice gave testimony to how he felt as his
players gather around him. Phil Jones was ecstatic.
The Shorter College head football coach had just watched his
Hawks complete the second week of their annual spring drills
with a physical and upbeat scrimmage at Ben Brady Field on a
beautiful fall-like Saturday morning.
`Great job! Great job men!` Jones told the players. `That is the
kind of effort we`re looking for.`
Shorter`s Golf Sits Second in RNT Invitational
- Shorter College senior Joaquin Correnti fired a two-under, 70 to
lead the Hawks to a second place standing after the first round
of the Rome News-Tribune Invitational hosted by Stonebridge Golf
Club in Rome, Ga.
The Hawks, who are receiving votes in the latest NAIA Top 25
Poll, shot a team total of 288 in the first round and sit two
strokes behind team leader John A. Logan Community College.
Shorter is in contention for a second team tournament title in as
many spring events after taking first place at the Thomas
University Winter Invitational in February.
UGA QB Arrested in South Georgia
- Georgia Bulldog redshirt freshman Zach Mettenberger, a candidate
for the starting quarterback positiion, was arrested and charged
with underage consumption and possession of alcohol, possessing
fake identification and disorderly conduct-obstruction.
Lady Hawks Place 7th at NAIA Indoor Nationals
- One universal goal shared by all athletic teams is to constantly
improve both individually and collectively. The Shorter College
men and women`s track and field teams continue to attain that
goal with each successive outing - the latest coming at the NAIA
National Indoor Track and Field Championships at East Tennessee
State University in Johnson City, Tenn., over the weekend.
Shorter`s Lady Hawks, powered by a near third individual national
championship from sophomore sensation Justyna Mudy, placed
seventh as a team while the Hawks just missed out on a second
consecutive top 10 finish, ending the meet in 11th position.
Unity to Host Fundraiser for Baseball team
- Unity Christian School will be selling Boston Butt BBQ as
that will be seasoned with a dry rub and then slow smoked over
night as a fundraiser on April 3rd from 8:00 AM to 2:00 PM.
Proceeds will go the UCS baseball team.
Spring training baseball arrives. It is a sure sign that a brutal winter (global warming my butt) is about to come to an end. It tells us that spring has officially arrived regardless of what that fat rodent in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania says. And it tells us that the time has come to renew our hopes.
Our hopes of pennants and October baseball. Hopes of homeruns, stolen bases and diving catches. It is the time of year when we all believe that our boys of summer have a chance to make a little magic.
The hometown favorites, the Atlanta Braves, have bolstered their lineup some during the offseason. The Braves added former Yankee outfielder Melky Cabrera and first baseman Troy Glaus. They also added closer Billy Wagner.
Gone are very capable but oft injured co-closers Mike Gonzales and Rafael Soriano. Wagner when healthy has been one of the best closers of all time. The question for the Braves will be whether he can stay healthy.
Glaus and Cabrera add veteran hitters to a lineup that was inconsistent most of last season. Phenom minor league prospect Jason Heyward is expected to make the team during spring training and will probably start in right field. Heyward is considered the top prospect in all of baseball.
If the bats can find some consistency and score runs the Braves should fare quite well. The Braves starting rotation consists of Derek Lowe, Tim Hudson, Jair Jurrjens, Kenshin Kawakami and last year`s minor league phenom Tommy Hanson. That might just be the best starting rotation in the Major Leagues.
The Braves will once again be chasing the Philadelphia Phillies for their division. The Phillies added one of the best pitchers in baseball in Roy Halladay. They also lost one of the best in Cliff Lee. More importantly, the Phillies field perhaps the most potent starting lineup in the Major Leagues and surely the best in the National League.
It will take some luck for the Braves to beat the Phillies for the division title. Wagner will need to be healthy. McCann and Chipper Jones will need to stay healthy. And I think that Heyward will need to be the second coming of the Albert Pujols.
But it is possible. Bobby Cox will manage his last season with the Braves this year. That will almost certainly add a little fuel to the fire of this team. The players all love Bobby. They all want to send him out a winner. Let`s play ball.
Conclusions made by a new study of cigar and pipe smoking by
researchers at the Columbia University Medical Center are not
supported by the study’s findings, says the International Premium
Cigar & Pipe Retailers Association, a not-for-profit group of
premium cigar retailers and manufacturers.
The study, published last month in the Annals of Internal
Medicine, was funded primarily by grants from the National
Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute and the National Institutes of
Health. The study concludes that `physicians should` counsel
cessation of pipe and cigar smoking`.`
`Nothing in the study justifies this erroneous conclusion. It is
prejudicial and preconceived, thereby justifying the labeling of
the survey as being a corrupt misuse of junk science,` said Chris
McCalla, legislative director of the IPCPR which is comprised
largely of some 2,000 neighborhood mom-and-pop retail stores and
family-owned manufacturers of premium cigars, pipes, tobacco and
related accoutrements.
McCalla cited several features of the study that he said support his group’s position:
Of 3,528 participants in the study, only 58 had ever smoked cigars or pipes and not cigarettes, and only 428 had smoked pipes or cigars along with cigarettes.
Only 47 of the subjects were current cigar smokers, of which only 16 were current cigar smokers who had never smoked cigarettes.
Of the cigar smokers, 95 percent were male, but only 34 percent of non-smokers were men.
There was no effort in the study to determine the type of cigar smoked – machine-made or premium, hand-made cigars.
The study showed no clinical effect on lung function in cigar smokers.
There were no differences in airflow obstruction between cigar smokers and non-smokers.
Cotinine levels (a form of nicotine) were similar in cigar smokers and non-smokers.
`The study found no clinical differences between cigar smokers
and non-smokers and to draw conclusions to the contrary is to
participate in a conspiracy of public disinformation and
deception,` McCalla said.
AARP Driver Safety Program
- Georgia Northwestern Technical College hosts the AARP Driver Safety Program Thursday and Friday, March 11-12, from 8:45am until 12:45pm on the Floyd County campus.
2010 Wine Dinner Series
- Barnsley Gardens Resorts in Adairville continues the 2010 Wine Dinner Series Saturday, March 13.
Rome Floyd County Cert Class
- The Rome Floyd County Emergency Response Team holds the next free cert class Saturday, March 13 and 20, at the Floyd County Health Department from 9am-4pm.
Red Cross Hosts Souper Supper
- THe Red Cross sponsors a Souper Supper Saturday, March 13, at 4pm at the Gadsden State Arena in Cherokee County AL.
Behind the Ropes Tours
- Guided tours take guests beyond the velvet ropes and into the private life of Martha Berry at the Martha Berry Musuem in Rome March 1-31.
7th Annual Southeastern Cowboy Gathering
- The 7th annual Southeastern Cowboy Gathering, a four day celebration of the West, is Thursday through Sunday, March 11-14 at the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville.
Pictured: Calhoun - top left, Rome - top right, Calhoun - bottom row
Spring training baseball arrives. It is a sure sign that a brutal winter (global warming my butt) is about to come to an end. It tells us that spring has officially arrived regardless of what that fat rodent in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania says. And it tells us that the time has come to renew our hopes.
