Blog Topic: Say What
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In the Loop: UPDATE: Democrats Score Stunning Wins in Athens State House Elections; T-SPLOST Approved
Photo Credit: Nicole Adamson
Jonathan Wallace supporters celebrate after learning he won the state House District 119 race.
Democrats won shocking victories in two special elections for Athens-area state House seats on Tuesday, winning the conservative-leaning seats in spite of well-funded opposition from Republicans.
In District 117, Deborah Gonzalez overcame Republican opponent Houston Gaines' $200,000 war chest and much-publicized support from Democratic Athens-Clarke County Mayor Nancy Denson.
As of 9 p.m., Gonzalez led Gaines 53 percent to 47 percent, with some Clarke County precincts left to be counted, but all the votes in staunchly Republican Oconee, Jackson and Barrow counties have been counted, leaving Gaines no chance to catch up.
Likewise, with all Oconee precincts reporting, Jonathan Wallace avoided a runoff by winning 56percent of the vote in District 119, which historically leans even further to the right than 117. (Both districts were specifically drawn to elect Republicans.)
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In the Loop: Tate Center Sign on Georgia Tech Shooting Disturbs UGA Students
Photo Credit: Hunter Hulsey
Hunter Hulsey was disgusted when he saw a sign with a poll in the Tate Student Center Plaza Wednesday asking if people agreed that the shooting of Scout Schultz at Georgia Tech was "a clean shoot."
Schultz, a student at Georgia Tech, was shot and killed by police responding to a call of a suspicious person on campus. Schultz reportedly refused to comply with officer orders to drop a multitool he was wielding. It was later revealed Schultz placed the call the brought officers to the scene in what appears to be a suicide by police shooting.
"It pissed me off, so I took a picture," Hulsey said.
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In the Loop: UGA Prof: Texas Is Under Trillions of Gallons of Water
Photo Credit: Lt. Zachary West
Texas National Guard soldiers rescue Houston residents from Hurricane Harvey flooding.
Just how bad is the flooding in southeastern Texas? University of Georgia meteorologist and geography professor John Knox is here to explain in a Medium post.
Knox looked at a 5,000 square-mile triangle between Houston, Port Aurthur and Lufkin, TX, that's home to about 7 million people. That region has received approximately 36 inches of rainfall. Calculate it, and that's 3 trillion gallons of water.
To put it in perspective, according to Knox, that's five Lake Laniers worth of water that's fallen on an area the size of Connecticut.
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In the Loop: Michael Thurmond: Stone Mountain Needs Context
Photo Credit: Jim Bowen
DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond weighed in on the Stone Mountain controversy in an interview the AJC published today.
He wouldn't endorse Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams' call to sandblast Confederate figures Jefferson Davis, Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson off the mountain, but he did call for additional context regarding the "Lost Cause" mythology surrounding the 1915 carving, as well as black representation on the board that runs the park.
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In the Loop: Georgia Republicans Can't Seem to Bring Themselves to Condemn White Supremacists
President Donald Trump has been roundly criticized for his milquetoast statement on the riot in Charlottesville, VA yesterday—during which white supremacist thugs killed a counterprotesterand injured dozens more, and two police officers died in a helicopter crash—blaming the violence on "many sides" rather than a particular group of bigots who happen to be his core supporters.
But he's not the only one who refuses to identify the people who committed the violence or their ideology. Several Republican Georgia congressmen have skirted the issue themselves, condemning violence and hatred in general terms while acting like they're things that just sort of ... happen, instead of things that people do.
Call them the alt-right, white supremacists, white nationalists, neo-Nazis. Call them whatever you want. But call them out.
Here's Sen. David Perdue, one of Trump's staunchest supporters:
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In the Loop: A UGA Professor Wanted to Let Students Grade Themselves
Rick Watson.
A conservative website's post about a University of Georgia professor who planned to allow students to choose their own grades went viral over the past couple of days.
Campus Reform wrote Monday about business professor Rick Watson's "stress reduction policy," which would have allowed students who felt "unduly stressed" about their grade email Watson with a suggested grade, "and it will be so changed."
The policy was included in the syllabi for two of Watson's fall courses.
Watson is the Terry College of Business's J. Rex Fuqua Distinguished Chair for Internet Strategy and a regents professor, a position awarded to Georgia universities' most highly distinguished faculty members.
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In the Loop: Update: Police Recover Stolen Equipment, Make Arrest in 40 Watt Break-In
Photo Credit: Kevin Schlot/Flickr
Dozens of pieces of music equipment were stolen from the 40 Watt Club during a break-in this morning, according to Athens-Clarke County police.
The burglary happened sometime between the legendary downtown music venue's closing at 2:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m., police said. Owner Barrie Buck reported it to police earlier today.
Officers noted damage around the the rear door and called in a forensic unit to collect evidence, said Sgt. Epifiano Rodriguez, ACCPD's public information officer.
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In the Loop: Athens Rep. Jody Hice Wants to Carry a Gun Everywhere
If U.S. Rep. Jody Hice ever does hold a town-hall meeting in Athens, you might want to think twice about asking him any pointed questions.
Or, you might find Hice has something of his own to point—a gun.
On Wednesday, Hice announced that, in the wake of the shooting at the annual congressional baseball game last week, he's introduced the Congressional Personal Safety Act, which would allow congressmen to carry a firearm anywhere in the country, except the U.S. Capitol. (Some of those hearings can get a little testy, I guess.)
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In the Loop: Turkish President's Bodyguards Attack Peaceful Protesters in D.C.
Photo Credit: Baltimore Bloc
Shortly after Donald Trump tweeted, “It was a great honor to welcome the President of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to the @WhiteHouse today!” members of Erdoğan’s security staff, many of whom appear to have been armed, attacked a peaceful protest across from the Turkish ambassador’s residence in Washington, D.C.
“We were only 13 people [plus two children] but we were Iranian, Kurdish, Armenian, Ezidi, American, man and woman, and we were basically there to protest Erdoğan and the Turkish state’s fascist policies,” said Pooyan Bahar, one of the protesters who describes himself as a human rights advocate. “And we were attacked by Erdoğan’s security guards who basically outnumbered us five to one and they brutally attacked us.”
Erdoğan’s government has been engaged in a violent suppression of the press and a purge of universities, the military, police, civil service and political parties of opponents since a failed coup last July. But Turkey's campaign against the minority of Kurds, some of which has been engaged in long separatist struggle with the Turkish state, has been particularly intense, drawing comparisons with some of the worst atrocities in Syria.
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In the Loop: The Varsity Files for Demolition Permits for Surrounding Properties
The owners of The Varsity have applied for permits to demolish a half-dozen structures on the same block, potentially allowing them to raze several historic houses to make way for a mega-development.
The permits are for 1076, 1086 and 1092 West Broad (the Dairy Queen that closed last year, a mechanic's shop and a house) and 835, 853 and 863 Reese Street.
The applications were filed Tuesday. Commissioner Melissa Link, who represents the area, said she has already exercised her power under county law to put a hold on those permits for 90 days.
"I have activated the 90-day delay, and I have every intention of seeking a long-term moratorium," she said.
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