To the Editor:
We believe that the Board of Equalization is correct in holding that the Cultural Center is exempt from property tax and that a Court will uphold that ruling. While it might have been better for  the Board of Equalization member who is a member of the Cultural Center Board to abstain or recuse himself, he didn't attempt to influence the decision which was unanimous. It appears that the Board of Tax Assessors is attempting to divert attention from the real issues which  are (1) Whether the Board of Tax Assessors is correctly applying the exemption of charities from property tax provided by Georgia law and (2) Whether the Board is treating the Cultural Center fairly by equally applying the same standard it applies to other charities.

Wayne R. Vason
Attorney for the Madison-Morgan Cultural Center
Atlanta
Via e-mail

To the Editor:
Celia Murray, I enjoy reading your columns in the “Morgan County Citizen.” They point out political disagreements.
For example you say that Regan raised taxes, but I remember him for a tax cut, reducing the highest tax rate from 70 percent to 28 percent. I also remember that JFK reduced taxes.
The bottom line is that you tax what you don’t like (tobacco usage, alcohol usage, gasoline usage and business expansion) and then use that money to buy flowers for the “Speaker of the House.”
I would rather that you tell us why your party is opposed to the 10th Amendment to the Constitution. I believe that is written in English so simple that a fifth grader can understand it, but our “representatives” don’t.
I would also like you tell us why your party supports larger government and a larger national debt, and why they want government run health care, and why “Cap and Trade” (based on the fraud of “Global Warming Mythology”). Why Democrats oppose secret ballots for workers and why they want illegal immigration and amnesty for illegals. Why do Democrats want nuclear weapons for Iran and North Korea.
Will you tell us why both parties oppose “Term Limits”, and the “Fair Tax.”
Where are the Democrat’s like Sam Nunn and Zel Miller who would chastise other party members for who insult our troops (“terrorize women and children in the dead of night”), the most highly trained military that ever existed.
Tell us the good things your party is doing.

Clay Bonnough
Madison
Via e-mail

To the Editor:
The mainstream media has become an open sewer of incitement and sanctimonious fodder especially when there’s politics involved and especially anything concerning our president. These people are obsessed with President Obama. No president in our history has been under such a microscope of scrutiny. A microscope with a very dirty lens I may add! There are too many pundits, too much armchair quarterbacking, too much propaganda, and assuming and reading things into situations that aren’t there and too much attention given to obstructionists and naysayers and detractors.  Even the survey questions and polls are phrased to draw negative conclusions and assumptions.

They try to create the news by ratcheting up every air brained scheme and stunt being pulled by some sleaze bag wanting to bring attention to themselves. I can’t tell the difference between Entertainment Tonight, Fox News, CNN or MSNBC. All of them over sensationalize and over dramatize everything to the umpteenth degree I admit that at one time I was caught up but now I can’t bear to look at this stuff for more than a few minutes before my disgust meter peaks out and I have to turn to            C-SPAN or PBS or LINK TV or the local news. I’m tried of all the ranting and raving and showboating. I wish they would all just shut up and stick to the facts. I don’t care what everybody thinks and I’m tried of listening to polls and opinions. I can think for myself and I’m tried of the media trying to make up my mind for me.

Christopher Murray
Madison
Hand Delivered

To the Editor:
    As many are beginning to realize, there has been a recent strong push to create a new landfill in Morgan County. Is one necessary? I don’t think so. Not now anyway! More emphasis on recycling is the answer. Have you ever stopped to realize?
• Over 80,000,000,000 aluminum soda cans are used every year and an aluminum can that is thrown away will still be a can 500 years from now!
• Rainforests are being cut down at the rate of 100 acres per minute! If all our newspaper was recycled, we could save about 250,000,000 trees each year! The average household throws away 13,000 separate pieces of paper each year. Most is packaging and junk mail. The amount of wood and paper we throw away each year is enough to heat 50,000,000 homes for 20 years.
• Americans use 2,500,000 plastic bottles every hour! Most of them are thrown away!
• Plastic bags and other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as 1,000,000 sea creatures every year! Plastic takes 100-1000 years to decompose!
• Every month, we throw out enough glass bottles and jars to fill up a giant skyscraper. All of these jars are recyclable! In a landfill glass takes 4000 years to decompose!
• A single quart of motor oil, if disposed of improperly, can contaminate up to 2,000,000 gallons of fresh water.
• A typical family consumes 182 gallons of soda, 29 gallons of juice, 104 gallons of milk, and 26 gallons of bottled water a year. That's a lot of containers -- make sure they're recycled!!
    What is disposed of in landfills is lost to time and is a misuse of landfills. What we recycle will prevent us from depleting our natural resources such as trees and petroleum as well as eliminating the need for additional landfills we may not need.

To the Editor:
I hope Matt Laseter gets his head out of the sand before it's too late. David Belton for the most part has it right. We are closer now to socialism/communism than ever. It's only a few penstrokes and laws away. Once our freedoms are gone who will get them back for us? The intentions of our founding fathers are as plain as they can be, as written in our Constitution. It is not up to interpretation, it's written quite plain and intentional. That's most of our problem, our lawmakers don't even understand that, leave it alone.
"The evil communist," as Mr. Laseter refers, are still ever present and active in this world. Their agenda is still the same. Kruchev was right! They will take over this country and never fire a shot. That is unless America steps up and speaks with one "united" voice.
Steve Shepard
Rutledge
Via e-mail

To the Editor:
Joseph’s Coat Thrift Store wishes to publicly thank Wal-Mart for their latest clothing donation. Joseph’s Coat is able to sell clothing very reasonably and with Wal-Mart’s support new clothing is available at the same low price. Our thanks go out to all who support our thrift shop and most especially for Wal-Mart’s generosity.
Sue Benefield and the
Joseph’s Coat Staff
Madison