This is Viewpoints for Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016
Homer
Trump knocks a homer at the GOP debate. Bush would make a good Vice President. Clinton is toast.
— John G. Kelley Jr.
Macon
Curry kudos
Bill Curry's excellent "Special to the Telegraph" in Thursday's opinion section is worth reading. I look forward to more from him. Perhaps he could write a monthly column for you. I suspect he's quite knowledgeable on a number of timely topics.
— Becky Yeatman
Warner Robins
New flag?
Why is there a flag with a pot leaf flying on Second Street? Is this part of the plan that the mayor has for downtown?
— Wayne Moyers
Macon
Great community leaders
Growing up in Macon. I was blessed to be connected to great coaches as I said in my previous letter. But I was also blessed to watch great leaders of this community, Damon King, Buck Melton, Lee Robinson, Frank Amerson, Tommy Olmstead, Charlie Jones, Bill Odom, Larry Justice, Emory Green, Albert Billingslea, Daddy Bill Randall, Ray Wilkes, Rev. Curtis Raines, and now Chief James Avera. These were leaders I respected and watched them work for the community. Rest in peace.
— Leon Jones
Macon
Inauspicious start
Most individuals and groups dislike changes in their lives, some even abhor them. If there is significant change for a group, leadership must assure good planning and execution to achieve success and maximum cooperation within the group.
After two weeks out of town there is always the process of catching up and returning to the normal routine of life at home. This involves checking phone messages, reading email and reading "saved" editions of The Telegraph. We traveled 2,000 miles homeward starting at 4 a.m. Sunday, Jan. 3, and started thinking of sleep 20 hours later as I was placing garbage cans at the street for pick up on Monday Jan. 4.
The Northwoods neighborhood community coordinator had sent an email reminding neighbors of the change in garbage collection starting on Jan. 4, countywide (I later read The Telegraph Dec. 19 front page article quoted by our coordinator).
This inauspicious nonstart of changes in garbage collection on Jan. 4 does not bode well toward the success of the more complex announced new countywide single stream recycling. Experience tells me to plan on continuing my 10-year trek of taking recyclables to Seventh Street for my neighbor and our household, avoiding recycling containers staying on the curb for extended periods as my garbage languishes now.
I hope the landfill replacement planning/execution is more successful to avoid additional state fines. I think we have run out of excuses by now, although some say hope is eternal.
— Arthur D. Brook
Macon
Not fair
We take our recycling to the fire station two blocks from home. Now we have to pay an extra $5 a month for pick up twice a month. Not fair! Cox and Direct TV make it hard for a customer to decide which. Not fair! Health insurance has increased $19 a month. Not fair! What do others say?
— Joy Thomas
Macon
Smarter than a possum?
I do not mean to suggest that many of our roadways are not in need of improvement or to make light of anyone's misfortune, but Jim Huber's letter was right on the mark. "Most people do not even look. They are either spellbound ... or believe they have the right of way."
I would add that too many of us have forgotten or never heard one of any mother's most important lessons: "Look both ways before you step into the road." An apparent unintended consequence of the Georgia crosswalk law seems to have been training walkers in unsafe behavior. Pedestrians learn they can cross without regard to the cars, and then transfer this bad habit to fast, dark and dangerous roads such as Gray Highway. Not a good plan.
A helpful Telegraph article might detail the facts and intention of Georgia's crosswalk law. Despite a rather serious effort to miss it, I recently hit a Jones County possum. Perhaps I should have noticed it sooner. Perhaps I might have braked a bit harder, but the simple truth is, there is only one certain thing that would have kept that possum alive. Please, be smarter than a possum. Do not walk in front of a moving pickup truck.
— Paul Hoinowski
Macon
Executive orders
It becomes more and more evident why President Obama has sealed his college transcripts; apparently he failed in constitutional law. He has repeatedly broken the laws of this nation and constantly repeats, "I must act because Congress failed to."
Someone needs to remind him we are a republic with a representative government. Failing to take action is an action. When Congress does not rally around his ideology on a given issue and no action is taken, he uses that as an excuse to trample what is left of our Constitution with his "executive orders."
Making laws and modifying laws outside of Congress is unconstitutional. This is how dictators behave.
— Kathy Solomon
Perry
This story was originally published January 16, 2016 at 9:43 PM with the headline "This is Viewpoints for Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016 ."