Don’t worry Sylvia Cooper will be back next week. For one more week, you will have to settle for my pontificating. Sylvia did want me to pass along that she has a new motto. “I Survived Covid-19, and I Am Going to be Hell on Wheels!” We all have that to look forward to.
Ethics for Public Servants According to Hardie – 101
Mayor Hardie Davis, Jr. has decided to trade his crown for the tweed jacket and ivory towers of higher education. Davis isn’t waiting for the expiration of his 125 remaining days in office to become Georgia Tech’s newest adjunct professor.
Davis will be teaching in the public policy department, a department that focuses on “leadership, ethical, organizational, and political skills, conflict management, project planning and management.”
I guess the old saying is true: those who can’t do, teach.
When I first heard about Davis teaching, I honestly thought it was a joke. There really isn’t anything humorous about a “Professor Hardie.” Instead, this really speaks to the sad state of affairs that our higher education system is in and the lack of ethical leadership in university administrations.
With the national conversation ongoing about student loan forgiveness, the notion of Davis being paid with funds obtained via student loans that will soon be forgiven is as putrid as the smell of a dead fish wrapped in a copy of the current Augusta Chronicle.
If one of my children was taking Davis’ class, and I did a little research on him, which clearly Georgia Tech has not done, then I would demand a refund on the tuition, whether it was already funds forgiven by Joe Biden or not.
Having completed both a bachelor’s and master’s degree, I can attest to the fact that colleges force students to take a lot of useless classes that are either not needed or desired. As I thought about some of those classes I took, I couldn’t help by imagine what classes I would rather take than “Ethics by Hardie – 101.” Below is a list I compiled of better classes and their would-be professors.
- Culinary arts – Hannibal Lecter
- Aerobics – Rosie O’Donnell
- Religious studies – Raphael Warnock
- Computer Information Systems – Sammie Sias
- Economics –Alexandria Ocasio Cortez
- Woman’s Studies – Caitlyn Jenner
- Nutrition – Stacey Abrams
- Early Childhood Education – Jeffrey Epstein
- Landscape Management – Maurice McDowell
- Accounting 101 – Bernie Madoff
- History of the Internet – Al Gore
- Criminal Justice and the Media – Sheriff Richard Roundtree
- World History – Adolf Hitler
- Cyber Security – Hillary Clinton
- Film editing – Michael Moore/Jerry Springer co-professors
- Human Resource Management – Bill Clinton
- Business 101 – Ghislaine Maxwell
- Public Speaking – Marion Williams
- Hair styling – Dennis Rodman
- Retirement Strategies – Joe Biden
- Environmental Science – Greta Thurnberg
- Healthcare management – Barack Obama
- Nuclear Engineering – Kim Jung-un
- Cosmetology – Michael Jackson
- Environmental Studies – Riverkeeper
MORE: Sylvia Cooper: Davis term comes to a close; Sias appeals; Augusta Commission in limbo
It costs money to see how government spent your money
To say that I am disappointed in our local government would be understatement of century. An assault on the first amendment has permeated from Augusta’s leadership now down through its ranks.
Davis isn’t to blame for all of Augusta’s problems, but he has certainly created an atmosphere of distrust and fear of transparency.
This week, The Augusta Press filed an open records request for financial data related to how stormwater funds have been spent. On a request for a single document/report on SPLOST 7, the city finance department indicated that they would need 10 additional days for a total of 13 days to provide the information. In addition, they are going to charge $103.15 for their time to produce the document. Below was the breakdown in the response.
1. 2.75 hours x $31.29/hour = $86.48 cost to search, retrieve, and compile the requested records.
2. 0.5 hours x $33.33/hour = $16.67 cost to review the requested documents for any applicable exemptions/redactions and to prepare the final response.
I took multiple accounting classes in college and can assure you that it does not take over three hours to hit print or email one single financial report. No redaction should be required or review needed. If the report can’t be printed and provided without having to modify or clean up something in the report the city has way bigger issues than anyone ever knew about.
The requested report is so easy to access and provide that the Richmond County Board of Education was able to provide a very similar report in a matter of minutes. Multiple emails and voicemails were left with the Finance Director Donna Williams on this topic with no response received.
Citizens should be able to request financial statements on how their tax dollars are spent without it costing $100 and taking nearly two weeks.
MORE: Sylvia Cooper: Davis shares recent work on gun violence with commission
Augusta doesn’t need a whitewater park
I was able to go whitewater rafting Friday in Clayton, Ga., in the Chattooga River. A full day away from technology is good for the soul for anybody. Augusta is a very centralized community that has great access to entertainment within a few hours drive.
The two-hour drive to Clayton is well worth the experience.
For Augusta to replicate a whitewater experience like that in Clayton is not feasible. The section of rapids I rafted down is not subject to any dam and is surrounded by national wildlife preserves on both sides. The land is completely unadulterated and natural, a feat that Augusta can’t accomplish.
Our God has created and managed the rapids in the Chattooga River for mankind’s enjoyment. Augustans would be better off making the drive and experiencing those rapids than anything Augusta’s leadership could create.
The cost to create a whitewater park would be enormous, and I have sincere concerns about how the city would manage it when they can’t even keep the grass cut in city parks. In order to pay for such a project, the city would have to use a new SPLOST to fund the project.
Citizens have made it very clear that until the city renews confidence in their fiscal practices any vote to increase taxes will be rejected. Augusta has a lot of work to do in this area. A good start would be to cooperate with providing info to citizens and not charging them for it.
Joe Edge is the publisher of The Augusta Press. Reach him at joe.edge@theaugustapress.com
