Staff Photo by Dan Henry / The Chattanooga Times Free Press- 4/15/14. Staff MugsFirst, let me say how much I appreciate all the feedback I get from readers.
Earlier this week, I wrote on license plates and religious pandering in state politics.
One of my more frequent - and astute - critics named Pat chimed in with rare praise. For perspective, Pat once wrote my boss and me an email that said his dog would not poop on my column. My reply was simple: Sorry to hear your dog is constipated.
Here was Pat's email from this week:
"Holy Moly! What a great column you wrote in today's TFP. I thought we would never agree on something, but now we do. If you want In God We Trust on your car that's fine, but we must have a choice My tag says VETERAN. Jay 22 is cool too."
Today, one day after we welcomed a new president and after one of the most divisive elections, may we all be willing to find the common ground as often as possible.
GOODBYE, AND THANK YOU
One of my professional idols died Thursday.
Edwin Pope, a longtime columnist for the Miami Herald, died Thursday. He was 88.
He was part of the long line of master wordsmiths who turned sports opinion into an art form.
He was there with Jim Murray of the L.A. Times, Dan Jenkins in Texas and Mike Royko from Chicago. Guys I learned to love later in life when electronic reach expanded our horizons and allowed access to voices from all over.
He had such grace in his words and delivery. His path was not the quick-muscle- twitch reaction in the moment, the hallmark of so much opinion spewed on the airwaves and internet today.
He made points rather than pointed fingers. When he took his shot, it was even more powerful because of the delivery.
He wrote eloquently. He took time for strangers. And above all, he stayed above it all, speaking softly but carrying no shtick.
Thank you, Mr. Pope.
WHERE WERE WE?
I try to mix in as many items as possible on Saturdays because there are so many things going on in our city and county.
So let's pick up the pace, shall we?
The Hamilton County Board of Education spent Thursday discussing bus solutions. Good.
That said, if they take the same, deliberate pace with our busing problems that we have experienced in the superintendent search, well, here's a thought: Let's write down the names of some of the really sharp fifth-graders, because by the time action happens, they could be hired as drivers.
PARKING PROBLEMS
So we are going to spend some sizable coin to solve parking problems downtown.
Excellent.
You have to wonder a little bit about the price package for a study like that, right?
Maybe the "Silver Package" includes one engineer, 20 minutes of study and some cool graphics. The "Gold Package" gets city leaders all the information on our current scenario, as well as some negatives of other locales so that we can hear the good and the bad - "Yes, parking is difficult, but it's not as bad as " This plan also has been well received by those studying traffic patterns.
Apparently though, we wisely went with the "$250,000 Big Wheel Package," which has all the bells and whistles - and promises not to blame bike lanes for anything.
PICK-UP ARTISTS
The Chattanooga National Cemetery's glorious Christmas tradition of placing wreaths on the markers enjoyed another great holiday season.
With that, though, comes the need for volunteers to help pick up the wreaths.
The cemetery staff is asking for the public's assistance with this process, beginning at 8 this morning.
If you have any questions, you can call 423-855-6590, ext. 5802.
Contact Jay Greeson at jgreeson@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6343.