Recent editorials from Georgia newspapers:
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Aug. 8
The Valdosta Daily Times warns the public about a new scam where con artists pose as government officials:
We join Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr in warning the public about a new scam where con artists are posing as government officials.
Carr has particular reasons to be concerned about this scam. His name is being used.
Across Georgia people have reported that the names and titles of Carr and his chief deputy, Dennis Dunn, are being used illegitimately.
“We are hoping this alert serves as a warning that no one is immune from scammers who are now using intricate schemes in order to gain the confidence of their victims,” Carr said. “The best way to fight back against them is to understand their methods and spot the warning signs before it is too late. Our Consumer Protection Unit will remain vigilant in rooting out these con artists, and we urge you to sign up for our alerts and encourage friends and family to do the same.”
According to the AG’s office, in one instance, a consumer was contacted by a scammer who was pretending to be Dunn. The consumer reported “the fake Dunn said she owed back taxes and would be arrested if she did not pay immediately by providing payment information over the phone.”
Carr’s office said, “The scammer then attempted to further establish credibility by directing her victim to the Georgia Office of the Attorney General’s website and pointed to the biography of Chief Deputy Dennis Dunn, who is an actual employee at the Attorney General’s Office.”
In another example, the AG’s office said, “a phony business sent a consumer a letter telling him he had been selected to win a cash prize in a sweepstakes. The letter indicated that the sweepstakes was ’approved’ by the Federal Bureau of Investigation as well as the Office of the Attorney General of Georgia. It included alleged ’signatures’ of FBI Director Christopher Wray and Attorney General Christopher Carr. When the consumer contacted the business to collect his prize, he was told he had to pay various fees in order to receive his winnings.”
The Attorney General’s Office said it does not endorse sweepstakes, nor does it collect debts owed to the IRS.
The attorney general offered these “red flags” as warning signs of a scam:
-Being asked to pay money in order to receive a prize
-Pressure to act immediately
-Use of scare tactics, e.g. telling you a loved one is in danger, that your computer has been hacked or threatening arrest if you don’t act now
-Insistence that you wire money
-Get-rich-quick and other promises that sound too good to be true
-Promises to recover money you’ve lost in other scams, for a fee
We advise readers to heed the AG’s warning. Don’t be fooled by the threats and promises of scammers.
Online: http://www.valdostadailytimes.com/
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Aug. 10
The Savannah Morning News on a state representative proposing “mega-entertainment venues” and his renewed casino push:
Ron Stephens is ready to go all-in on casino resorts, including one here in Savannah.
His hand is strong. The longtime local state representative has engaged in what poker aces call “slow-playing” for half-a-decade now, floating various casino ideas ranging from video gaming machines to now Las Vegas-style “destination resorts.”
A recent Supreme Court decision that clears the way for legal sports betting is but one more trump card.
Stephens recently debuted his latest plan in, oddly enough, a web-based trade publication focused on Atlanta commercial real estate. He told a reporter with Bisnow Atlanta he intends to push a bill that would legalize casino gambling at three locations within the state: most likely Savannah, Atlanta and somewhere along the Georgia-Florida border.
The casinos would be part of massive resort complexes that “will be nothing different than someone going to Disney World,” Stephens told Bisnow Atlanta.
Contacted by email earlier this month, Stephens elaborated on his vision. He wants to pair the casinos “with other mega-entertainment venues … like indoor sky and water parks, film studios or amusement parks.
“After 25 years, it’s time for the people to vote whether they want to continue gambling or not,” Stephens wrote.
Our state has had legalized gambling in the form of the Georgia Lottery for a quarter-century now. Like with the lotto all those years ago, the legalization of casino gambling would require a statewide referendum.
The bill is already being drafted, according to Stephens. If passed by the Georgia General Assembly and signed by our next governor, the issue would be placed on a future ballot, presumably in November 2019.
The process allows plenty of time for debate. Stephens, ever the gentlemen gambler, just opened that discussion.
Casinos as anchors for larger entertainment complexes represent an intriguing idea.
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The long-term viability of casinos, not to mention the societal effects tied to open wagering, left many weary of past proposals. A 2017 Stephens push led to an editorial in this space headlined “Beware the lure of easy money.”
We remain cautious about destination resort casinos but are encouraged by the evolution of Stephens’ vision.
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Stephens claims “big players” want to be a part of Georgia casinos. Part of the legislation he plans to push would require operators to produce at least 10,000 new jobs and invest a minimum of $1.2 billion, and that’s per casino.
Stephens would like to see casinos limited to three locations, which would increase the viability of those sites by driving visitors to those geographically disparate locales.
Outcomes in the November election could determine the future of Georgia casino resorts.
Again, a gambling referendum won’t be on the ballot this fall, but voters will decide whether to re-elect Stephens. The Republican faces a Democratic challenger for the first time since 2012. Alicia Scott, a marketing, strategic planning and policy consultant, is running against Stephens.
The governor’s race is another key contest as it pertains to casinos. The Republican, Brian Kemp, has said he opposes casino gambling, although promoting economic development initiatives is part of his platform.
The Democrat, Stacey Abrams, is for casinos so long as profits are earmarked to education initiatives, such as the HOPE scholarship, as lottery funds are.
Obviously, the potential for Georgia casino resorts is not intended to be a campaign issue for Stephens. He’s held his cards long enough.
Time for the big bet.
Online: http://www.savannahnow.com/
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Aug. 14
The Augusta Chronicle on protest during the Pledge of Allegiance:
Pro football players know exactly what they’re doing when turning their backs on this country.
High school students may not.
Either way, growing displays of disrespect for America are more than a sad, shameful disgrace. They’re signs of an alarming erosion in young people’s understanding and appreciation of their unique blessings.
We live in the freest and most prosperous nation in history. Yet, despite their good fortune, National Football League players are kneeling for or sitting out the National Anthem, while some students - likely induced by these millionaire ingrates making a nice living off the same country they’re repudiating each game on television - are refusing to stand and recite the Pledge of Allegiance.
Citing an alleged growing controversy over the Pledge, and saying “we want everyone in our school family to start their day in a positive manner,” the principal of the Atlanta Neighborhood Charter School recently announced that the Pledge of Allegiance would be eliminated from its morning all-school assembly and moved to classrooms, to be replaced by a school pride chant.
After a massive backlash and national embarrassment, the school reversed itself and returned the Pledge to the assembly. But the damage was done, the statement made: Pledging allegiance to this nation in a high-profile setting is too much to ask.
Think about that, and what it says about the future of this country - which, uniquely among nations, depends on the cohesion of its people, not their ethnicity, for its very existence.
The Georgia Department of Education requires schools to set aside time for the Pledge, though federal appeals courts have ruled public schools can’t force students to stand or recite it.
The thing is, they shouldn’t have to be forced to. They should want to.
You can’t force people to love their country anyway. What you can do, however, is educate them sufficiently in the timeless and boundless wisdom of our founding, in the principles of liberty and equality that undergird our system of self-governance, and the astounding singularity of it all in the annals of human interaction.
This region’s schools do better than most in inculcating our young in the virtues of America - while also acknowledging its many shortcomings which are quite universal in the affairs of man. But we, and the rest of the nation’s schools, clearly must do more.
In short, not only NFL players, but our offspring as well, should know better. They need to, for the survival of this country.
Does America have issues? Of course! Most of us, of every race and walk of life, stand ready to work on them, and many are. But turning one’s back on the country at a moment of shared love of it is no way to coax the kind of cooperation needed to tackle our problems. Do NFL players know nothing of team spirit and teamwork?
We shudder at what these privileged players are teaching our hatchlings. Just this past weekend, a patriotic young Augusta fast food employee told us how aghast he was when a peer at work unashamedly declared he doesn’t love this country and wouldn’t fight for it.
He knows not what he says. And it’s the fault of the adults in his line of sight.
Online: http://www.augustachronicle.com/
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