Dysfuntional Board, Borderline Insubordination and Attempted Deal Making

You often hear people jokingly say “No good deed goes unpunished,” but this past week it was horrifyingly true. Caleb Graves, a Dacula High School graduate, was seriously injured while attempting to help a stranded motorist. Graves was struck by a passing car and remains hospitalized at Gwinnett Medical Center. The driver of the vehicle that struck Graves fled the scene and remains at large. Click on the link above to learn how you can help this young man who friends describe as an amazing role model.

I realize government meeting news isn’t always the most exciting thing to read on the Internet, but sometimes it is the most important. The issue of whether or not to privatize Briscoe Field is gaining momentum. It is important to realize that no matter what side of the issue you are on, now is the time to make your opinion known. If you wait, you will be presented with a fait accompli.

One person who is not sitting on the sidelines of the Briscoe Field issue is Citizens for a Better Gwinnett board member and Dacula Patch blogger Jim Regan. Regan attended last week’s county commission meeting and shared his thoughts about what he described as a “dysfunctional” board in action. Regan’s blog post has generated a lively online debate centered around the issues of governmental honesty and transparency.

Gwinnett County Public Schools conducted the third enrollment count of the year last week. Mill Creek once again topped the chart with 3,542 students -- 61 more than forecast. That number puts MCHS’ enrollment at least 1,700 students ahead of Dacula and more than 1,600 ahead of Mountain View. Another enrollment count is due this week.

What makes a person caught red-handed, sitting in handcuffs in the back of a patrol car think he is in any position to negotiate? I do not know. What I do know is that abuse of prescription drugs is a serious problem -- one the GBI warns is causing an increasing number of deaths. A GBI analysis showed that in 2010, deaths caused by prescription drug overdoses increased by 10 percent. Whether this person is guilty or not guilty, a drug consumer or a drug seller, hopefully police will be able to obtain enough information from him to track down the person who provided the prescription.

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