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Friday, April 13, 2007
David Nordan, one of a kind, passes on
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Quite a few writers have come along since David Nordan’s heyday at the old Atlanta Journal, but none with more wit, passion and visceral appetite for the game of politics.
We’ve gotten the sad news that Nordan died Thursday afternoon, “with his loving family by his side.”
A memorial service is planned for 2 p.m. Sunday at Parrott Funeral Home in Fairburn. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested that donations be made to Mercer University, marked to the “David Nordan Memorial Scholarship.” It’s a scholarship for adult continuing education students - David was an instructor at Mercer’s adult writing lab and felt very strongly about the program.
The address is:
Mercer University University Advancement 1400 Coleman Ave Macon, Georgia 31207
A memorial service is also planned — he’d be mighty ticked off if there weren’t — for next Tuesday night at Manuel’s. Angelo Fuster, a longtime friend, put it very well when he said that session will bring together those who “sometimes liked and sometimes didn’t like, but always loved Dave.”
In elementary school, we called this ‘caught being good’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
On Friday afternoon, the House gave final approval to H.B. 79, a bill to permit licensed private investigators to drive cars with dark-tinted windows.
That way philandering husbands and bail jumpers can’t see who’s stalking them, although you’d think the dark windows themselves might be a tell-tale sign that something’s up.
On its first trip through the House, we didn’t notice that the bill had been amended so that members of the General Assembly could share this polarized privilege with private detectives. Driving around in smokey-glassed cars just like the by-God President of the United States is pretty cool, after all.
Ah, but someone in the Senate saw a danger in 236 swelled heads cruising Georgia highways in sublime privacy. The chamber stripped the bill down to its original scope, so that it only covered private investigators.
State Rep. Calvin Hill (R-Canton), the No. 2 sponsor of the bill, told his fellow House members that the Senate change was for the best. People might start thinking lawmakers viewed themselves as being above the law, he said.
The stripped-down bill won final passage, 121 to 10.
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Dogwood blossoms and stretcher-bearers: Two signs that the end of the session approaches
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Two House members are in hospital with chest pains today. State Rep. Greg Morris (R-Vidalia) was taken away by ambulance. State Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) went under his own power. House Majority Leader Jerry Keen said both are staying the night, but are doing fine.
State Rep. Fran Millar (R-Dunwoody) went for an ambulance ride on Thursday, after he, too, experienced chest pains. He was back at his desk today.
You know, of course, that the Legislature is the No. 1 cause of heart attacks in Georgia, whether you’re inside the state Capitol — or outside.
Heads up: The gun bill is shifting
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The National Rifle Association is attempting to re-shape its stalled guns-in-parking lots bill. The new version includes a highly tempting morsel for the Georgia business community.
But it’s also drawn a new player into the fight — the Georgia Trial Lawyers Association.
S.B. 43 ran into a brick wall on Day 30 of the legislative session. As written, the bill would have allowed employees to keep firearms in cars parked on company lots.
Business organizations, principally the Georgia Chamber of Commerce and the Georgia Realtors Association, declared the bill to be an infringement of property rights.
Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle kept the bill from a floor vote on Crossover Day, significantly reducing its chances of passing this session.
The new version — we haven’t seen a formal draft — is said to have these points:
— Companies would be prohibited from searching employee cars on their property;
— And a prohibition of guns in those cars could not be made a condition of employment;
In essence, the bill would codify the unspoken, don’t-ask-don’t-tell relationship that now exists between many employees and companies.
To lure the business community, the bill would end “vicarious litigation” in Georgia. If a FedEx truck runs over your toddler, right now you’re allowed to sue both the company and the driver. This bill would end that practice. You’d only be able to sue the driver.
Chamber leaders met today to discuss the offer. It’s not clear whether they’re biting.
Says Staton of Oxendine: He’s cooking the numbers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Earlier this week, we told you that state Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine had put out a letter criticizing S.B. 276, a bill to expand the rights of policy-holders with uninsured motorist coverage.
Oxendine said the measure, now in the House, would cost Georgia consumers an extra $400 million a year — or an extra $92 for the average policy-holder.
But the sponsor of the bill, state Sen. Cecil Staton (R-Macon), says that’s not what the insurance commissioner told him last month. Staton has put out a response, basically charging Oxendine of caving to insurance companies. Here an excerpt:
“Over six weeks ago, we asked Commissioner Oxendine’s office for an evaluation of the fiscal impact of this legislation, and representatives from his office assured me, in writing, that industry estimates showed a potential increase in uninsured motorist rates that was marginal at best.
“However, earlier this week, representatives from Commissioner Oxendine’s office called and informed me of his intention to oppose Senate Bill 276 on the grounds that it will represent an overall premium increase of 14 percent for Georgians.
“Yesterday, over a month after our initial request for information, Commissioner Oxendine changed his numbers yet again and informed us that the mandates of Senate Bill 276 will represent an overall premium increase to Georgians of 21.3 percent!
“However, the research provided to us early in this process shows that Senate Bill 276 will increase the premium less than $4 per month.
“I regret that Commissioner Oxendine is siding with the insurance companies and against Georgia’s drivers. Georgia drivers deserve to collect the insurance they are paying for and, and they should have the same access to coverage the citizens in our sister states currently enjoy.”
