Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Nowhere in Georgia is now classified as Level 4, extreme drought, which is dangerous.
The rain the area has received since the beginning of January is helping to ease dought conditions that have plagued Athens and most of Georgia since last summer, and months before. The cisterns are full and the rivers are rising. In January, says climatologist Pam Knox of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Athens got 7.36 inches of rain, putting us .6 ahead of the normal amount of 6.76 inches. "And we're expecting rain later this week, so that should help," Knox said. "Right now, we're a little above normal." In Central Georgia, dought conditions have lessened, thanks to the rain, moving from Level 4, exceptional drought, to Level 3, extreme drought. The acquifer levels are still low, Knox said, adding that it will …
Sunday, October 21, 2012
200 people have become sick and 15 people have died so far, but no cases have been reported in Georgia.
The Meningitis outbreak has now spread to 15 states, including three that border Georgia. 15 people have died from the disease that has been linked to drugs made by a Massachusetts pharmacy, the New England Compounding Center (NECC). The CDC reports that no cases have been claimed in Georgia, but Florida has 10 cases and 2 deaths, N. Carolina has 2 cases and 0 deaths, and Tennessee has 53 cases and 6 deaths. RELATED: Video on AOL NEWS about the Meningitis Outbreak The current meningitis outbreak has been traced to a specific product and company. According to the CDC, the people who should be most concerned are, "patients who have received a steroid injection of a potentially contaminated product into the spinal area. Several patients …
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
On November 6th, voters in Georgia will weigh in on changing the Georgia Constitution to give a politically appointed state commission the authority to create and fund a separate system of schools.
Myth: The State Does Not Have the Power to Approve Charter Schools That Were Denied by Local School Boards Fact: The Georgia Department of Education currently has the authority to review and approve state charter applications. According to State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge, “with the state charter schools review process already in place, why does Georgia need another state agency that can do the same thing?”1 Myth: Charter Schools Are More Innovative and Flexible Fact: Charters are allowed to “kick out” students for behavior or academic reasons. Where do these students go once they are kicked out? They go back to the area’s traditional public school. This “flexibility” charters are given to kick out students means the most …
Thursday, July 19, 2012
The public schools in Athens, Ga., scored significantly lower than surrounding districts.
If the Clarke County School District were a student, it would be grounded for its poor performance on the End of Course Tests taken last spring. Or maybe start seeing a tutor. The Georgia Department of Education has released those scores for all the school districts in the state. And, according to a story in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Clarke County made three C's, two B's, a D and an F on the applicable tests. The results for individual schools will be released before students return to school in August. The tests now represent 20 percent of a student's final grade. In Georgia, school districts overall did better in U.S. history, economics, biology, physical science, ninth-grade literature, American literature and Mathematics I. …
Saturday, June 30, 2012
Red, White & Blue festivities lead off a month filled with barbecue, beer, wine and more.
Starting with the July 4th Weekend’s Red, White & Blue Pub Crawl and two holiday parties featuring barbecue, beer, bluegrass and wine, this month's calendar of wine, beer, and spirits tastings offer opportunities to sample a little of everything. Brew Master Bobo, a Catholic monk from Belgium, comes to town. There's a Sour Beer festival and a Christmas in July party as well as an “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” and the “Wine Wars." Also planned are a beer dinner in an authentic English-style cask ale pub along with three super wine tastings set for July 21, July 26 and July 27. Foodies everywhere are licking their lips for the start of Downtown Atlanta Restaurant Week. There is a local celebration of the Spanish running of the bulls. …
Thursday, June 28, 2012
Apparently, even lower than it is now!
Your eyes haven't been deceiving you: the price of gasoline continues to fall. Today, it hit a six-month low, according to the AAA. A year ago, the average price, nationally, of a gallon of regular gas was $3.55, compared to $3.36 today. In Georgia, the average cost of a gallon of regular unleded gas is $3.14 a gallon. To the east, South Carolina has seen gas prices drop to $2.95 a gallon In Athens, Murphy Express Gas at Lexington Highway and Whit Davis is selling regular unleaded at $3.11 a gallon, the lowest in the area. Despite the drop at the pump, people aren't driving more, according to the Associated Press. Though gas is 18 cents cheaper, people are buying about 5 percent less of it.
Sunday, June 10, 2012
Does anybody think the Georgia Department of Transportation deserves one cent of sales tax money? I don't. Here's why
The mid summer elections are coming up, and the weather isn't the only thing that's HOT this July. T-SPLOST, or the Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, is one issue that has a lot of people fired up this election cycle. With good reason, too...In case you haven't noticed, traffic around here is a mess. Highway 20 in Grayson is a frustrating commute during rush hour, despite the recent ba-jillion dollar widening project. Loganville Chic-fil-A hires an off-duty policeman each day, just so its customers can make a right turn on 78. That pretty much sums up the traffic situation in the 'Ville. The further west you go, the worse the situation gets. There's literally no way around this fact: Atlanta traffic sucks. Expert …
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Wine fests, beer fests, a new winery opening, a 'Deliverance' commemorative river fest and more as summer gets underway this month.
A new winery opens, a mega Pinot wine tasting comes to Dunwoody, and two North Georgia wine festivals are among the highlights of this June’s wine, beer, and spirits events. Mark your calendars. Designate a driver. A smorgasbord of activities awaits – everything from a commemorative festival for the movie “Deliverance” to a celebration of the California wines in “Bottle Shock.” There also are the Brookhaven Beer Festival, a “scary-etta" haunted pub crawl, and a Napa Cabernet Sauvignon tasting with wines priced at $100 and more, just to point to a few. June 1 – Marietta’s First Friday Art Walk offers responsible drinkers wine and beers while they stroll along viewing works of 30 featured artists exhibiting at different stores and …
Thursday, May 31, 2012
A look at top Patch stories from around Georgia.
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Thursday, May 31, 2012
Man Dies After Crashing Into Building – Marietta Patch A Cartersville man died Tuesday night when his pickup truck crashed into a vacant building near a busy intersection in East Marietta. Marietta Police identified the victim as James Franklin Griffin, 68. Griffin is believed to have suffered a heart attack before crashing into the building. Police said the truck was completely inside the building when fire and rescue crews discovered the man in cardiac arrest, and that Griffin was pronounced dead at WellStar Kennestone Hospital. Man Robbed, Hit with Bat – Cartersville Patch A 55-year-old man said he was attacked from behind and hit in the head with a bat during a violent May 29 holdup in Cartersville. The victim fought back, telling …
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
"Stand your ground" laws have been under scrutiny in recent months due to the Trayvon Martin shooting.
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Wednesday, May 9, 2012
The yearly number of justifiable homicides in Georgia has almost doubled since 2006, when the controversial "stand your ground" self-defense law was passed, according to the Associated Press. The AP reports that Georgia averaged seven justifiable homicides per year in the three years before the law took effect. Between 2007 and 2011, it averaged 13 annually. Most self-defense laws state that when citizens feel their lives are in danger, they have a duty to retreat if possible before responding with deadly force. "Stand your ground" laws eliminate or reduce the duty to retreat. "Stand your ground" laws have been under national scrutiny in recent months after the killing of Florida teenager Trayvon Martin. Florida's "stand your ground" law…
ConFounded
10:22 am on Saturday, September 8, 2012
Myth: The State Does Not Have the Power to Approve Charter Schools That Were Denied by Local School Boards Fact: True today, but probably illegal based on the GA Supreme Court Decision. The State BOE did approve some charters as "special schools." The verdict from the Supreme Court set a precedent; identifies special schools as only those who fill a special need, and gives exclusive right to K-12… more ›