Letter to the Editor: Poking the bear

Dear Editor,President Donald Trump’s Justice Department has established a $1.8 billion “anti-weaponization” fund using taxpayer dollars to settle lawsuits and compensate individuals the administration claims were victims of government overreach.

Letter to the Editor: Former chief comments on story

Dear Editor,This is Bill Ashburn, retired Police Chief of Madison.I recently read your article about the current Police Chief being placed on administrative leave. I also noticed that you referenced me in your article.

Yarbrough: Elections not over ‘til they’re over

The good news is that the primary elections are over. The bad news is the primary elections are not over—we now have runoffs. Then it will all be over, except it won’t be. The general election is Nov. 3, so we still have that to look forward to.

Crane: I will miss the ‘Mouth of the South’

When I first met Ted Turner, he was already a larger-than-life figure and a rascal around Atlanta, though still just beginning to introduce himself to the national stage. CNN was barely a toddler, and its Atlanta Braves were in their formative years as “America’s Team.

Rich: World War II heroes

Tink and I were at lunch recently with a friend who began talking about his grandfather’s bravery and the medals he earned during World War II.When the war began, his grandfather was initially deferred because he was in college. A few months later, he was drafted.

Tocher: Voting integrity matters beyond elections

With primary election results arriving this week — unfortunately, after press time for The Eatonton Messenger — voters in Putnam County and across Georgia will once more be relying on the integrity and accuracy of the election process.Most of that trust is naturally tied to politics.

Stone: Uh-oh, Spaghetti-o’s

“If at the end of each person’s life, he were to be presented with the living spectacle of all that he had [eaten] in order to stay alive, he might well feel horrified by the living energy he had ingested.

Rich: The thief

The email from my literary agent popped up. He is the wonderful man who first believed in me without having read a single line I had written.

Yarbrough: Keep talkin’ Southern, y’all

I’m a little late getting around to this, but there is a survey out by a group called Writing Tips Institute, a website that teaches people how to write correctly.According to the survey, 51% of Georgians would like our dialect protected by law.

Stone: Pick me! Pick me!

“You can choose a ready guide in some celestial voice. If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice. You can choose from phantom fears and kindness that can kill. I will choose a clear path. I will choose Freewill.