The year will end soon and it is time to reflect on the best and worst events of 2012. The worst of 2012 are:
• The evil murder of 20 children and six adults last Friday at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn.
• The horrible midnight massacre in the movie theater in Aurora, Colo.
• The sad day in January when Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who received a bullet in the head during an assassination attempt, announced that she would not seek reelection to her seat in Congress.
• The misconduct of Secret Service agents and others while in Colombia doing advanced work for a visit by President Obama.
• The revelation that football players on the New Orleans Saints were paid bonuses to intentionally hurt opponents.
• The irrational ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that President Obama’s new healthcare law is constitutional because it construed parts of the legislation to be a tax.
• The devastation caused by “Superstorm Sandy” in the New York City area and the ineffective governmental response to thousands of citizens who needed immediate help.
• The death of legendary sports writer Furman Bisher.
• The realization that our federally funded space program has ended. Space exploration should be a priority because those who dominate space in 50 years will dominate the world.
• The assassination of Ambassador Christopher Stevens and three other Americans in Benghazi, Libya. The subsequent lies and cover-up by our political leaders dishonor the service of the four patriots who lost their lives.
• The ruthless attacks by some liberals on local resident Dan Cathy and Chick-fil-A because of his opposition to gay marriage.
• The secretiveness and ineptness demonstrated by Fayette County Board of Education members in the events leading up to the departure of Dr. Jeff Bearden, Superintendent of Schools. Bearden is a top flight school administrator who will be highly successful as superintendent of the Rome City Schools.
• The reference by this writer to “sewer boys” in a newspaper column last week. Mike Harman, Chairman of the PTC Water and Sewage Authority, told me it was “tasteless and unwarranted.” In hindsight, I agree with Mr. Harmon and extend sincere apologies to him and other members of the authority.
The best of 2012 are:
• The leadership demonstrated by Peachtree City Council member Kim Learnard in planning, organizing and setting the stage to create the proposed new Fayette College and Career Academy.
• The Sandy Creek football team winning a third state championship in the past four years.
• The McIntosh girl’s soccer team winning a second consecutive state championship.
• The 2012 Summer olympic Games in London. The United States won 46 gold medals.
• The opening of the International Terminal at the Atlanta Airport.
• The highly successful Peachtree City International Festival and Rotary Dragon Boat Races at Drake Field with an estimated 5,000 people in attendance.
• The news on the evening of July 31 that the much publicized T-SPLOST went down in flames by a wide margin. It lost in all ten metro Atlanta counties. Similar T-SPLOSTs lost in 10 of the 12 other regions throughout Georgia.
• The dancing moves demonstrated by Green Bay Packers wide receiver Donald Driver while winning “Dancing with the Stars” competition.
• The Olympic gold medals won by track and field triple jumper Christian Taylor and soccer star Kelley O’Hara at the London Olympic Games. Taylor is a graduate of Sandy Creek and O’Hara graduated from Starr’s Mill. Two gold medalists from a county the size of Fayette is something to brag about.
• The acrobatic sideline catch made by New York Giants receiver Mario Manningham to set up the winning touchdown for the Giants in the Super Bowl.
• The 155-yard golf shot that led to Bubba Watson’s victory in the Masters at Augusta National. Television commentators and spectators insist that the ball hooked 40 yards while in flight to the green.
In conclusion, readers should know that I sometimes hit a golf shot similar to the one Bubba Watson expertly executed at the Masters. Unfortunately, my hook is never intentional and almost always goes out of bounds … much like some of my opinions.
Have a happy and prosperous new year!
Enough said.
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[Scott Bradshaw, a resident of Peachtree City, is a real estate broker and residential real estate developer. His family has owned property in what is now Peachtree City since 1820. He may be contacted at rand5474@bellsouth.net.]
