Given the opportunity

to toss questions at state Senator Mitch Seabaugh, it was obvious what

was on the minds of many students at Starr's Mill High School Wednesday

morning the repercussions of the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington.

One student

asked about security measures that were taken in Georgia. Another asked

what security measures will be forthcoming.

Seabaugh, who

serves on the Senate's Public Safety Committee, said he received information

that Atlanta was indeed a target of the terrorists, particularly Hartsfield

International Airport and the offices of the Centers for Disease Control.

Another student

asked what role government will play in enhancing airline security. Seabaugh

said a focus would be on securing the cockpit and possibly use of a system

to gas the passenger cabins in the event of a terrorist attack so they

would be knocked out, buying extra time for the pilot to land safely.

But those questions

weren't what stunned the audience the most. When Seabaugh talked about

the Legislature's teen driving bill, which goes into affect Jan. 1, the

students reacted in disbelief.

The law, Seabaugh

said, will forbid 16-year-old drivers from having passengers in their

vehicle for the first six months after getting their license. The curfew

for those drivers has also been cut short and will end at midnight, Seabaugh

added.

Before the

question and answer session, however, Seabaugh said the most important

thing students can do is vote after educating themselves on the issues

and candidates, of course.

"As young

adults, your first responsibility is to vote," Seabaugh said, noting

that the nationwide voter turnout rate in the last election hovered near

50 percent, but was higher in Fayette.

Seabaugh also

urged the students to involve themselves with community service groups

"who go out and help others without waiting for the government to

do so."

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