My Morning Wooten: Giving Credit Where Credit Is Due

I tell friends all the time I miss the old Jim. Back in the days when Atlanta had two papers and the competition fostered some real journalism, Jim Wooten was one of my daily reads. On an editorial page full of screaming mimis, Jim was the one of the few conservative voices I considered reasonable. I viewed him in the mold of George Will. Agreement with the issues was not necessary but at least the views were intelligent and well communicated.

I often wonder what happened to that Jim. Since the merger of the Journal-Constitution, Wooten lurched hard right. Reason became a thing of the past and parroting Limbaugh-like talking points became the present. I have two theories. Either Jim's actual persona was stifled at the Journal or with the move to the more liberal Constitution he was required to fill the ecosystem's niche as the resident kook.

Well, maybe yesterday's shake up at the paper stirred the ghost of old Jim because I'm having a hard time disagreeing with most of his column today. Sure, he's still drinking the Kool-Aid on Iraq but many of his other points are, dare I say it, sane.

Townships, a government form common elsewhere, is being proposed for Georgia by state Sen. David Adelman (D-Decatur). His zoning-only concept of local control may be too limited, but the key is to give people the ability to control their communities.

Good lord. Not only do I agree but he actually credits a Democrat with a good idea. Get out the fainting couch! But of course in the very next bullet...

All of this drive to incorporate and to break away got started because Fulton commissioners treated north Fulton like dirt, taking their money while completely disregarding their concerns about density and development. We can love and identify with the brand Atlanta, but need to relate to a government with which we can connect.

Jim gets it half right. The other half is the prediliction of North Fulton to act like spoiled brats.

Yes! State Rep. Earl Ehrhart (R-Powder Springs), chairman of the House Rules Committee, offers legislation to allow individuals and corporations to get a significant tax credit for contributions that allow low-income or disabled children to attend private schools. Love this new Big Idea Legislature. They’re talking about things that matter — in addition, of course, to the usual things that don’t.

Although I am no fan of complicating our already ponderous tax code, if we must, tax credits are the way to go. If you listened to the Georgia Politics Podcast, you will note I want a little more accountability than conservatives but this bill demonstrates how government can work with the private sector to enhance the citizens.

There's more but I think I will limit myself to those few. Maybe one day Jim will come around on Iraq and his other sins but at least for today, I'm happy to see the old Jim.