Charles Shiflett Column June 5, 2005

Questions I'd Like Answered

• Two weekends ago, the Cartersville Police Department launched a crackdown on unlicensed drivers
and those driving without insurance. Since most of the names of those arrested were Hispanic, a few
questions for law enforcement are in order. Was the immigration or citizenship status of those arrested
checked? If so, were any of those arrested found to be illegally here? If any were illegal, were they held
for the INS for deportation? Of course a few of you will classify me as being a racist for even daring to
raise the issue.

• Some guy won the Indianapolis 500 last weekend, but I never heard who he was. All the media
attention was focused on the fourth place finisher… a woman. Will this endless quest to name “the
first woman, minority, etc.” ever end? And who actually did win the Indianapolis 500? That's really the
important thing.

• John McCain was soundly defeated in the 2000 Republican presidential primary by George W. Bush,
and last time I checked Bill Frist of Tennessee was still the majority leader of the U.S. Senate. So
why does McCain act as though he is in charge of things in Washington, DC? And why do Republican
leaders allow him to continually stab them in the back?

• Why do plumbing leaks always seem to occur on holidays? Yes, I spent Memorial Day replacing a
leaking water supply pressure regulator. That was fun!

• The Georgia Supreme Court recently ruled that Shorter College in Rome was still under the control of
the Georgia Baptist Convention. Now academicians are ringing their hands claiming that having a
religious body in charge of appointing trustees for the school would make it near impossible for poor
old Shorter to maintain its academic accreditation. Does this mean that religious backed education is
doomed in this nation? And why have academic accrediting agencies been allowed to accumulate all
this power?

• On a related note, why is it that Democrat Senators so vehemently opposes any judicial nominee
who is devoutly religious? Democrat litmus test: “Do you regularly attend religious services or do you
hold strong religious convictions?” Answer yes to this one and you'll be on the filibuster hit list.

• My wife and I just returned from Amelia Island and the Florida real estate market really shocked me.
The Sunshine State's coastline is quickly becoming dominated by huge condo towers where many
units go for a million bucks each and up. It's hard to imagine that many people being able to afford
housing in that price range, so where are all these folks coming from?

• We just learned that Georgia homebuyers are leading the nation in using interest only mortgages as
opposed to 15-year or 30-year traditional mortgages. That's a scary thought. There are a few narrow
circumstances in which interest only makes sense, but the danger of escalating interest rates makes
these loans risky. When we hit our next economic bump in the road, will a higher percentage of
interest only mortgages end up in foreclosure? Will lenders go crying to the government for help?

• It seems that violent crime is on the increase in England and since guns are all but banned there,
criminals are turning to kitchen knives as their weapon of choice. You guessed it… an article in the
British Medical Journal states that long pointy kitchen knives should be replaced with knives that are
rounded on the ends. Where does this nonsense end? Scissors, nail clippers? Sounds a lot like U.S.
airport security screening.

• Georgia law enforcement officials estimate that at least half of the record number of driving deaths on
Memorial Day weekend involved alcohol. Does this mean our drunken driving laws aren't tough enough,
or do those bold enough to drink and drive have little fear of being stopped?

• Finally, I have a question that has been gnawing at me for the past year… Is Mr. Six, the dancing
dude in the Six Flags commercials, a guy or gal? Inquiring minds want to know. OK I confess… I own
a Mr. Six bobble head doll.