Chamblee54

This content was originally published July 21, 2008. … In 1996 Atlanta hosted the Olympics. On the last day of the games, the Men’s Marathon was run. The Marathon course went out Peachtree from downtown, and turned around near the end of the 23 Oglethorpe busline, in front of the funeral home. It then turned right, and went down Lanier Drive beside Oglethorpe University. It went down the street a couple of blocks, turned around in front of Oglethorpe Presbyterian Church, and came back to Peachtree. The runners turned right, and ran to the Olympic Stadium. Being the slack person that I am, I had not gotten tickets to any Olympic events. …
… The Marathon was a free event, and was walking distance from my residence. This was my last chance. When I got there, I was amazed at the instant community that had assembled along the course. This remarkable event was almost over, and this was all I was going to see of it! The fact that it is more than many others saw was little comfort. I walked alongside the course, and crossed Lanier Drive. This is important to the rest of the story. The runners were a bit of an anticlimax. A pack of men in track uniforms ran past. …
… They went to the end of the course, down Lanier Drive, and hustled down Peachtree to the end of the race. After the second appearance of the bulk of the runners, I was ready to go. However, there was a glitch. One runner was way behind the rest of the pack, and I could not cross Lanier Drive until he had gone by, and the course was opened for pedestrian traffic. The last runner was from Afghanistan. After a few minutes, he appeared. He had a large bandage on one leg, which apparently had been injured. He finished the race.
This content was originally published July 15, 2008. … I was enjoying monday morning, until I went up pill hill and saw the red tee shirts. The people in the shirts were anti abortion protesters. The slick signs had the “standard” slogans and pictures of mutilated fetuses. This did not make me feel good about the rest of the day. It seems as though Operation Save America … formerly known as Operation Rescue … is having a National Event in Atlanta this week. “Will you heed the call and allow God to move through you this summer as the Church once again stands for Truth at the very gates of hell?” …
… Meetings and conventions are a big part of the local economy. They bring a lot of money into town. OTOH, we are the captive audience for loud people with a message. Mostly, we just go on about our business, until the vulgar idiots take their credit cards and go home. Many of these folks today wear red tee shirts. They have a cross, and the slogan “Jesus is the Standard”. Another source of amusement for OSA is picketing gay pride events. Could it be that those sign wavers are saying more about themselves than about others? …
… I wrote a post last year called Is Life Sacred? Here is the money quote: “Abortion and War are similar issues. Both are horrible, ghastly events. I have never participated in either, except as a sponsoring taxpayer. In the case of War, there are side effects to a society that wages war, no matter how just. It takes resources away from better uses, is damaging to the economy (except for a handful of profiteers), and is generally bad karma. The same can be said about abortion. However, I stop short of saying we should never do either. Sometimes War is needed. …
… Sometimes Abortion is an appropriate measure. We need to keep the option open. However horrified I may be by abortion, I do not like the power happy politicians and ministers who exploit this issue for their own benefit. The same could be said for those who enlist Jesus in this process. Of course, as many times as Jesus and his believers have hurt me, the sign wavers can have him. There is a counter protest to this nonsense. Next week, another convention will be in town. And unwanted pregnancy will continue. … Pictures today are from Special Collections and Archives, Georgia State University Library. The social media picture: “Rich’s Diamond Jubilee, Jan. 2, 1942. The Diamond Jubilee celebrations began on January 1, 1942, when Margaret Mitchell dedicated five murals commemorating the first years of Rich’s Department Store.” · selah ©Luther Mckinnon 2025