MIRABEAU B. LAMAR: Bad weather and shirtsleeves (5.12.08)

Mirabeau B. Lamar

Mirabeau wonders why TV weathercasters always shed their jackets when big storms are brewing? They break into Mirabeau’s favorite programs with weather bulletins and have the gall to show up in their shirtsleeves.

Qualifying isn’t until June, but Mirabeau hears action is picking up in races for Superior Court judgeships. Attorneys Alonzo Whitaker and Bob Wadkins are said to be gauging their chances. Their plans depend on what Judge Kenneth Followill does, and he's keeping his plans private. As for Judge Bob Johnston, his recycled hips continue to give him pain but Mirabeau is told he has quietly collected a war chest of donations for a reelection campaign.

Information and mis-information is already out there on the city's proposed sales tax. Mirabeau learned a lot from Tim Chitwood's Monday article in the Ledger-Enquirer. You will too.

Jack Pezold’s hotel group now owns the old Sheraton Hotel and Mirabeau has been told a second Houlihan’s might pop up on the site.

For a quick lesson in Georgia history, Mirabeau recommends a segment of Jim Galloway's Political Insider on the AJC web site. His report on how racial barriers fell around the state capitol shows how things used to get done.

Mirabeau was embarrassed for the WRBL-TV reporter who talked about the Zach Wages case winding up when she meant to say the Zach Allen controversy.

Mirabeau can’t figure out why a noted attorney from the Hatcher-Stubbs law firm sat in on Mayor Jim Wetherington’s Friday press conference announcing the reprimand of Columbus Fire Chief Jeff Meyer.

Memo to WTVM-TV: Mirabeau says can the weird music that plays while your sportscasters give the scores.

Mirabeau has heard over and over that Georgia ought to elect a businessman so he could run the state like a business. Mirabeau doesn’t argue with that, but before we do consider these words from Dick Pettys of Insider Advantage:  “Problem is, in a lot of cases, government already is run better than many businesses. And that’s not what real people talk about over the dinner table, anyway. So one of the first jobs for a candidate from the business world will be to craft a message that explains why he or she is running. They’ll need to hire some pros to help them craft the message (and manage other aspects of their campaign) and that’s where the rub comes in: first-time candidates sometimes make the mistake of ignoring advice from the paid professionals that they don’t want to hear. My guess is that’s particularly acute for CEOs-turned-politicos.”

Look out Publix. Mirabeau hears a local developer is courting a high-end grocery store for one of his properties.

(Got news? Send it to mirabeau@richardhyattcolumbus.com)