Is this the end?
One more thing about Larry McKinney's forum ... is it just me, or has it occured to anyone else this may be the end of any chance the Athens Area Chamber of Commerce had to be a viable player in town? With a solid majority of Athens-Clarke County citizens at least concerned about the proposed redistricting, it doesn't seem to be the best political move to come out so strongly for something which is so unpopular in this community ... particularly with a chance to install an entirely new Athens-Clarke County Commission just months away.
The Chamber may get a better seat at the state level, but is it worth becoming completely irrelevant at the local level?
The Chamber may get a better seat at the state level, but is it worth becoming completely irrelevant at the local level?
posted by Jmac at 2:29 PM
3 Comments:
from your mouth to G-d's ear!
I don't know if the COC-squad is necessarily making themselves irrelevant, but they're going to disenchant more and more members by continuing to favor meddling in politics over approaching business issues.
Their constant war with the Commission has won them few friends, even among their membership, and it's not making anyone happy except for the handful of folks who are most involved in Chamber business, most notably, the Bensons. I believe that most rank-and-file Chamber members are getting disgusted with Larry's antics, and the support he's getting from the small handful who have hijacked the Chamber and diverted it from its actual purpose.
The question is: what are the disenchanted Chamber members going to do about Larry's COC-squad? Continue to withdraw and mutter disgustedly, giving the hijackers free rein to continue their hijinks? Or are they finally going to stand up behind leaders in their ranks and make the Chamber into what it should be - an organization to support local business, new and old, who works with government and nonprofits to create the rising tide that lifts all boats?
So far, it's been the former, and that's a shame.
Found out an interesting tidbit on the way to the Gold Dome today. Any guess why the Chamber is hosting their dinner at the Athens Country Club and not at the Classic Center? It is because they owe the Classic Center $20,000! Apparently Larry McKinney likes to spend on interior decorating and not on paying the bills
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