Online headline: "Olympians Could Owe The IRS Thousands In Taxes On Medals, Cash Bonuses" -- I wasn't aware that the winners even got cash payments from the Olympic Games! What happened to the 'for the love of the game', 'for your country's pride' (or in the 'at least wait until after the games to cash in') attitude? It was bad enough when the Olympics started allowing known professionals in basketball, tennis, and hockey start playing in 'the Games', but this has just ruined it for me.

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Online story: "UPDATE: Senator Marco Rubio (R- Fla.) introduced a bill to Congress on Wednesday that would exempt Olympic winners from taxes on prizes received at the London games." -- Just say NO! Let your representatives know this cannot happen, or flood gates of athletic abuse will unleash a tsunami of 'exceptions'. If a precedence like this creeps into 'the system', every sport will want an 'exception'. The PGA would petition that winners of the 'Majors" get exemptions on their winners; Superbowl MVP's would want an exemption form the money the get for saying, "I'm going to Disney World", and every sport venue would demand the same treatment. Hell, some baseball players might want their performance clauses exempt. It's a nasty trail to start.

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I went to lunch at Chick-fil-A yesterday to show my family's support for Dan Cathy's stance and rights under the First Amendment. I arrived at 11:50 at the Wynnton Road Chick-fil-A for a take out order for my wife, daughters, and myself. The parking lot was jammed with cars and a drive-thru line of cars that wrapped around the building twice. If I had driven up on another day and saw such, I'd have just driven on to some other food place, but not yesterday. Inside, lines were from the counter to the exits and then some; inside the Chick-fil-A was an incredible situation; young and old, black and white, civilian and military, standing patiently in line, glad to be there, feeling each other's support for being there at this moment in time.. in a word..focused. This is the America our forefathers fought to give us. This is the freedom our forefathers used to overthrow an oppressive government.

If you didn't go to Chick-fil-A yesterday, shame on you! But you can make up for it... send Chick-fil-A coupons to the President, and Mayors of Chicago, Boston, and Washington, D.C.. Better yet, send them a Chick-fil-A gift card and write on it with a Sharpie "Obama Campaign Staff" so Chick-fil-A owners and employees will know we support them.

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Wendy's had signs around the country sending their customers to Chick-fil-A. Didn't see one locally but didn't see all of them. In other places, McDonald's stores did same. In one, the sign read, "Boycott US today, Eat at Chick-fil-A"

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King Arpege must be really dreading the rest of the campaign season. He won't be able to show his face at a Chick-fil-A to reach the voters he needs to get re-elected.

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Online story: "A major Wendy's franchise owner wants Chick-fil-A, the fast-food chicken chain embroiled in an blowup over its CEO's anti-gay comments, to know it's not alone." -- This is exactly what's wrong with the mainstream media. The media has 'evolved' a story of a man's Christian beliefs in marriage, and turned those words into a 'hate-fest'.

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Speaking of 'evolving', perhaps it's time to assume corporate exploitation of gay support/pandering should be considered 'anti-Christian', thus a 'hate message'.

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Hmmm, Dan Cathy for Vice President!

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If King Arpege wants tax cuts for the masses, why did he ram HELL-thSCARE through the DIM&DUMBERats Congress?

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Something is amiss in the communications department at the MCSD board... DOH!

The newspaper reported that the old library building would be ravaged and turned into a parking lot because of damages caused by vandals/whomever. Cathy Williams said it was going to be used as storage (have e-mail). Looks like another historic Columbus building under the control of the MCSD will be torn down for failure of the MCSD to have adequate security or adequate ongoing maintenance programs. Hell, the MCSD will probably ask for another SPLOST to resurrect the building, only it will be an Action Metal Shed.

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Instead of doubling the costs to taxpayers for indigent burials by cremation and interment at Porterdale Cemetery, Council should consider using the land thought to be a historic cemetery (but was determined no grave sites existed so Council used tax dollars to turn it into a park) as a new cemetery for future indigent burials. Or, if Council just buys it's own kiln, it can do cheaper cremations, then disperse the ashes over the whitewater course to save any interment costs.

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L-E's "Quotable": "Fools are more to be feared than the wicked." - Queen Christina, Swedish Monarch (1626- 1689) " -- Hmmm, ironic, isn't it, that Romney considers King Arpege and the DIM&DUMBERats 'fools', and King Arpege and the DIM&DUMBERats consider Romney 'wicked'. We've experienced what the country does under the control of 'fools'. Vote Romney!

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To letter writer C.L. Martin... if you're attempting to describe racism, get a goold look at it in your mirror!

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A L-E story about a Phenix City situation needs to be analyzed very closely. A teacher and bookkeeper were involved in a theft scheme and got caught. Larry Dichara made a statement that has upset me. The Phenix City schools superintendent, said his system has a zero tolerance for theft, especially when it's money that could have gone toward students. "Zero intolerance...especially when it's money that could have gone toward students"...HUH? Since when do we qualify whether theft has degrees of tolerance? This coming from the head of a school system should definitely not be tolerated by any citizen/taxpayer!

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Reports are coming in that the GSA, which was exposed for it's extravagant Las Vegas romp, is now being shown in even worse light. Bonuses to workers totaled $44,000,000.00 last year, Even though the GSA accounts for 'only' 1% of federal employees, their bonuses totaled 10% of all the bonuses various government employees received. In addition, it was revealed that the GSA has 14,000 buildings/offices that 'we' pay for that are either under- or not utilized at all. Let's have an audit of the building the GSA owns/rents and see how many are owned by politicians or family members.

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Does anyone know anything about the "West Georgia Jets"? Is this another private sports program like the Georgia Blazers that erupted into a Parks&Rec scandal?