Is it a sin to take advantage of business competitors when they take a controversial moral stand? Maybe so, depending on your morality, but no one is expecting that Georgia will turn away any business fleeing from the states which have passed laws similar to the one halted here by Gov. Nathan Deal’s veto pen.
Tag: politics
Posted inATL Business Chronicle
Gov. Deal’s ‘religious liberty’ veto downplayed business influence
By Maria Saporta
As published in the Atlanta Business Chronicle on April 1, 2016
Even before the 2016 Georgia legislative session began, the business community at the Metro Atlanta Chamber’s annual meeting in December let it be known it would fight any religious liberty bill that could possibly cause discrimination.
And as various versions of a religious liberty bill were introduced, amended and ultimately passed both houses, the objections from business leaders, industries, organizations and major conventions grew even louder — with some saying they would boycott Georgia if the bill became law.
Posted inTom Baxter
Robert Bentley and the new face of foolin’ around
It’s not as if Robert Bentley is the first Southern governor to end up in the compromising position the Alabama governor currently finds himself in. No, no. Bentley’s predecessor, Big Jim Folsom, made the definitive statement on this subject back before Bill Clinton reached puberty.
Posted inColumns
Execution of power: Even governor’s ally couldn’t alter outcome of Palmetto Pipeline
In the end, not even lobbyists who work with a firm led by the vice chairman of Gov. Nathan Deal’s transition team in 2010 were able to defend the Palmetto Pipeline. The pipeline company has suspended the project, and won’t say if it’s dead or merely delayed.
Posted inLatest News
Texas city offers lesson for Georgia as renewable energy debate unfolds
Dale Ross is fond of saying that a business decision is at the root of the plan in Georgetown, Texas to switch over to 100 percent solar and wind energy in 2017. Ross says renewable energy is a better deal for residents of the city he serves as mayor.
Posted inColumns
To keep current, lifespan of buildings seems to be about 30 years in metro Atlanta
The lifespan of commercial buildings now seems to be about 30 years in metro Atlanta, judging from two redevelopment projects in Atlanta and one under review in Peachtree Corners.
Posted inLatest News
Business leaders thank Gov. Nathan Deal for vetoing HB 757
Business leaders Monday were quick to applaud Gov. Nathan Deal’s decision to veto of HB 757, even though many expressed concern that the controversy over “religious freedom” legislation would not be going away.
“The Georgia Chamber agrees with Governor Deal’s thoughtful reasoning to veto HB757,” according to a statement from Hank Linginfelter, an executive with AGL Resources who is the 2016 chair of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
Posted inLatest News
Ralph Abernathy III’s Exit Interview: The curse of cancer and civil rights celebrity
Ralph David Abernathy III had been suffering severely for more than year, battling Stage 4 colon cancer while also valiantly fighting to honor and refresh his late father’s legacy. Yesterday, the son of civil rights icon and Martin King Jr’s best friend, Ralph Abernathy Jr., was eulogized and buried. Abernathy III died two days short of his 57th birthday.
Posted inLatest News
The Segway, a feature of downtown Atlanta, protected by federal trade ruling
The maker of Atlanta’s beloved Segways have just received an ounce of prevention from the federal government, which shut down the import of devices built with technology stolen from Segway.
Posted inColumns
Hillary Clinton stumps for campaign cash in Atlanta; blasts Donald Trump as a “political arsonist.”
For Rita Williams this was the American dream come true. The Decatur attorney, who grew up on the West Side of Atlanta and was the first in her family to attend college, was rubbing shoulders with some 250 doctors, lawyers, business executives and politicians who had shelled out up to $2,700 each to meet, hear and be photographed with Hillary Rodham Clinton at a private fundraiser recently.
Posted inLatest News
Savannah port continues to mark record growth in container volume
The Port of Savannah continues a trend of record-breaking growth in handling containerized trade, the Georgia Ports Authority reported Monday.
Posted inTom Baxter
Thaw could renew old Cuba-Georgia ties
Tommy Irvin saw this coming, way back when. The pragmatic former state agriculture commissioner was an early prophet and enthusiastic advocate of the Cuban thaw which is coming to pass.
Posted inColumns
Six percent of Georgia’s electricity produced by renewables, an oft-overlooked detail
As Georgia Power proposes to expand its use of renewable energy resources, one part of the conversation that gets scant attention is the considerable amount of energy already being generated from renewable resources.
Posted inLatest News, Main Slider, Maria Saporta
Georgia business groups urge governor to veto HB 757
Top Georgia business leaders now are looking toward Gov. Nathan Deal to continue his stance against discrimination – as it relates to HB 757 – also known as the religious freedom bill.
Richard Dugas, president and CEO of the Pulte Group who chairs the Metro Atlanta Chamber’s Public Policy Advisory Board, spoke out strongly against the the bill, which has now passed both the Georgia House and Senate and will rest on the governor’s desk.
Posted inDavid Pendered, Latest News, Main Slider
Atlanta Police Chief Turner criticizes federal cutbacks in funding of law enforcement
Atlanta Police Chief George Turner testified Tuesday before a Congressional subcommittee to oppose proposed cutbacks in federal funding to local law enforcement – including terrorist prevention programs.
Posted inDavid Pendered
Countdown to start for public comment on GRTA’s first major overhaul of bus service
Starting next week, the public will have its final chance to comment on GRTA’s first major overhaul since its bus service started in 2004. GRTA plans to implement new bus routes that affect all service corridors on Sept. 6.
Posted inTom Baxter
One nation, simultaneous and unsynchronized
That quaint custom by which we give up an hour every spring in order to get an extra hour back in the fall is under attack on both coasts. Oddly, this effort to decouple our clocks is going on while the country seems to be coming apart all at once.
Posted inColumns, Guest Column, Main Slider
Transit expansion is a simple decision, not a political one, whose time has come
By Guest Columnist JOHN MATTHEWS, a commercial real estate investor and an MBA graduate of Goizueta Business School
A debate seems to still be occurring in Georgia and our legislature about transit versus roads for the Atlanta region. Still? It is time for the debate to stop, and it is time to begin implementing solutions. Because the logic of transit is not a subject of debate.
Posted inLatest News, Maria Saporta
Fulton, Atlanta weigh local legislation route to fund transportation
Fulton County Commission Chairman John Eaves met with Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed last week to work on possible “local legislation” compromise for transportation funding that would address MARTA’s expansion plans.
Posted inDavid Pendered, Latest News, Main Slider
Coca-Cola Co. among 60 corporations backing federal ban on discrimination based on sexual orientation
Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co. is among 60 major corporations that have the launched the Business Coalition for Equity Act, which is to promote passage of civil rights legislation that seeks to prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, according to the Human Rights Campaign.
