Georgia On My Mind

Sunday, May 17, 2009

The New Georgia's State Flag

On May 8, 2003, Governor Sonny Perdue signed H.B. 380 creating a new state flag for Georgia. The act became effective immediately, giving Georgia its third state flag in a period of 27 months. Support for the new flag came from critics of the 2001 flag and those who felt there should be a public referendum on the state flag. The legislation also provided for a statewide advisory referendum on March 2, 2004, at which time voters will choose between the 2001 and 2003 flags. However, results of the referendum are not binding, and any future flag change will require an act of the General Assembly.

Georgia's new state flag is based on the first national flag of the Confederacy (the "Stars and Bars") and consists of a field of three horizontal bars of equal width, two red separated by a white bar in the center. In the upper left corner is a square blue canton the width of two bars. In the center of the canton is a circle of 13 white stars, symbolizing Georgia and the other 12 original states that formed the United States of America. Within the circle of stars is Georgia's coat of arms (the central design on the state seal) immediately above the words "In God We Trust" -- both in gold.

Georgia Map & Flags

On this map we tried to give you an idea of Georgia's Map, and also the two latest flag. The bottom flag was the old flag and the top flag was adopted in 2003, so it is the New Georgia's Flag .

H.E.R.O. - Highway Emergency Response Operators

You can see these yellow cars called the H.E.R.O.'s cars around Atlanta's Highway. The Highway Emergency Response Operators program is a freeway service Patrol operated in metro Atlanta, GA - USA by the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). It is a part of GDOT's Office of Traffic Operations. Both the program and the individual vehicles are typically referred to by the acronym HERO. The program began in Atlanta in 1994 and has since been expanded in association with GDOT's Navigator Intelligent Transportation System program.

But, What is the H.E.R.O. Program?

The Highway Emergency Response Operators program is a freeway service patrol operated in metro Atlanta, USA by the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT). It is a part of GDOT's Office of Traffic Operations. Both the program and the individual vehicles are typically referred to by the acronym HERO. The program began in Atlanta in 1994 and has since been expanded in association with GDOT's Navigator Intelligent Transportation System program.

The HERO unit's primary purpose is to minimize traffic congestion by clearing wrecked or disabled vehicles from the roadway lanes and providing traffic control at incident scenes. As a secondary service, HERO's function as a service patrol; assisting stranded motorists who may have a flat tire or are out of fuel. In addition to their normal duties in metro Atlanta, HEROs have been deployed in the past to assist with traffic control at the The Master golf tournament in Augusta, Georgia and along Interstates 75 and 16 during hurricane evacuations.

HERO truck operators are GDOT employees, distinguishing the program from freeway service patrols in other states, such as California, which are operated under contract by private tow truck companies. The HERO day is split into four shifts - Alpha (morning), Beta (afternoon), Charlie (weekend) and Delta (overnight). The program operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Typically, HEROs work between 55,000 and 60,000 incidents per year.

Motorists needing HERO assistance may dial 511 (and press 1) to reach a HERO dispatcher. 511 is also the number for general traffic information throughout the state of Georgia.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Hall County Sheriff (Gainsville, GA)

Both pictures above, is the "Gang Task Force" from Hall County Georgia Sheriff Department. As you can see, this car was bought with money apprehended from the gangs.