COMMUNITY TEA

An expert panel to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention voted to recommend that COVID-19 vaccines other than Johnson & Johnson’s should be preferred, citing increasing evidence that the company’s shots trigger a rare blood clot disorder now linked to dozens of cases and at least nine deaths in the last year. The panel’s vote effectively discourages vaccine providers and adults from using Johnson & Johnson’s shot. Data presented Thursday to the committee indicated there was a higher risk for the blood clotting condition than had been reported earlier to the panel. The recommendation, which the CDC must still decide whether to accept, is the latest setback for a vaccine which has largely fallen out of favor in the United States. About 16 million people in the U.S. have received the Johnson & Johnson vaccine as their primary immunization, compared to 73 million fully immunized with Moderna’s vaccine and 114 million with the Pfizer-BioNTech shots.

This week, electric vehicle maker Rivian confirmed it plans to build a $5 billion assembly plant and battery factory in Georgia. Gov. Brian Kemp called the announcement “the largest single economic development project ever in this state’s history.” At a news conference, a Rivian executive outlined plans to employ 7,500 workers at its factory, a jobs tally state officials have said could grow to 10,000. The plant will be built on a sprawling swath of farmland and pine forest about an hour’s drive east of Atlanta. Rivian plans to begin production in 2024 at the Georgia plant, where it expects to be able to manufacture up to 400,000 vehicles a year. Georgia beat out Texas and several other states for the vehicle factory. Rivian said the new factory will assemble its R1T truck and R1S SUV, in addition to delivery vans for Amazon, a major investor in Rivian. 

In the face of unyielding gun violence, the Georgia Supreme Court has ruled Probate judges must approve weapons carry licenses even when they have incomplete information about an applicant’s criminal history. In a unanimous decision issued Tuesday, the state high court overturned a DeKalb County probate judge’s denial of a carry license on grounds an applicant’s criminal background report failed to show the outcome of an arrest that could have resulted in a disqualifying conviction.

To “honor, support and retain” staff, the Marietta City Schools Board of Education unanimously approved retention bonuses for its 1400 district employees at its December meeting. The bonuses are $750 for eligible full time employees and instructional providers, and $375 for eligible part-time employees. Marietta City Schools employees received an average raise of 7.5% this year, which the superintendent said was among the highest in metro Atlanta. The bonuses are paid for by the district’s contingency fund.

A city task force in Smyrna has decided to demolish Aunt Fanny’s Cabin. The decision was based partly on the decaying state of the 70-year-old aging building, which has a number of structural issues. The cost to renovate the cabin would likely have eclipsed $500,000, according to city estimates. Task force members were also unable to get past Aunt Fanny’s Cabin’s sordid history. The restaurant became world famous in the 1940s, hailed for its southern recipes and family-like atmosphere. But it was notorious for using racially demeaning stereotypes from the “Old South” to entertain guests. Black boys hired as servers wore wooden menu boards around their necks. There were reports that framed slave advertisements decorated the walls. City officials also recovered racially derogatory relics from the past inside the cabin.

The Cobb County Board of Education amended Superintendent Chris Ragsdale’s contract recently to give him more power in dealing with his employer. Ragsdale, who heads the state’s second-largest school district, could now end his contract early and potentially receive hundreds of thousands of dollars in severance pay if board members are found to have repeatedly undermined him in his duties, the contract states.

Republican Herschel Walker’s campaign denounced a false claim that he graduated from the University of Georgia hours after it was posted on a website promoting his U.S. Senate bid. The former football star’s campaign removed the reference that he “graduated from UGA with a Bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice” late Thursday after being contacted about the claim. Walker’s claim of a degree from Georgia has shown up in an online biography advertising Walker’s book, at a campaign rally for his bid to unseat Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, and during his introduction this year at a congressional hearing.

More than 500 Chattahoochee Technical College students celebrated graduation from the state’s largest technical college during commencement ceremonies on Dec. 16 at the Clarence Brown Conference Center in Cartersville. Students received associate degrees, diplomas, or technical certificates of credit in programs of study in various areas of study including nursing, radiography, health care management, cybersecurity, and logistics and supply chain management. Graduates also pursued skilled workforce training in automotive technology, electrical and computer engineering, film and video production technology, and early childhood care and education. Among the fall 2021 graduates were 11 veterans and two Dual Enrollment high school students. 

The startup network, Black News Channel, announced it was laying off a portion of its 300 employees, 75 of whom are based in Atlanta. The Tallahassee-based company, which is heavily funded by Jacksonville Jaguars owner and billionaire Shahid Khan, has struggled to draw viewers. The Wrap tracked the Nielsen ratings of 124 basic-cable channels. BNC came in 123rd with an average of 4,000 viewers at any given time.

After years of complaints over noisy house parties, vehicles parked in neighbors’ yards and trash piling up at vacation rentals, Smyrna property owners who open their homes to travelers could soon be subject to regulations on vacation rentals. A task force is putting the finishing tweaks on an ordinance to set occupancy, maintenance, and enforcement guidelines for Smyrna’s short-term rentals.

Procter & Gamble issued a voluntary recall of more than 30 aerosol spray products, including dry shampoo and dry conditioner, due to concern over the levels of benzene, a chemical known to cause cancer.

A nationwide recall of fully cooked ham and pepperoni products has been expanded from more than 200 thousand to more than 2 million pounds due to Listeria concerns. Alexander & Hornung is recalling around 2,320,774 pounds of fully cooked ham and pepperoni products that may be contaminated with Listeria monocytogenes, according to officials. Alexander & Hornung is a St. Clair Shores, Michigan establishment and business unit of Perdue Premium Meat Company, Inc. The products subject to recall bear establishment number “EST. M10125″ inside the USDA mark of inspection. These items were shipped to retail locations nationwide.

The Peach Drop is back at the Underground. After a three-year break, the city of Atlanta is bringing back the New Year’s Eve celebration with musical acts Goodie Mob and Ashanti as headliners. Atlanta-based hip-hop act Goodie Mob consists of Big Gipp, Khujo, T-Mo and CeeLo Green.

Have a wonderful week….