Georgia is a state in the Southeastern United States. Mississippi is a state in the Southeastern United States. Mississippi has cities named “Jackson,” “Columbus” and “Macon.” Georgia has cities named “Jackson,” “Columbus” and “Macon.” Both Georgia and Mississippi have college athletic teams called the Bulldogs. Both states’ capitals have seven letters. Both Mississippi and Georgia have recently had controversies surrounding the prominence of the Confederate battle emblem in their respective state flags.
Ronnie Musgrove is the governor of Mississippi. Sonny Perdue is the governor of Georgia. Musgrove was elected in 1999. Perdue was elected in 2002. In 2000, Ronnie Musgrove called upon the services of a venerable and respected former governor (William Winter, a Democrat) to moderate discussions concerning the state flag. In 2003, Perdue called upon the services of a venerable and respected former governor (Jimmy Carter, a Democrat) to moderate discussions concerning the state flag. In 2001, Ronnie Musgrove signed a bill authorizing a statewide special election to recommend to the legislature what the state flag should look like. In 2004, Perdue hopes to have a statewide election that will recommend to the state legislature what the state flag should look like.
Despite these apparent similarities, there are distinct differences. Musgrove is a slender man with a full head of hair. Perdue is a stocky man with a bald head. Musgrove is a Democrat. Perdue is a Republican. But the biggest difference of all is that Ronnie Musgrove is highly unpopular in certain circles while Sonny Perdue has been hailed as a conquering hero. Of course, Musgrove took a stand on the issue even though he knew he’d catch the devil for it. Perdue, on the other hand, has dodged and ducked any and all questions concerning his own stand on the issue. As Perdue himself put it, “It is not important how Citizen Sonny Perdue is going to cast his vote.”
It would appear that Sandy Koufax wasn’t as great a dodger as Perdue seems to be. As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution said, “When Sonny Perdue ran for the governor’s seat, he did not campaign as a ‘facilitator’ or a ‘moderator.’ He promised to be a leader. So it’s disappointing now to watch Perdue reduce himself to a referee in the flag battle.”
Perhaps Perdue should take a lesson from State Rep. Alisha Thomas. Thomas, a 24-year-old former worker with the NAACP, presented her case at a Sons of Confederate Veterans’ meeting. For her to argue her case in one of the most hostile of hostile environments took courage, which is always a scarce commodity in politics. Perdue’s reluctance to dirty his hands with this highly volatile issue may make him good at the political game, but Pontius Pilate was a good at that game as well.
Tony Odom is a graduate student in the history department.