Predictably, news of a new Herschel Walker business venture in Athens brought out the naysayers and critics!

Actually, the cat-calls, jibes, and bullying from the little people out there in Athens, is probably familiar to most locals; I first "got it" when I encountered a small clique of club kids who had taken to hating the lead singer of a major local band.

As it was, I knew this band member, his band, and its members, had given a lot of blood, sweat and tears and MONEY back to Athens when they finally "made it."

FIRST, they didn't have to do that; but they wanted to give back to the community that had reared them.

But the "cool" little club kids forever, and even now, scorned this band member and never missed an opportunity to down him for all sorts of reasons. In total, it was unbelievably cruel and unwarranted.

In a recent op-ed, Flagpole magazine lamented that many chain businesses do not advertise locally; this sort of jibed with what one of their new writers said about the new Steak and Shake: Why don't people just go to the /locally-owned restaurant/, instead?!

At the ABH, this same writer, a few years ago, carefully noted a new tire business started in Athens that happened to be owned by a former conservative political candidate; as you would expect, the writer implied "liberal" Athens should refuse to do business with the new guy!

WELL. Here's what you need to know: THOSE sentiments -- mostly from a handful of the local liberals -- do not represent ATHENS, or ATHENIANS!

Instead, they represent the greater-than-normal cynicism of a group of folks who feel as though they should run and control everything!

As the turn-out at the new restaurant attests, however, they are but a tiny minority to be ignored!