The trap of naming things after living politicians
Once again, the practice of naming public facilities in Southern states is coming under scrutiny. This time in Alabama, where a reporter found more than one road and public facility is still bearing the name of politicians who were later sent to prison:
It's a corruption trifecta, and that's almost as good as a road to the dump.
That's not just a road map. It's a history lesson.
In a story from the news portal website AccessNorthGA, Derek Alderman, a cultural geographer at East Carolina University in Greenville, N.C. cautioned against that practice, which is also rampant in Georgia:
Their legacy isn't even established yet. They are more susceptible to the politics of the day.
Which takes us back to a long-standing controversy here in South Carolina over this same practice of politicians naming things after each other.
The potential for controversy over this practice reared it's head when Earle Morris Jr., a long-time Pickens County politco, including several decades as a State Senator, Comptroller General and Lt. Governor went to prison in a massive securities fraud scam. Over 12,000 investors, many of them former constituents of Morris', lost everything, so it wasn't a surprise to see Earle Morris Jr. Highway, the busiest road in Pickens County, State Route 153, which connects the towns and cities of the county to Interstate 85, a sore point among locals.
The potential for controversy over this practice reared it's head when Earle Morris Jr., a long-time Pickens County politco, including several decades as a State Senator, Comptroller General and Lt. Governor went to prison in a massive securities fraud scam. Over 12,000 investors, many of them former constituents of Morris', lost everything, so it wasn't a surprise to see Earle Morris Jr. Highway, the busiest road in Pickens County, State Route 153, which connects the towns and cities of the county to Interstate 85, a sore point among locals.
Quickly, local legislators moved to strip his name from the roadway. However, the legislation passed the House and stalled in the Senate, and as best as we can tell, the name has endured, awaiting further action.
Using a web search, we found a number of businesses along this highway still listing their addresses as being on the Earle Morris, Jr. highway, in addition to the route still listed as that on Google maps.
Maybe one day legislators will reconsider abandoning this tradition, but if they can't undo the name of a single highway, don't bet on them ending this practice anytime soon.
;-P