Georgia Today: Georgia Muslims condemn violence; Hydrogen fuel; Braves season ends on a low note

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Friday, Oct. 13. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, Georgia Muslim civil rights advocates condemn violence and threats against civilians in the Israel/Hamas conflict. Georgia hits a setback in its efforts to become a regional hub for hydrogen fuel. And a historic season for the Atlanta Braves comes to a disappointing end. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Georgia Muslim civil rights advocates are condemning escalating violence and threats against civilians in Israel and Palestine. The state chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations addressed the six-day-old war in the region yesterday. At a news conference in Atlanta, the group's Edward Mitchell said targeting civilians is wrong.

Edward Mitchell: It's doesn't matter if you're Palestinian, Israeli, Arabic, any other nationality — killing innocent people is wrong. We have no problem saying that. The problem is that we are not hearing that same condemnation from everyone else.

Peter Biello: Mitchell was joined by a Palestinian refugee who said she lost five family members in the Gaza Strip in recent days.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: Georgia is buying $10 million in Israeli bonds. Gov. Brian Kemp said today that he's ordering the purchase to support Israel after it was attacked by militants. $10 million is the highest amount available on the bond market and brings Georgia's total investment in Israeli bonds to $25 million. The governor most recently visited the Jewish state in May when he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and others to discuss Middle East security and other issues.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: An appeals court decision yesterday could clear the way for Georgia to issue medical marijuana production licenses to four companies. The AJC reports the Georgia Court of Appeals ruled against several companies that sued after they didn't win state licenses. A three-judge panel affirmed lower court decisions that had dismissed the companies' cases. Just two companies are currently allowed to manufacture and sell low-THC oil to registered patients. Those companies have seven dispensaries. The Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission declined to award four other licenses for smaller growing facilities last year while court cases were pending.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Georgia's efforts to become a regional hub for the emerging business of hydrogen fuel has had a setback. The Biden administration announced today that it has selected projects in 16 states to split a $7 billion pot of federal funds to kickstart hydrogen fuel development and production. They did not include Georgia plans for a regional hydrogen hub. Despite the setback, one of the hub's leading proponents. Atlanta-based energy giant Southern Company, said that it would continue to invest in hydrogen projects.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: The Georgia Ports Authority has big plans to keep up with expected growth at the Port of Savannah. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports on projects announced yesterday at the agency's annual state of the port's address.

Benjamin Payne: By 2035, the Port of Savannah is projected to see 65% more container cargo than it does now. To get there, Georgia Ports Authority executive Director Griff Lynch says the state needs to lift the Talmadge Memorial Bridge along the Savannah River.

Griff Lynch: We have ships today that want to come here today that cannot fit under the bridge and we have had to turn that business away and tell our customers we can't do it.

Benjamin Payne: Lynch expects the state to begin lifting the bridge around this time next year, taking around two years to complete. The Ports Authority also wants more space beneath ships — that is, by deepening the river itself by as much as five feet. Lynch expects the harbor deepening project would take about 10 years by then. A new port terminal on Hutchinson Island should be open as it's projected to be up and running in 2030. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne in Savannah.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: Middle Georgia congressman Austin Scott has announced a bid to become speaker of the U.S. House. In a statement today, the Tifton Republican excoriated the eight members of his GOP caucus that supported Democrats in removing Kevin McCarthy as speaker last week. In a social media post, he wrote that he wants a House that functions. He's the only declared candidate in the speaker's race beside Jim Jordan of Ohio, after Steve Scalise of Louisiana pulled out of the running last night.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: Health care students from Georgia State University Perimeter College will be offering free health screenings to people in Clarkston, east of Atlanta tomorrow. GPB's Amanda Andrews explains the event is returning for the first time since the COVID pandemic.

Amanda Andrews: The Connect to Care event offers screenings from dental, nursing, kinesiology and audiology students from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Clarkston campus and is funded by the Fulton DeKalb Hospital Authority. Project director Mary Helen O'Connor says they also offer resources for those with chronic health issues, regardless of insurance status.

Mary Helen O'Connor: If they don't have any insurance, then we will make a referral and call and connect them to — there's a clinic in town. We have three that will take uninsured patients, and so we'll intentionally follow through with those referrals — the ones who screen for something serious.

Amanda Andrews: O'Connor says in past years, over 200 people have shown up for the event. There's another screening scheduled for Nov. 11 at the school's Decatur campus. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.

Credit: File photo

Story 8:

Peter Biello: And finally, a historic season for the Atlanta Braves has ended with a loss to the Philadelphia Phillies last night. The Phillies beat the Braves on the road three games to one in the National League Division series. Atlanta's hitters dominated during the regular season but were comparatively sluggish this series. Pitcher Spencer Strider took the loss, giving up three solo homers and striking out seven. Manager Brian Snitker says even with the loss, this year's club has a lot to be proud of.

Brian Snitker: That mean the Phillies stifled us? I mean, they, they pitched really well. They had great plans. Their guys got big hits. I mean, you can't take anything away from that.

Peter Biello: The Braves finished the regular season first in the National League East, 14 games ahead of Philadelphia. And it is the second year in a row the Phillies have beat Atlanta in the NLDS.

And that's it for this edition of Georgia Today. Thank you so much for tuning in. Remember to tune in to this podcast on Monday as well. I'll be speaking with Slutty Vegan founder Pinky Cole. She's got a new book out. It's called I Hope You Fail. She's on tour for it now. It's all about learning from failures. She's also going to address lawsuits that she's faced in the last year from employees of both Bar Vegan in Atlanta, which she owns, and a Slutty Vegan location in New York City. Both of those are about wages that allegedly were not paid properly. We're going to talk about that. So the best way to remember to hear it is to subscribe to this podcast; that way we'll pop up automatically in your podcast feed on Monday afternoon. If you've got feedback or a story idea we should know about. Send us an email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you on Monday.

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