It’s fashionable these days to knock the Golden State. High unemployment, high taxes, high cost of living. Well, my response is that everything has a price.

I lived there for 22 years, in San Diego and Orange counties, and still rank that time as my most memorable, professionally and personally. (My moving away had nothing to do with California.) My recent vacation there restored the dormant warm fuzzies, and whetted my appetite for more. Something about wearing shorts in November …

But it’s not just good weather that makes California a state without peer. I’d like to pass along some insight on other extras. So, five things I really like about California.

– Pacific time: I was watching the recent Monday night football game between Atlanta and New Orleans. In the second half, it was still only 8 pm. On the East Coast, it’s all I can do to stay up for the conclusion of an important game.

– Excellent sporting landscape: Both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels (residents of Orange County, where the Angels play home games, dislike the LA name on their team) made it into baseball’s final four teams. And the USC Trojans have been one of college football’s dominant teams in this decade, and have a memorable tradition. Don’t forget UCLA’s basketball team, still a national power. And John Wooden can still tell you about it.

– News you won’t see anywhere else: During my recent visit, a front-page story in The Orange County Register told of medical-marijuana dispensaries in Dana Point being ordered to hand over records to city officials. Also, a news story reported that a serial-murder suspect who is defending himself in a death penalty trial pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Only in California …

– Great natural beauty: My above video shows some of the natural wonders of Catalina Island, technically part of Los Angeles County. Hey, sometimes schoolchildren there have to take “mud days” off. There are many other examples. Environmentalists can throw some red tape at building projects in California, but they have a lot to protect.

– People: The stereotype is La La Land, of course. But hey, everyone in the South does not resemble a Jeff Foxworthy joke. California is a melting pot, and I can point out plenty of natives who eat three meals a day, raise children and pay taxes just like people everywhere else. As the song says, you can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave.

Falcons owner Arthur Blank, left, after recent Atlanta Press Club speech

Add Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank to the lengthy list of pro sports owners who are tactfully telling taxpayers that they want their funds to help build a new stadium.

And for the first time, include me among those who don’t think it’s such a great idea.

In a recent speech to the Atlanta Press Club, Blank reiterated his call for a public-private partnership to fund a new home facility for his team. The Falcons began play in the state-owned Georgia Dome in 1992, but Blank noted that 25 of the other 31 NFL teams now play in newer facilities. That gives them more options for revenue from parking, corporate skyboxes, etc.

The veiled threat, of course, is that if Blank does not get what he wants, he’ll move the team to a city that will pay his price. This threat has worked before. The Oakland Raiders, St. Louis Rams and Baltimore Ravens are among the franchises that sold themselves to the highest municipal bidder.

As a Southern California resident, I remember how in 1998 the San Diego Padres repeatedly told local residents how they could not afford to continue losing money. They then went out and acquired pitcher Kevin Brown in a desperate (and successful) attempt to reach the World Series and inflame local voters enough to approve tax money for a baseball-only facility. It’s now a reality (Petco Park). However, keeping the Padres in town has not been a tonic for the city overall. Like many other municipalities, it’s struggling with the national recession, which has hit California particularly hard. And the Padres haven’t been back to the World Series since moving into the new stadium.

Thus, my argument against using tax money for helping a private enterprise, the Falcons, build a new stadium. Teams and cities often cite studies showing how pro sports generates jobs and tax revenue, but that obviously has not worked in San Diego, the nation’s eighth-largest city (1.25 million). And in the Atlanta area, teachers are being furloughed and municipal offices and libraries are shortening work weeks because of the economic downturn. It seems more important to shore up those things that to roll out a new carpet for millionaire athletes or corporate suites for high rollers.

Most fans can’t afford a ticket to an NFL game anyway, and you get a better view on TV, not to mention replay.

And it doesn’t mean a new stadium would not happen. The Atlanta Braves play in what was the track stadium for the 1996 Olympics, an enterprise that did not require a dime of public money. And California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose state almost had to give teachers IOUs in their pay envelopes, recently gave approval to private development of a 75,000-seat NFL stadium in the LA area. The “governator” had to waive some environmental regulations, but he made it clear that there was no public money available for this beyond a bond measure by the local city itself.

So if Newell Rubbermaid or Georgia-Pacific needed a new facility in Atlanta, do you think taxpayers would care? Emotions can cloud reason.

"60 Minutes" correspondent Byron Pitts, left, speaks with Steve Schwaid of CBS Atlanta

Byron Pitts recalls meeting with fellow “60 Minutes” correspondent and broadcasting legend Dan Rather before Pitts was to go to Afghanistan. “Who are the people you love?” Rather asked Pitts. After thinking about it and responding, Pitts said Rather continued, “Write them a letter and tell them you love them. Because when you go to a place like Afghanistan, you might not come back.”

Pitts discussed Rather, “60 Minutes” and other television matters recently in an Atlanta Press Club speech (10/13/09). And his tone was markedly different from the attack mentality that often prevails on “60 Minutes.” For instance, Pitts was open about his Baptist faith, and he told of being diagnosed as functionally illiterate in his youth. So he is appreciative of his position and the obstacles he has had to overcome.

His parents separated when Pitts was 12 in Baltimore, and he was left in the care of his mother, Clarice. It was a hard world, where he was bullied, where he had a stuttering problem and where a therapist once diagnosed him as “retarted.” … “Whenever I see a young person run afoul (of the law), I think there but for the grace of God go I.”

But he eventually attended Ohio Wesleyan. His television background includes a stint at WSB in Atlanta. “I don’t believe in the boostraps theory,” Pitts said. He was told as a youth that if you want to make it in a “white world,” you have got to get along with the people.

“If there’s something you want in life, claim it,” Pitts said. “I said I wanted to be a correspondent on ‘60 Minutes’ by the time I was 45. I made it when I was 48, so I was a bit (ticked),” he joked.

That has given him an insider’s view of a long-running program and some of the well-known journalists who have made happen. He described Diane Sawyer (now with ABC) as “elegant … unlike Mike Wallace, she never undresses anyone in an interview.” Pitts described Sam Donaldson as “abusive and mean” and the late Ed Bradley as “a black man when there were not many blacks on TV.” Yes, it’s a hard-nosed environment. “If you are going to be on “60 Minutes,” you’ve got to be comfortable with profanity,” he noted.

Rather, whose career was derailed by the controversial and inaccurate report on former President Bush’s National Guard service, was described as a good friend, honorable and a hard worker. “Perhaps management allowed him to be too out front,” Pitts said. “If you are going to take down the king, you have got to be sure that every ‘i’ is dotted and every ‘t’ is crossed, and that wasn’t done.”

Pitts said he likes to pursue “physical stories” for “60 Minutes.” “I like to go places where it’s hard to get to, and I like people with small stories.” He said searching for truth is not enough, that he also tries to add “context and perspective.”

The thing about reading a book on someone who is famous for words or music (or both) is that you wonder whether a book alone can do the subject justice. I once read a book about Mick Jagger and I almost expected to hear an outrageous version of “Sympathy for the Devil” when I opened the front cover.

But after reading “From Herschel To A Hobnail Boot,” a biography/memoir of legendary Georgia Bulldogs announcer Larry Munson, I could almost hear echoes of those memorable calls and that gravelly voice. It was double fun when Munson and co-author Tony Barnhart (ajc.com blogger and CBS-TV commentator) included a CD of Munson’s greatest calls with the book. At last, something to listen to besides Miley’s climb and that Black Eyed Peas song.

Munson, who retired in 2008 after 43 years of calling Bulldogs games, is as memorable as it gets. (Disclosure: I’m a UGA alum and classmate of co-author Barnhart.) Emotion is a critical part of college football, and it’s probably more intense in the South than anywhere. Hey, they also get serious over the sport in Southern California (where I lived for 22 years), but when the game’s over there, you can go to the beach or Disneyland. In the South, fans may leave the stadium, but they take a part of the game home with them.

Among the interesting things about the Munson book were the big names he rubbed elbows with in his early days, and the travails he had in some non-Bulldog endeavors. For instance, he toured with the Tommy Dorsey Orchestra as a piano player when that group had a young singer who went on to movie stardom. And Munson’s first broadcasting job was in Wyoming, where he replaced someone who went on to become a national TV fixture calling major league baseball. (Hey, movie reviewers don’t give away the finish.)

But everyone has struggles, and so did Munson, a Minnesota native who used World War II discharge money to go to broadcasting school. He describes being forced out of his Atlanta Braves job by lead announcer Milo Hamilton, and Munson also had some run-ins with Jerry Glanville when Munson took on radio duties with the Atlanta Falcons.

College football, obviously, was the perfect fit. As a UGA student, I remember being in the Gator Bowl stands in 1975 for the memorable Appleby-to-Washington pass. Back in Athens the next week, longtime UGA sports publicist Claude Felton replayed Munson’s call of the play, and I was so taken by the excitement that I repeatedly listened to it all week. I was hooked on Munson from then on.

Munson showed that connections matter. He landed the UGA gig in 1966 because he knew AD Joel Eaves, a former Auburn basketball coach,  from Munson’s days as Vanderbilt basketball announcer in Nashville, Tenn. And he hit UGA at a good time, as Georgia won SEC titles in ‘66 and ‘68, giving him additional excitement to create for fans.

Now, though, he’s gone from the airwaves. And I can’t help but feel an era is ending for all such announcers, radio and TV. Also done are people such as Ernie Harwell, Jack Buck, Cawood Ledford. Only Vin Scully, now 81 and who has been calling LA Dodgers baseball since the Brooklyn years, remains from the old school genre that was  identified with one team, and began on radio. With so much college football on television now, and live streaming on the Internet, radio is less of a factor.

“Guys like us, we’re like an old shoe,” Harwell once said. Munson agreed in his book, noting how much more of a business broadcasting has become.

Still, when I or almost anyone else watches a Bulldogs game or listens on radio, we’ll always imagine how Larry Munson would have called the action. And we’ll still have the book and CD.

It says something about the Atlanta Falcons’ history that their winningest coach, Dan Reeves, has an overall record under .500 with the team. And that the second-winningest coach, Leeman Bennett, was fired after a playoff game.

But that’s the case. Now the Falcons are 3-1 in 2009 and coming off a playoff appearance in a season in which they went 11-5 under a rookie QB, a first-year head coach and a new general manager.

Falcons fans, of course, are wondering whether the team that has never had consecutive winning seasons will break the pattern. Owner Arthur Blank, in a speech (10/8/09) to the Atlanta Press Club, made his case for the fact that the team has a sufficient foundation for winning.

He said he’s focused on building a “sustainably winning organization,” and made comparisons with the way he built Home Depot, the successful home improvement chain he co-founded with Bernie Marcus. Blank noted that at Home Depot, the corporate brass focused on “what’s wrong. That is the mentality of the football team,” Blank said. After last year’s playoff run ended, the Falcons added Pro Bowl tight end Tony Gonzalez and linebacker Mike Peterson. He emphasized that the Falcons are looking at 2009 with a “humble and hungry” attitude.

Blank talked of the “shared vision” between coach Mike Smith and GM Thomas Dimitroff. Sounds much like the setup of the “Grits Blitz” days of the late ’70s and early ’80s, which produced three playoff teams in five years (1978, ‘80, ‘82). But yes, no back-to-back winning seasons.

The Falcons owner, though, also has to focus on non-football matters, and he was open about the fact that the team desires a new stadium to stay financially competitive with other NFL teams. He noted that 25 of the 31 other teams have stadiums newer than the Georgia Dome. “Our competitive edge is dulling,” he said. The Falcons have committed $53 million to making it happen, with Blank saying he expects support from the public sector. Scouting and planning for a new facility is in “early stage.” The Falcons’ lease at the Georgia Dome expires in 2020, or when bonds are paid off.

The owner is also mindful of the recession that Atlanta and the rest of the country is in. He feels that a recovery will happen, though “it will be one only a statistician could love,” meaning that it will be slow. He feels there will be some “permanent scarring” among consumers that could force the Falcons to be more responsive.

And the owner addressed the controversial matter of former Falcons QB Michael Vick. Of course, Vick is back in the NFL with Philadelphia after a prison term and a scandal that forced the Falcons’ rebuilding.

“I’m happy he’s in Philadelphia,” Blank told the press club. “I’m excited that he will be back in the Georgia Dome (on Dec. 6), and it will be interesting to see him in a different uniform. … I’m supportive of the commissioner’s decision (to reinstate Vick).”

“Just tell yourself,” Dan Fouts once said, “that if you had played better, you couldn’t be beaten by one play.”

Fouts, the former San Diego Chargers QB, was referring to the “Holy Roller” play in a 1978 game between the Chargers and Raiders. In that game, the Raiders’ Pete Banaszak and Dave Casper appeared to intentionally kick and bat the loose football, “fumbled” by QB Ken Stabler, into the end zone for the for the winning touchdown. (Hey, the Raiders’ philosophy is “Just win, baby.”)

Now, fast forward to last Saturday in Athens. Georgia receiver A.J. Green made an excellent TD catch vs. LSU with 1:09 to play to give Georgia  the lead, but was flagged for excessive celebration. That penalty figured heavily in LSU’s winning touchdown.

So many in Bulldog Nation are upset with Green. And an Atlanta Journal-Constitution headline said “One play made all the difference,” though that headline/column referred to LSU’s winning run. Well, keep in mind that the AJC is losing tons of money, and therefore given to alarmist headlines and stories to attract readers. In other words, one play NEVER makes the difference in a close football game. (Update: the SEC acknowledges that the penalty on Green was erroneous.)

Now, I feel Georgia should have beaten LSU. Even oddsmakers had the Bulldogs as favorites. (Disclosure: I’m a UGA alum.) But I do not point a finger solely at A.J. Green. Keep in mind that on the Bulldogs’ first possession, QB Joe Cox overthrew a wide-open Green, a play that likely would have gone for a TD. And in the second half, Georgia kicker Blair Walsh missed a chip-shot field goal. That’s 10 points.

And on the kickoff following Green’s penalty, the Bulldogs allowed LSU to return the ball 40 yards into Georgia territory, and threw in another five yards with an illegal formation on the kickoff. That meant LSU, trailing 13-12, was almost in field goal territory without taking a snap.

Had Georgia held the Tigers in their own territory on the return, LSU would not have had the option of running the ball, as it did for the winning touchdown. Desperation passing is always a low-percentage way to win.

For the second straight year, the Bulldogs appear to be unable to rise to the occasion in crucial conference games (including a 45-19 loss to Tennessee). In 2008, Georgia was also given to penalties and turnovers, which indicates a lack of discipline. That, I feel, goes back to the coaching staff.

It has been three seasons since the Bulldogs have appeared in the SEC title game, and chances are very slim in 2009. Florida, LSU and Alabama are leaving the Bulldogs behind, and no program should tolerate mediocrity. It’s fans won’t. Just ask  Ray Goff and Jim Donnan.

I'm right with state Sen. Culver Kidd, left, as he leaves court in Macon in 1978 after acquittal.

There are Habitat for Humanity and efforts in the Mideast. But the legacy of Jimmy Carter as president and very active former president includes an event that riveted Georgia and provided a moment that then was unprecedented in American politics.

In 1978, Carter, who recently turned 85, was a prosecution witness in a criminal trial involving a political foe, state Sen. Culver Kidd of Milledgeville. It was the first time in the 20th century that an American president had testified in a criminal trial. It also marked the first time a president had testified via videotape.

Kidd was an adversary of Carter dating to the former president’s term as governor (1971-75; in those days, governors of Georgia were limited to one term). The state legislator was accused, along with the Baldwin County sheriff, of gambling conspiracy charges. The federal indictment accused Kidd, during the ‘72 Georgia legislative session, of trying to obtain advance notice from Carter — through an intermediary — of state raids on slot machines. In return, Kidd allegedly offered to do an about-face and back an administrative reorganization that Carter sought.

This was also big for me and the Macon Telegraph, which included Milledgeville in its circulation area. Yours truly was the reporter on the court beat when the story broke.

Adding to the intrigue was that federal prosecutors gave immunity to state Sen. Eugene Holley, named in the indictment as the intermediary between Kidd and Carter. A witness with immunity can’t exercise the Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

Carter had to tape his testimony in Washington in April 1978 because of scheduling conflicts; he disclosed in the deposition (I still have the official court copy) that he also gave written testimony to a grand jury in December 1977. Traveling to D.C. were presiding Judge Wilbur Owens Jr., prosecution and defense attorneys, and court personnel.

“It made a vivid impression on me,” Carter testified of Holley’s alleged proposal from Kidd. After rejecting the offer, Carter said he communicated the matter to aide Hamilton Jordan (who became White House chief of staff) and the chief of the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. (In the testimony, Carter was addressed as “Mr.” because the matter happened before his presidency.) The video deposition ran about 50 minutes when played for jurors in Macon.

But things took a dark turn for the feds after that heavyweight testimony was played in court. Holley’s testimony did not jibe with the president’s. Holley testified that the offer to Carter was for an advance notice of “an investigation” and that he felt the matter “had nothing to do with gambling raids.” 

Kidd — the only witness in his own defense — emphatically denied making such an offer. And he was acquitted, along with the sheriff, Buford Lingold. (Lingold later disclosed to me that he had refused an immunity offer, saying, “I wouldn’t tell a lie to save my neck. … I ain’t got nothing to put the mouth on Culver about.”)

Prosecutors later disclosed to me that Holley’s court testimony differed markedly from that of his grand jury appearance. However, they were so bruised over losing the high-profile case that they saw no point in pursuing that matter.

Kidd died in 1995. Holley died in 2000. Carter’s legacy lives on in his splendid museum in Atlanta (that’s me during a visit). But the videotaped testimony and a trial of political intrigue was memorable for many.

Randy Savage (later the "Macho Man"), right, Roberto Soto have me in their sights

So, Atlanta, which has hosted Super Bowls, World Series, the Olympics and eventually will be home to the College Football Hall of Fame, wants Wrestlemania, too. Can’t get enough of a good thing (money), I guess.

But from a competitive standpoint, the WWE’s version of the Super Bowl is a different animal. The “E” stands for entertainment, which tells you that the outcomes of those matches are not always determined in the ring.

Fans obviously do not care. WWE events regularly get high TV ratings, and Wrestlemania had an estimated $51.5 million impact on Houston last year.

As one who could not escape the activity in my younger years, either on TV or in person, I see significant changes. These days, performers such as Triple H (son-in-law of WWE Chairman Vince McMahon Jr.) and the Undertaker look more like video game characters than athletes. And one of those scrawny little divas would get tossed into the third row after a minute or so in the ring with the late Fabulous Moolah or Judy Martin, famous women heels of the past. Even when Chyna wrestled men back in the ’90s, it was still worth watching. I just thought of them as actors who do their own stunts.

Such was my weird interest in the activity in my younger years that I was all too eager to volunteer when a Macon Telegraph editor suggested that someone referee a pro wrestling match for a story. The paper then was doing a series of first-person articles on reporters doing unusual things.

And it doesn’t get much more unusual — and yes, dangerous — than getting between two muscular, temperamental wrestlers. I’ve seen matches where the ref got knocked cold (or so they said) so that some dastardly deed could be perpetrated without punishment in the ring.

So Macon promoters Fred Ward and “Choo Choo” Lynn consented to our request for such a story. Wrestling took place every Tuesday night at the Macon Coliseum in those days, usually featuring the same wrestlers that performed in Atlanta. The fans were vociferous and dedicated to the soap-opera style proceedings.

Before my match, I received a quick briefing from referee Ron West. If they are in the ropes, they have to break at a five-count, etc. “And if one of them doesn’t listen, disqualify him,” West said.

 He also emphasized not to try to physically separate them. Easier said than done, I discovered. No, there were no instructions as to the outcome of the match.

I was introduced to the crowd along with the wrestlers, Randy Savage and Roberto Soto. This was a mid-card match, not the main event. Savage would later gain fame and a world title in wrestling as the ”Macho Man.”

And once the action began, I was surprised how fast things moved in the ring. I’ve always been empathetic when criticizing referees in any sport, realizing that it’s not as easy when you are watching from the stands or on TV. Definitely the case here. These guys were aggressive and went at each other tooth and nail with all the moves. Were they pulling punches? Honestly, I could not tell.

And when they got tied up in a corner, I unwisely tried to physically pry them apart, and got a rude shove back from Savage at one point. And as you can see from the above picture, the wrestlers sometimes had to wait to allow me to escape harm’s way.

The outcome? Controversial, of course. I pounded the mat three times when Savage had Soto’s shoulders down. However, seems Savage also had a handful of Soto’s tights, a common rule-breaking maneuver that I did not detect.  The fans let me have it good.

Fatigue may have been a factor. When I took a seat in the stands after the match, I was quite wrung out.

But I was also quite happy, that I had done something unique and memorable.  I’m good about saving old newspaper clips and pictures, but I still can’t find my own account of this. Online, there’s scant mention. Here’s one link, and you have to scroll down to August 1977 to find my name. But hey, it’s my contribution to wrestling history.

Click back to 2003. Several people in recession-weary California, including me, were gathered to hear Christopher Cox, then a U.S. congressman from Orange County, speak about business matters. At that time, neither YouTube nor Twitter existed, but Cox — a pro-business Republican — still addressed the effect of the Internet on business.

The federal government, he told the crowd, was not inclined to levy extra taxes for commerce done on the Internet. He explained that the online world is the best thing ever for small businesses, which do more for employment and job growth than do large corporations. An extra financial burden there would do more harm than good at a time when the U.S. could least afford it. (Economic frustration in California then was so severe that it led to the recall of Gov. Gray Davis and the subsequent election of Arnold Schwarzenegger.)

Click ahead to 2009. YouTube is now owned by Google, whose market cap ($156 billion) now rivals Microsoft ($227 billion) and dwarfs Disney ($51 billion; Disney owns ABC and ESPN). Several people in recession-weary Atlanta, including me, gather at New Media Atlanta to hear speakers from large and small businesses discuss how online networking sites (Facebook, Twitter, etc.) can help the bottom line.

And yes, this is no longer a novelty. When the Internet first started reaching the masses in the ’90s, seminars teaching about online commerce were practically on every street corner. Now, “new media” gatherings are the trendy way to pull people in. Networking and knowledge are important, but there’s also overkill.

New Media Atlanta (#nmatl on Twitter), a one-day event in Atlanta on Friday, had some positive attributes. I noticed that the speaker list included officials from large companies, such as Turner Broadcasting, Nokia Siemens and Newell Rubbermaid. That’s proof that even the big boys know that the chatter in the virtual world matters.

The part I liked best was the dollar-sign factor. It’s getting cliche-worn to talk about “building your brand” and “forming relationships.” Businesses are interested for one reason: the bottom line.

So, some helpful names and numbers from New Media Atlanta:

– Mike Mullineaux, Nokia Siemens: Mobility is where the growth is. He notes that 20% of Google’s 650 billion daily searches come from mobile devices, and that’s expected to hit 30% in 18 months … Mobile advertising is now a $572 million market … the biggest next thing will be for mobile operators to get their cost basis to a world-class level and learn about consumer needs.

– Bert DuMars, Newell Rubbermaid:The consumer-products giant (Sharpie, Graco, Levolor) has Rubbermaid devoting 50 % of one person’s time to social media, and two others devoting 20%. Sharpie’s SM budget started at $2,000 annually. Those are small numbers for such a company, but it shows some attention … He points out that retailers have  a huge impact on consumers’ purchase decisions.

– Seth Miller, Turner Broadcasting: The company measures success in overnight ratings … He says there are “lots” of fans of Turner Classic Movies (@tcm) on Twitter.

– Brent Leary, CRM Essentials: Some 80% of Twitter usage is from mobile devices.

– Jeff Turner, executive and entrepreneur: “Charge by the project” in SM consulting, not by the hour.

There are many other fine reviews, pics and videos of New Media Atlanta on Twitter (#nmatl).

 And my own suggestion for anyone putting on such a gig: Offer breakout sessions on various topics, rather than just a “one size fits all” approach like New Media Atlanta. SoCon08/09 at Kennesaw State in Atlanta, for example, had keynote speakers as well as several smaller gatherings.

As one speaker said at New Media Atlanta, there’s no one solution in SM that’s right for everyone. But there are still good tools for almost anyone. And the numbers don’t lie.

My pic of a collapsed retaining wall at a strip mall in suburban Atlanta

 It had been raining for several days in the Atlanta area, already a strange occurrence. But when the skies opened up in overnight hours of Sept. 20-21, 2009, it set off quite a bit of havoc in roadways and residential areas. And it set off memorable efforts by citizen journalists, including myself.

I was awakened by the heavy rain overnight, so I was mentally prepared when I turned on TV early Monday. Already, reports were dire. Traffic backups on freeways. Boil water advisories. School closings. Swift water rescues. My instinct: Tweet.

Of course, that means Twitter, which everyone knows about. This shows the microblogging service is not just a tool for small businesses and social organizers. It has arrived as a disaster coverage/recovery tool.

From 6 AM on, I was tweeting to some degree. TV and online reports from Atlanta-area media were helpful. (Hey, they’ve got a place in the world, too.)  But I came to realize that many colleagues/friends/neighbors might not be aware of all developments as they headed to work, or to get kids off to school. So why not do what I could to help them out? I had the luxury of not having to rush out, so I could stay by TV and the Web to tweet the latest updates.

I wasn’t the only one. Fellow Atlanta social media maven Grayson Daughters (@spaceyg on Twitter) was in step. She lives in intown Atlanta, and I’m in the suburbs outside I-285, so we both could offer updates of importance to our specific locations. Another who stepped in well was strategic marketer Tessa Horehled at @driveafastercar.

(Updated 9/24/09: Daughters and Horehled discuss Twitter efforts during the flood, and the #atlflood hashtag and search features, in this video.)

Examples of how useful such tweets can be. Several of my followers learned from my tweets (and resulting re-tweets, or RTs) that Spaghetti Junction, the massive I-285/I-85 intersection in northeast Atlanta, was gridlocked due to standing water and accidents. Proof that many people these days check tweets before TV or radio.

Also, I tweeted immediately when Gwinnett County schools decided in the morning to close for the day; they already had delayed opening for 90 minutes. But that came too late for at least one parent, who tweeted that she was already at a bus stop with her child when that word came.

As I mentioned, I relied heavily on TV and Internet reports from Atlanta MSM for my tweets. But my bulletins were on Twitter a long time before some of their own. For example, Fox5’s Tacoma Newsome had an outstanding TV report of a swift water rescue of several police officers and a resident from a  Gwinnett County home. It was awhile before other Atlanta outlets got their tweets out on that, which tells me they need to shape up there.

Hey, I’m used to covering natural disasters. At the California-based Orange County Register, I dealt with major earthquakes in ‘92 and ‘94, and the days-long Laguna Beach fires in ‘93. I know how situations can change dramatically in minutes.

And another point: Atlanta TV stations WSB, WXIA and CBSAtlanta routinely cut away to network morning shows at 7 AM, when the calamity was really heating up. Mistake. Fox5 stayed with normal programming. (Not sure if Fox has a network morning show, but still …). So they gained a lot of viewers and tweets as a result.

And I congratulate WSB, Atlanta’s dominant station, for staying with local news programming Tuesday rather than deferring to “Good Morning America.” CBSAtlanta stayed local. WXIA switched to NBC’s “Today.” 

And hey, when you tweet anything, especially a disaster, the world is watching. A UGA colleague of mine with Atlanta ties, who now lives in North Carolina, learned of the mess from my tweets and the #atlflood hashtag. She gave an excellent account of Twitter’s impact in her blog post.

And here’s my account of how some homeowners were affected by flooding, reported for Atlanta Real Estate Forum.

Early Wednesday, damage estimate was at $250 million. (Hurricane Katrina? Over $90 billion.)

So for now, enough about my own Tweet Central.  The flood mess in Atlanta is not over. Just know that Twitter matters.