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Hammock in his office at City Hall

Hammock has new philosophy for bashers

By Michael Butler

"You've got to have thick skin." It's an old cliche' but one that people in public office know all too well, especially Tallassee mayor Johnny Hammock.

"When they take a shot at me, I let it go," Hammock said. "When they start talking about other departments in the city or council, I kind of feel like I'm the quarterback and that's my team. When you start talking about my team, I get a little salty."

Hammock has a message for the naysayers.

"You don't know what I'm going through until you've walked a mile in my shoes. They take personal attacks at you. A lot of times it's false. They don't have the information. You deal with it all the time. They blast you."

In the past Hammock has responded to some of the backlash but now is taking a different approach.

"I'm not getting into it anymore on Facebook," he said. "I'm trying to stay off there. It's the coward way to do things when you don't have all the facts. I'm making a stand. I'm not going to get into it on social media anymore. I'm taking the high road.

"I think it's petty. I pray about it a lot. I think God is telling me, don't stoop to their level. Let's keep moving forward. I know in my heart that I'm doing what's right. I'm going to try and be the bigger person from now on."

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