Category Archives: Politics: North Carolina

I Did It Too, But You Did It Last

Posted on September 30, 2011 | Leave a comment

Without a doubt the United States has made mistakes in our dealings with a whole host of people and nations.  In some cases, we were straight forward-no deception, just straight poor behavior.  In other cases, there WAS deception that preceded this poor behavior.

I have always acknowledged that our government’s treatment of native populations, nations and people was unacceptable.  However, I have always been leery at any attempt to make up for this all these years later through reparations or special benefits.

With that in mind, I am planning a family trip this weekend and I came upon this site for one of North Carolina’s State Parks:

The Town of Pilot Mountain is home to Pilot Mountain State Park, which is a remnant of the ancient Sauratown Mountains. The Saura Indians who inhabited the area knew Pilot Mountain as Jomeokee, the “Pilot” or “Great Guide”. The Cherokee Indians eventually drove the Saura Indians out of the area. Pilot Mountain became the 14th State Park in 1968 when it was purchased from Mrs. J.W. Beasley. Pilot Mountain State Park is made up of 3,703 acres of land, which preserves the natural resources of North Carolina.

So, if the United States government is expected to compensate the Cherokee, would the Cherokee than be expected to compensate the Saura?

My guess is probably not.  And why this is stumps me.  I’m sure it has to do with some form of “ism” or intolerance inherent in me; being conservative and all.

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Posted in Diplomacy, Politics: National, Politics: North Carolina

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When Government Gets In Government’s Way

Posted on September 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

Let’s face it.  Government IS red tape.  Folks in government are faced with making decisions that are based on the same basic premise that the rest of us make decisions on.  Namely, incentives.  People are incented in the same manner no matter their profession or walk of life.  And in politics, the incentive is to not error.

There is no incentive to lead.  While it would be nice, it’s not required.  Really, all you have to do is not make a mistake.  Just avoid decision making and talk.  A lot.  And just.  Don’t.  Make.  Bad.  Decisions.

And that’s how we get this.

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Posted in Government, Politics: North Carolina

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Gay Marriage: This is NOT What We Meant

Posted on September 12, 2011 | 2 comments

Republicans, led by the Tea Party, have control of state houses across the country.  Why, right here in North Carolina for example, we have control of both the Senate and the House for the first time in 140 years.

Several, many in fact, good things have come as a result of this.  Tomorrow the Republicans are going to undo much of that good work:

RALEIGH, N.C. — The gay marriage debate has arrived in North Carolina after years in which Democrats managed to push it aside because they controlled the Legislature.

Now Republicans are in charge of the General Assembly after a 140-year absence. They’ve scheduled a legislative session Monday to consider proposed constitutional amendments, including those that would let voters decide next year whether to define marriage in the state constitution as between one man and one woman.

Now, it can be said that such considerations ought be left to the voters.  However, in this case, the basis of the founding of the nation protects the individual.  No matter HOW many people disapprove of gay marriage, the fact remains that Liberty must be served.  Two sovereign individuals have chosen to commit themselves to each other ought be enough for the state.  It ought to be enough for us.

I’m not advocating that the marrying habits of all people be APPROVED, certainly not.  After all, were that the case, it is highly likely that I would never have been allowed to marry my wife; so many people objecting to such an honorable and capable woman of marrying such a degenerate as myself.  That not withstanding, she is capable of free will.

Liberty is powerful.  And hard.  It often means that the outcome isn’t exactly how we wanted it to end.  But that’s what makes it good; the hard.

I hope the Republicans fail tomorrow.  I really do.

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Posted in Liberty, Politics: National, Politics: North Carolina, Republicans Can Be Leftists Too, States Behaving Badly

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Ice and Gas Shortage: Hurricane Irene

Posted on August 26, 2011 | 8 comments

She’s coming.  There’s been little doubt about that now for 2 days.  Irene is coming and she is big.

As the storm hits and does her damage, residents in her path are going to find that they’re short critical supplies; water, ice, gasoline, propane to name a few.  Part of the reason we’ll be short these key commodities is because people have bought more than they usually would have in advance of the storm.  The second is because we’re just gonna use more of ’em.

Demand will impact supply.

And, just as the law of supply and demand would dictate, as those items begin to run out, the price will rise.  In some cases doubling or even tripling.  This does several things:

  1. It reduces the desire of people to hoard.
  2. It signals to suppliers that a need has been established and in the interest of profit, will work to fill that need.
  3. It activates politicians to fulfill the law of politics: Pass laws that try to break the law of economics.

See, people vote politicians in, so politicians react in irrational ways to this problem:

RALEIGH, NC (NCDOJ) — North Carolina’s strong price gouging law is now in effect because a state of emergency has been declared due to Hurricane Irene, Attorney General Roy Cooper notified businesses and consumers today.

“We’re warning price gougers that you can’t use a crisis as an excuse to make an unfair profit off of consumers,” said Cooper.

Price gouging—or charging too much in times of crisis—is against North Carolina law when a disaster, an emergency or an abnormal market disruption for critical goods and services is declared or proclaimed by the Governor. The law also applies to all levels of the supply chain from the manufacturer to the distributor to the retailer.

What people WANT is for suppliers to supply goods at the normal price even as the cost of doing so goes up.  IF the law above were written to say :

The people of North Carolina have decided that during times of crisis, we do not want to encourage exceptional efforts to deliver necessary and critical goods.  We don’t want to pay any price for this effort and would rather, instead, save our money and do without.

THAT is what this law is doing.

And if you don’t think so, or if you think that we should allow prices to reflect demand, then I suggest YOU buy a U-Haul truck of water or a refer truck full of ice and drive to the coast and deliver that water and ice yourself.

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Posted in Economics, Politics: North Carolina, Rocket Surgery

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If You Don’t Know – How Do You Know You Don’t Know?

Posted on August 18, 2011 | 2 comments

At the risk of summoning Don, I have to ask the question in light of this information:

Raleigh, N.C. — An 89-year-old Raleigh man accused of voter fraud said he was trying to prove a point by casting two ballots.

“I think the election system is pathetic,” Leland Duane Lewis said Wednesday.

…

On Oct. 29, 2010, Lewis said he voted early at the Optimist Center in Raleigh.

“I voted on the front of the ballot – just the front,” he said.

Lewis said he wondered how easy it would be to get a second ballot, so he went to his regular polling place, St. Raphael’s Catholic Church, on Election Day. He said he gave his name and address to precinct officials and was given a ballot.

“So, I voted the back of the ballot,” he said. “They should’ve had information that said, ‘Hey Mister, you voted.'”

Nice.

So, a man, able to vote early on one day and then, on election day, goes to his regular polling place, is able to vote again.  But our system isn’t broke.  And how do I know it isn’t broke?

Because I don’t know it’s not broke.

Or something like that.

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Posted in Elections 2010, Politics: North Carolina

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That Whole Squeaky Wheel Thing?

Posted on August 15, 2011 | Leave a comment

As a general rule I try to listen to what people say with a degree of open-mindedness.  IN my line of work, I hear all kids of reasons for things gone wrong and even more for why they can’t get fixed.

All day, every day.

And, in truth, many of those folks are right.  Or mostly right.  Or maybe just kinda right.

Every once in awhile I find someone who is NEVER right and I disregard what they say out of hand.  The Reverend Barber and the North Carolina NAACP are that guy.

RALEIGH, N.C. — North Carolina’s NAACP chapter says it will fight the General Assembly’s plan to redraw legislative and congressional boundaries in court and within the Obama administration.

The Rev. William Barber said Monday the group is ramping up to challenge the maps drawn by the first Republican-led Legislature since the 1870s.

The first map drawn by Republicans since the 1870s.  Can you imagine how gerrymandered that map is today; only in favor of the Democrats?  Can you imagine a scenario where that map ISN’T gonna look different than the Democrat’s map?  One that has had the advantage of being refined over 141 years?

It’s become so bad that I’m not convinced proper legislation has been passed unless and until Reverend Barber complains.  Then I KNOW it’s right!

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Posted in Politics: North Carolina, Race

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A Win Win

Posted on July 20, 2011 | 9 comments

Geese are dirty animals.  And they breed like rabbits.  And where they intersect with humans, they are a nuisance.

And they are protected by the Federal Government [which means, by the way, that a goose has more federal protection than an unborn child.  But I digress.]  And because they are protected by the Federal Government, you can’t just shoot ’em like you can shoot a raccoon or a skunk or a rabbit.

So, only by complaining to said Federal Government can action be taken:

The U.S. Department of Agriculture on Tuesday euthanized 20 of the approximately 100 animals in the Woodlake subdivision in southwest Durham after residents complained their neighborhood had become overpopulated.

The Canada geese were a nuisance, residents say, leaving feces in yards, walking trails, lakes and other public areas, including the neighborhood pool.

Now, to be sure, we are not talking about threatening the population of the geese:

The USDA says that as of 2006, there were 97,000 Canada geese in the state.

The population has increased exponentially over the past 40 years. In 1970, there were approximately 250,000 resident Canada geese in the U.S. By 2010, that number jumped to 3.5 million.

We’re just talking about too many geese.  Perhaps to the point that the population is a threat to itself.

Anyway, I promised a win win.

How about instead of protecting the geese to the point of over population, we do what other people who are hungry do–and hunt the geese for food?

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Posted in Government, Politics: North Carolina

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Superior Court Judge: I’ll Write The State Budget

Posted on July 18, 2011 | 2 comments

The North Carolina legislature passed a budget.  This budget passed both house of  properly elected lawmakers.  Then, this budget was vetoed by the Good Govna’ of the Great State of North by God Carolina, herself properly elected.

Bev Purdue certainly can veto bills she doesn’t like.

After learning of said veto, the legislature convened and took up  vote to over-ride the veto.  And over-ride that veto the legislature did.  And so, the budget became law without the consent of the governor.

That, however, is not the end of the story.

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Posted in Education, Lobby/PAC, Politics: North Carolina

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There Is No Such Thing As A Free Lunch

Posted on July 6, 2011 | Leave a comment

This is why we need to be leery of government.

It’s not because government is always “evil”.  It’s not because all people working in government are self absorbed power hungry influence brokers.  It’s not because of man’s natural desire to rule their own world; whatever world that is.

Now, to be sure, some or all of that exists, but the vast majority of the people who make up government are honest hard working folks.

The problem with government is that it creates the wrong incentives.

And the North Carolina State Parks is no exception.

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Posted in Government, Politics: North Carolina

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North Carolina’s Unemployment

Posted on June 27, 2011 | 5 comments

Unemployment across the State remained basically steady.  Officially the rate moved from 9.6% in April to 9.7% in May.

I suspect that this number not moving down causes great worry in the governor’s office.  And it should; she is contributing to the rate staying so high.

Consider:

A job at minimum wage over 40 hours is $7.25 x 40 = $290.00

Unemployment benefit c heck is $297.00.

The marginal benefit of working 40 hours is $7.00.

Do you think that pressure is going to add to unemployment or reduce it?

Governor Purdue, please remove your executive order restoring benefits with that Federal money.  You are making it harder to bring that number down.

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Posted in Economics, Economy, Government, Politics: North Carolina

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