GREENSBORO, NC -- Nine years ago, I stopped smoking. (On November 17th, to be precise.) It seems unremarkable now and I only acknowledge it as a backwards nod to the person I was back then who thought this would likely be impossible but who persevered. (Chantix helped, I'd recommend it if you smoke and want to quit.)
Thursday, October 19, 2017
Mike Barber's police body camera baloney
GREENSBORO, NC -- At the League of Women voters Greensboro City Council candidates forum on Tuesday, Councilman Mike Barber said this about police body worn cameras:
Baloney. This is a canard belied as untrue by Barber's actions.
Putting aside whether or not live streaming police video is a good idea (and on reflection, it's not: think victim interviews, medical emergencies, etc.), the thing to remember is that Mike Barber had a chance not that long ago to have Greensboro police video live streamed to the Internet and he sat on his hands.
In the spring of 2016, the city undertook the task of crafting a body worn camera policy. This was before the state law passed later in the year that took control of such decisions from cities. But before the state law, when Greensboro's efforts were underway, there was a policy proposed by citizens, another policy proposal ostensibly crafted by councilman Justin Outling and Mayor Vaughan and the one that passed, authored by the city attorney.
At a meeting that spring, Barber said then too that he would like to have police video live streamed to the internet but he never acted. That was gas then and it's gas now.
Barber never offered his "live stream to the internet" idea in any policy when he had a chance—never put it forward when it could have actually been debated and maybe become policy. He could have. Other people were actively working to craft a policy, putting ideas on the table for consideration, but not Barber.
It's easy for Barber now to say he'd like to live stream police video when he knows state law makes that impossible, but we won't forget that when he actually had a chance to put his idea into motion, he was missing in action.
"I want every body worn camera worn by a police officer to live stream on the internet."
Baloney. This is a canard belied as untrue by Barber's actions.
In the spring of 2016, the city undertook the task of crafting a body worn camera policy. This was before the state law passed later in the year that took control of such decisions from cities. But before the state law, when Greensboro's efforts were underway, there was a policy proposed by citizens, another policy proposal ostensibly crafted by councilman Justin Outling and Mayor Vaughan and the one that passed, authored by the city attorney.
At a meeting that spring, Barber said then too that he would like to have police video live streamed to the internet but he never acted. That was gas then and it's gas now.
Barber never offered his "live stream to the internet" idea in any policy when he had a chance—never put it forward when it could have actually been debated and maybe become policy. He could have. Other people were actively working to craft a policy, putting ideas on the table for consideration, but not Barber.
It's easy for Barber now to say he'd like to live stream police video when he knows state law makes that impossible, but we won't forget that when he actually had a chance to put his idea into motion, he was missing in action.
Tuesday, November 17, 2015
Seven years, smoke free
I nearly forgot that it was seven years ago today that I quit smoking. Here's what I wrote last year:
--------------
Six years ago today, I quit smoking. Smoking never really seemed to fit with me. I like the outdoors and fresh air. I like flavorful food. I've regularly exercised my entire adult life. None of those things go well with smoking. Yet, smoke I did. Like many people, I made numerous attempts to quit. Sometimes seemingly successful—a year or two, here or there—but none seemed to stick until this time.
If you smoke and want to quit, you can. I used the quit smoking drug Chantix to get me started and it worked for me. If you find a way that works for you, I can promise you this: Life is better without cigarettes. I know this is the exact opposite of how it feels when you contemplate quiting which has you thinking life without cigarettes is going to be misery. It's not. Quiting might be, for a little while, but after, life is better.
While you are a smoker, the consequences of smoking seem normal; unnoticed. Not until you quit will you understand -- no, that's the wrong word because it's more than mental -- not until you quit will you feel that your body and mind are capable of more energy, more stamina, better concentration, less anxiety and more serenity. It is ironic that, when I smoked, these were often the reasons I lit up: for a boost, to concentrate, to relax. But trust me, those effects are not only fleeting when achieved with tobacco, they are nowhere near as deep or sustained than your body is capable of without cigarettes. In other words, the very reasons you smoke will be better fulfilled by quitting. The reasons you smoke will not be left wanting if you quit. You will not be left to suffer a void. Quite the opposite. Your body will fill in the gap, naturally and more satisfyingly, if you give it a chance. If you give it time.
--------------
Six years ago today, I quit smoking. Smoking never really seemed to fit with me. I like the outdoors and fresh air. I like flavorful food. I've regularly exercised my entire adult life. None of those things go well with smoking. Yet, smoke I did. Like many people, I made numerous attempts to quit. Sometimes seemingly successful—a year or two, here or there—but none seemed to stick until this time.
If you smoke and want to quit, you can. I used the quit smoking drug Chantix to get me started and it worked for me. If you find a way that works for you, I can promise you this: Life is better without cigarettes. I know this is the exact opposite of how it feels when you contemplate quiting which has you thinking life without cigarettes is going to be misery. It's not. Quiting might be, for a little while, but after, life is better.
While you are a smoker, the consequences of smoking seem normal; unnoticed. Not until you quit will you understand -- no, that's the wrong word because it's more than mental -- not until you quit will you feel that your body and mind are capable of more energy, more stamina, better concentration, less anxiety and more serenity. It is ironic that, when I smoked, these were often the reasons I lit up: for a boost, to concentrate, to relax. But trust me, those effects are not only fleeting when achieved with tobacco, they are nowhere near as deep or sustained than your body is capable of without cigarettes. In other words, the very reasons you smoke will be better fulfilled by quitting. The reasons you smoke will not be left wanting if you quit. You will not be left to suffer a void. Quite the opposite. Your body will fill in the gap, naturally and more satisfyingly, if you give it a chance. If you give it time.
Thursday, September 17, 2015
"Echo Chamber of Delusion, Paranoia and Racism”
GREENSBORO, NC -- The Greensboro Police Department announced today a partnership, short on specifics, with Nextdoor.com, the closed social site/app that requires users to sign up with their real names and provide their verified address.
Out of the currently 123 reviews of Nextdoor.com on Site Jabber, 99 give it one star out of five. Here are some of the most notable, good and bad:
Out of the currently 123 reviews of Nextdoor.com on Site Jabber, 99 give it one star out of five. Here are some of the most notable, good and bad:
Every person "who looks out of place" walking on the sidewalk gets called out on the app. God help you if you're black and knocking on doors in our neighborhood.----
I signed up for this service because it was recommended by the city that we live in for traffic alerts, street closings, etc. I signed up for the service, began to browse for vital information in my city, and only then found out that this website publishes your entire personal information for everyone in the community to see without divulging this to users before the sign up. Considering we pay for a non-published phone number and address, I was pretty upset to find all of my private information listed. I deactivated my account, and only then did I look for complaints about the company. Boy was I surprised to see the complaints on here.---
The best thing is I feel cool after expressing my opinion there, about environment and things. That's why I don't read free local paper any more.---
The app sends "push notifications" for urgent alerts tagged as "Crime & Safety". This means that every bored, stupid Desperate Housewife who gins up a fantasy of danger now has the ability to push her stupid blather straight to your cell phone.---
I highly recommend this medium, it is a great resource to share emergency news (ie.: missing pets, bears in the neighborhood, theft alerts, odd jobs, yard sales, free stuff, block parties, etc.). A neighborhood is safer when its residents care and keep an active neighborhood watch.---
home to politically correct extremists...---
Continue to be re-registered by either the company or site lead. Have unsubscribed and quit the stupid site three different times only find NEW bat-$#*! crazy posts from "neighbors" I don't know. Ironically, it keeps signing me up for neighborhood I don't even live in. There must be some sort of con / grift going on whereby the company is trying to pump up its user numbers.
---
If you like trying to communicate with brain dead idiots this is the website for you.---
This organization sounds like it is run like a Junior High popularity club.---
Nothing has caused more hard feelings between neighbors in my community than Nextdoor.---
This works beautifully. Obviously it depends on the type of neighbors you have, but I have found NextDoor to be a life saver many times.---
I've found this site to be used only to judge and provide nasty comments about neighbors, and not helpful at all.---
I also love it because the Police Department can post urgent messages to those neighborhoods under their jurisdiction.---
Complete scam. How do I know ? Postal mail has return addresses of non-existent people in our own neighborhood saying we are "invited" to join. Getting them weekly now with fake return addresses claiming to be from neighbors. So folks, nothing free is any good. They are up to something. Pretty sure it will end badly for the investors....---
I feel that in this day and age if you need an app to communicate with your neighbors, instead of going and rining their doorbell, then maybe you should just stay inside.---
What it is is simply a means to locally share information and get to know your neighbors. As with all things that involve people, things can go wrong quickly if people aren't respecting each other and treating each other with kindness and understanding.---
if you are a upscale tight ass this site is for you.
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Council candidate cuts through the bull
While polite commentators and genteel reporters danced around the reasons for state senator Trudy Wade's recent attempt to redistrict Greensboro's city council as mysterious and unfathomable, Ridgill cuts through the bull and comes out and says it.
Our current system lends itself to areas of our city that are more active politically than others. Part of this problem is the apathy in many parts of Greensboro that feel their vote won't accomplish anything, citing preferential treatment to downtown development and east side Greensboro political leaders. East Greensboro has long been more organized as a voting block in our city elections and under this system has direct effect on 6 of the 9 council seats; Districts 1 and 2, all 3 At Large seats and the Mayor. It is for this reason that many in town want to eliminate the At Large seats for more streamlined representation of the city by reducing the size of the districts and eliminating the manipulation of the council by political activists.Ridgill's survey of the landscape might be a bit oversimplified, as it leaves no room to explain the not so long ago upset of incumbent mayor Yvonne Johnson by Bill Knight in an election that gave city council four conservative members, but premises don't have to be correct to become motivations.
While rejiggering the system to diminish the effects of motivated constituencies and enhancing the influence of the complacent seems counter to the American spirit—or maybe the argument is that, in a different setting the currently apathetic will become motivated—either way, one cannot deny that the motive behind Trudy Wade's plan is to diminish the political influence, real or perceived, of Greensboro's minorities on city council elections, and it's about time someone said it so plainly.
Sunday, September 06, 2015
Friday, August 21, 2015
The biggest question for mayoral candidate King
GREENSBORO, NC - Devin King is running for mayor. He is something of an outsider who doesn't like what he sees and thinks he can shake things up. That can be good. The best qualified city council candidates are not necessarily those who put in their time on boards, commissions and civic clubs. That's certainly one route to experience, but it can lead to being subsumed by the insulated power structure. Candidates who go that route often serve to maintain the status quo. Depending on your perspective, that can be a minus or a plus.
No matter where a candidate is coming from, inside or outside, there is one measure by which they all can be evaluated as serious and aware persons.
Voting history.
The 27 year-old King has lived in Greensboro for five years and yet has never voted in the ten elections during that time. In fact, he did not even register until March of this year. While voters across North Carolina may rightly feel apathetic towards the preordained outcomes of our gerrymandered congressional districts, plenty of other important decision are made at the ballot box and King, for all his passionate concern, has consistently left it to others to decide.
Republican King passed on participating in elections that had Robbie Perkins unseat Bill Knight for mayor and, two years later, had Perkins lose to current mayor and King's opponent Nancy Vaughan. King was silent on the race that had his incumbent district two council representative Jim Kee toppled by upstart Jamal Fox.
King was missing in action in 2011 as two fellow Republican candidates, challenger Chris Lawyer and incumbent Danny Thompson, each aiming for one of three council at-large seats, finished fourth and fifth respectively—just out of the money and leaving all at-large seats in the hands of Democrats. King sat on his hands in 2013 when Lawyer tried again and, again, came in fourth.
Those are just local races of note. During King's time in Greensboro, he passed on voting between Pat MCrory and Walter Dalton for governor, Elaine Marshal and Richard Burr for U.S. senator and between Barak Obama and Mitt Romney.
In his congressional district, King failed to weigh in on the race between Democrat Alma Adams and Republican activist Olga Wright and left it to others to decide a slew of judges, school board members and county officials.
King doesn't like the way thing are. He may have some good points. He's right about the need for greater transparency, for example. But is he part of the solution or part of the problem? One wonders.
No matter where a candidate is coming from, inside or outside, there is one measure by which they all can be evaluated as serious and aware persons.
Voting history.
The 27 year-old King has lived in Greensboro for five years and yet has never voted in the ten elections during that time. In fact, he did not even register until March of this year. While voters across North Carolina may rightly feel apathetic towards the preordained outcomes of our gerrymandered congressional districts, plenty of other important decision are made at the ballot box and King, for all his passionate concern, has consistently left it to others to decide.
 |
| Devin King, mayoral candidate |
Republican King passed on participating in elections that had Robbie Perkins unseat Bill Knight for mayor and, two years later, had Perkins lose to current mayor and King's opponent Nancy Vaughan. King was silent on the race that had his incumbent district two council representative Jim Kee toppled by upstart Jamal Fox.
King was missing in action in 2011 as two fellow Republican candidates, challenger Chris Lawyer and incumbent Danny Thompson, each aiming for one of three council at-large seats, finished fourth and fifth respectively—just out of the money and leaving all at-large seats in the hands of Democrats. King sat on his hands in 2013 when Lawyer tried again and, again, came in fourth.
Those are just local races of note. During King's time in Greensboro, he passed on voting between Pat MCrory and Walter Dalton for governor, Elaine Marshal and Richard Burr for U.S. senator and between Barak Obama and Mitt Romney.
In his congressional district, King failed to weigh in on the race between Democrat Alma Adams and Republican activist Olga Wright and left it to others to decide a slew of judges, school board members and county officials.
King doesn't like the way thing are. He may have some good points. He's right about the need for greater transparency, for example. But is he part of the solution or part of the problem? One wonders.
Wednesday, August 19, 2015
Memory loss
GREENSBORO, NC -- Former New & Record editor John Robinson bemoans the N&R's loss of institutional memory. It seems the paper has a short term memory problem too.
From a letter to the editor today:
The complete list of candidates who have filed to run for mayor of Greensboro, from the Guilford County Board of Elections:
From a letter to the editor today:
The complete list of candidates who have filed to run for mayor of Greensboro, from the Guilford County Board of Elections:
Thursday, June 04, 2015
It's all coming back to me now -- sort of.
Scott Yost at the Rhino Times: "The band Meatloaf famously sang, 'Two out of three ain’t bad...'"
Sigh.
Sigh.
Gary Marschall's big ol' gaping logic hole
GREENSBORO, NC -- The News & Record publishes a letter today from one Gary Marschall of Greensboro in which Mr. Marschall lights his hair on fire, warns of same sex marriage marking the end of "our culture" and laments: "If only reason and logic would rule."
Mr. Marschall then proceeds to send his screed down a sink hole void of the very logic and reason he just wrote should prevail.
The reason Mr. Marschall has for thinking the Supreme Court should reject same sex marriage? Because there is, he writes, no "homosexual gene." Therefore, he concludes, homosexuality must be a "choice to fill felt needs" and such motivations do not justify a marriage.
Science agrees with Mr. Marschall, there does not appear to be a single determinant of sexual orientation.
And now for that logic and reason Mr. Marschall pleads for...
Just as there is no "homosexual gene" there is also no heterosexual gene. Mr. Marschall's sexual orientation is also merely a "choice to fill felt needs." Because that was his point: That without a gene to explain one's sexual desires, they can only be a choice.
Of course, for Mr. Marschall, his "felt needs" are God-ordained. He has every right to believe that, as I'm sure many gay people do also, but when he worries about damage to America's culture, he should take heart.
The issue of same-sex marriage before the Supreme Court is not about mortals trying to read the mind of God, it is about what the Constitution of the United States of America says about equality; about whether a man who loves a woman has the same rights to legally sanctify that union as does a man who loves a man. Do adults acting on their "felt needs" have the right to be treated equally under the law?
The promise that they do is American bedrock. God bless America.
Mr. Marschall then proceeds to send his screed down a sink hole void of the very logic and reason he just wrote should prevail.
The reason Mr. Marschall has for thinking the Supreme Court should reject same sex marriage? Because there is, he writes, no "homosexual gene." Therefore, he concludes, homosexuality must be a "choice to fill felt needs" and such motivations do not justify a marriage.
Science agrees with Mr. Marschall, there does not appear to be a single determinant of sexual orientation.
And now for that logic and reason Mr. Marschall pleads for...
Just as there is no "homosexual gene" there is also no heterosexual gene. Mr. Marschall's sexual orientation is also merely a "choice to fill felt needs." Because that was his point: That without a gene to explain one's sexual desires, they can only be a choice.
Of course, for Mr. Marschall, his "felt needs" are God-ordained. He has every right to believe that, as I'm sure many gay people do also, but when he worries about damage to America's culture, he should take heart.
The issue of same-sex marriage before the Supreme Court is not about mortals trying to read the mind of God, it is about what the Constitution of the United States of America says about equality; about whether a man who loves a woman has the same rights to legally sanctify that union as does a man who loves a man. Do adults acting on their "felt needs" have the right to be treated equally under the law?
The promise that they do is American bedrock. God bless America.
Friday, April 24, 2015
New Greensboro film festival calls for submissions, volunteers
GREENSBORO, NC -- There is a new film festival coming to Greensboro this summer. It's the Barefoot Bijou Summer Film Festival and they are calling for submissions.
From the press release:
For more information, contact April Harris: aharris@newcityventures.net
From the press release:
The inaugural Barefoot Bijou Summer Film Festival invites North Carolina filmmakers to submit their short films. The fest is seeking short films produced in the last ten years, either: 1) films made by a North Carolina resident, or 2) films made within the state. There is no submission fee. Selected films will be screened at the 2015 festival, running June 3-28, 2015. To submit your film, email a link to your screener to submit@barefootbijou.com.There is also a planning meeting next week for people interested in chipping in and helping out:
Barefoot Bijou Planning Meeting
Thursday April 30
6-7pm
The Forge, 115 West Lewis Street
Thursday April 30
6-7pm
The Forge, 115 West Lewis Street
Friday, April 10, 2015
Down the tubes
GREENSBORO, NC -- I know a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do and, sometimes, circumstances make it hard to stick to one's principles; but the fall of John Hammer, former publisher of the Rhino Times and now-editor under new ownership, is remarkable to behold and a sad loss for Greensboro.
Always a staunch conservative, Hammer used to have going for him a tenacious allegiance to transparency and authenticity. It used to be that Hammer was a bulwark against public malfeasance and shenanigans that tried to deceive the people—often standing alone against powerful and entrenched interests in doing so. Whatever one thought of his politics, one could always admire him for that.
No longer.
Update: Doug Clark has more.
Always a staunch conservative, Hammer used to have going for him a tenacious allegiance to transparency and authenticity. It used to be that Hammer was a bulwark against public malfeasance and shenanigans that tried to deceive the people—often standing alone against powerful and entrenched interests in doing so. Whatever one thought of his politics, one could always admire him for that.
No longer.
Update: Doug Clark has more.
Friday, February 27, 2015
It's about time
Via Billy's blog comes news that John Hardister (R, Guilford) has submitted a bill to the state legislature that would make operations of the state lottery more transparent.
I haven't read the bill, but from Hardister's press release, it sounds like something long overdue. The free market does not mean that marketers are free to dupe people and lottery advertising with its emphasis on the largest of prizes with little if any mention of the preposterous odds is a form of deceit that should not be allowed -- especially by the state.
It is another form of fraudulent marketing to sell scratch-off tickets with no information about whether or not the prize being promoted— the big top prize—has already been won. There is no notification at the point of sale when the top prize has already been won and your chances of winning that prize have become exactly zero. It's a rip-off plain and simple to sell scratch-off tickets advertising a top prize of x amount when winning that prize has become impossible. I don't know if Hardister's bill addresses that too, but it should.
I haven't read the bill, but from Hardister's press release, it sounds like something long overdue. The free market does not mean that marketers are free to dupe people and lottery advertising with its emphasis on the largest of prizes with little if any mention of the preposterous odds is a form of deceit that should not be allowed -- especially by the state.
It is another form of fraudulent marketing to sell scratch-off tickets with no information about whether or not the prize being promoted— the big top prize—has already been won. There is no notification at the point of sale when the top prize has already been won and your chances of winning that prize have become exactly zero. It's a rip-off plain and simple to sell scratch-off tickets advertising a top prize of x amount when winning that prize has become impossible. I don't know if Hardister's bill addresses that too, but it should.
Riiiiiiiight
GREENSBORO, NC -- Roy Carroll, recipient of $2 million in City tax credits, a block of a city street onto which he will build apartments and a noise ordinance specially crafted to (successfully) close the rooftop bar below his penthouse condo, supports a proposed redistricting of Greensboro city council because he doesn't think city council has been business friendly enough.
Is Carroll a business whiz or less than sincere?
The following from the Triad Business Journal makes one wonder:
"[Carroll] sent an unsolicited $16 million bid for the News & Record to Warren Buffett, the Omaha billionaire who bought the daily two years ago."
and
"Carroll wrote in the letter to Buffett. 'If a local daily publication is out of touch with the needs of its constituents, I can only wonder about its financial performance.'"
Carroll added to his letter "This is not a publicity stunt."
If it's not a publicity stunt, we have to take it at face value: It's a $16 million offer for a newspaper, the value of which the prospective buyer admits he can "only wonder."
Is this revelation a reflection of Carroll's sincerity or of his business acumen?
Is Carroll a business whiz or less than sincere?
The following from the Triad Business Journal makes one wonder:
"[Carroll] sent an unsolicited $16 million bid for the News & Record to Warren Buffett, the Omaha billionaire who bought the daily two years ago."
and
"Carroll wrote in the letter to Buffett. 'If a local daily publication is out of touch with the needs of its constituents, I can only wonder about its financial performance.'"
Carroll added to his letter "This is not a publicity stunt."
If it's not a publicity stunt, we have to take it at face value: It's a $16 million offer for a newspaper, the value of which the prospective buyer admits he can "only wonder."
Is this revelation a reflection of Carroll's sincerity or of his business acumen?
Friday, February 13, 2015
Cumcumbers?
GREENSBORO, NC -- I've watched with anticipation the renovations to the restaurant space near the Fresh Market on Lawndale Dr., hoping it might be something local and unique. It's a Charbar 7, from Charlotte.
Not having heard of them, I took a look at their menu where I found them offering "vegatables," "oinions" and the very unappetizing sounding "cumcumbers. "
They also offer a "Two Elows out Burger" topped with "thinly chaved ribeye" on a "pretzle roll."
Other ingredients include "tomatoe," "american cheese" and "Tator Tots."
Still, that Seared Ahi Tuna Salad does sound pretty good. I might try it -- without the cumcumbers.
Not having heard of them, I took a look at their menu where I found them offering "vegatables," "oinions" and the very unappetizing sounding "cumcumbers. "
They also offer a "Two Elows out Burger" topped with "thinly chaved ribeye" on a "pretzle roll."
Other ingredients include "tomatoe," "american cheese" and "Tator Tots."
Still, that Seared Ahi Tuna Salad does sound pretty good. I might try it -- without the cumcumbers.
Sunday, February 01, 2015
Speaking of idiots
A Mark Underwood writes a letter to the News & Record in which he takes to calling the victims of the November 3rd, 1979 murders by Klan and Nazis in Greensboro "idiots."
Mark then goes on to write:
That's the convenience afforded by ignorance: One can put forth any opinion at all if one willfully leaves them unexposed to the facts.
Mark should read the Truth & Reconciliation Report. It's chock full of "true facts," gathered from a vast array of reputable sources. Were he to read it, Mark might come to understand who the real idiot is.
Mark then goes on to write:
"Passions still run high among the few interested, but the true facts are impossible to determine."Let's get this straight: Mark is convinced that the "true facts" are impossible to determine yet, despite this, he is confident enough to know that the people killed and wounded were/are idiots.
That's the convenience afforded by ignorance: One can put forth any opinion at all if one willfully leaves them unexposed to the facts.
Mark should read the Truth & Reconciliation Report. It's chock full of "true facts," gathered from a vast array of reputable sources. Were he to read it, Mark might come to understand who the real idiot is.
Ladd on fire
GREENSBORO, NC -- The News & Record's Susan Ladd is making the most of her new position as an advocacy journalist. In just a few short weeks, she is raising the bar for both her editorial and news reporting colleagues. I have not agreed with everything she has written, and some topics are more serious than others, but she is singlehandedly slaying stupidity and deception in a way I thought I'd never see at the News & Record again. It's refreshing, inspiring and, if she keeps it up, Greensboro will be better by her efforts.
Today, on developer Roy Carroll's furtive plan to reduce the number of Greensboro City Council representatives, Ladd writes:
[Read more]
Today, on developer Roy Carroll's furtive plan to reduce the number of Greensboro City Council representatives, Ladd writes:
What he wants on the council, Carroll wrote, is a “diversified majority of business executives and owners.”
Really? Why not a majority of environmentalists? A majority of preservationists? A majority of educators?
A majority of any one constituency would unbalance the council. The council needs members from diverse backgrounds and different segments of the community to represent the people it serves. A council dominated by business owners might well make decisions that disenfranchise all the other groups, including homeowners and neighborhoods.
“The simple answer is that a business professional would rather be part of a smaller decision-making group in which that person could effect change,” Carroll wrote.
Is effecting change anything like getting your way? It sure sounds like that.
Maybe, for example, it would be easier to get the city to close a street to benefit your development. Or to convince the city to enact a noise ordinance that placates your condo owners but hurts nightclub businesses.
Oh, wait. Carroll won both of those battles despite the objections of residents and other business owners.
How much more power does he need?
And just how is a plan to change the council’s size going to guarantee a body dominated by business people?
Oh, right. Donations.
It’s worth noting that Carroll contributed $5,300 to Wade’s campaign last year and $9,000 to the campaign of state Sen. Phil Berger (R-Rockingham), who has said Wade “may very well be on the right track” in proposing a smaller council in Greensboro.
But what’s good for Greensboro is apparently not good for Eden. Berger has made no attempt to reduce the size of the council in his hometown, a city of 15,000 residents represented by a mayor (elected at large) and seven council members.
The fact is that the Greensboro City Council, aside from an occasional spat, is a high-functioning body that broadly represents the residents of Greensboro.
This district-and-at-large system was created to ensure minority representation, and it has resulted in a more balanced and representative council, which currently has four women, four men, three people of color and a woman as mayor.
If anyone decides how and if that body is going to change, it should be the voters, not a lone senator who can trade favors in the legislature to ram through a partisan plan that helps only a select group of businessmen.
Especially when most of those businessmen hide behind cloaks of anonymity.
[Read more]
Monday, January 26, 2015
"I don’t have to look in the rearview mirror to see racism, and neither do you."
"I don’t have to look in the rearview mirror to see racism, and neither do you."
— Susan LaddGreat writers can say a lot in a few words. Such is the case with this outstanding piece by Susan Ladd in which she demonstrates the moral and intellectual superiority attainable when talking about racism in Greensboro when one rises above generalities, pettiness and tired old rhetoric. It's one of the best things I've read at the News & Record in a long time. Read it.
Wednesday, January 07, 2015
Horrible, horrible; just pathetically and absolutelty the worst
GREENSBORO, NC -- Yesterday, the News & Record reported of a robbery in which a gaming console was stolen at gun point:
It's bad enough the News & Record turned a press release from the police advising of a "robbery from person" into a fiction completely contrary to the facts, but today, when the police issued another press release about that crime, consistent with their first but adding new suspect information, the News & Record "reported" it again, this time writing that one of the suspects pulled a gun and took the gaming console:
It Matters
For all the thought and effort that various people and institutions put into advancing Greensboro, I am firmly convinced we will be forever held back from making the kind of progress we could as long as we are burdened by the dung heap that is the News & Record.
How can we as a community ever properly address our shortcomings and understand our strengths if our primary "news" outlet is a sloppy and indifferent pustule of perpetual misinformation and ignorance undemanding of itself and deceiving us about who we are and what's going on?
Day after day, the News & Record offers up mistake after mistake and each reveals a troubling fact: Our daily newspaper is not careful, not a checker of facts, rarely a source of insight or enterprising inquisitiveness* and not even any good at the simple task of regurgitating press releases.
Greensboro deserves better.
* This makes the situation even worse—that there are one or two reporters there who manage, against what must be monumental institutional momentum to the contrary, to occasionally deliver some quality reporting. I feel as bad for them about the burden of the News & Record's institutional incompetence as I do for my city.
"Armed men tried and failed to rob two people... The suspects ran from the scene without taking any property." (Emphasis added.)That story is still online.
It's bad enough the News & Record turned a press release from the police advising of a "robbery from person" into a fiction completely contrary to the facts, but today, when the police issued another press release about that crime, consistent with their first but adding new suspect information, the News & Record "reported" it again, this time writing that one of the suspects pulled a gun and took the gaming console:
"[O]ne of the two men pulled a handgun, took the system and the two alleged suspects ran off." (Emphasis added.)So now, at the illustrious News & Record, one can simultaneously find two accounts of the same crime, one where suspects fled without taking any property and one where property was taken. Both contradict each other, only one is accurate, the other remains uncorrected and yet both are online together.
It Matters
For all the thought and effort that various people and institutions put into advancing Greensboro, I am firmly convinced we will be forever held back from making the kind of progress we could as long as we are burdened by the dung heap that is the News & Record.
How can we as a community ever properly address our shortcomings and understand our strengths if our primary "news" outlet is a sloppy and indifferent pustule of perpetual misinformation and ignorance undemanding of itself and deceiving us about who we are and what's going on?
Day after day, the News & Record offers up mistake after mistake and each reveals a troubling fact: Our daily newspaper is not careful, not a checker of facts, rarely a source of insight or enterprising inquisitiveness* and not even any good at the simple task of regurgitating press releases.
Greensboro deserves better.
* This makes the situation even worse—that there are one or two reporters there who manage, against what must be monumental institutional momentum to the contrary, to occasionally deliver some quality reporting. I feel as bad for them about the burden of the News & Record's institutional incompetence as I do for my city.
Tuesday, January 06, 2015
Making it up: Another day, another News & Record fail
GREENSBORO, NC -- It's pretty bad when your local newspaper cannot even accurately regurgitate information from a press release.
The News & Record "reports":
All of this was clear in the police press release. It only became confused when the News & Record put their hands on it. From the police press release (emphasis added):
The News & Record "reports":
"Armed men tried and failed to rob two people who arranged on Craigslist to sell a gaming system, according to a police news release."and:
"The suspects ran from the scene without taking any property, police said."The police did not say that. The robbers did not fail. Exactly the opposite. The suspects did not flee the scene without taking any property. They took property. That's what made it a robbery and thus the headline on the police press release: "Robbery from person."
All of this was clear in the police press release. It only became confused when the News & Record put their hands on it. From the police press release (emphasis added):
"Officers discovered two victims in the parking lot who stated that they had been robbed at gunpoint during the sale of a PlayStation 4 that had been arranged on Craigslist. No one was injured and no other items were taken."I wonder what the News & Record sees as their mission and if they think they are doing a good job at whatever that is.
Monday, January 05, 2015
News & Record's huge error on drunk driving stats
GREENSBORO, NC -- There is a certain type of reporting error that astounds me, I call it an affront to common knowledge, where an assertion goes unchecked even though, on its face, it seems to violate common sense. It is the kind of thing a reporter or editor with general curiosity and some basic knowledge of the world would be compelled to stop and double check.
Today at the News & Record:
"In the United States, a drunken driver causes someone to die every 52 seconds."Reporter Danielle Battaglia doesn't cite a source for that tidbit but, on its face, it sounds hard to believe.
Just some quick math challenges the possibility this is true: If there is a drunk driving fatality every 52 seconds, then that's 69 drunk driving deaths every hour; 1,661 a day; 11,630 per week; and 606,000 per year.
And here is where a lack of general knowledge comes in: That is a huge number of deaths per year for any single cause. It should jump out to a professional reporter and her professional editors as extremely unlikely.
A quick search of "leading causes of death" would show that such a number would make drunk driving fatalities the leading cause of death in the United States, ahead of the roughly 598,000 per year from heart disease, the 577,000 from cancer and the third place 143,000 from lung disease. (source: Centers for Disease Control)
The fact is, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, "In 2011, 9,878 people were killed in alcohol-impaired-driving crashes." That's far from insignificant, but it is nowhere near the hysterical one every 52 seconds the News & Record reported. It is about one every hour to give you a sense of just how far off the N&R is.
And a big thumbs down to WGHP MyFox8 who copied and pasted this error to their website from the News & Record without correction.
Friday, January 02, 2015
Bye Dell
I'm looking around for a new desktop computer. I have some specific needs. Dell used to have a great website that allowed one to custom configure a computer, to add and remove features and options. It was great because one could see what an ideal machine would cost, then make adjustments that would change the price if one needed to bring it in line with a budget
It allowed people to dsicover, "Hey! I can afford a slightly larger hard drive" as much as "Hmm, I think I can get by with a little less RAM."
That's gone.
Now nearly all Dell machines are take-it-or-leave-it configurations. That means one cannot get a 2 terabyte hard drive in anything but the most expensive of their computers. HP and Lenovo, on the other hand, offer large hard drives in their mid-range computers - as an option — for the customer to decide along with a full range of options for RAM, processors, video cards, etc. As it should be.
Sorry Dell. Maybe next time.
It allowed people to dsicover, "Hey! I can afford a slightly larger hard drive" as much as "Hmm, I think I can get by with a little less RAM."
That's gone.
Now nearly all Dell machines are take-it-or-leave-it configurations. That means one cannot get a 2 terabyte hard drive in anything but the most expensive of their computers. HP and Lenovo, on the other hand, offer large hard drives in their mid-range computers - as an option — for the customer to decide along with a full range of options for RAM, processors, video cards, etc. As it should be.
Sorry Dell. Maybe next time.
Monday, December 29, 2014
For Pete's sake
GREENSBORO, NC -- The News & Record mocks congressional candidate Laura Fjeld today "for thinking she could carry the primary victory into the general
election in a district that has been a Republican stronghold for
decades."
A Republican stronghold for decades?
Sigh...
No.
If the staff at the News & Record are going to belittle someone, they might want to make sure they aren't making fools of themselves in the process.
The district in which Fjeld ran was newly drawn in 2012.
Prior to that, it included much of the Democratic leaning 13th district, held by Democrat Brad Miller for a decade.
Fjeld was not running in a district that has been a "Republican stronghold for decades." It is a newly drawn district in existence for only two years and which actually has more registered Democrats than Republicans.
Fjeld was not crazy for thinking she had a shot. On the other hand, what does it tell us about those on the political beat at the News & Record that they are so ignorant of their home turf?
A Republican stronghold for decades?
Sigh...
No.
If the staff at the News & Record are going to belittle someone, they might want to make sure they aren't making fools of themselves in the process.
The district in which Fjeld ran was newly drawn in 2012.
 |
| As of 2012 |
Prior to that, it included much of the Democratic leaning 13th district, held by Democrat Brad Miller for a decade.
 |
| Through 2011 |
Fjeld was not running in a district that has been a "Republican stronghold for decades." It is a newly drawn district in existence for only two years and which actually has more registered Democrats than Republicans.
Fjeld was not crazy for thinking she had a shot. On the other hand, what does it tell us about those on the political beat at the News & Record that they are so ignorant of their home turf?
Tuesday, December 23, 2014
News & Record contradicts itself
GREENSBORO, NC -- This is why reporters should not make assertions without attribution.
From Danielle Battaglia in the News & Record today: "Williams walked off the property only to return to the hospital's entrance"
Yesterday, Sarah Newell Williamson wrote in the N&R: "He [Williams] got within 150 yards of the entrance, on hospital property."
Which is it? If two sources are contradicting each other, that's one thing; but without attribution, the News & Record is contradicting itself. These are the reporters' assertions, the reporters are claiming responsibility for their veracity and one of them must be wrong.
From Danielle Battaglia in the News & Record today: "Williams walked off the property only to return to the hospital's entrance"
Yesterday, Sarah Newell Williamson wrote in the N&R: "He [Williams] got within 150 yards of the entrance, on hospital property."
Which is it? If two sources are contradicting each other, that's one thing; but without attribution, the News & Record is contradicting itself. These are the reporters' assertions, the reporters are claiming responsibility for their veracity and one of them must be wrong.
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