Why would a politician lie? (Local reporter gets played)

[Final Update: Joe and I had some good back and forth about this during the day. He takes exception with my characterization that he got "played" and says he wasn't fooled. What I saw that way, Joe says was his attempt to provide some context for Randall's comment, albeit with, as Joe says, "a poor wording choice." Joe explains he was trying to describe where Randall may have got his ideas, not where he got the quote which he now agrees "there's no evidence for" and which will be clarified in tomorrow's paper. I can buy that. Good egg, that Joe: Unafraid and professional.]

[Update: Joe Killian has now cited sources for the "human weeds" comment on his blog:  "The Pivot of Civilization" and "My Plan for Peace." Neither contains the phrase in question. I have asked Joe and his editor, John Robinson, on what page we can find the quotation. Joe has not answered yet. Robinson's reply in its entirety: "Got me."]

[Update II: Joe edited his blog post to say that "The specific 'human weed' language cited by Randall isn't to be found there..." It isn't to be found anywhere. Randall burped up a fable--an urban legend--a tired fantasy of right wing kooks to which Randall added a racial spin.]

Greensboro, NC -- In a candidates' forum Wednesday night, congressional candidate Bill Randall (R) asked what the parents of his incumbent challenger, Brad Miller (D), would think of Miller being endorsed by an organization that called "black people 'human weeds.'"

News & Record reporter Joe Killian gave his reporter's stamp of approval to the accuracy of the statement by writing:

Randall was referring to Planned Parenthood and comments by Margaret Sanger, the founder of the organization that preceded it in the 1920s.

One problem: Sanger never called black people "human weeds." I've asked Joe what was his source for reporting that she had (no reply yet), but it appears as if he just took Randall at his word.

There are plenty of conservative blogs and right wing websites that claim Sanger referred to black people as "human weeds." Most are unsourced. The few that are attribute the quote to Sanger's book "The Pivot of Civilization." But, thanks to Google Books, that tombe is online in searchable form, and "human weeds" just isn't in it. What Randall said was not true. Killian was wrong not to check it out. A correction is in order.

[Yes! Weekly's Jordan Green also reported Randall's claim, but he limited it to reporting Randall's words. Green did not assert, as Killian did, that Randall's claim was founded in fact. Still, there's room for clarification from Yes! too -- that what Randall said is make believe.]

Up is down, down is up; WGHP Fox8 reports the opposite of reality as fact

It seems as if not a day goes by any longer without some reporting error at WGHP Fox8. This time, they just make something up. It is time for the people who care about or have staked their reputations to this station to pay attention.

Today, WGHP reports in "Lower Interest Rates Increase Home Sales":

The increase in home buying is just not happening here in the Piedmont as reports show that across the country new home sales have picked up about 5 points over the last few weeks.

Increase in home buying in the Piedmont? Not according to something like, well, you know, data.

According to Trulia, sales in Greensboro have been in decline since July.

Same thing from the Dixon Hughes Triad Business Index.

"Making it up" is not a professional approach to reporting.

WGHP Fox8 contradicting itself

WGHP's lack of concern for factual accuracy has reached laughable proportions as they currently have two stories online that directly contradict each other. In addition to reporting on the "Guilford County libraries," of which there are no such things (there is a Greensboro library system), a story this evening reports:

"City council voted 8-to-1 last night to add pornography software to computers used by children, but not those used by adults."

"Add pornography software"? Well, you know what they mean. But that part about "not those used by adults"? That is in direct contradiction to their other story from earlier today that remains uncorrected:

"People over the age of 18 will have a choice to use the filters or not."

The claim in the newer story that each of the eighteen reported incidents involved adults is incorrect too.

[View all posts about WGHP's erroneous reporting on this blog]

WGHP Fox8 gets it wrong again

(Greensboro, NC) WGHP continues its recent and disappointing slide towards error-prone reporting.

This time, in "Council Approves Use of Computer Filters at Public Library:"

"People over the age of 18 will have a choice to use the filters or not."

Wrong.

The motion approved by council (video, at the 01:31:35 mark) makes no such provision and indeed, library director Sandy Neerman confirms to this blogger that the approved policy does not give adult users that choice.

Greensboro city council gets it right on library computer filters

Greensboro City Council voted last night to install "porn" filters on computers used by minors at the library. Adult log-ins will not get filtered. This is the correct decision.

There has been no disagreement that children deserve special treatment. The difference of opinion has been over whether to treat adults like children too. The over-protective software solution is right for children. It was wrong for adults.

The idea that software could serve as an appropriate enforcer of "community standards," as councilman Danny Thompson wished for, was misguided. Local online discussions illustrated the futility of identifying a community standard to begin with, as people argued for and against blocking sites about hacking, hate, extreme violence and other objectionable things not about sex. There were some attempts to embarrass people into supporting filters by impugning their morality. Local blogger Joe Guarino even went so far as to suggest that library staff should be arrested if library patrons were found to be viewing illegal materials. That was disgusting and dangerous. We should be thankful that we did not give such sanctimonious self-righteous moralizing any credence by wading into the quagmire of defining "community standards."

The complaint of council woman Trudy Wade, echoed by Guarino, that without filters, people will continue to view pornography is either an intentional canard or, despite the monumental amount of discussion, continued ignorance about the capabilities of filters. Filters can be defeated. Even with them in place, determined users can still view pornography and that imperfection would not only have left Guarino and Wade dissatisfied (and, presumably, looking for additional remedies for a 100% guarantee), it would have come with a heavy cost to legitimate users. As noted here, filters block access to things like Cragislist ads and pictures of bunny rabbits (really--from actual Greensboro library log files). We are better off without a "solution" that would have still allowed porn but which would have had the new requirement that a patron petition library staff should she want to view personal ads. The policies and procedures currently in place to police adult users against viewing obscene material will continue, just without the downside burdens or false sense of security of imperfect filters.

It would have been easy for council to bend to fear mongering and demagoguery on this one--to get scared or try to make hay. I am very proud that they took a deliberative approach to a mature solution. Kudos too to library director Sandy Neerman and library staff who navigated what could have been a minefield with aplomb.

[See all posts on this blog about this issue.]

And now, a bustle in your hedgerow

Rodrigo Y Gabriela

I'm going to let you in on a little secret

I am tempted to keep this to myself, but what good is a life on earth if you don't contribute to the joy of other people? This past summer, when Kathy and I were tooling around the southern North Carolina mountains, we drove past a little gravel driveway on Wayah Road west of Franklin with a modest sign for Wayah Creek Cottages, 800-559-8280. (Wayah is pronounced why-ah). On a lark, we turned around to check them out. When we got back to Greensboro (247 miles, 4.5 hours), Kathy made a three night reservation, guessing when the fall color would be pretty there and just about nailing the peak as this past weekend.

Let me tell you folks, what you get for what you pay at the Wayah Creek Cottages is an amazing value. Our $100/night wood paneled, one-bedroom cottage featured a king bed with linens. The modest but updated bathroom included towels and washcloths. The kitchen was fully equipped with refrigerator, stove, microwave, coffeemaker, cookware, utensils, dishes, mugs and glasses. The living area was comfortably furnished, carpeted with Berber and included a small TV with satellite and a stone fireplace. During the cool-weather months, firewood is included: well seasoned, cut and stacked on the covered porch, organized from kindling to split logs of three increasing sizes. Each of the six cabins has its own creekside parcel with seating, picnic table and grill. Everything, accommodations and grounds, was immaculate.

Husband and wife Jackie and Larry have owned the place for seventeen years and they have every conceivable detail figured out. A handmade guidebook on the coffee table is an accumulation of brochures, menus, clippings and handwritten directions to the area's points of interest Policies and procedures have been refined to assure smooth operation with minimal intrusion on guests. Check out by washing the dishes, unplugging the appliances, shoveling the ash out of the fireplace, taking out the trash and leaving the key on the table.

My only complaint was, when a wind gust brought a tree down on a power line somewhere down the road, the repair stretched into dusk, then dark for about an hour and the battery-powdered "lantern" we were promised turned out to be a closet light not suitable for illuminating a room or even reading. Bring some sufficient battery powered light with you to be on the safe side. A flashlight is a necessity if you are going to use the grill after dark as porch lights are appropriately very dim.

Truly though, the only items you must bring are your clothes, food, toiletries, charcoal, flashlight and books.

Although there is a golf course not too far away, this is the kind of place you stay to relax, read, eat and enjoy God's great creation. There is no Internet access; no cell phone service; the only phone is in the office. The closest convenience store is four miles away. It is a twenty minute drive to Franklin for quaint downtown shops, restaurants and grocery stores.

Franklin weather forecasts suffice for the cottages. Consult the cottage guidebook for area hikes, including the nearby Appalachian Trail. Here are some nearby driving destinations

West on Wayah Road

Going west from the cottages, Wayah Road begins a five mile, 2200 ft. assent.

Rufus Morgan Falls. 2.7 miles from the cottages, turn left onto road 388 to get to the 1 mile trail to Rufus Morgan Falls.

Wayah Bald. 5.2 miles from the cottages, immediately after crossing the Appalachian Trail, turn right on the gravel National Forest Service road to the north for another 4 miles to Wayah Bald. Even with the lookout tower closed for repairs, the vista from this 5,500 ft. peak was spectacular--undeveloped, massive expanses of primordial mountains. (The short trail to the tower is paved and wheelchair accessible. The very fit and ambitious hiker may park at the beginning of the Forest Service Road and hike the Appalachian Trail to the top).

Lake Nantahala. Continuing westward on Wayah Road takes you to Lake Nantahala where Nantahala Marina is on the left, 14 miles from the cottages. Boats are available for rent here (828-321-3001) and there is a popular burger joint upstairs but, for public access to the lake, continue to Junaluska Road (left) then left on Big Choga Road (24.3 miles from the cottages).

Rafting. 24.2 miles from the cottages, Wayah Road meets Nantahala Gorge Road. Turning right, this road skirts the Nantahala river with many riverside picnic tables. There are a number of rafting outfitters too who rent equipment, drop you off and pick you up. We had a great trip last summer courtesy of outfitter Appalachian Rivers and I recommend them.

Hayesville. If you really enjoy driving through the woods, are patient and have a reliable car suitable for some sustained and occasionally steep gravel road, take Tuni Gap road down from Lake Nantahala to Hayesville (41 miles from the cottages -- about 7 of them on gravel). From Hayesville, you can take four lane Hwy 64 back to the cottages.

West on Hwy 64

From the cottages, highway 64 leads to Hayesville, home of the Peacock Playhouse and the Licklog Players, and on to Murphy, home to the John C. Campbell Folk School. Closer to the cottages, at 14 miles, is the Standing Indian Mountain area, with numerous hiking trails of varying difficulty, many along creeks and to waterfalls.

WGHP Fox8, Rush Radio 94.5 punked by local thirteen year-old

It turns out the slickly edited video that made it appear as if a Guilford County Commissioner was insulting a speaker from the floor by taking two unrelated comments and splicing them together--the video that fooled WGHP Fox8 and Rush Radio 94.5 into believing the contrivance--was produced by the thirteen year-old son of the founders of Conservatives for Guilford County.

Here's the kid's handiwork.

WGHP Fox8 manufactures another story

City employee removing campaign signs from right of way on Market St. in Greensboro.

Did something change recently at WGHP Fox8? New management? Rookie hires? Special brownies?

For the third time in a week, WGHP has a politically oriented story in which they fabricate the central premise. This time the headline is:

Theft of Political Signs Increase in Greensboro

The proof of this theft? Nothing. So they just make something up.

The story tells of campaign volunteers "pulling out all the stops..."

"In some cases, that includes pulling up the opponent's campaign signs."

What cases? They don't say. Whose volunteers? They don't say. WGHP makes it up--fabricates it and puts it out there with no substantiation. They get some people to say that signs have gone missing and jump to the unsubstantiated conclusion that "volunteers" are "in some cases" "pulling up the opponent's" signs. No particular volunteer; no particular cases, just a little waltz through the land of make-believe.

Not until the very end of the story does Fox8 hint at another explanation for the disappearance of campaign signs, although they don't bother to flesh it out: If a sign is not on private property with the owners' permission, "it will be removed," by Greensboro officials they report; and contrary to WGHP's erroneous implication, it is not against the law to "steal" a sign that is on public property. Anyone may remove an illegally placed sign. That's not stealing. It's beautification -- and it's legal.

I have no doubt that people steal legally placed campaign signs, but this steaming pile from WGHP is not a report of sign stealing. It is a work of fiction that, like their other concoctions this week, substitutes fantasy for reality..

The fact is, there was an explosion of illegally placed signs over the past weekend. It did not take this blogger long, in photographing them, to run across a Greensboro City employee removing signs from street right of ways (pic above). Unlike WGHP's schlock, this is documented. This you can see for yourself. If WGHP were more interested in reporting news than faking it, they might have looked into the possibility that the "stolen" signs were illegally placed and rightfully removed

Illegal campaign yard signs

In Greensboro, it is against the law to put campaign yard signs on public property, including right or ways and medians. From the Greensboro code of ordinances, permitted signs:

Temporary political signs located on private property with the property owner's permission;

Here are some illegally placed yard signs in my neck of the woods. Congressional candidate Bill Randall's supporters seem to be particularly frequent offenders. The last picture is of a city employee removing some improperly placed signs.

Yon and Hyde to win by ignoring independents?

(Greensboro, NC) I am an unaffiliated voter -- have been for eight years. Our yard has recently accommodated campaign signs for Republicans B.J. Barnes, Howard Coble, Bill Knight and Zack Matheny. I did not support John McCain, but called the Republican party headquarters for a McCain sign to replace one an elderly neighbor had disappear from his yard. I am no partisan. I have voted in Republican and Democratic primaries and for Republicans, Democrats and Libertarians in general elections. I vote for the person who I think will do the best job.

Often my evaluation includes an assessment of a candidate's candor and responsiveness. On that score, Jeff Hyde and Theresa Yon get big fat "Fs" They are, respectively, the Republican candidates for state senate and state house in my districts.

I emailed Jeff Hyde to ask him some questions about the mystery surrounding the secret winner of his campaign raffle. He sent back an email asking who I was and completely ignoring my question.

Theresa Yon has made criticisms of incumbent Maggie Jeffus' support for economic incentives central to her campaign. I have twice asked Yon if she would have rejected the incentives that lured the FedEx cargo hub to Greensboro (see comments in links). She has twice not answered.

Both of these candidates' responses are in stark contrast to Sheriff B.J. Barnes' timely and respectful responses to a recent policy question I had. Maybe Hyde and Yon think they can win without the support of voters like me and maybe they will. I have little confidence that, as secretive and unresponsive, they would be good representatives.

UPDATE: Yon has now replied.

You are continually asking me if I would have voted for decisions and planning which took place at a time when I was not even living here (graduate school, Classical Studies, at Florida State University). I cannot tell you how I would have voted unless I read the reports, studies, etc. from that time period. I am perfectly willing to do that.

According to her biography, Yon has been at High Point University since 1999. The FedEx hub was announced in 1998. Decisions relating to incentives for the project continued through 2002, at least.

I take from her response that Yon's objections to incentives are not absolute, that there may be situations where she would support incentives. I appreciate her answer.

Email to WGHP Fox8

I sent the following to the news desk at WGHP Fox8 and to station manager Karen Adams yesterday. I am still waiting for a reply.
----------------------
Hello,

In two separate stories, you have asserted as fact that Guilford County Commissioner Carolyn Coleman directed a derogatory comment to one Isabella Adkins about Adkin's country of origin. Will you please tell me what evidence or record substantiates your assertions that the comment was directed to Adkins and was about her origin?

Specifically, here are the segments I am questioning:

"During Thursday's Guilford County Commissioners meeting, Commissioner Carolyn Coleman didn't apologize for a controversial comment she made concerning a woman's country of origin at a previous meeting."

"'I know where you're from, but I am from America,' said [sic] Coleman told Isabella Atkins during the commissioner's last meeting on Sept. 16."

AND

"Guilford County Commissioner Carolyn Coleman says a controversial comment she made to a woman at a recent commissioners meeting was directed at the audience and not the woman."

"'I know where you're from, but I am from America,' said Coleman during the meeting to Isabella Adkins, a member of the Conservatives for Guilford County.."

From:
http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-coleman-101006,0,2009632.story
and
http://www.myfox8.com/news/wghp-story-coleman-101007,0,2075169.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+wghp-localnews+%28WGHP+-+News%29

Thank you in advance.

Sincerely,
Roch Smith, Jr.

WGHP Fox8 News manufacturing deception, making up quotes

There is a smarmy tactic afoot in Guilford County. It involves taking two incongruous and non-sequential statements and splicing them together to make one appear to be in response to the other. Conservatives for Guilford County recently deployed the tactic to make it seem as if a Guilford County commissioner was responding to a speaker from the floor (when, in fact, the commissioner's comment was made 90 minutes later on a different subject).

Now, quite unfortunately, WGHP Fox8 has embraced the tactic and employed it themselves in the same affair. In addition to reporting multiple times--never with substantiation and contrary to video record--that County Commissioner Carolyn Coleman directed a comment to a speaker from the floor because of the speaker's county of origin, WGHP takes it one step further and published this yesterday:

Isabella Adkins, who is from Romania and a member of the Conservatives for Guilford County, claims the comment was directed at her. Adkins is demanding an apology.

"Check yourself. Don't ever ask me for an apology," said Coleman. "If I think I owe one, I'll give it. You have gotten off course," said Coleman Thursday evening.

It sounds like Coleman really has it out for Adkins, doesn't it? Except that, despite the way WGHP put one thing right after another, they were not sequential and Coleman was not addressing Adkins. This is the same deception Conservatives for Guilford County employed: take a comment by Adkins and append to it a comment that the commissioner made later and to someone else to make it seem as if the commissioner's comment is in response to Adkins.

The commissioner's comments WGHP quotes immediately after "Adkins is demanding an apology," were actually made nearly two hours after Adkins asked for an apology, they were not addressed to Adkins and were, in fact, addressed to fellow commissioner Billy Yow. WGHP doesn't bother to tell you that, but it's all on video. [Not yet posted at the County website. Link when available.]

That's not all. Even in what appears to be a straightforward quotation of Coleman, WGHP deploys more deception. Coleman did not say, "If I think I owe one, I'll give it. You have gotten off course," as WGHP reports. Coleman said (to Yow) "If I think I owe one, I'll give it." Then she stopped. WGHP added the rest. Remember, it's on video [Not yet posted at the County website. Link when available.]

Heads rolled at WFMY when a reporter fabricated video footage. This is no different. It is the same type of intentionally manufactured deception intended to hype an unsubstantiated suspicion at the expense of the facts. No matter how clever or smoothly perpetrated, it is unethical and not welcomed in our community. The person or people responsible should be shown the door.

---------
Bonus: If the negative implications of this for Guilford County are not clear, some comments from the WGHP website in response to the stories will help (errors preserved):

• No wonder blacks are hated soo much.
• what an uppity b. 
  
• Coleman is black and they don't have to apologize for anything.
• This is he night that we all should be ashame to live in Greensboro with this insane women loose.
• It's all about RACE, yes, I said it!
• Coleman will be excused from her comment because of her race.
• This shows beyond any doubt that blacks are not real humans and never will be.
• It must be general knowledge now that jungle animals are related to those people.
• I'm sure that she is one MAD black women today and I would advise ALL white people attending the commissioners meeting tonight to sit at the back of the meeting room in order to avoid the HOT mouths air that this beast will project into the room tonight.

The Old Rebel

(Greensboro, NC)  Jeri Rowe:

Timm Perry admits it’s hard.He’ll auction off some of his dad Sunday afternoon. [snip]

Timm’s dad was George Perry. Ask any longtime local over 40 and they knew him by another name: The Old Rebel.

The Old Rebel was vintage TV, the Triad’s own Santa Claus. He was the guy in the fake moustache, round glasses and top hat who helped an entire generation learn how to laugh on “The Old Rebel Show.’’

For more than 20 years beginning in the early 1950s, The Old Rebel helped children onto a set at WFMY (Channel 2) and entertained them with cartoons and vaudeville skits.

I remember well my several visits to the Old Rebel Show in the early 70's (that's the 1970's). The Old Rebel would find a few seconds between skits and birthday announcements to put me on camera to announce my Muscular Dystrophy carnivals, which made them wildly popular with the other kids in Rolling Roads. George Perry and his supporting cast were a local treasure the likes of which we haven't seen since. It's too bad his son is having a hard time. You can wear your nostalgia and assist Timm Perry at the same time with Old Rebel t-shirts.

 

Guess who?

A long time ago, I was in a car commercial. So was Billy Ingram, who electronified it for posterity.

WGHP MyFox8 making unsubstantiated assertions contrary to facts on record

WGHP MyFox 8 reports:

A member of a local conservative group wants an apology from a Guilford County Commissioner over a statement the commissioner made about the member's country of origin at city county commissioner meeting two weeks ago.

Nowhere does the unnamed WGHP reporter offer any substantiation that a comment was made "about the member's country of origin." She or he just drops it in there as if it's undisputed. Lazy; and wrong. In fact, that is an issue in dispute, the County Commissioner in question being on the record as saying the opposite. From the News & Record's Joe Killian:

I spoke with Coleman, who claims that she was responding to the hecklers in the closer rows who began shouting her down about capitalism and America, not Mrs. Adkins, who was near the back of the room and had spoken much earlier in the meeting.

So come on, WGHP, if you have some new information to substantiate the claim, bring it. Otherwise don't present things as facts that are not.

An open letter to the Quarter Cent Makes Sense committee

I clicked on the button to send an email on the contact page at the Quarter Cent Makes Sense website -- the site advocating an increase in Guilford County's sales tax. The email was returned to me as undeliverable: "host unknown."

Here is the question I tried to send. It can be answered in the comments here.
---------------
Dear mysterious unnamed person,

Your website claims that "Up to 40 percent of the revenue raised from the sales tax... is paid by visitors who do not live in Guilford County."

Can you tell me your source for that claim?

Cordially,
Roch Smith, Jr.

Ice rink scam?

Does he have this right? Sam at Piedmont Publius: A guy from High Point (identified as the operator of Renovo Designs, a company that is nowhere to be found on the internet -- Roch) proposes to construct an ice skating rink in Greensboro with funds donated by non-profit organizations, on city property, with city-funded infrastructure and utilities, that he will then sell to The City of Greensboro.

RLF Communication's Google fiber efforts went 65% over budget

Remember the City of Greensboro hiring RLF Communications for $10,000 to promote Greensboro to Google for Google's ultra high speed fiber optic internet access? The final invoice turned out to be $16,454.17 (of which the ubiquitously charitable Replacements, Ltd. paid $1,500.)

Docs here:
RLF Communications invoice to City of Greensboro for Google Fiber

Class

Congressman Howard Coble stopped by Claxton Elementary's 50th anniversary celebration, where he got to meet Kathy and her fifth grade class.

Tobacco Road

Everywhere, around the world

The fall color guy

Fall is one of my four favorite seasons. Dr. Howard S. Neufeld, a professor of plant ecophysiology in the Department of Biology at Appalachian State University is the, well, the fall color guy. Through his blog and website, he and his informal team of leaf watchers prognosticate and document fall color in the mountains. Among the interesting information is his prediction map (click to enlarge):

Why "hits" are not websites and why "porn" is not porn

(Greensboro, NC) From the Public Library's logs, the following were identified by the content throttling software as porn hits.

...and scripting files like this, a JavaScript file the user does not see but that is delivered to the user's computer to control some function of the web page behind the scenes:

Takeaway:

1. Filters identify and log things as porn that are not porn.
   
2. Filters count and log as "hits" not just web pages but all of the components that combine to construct a web page, like those above. "Hits" do not equal web pages or web sites any more than any of the items above are websites or web pages.

Sheriff Barnes and challenger Wadsworth on association's call for access to prescription database

(Greensboro, NC) The N.C. Sheriffs Association wants state lawmakers to allow sheriffs to have access to the state's Controlled Substance Reporting System database. The system tracks prescriptions for painkillers and other controlled substances.

I emailed Guilford County Sheriff B.J. Barnes (R) and his election challenger Phil Wadsworth (D) to get their opinions on the proposal. I would like to thank both men for their quick and serious replies.

The question I originally asked was:

Do you agree with the position of the N.C. Sheriffs Association that law enforcement have access to the state's computerized list of people with prescriptions for pain killers and other controlled substances?

Wadsworth's answer:

No, I don't agree with this.

Barnes' took exception with the premise of my question:

No, nor does the Sheriff's Association agree with what the paper wrote.* Our interest is to get the access the DEA and SBI have when we are working on a case where we have probable cause to believe a crime is being committed.  I would never support just a blanket access, we have NO business with that nor does anyone else.

Fair enough, but I was left wondering:

Would you have any objection to requiring a search warrant first -- so that a judge can determine if there is probable cause?

Barnes replied:

The issue is doctor shopping and forged prescriptions and people abusing the system. Without a complaint or information from a identifiable source we would not have reason to look into anyone's history.  You need these things as a basis for our investigation before looking into anyone's private information.  We use probable cause as a basis for every arrest and search warrant we do. That's the process we use now.  The state has eleven officers who have access to these records now to help stop the aforementioned violations, what the sheriff's are looking for is some not all officers to assist with those investigations, especially in the smaller counties where resources are sparse.

I still wasn't sure I understood where Barnes stood and I did not want to jump to any conclusions or read between the lines, so I had two more questions for Barnes:

Do you support the proposed change? Is there any criteria for how the selected personnel would be selected?

His reply:

No, only criteria on how and when it would be accessed.  I can't tell you if I support it or not, I would need to see the legislation that would make it a possibility. I support the concept but I want see how they intend on it working.  I'm not for anything that would impede law enforcement, but I will not support anything that stomps on individual rights.

[Note: Extraneous information edited from answers. The portions of answers included here are contiguous -- no internal edits.]
[* Barnes made this comment before the N&R published the story referred to above.]

More on the interim city attorney's disqualifications: Important Rhino reminders

A few days ago, I posted a video reminder of the current interim city attorney Becky Jo Peterson-Buie's hostility towards transparency and public records law. The Rhinoceros Times' editor John Hammer has an article that offers a more thorough look at Peterson-Buie's history and it reminds us of the many reasons why she should not get the city attorney position permanently. From Hammer's piece:

In February 2008, Margaret Banks, who was the city reporter for the News & Record, requested a memo dealing with some of the investigations in the Police Department that led to then City Manager Mitch Johnson locking then Police Chief David Wray out of his office. Peterson-Buie in an email responded that no memo of that description could be found, therefore the city could not release it.  [snip]

In this case the News & Record would have been forced to accept the proclamation that the memo didn't exist except for the fact that The Rhino Times had a copy of the memo. In fact, The Rhino Times had two memos that met the description of the News & Record's public records request. It is devilishly hard to describe a document you don't have, but Banks had done a good job and we instantly recognized the documents she was after. To help out our friends at the News & Record, we published one memo on the front page one week and another memo on the front page the next week. The city was forced to admit that it also had copies of the memos.

Hammer is also critical of Peterson-Buie's lack of understanding of parlimentary procedure, a good example seen here:



For what it's worth, I've seen Peterson-Buie in the courtroom. She's good there--fast on her feet, focused and forceful. She is certainly not without her competencies, she just should not, in my opinion, be in a position where her opinions would shape the city's policies or affect its interactions with the media and public.

Council representative Danny Thompson: prevaricator extraordinaire

(Greensboro, NC) Yesterday, I posted a file from the public library that I explained logged 500 hits from websites that the bandwidth shaping software identified as porn. Last night, Danny Thompson misrepresented my findings to the public during the city council meeting.

In the post, I asked readers to look at the file and see two things for themselves:

1. Many items flagged as porn are not porn at all.
2. Each counted item does not represent a web page. These logs also count images, styling files, script files and other elements that combine to compose a single web page. Each item is a hit. Hits are what are counted, not websites. There were 500 hits.

I did not think I could make it any more clear or convincing. As I wrote:

"It should be comprehensible to the rational mind that these are not 500 'visits' or even 'pages.'...It shows why it is disingenuous to report these items as counting 'porn site visits.'"

So what does Internet filter advocate and at-large City Council representative Danny Thompson do? At last night's council meeting, he refers to this blogger and announces that the information I requested* and evaluated reports the very thing I explained it did not report, his remarks conforming to what I said is disingenuous.

Thompson: "From twelve thirty to eight thirty P.M. I understand there was about 500 inappropriate or pornographic websites on August the twenty-third that Cymphonix had counted."

No. Wrong. There were not 500 websites. That is what I explained there were not. There were 500 hits (and many of those were not even to porn sites). As the library has explained, as I have explained and as Sue Polinsky has explained, hits do not equate to websites and interchanging them reveals the kind of ignorance that disqualifies one from claiming knowledge of the issue or it is the kind of prevarication that disqualifies one from elected office.

Thompson waves a stack of library incident reports.

Previously, Thompson waved a stack of nearly 200 incident reports from the library at a council meeting and implied that a majority of them were for viewing porn or inappropriate web sites when, in fact, only twenty-one were. Subsequently, somebody misrepresented the findings of another report from the library before it became public to Tony Wilkins who transcribed the mistaken information to his blog, crediting it to anonymous sources. Now there is this third misrepresentation.

If Thompson is unconcerned with establishing a reputation as a prevaricator, that is his business, but when he takes the careful fact-based analysis of this blogger and misrepresents it to the public, that is downright contemptuous -- of me and the public he represents. It is sinister and unworthy of an elected official.

[* Thompson also misstated what I had requested in my records request: Thompson said, "He asked how many web sites were, inappropriate websites, were attempted in one day." No, I did not ask for that, I asked for log files. But it helps Thompson to set up his deception by saying I had asked for what he is going to wrongly say the record reports, as if he's thinking, "I want to say this reports the number of websites, so I'll say that is what Roch asked for even though it is not."]

Rush Radio 94.5 appropriating web content from another newsorg, again

(Greensboro, NC) After a brief hiatus, Rush Radio 94.5 is again appropriating content from another newsorg for its web site (previously, previously, previously, previously and previously). This time they embedded a chart from this story at WFMY's Digtriad.com into a story on the Rush Radio 94.5 site.

Here is the chart in the story on WFMY's site:

Here it is on Rush Radio 94.5's site:

Pornish? Not really.

(Greensboro, NC) What does the library's internet access control software identify as porn? Here are some from one recent afternoon/evening:

http://yumyummagazine.com/index.html
http://jetpayday.com/?sub=19139
http://www.lazombie.com/matrice.swf
http://carbackgroundwallpapers.com/images/britney_spears.jpeg
http://carbackgroundwallpapers.com/images/5.gif
http://media1.keepbusy.net/content/epic-combo.swf
http://greensboro.craigslist.org/w4m/
http://truongton.net/forum/picture.php?albumid=10471&pictureid=138331

Smell that? A nose for nothin'

(Greensboro, NC). I saw on the city council agenda for tonight's meeting a change to the franchise fee paid by telecommunications companies for the public right of way they use for fiberoptic cable.

Accommodating Google?

Unfortunately, no. The city says they've had no communications from Google regarding our proposal since confirmation of its receipt. But, we did get a shoutout in Google's thank you video.

"Porn's" greatest hits

[Update: Some items flagged by the library' system as porn that are not porn.]

(Greensboro, NC) In response to a records request, I have received a report from the public library generated by their Cymphonix internet filtering system.* It reports items ("hits") throttled as porn on library computers from 12:29 P.M. to 8:49 P.M on August 23rd, 2010. It shows why it is disingenuous to report these items as counting "porn site visits."

Prodded by a previous report from the library, some local bloggers confused internet "hits" with site "visits" even though the library's report cautioned that a single web page may account for multiple hits and that counting the hits was not the same as counting visits. Tony Wilkins acknowledged the misinterpretation. Joe Guarino repeated the error without correction, twice.

With this file, we can see for ourselves what a number reporting "hits" actually reports. Scroll through the log and you will see multiple image files (extensions of gif, jpg and jpeg),  icon files (ico), formatting files (css) and scripting files (js). These are in addition to and separate from the entries for web pages (html files) but they load as components of a web page and get counted as individual items -- hits. These are the items that, as the library initially explained in their report, result in multiple hits being reported for a single web page. So, while this list shows 500 hits, it should be comprehensible to the rational mind that these are not 500 "visits"or even "pages."

* The library is working with the vendor, I am told, to figure out why the system is failing to report more than five hundred items but, for now, the available log is substantially instructive.

[The items in the log file are in reverse chronological order. ]
8/23/2010 Greensboro Library throttled internet hits

City Legal

(Greensboro, NC) Becky Jo Peterson-Buie has been appointed interim city attorney. I do not think the city would benefit from appointing her to the position permanently. She abuses the state personnel laws to bludgeon public records requests.

Crime reports are public record. If you or I get charged with a crime, that information is public. But here is Peterson-Buie arguing that city employees, by nature of their employment with the city, have special status--that information about their alleged crimes should be kept secret without the approval of City Council.

"In order to release the date, time, location and nature of the alleged violation, it needs to be done the way we have advised, you need to go into closed session to discuss the matter because it's personnel matter..."

When mommies attack

(Greensboro, NC) Local coffee shop asks breast feeding mom to leave. Mom is forum moderator for Triad Mommies, with lots of mommy friends. Mommies bomb coffee shop's facebook page and plan a nurse-in at the coffee shop.

Blue Boar Inn

 The Blue Boar Inn

After three nights of camping at the quite nice Standing Indian Campground near Franklin, N.C., Kathy and I spent our next night at the charming and secluded Blue Boar Inn in Graham County, North Carolina. Located on pristine Lake Santeetla near Robinsville, the inn was originally built in the 1950's as a hunting lodge by a Cincinnati beer magnate. It has since been renovated and updated with each of its eight rooms now including a private bath, sitting area, private porch, TV, telephone and CD player. Wireless internet access is available and there is a computer terminal in the lobby for the use of guests.


View Larger Map

The real charm of the Blue Boar though is not the amenities common to a modern hotel, the Blue Boar is exceptional for the pleasant and serene atmosphere created by the mother and daughter owner/operators through their attention to detail and loving care. We were not only provided a CD player, for example, but there were three disks with selected music labeled morning, afternoon and evening. The desk in the sitting area had guide books for nearby hiking trails and for identifying local birds and plants. Common areas are eclectically appointed and comfortable. And the grounds? Storybook.Not in a Disney way, but in an epitome-of-real-love-and-human-effort way.

View of the pond

While the inn offers dinner five nights a week, we were there on an off night so we scooted a few miles up the road to Snowbird Lodge for dinner, the only place to get an adult beverage in the county as it turns out. Graham county is a dry county--bone dry--even the grocery stores are prohibited from selling beer or wine, so bring your own or visit the restaurant or bar at Snowbird which has a "country club" exception to the alcohol prohibitions.

Snowbird is a rustic yet beautiful place with a view of the Smokey Mountains that you'd swear is too perfect to be real. They offer a prix fixe menu of quality entrees and an extensive wine and liquor menu including a mindbogglingly vast selection of scotches. A funny thing happened to us during dinner that added to our delight. After we were seated, Kathy kept saying to me, "I know the hostess from somewhere." I was sure I'd never seen her before, although I had. Kathy kept at it and finally waived the hostess over and introduced us. Her name was Tina, she said. Kathy proceeded with the usual starting places for solving the "where do I know you from" riddle. Schools, home towns, work...

Tina was coy. Kathy insistent. Finally, Tina fessed up: "I won Survivor," she said. Ah, yes! That Tina.

 A private patio

Before bed, I took a walk around the flowered grounds of the Blue Boar, around the lily-padded pond with splashing fountain and croaking bullfrogs and back to the inn twinkling like a ship at night, floating in the forest pitch.

Breakfast

The next morning, we dined on the complimentary breakfast then headed down to the lake for what was to be a short paddle in one of the Blue Boar's canoes. The warmth of the sun met the cool morning breeze to make paddling seem effortless, cozy almost, and the green of the water was so pure it was hypnotizing. We kept going further and further along, nearly an hour and a half out and back, never seeing another soul on the way. We packed our bags, said goodbye and thanks to owner Pam then headed to the nearby Cherohala Skyway and to hike in the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest.

The grounds

The Blue Boar Inn is one of those special places where the experience transcends the place; where the physical is perfectly in support of the soulful. The price was more than we usually spend for accommodations, even after procuring a last-minute deal. But it was so thoroughly serene and invigorating that I can only recommend it.

Common sitting area

Sanctimonious bullshit

(Greensboro, NC) Joe Guarino continues to wag his scolding finger at people who do not bow to his moralizing. His new gig is to accuse people who dare to think about internet access at the public library with any depth or complexity as "relativists." This time his target is City Council representative Zack Matheny.

In typical Guarino fashion, he impugns Matheny's character through innuendo then levels his indictment:

"Matheny's posited insistence that proposing filters at public libraries is not a 'black and white issue' is a statement that smacks of relativism."

It is condemnable "relativism," according to Joe, because Matheny's proposals would fail to completely stop people from viewing porn at the library. But here's the thing, Joe's preferred solution of mandatory "porn" filters on all computers would also fail to completely stop people from viewing porn. Both options are "relativistic." 

"Porn" filters are imperfect and defeatable and, as such, would still allow people to engage in the practices Joe wants to stop. The difference between porn filters and other options is the answer to the question of to whom do we give responsibility for imperfect options? Joe would bestow responsibility on the imperfect policing of a corporation that also blocks legitimate content, others would give responsibility to users of the library and library staff. 

The only "absolute" means of prohibiting anybody from ever viewing sexually explicit content on a library computer is to remove the computers. By not advocating for the absolute solution, Joe places himself among the "relativists" -- which makes his self-righteous moralizing accusations a pile of sanctimonious bullshit.

Ranford Almond

Eleven years old, from Browns Summit, NC.

Funky Funky from a secret location in Greensboro

One of the things about getting older is that you start seeing things and think, "Too late for that."

This, I wish I could.

BBoy battle from a secret location in Greensboro. (Found on Greensboro 101)

Records request foot dragging

 Custodians of public records shall respond to all such requests as promptly as possible.
-- North Carolina law

I made a records request of the City of Greensboro. One of the records provided was an email that refers to an attachment, but I did not receive the attachment. I asked for the attachment. I asked again. Then a third time I asked for it or an explanation of the delay. I am told, it is "being worked on."

Why does a document already in existence and already having been attached to another email need to be worked on?

Regionalism = Greensboro, diluted

(Piedmont Triad, Milky Way Galaxy) I've never understood the love affair local leaders have with "regionalism." Sure, I get the self-interested appeal of it to absentee conglomerate-owned "local" media but the glee with which people elected to represent Guilford County and especially Greensboro embrace it makes no sense to me.

Rob Bencini (hat tip Vie de Malchance) nails it:

Successful regions almost universally have successful cities as their lead.  With the notable exceptions of Silicon Valley and Research Triangle Park, very few regions stand above their principal city.  The Piedmont Triad Partnership, contrarily, has been adamant that it is regions, not cities, that are central to economic development success.  In a world that is largely unaware of Greensboro – and to a similar degree Winston-Salem and High Point – getting others to acknowledge the existence of the Piedmont Triad (Partnership) has proven to be expensive and futile.

And

If Greensboro, which shows up on a real map, has an airport, is the largest city in the 36th  largest MSA in America, has a coliseum that routinely gets big-time acts and regularly hosts the televised ACC Men’s Basketball (and other) tournament(s), is home of the International Civil Rights Museum and the historic 1960 sit-ins, is known among golfers as a host city of a PGA Tour stop, and is the home to five colleges and universities and a law school can’t get enough name recognition to move the meter, how in the world can skipping a step of identity to promote a blandly-titled, geographically-marginally matched region have a chance in this world of gaining meaningful attention and developing national/international name recognition?