Tag Archives: North Carolina Politics

July 20, 2015 · 10:39 pm

Just When You Thought I Was Out….I’m Back!

Believe it or not, I’m back to this blog.

I state this publicly as insurance that I will follow through….

I needed some time away.  I focused on my other blog for a while….

But it’s time to come back where I started.

Thank you for your patience.

I originally started this blog to ironically address things that where lost as we moved to the 21st Century.  Then I realized, I was at risk of becoming a grumpy old man screaming at children to get off my lawn.  I never wanted to be that….

A lot has happened over the last couple of years to make me re-evaluate a lot of things.  I’ve changed jobs and careers.  I’ve lost some important people in my life.  I’ve rethought how best to address our political differences….

But I’m fundamentally the same.

How will  this blog be going forward?  I’m not sure….

I want to be kinder and gentler.  More open to dialogue about politics and less judgmental.  I mean well…It doesn’t do anyone any good to sit at home and scream at their TV- or vent on their blogs.  We need to talk to each other civilly and with an open mind and heart.

We need to listen to each other….

But if that fails, screw it.  I’ve never been shy about my opinions.

There is just too much insanity in Politics in North Carolina, Virginia and the U.S.A for me to keep my mouth shut.  This is what is making me come back.  I can’t just sit on the sidelines…

Circumstances pulled me back in…..

I’m trying to be less political on Facebook, so expect more political posts here instead.  But I realize there are other blogs that do politics much better than I ever could.  This will just be what catches my interests and makes me want to share or comment.  I don’t promise in-depth analysis, but I do promise lots of opinion.

Culturally, I plan to be just as judgmental as ever.  I’ll post about what I like and what I don’t…..

And I hope we can pick up the dialogue we suspended when I stepped away….

Again, thanks for our patience….

Let’s roll!

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September 26, 2014 · 11:01 am

NC Residents Mailed Incorrect Voter Registration Information

This is not good…

The Koch Brothers, Art Pope and their friends continue to try to suppress voting by any means possible-including these disinformation campaigns.

It seems to me that intentionally sending incorrect information relating to the voter registration or voting process ought to be illegal.  This should be viewed as an attempt to unlawfully confuse voters and that is absolutely reprehensible.

But they know they can’t win fairly, so they are going to try as many unfair tricks as possible….

We can only hope this went to as many cats as possible….

From the Raleigh News and Observer:

 

RALEIGH — Hundreds of North Carolinians – and one cat – have received incorrect voter registration information, according to the N.C. State Board of Elections.

The information – an “official application form” – was sent by Americans for Prosperity, a national conservative group with a state chapter based in Raleigh.

Since then, hundreds of people who received the forms have called and complained to the State Board of Elections, said Joshua Lawson, a public information officer for the board.

“It’s unclear where Americans for Prosperity got their list, but it’s caused a lot of confusion for people in the state,” Lawson said.

One resident even received a voter registration form addressed to her cat, he said.

More:   RALEIGH: NC residents mailed incorrect voter registration information | State Politics | NewsObserver.com.

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April 11, 2013 · 12:37 pm

Michele Presnell, N.C. Lawmaker, Opposes Islamic Prayer

More bad publicity for the State of North Carolina…

This is from one the latest batch of GOP idiots elected to the State Legislature last election- when the Democrats stayed home….

Elections have consequences and that one had big ones- it handed the State Legislature to the GOP along with the power to gerrymander the districts to make it safe for people like this to keep their seats…

But this woman is just beyond stupid…

But if you click the link and look at her picture….

From TalkingPointsMemo.com:

A Republican legislator in North Carolina told a constituent that she has misgivings with an Islamic prayer being conducted before a legislative meeting because she doesn’t “condone terrorism,” the Raleigh News & Observer reported Wednesday.

In an email exchange obtained by the News & Observer, state Rep. Michele Presnell (R) was responding to a constituent who asked her if she is comfortable with a prayer to Allah taking place before the meeting.

“No, I do not condone terrorism,” Presnell responded to the constituent.

Presnell did not immediately respond to TPM’s request for comment.

The constituent was taking Presnell to task over an ACLU lawsuit against a North Carolina county over Christian prayers being conducted before commissioners meetings there. That lawsuit was the impetus for a bill that would nullify any federal ruling on prayer in the state, on which Presnell is a co-sponsor.

via Michele Presnell, N.C. Lawmaker, Opposes Islamic Prayer | TPM LiveWire.

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April 4, 2013 · 4:01 pm

NC House Republicans File Voter ID Bill

Here we go again….

And since there is no longer a Democratic Governor to veto this, it will probably pass this year….

Another attempt by the Republicans to block voters who don’t vote for them…

With demographic trends against them, the GOP’s only hope to stay in power is voter suppression- hence the bills to limit early voting, require voter ID and restrict College student voting….

They can’t continue to win on policy- even with their gerrymandered districts-so they are trying to win anyway they can-no matter the cost to Democracy…

From WRAL.com:

 

RALEIGH, N.C. — House Speaker Thom Tillis and Republican House leaders have filed a new proposal to require photo identification for voters.

House Bill 589, entitled the Voter Identification Verification Act, or VIVA, was filed Thursday afternoon, after what Tillis said was “a transparent and deliberative process” of seeking public input.

“This bill has had more discussion than anything in recent history,” said House Elections Committee Co-chairman Tim Moore.

Under the proposal, beginning in 2016, voters would be required to show a photo ID at the polls. The bill would allow “multiple forms of state-issued ID,” according to Rep. Tom Murry, R-Wake, including tribal cards, public university IDs and state employee IDs. Private university IDs would not qualify.

Voters without a photo ID will be allowed to cast a provisional ballot but would have to return to their local board of elections with a valid photo ID to have the ballot counted.

via House Republicans file voter ID bill :: WRAL.com.

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October 3, 2011 · 8:06 pm

Art Pope, Citizens United, and North Carolina Politics : The New Yorker

Very scary article in this weeks “New Yorker” about Art Pope and how he’s used his money to effect North Carolina politics….

The “Citizens United” decision by the Supreme Court last year is really hurting Democracy in America.  We are only just now starting to see how much….

Here is a brief excerpt from a very long article.  I encourage you to click the link and read it in it’s entirety.

For years, Pope, like several other farsighted conservative corporate activists, has been spending millions in an attempt to change the direction of American politics. According to an analysis of tax records by Democracy NC, a progressive government watchdog group, in the past decade Pope, his family, his family foundation, and his business have spent more than forty million dollars in this effort. Sizable as Pope’s contributions have been, they are negligible in comparison with his fortune. The Pope family foundation—of which Art Pope is the chairman and president, and one of four directors—reportedly has assets of nearly a hundred and fifty million dollars.

This wealth has enabled Pope to participate in the public arena on a scale that few individuals can match. Some have compared him to Charles and David Koch, the conservative oil-and-chemical magnates, whom Pope regards as friends; Pope has at times joined forces with them, attending some of their semi-annual secret planning summits and, through the family foundation, contributing millions to many of the same causes. Pope, in addition to being on the board of Americans for Prosperity—which David Koch founded, in 2004—served on the board of its predecessor, Citizens for a Sound Economy, which Koch co-founded, in 1984. Charles Koch recently praised the Popes, along with other donors, for providing financial support for the 2012 election effort, and tax records show that Pope has given money to at least twenty-seven groups supported by the Kochs, including organizations opposing environmental regulations, tax increases, unions, and campaign-spending limits. Pope, in fact, helped fund the legal center run by James Bopp, the lawyer who made the initial filing in the Citizens United case

More:   Art Pope, Citizens United, and North Carolina Politics : The New Yorker.

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May 23, 2011 · 8:37 am

NC governor will let Time Warner cable-backed bill restricting municipal broadband become law

Bev Perdue continues to be a most disappointing Democratic Governor here in North Carolina…

She’s will “neither sign nor veto” this horrible Time Warner Protection Bill …

Another bought and paid for politician?

I really hope she doesn’t run again and gets out of the way for a new Democratic choice.

She won’t though….

She will hand the Office of the Governor over to the GOP instead.

Thanks to my friend Gary for initially posting this on FaceBook…

We’ve repeatedly hammered Time Warner Cable (and its big-cable cronies) for crying to the North Carolina legislature about municipal broadband. TWC claims it can’t compete with taxpayer-backed ISPs such as Wilson, NC’s Greenlight — and that it shouldn’t have to. In fact, Greenlight and four other municipal providers came about specifically because corporate players refused to provide inexpensive, fast broadband. And now that local governments have proven they can provide it, the cable companies have cried foul, pouring hundreds of thousands of dollars into select political pockets all the while. That’s the drama so far, and now a bill restricting municipal broadband — mandating that providers pay taxes similar to private companies, for example — has landed on the desk of Governor Bev Perdue. She won’t veto the bill, meaning it will soon become a law; for whatever it’s worth (read: not much), she also refuses to sign it. The reason? Here it is from the horse’s mouth:

“I will neither sign nor veto this bill. Instead, I call on the General Assembly to revisit this issue and adopt rules that not only promote fairness but also allow for the greatest number of high quality and affordable broadband options for consumers.”

The legislation strikes a blow against public ISPs in a country that ranks ninth in the world for broadband adoption and download speeds. And that, apparently, is what “fair competition” looks like in the US.

via NC governor will let cable-backed bill restricting municipal broadband become law — Engadget.

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