It doesn't matter whether you love or hate the Democratic Party. It doesn't matter whether you like the current leadership or not. It doesn't matter if you're an unaffiliated voter, a Republican, a Democrat, or a Libertarian. Anyone with her eyes open can see that Raleigh is out of control. So make plans to show up on an upcoming Moral Monday, either as a supporter or as a person willing to put yourself on the line for freedom and fairness.

Thanks to the Independent Weekly, the media silence has broken and the deluge of criticism begins. After scanning reader comments online, it's a good thing I don't worry a lot about what people think of me.

The best thing about Protzman is that he isn't a politician, and he has a near-compulsion to say what he thinks in the most direct, if sometimes profane, way. Protzman was one of the first people in North Carolina to accuse Republican moneybags Art Pope of, well, read it for yourself: "Art Pope is contaminating North Carolina politics with the sleaze and corruption of corporate money, just as is the national Republican Party."

Many of us have been moved to tears and anger after watching interviews with those who participated in the Moral Monday demonstration yesterday. Their inspiring actions are beginning to create a powerful shift in the political conversation here in North Carolina, and maybe even around the world.

As we move forward to press the case for freedom and fairness, let's keep focused on the root cause of the problems we're facing. Our Republican-controlled legislature is not a legitimate government. Their supermajority power came through rigged elections in every House and Senate district across the state. They barely won the popular vote, but still ended up with nearly three quarters of the seats in the legislature.

Our Republican-controlled legislature is not a legitimate government. We have no obligation to obey or respect the laws they pass or the actions they take. On the contrary, we have a moral responsibility to resist them at every turn.

One thing I'm planning to do with my gubernatorial campaign is share the experience of running on a day-by-day basis. Much of that will take place at the campaign website, but I'll be posting some of it here at BlueNC too. Here's an example of the kind of thing I'm talking about.

HAPPY UPDATE: Just learned that I don't need to pay the actual filing fee until 2016! Woohoo! That is very great news!