NCGA

Compare and contrast the misplaced priorities of ideologically-driven Republicans:

The N.C. Sheriff's Association and N.C. Association of Police Chiefs are concerned about a measure -- House Bill 937 -- that would loosen gun controls, by repealing the requirement for a permit to buy a handgun and allowing guns in bars and on school property.

A bill that requires background checks for those seeking public assistance has cleared the Senate Judiciary I Committee. The bill requires local Departments of Social Services to ensure that welfare recipients are not fleeing felons.

Ignoring Federal guidelines in one case and eager to comply in the other, simply based on ideological impulse. And making our streets more dangerous in the process. Is this responsible leadership?

Can anyone provide links to the earlier Moral Monday events, especially the first three? Thanks!

Originally posted at ydnc.org.

Today, the Young Democrats of North Carolina released it's newest :30 web ad, "Take a Hike," on GrowNCWrong.com - a website launched to fight back against the "Tillis Tax Hike," HB 998. HB 998 was passed by Speaker Thom Tillis (R-Mecklenburg) and NC House Republicans under the guise of tax reform, but the proposal will raise taxes, on average, on the bottom 95% of North Carolinians. GrowNCWrong - a play on the pro-Tillis Super PAC - is telling the truth about Tillis's middle class tax hike and the NC House's plan to divest from everything that makes NC great.

Fear and loathing in Laurinburg:

A lawyer for landowners who were denied a permit last week by the Robeson County Board of Commissioners says the unfounded worries are putting in jeopardy a lucrative industry. In a separate case, the Laurinburg Planning Board on March 12 denied the same company, Strata Solar of Chapel Hill, a permit for panels off U.S. 501. To Rowland Mayor Elizabeth Hunt, the concerns aren't unfounded. "It's not an issue of trust. It's not technology lagging behind. It's the unknown," Hunt told Robeson County commissioners during the April 1 hearing on the Strata farm. She said she read that materials in the panels contained toxins that could leak into groundwater or sewer systems.

This article is somewhat dated, and Robeson County has since reversed its decision. But it's apparent there is some sort of stealth propaganda campaign going on, because the same unfounded fears are showing up in different places. Film at eleven.

They don't want to know, and they don't want you to know, either:

RT @kate_sheppard: Horrific abuse. Rampant contamination. And the crime is...exposing it? Welcome to #AgGag laws: http://t.co/q16RObAyyf

— Pricey Harrison (@priceyharrison) June 18, 2013

Some economic activities don't pass the smell test:

"The bill is an engraved invitation for mega-dumps, mega-landfills to come into North Carolina," said Molly Diggins, the Sierra Club's state director, adding that "instead of focusing on how to have a balance among competing interests, it puts landfills first before people or natural resources."

Disposing of the trash generated by the most prosperous nation in the world is a multi-billion-dollar industry, and states with weakened environmental regulations are the favorite target of Big Trash:

Apparently her God is elusive and very selective:

Where was your enthusiasm for pastoral participation when pastors from across the state showed up for pro-life day at the General Assembly, came out to speak in favor of pro-family education reforms or rallied across the state to pass the Marriage Amendment? There may be clergy present at these “Immoral Monday” gatherings, but that hardly means they are condoned by God, and it is completely inappropriate for the state’s largest paper to intimate otherwise.

If you really were pro-life and pro-family, you would be disgusted with the Legislature for cutting assistance to struggling families. The fact that you not only condone that but applaud it means you're nothing more than a bigoted hypocrite, who has created God in her own image. You better hope your idea of God doesn't exist, or you're in deep kimchee.

The defacto Governor caught with his ideological pants down:

In several interviews this month, Pope said he did not think the Rural Center grant had any effect on the lease terms – and he suggested his company did not know about the Rural Center’s aid as the deal came together. “There was no knowledge and no involvement of how the work was done on that (shopping) center owned by the developer and where his source of funding came from,” Pope said.

As I've mentioned before, in many cases, rural development projects simply won't happen in the absence of government grants, and this one is no different. There's nothing wrong with that, but there is something wrong with a man who would take advantage from that and then lie about it to save his much-lauded Libertarian reputation:

Breaking something that was already fixed:

The system, in place for a decade now, has helped North Carolina avoid the highly partisan, multimillion-dollar judicial campaigns seen in other states. It has minimized the influence of special interests over our courts. Unfortunately, some politicians apparently want special interests and partisanship to play a bigger role in our system of justice. So, I'm going to take a guess at Berger's likely response to the judges: Who cares what you think?

I had a brief but energetic debate with Doug Clark a few years ago about judicial elections, which I'm pretty sure I lost. My position was that returning the partisan designation would give voters a little more information to help them decide, but by the end of the conversation I was no longer so sure that would improve the judiciary. The bottom line is, whatever other issues Doug and I may disagree over, he's usually spot-on when it comes to judicial matters, and this one is no different:

http://turnncblue.org is up and running. Very pleased!

A few minor glitches still need tending, but nothing major. Lots of work still to do, but that's coming soon. If you would, I would appreciate readers casting a critical eye over the site, both at the design and at the content (such as it is at the moment -- this site is still in its infancy) and commenting on elements you like and (even more importantly) think could be done better.

Next step once bugs are squashed: gobs and gobs of content. Plenty of room for volunteers to help with that!

Thanks so much to James and the BlueNC community for making this possible. This is just going to get better. McCrory and his Legion of Doof are going to HATE this. (Even more when we start kicking his minions out in 2014.)