Armando’s Pizza is the newest New York style-pizza place at 3332 Airport Blvd. NW, Unit A1. “Every single customer that comes in here is not a customer, they’re family,” said Paul Costa, front line manager. “That’s what we want to give to everyone who walks in this door. We are truly happy to see you, not just because you’re giving […]
WT Columns
Judges see past Cooper’s rhetoric in appointments battle
Lawyers for Gov. Roy Cooper labeled the changes “shocking” and “breathtaking.” The governor himself complained about a “blatantly unconstitutional legislative power grab.” But a bipartisan group of Superior Court judges saw a much different picture. In a unanimous Feb. 28 decision, the judges rejected most of Cooper’s challenges to new state laws affecting appointments to North Carolina government boards and […]
NC’s political right promotes conspiracy theories and secrecy
This week is Sunshine Week — the 20th such annual celebration of open government principles and accomplishments since the event was conceived and launched in 2005 by the American Society of News Editors. And if there was ever a time in which all aspects of law- and policymaking in our country were badly in need of more sunshine, this is […]
Can Congress take away TikTok? Only if you allow it
On Wednesday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 7521, the “Protecting Americans from Foreign Adversary Controlled Applications Act.” The bill, which would attempt to ban the social media app TikTok unless its Chinese owners, ByteDance, sell it to non-Chinese owners, faces an uncertain future in the Senate, but president Joe Biden says he’ll sign it if it passes. I […]
7-month forecast: Stormy with a probability of ugly
You don’t need a crystal ball to predict that the seven months before the Nov. 5 general elections promise to be ugly, costly and divisive. They will affect our moods, our interpersonal relations, our work and normal events. Typically, the time after the primary elections is a period I call “reconciliation month.” To win primaries, candidates must reach out […]
‘Give us a king’
The want of a king is not new. Grumbling people fill the pages of history. We gripe about wages. We bemoan our tax situation. We whine about our health care and our schools. We complain about our lot in life, even when the sun rises on a day when employment is high, wages are up and crime is declining. Grumbling […]
Politicians play with fairy dust
It’s hard not to play along when children come up with cute untruths. Back when one of my now-grown sons was just an Opie Taylor-like tyke, for example, he used to tell me matter-of-factly that if he didn’t go to bed, the moon wouldn’t rise. It was a reasonable conclusion based on his experience at the time. Later, as his […]
Feeling overwhelmed? Here’s how to move forward
Although life has its ups and downs, at times of prolonged or intense down periods, there is the potential of feeling overwhelmed. When this happens, it can create a cascading effect. Your attitude turns negative, you feel distressed, your patience is worn thin, you become frustrated, your energy level drops and you become discouraged. When you get into this mode, […]
Maine pushes vets aside to hire ‘New Americans’
New York, Illinois and California are among the states most closely associated with embracing illegal border-crossers and assorted other asylum-seekers. But perhaps because the state is smaller than the major destinations and somewhat off the beaten media path, Maine’s over-the-top illegal immigrant red-carpet layout is less well-publicized. Make no mistake — Maine Gov. Janet Mills (D) ranks on par with […]
On UFOs, don’t expect the truth from government
On March 8, the U.S. Department of Defense’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office released the first volume of a two-volume “Report on the Historical Record of U.S. Government Involvement with Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena.” Like all previous government statements on the subject of UAPs — what we used to call, and will likely continue calling, UFOs for unidentified flying objects — this […]
Voters want more transit options; politicians should listen
Not long ago, a user-made map depicting a vastly expanded Atlanta transit system went viral on social media. Instead of just four branching main lines that intersect like a plus sign, the imaginary map spindles out like a bicycle wheel in 10 directions, with an additional ring around the periphery connecting the spokes. Comments like “They should’ve done this 25 […]
Garland cries wolf on voter ID
FREEMost Americans have heard the tale of the boy who cried wolf. A little boy tasked with keeping his father’s sheep grew bored and decided to have some fun at the expense of his village. Red-faced and out of breath, he burst into the local tavern shouting that a wolf was attacking his father’s sheep. The villagers grabbed their weapons […]
Celebrate Sunshine Week by supporting local journalism
Sunshine Week is March 10-16, and this year, there’s an even greater need for you to get involved. Sunshine Week annually celebrates freedom of information laws in every state. It also salutes efforts by good government advocates and journalists to use and ensure the effectiveness of those laws to get the information we need as self-governing citizens. The name is […]
‘Gun control’ is a call for returning to the Stone Age
Last November, 11-year-old Domonic Davis was killed and five others were wounded in a drive-by shooting in Cincinnati. “Federal investigators,” the Associated Press reports, “believe the 22 shots could be fired off with lightning speed because the weapon had been illegally converted to fire like a machine gun.” Per the AP report, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives […]
Down to Business: Treat Yo’ Self moving to Centro at Pine-Nash
Treat Yo’ Self Bakery is making a new home on the other side of downtown Wilson at the Centro at Pine-Nash apartments after a little more than four years at its Goldsboro Street location. Owners Greg Mason and Alex Smolen are have been running the bakery together since 2019 and have seen many changes, including a full interior renovation. The […]
Disappointing primaries lacked substance
Party nominations for North Carolina’s 2024 elections are, for the most part, decided. Just four races remain to be settled in runoffs on May 14. So, would you say you’re generally satisfied or dissatisfied with our primaries this year? Here’s my answer to the question: I’m deeply disappointed. It’s not that all the candidates I favored lost their primaries. Many […]
Mighty Mecklenburg
“Why do you Mecklenburgers always act so high and mighty?” I still get this question every now and then even though I moved away years ago. Last week, I remembered the best answer to that question. On March 4 in downtown Charlotte, members of the Mecklenburg County Commission hosted political officials and community leaders from the German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. […]
Should religious extremism have an equal voice in America?
Americans have been slow to wake up to the fact that religious extremism is a form of political extremism. Religious authoritarianism substitutes the decision-making of a private religious clique for the decision-making of the people’s public representatives in a democracy. The same thing that happened in Gaza when Hamas took over the government there without elections is happening in America […]
Fruits of our labors
It’s budget season on a permanent basis now. When I was a full-time community organizer, I used to love to go to Washington in time for the cherry blossoms and the hog slopping. Hog slopping? That was just one of the terms used by many Hill staffers (and even some administration figures in places like the Office of Management and […]
You Decide: What are the key challenges for NC’s future?
Long ago, my father told me it was always good to look ahead. Why? Because problems may appear that take a while to solve. Without advance planning, there may not be enough time to find a solution and avert possible disappointment or even worse. In more than seven decades of living I’ve tried to follow my father’s advice, and I […]