When I ranted yesterday about Clear Channel turning WTRG into a country station, it looks like I spoke too soon. In yet another bewildering twist, Clear Channel has now switched the station to alternative. I believe the whole format-swapping is simply a stunt to gain media attention, from what I’ve read on message boards out there. Cheap publicity.

Alternative format or not, I think Clear Channel is evil. No local station would change directions twice in three days. I’ll stick with the kick-ass WKNC for my alternative music and let the Clear Channels wither.

The only Clear Channel radio station I have programmed into my car stereo has now changed its format. Oldies 100.7 has stopped spinning Motown hits and is now going (wait for it) …country!

Makes me wish some of those low-power community radio stations like WZRU in Roanoke Rapids were close enough to listen to here. On our trips up to Lake Gaston, I’ve been mesmerized at how good that tiny public radio station is. Small, local radio will beat corporate radio every time in a contest based on content. That’s probably why Clear Channel and others feel so threatened by low power FM.

As Doc likes to point out, the listeners aren’t the customer in the station owner’s eyes: the advertiser is. But the listeners own those airwaves. The station owner only leases them. So it really is our radio. We should make sure crummy station owners like Clear Channel don’t ever forget that.

Yassir Arafat pitched himself as the only legitimate leader of the Palestinians. In fact, he was a liar of epic proportions, as well as a terrorist until his last days. Now that this hustler and killer is gone, Palestinians may now have a legitimate shot at obtaining peace, as well as statehood.

They’ve got their work cut out for them. Arafat left them a mess.

Did you vote today? You might have had the chance, thanks to the work of the National Commission on Federal Election Reform. Among other recommendations, the bipartisan commission, headed jointly by former Presidents Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, suggested that elections take place on a federal holiday, possibly on Veterans Day.

While President Bush gave tacit approval to many of the Commission’s recommendations, the idea of voting on a holiday seems not to have been one of them. I think its a shame, personally. I consider the duty of voting to be important enough to deserve a holiday of its own. Maybe some day.

Happy Veterans Day, everybody!!!!11!1!11!!!!

Veterans Day began as Armistice Day, in recognition of the end of World War I. It was initially dedicated to the cause of world peace and meant to celebrate friendly ties between peoples. After the destruction wrought by the World War II and Korean Wars, veterans pushed in 1954 for Armistice Day to be renamed “Veterans Day.” Ike and Congress agreed, and thus Veterans Day was born, changing a bit in purpose to honor the sacrifice of our country’s veterans.

As a veteran, I’m honored to have a day recognizing my service. Yet veterans actually have two days honoring their service: Memorial Day was the first, being celebrated as early as 1868. Memorial Day, once a day to remember our nation’s fallen, has itself become largely forgotten, the country perhaps concluding that one day – Veterans Day – is sufficient recognition. This summer’s Memorial Day parade in Washington was the first in over sixty years. Sixty years!

Personally, I’d be happy shifting the focus of honoring veterans back to Memorial Day where it began, rather than having that day’s greatest significance be the start of the summer vacation seasion. Veterans Day could once again be Armistice Day, recognizing not only the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform but also celebrating peace once again.

The state government rolled over and handed out $250 million in corporate welfare in an effort to woo Dell. Understandably, other computer makers with manufacturing shops here are a bit peeved about this, as they should be.

I know the economy is tough. No politician in her right mind would ignore a chance to add jobs. Or to appear to add jobs, at least. But writing a staggering check to a company to bring them here is to the extreme.

There is no promise that Dell will stay here. No promise that those jobs will remain. With all other jobs seemingly headed to Asia, one has to wonder how long a manufacturing plant in North Carolina will be profitable. Then again, if you’re being bankrolled by the state, I suppose you don’t have to worry about such things.

Corporate welfare occurs when politicians stop trying to find creative ways of spurring business. And don’t get me wrong. I think Dell is a good company. They may even be around for a while in the cutthroat business of computer hardware. Putting the burden of their success on the rest of us taxpayers and business owners, however, just ain’t right.

There’s got to be a better way.

Election Day did have some bright spots for me, actually. I confirmed the whereabouts of Mike Easley when he showed up for his victory speech. My Libertarian friend and fellow blogger Wade pulled in an eye-popping fifteen percent of the vote for his district. That’s an amazing total for a Libbie, but it’s no surprise to me. Wade’s a super guy and deserved every vote he got, and then some.

In another N.C. House race, a guy I campaigned for, Grier Martin won a seat in my district against Don Munford. I met Grier for the first time at the Kerry-Edwards rally, where he was a fellow veteran supporting Kerry. We were two of the few there who weren’t vets of Vietnam or Korea, so we kind of stood out. It wasn’t until I saw how he knew damn near every politician onstage that I put together that his father is D. G. Martin, longtime administrator of the UNC system.

Offhandedly, I offered to help in his campaign. He handed me a cheap, ink-jet-printed business card and vowed he would call. A few weeks later, he called saying he would be drilling with his Army National Guard unit that weekend and was looking for volunteers to help canvass neighborhoods. Having some free time, and wanting to learn more about politics, I joined them.

I’d like to think the four hours spent knocking on doors helped get him elected. Pundits agree about the importance of the “ground game.” In reality, though, it was probably the $330,000 his campaign spent on TV ads, mailings, and signs that put him over the top. The margin of victory was a mere 566 votes, a hundred of which I might have added by walking neighborhoods.

So what did I learn? Politics takes some good, comfortable shoes. It takes perseverence. And if happen to have a third of a million bucks, that helps too.

Travis got weighed this morning at his pediatric appointment. The doctor had told Kelly that he wanted to see Travis gain at least a half-ounce per day. Travis is apparently an overachiever, since he put on a whopping 11 ounces in the eight days since last getting weighed! He’s now over his birth weight once again, with no sign of looking back.

We’re mighty proud of our boy, though he’s certainly putting poor Kelly through her paces. Turner babies have a reputation for growing quickly. Travis will be no exception!