Politics

Politics

There are 1,050 posts filed in Politics (this is page 55 of 105).

NC-20’s stunningly-ignorant climate change memo


I was drawn to the memo from the NC-20 group pushing the state to ignore climate change research and, quite frankly, I’m stupefied that otherwise-rational people would take this stance. The memo was helpfully provided by Laura Leslie at WRAL [PDF] as part of her story on the group’s science advisor, Mr. John Droz, who apparently knows as much about climatology as I do.

The whole thing reminds me of the mayor in the movie Jaws, who knows the killer shark is out there but refuses to tell the tourists because it would scare them away. I’ve highlighted some of the more outrageous statements in it below.

I swear it seems like North Carolina Republicans have declared a war on science itself.

MEMO: NC 20 Members
FROM: Tom Thompson, Chairman
DATE: December 2, 2011
SUBJ: Sea level Rise Negotiations

As all of you know, the State has been pushing hard to declare a 39” (1 meter) Sea Level Rise (SLR) by 2100 a fact. The CRC came within 24 hours of mandating it for NC 20 counties Land Use Plans. Larry Baldwin and I met with Bob Emory, CRC Chair, the night before the key meeting and persuaded him to retract the mandate. To his credit and our relief, he did.
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Wade CAC getting back on track

Remember that neighborhood crisis I mentioned earlier? Well, last night was the night of the first “special meeting” to try to get the CAC back on track. Neither Dwayne Patterson and Luis Olivieri-Robert from the city’s Community Services department nor I had any idea how many members would attend the meeting, held at the Unitarian Church. It turns out that around 70 people showed up, which isn’t too shabby for a week’s notice.
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Running low on road revenue

The Republican leadership in the North Carolina General Assembly wants to cap our state’s gasoline tax. How is this anything but a stupid idea? Sure, it’d be nice for folks not to pay anything, anytime, but that’s not how it works. If you build roads, you damn sure better be willing to maintain them.

The gasoline tax pays for roads: roads that are in dire need of repair. We either pay to fix them or we pay when commerce in our state grinds to a halt.

Another ill-advised bill making its way through the NCGA would bar I-95 from becoming a toll road. One legislator said that companies would move their operations elsewhere if the tolls went into effect. If you think tolls will drive business away, imagine what will happen if I-95 becomes a pothole-filled parking lot because it’s crumbling and outdated.

There’s no complicated problem without a solution that’s simple, logical – and wrong. H.L. Mencken said something much like that years ago, and life still has a way of proving the caustic journalist right. Take the gasoline tax.

North Carolina’s state tax on gasoline sold at the pump, currently 38.9 cents, is relatively steep. It ranks sixth highest in the land (an additional federal tax of 18.4 cents on each gallon applies throughout the country). Our state’s tax is also an unusual one, in that a portion of it adjusts every six months in tune with the wholesale price of gasoline. So: Higher-priced gas equals a higher state gas tax.

To motorists with wallets pumped dry, that doesn’t seem fair, or right. No wonder politicians eagerly offer solutions

via Running low on road revenue – Editorials – NewsObserver.com.

NC Considers Making Sea Level Rise Illegal

My friend Scott Huler takes down the attempt by coastal developers and the Republican leadership in North Carolina General Assembly to pretend climate change doesn’t exist.

According to North Carolina law, I am a billionaire. I have a full-time nanny for my children, I have won the Pulitzer Prize, and I get to spend the entire year taking guitar lessons from Mark Knopfler. Oh, my avatar? I haven’t got around to changing it, but by law, I now look like George Clooney. There’s also a supermodel clause, but discussing the details would be boasting.

You think I’m kidding, but listen to me: I’m from North Carolina, and that’s how we roll. We take what we want to be reality, and we just make it law. So I’m having my state senator introduce legislation writing into law all the stuff I mentioned above. This is North Carolina, state motto: “Because that’s how I WANT it to be.”

via NC Considers Making Sea Level Rise Illegal | Plugged In, Scientific American Blog Network.

Coastal N.C. counties fighting sea-level rise prediction

While there’s still enough sand left on our coast to do so, state lawmakers and coastal county officials intend to bury their heads in it.

State lawmakers are considering a measure that would limit how North Carolina prepares for sea-level rise, which many scientists consider one of the surest results of climate change.

Federal authorities say the North Carolina coast is vulnerable because of its low, flat land and thin fringe of barrier islands. A state-appointed science panel has reported that a 1-meter rise in sea level is likely by 2100.

The calculation, prepared for the N.C. Coastal Resources Commission, was intended to help the state plan for rising water that could threaten 2,000 square miles. Critics say it could thwart economic development on just as large a scale.

A coastal economic development group called NC-20 attacked the report, insisting the scientific research it cited is flawed. The science panel last month confirmed its findings, recommending that they be reassessed every five years.

via Coastal N.C. counties fighting sea-level rise prediction – Local/State – NewsObserver.com.

Jumping into a neighborhood crisis

It’s been a crazy week for me. I got word last Friday that all was not well with the Wade CAC. Elections for new CAC officers that were scheduled to take place on Tuesday were delayed and the existing leadership resigned two days before. There were lots of email flying around and phone calls made, to the point where my head began to spin with trying to unravel everything.

The Wade CAC normally meets every other month, which means that any attempt to “reboot” the election process would normally have to wait until September. That’s the approach that the city’s Community Services department wanted to take, but as the chair of the Raleigh CAC (RCAC) organization of which the Wade CAC is a part, I didn’t think it was fair for the Wade CAC membership to have to go four months without representation. Many others agreed, writing some heated emails to that effect to elected officials and city staff.
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Blogging answer abruptly ends political survey

There was a long pause when I answered the phone this evening: a sure sign of a telemarketer. The number, 801-823-2033, wasn’t familiar, either. The woman on the other end soon came on, said she was with some survey company (perhaps Opinionology?) and wanted to ask a few questions. I agreed.

“Do you plan to vote for a candidate for president this year?” she asked.

“Yes.”

“To ensure we have a representative sample, in what year were you born?” she asked.

“1969.”

“What county in North Carolina do you live in?” she asked.

“Wake.”

There was a pause. “Lake?”

“No, Wake!”

“Oh, Wake. Okay.”

There was a pause.

“Do you have a political blog or participate in political blogs?”

I stopped and considered that almost every other post here on MT.Net has something to do with politics. “Yes, I do,” I answered.

There was an even longer pause.

“Thanks for your participation in tonight’s survey. Have a good evening,” she cheerfully said before abruptly ending the call.

Weird. I wonder what it was about writing a political blog that apparently disqualified me as a survey respondent. I also wonder what that says about the respondents who don’t get disqualified.

Gov. Perdue issues executive order creating fracking task force

The N&O’s John Frank is a great reporter and I always enjoy his stories. If I may be allowed to pick nits, though, I did have one quibble with this Dome blog post he wrote about Perdue’s fracking executive order (emphasis mine):

Perdue wants the group to include appointees from the Democrat and Republican leadership in the House and Senate. But her executive order appears to preempt — or at least compete with — legislative efforts to create an official oil and gas board to write regulations for energy exploration.

The proper term is “Democratic leadership” (such as it is, admittedly). Then again, I’m not won two talk about double-chicking mmy blag posts before postine them, am I? 🙂

via Gov. Perdue issues executive order creating fracking task force | newsobserver.com projects.

Raleigh CAC meeting ends on time

Tonight was a milestone of sorts as the Raleigh CAC meeting I chaired actually ended ahead of schedule. In the four years I’ve been on the board I can’t recall a single night where this has happened.

When I was elected chair, I pledged to my fellow boardmembers that I would run an efficient meeting and not waste everyone’s time. While the first few meetings were a bit longer than I would’ve liked, tonight we actually ended a minute or two early.

One of my first big moves was to make the meetings end at 8:30 PM instead of 9 PM. I thought we should be able to get done what we need to get done in that time and so far it’s worked out well. So with the switch to the earlier time, it’s probably safe to say that no RCAC meeting has ever ended before 8:30 until tonight.

One of the reasons I consider this a milestone is that I conducted the meeting fairly, sought input from the CAC chairs, and moved things along when they needed moving. Another notable thing is that the CAC chairs actually listened to me! When I first joined the RCAC board years ago, the RCAC seemed like the epitome of herding cats. Being chair looked like a thankless job that I accepted only with trepidation. Instead, meetings like tonight show that I may be able to effectively lead this organization after all.

I came home feeling psyched, energized, and actually looking forward to the next meeting. It’s a pretty good place to be!

Raleigh to involve public sooner in parks planning

I was quoted in this morning’s Midtown Raleigh News on the new Public Participation Process for Raleigh Parks.

After a string of park projects beset by opposition battles and lengthy delays, the city’s parks and rec department will soon overhaul the way it works with the public during planning for future parks, ballfields and gyms.

The proposed guidelines, laid out in exhaustive detail in three documents totaling 89 pages, are intended to pinpoint areas of disagreement and bring together citizens groups to give suggestions, particularly when controversial projects are involved.

The idea is to resolve disputes early and not let them fester, said City Manager Russell Allen.

“The hope is that if you take time up front, you don’t get snagged later in the development of the project and run into an element of the public that never bought in,” Allen said.

via Raleigh to involve public sooner in parks planning – Raleigh – MidtownRaleighNews.com.