Guarino

The European ideal, to which we should aspire

HT: Conservative NC

Non-Charter Charters in NC

Doug Clark comments on the absurdity of the recently passed "charter school" legislation in North Carolina:

This bill gives local school systems some new options for reforming failing schools, including turning them into "charter schools" that really aren't like other charter schools because they'll still be run by the school board and school system administration.

The purpose was to put this down on the state's second Race to the Top application, due Tuesday, in an effort to make it look like North Carolina is progressing farther down the road to school reform than it really is. Sort of like high school seniors add lots of clubs and activities to their college applications, even if they don't really participate.

This bill would not give Guilford County parents and students any real new alternatives.  They would be stuck with the same old mindset and the same old sets of problems.  This bill does nothing more than create some glorified magnet schools.

But the education establishment very much wants to control how charter schools do things for various reasons.  And that is what this bill is all about-- the Democrats in Raleigh granting the education establishment more authority over the one tiny sector of the system they have not previously controlled.

Greensboro Prayer Warriors

There have been some interesting discussions over the last week or so regarding Mayor Knight's decision to have an invocation at the beginning of every City Council meeting.  There have been threads here, at Cone's, and at the News and Record site. 

One commenter voiced the opinion that the Mayor did not foresee that this policy would engender some opposition.  I know that is not the case.  I had an opportunity to speak with Mayor Knight about a month ago, and he told me of his plan for the prayers at council meetings.  He was quite aware that some would oppose it; but he felt it was the right thing to do.

Several months ago, I ran a series of posts about the Manhattan Declaration.  Part of the weighty Declaration spoke to issues regarding religious liberty.  While prayer at governmental meetings was not a focus of the Declaration, it nevertheless contains some language that is instructive:

No one should be compelled to embrace any religion against his will, nor should persons of faith be forbidden to worship God according to the dictates of conscience or to express freely and publicly their deeply held religious convictions...

In recent decades a growing body of case law has paralleled the decline in respect for religious values in the media, the academy and political leadership, resulting in restrictions on the free exercise of religion. We view this as an ominous development, not only because of its threat to the individual liberty guaranteed to every person, regardless of his or her faith, but because the trend also threatens the common welfare and the culture of freedom on which our system of republican government is founded.

So what, in a nutshell, are the bases for the concern about the invocations Knight is implementing?  We saw the concerns expressed in the threads, and have heard it all before.  Prayer is not the council's business; and "religion" ought not be mixed with the state.  It will distract the council from its work on legitimate items like the budget.  The city will have to defend itself in court.  Our constitution, after all, is secular.  The prayers will be too sectarian.  People are not going to like the versions of religion that will emerge in the stated prayers.  Being non-sectarian will be too hard, and will water down the prayers too much. 

In spite of all the hand-wringing, what Knight has proposed is perfectly legal if it is done in a non-sectarian manner.

But what is really the basis for all the concern?  I think there is a deep-rooted fear that this type of activity will give a forum to Christians of orthodox belief; and will create an appearance a bit unpleasing to those whose sympathies are more secularistic.

We need to understand that atheists and agnostics might have some concerns with this policy.  But there is another group that also will object.  It is the much larger group of individuals who maintain some religious affiliation or identification; and who may be part of certain liberal churches, denominations or religious traditions.  They don't want those dreaded fundamentalists to get too much of a foothold.

But here is the irony.  Bill Knight, in his personal life, is part of a liberal denomination.  He attends a United Methodist church.  Recall that, when Obamacare was passed, Nancy Pelosi thanked the national United Methodist church for its support.  In any case, Mayor Knight is not even remotely part of that cabal on the religious right we are all supposed to fear.

But among the more liberal congregations and church traditions, secularism is often embraced.  Their leaders and their people will oft tend to look down on expressions or acknowledgments of religious belief in the public sphere.  That is probably why the Godless Americans were attracted to the candidacy of Kay Hagan, who attends one particular liberal church locally.  And they maintain this fastidious aversion to public acknowledgments or expressions of religious belief-- even as they press their religious worldview in the public sphere to achieve certain relativistic and/or socialistic outcomes.

I noted in the thread over at Ed's that at least several of those who objected to Mayor Knight's policy were Jewish.  And there has certainly been a history of Jewish advocacy for secularism over the last century in the United States.  And I think this is based, at least in part, upon a deep-seated fear of being hurt or marginalized by an overtly Christian culture.  We must remember that the Jewish people have been hurt at least once or twice in their history, in other less hospitable places.

But Michael Medved explains why Jewish fear of publicly vibrant Christianity is misplaced.  The Jewish people have tended to do very well in the United States; and have overall been accepted in a special way, in a nation that until very recently was culturally Christian. 

Prayer, however, ought not be feared.  Yes, there is a legal risk if the city does not handle the situation correctly.  But we ought not underestimate the potential benefits of prayer.

Those with an authentic faith tend to believe that prayer can be very helpful.  Bringing certain requests or supplications before a monotheistic God can have certain impacts.  If a member of the clergy genuinely asks God to do certain things, there can be two outcomes.  Either He will answer those prayers, or He won't. 

But again, if we truly harbor an authentic faith, then it seems we would not want to rob our city of any blessings or benefits that might accrue from God's intervention. 

Here are some things I said during a previous thread:

"I think praying to a monotheistic God is a great thing. Clergy can ask Him to fill our leaders with wisdom. They can ask him to bless our city, and to guide the council's deliberations. There would be nothing wrong with those types of supplications.

"And I don't object to clergy having to operate within certain ground rules. Think about what clergy have had to do in totalitarian countries to make things work where there is limited freedom of religion! (It is just a shade less totalitarian when prayers have to be limited in the USA because of the PC crowd.) :)

"I think prayer is a good thing, and earnestly seeking God's blessings on the workings of the council and the city can only be helpful. One other thing Jesus said: "Wherever two or three..."

"(The goal of a council prayer would be) to focus the attention of attendees and viewers on the act of bringing certain requests before God regarding our city and its leaders. Many of us believe that prayer can be efficacious; and if it is, as we believe, then it can be a very good thing.

"In a broader context, it is an acknowledgement of our dependence, and even indicative of our submission, to Him; and some would argue that has value as well. Focusing on a God who is intrinsically good can also set a more positive tone for that which follows."

One final thought.  I have repeatedly asked what objective, verifiable, discrete harm would result from invocations at the beginning of the council meetings.  No one has been able to produce even one example.  The mere fact that someone doesn't like it-- or that someone claims to be offended-- are not sufficient reasons to suspend the activity.  We need to remember that previous city councils did plenty that citizens disliked, and they were not deterred.

My concern is that the opposition to Knight's policy may be rooted in prejudice, and may be motivated by a desire to restrict religious liberty.  That would be awful.

Laura Wiley and Insurance Mandates

Rep. Laura Wiley represents part of Guilford County in the state House; and is on the verge of surrendering her seat.  She has had a bill that would require insurance companies to pay for hearing aids.  (HT: Binker)

This bill undoubtedly is well-intentioned.  But we need to think about what the effect would be if each of dozens (or hundreds) of legislators at the state and federal level each found their own specific "cause" to advocate for insurance payment.

The result would be a multiplicity of insurance mandates-- and that is, in fact, the situation in which many states now find themselves.  And a multiplicity of mandates will be the inevitable outcome of Obamacare as well.

The problem is that these mandates drive up insurance costs.  That makes insurance less affordable for the uninsured-- and indeed, for anyone who pays all or part of their health insurance premiums, directly or indirectly.

Sometimes good intentions can lead to bad outcomes. 

Guilford County, North Carolina Senate Ignore Day of Reckoning

Brian Balfour:

Like Governor Perdue's recommendations, the Senate spending plan would increase real spending over the tentative appropriations approved in last year's biennial budget bill. Curiously, however, the Senate would reduce the appropriations for public education and public safety...

Justice and Public Safety spending would decline by $83 million in the Senate's 2010-11 budget proposal. Most of the cut in JPS would come from corrections...

Like Gov. Perdue, the North Carolina Senate fails to look beyond a patch-work budget for the current year and ignores the massive fall-off in revenue coming next year. Their reliance on more than $1.5 billion in non-recurring federal stimulus funds and $1.3 billion in temporary tax revenue to help balance this year's budget establishes a massive structural deficit of nearly $3 billion for next year's 2011-12 budget.

Our leaders in the state of North Carolina are similar to those in Guilford County in one important respect.  They are muddling their way through this year's budget process, and making some tough choices; but overall their actions do not deal with the awful reality of what is to occur next year, or the year after that.

The North Carolina Senate appears poised to undermine our state's criminal justice system, which is already lacking. 

Guilford County and North Carolina residents have every reason to believe they are being set up for tax increases next year or in subsequent years.  If Republicans win either house of the state legislature in the fall, they would have a thankless task ahead of them.

City Manager's Budget: Hopefully a Starting Point

Triad Watch justifiably raises questions about the city manager's proposed budget.

I hope that the proposed budget is merely a starting point, and will be subject to positive changes by the city council.

I don't think we can expect that the budget will be perfect, or that we will find all its provisions agreeable.  We need to remember that we do not have a solid conservative city council; and that at least five votes will be needed to pass the budget.  Swing votes like Matheny and/or Vaughan will need to be on board in order to pass a "conservative" budget.

My understanding is that the budget's final form will likely be something closer to this.  But we shall learn all the final details as the process unfolds.

North Carolina: One of Only Twenty

Alysse ElHage:

The voters of 30 states—including our neighbors in South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia and Virginia—have had the opportunity to vote on and adopt Marriage Protection Amendments (MPA).  North Carolina stands out as the only state in

the southern United States whose citizens have been prevented from doing so as a direct result of legislative inaction.

Last summer, for the sixth consecutive year in a row, the General Assembly closed the legislative session without considering legislation that would give North Carolinians the opportunity to vote on a MPA.   As in previous sessions,

the leadership of both chambers refused to allow the bills to be brought up for consideration. But this May, when the “Short” legislative session convenes in Raleigh, state lawmakers will get another chance to consider legislation that would place the MPA question on the ballot for the people of North Carolina to decide.

It might be surprising to some that North Carolina-- the home of Billy Graham, and considered by some to be the "buckle" in the Bible Belt-- is one of only twenty states not to have a MPA.  We are increasingly finding our state among the lower half on various issues.  And we continue to "distinguish" ourselves among all the southern states.

Mayor Knight's Response to John Hammer on the Veterans' Ceremony

At the last Greensboro City Council meeting, there was a perfectly innocent, non-controversial ceremony recognizing our veterans in anticipation of Memorial Day.  It was a very good thing that Mayor Knight incorporated that into a council meeting to demonstrate gratitude and honor for those who serve our country, and for those who have lost their lives on the battlefield.

Of course, in a city like Greensboro, a ceremony such as this quickly becomes mired in identity politics.  Councilwoman Bellamy-Small quickly complained that no black veterans were present.  And John Hammer in the Rhino Times criticized the mayor on this issue.  His rationale was that Knight should have known better given our city's history of racial politics.

The problem, of course, is that when we acquiesce with these types of reflexive complaints, we succumb to the quota mentality that tends to prevail in these parts.  We are expected to engage in the celebrated practice of racial bean-counting, and if we fail to do so, we are offered up as objects of reprobation.  Perhaps that is a psychology we should be seeking to reverse, instead of constantly accommodating it.

One could almost understand if these complaints were registered over something truly substantive; but in this case, it was over a ceremony that represented but a symbolic gesture to acknowledge the contributions of a larger group of people.

For those that missed it, I want to call attention to the fact that Mayor Knight responded on this issue over at Allen Johnson's blog.  His comments were as follows:

Twenty-four veterans were invited to the City Council meeting, although several could not attend because of health or other reasons. I made special reference to William McBryar, deceased, because he distinguished himself and received the Medal of Honor for service in the Indian Wars in 1890 and became part of the Buffalo Soldier legend. For those present I asked each to stand as I repeated the branch of service and years served.

As part of the recognition I read a rememberance for veterans written by a Marine Corps chaplain. I obtained it while attending the annual memorial service at NC A&T University for twenty-three former students who died in service to their country in World War II, Korea, Vietnam and Iraq.

After the council meeting I learned from Councilwoman Bellamy-Small that Greensboro has a surviving Tuskegee airman, Harvey R. Alexander (Capt. USAF - Res. (Ret) ). This morning I had the privilege of visiting with him and reading the remembrance and resolution to him at his home, followed by an emotional story of his experiences during World War II.

Tonight another Triad Flight of Honor will arrive at PTI - I hope many of you will take time to go out and greet this special group of veterans. Also, there will be several services over the coming Memorial Day weekend that I urge you to attend. We owe a lot to our veterans.

If there is a future veteran recognition at Greensboro City Council I will make it a point to meet each invitee and members of the color guard beforehand to ensure complete inclusiveness.

Bill Knight
Mayor

Cost of Government in North Carolina

John Hood:

According to the Tax Foundation’s compilation of U.S. Census fiscal and income data, state and local revenues in North Carolina accounted for about 9.8 percent of personal income in the 2008 fiscal year...

North Carolina’s cost of government was substantially above the Southern regional average of 9 percent. Finally, I think the comparison to the country’s second-most-populous state is instructive. In Texas, the state legislature meets every other year, the governing philosophy is conservative, and government costs 8.4 percent of personal income.

If North Carolina had limited its spending to the regional average that year, that would have constituted an 8 percent reduction from what we actually spent. If North Carolina had matched Texas in government costs, that would have represented a 14 percent savings.

It appears that the state and local governments in North Carolina blow a lot of money compared with those in other southern states.  Where does it all go?

 

The Future Under Obamacare

Do We Need Elon Law?

Way back during November 2005, I had a post here that questioned the need for the new law school that was being planned for downtown Greensboro.

Doug Clark had a post yesterday that noted Elon Law's graduation exercises this past weekend.

Last year, I had the opportunity to speak with a member of Elon Law's first graduating class.  It had been noted in the media that this class overall had done very well on the bar exam.  This particular graduate had been fortunate enough to find a job.  But when I asked this person what percentage of the first graduating class had become gainfully employed in the practice of law, the number was astonishingly low.  I don't remember the precise number. 

But I think it would be fairly devastating to invest all the time, money and effort in the pursuit of a law degree, and to end up unemployable. 

To some extent, this is one of the legacies of the economic recession, globalization, and the new socialist economy.  As I noted above, however, it was questionable even years ago as to how many more lawyers we truly needed.

George Hartzman linked to a WSJ article that provides the gory details:

Of course, there’s always law school. Never mind that applications are at an all-time high and that thousands of legal positions at investment banking firms have disappeared forever. Never mind that recent Ivy League law school graduates are now working as file clerks, substitute school teachers, census takers. Never mind that in order to pay back the $200,000 it’s going to cost you to go to law school, you’ll need to land one of those plum legal jobs at…one of those other firms that are no longer hiring because they owe so much to the lawyers they already did hire to defend them from lawsuits brought by the government’s lawyers… 

I have several lawyers in my extended family.  I spoke with a couple at a family reunion last year.  When I discussed with them the phenomenon of all these new law schools being established, they said the explanation was money.

The folks at Elon Law are now our neighbors; and Greensboro cheerleaders have expressed glee over the establishment of the school downtown.  But it would be good to know the employment picture for its graduates. 

Arizona

How the City Council Might Deliver a Tax Cut

Jordan Green broke the story earlier today that the Greensboro City Council may be delivering a tax cut to citizens.

How would it be happening?  The bulk of the economies would be achieved as follows:

1. Cutting subsidies to non-profits

2. Lowering the monetary reserves the city holds

3. Reducing the number of unfilled positions previously funded within departmental budgets

4. Reducing the frequency of bulk (sanitation) pick-ups

In addition, there will be increased revenues planned through certain user fees increased or levied for the first time (for instance, at libraries for out-of-city users).

There will be no cuts to leaf collections, no lakes closed and no police officers cut under this scenario.  Not one city employee would lose his or her job.

In addition, some bond spending authorized by the voters would be preserved-- $75 million over two years.  Imagine what we could do to reduce property taxes were it not for the burdens associated with bond-related spending.

In any event, it was previously almost unimaginable that local residents would ever enjoy a property tax cut.  But we elected a couple of additional conservatives to the Greensboro City Council; and it appears a tax cut might now happen with limited pain to city residents.  We will learn more about the fine print and additional details as the budget process unfolds.  Let's hope it turns out to be as good as it appears to be.

The Gulf Oil/ Katrina Disconnect

I really try to avoid blogging on national or international issues except in limited circumstances.  But the story of the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has become extraordinary to watch.

Let's think back at Hurricane Katrina.  The prevailing narrative offered by the mainstream media was that the Bush administration was too slow in fixing all the problems caused by Katrina; and the drumbeat began within a couple of days after the hurricane struck.  The expectation was that the federal government would swoop down on New Orleans and make everything all better instantaneously.

Of course, this was a thinly disguised, concerted effort to undermine George W. Bush politically on the part of the MSM and the political left.  I had known, because I lived in the Charleston metro area during Hugo, that assistance does not magically materialize overnight when natural disasters occur.  And yet, we even saw Shepard Smith of Fox News becoming unhinged over the federal response.

Haiti, of course, took place months ago, and is still a mess.

But in the case of the Gulf oil spill, it has now been over a month, and we cannot see an endpoint.  I remember reading an AP article a couple of weeks ago in the News and Record reassuring us that the Obama administration was responding in a myriad of ways.

If the same standards expected of Bush during Katrina were applied to Obama, we should reasonably expect that the problem would have been fixed in a matter of days.  But of course, that same standard has not been applied by the media. 

But it gets even worse.  The administration has had an opportunity for a period of greater than one year to effect policy that could have prevented this disaster.  But it did not.  The problem occurred on Obama's watch, and he is responsible.  Let's apply the standards established during Katrina, and let the chips fall where they may.  Second guessing, and seeking ways to score political points, are now considered the best ways to respond to disasters.  That is the lesson we learned from Katrina.

Break: Graduation Weekend

I will be taking a break until some time next week.  My youngest son is graduating from Caldwell Academy this weekend.  There will be various events, celebrations and ceremonies; and we will be having a number of out-of-town guests. 

Will be back soon.

Kay Hagan and Financial Reform

She says she wants to deal with payday lending.

But she votes to sustain Fannie and Freddie as governmental entities.  And she votes against periodic auditing of the Fed.  (HT: Civitas)

Apparently, it is important, according to our esteemed Senator, to continue the government's backing up Fannie and Freddie's efforts to assure loans to certain populations-- in spite of their respective roles in the subprime mess.  Never mind whether this is a constitutional activity in which the federal government should even be engaged.

And perhaps Senator Hagan also wants to assure that the Fed will continue to feel free to effect bailouts of certain politically favored banks.  Remember that Hagan used to be an executive for a North Carolina bank that ultimately became Bank of America.  And remember that Bank of America was among those that were bailed out after having taking over Merrill Lynch.

Has Miss USA Outlived Its Time?

Last year, we had the Carrie Prejean episode.

And this year, there was even more for the politically correct crowd to cheer.  A contestant who gave the"wrong" answer on the state of Arizona was penalized; and an Arab-American was crowned who publicly embraced modernity by advocating on behalf of insurance coverage for contraception.

There was also more to cheer for those who celebrate the incremental erosion of public morality.  The pageant now has lingerie shots of the young women in lascivious poses.

Perhaps the Miss USA pageant has outlived its usefulness; and viewers should begin to tune out.

Unexpected Effects of Obamacare, Part 5

It seems that every week that passes, we learn more about Obamacare, and the ways it will not be living up to its billing.  Some additional examples:

1. Politico reports that Obamacare will cost $115 billion more over 10 years than previously estimated.  That will put the 10-year cost over a trillion dollars, which would have made it more difficult to pass Congress had it been reported then.  Of course, the true costs could turn out to be much higher.

2. We were told there was going to be a magnificent tax credit for small businesses that provide their employees with health insurance.  But now we learn that many small businesses will not qualify:

The full benefit goes to companies that have 10 or fewer workers with average salaries of $25,000 or less. They can get Uncle Sam to pick up 35% of their premiums. But sole proprietors aren't eligible. And neither are firms with 25 or more employees, or average wages of $50,000 and above.

3. We were told that people could keep their existing health care plans.  But if plans make changes, they risk losing their grandfathered status, and will have to jump more to the feds' commands.  This will increase the cost of premiums, and cause employers and individuals to no longer enjoy the plan they once had:

“It is very unclear on how you maintain grandfather or make changes without losing grandfather status,” says James Gelfand, the chamber’s senior health policy manager. “As of March [23] of this year, every plan in the country was grandfathered. However, plans are going to be making changes and as they make changes, they lose grandfathering and have to come into compliance.

”So, we don’t know what you are allowed to change and what you’re not,” Gelfand tells Newsmax.

Unless the Obama administration issues regulations allowing businesses to keep their grandfathered status when they modify their plans’ premiums or co-pays, these changes could prove costly to employers, Gelfand says.

4. We were told Obamacare would be good for businesses and job creation because costs would be held down.  But it appears one dynamic has surfaced that demonstrates yet another way this turns out to be untrue:

Of particular interest were provisions that hit employers with a $3,000 per employee penalty—even if they offer health insurance—for workers whose household income is low enough and they get subsidized health coverage through a government-run insurance exchange.

Curiously, the penalty for hiring and offering coverage to a low-income worker is 50% higher than the Obamacare penalty ($2,000 per employee) for NOT offering coverage.

The net effect of this weird policy is to discourage businesses from hiring workers from low-income households—those who need jobs most.

Oh, I know.  The political and moral imperative to offer more socialized medicine outweighs any temporal problems Obamacare causes.  Or so they might say.

Update: Another unexpected effect of Obamacare will be private insurers losing money and becoming less viable.  A breaking story from the Boston Globe reports that Massachusetts' four largest health insurers lost a combined $152 million during the first quarter 2010.  Romneycare in Massacusetts, of course, is the forerunner of Obamacare.  These losses by the insurance companies were caused in large part by the state limiting the premiums they could charge.

Smart Start, a former Governor, and an American Idol Contestant

(HT: Dome)

Former North Carolina Jim Hunt likely regards the Smart Start program as one of his political legacies.  The welfare state mentality that increasingly prevails in North Carolina suggests that the state must raise and educate pre-schoolers.

The question is whether the Smart Start program is effective, and whether it is worth the expense.  While the program appears to have attained an almost sacrosanct status in NC Democratic circles, its benefits are unclear.  The John Locke Foundation appears to have its doubts about Smart Start.

In any event, Jim Hunt appears in a video clip with former American Idol contestant Anoop Desai. 

What are Desai's credentials to appear alongside the former governor and expound on Smart Start?  Well, he graduated from college a couple of years ago; and has studied some in the fields of political science, American studies and cultural anthropology.  He also sings, of course.

In any case, Hunt and Desai have a mission.  They want to save Smart Start from budget cuts.  And what is the subliminal message?  Raise taxes, if you must, to save this untouchable program:

City Council Changes Course on "Speakers from the Floor"

Councilman Danny Thompson offered a motion tonight at the Greensboro City Council meeting to move the "speakers from the floor" portion of the meeting back to a time frame later in the evening.  This segment will occur after business items are concluded, but before individual council members are permitted to speak.

The motion was seconded by Trudy Wade.  It passed 6-3, with Mayor Knight and council members Matheny, Rakestraw and Vaughan also voting in favor.

Since the council moved this segment to the beginning of the meeting, a series of orchestrated efforts became manifest with multiple speakers demanding an apology from Mayor Knight, and later protesting against the GPD.   These orchestrated efforts ultimately culminated in protesters occupying council members' seats on the dais recently, and ministers getting themselves arrested outside police headquarters.  The dais incident was probably the clincher that convinced council members to revert back to Mayor Knight's original plan.

It is a privilege for members of the community to be able to speak first at council meetings-- not a right.  When that privilege is abused, it can be taken away.  And that is precisely what happened tonight.

Councilman Robbie Perkins was overheard complaining that the council undertaking this change was a "sign of weakness".