Now, some Biden questions the national media will ignore
Posted September 6th, 2008 at 5:34 PM by Jon Ham

The News-Journal in Delaware has done some investigating along the lines of the good real-estate digging regularly done by Carolina Journal’s Don Carrington. What they found is that Sen. Joe Biden has a home that seems way beyond his means:
In 1996, Biden sold a home in Greenville for the asking price of $1.2 million — [...]

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Credit where it’s due
Posted September 6th, 2008 at 12:23 PM by Jon Ham

I spend a lot of time criticizing the mainstream media because they deserve it. Instances of class are so rare they are almost startling. Here are two:
• Washington Post columnist Sally Quinn, who on Aug. 29 knee-jerkily joined most of the mainstream media in slandering Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s parenting skills and her ability to [...]

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Mystery solved: What community organizers do
Posted September 5th, 2008 at 11:32 PM by Jon Ham

Iowahawk got a community organizer to tell what he does. Here’s the job description:
Specifically, America’s community organizers:
* reach out and work with communities in various ways.
* liaison with, and for, community agencies for service within affected areas.
* fight to make a difference.
[...]

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• In Defense of (Most) Photojournalism
  Regardless of the recent examples of unethical photojournalism, most photographers have very high standards.
• Will TTA Use Eminent Domain?
  Many in the Triangle fear the TTA will resort to Kelo-style eminent domain condemnations.
• The Joke's on U
  In the new movie, "Accepted," a group of friends make up their own college after being rejected by real ones. The real joke is, the hoax college isn't any more outrageous than many real ones.
• See More Hits

Wake takes a long view of school assignments
RALEIGH — Wake County parents could know by Halloween where their children may be going to school for the next three school years. Wake school administrators laid out the timetable Tuesday for releasing a multiyear student reassignment plan, a departure from the past practice of doing one-year plans.

Triangle home sellers begin to budge
RALEIGH — Triangle home sales sank in July, again. Prices dropped, too. On the surface, the latest local housing data show that the national slowdown continues to hurt this region. But the numbers also may signal subtle improvements. The sales slide wasn’t as bad as in June, which posted the largest decline since the effect of the nationwide housing slump hit the Triangle in late 2006.

Wake waste official resigns
RALEIGH — The former director of Wake County’s solid waste management division resigned Tuesday amid questions about a subordinate’s excessive travel. James S. Reynolds, 56, had been the subject of withering public criticism since reports that he signed off on questionable spending by fired recycling program manager Craig P. Wittig.

Wake manager asks for audit
RALEIGH — County manager David Cooke will ask Wake commissioners to approve a sweeping audit of spending following a scandal involving a former employee who used government credit cards to pay for extensive travel. In a memo sent Thursday afternoon, Cooke tells the elected officials he met with an independent accounting firm about auditing credit card transactions and travel policies.

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The New Raleigh Convention Center: A taxpayer-funded money pit
Although many Raleigh and Wake County taxpayers do not realize it, city and county officials knew from the beginning that the new Raleigh Convention Center would require taxpayers to pay for large operational losses and even pay large subsidies to organizations to use the facility.

Even before the doors open on September 5, the losses and subsidies have begun to mount.

This report shows that the 164 contracts already signed by RCC officials provide users with room discounts totaling almost $2.3 million. Some organizations have received rooms valued at $20,000 and even $40,000 for the price of one dollar. What is worse for taxpayers, the first six taxpayer-funded subsidies, totaling $166,720, have been approved. The largest of these taxpayer subsidies — $96,900 — goes to NC State University to hold a meeting for the NC Community College System, all supported by state and county taxpayers. Thus from day one, city and county taxpayers are on the hook for an endless flow of money into the RCC money pit.

Un-Affordable Housing: Cities keep low- and middle-income families from home ownership
Many North Carolina cities use affordable-housing policies to provide housing to low-income citizens. No doubt started with the best intentions, those policies ignore fundamental economic realities and produce the opposite effect than was intended.

Does Wilson need a sales tax increase?
The Wilson County commissioners are asking voters to approve a sales-tax increase on May 6. This report identifies $23.2 million in revenue and savings the county could use to meet its needs — more than 11 times the amount that the proposed tax increase would produce.