Newspapers / The Chowan Herald (Edenton, … / July 24, 2019, edition 1 / Page 4
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4 3 A4 CHOWAN HERALD, WEDNESDAY, JULY 24,2019 Serving Edenton and Chowan County since 1934 Opinions The Chowan Herald Michael Goodman, Publisher Nicole Layton, News Editor Beverly Alexander, Advertising Representative A publication of Cooke Communications North Carolina, LLC OUR View Diversity makes democracy great “The opinions of the publishers will not be reflected in any news stories, space being allowedfreely according to the news value, irrespective of the opin ion, religion, and politics of said pub lishers. “Both of the publishers are Denwcrats, one a Methodist and the other an Episco palian, but we have not reached the point where we think every Methodist, every Episcopalian and every Democrat is an angle, but rather than there are good and bad in every denomination and every political party. “The opinion of the Herald on any question will be set forth in the editorial column, but we are satisfied that our opinion is no better than the opinion of many of our readers. We, therefore, throw open our columns to any criti cisms that may appear therein, whether the criticisms agree or disagree with our views....” — The first edition of the Chowan Herald, Aug. 30,1934 W e are still keeping that promise made by publishers Hector Lup ton and J. Edwin Bufflap 84 years ago. But times have changed. It is 2019. The worse part of the modern democratic process is underway—verbal mudsling ing. If you need an example of it, you only need to visit any social media linked to the 2020 presidential campaign. In 16 months, voters will go to the polls to vote for our next president. Maybe Donald Trump will win a second and final four-year term. Maybe the Democratic nominee will win. Neither will really truly win however, if the politicians and their supporters can’t win over the undecided voters—inde pendents who vote based on facts and their personal beliefs rather than down party lines. They also are disenfranchised Democrats and Republicans who see how the extreme factions have taken over their parties and long for a centrist move ment If the current mudslinging is any indica tion of what kind of tactics are coming in this election cycle, both sides have a lot of work to do to win over swing voters. Poli tics are pretty dirty right now, and we haven’t gotten into the real mud-slinging season—after the parties finally pick their presidential candidate. In Greenville during the recent Trump rally, there were a few minutes in which the crowd said some disparaging things about a Democratic lawmaker. For many, this chanting came off as racist and an other example of how Trump is supported by right-wing nut jobs. Looking at the backlash online and elsewhere, the other side comes off just as bad in some cases. The chanting didn’t occur throughout the entire rally. Maybe not everyone was chanting. But it became a rallying point for others with views op posed to Trump and his supporters. Diversity is what makes our Democ racy great. We posted the link to Trump’s rally and will continue to do so for every mqjor presidential candidate that visits our re gion. It’s our job. It is our job to inform Chowan County’s citizens so they can be knowledgeable voters. That’s why we encourage you to debate —thoughtfully and on-topic on our social media platforms and in our newspaper. In 2016, North Carolina saw many old Southern Democrats go across partly lines and voted for Trump. The same with the Republican party, but to a lesser de gree. Some Democrats may have felt that their party no longer represented then- values. The middle-of-the-line Democrats —union members, coal miners, and peo ple who became the last of long line of party supporters—were left behind by those who talked about getting rid of their livelihoods and proposed plans that were don’t fit rural America. In 2016, the Electoral College showed the world that Americans wanted to drain the swamp and get rid of the bickering and ineffectiveness of Washington, D.C. But in 2019, the swamp isn’t drained and the politicos in DC and Raleigh make it seem like everyone just wants to see who can shout louder, who can make more people angry, and who can be the meanest on social media. Chowan County is made of teachers in our schools, high school and college stu dents, town employees, law enforcement officers, business owners, farmers, fisher men, retirees, etc. We have different opin ions on how things need to be done, but are united in the fact that we, and by extension our county, need to prosper and thrive. Our country is a melting pot and our politics rightly reflect that. Our view points can be shared without divisiveness or in a way that alienates others. As was published back in 1934, we wel come all viewpoints to the pages of this newspaper. Share your ideas here in a thoughtful and meaningful way. Readers Write Tramp speech chills and thrills Making sure to pack plenty of frozen waters, two of my friends and I headed out at 9 am., to make certain we got into the Williams Center by 4 p.m. Upon ar rival, we landed a close parking place, and soon realized we were possibly 300- 400th in line. Whooop, we got in! Secret Service let us in an hour before, knowing the heat was way too extreme. There were six huge scanners set up —after those, we were home free. Prac tically being able to choose our seats, we were elated to be some place cooL As we watched people pack in, we saw more Trump hats, shirts, than ever imag inable. The couple sitting next to me had come from Charleston, SC. The crowd was ready. The entire arena, participated in the wave for several minutes, and the YMCA song to the blaring of some Rolling Stones tunes. Such energy, like electricity, was run ning through everyone’s veins. The ex citement was building. At 6 p.m, they closed the doors because tire over 8,000 capacity arena was filled. I heard 3,000 were outside. A thunderstorm happened sometime during the event, so between the rain and the heat, I'm not sure how many may have wanted to attend. After the National Anthem, a prayer, Lara Trump gave a short speech. Mike Pence also graced the podium rallying people more with the Lee Greenwood song blasting, with people going wild, with arms flailing all in the air Trump came out through the curtains, and made the long walk down the runway, stopping every few steps to wave. I was pinching myself because I was that close to a sitting President It’s noth ing to compare it to. Chills, no... Pride, yes. His speech lasted an hour and a half. LETTERS Letters must include the author’s name, address and daytime phone number (for verification pur poses). Unsigned letters will not be considered. Submissions will be edited. What They Are Saying My prayer... I pray for our state and nation. When disunity and insularity seem to prevail, I passionately cry out for Your intercession. Renew our hearts. Show us how to walk in love —- the perfect bond of unity. I pray we seek ways to uplift each other and not tear others down. Al low a deeper under standing. Allow more acts of kindness. Allow us to inspire patriotic sentiment in ways that glorify You. Amen! NC SEN. DON DAVIS D-Greene Accepting other viewpoints J uly 2019 is a season of political heat in North Carolina and the United States. But sharply differing opinions need not be divisive or terminal. A view point can be accepted graciously or re jected without demeaning gestures. What are some of the perspectives or ways of engaging others that can lead to enhanced communal well-be ing? The ancients declared politics to be the art of building human commu nity. They have a point. In late 1951,1 was “encouraged” to come to the family pharmacy every Saturday to straighten up the comic books and magazines left in a mess by adults! No salary was sufficient be cause I wanted to be elsewhere! But over time, I was “paid” by wisdom gained which I otherwise would not have received until years later. Possibly the most important was the maxim to “never burn your bridges” no matter the provocation. Running up the score in mismatched athletic com petitions (or veto-proof NC General Assemblies) would get you the same or worse later. I also learned that even the best doc tors had awful hand writing. And that even the best were finite and made mistakes. This was seldom admitted in the public square. Real growth comes when a physi cian knows his limits and asks for help. Same for holders of public office. One of my grandmothers died of cancer. Her doctor later came to my grandfather and father and “apolo gized” for missing the diagnosis. Respect for him grew in the commu nity. At least among some. Similarly in political life whether at the local, state or national level people He touched on all subjects, as we had an ticipated. Leaving Greenville, we noticed that the airport was lit up in red, white and blue lights.... Soooo beautiful! It took me three days to get off of a rally high I enjoyed it completely to the max. Thanks Pitt County, Go Trump, and God Bless this USA. BARBARA FLEMING Columbia Not-so Southern town of Edenton Much about Edenton is justified by saying, “We are a small Southern town.” I have concluded that, while there ex ists here a strong degree of Southern charm and hospitality, Edenton is nei ther small nor Southern, at least in its thinking. Two factors contribute to this—its churches and its government Edenton churches are moderate in their beliefs. Prevalent is a strong commitment to community betterment and a refrain from judging others. In politics, we have a town manager form of government with a non-partisan town council that avoids the divisions of party politics. Edenton offers a broad, moderate set ting for its residents. In my opinion, this represents large, non-Southern thinking ina Southern setting. We owe more to Boston than to Rich mond. The Daughters of the American Revolution are more influential that the Daughters of the Confederacy. In an increasingly divided world, Edenton is a town unto itself. The chal lenge is how to become more inclusive of new ideas and people without de stroying our harmony. ROGER COLEMAN Edenton SUBMIT LETTERS Submit letters to Opinion Page Editor Miles Lay- ton vie email at mlayton@ncweeklies.com. Let ters can also be dropped off at our office, 423 S. Broad St., Edenton. I am more than disappointed by the MSM characterization post Trump rally in Greenville that ENC is a bunch of STEINBURG racists based on the outburst of some saying “send her back” related to Rep. Omar. Did! like it? No! I was in attendance. But please, the con tinued anti-American, anti-Semitic, anti-Israel hatred expressed by Rep. Omar and her three outspoken congressional colleagues is and should be much more than disturbing to most of our nation, and if media were doing its job, reported that way. NC SEN. BOB STEINBURG R-Chowan CoUJMNIST JOHN MITCHENER need to interact with out burning bridges. Winston Churchill noted that “It takes courage to stand up and speak. It also takes courage to sit down and listen.” And apologize. Hard to do particularly if the other person is con ceited or a wise-guy or smart alec! Good ideas sur prisingly come from unexpected sources. Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mas- sachusetts), when he was dying from cancer, was asked if he could do his career in Congress over would he change any votes? He recalled that Republican Presi dent Richard Nixon had once made a serious proposal to improve health care. Kennedy disliked Nixon so much (as did others) that he did not vote for the bill which could have improved health for millions. The bill did not pass. , Back to bridge building! The person who is totally disagreeable to you to day may be the vote you could have had tomorrow for a win. Questions are a big part of life, par ticularly on the US Supreme Court. Justice John Paul Stevens who died July 16,2019, was famous for being too polite. His opening statement to an at torney before him was often, “May I ask you a question?” You, ajustice on the US Supreme Court, ask me for my permission! Some think Stevens politeness gained him respect and effectiveness See MITCHENER, A5 Left’s hypocrisy apparent after rally A t the Trump rally in Greenville, I shared space and experience with people who support and defend the nation’s foundational values of individual lib erty. These shared values and our apprecia tion for our representative republic that has thus far preserved liberty, bound us strongly together. PnillMNICT The press disdain VULUinWIJI was palpable. They B evaluate Donald Trump as an imperfect man and he is. They have an alle giance to their more, “perfect” heroes. We are simply dumb, Southern, supposedly all-white people who should be lemmings for their side.Their prejudice, HOLLY racist, bigoted perspec- AUDETTE tive of us is perfectly ac ceptable because it is of course, “truth.” Hillary Clinton barely made their radar when she claimed that white woman voted for Donald Trump because of the pressure of men. Think about that Has there ever been a more sexist, racist comment by a supposed feminist in the history of our country? But the left believes it is truth, so no problem. The left repeatedly talks about Trump’s dog whistle. The call he makes to us, his mind-numbed robot followers to dictate our actions. CNN wrote, “Why Trump’s racist dog whistle will not work this time”. So, calling the “deplorables” and the, “irre deemables,” who pathetically cling to their bibles and guns a collection of morons who do not think for themselves but rather wait for men or the President’s “dog whistle” to cue us is not misogynistic, racist, bigotted— right? Because of course the left is justified in speaking, “truth”. Here is real truth for the elite, arrogant hyp ocrites on the left who think they have a mo nopoly on intellect and have us accurately sized up. Unlike your racist and fascist he roes, who demand collective think without departure from it, we determine our alle giance based on the foundational principle of liberty, including of diverse thought and view. Our form of government was not founded as a pure democracy to expressly protect the minority voices’ right to be expressed. The left didn’t even flinch as their perpet ual victim of this, “horrible” country took again to the press microphones and de manded collective think or “we do not need” you. That sounds early like a demand to go somewhere else. If you are brown, we “do not need your voice” unless it is expressing what we demand it expresses based on your race. Didn’t even cause a ripple and was ap plauded and proclaimed by the left. No one questioned what “not needed” means. Not needed in this country, perhaps? Not needed on the planet, perhaps? It’s OK to be left fascists demanding no di versity of thought wlaile, “championing” toler ance and diversity. Who want alarge impos ing government to approve what words are allowed and what thoughts may be ex pressed. I am really angry at the caricature of North Carolinian Trump supporters. We do not ob ject to anyone because of what they look like or what their gender is. We object to their be liefs. We do not care if your beliefs are packaged in a green striped box, a polka dotted dog, or a green, blue or black person. We don’t care if a eunuch screeches your beliefs, yet alone a woman. We object to your assertions of what is, was and what should be. The President is a man of solutions. Go to where the problems you complain about are much worse. Solve those problems, then come back witir some earned credibility to tell us what we must do to “solve” what you claim is wrong here. The left’s “characteriza tions” of what he “meant” are transparently politically motivated. We are fed up with being characterized as fascists, Nazi’s, deplorables because we be lieve ours is a worthy nation—the most gen erous country on the planet With people who have literally given all to fight for the freedom of others around the globe. Your words, ideas and views against this nation, offend. Your disrespectful actions against those who serve offends. What you look like—who cares? The left will not silence us by playing the race card. Many are motivated by hatred for this President because he defends the worthi ness of a nation they don’t We take issue with viewpoint not race or gender, and the left knows it The interest or ambition of too many lauded on the left is not to improve this nation by upholding its foundations. It is to destroy those foundations, take this na tion’s wealth to redistribute to the “de serving,” remove our defense and liber ties, make us borderless and part of a global, fascist cesspool. To take us down a peg, a lot of pegs to step on our necks with their boots. They are cheered on by those believing they will share in the stolen treasure. You bet I want you out like I do cancer in a patient Just like you do when you proclaim who “we need” and who we don’t Game on. Holly Audette is a small-business owner active in politi cal and civic causes.
The Chowan Herald (Edenton, N.C.)
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July 24, 2019, edition 1
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