FORUM
McCrory
tries and fails to put
a positive spin on
2015
Rob Recently,
I Schofield Gov Pat
McCrory
issued video
Guest statement in
Columnist which he
proffered a
? scattershot
array of claims about where the state
stands at the start of 2016 and the perform
ance of his administration.
You can go to
http://governor.nc.gov/press-release/gov
ernor-mccrory-reflects-2015 to watch it.
As usual, ~the gist of Governor
McCrory's pitch was that North Carolina
is in the midst of a rousing economic
"comeback" that's been spurred by his
administration's policies.
According to the governor, the state is
overflowing with new jobs and is one of
the top performing states in the nationfor
putting people to work.
A statement that accompanied his
video claimed that North Carolina has
"added over 230,000 private sector jobs,"
"paid off $2.8 billion federal debt," "led
the drive for the $2 billion Connect NC
bond referendum to invest in universities,
community colleges, parks, National
Guard facilities, and water and sewer
infrastructure" and "modernized the tax
code to put more dollars in the paychecks
of North Carolinians, spur job creation and
to save families and business owners $4.4
billion over the first five years of tax
reform."
Unfortunately, these cherry-picked fac
toids tell only a small and misleading por
tion of the real story. The truth of the mat
ter is that while North Carolina certainly
has participated in the national economic
recovery, things are anything but rosy for a
huge swath of the population.
As N.C. Budget and Tax Center econo
mist Patrick McHugh pointed out recently,
if one counts all of the people who have
left the labor market over the last several
years because there are not enough jobs to
go around, unemployment in North
Carolina is likely still north of 10 percent.
What's more, as McHugh also notes,
McCrory's claim that North Carolina has
secured its supposedly lofty position by
aggressively slashing taxes and public
spending is similarly off-base. As he notes,
"states like California and Massachusetts
that focus more on investing than cutting
have seen stronger recoveries than North
Carolina or our neighbors to the south."
And while placing some kind of a bond
package to fund state infrastructure before
voters this year is probably a good idea,
McCrory's claims about paying off "$2.8
billion in federal debt" and putting more
money in the paychecks of average people
by cutting taxes are both wildly off-base.
The debt payoff was, of course, accom
plished by imposing what were likely the
largest and most devastating cuts to unem
ployment insurance benefits and eligibility
in modern American history. In other
words, McCrory is claiming credit for
inflicting unprecedented pain on the
incomes of hundreds of thousands of
struggling North Carolinians and the busi
nesses (grocery stores, gas stations etc.)
that they would have patronized with more
cash in their pockets.
Meanwhile, the tax cut claims are sim
ilarly outrageous. As has been explained
by multiple experts in recent months, the
vast majority of the billions in tax cuts
enacted by state leaders in recent years
will inure to the benefit of wealthy individ
uals and profitable corporations.
Despite the governor's cheery attempts
at spin, the plain and unavoidable truth is
that state leaders did precious little in 2015
(or 2011,' 12,' 13 or' 14, for that matter) to
improve the lives of average North
Carolinians.
The governor claims that education
spending is up, but one need look no fur
ther than the stories of thousands upon
thousands of North Carolina public school
teachers working multiple jobs in an effort
to make ends meet in light of their abysmal
salaries to see that this is not the case.
In a similar vein, compare McCrory's
claims of pride in the state's environmental
protection work (a statement back-dropped
in the video by images of beautiful natural
scenes) with the long list of destructive
ucmocnactownoi>i?|
acts that the state has actually taken in
recent years to dismantle environmental
protection efforts.
In other words, try as he will to make
lemonade out of the lemons his adminis
tration and the General Assembly have
churned out, there's simply no getting past
the fact that North Carolina's overall
health and well-being have been on a
downward trend for several years - a drift
greatly exacerbated in 2015.
At a point in our history during which
we could well be leading the rest of the
Southeast, and indeed the nation, on a path
toward sustainable prosperity, North
Carolina is, on the whole, a drabber, shab
bier and more divided state that is racing to
repeal much of the progress of the 20th
century.
And sadly, at this point, the prospects
for 2016 remain similarly grim.
Rob Schofield, director of research at
N.C. Policy Watch, has three decades of
experience as a lawyer, lobbyist, writer,
commentator and trainer. At N.C. Policy
Watch, Rob writes and edits frequent opin
ion pieces and blog posts, speaks to vari
ous civic groups, appears regularly on TV
and radio and helps build and develop
movements for change. Contact him at
rob@ncpolicywatch.com or 919-861
2065.
Keep the faith for African-American males
James B.
Ewers Jr.
Guest
Columnist
The- year 2015 was a
challenging year for
African-American males.
We were shot, killed and
seriously injured at record
rates according to some
reports.
There were national
cases which caught our
attention and made head
line news. The relationship
between black men and the
police has soured to a point
where we must be careful
and cautious about our
every move. Many
African-American men
like me have often said that
when we leave home in the
morning, there is no guar
antee that we will return
home in the evening.
The Black Lives Matter
Movement has created
such a stir that presidential
hopefuls like Bernie
Sanders are talking about it
and making it a part of their
campaign. Other candi
dates debunk the wisdom
of the movement and
attach no importance to it.
If you live in a major
urban area, you see the
murder rate among
African-American males
spiraling out of control.
While an argument can be
made about strained rela
tionships between law
enforcement and black
men, the overwhelming
majority of these murders
happen because of us.
We as black men are
killing and maiming other
black men. This is a fact
that is painful yet indis
putable; however this
black-on-black crime epi-,
demic seemingly does not
get our full attention.
Where is our outrage as
black people when black
children bring guns to
school in their book bags?
Why is there not equal dis
gust when rival black
gangs indiscriminately
shoot into unsuspecting
crowds of innocent people?
As I read newspaper
stories and Internet
accounts about these sense
less acts of violence, I
often wonder if we as black
people have simply
become immune to vio
lence.
Have we reached a low
point in our culture where
we now try to justify black
men shooting each other?
Yet when a police officer
shoots a black man, some
of us are the first to march
and scream and holler.
Yes, it is patently
wrong for a police officer
to shoot an unsuspecting
black teenager or to place a
chokehold on a black man
that results in his death.
Well, 2016 is officially
here and as black people,
we must stop this violence
upon ourselves.
Adam Clayton Powell
Jr., a black Congressman
from New York many years
ago used as his signature
expression, "Keep the
faith, baby." So it is that
we must keep the faith in
2016.
Let us keep the faith
that black parents can
recommit themselves to
being parents to their chil
dren and not their friends.
Let us keep the .faith in
trying to help young black
men find their way in life.
It is my opinion that being
black, male and being
between the ages of 18-30
bring. on unwanted chal
lenges.
This age group, I have
observed, has a certain
swagger. Yet too many in
this age range have the
wrong type of swagger.
They have the swagger
of not listening to good old
school advice. They have
the swagger of not having a
job. They have the swagger
of thinking that using vio
lence to solve disputes and
problems is the only
answer.
Let those of us who
know the swagger of suc
cess help these young
brothers to change their
social paradigm.
Let us show them
through our volunteerism
and taking care of our fam
ilies that we have the swag
ger of social responsibility.
Let us show them that get
ting an education, going
info the military or getting
a job with training will help
them with the swagger of
taking charge of their lives.
Let us be good listeners
and give them support as
they develop their swagger
of self-confidence.
As this New Year
begins, we must come to
the defense and save our
black children. As Marvin
Gaye sang many years ago,
"We must save the babies."
We must help them to
tak6 school more seriously.
We must teach them to
obey school rules so that
teachers can impart knowl
edge and wisdom. The old
axiom, children represent
our future, is as true today
as it was in my day.
Schools can't be places
where children talk back to
teachers and see that there
are no consequences for
their actions.
As parents and grand
parents we cannot send
unruly and disrespectful
children to school.
As black men and
women, we must make a
difference in the lives of
these young black boys.
If you are white, you
too can make a difference
in the lives of these young
people. Reach out and they
will reach back - caring not
color will win them over.
Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. said, "Everybody can be
great because anybody can
serve. You don't have to
have a college degree to
serve. You don't have to
make your subject and verb
agree to serve. You only
need a heart full of grace. A
soul generated by love."
Keep the faith.
James B. Ewers Jr.
EdD. is a former tennis
champion at Atkins High
School in Winston-Salem
and played college tennis
at Johnson C Smith
University where he was
all-conference for four
years. He is the President
Emeritus of The Teen
Mentoring Committee of
Ohio and a retired college
administrator. He can be
reached at
ewers jr56@yahoo .com
U.S. must lead climate
efforts by pricing carbon
... After
Mark decades of
Reynolds contentious
J and often acn
monious
Guest negotiations,
Columnist the nations of
the world
have come
together with an agreement that places our
civilization on a path toward avoiding the
worst effects of climate change.
The Paris accord is one of those rare
moments when every nation acknowl
edges that, for the good of all, we must act
as one.
"It was a wonderful surprise that after
the incredible disappointment of
Copenhagen, these 195 countries could
come to an agreement more ambitious
than anyone imagined," said Jim Yong
Kim, the World Bank president.-'This
never happens."
?* ?
The ambition Kim refers to is the goal
of not only staying under 2 degrees
Celsius [35.6 degrees Fahrenheit] of
warming since the Industrial Revolution,
but working toward limiting warming to
1.5 degrees Celsius [34.7 degrees
Fahrenheit]. The lower target is viewed as
essential for the survival of low-lying
island nations already disappearing from
sea-level rise and for avoiding some of the
worst consequences of climate change -
worsening storms, food shortages, mass
migrations.
President Obama was not exaggerating
when he hailed the Paris agreement as "a
turning point for the world," saying that it
"establishes the enduring framework the
world needs to solve the climate crisis."
Leadership from the United States is
needed to marshal global efforts against
carbon pollution. Right now, unfortunate
ly, that leadership is less than inspiring.
Forced by a recalcitrant Congress to
ti^ce matters into his own hands, Presiderjt
Obama initiated the Clean Power Plan,
which uses Environmental Protection
Agency regulations to reduce carbon diox
ide emissions at power plants. The EPA
rules have met with stiff opposition from
congressional Republicans. But instead of
just saying "nov to the Clean Power Plan,
"Instead of just saying 'no* to
the Clean Power Plan,
Republicans could offer a mar
ket-based alternative that would
eliminate the need for
EPA regulations."
Republicans could offer a market-based
alternative that would eliminate the need
for EPA regulations. By placing a fee on
carbon and returning the revenue to
American households, we can incentivize
a clean-energy economy without increas
ing the size of government. Meanwhile,
applying border tariffs to imports from
nations that lack an equivalent price on
carbon will protect American businesses
and provide the incentive for all nations to
establish a price on carbon.
A study released last year from
Regional Economic Models Inc. (REMI),
confirms that this solution, known*as
Carbon Fee and Dividend, would achieve
the necessary reductions in greenhouse gas
emissions while also benefitting the econ
omy. REMI analyzed a fee on fossil fuels,
starting at $10 per ton of C02 [carbon
dioxide] and rising $10 per ton annually.
After 20 years, C02 emissions would fall
50 percent and 2.8 million jobs would be
added, primarily because of the stimulus
of recycling the carbon fee revenue back
into the economy.
Those who scoff at the notion of
Republicans considering legislation to
price carbon may have missed a couple of
recent developments:
North Dakota Republican
Congressman Kevin Cramer recently
floated the idea of swapping out EPA cli
mate regulations with a carbon tax.
Twelve House Republicans have spon
sored a resolution acknowledging the
threat of climate change and calling upon
Congress to work on solutions.
Leadership from the U.S. in the form
of a market-based climate solution can
ensure that the promises of Paris are kept.
Mark Reynolds is executive director oj
Citizens' tlimate Lobby. Citizens' Climate
Lobby is a nonprofit, non-partisan, grass
roots advocacy organization focused on
national policies to address climate
change. ^