January 17, 2018
THE NEWS-JOURNAL
Raeford, N.C
Viewpoints
Reached the five-year point
It is hard to believe, but I
have now been writing this
column for five years. I would
like to thank the News Journal
for giving me the opportunity
to speak to its readers through
these words. I was inspired
to do this by a feature known
as The Puppy Creek Philoso
pher, which ran in this paper
when I was still in school in
Hoke County. I was further
inspired by my great
friend Raz Autry’s
column, “A View
from the Country,”
which ran for many
years. Having never
written anything for
publication, this was
areal leap of faith. I
was trained in engi
neering, not writing,
which meant I was
too ignorant to know
what I was getting
into. I suppose I had
nothing to lose, but
the stakes felt higher
when I agreed to
write something ev
ery week. Failure
is not one of my
favorite things, and
while the merits of my writing
are highly debatable, I have
managed to avoid being told
that my writing was no longer
wanted.
If I have any qualifications
for doing this, they are that I
am a native of Hoke County,
have lived here most of my
life, know how to string a few
words together in complete
sentences and am outspoken
and confident enough in
my own beliefs to put these
thoughts out for public con
sumption. I am also interested
in everything, and I try to
observe the world around
me beyond the superficial.
Perhaps most of all, Bubba
Dickson, the owner of the
paper has been a friend of
mine since 1960!
After the passing of Raz
Autry, I missed his column,
which had become a weekly
point of contact with him,
if only indirectly. I looked
Frog Holler
Philosopher
Ron Huff
forward to reading his words
and jokes and gaining his
insights into local politics
and other goings on. I hadn’t
met his grandchildren, but I
ANNIVERSARY
felt I knew them through his
writing. I never made it to his
ice cream stand, but I knew
it was a special place that I
surely would have enjoyed.
It was this loss that was the
birth of the idea behind this
writing. I don’t know exactly
how the conversation went
between publisher Ken Mac
Donald, Bubba and myself,
but I agreed to give this a try.
I confess that the idea of
writing a column appealed
to my ego and my belief
that we should produce, and
if possible, document our
productions in a meaningful
way. This has resulted in the
creation of these small slices
of what I do, think and believe.
I have a similar view of my
music, and while I neither
seek nor receive much public
appreciation of it, I document
it with recorded product that
means a lot to me, and which
presents a view of who I am
to anyone who might like to
know. The columns I have
written give a pretty clear
picture of who I am, like it
or not.
I calculated that between
my local knowledge and his
tory, my life at Frog Holler, my
musical exploits, our travels
and my views on events and
politics that I could find enough
things to write about. This was
hard at first, even
with a past lifetime
to draw upon, but
then a curious thing
happened. I began
to view the world
in a slightly differ
ent way because of
my commitment to
write. I also began
to search for subjects
rather than just draw
from everyday expe
riences. This caused
me to focus more
clearly on things
around me. I began to
try to be the eyes and
ears of the readers. I
also began to be more
critical of my own
views, knowing that
many readers would disagree
with my take on things. I never
want to write anything that I
cannot debate using credible
evidence or fact, and try to
consider the beliefs of others
in my writings.
The fun parts of this on
going assignment are the
comments that I receive from
readers. Most seem to like
the columns, leading me to
believe that many just prefer
to remain silent. Some have
stated that the political com
ments just add to the overload.
A few have chastised me. I
have tried to limit the politics
but can’t be totally silent. I
constantly tiptoe between pri
vacy and over-exposure. The
best reward is when someone
comments on our life at Frog
Holler as if they live next door.
Thanks for reading!
More later.
Editor: And here’s to an
other five!
New tactics aren’t new at all
By Thomas Mills
Politics N.C.
In the wake of the Brown v.
the Board of Education decision
in 1954 that ruled segregated
schools are unconstitutional.
Southern states started looking
for ways around the decision. In
North Carolina, our government
came up with the Pearsall Plan.
The plan would allow students
to be exempt from attending
court-ordered integrated public
schools and would allow for
tuition vouchers for students in
areas with integrated schools to
attend private ones.
The plan was passed by the
General Assembly with only
two dissenting votes and then
put on the ballot as a constitu
tional amendment that passed
with 80 percent support. Of
course, very few African-Amer
icans had the right to vote. The
plan was eventually found un
constitutional but succeeded in
keeping North Carolina schools
segregated for another 15 years
after the Brown decision.
Today, the GOP is revisiting
the principles of the Pearsall
Plan under the guise of school
choice. Charter schools and
vouchers allow students to opt
out of public schools, taking
with them resources and support
that help the most vulnerable
students. A study from Duke
shows the growth of charters
takes money from traditional
schools, leaving them strapped
to provide services to students.
The GOP took office com
plaining about our failing public
schools. Their solution was to
cut per pupil spending, lift the
cap on charters and introduce
a voucher program. The result
has been the beginning of a
re-segregation of our schools.
Students in charter schools are
more affluent and more white.
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FRANK, HERE,
PRATED FOR. MORE SNOW.
We Get Letters
Noise from Fort Bragg is too an issue
To the Editor:
Eellow citizens and members
of the Democrat Party (you know
which one I am referring to) it has
been ages since I posted to “Let
ters to the Editor” as I sit on the
Hoke County Board of Elections
where I pledge to serve the citizens
of Hoke County and the State of
North Carolina. January’s 10th
2018 Journal broke the camel’s
back where I have to clear the
issues as seen.
In late August and early Octo
ber of 2017 my wife and I under
took a vehicle journey in prepa
ration for our upcoming drive
from Calais, France to Moscow,
Russia for the Soccer World Cup
in 2018, where one of my favorite
teams is playing, making it worth
the hassle of traveling beyond
Raeford. The distance is around
1,687 miles—about 28 hours of
driving in comparison from Ra
eford to San Diego, California,
a mere 2,500 miles at 36 hours.
So off I went to the intersection
of Club Pond, Fayetteville Road,
and Skibo Road to tune up my
driving skills and reaction time
for the trip. While travelling I
had time to reflect on things as I
transverse across the vast culture
of the political boundaries on my
journey where English, Erench,
Dutch, German and Spanish,
with a sprinkle of other cultures,
intermix, providing the magic of
one’s identity. Notice I did not
say “race” as Hitler did and lost.
Anyway, the Journal—relating
the noise of Et Bragg and its effect
on the surrounding communi
ties—caused a flashback to sev
eral years ago on this issue as the
presenttwo sitting commissioners
up for election 2018 stated there
were no complaints from Hoke’s
citizens. People, that very same
night on the six o’clock news a
Hoke citizen was interviewed by
the local news station on this very
issue, and eventually the Journal.
As I was speaking to the commis
sioners on another topic I brought
this to their attention. Need I say
more, and it will be forthcoming!
John Harry
Shannon
Has seen miracle, but board is failing children
Now, the GOP wants to
enforce an unfunded mandate
on public schools in the form
of lowering class size with
out providing the money for
the change. It’s a pattern of
continuing to put pressure on
public schools and then ac
cusing them of being broken
when they struggle to meet the
needs of students. As students
flee underfunded schools, tradi
tional schools will increasingly
be left with children from less
privileged families.
Children have different
needs and a one-size-fits-all
public school system can leave a
lot of children without the sup
port they need. However, we can
fix that problem without segre
gating our schools by race and
class. We certainly don’t need
a modern day Pearsall Plan.
Thomas Mills is the founder
and publisher of PoliticsNC.
com.
To the Editor:
Since I was not permitted to
speak at the last Board of Educa
tion meeting due to meeting regu
lations, I am using other sources
to voice my opinion.
I want to publicly state what
an exceptional personal care as
sistant Karen McLean has been for
my daughter. She is the ultimate
example of a dedicated worker
who is committed to the success
of the student. It is difficult for
children with special needs to
adapt to a person, environment,
and routine. Since Day 1, Ms.
McLean has been the defining
factor for my daughter’s incred
ible speed of progress this past
year. It has been her hands over
my daughter’s, her eyes helping
my daughter see things, and most
importantly her voice speaking
with and for my daughter—a
nonverbal child.
Since this is my daughter, I am
not breaking any HIPPA rules. I
can state that she is a child with
Cri du Chat syndrome, a rare
genetic syndrome that occurs 1
in every 50,000 births. To see
her go from not responding to
questions, not knowing if she
was hungry or thirsty, no potty
training skills to everything she
has learned from Ms. McLean is
no more than a miracle from God
through the angelic dedication of
Ms. McLean.
Recently, however, the Board
of Education has made certain de
cisions that impact my daughter.
After various attempts, no one
from the board has responded to
my emails and concerns. I wanted
to express how disappointed I
am and how I feel the Excep
tional Children’s department
has failed my daughter and me
as her mother in her emotional
and educational path. If they are
truly looking at the success of
ALL students (specifically the
disabled children) more thought
and consideration should be
taken in addressing their special
needs (physical, educational, and
emotional).
Barbara Mena-Pena
Raeford
Paity puts forth viable candidate
To the Editor:
Earlier this week the Hoke
County Elections Director noti
fied both party chairs of the sta
tus of the congressional district
court case. As it has been widely
reported in the national news
media, a three-federal-judge panel
unanimously ruled that in 2016
the North Carolina Legislature
gerrymandered the congressio
nal districts to favor Republican
candidates. The court furtherruled
that North Carolina’s congres
sional districts unconstitutionally
disadvantaged certain voter on the
basis of their political affiliation.
While we Democrats applaud
the court’s ruling, we are eagerly
awaiting the final determination
and resolution of this court case.
It is going to be interesting, as we
move further into the 2018 elec
tion cycle. As you know, Hoke
County was redistricted from
the seventh congressional district
back into the eighth congressional
district. Republican incumbent,
Richard Hudson currently serves
in that capacity. Well, we have
some good news right now. I
say, right now, because the 8th
Congressional District leader
ship has recruited a very viable
Democratic candidate in the per
son of local businessman, Frank
McNeill. However, it is unknown
how the newly redrawn district
lines will affect the party ’ s recruit
ment effort. The North Carolina
General Assembly is supposed to
have new district map drawn by
January 24, 2018.
Frank McNeill is the owner
of the McNeill Oil and Propane
Company here in Raeford. He
lives in Moore County and is
the former mayor of Aberdeen.
Frank’s candidacy is attractive
enough to garner him national
attention. He is going to give
Republican Richard Hudson a
run for his money.
Currently as a member of the
8th Congressional District, the
Hoke County Democratic Party
will continue planning for a suc
cessful elections cycle for all
democratic candidates. To that
end, we will continue registering
citizens and establishing related
auxiliaries. Our senior Demo
crats, young Democrats, Hispanic
Democrats and the Democratic
women will be calling, knocking
on doors and having events until
next November. All politics are
local and every vote count. Once
again, the call for UNITY is a
national initiative for Democrats
and we are going to do our part
here in Hoke County.
James A. Davis, Chairman
Hoke County Democratic Party
Raeford
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