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14 Thursday, November 2, 2000 Concerns cc comments about our coverage? Contact the ombudsman at ombudsmanseunc.edu or call 933-4611. Kelli Boutin EDITORIAL PAGE EDITOR Kim Minugh UNIVERSITY EDfTOR Ginny Sciabbanasi CITY EDITOR Board Editorials Proven Leaders Incumbents Margaret Brown and Moses Carey Jr. lend experience and leadership to the post of Orange County commissioner. As members of the UNC community, immersed so regularly within the small con fines of Chapel Hill, it is easy to forget that Chapel Hill is only a part of a larger com munity - Orange County. But the water we drink, the buses we ride and the housing we seek are all affected at the county level. That is why the position of county com missioner is so important to UNC students. And The Daily Tar Heel endorses incum bents Moses Carey Jr. and Margaret Brown for Orange County commissioner. They are two candidates committed to the well-being of both UNC and Orange County residents. These two candidates possess the experi ence and know-how required if Orange County is to remain prosperous. Under Carey and Brown, the Orange County school system has become a model of suc cessful education across the state. The two candidates also are dedicated to affordable housing for all Orange County residents - including students. Brown is the chairwoman of the Affordable Housing Task Force and is committed to affordable housing for University employees and students. Both Carey and Brown also have expressed interest in the Master Plan. Carey Hackney and Towne Joe Hackney's leadership and William Towne's fiscal moderation make for a powerful team in the N.C. House of Representatives. This year’s race for the N.C. House’s 24th District offers five candidates vying for two seats. The candidates are: John H. Bauman, the Libertarian candidate; Rod Chaney and William Towne, the Republican candidates; and Joe Hackney and Verla C. Insko, the incumbent Democrats. But Hackney’s experience and influence, and Towne’s strong support for the UNC sys tem make them the best choices to fill the two open seats in the General Assembly. The Daily Tar Heel endorses the duo for the N.C. House of Representatives. Hackney is currently serving his 10th con secutive term in the N.C. General Assembly and has a great deal of experience in state government. Hackney, an attorney from Chapel Hill, serves on six committees, including finance, environmental and natur al resources and serves as chairman of the judiciary committee. Perhaps most impor tantly, Hackney serves as speaker pro tem for the House. Joe Hackney has earned a reputation as an elected official who serves his constituency well and continually earns praise from his Readers' Forum Citing Leadership, Openness and Hard Work, Local Residents Enthusiastically Endorse Margaret Brown for Orange County Commissioner TO THE EDITOR: I am writing to state my continued sup port for Margaret Brown, Orange County commissioner for the past four years. She has done an outstanding job of holding on to the vision she had when she was first elected. Margaret’s leadership has been evident in many areas. Since she has been in office, several new schools have either been built or are in progress in Orange County. The new Smith Middle School in Chapel Hill promises to not just fill a need for more space, but to become a cutting-edge facility in many respects. I think her commitment to improving our schools is a very high pri ority, and I want to see her continue her work and dedication in this area. I am also concerned that our county’s high cost of living has kept so many people from living here. As I watch new develop ments go up, the houses get larger, the lots smaller and the prices become way out of reach of most of us. Margaret proposed and helped pass the first-ever Affordable Housing Bond for $l.B million in 1997, which is a crucial first step in allowing for a more diverse population in our communi ty. Her leadership is helping us make affordable housing a priority at a time when the trend has been the opposite. Margaret has been prominent in push ing for cleaner drinking water and increas ing park and recreational spaces. She is also trying to initiate a trail and bike system in Chapel Hill and Carrboro that I strongly support. Matt Dees EDITOR Office Hours Friday 2 p.ra. -3 p.m. Kathleen Hunter STATE St NATIONAL EDITOR T. Nolan Hayes SPORTS EDITOR Will Kimmey SPORTSATURDAY EDITOR has stated that if re-elected, he would like to create a committee, much like the new town gown committee, which would foster better communication between the University and the county relating to the Master Plan. But both candidates should make concert ed efforts to consistently remember all of Orange County in their roles as commis sioners. Because Chapel Hill does play such an important role within the county, county officials run the risk of ignoring rural Orange County residents. That cannot happen. Although Carey and Brown could focus more on rural residents, both candidates are committed to preserving Orange County’s rural environment. For both candidates, the protection of Orange County’s eight natural watersheds - the source of drinking water within Orange County - is one of the most important issues of this campaign. Carey and Brown see efficient land planning and preser vation of Orange County’s wetlands as press ing environmental issues. Moses Carey Jr. and Margaret Brown’s experience, as well as their openness to the concerns of both students and residents, make them the right candidates for Orange County commissioner. peers. He is a strong supporter of the UNC system, as well as the higher education bond. William Towne would be a fine addition to the N.C. House. The 66-year-old Harvard graduate is a moderate Republican who wants to see more North Carolina residents filling the high-tech jobs available in the Triangle and supports smarter state planning and spending rather than more taxes. Towne also favors transportation changes in the Triangle. In particular, he supports the development of an improved, more efficient and expanded busing system for the Triangle, while the viability of a light rail sys tem is tested. With the area in dire need of transportation improvement, Towne could produce some much needed change. Like Hackney, Towne is an adamant sup porter of the UNC system and has spoken out against high tuition for the state’s college students. He also supports the higher educa tion bond, which will bring more than SSOO million to UNC-CH alone. Towne’s moderate fiscal policies, coupled with his interest in the UNC system, merit your vote next Tuesday. Margaret Brown has done a lot in her first term in office. I want her to have the chance to keep pushing these projects ahead and completing a lot of the work that has been started. We are fortunate to have someone so dedicated and clear-sighted in office. Let’s re-elect Margaret Brown on Nov. 7. Mia Prior Carrboro TO THE EDITOR: Margaret Brown has been a thoughtful and hardworking county commissioner. We should re-elect her so she may contin ue to serve our county well. Our county commissioners are faced with many difficult choices about respon sible land use, how to manage the pressures of growth and how to use our tax dollars. I have known Margaret for many years and I know that she is a careful student of the long-term consequences of decisions made today. She has the vision to continue mak ing good choices about long-range plan ning and the environment. For many years, I have been a teacher in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school system and concern for my students always affects my choice on Election Day. I know Margaret to be a strong advocate for qual ity education and other programs for chil dren and young people. As we face the challenges of growth and diversity in our educational systems, I feel that Margaret’s sensitivity and studious attention to com Opinion Z\)t Srnhj ®ar MM Established 1893 • 107 Years of Editorial Freedom www.dailyhuheel.com Jermaine Caldwell FEATURES EDITOR Ashley Atkinson ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Carolyn Haynes COPY DESK EDITOR w i j I li* hbShsbßhs^^ ,* •• .. f • -;-:;- r -Jy J., V j \ • pBBSBSHiiBp The Underbelly of Ticket Scalping The irony of writing this column is that it is basically due the Tuesday before it is published. So on Thursday, two days after Halloween, when this “column” runs, I am writing about stuff that happened a good while ago. I figure it is sort of like reading Time maga zine -1 am the “in-depth” analysis that comes after the fact. So while I would like to write about Halloween, that is not really an option. And while I would like to write about the upcom ing election, namely George W. “I lost money running an oil company in Texas” (where there is lots of oil), “I gave away Sammy Sosa when I owned the Texas Rangers” and “I helped my Daddy lose his election, so how bad a president could I really be?” Bush, I realized none of you care about politics. So I figured I would write about my experi ence with a group that is generally detested around campus: The Clef Hangers. Just kidding, put down the pitchforks folks. I want to talk about ticket scalpers. Back in August, my friends in South Carolina wrote me (yes, we can write) and asked me to get some tickets for the Barenaked Ladies concert. I dutifully obliged. But last week the state of North Carolina stopped allowing South Carolinians without visas across the border (or so my friends say). So my friends did not come. I was left with only one option: write a col umn about standing outside the Smith Center, trying to break even by selling back my tick ets. I found selling my tickets a lot harder a proposition than I had originally thought. I was given the most trouble by the ticket scalpers themselves. From the outset I felt like the minor leaguer called up to the majors. Or perhaps a better metaphor would be that I was like the know-it-all your parents made you invite along to the mall - even though plex problems will continue to serve our students effectively. Cindy Kahler Carrboro TO THE EDITOR: We in Orange County have been lucky to have Margaret Brown as a member of our Board of Commissioners for the last four years. One of the easiest things that we can do to try to preserve our quality of life here is to re-elect her. Margaret has shown tremendous leadership and commitment on the Board. She has worked very effec tively on many of the real challenges that our area faces: protecting the environment, treating neighborhoods fairly, making sure that our public facilities are not overrun by growth and ensuring that local government is accessible to all citizens. She has approached this work in a manner that is sensible, good-natured and fundamentally decent. This manner has enabled her to work very effectively with the public and with other government agencies. I urge you to vote Margaret Brown for Orange County commissioner. Peter C. Gordon Chapel Hill TO THE EDITOR: Four years ago, I supported Margaret Brown for Orange County commissioner, and I support her again today. She has been an excellent commissioner. She Sefton Ipock PHOTOGRAPHY EDITOR Cobi Edelson DESIGN EDITOR Saleem Reshamwala GRAPHICS EDITOR ■ WILLIAM MCKINNEY CROSSWORD PUZZLE you had no intention of ever talking to the guy- In other words, I was a younger me all over again. Whatever you want to say, I was not warm ly received by the more seasoned scalpers. Because I got there early, I had time to watch these guys work. They have lookouts and all seem to work as a team, buying tickets for their friend and vice versa - in general, working closely with each other. At first they offered me S3O for all three of my tickets, which cost me sllO in the first place. I declined the offer. “Perhaps they were trying to bargain me down,” I figured. Later I realized that these guys just didn’t like me all that much. Something else struck me as bizarre about these guys. They had lots of tickets, and I was the only nonscalper out there. They were buy ing up all the tickets from fools like me so they could be sure that they controlled as many tickets as possible. I began to feel less like the kid in the neigh borhood that the other kids were forced to play with and more like the last independent store on the block. But my vanity and pride held strong, and I decided to stay and sell my tickets. What is almost as interesting as the guys that sell these tickets are the guys who try to be real savvy about from whom and for how should be re-elected not only because of her experience, achievements and long ser vice to the people of Orange County, but also because of her even-handed and atten tive disposition. Over the more than 30 years that I have known Margaret, she has been deeply involved in community affairs, always exhibiting a sensitive attitude toward oth ers. That is how she has conducted herself as an elected commissioner. She under stands and respects the contributions that volunteer community agencies make to the people of Orange County. Margaret herself is the consummate volunteer, with lengthy service on many town and county boards and organizations. She believes strongly in giving to the community. Her caring disposition toward people and issues, along with her infections opti mism, maker her an ideal commissioner. Margaret Brown has achieved many of the environmental, social and housing goals that she established when she last ran for election. I have no doubt that she will be as dedicated, resourceful and responsible in her second term as she has been in the past. Jane Humm Chapel Hill TO THE EDITOR: One thing about Mafgaret Brown that has impressed me over our many years of association is that she is a pleasure to work with. That was true when she served on many boards in Orange County, Chapel Cate Doty & Lauren Beal MANAGING EDITORS Josh Williams * ONLINE EDITOR Brian Frederick ombudsman Laura Stoehr SPECIAL ASSIGNMENTS EDITOR much they buy their tickets. These guys would come around like five times, check and recheck my ticket and offer me a price (always below what I paid for them). “What are you stupid?” I thought to myself. “Just give me the amount it says on the ticket. This ain’t eßay. I just want to get my money back and go eat supper.” Finally, this gentleman who I can only describe as my guardian angel, or maybe just Scott Bakula from “Quantum Leap” (alas, I will never know), came along and gave me face value for two of my tickets. With the show starting, I was getting des perate. So when the ticket scalper offered me $3 for my S3O ticket, I came close to giving in. Fortunately though, guardian angel No. 2 came and paid close to face value for my last ticket and I went to eat like a king! The moral of this tale is that these ticket scalpers are really some cunning guys. Those ageless “I need tickets” signs are just the tip of the iceberg. They have business cards they give out when anyone drops the word “basketball tick ets.” And to top that, they basically run a cartel. My economics professor, Dr. James Wilde, can confirm to you that my economics grade is horrible. But I do remember that a cartel is a group that controls supply in order to charge what they like. These scalpers inflate the ticket prices and turn a profit - more or less conning people out of money that they did not have to spend. Maybe these guys aren’t OPEC incarnated, but they sure do make it hard for me to get my supper. William McKinney is a “horrible and pig-headed person." Reach him with questions, comments and more personal insults at wmckinne@email.unc.edu. Hill and Carrboro, and it has been true during her first term as Orange County commissioner. In addition, her record of accomplishment as a commissioner is out standing. Margaret was always a leader and remains one today. When school over crowding resulted from overgrowth, Margaret and I, along with other con cerned citizens, formed Stop Overcrowding Schools (SOS). Through effort and education, we were able to find new funding sources and to highlight the stress that school overcrowd ing causes children. Since her election, Margaret spearhead ed passage of the $47 million school bond in 1997. At the proposed Meadowmont school site, it was Margaret who bargained with the developer to get an additional 10 acres donated to the school system. And it was Margaret who championed energy-efficient school construction, con trolled building costs and schools linked to parks. Margaret thinks in the long-term. She understands the value of planning for growth, not just for schools but across the board for the benefit of the quality of life in Orange County. Margaret’s vision makes her an excellent commissioner. She has my support, and I urge citizens to join me in voting for her. Carolyn Miller Chapel Hill ®tjr Saili} (Ear Hppl F The Daily Tar Heel wel comes reader comments and criticism. Letters to the editor should be no longer than 300 words and must be typed, double-spaced, dated and signed by no more than two people. Students should include their year, major and phone number. Faculty and staff should include their title, department and phone number. The DTH reserves the right to edit letters for space, clarity and vulgarity. Publication is not guaran teed. Bring letters to the DTH office at Suite 104, Carolina Union, mail them to P.O. Box 3257, Chapel Hill, NC 27515 or e-mail forum to: editdesk@unc.edu.
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Nov. 2, 2000, edition 1
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