Newspapers / The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, … / Dec. 13, 1990, edition 1 / Page 4
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Opinion Page THE BRUNSWICK j^BEACON toward M. Sweatt and Carolyn H. Sweat! Publishers Edward M. Swcatt Edttor Susan Usher Nt'ios EUlttor IVuig Kuttcr and Tern* Pope StoJJ Writers Johnny Craig Sports Editor I Earwood Office Manager Carolyn El. Sweatt AdixTtising Director 1 imExrley Adams & Cecelia Gore Adivrtlsing Repn-stritatii'es Tammle (ialloway A 1 Dorothy Hrcnnan Typesetters William Manning Pressman Hrrnda Clemmons Photo Technician I onnie Sprinkle Assistant Pressman l'lu?et?e Clemmons and Frances Sweatt Circulation PAGE 4 A THURSDAY. DECEMBER 13. 1990 Brunswick County On The Road Again? Call us eternal optimists if you will, but there seems to be a ?'isc of forward movement in the air. Both the Brunswick County Board of Commissioners and Brunswick County Board of Education have some tough times ?on A'hich to rebound decisions tainted bv infighting, a reluc mcc to compromise and an unwillingness to respect, if not ?gree with, ideas that differ from their own. I'he ,vtt> squabbling that has occurred in the past reflects - ? Hi major philosophical differences that seem to exist not just niong the so-called leadership of the county and their political parties. but among the people themselves. As a county, a com ? amity we don't seem to have a strong sense of direction. We iivft know where exactly we want to go or how much we're illing to pay to get there. It seems we've been doing just lumgh to get by. But that's not why we elect leaders. We elect leaders be lusc we want and need leadership. We want leaders to listen to ? ideas and concerns and put them in countywide perspective: nake the tough decisions in their collective "wisdom" to set ourse and destination; then lead the way. inspiring us to jump board for the trip maybe even persuading us it was our idea 'i the first place. I or the past several years we've watched these two boards along the road in what looked like quicksand, bogging a lit 0 more with every internal struggle. Their achievements have von clouded further by their mistakes and by the problems '<ie\ ve chosen not to address. This month we've sensed forward movement on both fronts. 1 ite Ixntrd of commissioners hits set out to hire a new county 'Manager. This time they plan to follow standard procedures. In .vent years they've tried to handle personnel decisions their <wn way. with results that were damaging to the county as well is embarrassing. The new school board chairman wants members of that .?roup to show respect for each others' opinions, and to learn to work together to address problems. Cleaning up leftovers from he past, such as the system's financial concerns, should make it ?asier for this board to move ahead in 1991. It could be that Brunswick County is climbing out of the liiagmire and going on the road again?destination to be an ?tounced. Quake Predictor Had His Head In Clouds It was probably the worst earthquake that never happened. I'm talking about the New Madrid Fault earthquake of 1990. Or the Hayward F ault earthquake of 1990. Or the Tokyo earthquake of 1990. Take your choice. None dI these earthquakes had taken shape by the lime this column w;is written. But a lot of people had braced themselves for disaster based on a prediction from one man who had no experience call ing these kinds of things. In case you missed it, this guy .ml there was a 50-50 chance of a major earthquake occurring on <>i about Dec. 3 in one of three ar eas They were the New Madrid f ault in the Mississippi Valley, Hayward Fault near San I laiieisco, and Tokyo. His prediction was based on tidal forces the likes of which hadn't Ken seen in 179 years. He said the earthquake would register at least (y 5 on the Richter scale, which is a pretty intense quake. I followed the earthquake story pretty closely as the day of The Big One came and passed. I was very interested?not because I was afraid of an earthquake - but because I couldn't believe so many people would panic about such a prediction. Hie prediction created a legitimate scare along the New Madrid ' auh, where schools were closed and people left town temporarily to May clear of the mass destruction. Of course, nothing happened. The earth siood still. To me, the whole tiling was unbelievable when you consider the >ource of the prediction?a business consultant and weather-watcher named lben Browning. This man had no formal education in seismology or geology, which i* what >ou should have before you start walking around predicting earthquakes. T his guy was an unknown, but he still managed to get the world's attention. Ihe whole earthquake prediction thing was hard to figure out unul I learned thai this Browning fellow lives in New Mexico. I've never been to New Mexico, unless I count that family vacation to I our Corners National Monument. It's the only place in the United Staler where ,ou can have different sections of your Ixxly in four differ ent states at the same time. It's where New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and C olorado come together. T he monument is nothing more than a slab of cement that marks where the four states meet. The neatest thing about this place were the Indians who sold artifacts and hand-made jewelry out of their shiny new pickup trucks. It was a sight to behold. Anyway, I think you can tell a lot about a slate by its state bird and late flower. North Carolina claims the cardinal and dogwood, which are two pretty gixxi choices. New Mexico, on the other hand, chose the roadrunncr as us stale bird and the yucca as its state flower. 1 think that about says it all But there's more. Did you know 85 percent of New Mexico is over 4,000 foot elevation? That tells me there's a lot of people out there with their heads in the clouds, including this Browning fellow who predicts earthquakes What's Wrong With The Original Route? The con strut l ion ol a Northern Outer l.oop around the eitv of Wilmington will have a tremendous impact on Brunswick County. The entire county will he alfccicd by tin proposed highway, not just the resi dents of the northern end. Hopefuriy, the effects will be pos itivc ones for the continued growth of our county at the sacrifice of a minimum number of homes and businesses that presently stand in its projected pathway. Area beach communities can expect increased tourism and the industrial corridor on the northern end of the county can also expect to grow. We'll know a little more in April when the consulting firm hired to do an Environmental Impact Statement on the project releases what it believes are the three best possible routes for the highway. Those routes will gel further study by Grciner Inc. for another year be fore their final report is released. I'm afraid that fear is starting to win over judgment for some people who fee 1 threatened by the bypass. The bypass will exit traffic heading south to Brunswick County and f r\ff nj 1 10 Wilmington and loop it via a four lane route through Brunswick County to lie in wiih U.S. 17 near Town Creek. Presently. 1-40 ends by Terry Pope t merging wiih U.S. 132 iu>rih of lhc University ol North Carolina at Wilmington. Motorists wishing to continue south into Brunswick County must now wade through an hour's worth of Wilmington's traf fic. Navassa and Lcland officials arc right to be concerned that the high way will disrupt their communities. All highways arc disruptive to some extent. However, an alternative that somehow got railroaded into the minds of the consulting firm last week, was to study why the outer loop can't tie into U.S. 421 north of Wilmington and route traffic through Brunswick County on U.S. 74-76-17. The Brunswick County Planning ....... ...... J MV|'OIUMVm I.* tUj MIIIVII to this route, thank goodness. The amount of traffic already traveling across the Cape Fear River bridge on U.S. 421 is tremendous. The amount of traffic filtering along U.S. 74-76 through the Belvillc/Leland interchanges is al ready at a congested level. That plan appears to be a way of avoiding or delaying the project, which is needed even before the proposed 1996 date on the N.C. Department of Transportation's TIP (Transportation Improvement Plan). One question needs to be asked Irom this entire affair. What's wrong with the original plan, the route that DOT and county officials all agreed on before the Wilmington Bypass Steering Committee started playing politics? It deserves a second, close look once all the land studies are done. That original route would carry the highway on this path: north of Navassa, missing the town and missing the incorporated areas of Leland. through the 2,200-acrc Leland Industrial Park, which it would please county officials to see showcased: through a relatively-un developed area of the Malmo com munity; tying in with U.S. 17 near Bishop, far enough from the Belvillc/Leland interchanges to uvuiu added congestion. lTie alternate route the steering committee came up with is a disas ter. Sonic argue it's a shorter route, thus a money saver. But one must look at how devastating it would be for the towns of Navassa and Lcland and how costly it would be to have to purchase homes and town halls rather than undeveloped acreage. 1 ani a resident of the northern end; my family owns property in the Maco community on N'.C. X7. It appears this area will not lie directly affected by the highway; it's not a threat to displacing my family, which has lived in Maco for more than 30 years. However, I look at the project and think about the future. I must drive those highways with those id iots. Ammunition trucks rumble past my home at all hours of the night, heading for Sunny Point be cause N.C. 87 is a shorter mute than U.S. 17 at Bclvillc. But a short route isn't always the best route. Look at how the city of Wilmington's backward thinking over the years has gotten the town into some serious traffic problems already. Look at how far behind we are in four-laning U.S. 17 through Brunswick County. Look at how far bchinu we arc in getting a bypass around Shallotte. By the year 1996, even if^this northern loop projcct survives, it'll be 10 years too late. --- ?* -?.? LETTERS TO THE EDITOR It's Time To Hear From The Majority On Bridqe To the cdilor: It's amazing what a handful of people can do when the majority sits back and says to their neigh bors: Those few people cannot stop this bridge from being built. Well, folks, everybody knows the facts by this time. The judge made the only decision he could pull out of a hat to sympathize with a hand tul of people that half of them don't live here all year 'round. From what I hear and read, the bridge has to be built for safety, cost going up, inconvenience, etc., and if Sunset Beach cannot control what is built on the island, then again there is something radically wrong. If I were a member of that group and something happened on the is land, 1 don't know if 1 could live with myself. A 25-cent stamp and a short note saying: We want the new Sunset Bridge; that's all you need, date it and sign your name. Send it to Secretary of Transportation Thomas J. Harrelson, P.O. Box 25201, Raleigh, N.C. 27611. We heard from the minority; now let's hear from the majority. This bridge has to be built and Raleigh needs your letters. This continuous waste ol time is ridiculous because this bridge should have been half constructed by this time. Kay Norbruch Landing Drive Calabash Volunteer Departments Need More Support To ihc editor: II was with sorrow and anger 1 read the heading, "Fires Destroy Two Homes; More Daytime Volun teers Needed." Those of us currently participat ing in the Brunswick County Fire and Rescue Association, whether as firefighter or EMT/EMS, are acute ly aware of whai your editorial spoke of. Sadly, though, you have only scratched the surface of a complex set of problems. No easy solutions exist. More volunteers alone will not solve our problem, nor will more money alone solve this dilemma. Once you get new blood in your de partments, they must be properly trained for their, as well as your own, safety. This training must meet a standard set by many different agencies which takes a lot of time and effort. Every year more and more train ing is mandated by federal and state Keepsakes Tell Story Of Love Don and I don'l have room lor a "real" Christmas tree among the plants we tend year round, so we make do wilh our own variation on a theme. Each season we lighi the balled and burlapped tree planted after our first Christmas. It's growing well, demanding more and more lights each year as it gradually returns to its natural, unpruncd shape. Though we'd enjoy having a tall, lighted tree in front of the living room window, Don and I also like tying small red velvet bows on the ficus and one other "tree" whose name I can't remember. Our standard glass balls arc tucked away in the Christmas box; they'll keep until we have room lor a tree that looks, and more ini|x>r tant, smells like a Christmas tree. But there are spec ial ornaments that we'd find a place for even in the most cramped quarters. These orna ments are from people whose love has made a difference in our lives Susan T ^ Usher ^ and those of others. A suneatchcr stocking in stained glass, a gift from Don's Uncle John, hangs in the living room window. The angel, a wedding gift from the Carmichaels, has her own spccial place on the bookcase. From the small branches of the licus dangle the golden apple, red cotton slocking and handpamted geese made by my sister, Jean Barricklow. They're not too far from the blue and white beaded bell from her mother-in-law, Nell Barricklow. The handmade Santa was a gift from (ilenda and Frank Murray, former neighbors in Raleigh. The siraw wrealh came from a friend in Morganton; the cro cheted wreaths and stockings, from Fayc Simmons, a friend from Ash. Crochetcd snow flakes are reminders of my former pastor emeritus in Morganton, and a lifelong friend, Patty Jones, right here in Shallotie. It seems just about every holiday decoration in our home is a gift from someone?friend, family member or thoughtful stranger, including die table linens and candlesticks we use during the season. As each piece comes out of us packing box a flood of memories pours out as well, recalling the faces, smells and sounds of Chrisimases past. Christmas is a unie to celebrate God's gift of Christ to the world. But, as the keepsakes on our holiday Ileus help Don and I remember, it's also a lime to celebrate the gilts of loving and being loved that were and arc part of Christ's example to us. laws thai lake more time and mon ey. We arc all struggling to keep current in the field while trying to lead normal lives with jobs, families and other day-to-day activities. But yes, we do need more dedi cated people. We also desperately need more and better financing. The normal operating cost of running such an organization is high and climbing steadily. A new truck will start al S85,(XX), unequipped. Add to this another SI 5,(XX) to S25,(XX) U) meet current outfitting standards. You also may want to purchase protective clothing at SWX) to S9(X) per set, breathing apparatus S1,2(X) to SI,600 each, ladders, axes, noz zles, high volume fans, generators, ropes, lighting, etc. All of this equipment now needs a home, which won't be free, either. Nor will the gas to heat it, the elec tricity to power and light it. Plus, please remember, those little things like gasoline, tires, oil. etc. Are your eyes open yet? We need help. More people, more instructors available, more tunding, more do nations, newer, safer equipment. And finally, folks, the bad news, national studies show u all getting worse. II we don't gel support from John Q. Public, and federal and state governments soon, we will all suffer, and some will needlessly die. Michael R. Smith S ha I lode Point Volunteer l ire Department (More l.ellers Next Page)
The Brunswick Beacon (Shallotte, N.C.)
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Dec. 13, 1990, edition 1
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