Opinion Page
THE BRUNSWICKCfBEACOM
Edward M. Swcatt and Carolyn H. Sweatt Publishers
Edward M. Sweatt Editor
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TUnberlcy Adams. Cecelia Gore
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Lonnle Sprinkle Assistant Pressman
Phoebe Clemmons and Frances Sweatt Circulation
PAGE 4-A, THURSDAY, JULY 2, 1992
Remove Insulting Passages
From Draft Land Use Plan
It is a shame that a mostly commendable document such as
the draf t Bninswick County land use plan has gotten off to such a
rocky start. The document has managed to alienate and infuriate
our community's manufactured home owners and dwellers as
well as those who make their living by selling T-shirts and fast
C A
A UVU.
It is these iwo passages in the draft plan which are causing
the stir:
? "From an economic development perspective , it is nn un
fortunate truism that the occupants of manufactured homes are
less educated and have lower incomes, on average, than occu
pants of site-built single family homes. The addition of this many
(4,000 of 5,000 Brunswick Count building permits in 1991) mo
bile homes has implications for the county's rax base, education
and quality of the labor force. The figures also reflect on the pet
household disposable income, within a heavily tourist-based, ser
vice economy."
? "77k? subject of tourism as an economic development indus
try was a focal point of discussions during the leadership inter
views, as well as during Planning Board discussions in the early
stages of land use plan preparation. The central issue of discus
sion revolved around the type of tourism that the County wishes
to promote. Fundamentally, it was agreed that the County needs
to encourage high dollar tourism as opposed to 't-shirt and fast
food tourism.'
"Contrary to conventional wisdom, the tourism industry can
offer high paying jobs if the tourism market sought after is of
high caliber. This reqiures restaurants and accommodations of
fering services commantiing a fairly high dollar.
"In turn, the amenities developed (e.g. golf courses, marinas,
oceanfront resorts, equestrian facilities, etc.) must be of a quality
to also draw a high quality tourist. If, on the other hand,
R rumwick County goes the way of cheap t-shirt shops, fast fond
outlets and other lower end attractions, there will only be a per
petuation of the low wages and subsistence level economy
Brunswick County residents have tolerated for decades. "
It should be pointed out that these passages arc part of the
plan's narrative and are not official county policy. As the intro
duction states, "It is important to understand that the narrative
(discussion) is not policy, and does not carry the same degree of
importance as the actual policy statements. The narrative is de
signed to provide background and rationale for the ensuing poli
cy statement."
It is almost inconceivable that the plan passed through more
than one set of hands before ending up in a public meeting con
taining those statements, which are insensitive at best, and in
flammatory at worst. It is hard to believe that someone in the
loop couldn't have recognized the ballistic potential of those few
paragraphs and anticipated the reaction.
The statements reinforce all the ugly stereotypes about "trail
er trash" and "tourist traps," which anyone who's paying atten
tion knows are unfair and untrue. While there is no argument that
the county's business is to maximize its tax base and the way it
spends our money, the plan's authors should have paid more at
tention in the plan to serving and improving the quality of life of
every citizen who pays property and sales taxes, whether that cit
izen lives in a travel trailer or a Taj Mahal.
Now, take a look at the actual policy statements which ac
company the controversial passages of narrative:
? "A variety of residential development types is encouraged
within those areas of Brunswick County identified as appropriate
by the land classification map in concurrence with the provision
of necessary urban services.
m" Brunswick County encourages the development of a
high-quality tourism trade as a primary element of the county's
economic future. Investments in services, facilities and growth
management controls shall be employed to foster a high cal
iber of tourist clientele."
No argument there.
The controversy over those first paragraphs, unfortunately, is
likely to overshadow and divert attention from the plan's strong
points. Among those strengths are a stated commitment to
planned growth, protection of the county's considerable wealth
of natural and cultural resources, and an emphasis on attaining
and maintaining a quality educational system enlisting the help of
parents and the business community.
Such elitist language has no place in even a draft document
so long as thousands of Americans remain homeless, an even
greater number are desperate to get any kind of job, and the aver
age middle-class family stays stretched to the breaking point try
ing to feed itself and pay taxes to governments which have no
business insulting them.
We hope the offensive passages are removed so the furor can
subside. Only then can the plan be thoughtfully and rationally
studied and discussed by the people it is intended to serve.
We couldn't say it better or more succinctly than did a letter
to the editor in last week's Beacon. Regina Britton of Supply
spoke for many when she wrote, "I, for one, enjoy the brilliant
mixture of cultures and activities in Brunswick County. I moved
here for a ampler lifestyle, to get away from the 'mega-buck' so
ciety and to enjoy the luxury of being a full-time mom in my mo
bile home." She sounds like a woman who has her priorities in
the right place.
The authors of the Hraft lanH use nlnn while thev mav have
* * #
their hearts and minds in the right place, certainly put their feet in
their mouths.
Happy Birthday, America! Now Go To Your Room!
Looking toward ihc annua! obser
vance of America's birthday, 1 rec
ognize once again how irritating my
brand of patriotism must be to the
average patriot. My attitude towaiu
this country recks of the fault-find
ing tcacher. the severe parent, who
v"i Id rather take a chiiu to task
ihan praise him.
Actually, my parenting is on the
permissive side, but when it comes
to America, I have su;h high stan
dards and am so demanding! The
ideals that created her seem to me
such noble ones, so desirable, so
pure! The notion of the whole
world's huddled masses seeking ref
uge here, breathing free, enjoying a
orvvl lifo without ft*ar without nri
vation. The notions of representative
government, people participation
and the absence of intrusive tyrants
arc thrilling concepts.
AH of this must have filled the
hearts of Thomas Jefferson, Benja
min Franklin and their buddies with
pndc and hope and deep joy, know
ing ihcy had set in motion a grand
ideal.
But how would they sec us today?
Arc we now, more than 200 years
later, a caste-less, frce-brcathing,
unfettered people? Docs everyone
have enough to cat? Is everyone
treated equally? Is government truly
?? ? ? !? . i ? r?
ui, U) uiiu iui 11 ic ;
Well, I'm already on the soapbox,
so I might as w.;ll confess that I'm
a.; disappointed in us as I think Tom
and Ben would be, and that is not an
unpatriotic view. It presumes a great
deal of love for this United States
and high expectations of her. I
would argue Uial it is patriotism at
?is best to Ux>k critically al your
country, when it should be much
better than it is. It's the way a good
parent evaluates thai child who has
been caught lying, stealing, disobey
ing, letting down the family stan
dards. It's a love that's honor than
sentiment.
Many will resort to sentimentality
on the Fourth of July, choking up
over the sight of the flag that doesn't
protect everyone equally, singing
words that aren't true, glorifying all
our wars as if there were no inno
cent victims, ignoring all ou. flaws
and simplifying citizenship as "liv
ing the American dream."
That's another strange attitude I
i iu ? V/. i i?c <\rncnccn cfrccirn uC cc.t.
monly understood, is very clear to
me and has no appeal. It means get
ting to ihc top of a corjwrate ladder,
owning a house in the suburbs, the
biggest TV. the biggest tank ac
count.
My American dream is that we
will all put aside our sentimentality,
even on this national holiday, and
admit our country's Haws. Wc arc
not a well people. Wc arc sick unto
death of racism, materialism and a
disgusting disregard of the physical
environment that has supported us.
Wc arc self-indulgent, self-seeking
3P'.i jiMihciir ahoMi the. homeless,
the diseased and the whole mass of
poorly cducaicd young Americans.
Is it treason, or at least bad taste,
to bring up these petty problems? I
contend, oncc again, that it is an act
of love. I don't ask us to wallow in .
self-loathing, but to be honest about '
the America that is, so wc can create
the America that can be. Wc CAN
cducatc our children, allow even the
poor to be healthy, live harmonious
ly with oihpr rarrs and cultures and
preserve our natural environment.
But the whole process must begin
with a clear admission of the needs
and the flaws and the wrong direc
tions. What better day to make this
step than on Independence Day! It's
America's birthday.. .the pcrfcct time
to begin growing up.
HOW /^ANYMORE
SiGNAIUKbSDO
r:o++;
ettirsg Away's Fun, Makes Home Look Great
Weekend getaways arc growing
more and more popular for couples,
and if you've ever taken one, you
understand why they can become
addictive.
Weekend getaways work the
same way a beach cottage at Holdcn
or Ocean Isle does for a family that
lives in Shallotte. Out of sight, out
of mind. So what if work is piling
up in the house, in the yard, at the
office. Yoi' . an still get away for a
restorative break.
Don and I recently "'got away" no
farther than Wilmington. If you've
nsver played "tourist" across the riv
er, we highly recommend it
Nothing beats living in Brunswick,
but spending a weekend in a beauti
ful, small arid historic city like
Wilmington can be fun.
Our base for touring was a well
appointed turn-ol-the century
Victorian home in Wilmington's
historical district that had been con
verted into a bed and breakfast, op
erated by a woman who had tried to
get Holden Beach powers to allow
Suson
Usher
her to open a similar establishment
there. They nixed the idea, equating
it with whiat-l-don't-know. Little do
they realize the opportunity that
town is missing through that short
sightedness!
Our fellow residents for this par
ticular weekend of pampering in
cluded another couple celebrating
their wedding anniversary, a pair of
honeymooncrs and an elderly couple
enjoying a Father's Day/Mother's
Day gift from their son.
From this convenient and friendly
point, we cased into what turned out
to be a weekend of boats, boats,
boats! We couldn't have forgotten
the river's influence on this area if
we had chosen to try. Instead, we
gave the river its due.
At the Cape Fear Museum which
is trying hard to expand to a regional
scope, we looked at boats in a
miniature of Wilmington's water
front circa 1860-66. It offered de
tails so precise you could see a boat
in its cradle in one of the boatyards.
Not to mention all sorts of water
craft on the river itself.
We toured the USS North
Carolina Battleship Memorial; if
you haven't been there since the new
visitors' center opened, it is time to
go back, because they have some
wonderful new exhibits. Additional
new areas arc open on board ship as
well.
On the Cape Fear River itself, a
water taxi ferries customers to and
from the battleship memorial dock
for SI per person. We toured the riv
er on North Carolina's "only stern
wheel paddleboat," delighting in the
captain's colorful and informative
narrative and the view of downtown
as seen from the water.
We tried some "paddling" our
selves, over at Creen field Lake,
where both paddleboaLs and canoes
with paddles can be rented cheaply
and the algae problem is under con
trol on at least part of the lake.
On the city waterfront, docked
next 10 the stcrnwhcclcr, was the
U.S.S. Diligence , a Coast Guard cut
ter also open for touring. It has a
name and tradition of service well
known to Brunswick County. The
first Diligence served the Cape Fear
in the late 1700s.
In a modem whimsy offered right
next door, a S5 contribution to a
charily secured a scat on a new jet
boat (we saw one young boy bchinu
the wheel; he was having a blast cut
ting 360-degree turns in this sport
ing boat that simply skims the wa
ter!)
And then, the way home, the
Southport-Fort Fisher Ferry cross
ing, a perennial, soothing favorite.
Getting away is fun, but
Brunswick County's a good place to
come home to.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Another Complaint About Cable TV Service
To the editor:
A rcccnt leuer concerning our
poor cable TV service reassured mc
that I was not alone, but I doubt it
will help to improve the service. In
fact, at the moment I'm writing this,
our cable is not working again. Alas,
the sky is cloudy.
I wanted to point out one thing to
your readers and cable TV sub
scribers that perhaps many have not
noticed before. In the initial con
tract with the Brunswick cable TV
folks there is a clause in very small
print which slates that the provider
is "not responsible" for outages.
Now, I'm no lawyer but I have to
wonder about the basic legality of a
contract which stipulates that one of
the parties is not required to provide
the scrvice being purchased. Still,
like the rest of you, I signed that
contract because it was the only way
to get any type of scrvice, no matter
how erratic Uiat servicc may oc.
Personally, I'm thinking about
dusting off the old rabbit cars, be
cause they work rain or shine.
Besides, like perhaps many of you, I
don' i watch half the idiotic channels
provided by the cable system.
Unfortunately, most of our cable TV
watching is for the premium movie
channels for which we pay top dol
lar. This makes it all the more un
settling when the cable goes out dur
ing an interesting movie for which
I've paid extra. Further, because of
the contract I've signed, I have no
recourse to recoup the extra money
I've paid.
Yep, they've really got us by the
remote controls on this one.
Robert A. Gray
Calabash
Quayle Deserves Better
To the editor
With reference to the Mark A.
Lewis letter in The Brunswick
Bcinuii 01 June 18, this concerns
Vicc President Quayle's June 9 ad
dress to the Southern Bapust Con
vcnlion in Indianapolis.
I disagree with Mr. Lewis.
Mr. Quayle spoke in favor of
morality, traditional values, religion,
patriotism and responsibility of par
ents for conception.
Mr. Quayle spoke against promis
cuity, abortion, homosexual parent
ing and distribution of condoms to
school children.
The speech had no racist or anti
attorney ovenones. The Southern
Baptist Convention was highly re
ceptive to the specch.
As regards the "Murphy Brown"
controversy, il was comforting to
find that some usually very liberal
voices supported Quayie's view
point, people like David Brodcr of
the Washington Post, Eleanor Clift
of Newsweek and Margaret Carlson
of Time. Also Fox TV, which is not
a conservative bastion, surveyed its
viewers, and out of more than
50,000 responses, 59 percent said
that Quayle was right
1 have a hunch that a majority of
Americans are receptive to the
Quayle message and arc ted up with
the results of the 1960s and '70s
"anything goes" mentality.
1 do agree that Mr. Quayle should
not be vice president. He deserves
something better.
Ned H. Scott
Calabash
(More Letters, Following Page)
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