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Perspectives THE PERQUIMANS WEEKLY, WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 3,2016 5 Raleigh desperately needs nonpartisan think tank R ALEIGH — Attention millionaires and billionaires and anyone else with extra money who wants to spend it in a meaningful way in North Carolina Raleigh desperately needs a nonpartisan, independent think tank to examine impor tant issues from a neutral perspective and bring some level of clarity to debates divid ing this state. This topic comes to mind often, and did so again as the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals recently ruled the General Assem bly’s voter ID legislation unconstitutional. Over the course of two days, I received countless press releases about the ruling — all from either politicians or conserva tive or liberal interest groups. Having seen so many news releases over the years from these same senders, I could have almost written them myself. I didn’t receive a single email from any group that could claim any sort of political neutrality on this issue, and that’s almost al ¬ ways the case. In other words, the voter ID debate — along with many other important discussions going on in the state capital these days—goes on without substantive input from any organization that could hon estly claim political neutrality. Isn’t that the job of the media? Maybe to some extent. But it’s the media’s job to report on issues fair ly, giving both sides an opportunity to make their points. Most media organizations don’t employ trained scientists, economists, tax or education experts either. That’s where a nonpartisan, , independent think tank could Columnist PATRICK GANNON serve an important role in informing our politicians and challenging both sides to make decisions in the best interest of all North Carolina’s residents. tanks, like the conservative John Locke Foundation and the liberal NC Policy Watch, among others. They do a good job examining is sues, but their opinions are widely known and predictable. Our elected representatives and senators in the General As sembly know this, and my guess is they rarely even read the opin ions and research that come from the other side. And they take the research and opinions that come from their side as gospel. This only serves to divide our legislature even more. a This is where a trusted, in ¬ dependent organization could play a vital role in ensuring that legisla tors have as much information as possible before them when making important deci sions about the future of the state. Such an organization would offer its re ¬ search and opinion based on what is best for North Carolina, not what’s best for a certain fraction of society based on politi cal ideology. If nothing more, it would give lawmakers another source to consider in making deci sions, one that isn’t tainted by political pres sures or donors’ money. This wouldn’t be easy. To be successful, such a think tank would have to prove over time that it is truly above the political fray. It would have to be transparent about its do nors. It would have to hire the right people. In the end, we could only hope that this think tank would become a trusted source of reliable information for all legislators, re gardless of political affiliation. We could only hope that Republicans and Democrats would see that their respective sides aren’t always right on the complex is sues facing our state. And act accordingly. Patrick Gannon is the columnist far the Capitol Press Association. ADDRESSES NC SENATE Bill Cool (R) N.C. Senate 300 N. Salisbury Street, Room 525 Raleigh, NC 27603-5925 (919) 715-8293 Bill.Cook@ncleg.net NC HOUSE Bob Steinburg (R) 919-733-0010 NC House of Representatives 300 N. Salisbury St., Room 306 A2 Raleigh, NC 27603 bob.steinburg@ncleg.net US HOUSE Walter B. Jones Jr. (R) 202-225-3415 252-931-1003 2333 Rayburn HOB Washington, DC 20515 cong- jones@mail.house.gov G.K. Butterfield (D) 2305 Rayburn HOB, Washington, DC 20515 202-225-3101 252-237-9816 US SENATE Richard Burr (R) 202-224-3154 or 336-631-5125 217 Russell Senate Office Building Washington, DC 20510 http://burr.senate.gov/public/ Thom Tillis (R) 202-224-6342 G55 Dirksen Senate Office Build- Jog Washington, DC 20510 North Carolina already has partisan think Letters to the Editor Court a blow to discrimination in NC Dear Editor. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit recently invalidated North Carolina’s discriminatory voter restrictions. The court found that our State intentionally restricted the vot ing rights of blacks. Beginning in 2000, our State passed a series of reforms that benefited all voters, particularly black voters. Black voter registration and election turnout increased significantly, and by 2013, had reached near-parity with white registration and turnout rates. In 2013, our State turned back the clock and we lost the first week of early voting, same-day registration, pre-registration for 16 and 17 year olds, and out-of-precinct voting (i.e., voting at the wrong precinct, but in the correct county). The new law also required photo IDs starting this year. Before enacting the law, the legis lature requested racial data on sev eral voting practices. The court de termined that the legislature used the Execution of priest is an abomination Dear Editor On Tuesday, July 26, two Islamic terrorists stonned into a church in the French town of Sairit-Etienne-du-Rou- vray during the celebration of Mass. They made the 85-year-old priest kneel and, after making a speech in Arabic, cut his throat. I take this personally. And perhaps all Americans should. Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray is in Normandy, that part of France where thousands of Americans gave their lives to liberate France from Nazi oc cupation in 1944. Any American who has ever visited the Allied cemeteries in Normandy has felt the special bond between us and this land made sacred racial data to “target African Ameri cans with almost surgical precision.” What did the court mean by that? Well, the racial data requested by the legislature showed that blacks dis proportionately used the first seven days of early voting. The racial data requested by the legislature also showed that blacks disproportionately used same-day registration. The racial data requested by the legislature also showed that blacks disproportionately used pre-registra tion for 16 and 17 year olds. The racial data requested by the legislature also showed that blacks disproportionately voted out-of-pre cinct. Finally, the racial data requested by the legislature showed that blacks disproportionately lack the most com mon kind of photo ID, those issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles. The racial data also showed that blacks tend to use in-person voting, while by the blood of our soldiers. The French of that region have not forgotten. In 1964, two decades af ter D-Day, I happened to be having a mid-afternoon beer with an American friend in Amiens, not far from Saint-Eti enne-du-Rouvray. The bar was empty, except for three old men sitting at the far end of the room. After eying us for a while, one of the men came over to our table and asked, “Are you Ameri can?” When I said yes, the Frenchman held out his hand and said, “I want to thank you for what you did for us.” I was deeply moved by this unsolicited and heart-felt gratitude. Normandy also happens to be the land of my mother’s ancestors who whites disproportionately use mail-in absentee voting. The State claimed that the photo ID requirement was es tablished as a measure to control ex isting fraud. However, the State failed to provide the court with any evidence of in-person voter fraud. And although there was evidence of mail-in absen tee voter fraud, our legislature chose to exempt absentee voting from the photo ID requirement. The court decision prohibits the State from requiring photo IDs in fu ture elections, including the Novem ber 2016 election. It restores a week of early voting and pre-registration for 16 and 17 year olds, and ensures that same-day registration and out-of-pre cinct voting will remain in effect. Thanks to the Fourth Circuit Court for restoring our voting rights and blocking the State from discriminating against the citizens of North Carolina. Nancy Theodore Hertford July 3 fireworks supporters, thanks emigrated to Canada in the 17th cen tury. I share my blood with the people of Normandy. Finally, I am a Catholic. The execu tion of a priest in his sanctuary during the most solemn of Catholic ceremo nies is an unspeakable abomination. Worse, this atrocity was committed in the name of another religion, Islam. If this does not rouse the people of France-and those Muslims who ab hor radical extremism-to excise this growing cancer in their midst, I don’t know what will. Whatever they do, I will take it personally. Claude Milot Hertford Dear Editor, The 2016 Perquimans County Fireworks Show was again a big hit and the best show in the Albemarle region on the Fourth of July holiday weekend. Since the show, I have received calls almost daily thanking the volunteers, financial sup porters, pyrotechnics con tractor and first responders for all they did to make the show happen and another great success. I would like to take a moment to personally echo that thanks and support and also let you know who made financial contribu tions to make the show great in your community: the Perquimans County Farm Bureau Board of Directors, Frank and Con nie Jaklic, IBX Insurance Agency, Bill Sawyer, Miri am (Ray) Haskett, Gregory and Associates, Steve and Sharon S. Lane, Meghan and Salter Shoaf, the Parks ville Ruritan Club, Layden’s Supermarket, Reed Oil Company, the Town of Hertford, American Le gion #362, Michael and Mi ¬ chelle Winslow, Alan and Kathleen Barnes, the Du rants Neck Ruritan Club, Pepsi, Russell Waddell and Nancy Theodore, Charles and Rosanne Blankenship, Martha Borders, Greg and Anne Benton, Apex Clean Energy, Virginia Miller and Don Keith, the American Legion Auxiliary, the Win fall Fire Department, Mary Alice Brinn, Perquimans County, the Town of Win fall, and the Perquimans County Tourism Develop ment Authority. Again, thank you, for making the fireworks pos sible to all those that donat ed, and those that collected those funds. Thank you to those that volunteered to actually put on the show. Thank you Mayor Reid and thank you to the Hertford Fire Department, the Hert ford Police Department, and the Perquimans Coun ty Emergency Services for making sure the show and evening were safe. Brandon Shoaf Perquimans County Fireworks Committee Read more Perquimans news and feature stories online at DailyAdvance.com... At the home page, mouse over the News link and select Perquimans The Perquimans Weekly A PUBLICATION OF COOKE COMMUNICATIONS NORTH CAROLINA, LLC ESTABLISHED 1934 MIKE GOODMAN, Publisher/Editor 111 W. MARKET ST. BEV ALEXANDER, Advertising REPRESENTATIVE HERTFORD, N.C. 27944 252-426-5728 PETER WILLIAMS, News Editor The Perquimans Weekly (USPS 428680) is published each Wednes day by The Daily Advance, 215 S. Water St, Elizabeth City, NC 27909. Subscription rates are $27.00 per year plus sales tax in Perquimans, Chowan, Pasquotank, Camden, Currituck and parts of Gates counties; and $31.50 per year mailed to all other addresses in the continental US. Sales tax is required for delivery to all North Carolina counties at the sales tax rate in that county. Single copy newspapers are 50 cents plus PERQUIMANSWEEKLY@NCWEEKLIES.COM CIRCULATION DELIVERY, CUSTOMER SERVICE, SUBSCRIPTIONS, sales tax where applicable. POSTMASTER - Send address changes to VOLUME 84 NO. 32 CLASSIFIED ADVERTISING: 426-1757 The Perquimans Weekly, 111W Market St, Hertford, NC 27944
The Perquimans Weekly (Hertford, N.C.)
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Aug. 3, 2016, edition 1
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