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Page 4A - THE KINGS MOUNTAIN HERALD -Thursday, June €, 1896 Opinions THOM GOOLSBY ® Syndicated Columnist No good argument exists for state school bond issue Opposition to a recent proposal for a $1 billion plus bond issue to build schools across the state has caused division in the Republican Party. Vernon Robinson, candidate for State School Superintendent, referred to the proposed bond referendum as "a rip-off of voters and taxpayers." Robinson decries the proposed bond issue as "a power-grab from the voters at the local level." He and other critics claim that any so-called "school building crisis" is being inflated by an attempt to gold-plate cur- rent construction standards that make older, but well functioning schools obsolete. Sen. Hamilton Horton (R-Forsyth) joined Robinson and Steve Arnold, Republican candidate for Lt. Governor, at a recent press conference where the trip blasted the $1 billion plus bond proposal. Sen. Horton accused the state of abandoning "fine, even elegant, schools." He claimed that a cruel fraud was being imposed on taxpayers and the local school boards by state laws and regulation s that strip local systems of any freedom to design efficient, low-cost school buildings. Other Republicans didn't jump on the band wagon. House Majority Leader Leo Daughtry (R-Johnston) and Rep. Fern Shubert (R-Union), both members of a bipartisan panel investigating school building needs, claim that there is a real need for state-funded public school construction. They support a plan that would al- low taxpayers to approve a bond referendum wherein the state would borrow $950 million for new building construction. Additional moneys would be set aside out of any budget surpluses. A Democrat plan calls for borrowing almost $2 billion. In fairness to Robinson, he doesn't simply complain about more spending - he raises some very real ques- tions and possible solutions to simply throwing more money to the education establishment. He suggests calculating the positive impact that tuition tax credits - or vouchers would have in reducing the overcrowding in public schools and the need for additional facilities. He calls for reforms in so-called "gold-plating" of school building construction requirements and wants to rewrite the regulations that prematurely rule older buildings "obsolete." Robinson wisely points out that private sector leas- ing and buy back approaches to school construction can deliver quality buildings faster and at a much low- er cost to local school districts than complicated and slow moving taxpayer-financed bonds. Further, leasing and buy back approaches give school districts added flexibility to deal with sharp increases or decreases in student enrollment. | Why must we continue to do things "the way we've always done them?" Constructing more and more ex- pensive, traditional public school buildings will not begin to solve our crisis in education. Throwing more and more money at our public school debacle seems to accelerate its demise. The patronage and pork barrel aspects of the pro- posed state bond referendum may be the real driving force behind the demand for more and more of our money. We continue to see very little, if any return for the billions of dollars we lay out every year in a vain attempt to have our children educated. Is it really worth giving our kids a bright and shiny new building when we continue to demand sixth grade skills for a high school diploma? Our crisis in education is not about buildings, equipment or facilities. It's about a system that focuses on all these things to the exclusion of teaching Johnny to read, write, do his arithmetic or much less how to think. An excellent graduation To the editor: Each year the Senior Class always has been special to me. The Class of 1996 is no exception. I was proud to have been a part of their graduation exercises on Friday, May 31. All of them helped to make this a ceremony that they can look upon with pride. As they left the high school building to begin their march, I could not help but notice how distinguished, mature, and responsible they all were. Once they were seated and the program began, it was obvious that the audience had respect for them. Their class has set a precedent. Their actions, the manner in which they conducted themselves, and their goal to make this graduation a dignified ceremony were obvious. They, their parents, relatives, and friends, all need to be commended. I thank them for their help in making this occasion one to be remembered as excellent. Jaquitha R. Reid Established 1889 Published Thursday at East King Street at Canterbury Road, Kings Mountain, North Carolina 28086, USPS 931-040, by Republic Newspapers, Inc.-2nd Class postage paid in Kings Mountain DeaniRIidings ... J... 4. iii ai sal Publisher Darrell Aust... oti d Operations Manager AION R. GOSS aici nis Reirel Marketing Director Gary SIBWaIL 0.6 nin hl aa baad Editor Elizabeth SteWart.........vt dha ns News Editor Shirley Austin ......c..cccounnnee. Advertising Representative Mary Frances Etters ............ Advertising Representative Sarah Griffin....ot iad asain, Business Manager Debbie Welsh Production Manager JUBE LONE rin i aide Graphic Artist SUBSCRIPTION RATES: In Gaston & Cleveland Counties: 1 Year $17.00; 6 Months $10.00. Other NC Counties: 1 Year$19.00; 6 Months $11.00. Outside NC: 1 Year $22.00; 6 Months $12.50. (All Prices Add 6% NC State Sales Tax) REPUBLIC Jp NEWSPAPERS, INC. Member North Carolina Press Association Postmaster Send Address Changes to: Kings Mountain Herald: P.O. Box 769, Kings Mountain, NC 28086 Back issues, one month or older, when available, are 70¢ per copy. BC ON | Cartoonitorial God breaks down walls that divide Have you ever been party to a conversation which made no sense whatsoever? Have you ever felt like the people around you were speaking a foreign language, when in fact it was good ol' English passing their lips? For instance, try out for size this trivia question: If you were to overhear one person say to another, "After the diasopam, we will tritrate your sodium pentothol," would they be speaking of A) a new blend of transmis- sion fluid? B) medication pertinent to anesthesia? or, C) nicknames along your family tree? (Correct answer: B, unless for you it just so happens to be B and C). Furthermore, consider these juicy samples from a recent article in the highly respected and prestigious journal "Social Text." In quantum gravity...the space-time manifold ceases to exist as an objective physical reality. Geometry becomes relational and contextual; and the foundational conceptual categories of prior sci- ence...become problematized and relativized. The article in question was entitled, "Transgressing the Boundaries: Toward a Transformative Hermeneutics of Quantum Gravity," and was written by a professor named Alan Sokol of New York University. The beautiful part of it all, though, was that on the same day that "Transgressing the Boundaries" was published, Professor Sokol published another arti- cle in another journal to tell us (and the editors of "Social Text") that the whole thing was one gigantic, hoax! The entire article was a collection of utter non- sense shaped into something which sounded intelligent! but was not. And much to the disgust of the serious- Our View REFLECTIONS on Religion and Life ® Rev. Dick Newsome Pastor First Presbyterian Church minded editors of "Social Text," Alan Sokol chuckled down deep until he thought he would cry. In reading of this bizarre joke, however, I realized that we are often prone to do the same thing in the ways we relate to God and the ways we express our re- lationship to others. From congregation to congrega- tion, denomination to denomination, religion to reli- gion, we are likely to develop a set of buzzwords, stock phrases, language, and in fact, an entire culture - to help justify our own way. Of course, it makes no sense to others. But it serves to draw us closer to those who "speak our language” and to keep others who do not at a distance. How marvelous it is, therefore, that from time to time, God takes the initiative to step in among us and break down the walls which divide, to loosen suspi- cion, to show each of us that we are not in the sole possession of truth, and to instill in us a helpful dose of amily And when that happens, much like the 800 Professor Sokol, we can chuckle down deep at the very goodness of God. Speak out on budget matters "If it works, don't change it" say some people op- posed to privatizing city sanitation services which City Council has had on the back burner for some time. If you don't want garbage pickup at your house re- duced from two times to once a week it's time to speak But there are pros and cons to both sides of the is- sue. : Kings Mountain is apparently one of few cities that offers twice a week garbage pickup. The City Council is eying privatization, a system that is obviously working in some cities, including neighboring Gastonia, and which City Manager Gary Hicks says will save the city and taxpayers money. Hicks said Gastonia folks frowned on the idea of curb- side pickup at first but now they've adjusted and like it. Sunday afternoon Council has set a 2 p.m. meeting to finetune the budget and the sanitation matter is high on the list of subjects to be aired. The new budget won't be adopted until after a public hearing later this month. Now's the time to let the elected seven City Council members and the mayor hear from you, not only about garbage pickup proposals but about the budget in gen- eral. HERALD LETTER POLICY The Kings Mountain Herald welcomes your letters to the editor. We ask that you use these guidelines: Keep letters brief and to the point. Letters in excess of 600 words will not be published. All letters must be legible, signed in ink and include the full name, ad- dress and telephone number of the writer. The Herald reserves the right to edit letters for length, spelling, good taste, libelous or slanderous Statements, or any other reason; and the Herald re- serves the right to reject letters for any reason. Mail your letters to the Editor, P.O. Box 769, Kings Mountain, NC 28086. SIDEWALK SURVEY JIM HEFFNER Columnist News you can use President Fuzzy wanted to claim he was on active mili- tary duty, as commander-in-chief, to avoid being sued, by a woman named Paula Jones, for sexual harassment. When the public put up a hue and cry, his staff decided that wasn’t such a good idea, since Fuzzy had dodged the draft during the Viet Nam fiasco. This is the same man who once said he “loathed” the military. The staff, in fact, says that was never considered, and they are busily re- moving that portion of a letter to the court - the portion that was never a part of the letter, I don’t know about the rest of you ex military people, but it turns me off every time I see the guy salute a ser- vice man. He doesn’t even know how to salute. Misplaced priorities - Former Mecklenburg County Commissioner Bob Walton was called to task for alleg- edly molesting a male teen several years ago, and now they want to name a building or highway-or something for him. Is this what we have come to? Why not institute a national holiday for Tennessee Williams, Bamey Frank or Richard Speck. Walton is deceased. I say let the man rest. Guilty as charged - Three people have been convicted in the Whitewater scandal, and President Fuzzy’s taped testimony didn’t help his friends very much. I used to think the Whitewater thing was overblown hype. Now I’m not too sure. I doubt they’ll nail Mr. and Mrs. Fuzzy, but at least they got some of the scoundrels. I am enthralled with the Arkansas governor’s name, Jim Guy Tucker. Now that’s a southern name if there ever was one. Old Jim Guy has resigned, and good riddance. Medals and ribbons - I notice the news media is bent on finding as many people as they can who wear, or have worn, medals and ribbons they didn’t earn. One of the guys committed suicide. An officer in the U.S. Navy wrote an anonymous letter to the Navy Times to complain that Admiral Jeremy Boorda was wearing ribbons he hadn’t earned. The un- signed letter was published by the newspaper three days before the Admiral took his own life, and it is known he felt “wounded” by the unsigned letter. Now the officer, Commander John Carey, says he is sorry. He has good reason to be sorry, but the Navy Times has even more reason. There is an unwritten rule in the news business that you don’t publish anonymous letters. The staff of the Navy Times should hang their heads in shame. I wonder if the whole thing isn’t retaliation because so many people have mentioned, during this political sea- son, that President Fuzzy was a draft dodger. Use the food color - In recent years, it has become popular among environmentalist nuts to tell people to stop using red food color in hummingbird sugar water. Supposedly, it is unhealthy for the tiny birds. They will tell you that hummingbirds will come to feeders as fre- quently without the red coloring. That’s baloney. If you want to prove it to yourself, put up two feeders, one with and one without, and see which one draws the most birds. I’ve heard no stories about hummingbirds being detri- mentally affected by food color. It’s another effort by zealots to control even the smallest parts of people’s lives. Commencement - I see where a college up north had as its commencement speaker, Kermit the Frog. That says a lot about the college, and the education it imparts to students, Let me see if I have this straight. Kermit the Frog is a hand puppet isn’t he? You’d think the institution could have at least asked somebody with legs to speak. 1 wonder if Howdy Doody was available? Kings Mountain Weather Report (Compiled by Kenneth Kitzmiller) May 29-June 4 Year Ago Total precip. 1.93 3.30. Max. 1 day 1.78 (4th) 1.80 (1st) Yr. to date 23.11 24.54 Min. temp. 46 (30th) 63 (30th) Max. temp. 84 (29th) 85 (3rd) Avg. temp. 74.1 74.1 ® By Lib Stewart How do you feel about going to high school next year? BRANDON McCOMS Excited. I have finished driver’s ed at Kings Mountain Middle School. At Kings ; Mountain High School I will be able to drive a car. Middle School. DANIEL WALKER I’m excited too. I'm real glad to be out of BLAKE CLARY Happy. Being a high school freshman will mean that much closer to my senior year and graduation. THEA CARRINGTON Kings Mountain High School will give me many more opportunities it. to get into. KEISHA McCLAIN High school means more freedom. I will love a RS TT
The Kings Mountain Herald (Kings Mountain, N.C.)
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June 6, 1996, edition 1
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