Page 4A
Opinions...
\
Then and Now
Once again it is time for our July
| 4th celebrations. Every American
| takes pride in their forefathers, patri-
| ots as they were who founded this
great country.
These folks worked hard and long
to build a republic they hoped
would last forever. They were willing
to take up arms against what they thought to be a tyran-
nical government who had deaf ears to their needs. The
patriots risked life, limb and freedom to really be free.
They claimed independence and wrote the best guide
they could for free living when they penned the Consti-
tution. That Constitution was even written so that it
could be added to as needed when appropriately done
in accordance with itself.
Independent of your political viewpoint, you should
be able to agree with the above statement, with the
possible exception of the portion related to the Bible. |
know that some of you of different than Christian faith,
or no faith at all may choose to hold out that statement.
I hope you don't.
Next, | want to issue a challenge to all of you. Please
do your research, by encyclopedia, history books, inter-
net or other reference materials to discover the reasons
the Revolutionary War started. Based on my own re-
search I'm doubtful that you'll find more than a dozen
reasons. : :
Once you've found the reasons for the war, list the
reasons in numerical order, dates in sequences arent
really important. ;
Then, make a new list of things occurring now, or
that have occurred in the last 18 months within our
government that you would consider wrong, or that in-
fringed on your individual rights. Include those things
that affect taxes.
My prediction is that you will have a list much
longer than our forefathers had when they decided to
pull away from Britain's rule.
If I'm correct in my prediction, then ask yourself
what you are willing to do to change things? Be honest,
especially with yourselves.
My suggestions are in the following order:
1. Get on your knees and ask for God's forgiveness
for our failure to stay faithful to God. Ask Him for direc-
tions to repent so that we may once again have His
blessings for our Nation. :
2. Unless God directs you otherwise, stay in contact
with your representatives in government and hold them
responsible for any actions you see them take that is
not in line with God's desires for us.
3. Vote for those who tell you they will always con-
sider God's will first.
4. Be willing to stand against a tyrannical govern-
ment in any way necessary, but only as God directs.
5. Remember, if anyone you've elected is not lead-
ing you along the path God chooses then he or she is
not a proper leader.
6. Continue to pray every day for the healing of our
nation.
Beauford Burton
Guest Editorial
(Beauford Burton is a resident of Kings Mountain, NC)
The Kings Mountain Herald | www.kmherald.net
Dear Editor:
North Carolina enjoys
some of the lowest auto-
mobile insurance rates in
the nation, yet several na-
tional-brand insurance
companies are seeking to
change current insurance
laws.
The proposed amend-
ment to Senate Bill
(SB180) would allow in-
surance companies to in-
crease rates and limit the
ability of the independ-
ently elected Insurance
Commissioner to curtail
excessive increases.
As a consumer organi-
zation for 111 years and
the “motorist’s cham-
Quote of the week...
Where Liberty dwells, there is my country.
Wednesday, July 3, 2013
ours,
urs,
Others
~ Benjamin Franklin
Letters to the Editor
pion,” AAA believes this
amendment will eventu-
ally increase the number
of drivers without insur-
ance and increase the av-
erage auto insurance rate
paid by all insured driv-
ers.
North Carolina's cur-
rent auto insurance rate-
making program has
generated the seventh-
lowest rates in the nation,
as well as a marketplace
with 166 competitors. It
works.
Without the amend-
ment, SB180 increases the
ability of insurance com-
panies to offer discounted
rates for'special groups,
such as senior drivers or
Tim Moore
NC House of
Representatives
Moore news
from Raleigh
As session is beginning to wind
down, the State Legislature passed a
continuing resolution last week in
order to maintain state funding for
the next 30 days. The resolution
provides for 95% of last year's
budget to be effective through
next month while deliberations continue on the budget
and tax reform between the House, Senate, and the ’
Governor. The House will also take a brief intermission
from active session this week in order to primarily
focus on the ongoing budget and tax discussion with
the Senate.
Last week the House passed a comprehensive meas-
ure encompassing economic prosperity and growth, SB
127 or "Economic Development Modifications." The
bill provides for a public-private partnership approach
by creating a nonprofit corporation that will take over
many responsibilities of economic development of
North Carolina's Commerce Department. The board of
the nonprofit corporation will be comprised of 15
members; 9‘ members will be appointed by Governor
McCrory, 3 by Speaker Tillis, and 3 by President Pro-
tempore Berger.
The nonprofit corporation will be overseen by an
Economic Development Oversight Committee which
will be made up of the Secretaries of Commerce, Trans-
portation, Environment, Natural Resources, Revenue,
and the Director of the Office of the State Budget and
Management. In this way, the nonprofit corporation
can solely focus on economic development, growth,
and prosperity throughout North Carolina, propagating
current businesses in our communities while
See MOORE NEWS, 7A
Sidewalk Survey
‘We asked children
at the 4-church
Bible School
at Resurrection
Lutheran Church
what they liked
~ bestabout
Bible School.
Maggie — | liked making
crafts. We made Greek pot-
tery, mobiles with different
shapes and decorated a dis-
cus with Greek designs. | like
the singing too. ;
; LC
Canon — | liked the Olympic
games. | threw the discus. |
liked the food too.
Mea — | liked the games and
crafts. | listened to all the
music.
those with flawless acci-
‘dent records.
That is a win-win for
drivers and insurance
companies. No amend-
ment needed.
David E. Parsons,
President and CEO AAA
Carolinas
To the Editor:
To all who participated
in the Caring and Sharing
program through the City
of Kings Mountain you
will never know how
much these donations
help assist our clients at
the Kings Mountain Crisis
Ministry.
To sit in our seat and
be able to reach out to
those in need is so re-
warding. This is one of
our biggest programs for
the year.
Many families are in
need and suffering be-
cause of economic condi-
tions. There are families
" now that are facing major
financial difficulty. Local
schools, hospitals, police
department and Mountain
Street Pharmacy, utility
companies and other
businesses come to us first
when crisis assistance is
needed.
In the Bible God
speaks about helping oth-
ers. When you get a
chance read Matthew 25:
37-40. lt really speaks
volumes about the hun-
gry, the thirsty, the naked
and the sick.
You are valuable to
your community. Because
you care it will allow us
to assist those in need.
[RIS F. FRADY, Director
Kings Mountain Crisis
Ministry
To the Editor:
The House Democratic
Rural Caucus has con-
tended throughout the
budgeting process that
many measures appear to
be strategically designed
to disadvantage rural
North Carolina, especially
in the area of education.
Now that the budget has
passed the House, con-
cern for the future of rural
education and its students
remain at large. The
budget plans to eliminate
a significant amount of
funding for schools and
provides minimal support
for the community college
system. Funding will now
be based on average en-
rollment over two years
instead of three. This re-
duction provides a dis-
service to institutions that
are vulnerable to varied
enrollment numbers as a
result of our still-recover-
Paige — | liked the singing
and the games. | liked it when
we went to the market. That
is where we went around to
different tables to do differ-
ent things.
ing economy. Surprisingly,
there is a Senate provision
limiting the amount of
times the community col-
lege supervisory board
meets per year. This is a
premature decision to
make at a time when all
of North Carolina is look-
ing to community col-
leges as one of the
economic remedies that
helps address our ever-
growing unemployment.
The impending Opportu-
nity Scholarship Grants,
better referred to as
school vouchers, allow
parents to send their chil-
dren - who meet the eligi-
bility requirements - to
private, for-profit
schools. These
vouchers are simply just a
scheme that shifts vital re-
sources away from public
schools - leading to in-
creased classroom sizes,
as well as reduced serv-
ices and funding. These
pressing education issues
are likely to inflict severe
harm onto the future gen-
erations of this state. We
have a shared responsibil-
ity to build, ensure and
provide a high-quality ed-
ucation for our economy
and children to succeed
in the present and, most
importantly, in the future.
We can only hope that
both House and Senate
members come’to a bipar-
tisan agreement. North
Carolina is depending on
these budget choices to
be fair and beneficial.
Our citizens and commu-
nities deserve better.
Rep. Joe Tolson, Chairman
Democratic Rural Caucus
(D- Edgecombe)
Wendy Isbell - Publisher
wendy.kmherald @ gmail.com
Lib Stewart - Managing Editor
lib.kmherald @ gmail.com
Gary Stewart - Sports Editor
Beth Brock - Staff Writer
~ Dave Blanton - Staff Writer
Gaston & Cleveland County
Other NC Counties
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