BlueNC

Received via email ... something I wish I had written.

Five questions.

News reports in and around North Carolina government, politics and the General Assembly seem to raise more questions than answers. Here are some questions. Perhaps the search for the answers or the answers themselves, might be enlightening. In no particular order:

• Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers said Thursday: “I support the renewable energy portfolio standard.” Ivan Urlaub, head of the N.C. Sustainable Energy Association, supports it. The Sierra Club supports it. These folks often represent polar opposites on energy issues. If they agree on this, who is providing the juice behind efforts to repeal it?
• The state’s Medicaid shortfall will be $248 million -- $135 million more than initially estimated -- because of a “forecasting error” dating from Gov. Bev Perdue’s administration? Specifically what was the error? Might it have been that someone forgot to adjust the formula when Gov. McCrory decided to reject participation in Obamacare – and lost the federal funding that was in the initial formula?
• Is it appropriate for politicians who received campaign money from a sweepstakes operator facing criminal charges, to then make donations – in similar amounts to those donations – to charities as a way to distance themselves from the contributor? Aren’t these politicians still accepting the questionable donations? Is it appropriate for charities to accept funds that come from a tainted source? Why not just send the money back to the donor?
• Why would it be necessary to require drug testing to receive some state benefits, such as income assistance, when no drug testing is required for other benefits, such as a concealed to carry handgun permit?
• If state leaders believe they can come up with $49 million to put surveillance cameras on 14,000 buses that take kids to and from public schools each day, why can’t it come up with funds to keep teaching assistants in classrooms?

In 30-plus years as a business consultant and writer, I've come across many situations where the concept of optimum minimum applies. As a way to ensure effective use of resources in the face of certain risks, optimum minimum is the gold standard for many business investments. It's also the most effective model for thinking about the value and roles of government.

Have you ever taken a wrong turn and ended up in a dark alley?

As many of you know, I have announced that I am running for the Democratic Party nomination for governor of North Carolina. Among other things, our team is in the process of building out a website, which requires thinking through lots of very practical considerations.

One early question involves our plans for fundraising. This is one area where things are very clear. I don't want your money. For the next year at least, the "donate" page of my website will be directing visitors through links to the contribution pages to two kinds of non-profit organizations. We need your help identifying the best organizations to support.

I've gotten a lot of feedback lately (not just from you, Martha) asking for a kinder, gentler BlueNC. Without going into all the reasons for and against those requests, I am taking them to heart. The requests align with my mission to Do Good, Be Nice, and Have Fun, which is admittedly a difficult balancing act.

This has nothing to do with my insurgent campaign for governor, which will be kicking into higher gear later this month. I'm old enough not to really care what people think about me personally. But it does have to do with my urgent desire to influence more people to think more critically about more issues, which seems somewhat undermined by shouting.

The post below about phone-banking to protect our voting rights got me to thinking hard today about the conundrum facing progressives in North Carolina. On one hand, most of us feel compelled to do what little we can to keep the crazy under control. That means contacting elected officials, supporting studies and think tanks, and generally working to keep the radicals in Raleigh from going too far.

But there may be another hand worth considering.

Our technology team has been working behind the scenes for a couple of months to engineer some site improvements here at BlueNC. Mostly they've been focused on making it easier to find and share information, with a few new bells and whistles added in for good measure. The changes will be introduced over the course of the day tomorrow.

For old-timers, a few things will show up in new places, but it should be pretty easy to adjust. Be sure to let us know if anything isn't working. For those who tend to move between blogs and Facebook and Twitter will find the integration tighter and easier to navigate ... we hope.

James

PS I would be remiss if I neglected to use this opportunity to thank all of you for your time, energy and attention. I'm never sure if BlueNC is worth the trouble, but our readership continues to grow month after month.

PPS If you happen to be an anonymous commenter, feel free to register for an anonymous account. :) That would save the time it takes for us to read and authorize what you have to say each time you write something. It's not a huge deal, but it does take a minute or two. Over the course of a week, that rolls up to several hours.

We're working to build a list of all the things the Pope team has targeted to make illegal. For example, today we've learned that they want to make it illegal for cities in North Carolina to track their carbon footprints. (No, this is not a Blue Onion satire. This is real.) With that in mind, we'd greatly appreciate any input your can provide. Either post a comment or send us an email. Thanks.

Maybe Meteor Blades figures there's just too much crazy going on around here, but still. It's kind of frustrating. Drop by and leave a note encouraging our national brethren and cistern to show us some love. Pretty please?

BlueNC has officially adopted the policy imposed by the Republican-controlled General Assembly when it comes to comments from the public. If we like what we think you're going to say, we'll considering letting you post. If we don't like what we think you're going to say, please be advised in advance that the internet is all filled up and there is not space for you.