bob geary

Return of the Vermin

If hypocrisy was a capital crime, leaders of the Tarheel Taliban in Raleigh would have long since been hung by their necks until dead. As Bob Geary observes in the Independent this week, nowhere is their two-faced arrogance on display more than in the area of constitutional law. In the holy land of Skipstamistan, the North Carolina constitution is nothing but an afterthought on the way to imposing a Christian version of sharia law on women in the Old North State.

My comment in reply to Bob Geary Story, "Greg Poole’s Dix is great. His TIF financing plan isn’t.”

"Let me try commenting on this blog...again. My comment from last week has mysteriously disappeared with no explanation from Bob Geary or Lisa Sorg.

Not only is the park as Greg Poole proposed it not a good idea, anyone wanting my reasons why can call me in Raleigh at 919-781-7278 to hear the other side of the story, and I will also post this at BlueNC, where comments don't mysteriously disappear.

Also, there is no doubt in my mind that the Wake Legislative delegation has caved in to pressure from Poole and others, as those who were supporting other options for the Dix property (and that is what we are really discussing here) are quietly supporting selling the property for development. There may be a park, but one "like Central Park in NY City" will never happen.

Bob Geary has a thorough overview of the state of affairs regarding electric cars, net metering, smart grids, and utility foot-dragging. Net metering, in particular, should be a top priority for progressives during the 2011 General Assembly. It's time to get plugged in.

Duke Energy and Progress Energy, says John Runkle, a utilities expert who is general counsel to NC WARN, "have dragged their feet for years" on the subject of net metering—which would require the utilities to pay as much for the electricity they buy (from solar, wind and other generators) as they charge for selling it.

The term refers to having electric meters run forward, as usual, when a customer is taking power from the grid, and backward when she's sending it. "It's not to their advantage to do net metering," Runkle says. "They like to sell energy. They're not anxious the other way."

For those following the wild dispute over the Yadkin River Dam between We the People and polluting profiteers at Alcoa, you'll find Bob Geary's story in this week's Independent to be a sight for sore eyes. I'll share a few snippets, but you'll really want to read the whole thing, plus the two sidebar stories. It's good stuff.

Steering his boat on Badin Lake in front of the hulking smelter, Jimmy Dick recounts how in 1958, when Alcoa last came up for license renewal, the company argued that it needed the maximum allowable term of 50 years to ensure it could recoup its planned investments in a fourth dam and in doubling the smelter's capacity. In a legal brief, the company noted that the license was subject to "recapture" when it expired, at which point "the management of Carolina Aluminum could not rely on any assured source of power" for the plant.

If you want to understand the real issues in today's health care debate, read this article in the Independent. It's Bob Geary putting a human face on the emerging public option, with a good review of Kay Hagan's evolving positions.

I confess I've been on the edge of my seat for weeks wondering what The Independent would have to say about Jesus Swept. Especially since my book was in the hands of veteran political reporter, Bob Geary.

I couldn't be happier.

As "Anglico" (and later, as "James"), Chapel Hill's James Alexander Protzman has been the co-creator and driving force behind BlueNC.com, where the good, the bad and the strange sides of North Carolina politics are—from a progressive perspective—existentially explored.

Now, in his debut novel, Jesus Swept, Protzman turns a knowing eye to the weirdness of our everyday existence in the Tar Heel State. As the title suggests, Protzman locates the crux of the matter in our search for life's meaning, which for an eclectic cast of characters takes every possible religious shape, from pagan worship to one character's discovery of three new "commandments."

Bob Geary, one of those journalists who digs deep and thinks hard, has an excellent story in this week's Independent about the state of transit funding here in North Carolina. It's not a pretty picture.

The massive economic stimulus package now being fashioned in Washington is expected to include billions of dollars for mass transit and intercity rail projects. But because of decisions made during the Bush administration, the Triangle stands to receive little or none of it, the region's transportation leaders say.

Bob seems to have found some hints of a silver lining, reporting that North Carolina's metro leaders are on the case, but I can't help lament this sad situation. We'll be living with the disastrous consequences of Bush-era policies for generations to come.

  

One of North Carolina's better political reporters, Bob Geary, has done a decent job in recent months covering the monstrosity known as the Art Pope Puppetshow. In fact, he did a particularly good job laying out the sordid details of Pope's electioneering case that came before the State Board of Elections. In a display of stunning incompetence, the Board dismissed the complaint against Pope, and left the dirty old Puppetmaster feeling vindicated.

To celebrate his victory and try to clean up his shady reputation, the Puppetmaster responded to Geary's article in this letter to the editor:

By his own admission, ace political observer Bob Geary doesn't traffic in rumors, just well-founded speculation. So when he writes about the possibility of Raleigh Mayor Charles Meeker taking on Liddy Dull for US Senate in 08, we ought to at least sit up and take notice. The story first shows up on Wake Pol, one of the N&O blogs.