Kinston

The fight against Non Partisan elections just heated up a little bit. As reported by the Kinston Free Press and others (http://www.kinston.com/news/federal-79724-kinston-voting.html) The Justice Department has softened its stance on the Non Partisan referendum.

Imagine if you could (1) scam the government while (2) bad-mouthing the government, and then (3) use your taxpayer-funded business to pay a $17,250 fine levied for filing a frivolous lawsuit. I'm not saying that's what happened, but ...

The East Carolina Development Company, the small economic development non-profit founded by LaRoque in 1997, will pay $17,250 to Braxton’s lawyers for failing to turn over key documents in court proceedings, according to court documents.

This doofuss is one of the so-called stars in Thom Tillis' tarnished crown.

To my knowledge.

It's that time of the year again, election season! I know politicians always say that each election is the most important election and to some degree they are right. The last municipal election saw the city of Kinston elect is first Republican mayor since reconstruction, an historic event regardless of your political affiliation. But this election could switch the balance of power on the Kinston city council.

Even though Lennie Peterson is the only candidate "Running" as a Republican everyone knows John Nix is a republican and is only running as an unaffiliated candidate to increase his chances of winning and to promote his cause of "Non Partisan Elections" as if there ever was such a thing. It's impossible to get political parties and politics out of elections. Elections are political by their very nature, his wife is an officer on the Lenoir County GOP for Christ sake. He is definitely not unaffiliated and non partisan elections are just another republican trick.

Trying to make their voices heard before the shit hits the field:

Residents who live in communities in Southern Nash County and Wilson are fighting the proposed plant, saying their numbers exceed 800. They are collecting money for a legal battle.

Protestors held up signs that read “No Slaughterhouse” with a chicken crossed out by a prohibition sign. One woman even donned a yellow chicken costume and waved to the hundreds of people as they drove into the field.

Considering the rural locale and our severely depressed economy, for that many people to join in protest of a new industry is saying something.

Kicks off National Safe Kids Week, April 25-May 1

North Carolina's Commissioner of Insurance, Wayne Goodwin, threw out the ceremonial first pitch at Sunday's Kinston Indians game to start this state's observance of National Safe Kids Week.

As anyone who is familiar with the work of 'freedom fighters' the world over can tell you, there is little to be gleaned about anyone based on the labels they give themselves. From the 'justice and equality movement' to 'operation enduring freedom' there is simply very little correlation between these self-supplied titles and the goings-on that happen where the rubber meets the road. The same can be said of Kinston, NC's recent lawsuit challenging article five of the voting rights act. The story, found here from Democracy NC's link of the day, is another example of the disparity between title and implications. The referendum that the lawsuit seeks to uphold eliminated 'partisan' elections in Kinston in favor of 'non-partisan elections.

All through out this Municipal Election Cycle people have been talking about the Justice Departments Decision to Reject the Non Partisan Referendum Pushed by Fmr. District 10 Rep. and Fmr. Lenoir County Republican Party Chairman Stephen LaRoque. People (Mainly BJ Murphy) have been complaining that this is so bad for the City and that the Justice Department shouldn't have stepped in and went against the will of the people.

Mr. Art Pope, admired around these parts as the Puppetmaster (parody, satire, public figure), has apparently given one of his old adversaries an offer he couldn't refuse. The Dome has the story:

Former NC Rep. Stephen LaRoque of Kinston has apologized to former state Rep. Art Pope of Raleigh, who he had accused of buying legislators by pouring money into contested Republican primaries, Rob Christensen reports.

First off, let me congratulate Rob Christensen on getting the names right in his piece. After bungling (and not apologizing) a mention of NCBlue instead of BlueNC this morning, he's apparently sharpened his reportorial skills. But beyond that welcome bit of accuracy, the intrigue in the Pope-LaRoque saga gets really interesting.

In the middle of a multitude of activities, The Southern Dem found time to research and write an excellent series of articles about a usurper of democracy, one Theodore Lane Sampley of Kinston. Sampley, a political provocatuer, is the originator and maintainer of an eyesore in the nation's capital, an unkempt shack which sits in plain view of the Lincoln Memorial, mocking Lincoln and the nation's political heritage. The culmination of this writing was a three part article, links to which I have re-posted to recognize the excellent research and narrative which may have been missed by some readers the first time around in the whirlwind of daily posts.

PART 1 : Who is Ted Sampley and Why do I Care?

PART 2 : A Darker Shade of Ted

PART 3 : Disreputable, Despicable, Dishonorable

Disclaimer - To my knowledge, no person mentioned in this article has committed a crime, pleaded guilty to or been convicted of any crime associated with events listed here.

So far in this process, I've allowed Ted Sampley to defend himself in his own words. They might not have been fresh words, but he has provided ample material on his various sites to promote himself and dispute most claims. If the story has already been told, why even bother writing about Ted Sampley? I have struggled with this myself.

If Ted Sampley was simply a sloppy businessman who failed to file proper papers and failed to file or pay his taxes, I wouldn't bother with him. He isn't just another businessman, though. Ted Sampley has put himself out in the community as the leader of a charitable organization. He runs a 501c3 and solicits money from the public and receives favorable tax treatment from the state and from the IRS. He owes it to the town of Kinston and to the taxpayers of this state to be a good steward of the money with which he's been entrusted.

I write to bring attention to someone who, in my opinion, does not deserve another ounce of public trust. I write in the hopes that donors will watch their pocketbooks closely and look into any charity Ted Sampley is involved with. I write in the hopes that various authorities will take notice of the documents improperly filed, filed late or not filed at all in the course of Sampley's business dealings - to simply provide a guarantee that money is being used for the charitable purpose for which it was intended. I write because the veterans in my family deserve far better than the likes of Ted Sampley out in the world using his veteran status as a badge of honor to gain public sympathy and public trust when he does very little to earn it. At the same time he uses his veteran status as a shield to deflect criticism. Respecting a man or woman's veteran status doesn't mean you give them a free pass for all their transgressions. So, I write.

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