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AUGUST 22-28, 2018 UCW 5
MARGARET DICKSON,
Columnist. COMMENTS? Edi-
tor@upandcomingweekly.com.
910-484-6200.
This, that and the other
by MARGARET DICKSON
Changes and fragmentation in traditional news
media operations have brought many changes,
including less coverage of state government news in
areas outside state capitals. Two important events
occurred earlier this month, though, that should
register with all of us. First, North Carolina's five liv-
ing former governors, three Democrats and two Re-
publicans, got together in the old capitol and urged
voters to reject proposed constitutional amend-
ments that will appear on our November ballots.
e governors say the amendments would redis-
tribute the balance of power between the legislative
and executive branches of government. e five, Jim
Hunt, Jim Martin, Mike Easley, Bev Perdue and Pat
McCrory, who collectively logged 40 years in North
Carolina's Governor's Mansion, know whereof they
speak, and I, for one, will be taking their advice. Our
Constitution is not broken and does not need fixing,
thanks just the same.
North Carolina's elected state auditor, Beth Wood,
also released scathing findings of a yearlong audit
of our state-run Alcoholic Beverage Control Com-
mission. e audit reported the ABC Commission
wasted about $11 million in tax revenue through
mismanagement and lazy oversight. Not surprising-
ly, the report triggered cries of "not me" and political
finger-pointing, along with calls for privately owned
and operated liquor stores.
Infuriating as the audit findings are, let's not
overreact.
Our state's ABC Commission has been around
since 1937 and has historically been a vehicle for
political patronage under both parties. at said, as
a state-controlled monopoly, it returns millions of
dollars to state and local governments and provides
hundreds of jobs. No one knows what exactly would
happen if the system shifted to a market-based pri-
vate system, but it is a safe bet to say ABC revenues
to governments would have to be made up with tax
hikes, some on people who never patronize state
ABC stores.
In addition, while alcoholic beverages are legally
sold and enjoyed in 98 of our 100 counties, it is also
true that alcohol addicts some of its users, causing
pain and distress to them and those who love them.
State oversight originated as a protection of sorts.
Perhaps our state-controlled ABC system should
include some private entrepreneurs or change
altogether, but that is a decision to be made after
much study of other private systems and with great
deliberation. It has potential ramifications far be-
yond reacting to a critical audit report.
********************
"Spare the rod, spoil the child" is an oft-quoted
modern justification for corporal punishment of
children. Many believe the saying may be a corrup-
tion of a biblical verse found in the book of Proverbs,
but whatever its origins, it is a virtual artifact in
North Carolina's public schools. With the Robeson
County School Board's vote of 6 to 5 earlier this
month to ban the practice, only Graham of our 100
counties continues to sanction the "intentional in-
fliction of physical pain upon the body of a student
as a disciplinary measure." Nineteen states continue
schoolhouse corporal punishment, most of them in
the South.
********************
Several Up & Coming Weekly readers took me
to task for a recent column entitled "Mysterious
Melania," in which I talked about other first ladies,
quoted humorist Celia Rivenbark, and opined, "It
cannot be easy being Mrs. Donald Trump."
My take was particularly unpopular with one
reader who emailed, "what a hit piece on our first
lady ... as a wife, mother, grandmother, nurse … I
cannot believe Margaret Dickson would right (sic)
such an appalling piece on a woman, much less the
first lady of the United States."
I thanked the reader for her response, and we
agreed that we are all blessed to live in a nation
where we can share our opinions freely and openly,
whether we agree or not.
In that vein, a recent New York Times piece on our
first lady entitled "Melania Trump, a Mysterious first
lady, Weathers a Chaotic White House" provides a
longer, more detailed look. Here is a link: www.ny-
times.com/2018/08/17/us/politics/melania-trump-
first-lady.html
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First Lady Melania Trump
A yearlong audit by North Carolina's elected state auditor,
Beth Wood, reported the ABC Commission wasted about
$11 million in tax revenue through mismanagement and
lazy oversight.