Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1243875
4 UCW MAY 6-12, 2020 WWW.UPANDCOMINGWEEKLY.COM STAFF PUBLISHER Bill Bowman Bill@upandcomingweekly.com ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Stephanie Crider editor@upandcomingweekly.com OPERATIONS DIRECTOR Paulette Naylor accounting@upandcomingweekly.com EDITOR Jenna Shackelford jenna@upandcomingweekly.com HOPE MILLS AND SENIOR SPORTS EDITOR Earl Vaughan Jr. EarlUCWSports@gmail.com REPORTER Jeff Thompson news@upandcomingweekly.com GRAPHIC DESIGNER Elizabeth Baker art@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING ASSOCIATES Linda McAlister Brown and Melanie Twine linda@upandcomingweekly.com melanie@upandcomingweekly.com MARKETING COORDINATOR FOR WOMEN'S VIEW AND FAYETTEVILLE LADIES POWER LUNCH Caroline Schafer caroline@upandcomingweekly.com DISTRIBUTION MANAGER/SALES ADMINISTRATOR Laurel Handforth laurel@upandcomingweekly.com CONTRIBUTING WRITERS D.G. Martin, Pitt Dickey, Margaret Dickson, Karl Merritt, John Hood, Jim Jones, Shanessa Fenner, Prudence Mainor, Avery Powers, Crissy Neville ––––––––––– Up & Coming Weekly www.upandcomingweekly.com 208 Rowan St. P.O. Box 53461 Fayetteville, NC 28305 PHONE: 910-484-6200 FAX: 910-484-9218 Up & Coming Weekly is a "Quality of Life" publication with local features, news and information on what's happening in and around the Fayetteville/Cumberland County community. Up & Coming Weekly is published weekly on Wednesdays. Up & Coming Weekly welcomes manuscripts, photographs and artwork for publication consideration, but assumes no responsibility for them. We cannot accept responsibility for the return of unsolicited manuscripts or material. Opinions expressed by contributors do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher. The publisher reserves the right to edit or reject copy submitted for publication. Up & Coming Weekly is free of charge and distributed at indoor and outdoor locations throughout Fayetteville, Fort Bragg, Pope Air Force Base, Hope Mills and Spring Lake. Readers are limited to one copy per person. © 2020 by F&B Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of editorial or advertisements without permission is strictly prohibited. Various ads with art graphics designed with elements from: vecteezy.com and freepik.com. PUBLISHER'S PEN BILL BOWMAN, Publisher, UP & COMING WEEKLY. COM- MENTS? BILL@upandcomin- gweekly.com. 910-484-6200. Ladies and gentlemen, step right up and place your bets. In Las Vegas, Ne- vada, every smart gambler knows it's not a good idea to bet against the House (Ca- sino). e House is always bigger, more intelligent and has a lot more resources and staying power than you do. Hence, it will ultimately win. Or, more appropri- ately, you will eventually lose. is could be where the phrase "you should know when to quit" originated. Many Americans are currently feeling that local, state and national govern- ments are betting against the House as we wrestle our way out of the grip of this nasty COVID-19 pandemic. In this case, the House is America with its God-fearing inhabitants, who strongly believe in the Constitution of the United States and the Bill of Rights. It would be a sucker's bet to wager on any person or group of people who, regardless of title or posi- tion, ignores and disregards the freedoms upon which this country was built. Yet they do. I hope that by the time you read this article that North Carolina's governor, Roy Cooper, has figured out that it's time to quit acquiescing to half-truths and partisan gamesmanship and open up North Caro- lina's businesses so people can get back to work, and more important- ly, get on with their lives. Cooper, along with dozens of other governors and mayors across the country, is betting against the American people (the House) when it comes to subjecting them to the Draconian rules and regulations that have accompanied the "sheltering in place" edicts. What are they thinking? Or, are they thinking at all? ank God we have a competent U.S. Attorney General in William Barr, who believes his job is to enforce the U.S. Constitution and protect the rights of American citizens. What's really scary about this situation is that he is protecting us against the governors and mayors and bureaucrats across the country who have taken the same oath of office he did. What are these people thinking? Are they so greedy, self-absorbed and drunk with power that they are oblivious to their obligations and responsibilities as elected officials? Are they so desperate that they are willing to lie, cheat and destroy our country just to gain power and authority over the American people? Well, it sure seems that way. We have witnessed far too many situations where government actions lack logic and lack common sense. Need examples? In New Jersey, where liquor and hardware stores are deemed "essential," the governor, Phil Murphy, bans church gatherings. He even went as far as having 15 Jewish men arrested at a synagogue in April as part of coronavirus quarantine enforcement. When a reporter asked him if he was concerned about violat- ing people's constitutional rights or if he had heard of the Bill of Rights, he replied, "at's above my pay grade ... I wasn't thinking of the Bill of Rights when we did this." What? He wasn't thinking of the Bill of Rights? Free speech? e right to as- semble? Freedom of religion? And, this is a governor? North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper had a similar brain cramp when he gave the executive order to limit outdoor social gatherings and activities and classified protesting as "nonessential activity." Again, being drunk on power must be the only explanation for declaring the First Amend- ment as "nonessential activity." Hopefully, Cooper will follow the example of the more pragmatic government leaders and free North Carolina so people can go back to work. en businesses can open back up and people can start earning a living again and getting their lives back. e American people are smart; they are not willing to sit back and allow their constitutional rights to be trampled. You are betting against the House if you think Americans are going to accept or tolerate gov- ernment drones flying overhead, digital surveillance or being told what to do, where to be and when to be there. e last 50 days could almost be a sneak preview into what it would be like living in a socialist or communist country. Bernie Sanders followers should feel proud. With nearly 30 million people collecting unemployment and Con- gress taking a pass on working, I think we may not be able to buy our way out of this. e only solution is to let Americans do what they do best — work. Otherwise, if we keep throwing money at this problem, the cure could end up being worse than the disease. Don't bet against the House. Americans are tough and resilient. We are going through a rough period, fighting off two diseases. One, for which we are working on a cure, is on the surface. e second is from within our government. It is a disease caused by power, greed and self- ishness of those we elected. e cure here is easy and much less com- plicated — we unelect those who have become diseased and replace them with people who genuinely want to make America great again. Don't bet against the House. anks for reading Up & Coming Weekly. Don't bet against the House by BILL BOWMAN Politicians are gambling with our economy and our livelihoods. 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