I’m once again on the hot seat tomorrow as pro-referendum Orange County Commissioner Moses Carey (and legions of staffers) try to counter my pro-democracy arguments against local election redistricting
Seriously, if folks walk away understanding how this redistricting actually diminishes “small d” democracy, distorts voter-power, potentially overweights rural influence and that other, better, alternatives […]

5:33pm, Tuesday, Oct. 31st, 2006, Halloween in downtown Chapel Hill means helicopters.
As I stepped out of my building at the corner of Church and Franklin streets, the first portent of tonight’s Chapel Hill-o-ween was the thrumming beat of helicopter blades. Two of the beast hovered high above downtown’s Franklin in a vain […]

I’m quite interested in the fortunes of our southern neighbors in Chatham County.
As reported in today’s N&O, local Chatham activist Mark Barroso has put together a great little youTube video on the outgoing Commissioner’s ill-deeds.
By the way, the Chatham redistricting proposal, which everyone should vote NO on, serves well as an example of […]

Spoke with the local Board of Elections candidates Alice Gordon, Jamie Daniel and Barry Jacobs reports are in.
I just spoke with candidate Mike Nelson about his report and he assured me it was “in the mail”.
[UPDATE:] Former (and future?) Carrboro Board of Alderman candidate Katrina Ryan has volunteered to scan the latest reports. […]

WRAL5 reports …state lottery officials are in the Christmas spirit.
Excuse me while I puke.

Merry Money, the first $10 instant-ticket game in North Carolina, began appearing in stores Tuesday. The new game is part of a trend in the lottery industry toward holiday-themed scratch-off games, which officials hope will boost sales.
The new game features a colorful […]

Superior Court 15B candidates Judge Baddour and Attorney Stein are first out of the blocks with their 3rd quarter campaign reports.

Judge Baddour’s report (as data, image to follow) is here.
Attorney Stein’s [amended] report (again, as data) is here.

[UPDATE: 1] Leon Bryant is Baddour’s grandfather.
[UPDATE: 2] As of 1PM, Nov.2nd neither Fox’s or Anderson’s […]

…whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me…

While I was in Boston last week, the DPC’s (Downtown Partnership) Kiosk Giving Task Force morphed into the Downtown Outreach Work Group.

As the next step, the Downtown Outreach Work Group recommends a public-private partnership effort amongst […]

Local ‘blogger Mark Kleinschmidt (and fellow 2005 Council candidate) alerts Chapel Hillian’s to an upgrade (?) in our image.

Quick update for the special adventurers I left behind. Botolph’s Stone’s weather was beautiful this evening - 51 and clear. Had a nice walk, mostly after dark as we worked through ’til almost 6pm. Here’s some slideshow highlights:

Mr. E, be sure to click here [Google Earth] to see where I walked.

October is Energy Month

Five After Six

HiFi World

No Right Turn

Ghostwalk

WCHL1360 caught a small taste [MP3] of Wednesday’s “debate”.
I’ve since heard the radio ad promoting,to some small extent (and, hopefully, unintentionally), the referendum. Besides surmounting all the advertising - radio, print - the layout of the ballot will probably prove to be the hardest obstacle to overcome. As someone (thanks) pointed out to […]

As I’ve mentioned a few times before, I’m hooked on the ‘blog CreditSlips, “A blog on all things about credit and bankruptcy. We are seven academics who will use this space to do what we like to do when we get together–discussing and debating what does happen and what should happen when consumers and businesses […]

More on this issue later.
Here’s the text of my Oct. 19th WCHL1360 commentary:

This week, I am asking candidates for this years Superior Court and Board of Commissioner races to voluntarily report their campaign finances by Wednesday, October 24th.
The last we heard about campaign fund-raising was June 30th.
At that time we discovered […]

Homestead Road is becoming quite the corridor. Stretching roughly east-west along the Chapel Hill/Carrboro urban boundary, the road, already servicing several developments and schools, will become a vital connector to UNC’s Carolina North (whether we want it to or not).
Tonight the Town Council and Orange County Commissioners will hold a rare joint zoning hearing […]

I’m on the hot seat tomorrow as pro-referendum Orange County Commissioner Moses Carey (and legions of staffers) try to counter my pro-democracy arguments against local election redistricting
Seriously, if folks walk away understanding how this redistricting actually diminishes “small d” democracy, distorts voter-power, potentially overweights rural influence and that other, better, alternatives were not […]