Rhino4_11_13 by The Rhinoceros Times

The Rhinoceros Times

Vol. XXIII No. 15

Greensboro, North Carolina

www.rhinotimes.com

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Prison Farms Out Cons by Scott D. Yost county editor

Photo by Sandy Groover

The pool at the Greensboro Aquatic Center can get a little crowded during warm ups with the US National Synchronized Swimming Championships being held in Greensboro this week.

Noah Was Pushed, Didn’t Jump by paul C. clark Staff Writer

Ben L. Smith High School Principal Noah Rogers – at $141,632 a year with bonuses the highest paid Guilford County Schools principal – would have been fired had he not resigned on Monday, April 8, according

to Guilford County Board of Education members. School board members said that, on Friday, April 5, the day Rogers’ retirement was announced, Guilford County School Superintendent Mo Green called each school board member

Mayor Upbeat On Bankruptcy by john hammer editor

For a man who declared personal bankruptcy last week, Greensboro Mayor Robbie Perkins is pretty upbeat and, given a chance, will start talking about the bright future he sees for the City of Greensboro with him leading the way. About the bankruptcy, Perkins

is matter of fact. A phrase he used several times was, “It is what it is.” He said, “I’m going to do it all with a positive attitude. It’s not like I’m going bankrupt so I went and sat in a closet and said woe is me.” Perkins said that the combination (Continued on page 37)

individually and told them that Rogers had to go – immediately. Green reportedly reached that decision in conversations with Rogers that afternoon. Rogers’ resignation was announced at 6:21 p.m. The school board members said Green told them that Rogers’ exit could not wait until the end of

the school year, or until June 31, the usual end-of-the-fiscal-year time for school systems to hire employees, cancel their contracts or let their contracts expire. School board members said Green told him that the reason Rogers had to go was serious enough that it might be referred (Continued on page 28)

The Guilford County Prison Farm near Gibsonville has been holding inmates for 78 years, but now that’s about to come to an end. In what Sheriff BJ Barnes calls an effort to save the county money, the Sheriff’s Department will cease housing prisoners at the Prison Farm by the end of June. Barnes said this week that, because of a declining inmate population at the Prison Farm, he’s unable to justify spending the money necessary to hold inmates at the unique and historic facility. The Prison Farm, which is a working farm on 806 acres in eastern Guilford County, extending into Alamance County, has beds for 134 inmates. (Continued on page 26)

Inside this issue

High Point News............ 8 Entertainment Guide.....11 Puzzles.................. 12, 22 Uncle Orson Reviews... 13 Yost Column................ 15 Scott’s Night Out.......... 16 Rhino Real Estate........ 17 Letters to the Editor..... 25 Editorial Cartoon.......... 38 under the hammer....... 39

Rhino Rumors From staff and wire reports

Photo by Sandy Groover

The downtown Greenway celebrated another milestone with a ribbon cutting on Wednesday, April 10 at 3:15 p.m. for phase 3b on Smith Street between Eugene and Spring streets.

I’ve been to countless meetings in the plaza level conference room at city hall but at only a handful of those meetings have I actually sat at the table. At the meeting on public records held Monday, (Continued on page 6)

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

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We don’t qualify for government-required advertising in newspapers because we Expert Service For don’t have paid circulation, so we don’t have a dog in the fight over Senate Bill 186 aboutPorsche our BMW Ask Mercedes that state Sen. Trudy Wade is sponsoring. The mainstream media, which gets all of that Jaguar pre-purchase inspections! Volvo Audi VW government-mandated advertising, is going nuts because they see the money river is going to be diverted away from them. The current state law requires that advertisements required by the state to be placed 2629 Randleman Road | www.kormanautoworks.com in a newspaper of general circulation – such as public hearings and tax liens – also have enough paid circulation to qualify for a second class postal permit. Since The Rhino Times doesn’t have much paid circulation, we don’t qualify for advertisements that statewww.kormanautoworks.com 2629 Randleman Rd. law requires local governments run. The bill sponsored by Wade would allow governments to advertise on their own websites instead of in a newspaper, saving local governments thousands of dollars, but also costing local newspapers thousands of dollars in lost advertising revenue, since it seems to be accepted that local governments advertise in newspapers because they are required to by law, not because they believe it is a good idea. The law requiring advertisements in local newspapers was passed in 1940, before the advent of television, and before the internet was even conceived. One of the major arguments made against allowing local governments to advertise on their own websites is that not everyone has a computer. That is absolutely true. Not everyone has a computer, but the News & Record, which gets most of the government-required advertising in Guilford County, has a daily circulation of about 50,000. Guilford County has a population of right at 500,000. So 10 percent of the people in Guilford County subscribe to the newspaper where governments are required to run their ads. But newspapers are not just read by one person. The accepted multiplier for daily newspapers is 2.5. So the N&R can count 125,000 readers in Guilford County. But that is still only 25 percent of the population. So the N&R advertisement is available to 25 percent of the population. According to a Google search, 76 percent of Americans own computers. So an online notice would be available free of charge to 76 percent of the population. In neither case can you count on someone actually seeing the advertisement or notice. But in the case of the newspaper advertisement someone has to pay for the newspaper. It might not be the reader, but someone pays for the subscription. For someone without a dog in this fight, the better choice seems obvious. Spending hundreds of thousands of dollars to go after 25 percent of the population when you can spend nothing to go after 76 percent doesn’t make sense. You also have to consider that of the 24 percent who don’t have computers, a good percentage have access to computers or the information on computers. The idea that is being promoted is that people who can’t afford a computer would not have access to the information. But how many people who can’t afford a computer have a newspaper subscription? It looks like what they call a no-brainer to me.

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The Rhinoceros Times

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Close Parking Call For Councilmember by john hammer editor

City Manager Denise Roth and City Councilmember Dianne BellamySmall discuss the expired parking meter in front of Bellamy-Small’s van on Monday, April 1 on North Elm Street.

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A picture is worth 1,000 words, except when it isn’t. This is a photo of City Manager Denise Roth and City Councilmember Dianne Bellamy-Small talking to a parking enforcement officer on North Elm Street on Monday, April 1. Bellamy-Small’s van was parked at an expired meter but Bellamy-Small did not get a ticket. Both Roth and Bellamy-Small had been across the street at a meeting at the Greensboro Partnership. Bellamy-Small has never returned a single phone call to The Rhinoceros Times, so we don’t know what her story is, but Roth has a good relationship with the press. According to Roth, she was leaving the meeting and as she walked out the door she heard someone say, “Dianne is getting a ticket.” Then she saw Bellamy-Small heading across the street and Denise said, “I went over because it seemed like the right thing to do because a city employee was encountering a city councilmember. Because I was there, it just didn’t seem like I could ignore it.” Roth also said she knew it didn’t look good for her and a city councilmember to be talking to a parking enforcement officer who was getting ready to write BellamySmall a ticket. But Denise said as she was walking

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across the street she heard the parking enforcement officer say that he had not started writing a ticket yet, so if BellamySmall had money she could plug the meter and avoid a ticket. It is a common practice for parking enforcement officers to allow people to plug the meter if they have not started writing a ticket. If the enforcement officer had started writing a ticket then there would be a record in the system and two different checks of the system show no such record. Roth said, “I know it didn’t look great and I wish I hadn’t been there, but I was.” It is particularly interesting because in the last couple of years the City Council has raised parking tickets to $15 and increased enforcement. Even Guilford County Sheriff’s Department cars get tickets. So for a councilmember to get a ticket would have been justified retribution in the eyes of many people who frequent the downtown, but that was not the case. Bellamy-Small had change and managed to get across the street before the ticket was entered into the system so she was afforded the same courtesy as just about everyone else. Parking enforcement officers sometimes do not allow people who have a history of parking violations the option of plugging the meter, but Bellamy-Small has no such history.

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 5

New Manager Leaves Brunswick In Stew by Scott D. Yost county editor

Brunswick County Manager Marty Lawing will become Guilford County’s manager on Monday, May 6, and, if the current widespread dismay in Brunswick County over his departure is any indication, Guilford County has hired itself one of the best managers in the history of county government. Mark Twain said familiarity breeds contempt, however, when it comes to Brunswick County and Lawing, nothing could be further from the truth. After serving as Brunswick County’s manager for 12 years – under both Republican and Democratically controlled Boards of Commissioners – many in Brunswick County seem very sorry to see Lawing go. It’s hard to find anyone in that coastal county – from the reporters who covered him to commissioners who worked with him – who have anything other than glowing reviews of Lawing. Conversely, it’s almost comical how – even though Lawing hasn’t served one day as Guilford County’s manager – some Democrats on the Guilford County Board of Commissioners have piled criticism on Lawing and raised questions about his record managing Brunswick County. The press in counties across the state is often critical of the county managers they

cover, but not in the case of the Brunswick Beacon’s coverage of Lawing. Sue Ingram, who covered Brunswick County government from 2003 to 2006 for the Brunswick Beacon and who’s now an editor with that paper, said Guilford County was getting a very sharp manager in Lawing. “I thought he did a fine job here,” Ingram said. She said Lawing is straight-laced and all business. Ingram said the Beacon recently ran an editorial that described him as like “vanilla ice cream – not spicy but very reliable.” “He doesn’t crave publicity,” she said. According to Ingram, Lawing is one of the best-organized county administrators anyone will ever come across. She said his planning skills are meticulous. Ingram said Lawing is extremely knowledgeable about Brunswick County and is familiar with the ins and outs of the legal issues that pertain to county government. “I think he knows the law well,” she said. Ingram also said he’s punctual to a fault. “I don’t recall him ever being late – ever,” she said. According to Ingram, it’s astonishing how serious and reserved Lawing has

been while serving as Brunswick County’s manager. “He has the least flair of anybody I’ve ever known,” she said. She added that, one time, she came across Lawing in a local grocery store and he was wearing a UNC Tar Heel shirt, and she remembers being astonished because, before that moment, she’d never seen him exhibit any “flair” whatsoever. Normally, saying that someone is “vanilla” and has “no flair” might not be a compliment, but when it comes to Guilford County government in the aftermath of a manager who was associated with one scandal after another for two years running, those adjectives sound like a breath of fresh air. The Brunswick Beacon editorial about Lawing’s departure stated, “There was never one shred of scandal about Lawing running the show. He had a clean slate.” Former longtime Brunswick County Commissioner Bill Sue told the Beacon: “My personal opinion is Marty’s one of the best managers Brunswick County’s ever had. He’s a team player, he was a planner, his integrity was unquestionable, and if he told you something, you could count on it.” Sue told the Beacon that one of the few complaints he heard about Lawing is that

Lawing should have visited the county departments more – but Sue said that’s difficult to do when managing any large government. In Guilford County, most department heads – who tend to be highly territorial – will no doubt be overjoyed if they never get a visit from the new county manager. Others in Brunswick County share Sue’s positive view of Lawing. This week, Phil Norris, the chairman of the Brunswick County Board of Commissioners, echoed the sentiments of many in Brunswick County government when he said he was very sad to see Lawing go. Norris, who runs a local engineering firm, said Lawing was a special county manager and he added that he liked Lawing on a personal level. “It has been a good relationship,” he said. “He’s a tremendous county manager and a friend.” Norris said Lawing never got caught up in partisan political disputes. “Marty is not politically motivated,” he said. “He has treated everybody well.” Like most county managers with any sense, Lawing is registered as unaffiliated. However, in the job interviews, he apparently convinced Guilford County’s (Continued on page 36)

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Bellamy-Small Gets Around In Style by Alex JakubseN Staff Writer

This year Greensboro City Councilmember Dianne Bellamy-Small has spent more on travel expenses than all of her fellow councilmembers combined. In the current fiscal year, which runs from July through June, Bellamy-Small had already spent $6,943, as of Feb. 20, although the limit for each councilmember is $3,356. Since 2007, Bellamy-Small has spent $25,600 By comparison, Councilmember Trudy Wade, who vacated her District 5 seat after she was elected to the North Carolina state Senate in November, did not spend a penny of her annual allotment. In the last fiscal year, 2011-2012, Bellamy-Small spent $2,700 in travel expenses, while Councilmembers Nancy Vaughan, Marikay Abuzuaiter and Nancy Hoffmann spent nothing. Then Mayor Bill Knight spent $556. In fiscal year 2009-2010, Greensboro spent $2,427 on Bellamy-Small’s travel and nothing on the travel of her fellow councilmembers Robbie Perkins, Zack Matheny, Mary Rakestraw, Sandra Anderson Groat, Jim Kee, Nancy Vaughan, Goldie Wells, Danny Thompson and Mike Barber. In fiscal year 2008-2009, Bellamy-Small racked up $3,883 in travel expenses. In that same year Perkins, Matheny, Rakestraw

and Thompson spent nothing on travel expenses. In fiscal year 2007-2008, when the council allotment was $3,500, BellamySmall spent $5,184 in travel expenses. That year Councilmembers Mike Barber, Florence Gatten and Anderson Groat spent nothing. City Manager Denise Roth said that councilmembers are allowed to give each other unused travel expense money but there is no formal policy regarding the exchanges, and records of them are not kept. “There wouldn’t be records of the transfers; it’s all the same account,” Roth said. She said the travel expense account, which is $33,560 for the entire council, is not broken down among councilmembers in the budget, despite the fact that each member of the council has a designated allotment. After Bellamy-Small, the councilmember with the most in travel expenses for the current fiscal year is Kee, with $2,522. Matheny comes in third, with a total of $1,321 spent attending Gov. Pat McCrory’s inaugural celebration on Jan. 12. Councilmember Yvonne Johnson spent $1,081 to attend the National Forum for Black Public Administrators in Atlanta. Perkins said that Bellamy-Small represents the council on a number of

associations that require travel. Perkins said he has given Bellamy-Small some of his travel allotment in the past but was unable to do so this year because he is approaching his own travel expense limit. As of Feb. 20, Perkins had spent $3,061 of his travel allotment of $6,712, but said he would spend most of it by June 30, the end of the fiscal year. Bellamy-Small is on the board of directors of the North Carolina League of Municipalities. Greensboro paid $458 for her to attend its board of directors meeting in Emerald Isle on Nov. 20.

Rumors (Continued from page 1) the press – including bloggers and poets – sat at the conference table and city staff and councilmembers sat in the chairs around the sides of the room. I can say sitting at the table gives you a totally different perspective. It also gives you the right to speak, which is pretty nice. The meeting went better than I expected, although getting journalists and bloggers to stay on topic is definitely like herding cats. --Make no mistake about it, The Eleven County Area News & Record has declared war on prayers before the Guilford County

The city paid $1,139 for BellamySmall’s hotel in Boston for the National League of Cities in November 2012. That includes $249 per night for a room at the Omni Parker House Hotel. Bellamy-Small also represents the council in the National Forum for Black Public Administrators. The city paid $1,703 for Bellamy-Small to attend one of its events. The city also spent $903 sending Bellamy-Small to Atlanta, Georgia, for the Global Diversity Summit in September of last year.

Board of Commissioners meetings. It is a war that mainstream media love and have been winning. Isn’t it interesting – as long as the Democrats controlled the board and Democrat prayers were being said, TECAN&R didn’t have a problem with it. But a couple of months after the Republicans take control, the same prayers said by the same man are a problem. It does make you wonder if there isn’t some kind of bias in their journalism. --The Greensboro Downtown Residents’ Association, which is reportedly not associated with any other downtown (Continued on next page))

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The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Save Money, Cancel Budget Meetings by john hammer editor

The City Council claims to always be looking for ways to save money. Here is an easy one: Cancel the council district budget meetings. If there isn’t a big issue like the White Stree landfill attendance is dismal and it takes a tremendous amount of city staff time. At the District 5 meeting on Thursday, April 11 at the Swing Road police station, there were 28 people in attendance, and seven of those weren’t reporters or don’t receive a city paycheck. Of the seven, one is on the Zoning Commission and one is on the Parks and Recreation Commission, so they are more involved with city government than most, even though they aren’t paid, and two were family members. But in addition to the seven non-city employees you had Mayor Robbie Perkins and Councilmembers Tony Wilkins, Jim Kee, Nancy Vaughan and Marikay Abuzuaiter. One of the citizens was Isa Abuzuaiter, Marikay’s husband. Catherine Vaughan, who is Nancy Vaughan’s daughter, was another. City staff who were present included City Manager Denise Roth, Assistant City Managers Andy Scott and Sandy Neerman, Police Chief Ken Miller, Fire Chief Greg Grayson, Greensboro Department of Transportation Director Adam Fischer and Parks and Recreation Director Chris Wilson. There were other police personnel present and at least two other firefighters as well as several people from the city manager’s office and other departments. In short, you had the top echelon of city government out on Swing Road to talk to

Rumors (Continued from previous page group, is holding a Spring Sip-n-Stroll on Saturday, April 13 from 1 to 6 pm. Tickets are available at springsipnstroll.eventbrite. com and are $25 in advance and $35 the day of the event. Check-in tents will be at the corner of Martin Luther King Drive and South Elm Street and at the Greensboro Marriott. For more information, visit www. Greensborodra.org. --The Greensboro Farmers Curb Market on Yanceyville Street will be holding its first annual Plant Sale and Earth Day Celebration on Sunday, April 14 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission to this indoor/ outdoor event is free. A wide array of plants will be available from vendors as well as gardening workshops. Cooking demonstrations and food trucks. ---

a couple of folks. It was raining, so that may have hurt attendance, but even if attendance had doubled to 14, would that be worth it? There was a request for more parks in the area, a suggestion that the mayor and members of the City Council take a 5 percent pay cut, and a request for more detailed police information. All of this could have been done by email in about two minutes. City staff time is not free, and this highlevel meeting took almost an hour. When you add in travel time you’ve taken at least 90 minutes out of the day of the top level of Greensboro city government, who all have more important things to do then listen to Roth give an extremely general budget presentation. Which is not a criticism of Roth, the presentation had to be extremely general to fit in any kind of reasonable time frame. District budget meetings are one of the many things that sound like a great idea and a great way for the city to be transparent, but they just don’t work. Regular citizens don’t have to think about it, they already have and have voted with their feet. But city councilmembers need to talk to a few of their constituents or family members and ask them if they would attend a “city budget” meeting of their own free will. The answer is an overwhelming no. It’s about like asking people if they would volunteer to be audited by the Internal Revenue Service. Cancel the meetings. No one will notice, except those who have to attend. And they will all get an hour or two of their lives back.

Conservatives for Guilford County, better known as C4GC, will be holding its annual Liber-Tea rally on Saturday, April 13 from noon to 3 p.m. at the Phill G. McDonald Plaza behind the Old Guilford County Court House in downtown Greensboro. Carmen Conners from 94.5 Rush Radio will be the master of ceremonies, and speakers include state Sen. Dr. Trudy Wade and Paul Valone, President of Grass Roots North Carolina. --After taking a winter break The Rhino Times Schmoozefest will be returning at the end of next month. On Thursday April 25 from 6 to 8 pm The Rhino Times Schmoozefest will be held at the Antique Market Place at 6428 Burnt Poplar Road in Greensboro. As usual drinks and food will be served gratis to those who sign in and wear a name tag. ---

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

HIGH POINT

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro HIGH POINT

HIGH POINT

Guilford Delegation Hears Complaints by paul C. clark Staff Writer

Four members of the Guilford County state legislative delegation got an earful from citizens and representatives of organizations at a public forum in the City Council chamber at High Point city hall on Thursday, April 4. State legislative delegation forums in High Point aren’t usually packed, but last Thursday’s drew a large crowd that would probably have been larger had it not been rescheduled already as a result of the General Assembly staying in session. Nothing brings people out to complain to state legislators like talk of budget cuts and a change in control of the government. With a first-in-120-years Republican governor and General Assembly proposing to reduce spending, supporters of mental health care, senior citizen services and library services were out in force, along with opponents of specific Republican bills. Because the meeting was rescheduled, legislator turnout was low. Of the three state senators and six state House members who represent parts of Guilford County, only two senators and two representatives showed up. The senators were Republican District 27 Sen. Trudy Wade and Democratic District 28 Sen. Gladys Robinson. The

state House members were Republican District 61 Rep. John Faircloth, chairman of the legislation and a former High Point city councilmember, and Democratic District 60 Rep. Marcus Brandon. The legislators introduced themselves, but Faircloth kicked off the forum by letting the audience know the legislators were there to listen, not to talk. “We’re not here to debate issues,” Faircloth said. “We do that all day long.” Julie Peeples, pastor of the Congregational United Church of Christ in Greensboro, was the most comprehensive of the critics of the Republican-controlled state legislature, attacking its goals entirely. Peeples said that, during the 2012 campaign season, what she heard from Republican candidates was job creation and better education. Peeples said, “Now the campaigns are over, and what we are hearing is a lot of these proposals that I am finding very disturbing.” Peeples included in that category a proposal to require voter identification and another to reduce early voting, which she said would make it harder for senior citizens and young people to vote; a proposal to eliminate the cap on the size of

kindergarten through fourth grade classes; a proposal to cut unemployment benefits; and a bill by Wade to make elections to the Guilford County Board of Education partisan. She said, “I would not call this less government intrusion, frankly.” Peeples singled out for criticism a bill that would attempt to enable North Carolina to have an established religion, contrary to the First Amendment to the US Constitution. Faircloth said that bill had been killed in committee. Peeples said, “Hopefully, the late-night talk shows will give us a break and stop making fun of us ... Please, can we get back to jobs and the economy?” Steveland McSwain of Greensboro also spread his criticism wide. He said he is the third generation of his family to attend college in Greensboro and doesn’t want to move, “frankly, because I think I would have a hard time getting the University of North Carolina basketball games anywhere else.” McSwain complained about the “less than progressive” laws being discussed. He said he would defer to the legislature on what would attract jobs, which were needed because North Carolina had the sixth highest unemployment rate in the nation. He said, “I certainly wish that was the ranking for NC’s basketball team.” McSwain said that more progressive laws would attract more progressive companies. He asked, “What types of companies are you all thinking that these sort of laws will attract to our state?” Most of the speakers, however, were at city hall to speak on single issues. One awkward moment came when Faircloth, struggling to read handwriting on the speaker signup sheet, called on “Jay Golden” to come up to speak. The speaker turned out to be Ward 1 High Point City Councilmember Jeff Golden – who was elected in November 2012, after Faircloth left the City Council Faircloth appeared not to recognize Golden, and Golden for his part said he thought he was signing into the event, not to speak. Having been called, however, Golden said his piece. Golden said he had read that 600,000 voters in North Carolina didn’t have government identification. He said that turning away voters would a problem, “if these people show up at the polls on Election Day, although they have been voting for these many years.” Faircloth said that voter identification would be available. Golden asked who would pay for it. Faircloth replied that the taxpayers of North Carolina would. Golden said, “Please come back and talk if it doesn’t work out that way.” James Brown of High Point (not that James Brown) said he lived in Connecticut for 45 years, and that Connecticut let charter schools multiply with little oversight. The

current Republican state government, unlike the previous Democratic one, supports charter schools. Brown said, “I’m concerned that’s going to affect our house taxes.” Wade and Faircloth explained that charter schools get the same state allotment per student that Guilford County Schools does. Wade said, “You’re going to pay the same amount per student if they go to a public school or a charter school.” Actually, charter schools are a deal for taxpayers, because the state doesn’t pay for construction of their buildings. Brandon pointed out that charter schools are public schools. “The purpose of them is to give parents a little more choice than they had before,” Brandon said. “And for a lot of people, that choice is really needed.” Faircloth called on Martha Stewart (not that Martha Stewart) – who wasn’t present, but was represented by Ellen Cochran, executive director of Mental Health Associates of the Triad, which provides outpatient services for the mentally ill. She said, “Those of you who know Martha Stewart know I’m not her.” Cochran said she has worked in the mental health field for 30 years in North Carolina, and is struggling to keep her agency’s doors open because of a lack of funding and an exponential increase in required paperwork after the takeover of Guilford County mental health services by the Sandhills Center – the Moore Countybased mental health management group into which Guilford County was forced to merge by the state on Jan 1, 2013. “I can tell you with no hesitation that, as I stand here right now, I have never been more concerned with the state of mental health in North Carolina,” Cochran said. “There has got to be a treatment alternative that is better than incarceration and people who are having to use the emergency room at the hospital for crisis services.”

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The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 9

Squeaky Davis Gets Parking Grease by Scott D. Yost county editor

When Guilford County voters elected a Board of Commissioners with a 5-to-4 Republican majority last November, they no doubt expected to see a lot of important votes on county policy come down to 5-4 splits, and in fact they are seeing that – it’s just that those close votes aren’t split along party lines as expected. At the Board of Commissioners Thursday, April 4 meeting, Republican Chairman of the Board Linda Shaw gave the four Democrats on the board the liberal support they needed to give away $400,000 to the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority, an entity that pays no property taxes to Guilford County. The board is giving the money to the Airport Authority for the construction of two hangers at the airport that would be used to expand TIMCO Aviation Services, the largest aircraft maintenance and repair company in North America. The incentives deal that the board approved at the April 4 meeting is highly irregular for several reasons, which made some commissioners reluctant to vote for the giveaway. For instance, usually the incentives agreement is made between the county and the company in question, but, in this case,

rather than entering into a an agreement with TIMCO, Guilford County entered into an agreement with a third party, the Airport Authority, regarding TIMCO. Also, usually that agreement is a contract, however, when it comes to giving money to the Airport Authority for TIMCO, there will instead be a “memorandum of understanding.” In addition, in almost every previous case when the county has given away taxpayer money, it got a new large structure in return that it can collect property taxes on; however in this case the Airport Authority is building hangers for TIMCO. Therefore the county won’t collect any property tax from the $30 million construction project (though the county will collect taxes on the estimated $2 million worth of equipment and other taxable items that will be inside the hangers.) At the April 4 meeting, Democratic Commissioners Bruce Davis, Carolyn Coleman, Ray Trapp and Kay Cashion voted along with Shaw to give the money away, while Republican’s Bill Bencini, Jeff Phillips, Alan Branson and Hank Henning voted against the move. The vote meant the county will give $400,000 from the county’s general fund to the Airport Authority for expansion of

TIMCO’s operations at the airport. The $32 million project is expected to create 400 new full-time jobs over the next five years. Advocates said that, since Guilford County has a 9.5 percent unemployment rate, those jobs were badly needed. At the public hearing, Dan Lynch, the president of the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, spoke in favor of the handout. He said the project would tie in nicely with aviation workforce training programs at Guilford Technical Community College, as well as with advanced materials programs at North Carolina A&T State University. Kevin Baker, the executive director of the Airport Authority, said TIMCO’s expansion would grow the airport’s core business. “Our airport has been a center for aircraft design,” he told the board. He said TIMCO has been active at Piedmont Triad International Airport for three decades, and he added that the privately held company was the largest employer at that airport. “It would make the airport more competitive,” he said. “That’s really why we’re here. Our vision is to become a preeminent aerospace center.” Baker added that some in the aircraft

industry already refer to this area as “the Wichita of the east.” That city in Kansas is widely known as a center of aircraft related industry. Baker said the county might lose the 400 planned jobs if the commissioners didn’t vote to shell out the money. “They are looking at six sites across the country including ours,” he said. During the public hearing, no one spoke against the incentives. Shaw began the commissioners’ discussion. “This is an investment,” Shaw said. “This is 400 more jobs. We need these jobs right now.” Her fellow Republicans, however, had a lot of questions and concerns. Bencini, for instance, asked how the county could hold TIMCO accountable when it wouldn’t have a contract with the company. Guilford County Attorney Mark Payne said the memorandum of understanding would stand in place of a contract, and he added that it will “look like a standard contract.” Payne also said that, since the new hangers would be owned by the Airport Authority, which doesn’t pay property (Continued on page 30)

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Page 10

Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Sound of the Beep

Two Great

April Events

What follows has been transcribed from the answering machine tape on our comment line 273-0898. We edit out what is required by the laws of the state, of good taste and of good sense. The limit on phone calls is one minute and each caller may make up to two calls per week. If you have something to say, call our comment line at 273-0898 and start talking at The Sound of the Beep.

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The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Hello. This is High Point calling. I just wanted you to know that your newspaper is greatly appreciated by my customers and myself. Even though we disagreed on who was the best Republican candidate for president, your newspaper is a light shining in this world of political darkness. There is no other news source in the triad that gives proper coverage of the local, national and international politics. Orson Scott Card, Paul Clark, Scott Yost, Jerry Bledsoe, Alex Jakubsen, and, of course, John Hammer, your coverage of politics in Greensboro, High Point and Guilford County is much needed for there is no other source for us to rely on. Thank you for your courage to expose the lies, cover-ups, deception and the evil that is all around us. PS: Also, Geof Brooks, thank you for your cartoons, because everybody knows every picture tells a story. %%% Hey, I don’t know why y’all give Obama such a hard time. I mean, proportionally the Greensboro City Council wastes more money than he does. Spending $200,000 to rename High Point Road? Just call it Slashand-Stab Avenue like everybody else. Thanks. %%% Yes, this is for Scott Yost. Just read your article Seniors Stoned. I thought it was absolutely hilarious, me being a senior citizen anyway. I thought it was a great piece and real funny. You could have mentioned possibly going to the Castaways and seeing Archie Bell and the Drells or Junior Walker. That would have hit the note right on its head. Thanks. Bye. %%% The guns are not the problem. The problem is the anti-religious atmosphere that the Democrats want to create in our country – that is what is wrong with our country. The Democrats will stop at nothing. They will not stop until all moral Christian family values are gone. They will not stop until all of the churches are gone. And you will be arrested for quoting scripture. That is their goal. And that is what they are after. The Democrats are the problem, and the environment they are trying to create. We have got to vote these people out of office and save our country. Thank you. %%% Yes, I was just calling about the change of the names of the street, Lee Street and High Point Road. Why spend all that money to do that when they could very easily use that money for the Police Department to clean up crime in Greensboro and let them do their jobs. That’s the problem. They’re not letting the Police Department do their job. They’re tying their hands behind their back and saying not do nothing. Something needs to be done besides wasting money. And the Police Department does a good job, and they need to be able to clean the crime up in Greensboro. Thank you. %%% Let me get this right. The homosexual community wants DOMA struck out. The Defense of Marriage Act that says marriage should be between one man and one woman. They want that changed. And the reason they want it changed is so they can put their spouses on their insurance policies. Well, let me get this right. All these people that want it changed, they’re Democrats, right? I thought their health insurance was taken care since their man got reelected. So, what’s the purpose of striking down DOMA to put their spouses on their insurance policies if their insurance is going to be taken care of automatically by big daddy government? Think about. Thank you. %%% Whenever a patron goes out to eat for lunch or dinner, you always see the sanitation grade prominently displayed somewhere near the front entrance of the establishment. Now, I have a question for the fast food restaurant owners or operators, how come you don’t see the sanitation grade at the outside menu? You only get to see it when you get to the drive through after you’ve placed your order. Just wondering. (Continued on page 12)

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

The Rhino Times

Thursday, April 11, 2013

SCHMOOZEFEST

™

6428 Burnt Poplar Road

Thursday, April 25 • 6 pm - 8 pm Open to all business professionals. For more info call (336) 273-0885.

Page 11

Page 12

Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

The New York Times Crossword Puzzle

No. 0407

FITTING REARRANGMENTS By Matt Ginsberg / Edited by Will Shortz

6 19

Across 1 Postal ID 6 Memphis belle? 10 Raspberry 14 Kind of form 1 8 C o b b l e r ’s j o b 20 So that one might 22 Black shade 23 Stevedore, at times 2 4 C o l l e g e s t u d e n t ’s place 25 Dial competitor 26 British soccer powerhouse 28 “Got it” 29 Fish with a long neck 31 Procrastinators’ enablers 34 Shark, maybe 3 5 B e a t a t a N a t h a n ’s hot dog contest, say 36 Snake in “The Jungle Book” 39 Salad bar items

RELEASE DATE: 4/14/2013

40 “Le ___ de MonteCristo” 4 2 Vi s a o ff e r i n g 47 Of ___ (servicing) 48 Mayo containers? 4 9 Tu r n e d 50 “China Beach” actress H e l g e n b e rg e r

For any three answers, call from a touch-tone phone: 1-900-285-5656, $1.49 each minute; or, with a credit card, 1-800814-5554.

52 Novelist who had two spouses simultaneously

5 3 A b b r. o n c a r s e l l e r s ’ license plates 54 N. African land

55 “Decision Points” author 58 Repeats

6 1 Va g u e r e s p o n s e t o “When?”

62 Marsh of detective fiction 6 5 _ _ _ C i t y, M i s s .

6 6 G e c k o ’s g r i p p e r 6 9 Tu r b u l e n c e

71 Local bird life

73 “Bye Bye Bye” band 75 Onetime sunblock agent 77 BB shooter

79 Galileo, for one 83 Electric ___

84 Mishandle something, say

8 5 O n e o f t h e M ’s o f 3 M : A b b r. 88 Electric car

89 Football misdirection 9 1 H i p s t e r ’s p a d

9 2 C h a r i o t e e r ’s p l a c e

94 Apt anagram for 42Across 96 Beat it

97 Name on a museum plaque 98 Memphis-toN a s h v i l l e d i r.

99 Opera character who s i n g s “ L a rg o a l factotum”

Beep (Continued from page 10) %%% There is no one that’s living now, or ever has lived, that can explain Obamacare. I’ve tried to learn all I can about it. And there’s two things I found out for sure. Everybody’s insurance is going to go up. And the people standing out on the street that don’t work can go to the doctor or the hospital for free. When the hardworking Democrats find this out, the Republican Party can run Mickey Mouse in 2014, keep the House and take over the Senate. %%% Yes, this only applies for the guy who wrote about get rid of the car inspection and why they keep doing 96s and why they don’t take some off as more and more are added on. And the guy is saying they’re spending tens of thousands of dollars, the station owners. Well, if they don’t want to do the inspections, don’t buy the equipment. Let the state worry about getting it inspected. The station owners are making the money and getting reimbursed back from the

101 “The ___ Show” (best-selling album of 2002) 103 “Great” 1666 conflagration 109 Birthday suit enthusiast 11 2 P a s s a g e

11 3 Vi d e o s t o r e p e n a l t y 11 5 M e d i c a l s u ff i x

11 6 A p t a n a g r a m f o r 24-Across

11 9 D e s i g n e r P i c a s s o , daughter of Pablo 120 Coastal niche

121 They’re on the left in Britain 122 “South Pacific” protagonist and namesakes

1 2 To b e i n P a r i s ?

13 Buckingham Palace resident 14 Alters to allow development, maybe

1 5 S c o t l a n d ’s “ G r a n i t e City”

16 English poet who co-founded the PreRaphaelites 17 Begins, as a journey 19 Scratch the surface of, maybe

40 Fleetwood or Eldorado, informally

Down

1 Cuba, por ejemplo 2 C o u p e ’s c o u p l e

3 Apt anagram for 31Across 4 Places to hole up after holdups 5 Unvarying

6 Grant, e.g.

7 How things are g e n e r a l l y s t i r- f r i e d 8 Backs, anatomically 9 Munitions supplier 10 Black shade

11 L o v e r o f P s y c h e

41 Checked out

43 Ask for change 44 “How can ___ sure?”

4 5 H o m e t o w n o f T V ’s McCloud 46 PC insert

49 Alternative to “com”

5 1 B a n k e r ’s c o n c e r n

54 Apt anagram for 79Across 5 6 H o t t a r, e . g . 57 Mata ___

59 Good protein source 60 1984 title role for Emilio Estevez

state. Getting $25 for each inspection that they’re doing. So, who are they kidding? This is the most greediest state I’ve ever seen around. Come on, now. And new cars, more and more has to be inspected. Why can’t for five years your car not be inspected for emissions, huh? That’s because the state is greedy. They want to stick it in our you know what. Thank you. Have a great day. And happy Easter. %%% Hi. This is the Black Republican again. I was calling to let you know. These statements like the guy – Democrats is not drawing a check. That’s the type of things to make sure that we don’t get more black Republicans. That’s the reason we have a problem getting voted into office. Because they sling the same – the same evil although we’re all the same and everything. They’re a lot more peaceful. You see what I’m saying? No black man wants to be part of the Klan. Please, stop with your racist comments. %%%

120

121

123

124

67 Sun

68 Multiple-choice choices 70 Order during an M.R.I.

72 Croatian leader?

74 Municipal facility: A b b r. 7 6 U . S . A . p a r t : A b b r.

111

91 96

99 103

110

102

116

6 4 O ff s h o r e installation

115

63 Apt anagram for 103-Across

70 77

109

51 57

69 76

101

60 66

1 2 5 B a ff l e d

3 7 G e o rg i a n e i g h b o r

25 28

123 Former Israeli p r e s i d e n t We i z m a n

126 1978 Peace Prize recipient

10 21

38 Not much, as of paint

35 40

32 Egyptian sun deity

124 Dustup

27 Galena and cerussite

33 Reggae precursor

21 Per ___

30 Apt anagram for 55Across

104

105

106

100

107

108

112

113

117

118

114 119 122

125

78 Alternative to white 80 “Hurlyburly” writer David 8 1 To m o r r o w ’s i s tonight

126

91 Legendary queen of the Britons immortalized by Shakespeare 9 3 Te e t o t a l e r

82 Like Mars

95 Cool, in slang

86 Completely

100 Lose it

106 Prefix with car 107 Some Siouans

108 Where Hercules slew the lion 11 0 M i n u t e m a n ’s location

8 5 Wa s c o n g e n i a l

96 Small chickens

87 Like the word “curiae” in “amicus curiae”

102 Heart

11 4 B i g _ _ _ ( s p o r t s conference)

105 Not built up

11 8 N . M . s e t t i n g

90 Melodic phrase

Hi, the Black Republican again. I was calling just to say I noticed that a lot of these people posting racist comments have a serious lack of enunciation, grammar, as well as political information. Thank you. %%% Everyone that’s got enough sense to get out of bed and put clothes on knows that Iran is building a nuclear weapon. North Korea already has one. And our great leader Barack Hussein Obama is doing away with czars. He is also taken away the stuff that Reagan put into place that would shoot down incoming missiles. Well, with that it all just looks like we’re doomed. %%% I’m calling concerning yet another idea by our City Council and emperor Mayor Robbie Perkins renaming Lee Street and High Point Road. Apparently, the feeling is that, at least with High Point Road, the dilapidated buildings along High Point Road embarrass the City of High Point. But I’ve yet to hear of High Point suing Greensboro for defamation. The sentence,

104 Short pastoral piece

111 S t e p p e d

11 7 M o s e s M a l o n e , o n the 76ers

a rose by any other name would smell as sweet, comes to mind. More specifically two major thoroughfares lined by shoddy looking buildings would still be two major thoroughfares lined by shoddy looking buildings if the thoroughfares were renamed Gate City Boulevard. In fact, renaming Gate City Boulevard would degrade the term Gate City rather than upgrade the land and buildings to which the thoroughfares pass. To me the idea’s like renaming the Gulag as Stalin’s winter vacation camp or ... %%% Continuing. Another idea comes to mind: if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. Lee Street and High Point Road have served us well for decades. So, for once, let’s have government play hands off and not tinker with our history and traditions. And to continue with this theme, why not change Greensboro to Rhinopolis? We could invent a word rhinicity, to mean uncovering silly, wasteful and corrupt practices in our city and county governments. Finally, (Continued on page 29)

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 13

Uncle Orson Reviews Everything

Cougar Town, England, Basques, DNA of how small its cast is. Characters have self-awareness which, if they really had it, would make them behave differently. So the writers’ voices constantly come out in the characters. Courteney Cox is so face-lifted it hurts just to watch her talk – but she’s a wonderful performer. Christa Miller makes smug misanthropy weirdly likeable; Brian Van Holt and Josh Hopkins play opposite men whom we can believe both played an important role in Cox’s character’s life. But the jewel of the cast is Dan Byrd, as Courteney Cox’s round-headed son. Byrd plays the same role in this ensemble that Zach Braff played in Scrubs: the nearly normal person who never questions the insanity around him and manages to find love and happiness within it. He does a great job. And there it is: A brief review. Who knew I could do that?

.... I’ve already mentioned Foundation: The History of England from Its Earliest Beginnings to the Tudors by Peter Ackroyd. A single volume covering such a vast amount of history is hard to write, but nobody has done it better than Ackroyd.

His most important contribution is to deal with the pre-Norman history – and the pre-Roman and pre-Saxon history as well – with astonishing clarity and usefulness. He demonstrates that both archaeology and DNA show that regardless of who the ruling class was at any time, or what language the people spoke, the overwhelming theme is continuity. The “great waves” of migration – Celts, Germans, Scandinavians – did not replace the indigenous population as I had been taught fifty years ago. Instead they merely supplemented it, and not by that much of a percentage. Change in the actual life of the people, as well as in their genetic makeup, was gradual and incremental through all those early millennia. Throughout the book, Ackroyd interrupts the narrative to give us essays on the long continuities. But that doesn’t detract from his narrative achievement: He makes the history of England sharp and clear, so that if you knew nothing about it, you would come away with an accurate picture of what happened and why. Not only that, but you would be entertained every step along the way. Ackroyd is not a creator of original history – that is, he is not the guy who pores over

the ancient documents and archaeological reports and makes the first report of what the evidence seems to show. But the kind of history he does write – the overview, the big picture, the telling detail, and fascinating anecdote – he does better than almost anyone. If you want to know English history, this is the book I would recommend as the starting point. (And I’ve read many, so I know what I’m talking about.)

.... On the other hand, Roger Collins’s The Basques, part of the Peoples of Europe series of scholarly histories, is based on deep original research. The Peoples of Europe series is devoted to groups whose history is barely recorded, so everything is based on a scrap of writing here and an ancient inscription there. The Basque-speaking people are among the most fascinating, anywhere. Theirs is the last surviving pre-Indo-European language of Europe (though this does not mean it is the original European language; it merely could be). And somehow it survived when all the others were swallowed up in the surrounding culture. However, writing about Basque history (Continued on page 14)

Are you ready to “Shake Your Booty”?

with

Sometimes I get so far behind in my reviewing that I despair of ever catching up. The problem is that I’ll read a book or see a movie and then, instead of reviewing it, I’ll write a critical essay and so instead of reviewing three or four things, I review only the one and the pile of things on my desk keeps rising and rising. For instance, I’ve been watching Cougar Town. I knew nothing about it except that I hated the original premise of middleaged women pursuing younger men. That theme still persists in a shadowy way, and with one subplot (though the boy is now in college so it’s almost not nauseating). But what keeps me watching is the fact that underneath the style – which is straight Scrubs comedy transplanted to a wine-bibbing Florida cul-de-sac – there is some seriously good thinking about human nature. And it’s funny, more often than is usual with television comedy (though less often than the writers think). Part of what makes it funny is the unrealistic self-awareness that was also a hallmark of Scrubs. These friends know how unbelievably limited their life is; the show makes fun

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Page 14

Uncle Orson (Continued from page 13) is not only difficult because of lack of documents, it’s dangerous because of Basque terrorist activity. If you say the wrong thing, you can be killed for it. Historians don’t often face that possibility. Collins is forced to piece together a coherent story from an amazing collection of tiny shreds of evidence – complicated by the fact that many documents claiming to be ancient are actually much later (but still old) forgeries. It was in the interest of a twelfth-century monastery to be able to produce a deed from the tenth century – even though nobody was writing down property deeds at that time. So forgeries abounded. The important questions, though, Collins is able to answer with clarity and authority. Basque inheritance was nonpartible and matrilineal: The family property was passed on, intact, to one heir – preferably a nephew, a sister’s son – and the others fended for themselves. In Roman times, this worked fine because the extra sons would join the Roman army. We have records of Basque legions serving in Britain, for example, at Hadrian’s Wall. But when the Roman system broke down, and trade was not safe, and there were no nations hiring mercenary soldiers, what did the extra sons do? They turned to brigandage, and then the inevitable progress from brigandage to overlordship happened. Even though there was never a centralized Basque government, Basque raiding groups eventually became Basque settlers and overlords in a widening area. Gascony in southern France takes its name from the Basques (a normal consonant progression: Vascon, Wascon, Guascon, Gascon), and Navarre and other provinces from the Biscay coast to the Ebro valley in Spain had, at times, a Basque-speaking majority. But the heartland of Basque speech always was and remains today the rural pastoral mountain valleys of the Pyrenees mountains, on both the French and Spanish sides, and the shepherd Basques were never

Thursday, April 11, 2013

fully absorbed into any other culture. The present Basque separatist movement began with the Carlist civil wars in 19th century Spain; only then did a sense of Basque nationhood begin to surface. Before that, Basque was simply the language of the common folk, and had nothing to do with nations or realms of any kind. Collins’s book is tough sledding if you’re not used to reading original scholarship. However, if you are familiar with it, then you’ll recognize that Collins is an extraordinarily good writer, and his reasoning is always clear and welljustified. He always includes contrary views, too, so that you can understand that others disagree with him on certain points. This is how true scholarship is done; may his tribe increase.

.... Then there’s yet another kind of history, typified by James Romm’s Ghost on the Throne: The Death of Alexander the Great and the War for Crown and Empire. In most histories or biographies of Alexander the Great or his period, we are told of his death at elaborate length – and then the writer says, “Alexander’s heirs were too young or weak to rule, and so his generals fought among themselves until clear successors emerged.” They mention the three-part division of the empire that resulted – the European, consisting of Macedonia and Greece; the African, consisting of Egypt and whatever the Ptolemies could grab from time to time; and the Asian, ruled by the Seleucids, descendants of Seleucus, who ruled essentially the old Persian Empire. What Romm does is take us through the complicated history of the struggles, at first to keep the empire together for Alexander’s heirs to inherit, and then, when all of them had been killed by various factions, to determine which general had the power to hold on against the others. This is an extravagantly complicated story. By contrast, the English Wars of the Roses are a simple matter for schoolchildren. Yet Romm is such an extraordinarily

good writer – and good organizer of his material – that not for one moment is the story confusing, and never is it anything less than fascinating. There are certain figures whose stories become emotionally important: Alexander’s niece,Adea, who eventually is married to Alexander’s retarded son, and whose brave, bold, and brilliant actions brought her very close to ruling the empire herself, and definitely kept her alive and in the game for an astonishingly long time. Alexander’s mother, Olympias, the Medea-figure of the play, who ended up murdering practically everybody she felt threatened by, yet who for a time was one of the most important of Alexander’s successors. A Greek clerk named Eumenes, who rose by merit alone to be the finest of all of Alexander’s generals; he outfought everyone who came against him, but ultimately lost because no matter how brilliantly he performed, no matter how worthy he was of Alexander’s mantle, he was Greek and not Macedonian, and so other Macedonian generals would not follow him. Any one of these is worthy of a great tragedy or opera or novel or feature film. And they are just the most likeable and effective of the losers. There is the pathetic figure of Alexander’s son by his Bactrian wife, Roxanne, who lived to be seven or eight years old before he was finally murdered by a general who saw no further use for him. Think of the sevenyear-olds you’ve known and realize that he reached a level where he could understand much or most of what was happening, but remained powerless to affect it. But I’m only just touching on the huge cast of characters that Romm is working with. It is almost miraculous the way he structures the story so that every narrative thread remains alive, and we keep track of all the main characters, and we are never confused. Unlike Collins as he writes of the Basques, Romm is working over territory that many scholars – but very few ordinary readers – are quite familiar with. These stories were already controversial

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

and argued over by Greek and Roman writers in ancient times. As Romm sorts truth from fantasy, he is dealing with almost too much material, too many alternate versions. Yet he makes his choices openly, letting us see the alternatives. And he picks no real villains. While many people do truly dreadful things, Romm lets us understand what they were thinking and why they acted as they did. There are stories where you can almost believe in Fate – Perdiccas’s failed attempt to invade Egypt, for instance, where he imitated Alexander’s tactics but received none of Alexander’s luck. There are also figures who emerge from shadows, surfacing first as traitors and murderers, though we know they will eventually become the founders of dynasties. Some are brave, some luckless, some too timid to survive, some honest and some dedicated to lying – it is like the whole history of the human race caught in a deadly struggle for survival. And, by the way, there really is a firm justification for the title Ghost on the Throne, as Eumenes, knowing that Macedonians won’t follow a Greek like him, invokes the presence of Alexander by creating a throne for him and adding props from his reign, then bringing in soldiers and officers to swear allegiance to Alexander. Never has empty symbolism accomplished so much, even if it was only for a relatively short time. Even if you know nothing about Alexander or about the Hellenistic empires that followed him, Ghost on the Throne is great history, well written.

.... By the way, when I spoke of how DNA shows relatively little population change in Britain over the course of the centuries and migrations and invasions, I had in mind some rather personal DNA information to confirm it. At Ancestry.com, you can spend $99 to take a personal DNA test. They send you a package that you swab, swirl, and return; then they analyze your DNA and tell you (Continued on page 16)

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 15

Mensa Members Get To Sleep In by Scott D. Yost county editor

LONDON, April 3 (Reuters) - North Korea said it had “ratified” a merciless attack against the United States, potentially involving a “diversified nuclear strike”. “We formally inform the White House and Pentagon that the ever-escalating U.S. hostile policy toward the DPRK (North Korea) and its reckless nuclear threat will be smashed by the strong will of all the united service personnel and people and cuttingedge smaller, lighter and diversified nuclear strike means of the DPRK and that the merciless operation of its revolutionary armed forces in this regard has been finally examined and ratified,” a spokesman for the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army said in a statement.

HuffingtonPost.com

I didn’t really intend to write about any particular subject this week, but I realized after I started writing this column that there were a lot of evil things that ended up included. At first I couldn’t figure out why that was, but then I realized that, these days, evil is a big theme everywhere you turn. In fact, the top-grossing movie in the country is Evil Dead, and if you Google “evil” right now you get 373 million hits. So, evil it is this week. Let’s start with … Evil North Korea. Trust me when I say that North Korea is an evil place run by an evil man who spreads evil with every move he makes. And North Korea and its threats of impending nuclear attack have dominated the news cycle for days now. But let me tell you why we don’t have to worry about North Korea. Do you know why we don’t have to worry about it? If you’ve ever seen the newsreel footage of any of their missile tests, then you know why there’s no cause for alarm. Any time North Korea shows off a new missile, there’s always a whole lot of fanfare, and Kim Jong-un comes out to watch the launch through his 1930s binoculars, and all the North Korean dignitaries are there, sitting in the viewing grandstand. Then the missile shoots up off the launch pad, and then, when it’s about 100 yards off the ground, it starts to malfunction. It starts twirling wildly and everyone runs for cover and the missile then either explodes in the air or smashes back down to the ground in the general area where it took off from. That right there is every North Korean missile test they’ve ever done in a nutshell. If wacky Kim Jong-un and his country really wanted to attack us, they would have to sneak past the border guards at night and then take us out with knives and bayonets. I promise you that, if they ever do really try to arm and launch a nuclear missile, it will be exactly like a real world reenactment of the Road Runner cartoon where the coyote launches a giant rocket at the road runner but then the rocket spins around and heads straight for the wily coyote and blows him to smithereens. Speaking of evil things in the world, I can’t believe that someone has just made the most evil invention in history even more evil. That’s a remarkable accomplishment if you think about it. Six years ago, I wrote a column on the most evil inventions ever created, and the invention that took home the top prize was the alarm clock. Levi Hutchins was a clockmaker in Concord, New Hampshire, who was obsessed with never wasting any part of his day, and he invented the evil device in 1787. As I wrote in that column in 2007, if you think about it, if the alarm clock had never been invented, you could walk in to the office at noon on a workday and your boss might say, all upset, “Johnson, the workday starts at 8:30 last time I checked!” And you could shrug your shoulders nonchalantly and say: “Oh yeah, I know. I overslept.” Your boss might say, “You overslept? Till noon?” And you could just look at him and go, “Yeah, can you believe that? It’s just crazy, huh?” Levi Hutchins’ invention was evil enough as it was, but, in 1956, it was made more evil when alarm clock scientists at General Electric came up with a “snooze” button that allowed the alarm clock to toy with you endlessly while you lay in bed. I couldn’t imagine that any sick mind could come up with a way to make the alarm clock even more evil than it already was, until I read this week about the new IQ Alarm Clock. This alarm clock from hell starts blaring each morning just like other alarm (Continued on page 16)

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Yost

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clocks, but here’s the twist: When an IQ Alarm Clock goes off, you can’t turn it off by just hitting a button – you have to answer a series of math and logic questions to convince the clock that you are actually fully awake and alert. Until you do that, it will keep right on blaring. Here’s a sample question that comes up on the clock screen: “Which number should come next in this series? 3, 5, 8, 13, 21.” It then gives you some choices and you have to figure out the answer to that as well as a couple of other questions if you want the alarm to stop. In other words, you have to wake up and pay attention, sleepyhead. Oh, and in case you think you’re going to be clever and take the battery out to silence the alarm – well, good luck with that because the tamper resistant battery compartment makes that an extremely difficult thing to do.

Scott’s Night Out Very sweet movie star Megan Blake (above) was in town Wednesday promoting her new film, Susie’s Hope, about the famous local dog behind Susie’s Law. Megan lives in Malibu (“How terrible for you” I said to her.) and has appeared in quite a few motion pictures. Smiley, her rescue dog in the orange bandana, isn’t in the movie, but Smiley was photo-bombing every shot I took when commissioners, filmmakers and representatives of the Guilford County Animal Shelter met for lunch at Marilyn’s modeling agency in Greensboro. Megan apparently loves horses as much as dogs, as you can see in this last shot. In Malibu, they apparently even dress up to do barn chores. The caption for this picture said the two horses were named Starfire and Mini Ha Ha, but it did not say which was which. - Scott D. Yost

OK, let’s move from evil alarm clocks to evil bills in the NC legislature. Right before I heard about this new bill that’s under consideration in Raleigh, I was thinking: Hey, you know what the problem with society is? It’s that we don’t force married people who hate each other to stay together long enough. Also, another problem is that we never force those couples to go into a small, cramped room and tell each other face to face every detail of exactly what they hate so much about one another. So the new bill addresses those problems. Two Republican legislators recently put forth the Healthy Marriage Act, which would make it even more difficult for couples in North Carolina to get a divorce. The bill, sponsored by NC Sens. Austin Allran and Warren Daniel, would double the current one-year waiting period that people have to endure in order to get a divorce. If the bill passes, couples would have to wait two years, and, during that time, the couples would have to undergo mandatory couple’s counseling. The senators behind the bill argue that it would reduce the divorce rate in North Carolina, and I think it would. However, it would only do so by causing the murder rate to skyrocket. Now, while we’re on the subject of evil, I am still addicted to the Jodi Arias trail. Partly, I’m fascinated by the trial because I think she is pure and unadulterated evil. I can hardly stand to watch the prosecutor because, you know, you have this woman who shot a guy in the head, slit his throat from ear to ear and stabbed him almost 30 times, nine of those in the back – and she’s claiming self defense. So it should be an open and shut case, but the trial has been going on and on, and the prosecutor has no idea how to stick to the main point. What follows is actual testimony from

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

the Jodi Arias trial in which the prosecution spent an eternity talking about Snow White. The prosecutor, Juan Martinez, was cross-examining a defense psychologist, Alyce LaViolette, and he brought up a lecture she had given a long time ago. Her talk asked the question whether Snow White was a battered woman. Again, I am not making this up: This is actual testimony from the actual trial. I haven’t added anything to it – in fact, the only thing I’ve done is cut it down some. Please, enjoy … Martinez: Well, are you familiar, back in 2010, are you familiar [with] putting on a seminar and indicating that Snow White was a battered woman. Do you remember talking about that? Defense Attorney: Objection, irrelevant. Judge: Overruled. Martinez: Right. So it does say, “Is Snow White a battered woman,” right? That is the title of it, correct? Witness: It is. Martinez: And one of the things that we know about your presentation, also, is that – uh, and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs is a fairy tale by Brothers Grimm, right? (Continued on page 26)

Uncle Orson (Continued from page 14) your genetic ancestry, in broad terms. My wife, part Irish and part English by genealogy, took the test and learned that her genotype indicates this: 65 percent British Isles 19 percent Scandinavian 11 percent Finnish/Volga-Ural 5 percent unknown For her, then, the Vikings made a definite contribution, and we’re still a little puzzled over that Finnish/Volga-Ural percentage. Because that’s kind of a lot. My origins, on the other hand, are very simple: 99 percent British Isles, 1 percent unknown. Folks, I am Brit to the core. Almost undiluted. Except that “British Isles” can mean Irish, Pictish, Cornish, Welsh, AngloSaxon, or whoever was in Britain before the Celts crossed over. In a way I was vaguely disappointed that there was nothing exotic in my ancestry. I suspect it really means that I am descended from a long, long line of nobodies. The way you get exotic bloodlines in Europe in that era was through intermarriages, and those usually happened in the upper reaches of society. Common, ordinary people like my peasant ancestors just married folks from the neighboring village. But hey, whatever the process was, it produced me, and I’m the only self I’ve got, so I’m content.

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

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Letters to the Editor We agree Dear Editor, In your article about charter schools you stated that employees of the traditional public schools are reportedly not required to have criminal background checks. I have copied a section of the employee handbook of Guilford County Schools for your information. “Criminal Records Check | Employees and Substitutes Board Policy GBDC requires a criminal records check on newly hired employees including substitutes. A criminal records check will also be conducted on a random or rotating basis on all annually rehired and current employees including substitutes. (Reference: Board of Education Policy GBDC; Administrative Procedure GBDC-P) Criminal Records Check | Volunteers Reasonable background inquiries and checks are required for all volunteers (interns, student teachers, tutors or similar roles) who may have unsupervised contact with students. The volunteer must complete a Volunteer Registration. The form must include sufficient personal information to allow the district to complete an in-state criminal record check and to investigate any out-of-state/federal arrests or convictions. The district’s Human Resources Office will review the results and notify the principal

and volunteer coordinator of the results and recommendations. No volunteer as defined above should be used without a completed background check and an affirmative recommendation. (Reference: Board of Education Policy GBDCA)” Background checks are pretty routine for people who work with children or even in sight of them, including parochial school volunteers and those who volunteer for parks and recreation. Ellen Corbett Editor’s Note: Thanks for helping me make the point. Background checks are not required by state law for traditional public schools, but by school policy, as it will be in charter schools.

Gun buying takes time Dear Editor, As someone that had previously never purchased nor owned a firearm, my recent experience in actually buying a weapon greatly conflicts with what I had been led to believe by most media reports, would be a quick and easy process. Attempting to buy nothing more than a single shot revolver, a local dealer informed me that I would have to obtain a permit from my local sheriff’s department

before he could sell me the firearm. Obtaining the permit was not difficult, but was thorough and took some time. The Sheriff’s Department completed a background check and several days later I was informed that I could come pick up my permit. At that point I presented the permit to the dealer, who had me fill out several pages of paperwork, something called a Federal Firearms Transaction form. I was informed that any false information I might include on the form would constitute a felony. Afterwards, the dealer called the FBI to perform an additional background check. Clearing that, I was allowed to buy the firearm. It occurs to me that the last car I bought was a far easier and quicker process than buying a firearm was. Cosh Backer

FairTax proponent Dear Editor, After the FairTax HR25, S122 is the law of the land. With the FairTax you keep your entire paycheck. If you are employed at $35,000 per year you have all of the $35,000 to spend or save. With the FairTax, since there is no income tax in the US, jobs are being created from the offshore capital coming

back to the US. With the FairTax you don’t have to pay someone to do your taxes or spend hours doing them yourself. These are just a few reasons why April 15 can be just another day. Check www.fairtax.org for more reasons. Ask Congressman Coble why he will not co sponsor HR25. John Pierce

Social security not a great deal Dear Editor, I am 70 years old. I had a stroke a little over a year ago and am confined to a rest home. As a retired senior citizen, I need as much help from the government as anyone who is “entitled” to government assistance. Here’s my problem. I paid 7.5 percent of my gross income into the system for over 50 years. My employers matched that amount, which means 15 percent of my gross income was paid into the system for over 50 years. Plug these figures into a savings interest schedule and it will do the math for you. A very modest 5 percent annual earnings invested wisely comes to about $800,000. I earned the entitlements I am supposed to be receiving from the government. It should be a lot more than (Continued on page 30)

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Prison (Continued from page 1) However, recently the number of inmates being held there has fallen to levels that make it cost prohibitive to continue keeping prisoners there. In the past, convicted inmates have served their prison terms while growing crops, raising cattle, selling plants, maintaining and repairing Sheriff’s Department vehicles, running a countywide large appliance recycling program, and handling other duties at the farm that helped the inmates acquire useful skills while incarcerated. Many of the operations based at the farm generate revenue for Guilford County, and Barnes said he wants to keep some of those programs going even after all of the inmates are transferred from the farm to the county’s large new jail in downtown Greensboro. That 1,032-bed jail, which opened late last summer, has plenty of room, and it offers enough capacity for the Sheriff’s Department to keep inmates in the jail while separating them from the regular inmates awaiting trial. The Prison Farm holds inmates convicted of non-violent crimes. Most of those in the county jail are awaiting trial, and many of the inmates in that facility are charged with violent crimes. Just a few years ago, the Prison Farm would have 70 or 80 inmates on weekdays,

and well over 100 on weekends. Now, on weekdays that number is roughly half what it was, and it’s still shrinking. Barnes said that is due largely to changes in the way inmates are sentenced. In January 2012, the average daily population at the Prison Farm was 45 inmates; in July, it was 37 and, in December of last year, the average daily population was down to 32. On Friday, April 5, the head count at the farm was 29 inmates. Barnes said the Prison Farm still sees a healthy number of inmates on the weekends. There are a lot of “weekenders” who serve their sentences on Friday, Saturday and Sunday for, say, driving under the influence. That way they can keep their jobs. On the weekend of April 6 and 7, the Prison Farm had 38 inmates join the 29 inmates held during the week. Barnes said it simply doesn’t make financial sense to hold inmates at the Prison Farm anymore. “During the week the count is very, very low,” Barnes said. “I can’t justify having 32 guards for 32 prisoners. At times we’re looking at one detention officer for every inmate. I can’t justify that.” Barnes clarified that the 32 guards work in shifts, which means that, at any given time, there’s roughly one guard for every four inmates. The sheriff said that isn’t an efficient ratio, and, he added, there’s no reason to keep the remaining inmates at

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the Prison Farm now that the county has a brand new fully operational eight-story, $100 million facility. Speaking of the shiny new jail in Greensboro, that jail cost taxpayers $100 million, and the inmate population in the jail isn’t anywhere near the high numbers predicted when Barnes and other area law enforcement and justice system officials were selling the project to county voters in early 2008. But Barnes said emptying the Prison Farm isn’t an attempt to spike up the numbers in the new jail. “I’m not looking to fill up the new jail; I’m looking for ways to save money,” the sheriff said. He said changes in the justice system are partly responsible. “Judges are putting inmates on electronic monitoring, not giving them active time, or [giving them] no time,” Barnes said. “Structured sentencing allows them more leeway in whether they get time or not. Many prisoners may not want to do farm time and take straight time to get it over with.” He said the guards and other staff at the

Yost (Continued from page 16) Witness: Yes. Martinez: And in it, we have the individual who is a king, that’s the king, right, who is married and has a kid by – and they name her Snow White, right? Yes or no? Witness: I’m not using the Brothers Grimm version. I’m using the Walt Disney cartoon. I just want to make that clear. Martinez: So, there’s a different – all right. But is it true, though, that Snow White had a father, right? Witness: Yes, she did. Martinez: And the father was the king, right? Witness: Yes. Martinez: And it ends up that Snow White’s mother ends up dying, right? Witness: Yes. Martinez: And what ends up happening is that she remarries, right? [And] the father sends her away, correct? She goes into the forest, right? Defense Attorney: Objection, irrelevant, going this far into the Snow White story? Judge: Overruled. Martinez: Right? Witness: She goes into the woods, correct. [At this point the prosecutor made several weird comparisons between Snow White and Jodi Arias.] Martinez: And the same thing with Snow White, right? She lived in a situation that was less than ideal circumstances, right? Witness: She lived with the seven dwarfs, and according to the Disney version she was pretty happy. Martinez: Well, she lived in a shack, right?

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Prison Farm can be put to better use within his department. “With the population at the farm falling to 30 to 35 prisoners, it makes no sense to operate the farm as we do now,” Barnes said. “We use approximately 36 folks at the farm, and they can be utilized elsewhere for more impact. Why operate a kitchen, medical facility and have guards watch these folks when I can handle the process by sending them to work at the farm, giving them a bag lunch and keeping the kitchen and medical facility there. It’s about money and efficient operations.” In the past, there have also been logistical reasons the Prison Farm inmates couldn’t be moved to the jail. With a large group of inmates coming in and out every week, Barnes was concerned those people would bring contraband items into the jail. Now that Prison Farm inmates can be held in the new jail while being kept entirely separate from the rest of the jail population, contraband is less of a concern. In the fall of 2012, Barnes was forced to start thinking about alternative plans for the (Continued on next page))

Witness: I thought it was a cute little cottage, Mr. Martinez. Martinez: All right. But there are seven dwarfs that she’s living with, right? No one of her own age is there, right? Witness: I don’t know the age of the dwarfs. I don’t. I’m sorry, but I don’t. Anyway, that is honestly, I swear, just a small portion of the Snow White part of the trial. At one point a flabbergasted defense attorney called out, “Objection. Foundation, relevance, foundation, speculation.” And I was thinking, “I hear you man,” but the judge overruled the objections and let the Snow White testimony go on and on and on. Let me tell you something. If there is a murder trial and the statement “I don’t know the age of the dwarfs” comes up and any point, well, then things have gone horribly awry. Incidentally, in the Snow White story that I read, I think Snow White and the prince lived happily ever after. I don’t think she ever shot Prince Charming in the face, slashed his throat and stabbed him 29 times. By the way, in case you find yourself one morning with the alarm clock blaring loudly asking you the next number in that series, and you don’t know the answer, here’s some help. The series 3, 5, 8, 13, 21 is called a Fibonacci sequence because you get the next number in the series by adding the previous two numbers together. So 3 + 5 = 8, 8 + 13 = 21 and 13 + 21 = 34, which is the answer you will need to feed into the evil alarm clock in order to appease it. One morning, you’ll thank me greatly for that.

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

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Prison (Continued from previous page) inmates at the farm, after a giant retail chain codenamed “Swordfish” briefly considered opening a food distribution center that would have been situated on about 150 acres of the land. At that time, the Guilford County Board of Commissioners voted to relocate the Prison Farm and rezone the land if the company chose that site. The still unknown company passed over Guilford County. However, area economic development officials are still eyeing the Prison Farm as a possible site for a large industrial park – though those discussions have died down since there are currently no prospective businesses that want to open up shop on the land. Barnes has always maintained that he simply wants to see the farmland put to good use for Guilford County, whatever that entails. The Prison Farm is the last county-run facility of its type in the state, so a little piece of history will be gone after June 30. Barnes said the Prison Farm’s greenhouse operations will be maintained and the store connected to the greenhouse will still sell plants and lawn furniture to the public. That store is popular especially with residents in eastern Guilford County. Barnes said his department will continue the “white goods” recycling program that’s now run out of the farm. In that program, the county picks up discarded refrigerators,

stoves, dishwashers and other major appliances and recycles them. According to Barnes, for now at least, the bees will stay, and the Sheriff’s Department will continue to sell honey. For years, some Guilford County commissioners have said that they wanted to see the Prison Farm shut down and the land sold. About six years ago, Commissioner Carolyn Coleman chaired a committee that examined possible uses of the farm. Coleman said this week that she still believes Guilford County would be better off getting rid of the land. “I feel the same way I did years ago when we had the committee,” she said. “I think we should sell it – maybe not all of it, but most of it. Someone needs to buy that land and put houses on it.” The Prison Farm is in Commissioner Alan Branson’s district, and Branson said there can be a happy medium; he said the county could sell off or lease some of the land and hold onto the parts the Sheriff’s Department considers vital. For instance, Branson said, the Sheriff’s Department has a shooting range at the farm that’s used by the Sheriff’s Department along with law enforcement agencies such as the FBI, ATF, Winston-Salem police, and Guilford County security. Barnes is adamant that the range must stay open. Branson said that, if the county did sell

off other property, it could hold onto the shooting range and some other key areas that the Sherriff’s Department needs. Branson said he grew up near the Prison Farm and knows the area well. He said there would need to be a lot of infrastructure enhancements before any large business puts the land to use. “There’s no water; there are no roads,” Branson said. The Prison Farm currently operates on well water. All indications are that, if any sizable industry opened on the land, major infrastructure enhancements, including roads and water lines, would be needed. Dan Lynch, the president of the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, said it would take about a year and a half to get necessary infrastructure enhancements to support major industry. Lynch said most businesses that consider locating somewhere want a site that can be ready quicker than that. “Eighteen months is probably too long,” Lynch said. Once the Prison Farm is emptied of prisoners, the county will have two empty large inmate holding facilities. The county’s old jail in downtown Greensboro now sits idle except for housing some of the Sheriff’s Department functions. Still, a few times a week, sheriff’s staff does a walk through of the old building and flush all the toilets to keep the plumbing in good

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shape. Barnes said some of the Sheriff’s Department operations, such as staff duty, legal process, a gun unit and the employees overseeing the department’s transportation services, use office space in the old jail. He also said there are some renovation projects going on in the dilapidated building. “We are also keeping the detention portion operational to make sure that we don’t have to upfit it when we put prisoners back into the old jail,“ Barnes said. “Presently, it also gives us a place to hold prisoners if we should have to evacuate the new jail or a floor of the new jail for whatever reason.” Barnes has always had a special affinity for the operations at the farm. Over the years, he has frequently touted the fact that, while at the farm, inmates learn work skills that help them find a job when they get out. About 10 years ago, Barnes wanted to build a golf course and a driving range at the farm. At that time, he argued that having the golf course and the driving range would help inmates learn “groundskeeping skills.” Even with its storied past, Barnes said it’s now time to move the inmates out of the Prison Farm. “It’s time to take the bulls by the horn – literally, because we have bulls out there,” he said.

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APRIL 2013 | CAROLINA JOURNAL

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The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Incentives Switcheroo Benefits Carolina Panthers (a CJ Parody) Noah By TuTTS(Continued DownS from page 1) Incentives Editor to a district attorney. They said it was not connected with his management ofRALEIGH Smith. ebuffed in his effortsand to get the Rogers resigned suddenly without state to kick in $62.5 million in notice after a rapid rise to become one of the state tax dollars for upgrades to most lauded principals in Guilford County his team’s Charlotte home, Carolina – and in North Carolina. Rogers even Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has attracted attention in national publications. found out there’s more than one way His fall has been meteoric. to skin a cat. Guilford County Schools almost never While Gov. Pat McCrory and othdismisses problematic employees. Instead, er state officials were telling him his it usually moves them to other jobs or request for millions was no-go,allows they them resign. simultaneously Sometimes, resignations were toalmost telling seem designed to spare theforemployee and MetLife that its request $94 million the school system embarrassment. Other in incentives to move 2,600 jobs from times, as school board attorney Jill Wilson the Northeast to North Carolina had has said, Guilford County Schools simply been approved. can’t Richardson prevent employees from resigning. told Carolina Journal Wilson said that, under state law,the firing an he initially was miffed that state employee takes so long that an employee “feels it’s OK to give money to insurcan resign the football ax falls. playanceeasily agents butbefore not to Rogers’ was lightning fast. His ers,” until exit he hit upon an idea. He apresignation was announced on Friday, proached MetLife and offered to sell April 5, rights and took effect on April 8, the naming to the stadium in Charfirst after the Sunday, April 7 end lotteworkday for $94 million. of spring break.already Rogersowns was out the MetLife the of nambuilding at Smith same day. Stadium, ing rights to thethe New Jersey Greenthe named Anitra – executive where NFL’s JetsWalker and Giants play, director (second in stranger command) of thea so it would be no to such Guilford Schools Central proposal,County Richardson thought,Region and and former principal of He Northeast High might be receptive. was right. School interim only principal of Smith High MetLife– agreed, the new name for School. what is now Bank of America Stadium High School of theStadium Guilford inSmith Charlotte will beis part MetLife County South. Schools Enrichment Region

– a non-geographic region of poorly resigned – which makes it doubly unusual performing schools that were united under that Guilford County Schools would not let one region to get special attention in an him serve out his contract. attempt to improve them. Smith has been hailed as a savior of At a meeting with Smith High School Smith High School, which in 2007 was parents in the media center on Monday, ranked by the North Carolina Department April 8, Enrichment Region Superintendent of Public Instruction (NCDPI) as lowWanda Legrand said that Walker’s tenure performing, and has since moved up two as principal will last until the June 30 ranks to a “school of progress” – a school end of the fiscal year, or until Guilford at which 60 to 80 percent of students are County Schools can hire a replacement for performing at grade level. Rogers. During a June 2009 visit to Smith, former “I am the interim principal here,” Walker North Carolina Gov. Bev Perdue praised said. “I am in no way, shape or fashion Rogers lavishly. here to make drastic changes at Smith High “He’s my favorite principal,” she said. School.” “There are a lot of good principals, but he Rogers came to Guilford County Schools inspired me.” in 2006 from Norfolk Public Schools in But underneath, not everything about Virginia, where his last job was as principal Rogers was straightforward. An artist’s rendering of what the Carolina Panthers stadium will look like when signage of Lake Taylor High School. A 2005 U.S. The Rhino September 2011 is changed to reflect the new naming sponsor. (CJ spoof Times photo in graphic) News and World Report article cited him as reported that Rogers, although he claimed “We are pleased with this part- vate funds. having improved that school’s test scores two presumably legitimate degrees – a 1980 Asked by CJ if he didn’t feel that nership with MetLife,” said Richardby more than 20 percent. bachelor of science degree in social studies son. “Not only does it give MetLife the $94 million in incentives that the Rogers was hired by former Guilford from the University of North Carolina at some added visibility and yet another state granted to MetLife wasn’t the County School Superintendent Terry Grier, Chapel Hill and a 1982 master’s degree place to fly its Snoopy blimp, but the same money that MetLife was now who was from knownthefornaming playing rights favorites education Norfolk giving to theadministration stadium, thefrom Commerce revenue is in among principals and for giving would-be State University in Virginia – also claimed more than 50 percent more than we official responded tersely, “Well, that favorites whatever tookstate to hire 2003 Ph.D.that in education shows you don’tadministration understand were asking fromitthe forthem. renova- ajust Rogers, for example, has 125 more sick (magna cum laude) the complicated naturefrom of theMadison state’s tions.” days than other principals in hissaid original Gulfport, Mississippi. incentivesinprogram.” McCrory earlier had the University four-year contract signedto ongive Feb. the 15, 2006 Madison University,for notMetLife to be confused A spokesman told CJ state could not afford Panand the$62.5 same million provisioninintax his current Madison Virginia, that James the the media University and NorthinCarolina thers money,fourbut with year contract when it was renewed on conMay is a “diplomashould mill” – not a small an taxpayers getbuilding “hung inup” a Commerce Department official 12, 2009. Rogers current contract would park in Gulfport with no more on the coincidence of the incentive and vinced him this arrangement was OK industrial have expired on money June 30,comes 2013 had heprinot than 19 employees. University the naming rights Madison amounting to the because all the from

FIRST IN FREEDOM

samebeen number of dollars. has described as a substandard, “All money is diploma fungible,” unaccredited college or mill the by spokeman said. “When Mr. Richardson officials in five states, as well as in news named the price for the naming rights, articles. it never occurred that –this was the A diploma mill istoa us college a company, exact same amount of money the state actually – that offers diplomas based had given us in incentives for moving on little or no academic work for a fee. jobs to North Carolina. One thing has Diploma mills are usually unaccredited, nothing to do with the other.” or are accredited by fake institutions He went on to say that incenunrecognized in the normal academic tives money is given with no strings world. Some charge by the degree, rather attached, so, even if MetLife simply than by the passed theclass. same money from the state The Mississippi on College treasury into the Commission hands of Richardson, Accreditation lists Madison University that would be entirely appropriate. on its “The “ENTITIES NOT APPROVED $94 million was given TO to OPERATE IN MetLife for the MISSISSIPPI” good things it list was (the goall the original); ing caps to doarein in North Carolina,”theheMaine said. Department of Education listsand Madison “That includes bringing jobs busiUniversity “notHeel approved Mississippi” ness to theasTar State.inHaving our –name and, prominently therefore, not in Maine; displayedthe onOregon a proOffice of Degree lists it as fessional sports Authorization stadium in the state’s alargest schoolcity notcan authorized to offer degrees only enhance our abilfor licensure inpeople the State of Oregon; ity to help the of this state.” the Michigan Civil Service Commission lists Bank of America officials would it as unaccredited; and the Texas Higher not comment about losing their name Education Coordinating Boardonly goesnine the on the renovated stadium furthest, putting the university on its list of years into a 20-year deal, but one insid“institutions whose degrees are illegal to er said the refund they would receive use in Texas.” for the 10 lost years would be helpful weren’t enough, the online toIfthethat company. site “Their Quackwatch.com liststaking Madison stock has been a hit University underfrom “Schools Not Accredited due to fallout bad mortgages, so by Recognized Accrediting Agency,” the money the Panthers are refunding and the Better Business lists itone as to them will really comeBureau in handy,” analyst (Continued said. CJ on next page)

Transforming Ideas into Consequences for North Carolina In First in Freedom the John Locke Foundation’s president and research staff apply the timeless ideas of 20th-century conservative thinkers to such 21st-century challenges as economic stagnation, tax and regulatory burdens, and educational mediocrity. First in Freedom contains practical suggestions and advice for North Carolina’s new governor and General Assembly. To get your copy, go to: JohnLockeStore.com. The John Locke Foundation, 200 W. Morgan St. Suite 200, Raleigh, NC, 27601 919-828-3876 • JohnLocke.org • CarolinaJournal.com • info@johnlocke.org

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 29

Noah

(Continued from previous page)

unaccredited by the Better Business Bureau and gives it a grade of “F” to boot. Why Rogers took a high-profile Guilford County principal’s job claiming a phony doctorate is a mystery. North Carolina doesn’t require principals to have doctorates for certification, and Guilford County Schools officials said Rogers wasn’t paid more for having the fake doctorate. Real doctorates move Guilford County Schools teachers up the pay scale. The claimed doctorate, which was on Rogers’ resume, was doubly unnecessary because, according to the Licensure Division of the NCDPI, Rogers had “enough coursework to qualify for what is called an ‘advanced degree’” from Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. In 2011, even Rogers couldn’t explain it. Asked who was on his dissertation committee, Rogers said, “Oh, God, it’s been eight years. I don’t remember.” Asked for a copy of the dissertation, he said all his copies were at his house in Norfolk.” He

Beep (Continued from page 12) we can have Rhinopoly, a board game, in which one group of players represents the News & Record and the other represents The Rhinoceros Times. The group that most accurately penetrates and … %%% Editor’s Note: You’ve got one vote for Rhinopolis. %%% If the alleged president, Barack Obama, was really interested in running this country like it ought to be run, the first thing he wouldn’t have flown around all over the country talking about how bad it was going to be after the sequester. The next thing, he would have signed the Keystone pipeline three years ago to try to help the American public, the working people that he says, buy gasoline cheaper so they can get to work. The man has no interest at all in looking after us. Looks like anybody could understand he is absolutely trying to destroy this country and doing a pretty good job. %%% I’m tired of all of these veterans looking for handouts with all these new items coming up, PTSDs and all that other stuff. Come on, man. My old man came back from Korea. And you know what he got? A good swift kick in the backside. He’s never going to collect what you guys got. And he’s been through the same thing. So, stop soaking the system for what it’s worth. Get back and get a real life and grow up there. You know? %%%

never provided The Rhino Times with a copy. Had Rogers been fired instead of resigning, it would have been based on a claim by Guilford County Schools that he had violated school system policy and one of the provisions of North Carolina General Statute §115C‑325, which sets out the reasons career employees, including a school administrator under contract, can be fired. The grounds for firing listed in the statute range from minor to criminal – from inadequate performance to “advocating the overthrow of the government of the United States or of the State of North Carolina by force, violence, or other unlawful means.” School board members said the allegation the school system would have made against Rogers did not fall on the extreme end of the scale. Rogers could not be reached for contact. His listed phone rang off the Hook. Rogers’ attorney, Robert Cone of Greensboro, would not comment on Rogers’ resignation.

Well, this is a head’s up for the City Council because they seem to be oblivious to anything except expensive things like an art center. Those of us residents who live out here on Old Battleground Road, and on Battleground Road who are confined to wheelchairs, have almost no way to get to public bus stops. And a lot of us take public transportation because we can’t afford cars. So, there’s no sidewalks except on one side of Battleground, and those sidewalks are desperately in need of repair. And there’s no way to get a wheelchair up to the bus stop when the grass is wet and because of the red mud out here. So, if y’all just have to spend some money on sidewalks, we would sure appreciate some on both sides of Battleground Road, on Old Battleground Road, around all these shopping centers so we can access them from public transportation. Thank you. %%% They have been talking about the shooting in Connecticut for over three months. I think it’s time now to let it ease and let those people heal in peace. They’ve talked about it. They’ve run it in the ground. Everybody knows what happened. Everybody saw it happened. But now those people need time to heal in peace and quit keep bringing it up. That’s not going to help the healing process. %%% I’m calling about Ballinger Road. It didn’t take them this long to build the Golden Gate Bridge. Don’t start a project unless you can work on it and finish it. This is ridiculous. %%% (Continued on page 31)

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Page 30

Thursday, April 11, 2013

CHILDRENS

Schedule CheCk us out on the open house page

Greensboro Science Center 4301 Lawndale Dr.

Mini Bot Games

On Saturday, April 13 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. come out for a funfilled day dedicated to inspiring children and adults to learn more about science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Visitors will have an opportunity to participate in a LEGO build, Robotic demonstrations, craft activities, as well as participate in the Mini-Bot Games where they can build a mini-bot and race it on a 750mm track, Sumo-bots, Bob Sledding, Obstacle Course and Bot Figure Skating.

Party for the Planet

On Saturday, April 20 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., celebrate the center’s animals, their habitats and earth with a variety of fun-filled and educational activities, including recyclobeasts for kids to paint, crafts, face-painting and animal enrichments.

Greensboro Children’s Museum 220 North Church St.

Cooking Together: Cheese Making

On Saturday, April 13 from 2 to 4 p.m., learn to make your own fresh cheese and crackers. It’s fun and easy and only takes a few ingredients and a little magic. All ages welcome with parent. The cost is $45 for 1 parent/child ticket, $10 for each additional parent or child. For more information, visit www.gcmuseum.com or call 574-2898.

Springtime Sprouts: Bees & Bugs

On Saturday, April 20 from 2:30 to 4 p.m., children ages 5 to 8 are invited to discover the world of insects. What in the world do bees do all day? Are all bugs “bad” for the garden? The day will include hands-on activities and games about bugs, a local honey tasting, and playtime in the museum. The cost is $10. Register on line.

$4 Fun Friday

This Friday, April 12, admission is just $4 from 5 to 8 p.m.

High Point Museum

Parking (Continued from page 9) taxes, the county wouldn’t get the revenue bump it usually enjoys when there is new construction. He said Guilford County could and should stipulate that the payout to the Airport Authority be dependent on jobs created by TIMCO. He also said the Board of Commissioners sets the incentives policy and the board can therefore always deviate from its own policy. Trapp said he supported the move, but he had a concern. He said it was his understanding that TIMCO currently has a lot of job openings that it can’t fill. Trapp asked if that was correct. Baker responded that TIMCO currently had over 100 unfilled jobs at the airport. Several commissioners raised the question why TIMCO was talking about adding hundreds of jobs when it couldn’t fill its existing positions. A company representative said it would take awhile for the area’s aviation training programs to meet the demand for skilled workers in that field.

All Dressed Up in Historical Park

Children Are Our Future This schedule brought to you by your friends & neighbors at (336) 282-4414

Coleman said training efforts would eventually catch up with job demand, and she added the jobs were needed badly. She also said she hoped her fellow commissioners would approve the request. “I’m from Savannah Georgia, so I’m very familiar with TIMCO,” Coleman said, referring to another part of the country where TIMCO also has a large presence. Phillips was an outspoken opponent of corporate welfare even before he took a seat on the board last December. “I won’t belabor the point how I feel about incentives,” he said. Phillips said he’d toured the TIMCO campus recently, and he added that, if there were ever an incentives request he would be tempted to approve, it would be this one. However, Phillips said, these large payouts to big companies can’t be justified when ordinary taxpayers and small companies are struggling so hard to make ends meet. The commissioners who voted to give the Airport Authority the money seemed to be influenced to some extent by the fact that the City of Greensboro and the (Continued on next page)

Letters (Continued from page 25) what it is. It makes me really mad to see our government continue to throw our tax money away, when I have to try to pay the medical and power bills, buy groceries and necessities on what little I get after they get through doling it out to people who never paid a dime into the system; and giving our hard-earned money to people and countries half way around the world who hate us. We could let them hate us for free and use that money to help our own citizens who love our country and put their lives on the line fighting for our freedom as well as that of these oppressed countries. Do they appreciate it? I haven’t seen much indication that they do. I think maybe all of us want what is best for America and our citizens. We just don’t always agree on how to accomplish that goal. Ramon Bell

1859 E. Lexington Ave On Saturday,, April 13 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., try on some clothing reproductions and find out what was fashionable in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. This event is free and for all ages. For more information, call (336) 885-1859 or visit highpointmuseum.org.

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

GTCC grants explained Dear Editor, I wanted to clear up some misconceptions that another reader expressed in a letter titled “ GTCC’s Dirty Little Secret.” As a student at GTCC, who is attending thanks to a Federal Pell Grant, it saddens me that some people look upon students like me with such, contempt. I hold a 3.75 GPA and am on track to make all A’s this semester. I work hard at my education and appreciate the opportunity to receive one. Here is how financial aid really works: the amount of aid you can receive depends on how many courses you sign up for, that is true. However, the money from the government is paid directly to the school.

The school pays itself with the funds for my courses first and foremost. The rest is then made available to me via my student ID to use in the bookstore for books and supplies. This semester I got off pretty easy, my books only cost $500. Last semester it was nearly $700. After that the school holds the remaining funds. They hold them for a reason – to prevent the type of scam the author of “GTCC’s Dirty Little Secret” described. Refunds for dropped classes are only given for a short period of time. After that time passes, then the remaining funds are sent out to us from the school in one lump sum, after the school is paid and the books are paid. As a young adult that has been hit hard by our failing economy, those funds do not buy $200 sneakers, they buy groceries. Are there some students who take the remaining funds and squander it and drop their classes? Yes, absolutely. However, if you drop below full time student status while receiving aid, no refunds from tuition paid are given and not only are you required to pay back any money you received, you are not eligible for aid again until you do so, therefore, the scam that was “exposed” is highly inaccurate. There are many students just like me who aren’t lucky enough to have parents work two jobs to pay for their education and aid is the only way that we can afford to do so. Isn’t tax money helping us to better ourselves and become productive working members of society a far better alternative to tax dollars being spent to give us welfare and food stamps to do nothing while you work? Anonymous

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 31

Parking (Continued from previous page) State of North Carolina were also offering funds. However, a couple of days after the meeting, the news broke that the state may not give TIMCO all the funds it was expected to contribute for the project. But that isn’t likely to matter since it’s almost certain TIMCO will expand at the airport whether it gets incentives money or not. After the 5-to-4 vote to give away the money to the non-taxpaying Airport Authority, the commissioners got on with the night’s truly important business – they continued their ongoing argument about

Beep (Continued from page 29) I hope all Obama worshippers in The Rhino Times readership pick up a copy of Dick Morris’ new book, ObamaCare Survival Guide. When you get through say, oh, maybe 25 or 30 pages, if your conscience isn’t bothering you, you might want to check your pulse. The ultraliberal Obamaloving mainstream media did a great job fooling you people. You should all feel like fools because that’s what CNN, MSMBC, CBC, ABC, etc., have played you people for. Thanks for nothing PBO worshippers. %%% In an Obama perfect world, we would all, number one, drive a Chevy Volt. Number two, live in government-subsidized housing. Number three, have a government job. In addition, we would all pay at least $8 per gallon for gas. Bumbling Joe Biden would be our president, although he would have to be reminded which planet he’s on every morning. Our children could go to school and learn just how bad America is. The whites and the Asians would subsidize all minorities. This is what we’re headed for, folks, if we don’t get the liberal Marxists out of … %%% Yes, thank you Beep and Rhinoceros Times for allowing us to give our opinions for free. Most papers don’t do that. On the voter ID situation, it seems like that should be the only requirement for anybody to vote, a voter registration card. If they are registered voters, if they have a voter registration card, that should be the only requirement, not an ID. You can have an ID in a state, or in a city, but you still may not be registered to vote. So, the ID should not be the preeminent thing that causes you to vote. It should be a voter ID. %%% The voter ID bill, voter registration card, has not been talked about in the bill. You can have an ID in a state, or in a city, but still not be a registered voter. Voter registration should be the only requirement that anybody should have in order to vote, not a voter identification card, not even (Continued on page 33)

whether commissioners should have their names on parking spaces. The commissioners have nine prime parking spots in the underground lot beneath the Old Guilford County Court House. Just over a month ago they voted to take down the signs that indicated individual spaces for each of the commissioners. There were still reserved spots for all the commissioners – it’s just that they didn’t have individual ones anymore. The commissioners, with the exception of the chairman, rarely use their parking spaces so the commissioners had been letting court workers use them. When problems arose with that arrangement, the board voted to remove the signs. That way the commissioners wouldn’t have individual spots to loan out, and it gave them a good excuse to end the agreement with the court workers without having to confront those court employees directly. When the commissioners voted to take down the individual signs last month, Coleman asked that she be an exception, so the only two signs in that lot were for “Chairman” and Commissioner Coleman.” At the April 4 meeting, Davis said he wanted the individual signs put back up. “The chairman has her parking space,” Davis said, adding that he’d like an individual space as well. Shaw said it wasn’t her space but the space for whoever was chairman. Davis suggested that he didn’t have a chance at being chairman, since the Board is Republican. “I count three years that I don’t have a parking place,” he said. Davis also said that, when he arrived at the meeting that night, his parking space had been taken. He said parking wasn’t a problem in the evening, but it could be during the day – so he wanted the signs back up. “I hope our staff didn’t throw away the signs,” Davis said. Shaw, apparently joking, told Davis the signs had been tossed out. However, the clerk to the board indicated staff still had the signs. The board didn’t vote on the matter; but, on Friday, April 5, county staff said Davis’ sign would be put back up over his parking space. The resulting cockamamie situation is such that the commissioners don’t have individually labeled parking places, with the exception of the chairman, Coleman – and now Davis. If aliens came down to earth and tried to figure out the pattern Guilford County is using to provide commissioner parking spaces, those aliens would no doubt be greatly confused no matter how advanced their intelligence. Shaw also brought up a concern about too many commissioners showing up at the Guilford County Budget Committee meetings. There are four commissioners on that committee and Coleman, who’s not a member, has been attending, which makes a quorum, and perhaps qualifies as a

full board meeting. Coleman said she sat at a table that adjoined the other two tables the four committee members sat at, but she hadn’t sat at the same tables that they did. “I have sat on the side.” Coleman said. “That’s what offends me.” “I will continue to attend,” she said. Coleman said she didn’t talk much and that the only time she asked a question was after Phillips, the chairman of the committee, asked her if she had any questions. It is not clear how the county will resolve the situation. The board met in closed session and discussed the job performance of Sheriff BJ Barnes and Register of Deeds Jeff Thigpen. The two are elected officials, so the board doesn’t have any say over whether they keep their jobs or not – but the commissioners do have say over how much the two are paid. The board had positive comments about their job performance but didn’t grant either a raise. Thigpen will continue to make $109,586 a year, and Barnes will still make $142,000 annually. At the meeting, the board had a request from the Guilford County Board of Education to move $165,000 in voter approved bond funds from one project at Dudley High School to another at that same school. However, no one at the meeting knew any of the details about

that transfer of funds. The schools always have a representative at the commissioners meeting when a school issue is on the agenda. However, no one from the school system showed up at the April 4 meeting. Branson said he couldn’t vote for something like that when the schools had no one at the meeting who could let the commissioners know what was going on. Branson said, “So we have no idea what kind of problems they are running into? If there’s not anybody here to answer questions …” Several commissioners said they agreed with Branson, and the item was continued until the commissioners can get some answers. At the meeting, the Board of Commissioners also adopted a resolution honoring the life and memory of popular long-time sportscaster Rich Brenner, which was presented to his wife and family. Several commissioners spoke highly of Brenner, and Davis said he liked the sportscaster the moment he met him. “Richard was a good friend,” Davis said. “When you met Richard, it was like you had known him for a long time. He loved people and he loved to talk about sports.” Davis also pointed out that Brenner had been active in promoting the Field of Honor war memorial project. The next scheduled meeting of the Board of Commissioners is set for Thursday, April 18.

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Page 32

Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Thursday, April 11, 2013

To Place A Classified: Call: Melissa (336) 544-1952 Call

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Email melissa@rhinotimes.net Email: Online: www.rhinotimes.com Fax: (336) 273-0821 Deadline: Friday by 5pm We Accept: Cash, Money Order, Check, MasterCard, Visa, American Express & Discover

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TRIAD ENGRAVING AND PRINTING

Review your ad the first week it runs. J o hn& Appraisal C. Pe gg If you notice an error, please call the Auction Service Auction & Appraisal Service Classified Department at 544-1952. We cannot be responsible for errors reported after the first week of publication. Liability shall not exceed the REALTOR, GRI, CRS, CAGA, Appraisers, Professional Auctioneers, #5098 cost of that portion of space occupied 336.996.4414 www.peggauction.com by such an error. We make every effort to print only those ads deemed credible and reserve the right to correctly classify and edit copy and reject or cancel any advertisement at any time. Early cancellation or withdrawal of ads does not entitle the purchaser to a discount or refund.

ESTATE AUCTION

Saturday, April 13, 10:AM

ANNOUNCEMENTS BAUBLES AND BEADS Fantastic Jewelry Sale! Friday, May 3rd, 9am-7pm Saturday, May 4th, 9am-1pm St. Christopher’s Episcopal Church Corner of Eastchester and Johnson St. In High Point. Beneﬁtting homeless mothers and children (Mary’s House)

ATTENTION Have you visited Southside Baptist Church? This Sunday would be YOUR perfect time. This is a loving and compassionate church. We have many social events for all ages. Including Sports, Trips, Luncheons, etc. We will be expecting you and your family. Located at 1101 Greenhaven Drive, Greensboro NC

Phone# 336-854-2140 (paid for by a private citizen)

YARD/GARAGE SALES Get Ready for WATERBURY in Whitsett HUGE Annual Community Yard Sale. April 20, 2012 - 7:30AM until 12:30 PM Rain or Shine I 40/85 exit 135, Rock Creek Dairy Road South 1.5 mile, Left on Heron Point Dr or Wake Bridge Dr into community.

PARKING SPACES Downtown parking space for rent in private parking lot on corner of Greene & Market St., Greensboro. $50 per month. Call 336-273-0885 and ask for Elaine.

CHURCH/WORSHIP ATTENTION Have you visited Southside Baptist Church? This Sunday would be YOUR perfect time. This is a loving and compassionate church. We have many social events for all ages. Including Sports, Trips, Luncheons, etc We will be expecting you and your family. Located at 1101 Greenhaven Drive, G’boro Phone# 336-854-2140 (paid for by a private citizen)

RELIGIOUS PRODUCTS Secreto Azteca Candles, bibles, books, rosaries, soaps and perfumes (336) 851-1234 3612 Spring Garden St. Suite-B Greensboro NC 27407

Dare To Know

(Living Estate of Betty Weber who has moved in with relatives)

1907 Cliffside Drive Pfafftown 27040 Items include: like new vinylclad outbuilding/workshop, Freestanding fiberglass carport, boat/motor/trailer, like-new SS sidexside ref/frz & flattop 30” SS range, chest freezer, vintage Lamps & hanging light fixtures, many retro décor items, assorted Furniture, accessories, & accents.

Visit peggauction.com for details & photos! #5098

John C Pegg 336.996.4414

AUCTIONS John C. Pegg Auction & Appraisal During a recent 30 day period We sold ONE commercial building, ONE large farm and all associated equipment, TWO vacant lots, and SEVEN single family homes! Our magic may work for you as well. Contact the Genie today. 336-996-4414 – john@peggauction.com Professional Auctioneer and Liquidator of Real Estate and Chattel of any type. Visit us at www. Peggauction.com and see who we are and what we do.

ADOPTION A MARRIED COUPLE SEEKS TO ADOPT. Full-time mom & Devoted dad. Financial security. Expenses paid. Let’s help each other. Melissa & Dennis. 1-888293-2890 (Rep. by Adam Sklar, Esq. Bar #0150789). SAPA PREGNANT? CONSIDERING ADOPTION? Call Us First! Living expenses, Housing, Medical and continued support afterwards. Choose Adoptive Family of Your Choice. Call 24/7. ADOPT CONNECT 1-866-743-9212 ADOPT - HAPPILY MARRIED couple wishes to adopt a baby! We promise love, learning, laughter, security, extended family. Expenses paid. www. DonaldAndEsther.com 1-800-965-5617 (Se habla espanol) SAPA A UNIQUE ADOPTIONS, LET US HELP! PERSONALIZED ADOPTION PLANS. FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, HOUSING, RELOCATION AND MORE. GIVING THE GIFT OF LIFE? YOU DESERVE THE BEST. CALL US FIRST! 1-888-6378200. 24 hour HOTLINE. SAPA

COMPUTERS/ ELECTRONICS PCXperts Computer Sales & Service Desktop & Laptop Repairs On-Site/In-Shop Service Virus/Malware Removal Custom/Prebuilt PC’s Networking/Wireless Setup 336-638-6408 service@pcxnc.com www.pcxnc.com

Specializing in tasty vegan comfort food...

NO JOB TOO SMALL!

YARD SIGNS PLAQUES BANNERS POSTERS TROPHIES AWARDS SIGNAGE NAME BADGES GIFTS RUBBER STAMPS

7360 W. FRIENDLY AVE., STE 116, GREENSBORO, NC 336-856-2311

PCXperts Computer Sales & Service

• Desktop & Laptop Repairs • On-Site/In-Shop Service • Virus/Malware Removal • Custom/Prebuilt PC’s • Networking/Wireless Setup (336) 638-6408 service@pcxnc.com www.pcxnc.com

Triadep.com Wanted Riding Lawn Mower that Needs Repairs or FREE pickup of any unwanted mowers, appliances, grills or metal items. Call 689-4167. CASH for unexpired Diabetic Test Strips! Free Shipping, Friendly Service, BEST prices and 24 hour payment! Call Mandy at 1-855-578-7477, or visit www.TestStripSearch.com Espanol 1-888-4404001 SAPA

ART/PHOTOGRAPHY

Air Brush Art

Sidd’s Different Strokes. Airbrush Services. Helmets, Clothing, Shoes & Accessories. Call for free estimate. 336-834-7445

MISCELLANEOUS THE BIRDHOUSE MAN Handmade houses and Feeders for Spring 707-2698

My Computer Works: Computer problems? Viruses, spyware, email, printer issues, bad internet connections - FIX IT NOW! Professional, U.S.-based technicians. $25 off service. Call for immediate help. 1-888-582-8147 * REDUCE YOUR CABLE BILL! * Get a 4-Room All Digital Satellite system installed for FREE and programming starting at $19.99/mo. FREE HD/DVR upgrade for new callers, SO CALL NOW. 1-800-9359195. SAPA

HOME GOODS Where preservationists salvage and creatives shop for wonderous old house parts. Antique Millwork, Flooring, Light Fixtures, Clawfoot Tubs, Door Hardware, Wavy Glass, Doors and much more!! Architectural Salvage of Greensboro, 300 Bellemeade St, 336-389-9118. Showroom Open Fridays 10am-6pm & Saturdays 9am-3pm. www. blandwood.org All New Mattress Sets In Manufacturer’s Plastic with Warranty Twin starts at $89 Full starts at $109 Queen starts at $129 King starts at $191 Delivery Available Free Layaway Mattress Outlet Greensboro: 292-7999 Kernersville: 992-0025 Burlington: 226-0013

WANTED TO BUY Winchester Firearms WANTED! Individual Pieces or Whole Collection Top $dollar$ paid in cash 336-880-1591

DISH Network. Starting at $19.99/month (for 12 mos.) & High Speed Internet starting at $14.95/ month (where available.) SAVE! Ask About SAME DAY Installation! CALL Now! 1-888-709-1546. SAPA Do you know your Testosterone Levels? Call 888414-0692 and ask about our test kits and get a FREE Trial of Progene All-Natural Testosterone Supplement. SAPA AVIATION CAREERS - Train in Advance Structures and become certified to work on aircraft. Financial aid for those who qualify. CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance 1-877-205-1779. www.fixjets.com AIRLINES ARE HIRING - Train for hands on Aviation Maintenance Career. FAA approved program. Financial Aid if Qualified - Housing available. CALL Aviation Institute of Maintenance. 1-866-724-5403. SAPA * REDUCE YOUR CABLE BILL! * Get a 4-Room All Digital Satellite system installed for FREE and programming starting at $19.99/mo. FREE HD/DVR upgrade for new callers, SO CALL NOW. 1-800-7251835. SAPA MEDICAL CAREERS begin here - Train ONLINE for Allied Health and Medical Management. Job placement assistance. Computer and Financial Aid if qualified. SCHEV authorized. Call 1-877-206-7665 www.CenturaOnline.com SAPA

3601 Groometown Rd., Greensboro NC 27407

zizisgreensboro.com | 336-554-7229

MUSIC/INSTRUMENTS Kurzweil Mark 152i Ensemble Grand Piano. Excellent condition inside and outside. $5000 (negotiable). Come and see for yourself. 336-2924783

PRINTING/ENGRAVING TRIAD ENGRAVING & PRINTING: Call us for all your printing & engraving needs! 1110 Grecade Street, Greensboro, NC 336-856-2311 ; www. triadep.com

SPORTS/ATHELETICS Grappling Classes. Call 336-316-0860. www. greensborojudo.com

SAFETY/SECURITY Southern Safes & Vaults Inc. Safes for homes & businesses. 1106 N. O’Henry Blvd, Greensboro. 336-274-1525

STORAGE/BUILDINGS Carolina Self Storage A Quality Facility with Low Rates Located at 501 Liberty Rd., Archdale , ( across from Brookwood apts.) Web Site address: www.carolina-storage.com On site management Hablar Espanol Rent a unit and receive a $25 gas card. Telephone (336) 434-4367

CAR CARE Check Engine Light On?

We can solve that “Check Engine” light problem. ‘Merican Automotive Repair Center. Catalytic Converters. Mufﬂers. Brakes. Engine Work. NC Inspections. Performance Exhaust. Flowmaster. 336-294-5970. 716 Camann St. Greensboro. M-F 8am-5:30pm. Serving Greensboro for over 20yrs.

AUTOS FOR SALE TOP CASH FOR CARS, Call Now For An Instant Offer. Top Dollar Paid, Any Car/Truck, Any Condition. Running or Not. Free Pick-up/Tow. 1-800-761-9396 SAPA

HOBBIES/ ENTERTAINMENT Excellent gift! Adult Horseback riding lessons package of 4 one hour lessons $99. Regular price $ 180. Pleasure rides available for experienced riders prices start at $35. For times and more information call 336-963-3703. (limited number of packages available)

TRAVEL/VACATION

SCUBA DIVE www.greensboroscuba.com 336-656-7856

NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS Head to the mountains! Book your vacation today; even the family pet is welcome! Nightly, Weekly & Monthly Rentals. Foscoe Rentals 1-800-723-7341 www. foscoerentals.com SAPA CAVENDER CREEK CABINS Dahlonega, GA GAS TOO HIGH? Spend your vacation week in the North Georgia Mountains! Ask about our weekly FREE NIGHT SPECIAL! Virtual Tour: www.CavenderCreek. com Cozy Hot Tub Cabins! 1-866-373-6307 SAPA

EMPLOYMENT SERVICES NOW HIRING! National Companies need workers immediately to assemble products at home. Electronics, CD stands, hair barrettes & many more. Easy work, no selling, any hours. $500/week potential. Info 1-985-646-1700 DEPT NC - 4152 (Not valid in Louisiana) SAPA TRUCK DRIVERS Wanted- Best Pay and Home Time! Apply Online Today over 750 Companies! One Application, Hundreds of Offers! www. HammerLaneJobs.com. SAPA

HELP WANTED Drivers: Singles or Teams! Regional, West Coast Runs. NO NYC! Casual, FT/PT. 5yrs OTR exp. required. Transcorp Carriers: 800-669-1978 Start 2013 working with a happy, professional coworkers. Stylist and nail tech needed. Call 336339-7960

GrapplinG Greensboro Judo & Jujitsu Classes greensborojudo.com (336) 316-0860

Call Melissa for Great Deals in the Classiﬁeds • 544-1952

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Beep (Continued from page 31) having your ID on the voter registration card. There’s not even a need for that. But it seems like this conversation has been left out in the big Republican debate about voter identification. %%% Democratic Sen. Kay Hagan recently came out saying that she supports gay marriage, an abomination. She is a member of First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro to my memory. I wonder what former pastors

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Doctor John Redhead and Doctor Joe Mullin from that historic church would think of that. I believe I know what the late Dr. Redhead would say. Just a thought. %%% Hi. This needs to be printed this week. And I’m quite irritated. I tried to report a threatening phone call, and I’ve been playing phone tag with the Police Department. And, you know, they give me this number to call. And, finally, when I don’t get anybody because I’m playing phone tag with them, they tell me to call

Call Melissa @ 336-544-1952 Fax: 336-273-0821 Email: melissa@rhinotimes.net

CAN N A M Y Repair & HAND The

Remodeling

Includes Pressure Washing Gutter Cleaning Chandelier & Ceiling Fan Cleaning plus other high ladder work. Fully insured and bonded

Free esTimaTes

Licensed & Insured

336-908-0032

*Handyman of all Trades*

Call Today 336-609-0677 www.castleworkswindowcleaning.com

GREENSBORO ELECTRIC SERVICES • • • •

Inspections Repairs • Fixturing Home • Business Improvements

Licensed, Insured Quality Driven Service

Residential & CommeRCial

top Quality service & affordable Prices

No Job Too Odd!

988.1621

IFixPower.com

336.291.3423

GreensboroElectric@gmail.com

BUSINESS SERVICES

RESTAURANTS

SJ Digital Services Digital Printing, Equipment, Sales, Supplies & Maintenance. OCE, KIP, XEROX, HP. Your local wideformat service provider. 336-852-7141. www.sjdigitalservices.com

ZiZi’s Restaurant Vegan Take-Out Restaurant No meat. No dairy. BOTTOM LINE! Specializing in tasty vegan comfort food… 3601 Groometown Rd Greensboro NC 27407 336-554-7229

TRIAD ENGRAVING & PRINTING: Signs, Banners, Rubber Stamps, Awards, Trophies, Printing; 1110 Grecade Street, Greensboro, NC 336-856-2311; www.triadep.com.

FINANCIAL SERVICES Beware of loan fraud. Please check with the Better Business Bureau or Consumer Protection Agency before sending any money to any loan company. SAPA $$$ ACCESS LAWSUIT Cash Now!! Injury Lawsuit Dragging? Need $500-$500,000++ within 48/hours? Low rates. Apply Now By Phone! 1-800-568-8321. wwwlawcapital.com Not Valid in CO or NC. SAPA

Call Melissa for Great Classiﬁed Deals 544-1952

373-3222, which is the Police Department. And when I call that number, it says, I’m sorry, your number cannot be completed as dialed. Why not? It seems completed as dialed for the last 35 years. I’m so sick of the Greensboro Police Department. %%% Editor’s Note: The non-emergency number is 373-2222, but you get such a long automated message that when I called recently I got tired of waiting and just dialed 911. That worked much better. %%%

Yo. Hey where’s all these jobs, these tax cuts that Gov. McCrory promised us that we’re going to get if he got elected. He’s still not doing us no favor. I mean look at the price of gas here, and the taxes on gas here in North Carolina. How about the inspection system? We still got it. I thought he was going to help us out. Nothing. He got him and his cronies in the office already. And the backdoor deals with Duke Power that he’s doing, the good, old boy club. McCrory, you sure fed us a (Continued on page 36)

Triad Business Guide

3 Easy Ways to Place Your Ad:

• Plumbing • Carpentry • Painting • Minor Electrical • Brick Patios • Kitchen & Baths • And Everything Else • 30 Years Experience

Page 33

RAPID WEIGHT LOSS!!! Dr. Jeffrey Hooper’s Weight Loss Clinic Physician Prescribed Weight Loss Looking to shed pounds Quickly? We offer the HCG injections for RAPID WEIGHT LOSS. Ofﬁces in Greensboro

• Furniture Repair & Refinishing • Cabinet Refacing • Leather Repair

336/404-1471 www.fmbyjh.com

FEELING OLDER? Men lose the ability to produce testosterone as they age. Call 888-414-0692 for a FREE trial of Progene- All Natural Testosterone Supplement. SAPA

BEAUTY SERVICES Love Jafra products but no time for parties? Quick order your favorite products from me! Call 778-1425

!!! RAPID WEIGHT LOSS!!! Dr. Jeffrey Hooper’s Weight Loss Clinic Physician Prescribed Weight Loss Looking to shed pounds Quickly? We offer the HCG injections for RAPID WEIGHT LOSS. Ofﬁces in Greensboro Call 336-588-1505 or 299-6242 for appointment and locations

(336) 772-8799

or FREE pickup of any unwanted mowers, appliances, grills or metal items.

IF YOU USED THE MIRENA IUD between 2001-present and suffered perforation or embedment in the uterus requiring surgical removal, or had a child born with birth defects you may be entitled to compensation. Call Johnson Law and speak with female staff members 1-800-535-5727 PELVIC/TRANSVAGINAL MESH? Did you undergo transvaginal placement of mesh for pelvic organ prolapse or stress urinary incontinence between 2005 and present time? If the patch required removal due to complications, you may be entitled to compensation. Call Johnson Law and speak with female staff members 1-800-535-5727

Place Your Ad Online at www.rhinotimes.com

Twin starts at $89 Full starts at $109 Queen starts at $129 King starts at $191

Delivery Available! Free Layaway Mattress Outlet

Individual Pieces or Whole Collection Top Dollar Paid in Cash

336-880-1591

ACCOUNTING/TAX SERVICES

Income Tax

Need help sorting your income tax records? Call Roy, I can help. 336-772-8799

HANDYMAN SERVICES Spring Garden Construction Co. Handyman work, painting, remodeling, siding, windows, all types of home repairs. Call 336-918-6528. Jsw1108@msn. com

HOME IMPROVEMENT JLB Remodeling, Inc. Licensed & Insured Free Estimates Remodeling, Additions & Home Repairs Kitchens, Bathrooms, Decks and much more. Call Today: 336-681-2902 Visit: www.jlbremodeling.com Patios, driveways and walkways. Tony Walden, Budget Concrete # 2. Work contractor. Any type of concrete work. (O) 336-271-3271; cell: 336-9875433 Spring Garden Construction Co. Handyman work, painting, remodeling, siding, windows, all types of home repairs. Call 336-918-6528. Jsw1108@msn. com CastleWorks Window Cleaning- Includes Pressure Washing, Gutter Cleaning, Chandelier & Ceiling Fan Cleaning plus other high ladder work. Fully insured and bonded. Free estimates Call Today 336-609-0677

EVERYBODY NEEDS A HARRY LAWN MAINTENANCE SERVICE Lawn Maintenance service adding customers MOWING, TRIMMING, and BLOWING Additional services available.

Kernersville: 336-992-0025 Greensboro: 336-292-7999 Burlington: 336-226-0013

855-5706 | 707-4808

Furniture Medic uses advanced techniques and materials to repair wood and leather surfaces. Services also include the enhancement of existing wood ﬁnishes on vanities, kitchen cabinets, doors, ﬂoors, and trim work. Free Estimates. 336/404-1471

Big Howard’s Junk Removal. Residential & Commercial. House, Attic, Basement, Garage, Yard Debris, Ofﬁce, Foreclosure, Storage Building, Rental Property. FREE ESTIMATES. 337-0642 or 3390638. Howard Staley, Owner

WANTED! SHEETROCK

CALL FOR A FREE ESTIMATE

Canada Drug Center is your choice for safe and affordable medications. Our licensed Canadian mail order pharmacy will provide you with savings of up to 90 percent on all your medication needs. Call Today 877-644-3199 for $25.00 off your ﬁrst prescription and free shipping. SAPA

4th Year Accounting Student

Wanted Riding Lawn Mower that Needs Repairs

Winchester Firearms

MEDICAL SERVICES

ATTENTION DIABETICS with Medicare. Get a FREE Talking Meter and diabetic testing supplies at NO COST, plus FREE home delivery! Best of all, this meter eliminates painful ﬁnger pricking! Call 877-517-4633. SAPA

In Manufacturer’s Plastic with Warranty

for appointment and locations

HEALTH/WELLNESS

ATTENTION SLEEP APNEA SUFFERERS with Medicare. Get CPAP Replacement Supplies at little or NO COST, plus FREE home delivery! Best of all, prevent red skin sores and bacterial infection! Call 1-888-470-8261. SAPA

All New Mattress Sets

Call 336-588-1505 or 336-299-6242

RESTORATION SPECIALISTS DELIVERING AN AMAZING EXPERIENCE

13 weeks: $130 26 weeks: $228 52 weeks: $312

Sheetrock Services- Textured Ceilings. Call Mike or Jeff Welchel: 336-375-3515, Father & Son. Masonry Concepts. Brick, Block, Stone, Concrete & Repairs. Free Estimates. No job too small. 336-988-1022. www.masonryconceptsgso.com. Licensed & Insured. BBB accredited.

ELECTRICAL SERVICES 26 years of experience and satisﬁed customers. .Licensed and Insured. SAFETY INSPECTIONS CONSULTING AND REPAIRS FUSED PANELS TO CIRCUIT BREAKER PANELS & SERVICE UPGRADES .LIGHTING . FANS . RECEPTACLES. .INSIDE AND OUTSIDE. .EQUIPMENT WIRING. .RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL APPLICATIONS. .PLUMBING SERVICE ALSO. NO JOB TOO ODD! Thomas Eyring 336 988-1621 Greensboroelectric@gmail.com www.IFIXPOWER.com 336 988 - 1621

PLUMBING SERVICES Liquid Assets Plumbing. Protecting the health of the Triad. We handle all types of plumbing services including drains, water mains, gas lines, and wells. 24 hour service. All major credit cards accepted. 336-235-5992. www.liquidassetsplumbing.com PROFESSIONAL THOROUGH REPAIRS AND FIXTURING. WATER HEATERS . TOILETS . FAUCETS. SUPPLY AND DRAIN PIPING. BONDED AND FULLY INSURED ELECTRICAL SERVICE ALSO. NO JOB TOO ODD! Thomas Eyring 336 988 – 1621 Greensboroelectric@gmail.com

MOVING/HAULING SERVICES * DON’S HAULING* Trash, Brush, Construction, Appliances Garage Debris Removal Attics/Basements!! 336-697-5288

We Make The Lawn Happy! Call Harry:

CLEANING SERVICES Two Lady’s Cleaning Residential & Commercial Top Quality Service Affordable Prices 336-291-3423 Carpet Cleaning & Restoration. All cleaning includes free deodorizing! Call and ask about our money saving specials today! 24 Hr Water Extractions. Agape Services 336-988-6390. Additional services include lawn care, pressure washing, mobile detailing. agapeservices@ yahoo. com TJ’s Pressure Washing & Carpet Cleaning Service. Serving the Triad area. Mobile Detailing, Pressure Wash Homes, Carpet Cleaning, Etc…Contact TJ 336-404-4037

LAWN CARE/ LANDSCAPING EVERYBODY NEEDS A HARRY LAWN MAINTENANCE SERVICE Lawn Maintenance service adding customers. MOWING, TRIMMING, and BLOWING. Additional services available. WE MAKE THE LAWN HAPPY! Call Harry: 855-5706 or 707-4808 GET RIGHT. Home & Lawn Care. You need it done – We make it happen. FREE Estimates. Call 336669-6456. (Owner, Rob Newman)

TREE SERVICES Drew’s Tree Service – Removal & Pruning. 30 yrs experience. ISA Certiﬁed. Reasonable Rates. Fully Insured. Call 336-312-0448 Triad Tree and Lawn Care. Offering Tree Removal and Stump Grinding Service. Free Estimates. Bonded. Licensed. Insured. See coupon in the service directory!! Call 336-991-1496.

1-3 lines 4 weeks, $25 4-6 lines 4 weeks, $35

Add a border block to your line ad for $4 more or special header for 50¢/week

Page 34

Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Better Selection...Better Service...Better Quality

13 Weeks: $260*

*Prepay and get 15% off!

Call Melissa: (336) 544-1952

Licensed/Insured

Remodeling , Additions & Home Repairs Call 336-681-2902 Visit www.jlbremodeling.com

FREE

ESTIMATES

for details and photos

SJ Digital Services

Your local wideformat service provider

Digital Printing, Equipment, Sales, Supplies & Maintenance 3716 Alliance Drive, Suite B Greensboro, NC 27407 336.852.7141

Secreto Azteca Religious Products Candles, Bibles, Books, Rosaries, Soaps and Perfumes, etc... (336) 851-1234 3612 Spring Garden St. Suite-B Greensboro NC 27407

www.sjdigitalservices.com

OCE,KIP,XEROX,HP

Sheetrock Service • Textured Ceilings • Plaster Repair • Painting Interior/ Exterior • Remodeling • Carpentry Painting of Textured Ceilings Father Son

Welchel

5538 Jason Road • Greensboro, NC 27405

Mike & Jeff 336.375.3515 • Handyman work • Painting • Remodeling • Siding • Windows • All types of home repairs

spring garden construction co.

336.918.6528 • jsw1108@msn.com CALL FOR SPRING SAVINGS

TREE REMOVAL and STUMP GRINDING FREE ESTIMATES 336.991.1496

TRIAD TREE and LAWN CARE

Bonded • Licensed • Insured

CALL FOR SPRING SAVINGS

‘Merican

Automotive Repair Center We can solve that “Check Engine” light problem • Catalytic Converters • Engine Work • Mufflers • Brakes • Performance Exhaust Serving Greensboro “We weld our exhaust systems for over 20 like the factory does — a better job for you, our valued Years Hours: M-F 8:00am-5:30pm customer.” 716 Camann Street | Greensboro, NC 27407

336.294.5970

GC #69997, CAPS

TRIAD ENGRAVING AND PRINTING WEDDINGS BIRTHDAYS SPECIAL OCCASIONS ANNIVERSARIES

www.masonryconceptsgso.com

GIVE THEM A UNIQUE & PERSONALIZED GIFT!

Licensed & Insured

7360 W. FRIENDLY AVE., STE 116, GREENSBORO, NC 336-856-2311

Triadep.com

Brick • Block • Stone Concrete • Repairs 336.988.1022

Free Estimates!

“No Job Too Small”

GET RIGHT

Lawn & Home Care

You need it done

We make it happen

•FREE ESTIMATES•

336-669-6456 Owner Rob Newman

Carolina Self Storage A Quality Facility with Low Rates Located at 501 Liberty Rd., Archdale, (across from Brookwood Apts.)

www.carolina-storage.com On site management | Hablar Espanol

Rent a unit and receive a

$25 gas card

(336) 434-4367

Big Howard’s

Southern SafeS & VaultS, Inc.

Residential & Commercial

(just off of Bessemer Avenue) Greensboro, NC 27405

Junk Removal House • Attic • Basement • Garage Yard Debris • Office • Foreclosure Storage Building • Rental Property

FREE ESTIMATES! 337-0642 or 339-0638 • Howard Staley, Owner

come VISIt uS at our new locatIon 1106 N O’Henry Blvd

• Protect your valuables • Safes for homes & businesses • Gun safes

• Quality products • Personalized customer service • Professional repairs & delivery

Mon-Fri 8a - 5p

336-274-1525

her n

ut & Vaults, Inc. Soafes Adult HorsebAck riding lessons pAckAge of 4 one Hour lessons $99.

Regular price $180

Pleasure rides available for experienced riders prices start at $35.

For times and more information call (336) 963-3703

Limited number of packages available

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

Real Estate

Thursday, April 11, 2013

Call: Melissa (336) 544-1952

Email: melissa@rhinotimes.net Deadline: Friday by 5pm Online: www.rhinotimes.com Fax: (336) 273-0821

Rhinoﬁeds Our Policy Review your ad the 1st week it runs. If you notice an error, please call the Classified Department at 5441952. We cannot be responsible for errors reported after the 1st week of publication. Liability shall not exceed the cost of that portion of space occupied by such an error. We make every effort to print only those ads deemed credible & reserve the right to correctly classify & edit copy & reject or cancel any advertisement at any time. Early cancellation or withdrawal of ads does not entitle the purchaser to a discount or refund.

ANNOUNCEMENTS Beware of loan fraud. Please check with the Better Business Bureau or Consumer Protection Agency before sending any money to any loan company. SAPA Test drive a career in real estate! Visit www.cbtriad.com. Coldwell Banker Triad, Realtors.

LOOKING TO RENT Retired, professional gentleman, active, nonsmoker/non-drinker, needs furnished studio, efficiency or room with private bath in private home. Closer to downtown area preferred. References available. Call 336-314-4795

FOR RENT 1 room studio apt, private entry, private bathroom, beautiful large bedroom, kitchenette. $475/mo. Call 336-908-0032 Beautiful country Apt., all utilities included, huge bedroom, beautiful large kitchen $575/mo. Call 336908-0032 Apts for Rent – 4br/2ba apts. $795/mo, w/$500 sec dep. Sect. 8 welcome. Call 336-355-9079. Pictures at www.triadrentalhomes.com. Triad Investors Realty, Inc. Battle Forest. Spacious 3br/2.5ba, 2-story townhome, appls, fenced patio, pool privilege. $850/mo. Rent-A-Home @ 336-272-0767. www. gsorentahome.com Adams Farms. 3br/2ba, one level townhome. C/A, all appls, fenced patio. $975/mo. Rent-A-Home @ 336-272-0767. www.gsorentahome.com AFFORDABLE LUXURY FOR 55+ Admiral Pointe Apartments in High Point now leasing BRAND NEW 1BR Apartment Homes at Affordable Rates! Call us today to ask about our AMAZING MOVE IN SPECIAL! 336-307-2414

LARGE HOME IN STARMOUNT 216 HOMEWOOD AVE 4 BEDROOMS/ 3.5 BATHS GAS HEAT/CENTRAL AIR STOVE, FRIG, DISHWASHER, DISPOSAL DEN WITH FIREPLACE WASHER/DRYER CONNECTIONS WRENN ZEALY PROPERTIES 336-272-3183

All real estate advertised in this newspaper is subject to the federal EQUAL HOUSING and state Fair Housing Act which OPPORTUNITY makes it illegal to advertise “any preference, limitation or discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, handicap, familial status or national origin, or an intention to make any such preference, limitation, or discrimination.” The newspaper will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are available on an equal opportunity basis.

FOR RENT

RHINO RATES: 1-3 lines - 4 weeks, $25 | 4-6 lines - 4 weeks, $35

office space available Approx 600 sq ft $495, Entry-foyer/ office space. 2 Restrooms/small loft space

412 EAST MARKET ST Approx 1424 sq ft $650 Large open space/office in back

WRENN ZEALY PROPERTIES 336-272-3183

Small 2br/1ba

houSe

for leaSe Fenced in backyard. Outside city limits. Good location. Easy access to I40/85. Call 336-274-5095 leave msg if no answer.

CONDO IN IRVING PARK 106 SUNSET CIRCLE JUST OFF ELM NEAR CONE HOSPITAL TWO BEDROOM $895 ALL ELECTRIC/CENTRAL AIR STOVE, FRIG, WASHER, DRYER WATER INCLUDED WRENN ZEALY PROPERTIES 336-272-3183

APTS OFF W. WENDOVER 1006/1008 RUCKER ST 1 BR LOFT $ 495 4005/4007 MCINTOSH ST 1 BEDROOM $ 325/$395 STOVE & FRIG IN BOTH WATER INCLUDED IN BOTH WRENN ZEALY PROPERTIES 336-272-3183

DUPLEX FOR RENT 2600 SPRING GARDEN ST 2 BR $ 625 STOVE & FRIG GAS HEAT/CENTRAL AIR WASHER/DRYER CONNECTIONS WRENN ZEALY PROPERTIES 336-272-3183

Mosby Oaks 2 Bedroom Townhouse Apts. $400 month 3806-14 Mosby Dr. Off Merritt Dr. 336-379-8384 Knight Rentals www.greensborohomelist.com UNCG area 1 & 2BR Apts Appls, A/C, character galore $395-$625 Rent-A-Home (336) 272-0767 www.gsorentahome.com

WHY RENT WHEN YOU CAN OWN? We maintain an inventory of owner-financed homes. All Credit OK! No Banks Needed! BuyCarolinaTriad.com/2 Houses & Apts For Rent Lambeth-Osborne Realty 214 W. Market St. (336) 272-3163 Best Landlords! Best Greensborolandlord.com

Properties!

Apt FOR RENt

www.

FOR SALE BY OWNER Historic Mary Fisher Frazier House! Charming Storybook Victorian Home. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places with the Department of Interior. Beautiful four bedroom home for residential use, and a gardeners dream. Also may be utilized as professional offices, as there is a dual zoning on this parcel (presently zoned for residential or professional offices). Adjacent lot may also be available for purchase (additional parking). Near Downtown High Point, Main Street, and High Point Regional Hospital, Schools and Commercial Properties. This unique home features hard wood floors, large rooms. Newly renovated both externally and internally. Roof 5 years old. The yard is a gardeners paradise with nearly 50 species of fruit trees from the world over. Wrap around front porch. We are in the final stage of a three year renovation project and will be sanding and epoxying the hardwood floors. $215,000. Call 336-889-9408

$795/mo

with $500 security deposit. Sect. 8 welcome.

Special Rates: One bedroom garden Apt. $415/mo Two bedroom garden Apt. $475/mo Desirable 3307 N. Elm St location 336-288-5755 or 379-8384 Knight Rentals www.greensborohomelist.com

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8300 Banager Rd, Stafford Farm Estates. 4 BR/ 4 1/2 BA. Like new home, abundance of living space. Spac ML mstr suite w/tray ceiling. Upgraded finishes, dramatic stairway, awesome kit w/island, granite, SS appli, breakfast room. L/R would make great office/ library. Finished walk out bsmt w/den, workout room, surround sound, extra storage. 2nd level bonus rm w/ 5704 Chinaberry Place, Gso. Charming and built-ins, space for pool table or media room. 3 car Immaculate 3BR/2BA/2 car home with Open Floor side entry garage, screened porch, large backyard. plan that accommodates any lifestyle. A Huge & Beautiful details thruout. $512,000 Fenced Back Yard. Shopping/Eating are closeby. Co. Taxes and 100% USDA Financing Eligible. 3395 Springsong, Sunnybrook-Summerfield. 3 BR, 2 $123,900- Call Gil Vaughan-Prudential Yost&Little 1/2 bath. Seller offering $5000 Paint Allowance. In Realty-337-4780 serene Summerfield. Totally renovated, spac home, 6 Ashway Ct, Gso. Updated & Immaculate Home vaulted ceilings, designer touches. Private large in the heart of Adams Farm. Nestled on cul-de-sac landscaped yard w/multi-level new reinforced deck. w/fenced back yard, this 4BR/2.5BA/2Car home Kit w/granite, tiled bksplsh, wormy maple wainscoting. w/many updated items-Hardwoods up & down, ML mstr suite w/amazing bath. LR w/exotic hdwds, Screened Porch, SS Appl’s & Kitchen Isle. Home wood burning FP. New carpet, updated bathrms w/ Warranty! $219,900-Gil Vaughan-Prudential Yost & designer finishes. Loft/bonus room. Huge walk out unfin basement. Oversized garage, storage shed. Little-337-4780 Northern schools. $299,900. Allen Tate Realtors, 108 Thora. 4Br/2.5Ba. Beautiful open plan in popular Bobbie Maynard, 336-215-8017 Whittington Hall. Kit w/bfst open to family rm w/ island, SS appli, solid surf ctops, new can lights, 833 Cornwallis, Irving Park. 4 BR 2 ½ Bath. In heart pendant lighting. Updated fixtures throut, eve and of Irving Park. Many updates, 2 story addition w/ attic storage, front and back stairs to UL. Large bonus sunroom & den/library. Sep entrance to 2nd floor rm w/extra nook for Craft or sewing rm. Huge deck w/ w/2bdrms, bath and another kitchen. Roof replaced beautifully landscaped .60 acre lot. Spac garage w/ recently along w/AC units. Plenty of storage in floored storage nook. Sprinkler system. Short walk to n’hood attic. Fresh paint and lovely landscaped yard. Great pool, playground. $359,900. Angie Wilkie, Allen Tate, convenient location. $264,900. Allen Tate Realtors, (336) 451-9519 or 681-7680 Bobbie Maynard, 336-215-8017 312 Melbourne. 3 Br/1.5 Ba brick ranch convenient to shops, restaurants. New roof 2011; replacement Weatherstone Townhome Lot 219 – 4375 Weatherton windows; spacious kit and laundry; detached 2-car Dr, Kernersville, 2 mstr BRs/2 BA, 1 car garage, garage w/workshop; spac lot. Mstr shower handicap cathedral clgs, skylights in GR, curved roof elevation, accessible. $94,000. Angie Wilkie, Allen Tate, (336) spac kit/dining area, 1417 SF, $129,900 – Call Sarah 451-9519 Draughn, Shugart Enterprises, 336-283-9809 2003 Elkhart. 3 Br/1.5 Ba cute ranch style home in Kirkwood area! Spac kit w/bkfst nook that opens to LR/DR. Lrg LR w/FP. Fenced backyard w/detached screen porch. Many options with rooms; 3rd bdrm could be den. Office could be bdrm. $139,900. Angie Wilkie, Allen Tate, (336) 451-9519 or 681-7680

1124 Northwood 3Br/2Ba addition not on tax card. Bdrm, bath added in 2000 making this a spacious 3BR/2BA. Priced to sell, waiting for someone to update w/their own personal touches. Great location! 1500 Elwood Avenue. 2BR/1BA vinyl home with large Spac fenced backyard. $162,000. Angie Wilkie, Allen front porch, convenient to UNC-G, fenced backyard. Tate, (336) 451-9519 or 681-7680 $49,900. Call John Owens with Ray Realty @ 317201 Pearce. 5Br/5.5Ba Meticulously well kept. Great 2266 n’hood w/pool, tennis. Beautiful 2-story family rm w/built in shelves, tons of nat’l light. Kit w/SS appli 2728 Stratford Drive - Wonderful 2BR/1.5BA ranch include cook top, dbl ovens. Hdwds ML, Updated home with garage, fenced backyard, vinyl siding, fixtures thruout. Walkout daylight bsment w/full bath, updated bathroom, designer paint, beautiful wood wet bar. Workshop in stand up crawlspace. Bedroom, floors and more. $124,900. Call John Owens with full bath ML. Perm stairs to walkup attic, eve storage. Ray Realty @ 317-2266 Sunroom not incl. in sq ft. Come see! $459,900 Angie Wilkie, Allen Tate, (336) 451-9519. 290 Post Oak - Outstanding 3BR/2BA brick home w/ basement,2 car garage, fenced backyard, updated 3212 Hobbs Landing Ct, Hobbs Landing. 4BR/3 deck, new roof, vinyl replacement windows, kitchen 1/2 BA. 2009 Parade of Homes! Custom designed with slate tile counter and much more. $209,900 Call home loaded w/many features. Decorator touches thruout. Abundance of living space. Kit w/custom John Owens with Ray Realty @ 317-2266. designed cabinets, banquette table/chairs, SS, gas 7 Suburban Ct - 3/2 ranch on cul-de-sac off Alamance cook top & FP. M/L mstr suite w/sitting area & bath w/porcelain deep soaking pedestal tub. Library w/ Church Rd. Completely renovated including all new built in bookcases, file cabinets. Downstairs has 10’ appliances, $75,000, 336-453-5128 for appt. Pictures ceilings, up 9’. Cozy up to one of 3 FPs. Fantastic at www.triadnchouses.com. game/media room w/wet bar. 3 seasons screened porch. Home has EPA Energy Star rating & is Green Home certified. Cul-d-sac close to shops/restaurants. $745,000 Allen Tate Realtors, Bobbie Maynard, 336215-8017

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1859 Longmont Dr, Kernersville. 3BR/2.5BA, 1908 sf w/loft area. Beautiful kit w/ceramic backsplash, upgraded black kit appliances. Great incentives available!! Priced at $147,900. Call Sarah Draughn, Shugart Enterprises at 336-283-9809

2405 Pineview - $79,400. Home also for rent for $850. Well kept bungalow on dead end street. Excellent opportunity for owner occupant or investor. 3rd bdrm can be additional living area or DR. Deck w/ privacy fence, hdwds thruout. Large back yard w/ lots of privacy. Kit and laundry room w/new vinyl floor. Lots of space for money. Gas furnace Dec 2011, Water Heater Oct 2010, Roof 2009 per seller. Home warranty. Seller will also rent home. Michelle Porter, Allen Tate Realtors, (336) 207-0515. 2400 Philadelphia Lake- $297,500. Welcome to quaint village of Philadelphia Lake, 12 townhome community in prestigious Irving Park. Quality construction w/heavy moldings, 9’ ceilings, hdwds ML, open yet traditional floor plan w/ML mstr, two car attached garage, extensive walk in storage. Large bonus room could be bdrm. Kit w/custom cabinets, bay window, Corian ctops, all appliances. Not to be missed! Michelle Porter, Allen Tate Realtors, (336) 207-0515. Deviney Road $130,000. Build your dream home, hunt, farm and enjoy 40.76 acres centrally located adjacent to Hwy 421 just south of Guilford County in Randolph County. Land can be used for multiple purposes – 1/3 cleared, 1/3 w/pine trees, 1/3 w/ hdwds. Soil evaluation and survey done. Low Randolph County taxes. Michelle Porter, Allen Tate Realtors, (336) 207-0515. Great Investor or Move- In Ready! Northwest Condo, Conviently off Battleground. A beauty! Includes vaulted ceilings in LR and mstr. Private balcony w/ wooded view, Large laundry rm, W/D remain! Movein ready, Many upgrades in kit. Call today to see! Sherry Stevenson, Allen Tate (336) 209-4040 Main Level Mstr, Large family rm w/hdwds, stone FP. Kit w/granite tile ctops, stainless appliances, gorgeous wooded view. 2 tier deck wired for hot tub, great for entertaining. Large bonus/exercise rm. Wired storage bldg, a man’s dream. Work station, cabinets in garage. Call Sherry Stevenson, Allen Tate (336)209-4040 Look no further! If you need flexible spaces, formal or casual, spac private areas, an exceptional nhood, this home will make you smile. Features & upgrades include hdwds, granite ctops, tile bksplsh, oil-rubbed bronze plumbing fixtures. Screened porch, perfect for 3 seasons, huge deck, ideal for casual dining, entertaining, $250,000 Call Sherry Stevenson (336) 209-4040

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Weatherstone Lot 243 – 4354 Portico Ln, Kernersville, 3 BR/2 BA, 2 car garage, Eat-in breakfast room, black appli, tile backsplash in kit, FP can be added, 1521 sf, Brand New Singlewide Homes $750/mo. 3bd/2ba $149,070 – Call Sarah Draughn, Shugart Enterprises singlewides $630-$670 this month only! Spacious rms, kitchen appls, separate utility rm with w/d at 336-283-9809 hookups & more! New Home Special giveaways! Call 3103 Diana Circle, Burlington, 4BR/2.5BA, 2739 sf. for details! Great Amenities: Swimming pool, soccer Brick and stone elevation, 9’ smooth ceilings, FP, field, playground & clubhouse for residential use. granite ctops, kit island, tray ceiling in mstr. Priced at Monthly events: BBQ’s, kids movie nights, Zumba $199,920. Call Scott Goodson, Shugart Enterprises classes, children’s’ church and more! Village Park at 336-270-5230 724 Creek Ridge Rd. Greensboro 336-299-5840 Weatherstone 82 – 1672 Ridgestone Ln, Kernersville, 3 BR/2 BA, Finished bonus room above 2 car garage, partial stone front, covered front porch, DR + bfst room, 2091 sf, $169,900 – Call Sarah Draughn, Shugart Enterprises, 336-283-9809 1003 W. Cornwallis Dr - $674,900. Irving Park Gem. 5bd/3 bath home filled w/quality & craftsmanship that can’t be found today. Extensive moldings, slate roof, extensive recessed lights, multitude of built-ins, antique paneling, hdwds thruout, four FPs, large spacious rooms, all completely updated w/renovated kit w/SS appli, granite ctops, gas cooktop, extensive cabinets. Mstr bath updated e/new cabinets, marble floor & ctops, garden tub, sep shower. All Situated on large lot. Not to be missed – hard to find today. Michelle Porter, Allen Tate Realtors, (336) 207-0515.

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Brunswick (Continued from page 5) Republican commissioners that he shares their political vision to a large extent. “He is very conservative,” Norris said. “He’s very good with budgets, and very knowledgeable.” Norris said the coastal offerings of the county and other factors helped Brunswick County grow over the last 12 years while Lawing was manager. But he said there’s no question in his mind that Lawing played a big role in that development. According to Norris, Lawing was the force behind a very well advised expansion of the water and sewer in Brunswick County, which allowed for tremendous growth. “That has really been a game-changer for us,” Norris said. He also said Lawing spearheaded the passage of a zoning ordinance that helped guide growth throughout that county. According to Norris, it was also very much due to Lawing over the last few years that the county has been able to keep taxes down. Brunswick County has a property tax rate of 44.25 cents per $100 of property value, one of the lowest in the state, and much lower than Guilford County’s rate of 78.04 cents. Norris also said Lawing had orchestrated a decrease in the size of that county’s budget without laying off workers. In 2005, the county had 1,005 employees, and that number is now down to about 935. Lawing reduced government through attrition – eliminating positions or consolidating them as people retired or left the county’s workforce for other reasons. When Norris was asked why he thought Lawing was leaving a nice coastal county with a supportive Board of Commissioners to take a job for just $7,000 more in Guilford County, with its famously petty and cantankerous political leadership – Norris said he had an idea.

“It’s not about the money – he wants a new challenge,” he said. Lawing will be making $183,000 a year as Guilford County’s manager. He was making just over $175,000 in Brunswick County. According to Norris, Lawing is all business. However, he added there’s one characteristic that makes Lawing stand out at social events. “It’s an ongoing joke – he loves to eat,” he said. “He’s not overweight and he keeps himself in great shape, but he loves to eat.” Norris said that, due to his personal relationship with Lawing, he was aware, well before the announcement, that Lawing was looking at the Guilford County manager’s job. But he said that Lawing’s Brunswick County citizens only found out when people in that county began reading an article online from the Thursday, March 14 issue of The Rhinoceros Times, which reported that Lawing had been selected to take the Guilford County job. The Guilford County commissioners met on Thursday, March 21, and, at the end of the meeting which lasted past midnight, they voted 6 to 3 to offer Lawing the job. Norris said that, when he spoke with Lawing on the morning of Friday, March 22, Lawing told him he still wasn’t sure if he was going to take the job. However, by noon that day, Norris said, Lawing had told him he would accept the offer from Guilford County. Marty Cooke, a Republican Brunswick County commissioner, said Guilford County was lucky to have Lawing as its new manager. Cooke said Lawing has managed the changing situation in Brunswick County with great acumen. “Marty has seen a lot of transitional dynamics take place,” he said. Cooke said Lawing’s knowledge of Brunswick County affairs was impressive and, he said, Lawing rarely needed to

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consult documents or ask his staff for the details. “He immediately knew the answer,” Cooke said. Cooke said it could be something reported in the newspapers or something going on with one of the county’s departments – it didn’t matter. “He was like a walking unabridged encyclopedia,” Cooke said. “He’s got a lot under the hood.” Cooke, who was in the real estate business until a few years ago, said Lawing is a tireless worker with a great deal of focus. He added that that allows him to solve even very tough and complex problems. “He comes before anybody else and he leaves after everyone,” Cooke said. “Marty has done a lot for this county – no question. This county has truly grown during his tenure.” Cooke said Lawing oversaw a complex consolidation of 911 centers in that county and orchestrated a complete overhaul of the Brunswick County government during his 12 years as county manager – including a revamping of the technology used. “He was on the forefront of that,” he said. Given the glowing reviews of Lawing, it’s interesting to see how some Guilford County commissioners – and even a former commissioner – have griped about him from the start. Former Commissioner Skip Alston said that Lawing didn’t hire enough minorities as department heads in Brunswick County and current Guilford County Commissioners Bruce Davis, Carolyn Coleman and Ray Trapp all took their jabs at Lawing as well. Lawing has said publically that, on the first day he goes to work for Guilford County, he wants to meet with those who voted against him to see if he can assuage some of their concerns. Trapp, for one, said that fight over

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Lawing is now over. “I said what I had to say and now I am about moving forward,” Trapp said. Trapp added that he’s now going to do all he can to see that Guilford County prospers under Lawing.

Beep (Continued from page 33) line, and we fell for it. I guess he voted for Obama, too. So, I guess it is time for a change. That’s all we’re going to have in our pockets, McCrory. Have a nice day. %%% A square circle, an egg legging mammal, finite infinity, and homosexual marriage, all are contradictions in terms or inherent nonsense. Just sign me off as An Independent Thinker. %%% The Guilford County finance specialist said he received an email from the North Carolina Association of County Commissioners that stated that both Mecklenburg and Guilford County use the same reevaluation software, which is a NCACC Collaborative Property Tax System. Ben Chavis, Guilford County tax director, made it clear that Guilford and Mecklenburg didn’t use the same software. But what software was used by Guilford? Is a copy of the software instruction manual available? No answers from Chavis or the Guilford County commissioners who is lying. We have a right to know. Please, let us know. Thank you. %%% It might be a lot of years ago, but sometime in the mid-1990s I distinctly remember calling in a beep advising that it was extremely foolish and foolhardy for the then administration to provide nuclear (Continued on page 38)

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Page 37

Mayor (Continued from page 1) of the downturn in the commercial real estate market and his divorce proved to be too much for him to handle financially. He said, “Basically, I just ran out of cash.” Perkins said that in his business he makes money as a commercial real estate broker. meaning he sells or leases others’ property for them and is paid a commission, and he is involved in developing property. He said, “My commission income is way down and there is no development because I can’t borrow any money.” The bankruptcy will allow Perkins to prioritize his debts. He said, “The debts will be prioritized for me. The only things I will be allowed to pay are the priority claims, which are the taxes and whatever the support ends up being. I am disputing that amount. I really don’t see how I can be required to pay more than I make.” He said, “The real estate portion I may have been able to work out, but the divorce portion made that impossible. The way the real estate market imploded I just didn’t have anything left.” He also said he was really upset by the accusation that he had artificially depressed

his income. Perkins said that between being mayor and his day job as president of NAI Piedmont Triad Commercial Real Estate that he worked all the time. He then spent a few minutes going over this schedule this week, which is somewhat mind-boggling. No one has ever accused Perkins of not having energy, and his day is chock full of meetings as mayor and for commercial real estate. Perkins said about the commercial real estate business, which he has been involved in for 30 years, “The change in our business has been dramatic. We aren’t in the same business anymore. It’s just changed and it won’t be the same for a long, long time.” Perkins elaborated and said he really didn’t see commercial real estate coming back like it was before 2020. About his bankruptcy he said, “I fought this thing for as long as I could fight, but the combination of the real estate and the divorce got me.” He also noted that he was not the only one in bad shape in Greensboro. He said, “This has cut a swath wide and deep across Greensboro.” As far as politics go Perkins said he will run for reelection this year and plans to run on his record as mayor.

Beer (Continued from page 2) State Rep. Jon Hardister said Tuesday he was all set to introduce a total of five bills by the Wednesday, April 10 deadline, but only one of those bills appears likely to raise any controversy. House Bill 610, sponsored by Hardister, is designed to end state discrimination against beer drinking baseball fans and to treat them just like beer drinking football fans. Under the current law, football fans who attend Panthers home games don’t have to leave their seats to buy beer. In other words, they don’t have to get up and find their way to the beer counter in the stadium. They can wait for someone to come by with a tray of beers and buy one. At baseball games, fans cannot buy beer from their seats but have to get up and buy their own beer. The way the law is written it is legal to sell beer to fans in the seats in a stadium that holds over 60,000 people, and there is only one such professional stadium in North Carolina and it is in Charlotte. So baseball fans who are in smaller stadiums at minor league games throughout the state are forced to leave their seats to purchase a beer. Hardister said he didn’t think selling beer to people in their seats would cause any problems and could see good reasons why some people would not want to make the trek to the beer counter. He said the handicapped and elderly who could make the trip but would have difficulty would benefit by being able to buy a beer from

their seats. He said some people might not be able to leave their families but would like to dink a beer during the game. Hardister said he didn’t see a downside to offering beer to baseball fans in their seats and was glad to sponsor the bill. A bill that was not introduced, because the powerful beer lobby fought it, was to allow Red Oak Brewery in Whitsett to brew more than 25,000 barrels of beer a year. Red Oak is restricted on how much beer it can brew because it is distributed by the brewery and not through a wholesale distributor. If Red Oak were distributed by a distributor, owner Bill Sherrill says he could brew as much beer as he wanted. But Sherrill notes that his beer is not filtered and has to be kept refrigerated. He said he wants to control the distribution and doesn’t think he should be punished for it. Sherrill asked, “How would you like to have to get permission from the News & Record to print more papers?” There is no doubt that the alcohol laws in North Carolina are ridiculous, but from beer to whiskey they make those entrenched in the system a lot of money, and money buys friends in Raleigh. After the Republicans clean up some other messes that the Democrats left in Raleigh, like taxes, maybe they could get the state out of wholesale and retail alcohol sales and open up beer to the free market system.

Perkins said, “This City Council under some pretty well-defined leadership has moved the city forward.” He added, “We have the best management team we have had at the city in 25 years.” Perkins noted that a big part of the mayor’s job was promoting the city and said he thought he did a good job of that. He said, “I’ve got a good understanding of where this city needs to be in five years.” He said that the council was sticking to its goals of economic development and jobs and that he thought things were starting to happen in the target areas – the airport, the center city and the nanotech center. He also said he thought the downtown performing arts center – which appears to have stalled short of the money needed to build it – would get put together this year. Perkins says they need about $15 million more. Others have big problems seeing where the $60 million is going to come from, but Perkins said he thought it would all fall into place. As far as the bankruptcy itself, Perkins said that he doesn’t owe nearly as much as the $10.8 million shown in the bankruptcy filing because he has partners in the real estate deals. He noted that one shopping center with an outstanding loan of $3.6 million accounted for over a third of the debt, and that not only did he have partners, but that the shopping center was worth that amount.

Perkins said that his lawyer is in Charlotte, which is why he filed for bankruptcy in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of North Carolina instead of the Middle District in Greensboro. There was a rumor going around town that Perkins has not really filed for bankruptcy because some people looked under the Middle District filings and didn’t find it. The divorce of Robbie and Carole Perkins is messy and appears to be getting messier. In March, Carole Perkins asked the court to hold Robbie Perkins in contempt for not paying the full $13,000 a month the court ordered him to pay post separation and child support. Robbie Perkins said that he is being ordered to pay more than he is earning and he doesn’t have the money, which is one of the factors that led to bankruptcy. Earlier his father-in-law Robert Dabbs sued Robbie for $16,000 that Dabbs said he loaned his son-in-law but primarily because he didn’t have any paperwork stating that money was a loan the case was dismissed. Robbie Perkins lists the $16,000 owed to Dabbs as an unsecured claim in his bankruptcy filing. Perkins also said he did have income his tax debt paid down as he was quoted as saying in earlier articles about this financial situation, but with another year the debt went back up.

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

Beep (Continued from page 36) technology to North Korea. Oh, the North Koreans up and down said that they would only use it for peaceful power generation. And Bill Clinton, and his administration, would have us believe that they believed that claim. How naive, how foolish. And, now, we see the fruits of that absurd judgment failure by Bill Clinton. The North Koreans, of course, used it for weapons. What an fool Bill Clinton was. Just sign me off as An Independent Thinker. %%% Editor’s Note: I can’t say that I remember that beep, but it seems you were right. %%% Yes, I picked up a few of the editions of your paper recently. And I’ve got to say, your readers at The Sound of the Beep are the most idiotic, closed-minded fools that I have ever read in my life. No wonder this paper is free. Because only a tight-fisted Republican would ever try to read this paper. I cannot believe that there are so many closed-minded people still left in this world. Y’all need to take your Republican selves and get out. %%% Editor’s Note: You have joined the club. %%% In response to Mr. Greensboro about

Trader Joe’s wine for $3 a bottle and the Greensboro citizens not drinking $3 bottle of wine. You’d be amazed at how many restaurants have $3 bottle wine in their establishments and people love it. And that is their house wines. Number two, if people are drinking before they go to these performing arts center, isn’t it wrong to be drinking and driving, and for what? Just to go see a bunch of artwork, or anything art wise. I don’t know, but if that’s what you think is OK, and not OK to drink $3 bottle wine. Well, I guess the ticket price for DMV … %%% In response to Gov. Robbie Perkins, they need to throw him out, period. People should have never voted him in in the first place, because he was no good in the first place. Everybody fair warned you. And now you see that they were right. And y’all were wrong. He still hasn’t done any good for anybody else but himself. Thank you. %%% Yes, in reference to the article that Mayor Robbie Perkins put in the paper about 400 jobs at $41,000 a year. I wonder if he could live off of $41,000 a year. That is not any great salary for a household family. He was bragging about what great jobs it is and how much pay is $41,000, but if see if he could live off of $41,000. Thank you. %%%

Yes, Bruce Davis, county commissioners always downgrading Sheriff BJ Barnes about his employment and so forth. Why don’t he volunteer some of his time and go over there and work free to help cut the county budget down? Then he can see what the situation is. He always talks about things, but he don’t want to do nothing. %%% To the City of Greensboro: Do not change the name of High Point Road. Leave it as is. Rearrange the buildings and the business, and you should prosper from it versus changing street names and street signs, and any other stupid stuff that y’all can come up with. Please, leave the name alone. It’s been in the history books for a long time. Just leave it as is, and change everything else. Bye. %%% Hey, just saying no. Liberals don’t have a problem with charter schools. The problem is they don’t have to conform to everything else that other schools conform to like reporting their graduation rates, hiring certified teachers, you know, things like that that actually mean something. The other problem that someone might have with a charter school is that they want to steal taxpayers’ dollars from public schools to give to these charter schools. If you, as a parent, want your kid to go to a charter school, then you foot the bill. Otherwise,

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

just send your kid to a public school where it’s paid for by the taxpayers. Pretty simple. That’s the problem with charter schools, they’re for-profit. So, someone’s got to make money off of it. That’s what’s wrong with it. %%% Editor’s Note: They are not all for-profit. %%% That’s mighty righteous of Obama to offer up a 5 percent pay cut to his salary in these dark economic times. However, I have a better idea. Give him a 10 percent raise and cut off his benefits.

Under (Continued from next page) survive the way it is, with the knowledge that they are sentencing young men to extremely early dementia and a terrible quality of life where they are forced to wear restraints so they won’t hurt anybody. The NFL may not lose the current suit, but eventually it will lose because the evidence just keeps piling up – dementia, Alzheimer’s, Lou Gehrig’s disease. The NFL, like tobacco, may be able to fight and win a few battles, but it is going to lose the war because these players have far too much evidence that they were wronged.

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro

We think our local governments spend money like it is water, but then we find that other governments make ours look like they are not even trying. Greensboro built a $20 million garage to repair buses last year. That’s a $20 million repair shop, and it is the nicest repair shop you have probably ever seen. However, Arlington, Virginia, has Greensboro beat cold. Arlington has built a $1 million bus stop and is planning on building 20 more. These are not huge bus stops. They are built to hold 15 people. When you look at them it is hard to believe that somehow the government is managing to spend $1 million apiece to build them, but it’s true. They don’t have side walls but do have a roof, back wall and benches. Reportedly the concrete is heated, so they will be very popular with the homeless at night. The reason that Greensboro has a $20 million bus repair shop and Arlington has $1 million bus stops is the same. In neither case did the city pay for the structures. In both cases the federal government picked up 80 percent of the tab. In Greensboro the North Carolina Department of Transportation also picks up 10 percent and the city is allowed to count staff time and all sorts of ridiculous stuff as its 10 percent match. So the $20 million bus repair shop may not have cost Greensboro anything out of pocket. I know Arlington is getting the 80 percent grant, so the most the bus stops are going to cost them are $200,000 apiece, and they may cost Arlington nothing out of pocket. No doubt Virginia has a similar match and the DOT must allow Arlington a bunch of absurd expenses just like Greensboro. The Greensboro City Council would never vote for a $20 million bus repair shop, but they won’t hesitate to vote to spend a $20 million federal grant on a bus repair shop. Why not? If Greensboro doesn’t get the money than some other town like Arlington will find an even more wasteful way to spend it. Maybe they could put flat screens on the wall of the bus stop. And what about a Jacuzzi? People could have a nice soak while they waited for their bus. There is a reason why the federal government is running a $1 trillion deficit every year, and paying for absurd structures like $20 million bus repair shops and $1 million bus stops is a big part of that. It’s because the money is “free.” The federal government knows that there is no way that all that has been borrowed can be paid back without hyperinflation or an economic boom like we have never seen. These aren’t tax dollars that the federal government is spending. Almost one-third of the budget is borrowed money. As long as the federal government can continue to borrow a trillion or so a year, the big spenders see no reason to cut back. If you can cut spending to lower taxes, that you can sell to the public. But it is really difficult to cut spending just so you can

Thursday, April 11, 2013

borrow less. People ask what they gain by doing away with this program or that program, and when they find out that taxes will not be lowered, just that borrowing will be slightly lower, it is a tough sell, as Mitt Romney found out last November.

,,, Playing golf on Sunday is not free for the president. He has to be transported to the golf course, and the security has to be established at the golf course and then maintained while he is playing. They throw everyone off the course who is near the president. Then they have to transport him back to the White House. The cost of an Obama golf outing is top secret. Maybe because there have been 118 of them during his presidency. So if you multiply whatever it is by 118, it’s going to be big. If it only cost the country $10,000 for the president to play golf, and that seems like an extremely low estimate, then he has spent $1.18 million playing golf while president. Some people would consider that excessive. The cost for the White House tours is reportedly $74,000 a week. So when you consider that last year it cost the people of the US $1.4 billion for the first family to live in the style to which they have become accustomed, $74,000 doesn’t seem like much. If you divide that $1.4 billion by 52, that would be about $27 million a week, or $3.83 million a day, or $2,659 a minute. So if the Obamas could hold back on spending for about half an hour each week they could pay for the White House tours. If might mean that Malia and Shasha next year will have to choose between going to the Bahamas for spring break or going skiing. They may not be able to do both like they did this year, but that might not be too much of a hardship when you consider if they gave up the double spring break that thousands of kids their own age could tour the White House. Perhaps the Obamas will have to go one month without going on vacation. So far this year they have been on a vacation every month. Perhaps Obama will have to spend and entire week in Washington, DC, without traveling for a fundraiser anywhere in the country, but that seems like a huge sacrifice. There is probably a better chance of restricting the travel of his children.

,,, So far I’m 100 percent behind the sequester, even though it was Obama’s idea. I didn’t have a White House tour planned this year, so it hasn’t inconvenienced me. It is astounding that the White House can have a huge Memphis blues show and there is plenty of money for that, but nothing for tourists. I suspect that the truth is the Obamas don’t like all the tourists walking through the White House and are pleased to be able to shut them out and blame it on the evil Republicans.

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The sequester may be the one time that the Republicans have outsmarted Obama, although the Stupid Party gets their hats handed to them so often it is hard to believe they won a round. During his first four years in office, Republicans were howling about taxes and spending while Obama quietly went about ensuring his reelection by increasing the number of people on the government dole. It is no accident that the number of food stamp recipients is through the roof. Obama has made it a right to have a cell phone. Republicans were talking about immigration reform and Obama was buying votes all over the country. On election night people voted their pocketbooks, as they usually do. But in this case they voted for the man who was putting money and phones in their pocketbooks. And he wasn’t putting his own money in there but your money, if you are in the minority that pays taxes. It was a brilliant maneuver and evidently the Republicans didn’t see it coming. This is one conservative who didn’t figure out what Obama was doing until long after he had done it.

,,, Right now the press is pushing immigration reform, but it is doubtful if it will pass. Under Obama, either things get done exactly the way he wants them or they don’t get done at all. Obamacare was passed with a huge Democratic majority in the House and a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate. Not a single Republican voted for the final version and no concessions were made in an attempt to win Republican votes. Obama told the Republicans he had won the election and things were going to be done his way. As things go in Washington, Obama didn’t manage to hang on to that filibusterproof majority in the Senate for a full year, and at the midterm election the Democrats lost the House big time. Obama still believes he can ignore the Republicans, and he can, but he can’t get anything done unless he gets the Republican House to go along. To get Speaker John Boehner and the Republican majority in the House to agree to major legislation takes compromise. So far Obama’s technique has been it’s my way or the highway, and he has won several financial battles with just that plan.

,,, The National Football League all the way down to pee wee football appears to be headed down the same path as big tobacco. Nobody thought the tobacco companies would ever give in, but now, even in North Carolina, in many cases you can’t smoke in your own business even if you own the building. A tobacco shop in Greensboro had to move because a neighboring business complained of the

By John Hammer smoke, even though there was a cinder block wall between the businesses. How much smoke gets through a cinder block wall? But the current laws are so antitobacco that reality doesn’t matter; it’s all about perception. What does that have to do with professional football? What brought tobacco down were lawsuits. The tobacco industry realized it could not survive the mass of lawsuits and made a compromise. The lawsuits against the NFL started this week in Philadelphia. Of course, you don’t have the massive numbers of people who played professional football like you did smokers, but it appears the number of players who are suffering from the longterm effects of repeated head injuries is growing. Much like tobacco, the NFL knew that repeated head injuries could cause long-term effects. The NFL might not have realized until lately how serious those effects would be, but when you have men in the 50s with dementia and Alzheimer’s so severe that they cannot take care of themselves, then you have serious problems. Another aspect of the NFL issue is that these men are big. If a 100-pound woman gets confused and angry in a grocery store and starts flailing around, people try to calm her down. If a 275-pound man gets confused and angry and starts knocking things off the shelves, people call the police. What you have are a bunch of really big guys who are losing their ability to reason and are somewhat of a danger to society, and very much a danger to themselves. But the NFL knew, or should have known, that humans cannot sustain repeated head injuries without some ill effects. No doubt they were hoping that the ill effects would not be as severe as they appear to be right now. But they appear to be extremely severe when quarterbacks are having problems. On the vast majority of plays quarterbacks are not hit. So if quarterbacks suffer enough head injuries to have problems, how can the NFL expect linemen – who on the vast majority of plays are hit, and in the NFL are hit by someone who is huge and extremely powerful – not to have problems? Once a couple of decisions go against the NFL, some kind of settlement will have to be reached. Part of that deal will have to be that the NFL takes steps to make certain that the current players are not being similarly injured. It’s going to take much more than saying the ball runner cannot lower his head, which is the NFL’s current response. Some people are predicting that the hard helmets and pads that are so much a part of football will be replaced with soft helmets and pads. It sounds pretty weird, and it doesn’t sound like football. But there is no way that the NFL is going to be allowed to (Continued on previous page)

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Thursday, April 11, 2013

The Rhinoceros Times Greensboro