Friday December 11, 2009
ROBERT HEALY: Do conservatives have any actual, original ideas? TOMORROW
Opinion Page Editor: Vince Wheeler vwheeler@hpe.com (336) 888-3517
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Say ‘Merry Christmas’; the holiday is about Christ
Two weeks ago we celebrated Thanksgiving day, which is a national holiday. Did any of your readers greet someone with “Happy holiday” instead of “Happy Thanksgiving?” A week after Christmas, we will be staying up till midnight, and when that old clock strikes midnight, shouts of “Happy New Year” will be heard across America. Folks would think you had lost it if you said happy holiday instead. So what is this big deal about all the TV shows and store clerks being instructed to say “Happy Holidays” to everyone instead of “Merry Christmas”? So why exactly are we celebrating Christmas? I must really be out of the loop because I always But let me joyfully wish you a thought it was because Jesus blessed “Merry Christmas! Christ was born. So this offends BETTY K. LINTHICUM atheists and the ACLU? Well, let Sophia me make it clear that where their rights end is where mine begin. They say that other religions do not believe in God, therefore we Expanding Medicare to all must not push our beliefs on anyone else. I wouldn’t think of it! would fix problem People have the right to believe in a dead god – but the one in My husband and I both support whom I believe holds every breath Medicare for all! Public insuryou breathe in His hand, and is ance with a private option. He is very much alive sitting on the a Republican and I am a Demoright hand of the Father. He is crat! This is not a left or right not a religion; he is a person and issue. This is corporations verses the only one who can save your constituents. soul and give you life. Medicare for all just makes We will never know peace until sense. It would save Medicare by the Prince of Peace comes! Oh expanding the pool of people covyes, He is coming again to receive ered to include not only the older those who have trusted in the and sicker Americans. Currently, shed blood of Jesus Christ on Cal- the private insurance companies vary. I have walked with Him for take all the premiums when peo61 years, so please don’t offend me ple are young and healthy, leaving by wishing me happy holidays. Medicare to cover the difference
YOUR VIEW
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OUR VIEW
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Videotape is public property
A
n investigation by Randolph County District Attorney Garland Yates into the tragic death of a University of North Carolina student last August came to a conclusion last week. Yates determined that the fatal shooting of Courtland Smith by Archdale Police Officer Jeremy Paul Flinchum was justified under N.C. law and that the district attorney’s investigation would be closed. Yates’ decision last week, however, does not conclude the court case surrounding release of videotape of the incident that was captured by cameras mounted in Archdale police cruisers on the scene when the shooting occurred in the early morning hours after police stopped Smith on Interstate 85. A Randolph County judge sealed the videotape from the public and the media during investigations by Yates and the State Bureau of Investigation and said it should be released at the conclusion of investigations. But that videotape remains sealed today. Smith’s parents, Pharr and Susan D. Smith of Houston, Texas, have filed legal action requesting that the videotape be sealed permanently. The judge has ordered the videotape remain sealed until a hearing on the Smith’s request can be held, on a date no later than Dec. 18. We understand the Smith’s request. This was a terrible incident, a tragedy that all concerned wish could have been avoided. We understand the family’s pain, and we hope that it somehow will subside soon. But this is videotape of public officials performing their duties as recorded on equipment provided by the public for the very purpose that it has served in this case ... to provide an accurate record of what transpired that August morning in the confrontation between Smith and Archdale police officers. The videotape is public property, and it is the public record. Because of that, it should be opened to the public, not sealed and locked away or destroyed.
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The High Point Enterprise is committed to this community ... and always will serve it by being an intensely local newspaper of excellent quality every day.
when people are older and in need of more health care. Of course, it is going broke ... it was designed to fail! Also, Medicare payment rates must be adjusted. Small hospitals are getting crushed while large corporate hospitals are reaping the gains. The entire system is broken! Stop bickering and fix the problem. It is time to start working for the people in the state and stop working for the private corporations making huge profits at the expense of your constituents. ANGIE COCKMAN High Point
Community makes Salvation Army program successful On behalf of all those who signed up for Christmas assistance this year, the employees of
The Salvation Army would like to say a big “Thank you” to members of the High Point community for their participation in this year’s “Hammin’ It Up.” This year’s goal was to raise 750 hams for the families who signed up for the Angel Tree program to ensure that all families could have food on the table and toys under the tree. The monetary and canned ham donations started rolling in at 6 a.m. and by 6 p.m. the goal had been met. When everything was said and done, the grand total was 794 hams. Without the help from High Point locals and the Triad as well as partnerships with Bicycle Toy and Hobby Sales store on Main Street, FOX 8 WGHP, 98.3 Country Legends, 99.5 WMAG and McDonald’s, this event would not be possible. Again, thank you High Point for your help! TONY PEREZ High Point The writer is captain of the High Point unit of The Salvation Army.
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Michael B. Starn Publisher Thomas L. Blount Editor Vince Wheeler Opinion Page Editor 210 Church Ave., High Point, N.C. 27262 (336) 888-3500 www.hpe.com
DAVIDSON COUNTY
YOUR VIEW POLL
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The EPA says greenhouse gases “threaten the public health and welfare of the American people” and that carbon dioxide from burning fossil fuels should be reduced. What impact will this have on the U.S.? In 30 words or less (no name, address required) e-mail your opinion to letterbox@ hpe.com.
Gore has a history of playing loose with the facts. Recently on TV, while discussing geothermal energy, Gore made the outrageous claim that “the interior of the Earth OPINION is extremely hot, several million degrees.” HowMary Beth Brown ever, the actual temFloyd Brown perature here on Earth ■■■ is between 5,000 and 9,000 degrees. This is a gaffe that if Sarah Palin had made, the media would ridicule as her stupid. Speaking of hypocrisy, Gore is a living embodiment of it. As he lectures the world on energy use, and lobbies Congress to regulate productive American companies out of business, Gore consumes more than 20 times more energy than the average American, according to the Tennessee Center for Policy Research. This doesn’t count the energy consumption of his jet. Gore’s “Inconvenient Truth” is full of instances where he plays loose with the facts. A 2007 British court ruled that Gore’s film has nine significant refutable errors. These are examples of Gore’s scare tactics to induce the public to take radical action (to his financial benefit). Not only is Gore prone to hyperbole, hypocrisy and blatant distortions, he is also a bully. Professor Richard Lindzen of MIT wrote about scientists being “in the cross hairs” of Gore, who “tried to bully” them into changing “their views and supporting his climate alarmism.” When one side tries to shut another side out of the debate, it is typically because they feel their arguments won’t stand up to scrutiny. These propagandists use various tactics. A favorite is to make people feel guilty if they don’t jump on the “green” bandwagon, and those who do are praised for helping the environment. At the Copenhagen meetings, expect to see “green” propaganda exponentially increasing. Open your eyes to these manipulators of data and people, who while acting like dogooders, see great (green as in money) gain. FLOYD AND MARY BETH BROWN write a national column distributed exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. E-mail browns@caglecartoons.com.
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Global warming spinsters, shysters dress as do-gooders ust like in the Wizard of Oz, the curtain was torn back and leading proponents of anthropogenic (people-caused) global warming have been caught lying. Called Climategate, the scandal exposes the global warming shysters who are conning the public into a massive restructuring of the global economy, while attempting to silence any dissent. But don’t expect to see this in our mainstream media, because they are the spinsters who promote this manipulation of data and propaganda. It all began when an anonymous person hacked into the computers at the University of East Anglia’s Climate Research Unit in England, releasing 61 megabytes of confidential files, including 1,079 e-mails and 72 documents onto the Internet. These files are a wealth of information. The most damning indictment of proponents of global warming hysteria is a long series of communications discussing how best to squeeze dissenting scientists out of the peer review process. The e-mails even included fantasies of violence against those who question anthropogenic global warming. These e-mails show disturbing patterns of “conspiracy, collusion in exaggerating warming data, possibly illegal destruction of embarrassing information, organized resistance to disclosure, manipulation of data, private admissions of flaws in their public claims and much more,” says Australian Sun’s Andrew Bolt. Man-made global warming hysteria long has been fueled by people using junk science, fear and hyperbole to support an agenda that they personally profit from. As they attempt to lead the world into a green revolution, these propagandists are hiding the truth that the average global temperature has fallen since 1998. The leading profiteering propagandist is Al Gore. After losing the presidential election in 2000, Gore became the leader of the hysteria movement. However, this “Eco-Prophet” has hidden a few inconvenient truths of his own. He just happens to be involved with a venture capital firm that has invested approximately a billion dollars in green companies that stand to make a bundle if cap-and-trade becomes law. Reports state that Gore’s net worth now stands at $100 million, when it was $2 million when he left politics. He’s laughing all the way to the bank.
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School board Allan Thompson, 2622 W. Center Street Ext., Lexington, NC 27295; 249-1886; althompson@ lexcominc.net Kenny Meredith, P.O. Box 24097, WinstonSalem, NC 27114; 764-4676; kdm@ rymcoinc.com Alan Beck, 101 Castleton Dr., Thomasville, NC 27360; 472-9438; suburbanone@ northstate.net Karen Craver, 477 William Carter Lane, Lexington, NC 27295; 764-4075; karencraver2004@ yahoo.com Carol Crouse, 260 Burkhart Road, Lexington, NC 27292; 3572211; cbcrouse@ lexcominc.net
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The Enterprise welcomes letters. The editor reserves the right to edit letters for length and clarity and decorum. Writers are limited to 300 words and to no more than one letter every two weeks. Please include name, home address and daytime phone number. Mail to: Enterprise Letter Box P.O. Box 1009 High Point, NC 27261 Fax to: (336) 888-3644 E-mail to: letterbox@hpe.com