North State Journal — Vol. 2., Issue 54

VOLUME 2 ISSUE 54

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WWW.NSJONLINE.COM |

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2018

Inside Bobsledders have Olympic dreams, Sports

JONATHAN ERNST | REUTERS

President Donald Trump holds a bipartisan meeting with legislators, including N.C. Sen. Thom Tillis (center), on immigration at White House on Jan. 9.

the Wednesday

NEWS BRIEFING

Frigid weather sets new record for Duke Energy Charlotte Duke Energy Carolinas says customers set a new all-time peak record for energy usage last week during the bitter cold that gripped the region. On Friday, Jan. 5, Duke Energy’s 2.5 million households and businesses in North and South Carolina hit 21,623 megawatthours in the 24 hours ending at 8 a.m.

NORTH

STATE

JOURNaL ELEVATE THE CONVERSATION

North Korea to send team to Winter Games, South to consider easing bans Seoul North Korea said during rare talks with the South on Tuesday it would send a delegation to the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics in South Korea next month and Seoul said it was prepared to lift some sanctions temporarily so the visit could take place. At the first formal talks with South Korea in more than two years, North Korean officials said their delegation to the Games would consist of athletes, high-ranking officials and a cheering squad.

N.C. Highway Patrol seeks interns Raleigh The State Highway Patrol announced a new high school internship program to begin in January. The 40-hour program is intended to build relationships with young people in the state by providing experience in law enforcement careers.

Participants will get defense diving training, ride-along experiences, and visits to jail and training facilities.

Burst pipes soak NC businesses North Carolina Cleanup is underway after historic cold last week burst water pipes across the state.

Among the soaked stores, Raleigh’s North Hills had a second-floor pipe burst damaging Vivace restaurant and Quail Ridge Books. In Transylvania County an assisted living facility had to be evacuated from a burst pipe in the sprinkler system and in Caldwell County, water was cut off to 300 residents due to burst waterline on Friday.

PHOTO COURTESY OF AMERICAN AUTOMOBILE ASSOCIATION CAROLINAS

Historically low temperatures have N.C. residents preparing for the next big freeze.

While NC thaws, the state readies for the next winter blast Government, electric cooperatives and AAA say planning now can mean a safer winter to come

By Laura Ashley Lamm North State Journal RALEIGH — North Carolina experienced its first severe weather storm of the season last week, resulting in several inches of snow just after the first of the year. Local, state and federal agencies are planning for the season ahead and encourage residents to do the same.

We pulled together the most helpful information, tips and recommendations from officials with the North Carolina Department of Transportation, North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives and the USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service to

ensure residents in all 100 counties are prepared for the winter season and understand how officials are working to solve weather-related issues.

While much of the state is thawing out, some school systems remained closed Tuesday due to slick side streets. The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) has been moving around-the-clock to prepare, treat and scrape roadways.

“To be most effective, the brine must be applied on dry roads when the temperature is above 18 degrees,” said the NCDOT Communications Office.

“So, if the forecast calls for an event to begin as all rain, the crews won’t pretreat because the brine would be washed away.

Interestingly, brine is about half See WINTER, page A2

Tillis joins bipartisan group in rare glimpse of White House immigration talks Reporters given access to negotiations between both parties and Trump administration

strictions.

“If you don’t have the wall, you don’t have security,” Trump told the lawmakers.

Democrats say they want a deal to keep DACA recipients from being deported, but under pressure

By Donna King from immigrant groups, they are North State Journal reluctant to give ground to Trump WASHINGTON, D.C. — In on the issue of the wall — a key extraordinarily rare access, Pres- promise from his 2016 presidenident Donald Trump allowed re- tial campaign.

Maryland’s Steny Hoyer, the porters and cameras to sit in on a high-level immigration meeting No. 2 Democrat in the House for nearly an hour on Tuesday. of Representatives, spoke at the Allowing media to witness the meeting, saying a DACA bill could win support for passage negotiations was unusueven though there are al, especially compared to differences between the prior White House adminparties over what conistrations.

“I will sign stitutes necessary border Sen. Thom Tillis security.

(R-N.C.) was among those whatever “Democrats are for at the table as Republicans immigration security at the border,” and Democrats weighed bill they Hoyer told Trump during in with the president on the meeting. “There are immigration reform, secu- send me. I differences, rity, chain migration and have a lot of obviously however, Mr. President, what to do about thou- faith in the on how you affect that.” sands of undocumented Tillis has been negoimmigrants who are pro- people in tiating with lawmaktected from deportation this room.” ers from both sides of under an Obama-era prothe aisle, and the White gram that will sunset in — President House, since filing his March.

SUCCEED Act this fall, “I do have people that Donald co-sponsored with Sen. are very far right and very Trump during James Lankford (R-Okfar left, and they are very bipartisan la.). The bill would set unhappy with what we are meeting on up a merit-based system doing, but I really don’t immigration that allows DACA recipicare,” said Trump. “If we ents to build toward natdo the right bill, on DACA, reform uralized citizenship over we aren’t so far away from comprehensive immigration re- 15 years, as long as they remained employed or in school with a clean form.”

Trump says he anticipates a criminal record. Tuesday’s meettwo-phase plan that first address- ing followed weeks of work to try es recipients of Deferred Action to find a deal on Capitol Hill.

“Over the course of the last sevfor Childhood Arrivals (DACA), then addresses a more compre- eral weeks, we have negotiated in hensive immigration reform plan. good faith with Senate Democrats However, he said he wants any im- on a DACA agreement,” said Tillis migration deal to include funding and Lankford in a statement last for a border wall with Mexico and a tightening of immigration re- See IMMIGRATION, page A8

INSIDE Lawmakers tap Democrats and Republicans for the new joint judicial reform committee.

Jones & Blount

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20177 52016 $2.00

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North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

A2 WEDNESDAY

01.10.18 #110

Trump announces new focus on rural prosperity Expanding broadband and supporting crop insurance are key parts of the plan to build rural economies

mer Gov. Pat McCrory connecting every N.C. school to broadband was a high priority, and now 98 “Throughout our history, percent of K-12 schools across the state have broadband. Still, N.C. farmers have always, ranks the tenth most populated always, always led the state, but the fifteenth most con- way.” nected.

Nationwide, about 39 percent of rural areas lack access to high- — President Donald Trump speed internet service, the Federal Communications Commission Trump said Congress would insaid in a 2016 report. The president's speech outlined the find- clude the subsidies for crop insurings of the Rural Prosperity Task ance premiums in the upcoming “farm bill” that directs billions of Force report.

“The task force also focused dollars each year to agriculture, on the need to rebuild our crum- nutrition, food and land-conserbling rural infrastructure,” said vation programs.

“I’m looking forward to workTrump. “We’ve already slashed harmful restrictions that delayed ing with Congress to pass the critical infrastructure projects farm bill on time so that it delivfor decades and decades. Hard ers for all of you and I support a to believe. And we are proposing bill that includes crop insurance,” infrastructure reforms to ensure Trump said after noting Senate that our rural communities have Agriculture Committee Chairaccess to the best roadways, rail- man Pat Roberts was in attenways and waterways anywhere in dance. “We’re working hard on the farm bill and I think it’s going the world.”

In the speech, the president to go well.”

In May, Trump angered farm also told farmers that he supports crop insurance, signaling a groups, which represent the rupossible shift from his proposals ral voters who generally support last year to shrink a program that his Republican Party, when he many farmers rely on for funding proposed cutting $46.54 billion in federal agricultural funding, their operations.

mostly by capping the amount the government chips in toward crop insurance.

However, in the speech Monday he got a standing ovation and chants of “USA! USA!” from the room of agriculture professionals when he talked about the recently passed tax cut bill that caps the estate tax.

“From now on, most family farms and small-business owners will be spared … the deeply unfair estate tax, known as the death tax — so you can keep your farms in the family,” Trump said. “Obviously, you love your families; otherwise, you wouldn’t be standing for that one.”

Last year, Trump hired N.C. native and former longtime Sen. Thom Tillis staffer Ray Starling as a White House senior adviser on agriculture trade. From a farm family in Autryville, Starling has advocated for rural economies on the staff at the General Assembly and the White House.

“President Trump showed he was serious about agriculture having a seat at the table when he hired Ray Starling, my former chief of staff, to advise him on agriculture policy,” said Tillis (R-N.C.). “His speech today announcing broadband recommendations of the Rural Prosperity Task Force to help rural America thrive and overcome the challenges they face reaffirms his commitment to our agricultural community.”

After the speech, Trump signed the two executive orders to improve rural broadband access.

“We need to get rural America more connected. We need it for our tractors, we need it for our schools, we need it for our homebased businesses,” a White House official told reporters ahead of Trump’s speech.

The White House described the moves as an incremental step to help spur private development while the administration figures out how it can help with funding, something that could become part of Trump’s plan to invest in infrastructure.

the essentials. Maintaining food safety and refrigeration of items is important with or without power in homes.

“No matter what season it is, it’s always important to follow the four steps of food safety — clean, separate, cook and chill,” said Archie Magoulas, technical specialist with the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the USDA. “In the case of power outages, you can keep items in the refrigerator up to four hours, but try to move as many items over to the freezer as you can. A full freezer can withstand two days without power, and a partial freezer can keep items safe for a day,” Magoulas added.

Even if you still have power and are snowed in, it is still important to follow food safety principles. Milk can last about seven days. Meat and poultry should not be left on the counter to thaw. Thawing can be done in the refrigerator or microwave.

Any foods thawed in the micro-

wave cannot be refrozen.

Magoulas also helped debunk myths floating around on social media. It’s not a smart idea to fill your washing machine with ice as a make-shift cooler.

“Due to the chemicals in your laundry detergent, it’s not healthy or advisable to place ice or food inside due to the ability of cross contamination,” said Magoulas.

In addition, a popular snow day treat for some is snow cream; however, the FSIS does not recommend it.

“This is not advisable due to bacteria found outside,” said Magoulas. “Some bacteria do not die in cold weather, they simply become dormant. You also risk elements of outside dust and bacteria traveling into your container of snow.”

The NCDOT, N.C. Electric Cooperative, FSIS the USDA offer websites, app for iPhones, social media posts and more to help residents stay connected with the lasted weather updates and safety tips.

By Donna King North State Journal

“The whole state.

The whole story.”

Visit North State Journal online! nsjonline.com jonesandblount.com nsjsports.com carolinabrewreview.com chickenbonealley.com

We stand corrected To report an error or a suspected error, please email: corrections@nsjonline.com with “Correction request” in the subject line.

Correction: In last week’s issue, we omitted the photo accompanying the column sponsored by ElectriCities in business on page A5. Below is the photo of Sparky the Safety Squirrel.

North State Journal (USPS 20451) (ISSN 2471-1365) Neal Robbins Publisher Donna King Editor Cory Lavalette Managing/Sports Editor Frank Hill Senior Opinion Editor

Published each Wednesday

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. — President Donald Trump on Monday announced his plan to boost the nation’s rural economies. Speaking at the 99th Annual Convention of the American Farm Bureau Federation, Trump announced the Task Force on Agriculture and Rural Prosperity, a multipronged effort to remove economic barriers and get money flowing in rural areas. Rural areas, including those in N.C., were key to Trump’s 2016 White House victory, voting for Trump nearly 3-to-1 over Democrat Hillary Clinton.

The trend came after years of what small town voters, often employed in agriculture, saw as trade deals and White House policy that triggered rural flight and hollowed out small towns across the country. Rural Americans make up about 20 percent of the population, but in the 2016 elections, they were 17 percent of the voter turnout. These rural voters are expected to play increasingly pivotal roles in the 2018 and 2020 elections.

As part of the effort to bolster rural economies, Trump signed an executive order Monday to make it easier for the private sector to locate broadband infrastructure on federal land and buildings, part of a push to expand high-speed internet in rural America.

Faster internet speeds in rural areas have long been seen as key to addressing the economic divide between rural and urban America, but the costs have so far been prohibitive.

Expanding broadband has been a priority in N.C. where nearly fifteen percent of the population has access to less than 1 gigabyte of broadband. Under for-

WINTER from page A1 the cost of rock salt.”

NCDOT is responsible for more than 163,000 lane miles of roads, prioritizing interstates and U.S. routes to be cleared first because they are essential for connectivity throughout the state.

Road crews then shift their focus to N.C. routes, lower-volume primary routes, secondary roads and then subdivisions.

“NCDOT does its best to treat areas it knows are prone to black ice, but because it is in isolated spots and forms quickly, it’s not possible to treat every spot,” said NCDOT. “The best way to avoid black ice is to stay off roads unless you absolutely must go out.

If you do, drive slowly and leave plenty of space between vehicles in front of you.”

AAA Carolinas says 20 feet is the minimum distance between a vehicle and a plow. They also recommend that drivers avoid unnecessary travel in icy weath-

JONATHAN ERNST | REUTERS

President Donald Trump signs a pair of orders for initiatives meant to promote rural Internet access, after his remarks to the American Farm Bureau Federation convention in Nashville, Tennessee, on Jan. 8.

er, but to stay on major routes because they are treated first. Before the next storm arrives, this is the time to get tires inspected, pack an emergency car kit with an ice scrapper, jumper cables, portable phone charger, sand and warm blankets.

In addition to changes in road conditions, snow, ice and strong winds can bring power outages.

North Carolina’s Electric Cooperatives continuously monitor weather conditions and reports.

In turn, they are prepared to respond quickly if power outages occur as a result of the approaching winter storm.

To help their members prepare for winter storms, North Carolina’s 26 independent electric cooperatives recommend creating a home emergency preparedness kit with food, water, medicines, first-aid supplies, blankets and flashlights in the event of a power outage.

Being stuck indoors for days has residents flocking to the grocery store for milk, bread and

Want to learn more about North Carolina Agriculture?

The First Furrow www.FirstFurrow.com

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

A3

BUSINESS iPhone addiction?

Hedge fund JANA Partners LLC and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System pension fund said in a statement on Saturday that iPhone overuse could be hurting children’s developing brains, an issue that may harm the company’s long-term market value.

But some investors said that habitforming nature is one reason why companies like Apple, Google parent Alphabet Inc and Facebook Inc added $630 billion to their market value in 2017.

ADNAN ABIDI | REUTERS | FILE

n.c.

FAST FACTS Sponsored by

The Economic Snapshot series from the N.C. Department of Commerce provides a look into the condition of North Carolina’s economy, based on 14 indicators.

The Snapshots also compare North Carolina to other states. There are currently four indicators available: State GDP, Occupational Mix, Industry Mix and Labor Force.

Clean out your ‘financial garage’, make room for growth in 2018 Retirement expert Mark Fried offers five basic areas in most portfolios that should be revisited frequently – at least annually – to ensure maximum potential, minimum costs

Approved Logos

This week, NSJ focuses on the State GDP snapshot:

While North Carolina’s GDP underperformed the nation and several competitor states during and the immediately following the recession of 2008, the state has seen a marked improvement over the last year. It is unclear if this will be a continuing trend, as the state’s quarterly GDP growth has jockeyed positions with the nation’s. North Carolina also has a large manufacturing economy which has seen its share of GDP decline over time.

Largely, this has been due to declines in nondurable goods manufacturing, while at the same time professional and business services have begun to contribute more to GDP. However, when comparing the nation and North Carolina on a quarterly basis instead of broader year-to-year indicators, North Carolina appears to be outperforming the country over the past year. From 2015 Q2 to 2016 Q2, North Carolina’s GDP increased by 2.3%, while the United States saw a modest increase of 1.2%.

SOURCE: N.C. DEPT. OF COMMERCE

By Mark Fried For the North State Journal IT’S AMAZING how much stuff piles up in a family garage over the years. The stacks get higher every year because, presumably, the items within them hold value. It becomes harder to throw anything away.

While ignoring all those old bicycles, cleaning supplies, and other odds and ends in your garage may not change your life, the same cannot be said for ignoring all the financial clutter accumulating in your bank accounts, 401(k)s, IRAs and other investment storage units. Eventually, your money, your investments and your financial plans need a good cleaning and reorganizing.

“Financial products, investments and plans have a shelf life,” says Mark Fried, president of TFG Wealth Management and author of Road Rules for Retirement. “You have to be aware of that and focus on it. The reason they have a shelf life is because your life changes – you have kids, lose jobs, have parents to take care of, or you make a lot more money. Like items in an overstuffed garage, some things in your financial garage might be outdated – or need to be found and updated.”

Fried lists five areas to reorganize in your financial garage: • Your basic financial plan.

When younger, some people purchase a plan but put it aside. “For folks who have actually done one, they had it done probably because the person was trying to sell them something,” Fried says. “Now it’s sitting in the back of the garage under the car wax they don’t use anymore. If you have a retirement plan, you‘ve got to re-evaluate it and make sure it’s something you can use and depend on.”

• Old investments. Investments that seemed to make sense years before should be re-evaluated. “You need to know why your money is where it is,’ Fried says. “Why did you buy that partnership, or why did you buy this stock or this mutual fund? Now you’re at a different stage of life, and the reason you had for buying it then isn’t valid now.”

• Missing money. As in a garage, things go missing. The workforce of the 21st century is highly mobile, changing jobs on a regular basis. Every time you change a job there is a 401(k) or pension that has to be tracked.

“Now there’s an evolution of software packages where you can put in all of your information so you don’t lose track of your investments or retirement accounts,” Fried says. “You can easily track your old employer plans.”

• All insurance. Policies for life insurance, health, auto and homeowners all are worth a careful review. Fried points out that these reviews can lead to money savings. For example: empty nesters may want to restructure their auto policy since the kids aren’t driving the parents’ cars anymore; or a whole life insurance policy could be tweaked to bring more value. “A good insurance agent is reviewing your policies every year,” Fried says.

• Estate Plan. Wills may need updating. “A lot of people have a will, but they did it when their kids were very young, and now

n.c.

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT Sponsored by

Building a legacy, one banjo at a time In an ordinary house in the NC Public Power city of Kinston, odds are good that Marvin Walker is creating something extraordinary.

It seems there’s nothing he can’t make, but he’s known in bluegrass circles for his banjos: exquisite handmade instruments that look like art and sound like a dream.

About Mark Fried Mark Fried, president of TFG Wealth Management, LLC (www. tfgwealth.com), is the author of Road Rules for Retirement.

He is an Investment Advisor Representative, a Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor and an insurance professional.

Fried has been a contributor to several publications, including Forbes, Morningstar and The Wall Street Journal. He has been a guest on Fox Business and NBC, and co-hosted the PBS special How to Select a Financial Advisor.

the kids are 27 and 31,” Fried says. “The estate laws change.

The power of attorney language could be out of date, or maybe you have gotten divorced and not changed the beneficiary. It’s got to all be coordinated.”

“You’ve collected all this stuff over the years,” Fried says, “and you need to see what serves a purpose and what does not.”

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He built his first banjo because he wanted a better one, and a better one was too pricey. Another followed, then half-size versions, and finally, a cigar box banjo crafted from whatever he had on hand, like a discarded recliner, old telephone parts and—get this— sink strainers.

His banjos aren’t for sale, though Walker has given them to wellknown pickers such as Ricky Skaggs and Little Roy Lewis. “We all need something that we pass on to somebody else to prove that we were here,” he says.

Watch an inspiring video that Our State magazine created about Marvin Walker and his banjos: http://bit.ly/WalkerVideoOS.

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

A4

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Murphy to Manteo Hanging Rock State Park

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Pilot Mountain State Park

Haw River State Park William B. Umstead State Park

Mount Mitchell State Park Max Patch

Although the highest peak east of the Mississippi, Mount Mitchell stays open year-round, weather permitting. Driving to the summit offers a quick but brisk hike to the overlook. If Mount Mitchell gets too chilly or windy to handle, venture to the Blue Ridge Parkway. While many sections are closed during winter, you can still take advantage by hiking or cross country skiing along the Parkway. Stop and take a rest along the overlooks to take in breathtaking views.

Linville Gorge Wilderness

Lake Norman State Park

Crowders Mountain State Park

DuPont State Forest

Morrow Mountain State Park

Jordan Lake State Recreation Area Raven Rock State Park

Jones & Blount jonesandblount.com @JonesandBlount

Members of the judicial reform committee selected

Croatan National Forest offers 160,000 acres of long leaf pines, raised swamps, saltwater estuaries, and incredible plant and animal life — you very well might spot a black bear. It is the only true coastal forest found in the eastern United States.

A popular trail which can be done in sections is the 100-mile Saltwater Trail that starts near New Bern. Don’t forget to bring your binoculars: rare birds are a frequent sight as well as the native Venus Fly Trap.

By NSJ Staff RALEIGH — Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) and House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) last week named 15 lawmakers to a newly created Joint Select Committee on Judicial Reform and Redistricting. The House and Senate agreed to form the committee to discuss reforms to judicial elections and any changes to judicial districts.

“I’m proud of the work that senators from both parties serving on the Senate Select Committee on Judicial Reform and Redistricting performed during their roughly 20 hours of committee hearings, expert testimony and robust debate,” Berger said. “While judicial reform is a complex and challenging issue and the process has occasionally been contentious, I’m pleased with the committee’s progress and its unanimous vote to move this discussion to the next step. As the bipartisan joint committee evaluates how best to modernize and strengthen North Carolina’s judiciary — including judicial redistricting plans, merit selection models

Uwharrie National Forest Lake Rim Park Croatan National Forest

Jordan Lake encompasses 14,000 acres and is home to 14 miles of hiking trails and more than 1,000 campsites. With close proximity to both Raleigh and the Piedmont, it’s a great day or weekend camping trip on those nice, warmer winter days.

Many of the trails wind around the lake offering stunning waterside views to go along with your trek.

A5

Lake Waccamaw State Park Carolina Beach State Park

and other reforms — I hope it finds and brings forward a consensus recommendation that all North Carolinians can support.”

The membership of the committee consists of 18 Republicans and 12 Democrats.

Sens. Dan Bishop, Warren Daniel, and Bill Rabon will co-chair with Sens. Dan Barrett, Dan Blue, Jay Chaudhuri, Chuck Edwards, Joel Ford, Ralph Hise, Floyd McKissick, Wesley Meredith, Paul Newton, Shirley Randleman, Norm Sanderson and Terry Van Duyn serving as members.

From the N.C. House, Rep. Justin Burr will co-chair with Rep. David Lewis, and Reps. Hugh Blackwell, John Blust, Ted Davis, Holly Grange, Destin Hall, Duane Hall, Darren Jackson, Joe John, Jonathan Jordan, Robert Reives, Billy Richardson, David Rogers and Sarah Stevens will serve as committee members.

“This joint committee is an important step in our comprehensive legislative process to reaffirm the rights of North Carolinians who deserve balanced representation, an equal voice and full confidence in their justice system,” Moore said.

INFOGRAPHIC BY LAUREN ROSE

INFOGRAPHIC BY LAUREN ROSE

WEST Asheville police seek help for 2 theft suspects Buncombe County The Asheville Police Department requested public help on Monday locating two people of interest for several thefts in Asheville and surrounding areas. Dennis Gates Miller, 26, and Hope Elizabeth Baker, 35, have multiple outstanding arrests, including felonies. Police warn they may be armed and dangerous. Police are asking the public if they know about their whereabouts to contact the Asheville Police Department or Crime Stoppers.

Western N.C. bracing for second wave of winter weather Cherokee County The National Weather Service issued a winter weather advisory Monday for more than 30 counties in western and central counties. Light snow and sleet were anticipated at higher elevations in the mountains causing some schools to close or delay opening. On Monday, 260 Duke Energy customers were without service in the state. On Tuesday, some western N.C. schools were delayed opening due to areas of black ice.

PIEDMONT

Man froze to death in Burlington

Women dies after car crashes into Wendell creek Wake County A woman died on Monday after her car crashed into a creek Robertson Pond Road in Wendell. Maria Prieto, 23, died at the scene after her red sedan was found Monday morning upside down in the creek, according to the North Carolina Highway Patrol.

Authorities believe the accident occurred before dawn, and icy conditions likely factored in the vehicle crashing down the embankment and into the creek.

WXII

WRAL

NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Deer, bear hunting rules may alter season start Buncombe County The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission proposed to change the seasons of white-tailed deer and bear hunting. The rules may allow longer periods for hunting with guns in the woods allowing bear and deer hunting seasons to overlap. The rules would also remove the start of the hunting season from the Monday before Thanksgiving to the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The Wildlife Commission will hold public hearings in January in nine districts.

Worker killed in industrial plant accident

2 charged with murder of Henderson man

Cabarrus County Officials said a worker was killed Monday morning at Concord’s S&D Coffee and Tea in a plant accident.

The incident happened at 9:30 a.m. and Cabarrus EMS was called to the facility for an emergency. The worker’s identity hasn’t been release and the cause of the accident isn’t known. The company is working on conducting an investigation.

Vance County Two people have been charged with first-degree murder of Michael Bowes of Henderson, according to the Vance County Sheriff. John Jefferson, 23, and Tynetta Mayfield, 17 have been charged and held without bond at Vance County jail. Bowes was found dead in his car on Sunday afternoon. He had been missing since Dec. 21.

Yes.

ABC 11 BLUE RIDGE NOW

Alamance County A 61-year-old man died last week after walking in cold weather to church.

Franklin Roosevelt Kirby was found unresponsive at a playground near the church the next morning. Burlington reached a low of 8 degrees overnight.

Police said Kirby was dressed for cold weather but was in bad health. They don’t believe there was any foul play in his death but are waiting for autopsy results.

THE CHARLOTTE OBSERVER

EAST Wilmington Airport sets record New Hanover County The Wilmington International Airport has set a passenger-count record for the second year in a row. The airport, also known as ILM, saw 836,589 people fly out of and into it in 2017.

That’s an increase over the former record of 817,896 set in 2016. ILM has plans for an $88 million upgrade in the coming years that would include two new parking decks, an expanded terminal for concessions and passenger space, and a doubling of the airport’s gates from five to 10.

WILMINGTON STAR NEWS

WSOC TV

Dare County North Carolina Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey rejected the North Carolina Rate Bureau’s (NCRB) proposed homeowners insurance rate increase that would have averaged 18.7 percent and scheduled a July 23 hearing to resolve the issue. The Rate Bureau’s proposed increase could have meant hikes of up to 25 percent in Dare County, which would have been particularly hard hit.

The NCRB and DOI can also settle the proposed rate increase through negotiation prior to the hearing.

OUTER BANKS SENTINEL

Water main breaks cause more icy conditions Mecklenburg County Crews in Charlotte have responded to several water main breaks over the weekend and on Monday, caused by record low temperatures. Drivers were urged to avoid the areas of the breaks while repairs were being made. Charlotte Water officials said aging pipes are prone to breaking and they spend about $10 million a year replacing the city’s oldest pipes.

Salisbury also had a water main break.

Proposed hike in homeowners insurance rejected

McCrea named Tryon Palace director Craven County The N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources has named William J. McCrea as the new director of Tryon Palace. McCrea had been serving as the palace’s interim director since March of last year. McCrea has worked for the Department of Natural and Cultural Resources for 36 years, holding various positions including head of Architecture and Restoration for N.C. State Historic Sites and as associate director of the N.C. Museum of History.

Two ECU fraternities closed Pitt County East Carolina University officials announced Monday that two fraternity chapters on the campus are closing their doors immediately after allegations surfaced of hazing and violations of the school’s alcohol policies. Tau Kappa Epsilon will close at least until 2021. Delta Chi will also close, but did not give a possible reopening year.

As lawmakers prepare to gavel in, debate over class size resumes

By NSJ Staff RALEIGH — Gov. Roy Cooper and Democrat Senator Jay Chaudhuri held media events Tuesday objecting to the smaller class size mandate passed by the N.C. General Assembly scheduled to begin this fall. The legislature passed the smaller class size requirement in 2016, citing research that links lower teacher to student ratios to increased academic success for students.

Cooper and teachers say they can’t meet the new class size requirement without cutting arts and other programs or increasing class sizes at the upper grades. Their appearances follow protests organized by teachers at the General Assembly last week.

“I believe smaller class size can be a good thing, but you have to pay for it,” said Cooper in a press release. “This is an artificial class size change – one that shrinks class size on paper but in reality it hurts teachers and students.”

However, according to lawmakers the General Assembly did allow funds for the change. Since 2014, local school districts have received $222 million in extra state

dollars to fund reducing the teacher/student ratios and are guaranteed to get $70 million in recurring money to hire more teachers in kindergarten through third grade. Still, fourteen school boards have passed resolutions to encourage the General Assembly to change the class size requirements.

“The fact is the General Assembly has funded the reduction in class size and teacher-to-student ratios,” said Senate leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham). ”Gov. Cooper and some school boards are not being honest with the public when they claim otherwise, and they should be ashamed of themselves for trying to raise class sizes on our kids. We will continue working with our schools to provide parents certainty about what will happen next school year – while making sure taxpayers are getting the smaller class sizes they’ve paid for.”

The protests and media events come as the N.C. General Assembly plans to resume session on Wednesday. Chaudhuri told supporters that he will file legislation that would allow school districts to exceed the average 17 students per class mandate in kindergarten through third grade.

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North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

A6

north STATEment Neal Robbins, publisher | Frank Hill, senior opinion editor | Troy Kickler, deputy opinion editor

VISUAL VOICES

EDITORIAL | FRANK HILL

#ItsYoursFirst, #NotTheirs

One of the first things any taxpayer should do in January 2018 is review their expected income for the upcoming year and make the necessary adjustments to their withholding per pay period in their W-4.

THE TAX CUTS and Jobs Act Bill (TCJA) of 2017 is now law. What next?

The first thing every taxpayer should say out loud is this: “It is my money first, not the government’s!”

Every 30 years or so, the American public gets blinded by the promises of progressive government and begin to believe that the government somehow supersedes them when it comes to spending the hard-earned money they earn each and every day.

Before Ronald Reagan routed President Jimmy Carter in 1980, many people had been hoodwinked into believing the federal government could spend their money better than they could. Many believed their tax refund was a “gift” from the federal government each year for some reason.

The Reagan Revolution upset that apple cart for most of the ensuing 30 years. When President Barack Obama took office in 2009, he sought to expand the role of the federal government in virtually every aspect of American life in the aftermath of the Great Crash and Recession and many people believed in the supremacy of government again.

Perhaps things will change now that the average taxpaying family of four may save approximately $2,400 per year due to the TCJA 2017.

One of the first things any taxpayer should do in January 2018 is review their expected income for the upcoming year and make the necessary adjustments to their withholding per pay period in their W-4.

If you do not make the necessary adjustments, you may wind up letting the federal government in Washington use it all as an interest-free loan for the entire year before issuing a refund in April 2019.

It would be quite possible that almost all of the tax cuts you expect to receive will not be passed on to you in the form of higher net take-home pay in a regular paycheck.

Instead, your money would be sent to Washington only to be used to spend on other federal programs until a refund is sent back in the spring of 2019, 16 months from now.

On top of making sure you don’t preclude yourself from getting immediate monthly tax relief from the TCJA of 2017, every family should take a serious look at their last tax refund from the U.S. government and ask this serious question:

“Why in the world did I give the U.S. government an interest-free loan of $3,000 last year?”

The average taxpayer received a refund check from Washington in 2016 for about $3,000. About 110 million taxpayers received a refund check of about $3,000, two-thirds of all taxpayers who filed returns for the previous taxable year.

None of them received any interest for allowing Washington to use their money all year.

The U.S. government sent out $330 billion in total refunds in 2016.

That represented a massive $330 billion interest-free loan that funded 97 percent of the federal share of Medicaid for the entire year.

If the average American taxpaying family adjusted their W-4 exemptions upwards to account for the tax cuts and made sure they would get $1 in a refund check in 2019 instead of $3,000, they could expect to see the additional $200/month in tax relief from TCJA 2017 plus another $250 per month from lower withholdings in their monthly take-home pay for a total of $450 more per month in disposable income they could then spend or save as they see fit during the year — not the government.

Getting $450 more per month in regular take-home pay for the average American family is $5,400 more in their pockets over what was there in 2017. That is $54,000 more in disposable income over 10 years available to spend as you see fit during the year — not Washington.

You will be glad you did. Do it for you and your family’s sake.

EDITORIAL | TROY KICKLER

To celebrate the N.C. Constitution, read it

The minutes of the North Carolina ratification convention may be the best among various state minutes.

THIS YEAR MARKS the sesquicentennial anniversary of the 1868 North Carolina Constitution. Although there were conventions that drastically changed the state’s constitution in 1835 and 1875, the Old North State has had three constitutions: 1776, 1868 and 1971.

All three state constitutions have a “Declaration of Rights.” Over the years, each state constitution included the following declaration: “A frequent recurrence to fundamental principles is absolutely necessary to preserve the blessings of liberty.”

The Pennsylvania Constitution of 1776 includes a more explanatory statement in its Declaration of Rights: “That a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles, and a firm adherence to justice, moderation, temperance, industry and frugality are absolutely necessary to preserve the blessings of liberty and keep a government free.”

In an age of more and more Americans espousing constitutional interpretations disconnected from the past, these declarations are a good reminder. History, and in particular constitutional history, is not some esoteric intellectual exercise, nor the mere memorization of facts to maintain your team’s string of victories on trivia night.

“A frequent recurrence” is essential for the understanding of the nation’s being and the preservation of your individual liberties. Such knowledge, or lack of it, affects your daily life in some fashion.

To be sure, none of us were present at the deliberations in Halifax, N.C., in 1776 or

in Philadelphia in 1787. So, this “frequent recurrence to fundamental principles” seems like a daunting task. But becoming familiar with those principles may be easier than we realize.

Co-author of The Federalist Papers and fourth President of the United States, James Madison is regarded as “The father of the Constitution.” In 1821, he wrote an inquisitive Thomas Ritchie, editor of the Richmond Enquirer, who anticipated publication of Madison’s notes regarding the 1787 Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia.

Madison relayed that the state ratifying conventions offered the key to understanding the “legitimate meaning” of the Constitution.

Madison made similar statements as early as 1791, when he opposed Alexander Hamilton’s idea for a national bank, and again in 1796 when discussing the merits of Jay’s Treaty. On the floor of Congress, he actually read passages from the respective Pennsylvania, Virginia and North Carolina conventions. There is a consistency of Madison’s thoughts over a lengthy period.

He was not backpedaling in 1821 for political purposes, as one political scientist once told me.

The minutes of the North Carolina ratification convention may be the best among various state minutes. For one thing, the note takers and editors, employed by Federalists, wielded a light editorial hand. They did not misrepresent Anti-Federalist arguments or purposefully portray them as unsophisticated rubes unable to understand Federalist

erudition. The minutes reveal a robust debate.

Before pointing out the ratification minutes to Ritchie as a means to understand the Constitution, Madison said that the “legitimate meaning . . . must be derived from the text itself.” Imagine that! To understand the meaning of the Constitution, one should read the document.

It’s not as simple as reading it once and absorbing all the content, of course. One has to remember that some words were defined differently a couple centuries ago, and one must be familiar with the times in which the document was written. But what a simple yet profound (and overlooked and ignored) place to start: read the Constitution for a better understanding of the document.

In a similar Madisonian spirit, if one wants to learn more about the North Carolina Constitution, he or she should read the document. That would be an example of “a frequent recurrence to fundamental principles” and an excellent way to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the North Carolina Constitution of 1868.

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

A7

COLUMN | L. BRENT BOZELL III AND TIM GRAHAM

Spielberg spoils the press SUSAN ESTRICH

Is the media’s goal always simply the “truth”? Or are they motivated by an ideological agenda?

STEVEN SPIELBERG has made a new movie glorifying The Washington Post and how it rallied against then-President Richard Nixon and the Vietnam War in the Pentagon Papers court fight of 1971.

It’s simply called “The Post.” Everyone inside and outside this movie is drawing the comparison between Nixon’s difficult relationship with the press and President Donald Trump’s.

Spielberg told the Hollywood Reporter: “The relevance is up to everybody to strike their own balance between the news today and the news then. But obviously, sometimes, bad things happen twice. History is certainly repeating itself.”

This movie became more urgent to Spielberg & Co. because Trump surprised the liberal elites and beat Hillary Clinton. The first script for this movie was set to glorify the rise of then-Washington Post owner Katharine Graham as a pioneer for women’s power in the nation’s capital, a theme that would resonate under the first female president. Meryl Streep said the movie is now relevant because the “press is under siege” in the Trump era.

Liberal Hollywood naturally sees the liberal media as an ally. No one in the movie business wants to produce a movie that makes The Washington Post or other media outlets look irresponsible. Imagine the movie recounting how in 1981, the Post rushed to print Janet Cooke’s utterly preposterous — and Pulitzer Prize-winning — story about an 8-year-old cocaine addict. Imagine a movie about The New York Times letting Jayson Blair invent stories out of whole cloth in 2003. Those newspaper movies will never be MARIO ANZUONI | REUTERS | FILE made, although they would certainly be based on real events.

Producer Steven Spielberg arrives at the 88th Academy Awards nominees The media, of course, were luncheon in Beverly Hills on Feb. 8, 2016. guaranteed to gush over this movie that polishes their historical apple. partisan things imaginable. chide each other for being too close The New York Times played with the Everyone should embrace the to power. Graham would rush to Post’s new Trump-era motto, titling notion that freedom of the press is spend a weekend at the ranch in its review “In ‘The Post,’ Democracy part of the system of government Texas with “Lyndon” Johnson, and Survives the Darkness.” Stephanie checks and balances. But what all then-Executive Editor Ben Bradlee Zacharek of Time magazine called the media are suggesting about this schmoozed around for plenty of it “a superhero movie for real movie, and about this president, is dinners and drinks with “Jack” grownups.” The Post “critique” by that no one needs to act as a check Kennedy. But Spielberg casts these Ann Hornaday is headlined “In or a balance on the press. They can characters as heroic by shunning ‘The Post,’ Streep and Hanks Lead be painted as dangerously “under their past sins of closeness to a Stirring Homage to the Pursuit of siege” when their bias or errors are Democrats ... by undermining Nixon Truth.” questioned. Despite the “superhero” — which only shows they were still But is the media’s goal always treatment at the Cineplex, journalists doing exactly what the Democrats simply the “truth”? Or are they are not automatically more noble and wanted. motivated by an ideological agenda? conscientious than everyone else.

Nevertheless, Bob Odenkirk, Didn’t the Post (and pretty much who plays the leftist Post Assistant everyone who worked there) want L. Brent Bozell III is the president Managing Editor Ben Bagdikian, Nixon to lose to Hubert Humphrey of the Media Research Center. bizarrely claims the movie is and George McGovern, just like they “nonpartisan.” That’s perfect in a way. Tim Graham is director of media wanted Trump to lose to Clinton? analysis at the Media Research The moviemakers, just like the press, If conservatives ever see this Center and executive editor of the blog love to pretend they’re nonpartisan propaganda, what might surprise NewsBusters.org. even as they are doing the most them is that the film’s lead characters

COLUMN | WALTER E. WILLIAMS

Dirty college secrets

The true test of one’s commitment to free speech comes when he permits people to make statements he does deem offensive.

A FREQUENT POINT I have made in past columns has been about the educational travesty happening on many college campuses. Some people have labeled my observations and concerns as trivial, unimportant and cherry-picking. While the spring semester awaits us, let’s ask ourselves whether we’d like to see repeats of last year’s antics.

An excellent source for college news is Campus Reform, a conservative website operated by the Leadership Institute. Its reporters are college students. Here is a tiny sample of last year’s bizarre stories.

Donna Riley, a professor at Purdue University’s School of Engineering Education, published an article in the most recent issue of the peerreviewed Journal of Engineering Education, positing that academic rigor is a “dirty deed” that upholds “white male heterosexual privilege.”

Riley added that “scientific knowledge itself is gendered, raced and colonizing.” Would you hire an engineering education graduate who has little mastery of the rigor of engineering? What does Riley’s vision, if actually practiced by her colleagues, do to the worth of degrees in engineering education from Purdue held by female and black students?

Sympathizing with Riley’s vision is Rochelle Gutierrez, a math education professor at the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign. In her recent book, she says the ability to solve algebra and geometry problems perpetuates “unearned privilege” among whites.

Educators must be aware of the

“politics that mathematics brings” in society. She thinks that “on many levels, mathematics itself operates as Whiteness.” After all, she adds, “who gets credit for doing and developing mathematics, who is capable in mathematics, and who is seen as part of the mathematical community is generally viewed as White.” What’s worse is that the university’s interim provost, John Wilkin, sanctioned her vision, telling Fox News that Gutierrez is an established and admired scholar who has been published in many peerreviewed publications. I hope that the University of Illinois at UrbanaChampaign’s black students don’t have the same admiration and stay away from her classes.

Last February, a California State University, Fullerton professor assaulted a CSUF Republicans member during a demonstration against President Donald Trump’s executive order on immigration.

The students identified the assailant as Eric Canin, an anthropology professor. Fortunately, the school had the good sense to later suspend Canin after confirming the allegations through an internal investigation.

Last month, the presidents of 13 San Antonio colleges declared in an op-ed written by Ric Baser, president of the Higher Education Council of San Antonio, and signed by San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg and 12 other members of the HECSA that “hate speech” and “inappropriate messages” should not be treated as free speech on college campuses. Their vision should be

seen as tyranny. The true test of one’s commitment to free speech doesn’t come when he permits people to be free to make statements that he does not find offensive. The true test of one’s commitment to free speech comes when he permits people to make statements he does deem offensive.

Last year, University of Georgia professor Rick Watson adopted a policy allowing students to select their own grade if they “feel unduly stressed” by their actual grade in the class. Benjamin Ayers, dean of the school’s Terry College of Business, released a statement condemning Watson’s pick-your-own-grade policy, calling it “inappropriate.” He added: “Rest assured that this ill-advised proposal will not be implemented in any Terry classroom. The University of Georgia upholds strict guidelines and academic policies to promote a culture of academic rigor, integrity and honesty.” Ayers’ response gives us hope that not all is lost in terms of academic honesty.

Other campus good news is a report on the resignation of George Ciccariello-Maher, a white Drexel University professor who tweeted last winter, “All I Want For Christmas is White Genocide.” He said that he resigned from his tenured position because threats against him and his family had become “unsustainable.”

If conservative students made such threats, they, too, could benefit from learning the principles of free speech.

Walter E. Williams is a professor of economics at George Mason University.

How Democrats can lose the House THINK WE’VE GOT the House,” one California “I Democrat said to me not long ago.

“It’s the Senate we need to focus on.”

I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Cry, I think.

This is how Democrats lose the House.

I don’t know that there has ever been a time, in my lifetime anyway, in which perceptions varied so diametrically from one political party to the next as they do now.

If you’re a Republican, chances are better than eight out of 10 that you’re pleased with your president.

Probably get a kick out of him too, not to mention the jobs numbers, or the stock market.

If you’re a Democrat — particularly one in a place such as California, where you are mostly surrounded by other Democrats — you cannot imagine how anyone could support him. How dumb could they be?

This is how you cement Donald Trump’s base. With a mixture of contempt and disbelief.

Meanwhile, they are counting on the last laugh. If Democrats don’t “get it,” they won’t win. Simple as that. If we keep thinking the Trump voters had it wrong and “should come to their senses,” we will lose in 2018. If we don’t offer something other than our aversion to Trump, we’ll be no better off after the midterm than before.

This is how you cement Donald Trump’s base.

With a mixture of contempt and disbelief.

I know: Roy Moore lost. Need I point out that the man was notorious for allegedly preying on children when he was in his 30s — and that even so, the president endorsed him, and Moore’s opponent only narrowly beat him?

And as best I can tell, the president hasn’t paid any price for endorsing him. He won’t pay any price for pushing the FBI to investigate the Clinton Foundation, although his never-ending efforts to politicize law enforcement should offend any student of the rule of law. But not.

It’s not just Teflon with President Trump. It’s not that the muck doesn’t stick. It’s that in his universe, it’s not muck at all. There are plenty of people, sad to say, who still want to “lock her up.” We don’t win by rerunning the last election, or by trying to convince those who supported Trump that they were wrong to vote for him when they did.

For the record, I’m not at all confident about the House. True, the incumbent president’s party tends to lose seats in midterms. Bill Clinton lost the House in his first midterm. The incumbent president tends to come back and win reelection two years later, it’s also worth noting.

But not so fast.

First, we know politics is local.

Second, incumbents in Congress always win. Democrats need more Republicans to leave in order to truly open up seats.

Third, Republicans have controlled the drawing of district lines in more state legislatures than Democrats. The maps favor them.

Fourth, Nancy Pelosi. I happen to like her, and I think she has accomplished an enormous amount as the leader of the Democrats. But I really liked Hillary Clinton, too. I know this much: I am not America.

I live in California, not Ohio.

The challenge for Democrats has never been to win my vote. If you’re a die-hard of either party, it’s not about finding the candidate you like best, because that may well be the candidate with the least chance of winning. It’s about finding a candidate you like who might appeal to people with whom you generally disagree. It’s not easy to think that way, and not near as much fun as cheering for Bernie Sanders. But it’s better than losing.

A8

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Nation & WORLD

NEWS IN IMAGES

MIKE SEGAR | REUTERS

KIM KYUNG-HOON | REUTERS

A woman photographs ice on the Hudson River, with the George Washington Bridge and New York City in the background, from the Rockefeller Lookout in the Palisades Interstate Park in Englewood, New Jersey, on Jan. 7.

Japanese women wearing kimonos ride an escalator at a subway station after attending their Coming of Age Day celebration ceremony in Tokyo, Japan, on Jan. 8.

MIKE BLAKE | REUTERS

Palm trees are pictured through rain drops on a car window after a rainstorm in Encinitas, California, Jan. 9.

U.S. ends protected status for 200,000 Salvadorans

Trump administration drops Obama-era easing of marijuana prosecutions Washington, D.C. The U.S. Justice Department has rescinded an Obama administration policy that had eased enforcement of federal marijuana laws, giving federal prosecutors wide latitude to pursue criminal charges. The action by Attorney General Jeff Sessions could impact the burgeoning marijuana industry in the six states including California and Colorado that have legalized the drug for recreational use, plus dozens of others that permit medicinal use. Federal law still prohibits marijuana even as some states move to legalize it.

The policy change came three days after California formally launched the world’s largest regulated commercial market for recreational marijuana.

The United States deported 1,241 Salvadorans in 2017 for alleged connection to gangs, compared to 524 in the previous year

By Yeganeh Torbati Reuters

YURI GRIPAS | REUTERS

President Donald Trump listens to Vice President Mike Pence speaking to the media after the Congressional Republican Leadership retreat at Camp David, Md. on Jan. 6.

Security flaws put virtually all phones, computers at risk San Francisco Security researchers say a set of security flaws that they said could let hackers steal sensitive information from nearly every modern computing device containing chips from Intel, Advanced Micro Devices and ARM Holdings. One of the bugs is specific to Intel but another affects laptops, desktop computers, smartphones, tablets and internet servers alike. Intel and ARM insisted that the issue was not a design flaw, but it will require users to download a patch and update their operating system to fix.

U.S. top court scrutinizes purging of voter rolls Washington, D.C. Government officials across the United States try to maintain accurate voter rolls by removing people who have died or moved away. But a case coming before the U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday explores whether some states are aggressively purging voter rolls in a way that disenfranchises thousands of voters. The justices will hear arguments in Republicangoverned Ohio’s appeal of a lower court ruling that blocked its policy of erasing from voter registration lists people who do not regularly cast a ballot. Under the policy, such registration is deleted if the person goes six years without either voting or contacting state voting officials

Germany expects return of over 100 children of Islamist fighters Berlin German security officials are preparing for the arrival of more than 100 infants and children of people who left the country to fight for Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, amid concerns about the radicalization of minors. Nearly a thousand people are believed to have left Germany to join up with the Islamist militants. As the group’s presence in the Middle East crumbles, some are returning with family members, while German authorities are trying to secure the release of children whose parents have been detained.

Pence to visit Egypt, Jordan, Israel in January Reuters WASHINGTON, D.C. — Vice President Mike Pence will visit Egypt, Jordan and Israel from Jan. 20 to 23, the White House said, embarking on a tour originally planned for last month after President Donald Trump recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Pence will hold talks with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Jordan’s King Abdullah and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the White House said in a statement.

Pence, a strong supporter of Trump’s decision on Jerusalem, will also visit the city’s Western Wall and give a speech at the Israeli parliament, it said.

Trump’s decision on Jerusalem and announcement in December that the U.S. would start the process of moving its embassy from Tel Aviv led to uproar and protest in the region.

“At President Trump’s direction, the vice president is traveling to the Middle East to reaffirm our commitment to work with the U.S.’s allies in the region to defeat radicalism that threatens future generations,” said Alyssa Farah, a spokeswoman for Pence.

He plans to discuss with the three leaders “ways to work together to fight terrorism and improve our national security,” she added.

The status of Jerusalem, which is home to Muslim, Jewish and Christian holy sites, is one of the thorniest obstacles to a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians, who protested

IMMIGRATION from page A1 week. “Unfortunately, our discussions on border security and enforcement with Democrats are much further apart, and that is key to getting a bipartisan deal on DACA. Until that happens, we cannot accomplish the solutions our country needs and many families deserve. More work remains ahead.”

Now, as lawmakers entered bipartisan White House talks

Trump’s move and have declined to meet with Pence.

Pence postponed a visit to Egypt and Israel last month to stay in Washington for a congressional vote on Trump’s tax overhaul plan.

The announcement on Pence’s visit came the same day that Jordan announced it had foiled an Islamic State plot that included plans for a series of attacks last November on security installations, shopping malls and moderate religious figures.

Jordan’s state news agency, Petra, said the country’s intelligence department had arrested 17 members of the cell and confiscated weapons and explosives that the militant group had planned to use in several operations.

“The members of the cell had planned to execute a number of terrorist attacks simultaneously to destablize national security and sow chaos and terror among civilians,” the statement said.

The detainees were being interrogated before being put on trial in a military court, the authorities said without giving a date.

The statement said the cell had planned to wage a series of bank robberies and car thefts to get financing, and manufactured homemade explosives from material bought from local markets.

Militants from al-Qaida and other radical jihadist groups have long targeted the U.S. allied kingdom and dozens of militants are currently serving long prison terms.

King Abdullah, a Middle East ally of Western powers against

Tuesday, the stakes are high but the dialogue appeared to make progress.

“There have been some discussions, but our position is clear and their position is somewhat clear.

We want to drill down and see if there is some room for negotiations,” a White House official said before the meeting.

Trump has also said any DACA deal with Democrats must include ending “chain migration,” which could jeopardize the par-

“At President Trump’s direction, the vice president is traveling to the Middle East to reaffirm our commitment to work with the U.S.’s allies in the region to defeat radicalism that threatens future generations.”

— Alyssa Farah, spokeswoman for Pence Islamist militancy who has also safeguarded Jordan’s peace treaty with Israel, has been among the most vocal leaders in the region in warning of threats posed by radical groups.

Jordan plays a prominent role in the U.S.-led coalition against Islamic State, providing military, logistical and intelligence support, Western diplomats and regional intelligence sources say.

Several incidents over the past few years have jolted the Arab kingdom, which has been comparatively unscathed by the uprisings, civil wars and Islamist militancy that have swept the Middle East since 2011.

In the last major incident, Islamic State militants claimed responsibility for a shootout just over a year ago at a Crusader castle in the southern city of Karak in which 10 people, including a Canadian tourist, were killed.

ents of DACA recipients who are still in the United States illegally, and a visa lottery program. In the meeting Trump said he trusts the lawmakers in the room and would most likely support a compromise they can pass, saying “I’ll take the heat.”

Following the meeting, House Judiciary Committee Chairman Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.) said he and other Republican lawmakers would introduce on Wednesday a bill to address immigration issues

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Around 200,000 Salvadorans allowed to live in the United States since 2001 after earthquakes in El Salvador must leave the country in 2019, U.S. officials said this week, marking the Trump administration’s latest move to tighten immigration law enforcement.

Termination of the Salvadorans’ temporary protected status (TPS) will take effect Sept. 9, 2019, to give them time to leave or seek lawful residency, and for El Salvador to prepare for their return, officials said.

The decision to end TPS for Salvadorans is part of the administration’s broader push to deport immigrants who are in the United States illegally. The decision was heavily criticized by immigrant advocates who said it ignored violence in El Salvador, which has one of the world’s highest murder rates.

The Trump administration has faced a series of deadlines over the past year to decide whether to end the protected status of immigrants in the United States whose home countries have been affected by disasters. Administration officials have said TPS is supposed to provide a temporary haven for victims, not a permanent status.

Haitians and Nicaraguans will lose their protected status in 2019 and Hondurans could lose theirs later this year. South Sudanese immigrants’ protected status was extended until May 2019.

Salvadorans are the largest group by far with temporary protected status. An estimated 200,000 Salvadoran immigrants have the protection, according to a November report by the Congressional Research Service. That is more than three times the number of people in the next largest group with the status, Hondurans. Salvadorans were granted the protections after a pair of earthquakes in 2001 that killed more than 1,150 people between them and left hundreds of thousands homeless.

Critics have complained the TPS program allows participants to repeatedly extend their stays in sixmonth to 18-month increments in case of a natural disaster, civil strife or other emergencies in their homelands.

that would serve as the basis for the negotiations with meetings to commence quickly on Wednesday.

Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), the second-most powerful Republican in the House of Representatives, said lawmakers will cover four topics as they move forward in crafting a deal: the immigration program known as DACA and “dreamers,” border security, chain migration and the visa lottery.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 10, 2018

MOLLY CHOMA | USABS

Former NC A&T football player Adrian Adams (third from front with hand raised) is attempting to make the U.S. bobsled team at the 2018 Winter Olympics.

the Wednesday SIDELINE REPORT

SPORTS

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Hall of Fame picks have N.C., ACC ties Former UNC football coach Mack Brown and late ’90s Panthers quarterback Kerry Collins were among the 13 people chosen to be inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2018. Brown coached the Tar Heels from 1988‑97, compiling three 10-wins seasons and a 69-46-1 overall record, reaching No. 1 in 1993. He won a national championship with Texas in 2005. Collins was the fifth overall pick by the Panthers in 1995 out of Penn State and quarterbacked Carolina for three-plus seasons.

Longtime Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer and Georgia Tech receiver Calvin Johnson were also among those set for induction. Ed Reed, who played for Miami before the Hurricanes joined the ACC, and 1997 Heisman Trophy winner Charles Woodson were named as well.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

Duke falls to 7th, UNC to No. 20 in AP poll Duke and North Carolina both slid in the recent Associated Press college basketball poll, with the Blue Devils going from second to seventh and the Tar Heels dropping from 12th to 20th. Villanova is back at No. 1, while Virginia climbed to No. 3 and is the highest-ranked ACC team. In all, six ACC teams (No. 18 Miami, No. 19 Clemson, No. 23 Florida State) are in the top 25, with Notre Dame just on the outside with the most votes without making the poll.

PGA

Former Campbell golfer, N.C. resident Fritsch banned Canadian golfer Brad Fritsch has been banned for three months after he reported himself to PGA Tour officials for violating its anti-doping policy, the governing body said on Monday. The 40-year-old, who plays on the Buy.com Tour and is eligible to return to competition on Feb. 28, said the banned substance was in a supplement he had been taking to assist weight loss.

Fritsch played collegiate golf at Campbell University and resides in Holly Springs.

Bobsled provides athletes a shot at Olympic glory Former 49ers track star Briauna Jones, NC A&T football player Adrian Adams hope to be in Pyeongchang next month

By Brett Friedlander North State Journal

DERICK E. HINGLE | USA TODAY SPORTS

Quarterback Cam Newton and the Panthers face an offseason filled with questions.

Panthers face an offseason filled with uncertainty Ownership, front office and coaching staff all in a state of flux

By Shawn Krest North State Journal Normally, the season-ending post mortem on an NFL team focuses on the list of expiring contracts and speculation on who will be back next season.

Certainly, there’s a concern about whether Star Lotulelei, Julius Peppers and the other Carolina Panthers free agents will re-sign with the team, but the team’s roster is far down the list of concerns facing the franchise at the start of the 2018 offseason.

Panthers fans likely have mixed feelings about the 2017 season. The team bounced back from a Super Bowl hangover in 2016 to tie for first in the NFC South and return to the playoffs. With one of the top defenses in the league, however, expectations were much higher than a wild card berth and first-round exit.

Off-field drama seemed to hijack the season, however, and, from the looks of it, the offseason will be no different, as the soap opera around the Panthers will continue to swirl.

Ownership search The biggest off-field distraction was the revelation, late in the year, that owner Jerry Richardson was under investigation for harassment and workplace misconduct. A bombshell Sports Illustrated story broke in the middle of a game, and, by the time that Sunday was over, Richardson announced plans to sell the team following the season.

The good news for fans of the team is that there appear to be several legitimate local options. Of See PANTHERS, page B3

“I hope that it’s somebody who’s willing to keep the team here.”

— Panthers coach Ron Rivera on new ownership

FOR AS LONG as she can remember, Briauna Jones has dreamed of representing her country in the Olympic Games. It’s a goal that could become a reality this week. Only not the way the former UNC Charlotte track star envisioned.

In her mind’s eye, Jones pictured herself throwing her arms into the air in triumph as she landed in a pit of pure white sand at the end of a medal-winning long jump. Instead, her reality now consists of a shiny red, white and blue bobsled firing off a spray of snow and ice as it speeds across the finish line following a successful run.

Jones is one of two North Carolina residents vying for spots on the U.S. Bobsled team at the upcoming Olympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.

She is the brakeman on a sled driven by teammate Elana Meyers Taylor. Reidsville’s Adrian Adams, a former NC A&T football player, is trying to earn a spot as a pusher on a four-man men’s sled.

They will learn their Olympic fate this weekend when the U.S. team for Pyeongchang is named following a World Cup event in St. Moritz, Switzerland.

“The United States is a really competitive country in any sport and bobsled is no different,” said Jones, a 25-year-old who graduated from Charlotte in 2014 with a degree in anthropology. “On a team with ladies who come from very different backgrounds and who are very talented, it’s going to be a tough one with who makes the team. At this point, it’s all about executing in these final days.”

The U.S. is guaranteed of having two sleds in the Olympic women’s competition. A third can still qualify based on World Cup standings after this week.

Jones strengthened her chances of getting to South Korea last week at an event in Altenberg, Germany. Although her sled finished 11th overall in the competition and second among American finishers, her start times of 5.54 on the first run and 5.57 on the second were the two fastest in the entire field.

Adams’ hopes for making the U.S. team are more of a longshot after lower back and hamstring injuries sidelined him for a large portion of the 2017 season. Even if he doesn’t get chosen this year, he’s committed to staying involved in the sport through the next Olympic cycle with an eye on competing in Beijing in 2022.

Adams and Jones are part of a growing trend in which American bobsledding has turned to former track athletes and football players—- many of them African-Americans — in hopes that their speed and athleticism will help improve starting times.

It’s a strategy that gained popularity in 1992 with Hall of Fame running back Herschel Walker and has helped the U.S. win 10 medals over the past four Olympics after going a half century winning one.

Adams’ father Randy Russell was among the first wave of newcomers to the sport, and it was his influence that got his son into a sled once it became obvious that a career in professional football wasn’t in the cards.

Adams was a wide receiver and defensive back who helped Reidsville High to consecutive state championships in 2002-03 before moving on to A&T. He played briefly for the Huntington Hammer of Arenafootball2 and had several tryouts with Canadian Football League teams, but nothing ever came of them.

See BOBSLED, page B3

“She was a successful track athlete who never achieved everything she wanted, but still had that fire to achieve something.”

— Charlotte 49ers track Bob Olesen on Briauna Jones

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

B2 WEDNESDAY

1.10.17

TRENDING

Martin Necas: The Hurricanes firstround pick in the 2017 NHL Draft was a standout for the Czech Republic at the IIHF World Junior Championship in Buffalo, N.Y. Necas, picked 12th overall by Carolina, tied for the tournament scoring lead with 11 points in seven games and had a WJC-best eight assists. The Czechs lost the bronze medal game to the United States, finishing fourth for their best result since finishing third in 2005.

Matt Nagy: The Chiefs offensive coordinator was criticized for his handling of the Kansas City offense during the team’s firstround loss to Tennessee, but that didn’t keep him from landing his first head coaching gig. Nagy was hired to replace John Fox as the next coach of the Bears with the hopes he can develop from UNC quarterback Mitch Trubisky into a top-flight quarterback.

NC State football: The Wolfpack finished the 2017 season ranked 23rd in the final Associated Press poll, which was released Tuesday following Alabama’s win over Georgia in the national championship game. NC State was the only school that went from being unranked before bowl season to ranked afterward, thanks to a 52-31 win over Arizona State in the Sun Bowl. The Wolfpack last finished a season ranked in 2010, when under Tom O’Brien it finished 25th. The No. 23 ranking is the best finish for NC State since Chuck Amato guided the school to an 11-3 record and No. 12 ranking in 2002. The other ACC schools made the final rankings: Clemson (fourth), Miami (13th) and Virginia Tech (24th).

beyond the box score POTENT QUOTABLES

NFL

The Carolina Panthers signed coach Ron Rivera to a two-year contract extension through 2020, the team announced Saturday. Rivera’s contract was set to expire at the conclusion of the 2018 season. The new two-year deal is reportedly worth $15.5 million. Rivera’s contract extension is the first major move for Tina Becker, the Panthers’ chief operating officer, who has taken over daily operation of the franchise after owner Jerry Richardson stepped away amid an investigation into alleged workplace misconduct.

ROB KINNAN | USA TODAY SPORTS

“Every team we play, I’m going to tell them they’re ranked No. 2 in the country.”

NC State coach Kevin Keatts after the Wolfpack defeated Duke. It was the team’s second win over a team ranked second in the nation, having beat then-No. 2 Arizona on Nov. 22.

CHUCK COOK | USA TODAY SPORTS

NHL

NFL

CHUCK COOK | USA TODAY SPORTS

“I do believe I am the leader of this team, and the team goes as I go.”

Panthers quarterback Cam Newton shielded teammates from criticism after Carolina lost its wild card playoff game in New Orleans.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

4 Games with at least 30 points and 10 rebounds for Duke freshman Marvin Bagley III. Bagley has accomplished the feat in two of the Blue Devils’ first three ACC games this season. Bagley is averaging 22.5 points and 11.5 rebounds heading into Wednesday’s game at Pitt and ranks in the top 20 in the nation in both scoring and rebounding.

EAMON QUEENEY | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

STAN SZETO | USA TODAY SPORTS

Injuries have kept Hurricanes winger Lee Stempniak off the ice all season, but he’s officially close to returning.

The team moved the 34-year-old off injured reserve Monday, reassigning Lucas Wallmark to AHL Charlotte.

Stempniak had 16 goals and 24 assists in playing all 82 games last season, his first in Carolina.

Jon Gruden will be back roaming an NFL sideline in 2018. Gruden, 54, has been re-hired by the Oakland Raiders, landing a reported 10-year, $100 million contract to return to the team that traded him to Tampa Bay in 2001. Gruden went on to lead the Bucs to a win Super Bowl XXXVII over the Raiders in 2003.

NBA

The Charlotte Hornets finally found some success on the road during a recent West Coast swing.

Charlotte has won three of four, all in California, since Dec. 29. It started with a near-triple-double effort from Dwight Howard (29 points, 13 rebounds, seven assists) at Golden State and, after a loss to the Clippers, included the Hornets beating the Kings and Lakers on the road. Charlotte had previously been 2-12 away from Spectrum Center.

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North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

B3

lumbia, S.C., during the summer of 2016 and was the only candi“Once I was done pursuing date selected to train with the football, I wasn’t done being an U.S. national team. As the squad’s athlete,” the now 30-year-old only rookie, she earned her first Adams said by phone from Lake international medal in November Placid, N.Y., where he is preparing 2017, finishing third with pilot Brittany Reinbolt at a competition for a competition this weekend. in Whistler, Canada. A “My dad was like, month later, she and ‘maybe you should try Meyers won a World bobsled,’ so I went to Cup gold medal in St. a combine or two and Moritz. the coaches liked what “I really hate Her job is to use her they saw. I’ve been at strength and speed the spot since 2012 and cold weather. to get the 400-pound I’ve fallen in love with ... When sled moving down the it.” it’s 20-30 course, then go along Jones’ path from the for the ride until hitrunning track to a fro- degrees, I feel ting the brakes at the zen one was similar to like I’m more bottom. that of Adams.

“Your arms are After a successful adapted to it locked in pushing the career as a jumper and than before. sled, but your legs are short-distance sprinter really the engine,” she for the 49ers, she set But negative said. “It’s very lower her sights on repre- temperatures body and core engaged, senting the U.S. at the never get a lot like track and 2016 Summer Games in Rio, but fell short of easy. When it’s field.

“Every track is difher goal. Disappointed, negative-20 ferent and ice conshe was prepared to ditions also change give up on her dream outside, things, the way the sled until her college track there’s no way moves. On super cold coach Bob Olesen — who was a member of to mentally get days, the start will be kind of sticky and it’s the 1998 U.S. team in through that not as easy to get the Nagano, Japan — apwithout being sled moving. On warmproached her with an er days when it’s meltidea that rekindled her reminded how ing a little, it will be Olympic ambition. cold it is.” super fast.”

“I saw a lot in her that played into my Those warmer days decision years ago.” — Briauna Jones are Jones’ favorite. And Olesen said. “She was a not just because of the successful track athlete positive effect they who never achieved evhave on her start times. erything she wanted, but still had “I really hate cold weather,” she that fire to achieve something. said. “There’s a certain level of “She had a lot of the physical getting used to it. When it’s 20qualities that would be successful 30 degrees, I feel like I’m more for bobsledding. After a couple of adapted to it than before. But years of trying options to continue negative temperatures never get athletically, this was something easy. When it’s negative-20 outreally stood out.” side, there’s no way to mentally Jones went to a Combine for get through that without being prospective bobsledders in Co- reminded how cold it is.”

BOBSLED from page B1

KIM KLEMENT | USA TODAY SPORTS

First-year Bills coach Sean McDermott is one of several former Panthers who helped lead Buffalo back to the postseason.

Panthers North: Carolina transplants lead Buffalo back to postseason Brandon Beane, Sean McDermott, Kelvin Benjamin help Bills end 17-year playoff drought

By Shawn Krest North State Journal JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The Buffalo Bills made their first NFL Playoff appearance of the millennium, losing to the Jaguars in the Wild Card round.

The team, which hadn’t been to the postseason since the 1999 season, relied on an infusion of front office and on-field talent from the Carolina Panthers to snap the NFL’s longest playoff drought.

With a GM, head coach and handful of players imported from Charlotte, the team looked like Panthers North as it ended nearly two decades of frustration.

The playoff appearance was a bit of a surprise. After 10 losing seasons in the previous 12 years, this year was expected to be a rebuilding one. Don’t look for the early success to tempt the team into making any short-term moves to try to speed up the process, however.

“We have a long way to go,” said GM Brandon Beane. “We really do. We have a lot of work to do. We’re trying to compete and win every day. Our plan has not changed. The only thing that you adjust is that you don’t know where you’re going to be drafting.

It’s a great thing to be drafting No. 21. If you’re drafting in the 20s, it means you made the playoffs. And that means you have a chance.”

The Bills had a chance this year, thanks, in part, to Beane, one of the key components of Panthers North.

He had served as Carolina’s director of football operations for 12 years and served two years as as-

sistant general manager. He was thought to be the heir apparent to Dave Gettleman before leaving to take the Bills job this past offseason. Ironically, a few months after his departure, the Panthers job he’d been waiting for opened up, unexpectedly.

One of Beane’s biggest hires was his head coach, Sean McDermott.

Plucked from Ron Rivera’s Panthers staff, where he’d spent the last six seasons as defensive coordinator, McDermott was a hard-nosed, no-nonsense leader for a team that quickly took on his personality.

“I’ve known coach McDermott for some time,” said fullback Mike Tolbert. “He brought a certain bravado to the team that hasn’t been around in a while. It was definitely what I expected and more.”

Tolbert, a five-year Panther, is in his second stint following a former assistant to his new team.

Prior to joining McDermott in Buffalo, he followed Ron Rivera from San Diego to Carolina to help implement the new head coach’s mindset.

The team also picked up special teams ace Joe Webb from the Panthers late in training camp.

Webb ended up playing wildcat quarterback and stepped in to lead the team to an overtime victory late in the season when the starting quarterback went down to injury.

Following the Jacksonville loss, McDermott discussed his first year on the job.

“We’ve come a long way in a short amount of time,” he said.

“That said, we’re not where we need to be. That’s obvious. We still want to be playing, and we’re not playing next week. … There are no moral victories. I don’t believe in those. What I believe in is continuing to build, and we’re not done yet. When we came in here, we set a vision and put forward a

plan to accomplish that vision.”

His boss was happy with McDermott’s rookie season as head coach.

“I thought Sean and his staff did one heck of a job,” Beane said.

“We threw him some curveballs with some trades in August and even two during the season. To go through all that, to handle the three-game losing streak and get this team into the playoffs says a lot.”

One of those midseason trades brought in another former Panther in wide receiver Kelvin Benajamin.

A first-round pick of the Panthers in 2014, Benjamin was dealt to Buffalo for draft picks at the trade deadline.

In his second game with the Bills, Benjamin tore his right meniscus. The injury would cause him to miss two games and struggle to a 36 yards per game average, the lowest of his career. He’ll have knee surgery this offseason.

“I’d be lying if I said Kelvin was himself,” McDermott said. “He wasn’t.”

“I was trying to make that push,” Benjamin said. “If I had to go all the way through the Super Bowl, I would do it. It’s the grit.

You’ve got to play injured. You’ve got to play hurt. We’re out there playing for each other. You’ve just got to push through it.”

The team pushed through adversity to make the playoffs in their first year as Panthers North, and the future looks brighter than it has in a generation in Buffalo.

“We did it, first year, man,” Benjamin said. “A bunch of guys, coming in, not even knowing each other.”

“I saw flashes, at times, of this thing getting turned in the right direction,” McDermott said.

He’s one of the big reasons why.

“With that guy at the helm,” Tolbert said, “there aren’t going to be many years where the Bills aren’t in the playoffs.”

MOLLY CHOMA | USABS

Briauna Jones, left, was a track star at UNC Charlotte before continuing her athletic career as a bobsled brakeman. She is attempting to make the U.S. team for the Pyeongchang Games.

Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart is tackled

by Saints defenders during the NFC Wild Card playoff football game in New Orleans.

PANTHERS from page B1 course, any plans to keep the team in Charlotte seem to mention the need for a new stadium. In other words, the future of the team is uncertain, at best.

“I hope that it’s somebody who’s willing to keep the team here,” coach Ron Rivera said of the team’s sale. “I think this is great area and we’ve shown that we can be supported, which we have been by the community. We give back to the community, and I think we have things in place that make this an ideal place for a football team.”

General manager search The uncertainty doesn’t stop at the top of the org chart. The team spent the season with an interim general manager, after firing Dave Gettleman shortly before the start of the season. Former GM Marty Hurney spent the year at the helm, and he would like to remain in that position permanently.

Of course, the ownership situation overshadows any GM search, as the new owners may want to pick their own person to lead football operations.

“He knows us,” Rivera said of Hurney. “Even though he was removed for a few years, he still

STEPHEN LAW | USA TODAY SPORTS

knows us and understands what this organization is about. He understands me and my philosophy, and I get his as well. Marty, knowing him and him knowing us, I think that’s what helps. We’ll see how things go.”

Coaching changes Rivera signed a two-year extension following the regular season, giving him some job security.

Of course, the ownership search casts a shadow over this, as well.

If the new administration brings in a new general manager, Rivera’s contract may simply serve to increase his buyout price.

More uncertain than Rivera’s status, however, is that of his staff.

The team has already cut ties with offensive coordinator Mike Shula and quarterbacks coach Ken

Dorsey, firing both two days after the Wild Card loss.

The team also faces the likely prospect of losing defensive coordinator Steve Wilks. After a successful first season on the job, Wilks has generated a great deal of interest in head coaching jobs, most notably the New York Giants, who were interviewing him earlier this week and rumored to

be sold on him as the frontrunner for the job.

“We have a few great candidates as far as that’s concerned,” Rivera said. “If it does come to fruition, I’ll have to go through that process again. If I lose guys to Steve going on, then I’ll have to look at those guys as well. I feel really good about the guys we have in place to replace Steve.”

The players Finally, there are the possible roster changes. Peppers, Lotulelei and defensive end Charles Johnson are the biggest names on the list of unrestricted free agents.

Lotulelei, the standout defensive tackle, is the most likely to leave, as he’ll generate interest on the open market and should lead to lucrative offers.

“We have a number of guys that are veteran guys that are really neat people, and we’ll see how things go,” Rivera said.

The team will also look to upgrade at several positions, with wide receiver topping the list.

But long before any personnel moves are finalized, there’s plenty of other areas that will occupy the organization’s attention in what’s shaping up to be a postseason for the ages.

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

B4

Alabama headlines early ’18 contenders Clemson still the ACC frontrunner

By Adam Jacobi Field Level Media Sure, the confetti is still on the field, and “Sweet Home Alabama” hasn’t stopped echoing inside the Georgia Dome.

That means it’s a perfect time to start thinking about the 2018 season. Here are five programs to keep an eye on to hoist the Golden Parentheses this time next year.

THE GOLD STANDARD: ALABAMA What more can be said about the most dominant college football program of the postwar era?

Nick Saban has led the Crimson Tide to five national championships in nine years, and there’s no sign the Tide’s going back out any time soon. That’s not to say Alabama’s a lock to repeat; depending on how many early NFL draft entrants come out, Saban may need to replace about half of his starting lineup from this championship squad. But Bama’s strength has always been as much about the second and third and fourth strings as the elite talent up front. There are no down years in Tuscaloosa, not for a juggernaut like this.

THE NEW DOG IN THE YARD: GEORGIA Make no mistake about Georgia becoming Alabama’s latest postseason victim — the Bulldogs belonged, and they’ll be back. Yes, the iconic duo of Nick Chubb and Sony Michel will be missed, along with a bevy of playmakers on defense. Yet there’s enough high-lev-

el talent ready to step in or take a step forward that the Bulldogs won’t have to look like the same team to make another run at a championship. Few head coaches know that better than Kirby Smart after his stint as Alabama’s defensive coordinator.

THE PRIZE FIGHTER: OHIO STATE There’s an argument to be made that Ohio State could have made the 2017 College Football Playoff by scheduling, say, Tulsa instead of Oklahoma. Perhaps, but then Ohio State wouldn’t be Ohio State: fearless, tough and talented. OSU will miss J.T. Barrett and could use a speed upgrade on the outside. But QB Dwayne Haskins looked the part this year, and nobody cranks out more elite defensive linemen than position coach Larry Johnson. And by the way, OSU travels to AT&T Stadium to face TCU in Week 3. It wouldn’t be fun if it were easy.

THE MACHINE: CLEMSON If it weren’t for Alabama, Clemson would be the most fearsome program in college football. The Tigers are the only other team to make each of the three Playoffs, and 2017 was the seventh straight season with 10 or more wins under Dabo Swinney. The Tigers only started four seniors by the end of the season — that number looks to jump substantially in 2018. Rising senior quarterback Kelly Bryant is ready to follow his predecessors Deshaun Watson and Tajh Boyd in pushing for a first-team All-ACC season; that may be all Clemson needs to complement its ferocious defense.

KIRBY LEE | USA TODAY SPORTS

Alabama wide receiver DeVonta Smith celebrates his game-winning touchdown in overtime against Georgia in the 2018 CFP national championship college football game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.

THE UNDERDOG: PENN STATE Yes, Saquon Barkley is gone to the NFL where he belongs, but with ultra-athletic RB Miles Sanders stepping in, Penn State’s offense shouldn’t suffer much. The big question is whether Penn State can withstand heavy senior losses in the secondary. If James Franklin has enough talent waiting to replace them, that’s just about all PSU will need to put together a monster run; four offensive line starters return for Trace McSorley, the closest thing the Big Ten has to a Baker Mayfield. PSU might not even be the best team in its division in 2018 -- but that didn’t stop Alabama from winning its latest title.

CHUCK COOK | USA TODAY SPORTS

Quarterback Kelly Bryant and Clemson should still be the class of the ACC in 2018, along with being a national title threat.

2018 football season already coming into focus North Carolina’s teams went 5-0 in bowl games, and the news has been mostly good early in the postseason

By Brett Friedlander North State Journal ALABAMA RALLIED late Monday night in Atlanta to beat Georgia in overtime and claim college football’s official national championship. Meanwhile in Orlando, the nation’s only undefeated team — Central Florida — held a parade to celebrate a self-proclaimed “national title.”

Even with a playoff that was supposed to end this kind of debate, the conversation over how the national champion is crowned and who should get the chance to play for it only has only intensified.

But for all the talking points that have been generated by a postseason in which the last team standing was one that didn’t even win its division, let alone its conference, one thing is beyond discussion: The 2017 bowl cycle was a good one for teams from North Carolina. And for many of those programs, the positive momentum has carried over into the new year.

Here’s a recap of how things transpired and where each of the state’s highest profile teams stand as they look ahead to 2018: NC State Even without All-American defensive end Bradley Chubb, who decided to sit out the Wolfpack’s Sun Bowl game against Arizona State to help protect his lofty NFL Draft status, coach Dave Doeren’s team put an exclamation point on its season by beating the Sun Devils 52-31 in El Paso.

The win was State’s ninth, marking only the 11th time in 125 football seasons that it has won that many games in a year.

Chances for further ascension have improved considerably since the team’s return from El Paso with Doeren receiving a contract extension following a brief flirtation with Tennessee and quarterback Ryan Finley deciding to return for his final season of eligibility.

His return coupled with junior running back Nyheim Hines and 1,000-yard wide receiver Kelvin Harmon gives the Wolfpack one of the most potent offensive attacks in the ACC heading into next season.

NORTH STATE JOURNAL 2017 ALL-BOWL TEAM Players from the five North Carolina schools:

OL: Joshua Mattocks, NC A&T

QB: John Wolford, Wake Forest; 32-49, 400 yards, 4 TD, Belk Bowl MVP

OL: Will Richardson, NC State

RB: Marquell Cartwright, NC A&T; 110 rush yards 1 TD, 54 receiving yards, 1 TD, Celebration Bowl Offensive MVP RB: Jalin Moore, App State; 125 rushing yards, 3 TD, Dollar General Bowl MVP

OL: Colby Gossett, App State DL: Kentavius Street, NC State; 1.5 TFL, 1.5 sacks, Sun Bowl Defensive MVP DL: Kenneth Melton, NC A&T; 1 TFL. 0.5 sacks, 1 fumble recovery DL: Caleb Fuller, App State; 3 TFL, 1.5 sacks, 4 tackles

WR: Scotty Washington, Wake Forest; 138 yards, 1 TD

LB: Justin Strnad, Wake Forest; 10 tackles, 1 sack, 1.5 TFL, 1 forced fumble, 1 fumble recovery, 1 PBU

WR: Stephen Louis, NC State 115 yards

LB: Airius Moore, NC State: 10 tackles, 1 interception

TE: Cam Serigne, Wake Forest; 112 yards, 1 TD

LB: Joe Giles-Harris, Duke; 8 tackles, 1 TFL

C: Austin Davis, Duke

LB: Anthony Flora, App State; 8 tackles, 19-yard interception

OL: Gabe Brandner, Duke

Wake Forest The Deacons also finished their season on high note — and a high-scoring note — by battling from behind twice for a 55-52 win against Texas A&M in the Belk Bowl.

The victory against an SEC opponent was significant, not only because it showed that Wake is capable of holding its own against one of college football’s big boys, but because it represented another step forward in coach Dave Clawson’s remarkable rebuilding effort.

The Deacons finished 3-9 in his first two seasons before winning seven in 2016. The Belk Bowl win was their eighth of 2017.

And while seniors such as linebacker Grant Dawson, defensive end Duke Ejiofor, record-setting tight end Cam Serigne and quarterback John Wolford are gone, there is enough returning talent on hand to suggest that Wake still has room for further improvement in 2018.

One player that won’t be around to help take the next step is Jessie Bates III. The redshirt sophomore safety decided to enter the NFL Draft.

Duke The Blue Devils completed a remarkable turnaround that saw them bounce back from a six-game midseason losing streak to win their final three games, capped by a 36-14 trouncing of Northern Illinois in the QuickLane Bowl in Detroit.

Sophomore quarterback Daniel

Jones piled up 338 yards of total defense and the defense pitched a second half shutout, as Duke scored the game’s final 22 points on the way to a victory that ensured its fourth winning season in the last five years.

“I felt like these young men cared enough about each other to climb back and accomplish something like this,” coach Dave Cutcliffe said. “It was a really outstanding victory for us.”

Cutcliffe then got good news for next season. Four-star offensive lineman Jack Wohlabaugh, who was once the nation’s No. 4 center prospect, announced his decision to transfer to Duke from Ohio State.

Appalachian State The Mountaineers ended 2017 the same way they did the previous year, with a win against Toledo in a postseason bowl game.

This time, though, they did it in much more emphatic fashion with a 34-0 shutdown of the Rockets at the Dollar General Bowl in Mobile, Ala. Junior running back Jalin Moore churned out 125 yards and three touchdowns to complement a defense that held the high-scoring Rockets to just 146 yards and eight first downs.

With the victory, the Mountaineers became the first program ever to win bowls in their first three seasons after transitioning from the FCS level to FBS. They are just the second team to play in the postseason in each of its first three years at the FBS level

S: Dylan Singleton, Duke; 10 tackles, 9 solo, 1 TFL S: Desmond Franklin, App State; 4 tackles, 35-yard interception CB: Franklin McCain, NC A&T; 4 tackles, interception, Celebration Bowl Defensive MVP CB: Nick McCloud, NC State; 7 tackles, 53-yard interception return P: Xavier Subotsch, App State; 41 yard average K: Kyle Bambard, NC State; 10 points, 3 touchbacks, Sun Bowl Special Team MVP Return: J Bates, Wake Forest 59 yard punt return TD

— joining Marshall, which went to six straight bowls from 19972002.

NC A&T The Aggies capped a magical season by beating Grambling in the Celebration Bowl 21-14 to win their second Historically Black Colleges and Universities national championship in three years and become the first team in MEAC history to go undefeated.

In the days following the victory, 62-year-old coach Rod Broadway — whose contract expired after the 2017 season — announced that he was considering retirement.

It’s a move he made official on Monday by announcing his decision to go out on top, leaving the head coaching responsibilities to defensive coordinator Sam Washington.

“I started out wanting to be a coach when I was in the sixth grade,” Broadway said recently. “I guess I’m one lucky guy to have an opportunity to live my dream.”

UNC The Tar Heels missed out on a bowl for the first time since 2012 after going 3-9, but coach Larry Fedora’s team can take solace that it heads into the postseason having won two of its last three. UNC can also look forward to starting over from scratch with a healthy roster after a spate of injuries that saw 21 players listed as “out for the season” for its season finale against rival NC State.

“We’ll go back and evaluate everything, everything that we do in this program,” Fedora said. “We never stop doing that. We’ll try to tweak things to make them better. Hopefully, we’re going to get a bunch of guys healed up and then we’ll be ready to go.”

Several young players who were forced into service by all of the Tar Heels’ injuries will play key roles in 2018, including running back Michael Carter, safety Myles Wolfolk, and quarterbacks Nathan Elliott and Chazz Surratt.

The only downer of the offseason came when linebacker Andre Smith, the team’s leading tackler at the time of his injury, decided to forego his senior season for the NFL Draft.

ECU Scottie Montgomery drew a line in the sand for both himself and the Pirates after completing a second straight 3-9 season by proclaiming that his team would win at least six games and qualify for a bowl in 2018.

“I haven’t given a whole lot of guarantees since I got here, but we’ll be a better football team and we’re going to go play in the postseason next year,” Montgomery said after a season-ending loss at Memphis.

In order to make that happen, the third-year coach has completely revamped his staff. defensive coordinator. Former ECU players David Blackwell (defensive coordinator) and Kirk Doll (special teams) are in, and Montgomery also hired a new defensive line coach in Rod Wright. Incoming four-star quarterback Holton could potentially step right into the starting job as a true freshman next fall.

Charlotte The 49ers decided to stay the course with coach Brad Lambert despite a 1-11 season that saw the school — in its third year with a football program — regress from 2016’s four-win season. It could be a short leash for Lambert, who is 7-29 with the Niners and will be evaluated by a new athletic director when longtime AD Judy Rose retires this summer.

Lambert did add new offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery to his staff. Montgomery replaces Greg Adkins. A former NC State quarterback, the 50-year-old Montgomery was offensive coordinator at Youngstown State, an FCS school, the past eight seasons.

He was previously head coach at Miami (Ohio), where he went 1731 in four seasons.

the good life

WEDNESDAY

1.10.18

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IN A NORTH STATE OF MIND

Jan. 11-14 “Pictures at an Exhibition” Various locations The North Carolina Symphony presents “Pictures at an Exhibition” — an orchestral masterpiece by Mussorgsky combined with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 4. The concert will travel to Southern Pines, Raleigh and Wilmington. Visit the North Carolina Symphony website for concert dates, location and ticket information.

Jan. 12

GINNETTE RIQUELME | REUTERS

Australian actor Hugh Jackman waves to fans during the red carpet of his latest film, a musical directed by Michael Gracey called “The Greatest Showman”, in Mexico City, on Dec. 13.

From big screen to big impact, 5 celebrities running businesses that give back

By Lee Mannion Thomson Reuters Foundation LONDON — Popularity and awareness of social enterprises — businesses that trade to address social problems — has flourished in recent years. From A-list actors to celebrity chefs, here are five famous faces running businesses with a mission to do good:

“The Bald Soprano” Hart Theater, Waynesville Discover the classic and nonsensical play, “The Bald Soprano,” at Hart Theater. The plot is a unique arrangement of flashbacks and flashforwards among two families having a visit. Visit the Hart Theater website for show times and ticket information.

Famous for playing character Wolverine in the “X-Men” series of films, Australian actor High Jackman first stuck his tungsten talons into social enterprise in 2011 after a trip to Ethiopia.

On the trip Jackman helped out local coffee farmer Dukale for a day and saw coffee traded, sparking an interest in fair trade which ensures growers get a fair price for their crop.

Laughing Man coffee was founded in 2011 to trade directly with growers, with a Laughing Man coffee shop opening in New York’s Manhattan.

Next came a tie-up with Keurig, with Laughing Man pods now available. Keurig then introduced Jackman to supermarket chain Kroger, according to CBS News.

Laughing Man coffee is now available in 1,800 stores across the United States. All the profits go toward education, community development and new business development projects in the developing world, according to the Laughing Man website.

Jan. 13 Anniversary of the Battle of Fort Fisher Fort Fisher State Historic Site, Kure Beach Take part in history at the 153rd Anniversary of the Battle of Fort Fisher. Cannons will sound, and stories will be told of the brave men who fought in this pivotal battle during the Civil War. Attendees can see live demonstrations and learn about camp life. The event begins at 10 a.m. and entrance is free.

Jan. 13-14

Rosario Dawson

Pharrell Williams The Grammy award-winning producer and performer Pharrell Williams has been creative director of social enterprise Bionic since 2010. Bionic takes plastic, shreds it, heats it and spins it into two types of yarn used to make

Pickin’ at the Armory Canton Armory, Canton Enjoy Vintage Country Band and Southern Appalachian Cloggers at the Canton Armory for an evening of fun-filled entertainment. Family and friends are sure to delight in the music and dancing. The event begins at 7 p.m. and entrance is free.

Jan. 12-14

Hugh Jackman

Actress Rosario Dawson, star of “Men in Black II” and “Sin City,” launched her social enterprise Studio 189 with best friend Abrima Erwiah in 2013 after traveling in Africa, according to the project’s website.

Studio 189 sells clothes that challenge the idea of cheap, mass produced, fast fashion with the garments handmade in Ghana with a focus on African patterns and fabrics while paying a decent wage to the people who create them.

Studio 189 is a part of the United Nations Ethical Fashion Initiative which aims to build a responsible fashion industry where workers earn a living wage in good conditions while also protecting the environment.

African American Music Series Emerge Gallery & Art Center, Greenville Celebrate African-American musical heritage with this music series happening the second Friday of each month.

The January concert features performances by Soloman Howard, Ded Nansteel and John O’Brien. The first set begins at 7 p.m. and entrance is free.

FILE PHOTOS

everything from jeans to the roof linings and car seat covers.

To date Bionic said by email that it has recycled 9 million bottles by making the material. This number will grow as Bionic has partnered with the charity Waterkeeper’s Alliance to use plastic found in the sea and washing up on the coast.

The United Nations has warned that if current pollution rates continue, there will be more plastic in the sea than fish by 2050.

Michael Sheen It was at Social Saturday, an annual event that encourages people to spend money on goods and services that have a positive social impact, that Welsh actor Michael Sheen declared his interest in social enterprise.

Donning a Social Saturday T-shirt in 2016, the actor, famous for his roles in the “Twilight Saga”

and Oscar nominated film “Frost/ Nixon,” said he wanted to understand how social enterprise might be useful to his home country.

In April 2017 it was announced that he would become a patron of industry body Social Enterprise UK. At an awards event in November he told the Thomson Reuters Foundation he would launch his own social enterprise in 2018.

“Social enterprise is one of those tools for communities that want to create their own opportunities, like where I come from in the South Wales valleys,” Sheen said.

He plans to start a “community hub” in Port Talbot to help people start community-owned businesses and services, as threats to the steel industry have put traditional jobs at risk.

Jamie Oliver British celebrity chef Jamie Oliver started his restaurant Fifteen

in London in 2002 when he was just 26. It was named after the number of disadvantaged young people Oliver attempted to train as chefs there.

The first group were all unemployed; some were truants who’d left school without qualifications, others had anger management issues. To date, a third of all candidates have had a brush with the law, Matthew Thomson, Fifteen’s managing director, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

New chefs have three months training in professional cookery at college which is followed by 11 months of work in a Jamie Oliver restaurant. The last month involves work experience elsewhere, which can lead to a job.

Further Fifteen restaurants were opened in Amsterdam and in Cornwall in southwest England. More than 500 chefs have been trained, with 80 percent of them still working in kitchens.

20th Annual Outer Banks Wedding Weekend & Expo First Flight High School, Kill Devil Hills Planning your dream wedding in the beautiful Outer Banks? If yes, then you don’t want to miss the two-day Wedding Weekend and Expo featuring venue tours, special vendor offers and discounts at restaurants and hotels. VIP ticket holders are eligible to enter to win a Dream Wedding or Honeymoon.

Jan. 14 Silver Coast Bridal Show Silver Coast Winery, Ocean Isle Beach Make wedding planning a breeze at the Silver Coast Bridal Show. Attendees can meet event planners, photographers, caterers, entertainers, florists and more, and even have a chance to win door prizes. The event begins at 1 p.m. and entrance is free.

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

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NeCessities! history marked Jan. 11, 1909

Tab Smith and the birth of rhythm and blues On Jan. 11, 1909, alto saxophonist Talmage “Tab” Smith was born in Kinston. Smith’s first professional musical endeavor came in 1929, when he formed the Carolina Stompers, and he soon achieved national acclaim as part of bands fronted

by Count Basie and Lucky Millinder. Through the 1940s he recorded with some of the finest performers, including Billie Holiday, Earl Hines and Coleman Hawkins. His peers on the alto sax included Johnny Hodges of the Duke Ellington Band and Earl Bostic. With the evolution of musical tastes, Smith gravitated toward rhythm and blues in the 1950s, recording primarily on United Records. His version of the Tony Bennett hit “Because of You” was a chart topper in 1951.

Most of Smith’s numbers were short and were favorites on jukeboxes. He recorded a sax version of “Try a Little Tenderness,” later covered by Otis Redding, and toured with the Five Royales, based in Winston-Salem, in the mid-1950s.

Jan. 12, 1896

Campus high jinks at Davidson Involved X-rays On Jan. 12, 1896, three students at Davidson College experimented with X-rays. Six days earlier, the Associated Press announced that German physicist Wilhelm Roentgen had discovered a new form of radiation. While experimenting with cathode rays, he discovered that mysterious “X”-rays passed through a variety of objects.

He put his hand in front of the rays and saw the silhouette of his bones. At the time, many physics labs had equipment to duplicate the X-ray. Henry Louis Smith, a physics professor and future president at Davidson, was the first professional in North Carolina to work with X-rays. It was a group of Smith’s students who appear to have been the first people in the state to perform X-ray experiments. Three juniors professed to having bribed a janitor to let them into the building housing the physics equipment less than a week after Roentgen’s announcement reached America. The students placed objects on photographic paper taking photographs, then called roentgenograms, of objects

including an eggshell with a button in it, a rubber-covered magnifying glass, a cadaver’s finger, pins, cartridges and paperclips. Years passed before the students’ escapade was made public. The original X-ray images are now housed in the Davidson College Archives.

Jan. 13, 1962

Mary Martin Sloop and education in Avery County On Jan. 13, 1962, Mary Martin Sloop, founder of Crossnore School in Avery County, died at the age of 88. Raised at Davidson College where her father was a professor of geology and chemistry, Sloop went to Philadelphia to study medicine after being rejected by schools in North Carolina. She married surgeon Eustace Sloop in 1908, and they determined to seek their fortune in the North Carolina mountains. Settling into a joint practice first at Plumtree and soon after at Crossnore, they attended to the medical and educational needs of the community. Sloop founded Crossnore School because of the deficiencies of the publicschool system. As local schools improved, Crossnore’s mission changed to serve orphans and children from broken homes. She worked to reduce the problems of child brides and illegal liquor through education. In 1928, she helped organize the Southern Highlands Handicrafts Guild. The Weaving Room at Crossnore played an important role in the revival of Appalachian handicrafts. Of students’ craft work, Dr. Sloop said, “It is their character building qualities which concern us most at the school.” “Miracle in the Hills,” published in 1952, is her life story and that of Crossnore School.

Jan. 14, 1868

Black delegates had voice at 1868 convention On Jan. 14, 1868, a North Carolina constitutional convention, now known as the “Convention of 1868,” opened in Raleigh. The convention was required by an act of Congress which ordered North Carolina to create a new

state constitution. The General Assembly decided to hold a referendum in November 1867 to choose delegates to a constitutional convention to be held in early 1868. Many former Confederate leaders had not yet taken an Oath of Allegiance to the United States and were not eligible to vote or serve. Chosen for the convention were 107 Republicans and 13 Democrats. The members of the first “Black Caucus” were all Republicans. The participants of the Black Caucus were not legislators, exactly. But they came together at the State Capitol in January 1868 to take part in a very important process — to expand freedom for all. The members of this first Black Caucus were: James Walker Hood; Parker Robbins; Henry Cherry; Bryant Lee; Wilson Carey; Clinton Pierson; John H. Williamson; Cuffie Mayo; Henry Eppes; W.T.J Hayes; John Hyman; Abraham Galloway and James H. Harris.

Jan. 15, 1771

The original Queen’s College in Charlotte On Jan. 15, 1771, the legislature passed an act to establish Queen’s College in Charlotte. The act stressed the urgent need for educational opportunities in what was at the time the “backcountry.” However, the school, which was to be established under the auspices of the Presbyterian Church, was in conflict with royal authority and the Church of England. Gov. William Tryon believed that the school’s charter would show his appreciation to the Presbyterians who aided him in the ongoing conflict with the Regulators.

The British government determined that it would not be appropriate for the crown to approve a Scots-Irish institution that could perpetuate anti-royalist views in the colony, and the charter was revoked. The trustees continued to apply for a charter and operated the school under the name of Queen’s Museum. During the Revolution, school trustees sympathized with the Colonial cause and many future leaders, including William R. Davie and Andrew Jackson, were educated there. When independence was declared, the school became known as Liberty Hall Academy. It relocated to Salisbury in 1784. The institution that we know today as Queens University of Charlotte was founded by Presbyterians in 1857.

Feeding the fashionistas Gucci turns to fine dining

By Giulia Segreti Reuters FLORENCE, Italy — It’s all a matter of taste.

Luxury labels are accustomed to tempting fashionistas, and now they’re stretching from haute couture to haute cuisine.

Gucci opened a 50-seat restaurant, Gucci Osteria, in Florence on Tuesday where three-Michelin-star chef Massimo Bottura will serve up high-end dishes.

The Italian fashion house, owned by Kering, is not the only luxury company to foray into food; LVMH announced late last year it would open a second branch of its gourmet grocer La Grande Epicerie in Paris, days before Tiffany & Co. opened its Blue Box Cafe in New York.

“The big brands are following where their high-spending clients’ cash is going,” said Fabrizio Pini, professor and joint director of the International Master in Luxury Management of Milan’s MIP Politecnico business school.

Gucci and its rivals do not expect these investments to yield significant financial returns, for now, but they are seen as a way of enhancing their global brands. In some cases, eateries can also be a way to make the most out of large, city-center store sites as customers increasingly shop online.

The Gucci restaurant is sited behind the walls of the 14-century Palazzo della Mercanzia building, overlooking the city’s most famous square, Piazza della Signoria.

Visitors can treat themselves to the likes of Parmigiano Reggiano tortellini, Peruvian-inspired tostadas, pork belly buns and mushroom risotto for 20-30 euros per dish.

Few strategies come without an element of risk, however.

Bernstein analyst Mario Ortelli said that if luxury companies did not provide a gastronomic experience that matched their other goods, it could dilute their brands.

“The experience has to be luxurious and recognizable,” he said.

While labels are looking to these investments for marketing rather than profits, a presence in food could offer some financial returns in the long run.

With a global luxury market estimated to be worth 1.2 trillion euros in 2017, sales of luxury wines and spirits and food, together worth just under 120 billion, last year grew 6 percent, more than personal luxury goods such as bags, shoes and clothing, according to Bain & Company’s yearly report on the sector.

“Food is luxury as much as fashion,” said Stefano Cantino, strategic marketing director at Prada, which owns exclusive Milan patisserie Marchesi.

“Barriers have been broken.”

The Gucci Osteria restaurant is part of “Gucci Garden,” which includes an exhibition area, a bazaar-like boutique and a cinema room. “Haute couture and haute cuisine are a recipe made in heaven,” Bottura told reporters.

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North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

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ENTERTAINMENT Pink to sing national anthem at Super Bowl LII Pink will get the Super Bowl party started by singing the national anthem before the championship game in Minneapolis on Feb. 4, the NFL said on Monday. The performance will mark the Grammy award-winning singer’s first appearance on the Super Bowl stage, which has been graced by artists such as Luke Bryan, Lady Gaga and Idina Menzel in recent years.

Stars say ‘Time’s Up’ wearing black on the Golden Globes red carpet PHOTO COURTESY OF LIONS GATE ENTERTAINMENTL

Vera Farmiga and Liam Neeson star in “The Commuter.”

FILM REVIEW: LIAM NEESON IN ‘THE COMMUTER’

By Guy Lodge Variety LOS ANGELES — There has, thus far, been a pleasing interchangeability to the titles in the banging, clattering action oeuvre cultivated by Liam Neeson and Spanish genre maestro Jaume Collet-Serra. “Unknown,” “Non-Stop” and “Run All Night” sound so tersely generic as to be slyly ironic, and that hint of playing-dumb humor extends to their gleefully absurd thriller mechanics: All three put rather a lot of crafty thought into their empty-headed pleasures.

“The Commuter” sounds more tastefully sedate by comparison, but don’t be fooled. Neeson and Collet-Serra’s whooshing, whiplash-inducing fourth collaboration could as easily be titled “Run Non-Stop Into the Unknown” — a moving-train whodunit that makes Kenneth Branagh’s jackedup “Murder on the Orient Express” remake look like “Jeanne Dielman” by comparison, it’s so concerned with its own sheer speed that any semblance of storytelling logic is left waving from the platform.

That’s not necessarily a problem in the Collet-Serra Cinematic Universe, but “The Commuter’s” breakneck incoherence — not to mention a generally dour demeanor, shorter on incidental humor than most of the helmer’s work — makes it a notch less fun than those previous ex-trash-aganzas.

Coming after the tight, laser-focused precision of last year’s terrific shark suspenser “The Shallows,” this noisy, sure-to-be-popular chunk of January multiplex filler suggests Collet-Serra would do well to explore further corners of the B-movie realm. But that’s not to deny the transient pleasures of “The Commuter,” a film that enthusiastically puts the humble passenger car through almost as many mechanical acrobatics as any “Fast and Furious” hot rod, in the process gifting us with the line, “Between the train and the people, I always knew it would be the train.” Given the depth of character development and human investment in the narrative, action-rapt audiences may feel likewise.

Still, it wouldn’t hurt to have a clearer moment-to-moment sense of what’s simply going on in “The Commuter.” The film commences the bafflement from the off, with a needlessly tricksy opening-credits sequence, rife with repeated fades to black, that splits and splices timelines — all for the sake of establishing the thoroughly mundane morning routine of Michael MacCauley (Neeson), a gray-suited insurance salesman and family man who commutes daily between his Manhattan office and his well-cushioned upstate home.

Not that you’d cast Neeson, of course, as an insurance guy without some manner of meaner past that has taught him some tough-

er skills: Turns out that McCauley used to work as an ace police profiler until a decade ago, before trading in his badge for a more sedate suburban life with his wife (Elizabeth McGovern, vastly overqualified) and kids.

That background — and his ongoing friendship with troubled cop Murphy (Patrick Wilson) — go some way toward explaining the murky cloak-and-dagger that ensues, though the head-scratchers pile up faster than the revelations.

On his Metro-North train home, McCauley is approached by the enigmatic Joanna (Vera Farmiga, silkily sinister as ever) with an impromptu mission: Find an unidentified fellow passenger transporting critical cargo, or risk the lives of not just the remaining travelers, but his own family at home.

It’s a basic enough ultimatum, but the further McCauley looks into the criminal conspiracy at hand, the less sense it makes to him and viewers alike. Random red herrings and Dan Brown-level literary riddles are the order of the day as the literal end of the line approaches; Neeson, his brow dutifully furrowed, musters what gravelly authority he can as he profiles a motley crew of other commuters — a classily cast bunch ranging from Jonathan Banks to “Lady Macbeth” breakout Florence Pugh — for clues.

Lest audiences put too much tortuous thought into the motives or endgame of pretty much any-

one in this scenario, Collet-Serra cranks up this locomotive as he knows best, building as much breathless, senseless real-time momentum as possible before train and plot go simultaneously, albeit spectacularly, off the rails.

Even when Neeson isn’t darting urgently from carriage to carriage, cinematographer Paul Cameron (working in shades of five o’clock tan that match the muddiness of the puzzle) makes the talkiest scenes antsy with handheld camerawork; the fevered, no-time-tothink atmosphere is maintained by editor Nicholas De Toth. Incidentally, he’s the son of filmmaker Andre, director of the original “House of Wax” that was later remade by Collet-Sera — “The Commuter” may be fast, but not so engrossing that your mind can’t ponder these degrees of separation at the same time.

Even the daftest, dooziest set pieces here don’t have quite the clarity or invention of Collet-Serra’s most vigorous action choreography — nor of such superior rail-bound heart-pounders as “Unstoppable” or either version of “The Taking of Pelham One Two Three.”

But you sense such inevitable comparisons on the film’s mind as well as ours. Whether at his most inspired or his most workmanlike, Collet-Serra may just be the heir apparent to Tony Scott: an eager showman and a clock-conscious conductor of thrills, whether the script has earned them or not.

‘The Greatest Showman’ swings to top of Billboard 200 chart

By Piya Sinha-Roy Reuters

FRED PROUSER | REUTERS | FILE

Hugh Jackman stars as P.T. Barnum in Twentieth Century Fox’s The Greatest Showman.

LOS ANGELES — The soundtrack for circus musical “The Greatest Showman” climbed its way to the top of the U.S. weekly Billboard 200 album chart on Monday, leaving offerings from Ed Sheeran and Taylor Swift as the runner-ups.

“The Greatest Showman” soundtrack, which features songs by the cast including Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron and Zendaya, sold another 106,000 total album units in the week ending Jan. 4, according to figures from Nielsen SoundScan.

The soundtrack’s lead song, “This is Me,” won the Golden Globe award for best original song in a motion picture on Sunday. The 20th Century Fox film, about circus entertainer P. T. Barnum, has grossed $150 million worldwide since its Dec. 20 release.

Sheeran’s “Divide” album remained at No. 2 for a second week with sales of 67,000 units, while his single “Perfect” featuring Beyonce held steady at No. 1 on the Digital Songs chart with another 109,000 copies sold.

Swift’s “Reputation” album, which opened 2018 at the top of the Billboard 200 chart last week, dropped to No. 3 with 48,000 units sold.

From flowing gowns to tailored tuxedos, Hollywood’s film and television stars dressed in their finest black on the Golden Globes red carpet on Sunday in solidarity with the Time’s Up campaign to fight sexual harassment in the workplace. Jessica Chastain, Laura Dern and Natalie Portman led female and male nominees as well as attendees dressed in black at the awards show where the sexual harassment scandal roiling Hollywood is expected to dominate the conversation.

Gwyneth Paltrow to give marriage a second shot Actress Gwyneth Paltrow on Monday announced her engagement to U.S. television producer Brad Falchuk, saying she had decided to give marriage a second shot after accepting “the soulstretching, pattern-breaking opportunities” of intimacy.

Paltrow, 45, who famously described her 2014 separation from her Coldplay frontman husband Chris Martin as a “conscious uncoupling,” confirmed the engagement in an interview for the latest edition of her lifestyle magazine Goop.

‘Roseanne’ star says revived show reflects Trump’s America The March revival of hit 1990s television comedy “Roseanne” will show how a politically divided, working-class American family grapples with daily life and challenges after the election of U.S. President Donald Trump, the show’s stars said on Monday.

Walt Disney Co.’s ABC broadcast network is bringing back “Roseanne,” starring Roseanne Barr and John Goodman, for nine episodes starting March 27.

Golden Globes U.S. TV audience down 5 percent despite Oprah, Time’s Up The U.S. television audience for the 2018 Golden Globes ceremony dropped about 5 percent to 19 million viewers, broadcaster NBC said on Monday, despite the show’s high profile following sexual misconduct scandals that have rocked Hollywood. Sunday’s three-hour show was the second-most watched in 10 years, NBC said, but reversed an upward trend.

North State Journal for Wednesday, January 10, 2018

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WAKE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF WAKE NOTICE TO CREDITORS AND DEBTORS FILE NO. 17 E 2956 Having qualified on the 8th day of November, 2017, as the Co-Administrators of the estate of Rosemary Suszynski, deceased, late of Wake County, North Carolina, this is to notify all persons, firms and corporations having claims against the decedent to exhibit the same to Barbara Lavalette and Cory Lavalette, Co-Administrators, on or before April 3, 2018, or this notice will be pleaded in bar of their recovery. All persons, firms and corporations indebted to the estate should make immediate payment to the above named Co-Administrators.

This is the 3rd day of January, 2018.

Barbara Lavalette and Cory Lavalette, Co-Administrators 4200 Mallory Glen Circle Raleigh, NC 27616 1/3, 1/10, 1/17, 1/24 CL

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Happy New Year!

I wish you all the best in 2018 as you experience everything North Carolina has to offer.

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