Chatham Journal Weekly: One on One

Gandhi and Churchill - The lessons they could teach

Mon, 22 Jun 2008 02:50:00 GMT

Here is my nomination for every college or university that sponsors a campus-wide book for students and faculty to read and discuss together: “Gandhi & Churchill: The Epic Rivalry that Destroyed an Empire and Forged Our Age,” a new book by Arthur Herman.

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North Carolina's greatest Confederate general

Wed, 17 Jun 2008 12:03:00 GMT

Who was the greatest North Carolina general in the Civil War? Wait a minute, you say, we don’t play those games anymore. You think it’s time we put aside our glorifying the horrible Civil War that tore our country into two factions that waged war on each other for four terrible years.

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Take a trip with me to Saluda

Sun, 07 Jun 2008 03:23:00 GMT

I would like to take you on a trip to one of North Carolina’s too often overlooked charming little mountain towns, Saluda. It’s a few miles south of Asheville, just off I-26 and not far from the South Carolina line.

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Why won't she quit?

Tue, 09 Jun 2008 03:15:00 GMT

Why doesn’t Hillary quit? People ask me this question all the time these days. I have learned to be careful how I answer that question. If my response somehow suggests that either Senator Clinton and Senator Obama is not entitled to the nomination, or not yet entitled to it, I may be in for an argument, one that I would just as soon avoid.

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The good things about hard fought primaries

Wed, 29 Apr 2008 14:45:00 GMT

Well, here it is. We’ve complained about not having a role in the selection of the presidential nominees. Now the campaign of the Democrats has come to our door. We are “in play” at last.

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Understanding North Carolina's Political Paradox

Tue, 21 Apr 2008 21:25:00 GMT

"It is God-fearing, gun-owing, lock-em-up-and throw-away-the-key, military-loving state. And race feelings, while diminished, are still a powerful force. It is a state that loves NASCAR, pick-up trucks, and plainspoken politicians who don't put on too many airs."

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Oil and Iraq - How wrong I was

Tue, 17 Mar 2008 10:57:00 GMT

Five years ago, when it became clear that nothing would stop our President from leading our country into a war with Iraq, I struggled to find some reason that would justify that course of action. When I finally thought I had found that reason, I wrote about it in this column. This week, I found out how wrong I was, thanks to the reporting of New York Times reporter Richard A. Opel, Jr.

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Good sports don't quit in the middle of the game

Wed, 22 Jan 2008 14:36:00 GMT

Why is John Edwards still running? When is he going to face reality and throw in the towel? Even John Edwards’ friends are asking these questions after his poor showing in the Nevada caucuses, which followed disappointing results in Iowa and New Hampshire, and with polls predicting a distance third place in this week’s South Carolina primary.

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The lesson of 1972: Only the old Democrats remember

Tue, 14 Jan 2008 04:17:00 GMT

“They’ve forgotten again the lessons we learned in 1972.” Some older Democrats were saying this under their breath last week as they watched their primary candidates for governor attack each other in a televised debate on UNC-TV, followed up by TV ad campaigns from both Democratic candidates. The leading candidates, Lt. Governor Beverly Perdue and state Treasurer Richard Moore, took off the gloves and went on the attack—against each other.

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Obama, Huckabee, and McCain - and Jesse Helms?

Sun, 12 Jan 2008 12:02:00 GMT

How can a former North Carolina senator help us understand the surprising recent upsurge in the strength of several presidential candidates? You might think the former senator I have in mind is presidential candidate John Edwards. No, it’s the example of Jesse Helms who might give us that help.

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North Carolina books for Christmas giving

Tue, 10 Dec 2007 20:31:00 GMT

About this time every year people ask me what books I would recommend for Christmas giving. I am glad to get the question because I try to keep up with our state’s books and authors in connection with North Carolina Bookwatch, the UNC-TV program that I host. But I have learned that there is no way I can read, or even know about, all of the approximately 1000 new North Carolina related books that are published each year. Almost every day, I learn about an important new book that I had, up until then, missed.

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Winning the Civil War - and other speculative fictions

Wed, 13 Nov 2007 20:47:00 GMT

What if the South had won the Civil War? What kind of country would we live in now? White Southerners, often the “unreconstructed” ones, have dreamed about the reversal of their “Lost Cause” defeat and speculated that things might have been much different, maybe even much better, if the “War of Northern Aggression” had turned out differently.

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Understanding Senator Sam

Wed, 13 Nov 2007 20:57:00 GMT

Although my mother grew up in the Deep South, she always considered herself a political liberal, especially on matters of race. Yet she often expressed admiration for Senators Richard Russell and Sam Ervin, who were two of the most effective warriors against proposed civil rights legislation during the 1950’s and 1960’s.

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What is in a name?

Wed, 13 Nov 2007 20:57:00 GMT

The North Carolina Democratic Party has sent me back to the books to study my state’s history. The history question raised among Democrats is whether the name of Charles Aycock, the Democratic governor from 1901 to 1905 should continue to be a part of the title of their annual Vance-Aycock celebration in Asheville. Old-time Democrats just say, “See you at Vance-Aycock.”

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The real Daniel Boone: A real North Carolinian

Fri, 25 Oct 2007 14:14:00 GMT

The legendary Daniel Boone was a North Carolinian. It is a fact that is too often overlooked and underappreciated in our state. Although Boone explored Kentucky and later settled there before moving to Missouri, North Carolina was his home longer than any other place.

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