Chatham Journal: Opinion

Chatham school board has a tough job this year

Mon, 21 Mar 2010 05:48:00 GMT

Reading the list of cuts the Chatham County Board of Education will have to make this year is tough. Please remember it's tougher for them. We have all had to make changes to our lifestyles and do without, some more than others and that is not different with Chatham County schools. Jobs will be lost and that's a hard choice these board members will make.

Chatham tax survey was unscientific

Mon, 21 Mar 2010 05:52:00 GMT

I too felt the Chatham tax survey was unscientific with its pre-question "narrative" post on the chatlist and leading questions. It would have been much improved with a neutral party creating the questions in an un-biased way. There really was no way to quantify the data collected.

Surveys like the Chatham tax survey help keep those that care informed

Mon, 21 Mar 2010 05:52:00 GMT

My opinion is that Tom is being unfairly criticized for posting the survey. Tom has been a wealth of knowledge and information for the chatlist. I admire him. I think he is well within his right to post the survey. And as I would suspect, there will be those out there that wish taxpayers wouldn't pay attention to what our elected officials are doing with our money.

Survey of Chatham taxpayers is one-sided

Mon, 21 Mar 2010 05:51:00 GMT

While I applaud anyone who asks for accountability in government, I have to comment on Tom Glendinning's survey. I took the survey, and found it to be very one sided, especially the last question. An unbiased survey would have included more boxes for "need more information".

I appreciate the effort behind the Chatham taxpayer survey

Sun, 06 Mar 2010 16:02:00 GMT

I greatly appreciate the effort behind the survey, though I did find some of the yes/no type questions at the end rather difficult to answer mainly because the issue presented is much more complex than just a yes/no reply.

Service at Pittsboro eateries is inconsistent

Sun, 06 Mar 2010 15:56:00 GMT

Yes, the service at the General Store is still very inconsistent but it is the same at the City Tap and the Carolina Brewery.

Judicial Watch's releases 2009 list of Washington's "Ten most wanted corrupt politicians"

Thu, 03 Feb 2010 23:52:00 GMT

Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, released its 2009 list of Washington's "Ten Most Wanted Corrupt Politicians."

Boom and bust cycle in Chatham County development

Wed, 26 Jan 2010 17:45:00 GMT

Wally Kaufman's post on the Chatham Chatlist (1/18/2010) rebutted claims in the Independent Weekly newspaper about developments in Chatham County and the effects of the building cycle. I praise Wally for being involved after years of residency elsewhere. His dedication is equaled to that of Wade Barber Sr., who worked on Chatham business up to the time he died.

Back to the drawing boards on race?

Tue, 18 Jan 2010 16:57:00 GMT

This time last year, most Americans, whatever their political persuasions, celebrated the Martin Luther King Holiday with a special good feeling that King would share the nation’s pride at inauguration of a Negro President of the United States. Of course, even though “Negro” is the word King used to describe an American with African ancestry, it is no longer accepted as a positive term.

Related:
NC Book Watch
Our State Magazine

Archie closing Pittsboro Appliance shop

Tue, 18 Jan 2010 16:40:00 GMT

It is indeed sad to hear that Archie is closing his store on Hillsboro Street. There are no others like him. Service with a smile and most of the time a good laugh. He madel our problem seem simple once we had explained what was wrong.

Ain't it a crime

Tue, 18 Jan 2010 16:34:00 GMT

On December 20, the owner of a downtown Pittsboro business posted on the Chatlist: "Beggars and Choosers is closing after Christmas." "The store was robbed the day of the street fair. We were hit hard and it has taken the joy out of working and I need to take a break to get my groove back." The same day, I heard a rumor that Chatham Marketplace had been robbed.

What about North Carolina's seven "natural" wonders?

Tue, 18 Jan 2010 14:57:00 GMT

“Why didn’t you make a list of North Carolina’s seven natural wonders?”
I got this question after I shared my choices for our state’s seven manmade wonders in a recent column. The same group that identified the Seven New (manmade) Wonders of the World, which prompted my earlier column, has also identified the Seven Natural Wonders: The Aurora Borealis (the Northern Lights), Grand Canyon, Paricutin (a cinder cone volcano in Mexico), Victoria Falls, Great Barrier Reef, Mount Everest, and the Harbor of Rio de Janeiro.

Related:
NC Book Watch
Our State Magazine

Whiners and winners: Recession brings Chatham golden choices

Mon, 17 Jan 2010 02:45:00 GMT

A recent article in The Independent about thousands of acres of failed, stagnant or bankrupt development obscures several golden opportunities by the writer's choice to whine about the past rather than think about the future.

A Closer Look: The political lynching of Harry Reid

Mon, 17 Jan 2010 02:15:00 GMT

When Barack Obama was neck-in-neck with Hillary Clinton racing for the Democratic nomination for president, one of his earliest supporters, Senator Harry Reid of Nevada said in a private conversation that Obama could win the presidency. One of his reasons was that Obama was “light skinned” and "with no Negro dialect unless he wanted to have one."

Goodbye to Archie and Pittsboro Appliance

Sun, 16 Jan 2010 21:12:00 GMT

January is turning out to be a very sad month for downtown Pittsboro. Pam Smith and family did business at Beggars & Choosers for 32 years until earlier this month when they closed the store. Pittsboro Appliance is closing at the end of the month after 27 years of service to our town and beyond.