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Most of the city council is backing Smothers. Well that's not a surprise! You see that's how backdoor ,SMALltown polictics functions.

MOst people, who are well-informed regarding the issues, will NOT vote for her. So if she wins it just shows you that many people vote based on name recognition instead following the issues. She has done NOTHING to manage the growth IN NORTh HIGH POINT. THAT'S RIGHT, DOUG, I SAID NORTH HIGH POINT!!!!!

And what has Mr. Wood promised to do to manage the growth in north High Point?

Dougsadam,

your insistance on this subject and your consistent scathing remarks of Mr.Wood are clear abuse of your position.
Doug, this is not Iraq under the leadership of Sadam. People will think by themselves inspite of your attempt at Brainwashing.
Emoneywood and your regime will fall sometime. Your days are numbered.

We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on 68, we shall fight on Skeet Club, we shall fight on the Oak Hollow Lake borders and in the fields that surround it; we shall never surrender.

Mr Clark,
What does promises made before the election, have to do with what happens after the election??
Case and point. George Ward Caswell County Commissioner. I took a full year working for him (free) Our promise to the people was to work for all the people! Special interest groups where to not going to receive and tax $$$$ for their pork projects!!!! One special interest group spent $8000 to keep Ward from being elected!! We won the election. Ward first vote was to give these group money.(taxpayersmoney) Since then is has been no more than a lap dog for special interest groups. I will supply you his phone # in a e-mail.Call and check this out. If he says I am not telling the truth,do a story on this one on one. Ward and the DAWG. Just give me a weeks notice, I travel a lot, and may need to cancel plans.

I wonder why you forgot to mention that Steve Wood wrote the the Choice Plan was the most dividing issue in the perceived City of High Point. Is it because he is RIGHT? Why did Becky not mention the Choice Plan and the long bus rides? We know why.

There is "North High Point" where people now address their mail as such. There is North High Point where people tell their relatives they live (not to be confused with Downtown). There is North High Point where people take their out-of- town relatives to eat.

Then there is Downtown High Point which many locals perceive to be dying. The High Point that Fantasia called a dead city. The High Point that transplants consider the enemy. The High Point where those involved in school issues know that meeting where held behind closed doors before the IT Plan. The High Point that does have a dead downtown area except for furniture market.

As you mentioned, Becky has the support of city council members. Enough said. After the Andrews forum we know where certain city council members stand on the "Choice" Plan. We know the small town politics that have gone on.

It is sad that a leader has chosen to divide the city rather than unite efforts. The division only continues to grow deeper and wider.

The sadist things of mice and men are the things that could have been.

As someone said, if she gets elected it is because of name recognition and not because they are aware of what has been going on with unplanned growth. Most cities have a master plan for housing, roads and SCHOOLS to be built where the growth is. Where has the master plan been?

Steve Woods may not be the best choice but there will be PROTEST votes. If she wasn't scared why would she bother to write a letter?

To many all we hear is market, market and then there is market. With all the eggs in one basket what happens when the eggs hatch in Vegas and Downtown High Point people are left holding the basket. The support that could have come from the city of North High Point has long been gone.

A great leader should unite and not divide.

Correction: It was the Penn-G forum on redistricting a month or so ago, not Andrews. One attends so many forums and it is the same b.s. you forget where you heard the same b.s.

The difference was the Penn-G was "crystal" clear on the local politics and promises made.

Alice,

Are you already making an excuse for Smothers' win over Wood? Name recognition. Wood's name has appeared on High Point ballots probably 15 times or more over the years. He's been elected to the legislature eight times. How can he lack name recognition?

Rather than dividing the city, the high school choice plan was intended to unite the city. It would it children from all parts of High Point attended all three city high schools.

What the proponents of the plan underestimated was the extent that High Point was already divided, and how intensely some residents of north High Point did not want to be part of the rest of the city.

DC.... so much for your incessant declamation of a quiet election.

In our precinct walks, doorknocking, community meetings, ward sessions, confabs with citizens,
and brainstorming about the general state of affairs hereabouts during this campaign,
anecdotal evidence and our internal polling and assessments indicate a dissatisfaction with the status quo.

That is why the characterization of a City Hall that is the wholly-owned subsidiary of the status quo has resonated.

Let me lay a few questionable assertions in the
'open letter' to rest.

The members of the NC House that adopted budgets that took revenue away from the cities were the
incumbent mayor's Democrat friends in Raleigh--who have held majority there the last 8 years. My recorded votes are all no.

"The Taxpayers Best Friend" Award is given by the NC Taxpayers United, a non-partisan organization that monitored actual votes in the Legislature.
I certainly would not be a recipient of those awards over my years of service if not a tax-
fighting conservative.

To suggest that anyone who opposes red light cameras supports a driver's right to run a red light is ridiculously absurd. The courts have ruled the misguided policy as unconstitutional
confiscation of funds from the classroom! Again,
House records show my vote against this measure.

Yes, to return taxpayer-friendly, citizen-
centered leadership is a goal of this campaign.

The HP Enterprise editorial of 8/03/05 cites the
unfortunate statistics and opines, "Having the Triad's highest property tax bill is a handicap." That is from newspaper that supports the current City Hall leadership.

Here are the numbers on city tax rates as reported by the HP Enterprise:

High Point--------59.30
Greensboro--------56.75
Winston Salem-----48.50.

I believe that pretty well represents the
dubious distinction of "Tax Capital of the Triad," which has happened on the watch of the current leadership. Don't believe this is
taxpayer friendly.

I honor and respect the service of any and all who offer themselves for public office and those who are elected and privileged to serve.

My challenges to the current leadership has enlivened the debate and helped us to focus on
issues that would have gone unnoticed without
a competetive election.

I don't expect to get everyone's vote. But I do hope that those who feel we need a change in City Hall leadership will support this campaign
when you vote.

Thank you for you support in previous elections and in advance for your vote on Tuesday.

SWood

I just got copied on Beckys letter.
She is getting desperate. She is now trying to appeal to NHP by lying that she supported the ABC group.
Sad and desperate!
Doug, you are totally wrong. It is the Choice plan that has divided HP. I for instance have had my eyes opened about the cruel Emorywood people and their cruel political manouvering only since the plan ws implemented.
Now I absolutely HATE that place!

Thanks you, Steve.

I'm the last one to prefer a quiet election. I hope I've helped spur a little debate.

It's a shame there have been no candidates' forums in High Point during this campaign, while there have been several in Greensboro.

Of course there's dissastisfaction with the status quo. Always is in any election, no matter who the incumbent is. The question is what's the alternative to the status quo? If the issue is high taxes, then by all means let's find a way to reduce them. Which programs should be cut? If the red-light camera program was the wrong way to go, what should we do to reduce the number of side-impact crashes caused by motorists running red lights? If there are problems with the schools, well, I hope no one running for city office is promising to eliminate any particular school programs because that's a promise beyond their ability to fulfill. But school issues should be discussed. But hurry, the election is almost here, and this campaign was too quiet for too long.

Becky's letter-

I have been out of town but sent the Mayor this e-mail in response:

November 6, 2005

Dear Mayor Smothers,

I am sending you this e-mail and am forwarding it to several people who have had questions regarding the content of your letter since receiving it. In particular, most questions have been regarding your comment about "arranging meetings between leaders from the ABC group and civic/business community".

The meetings you were referencing happened prior to my accident. I don't have the particular date, but I think they were in the spring of 2004. One was between John Faircloth, you , Michael Murphree and myself. The other was held at the High Point Museum with quite a group of distinguished leaders of the High Point community. For those meetings, I appreciate your assistance.

I must also add that during that period, your opponent, was the Chairman of the Education Committee in Raleigh and also was of assistance to our organization.

Unfortunately, neither of your help was enough to get the Guilford County Board of Education to stop the ill-conceived, under-funded, lottery that buses North High Point's students all over the city. Distrust of elected officials and cross town residents will continue until a child knows where he or she is going to school based on their address and not their "free and reduced lunch" meal status!

Additionally, I want to make it clear that neither I, nor ABC, has endorsed any candidate in this election. In fact, at this point ABC is a dormant organization. I assume the PAC will be active again before the school board elections in 2006.

My reason for not endorsing anyone is simple. I personally do not believe any of the candidates has been involved with, or has a solid grasp on the education system in Guilford County, in general, and High Point in particular. Hopefully, your workforce preparedness study will reveal what all of us in North High Point and Jamestown have been saying for the past several years. The Guilford County School system is FAILING to provide a sound basic education to the kids in Guilford County. Because of that FACT, High Point will continue to suffer until our elected officials take a stand.

Best of luck on Tuesday.

Tim Mann
Ward 6

Stop the kipnapping of our children.

VOTE WOOD AND BROWN!

Doug,

How could the intent of the High Point Choice Plan have been to "unite" the city? (If somehow anyone imagined this, it failed miserably.) Here are some of the components of the plan:

1. Long bus rides.
2. Three separate "magnet-like" programs and no homebase, traditional school like the rest of the county
3. An experimental plan unlike any in the U.S.
4. A plan that treats High Point
students/families very different from the rest of the county.
5. A plan that takes children OUT of their surroundings and community and creates a hardship on families who have to:
a. look for car pools
b. rearrange work schedules because of the busing schedules and day care
c. puts poor children at a disadvantage who do not have transporation to attend sports and after school activities
d. makes some parents have kids at schools in 3 different parts of town if they have younger kids too

6. Rips away the traditions of all 3 high schools by those kids who wanted to attended "their" high school, just like those kids in other parts of the county and in Greensboro have the privilege to do (i.e. Grimsley vs Page traditions)

7. 800 plus parents came out against the plan

8. Suspension rates have increase in the HP high schools

9. Test scores are down

You stated that the residents of North High Point did not want to be the rest of the City. You get it. Bingo. That is their true CHOICE. They moved where they want to live, shop, go to church and yes, go to school. The students, 100% of them at Central and Andrews, got their first choice to go to THEIR school. That is a major difference. No one forced the children of Central alumni to leave their IB Program and get on a long bus ride to North High Point and attend SW or to Andrews. Correction on the citizens of North High Point opposing being part of downtown High Point. You have MANY students at SWH who live in the county (and no city); they chose to live in the county and NOT in High Point. For many, many reasons. And they do not want to go to the 5th or 6th closest school because of some experiment with their kids to appease the politics. The reason that they do not want to be part of downtown High Point, is truly their own true choice. The "why" is not important.

The plan, to date, is failing miserably.

And if some people think it was to "unite" this is a joke. It has taken a 180 degree turn in that effort.