News-Record.com

My column today:

John Blust answered his phone Monday, "Legislative reform headquarters."

He was just having fun with me, but I can't blame him for enjoying his newfound status as an important legislator. It’s been a long time coming.

For years, the Greensboro Republican was the General Assembly's boy who cried wolf. Now, people are finally starting to notice that something with big eyes, big ears, big teeth and a big appetite has been eating the sheep. ...

These people just don't impress me.

Not with their apparent violence; not with their rhetoric.

"Bring the noise; drown out the lies."

Is that someone's idea of a rhyme?

World Can't Wait, the organization that claimed to have sparked 68 demonstrations across the country last night, including the one in downtown Greensboro, is pretty far outside the mainstream of political dissent. One of the speakers listed for its rally in Washington Saturday is Al Sharpton, and he might be the most rational of the bunch.

What bothers me the most is the depiction of President Bush as a terrorist surpassing Osama bin Laden.

Disagree with the war in Iraq if you will, but the violence there -- murderous attacks on innocent men, women and children, as well as soldiers and police -- is generated by bin Laden followers and insurgents, not Americans.

Terrorists are defined by their ideology.

Bush's ideology is a driving force behind free elections in Iraq, Afghanistan and even Palestine. We may not always like the outcomes, but we support freedom and self-determination.

Bin Laden's ideology calls for submission to his brand of Islamic fundamentalism, much like the Taliban imposed in Afghanistan. He and those who believe as he does intend to accomplish this objective by any means necessary, even mass murder. They have declared a jihad against Western freedom. The leaders in Iran, working to develop nuclear weapons and stating their desire to destroy Israel, present a startling example of what might happen if this ideology continues to gain strength in the world. For all his faults, Bush is one Western leader who will try to defend this country against that sort of very real threat.

If members of World Can't Wait think Bush is the world's most dangerous terrorist, they just aren't looking toward the Middle East.

And, if anyone was dangerous in Greensboro last night, it was the demonstrators themselves.

In the past, I've strongly supported High Point police when they've had to shoot a dog.

I can't do that in the latest instance.

It occurred last week.

Two officers and a police dog were pursuing a suspect on foot. The man they were following allegedly had wrecked a stolen car.

They lost sight of the subject, but the dog tracked him across the back yards of several homes on Louise Avenue, police said.

Coming to a fence, the officers climbed over to continue the pursuit. The homeowner's dog ran out from under the house and attacked, according to police. An officer shot the dog three times, killing it.

A police spokeswoman said the officer acted to protect himself. At the same time, the spokeswoman added, the dog wasn't at fault. It was guarding its property.

This bothers me because, in this instance, the exact same thing could have happened to my dog or to almost anyone's.

In other cases, police are called to a neighborhood where a dog is running loose and often threatening people, if not actually attacking.

Such a dog is a danger to public safety and fair game for lethal action as a last resort.

A dog kept in a fenced yard is an entirely different story. It doesn't pose a threat to anyone who doesn't come into its yard. If that happens, the dog is supposed to defend its turf.

If intruders intend to break into the house, they're the ones who are fair game for whatever injury the dog is able to inflict on them.

Well, what if the intruders are police officers crossing the property in the line of duty? Then, apparently, the dog is in big trouble.

Of course, I can't say the officer didn't need to shoot the dog to avoid a painful encounter with a fiercely protective dog. I wasn't there.

But, as I wrote in my previous column, in more than 35 years as a runner, I've been challenged by countless snarling, threatening and occasionally biting dogs, and not one time was I ever in a situation where I was in such jeopardy that I needed even a nonlethal weapon, let alone a gun. Not that it couldn't happen, but just knowing how to deal with the animal can avert a crisis.

In this case, I don't know if a willy-nilly pursuit across private property, and especially into a fenced yard, was the wisest course for officers to take, unless the subject was considered armed and dangerous.

And why didn't he have trouble with the dog if he'd passed through the same yard?

Police didn't get their suspect anyway, so maybe they were on the wrong track.

Perhaps they should reconsider their procedures in such cases. I'm not comfortable with the idea that police might run through my fenced-in back yard and provoke a confrontation with my dog.

Congratulations to Amy Adams, nominated for an Oscar for her performance in "Junebug."

Our headline refers to Adams as an actor.

But the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences still bestows awards for Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress. Adams is up for an Oscar in the latter category.

Is it politically incorrect to say actress these days? Maybe the Academy should get with the times.

If it does, however, should it go gender-neutral in its awards, throwing male and female actors into the same category?

And the Oscar for Best Performer goes to ...

Would the parents have a say in this?

I would have said no way.

N.C. Supreme Court Justice Mark D. Martin has just announced five huge endorsements of his re-election: from all five living former state chief justices.

They are I. Beverly Lake Jr., Henry Frye (of Greensboro), Burley Mitchell, James Exum (of Greensboro) and Rhoda Billings.

Most significant about this, however, is the bipartisan nature of Martin's support.

Technically, our court system is nonpartisan -- although it doesn't always look that way.

But Martin has overcome the political divide to draw the endorsements of Democrats Frye, Mitchell and Exum and Republicans Lake and Billings.

Martin is a Republican. Which shouldn't matter at all if he does his job right.

A letter signed by the five former chiefs says of Martin, in part: "He is an experienced jurist who writes excellent judicial opinions, examines legal issues carefully and methodically, and upholds high standards of judicial excellence. He has exhibited unquestionable judicial demanor and temperament, and unquestionable integrity, during his 13 years of judicial service."

I've written before that there's danger that judicial campaigns can be politicized.

In putting politics aside, the former chiefs are standing up for judicial integrity.

Is this the guy who was going to set back human rights to the Dark Ages?

TCM is showing "The Bridge on the River Kwai," Best Picture of 1957.

It's one of three David Lean movies that rank in my all-time top 10. The other two are "Lawrence of Arabia" (Best Picture, 1962) and "Dr. Zhivago" (not Best Picture of 1965; it lost to "The Sound of Music").

My ranking puts them in this order:

Zhivago

Lawrence

River Kwai

What's yours?

By the way, Alec Guinness appears in all three, starring in River Kwai (and winning the Oscar for Best Actor).

But I guess he's most famous for this.

The protests over cartoons in Danish newspapers -- cartoons! -- have escalated into violence with the burnings of the Danish and Norwegian embassies in Damascus today.

Norwegian? What did they do?

Cartoons depicting the prophet Muhammad so offended the Muslim world that, apparently, murder and mayhem are required in response.

This represents a clash of values of immense proportions.

Western governments are becoming very apologetic over this affair -- but how much can and should we compromise our ideals to appease the sensitivities of those who demand respect solely on their terms?

Do we have to bow to their beliefs in order to quell the hostility?

What about respect for freedom of expression?

How much harm is done, after all, by publication of cartoons compared to the angry reprisals unleashed?

And let's not pretend that this fury represents the attitudes of only a radical few in the Islamic world. This is the mainstream, and it's very, very frightening.

The cartoons themselves are unimportant, not worth all this anger and destruction.

The intense intolerance these demonstrations reveal, on the other hand, illustrates a grave threat to the underpinnings of Western civilization.

Parents can go to great lengths to give their young children a head start in school. No question it will pay off.

Our formula for success was much simpler:

A stay-at-home mom.

Parents are their children's first teachers. We decided one of those parents should make it a full-time teaching job for several years.

What an incredibly important decision that was -- despite the major financial sacrifice required.

I firmly believe if you want to make your kids smart, you should give them the full attention of a parent, who teaches, reads to, plays with and takes the child on outings.

The other parent can take over the teaching duties after work.

Talk with your children. Read to them. Interact with them.

Because of the income lost during the many years our kids had a stay-at-home mom, we were never able to catch up enough financially to save much for college.

It turned out we didn't need to. Scholarships covered most of their costs.

The best investment we ever made was giving our kids a full-time teacher at home.

North Carolina residents are paying more to support their municipal and county governments.

Maybe you didn't need this new report from the John Locke Foundation's Center for Local Innovation to tell you that.

The increase in local tax burden outpaces the rate of inflation.

The report is based on fiscal year 2003-2004 numbers, the most recent available statewide.

Guilford County ranked 10th in local revenues per capita at $1,658. But Guilford ranked 9th the year before, and 7th the year before that. In terms of local tax burden as a percentage of income, Guilford's ranking slips to 23rd at 5.22 percent. Revenue includes property tax and sales tax income.

Dare is North Carolina's highest-taxed county at $3,572 per capita, or an incredible 12.13 percent of per capita income. That's got to be influenced by the number of expensive beach properties owned by nonresidents.

Among large cities -- over 25,000 population -- Greensboro was 11th in 2004 at $1,669 in local revenues per capita, falling back from 7th in 2003. High Point was 13th at $1,618, falling from 12th in 2003.

Correction: The figures in the paragraph above represent combined city-county totals -- Greensboro-Guilford and High Point-Guilford.

Across the state, taxes and fees paid to local governments increased 5.1 percent from 2003 to 2004 -- a time when many residents were struggling to make ends meet.

At the same time, hard economic times raise additional demands for government services.

This report only looks at taxes, comparing cities and counties based on their revenues. It doesn't take into account the quantity and quality of services provided. Where voters demand high levels of service, they also have to accept the taxes to pay for them.

For more insight into World Can't Wait, the group that organized last week's protest in Greensboro -- resulting in several arrests -- check out this photo gallery on the WCW Web site. It gives you the flavor of their big demonstration in Washington Saturday.

The photos include:

Burning the American flag

and a depiction of George W. Bush decapitated.

Lovely.

They're entitled to express their views. I just don't see how some of their expressions -- or the violence in Greensboro -- advances their cause.

Addendum, Feb. 8: The picture of decapitated Bush has been removed.

Now that I've taken some shots at a band of leftist extremists, it's time to fling a dose of outrage in the other direction.

NPR offered an infuriating report this evening about Fred Phelps and his Westboro Baptist Church of Topeka, Kansas.

These lunatics are about as Christian as the "Christian" Knights of the Ku Klux Klan.

Lately, they've been picketing funerals of servicemen killed in Iraq, berating the survivors and declaring their fallen loved ones have gone to hell.

They say they're going to show up and do the same at Coretta Scott King's funeral tomorrow.

Warning: The link directly above takes you to their Web site. Their rhetoric is highly offensive.

Phelps' tactics are so noxious that several states, like Indiana are considering legislation to bar demonstrations at funerals.

That's an extreme response. Is it necessary to block the actions of these repulsive people?

What unintended consequences might result? One worried observer told NPR the laws could apply to Cindy Sheehan or other war protesters who also might show up at military funerals. Yes, laws apply equally to everyone.

I think there's room to impose reasonable restrictions without infringing unreasonably on First Amendment rights.

A funeral might take place in a public setting, such as a military cemetery.

That doesn't mean a funeral is a public event.

There should be a space -- in time and distance -- reserved for family members and invited guests.

Everyone else could be required to stay a decent distance away for a decent amount of time.

This is a great country because it allows everyone to have his or her say.

It would be better if everyone could exercise those rights respectfully.

Fred Phelps and his flock of hateful bleating sheep refuse. It may be necessary to impose a little civility on them.

It's beyond tolerance to expect the family of a soldier who dies for his country to endure insults from the likes of Fred Phelps when they're laying their hero to rest.

Here's a brilliant response from an Iranian newspaper. It announced it is seeking cartoons of the Holocaust to test Western tolerance for free expression.

What do the editors of this newspaper, which has links to Iran's idiotic president, expect to happen -- bloody riots throughout the capitals of Western Europe in outrage over cartoons?

The fact is, Islamic newspapers publish anti-Semitic material routinely, without triggering violent demonstrations in protest.

Go ahead and print more. The contrast in reactions will once again drive home the point that irrationality is more prevalent in some cultures these days than in others.

My column today:

Guilford College, don't kill Independent George.

George, from "Seinfeld," couldn't handle it when his girlfriend started to push her way into his intimate circle of friends, leaving him with no space to be himself.

That's exactly what could happen if Guilford College allows men and women to share dorm rooms. ...

There's a rally planned for 4:30 this afternoon (Correction: Thursday afternoon) outside the Greensboro Police Department as a follow-up to last week's demonstration by World Can't Wait.

This time the College Democrats and College Libertarians at UNCG are joining in.

They're going to protest police actions that led to seven arrests last week and call for charges to be dropped.

If nothing else, all this activity is getting more young people downtown.

This "Lost World" is awesome.

"It's as close to the Garden of Eden as anything you're going to find on Earth," a Conservation International official gushed.

Here's a map of West Papua, part of the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya.

So, what will the government of Indonesia do with it?

Go away and leave it like it is?

Or explore for oil, gas and other natural resources?

I have a feeling this place won't be lost again.

Remember what happened to the original Garden of Eden.

There's a whole other angle to the issue of opposite-sex roommates at Guilford College that I didn't address in my column yesterday.

"One of the main reasons this policy change was initially discussed was in support of transgendered students," a Guilford student named Jessica posted on yesterday's blog entry.

Other private responses I received from people in the Guilford College community spoke to similar issues.

"I read with great interest your editorial in today's paper," a faculty member wrote. "One question for you: how do you know that George (nevermind Georgette!) is heterosexual?"

She added in a second email: "Actually I was quite serious when I asked about the students' sexual orientation. There is a vibrant community of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered students and faculty at Guilford College, and I dare say at many colleges, much less our community at large. More and more students are open about their sexuality, and whether or not you approve of non-heterosexual relationships, your article was ignorant of its reality."

From a male student at GC: "I was very disappointed by your treatment of the issue, which clearly shows a profound lack of understanding of some of the main reasons the idea is coming up at college campuses across the US. ... What if that young man, or woman, is homosexual, bisexual or unsure about their sexual orientation and their attraction to their roommate causes all the problems you flippantly applied to heterosexual people?"

And from a woman who is a graduate of Guilford College: "I think Kent Chabotar would be correct in trying out rooming situations with a female and male. If you think about it, would you rather have your son or daughter experimenting with sex with someone of the same gender or of different gender? As long as I could trust my child and know that they were on some type of contraceptive, I would rather they room with a person of the opposite sex than the same sex."

Does this change the equation? Is there no harm in having a male and female room together if one is homosexual and therefore not sexually interested in the other?

I still don't think so. After all, a gay man is not the same as a woman.

What about "transgendered" students? Should a student who is physically male but prefers to live as a woman be assigned to room with a guy or a girl?

Maybe colleges should offer single rooms for everyone.

I've just walked back to the office from the little rally outside the police station organized by UNCG's College Democrats.

They seemed to be a nice group of young people. The president, Patrick Tutwiler, is thoughtful and well-spoken. He's hoping some PD officials might come out and discuss the demonstrators' concerns about the arrests last week. I doubt he'll have any luck.

Police might not appreciate some of the signs and banners. One said: "GPD Oppression & Brutality." A woman had a patch on the back of her coat that said "To Protect and Serve" but depicted a police officer pointing a gun at the head of a kneeling and handcuffed suspect.

I don't think the College Democrats were responsible for that.

Most of today's demonstrators seem to be affiliated with World Can't Wait, the group that organized last week's downtown march. They were all showing good manners today, too, except for the guys banging on the drums, which tended to drown out a lot of conversations and media interviews.

I thought this was about free speech. Those drums are pretty oppressive!

One interesting thing is how the protest has broadened. Last week, it was all about President Bush. Now it's targeting the Greensboro police and Bush. The demonstrators are making a connection. Bush has his surveillance program, the police have theirs. It's all related somehow. Patrick, the College Democrat president, thought it's possible that GPD might be sharing information with the Bush administration about the president's opponents down here.

I'll tell you, if local PDs are doing that, Washington is being deluged with lots of useless information from all over the country.

Oh, Nelson Johnson was there, just sort of hanging out. He said last week's actions by the GPD follow a pattern of behavior. I didn't have a chance to talk with him longer because of those blasted drummers.

Putting this all together, you've got an anti-Bush protest in downtown Greensboro, monitored by city police -- partly in an effort to intimidate anti-government demonstrators -- followed by a crackdown and arrests, possibly with reports going up to Washington. That's the thinking.

Last week's arrests were unfortunate, and I think some fault can be assessed to police and protesters. So far, the protesters are doing a lot more communicating with the media, despite the drummers.

Of course, most people who come into contact with police officers don't think of them as brutal or as agents of a repressive regime in Washington. Sometimes, though, police don't do a good job of telling their story. It lets their critics portray them as secretive.

Maybe the chief should have come out and talked with the folks on his sidewalk.

The Independent Weekly nails down what lottery critics have said all along: Gambling revenue will simply replace money the state already is spending for education.

"Dan Gerlach, the governor's senior policy advisor for fiscal affairs, says it had been Gov. Easley's intention all along to replace some general fund money with lottery revenue," the Indy reports. " 'What the governor has said all along is that he never intended that the additional teachers needed to reduce class size and the More-at-Four program be funded through the general fund,' he says. 'The general money was fronted, kind of like an upfront loan.' "

What?

Pardon my language, but this is nothing but a damn scam.

Now the politicians can use the money previously spent on these school programs for something else.

Shame on the governor and shame on the legislative leaders who pushed this lottery through on false pretenses.

Want to reduce dependence on foreign energy sources and bring down costs?

We'd better find more supplies here.

It's a terribly dreary day -- a good time, perhaps, to conjure up some warm memories.

Back in college, February meant starting to make plans for spring break.

Nowadays, some kids go skiing in Colorado, take Caribbean cruises or even fly to London or Paris.

Those weren't options back in the day.

We piled into the biggest car available and headed to Fort Lauderdale. There, we found the cheapest motel that had a room available, ate meals at places that offered all-you-can-eat pancakes for a couple of bucks, hung out on the beach all day and partied late into the night until our money ran out. We were so broke one year that my buddies and I ended up sleeping on picnic tables in a park on the drive home.

One year, a friend and I went to New Orleans for spring break. We never were sure exactly how, but almost all our money disappeared real quick. We drove on to Galveston and camped on the beach. I recall we ate nothing but grilled baloney sandwiches for a couple of days, washing them down with Lone Star beer. And the transmission went out on my Ford Pinto on the way home. Man, that was a fun trip!

What are your spring break memories?

And, to any college students reading, what are your spring break plans?

We opened a bottle of Westbend merlot (2004) this evening. We think Westbend is one of the best of the Yadkin Valley labels, and this merlot is very good.

But we'd never read the description provided on the label:

"Deep berry floral and tobacco accents up front. Solid cherry and plum flavors combine in this varietal red wine."

Tobacco accents?

Sure, grapes are now growing where the golden leaf once flourished. Does the soil retain "tobacco accents" that work their way into the fruit?

I didn't taste any.

And if I did, I'm not sure this wine would return to our table.

If the Westbend folks think it's smart marketing to boast of "tobacco accents" in their wine, I'm suggesting they've made a mistake.

Or does anyone find the idea appealing?

Gosh, the Washington Post's Paul Farhi has just taken all the fun out of the Winter Olympics with his complaint that the Games belong to the rich and elite.

Here's a link to the Post (registration required).

The article appears in our Ideas section today.

Basically, Fahri thinks it's terrible that Northern Hemisphere nations dominate the winter games.

What, they don't play ice hockey in Belize? Well, surely Kenya sends a cross-country ski team. No speed skaters from Sri Lanka?

Well, it's not just climate that holds back athletes from parts of the world that lack winter, says Fahri. Poor countries don't have enough money to train Olympians.

A lot of Summer Games sports are cheaper -- except equestrian, I suppose, but horse competitions shouldn't be part of a human athletic contest, anyway.

Well, so what? Should wealthier countries have to provide foreign sports aid to poorer countries to level the Olympic playing field? Recruit Liberians to train at Finnish ski-jumping schools? Or replace the Winter Olympics with a competition featuring sports favored in places with deserts or jungles, whatever those sports might be?

Or maybe we can just enjoy watching the skating, skiing and jumping without worrying about the people in Borneo and Rwanda who've been left out.

In Borneo and Rwanda, they've got other things to worry about, anyway.

Vice President Dick Cheney is being praised today for quick reactions and outstanding marksmanship.

Although the man gunned down by Cheney in south Texas Saturday was actually a friend, Austin millionaire Harry Whittington, he could have been a terrorist trying to sneak up on the vice president.

Or an illegal immigrant.

At any rate, the incident is Whittington's fault for not announcing himself. The vice president's hunting companions are warned by Secret Service agents to declare periodically, "I am not a bird," "I'm not a terrorist" or "It's me, Dick, your wife. Don't shoot!"

Whittington's injuries from the well-aimed shotgun blast at 30 yards were described as serious, but he was fortunate to have been shot by Cheney, as the vice president travels with a team of medical personnel and a med-evac helicopter for just such emergencies.

Despite the excitement, Cheney was given a clean bill of health by his on-the-scene cardiologist.

After visiting Whittington Sunday, the vice president pronounced himself pleased that his friend was going to pull through and would know to be more careful in the future.

Cheney's next planned outing, a Wyoming buffalo hunt with President Bush, has been canceled, the Secret Service announced today.

I'm very sorry about what happened to this young woman. It's tragic.

But blame the EMTs?

And ask Guilford County taxpayers to come across with $2.3 million?

I don't think so.

Should Guilford County commissioners and Greensboro City Council grant incentives for RF Micro Devices?

Some questions to ponder:

Would the company really go elsewhere for its expansion if not offered public support here?

When state and local governments offer huge bounties to bring in outside companies, why wouldn't they do the same to help a homegrown business?

Won't local governments get back their investment many times over?

Isn't the practice of giving incentives a bad idea in principle, and why shouldn't you take a stand on principle once in a while?

We're preparing an editorial.

Vice President Dick Cheney's accidental shooting of friend Harry Whittington during a Texas quail hunt Saturday no longer is funny.

The 78-year-old victim's physical condition has taken a serious turn for the worse.

And reports now are detailing how Cheney tried to manage the news about the mishap.

Cheney was terribly careless in firing at a man 30 yards away and wearing blaze orange. He must feel extremely guilty about his reckless mistake.

The stress could have a detrimental effect on Cheney, who has well-documented heart trouble.

I'm going to delve into deep speculation here and suggest that this is the sort of strange occurrence that could have significant consequences.

Imagine, if you will, continued scrutiny of Cheney's actions Saturday and in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. The questions, combined with his remorse, force a dramatic decision: The vice president decides to resign for health reasons. ...

... giving President Bush an amazing opportunity.

Whom would he name to replace Cheney?

How about his secretary of state?

She would be an historic appointment -- and gain the inside track to win the GOP presidential nomination in 2008.

What a coup for Bush, replacing an unpopular vice president with Condi Rice, and leaving a legacy for shattering the White House gender and race barriers in a single stroke.

That would be quite an outcome to this otherwise sad story.

My column today:

Greensboro's little band of radicals is beating its drums about conspiracies stretching from here to Washington.

The local chapter of The World Can't Wait led a downtown demonstration during President Bush's State of the Union address Jan. 31. The march included several drummers trying to "drown out" the speech.

Afterward, unfortunately, an altercation with police led to charges against seven participants, including assault on a law-enforcement officer and carrying concealed weapons -- and countercharges of police brutality.

Some think it all ties in together. ...

Pamela Anderson is boycotting the Kentucky Derby?

She's had such a good time there in the past.

But, since discovering that horses are forced to run around the Churchill Downs track, Pam had to write the Derby off her list of party scenes.

I wonder why she didn't speak up for the little people who are forced to ride those horses.

Man, I wouldn't want to try to hang on to one of those monsters.

What about kids? My Little League baseball coach, Mr. Murphy, was a sadist. Every time you made a bonehead play in practice, he'd force you to run laps around the field.

Turned me into a distance runner.

Hey, please don't tell Pam that I'm forcing my dog to run 5 miles with me every morning. Yeah, dogs and horses really hate to run.

Except my dog pulls me out the door with a burst of animal energy -- and I don't even have to use my whip.

Speaking of dog races, I wonder if Pam's going to Alaska for the Iditarod next month.

She'd look great in fur.

Dick Cheney's not out of the woods yet, even if Harry Whittington is. His statements to Fox News' Britt Hume yesterday (transcript) aren't convincing.

Cheney tried to manipulate news coverage of the hunting accident, but not for the reason of accuracy.

The vice president explained that early reports from the hospital about Whittington's condition were incorrect:

"If we'd put out a report Saturday night -- we could have then -- one report came in said 'superficial injuries.' Had we gone with a statement of that, then we would have been wrong."

But that's exactly what they went with Sunday, through designated spokeswoman Katharine Armstrong. She provided an account (registration required) of the shooting to the Corpus Christi Caller-Times that downplayed the severity of the accident and Whittington's condition:

"All safety precautions were taken by the hunters, who were wearing bright orange vests, Armstrong said.

" 'Everybody behaved exactly as you would want them to,' Armstrong said. ...

"Armstrong said Whittington holds no ill feelings toward Cheney and doesn't plan to sue.

" 'Oh, heavens, no,' Armstrong said. 'This happens, and my God, I've never seen a case of hard feelings. I bet this would deepen their friendship.' "

Armstrong also spoke to the Houston Chronicle Sunday, observing that Whittington was "bruised more than bloodied" by the shooting. "I think his pride was hurt more than anything else."

She added that Whittington had approached Cheney without "announcing himself. ... You're always supposed to let other hunters know where you are."

I take Armstrong's efforts one way: She was trying to soften the impact on Cheney. He wasn't really to blame, and no real harm was done anyway.

From Cheney personally, nothing ... until his interview Wednesday.

By that time, Whittington's condition had worsened. The shooting had done more damage than initially thought. And no one was buying the suggestion that it was the victim's fault.

Cheney finally set the record straight about that Wednesday: "Well, ultimately I am the guy who pulled the trigger, that fired the round that hit Harry. And you can talk about all of the other conditions that existed at the time, but that is the bottom line. And there is no -- it's not Harry's fault. You can't blame anybody else. I'm the guy who pulled the trigger and shot my friend."

That's exactly what Cheney should have said directly to the press no later than Sunday. He thought he could get away with saying less, but the full story has a tendency to get out eventually. He made a bad situation worse by mismanaging the news, and his initial version of events didn't take long to unravel.

It's remarkable that Gov. Easley says the public wasn't misled about the lottery legislation.

Even some legislators say THEY were misled.

My column this week has generated quite a few angry responses. I'm being called a liar, an enemy of free speech and a defender of police brutality, among other things.

Fire away.

What cuts me to my soul was a terrible ethnic slur thoughtlessly cast into one of the missives.

It was stated that the people arrested after the Jan. 31 demonstration were thrown into a "paddy wagon" and taken away.

Paddy wagon! That's a slanderous term with the most insulting connotations.

"Paddy," of course, is a dismissive way to refer to Irishmen, some of whom are not even named Patrick, or Paddy, at all.

The paddy wagon was so called because of the impression it was needed mainly for the purpose of hauling brawling sons of Erin to the hoosegow until they sobered up. Unfounded stereotyping, of course!

So, on behalf of all my Irish kinsmen, I respectfully request the retirement of this disparaging term from common use, as some already have tried to do.

Critics may defend their rights without attacking the character of a noble people, who never did harm to anyone (but occasionally themselves).

The Rhino has gotten a lot of attention since publishing a couple of the Muhammad cartoons yesterday.

I imagine that was the idea.

I mean, no real purpose was served by publication except to make the statement, "We can if we want to."

Of course they can. So can any publication in a free society.

The violent response to these cartoons across the Muslim world has been unbelievable -- actually strengthening the stereotypes the cartoons supposedly play on.

The cartoons aren't even religious in nature, they're political. They make the point that some Muslims resort to violence -- and some Islamic leaders encourage it -- in the name of their religion. Is anyone denying that?

The contention that it violates Islamic law to publish depictions of Muhammad means nothing. Western publications aren't governed by Islamic law.

Let's hope there won't be a violent response to the Rhino's decision to print the cartoons. There have been complaints and threats of a boycott. That won't accomplish anything except draw more attention to the issue.

The Rhino had a right to publish. The News & Record made a different -- and I think better -- decision.

People can agree or disagree with either position -- respectfully, I hope.

The way we're supposed to in a free society.

The Sunday Times of London has done some extraordinary reporting about extremist attitudes within Britain's Muslim community.

This reminds me of a Lewis Grizzard book title:

"My Daddy Was a Pistol, and I'm a Son of a Gun."

Mark Binker gave us the quote of the week in his story today about state Republicans asking for church directories.

He has more on his blog.

Mark quotes N.C. Republican Party chief of staff Bill Peasley as explaining why the GOP casts for support among church congregations:

"We're just appealing to one of our constituencies, just as the Democrat Party does. ... The Democrats may feel it's more profitable to go and do voter registration drives at a homosexual convention. We feel more comfortable going to churches."

Bash! Take that, Democrats!

(Are there homosexual conventions? Well, never mind.)

I wouldn't send my church directory to a political party or anyone else. It's for use by church members for church purposes, not outsiders for any other purpose.

But, as the Rev. Ken Massey of Greensboro's First Baptist Church told Mark, the Republicans have "got their math right."

People who go to church are more likely to vote Republican. In fact, the more often they go to church, the more likely they are to vote Republican.

From CNN exit polls on Election Day 2004:

Among voters who attend church more than weekly, Bush led Kerry 64-35.

Weekly, 58-41.

Monthly, 50-49.

A few times a year, Kerry led Bush 54-45.

Never, Kerry led 62-36.

Oh, although Peaslee's chide about "homosexual conventions" was crude, his math was right about that, too.

Among voters who identified themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual, Kerry led Bush 77-23.

The trouble for Democrats? That was only 4 percent of voters. But 42 percent said they attend church once or more a week.

But, just because most people who attend church vote Republican, it doesn't mean they want to mix politics with their religion.

What's the prettiest college campus in North Carolina?

Once I would have named the Southern part of heaven over in Chapel Hill. It's still beautiful to me, but I have to admit it's getting awfully overgrown.

How about Guilford College?

Western Carolina?

Lees-McRae?

Make your nominations.

Update, Feb. 20:

Thanks for the nominations of Elon, Davidson, State and Duke (Kenny, are you serious? What about Wake?)

Sorry about the Guilford link. Try this.

Happy Presidents' Day.

Remember when we celebrated Washington's birthday?

And Lincoln's?

Well, I guess Lincoln's birthday wasn't all that popular in this part of the country.

Anyway, now we honor all presidents on a single day -- and remember none.

As for other great Americans, well, I doubt many get much attention in school or anywhere else anymore.

High Point lost one of its greatest citizens Saturday with the death of Robert T. Amos Jr.

Bob Amos loved High Point and did everything he could to make it a better place.

He and the late Jim Millis, although competitors in the hosiery industry for many years, were lifelong friends and partners in countless community causes. High Point won't be the same without them.

Millis and Amos exemplified a class of citizen that has all but disappeared from cities like High Point -- the homegrown industrialists who believed their role was more than to run a business and make money. They truly operated from a sense of noblesse oblige or, to be more accurate about the motivating spirit of these two deeply Christian men, obedience to Jesus' teaching that to whom much is given, much is expected.

Bob Amos, like Jim Millis, was humble, friendly and kind-hearted. They cared about the welfare of their employees and others who populated the city of High Point, and used their resources for the betterment of the community.

Unfortunately, much has changed in High Point's corporate scene over the years. The decline of traditional industries and the loss of local ownership means that business decisions affecting High Point are made by people far away whose primary interests may not coincide with local concerns. There are fewer High Pointers who are as committed to building the community, and equipped with the resources to make a difference, as were men like Bob Amos and Jim Millis.

As a High Point resident, I appreciate the many contributions of Bob Amos and express sincere condolences to his family.

Jim Black is a master of irony.

Yesterday, he proposed a series of ethics reforms -- most of which aim to curtail the very practices that have made him arguably North Carolina's most powerful politician.

I can't quite figure out, however, whether Black actually thinks reforms are really needed or if he's just giving in to badgering by the pesky press.

"The public's perception and faith in our government has been adversely affected in recent months due to negative ongoing media coverage, which has been warranted in some cases, but unwarranted and inaccurate in others," Black wrote in a letter to the House Ethics and Governmental Reform Committee.

Uh-oh. Our Mark Binker added to that negative coverage today.

Well, maybe the latest story will count as some of the "warranted" negative coverage rather than the "unwarranted and inaccurate" negative coverage.

I suppose it could turn out that chiropractors didn't contribute a lot of money to Black's campaign and subsequently didn't get favorable legislation passed.

Anyway, Black now calls for:

banning personal contributions from lobbyists and prohibiting lobbyists from organizing or hosting political fundraisers;

prohibiting lobbyists from holding positions in legislative or executive branch political campaigns;

and ending the practice of "blank payee checks," among other reforms.

Gee, I wonder who's had anything to do with practices like that.

Who would have thought that Jim Black would become a leader in legislative ethics reform?

Why, he might put himself out of business.

Now, that would be ironic.

Here's a link to the Daily Tar Heel cartoon that Muslim students at UNC say offends them because of its depiction of the prophet Muhammad.

Editor-in-Chief Ryan Tuck refuses to apologize for printing it.

He shouldn't.

Unlike the Danish cartoon showing Muhammad with a turban-bomb, the DTH cartoon makes a clear point that the prophet is betrayed -- not represented -- by those who commit violent acts in the name of Islam.

If the Muslim students are saying that any likeness of Muhammad is offensive, they're going to have to be perpetually offended. Muhammad is depicted at the U.S. Supreme Court as one of the world's great lawgivers.

In fact, illustrations of Muhammad have appeared in Islamic art for centuries, so the supposed edict against publication now is puzzling.

Of course, it's wrong to be intentionally offensive or insulting. The DTH cartoon should not have been interpreted as such.

This port security story is becoming more troublesome by the hour for the Bush administration.

Bill Frist is the latest Republican politician to demand a halt to the planned transfer of operational responsibility for six U.S. ports to Dubai Ports World of the United Arab Emirates.

Dubai Ports World acquired the British firm that currently manages the ports.

This story reminds me of the 1980 U.S. Senate race in North Carolina. Anyone else remember that?

One of Republican candidate John East's most effective TV ads hammered Democratic Sen. Robert Morgan for "voting to give away our Panama Canal."

The issue was the Panama Canal Treaty, signed by President Jimmy Carter in 1977 and ratified by a single vote in the Senate the next year. It relinquished control of the canal to Panama in 2000.

Obviously, the canal is vital to the defense and economic security of the United States. Concerns increased when a Hong Kong company with ties to the Chinese government was granted leases to operate ports on both ends of the canal.

Of course, the U.S. demonstrated dramatically in 1989 that it will bring force to bear in Panama when it perceives its interests threatened.

I believe even China respects that.

The issue with our own ports is different. Here the concern -- in a worst-case, nightmare scenario -- is terrorism, aided and abetted by an Arab-owned port-management company.

At the very best, the Bush administration has shown tremendous insensitivity by blundering into this problem. Why in the world it didn't discuss this matter with congressional leaders and figure out some resolution in the first place, I just can't guess.

There was no concern with the British firm Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Co. managing the ports. Now it's an entirely different story. Unless the contract to run the ports can be transferred or subcontracted to an American company, there will be legitimate doubts about future security.

Oh, East won that election in 1980. Maybe some of today's politicians are aware of that.

Yes, as a resident of North Carolina's 12th Congressional District, I am happy that Vernon Robinson is running.

He'll give Mel Watt a rough-and-tumble campaign tussle.

Every once in a while, a politician should really have to earn re-election.

I'm not a big Vernon Robinson fan. He's way over the top. Once in a while, he's right.

I can't say I agree with Mel Watt on many issues, although I respect him. He's honest, thoughtful, accessible, conscientious and a true gentleman.

I'm sure he'll try his best to ignore Robinson.

It will be impossible.

Voters shouldn't be able to ignore this campaign, either, and that's for the better.

My column today:

"Don't play. Save a dollar a day."

That's my pitch for the North Carolina lottery.

Sounds stupid? Not when you look at the advertising restrictions written into the lottery law. There are four rules:

Lethal injection: cruel and unusual.

Partial-birth abortion: an essential right.

Does this make sense?

I'm not a strong proponent of the death penalty, nor do I think abortion is the wrong choice in all instances.

I'm just trying to understand.

Help!

Here's why I had to hide the paper from my wife yesterday.

The Bush administration just makes me grit my teeth these days.

At the same time, the recent foibles let me give my son, Andrew, a smile or two.

Much like I did years ago when he was away from home. Let me go back.

The summer after seventh grade, he participated in Duke University's Talent Identification Program, which actually was held at Davidson College.

He was there for three weeks, during which the young students completed a year's course in algebra. They weren't allowed to go home for weekends.

He was pretty homesick, at least for the first week or so.

Trying to help, I sent him a letter every day and included each day's installment of his favorite comic, The Far Side by Gary Larson. I think it cheered him up.

Now he's much farther away, working as a Peace Corps volunteer in Tanzania.

Even though he's 24 now and an experienced traveler who's spent lots of time overseas, I think he still misses home occasionally and feels just a bit isolated in a very different culture. So, I write to him regularly and send him things I think he might enjoy.

I have to say that somewhere in his development, he took a strange turn. His political views tilt well to the left. Oh, well, that's what you get when you encourage your kids to think for themselves.

Anyway, the perfect news clippings and commentaries to send him detail the seemingly never-ending list of Bush administration flubs.

Last week it was the Cheney hunting accident.

This week it's the ports.

Next week, well, I shudder to think what it might be.

I'll grit my teeth ... and cut out stories to mail his way.

It's The Far Side all over again.

Kudos to Brad and Britt of 101.1 FM for their interview this morning with U.S. Rep. J.D. Hayworth, R-Ariz.

Hayworth is a High Point native whose career in broadcasting took him to Phoenix, where he decided to jump into politics.

After lamenting the Wolfpack's dismal showing against Carolina last night, N.C. State grad Hayworth forcefully expressed respectful disagreement with President Bush's handling of the ports issue.

Hayworth is an impressive guy -- personable, engaging, quick-witted and an excellent speaker. He's got a great future in politics.

Too bad North Carolina let him get away.

The Rhino had a right to publish the Muhammad cartoons.

It wasn't a good idea to do so, in my opinion.

Local Muslims have a right to hold demonstrations in protest.

It won't be a good idea if they do, in my opinion.

If it was divisive for the Rhino to publish, it is equally divisive to stage demonstrations.

Both actions nudge people into taking sides.

This can lead to worse things: counter-demonstrations, name-calling, anger.

Muslims in other places have grossly overreacted to these cartoons.

I wouldn't expect violence to occur here. But even peaceful demonstrations are an overreaction.

In a free society, offensive material is published all the time. Sometimes the best response is to ignore it, not magnify it by protest, demonstrations, boycotts.

Americans support freedom of expression. They resent attempts to intimidate others into giving up that freedom through public pressure.

A popular saying goes like this: I may not like what you say but I'll defend your right to say it.

It's not: If I don't like what you say, I'm going to demand an apology and see to it that you don't say it again.

The Muslim community should let this go and show it understands the sometimes rough-and-tumble realities of free speech. Otherwise, I'm afraid it risks alienating itself from the greater community.

I saw a pear tree in bloom downtown this morning.

My pear tree at home won't be far behind.

Darn! Just in time for plunging temperatures in a couple of days.

Jim Black wants taxpayers to fork out up to $200,000 for his legal expenses.

I have a better idea. Let him tap into the $1,058,301 in his campaign fund.
The way he raised that money is what brought on all his trouble in the first place.

One of my favorite words is shenanigans.

I love its lilting Irishness, of course, but more than that its ultility.

It describes wrongdoing in a way that implies much more than it says.

It can have a fairly benign application, to be sure. "Playful or mischievous trick," says Webster's in one of its definitions.

It can have a somewhat shadier meaning as well.

That allows the writer plenty of flexibility when referring, say, to politicians who are up to no good but possibly not guilty of anything actually illegal.

Just refer to their shenanigans and let the readers take it any way they like.

I'm going to respond to today's Counterpoint only because what I wrote in my Feb. 15 column is so badly distorted.

Chris Newsom refers to my "misguided paranoia against our fellow Muslim Americans."

I don't know whose "fellow Muslim Americans" that is; I'm not a Muslim American.

Nor did I write anything in that column about Muslim Americans. I wrote about Muslims overseas who have been rioting, burning and killing in response to cartoons.

Newson adds: "I would put forth that our real concern should not be Clark's fear of 'the fury of radical Islam' but should be on ensuring that citizens are not terrorized here at home by their own police force in the name of a widely criticized war on terror."

I have to disagree with the premise of this statement, which is that the Greensboro Police Department represents a greater threat than radical Islamists.

While I wish the GPD would answer the charges of police brutality at the Jan. 31 demonstration -- I'm pretty sure David Wray would if he were still chief, as he did in the case of the Egyptian woman who claimed to have been roughly treated by an officer -- the fact is that police officers as a rule are not terrorizing people in Greensboro.

Radical Islamists, on the other hand, are terrorizing people in many places around the world with kidnappings, beheadings, bombings. A radical Islamic country -- Iran -- is building nuclear weapons and saying that Israel should be eradicated. That's terrifying, in my opinion.

Radical Islam brought us 9/11. Tell the relatives of the 3,000 9/11 victims that an American police department is more dangerous to Americans than al-Qaida.

Finally, let me ask Chris Newsom this: Where would you feel safer protesting the government: in Tehran or in Greensboro?

Case closed.

Considering the party-first attitude of Bode Miller and the Shani Davis-Chad Hedrick feud, it's a good thing the U.S. Olympic team had Joey Cheek.

No one deserves to carry our flag more than the speedskater from Greensboro.

While Miller, one of the world's most talented alpine skiiers, failed to medal in five events, then revealed his goal really was to party at an Olympic level, and gold medal speedskaters Davis and Hedrick sniped at each other, all Cheek did was win a gold and silver, get along with everyone and donate his winnings to humanitarian work in Africa.

Thanks, Joey. You did us proud.

Do you consider yourself politically moderate, rather than liberal or conservative?

If so, you're probably not very well represented in Congress.

I base that conclusion on National Journal's new congressional rating.

It scores senators and representatives according to their recorded votes.

Overall, it rates North Carolina as a "centrist" state. But that's very deceptive. The centrist tag reflects an average score, but the state's congressional delegation consists almost entirely of liberals and conservatives.

Only two members -- Republican Walter Jones and Democrat Mike McIntyre -- could be considered moderates, according to National Journal's findings.

Jones, from Farmville, is more conservative than 51 percent of his House colleagues.

McIntyre, from Lumberton, is more liberal than 52.3 percent.

That puts both in the middle.

Other scores:

Republicans

Virginia Fox of Banner Elk, more conservative than 91.3 percent.

Patrick McHenry of Cherryville, more conservative than 88.8 percent.

Sue Myrick of Charlotte, more conservative than 88 percent.

Robin Hayes of Concord, more conservative than 82.5 percent.

Charles Taylor of Brevard, more conservative than 80.2 percent.

Howard Coble of Greensboro, more conservative than 65.8 percent.

Our senators, Republicans Elizabeth Dole and Richard Burr, are more conservative than 81.8 percent and 73.5 percent of their colleagues, respectively.

Democrats

Bob Etheridge of Lillington, more liberal than 65.8 percent.

G.K. Butterfield of Wilson, more liberal than 68.2 percent.

Brad Miller of Raleigh, more liberal than 77.8 percent.

David Price of Chapel Hill, more liberal than 81.7 percent.

Mel Watt of Charlotte, more liberal than 92.7 percent.

Why do almost all our representatives skewer so far left or right? Because of how the congressional districts are drawn. Each one is crafted by our state legislature to favor one party or the other. A district that strongly favors a Republican is generally going to produce a very conservative Republican because it lacks the moderating influence that a significant number of Democratic voters would require. A district that strongly favors a Democrat likely will elect a very liberal Democrat because it lacks the moderating influence of many Republican voters.

As a result, moderates are pretty much left out.

So, we have a centrist congressional delegation, but only on average.

In reality, there aren't many centrists at all.

I wrote a few weeks ago about Rachel Lea Hunter, who planned to run for a seat on the N.C. Supreme Court partly on a platform of calling for the impeachment of President Bush.

That doesn't have anything to do with the state Supreme Court, but it was a position sure to attract attention to her campaign.

Now Hunter has actually filed for the office -- as Rachel Lea (Madame Justice) Hunter.

That's how she wants her name to appear on the ballot.

She's running against Associate Justice Mark D. Martin, an eight-year veteran of the court who, as I've written before, already has been endorsed by all five living former chief justices of the state court.

Defeating such a highly regarded justice would be a tall order for Hunter. No doubt she thinks listing herself on the ballot as Madame Justice will win her some votes.

It certainly could fool some voters.

Hunter is not now, and has never been, a justice. She's never been a judge of any sort.

Calling herself Madame Justice would be a fraud.

She claims that's her nickname, and nicknames are allowed on the ballot. Normally those nicknames are derivatives of the candidate's actual name, according to Johnnie McLean, deputy director for administration of the State Board of Elections, with whom I spoke a few minutes ago. As an example, she cited James B. Hunt appearing on the ballot as Jim Hunt.

McLean could not think of a previous example of a candidate using a nickname that encompasses the office for which she is running.

Just imagine:

Mike (The Governor) Easley

Jim (Speaker For Life) Black

Keith (His Honor The Mayor) Holliday.

Let's not get this sort of thing started.

The State Board of Elections already has received an objection to Hunter's request, and Executive Director Gary Bartlett plans to consider the matter later today, McLean said.

He should say no to Madame Justice.

Update: Bartlett does say no.

Somehow, Mardi Gras just doesn't seem like the right thing for New Orleans to do this year.

Vernon Robinson has skipped out.

I welcomed the volatile black Republican's challenge of Congressman Mel Watt in my 12th District, and now he's abandoned me. Robinson scratched his name off the books today and re-filed as a candidate in the 13th District.

That seat is held by Democrat Brad Miller.

Running against Watt would have been "a waste of Robinson's resources," the former Winston-Salem alderman's Web site says.

Now he's matching his "mainstream record" against the "ultra-liberal" Miller.

Um, Watt is more "ultra-liberal" than Miller.

But, since when is Robinson "mainstream"? He calls himself the black Jesse Helms and is probably most famous for placing a monument to the Ten Commandments in front of the Winston-Salem municipal building on a holiday. Of course, he had no authorization for that stunt.

Nevertheless, I was excited about having Robinson run in my district. Watt never has faced a contentious challenger, and Robinson would have given him fits.

Now the GOP nomination will go to Ada Fisher, who was crushed by Watt with barely a whimper two years ago.

Miller, on the other hand, is in for a tough year. He'll probably win in his Democrat-leaning district, but Robinson will make him work for it ... and give him indigestion.

Wait a minute? How can Robinson, who ran for Congress in the 5th District two years ago, file to run in the 12th, then the 13th? Does the guy live in an RV that he drives from one district to another?

Nope. There's no law that says a congressional candidate has to live in the district where's he's running.

Witness Rory Blake of Charlotte, who filed Tuesday to run against Howard Coble in the 6th District.

Blake ran several times against Sue Myrick in the 9th District.

Since no 6th District Democrat was willing to take on Coble, Blake apparently decided to give it a try.

Blake can't win, but Coble might be nicer to him than Sue "HELL NO!" Myrick would be.

I doubt even Myrick, as feisty as she is, would want to have Vernon Robinson to contend with.

I think I hear Mel Watt breathing a sigh of relief.

And Brad Miller crying.