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July 30, 2007

Peace, dawg (or Mike Vick is cooked)

Mike Vick is cooked. And deservedly so. Today, co-defendant Tony Taylor entered a guilty plea and will likely testify against Vick if the case goes to trial.

In the statement of facts accompanying the plea, Taylor acknowledges several damaging things against the flee-footed quarterback.

Including:

The men developed an idea to start a dog-fighting ring
A property was identified and purchased by Vick.
Vick put up all the expense money to purchase equipment, train and kennel dogs and improve the property.
Vick routinely traveled with the men to fights in the southeast.

The statement also details that Taylor lived in the house, took care of the dogs and used his winnings to live off of since he spent most of his time dedicated to the enterprise.

In my experience covering federal criminal court, I think you can bet on the fact that the government has receipts, checks, bank account statements and hotel records that can back up their claims.

Did I mention Vick owned the property?

Bye, bye Mike.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 06:14 PM | | Comments (0)

Innocence and existential crises

Spent the morning here. What a wonder it is to see a boy and his favorite train. Such innocence, the way a little boy adores a train. So it seemed fitting on a rainy afternoon that I came back to base camp and watched this movie.

One thing about not watching tv. When you do, you sometimes remember that the medium can be quite powerful.

I highly recommend The American Ruling Class to anyone who has not seen it yet.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 02:57 PM | | Comments (0)

"Shooting Michael Moore" is worth its weight in gold

Saw this on CSPAN last night. Almost made me reconsider not having cable, till I ran across this a few minutes later.

Anyway, Kevin Leffler grew up with Michael Moore and grew sick of Moore's hypocrisy so much so that he spent 100k of his own money to show what people who know Moore, or have been left in his wake, think of him.

Lot's of troubling stuff. I've never watched a Moore film, but I enjoyed seeing clips of Leffler's.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 12:26 PM | | Comments (0)

July 29, 2007

States could lose millions under expanded SCHIP

In trying to understand the health care debate, I've been paying more attention to the commentary and news items related to the issue.

Before Congress right now is a proposal to expand a program that covers middle-class children, whose parents make too much to afford medicare, but not enough to afford insurance.

David Broder spoke about this at length on Washington Week on Friday night and his Sunday column tackles the veto battle that may result.

Heritage Foundation has a great map that shows some states will lose big time under the funding scheme included in the proposal. Democrats want to increase cigarette taxes to increase the program (State Children's Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP) by some $50 billion to cover an additional 5 million children.

Texas, Cali, NY and southwest border states would see increased federal dollars, while most of the southeast and rust belt would lose millions.

Heritage has four-point criticism of the plan to expand SCHIP.

On an unrelated not, here is a Heritage item on the Massachusetts health care reform I hear so many people offering as an example to be emulated.


 

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:13 AM | | Comments (0)

July 26, 2007

Subprime pushback

Worrisome.

Since 2000, more than $1.8 trillion worth of securities backed by subprime mortgages have been created, according to Inside Mortgage Finance.

Hedge funds made money off those securities by turning them into complex investment vehicles called derivatives and selling them to pension funds, insurance companies, foreign investors and others. The rise of such financial partners empowered the lending industry to sell even-riskier loans.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:28 AM | | Comments (0)

Housing market could be further damaged by new state tax

Given this report, I'm not at all convinced that now is a good time for a new tax on home sales in North Carolina.

The housing industry is very shaky, "on a staircase to the basement" as one analyst stated.

In places not named Raleigh, Charlotte and Greensboro, it can be very hard to sell a home in North Carolina. In Reidsville, some homes sit on the market for years, with sellers absorbing closing costs just to get rid of the home. We don't need another tax and another fee standing in the way of a home sale.

We also don't need more shell games to finance the state budget.

But with state Republicans unable to offer serious leadership and personal integrity as a whole to oppose even a state Democratic party rocked by the most serious ethics scandal in state history, it looks like more of the same is in order for the foreseeable future.

Lot's of complex issues are inter-related, like this example of the national economy and a new state tax. I wish I had time to examine them in more detail.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:23 AM | | Comments (1)

July 25, 2007

No Child leaves important subjects behind

The WaPo reports today that NCLB has caused a decrease in the amount of classroom time spent on subjects that lead to a well rounded individual:

In the five years since a federal law mandated an expansion of reading and math tests, 44 percent of school districts nationwide have made deep cutbacks in social studies, science, art and music lessons in elementary grades and have even slashed lunchtime, a new survey has found.

The most detailed look at the rapidly changing American school day, in a report released today, found that most districts sharply increased time spent on reading and math.

Teaching to the test is not the same thing as education.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:40 AM | | Comments (0)

July 24, 2007

Legislature should say no to baseload financing of power plants

Allowing Duke and Progress to charge its customers for the construction cost of new power plants plus profit before they are on line is part of the proposed state energy bill.

Mark Binker's ever wonderful Capital Beat has all the background and reporting you need to know.

I don't see any reason for power companies to be allowed to charge rate payers cost plus profit to build new nuclear and coal plants.

Binker linked to a group called NC Warn and I found this memo regarding baseload financing that goes into detail about the rational behind it.

Bottom line: We need more consumers writing energy bills instead of power company lawyers.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 09:55 PM | | Comments (0)

Reidsville's Renaissance

Brad Spencer looks out of the window in his newly rennovated building on SW Market St. in Reidsville. Photo by Jeffrey SykesReidsville's SW Market Street is seeing somewhat of a renaissance in the last year. Led by artist Brad Spencer, and his wife Tammy, the city's director of economic development, shop owners and artists are building momentum.
Teresa Phillips opened her Everyday Art Gallery last year and sees a steady stream of customers. On Saturdays her shop is abuzz and business appears steady.

The Fine Arts Festival Association recently received a gift from Brad Spencer, when he bought and renovated a small building next to Everyday Art and donated it to FAFA for gallery and office space.

I visited Saturday, about two weeks after their grand opening, which I missed while on vacation. An RCC student, Tara Thullner, is working with FAFA, manning the gallery during its open hours.

In the photo gallery are several pictures of works by the Studio Group, an artist collective in Rockingham County.

I also included a crude graphic that shows the location of the new galleries and a few things that I hear are planned for the street.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 08:45 PM | | Comments (0)

Beyond furniture

Reidsville and Rockingham County are making some strides in moving past the loss of its manufacturing base. Witness the Fine and Creative Woodworking Program at Rockingham Community College.

I'm lucky enough to know the program's director, David Kanealy, and his family.

With a burgeoning arts district in downtown Reidsville (more on that soon) the woodworking program could add a solid element to the city's attempt to transform itself. A store-front studio showcasing the work of RCC students could be a boon to the downtown area. I don't know of anyone planning such a thing, but it would seem a natural symbiosis.

The woodworking program was recently featured on WUNC's The State of Things program with host Frank Stasio. The audio is available via MP3. Kanealy is featured on the program and lends insight into how he got involved in woodworking because of a high school teacher who fueled his interest in the trade.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 01:59 PM | | Comments (0)

July 23, 2007

Stat sheets not rap sheets

I see Ed Cone beat me to some of this already, but that's ok.

This morning on reading more about the NBA referee scandal, I got to thinking how all three major pro sports leagues are living under a cloud of suspicion involving alleged illegal activity on and off the field.

That's not what pro sports is supposed to be about.

Like many, I too lost interest in MLB after the 1994 strike. I continued to watch the World Series, but an ungodly amount of black and white pinstripes and Derek Jeter was more than I could stomach. When that followed up with the increasing steroid cloud hanging over the sport, I easily gave up on baseball.

It feels awkward to know a 'roid rager like Barry Bonds is about to break one of the greatest records in sports, owned for so long by one of its most deserving heroes.

Now, with Michael Vick's indictment and the NBA referee being controlled by a gambling organization and fixing games, its become intolerable.

I love sports. I'm not one of those who writes it off as grown men making too much money for their own good. Basketball is beautiful and football is poetry in motion. Watching Amare, or KG or Kobe work their stuff is amazing. Same goes for watching Vince Young scramble or Tom Brady of Peyton Manning carve up a defense.

But they've got to clean these sports up.

Some have already pointed out the NBA is in deep trouble.

I believe Vick's stupidity, added to a cadre of other players in recent years involved in violent criminal activity, continues to be a blight on the NFL and a discredit to Hall of Famers like Jim Brown, Gayle Sayers, Roger Staubach and others who built the league into what it is today.

It's just a sad time for pro sports right now. I hope they get back to basics so we can focus on stat sheets instead of rap sheets.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 12:46 PM | | Comments (0)

July 20, 2007

Ethics for modern journalism

Brook R. Corwin, l.c.s.

I don't know if I should write about this or not, but I will:

"Brook R. Corwin has been promoted to associate editor at The Tribune in Elkin. Corwin has been a staff reporter since 2005."

Can anyone offer perspective on the following:

A young reporter fabricates interviews, turns in photos lifted from the internet for publication in the newspaper, and then lies to his editor when confronted about it saying he did the interviews and only lifted the photos to complete his assignment. That reporter is suspended when his editor discovers that he lied when asked about the incident, then resigns along with another reporter and the editor because of the world-wide fall out the incident attracts.

Does that reporter deserve a second chance in journalism and can he ever be fully trusted with the truth, let alone rise to become an editor himself within two years of the lying, cheating and stealing that cost two others their careers in journalism.

I'm just asking.

 

Here's how I feel. 

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:24 AM | | Comments (0)

End of Oil?

I don't have cable tv in my house, well for a lot of reasons, but primarily I cancelled it after my son was born in 2005 because I wanted to give him his first few years without being pounded by the nonsense he would be exposed to while his parents sit around watching cable tv.

Anyway, I went to visit my grandmother yesterday to mow her yard and caught some C-SPAN.

I saw a replay of Rep. Roscoe Bartlett's Peak Oil Presentation from March. From his website: "One of three scientists in the Congress, Dr. Bartlett is also a senior member of the Science Committee serving on two of its subcommittees, Energy and the Environment and Research and Science Education."

So he should be in a good position to talk about Peak Oil, the looming energy crisis and a GAO report warning of possible critical shortages in oil to fuel our economy and military.

Tons of info in the GAO report.

Bartlett's Peak Oil presentation with charts.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 09:32 AM | | Comments (1)

If clicks were votes

Came across this via CNN yesterday. Compete, Inc. tracks web traffic for corporations. They have also been tracking visits to web sites of presidential candidates. They make their research available here.

You can see the heavy amount of traffic generated by the Democratic candidates. According to their metrics, Obama and Romney would win the nominations, with Obama trouncing Romney in a landslide.

Lots of eye candy on their web site.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 08:29 AM | | Comments (0)

July 17, 2007

The Boy Millionaire and the Torch Singer

I give Winston Salem Journal reporter Mary Guinca a C- for her rehashing of the history of the death of Z. Smith Reynolds. The writing is less than energetic, with the drama of the case carrying the story. That makes the series worth the read.

The Journal, though, gets an A for continuing their stellar tradition of engaging journalism. The Darryl Hunt saga's online content a few years ago was a great example of online journalism and storytelling.

Smith Reynolds' death had a great impact on the city of Winston-Salem. In the end, though, the foundations and entities that bear his name (Smith Reynolds Airport, Z. Smith Reynolds Library at Wake Forest University) leave a positive legacy.

The Journal package, published last week, comes with multimedia photos and a link to Youtube video of Libby Holman. She provides a connection to Reidsville and Rockingham County in that she turned herself into authorities in Wentworth after being in hiding following ZSR's death. Amid much media fanfare, she checked into the Belvedere Hotel in Reidsville before going to Winston-Salem to await trial.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 07:32 PM | | Comments (0)

Cornell West online discussion via WaPo

Dr. Cornell West, one of my intellectual heroes, participated in a discussion online today via the WaPo "which explores the issues of race, the use of the "N-word" in popular culture and hip-hop and the current state of the world."

I don't agree with everyting West stands for, but I do admire his ability to elucidate what he believes. He's a passionate thinker and an American icon. I read Democracy Matters a few years back.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 01:12 PM | | Comments (0)

July 16, 2007

Coastline?

I'm really a big fan of the WaPo. Don't know why. Probably because of Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, All the President's Men and the legacy that endures today.

They continue that tradition of great reporting with two recent series. One on Dick Cheney, I'll not comment on since I dislike him intensely.

I came across this series today, and this story about what our coastline could look like in decades to come.

While planning a recent beach trip, I spent some time with Google maps looking at satellite images of our coastline. My childhood saw a great many weeks spent with my grandparents on Emerald Island. Look how thin that coastline is.

I'll be going to Sunset Beach for the first time next month. I saw this image and became vexed. Greatly vexed. What is all that dark matter coming through the jetty? I shudder to think.

Needless to say with rising sea levels threatening our stellar coastline, along with SC, GA and most of Florida, New Orleans and the nation's fourth largest city, Houston, this issue is not only a moral imperative, but one of national security as well.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 10:03 AM | | Comments (0)

July 15, 2007

Kristol's got guts, but is he right?

It takes big guts to write an apologetics like Bill Kristol penned in today's WaPo.

Even if Iraq takes a major turn for stability, I don't think Bush can be judged a success. I could be wrong.

Also, it's unlikely any GOP candidate can win in 2008 because Americans rarely give the same party three term in the White House. We need to focus on middle America and take the Congress back. 

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 06:48 AM | | Comments (8)

July 14, 2007

Reidsville in Time of War

Downtown Reidsville, or what's left of it.
(click image for photo gallery)

Life is Reidsville is rarely dull, what with the racing cars and booming systems creeping by the crib at all hours of day and night. But I was stunned recently when I came past the old tobacco plant and saw the remnants of North Scales Street after what looked like a missile attack.

Calm yourselves. There was no real attack. Reidsville City Council continues its drive to transform downtown, this time by demolishing both sides of an unsightly city block in the heart of the city.

Last year, council began buying up property in the area. When a planned mixed use development failed to secure redevelopment grants to assist with the project, council moved to plan B, which involves demolition. What else it involves is a good question.

A major city park is planned for the area behind city hall and the police department, but that project has no money as of yet. Some of these razed areas would serve as parking and a gathering area behind the library, but what's to become of the other side of the street I don't know.

Enjoy the pictures. I did.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 07:31 PM | | Comments (0)

July 13, 2007

Whatever's cool with me

In all the hubbub over the Hindu praying' in the US Senate, one thing escaped me until now. How did it come to be that a Hindu got in a position to take the podium in the United States Senate and speak his intonation into the microphone?
Well, none other than Sen. Harry Reid invited the man.
I'll say one thing for these Dems. Harry and Nancy are doing a great job of stoking the conservative base for the '08 election.
I had fun trading' barbs over at Word Up with the regulars who line up under the "whatever's cool with you is cool with me" banner.
But beyond my absurdist rhetoric, a few things are important to consider.
Ed Cone, Joe Killian and others who comment often there seem to me to want to ignore traditional values and prudence in matters of morals. Are we really prepared for the unknown consequences of doing away with commonly held values and morals that have guided our communities, states and country, along with most of the rest of our cultural cousins in Europe and the Middle East, in favor of letting everybody do their own thing and do it right out in the open because of the word "freedom" in the US Constitution? Are we using the word "freedom" in the same paradigm it was intended to be used, or has the paradigm shift in American culture made the word "freedom" irrelevant in the context of the Founder's meaning?
I don't have the answer.
Morals and ethics are dichotomies. At heart, I believe all values are likely meaningless, but then I run the risk of burning in hell for eternity. I was raised on traditional Judeo-Christian morals, and so if I'm to have any allegiance to a code of morals, that's likely the one I default to. The Hindu religion's cycle of life makes great sense to me, and at times I feel that it is more likely that we are all spirits in the material looking for a path to immortality.
I don't so much mind the Hindu saying his bit about becoming eternal, as much as I mind Senator Reid saying that the guy was "in communication with our heavenly father regarding peace." What a crock. He was in communication with Shiva or Vishnu or whatever deity of the moment is ascendant. "Our heavenly father" is vernacular for Jehovah God. If you know anything about him, you know he don't play that.
As Mr. Cone likes to say, words have meaning.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 09:01 PM | | Comments (0)

The Yellow House

The Yellow HouseI'm taking a break from my usual historical and philosophy readings, and turning to other fare this month. After all, it's summer. 
After having revisited Lee by D.S. Freeman and an old favorite, Jefferson Davis and His Generals: The Failure of Confederate Command in the West in the past months, I picked up a book last week, The Yellow House: Van Gogh, Gauguin and Nine Turbulent Weeks in Arles.
It's a great read so far. I know a bit about Vincent, but nothing of Gauguin. Very interesting on their daily lives, letters to their art dealer in Paris, Theo Van Gogh, and their commentary on each others paintings.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 07:17 PM | | Comments (0)

July 12, 2007

Issues critical to Reidsville's future

Though I am not going to run for Reidsville City Council this year, I still feel these issues are critical to the city's future success. I am reposting these snippets from my temporary campaign website here for the archives.

Economy

Reidsville has to grow out of its current status quo.

I think most people realize that the economy cannot stay the way it is. We must attract new families to the city and not allow our middle-class residential base to continue to drain away to county subdivisions and beyond.

How do we do that?

I believe it can best be done by making Reidsville a vibrant community, full of life and color. We should work to build stronger neighborhoods and continue to improve quality of life issues such as appearance, walkability, decreased noise pollution and pride in ownership.

Businesses must play a vital role in this by offering top-notch service and experience for customers. I believe the city should encourage entrepreneurs to set up shop downtown to bring life back to the core business district.

The city should offer tax incentives to property owners that give rental discounts to potential high-impact small businesses that locate downtown.

But we must move beyond this core business district.

Lawsonville Avenue and West Harrison Street, along with South Scales Street, need major upgrades.

I believe we should create a redevelopment plan for South Scales Street from Harrison Street to Richardson Drive as a next step in urban revitalization.

Someone needs to promote appearance and quality of life issues to private property owners in an effort to encourage them to put their best foot forward in attracting new customers to their stores and residents to our city.

City budget/taxes

Budgeting for outcomes is about leadership.

Our city officials need to realize that value in government means not making excuses. “We pay these taxes too” and “It’s a revenue problem” and “We’ve already cut all the fat” don’t excuse a six-cent tax increase after years of budgeting as usual.

Across the country, localities large and small are turning to a new process by which citizens decide how much they are willing to spend on government and then challenge elected leaders to deliver services without making excuses.

It’s a complicated process that requires innovation, but in an age of permanent fiscal crises, innovation is what’s needed, not more taxes.

There comes a point at which government no longer delivers value for the governed. I believe we have crossed that line and need to address the fiscal challenges facing Reidsville so we will be better positioned for business and residential growth that will fuel the local economy.

Schools and economic development

We cannot wait any longer to improve the quality of public schools in Reidsville.

The continued negative reputation of our middle and high school is a hindrance to economic development, real estate sales and overall community self-esteem.

But we all know that our schools have countless success stories that go untold. I believe as a city we must bond together to channel our energy into turning around the negative perception attached to our schools.

Someone should champion the successes in our schools and work to turn around the negativity some in our area seem to insist on when talking of our students and teachers.

We cannot spend money as a city to make the schools better, but we can and must spend our emotional and sweat equity as volunteers and mentors to help our students succeed.

That extends to parents as well. Parenting is likely the number one factor in a student’s success or failure. We must, as parents and residents, work outside of the schools to make our students more prepared for classroom success. Then we must back off and let our educators do their jobs.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 11:41 AM | | Comments (0)

July 10, 2007

Not running

I had a great vacation last week, with lots of time to think and read and plan. I've decided that right now it is not appropriate for me to run for Reidsville City Council. Although there are lots of reasons why I'd like to run, there are also lots of reasons I shouldn't.

Chief among the reasons why I've decided not to run:

1. Support for the incumbents is strong among likely voters. In talking to people around town there doesn't seem to be much of an outcry about the budget situation or the recent property tax increase. Both incumbents are admired and respected, and so I don't see the existence of the primary criteria for me to mount a challenge.

2. As chairman of the Reidsville Appearance Commission I already have a voice in one of the most important challenges facing the city. I can continue to focus on litter abatement and promoting pride in ownership. I can also have a voice in other property and economic development issues by continuing to serve on additional steering and ad hoc committees.

3. From a personal standpoint, the most compelling reason for me not to run is the fact that I have significant failures in my past. Whether some will allow me to move beyond those failures and serve in elected office is yet to be decided. The baggage will always be there. At this time, however, I believe that any benefit I could bring to the council, and to Reidsville residents, would be negated by these personal failures. Therefore, judging myself by the strict criteria I would judge a candidate for office by, I don't think it is a propitious time for me to stand for elected office.

I appreciate the encouragement of those who have taken the time to contact me. I also am thankful for the wise counsel of those community leaders who have given me straight feedback and clear perspective.

Posted by Jeffrey Sykes at 07:13 PM | | Comments (0)