This post is a mixed-bag of stuff that’s been floating around my head these few weeks.

The race for Jacksonville’s City Council

There hasn’t been much public campaigning. Mr. Hunter Hadley, Jr (At-Large) has yard signs posted. Councilwoman Reva Sullivan (Ward 2) is hosting a campaign kick-off event tonight (September 3rd) from 6pm to 9pm at Tony’s Seafood and Oyster Bar. Mr. James Bryan (At-Large) has a blog, but it’s fizzled (almost as badly as Bloviations!).

I was quite disappointed at the lack of campaigning at the National Night Out. Not one candidate for Jacksonville’s City Council visited the Recreation and Parks/Trails and Greenways commissions tents…Well, that’s not necessarily true…Council-members Alva Williams (At-Large) and Reva Sullivan walked by, but didn’t say anything to the Commission volunteers manning the tables. Ms. Sullivan even refused to accept information regarding Trails and Greenways and an upcoming Downeast Cyclists’ ride in October.

Freedom Communications, Inc Files for Bankruptcy

The company which owns the Jacksonville Daily News, and other eastern NC newspapers, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy. JDNews publisher Elliott Potter says it’s “business as usual” at Jacksonville’s only newspaper.

Speaking of the Jacksonville Daily News…

The paper’s opinion page reads more like a Republican-funded political rag than a libertarian-based newspaper. It’s no wonder that younger folks aren’t interested in paper news when all you see are screeds that accuse President Obama of being a “socialist” at best and the anti-christ at worst.

Some Cool Bicycle Poetry

Thoughts on My Bike and There’s a Flower in My Pedal by Andrya Dorfman. Tip o’ the bicycle helmet to Cycleicio.us

While We’re on Bicycles…

Did you know that less than 10% of accidents that include a bicycle are the bicyclists’ fault?

Blowing my Own Horn or Ringing my Own Bell

As of August 15th, it’s been 12 full months of bicycle-commuting. As of earlier this week, I’ve bicycled over 4,000 miles. Whoever says you can’t live in Jacksonville without a car is wrong.

If you thought recent dramas in Jacksonville were over, you were wrong. The folks at Americans for Prosperity have attacked Mr. Phillip Cherry (Director of the Onslow County Library System) for sending out an email requesting citizens speak at a recent Onslow County Commission meeting to advocate for library programs. Members of the Onslow County faction of AFP claim that Cherry has undertaken “political and partisan” action while using government systems and information. I find it odd that the chief advocate for the library would be attacked for advocating against serious cuts, but I think it’s more likely that the local group hasn’t gotten much play in the media. The AFP has been taking a more active and public role in attempting to force local governments into cutting budgets, laying off or furloughing employees and trimming services since their organized “TEA parties” (which they tried to pass off as “grassroots”). AFP is a group of right-wing zealots that believe in reducing anything that doesn’t directly benefit themselves (usually Social Security, MediCare and MedicAid, etc). It’s quite pathetic, actually.

There’s a new blog covering local politics. Onslow County Politics is written by a former-Onslow County employee and he’s got some good insight on stuff. Check him…Erm, his blog, rather…out on a regular basis.

The Onslow County Board of Education has approved a budget nearly $3 million smaller than they wanted. Among the results are deferments for non-essential building renovations and repairs and a hiring freeze (leaving nearly 200 vacant positions) are the results.

Freedom Communications, Inc has instituted a 5% pay cut across the board for employees. Freedom Communications has a firm grip on Eastern NC’s news sources as it owns the Jacksonville Daily News, New Bern Sun Journal, The Havelock News, The Kinston Free Press and other newspapers in the area. 

There’s a few other things rolling around, but none are currently…Ready for release. So. Keep an eye open.

What’s happening in your world?

I haven’t heard the names “Joe McLaughlin” or “Delma Collins” in a while. Isn’t that nice?"

And it was, it was very nice…But it wasn’t to last very long. Follow the jump for details.

On Wednesday morning, my co-worker laid a clipping from the day’s Jacksonville Daily News. It was a paid advertisement, sponsored by Joe McLaughlin, which detailed a small slice of funding from the Economic Stimulus Package recently passed by the Congress and signed into law by President Obama.

And it looked exactly like this:

It says:

Did you know?

Under the new stimulus package recently signed into law the,

NATIONAL FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS AND THE HUMANITIES NATIONAL ENDOUWMENT FOR THE ARTS

GRANTS AND ADMINISTRATION

For an additional amount for “Grants and Administration”,

$50,000,000 OF YOUR MONEY!

to be distributed in direct grants to fund arts projects
and activities which preserve jobs in the non-profit arts sector
threatened by declines in philanthropic and other support during
the current economic downturn: Provided, That 40 percent of such
funds shall be distributed to State arts agencies and regional arts
organizations in a manner similar to the agency’s current practice
and 60 percent of such funds shall be for competitively selected
arts projects and activities according to sections 2 and 5(c) of
the National Foundation on the Arts and Humanities Act of 1965
(20 U.S.C. 951, 954(c)): Provided further, That matching requirements
under section 5(e) of such Act shall be waived.

"Ultimately, this is your money, and you deserve to know where it’s going and how it’s spent.” – President Barack Obama – Radio Address, Feb 14th, 2009

The advertisement takes text directly from H.R. 1, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and quotes President Obama.

McLaughlin placed similar advertisements in Friday and Saturday editions as well. His targets were AMTRAK and volcano monitoring funding within ARRA.

I understand McLaughlin’s choice of targets. Arts, science and AMTRAK have long been targets of the Republicans. They seem to feel that any government spending related to the three (as well as public/mass/alternative transportation, alternative energy, climate change, and more) is waste. It’s obviously a wrong-headed and misguided point of view, but it’s something I’ve accepted from right wing Republicans.

What has plagued me for the last few days is McLaughlin’s motives. Why is he paying for these advertisements? Just to educate Jacksonvillians? What’s his angle?

Could he be gearing up for a Jacksonville City Council battle this year? Onslow County Commissions (a post he held before resigned to spend his time campaigning for Congressman Walter B. Jones, Jr’s seat, a campaign at which he ultimately failed) aren’t due for a contest for four years. A run to get into the NC General Assembly? But against who? Would he challenge George Cleveland, Robert Grady or Harry Brown in primaries or Russell Tucker in a 2010 General Election? Is he ramping to challenge Mr. Jones, Jr. in 2010? Can he possibly believe he’d have a chance against Jones, Jr. after the primary? Or is he planning another primary challenge against a different opponent in 2010? Perhaps McLaughlin has senatorial aspirations.

I’m keeping my eyes and ears open. Joe McLaughlin is bad for Jacksonville, bad for Onslow County and bad for North Carolina. His  political career has ended and it needs to stay that way.

The subject of her post, cyber stalking, is something I’ve never had to deal with, as I have always written online by my given name. I do so for two reasons:

• I believe it lends more creditibility to my writing
• It requires that I think a little more about what I write

There is, though, a risk associated to writing by name and, to be completely honest, I really hadn’t considered it before I began writing. By using my name, I’ve placed myself in the public view. People of “authority” read my blog. Media outlets (Hi JDNewsers!), City of Jacksonville staff and, even, folks at the House of Representatives and U.S. Senate have visited and read my writing. This means that the people I’m closest to (Mini and AM) could become targets of their attacks (should any of them decide to do so). When I first posted at the Brock Log, I had never thought any of that possible.

I’ve been fortunate that I’ve never been victim of “cyber stalking” or it’s real world counter-part as a result of my online writing. I’ve been even more fortunate that my friends and family have been spared any sort of stalking.

It’s not something I’ve really worried about in the past…But now, as I become more public, it’s something I have to consider and be more watchful.

Community’s needs greater than bridge
To the editor:
    In his Jan. 8 letter to the editor headlined, “More use of bridge than some claim,” Thomas Brock acknowledges that Robert Hitch and I “may not” have seen any joggers or cyclists on the pedestrian bridge. Allow me to return the courtesy — he and “dozens of other walkers, runners, cyclists and families” may use Rails to Trails and its bridge, but I sure as the dickens have not seen them. The few people who may use the Rails to Trails and pedestrian bridge certainly do not justify what has been spent on that project.
    I freely admit that I am not a structural engineer; however, in all my experiences with rust, no rust I ever saw “sleeps.” All the rust processes I have encountered continue unabated 24/7 until the metal is completely consumed. Hopefully, no one will be under this “weathered steel” when it finally does rust all the way through.
    If Brock truly wants facts, here is one supported by numerous articles in The Daily News: Additional fire and police department personnel and facilities are desperately needed to meet current and future needs. These additional resources, if funded instead of Rails to Trails, would very easily have provided greater security and peace of mind to the entire community.
    And did the $1 million grant by the North Carolina Department of Transportation grow on a tree? The fact is that the source of all North Carolina government funds, of which the Department of Transportation is a part, are extorted from the public with the threat of a prison cell or loss of property. The $1 million did not fall out of the sky — it was forcefully confiscated from North Carolinians through taxes.
    Bro c k’s l e t t e r a l s o contained one of my very favorite political expressions: “Had the money not been used in Jacksonville, it surely would have been used elsewhere.” Why do politicians as well as other Rails-to-Trails supporter types always seem to think that since the money is there, having already been extorted from fellow citizens, it absolutely must be spent? It seems that spending is and always has been the first, if not the only, option considered. What’s wrong with saving the public’s money for future needs or, heaven forbid, return it to the people from whom it was confiscated?
    It is exactly this we-mustspend-it attitude that has put this country on the economic shoals. Contrary to current political philosophy, it is impossible to spend one’s self out of debt. Getting out of debt can only be achieved by acute fiscal responsibility.
    I, as well as many others, do not believe that placing a higher priority on Railsto-Trails enthusiasts’ needs for a place to exercise over the needs of additional police and fire department resources meets the good fiscal stewardship standard.
    Eddie C. Quinn
    Jacksonville

I’d respond but I believe that his letter contains nothing worth answering and nothing I say will convince Quinn that the Rails-to-Trails was a worthwhile project.

I will say this, however: Quinn bases his entire opinion of the usage of the Rails-to-Trails on the 45 seconds to 2 minutes the bridge is visible as he drives down Highway 24/Lejeune Blvd. I base mine on using the trail, twice a day, every day and frequently on weekends. You decide who is the better source of usage data.

Dear Editor,

The January 6th, 2009 edition of the Jacksonville Daily News featured an article titled “Rails-to-Trails bridge earns state engineering award”. This article unfairly portrays the Rails-to-Trails project, and the associated pedestrian bridge, as unused and unpopular by using quotations from two outspoken citizens, Messrs. Robert Hitch and Eddie Quinn.

The article quoted Messrs. Hitch and Quinn as saying neither has seen pedestrians or cyclists use Rails-to-Trails path or the pedestrian bridge over Highway 24/Lejeune Blvd. They may not have seen anyone using the bridge, but they are wrong when they claim it isn’t used. I, personally, use the path and bridge twice a day, every day Monday through Friday. There is a group of recreational cyclists that use the path and bridge nearly every day. I have passed, been passed by and met dozens of walkers, runners, cyclists and families on the path and
bridge. The Rails-to-Trails path and bridge is well-used. To believe anything else is to refuse to accept reality.

Messrs. Hitch and Quinn were quoted about their disapproval of the appearance of the bridge. I am not a structural engineer. I don’t believe Mr. Hitch or Mr. Quinn is, either. I, like City staff, can only go by the advice and recommendation of the engineering firm used to design and build the bridge. Their advice was to use a method called “weathered steel finish” to reduce long-term maintenance costs. Essentially, a layer of rust protects the interior steel from corrosion. This finish does not require stripping and repainting as galvanized steel would. Additionally, the dark, non-reflective coating reduces glare from a rising or setting sun which could cause the already-dangerous Highway 24/Lejeune Boulevard to be even more so.

Messrs. Hitch and Quinn said that they did not appreciate the use of tax-payer monies to fund the Rails-to-Trails project. They feel the monies used could be better spent in other areas. This is clearly a misunderstanding of several government budgeting and funding processes on their part. More than $1 million used to fund the Rails-to-Trails project came in the form of NC Department of Transportation grants. Had the money not been used in Jacksonville, it surely would have been used elsewhere. Other funds used were already budgeted to the
Recreation and Parks division. No existing City need was ignored in order to fund the Rails-to-Trails project.

Messrs. Hitch and Quinn are certainly entitled to their opinions. They are not, however, entitled to their own facts and, in this case, their facts are lacking. The Rails-to-Trails path is  often-used and well worth the money spent.

Thomas Brock

The full list is below:

There’s a few projects on the list that are surprising to me. The sidewalk, street rehabilitation and Chaney Creek Boardwalk projects are important, but I never imagined that they’d make the federal money wish-list since I would’ve thought they’d be less important to the Mayor than larger (and more expensive) capitol projects.

I’m surprised that the Jacksonville Daily News hasn’t covered the list, as their “Libertarian” leanings would certainly not be in support of federal money being spent on such frivolous projects.

Kudos to Jacksonville’s leadership (I’m not sure who represented the City at the meeting, though I’d imagine Mayor Sammy Phillips and City Manager Kristoff Bauer were involved) for getting them on the Coalition’s list. Here’s to hoping they can close the deals.

The Jacksonville Daily News website has a poll related to the Register of Deeds pay controversy. Go vote. It’s fun.

It appears that the Onslow County Board of Commissioners has no interest in discussing Becky Pollard’s pay during their December 15th meeting.

Says Commission Chairman W.C. Jarman:

"It is not on the tentative agenda and as far as I am concerned there will be no discussion of the salary,"

That means Ms. Pollard will be earning the minimum pay of $41,331.

Lindell Kay has a post that includes a quotation from Tommy Pollard about the awkward swearing in ceremony.

Pollard had this to say:

I do silly things sometimes

I suppose “silly” is one word that could be used to describe Mr. Pollard’s actions of late…

Lindell Kay reports in the Jacksonville Daily News:

Tommy Pollard passed out information to county officials last week comparing the salaries of several registers of deeds across the state to what former Onslow register May Kay Washington was earning. The paperwork shows a list of the pay for the register of deeds in 10 North Carolina counties with a population of 168,000. The average pay is around $70,000. Washington earned a salary in the mid-$50,000 range.

Let’s ignore that Ms. Washington, the previous Register of Deeds, had worked in the Onslow County Register of Deed’s office for decades longer than Ms. Pollard. Let’s ignore that Ms. Pollard hadn’t even been sworn in when Mr. Pollard provided his unofficial and unrequested study to the Onslow County Commissioners. Let’s even ignore that three of the members of the Onslow County Board of Commissioners hadn’t been sworn in when they received this unrequested study.

We’ll toss all that aside and look at the most significant factor:

Tommy Pollard has been accused of using his political clout for personal benefit before and he’s clearly interested in using his wife’s clout now.

My friends, that’s not change I can believe in…And if Becky Pollard wants to have a significant political career in Onslow County, it may not be change she can live with.

Added to Update: Lindell Kay blogged about Mr. Pollard’s actions, as well. He even pointed out an oddity with a photograph taken during Ms. Pollard’s swearing in…Can you spot it?

Added to Update: The commenters at the Jacksonville Daily News article are clearly not happy with Pollard’s efforts. I’ll go into more detail later, but I wanted to point them out now.

(Note from Thomas Brock: What follows is a guest post from Lindell Kay. Read more of Lindell’s writing at the Jacksonville Daily News and at his blog, Off the Cuff.)

My father, soon to be 79, has only one testicle. He has never disclosed to me exactly how that came about. In fact, it took me 30 years to find out where he picked up the long purple scar that stretches across his stomach. He told me at various times he was bitten by a ‘gator in Vietnam and bayoneted by a communist in Korea. The truth, I found, was less thrilling – doctors removed his appendix many decades ago.

My father’s one testicle is gigantic. Not surprising, Kay men have always been know for their large cojones, literally and metaphorically. And my father’s limited testicles count never interfered with his libido. I am the
youngest of eight children and there have long been whispers of several big-balled Vietnamese kids running around Da Nang in the years after my father’s tour of duty.

So why am I telling y’all all of this? Because I wanted to tell you about a visit my father recently had to his doctor’s office. To fully appreciate that tale, you need some background.

He had an appointment with a new physician and had to wait in the aptly named waiting room for about an hour. My father had his prostrate cut out about 15 years ago and has to make frequent trips to the little boys room.

Around 48 minutes into the wait, my father had to go. Now here is another slightly weird family secret  admission necessary to tell this story. Kay men like to sit down to urinate. It has not been fully explored whether it is the exhausting endeavor of lugging around large gonads all day that forces us to sit on the can, but it has long been suspected.

Now we don’t sit down in most public restrooms, at least I don’t. Thank God for urinals. But at home and in other clean bathrooms we usually take a seat.

One last necessary fact – my father has a ridiculously stretched out scrotum. He told me his one gigantic  nut dangles like a bowling ball hanging inside a plastic shopping sack.

So my father did his business in the bathroom and was called into see the doctor. As soon as he doc examined my father, he started ordering tests and asked whether my father felt OK.

My father asks what’s wrong and the doctor points down at my father’s genitals and says, “You don’t know? Take a look, man!”

My father looked down and panicked when he saw his entire sack had turned blue. He said he felt lightheaded and had to sit down.

“I thought I was a goner,” he told me.

Then it finally donned on him that the bowl on which he sat in doctor’s bathroom had blue cleaner in the toilet water. My father’s scrotum had been died blue.

When he relayed this story to me I told him I HAD to put it on my blog. Then he asked what a blog was and I tried to explain it to him.

“And people read that crap?” He asked incredulously.

Good grief. Everyone’s a critic…