Posts by Carter Wrenn
Coal Ash
I don’t know why but I’ve become absorbed by the machinations of bureaucrats – it’s a bit like watching Alice in Wonderland: Down is up, and up is down. Take hard work. Businessmen work hard to get ahead. Students work hard for better grades. But who joins a bureaucracy to work…
Read MoreGreen Paint Balls
About a month ago Greg Brannon, dead-set on getting elected to the Senate, was trying to build momentum and gain ground on front-runner Thom Tillis then, out of a clear blue sky, two investors sued Brannon for flamoozling them out of $250,000 and a jury ruled he had to repay the money. That opened…
Read MoreA Better Way
Charlotte minister Mark Harris, who’s running for Senate, hit a rough patch when he released a poll showing him trailing Thom Tillis by 11 points – an inconvenient fact his political aide, Tom Perdue, brushed aside by saying, “The fact that we are down actually means we are way up.” Saying down is up…
Read MoreA Side-Step
It’s tough to stay a step ahead of a smart bureaucrat. About a week ago I wrote an article explaining how what a bureaucrat wants (for himself) and what’s best for public education isn’t always the same thing – and used Senator Phil Berger’s ‘Read to Achieve’ bill as an example. What…
Read MoreRunning in Circles
These days just about every politician in Raleigh is saying (as often as he can) how he wants to spend more money on schools and give teachers raises. But what if the root of the problem with schools isn’t money. This is a bit simple but the prime movers in public education are:…
Read MoreA Little Patience
The other day I was feeling a little down and blue about Republicans’ foibles then thanks to Democratic Chairman Randy Vollmer the sun broke through the clouds. Awhile back, the Democratic Party had to replace its Executive Director after he was accused of sexual harassment. Last week, Chairman Randy Vollmer fired the replacement and…
Read MoreGiving a Friend a Break
The other day when one of the bureaucrats over at the Department of Health and Human Services slipped up and made a mistake, the blame landed squarely on Secretary Aldona Wos’ shoulders. And Wos landed back on the front page of the newspaper again. Secretary Wos had a tough year. And Governor McCrory ought…
Read MoreKeep ‘em here, Send ‘em home
Immigration, the newspaper says, is ‘bedeviling” Congresswoman Renee Ellmers. It’s also bedeviling Speaker John Boehner. And half the Republicans in Washington. It’s a knotty problem. Part of the politicians have decided it’s best to send every single illegal immigrant back to where they came from – but no one’s quite sure how to…
Read More580,834
The number floated up off the page and hung shimmering in the air in front of my eyes: 580,834. Surprised, and curious, I clicked on the computer, then stared at another number that looked dreary in comparison: 345. 580,834: The number of people who have watched Clay Aiken’s video since he announced for…
Read MoreSettling It…
John Drescher down at the News and Observer hit the nail on the head last week when he wrote: ‘Steve Beam needs a boss.’ What’s happened to Mr. Beam (the Director of the Raleigh Housing Authority) isn’t unusual. He’s got a government job and a political board with political goals. No one spends his own…
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