Todd Paris, Staff Writer and Salisbury Attorney
♦ Yesterday appeared to be “Butt-Hurt Sunday” in the pages of the “Salisbury Fishwrapper.” Almost two full pages were devoted to local BoE members and one Commissioner as “Specials,” apparently to do damage control after pulling one of the stupidest political gaffs in Rowan County history, the infamous “Nightmare Scenario.” According to the BoE’s own information, it would have closed at least five rural elementary schools and bused 4400 elementary school kids from all over Rowan County. It was voted down last week after massive resistance from concerned citizens and parents led by a local 5000 plus group Facebook page named Rowan Rural Save Our Schools. I started that group and I am proud of them.
The editor of this watchdog website will not allow me to link or copy to this publication. That publication will not mention RFP’s name. My guess is that neither wants to direct traffic to the other. There is a history, and I do not blame our editor. I will be stuck with summarizing what I read. (Editor’s note: We don’t care if someone uses fair use quotes and properly attributes them.)
Chairman Edds was in Fishwrapper praising the BoE and at the same time further distancing himself from the debacle. The BoE member’s articles were mainly claims they were never going to do this anyway and asking that they not be beat up and asking for support and cooperation. For their part, the Fishwrapper’s own editorial says that school consolidation is still worth more study.
Apparently, things are not well at the “Fishwrapper.” This weekend their original request was to take down a photo RFP had obtained from my FB of the “Blunderdome” being constructed that they claimed a copyright on. After a few minutes investigation, I agreed and told our editor and he immediately comply. He thought it was something I or one of my friends photographed. This was soon followed by a request from the Fishwrapper’s editor asking that any materials from their paper be removed from my personal FB page as well as from RRSOS. While I don’t have the time to cleanse my entire FB of all Fishwrapper related posts, I did remove anything recent and related to this photograph.
There is a lot of “butt-hurt” along the “northern I-85 urban corridor” this weekend as the Salisbury Cabal’s plan to bus 4400 rural children into town appears to have failed. Appearances can be deceiving. They may just go ahead with it after the election.
As far as yesterday’s “Fishwrapper” is concerned, I have never seen a more biased example of pandering to any particular group of politicians in my life, particularly after the neutral, fact-based reporting on “The Nightmare Scenario” that had proceeded it. My guess is that “big people are moving the furniture.” I bet one or more large advertisers who favored “The Nightmare Scenario” are not happy with the “Wrapper’s” failure to properly support the Cabal’s “cure for all that ales” Salisbury. Of course, this is mere conjecture. The great thing about RFP is that we are immune from advertising pressures and do this for the love of our community and our dislike for corruption and bad government.
I have been remiss in examining developments at the “Edds Commission.” Why is it that we can’t seem to afford to maintain rural schools, but can afford all the new multi-million dollar airport construction, a 30M mall renovation down the road from Edd’s and Jim Greene’s insurance offices and 20M baseball/softball complex predicated on an event that takes place maybe one weekend a year? After the massive financial debacle of the Kannapolis ball park we built years ago, is that our best idea?
Why do we not thrive like our neighboring areas? While a few good people have been recently elected, by and large, Salisbury-Rowan is poorly led, poorly promoted and awash with folks who only look out after their own self interests to the detriment of the public good. That’s why we can’t have good jobs and that’s why folks are leaving. The public needs to continue to get involved and vote good people in.
