All in Opinion

The Woodshed: UNC professor claims only Democrats protect black voters' rights

A liberal UNC-Chapel Hill professor testified Tuesday in Wake County Superior Court that GOP-crafted election maps represent a conservative white backlash against rising black political power. Professor James Leloudis appeared on behalf of Democratic Party-aligned plaintiffs working to overturn voting maps passed by the Republican-led General Assembly, arguing that the maps are unfair to black North Carolinians.

School closures were too risky

When the news broke on January 3 that one of North Carolina’s largest school districts, Cumberland County, was considering a shift to virtual instruction in response to rising case counts of the Omicron variant, I felt my stomach lurch.

Those we've lost in 2021

As we close the books on 2021, the year leaves stories for the future: an awakening from the pandemic, renewed attention to public school classrooms, and indications that the 2022 elections could bring a Republican wave.

N.C.’s Apple deal named worst of 2021

The $846 million subsidy deal that North Carolina struck with Apple just topped the “year’s worst” list of a nonpartisan economic think tank. The Center for Economic Accountability selected the 39-year agreement to put Apple’s campus in Research Triangle Park as the “Worst Economic Development Deal of the Year,” saying that its annual $21 million cost to the state led the list of reasons.

Worker shortage won’t end soon

On a recent road trip through Western North Carolina and North Georgia, I had occasion to stop at service stations, restaurants, hotels, and small businesses. Each establishment had a sign on the door conveying the same message: help needed.

Manufacturing continues to thrive

With the recent announcements of a new Toyota battery plant in Randolph County, a new Fujifilm Diosynth drug plant in Wake County, a large MasterBrand cabinet facility in Kinston, and a big White River Marine operation in New Bern for making saltwater boats, among other projects, North Carolina’s manufacturing sector appears to be thriving.