Every morning I go to a gym in Durham to work out. I try to get there before 6 a.m., because as anyone who gets up regularly at that hour knows, that is when the overnight flashing yellow and red traffic signals revert to their normal, if that is not too charitable a word, operation. […]
John Yewell
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Home sweet home
Last week a woman from the Bay Area was in town and considering moving here to work for The Independent. I was asked if I would meet with her and answer questions about life in North Carolina. After only five months here I’m certainly no expert, but since the good folks at The Independent had […]
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A Cheap Violin
On Jan. 30, The News & Observer published a front-page story by staff writer Amy Gardner describing the relationship between Gov. Mike Easley and lobbyist Dave Horne–who also serves, in Gardner’s words, as Easley’s “gatekeeper and talent scout” for jobs in the new administration. In the generous space of some 32 column inches, Gardner and […]
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Street Theater
It’s Saturday, Jan. 20, Inauguration Day, and in a few hours a new president will be sworn in. They said this election was going to be about the Supreme Court, so that’s where I decide to go first, seeking out demonstrators. President W. It’s a concept many folks are having trouble wrapping their minds around, […]
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Straight Shooters
Donald Spitz wouldn’t win any awards for elocution. But as head of Pro-Life Virginia and a longtime supporter of hard-core anti-abortion fanatics, Spitz believes that violence in defense of the pre-born–including the murder of abortion clinic doctors–is not only justifiable, but cannot be condemned. He has stepped up to the podium to present an award […]
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Busted
After almost two months of house hunting, I was on the verge of giving up until after the holidays. Pickings were slim. Christmas is not exactly a popular time of year for uprooting one’s self or family and selling a home. Furthermore, I had by then driven my agent, Carol, nearly to drink with contradictory […]