Political Digression Thread -- Save UP! Move the politically focused stuff here

[videtur quam contuor]

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sen. Jeff Jackson

 

@JeffJacksonNC

·

1h

 

My kids are waiting to go see the Lincoln Memorial while I'm finishing up this newsletter update and holy smokes they are very much ready to go. Updates about the next few days will mainly be on instagram. Same handle.

[LKN704]

There isn't really a relevant thread for this…it could go in History of Charlotte I suppose but considering its health care/health system related and that kind of goes alongside politics these days I thought I would put it here. 

I recently switched medical plans and joined Kaiser Permanente. I was always interested in their model and a little of apprehensive at first as you have to go to Kaiser facilities for everything, and outside DC they are only located in CA/GA/CO/OR/WA/HI. Once I found out emergency care was covered anywhere in-network, and you could go to any Minute Clinic or urgent care facility that accepts Cigna, I figured it was a no brainer because it was so cheap. I only pay $60 per pay period for the plan, versus $190 per pay period for comparable employer-sponsored plan I could choose with United Healthcare.

The plan features no deductible, and everything is outrageously cheap…$100 to deliver a child, $100 admission fee for a hospital stay with no physician or surgeon fees, $75 if you have to use an ambulance, etc. Out of pocket max is only $2500. Dirt cheap co-pays that seem too good to be true. 

I've heard stories that the plan isn't very good if you have of pre-existing medical conditions and it becomes somewhat hard to get care if you need a lot of specialist visits, but considering I am fortunate to be healthy I figured it wasn't a big deal.

Anyways, I went to the Kaiser facility early this morning for the first time, and they had this long timeline displayed in the waiting area. One of the markers on the timeline (in the late 1990s) said something like "Kaiser opens model, state of the art Southpark Medical Center in Charlotte" and had a picture alongside. I swear I recognized the building in the picture…it was a boxy shaped 1990s-looking building with square windows…almost a cross between a jail and a hospital. 

I asked the PCP I chose about it, as he has been with Kaiser for the past 25 years or so. He said that Kaiser tried expanding into a number of markets in the 1980s/1990s and all failed except for Atlanta but he couldn't necessarily recall a NC unit. He said he heard there were crazy malpractice claims in the new units and that some local doctors/governments/politicians weren't necessarily friendly to the system and decried as being too socialist. 

He said they really are only successful in markets where they can rely on a dense network of unionized labor or government employees.  

Does anyone recall them being in Charlotte, and why they specifically left?

[davidclt]

43 minutes ago, LKN704 said:

<snip>
. . . One of the markers on the timeline (in the late 1990s) said something like "Kaiser opens model, state of the art Southpark Medical Center in Charlotte" and had a picture alongside. I swear I recognized the building in the picture…it was a boxy shaped 1990s-looking building with square windows…almost a cross between a jail and a hospital. . .

Does anyone recall them being in Charlotte, and why they specifically left?

They had an office on Fairview they closed in 1996. If I remember correctly, it was this building on the right:

From History of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program | Kaiser Permanente Thrive Exposed (kaiserthrive.org)

Quote

Kaiser has pulled out of four money-losing regions. Kaiser sold its Texas HMO in 1998. The problems in Texas were so severe that Kaiser directed its law firm to attempt to block the release of a Texas Department of Insurance report in 1997 – a report that prompted the state attorney general to threaten to revoke Kaiser’s license. In North Carolina, the Industrial Union Department of the AFL-CIO issued a 1996 report critical of Kaiser quality, and Kaiser closed health plans in Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham in North Carolina four years later. Kaiser closed its unprofitable Northeast division in 2000.

 

Edited January 3, 2023 by davidclt
Added building picture.

[LKN704]

53 minutes ago, davidclt said:

They had an office on Fairview they closed in 1996. If I remember correctly, it was this building on the right:

From History of the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program | Kaiser Permanente Thrive Exposed (kaiserthrive.org)

 

Thanks...and somewhat scary/concerning stuff.

I found an image of their "new" building in Southpark that opened in the late 1990s that was displayed at their office in DC:

I swear I recognize the building (I think it's by the mall). 

Kind of concerning too that the exit occurred immediately after the new building opened...as if something happened/financials were so bad that they needed to make a quick exit. 

 

[Prodev]

I'm nearly certain that's the Charlotte ear, eye, nose and throat building on Fairview just to the east of Piedmont Town Center. 

[videtur quam contuor]

Watching the Speaker circus on C-SPAN and the expanded camera view, including the gallery, reminded me of the time I visited DC at Spring Break, (Florida Spring Break was the year before) with a Japanese friend who was a fellow college student. At the Capitol US citizens (I was one year too young to vote) had to go to their representative's office, House or Senate. Go downstairs, walk to another building, take elevator, etc. International visitors obtained a ticket from the Capitol office where we stood at that moment and I could accompany my friend so the DC loophole process was apparent early for me. Sat in the Senate Gallery, only house operating and recognized a senator. There was little to nothing happening but I recall the experience quite well. I have also done the White House tour with tickets from Senator Jesse Helms. 1989-ish

edit: congresspersons were not nearly so identifiable then as now. Few tv stations and little coverage of issues pre Watergate. No C-SPAN, no internet, campaigns were not so personality driven. A few were famous or near so. Others were a name or not even that.

Edited January 6, 2023 by tarhoosier

[rancenc]

Could there be a bus drivers strike looming for CATS??

https://www.masstransitmag.com/management/news/21291946/nc-charlotte-bus-drivers-vote-to-strike-what-will-it-mean-for-18000-daily-commuters

 

[CLT2014]

3 hours ago, rancenc said:

Could there be a bus drivers strike looming for CATS??

https://www.masstransitmag.com/management/news/21291946/nc-charlotte-bus-drivers-vote-to-strike-what-will-it-mean-for-18000-daily-commuters

 

It is sad the bus service is so bad right now that it is now charity to get people into automobiles in Charlotte so they can keep a job, get healthcare, get an education, et... 

[go_vertical]

I was surprised to find out on one of the news blurbs about this that starting pay for bus drivers is just a little over $18.00.  I think the actual amount was $18.47.  That is pretty sad starting pay for all the insane and outright dangerous crap they have to put up with on the daily. 

[elrodvt]

Yes, that job is not easy and the wage is ridiculous. Hopefully they at least get health and paid time off? 

[elrodvt]

GOP is off to a great start. Their first priority? Send a bill to the Senate to roll back the increase in IRS agents. Which I predict will stall until they make it part of their blackmail to raise the debt ceiling and pay the debts they voted to incur!

Then we have the state results especially the supreme court. I think we're going to get close to catching up to Mississippi this decade. Fortunately, they're not standing still though

How can anyone but a drooling maga idiot get behind this? Why is NC going more red with these types of policies as their central message. I just can't wrap my head around it.

Now to the point of this message - You banking dudes. What's a safe place for money when they don't pay the debt? Crypto? :⁠-⁠)

 

 

[kayman]

https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/investigations/minority-and-women-owned-small-businesses-crva/275-3461601e-4dbf-48c9-98f0-ecfaabb340ac

This is another recent example of corruption. 

https://www.wcnc.com/article/money/city-charlotte-overlooked-qualified-businesses-uncertified-talent-coach/275-c0c65be2-04b2-4ee7-9463-601545445aac

The City of Charlotte council-manager form of municipal government have some major problems.  It's shows that Charlotte has some major shortcomings from having a part-time, mayor and city council that should be calling out why this is a growing constant problem for the city.  Charlotte should have three, seperate branches of municipal government (executive, legislative, and judicial [even if it is a county-level superior court]) that's working full-time. It should have checks and balances on each of the other branches of government serving a municipality of nearly 1 million people. This is becoming more common as lipservice doesn't do anything when an unaccounted to the citizens' city management bureaucracy is continuing corrupt activities of bypassing a pre-certified city vendor registry to  allow more women-owned and non-white-owned businesses to receive city business via open public bids. Instead more of the same from the past when the growing non-white population is becoming more aware of these improprieties. 

Edited January 23, 2023 by kayman

[15895]

(This isn’t about any of the replies above). I think some of you maybe unknowingly spread anti-urban propaganda particularly using certain urban cities & I think the only place it hurts is Charlotte and other cities in Republican controlled states. I usually ignore it - particularly about Portland & San Francisco Bay Area. 

Sometimes it’s round about “glee” when very skewed or misleading statements on DC or San Francisco, Portland, or NY, etc are made. At the end of the day, we are still pursuing and following through on policies that some of you wish was even considered in Charlotte no matter what senators from states like TN say (yes, random legislators & senators bash certain cities *daily*… literally. It’s ridiculous. It doesn’t affect the policy here except if the federal government withholds federal funds but it’s usually never a big deal as the pendulum of power swings or compromise in a split government. All around the country its **daily** obsession with false narratives of certain cities for people who aren’t effected at all about the urban core of Seattle or wherever…

The issue for Charlotte & Nashville, etc from the bashing & misleading statements on the liberal cities…. Guess who the audience is for NC politicians who bash the liberal cities daily? … it’s North Carolinians… NC legislators don’t really pass laws that effect us. It affects North Carolinians. When they Spread grossly exaggerated misleading characterizations of NY, DC, Seattle, etc… You realize the only thing that serves is for them to pass laws that literally only hurt Charlotte & Raleigh’s urban policies and self-governance? And some of you play along with the anti-Seattle/NY mess and it’s literally the blue print on how to keep Charlotte on a tight leash…

Some of you even pre-pandemic have entertained everyone’s leaving NY, it’s becoming abandoned as people flee to the cities in GOP low cost states narrative. But at the same time it’s like. NY (City limits) added more people in the last decade than the entire population of Atlanta… DC added as many people as Atlanta with 1/2 the Sq. mile of land but we got the same “you don’t want to be like DC, it’s dying” narrative. Some of you are particularly concerned with development and have bought into “but if we become like those liberal cities, we won’t grow - look at uptown & Southend!” - but uptown & SouthEnd have/had a fraction of urban development of the cities you claim to be afraid to become because you want more development to continue. But we have an insane amount more of urban development in most of those cities. And by raw numbers, we are cranking it out.  Some of you mention “smash & grabs” of Portland but they still have Louis Vuitton and tons of retail though in downtown & uptown doesn’t really anything… It’s like if Greenville SC kept saying “we don’t want to become Charlotte, we are growing way faster than they are” - yeah. By percentage. But should Charlotte envy the growth of Greenville SC? I mean… Are any of you really wringing your hands Charlottes growth isn’t matching Greenville by a large margin? And certain stats always paint an inaccurate picture (for example U-Haul move-in/move-out ignoring how some cities have giant foreign immigration additions or natural births. For DC, moving out of state could be to MD & VA & just so many stats skewed for “you don’t want to be like them :0 we will protect you from that!” [again, as Uptown & SouthEnd’s urban growth is tiddlywinks/child’s play in comparison. Yet there’s this belief somehow Nashville & Charlotte have booming urban centers yet neighborhoods in the cities some don’t want to become because you like growth, are adding the entire populations of your downtowns in multiple neighborhoods in their cities…) How can you gloat about the growth of your urban development yet only 11,000 people even live in that area and say “but I rather not be like xyz liberal City so we keep growing uptown”. It’s self defeating. 

In just one zip code in DC, for example, that has Navy Yard, It went from 20,491 in 2010 to an estimated 28,000 in 2019 (and still boomed even during covid & currently & never lost population) and almost all of the growth came from <1 Sq. Mile in Navy Yard (and not Capitol Hill). Navy Yard alone has added nearly the population  of uptown in a decade. But you’re afraid to adopt some of our policy for fear of losing growth & developments? 

20003  DC (Navy Yard / Capitol Hill)

 

Vs. 28202 (Uptown Charlotte) 

And again, the Population growth of 20003 was almost exclusively Navy Yard which is less land area than Uptown 

& yes, I know some have latched on to Covid #’s & could point that out to me but we’re all rebounding and still cranking out urban development that is on different scales & new numbers that prove it that go unmentioned by national news (yet old Covid numbers are still screamed on prime time right wing media news…) we have nearly the same Multifamily units U/C in DC Vs the entire Charlotte metropolitan area. So why use us as a boogeyman on “but they’re dying & I prefer  our urban growth to continue.” … ? There’s just a glee over certain cities *perceived* decline that makes some think it’s good news for other certain cities. It’s just not true.

—————-

So what really started this rant for me is DC’s Union Station constantly being mentioned lately for justifications on anti-transit policies in certain cities. 

So to go back to some old news where DC’s Union Station (multimodal transit station) was used I believe in an Opinion piece on why Tim Moore was right and mentioned DC’s Union as the typical attack on liberal cities (homeless, needles, feces, etc.) 

It’s a high of 30F today so I went to union for Taco Bell. xD and I figured I wanted to demonstrate something anyway & make a point relevant to Charlotte. 

During the Covid Lockdowns at this point becoming years ago of its worst when the city *was* temporarily abandoned and even the national mall was roped off. Yes, we had homeless camps pop up in several areas. Union - which was like. 5% of Ridership was desolate & empty (Just like Charlotte Douglas Airport was dead empty with airplanes lined on runways parked). 

Yes following the worst it still was having issues with homelessness etc. but that’s over. Yet images of years ago (at This point) are still being shared by major news organizations etc. Especially with tents alll over the front of Union. 

Today, I took some pictures. I saw *maybe* 3 homeless people not bothering anyone & I was actively looking.  Not a bother at all & I wouldn’t have noticed otherwise. Yes, during Covid there were problems and you’d get sometimes bothered or even harassed. Yes, I wouldn’t even walk in front of union because it felt dangerous even to me.

Here is what the homeless camp / Tent City (that Tim Moore wants you to be frightened of) actually looks like today and for a while now: 

 

 

So many tents!!!

Also on the inside where they talk about allll the supposed homeless people on the inside:

 

 

There are empty retail wings that are likely intentionally empty for now as the station is undergoing billions in upgrades and will pivot to become a major mall (with Tyson’s Corner mall’s former CEO leases are already being signed, etc.) but I want to show this because of transparency:

 

And my pictures make Union seem way less busy than it was because I purposefully try to avoid pictures with people in it but Metro alone has around 10,000 riders at union currently. Not to mention all the other traffic including the Saturday schedule below with trains constantly coming and going…

 

To sum up my point.

It’s not about which city is bigger etc. I could move to Manhattan with my job which they prefer. But I rather stay settled in DC. NY is adding way more, has more amenities, wayyy more growth and it just makes DC seem like a backwoods sleepy swamp & crushes our growth. But I support their policy. I agree with NY mostly, I take inspiration from some of New York’s infrastructure, etc. I don’t care DC isn’t growing as fast or as large, or has a much smaller mass transit network or just totally eclipsed. 

When you take the bait on these narratives against Portland, Seattle, etc & you have little stats to justify… It’s just being used against Charlotte by your state legislators. 

If you want to see Charlotte grow a certain way, unapologetically push for your vision. Because I guarantee the NIMBY’s push equally as hard. Don’t be shamed into looking like a dork who is obsessed with buildings… The NIMBY’s light themselves on fire and show up in rage over the tiniest things. If you have a certain view or beliefs, don’t compromise based on BS lies from people who tell you elections were stolen, Biden is really an alien and the world is run by a cabal of satanic worshipping child predators and Italian Jew-ish space lasers changed the election results. 

Charlotte is great. A great city, clean, so much to enjoy so it’s not anti-Charlotte. But about the future. & everyone is entitled to what they want on any side. I hate gaslighting people on how they want the future of their community to be. And it’s perfectly fine to like the current trajectory. But it’s just self defeating to buy false narratives on certain areas while tying to pursue policies of those areas. I just ask, just think - what exactly is it of say Seattle or DC do some of you particularly fear of Charlotte adopting similar policies of & what outcomes of those policies are to be feared? (Not copying cities but good urban policy is good urban policy no matter where at) 

Edited February 4, 2023 by AirNostrumMAD

[LKN704]

^Somewhat related, I spent the past two and a half weeks in SF. Granted, I visit at least once every year (more often a few times), but this was the first time I actually spent a considerable amount of time in the city. I'm seriously considering a move there and I went to basically "test out" living there. I went all over, from Crocker Amazon to Viz Valley to the Mission to Tenderloin to Outer Richmond...literally everywhere (except Fisherman's Wharf...eww).

One thing that amazed me is how clean the city was and the sense of security/safety I had whilst there. Again, I visit frequently and never had a problem, but after being there for almost 20 days straight, I was surprised how clean the city was. There were issues with homelessness, but no worse that I have seen in any other major US city. I actually thought the homelessness crisis in DC was worse, and I recognize there is a lot of privilege of me saying this, but I thought that unhoused folks in SF were a lot less aggressive than the ones in DC.

No major trash problem when compared to other US cities, no hypodermic needles littering the sidewalk, etc. Not that I feel unsafe in DC, but on average I felt safer walking around SF than I do in DC.

This is a little thing, but I was surprised how the city didn't reek of weed. DC reeks of weed...I am constantly surrounded by it everywhere I go...from grocery stores to apartment buildings to the metro...I constantly see people lighting up on Metro cars at least once or twice a week now. I'm for legalization but don't smoke for a myriad of reasons, but the smell absolutely is disgusting. I didn't smell it once in SF. Maybe edibles/gummies are bigger there?

I sometimes feel unsafe on the Metro at night (not often, but sometimes, maybe a couple times of month) but I never felt unsafe on BART or Muni. I will say though that BART is gross and is definitely the weirdest transit system in the US...they clearly prioritized existing rights of way versus going where the people are, it was obvious that it was built on the cheap (but they have nice marble flooring in stations??), etc. 

I often wonder if locals there perpetuate their bad reputation. All throughout my time there, I heard locals say things like "this street is disgusting" (it looked fine to me), "no one rides the BART after 7pm" (the train was packed when I landed at 10pm from DC), "Crime killed this neighborhood" (it had a bustling grocery store and a lively park with families hanging out close to dark), etc. 

How could you not love a city where this view was accessible via public transit (the N Judah train)?

 

 

[15895]

25 minutes ago, LKN704 said:

^Somewhat related, I spent the past two and a half weeks in SF. Granted, I visit at least once every year (more often a few times), but this was the first time I actually spent a considerable amount of time in the city. I'm seriously considering a move there and I went to basically "test out" living there. I went all over, from Crocker Amazon to Viz Valley to the Mission to Tenderloin to Outer Richmond...literally everywhere (except Fisherman's Wharf...eww).

One thing that amazed me is how clean the city was and the sense of security/safety I had whilst there. Again, I visit frequently and never had a problem, but after being there for almost 20 days straight, I was surprised how clean the city was. There were issues with homelessness, but no worse that I have seen in any other major US city. I actually thought the homelessness crisis in DC was worse, and I recognize there is a lot of privilege of me saying this, but I thought that unhoused folks in SF were a lot less aggressive than the ones in DC.

No major trash problem when compared to other US cities, no hypodermic needles littering the sidewalk, etc. Not that I feel unsafe in DC, but on average I felt safer walking around SF than I do in DC.

This is a little thing, but I was surprised how the city didn't reek of weed. DC reeks of weed...I am constantly surrounded by it everywhere I go...from grocery stores to apartment buildings to the metro...I constantly see people lighting up on Metro cars at least once or twice a week now. I'm for legalization but don't smoke for a myriad of reasons, but the smell absolutely is disgusting. I didn't smell it once in SF. Maybe edibles/gummies are bigger there?

I sometimes feel unsafe on the Metro at night (not often, but sometimes, maybe a couple times of month) but I never felt unsafe on BART or Muni. I will say though that BART is gross and is definitely the weirdest transit system in the US...they clearly prioritized existing rights of way versus going where the people are, it was obvious that it was built on the cheap (but they have nice marble flooring in stations??), etc. 

I often wonder if locals there perpetuate their bad reputation. All throughout my time there, I heard locals say things like "this street is disgusting" (it looked fine to me), "no one rides the BART after 7pm" (the train was packed when I landed at 10pm from DC), "Crime killed this neighborhood" (it had a bustling grocery store and a lively park with families hanging out close to dark), etc. 

How could you not love a city where this view was accessible via public transit (the N Judah train)?

 

 

It’s completely related to my post. I had the pleasure in Dec. 2019 to spend time a considerable amount of  time exploring San Francisco & I had the same exact sentiments on every account as what you described. One of the most beautiful cities I’ve seen in the world & felt so global,  IMO. I personally like SF more than DC but probably won’t move. I plan on staying in DC for a long time (too many long term friendships here now, good reputation in my industry which is concentrated here and between Charlotte & NY [Agency Multifamily Real Estate - AKA Fannie/Freddie]
 

But it’s relevant to my post because It’s about these false narratives people buy into that are used against them. Over things as silly as being against bike lanes.  “Look at this picture of 1 underpass of San Francisco that has been circulated for years - this could be you if we have bike lanes.”  It’s like. Yeah, please give me an opinion piece  in the Charlotte Observer of DC Union Station being a slum and dangerous and in disrepair yet Charlottes own Amtrak station is a literal dump and, uh. Walking from Amtrak CLT to uptown. Pretty sure more sketch and has more homeless than around DC Union…But yes, beware Charlotteans. Tim Moore will protect you from having a transit hub like DC! You don’t want to become like those schlubs. Enjoy your Charlotte Amtrak station & Tim Moore will protect you from having a train station like the homeless shelter dump that is DC Union Station…. 

Edited February 4, 2023 by AirNostrumMAD

[elrodvt]

I'll pile on a little. Basically I've always had the feeling most here didn't want to hear about negative opinions on Charlotte (granted, I'm sure some were unartfully written). I think that attitude is all too common and amounts to a chip on the shoulder or insecurity with the area.

Why not complain and then talk about ways to improve? What're you afraid of? Instead it's "yeah that's bullcrap, overstreet and epic are great and well... It's so clean! ". 

We have a lot going for us. but a very complacent attitude which won't lead to success is throttling the area. That all said, I've noticed quite a change in the last couple years where debate seems more welcome. 

[JRCLT]

I'll pile on a little. Basically I've always had the feeling most here didn't want to hear about negative opinions on Charlotte (granted, I'm sure some were unartfully written). I think that attitude is all too common and amounts to a chip on the shoulder or insecurity with the area.
Why not complain and then talk about ways to improve? What're you afraid of? Instead it's "yeah that's bullcrap, overstreet and epic are great and well... It's so clean! ". 
We have a lot going for us. but a very complacent attitude which won't lead to success is throttling the area. That all said, I've noticed quite a change in the last couple years where debate seems more welcome. 

There’s definitely a lot…A LOT of room for improvement in Charlotte.

[southslider]

The NC House Speaker has let it be known under no circumstances while he is in power will Charlotte be seeing any additional taxing authority. And when people show you who they are, believe them. However, Moore has also shown his biggest political vulnerability, and that's the NC mess that is transportation funding.

Moore is actually weak when it comes to dealing with the combined voices of all NC communities who are immensely disappointed in NCDOT.  The successful lobbying strategy isn't what any one city or even one region needs, but what all of the state deeply craves. No amount of urban-rural divide rhetoric by any established politician can stop true reform when it truly addresses statewide problems.

[kayman]

A long read but very informative on why a change in form of city government must happen soon for the future leadership of Charlotte. The article writer is a former long time political reporter for The Charlotte Observer.

https://www.charlottemagazine.com/whos-in-charge-in-charlotte/?fbclid=IwAR0x8Z7a4ketKKlqT0J3iUawoxPVdQswfkxjk0dU94Vcn_ggiw7O80R8sTY

It shows there needs to be a new, can-reach-across-various-interests, type of leadership in Charlotte that can speak up and advocate for Charlotte in the state capitol.  Unfortunately,  Vi Lyles and Marcus Jones have shown that they're too bureaucratic-driven and behind-closed-doors type of style of  city "management" rather than satisfying the need for civic leadership in Charlotte. Basically, they're a black version of an outdated style of leadership that even Hugh McColl has pointed out as outdated for Charlotte.

We need a full-time city council and mayor who has the power to make things happen for the citizens,  i.e., the people. Mayor-council government should be seriously considered.  As city management under this (part-time) council-manager government seems to be too bureaucratic and risk-aversed for the dynamic place Charlotte has evolved into a major city with major needs across several areas and types of citizens.

Edited February 6, 2023 by kayman

[LKN704]

Figured I would put this here (think of this post as a rant) to get off my chest, but the overall lack of rationality circling in the media and online regarding all of the aerial objects within the past week is so mentally exhausting to me, specifically in regard to the General's remark yesterday when he said something akin to "we haven't ruled anything out" when asked if the objects were extraterrestrial. 

Saying that we haven't ruled anything out does not mean the objects were extraterrestrial. Full stop. Point blank. I believe the General wasn't necessarily replying directly to the extraterrestrial question but rather stating in general that they don't (publicly at least) know the origin of the objects. 

To me, the OSINT evidence available literally points to all objects being of PRC origin. There has been an exponential increase in PRC reconnaissance activities within the past several months...just this past weekend a Chinese satellite shot laser beams over Hawaii and a Chinese PLAN ship shot a laser at a Philippine vessel, temporarily blinding its crew. There have also been reports within the last several months of a Chinese aerial object washing ashore in Hawaii.

It's also worth noting that Chinese media just came out today and accused the US of operating their own aerial balloon surveillance over China despite there being no evidence the United States has done so. The CCP is trying to deflect and move on at this point.

It's obvious that the CCP/PLA is testing our response time and overall capabilities, and I am sure all of this is also providing lots of intel in regard to the way U.S. and Canadian forces collaborate on NORAD. 

While we are definitely finding more of these objects because we have significantly fine-tuned our monitoring software to better detect these objects, a part of me thinks that after we collected evidence from the craft that went down off Myrtle Beach, our IC was able to get access somehow into the network that these objects use and we are just now locating everything China has in North American airspace. Obviously we will never publicly know this is the case, as a reveal would compromise national security and be an embarrassment if the world found out the Chinese had something the U.S. did not, hurting our credibility overseas. It's telling that we haven't heard much about the evidence we have found from the craft. 

I am not in favor of Biden speaking out about the issue. If he has a massive press conferences to say "it isn't extraterrestrial" folks are going to wonder how his administration came to that conclusion and what they are withholding. Coming out and straight up saying it is China would be disastrous from a diplomacy standpoint, and I gauge the threat of making such a comment (or even suggesting it) would pose a far greater risk to our country and national security that these objects do. That said, I am not sure what choice Biden has politically. 

This article is almost two years old but is excellently written: https://www.thedrive.com/the-war-zone/40054/adversary-drones-are-spying-on-the-u-s-and-the-pentagon-acts-like-theyre-ufos

[kayman]

https://www.wfae.org/politics/2023-02-13/charlotte-city-council-mayor-move-ahead-with-plans-to-double-term-length

It's been voted upon and passed by 6-4 margin. The CoC City Council would be to hold a public hearing on March 12th. The terms would be lengthen from 2 to 4 years, create an 8th district seat,  removal of an at-large seat, make elections non-partisan, increase in pay,  and staggering terms where all seats wouldn't be up for vote all at once. 

Charlotte still needs a full-time city council to hold the city manager's office accountable. As it (the city management) seems to not be very transparent nor very responsive to the constituents' questions for or service needs from the City of Charlotte.  Also amongst other legislative changes including 3 separate yet equal branches of municipal (city) government for more transparency, direct representation, and accountability to us, the constituency/taxpayers. 

I say yes to these recent movements.  Although we should continue to allow candidates to openly claim their partisanship affiliation if they have one. This is a step in the right direction as we need some continuity of elected officials like most other US major cities rather than creating a whole new council every two years.

[go_vertical]

I like the extention to four years.  I want my elected officials to have more than a year to focus on what needs to get done before they have to start begging for their jobs again. 

[southslider]

Longer terms on Council won't reform a system dominated by partisan primary voters.

[SouthEndCLT811]

1 hour ago, southslider said:

Longer terms on Council won't reform a system dominated by partisan primary voters.

Maybe they could tie the four year elections to Presidential Election years?  At least ensure max turnout under our current archaic systems.  I'm not expecting that to fix the partisan makeup of the council but at least maximize the population that has their voice heard.  The turnout this year for the summer primary and then November vote was pretty sad...

[elrodvt]

Do we want participation by people who can't be bothered to vote otherwise and likely have no insight into the issues though? It's a ying yang type of decision.

The way things are now maybe it's be best to keep super partisan and low info voters away. For example, Sometimes I wish that to vote in a race dominated by global warming positions you have to take a short test to decide how much your vote is "worth". I can easily see all the potential pitfalls and it's not practical but am frustrated with people voting against their interests due to ignorance! How the hell could people like Greene and Boebert be elected if voters truly were educated on the issues?