Continuing the Conversation: Bill Blackman

City Councilman Bill Blackman believes in this economy ...  the travel expenses of some council members are just too much. During a time when the city budget is limited and employees haven't had a raise in three years, Blackman has suggested "monitoring" by way of the City Council "approving" the travel plans of other council members. This has less to do with employees not getting a pay raise in the last three years and more to do with control and power.

Whether (some) city staff members have or have not had a raise in pay in three years is a matter of record. And the answer lies somewhere within the compounds of the corridors in City Hall. The information regarding the pay salaries of current City of Wilson employees has been requested by a sitting Council member. Yet it has not been released - not even to the City Council representative who has requested the information. WHY NOT?

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We Saw What You Did

Last week while crusing the area where the Texas corporation, Pennco wants to bring a chemical plant this is what we saw. Odd thing about it is we had just asked some of the local residents when was the last time they saw or heard a train come through this area - Guess what they said. They hadn't in quite a few years. So we found it pretty interesting that on the very day we asked this question this is what we saw coming down the track . . . Now the question is was this a "trial run" to see if the tracks were in good shape and stable enough to sustain traffic...

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Citizens Have their Own Version of cartoon

Credit: Citizen DanBarb

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Councilman wants to Curtail Colleagues Travel

Recently, Councilman Bill Blackman commented that during a time when the city budget is limited and employees have not had a raise in three years, he felt the travel expenses of his fellow colleagues was too much. He made the suggestion that Council take on the role of approving the travel plans of other council members.

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Cartoon Depicts Councilman as Wasteful

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Butterfield Moderates Forum

Did you get your invitation to come?

A Forum will be held today on the matters of senior issues and job creation. U.S. Rep. G. K. Butterfield will moderate the forum today in Wilson. A select few knew about this event prior to today's date. The forum will be from 2-4 p.m. at the Gee Corbett Village, at 1817 Butterfield Lane.

The congressman will be joined by Mary Bethel, advocacy director of AARP North Carolina. Local and state elected officials have been invited to participate as well. Wonder who will show up!

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No Chickens. No Chemicals.

If you're a local or live in the surrounding area, then you know exactly what this phrase means. If you don't then maybe not so much, but what you can get from this picture is that folks don't want a chemical plant operating in middle of their neighborhood. And rightly so.

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For The Record

In the past couple weeks, my name has been mentioned several times by a man who has been making comments in the local newspaper online comment section who has been identified as Daryl Barber. He's openly accused me of being a political hack and he's made false accusations that I've recently written comments on the following Wilson Times (WT) news articles: Please Redraw the lines & Do Away with Racial Lines or something to that affect if those headlines are incorrect. I've had friends share with me the things Barber has

                stated and the manner thereof.

I've ignored the rants, the name calling and negative comments until now. And let there be no mistake as to whether I did or did not contribute to comments written in the online comment section of the WT. I have not, but I am speaking out now.

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Revisiting Wilson One Year Later

Last year around this time the town was all up in arms. The atmosphere was very different then than where we are today. How so, well, we had just come through a heated contest concerning the Sheriff’s race here in Wilson County. Getting poised to have another one. The Chair of the Wilson County Democratic Party refused literally to back the Democratic party nominee.  There was no acknowledgement from the local Dem Party for the nominee. No endorsement and no cooperation from the Party Chair.

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Tear the Roof Off The Sucker - II

Community Blogger: K.Real 

To Raise the Debt Ceiling or Not to Raise the Debt Ceiling.
That Was The Question.

So, on August 2, 2011 the question was answered, by a vote of 269 Yes to 161 No in the U.S. House of Representatives on Monday 1 August, and a concluding 74 Yes to 26 No votes in the U.S. Senate today August 2^nd and an approval signature by the President, Barack Obama, the United States avoided what would have been one of the worse events to happen to this nation since its conception. that being, defaulting on America’s financial standing in the free world economy.

Immediately, after the vote was in by the House of Representatives the cable networks were asking who were the winners and who were the losers in this ridiculous, childish, and unprofessional self inflicted crisis. A crisis created in the Congress of the United States of America by the very people we elected to govern our country. 

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Tear the Roof Off the Sucker

Community Blogger: K. Real
To Raise The Debt Ceiling Or Not To Raise The Debt Ceiling. That Is the Question.

Just wanted to give my perspective on this mess our nation is facing. I call it a mess because as with President Obama I too believe that this is a crisis, a crisis of mans own making. Man being the Republican Party under President George W. Bush and the Democratic Party under President Obama.

Ah, but there is a major difference between the two. President Bush took a 4 trillion dollar surplus as stated by some, or a 480 billion dollar surplus depending on whom you believe, left to him by President Bill Clinton.

With that surplus, he spent it on wars, two of them, veterans’ programs, medical prescription programs, unprecedented tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, the middle class, low income and poor Americans, tax breaks and subsidies for Big-Oil Companies, and Major Corporations etc…

The problem: although it appeared all of America benefited from this unprecedented spending, the fact is that George W. Bush left the Nation 8.5 trillion dollars in national debt and 8.5 billion dollars in annual budget deficit shortfall for year 2008. The Nation’s economy was on the verge of collapse and the free world economy too was on the verge of collapse all due to President Bush’s unprecedented spending and deregulation of Wall Street, the Mortgage Industry, and the Banking Industry.

In steps, President Obama and the Democratic Party with a Nation in recession and headed toward depression. The President called for 970 billion dollars in stimulus money “to save the country” and the free world. The Republicans blocked 190 billion of that request allowing only 780 billion dollars that the President requested to be approved. In spite of Republicans “Just Say No" game plan the President’s plan worked and the Nation did not go into another depression.

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Citizens' Academy 2011 - All About Wilson

Citizens' Academy, Ever heard of it? This year's theme is "All About Wilson."

Citizens' Academy is a series of classes designed to teach citizens all about the different aspects of our local government.  Citizens' get the opportunity of hands-on experience to learn up "close and personal" about how stuff works around Wilson. Meet fellow Wilsonians, enjoy field trips, visit Gillette Field and Buckhorn Reservoir. Citizens' Academy is a series of interractive adventures around the town you won't forget.

If you've never taken the class think about becoming an active participant in this year's class. Class size is limited so get your name in the running early. There is no cost or fee to citizens to participate. Classes are held on Tuesdays for 8 consecutive weeks beginning at 5:30pm until 8:30pm. And at the end of the program, a graduation ceremony is held on your behalf and the exprience is one you'll always remember.

So think about becoming a part of this year's Citizens' Academy Class. It's All About Wilson!
                                                 

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Redistricting Meeting Tonight

Rep. Jean Farmer-Butterfield will host a meeting about redistricting and the voting rights act tonight from 6:30 to 8:30 on the campus of Wilson Community College at the Frank L. Eagles Bldg.,Room G-237.

Redistricting is a very important issue that directly affects each citizen in they way that they  vote and who represents you for the next 10 years. Farmer-Butterfield encourages the community to come out and ask questions about the redistricting process.

The event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be served.


Photo - File NCDP

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Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You Should

Recently the local newspaper headline read “Third candidate announces for mayor.”

Interesting, someone else was throwing their name in the ring as a contender.  Well, after reading the article we walked away with just one curiosity question. Why?

Sure this city is in need of change and a new direction. HOWEVER, we’re even more sure the third candidate’s proposal is NOT the answer.

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God Bless America - Happy Fourth of July

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