Opinion
Explaining the Pugnacity Quotient
Gov. Mike Easley and Patrick Ballantine met Friday for the second and final gubernatorial debate. Does Easley know something the pundits don’t about the competitiveness of the race?
Opinion
Troubling Republicans, Sad Democrats
When commenting on allegations of misbehavior by Republicans, The News & Observer is stern. But regarding Democrats guilty of serious corruption and crimes, the language is noticeably different.
Opinion
Paging Dr. Huxtable
Speaking to students in Richmond public schools, Bill Cosby again delivered a plea to focus on learning rather than sex or acting tough. Too bad some school officials fear being so blunt.
Opinion
The Lycanthropy Defense Asserted
An internet disclosure of a Democratic National Committee manual gives activists the opportunity to defend their crying wolf on voter fraud: Republicans are werewolves.
Opinion
For Bush, Third Debate’s A Charm
President Bush entered the presidential debates with a measurable lead over John Kerry, and his more effective and charming performance Wednesday night may have restored it.
Opinion
The Future of History is Now
A shockingly large number of our students are graduating from school without the firm grounding in history they need to be good voters and citizens. The state’s history museum can help.
Opinion
Reading the Tea Leaves on Voting
Voter registration appears to have surged in North Carolina, but will voter participation follow? The history and partisan implications are complicated and inconclusive.
Opinion
Now the Numbers Do Matter
For months, those who fixated on political polls were missing important developments in the 2004 races. But now, the match-up numbers start to take on significance.
Opinion
No. 789: Cleveland Gets Stiffed by TIFs
Cleveland still tops the list of impoverished cities despite its use of tax increment financing, such as Amendment One.
Opinion
No Complacency on the Budget
The state had a small revenue surplus for the first quarter of the 2004-05 fiscal year, but that probably won't head off the budgetary train wreck coming next year.
Opinion
A Bipartisan Idea Worth Pursuing
While calls for bipartisanship can be fake and sometimes downright dangerous, there is no need to be cynical. Unemployment insurance reform shows that it can be worthwhile.
Opinion
Good Litigator, Wrong Defendant
Vice President Dick Cheney turned in an effective, sometimes commanding performance in a debate against a skillful but misdirected John Edwards. Won't matter much by itself, though.
