Cover

• Anti-ALEC campaign ignores NCSL similarities
• Lawmakers conclude 2012 short session

North Carolina

• Agenda 2012 offers road map for sound policy, Page 2
• Trials delayed for Gov. Perdue’s associates, Page 4
• N.C. Briefs, Page 4
• Report: N.C. lawmakers, federal bureaucrats hinder free trade, Page 5
• Anticipated low turnout makes runoff races unpredictable, Page 6

Education

• Helms Center program teaches high schoolers about capitalism, Page 7
• Kristen Blair commentary: Kindergarten hustle, Page 7
• Martin board refuses to lease vacant building to charter school, Page 8
• Candidates battle over state vs. local control of schools, Page 9

Higher Education

• Hostilities between UNC, WakeMed over … for now, Page 17
• Duke Cheston commentary: UNC gets one right, Page 17
• Study: Pell spending not leading to better results, Page 18
• Campus Briefs, Page 18
• Issues in Higher Education: Outdated U.S. vision keeps STEM education rooted in the past, Page 19

Local Government

• Wake decision puts bus/rail plan in limbo, Page 10
• Town and County, Page 10
• Court paves way for more personal injury lawsuits, Page 11
• Chad Adams commentary: Public needs vs. public wants, Page 11
• Tensions fester between hunters and landowners over dogs, Page 12

Learning Curve

• Book review: Collier’s Political Woman a larger-than-life story, Page 20
• From the Liberty Library, Page 20
• Troy Kickler commentary: Country song ‘Home’ offers sophisticated view of America, Page 21
• Book review: Individualism and capitalism, Page 22
• Short Takes on Culture, Page 22
• Book review: Murray’s Coming Apart offers explanations for social decline, Page 23

Opinion

• Editorial: Eugenics victims must wait, Page 24
• Roy Cordato commentary: Austerity vs. growth: a false dichotomy, Page 24
• Editorial: Mediocre not enough, Page 25
• Editorial: TABORing success, Page 25
• John Hood commentary: Surviving the Big Sort, Page 25
• Michael Walden commentary: Why interest rates are super low, Page 26
• Editorial Briefs, Page 26
• Andy Taylor commentary: Is juridical democracy gaining adherents?, Page 27
• Becki Gray commentary: Status quo not OK in North Carolina, Page 27

Parting Shot

• John Edwards develops new hair-care product line (a CJ parody), Page 28