North Carolina’s unemployment rate hovers at a staggering 11 percent. At least one economist has predicted it might reach 13 percent next year. So what will it take for North Carolina to get back on its feet? John Locke Foundation president John Hood provides an economic roadmap for lawmakers who have the power, via their policies, to either push the economy back up or send it over a cliff. At the core of Hood’s advice is a focus on the basics, avoidance of more tax hikes and regulations, and addressing head-on the state’s serious transportation issues. Next, Gov. Beverly Perdue says the tax hikes enacted in the new state budget helped prevent ‘horrific’ cuts in education. Perdue discussed education issues in a recent video addressed to North Carolina teachers. You’ll hear Perdue’s comments, along with reaction from John Locke Foundation education policy analyst Terry Stoops. Then we turn to ways to curb government waste and inefficiency. A recent report from an outside consultant shined a light on administrative bloat at UNC-Chapel Hill. That report is drawing praise from some conservative lawmakers. Rep. Hugh Blackwell, R-Burke, explains why the rest of state government would benefit from the same type of scrutiny. That’s followed by an update on state efforts to pick winners and losers by bolstering certain industries in our state. Despite last-minute lobbying efforts, state lawmakers left town this summer without taking final action on the Life Sciences Development Act. The legislation was designed to give taxpayer help to biotechnology businesses in North Carolina. The legislation raised plenty of red flags for Jason Kay, senior staff attorney at the N.C. Institute for Constitutional Law. Kay outlines his concerns. And finally, Locke Foundation legal and regulatory policy analyst Daren Bakst discusses the controversy over wind power in the North Carolina mountains. A 2007 law mandated that utility companies produce a certain amount of energy using renewable sources, wind among them. But there is pushback from some environmentalists who don’t want the huge wind turbines to hurt the beautiful landscape. A complicating factor for all parties is what’s known as the state’s Ridge Law, which protects certain areas of the mountains from development. Bakst explains that the simple way to end the controversy over the turbines is to simply repeal Senate Bill 3, which is creating the artificial demand for wind power.