“The day the music died.” I thought about that song a lot last year. The music didn’t die then, exactly, but rather faded like that final guitar riff, the one before the band waves and turns its collective back on the crowd, who stay hoping the lights don’t come on. Not yet, they plead. One...
Beyond the heroics of literally plucking people from the tops of roofs amid violent storms, this army of volunteers is reminding us of the value of a robust civil society and the limits of relying on the government.
One of the most hotly debated bills of the legislative section cleared its final hurdle Wednesday, Sept. 1, and now heads to Gov. Roy Cooper, who could add the measure to his growing list of vetoes. House Bill 324, Ensuring Dignity and Nondiscrimination in Schools, passed a concurrence vote in the N.C. House by a...
As the controversy over vaccine mandates grows, public officials’ animus for the unvaccinated is resonating among social justice activists. On Thursday, July 29, Gov. Roy Cooper announced that while the statewide mask mandate would still expire at the end of the month, his administration was focused on increasing vaccinations and was implementing a verification, masking,...
One time, during high school in Western Pennsylvania, about six of us got in a car and drove across the border to Wheeling, West Virginia, where the drinking age was still 18. Just one of us was actually 18, but it didn’t matter. It was 1981, and Pennslyvania still issued drivers’ licenses without photos. Just...
As communism’s iron grip tightened around eastern Europe in the 20th century, the government became increasingly hostile toward relationships that didn’t center around the State. Civil society was crowded out, and in some cases outlawed, by the expansion of communist regimes that saw little use for friendship. Citizens were encouraged to look to their rulers for...
The exclusive teaching of Critical Race Theory in public school classrooms would be outlawed under a bill making its way through the N.C. Senate. On Wednesday, July 14, the Senate Education Committee took up a proposed committee substitute for House Bill 324, a measure that passed the House on May 12 in a 66-48 party-line...
It’s now a time in North Carolina to dismiss policy based on politics and embrace a move toward legislation focusing on common sense, John Locke Foundation legislative experts say. A time to turn toward hope and a prosperous future for N.C. families. How that future looks depends largely on the makeup of our state government...
Lei Zhang says he moved from his home country for a reason, and it wasn’t a trivial one. Lei was born in China in 1966. It’s a historically significant year because it marks the beginning of Chinese Communist Party Chairman Mao Zedong’s notorious Cultural Revolution, a campaign to reinvigorate the Chinese people’s communist spirit after...
Anyone who wanted a COVID vaccine has gotten a vaccine. Anyone who wants a vaccine can get a vaccine. It’s a fact transcending logical debate, child-like in its simplicity. Not only is the vaccine free, but now, depending on where you live in North Carolina, the state will pay you for the quick shot in...
Mark Robinson was rewarded by conservative voters for having the courage to take a deep dive into the culture wars. Most years, Republicans barely got their toes wet. Many Republicans believed the path to electoral success was to focus solely on economic issues while largely ignoring the left’s long march through the institutions. As long...
