When the 2013 edition of one my very favorite books, “The World Almanac and Book of Facts,” arrived on the bookshelves the other day, it reminded me that it has been several years since I updated my mini-state almanac. With the hope that someone will take up the challenge of giving us a printed and […]

How are the North Carolina Democratic Party and the National Republican Party alike? That is easy. Both lost elections this fall and do not know what to do about it. It is particularly humiliating for North Carolina Democrats. They have to face a legislature totally dominated by Republicans, who have gerrymandered so effectively that it […]

How do we put it all together at this time every year? Christmas. That is what I am thinking about. We are used to it of course. It almost seems natural. But it is not. We have just done it this way forever. We are on autopilot—usually not stopping to think about whether the things […]

Just in time for holiday giving, here are some good ideas about a variety of North Carolina related books, one or two of which might be perfect for a last minute gift. But first a bit of news about UNC-TV’s North Carolina Bookwatch’s broadcast schedule. Beginning in January, the program will air on Sundays at […]

Why doesn’t U.S House Speaker John Boehner go ahead and recognize the hard facts? The president won the election. A majority of the country wants rich people to pay more taxes while everybody else’s rates stay the same. In the end Boehner will have to give up on this issue. Some say it would be […]

“Innovation is the key.” We are hearing these words of wisdom all the time, aren’t we? And we nod our heads in agreement, remembering our pocket computers and communication devices that we still call phones. Or how the 3D technology and programs of North Carolina-based Geomagic make possible the on-demand manufacture one-of-a kind products based […]

“Tell me more about Jill and Lee and their new books.” I wanted to talk politics and more about why Romney lost and McCrory won, but these readers wanted only to hear more about the upcoming books by their favorite authors, Jill McCorkle and Lee Smith. These two popular writers are good friends and artistic […]

“Why did Romney win?” Well, of course, he didn’t. But–suppose he had. How might the experts be explaining it? They would be explaining it, you know. In the aftermath of President Obama’s victory, ‘the experts’ have been coming out of the woodwork with all sorts of macro- and micro-explanations for why the outcome was such […]

Earlier this month, I remembered something to add to my list of things to remember on Thanksgiving Day. It was on Election Day, which was for me this year a day of memories rather than a day of action like it has been before. Beginning in 2004, when my son was first a candidate for […]

There are many different answers to the questions we are asking about last week’s elections. Why and how did Obama win? Was Romney’s team really surprised that they lost? Why, when Democrats were making gains throughout the rest of the country, did they lose so much in North Carolina? You can get answers anywhere and […]