Damning by faint praise? Melynda, I congratulate for having made up your mind that apparently Senator Smith is your candidate. If I read it correctly, he sure has done a lot for Riverwood, a development that sounds pretty pricey. Not sure how that tranlates to us out here off Cleveland Road. Your "research" sounds spurious, at best. Your tone for Ms. Altman is demeaning. Would you have been so concerend the first time that Fred ran for office? Your take kinda reminds me of the elections of Zebulon Vance, here in NC, ages ago. He wrote that when campaigning for a certain office, his opponnent verbally attacked Vance by pointing out how young Vance was. Zeb's response was to the effect that it wasn't his fault that he was born so late, and that he (Vance) would speak to his own mother and father about it, when he next spoke with them. Your tone suggests use of what is called "damning by faint praise". I'd much prefer to hear from the candidates. Support Fred. Don't dismiss Ms. Altman.
Hey, did Ms. Altman actually take the time to answer us here on 4042? That's pretty cool. We can get our question answered and our voiced heard against over developement of our area and other issues. I think that was pretty nice of her to do that.
I think it was nice of her to respond also. However, I also think right now its a quick, easy, "free" way to campaign. I think that along with experience in politics - comes a thicker skin & the ability to handle criticism. Something that worries me about Sherry Altman is that she has only worked a volunteer - never as a leader in a public capacity. The bad thing about taking a leadership role of any kind is all the criticism that comes along with the job. As a volunteer she is thanked for her efforts. As a leader she will always have to deal with those who didn't like her decisions or who didn't think she did enough. As I said before, I think one day - with a little more experience, Sherry Altman may make a fine candidate. Currently she doesn't have to deal with folks being mean spirited, nasty & critical of her decisions - it's impossible to make everyone happy all of the time. If she ever does succeed in her political aspirations - I doubt she will still be responding to discussion boards at that time (I've been wrong before though). Hopefully she'll be too busy out changing the world for the better. Although her motivition is admirable, sometimes its best to take baby steps rather than jumping into the unknown head first.
Re: Damning by faint praise? Apparently Fred Smith has a vision as to how developers can help with our current school situations. He is probably in better position that the average citizen to influence other developers. I'm still listening & learning. I still have time to research between now & election day. However, so far Fred Smith is definately my choice. Hopefully I'll be able to learn from your research & that of others who care to share what they've learned about the candidates. Hopefully in the end, if we all do our homework - we can proudly say we chose the best candidate. I'm not trying to demean Ms. Altman. I've said time & again that she seems like a good person who could possibly make a good candidate in the future. However, currently I don't think she is any more qualified than I am to run for such an office. Most folks just whine & complain - but they never stand up to try to make a difference. Ms. Altman has shown that she has the desire & willingness to run for public office. Already she is one up on me. I'd rather simply serve as a volunteer in improving my community. Although I've come to terms with the fact that I can't make everyone happy 100% of the time - I've also learned that my skin isn't thick enough to handle all the criticism from the trouble makers who like to cause problems & then throw nasty little tantrums when things don't go their way. If you were write up a list of what you consider are job qualifications for a "good" NC senator - and then compare the resume's of Ms. Altman & Mr. Smith. If it was (and I assure you that it is) money from your pocket paying the salary (although the salary probably isn't worthy of the job) - do you think you would consider Ms. Altman the best candidate for the job knowing what you do today? I'm not dismissing Ms. Altman - I hope we do hear more from her in the future. As for now, I think she probably has some noteworthy ideas & suggestions and probably is an asset to our community. However, I just don't think she has the experience to do a better job than Senator Fred Smith.
Were you that worried in 2002 when Fred Smith first ran for the State Senate? If I recall correctly, he didn't serve a complete term as County Commissioner before he ran for the State Senate. He won because he had more money, not because he had more experience than the incumbent, who had been in the State Senate for years. Personally, I think we need more "ordinary" citizens with some common sense in the General Assembly, than those worried about what is the next office they can obtain or what the party hierarchy wants them to do. I hadn't ever heard of Ms. Altman until the other day, but at least she's out there giving us a choice.
Java, I am unsure as to what a state senator can do to affect illegal immigration. If the feds can't or won't act to fix it, how can the state of NC do so? Believe me, I do not support illegal imigration. I just can't figure out what the state could do. It's not as if we have a lot of law enforcment people sitting around with their thumbs inserted. Can't keep criminals in jail now because of overcrowding. What to do with illegal immigrants?
Fred Smith and Experience I do have the luxury right now to visit forums and talk to hard working people and here is a response to the "No Experience" that you are talking about. I do want to state that I have thicker skin than most people, but I want to make sure that people get the right information and know who I am and that anyone, with or without experience, in a field should be given a chance. I am a very intellegent person and I want to answer as many questions as possible that citizens have. This response is to the lack of experience I have as a politician, please see who else did not have expererience and then ask yourself, do you only vote for citizens who have held office before? I have the reference below showing where I looked up the information. I happen to be very savy when it comes to politics and to the internet and I hope that I can answer each and every person's question before the election as this is a very important election. I will start with this topic right now and then move on to each question or statement so that everyone understands the truth and understands that I am a person who listens and wants to represent the people, so I think responses are vital. Thank you so much for taking the time out to ask the questions or make statements that I can answer. Please be patient with me because I am on the run every day, but will get to each and every one of you. I just wanted to start with the experience statement first. Please note below that the first office each held or ran for is the very first office, not school board or county commissioner. I could have gone on and on with the people who did not have experience, but thought I would overwhelm you with the amount of politicians who just jumped into the fray, trying to make a difference. In doing this I tried to give people a look at both Democrats, Republicans, Liberals and Conservatives. John McCain Political career When John Jacob Rhodes, the longtime Republican congressman from Arizona's 1st congressional district, announced his retirement, McCain ran for the seat as a Republican in 1982 and won it. In 1986, upon Republican Senator Barry Goldwater's retirement, McCain was elected to succeed him. Nancy Pelosi Congressional career When Burton died in 1983, his wife Sala won a special election to complete his term. When she became ill with cancer, she suggested that Pelosi run for her seat in 1988. Sala Burton died on February 1, 1987, just a month after being sworn in for a second full term. Pelosi won in a special election to succeed her, narrowly defeating left wing San Francisco Supervisor Harry Britt, and took office on June 2, 1987. She was elected to a full term in 1988 and has been reelected eight times, often with more than 70% of the vote. The 8th is one of the safest Democratic districts in the country; Democrats have held the seat since 1949. Pelosi has kept this tradition going. She has never faced a credible Republican opponent, which is not surprising since Republicans only make up 13 percent of registered voters in the district. After the Tiananmen protests of 1989, Pelosi became a supporter of the Chinese democracy movement and vocal critic of the government of the People's Republic of China and sponsored the Chinese Student Protection Act of 1992. In the House, she served on the Appropriations and Intelligence Committees, and spent long hours raising funds for other members. She was the ranking Democrat on the Intelligence Committee for two years. Newt Gingrich 1974, 1976, 1978: Elections In 1974 and 1976, Newt Gingrich made two unsuccessful runs for Congress in Georgia's sixth congressional district, which stretched from the southern Atlanta suburbs to the Alabama border. Gingrich lost both times to incumbent Democrat Jack Flynt. Jack Flynt was a conservative Democrat of the Georgia delegation who had family political ties that bound him to a particular powerbase within his district. He had served in Congress since 1955 and never faced a serious challenge prior to Gingrich's two runs against him. In both cases, Flynt just barely squeaked by even though 1974 and 1976 were generally considered bad years for Republicans due to the Watergate scandal. Flynt's struggle, which was emblematic of the struggle of many southern Democrats to hold onto political power, is documented in Richard Fenno's Congress at the Grassroots. Flynt chose not to run for re-election in 1978, and the Democrats fielded state senator Virginia Shapard in his place. Shapard's support of the Equal Rights Amendment [1] backfired against her in the socially conservative district, and Gingrich defeated her by eight points. [edit] 1979–1993: United States Representative Gingrich was reelected ten times, facing only one truly difficult race. This difficult race was during the House elections of 1990 when he barely defeated Democrat David Worley. George W. Bush In 1978, Bush ran for the U.S. House of Representatives from the 19th Congressional District of Texas. Facing Kent Hance of the Democratic Party, Bush stressed his energy credentials and conservative values in the campaign. Hance, however, also held many conservative views, opposing gun control and strict regulation; he portrayed Bush as being out of touch with rural Texans. Bush campaigned hard and was an effective fundraiser, but lost by 6,000 votes. Hance later became a Republican and donated money to Bush's campaign for Governor of Texas in 1993.[13] With his father's election in 1988, speculation had arisen amongst Republicans that Bush would enter the 1990 gubernatorial election, but this was offset by Bush's purchase of the Rangers baseball team and personal concerns regarding his own record and profile. Following his success as owner and manager of the Rangers, Bush declared his candidacy for the 1994 election, even as his brother Jeb first sought the governorship of Florida. Winning the Republican primary easily, Bush faced incumbent Governor Ann Richards, a popular Democrat who was considered the easy favourite, given Bush's lack of political credentials. Bush was aided in his campaign by a close coterie of political advisors that included Karen Hughes, a former journalist who was his communications advisor; John Allbaugh, who became his campaign manager, and Karl Rove, a personal friend and political activist who is believed to have been a strong influence in encouraging Bush to enter the election. Bush's aides crafted a campaign strategy that attacked Governor Richards' record on law enforcement, her political appointments, and her support of liberal political causes. Bush developed a positive image and message with themes of "personal responsibility" and "moral leadership". His campaign focused on issues such as education (seeking more accountability for schools over student performance), crime, deregulation of the economy, and tort reform. The Bush campaign was criticized for allegedly using controversial methods to disparage Richards. Following an impressive performance in the debates, however, Bush's popularity grew. He won with 52 percent against Richards' 47 percent.[15] Reference: http://en.wikipedia.org
Great, a one issue voter! First off, immigration is a federal issue, not a state issue. While there are things that states can do to help (such as validating a person's right to be in the US before assigning a driver's license), the issue is not something to vote upon strictly. Ms Altman, I have always been a proponent of getting candidates to visit the local forums and discuss, or at least make known, the issues they stand for. I must say I applaud you for doing so. I do have a couple of questions (which I fully admit is attempting to put you on the spot). What is your opinion of Marc Basnight and would you vote against Mr. Basnight retaining his position as State Senate President Pro Tem?
I have met the Senator on a number of occasions. In one day, he happened to run into me no less that 6 times at a function within 30 minutes. Each time he introduced himself and asked my name...like he'd never seen/spoken to me before. A time or 2? Ok. Six times in 30 minutes? He's not paying attention, he's just running for office. I don't agree with him being the large developer and having the Senate seat. It's a conflict of interest. I've been around when the issues of roads, etc came up and he got "his way". Personally, I didn't like the out come, but that's just my opinion. I'm willing to listen to the new candidate/s, regardless of party affiliation. I'm voting for the person I think will do the best job, not just being a party-hound. I thank Ms. Altman for posting to answer questions. It's one way to reach the voters. If we're asking her questions and she's answering them, the "free advertising" is just cream, that's all. Frogger
Exactly. Basically Java C PMC was saying, if he can't get the trains to run on time, he's not getting my vote. That's ok. You're even worse. It doesn't matter what the stance on the issue is, if there isn't an (R) beside the name, you won't vote for them.
You've been posting here long enough to know that isn't true. More proof that you choose to ignore that which you choose to ignore. Why don't you ask Saddam's Poodle when's the last time he split his ticket.
Candy Lightner is the founder of MADD. Her 13 year old daughter was killed by a drunk driver. She has broken away from the organization because they have lost focus. http://www2.potsdam.edu/hansondj/Controversies/1119636699.html "It has become far more neo-prohibitionist than I ever wanted or envisioned," she says. "I didn't start MADD to deal with alcohol. I started MADD to deal with the issue of drunk driving." The legislation I was referring to is House bill 1048 which passed this summer. (The Governor's DWI Task Force Recommendations) They have changed the "Impaired Driving Checks" to "Checking Stations and Roadblocks" because its not about drunk driving anymore. Its about using the Highway Patrol as a source of revenue. There used to be strict guidelines for setting up these checkpoints, but not anymore. They're announcing that we will see more of these in the future. The fact that you can be stopped and detained for no reason is a DISGRACE that should not be tolerated in this country. It is a slap in the face to the authors of the 4th Amendment. Our protection against unreasonable searches and seizures. That's my one issue!
Re: Senator Smith and Ms. Altman responses requested. I will not reword my website where I speak of knowing military issues “firsthand”. I was born into a military family. My father studied Chinese and when I was a small child we moved to Taiwan, formally known as Formosa, where I spoke Japanese first, Chinese second and English third. Needless to say, my mother could not understand me and I have forgotten the other two languages. While living in Taiwan the Chinese decided to invade. The American government ordered all military personnel to stand on the borders of Taiwan to stop the Chinese invasion. While our military, my dad, were defending the invasion, the dependents of Americans were hovered together in a home. We were extremely nervous and anxious about what was going on. My grandfather, living in Alabama, heard of our plight and contacted his Congressman, who by the way had no previous political experience, and the Congressman had my grandfather drive to his office. They were able to reach the American Embassy in Taiwan and the officials from the Embassy came and got my mother and drove her to the Embassy to speak with my grandfather. Needless to say, I was terrified because I did not understand where either of my parents were or if I would ever see them again. Luckily, the Chinese decided to turn back around and we were safe. Several nights a week a soldier that my father had befriended would sleep at our house on the couch. He would wake up with nightmares of World War II. My dad would get up and talk to him until he would go back to sleep. This friend of my father’s and several of his buddies from New York fought in World War II. This man and one of his friends were captured and put in a POW camp. They were separated; Jews in one hut and everyone else in another. His friend was Jewish. He told us that he could hear his friend screaming from being tortured and he could do nothing to help him. Eventually his friend was killed and the survivor felt that he never did enough to help him. I learned what human beings, not just soldiers, go through and I saw the strength of both of my parents in helping one person at a time. Our next deployment was to Norway, where my father was with NATO. We were living in Norway when President John F. Kennedy was assassinated and when one of our soldiers plane went into the Soviet Union airspace and he was captured. My father was one of many to help this soldier when they could get him into Norway. When our President was assassinated, even though I was in elementary school, I realized the impact. My parents had a house full of people and the radio was turned up and no one was allowed to speak. We listened for hours upon hours with tears flowing down our faces. When we were stationed at Fort Bragg and my grandparents were visiting I happened to walk into the living room where all the adults were watching the news. Shown on TV was our President shaking hands with the troops as they boarded a plane headed to Vietnam. I stood in the doorway watching the TV and noticed a man I had just seen in his backyard shaking the President’s hand on TV. I stated “Hey that’s Mr. So and So and he’s at home right now. He’s not going to Vietnam.” My dad grabbed me and took me into a bedroom and explained that the troops were already in Vietnam but that we did not want our enemy to know our plan. He went into great detail to explain to me that I must not ever speak freely of these things before talking to him because people could get hurt. I was young but learned a lot about our government and our military forces. When my dad went to Vietnam my mother and I moved to Alabama and stayed with my grandparents. He told both my mother and me that if anyone told us that he was POW or MIA not to believe them. He was in Intelligence and Counter-Intelligence and carried a capsule with him to take in the event of capture. He was undercover in Vietnam and was behind enemy lines for a while. During that time we did not hear from him. After six weeks with no word, while my mother and I sat in church, my mother could take it no more. She ran out of the church with me in tow. She cried all the way to the main post office and started banging on their door. Someone answered the door and my mother told them what she was going through and we were allowed to enter. All the employees, my mother and I sat on the floor going through tons of mail trying to find one piece that would show that my father was still alive. To our amazement we found several. He had been behind enemy lines the whole time and could not communicate with anyone. I would awake at night hearing my mother screaming from a nightmare she was having. Her nightmare was always the same; she would hear car doors and look out the window and see two soldiers coming up to the door. Before they could knock she would run out the back door into the woods because she did not want to hear what they were going to say. When you state that I have not “served” I certainly beg to differ. The dependents of these wonderful people “serve” more than you think. You and my dad may have been on the front lines in a foreign country, but, we dependents serve and are on the front lines wherever we are. I would be careful with what you say on this subject as the dependents of the soldiers who are in Iraq and Afghanistan will eat you alive. I could go on and on about what our family went through but I would probably bore most people. My father is real proud of me for running for office and supports me 100%. He has stated to me that we need more hard working people in office. He believes that I am doing an honorable thing and so do I. Please, please never tell a dependent that they have not “served”. I do not take anything anyone says personally but Veterans Affairs are a personal issue with me. If Alabama can find a way to make our veterans lives better as they grow older then why can’t North Carolina and the other states? I will tell you that my father has asked me to make sure that he is never put in a veteran’s hospital and shame on us!
Sherry's Answers I am unaware of this Bill as I am sure that I do not know every Bill that has been passed, but will look into this particular one. I certainly agree with you on this issue. Our rights are being taken away slowly but surely and that is just ONE reason I am running for office. I commend you for your stance and for keeping up with the Bills!
Sherry's Answers You are certainly correct that this is a quick, easy, "free" way to campaign. Is that not what we really need? I am all for Campaign Finance Reform and if I can walk the walk, I can talk the talk. Your tone states that I should not use forums such as this to help campaign. If a candidate, any candidate, does not understand what people have on their minds, how can that candidate represent them? I do not believe with our unemployment rates going up in our district that the money being spent on running for an office is money being used wisely. I will tell you that Hatteras6 has a list of questions that I will answer because they are very important questions. So, in saying that, I want everyone to understand that I believe the person who should be in office should not be the one with the largest amount of money, but the one with the people in mind. I will take any "free" forum I can to talk to people.
You marched with Caezar Chavez? How about Jobey Dougher? With all the words that say nothing and smear tactics, finding the meat was like looking for a needle in a haystack. I found the key paragraph, however: "Here are the real issues: If anyone uses common sense in government and is honest I believe we can get alot done. Healthcare should be available to all, a moratorium on housing developments should be implemented immediately until we can work out infrastructure issues such as schools, roads, water, traffic lights, etc., we need to stop developers from cutting down all trees and natural growth before building anything, we need to clean up the Neuse River, we have the smartest people right here in our own district who can develop alternatives to our fuel crisis, we need to take care of our veterans and for goodness sakes we need to be united on each and every issue. We CAN find a middle ground. " Translation: I'm posing as a moderate so that I can work for socialized medicine (read rationing) and shut down entrepreneurship! No, Ms. Altman, those are not values I wish to have imposed upon ME!
I, for one, am very impressed that Ms. Altman has chosen to respond to the questions and thoughts on this local forum. It is very impressive to me that a person running for office is actually concerned about what we, as a community, think. You have to admit, that is very unusual for most politicians and is very refreshing. Ms. Altman, you have most definitely given me a lot to think about.
