If you’ve been an occasional reader of this column or, more likely, someone who got lost looking for Sudoku, you’ll know this column served mostly as a counterweight to the progressivism that generally marks this space. Hence its name — I’m the guy in the metaphorical columnist room who spouts opinions no one wants to acknowledge but has to, since I’m a metaphorical elephant.
Nothing ruins a spring day quite like an anti-abortion display, complete with photos of aborted fetuses and Holocaust victims.
In the Business School, internships are a way of life. From day one, we’re put on the hunt for the elusive post-sophomore year internship, to be followed by the lucrative post-junior year internship, which hopefully turns into the post-graduation full time job.
Misguided is perhaps too light a word to describe the infamous Chapel Hill housing ordinance, which prevents more than four unrelated people from living in the same house. The ordinance is a feeble attempt at socially reengineering a by-gone era of the Chapel Hill housing market. The costs of this bad policy fall almost entirely on students, who the town should do well to remember are vital to Chapel Hill’s economy.
If you’re inclined to believe the protestors who descended on Raleigh this past Saturday, North Carolina is in serious social and economic trouble. Yet just a couple of weeks ago, North Carolina got a rare moment of national commendation when the state’s unemployment rate dropped faster from July to November than that of any other state.
In the wake of his letter last week regarding undocumented students and in-state tuition rates, Attorney General Roy Cooper received the most crucial of political lessons: Voters are fickle, self-interested and generally lacking in empathy.
A minimum wage essentially says that an hour of work, no matter how unskilled or unimportant, is worth at least $7.25. That’s not a lot of money, but then again there are some jobs that require no real skill, effort or responsibility. Parking enforcement comes to mind, but I’m probably biased. Raising the minimum wage implies that the inherent skills, efforts or responsibilities have increased in value. In all likelihood, though, the jerk writing me a $60 parking ticket hasn’t gotten significantly better at writing parking tickets.
Tis the season to be a Republican. With healthcare.gov about as popular as ConnectCarolina at registration, the shutdown long gone from the average voter’s mind and higher incomes than Democrats, the GOP should be enjoying the holiday season.
Officially, the field for next May’s N.C. GOP Senate primary includes House Speaker Thom Tillis, tea party favorite Greg Brannon, the Rev. Mark Harris, radio host Bill Flynn and nurse practitioner Heather Grant. Without being rude, let’s take a look at the three people who can make it to next November. And then I’ll show you the candidate who should actually win.
Maybe it’s selfish of me to criticize the Pope Center’s “General Education at UNC-Chapel Hill.” As the Elephant in the Room, it’s usually my job to go to bat for some of the less popular things the GOP and its allies do. But this time, I can’t.
