It's morphed into the worst of conservatism AND the worst of big government liberalism. Down here in Helms home state and hometown the government is booming while it looks for new ways to chisel a dollar from everyone in order to hire more cops to provide the illusion that its some fine Libertarian paradise replete with freedom and small government. It's basically turned into Mussolini without the cool uniforms. I have Democratic governor and a democratic state assembly (both houses) that sees nothing at all wrong with raising taxes this year to pretty much whatever they want in order to fund public safety while at the same time they're cutting practically every social program on the books. Except of course for all education salaries which are going up 8-10% per year every year. Our public mental health system is 45th in the nation. But Raleigh has at least 5 overlapping police forces and we're one of 7 states with NO juvenile justice or court system.

Our two Senators, Libby Dole and Richard Burr basically exist to generate cash for the GOP money making machine while they prattle on about Jesus and Family Values. But at the same time our Democratic Governor is semi-sort-of-pro choice don't ask don't tell at the same time he slapped down a state legislative proposal that would at least put a temporary moratorium on the death penalty. Because apparently soccermoms want nothing less than public lynchings to ensure their little snowflakes are safe and snug.

And where does any remaining cash go? Road 'repair' of course. Some sections of the interstates in NC have been under constant never ending 'repair' or widening since 1995. We're the home of THE most expensive highway, per mile, ever constructed in the US; I-540, at more than $35 million per mile. And after almost 30 years of 'development' it's only half done and the state has decided to even do another 25% of it it will have to be privatized on that section and run as a private toll road. You don't have to be Descartes to know that the money is going to crony construction companies and real estate holdings.

And oh yes, NC has had ONE black officeholder of a statewide office since Reconstruction. He was voted out in 2004. Also in 2004 which didn't make the national papers, we had more than 10 state and national elections which took more than TWO YEARS to finally settle, in the courts and then by re-voting. Two years.

So if anything else, Helms didn't make the South, he came FROM the South and all that it is.

I know plenty of homespun small town umpteenth generation former sharecropper/tobacco farmer white Tar Heels. And they are for the most part charitable kind Christian men and women. We have a euphemism for what Helms was. We heard on the news all last week; "He was a Southern Gentleman". Which is a nice way of saying he wasn't. He was a lower middle class shitkicker who aspired to gentry even though he had none of the class or breeding. And he aspired to be a plain folks even though in his heart of hearts he was a redneck bastard.

This is starting to smell like a put up. Who BUT Jesse Jackson could ever get away with this fake bullshit? No one. When is the 'media' going to stop tossing marshmallows at Obama? Jesus H. Christ it's practically a "Jeff Ganon" moment at this point.

Do people ever quit a job ONLY because of the money? Rarely. Though if you feel you're not paid fairly you will tend to look for other reasons why your job sucks. So, given that if the only reason to pull up and move 3000 miles is money and some advancement, the question you have to ask yourself, is, is it enough? I for one would be perfectly willing to take on a very unpleasant and unrewarding job if they paid me enough. But it would have to be a great deal of money to be enough. This is what they call "Fuck You Money". Getting paid enough to storm into your mad rhino asshole of a boss's office one day, pee on their desk and say fuck you and leave. If you need Fuck You Money then bargain for it. Otherwise say no.

And for the record, having done it before and been burned, I will NEVER relocate for an employer again. I will move on my own and work out some other arrangement when the time comes but relocate? Never.

Now that the TSA admits that upwards of 16,000 laptops are stolen or 'lost' (a.k.a. stolen by TSA staff) at TSA checkpoints, business travelers aren't traveling. Now that the TSA randomly confiscates laptops, cameras, SD memory cards, USB drives and the like, business (and some leisure) travelers aren't traveling. It couldn't happen to a nicer bunch. Let the airlines slowly twist in the wind on the sharp meathooks of their 'let the free market decide' business model. It would be a wonderful day if air travel in the US died a miserable slow death of a thousand cuts.

Well at least they speak English in Injya. Pack the pith helmets and Earl Grey. We're on safari.

Not just the lunatic fringe, but the lunatic fringe huffing paint and boxing cops. This is awesome. The Green party is officially insane. And Bob Barr? May a voting machine fall on him and crush his empty skull. What platform is he running on? That he sniffed Bill Clinton's underwear for 5 years?