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Paula Jacques
(joined: May 28th, 2011 @ 3:36 pm as PJMSW)
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(commented on December 11th, 2011 @ 8:47 pm)
Which other cities did the Committee study to prove this is a good idea. It does not sound like low income residents will bring the needed vitality to the downtown area. Are the owners of the buildings just trying to unload their property at the expense of the citizens of Washington, this project needs more study.

Bill Cook
(joined: May 15th, 2011 @ 10:35 am as bill)
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Anna Deatherage
(joined: May 12th, 2011 @ 2:17 pm as anna)
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Betty Murphy
(joined: April 11th, 2011 @ 9:52 am as bettym)
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(commented on July 19th, 2013 @ 3:10 pm)
Maybe Civitas can use my research find an answer to your question. Brian Balfour is using it in today's Blog - almost word for word.

Civitas was able to use the info (attachment 990 Info) that I shared with you. Both De Luca and Balfour are using it to dig deeper into the Rural Center.

(commented on July 19th, 2013 @ 12:19 pm)
"...Within hours, Pope’s office hand-delivered to Hall’s replacement the order that demanded the agency stop spending state money.

Pope wrote that the administration is considering “the further step” of seeking recovery of all state funds now held by the center, an amount that may top $100 million.

The order includes a halt to any state money going to grantees or to the center’s employees. It was not immediately clear, according to a Rural Center spokeswoman, whether the funding freeze affected Hall’s severance pay...."

Read more here: www.newsobserver.com

(commented on July 19th, 2013 @ 12:09 pm)
I guess the BCC-100/Braddy Bath property is on hold.

John Lacava
(joined: April 5th, 2011 @ 10:32 pm as johnl)
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Nathan Black
(joined: February 21st, 2011 @ 11:30 pm as nathan)
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Warren Smith
(joined: January 24th, 2011 @ 7:32 pm as Warren)
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(commented on December 6th, 2012 @ 2:13 pm)
What a wonderful opportunity Mr. Britt has opened up to readdress Al as the self serving boob he is.

Instead of lying low and letting the dust settle, Britt has put the target right back on Al.

For the next two years Al should be objective #1....If Jay reruns in 2014 then Jay and Al will be fighting for the Britt wing votes of the RINO party...while Ed Booth sweeps the Democrats and Stan works the right and middle.

Long story short, Al has no friends and even his old allies, i.e., Jay and Britt are now rivals.

(commented on June 19th, 2012 @ 12:53 pm)
Cost of Doing Business in Beaufort County is Electrifying
June 19, 2012 | 08:39 AM

With respect to discussions on the city council about utility rates versus customer usage: the electric rate is overwhelmingly important.

The point of generating electricity is to make the product affordable to consumers for a wide and growing number of uses. Lower rates encourage new commercial and residential users and greater economic development in the community being served. The single best indicator of economic well being in a modern community is strong and rising use of electricity.

Electricity rates are the "elephant in the room" concerning economic development in Beaufort County. Businesses are acutely aware of all manufacturing costs. They are already actively involved in restricting needless uses of electricity at their facilities. Plant managers, manufacturing process designers, selection of efficient machines and motors which are scaled to their best need all contribute to best use of only essential KWH useage. However, various manufacturing processes do have their own most efficient and particular basic KWH requirements and that cost is controlled only by the utility rate.

Our rates are an all prevailing hurdle to our local economy. New business is deterred from locating here. Old businesses are at a disadvantage to competitors being served by lower rate utilities. Residential customers need to direct dollars to utility bills which could go to home repairs. This results in a depreciating housing stock. The distortions to the local economy are all intrusive and pervasive. No amount of EDC scheming or industrial park nonsense can overcome the burden of utility rates. What new development does come to Beaufort County seeks out areas served by alternate power providers.

While it is a service to customers to educate users as to "smart use" strategies, it is not the government or the generating company's place to discourage usage. Discouragement of usage leads to two problems:

1) As utility usage falls the limited KWH hours generated and sold become less able to spread the fixed costs of plant and equipment across a broad sales revenue base. This causes the portion of fixed costs allocated per KWH to rise, this in turn requires moth balling plant and equipment or increasing rates.

..........this is a death spiral for business and for customers.

2) The logical progression for reduced customer usage through recommended thermostat settings, etc., is for the regulators to move into mandated temperature settings and then onto rationing. Regulation by central authorities replaces business and personal decision making

..........this is the death spiral of the business environment.

(commented on June 15th, 2012 @ 1:20 pm)
I just watched the city council addressed by Jim Chesnutt and Dot Mote. It is hysterical. Do these folks even believe this stuff themselves?

Mr. Jennings has rightly pointed out that planning needs a great deal more work than anecdotal meanderings about random data.

It is more of the same unsupported and imaginary correlations masquerading as "market studies and evidence" which led the EDC and C100 to propose industrial parks and Quick Start buildings. Notice that neither speaker made any reference to either project....better forgotten and avoided as embarrassing failures...$6,500,000 simply ignored and abandoned.

Just what is it that Mr. Thompson has laid as ground work for our future? Empty real estate? Debt? Higher taxes? $500,000 in clawbacks on grant guarantees?

After 10 years of sending $1,500,000 to salaries in Craven County, $6,500,000 to empty industrial parks and $4,000,000 to Committee of 100 favorites, the self-appointed leadership of economic development feels that Beaufort County and the City of Washington need a plan!

As to the regrettable "negativity"...what is more negative than selling of assets and reducing business exposure in a community?

National Spinning is actually divesting themselves of assets and financial exposure in Beaufort County, yet these same folks want taxpayers to accept the Committee of 100's "vision" for our future.

Mr. Thompson refused to even live here.

ARE THEY SERIOUS? You cannot make this stuff up.

Edward Mann
(joined: January 24th, 2011 @ 11:06 am as edmann)
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Doug Rufino
(joined: January 12th, 2011 @ 1:01 pm as dougrufino)
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(commented on January 26th, 2026 @ 3:34 pm)
One need only look at how Barack Obama handled illegal immigration during his tenure as president. This included putting a presidential.Medal on Tom Holman, the head of ICE for deporting between around 5 million illegal aliens. And he's on record openly stating it.

Then one only has to look at the exact same policy under the Trump administration. Now it is front and center in the news, and there is open armed resistance in Minneapolis. But ICE is active in many cities throughout the United States. It appears only Minneapolis has significant problems. Including setting up, autonomous zones and essentially acting in open rebellion and insurrection against a federal agency. ICE falls under the Department of Homeland Security, which falls under the executive branch of the government which falls under the supremacy clause of the constitution, which means it has full and total rights and jurisdiction by the president.

At the same time, we have discovered massive fraud in Minneapolis and throughout Minnesota. Very unfortunate. But just when we started to examine fraud and waste in the government, the Democrats decided to burn Tesla's burn down Tesla dealerships, and once again openly engage in violent Ins insurrection, like activity to stop the investigation of fraud.

Minnesota and Minneapolis in particular is infested with fraud. So to detract away from the fraud, they are openly going after ICE agents. That's my take on it.

This is yet another wag, the dog movie directed by the Democrats designed with one intention only to influence the 2026 midterms with their lies and they're complicit lying media. The five-year-old boy was not kidnapped and used as bait. His father abandoned him in a -21° C car. His mother refused to accept them. That's the truth.

Renee Goode refused to comply with armed police, asking her to get out of her car, which was being used to actively block in ICE vehicles. That is an illegal activity. Did she comply with the police officers and step out of her car? No. She used your car she hit an ICE agent who went to the hospital with internal bleeding and she was shot and unfortunately killed.

Alex Pretti brings a 9 mm gun with an extra magazine into an active crime scene while filling it. Is it legal for him to carry the gun yes. He had supposedly a CC permit. But who walks into an active crime zone filming them while carrying a loaded gun? And what is the reason why he would do it. And where were the local police supporting the ice agents to make sure he would never even step off the sidewalk. He's allowed to carry his gun.

He's allowed to film them. But he can't walk up to them while they are in an active crime scene. When he was engaged by the police, did he fall to the ground immediately and say hey I'm carrying a gun don't shoot? No he actively resisted 5 ICE agents. Who does this? Now you see why the police instinctively followed your training and neutralized him? He did not state his intentions.

They have no idea who he is, but he's carrying a loaded pistol. Police officers are trained to draw on you before you even put your hand toward your gun. You are to tell an officer in advance that you have a gun on you if you're approaching a law officer while you're carrying. That's the law and that's just common sense.  that's what you do if you don't wanna get shot. The last thing I would do is resist arrest.

The governor of Minnesota and the mayor of Minneapolis are actively encouraging their citizenry to violently engage ICE agents in the attempt to interfere with their objectives.

This is because of the massive fraud that has been uncovered under their watch and the violent crime they allow in their city as a stated sanctuary city.

A sanctuary city is a city that is an open rebellion against the United States. They are declaring themselves above federal law. So by default they should receive no federal funding. If a state and a city can openly violate federal law, what laws can we have citizens choose to violate? I would say if my city is a sanctuary city then there should be a class action lawsuit to prevent us legal American citizens from paying any property taxes.

William R Sykes
(joined: January 11th, 2011 @ 7:38 am as bsykes)
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(commented on January 11th, 2011 @ 8:02 am)
Stan, I believe that your financial analysis only looks at the short term impact and not at the long term. The analysis should include where our health services in the County will be in 10, 20 or 30 years and how it will impact the financial wealth and well being of the County. Would choosing UHS over CHS increase the tax base by encouraging businesses and families (including retirees) to stay in or to move to Beaufort County because we had an excellent health care system that delivers high quality healthcare? Analyzing present facts is easy; trying to predict what might happen in the future and do a discounted cash flow is more difficult and requires vision. Needless to say I believe that UHS will do a better job.

Bill Sykes, 213 N Market St, Ste 201, Washington(252)833-4637 (In my past career I did capital investment analysis, strategic and long term planning at the the Stanley Works, parent company of Stanley Tools.) Harvard College BA 1970, Harvard Business School MBA 1975.

Announcements
(joined: January 5th, 2011 @ 4:07 pm as Announcements)
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Monica R. Gibbs
(joined: December 1st, 2010 @ 4:04 pm as monica)
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Susan Sounding
(joined: November 19th, 2010 @ 6:00 pm as gay_cox)
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Pitt Comunity College Foundation
(joined: November 5th, 2010 @ 4:57 pm as PittCC)
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Howard Ochs
(joined: November 2nd, 2010 @ 8:08 pm as HBOCHS)
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(commented on November 2nd, 2010 @ 8:10 pm)
Anything yet???

John Murphy
(joined: October 30th, 2010 @ 6:19 pm as johnm)
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(commented on March 18th, 2012 @ 9:43 pm)
Much of this great country is currently embroiled in the Voter Photo-ID question, an issue that could easily decide the results of a close election. I grew up believing that the United States was founded on certain principles that set it apart from the rest of the nations of the world. In addition to our basic rights, two of these principles stand out above the rest. The first of these tenets i...s that a person accused of a crime is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, and the second is the right of all citizens to vote in free elections.

It has often been said that it is better to let 1,000 guilty parties go free than convict a single innocent person. Using the same premise with regard to elections, isn't it better to allow a dozen voters without IDs to cast ballots than to deny even a single person who is otherwise entitled to vote? If we are to err on this issue it should be on the side of over-inclusion, and not unjust exclusion.

Velma Hickman
(joined: October 28th, 2010 @ 7:39 pm as velma)
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(commented on August 28th, 2014 @ 8:45 pm)
Stan, they've already done something stupid when they hired the Washington Strategic Group!

(commented on December 29th, 2012 @ 11:17 pm)
Dustin, I agree with Lynn. You definitely did an A+ paper. Please continue to write to stimulate our thinking. By the way, I remember you as a quiet and interesting little boy who enjoyed renting videos.

Lynn Deatherage
(joined: October 22nd, 2010 @ 9:44 pm as Lynn)
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(commented on December 11th, 2024 @ 6:02 pm)
I first met Diane through my husband, Stan. They became quick friends through their mutual involvement with, and enthusiasm towards all things government. Lucky for me, Diane was a multi-faceted person that I could relate to on other topics.

She was very kind towards me and I appreciated her humble character. I was fascinated by her many intellectual achievements and will forever feel of her passing from this earth at such a young age as surreal. I am heartbroken for her family and am truly saddened that cancer has taken another fine person way too soon.

Diane Rufino was truly one of God's good children, and is now resting in divine peace.

(commented on March 18th, 2020 @ 11:30 am)
What a loser and a dumbass

(commented on December 5th, 2019 @ 8:48 am)
This blend of her beautiful voice with Yo-Yo Ma and his cello along with some other unique instruments that build toward the end is captivating! My new favorite. Hey that's a song too.

Beaufort Observer Editorial Team
(joined: September 19th, 2010 @ 11:43 pm as beaufortobserver)
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(commented on October 18th, 2012 @ 6:44 am)
Editor's (Beaufort Observer) response: Stan is correct in all that he says. We differ only on the obvious soft assumption that DOJ could be convinced. Not the current DOJ. Jerry Langley and David Moore would see to in one phone call. A Romney DOJ would be irrelevant because any Pre-clearance would be appealed to the DC Court of Appeals and it would be killed there, not on a constitutional issue but on the factual basis. Hood's plan of 2 minority districts and 5 at-large would address the retrogression issue but would not likely fly because it would be statistical packing with a very distorted gerrymander. But you are precisely correct, without virtually unanimous agreement among the BOC, the current system is not going to change.

Did you and Steve evaluate preferential voting?

Anna Nelson
(joined: September 14th, 2010 @ 11:13 am as leftnorright)
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Sam Northrop
(joined: August 1st, 2010 @ 10:57 am as Northrop3)
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(commented on August 1st, 2010 @ 11:22 am)
I'm absolutely amazed at your description and photos of the neighborhood. I was born there in the early 60's spent my first seven years there before we moved away. We bought a small house near the entrance, then built something bigger a few years later. After 40+ yrs It's exactly as I remember it.

Ashley Woolard
(joined: July 28th, 2010 @ 12:58 pm as ashley)
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(commented on March 30th, 2026 @ 8:38 pm)
Stan, I appreciate you writing this article. I know Hood didn’t because there is only one misspelled word.

We are at a crossroad here in Beaufort County. You two have allowed the people to have their taxes doubled or even tripled in many cases.

That stops this November and all the nonsense you guys post is absolutely irrelevant to the people here in Beaufort County. Are you seriously posting this garbage to protect yourself?

I know youre ilk is trying to calculate numbers to save you Stan….I get it.

Not going to be enough 🇺🇸

(commented on April 2nd, 2025 @ 8:57 pm)
I have much in agreement with both Stan and Hood on policy. Hood and Stan put their names on what they write.

This kind of article may be funny to some — but at the end of the day how is this helping to heal wounds and advance our cause?

And whoever this writer is have the cajones to put your name on it. Other than that it’s a joke and so are you.

Holly Cherry Ange / Art Carawan
(joined: July 26th, 2010 @ 4:48 pm as holly)
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Jeff Emmerich
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Rowan Kountie
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Judy Jennette
(joined: June 23rd, 2010 @ 10:49 pm as Judy)
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Matthew Jordan Cochran
(joined: June 18th, 2010 @ 2:10 pm as cochran)
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(commented on June 20th, 2010 @ 4:46 am)
I'll try to put together an Equal Protection overview. Meanwhile, this paper (papers.ssrn.com) serves as a good primer on some of the other arguments likely to be made by anti-deportation activists (e.g., preemption of local action by federal regulation).

(commented on June 18th, 2010 @ 3:09 pm)
Unfortunately, some of the proposed measures--at least as they are described by the ACLU article--might trigger Equal Protection Clause difficulties. For example, the Supreme Court has overturned laws that impact the "innocent children" of illegals. Check out Plyler v. Doe, 457 U.S. 202 (1982).

Leslie Schneider
(joined: June 14th, 2010 @ 3:35 pm as schneider)
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(commented on August 24th, 2011 @ 5:42 am)
Felt like we were in a tree house in a building at PittCC.

(commented on August 11th, 2011 @ 1:58 pm)
A post by a friend of mine...

Dr. Seuss-2011
I do not like this Uncle Sam, I do not like his health care scam. I do not like these dirty crooks, or how they lie and cook the books. I do not like when Congress steals, I do not like their secret deals. I do not like ex-speaker Nan, I do not like this YES WE CAN. I do not like this spending spree, I'm smart, I know that nothing's free. I do not like their smug replies, when I complain about their lies. I do not like this kind of hope. I do not like it. Nope, nope, nope!

(commented on July 8th, 2011 @ 4:02 pm)
Requiring photo identification would without a doubt eliminate the various forms of voter fraud. People would no longer be able to vote multiple times using false identities as well as the stated issue of illegal immigrants. My question is why would you want to prevent a flawed system to be remedied? If a politician want votes so desperately, that they don't care how the race is won, then they shouldn't be running, much less elected. Which goes to show how confident they must be are in themselves and what they "stand for".

Julia Stephenson
(joined: June 3rd, 2010 @ 10:33 am as Jewels)
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Hood Richardson
(joined: May 28th, 2010 @ 9:15 am as HoodRichardson)
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(commented on August 18th, 2026 @ 6:27 am)
Irrational and liar describe you perfectly.

(commented on August 13th, 2026 @ 10:15 am)
The present Republican Executive Committee has never supported all Republican candidates. Giving lip service is not support. You back stab conservatives and support the Hood and Stan haters. Political piety does not look good on anyone.

(commented on August 11th, 2026 @ 5:11 pm)
To the upset commenters below. The truth really hurts. "It burns, burns, burns like a ring of fire" - June Carter Cash. You do a great job of distorting the truth and embracing lies.

Irrational Observer, it is more important that the public knows who and what you are.

Beth Byrd
(joined: May 7th, 2010 @ 10:45 am as EEMBB)
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(commented on August 26th, 2013 @ 1:10 pm)
Dear Mr. Pyle,

Thank you for your input. It is always a pleasure to hear from any concerned citizen about our town. Our organization is made up of volunteers, who like yourself want to see a better Washington in the future.

I can’t speak for the City of Washington but would like to clarify this issue.

I believe most of the roads you mentioned are state roads (except for Hackney). Funds for road improvements would be done by NCDOT. I would suggest you address your concerns with them too.

Best regards,
beth signature med

Director

Washington Harbor District Alliance
102 East 2nd Street

PO Box 1988
Washington, NC 27889

Cell: 252-947-1487

(commented on May 9th, 2010 @ 3:42 am)
Great story. Thanks for your efforts.You captured the evening well.

Stan Deatherage  
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