Political Speech is Severely Curtailed on the Beaufort County Board of Commissioners | Eastern North Carolina Now

Representation lost as the Word Police triumphs for Authoritarianism.

    Last night, at Beaufort County's General Meeting for October, a majority of Beaufort County Commissioners saw fit to snatch away Commissioner Hood Richardson's constitutional right to his political speech to further their authoritarian agenda. By the slender vote of four to three, the Gang of Four (Democrat Commissioners: Langley, Booth and Belcher, with RINO commissioner Al Klemm) voted to delete the overwhelming majority of Conservative Lion Richardson's agenda items dealing with issues such as the Southwest County Jail, and the oversight of the sheriff.

    In the preceding general meeting of September 2, 2014, and during that same period early-on in this most recent meeting, when 'urgent' agenda items are considered for last-minute inclusion, Chairman Gerry Langley challenged the necessity of the vast number of Commissioner Hood Richardson's agenda items, and motioned to remove them before there could be any discussion regarding his sundry issues. During the fervent debate to abridge, or sustain the strident commissioner's constitutional right to free political speech, long-time King Chairman Langley attempted to assert his perceived procedural prowess, as chairman of these county commissioners, to which Hood Richardson sarcastically answered, in his normal voice, "Yes Master". The video-cast of record shows this exactly as described.

    That same video-cast minutes later revealed public commentary from Cathy Vasquez, a Beaufort County resident, where she blatantly accused Commissioner Richardson of being a racist, thereby querying Commissioner Richardson, "Did you just say 'Yes Massa?'" King Chairman Langley is Black, which, obviously in her mind, qualifies "Yes Master" to metamorphosis into "Yes Massa", and which immediately qualifies Chairman Langley to engage in his heavy-handed chairmanship to limit representation, as Commissioner Richardson, in the mind of the Liberal activist, conveniently evolves into a racist.

    Flash forward to the aforementioned most recent county commissioner meeting, where Chairman Langley, buoyed by a reprise performance of Cathy Vasquez still accusing Commissioner Richardson of governing while racist, elected to, once again, motion that over 80% of Commissioner Richardson's agenda items be removed from public discussion; however, this time the Chairman did have his Gang of Four to do his bidding.

    In the early moments of that People's meeting, the Gang of Four did rally around their chairman, and did give him the vote that he requested: Commissioner Richardson, and the constituents that he represents would be effectively shut down. The upside for the Chairman was that he would get home in time to see "Monday Night Football"; the downside was that Commissioner Richardson's constituents' collective voice was effectively silenced.

    I argued in favor of giving Commissioner Hood Richardson's constituents a voice at the People's table, stating: "While Commissioner Richardson's methods, his ideas may be alien to some of you county commissioners, his purpose has proven to be good for Beaufort County. Hood's agenda of having a monthly jail report to hold the district attorney, judges and public defenders accountable has proven to be a wise method to reduce the jail population ... maybe to the point of not currently needing a jail."

    After that meeting, in comments made to BCN, Commissioner Richardson stated: "The first restriction made by fascist dictators, when they seek to rule with an iron fist, is to restrict the political speech of the people's elected representatives. It makes it so much easier for these authoritarians to steal their individual liberties, one by one, as is necessary for them to hold onto that power to keep control." Commissioner Richardson continued, "It is reminiscent of what is occurring now as this same Gang of Four rams this jail down the public's throat, one indigestible bite after another."

    Another political truism is that more often than not, when Liberals begin to lose any debate in the public arena, they usually cry "racist", or some similar non sequitur that is equally ambiguous. These Beaufort County Liberals, through their vocal and rather visible sycophant, Cathy Vasquez's accusatory comments, have proven to have lost that argument to squash the will of the People that consider themselves a constituent of Commissioner Hood Richardson.

    The problem here in Beaufort County is that quite often the liberal debate is lost, but the bad policy continues because the votes of elected Progressives are there to carry the day for these Authoritarian ideals: their costly projects, their unwise policy, and their bad practices of stealing the freedoms of those they govern by such a slim majority.

    Another truism is that even liberal citizens, as thoughtless and arbitrary as their ideals may be proved, will squeal and whine when their property taxes become too high, or their granted freedoms become too limited. Regardless, they will continue their support for those politicians that singularly make this all happen at their electoral behest.

    Not paying attention is a way of life for these people that comprise this heretofore poorly educated segment of Beaufort County's electorate. Education, and the truth that resides within that effort to know real stuff, is the key to have a properly functioning republic. We are far from that reality here in Beaufort County, and crying racist because you lost the debate, and have no shred of real wisdom to know the difference is no excuse for that obvious deficiency.

    In conclusion, and to put a proper point on how King Chairmen can flex their authority over the constitutional prescribed liberties of others, I will repeat a borrowed phrase: "Beaufort County citizens do not expect bad government, they demand it."

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