Rep. Speciale puts the words on Rev. Barber, and we say: Right on, Mike. | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's Note: This article originally appeared in the Beaufort Observer.

Fairy tales abound in Raleigh.

    Time was, although no longer true, that most children knew the moral of the fairy tale of Chicken Little and the Boy Who Cried Wolf. Not so with the Reverend Dr. William Barber, president of the N. C. NAACP.

    Here's the short version of the fairy tale he spun last week in Raleigh.

    Mr. Barber called a press conference, one of many such events he has created, and threw a hissy fit about racism. You can read his rant by clicking here to download his press release. You can watch the press conference in the WRAL-TV video below:



    But Mr. Barber got more than he bargained for.

    Rep. Michael Speciale, R-Craven, responded to the email Mr. Barber sent to all legislators. Rather than summarize it, we publish it in its entirety here since it has already been published publicly elsewhere:

    From: Rep. Michael Speciale

    Date: Wed, Jan 23, 2013 at 4:39 PM

    Subject: RE: NC NAACP Statement as Read at Morning News Conference on Voter Suppression

    To: northcarolinanaacp@gmail.com

    Dr. Barber,

    This is as insulting a diatribe as I have seen in years. The NAACP has a proud history of working on behalf of black Americans to address the problems of society directed at them. You tarnish that with your racist diatribes and your race-baiting attitude. The photo requirement to vote is to prove that one is who they say they are. Nowhere in anyone's minds but yours and your fellow race-opportunists is race, ethnic background, or color of one's skin mentioned, insinuated or inferred regarding the proposed voter ID laws.

    You do minorities and the elderly a disservice when you assume that they are incapable or incompetent to the point that they cannot provide a photo ID to vote. Photo ID's are required in nearly every aspect of American life, and most Americans over the age of 16 have some form of photo ID. Your talking points make no sense, as you ramble on with Constitutional phrases to give an impression that you know what you are talking about, and it is apparent that you are grasping at straws. Your attempts to make minorities and the elderly believe that they are victims in this effort is contrary to common sense but apparently necessary to your economic survival

    Your comments, both today and in the past are racist and inappropriate, therefore, I request that you remove me from your email list.

    Michael Speciale

    And just as you might expect, the liberal, left-wing Elite Media in the state rushed to Mr. Barber's aide. They published a private communication and tried to make Speciale the villain in the matter. Trouble is, it didn't work. In fact, it appears to us that it has backfired big time on the Elites.

    Blogger Bob Lee (Agent Pierce) immediately posted "THE REAL STORY re: Speciale vs. Barber."

    Brant Clifton, posted on the Daily Haymaker posted: The latest from the 'It Needed to Be Said' Department ...

    Francis De Luca, president of the Civitas Institute responded to some of the accusations made at the NAACP Press Conference by calling on the NAACP "to retract the lie about Civitas..." told at the press conference.

    Check back later. We suspect there will be more on this fairy tale.

    Commentary

    Chicken Little actually believed the sky was falling when an acorn fell from the tree above her and hit her on the head. She immediately ran to tell the king that the sky was falling. Along the way she met other fairy tale characters that she convinced that what she believed about the sky was true and they too must run to tell the king. Of course it did not turn out well for Chicken Little or her friends, but that's not the point we make in citing her story. The point is that she actually believed the sky was falling. Or did she? Was it merely a matter of seeking attention?

    Mr. Barber, and the state NAACP under his leadership, we would suggest, have become more like a co-mingling of Chicken Little and The Boy Who Cried Wolf. Like the boy who blew his credibility by crying wolf so often and then could not get anyone to believe him when there was an actual threat from a real wolf, Mr. Barber's diatribes about people he sees as racists, while ignoring the log in his own eye, or the knot on his head from the sky falling, no longer have enough credibility for anyone to take him seriously.

    We applaud Rep. Speciale for responding and calling Mr. Barber out. Speciale is exactly right when he says that requiring a voter to prove who they say they are when going to vote is not racist. It is just as easy for a black person to get a photo ID as it is for a white person or a brown person to get one. Sure it's a little trouble, but voting is a serious privilege (no, it is not a right) and if one is not willing to go to the trouble to get a photo ID then they should not be allowed to vote.

    If requiring a photo ID is racist why does Mr. Barber not rail against the banks requiring one to open a bank account, or the hospital/doctor requiring one to obtain health services or in many places to open an account to buy electricity; and why did Mr. Barber not assail the Democrat National Committee when it required a photo ID to get into its convention?

    The simple fact is that a photo ID does not suppress anyone from voting if they feel it is as important as buying a pack of cigarettes at a convenience store. He claims such a requirement has a "disparate impact" on poor or black people. No, it is not the photo ID that causes a disparate impact, it is whatever it is Mr. Barber believes prevents a person from getting a photo ID. And we would suggest that what that cause is in most cases is motivation.

    No, we think the real motivation in opposition to the photo ID is that it would make it more difficult for some to commit voter fraud.

    Moreover, Rep. Speciale is right on the money when he points out that Mr. Barber's specious use of constitutional quotes are simply bogus. Certainly before making such charges as Mr. Barber has made he should learn that "disparate impact" does not constitute a constitutional violation, absent intent to discriminate on an impermissible basis. For example, would Mr. Barber contend that disparate impact was wrong or illegal if it were found that more black people received food stamps than did white people? Or Medicaid, or...well you get the point. Many things have a disparate impact but that does not make them wrong or illegal.

    We suspect that Rep. Speciale has voiced what many people think when they hear diatribes such as we get from Mr. Barber.

    The problem we have with Mr. Barber's accusations of racism is that he does not substantiate it. Claiming something does not make it true.

    But the real problem here is that Mr. Barber's and the NAACP's unsubstantiated accusations distract from conscientious consideration of the real and actual issues many people in North Carolina face. Mr. Barber is correct that there are some serious problems in North Carolina...like getting our economy back on track, improving the public education system and making the health care system efficient and effective. But as with Chicken Little, if he thinks those problems will be fixed by his crying "racism" as often as he does then the real disparity that exists here is the difference between his perceptions and reality.

    It's time, for example, for Mr. Barber to come to realize that Barack Obama's policies and actions cause many more problems for "poor folks" than anything else he has substantiated.

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