Comments by Charles Hickman | Eastern North Carolina Now

Stan: Yeah, it's the same thing except they've upped the ante from name calling to murder.

Commented: Thursday, September 11th, 2025 @ 10:34 am By: Charles Hickman

Assassination: The ultimate debate concession.

Commented: Thursday, September 11th, 2025 @ 5:18 am By: Charles Hickman

Condolences to the family and friends of Ms. Frances. I have fond memories of working in tobacco on the 'Lyn' Haddock farm and how well I was treated by Ms. Frances, Mr. John and the Haddocks. It was hard work and great times spent with good people.

Commented: Tuesday, May 27th, 2025 @ 10:54 pm By: Charles Hickman

Velma and I still share the memories of coming back from Knott's Island on the flooded roads with Hood. In order to find safer roads, we had to detour into Virginia, then turn back south for home. At Elizabeth City we stopped overnight, because the roads were washed out between there and Beaufort County. What an adventure. That's just one of many.

Many people know how tenacious Hood is in politics. Fewer know how generous he is with his time and resources.

Happy Birthday Hood.

Charles and Velma Hickman

Commented: Monday, April 14th, 2025 @ 8:17 pm By: Charles Hickman

There is so much to admire and appreciate about Diane. She was truly an intellectual: Scientist, Lawyer, Educator. She was a dedicated Patriot. On top of all that, she was a humble and genuine person.

I've been acquainted with Diane for many years because of mutual interests and mutual friends. In more recent years, I've gotten to know her better because of similar experiences caretaking for parents; then even more so when we shared our parallel journeys dealing with our own personal health issues.

I am surely privileged to have known her.

Commented: Wednesday, December 11th, 2024 @ 10:00 pm By: Charles Hickman

The modern-day cultural revolution purge going on throughout all of western civilization must end. Rational people must stand up and stop this insanity.

History is a rich tapestry of human stories. Totalitarian attempts to sanitize it to their own standards or to cancel it entirely only destroy it. When we stop building on our history, we stop enriching our culture. We ultimately commit cultural suicide.

This attack on West Point history and tradition is awful. People are now even considering taking down reconciliation monuments. Think about what that means.

Lately, in many countries people have destroyed monuments to James Cook of all people. Cook mapped more of the world than anyone. His voyages catalogued thousands of plants and animals and contributed greatly to mankind. During our own war for independence against Britian, Benjamin Franklin wrote to captains of colonial warships, recommending that if they came into contact with Cook's vessel (a British vessel), they were to "not consider her an enemy, nor suffer any plunder to be made of the effects contained in her...but that they treat the said Captain Cook with all the civility and kindness...as common friends to mankind."

Cook's work was that important to the human race, and he gave his life to make those contributions. Now in today's hate filled world, he is made to be a supposed villain to be erased from history.

As for me, no thank you to that totalitarian nightmarish vision of the world. Madness such as this must be opposed.

Commented: Wednesday, May 1st, 2024 @ 10:10 am By: Charles Hickman

Willie Jones is one of my favorite figures in our history. The concerns of men like Jones and Patrick Henry have proven to be well founded.

Commented: Friday, April 12th, 2024 @ 10:18 pm By: Charles Hickman

I can only speak as one individual member of the School Board. I pledge to never use an official School Board meeting as a campaign opportunity.

Commented: Saturday, January 20th, 2024 @ 8:48 am By: Charles Hickman

The thing that tells me all I need to know is that there are people wanting to remove a monument to reconciliation.

To reconcile is to conciliate or make friendly again. It is to bring into accord as in settling or composing a difference. It is to harmonize, to bring into harmony.

The flip side of reconciliation is agitation, confusion, alienation, and disruption. Other ingredients in this particular issue are disrespectfulness and hatefulness bringing about more alienation and furthering the other negative conditions listed.

Removing the monument to reconciliation from Arlington National Cemetery is a real bad idea.

Commented: Thursday, December 21st, 2023 @ 11:40 am By: Charles Hickman

Condolences to the Cilluffo family. - Charles & Velma Hickman

Commented: Wednesday, December 6th, 2023 @ 9:38 am By: Charles Hickman

Just for the record, I'm one member of the Beaufort County School Board. I represent all of Beaufort County, and I'm elected from the 2nd District, which includes Aurora Precinct, Edward Precinct, Blounts Creek Precinct, a lot of Gilead Precinct, and part of Chocowinity Precinct. I am one member of a nine-member school board and do not speak for the entire board unless we come together as one to make a full board decision. I'm sure most people know that already.

Congratulations to Mr. Leary on this article. He has kept up with all of this better than anyone I know. Good thing for dictionaries, too. I found the word internecine - that's an effective word.

Still, I realize how difficult it is for the general public to understand my issue in the September 5th meeting to rescind the gag motion without first seeing the April 20th meeting where the gag motion originated.

Also, Mr. Leary has been taping all the board meetings. The gag motion issue is a great example demonstrating how important it is to tape the meetings. I use these tapes all the time to keep things straight in what would be very confusing otherwise. This by itself is a very valuable and much appreciated aid. I've been using this resource plenty concerning the 20 April meeting. Thanks for providing that resource.

Thanks also for people in the community who have expressed their concerns and lent their support to me individually and for our schools as a whole.

Commented: Saturday, September 9th, 2023 @ 2:30 pm By: Charles Hickman

I've been off Google for quite a while too. I usually use Duck Duck Go. I'll give Brave a look.

On a side note, I've sort of made a game out of reading those disclaimer warnings on Youtube sites. They're kind of funny, but in a very dark and disturbing way.

Commented: Saturday, August 26th, 2023 @ 9:24 am By: Charles Hickman

Stan - It's true that McConnell worked to keep Garland off the Supreme Court. It is also true that Mitch McConnell voted to confirm Merrick Garland for Attorney General. Among the several Republicans joining McConnell in confirming Garland were North Carolina Senators Thom Tillis and Richard Burr. Before the vote of the Senate body Tillis also voted on the Senate Judiciary Committee for a favorable recommendation.

Such is the precarious situation of our doctrine of equal justice under law. Presently, the tenets of our civilization are not being defended. That is a sobering reality.

Commented: Friday, August 25th, 2023 @ 7:04 am By: Charles Hickman

Hood, these people obviously do not care if they are seen as legitimate. They do not care if they are seen as accountable. They do not even care to pretend. It will take a lot to rebuild the NC GOP, if it is even possible.

I've been to a number of state conventions over the years. It seems they have progressively gotten worse. To say that the 2023 state convention has reached a new low is actually an understatement.

Commented: Wednesday, July 19th, 2023 @ 6:31 am By: Charles Hickman

The NC GOP is already sending fundraiser emails out touting themselves as defenders of election integrity. Even Hollywood couldn't make this stuff up.

Commented: Friday, June 16th, 2023 @ 10:42 am By: Charles Hickman

Update: The rules of the convention were that only delegates in the convention hall had the right to vote. It appears there were violations as well as other troubling things. Here are a few examples:
1) Evidence that people voted using the ap from Florida and Wisconsin.
2) Guest that were not delegates to the convention used the ap to vote.
3) Three of the 1st four county totals were tossed because they reflected an over-vote.
4) The business day ended without a quorum as the only basis to adjourn the convention.
5) Electronic voting left no trail or evidence of the vote.

This is the statement from Mr. Whatley after all that has transpired: "That election was done and final and will not be re-opened."

So much for transparency, righteousness and honor. This is a terrifying situation that leads me to a No Confidence conclusion.

Commented: Tuesday, June 13th, 2023 @ 12:29 pm By: Charles Hickman

A red herring is eye catching and Georgia like North Carolina has a variety of nuts, but that doesn't change the well-established fact that "woke" is a radical left neo-Marxist dogma.

Concerning the article, I agree that voting should be contingent on passing a civics/history test. Unfortunately, our population has reached a level of ignorance making that necessary if we are to continue as a healthy constitutional republic. Also, I believe we should be way more wary of the next greatest curriculum fads. Publishing companies push these curriculum fads as ongoing profit makers. Many times, they are used as ideological tools too.

We should not forget tried and true teaching methods. In order to see how much we have digressed educationally in this country, take a look at a 19th century eighth grade exam. I'll bet most present-day college graduates would have to study in order to do well on it.

Commented: Saturday, May 27th, 2023 @ 8:24 pm By: Charles Hickman