Crooks of a Feather . . .

Crooks of a Feather . . .Or Just Misinformed?

by Fern Shubert - July 19th, 2007 - North Carolina Conservative

This morning I watched as Jim Black was sentenced to 63 months in federal prison for taking bribes from chiropractors. It was painfully obvious that there were other crimes for which he was not (yet?) being sentenced, although his efforts to obstruct justice were noted in part of the discussion of sentencing guidelines.

Probably the most entertaining part of the session came when Black’s attorney tried to convince Judge Boyle that there was nothing unusual about Black paying to hire an attorney for Mike Decker when Decker was called to testify before the grand jury. Judge Boyle, while accepting the explanation given, explained why he thought that action might be considered significant.

According to Judge Boyle, in his experience dealing with drug cases, when a mule is caught, the kingpin typically hires the attorney to be sure the mule keeps quiet. Obviously in Decker’s case, he did not keep quiet. Judge Boyle’s comment does strengthen the case of those who believe the public should be informed of the identity of those footing Black’s legal bills.

Another entertaining moment came after the hearing when Mecklenburg County Commissioner Parks Helms “held court” to give his spin on the Black story to a group of reporters. With John Rhodes and me standing in plain view, barely five feet away, he told what a great guy Black was and how he was never vindictive. Perhaps he meant he was never vindictive to his political allies, only to those like Rhodes and me who thought using the government to steal from the public to reward those allies was dishonest.

Since I returned to NC I have been hesitant to believe just how crooked our state politics have gotten. In the last few months I have finally become a believer. The stories about the abuse are constant and easy to find if you are not willfully ignoring the problem. This article is indicative of how openly dishonest the democrat party has become in North Carolina.

To me the most contemptible action documented in this article is the story "about Black’s action in firing pesticide inspectors in retaliation for fining Black’s son for cheating the public."

. . . . don't forget the time Black's son was being fined for cheating people by charging for pesticide applications he didn't make. Rather than advising his son to quit stealing, Black used the state budget to fire the people who caught and penalized his son. What a great guy.

Why are citizens no longer outraged when honest people are destroyed for their actions? This power play is a part of the culture that intimidates people into going along with the evil practices.

There was an earlier democrat in our area, Congressman Frank Balance, who has gone to jail for his criminal abuse of the public trust. Numerous democrat politicians in our area still talk about what a great guy he was and how sending him to jail was a miscarriage of justice. How can they believe this?

In none of these cases is the criminality petty or technical or small. It is open and abusive and arrogant.

Despite the fact that the majority of our state votes Republican, democrats dominate government at both the local and state level. This dominance is based on power rigging schemes that have long denied open and honest government to the citizens of North Carolina. There are a number of honest and well intentioned democrats in government in NC. Unfortunately they often cover up for and excuse rampant corruption that could not happen except for their complicity. Doesn't that make them equally guilty?

"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing."
- Edmund Burke

If we are ever going to regain honest government in North Carolina, people of integrity in the democrat party are going to have to accept that their own futures are dependent on helping to end the abuse. Otherwise they become a part of the problem. Are there none in the democrat party who are outraged at the abuse?

I never see anything like the article linked below on Republican Patrick McHenry's campaign if the official in question is a Democrat. Here a conservative web site condemns the actions of McHenry that are not themselves illegal, but just immoral. We need more of that .
http://www.northcarolinaconservative.com/index.php?subaction=showfull&id=1184780639&archive=&start_from=&ucat