Archive for April 2009
Matthew Hoagland, a local activist and BCGOP member, who collected signatures in support of HR1207 at the Asheville Tax Day Tea Party, sent the below message today. Matthew was scheduled to hand-deliver his petition to Representative Heath Shuler today. HR1207 is a bill to Audit the Federal Reserve. What follows is his account of what happened:
Friends of Liberty,
Earlier today I went to our nations capital to deliver our H.R. 1207 Petition to Rep. Heath Shuler. Not only did he not acknowledge the delivery of the petition, he had his secretary, after a brief closed-door consultation, tell me that no Press Secretary or other staff member of any importance could sign off on the delivery.
Of course, Shuler, who remained in his office for the entire hour I was in his office building, refused to see me or even be reached as well.
Our new mission is clear. It is now our duty to flood Rep. Shuler’s Washington office and come out in strong support for this bill. The pressure is mounting and with enough phone calls he will cave.
Shuler’s Washington number is: (202) 225-6401. Please call and push this important legislation through.
In Liberty,
Matthew P. Hoagland
To read HR1207 Audit the Fed, click this link. This bill currently has 110 co-sponsors in Congress.
To email Heath Shuler’s office (though we suggest a phone call,) click this link.
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The updated animal control ordinance, which eases restrictions on urban chickens, passed yesterday without much resistance. Asheville residents are now at liberty to have chickens in their yards so long as their coop is 10 feet from their property line OR 50 feet from the nearest house. A permit is also required, and there is a limit of 6 total animals per household. Here’s an article in the Citizen-Times.
We congratulate Asheville City Chickens on their hard work in getting these changes passed. We were proud to lend a voice of support for this important local issue.
Responsibly raising egg-laying hens on one’s own property allows individuals and families to improve their health and save money while reducing our dependence on foreign oil, and increasing the self-reliance of our community, without doing harm to the property or health of others. Furthermore, it is a violation of our citizens’ private property rights and health freedom to prevent individuals from responsibly raising chickens on their property.
The Buncombe County Republican Party Executive Committee unanimously supports the efforts of “Asheville City Chickens” to ease the current restrictions that make it impossible for most Asheville residents to responsibly raise chickens on their property.
This issue will be up for discussion at tomorrow’s City Council meeting, Tuesday April 28th at 5pm. We encourage all those who value property rights and individual liberties to attend.
What a great turnout we had for Buncombe County today at the 11th District Convention! 62 Buncombe delegates were seated. We were, by far, the largest group, having nearly double the number of delegates as the next largest county. We certainly hope to have such a good turnout for the state convention in June.
The business of the convention included electing our 11th District officers for the next 2 years and passing resolutions. Congratulations to our elected officers:
Chairman, Stephen Duncan (from Buncombe)
Vice Chairman, Sue Lynn Ledford
Secretary, Robin Ramsey (from Buncombe)
Treasurer, Beki Taylor (from Buncombe)
Buncombe County delegate, Gary Shoemaker, submitted a Resolution for reaffirming state sovereignty, Resolution for reaffirming our right to bear arms, and a Resolution for supporting NC House Bill 849 which supports the State Sovereignty movement. This set of Resolutions passed unanimously. Thank you, Gary, for making this effort!
The Mountain Express reports that Jerry Young, Board President of public access station URTV, has suspended 2 outspoken URTV Board members for seemingly dubious reasons. Excuses Reasons for the two dismissals are reported as follows:
In an e-mail dated April 10, Young stated that Bernier and Dial were suspended—Bernier for not paying his membership dues and Dial because she faces dismissal.
“Richard, you have refused to pay your membership!” Young writes in the e-mail. “I have previously informed you of this matter which is expected of all our membership. Therefore, you should not be speaking to anyone on behalf of URTV. As president I am the only authorized person to speak for URTV.” URTV’s bylaws, however, don’t require members of its board of directors to also be dues-paying members of URTV. State law that covers the membership of non-profit boards states that “a director need not be a resident of this State or a member of the corporation unless the articles of incorporation or bylaws so prescribe.”
Young’s e-mail also addresses Dial: “Davyne, as you are aware you have been officially noted that you are up for dismissal from the board and as a result you also should not be speaking in behalf of URTV,” it reads. In a subsequent e-mail to Xpress, Dial questioned the reasons behind her suspension and asked “by what authority does the chairman of the board unilaterally suspend a member?”
Dial added that she requested clarification from Young on the reasons and terms of her suspension on April 10, but has not yet received an answer. URTV’s bylaws establish guidelines for dismissing a board member by a two-thirds majority vote of the board, but there is no mention of suspension. Dial said that the suspension “came within hours after I asked for access to Public Records of financial spending, credit card receipts and membership list for at URTV.”
Both Dial and Bernier have criticized what they see as a lack of transparency at the channel, which has faced controversies in recent months concerning a disputed confidentiality clause in an oath administered to board members (the oath was later rescinded), a memo from Young directing board members not to speak to the press, and questions about whether the board has followed open-meetings law.
Tom Tancredo, former U.S Representative and presidential candidate, was silenced by mob rule at UNC Chapel Hill, while giving a talk on immigration legislation. Protesters were allowed into the lecture hall with a large banner during the speech until they became so disruptive that the event had to be shut down.
Protesters blocked Tancredo with a banner, shouted, and broke a glass window, because they did not agree with his views.
Left-leaning activists have historically been strong advocates for free speech. Let’s hope they soon come to understand that they abuse their free speech rights when they violate the rights of others.
The following important message is from the White Oak-New River Keeper Alliance:
We need your help to defeat a dangerous plan to inject treated sewage into our drinking water aquifers. Please read the facts below and forward this to everyone you know that lives in North Carolina and encourage them to take action as well.
What’s at Stake?
The Onslow Water and Sewer Authority, known as ONWASA, wants to dump treated sewage down into our groundwater. This proposal, if allowed statewide, is a risky scheme that can easily contaminate vital drinking water sources for millions of North Carolinians.
Because of the risks, ONWASA’s proposal is currently illegal in North Carolina. But Rep. Russell E. Tucker, a Democrat from Pink Hill who represents Onslow and Duplin counties, has introduced a bill in the N.C. General Assembly that would allow ONWASA and others to dump potential pollutants into our aquifers. If House Bill 643 passes, any operator of a sewer system in the state could apply for a permit to inject treated sewage – the bill artfully calls it “reclaimed water” — into the ground where it can be stored “temporarily” for “beneficial reuse” later.
At our County Convention on March 7th, we unanimously passed a State Sovereignty Resolution, which reaffirms North Carolina’s Constitutionally protected powers as written in the 10th Amendment.
The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people.
The 11th District Republican Convention will be on Saturday April 25th, and we will again have the opportunity to support and pass this important Resolution, before heading to our State Convention in June.
North Carolina has now joined more than 30 other states in introducing a similar Resolution in our state legislature, as HB 849. You can see details of HB 849 here.
The wording of the State Sovereignty Resolution to be submitted at the 11th District Convention is as follows….
The Young Republicans of Buncombe County will hold a very important meeting on Thursday, April 9th at 6:30pm. The meeting will take place at La Paz Restaurante located at 10 Biltmore Plz [map].
This is possibly the most important YR meeting all year. The Young Republicans will be voting on the adoption of their constitution and bylaws as well as electing club officers. Posted here for your review befoe the meeting:
Young Republicans of Buncombe County Bylaws (proposed)
Young Republicans of Buncombe County Constitution (proposed)
Everyone is welcome to attend YR meetings and events. Republicans of ages 18-40 may join as voting members of the club. Club membership is $30.
YR Membership Form (.Doc) or (.PDF)
The Young Republicans of Buncombe County are looking forward to making a fresh start with a strong core group of participants.
Reserve your seat now! In order to facilitate the trip for our delegates, we have chartered a bus to take us from Asheville to the convention in Raleigh. $50 per person.
Departing: Friday, June 12, 8AM, from Westgate Shopping Center, 40 Westgate Parkway (Location of W. Asheville Earthfare)
Returning: Sunday, June 14, after closing ceremonies, from the Convention
Reserve your seat online now by clicking the Pay Now button below. You do not need a PayPal account to pay online.
For more information about the 2009 NCGOP Convention, visit www.ncgop.org/convention