Wednesday, February 3, 2016

In Triad City Beat this week; Millions more for downtown Greensboro's Cultural Center and 'Free' Federal Identification etc...;

Jordan Green; "Sides argue federalism and Jim Crow racism at stake in voter ID trial

...In June 2015, weeks before the trial over North Carolina’s omnibus 2013 election law was scheduled to begin, the General Assembly amended the voter ID provision with little debate. The amendment allows those who are unable to obtain photo ID to vote, but only after making a sworn declaration that they face a “reasonable impediment” because of reasons like lack of transportation, work schedules, family responsibilities and not having a birth certificate. Plaintiffs argue that the provision does not mitigate what they contend are the discriminatory aspects of the photo ID requirement, and that the process is confusing and intimidating...



...The plaintiffs are asking Judge Schroeder, who was appointed to the federal bench by President George W. Bush, to strike down the law to invoke an obscure provision of the 1965 Voting Rights Act that would require the state to obtain permission from the courts before making any further changes to its election system..."

http://triad-city-beat.com/sides-argue-federalism-and-jim-crow-racism-at-stake-in-voter-id-trial/
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Brian Clarey; "IDs for all!

...in the absence of evidence that there’s any impersonation fraud,

There is some voting fraud.

Not as much as many of the R's say there is,
and not not "any" as most of the D's say there is

The current system is pretty very easy to game
if one were so inclined

...there’s simply no reason to make it more difficult for people to vote — it’s anathema to the very idea of representative democracy. This is a transparent effort to deter and discourage voters who don’t tend to vote for Republican candidates. And they are not going to let it go.

There’s an easy solution, though: national ID cards.

More Cow Bell

...the national ID needs to be free for everyone, any time, on demand.

At any expense

...needs to be absolutely free and simple to obtain, like if you can’t get to the facility to have one made, someone should come to your house and make one there.



...And even though everyone will have one, we shouldn’t make people show them at the polls."

Which makes little sense, 
as the Orwellian idea would lose Brian's initial purpose

http://triad-city-beat.com/ids-for-all/

Think about how hard it would be to 'disappear' now
if one were to so inclined,
compared to having to have a national ID

Jordan Green; "It Just Might Work: Overhaul the Greensboro Cultural Center

...the Greensboro Cultural Center is a people’s arts facility, accessible to citizens of all ages and abilities who want to engage their creativity. It’s a democratic, small-A counterpoint to the elite, big-A arts framework that will guide the coming Steven Tanger Center for Performing Arts, which will provide a forum for ticketed events with symphonies, Broadway shows and national acts...

$78.1 million so far

...The cultural center needs some new spark.



...A legitimate website with a unique domain name that showcases new exhibits and upcoming performances would be a start.

Not a bad idea, 
which can be done for almost nothing by some volunteers


The cultural center probably needs a part-time marketing director to cross-promote programming.



I don’t know if each of the constituent organizations would chip in some of their budget to support such a position or City Arts (a division of the Greensboro Parks & Recreation Department) should outsource the position to someone at ArtsGreensboro with the requisite background.



...The building could also use some renovation.



A small auditorium equipped to screen films and a nice space to rent out for receptions would be worthwhile enhancements.



...the building needs to be redesigned to create a more open path to the bar so that foot traffic can more freely between the two. Maybe a mini coffee bar could be added to the cultural center?



The specifics don’t really matter, as long as the principals come together and do something to add some spark to the cultural center.



As long as everyone else pays for it without saying how, 
like Brian's ID idea

http://triad-city-beat.com/it-just-might-work-overhaul-the-greensboro-cultural-center/