Madness in the NC General Assembly

That's actually the title of an editorial published in the Hickory Daily Record. When folks in Catawba County start noticing The Crazy, then The Crazy is getting mighty noticeable. Excerpts from the above:

April Madness is upon us again, ... I warned readers a year ago with a column on April 28 about how misguided legislation in North Carolina could affect every household in our state. 

The object of my concern then, Senate Bill 33, is having the tragic effect that was predicted. Retirees and children have lost their rights to protect themselves against possible medical malpractice. Retirees and children are now considered “non-economic entities” because they can’t show a loss of wages resulting from medical malpractice in North Carolina. 

A $500,000 limit was placed all “non-economic” cases, which has produced the exact effect that the 2004 Task Force Report on Tort Reform warned the N.C. Legislature and N.C. citizens could happen — no lawyer in North Carolina will take a “non-economic” malpractice case against a N.C. doctor today. 

What “April Madness” bills are being introduced and voted on in our N.C. Legislature this year? 

How about the “Healthy Marriage Act,” that would force married couples to wait two years to get a divorce, ... Is this the way to stop domestic abuse and violence? 

Senate Bill 667 was introduced last week that would penalize any N.C. parents if their children registered to vote at their college address. “ ... One can only assume that the members of the present N.C. Legislature do not want college students voting in any future election. I wonder if they are afraid that college students will not vote for them anyway.

Recently, the state Senate Education Committee approved Senate Bill 337 that creates a separate governing board for state charter schools. Charter schools in N.C. would not be required to have licensed teachers. Charter school employees would not be subject to criminal background checks. Supporters of the bill say each school should be able to decide how many, if any, certified teachers they should have. Even basic courses such as math, English, science, etc. would not require certified teachers in charter schools. 

April Madness only gets better when two N.C. legislators propose a bill that would say that North Carolina and its counties and towns have the right to establish an official religion. Their reasoning seems to be that the U. S. Constitution prevents the federal government from establishing an official religion, but that rule does not apply to states. 

Another proposed bill, S 298, would eliminate all requirements for utilities to purchase power produced by solar, wind, or biomass. This proposal would essentially wipe out the renewal energy bill, set up in 2007 by Senate Bill 3. ... One wonders again if he is being influenced by his past associations with one of the largest utilities in the state.

With reference to Senate Bill 667 (and its "sister" voter suppression legislation, S666, the mark of the Beast that Sen. Dan Soucek is so hot to embrace), we understand that a group of ASU students are holding a press conference Wednesday morning to protest all the legislation meant to discourage them from voting.

They may be young, but they get it ... what Dan Soucek, Jonathan Jordan, and the rest of the Clown College is so blatantly trying to do to them and to their rights.