Hogg Wash

The N&R has partnered with a few selected bloggers to appear as columnists in their paper. On the surface it seems like a really neat gesture. The mighty paper helps get blogging going in Greensboro. Blogging becomes so powerful that local politicians join in. Many of the N&R staff joins with blogs of their own. Greensboro becomes such a powerful blogging community it is frequently called Blogsboro. Why would the N&R not want to expand the project by giving space in their paper to the blogging elite? This could lift the voices of the people and make Greensboro a more democratic city. It could be a shining example of the people leading the leaders. What a great idea, as long as you stay on the surface. If you just take Keith Holliday type glances at this partnership, everything will be as peachy as the Mosaic Project. However, if you take a good look into the N&R's actions you will be able to see the danger ahead.

The Editor of the N&R is financially involved in the sale of the Canada Dry building. His wife's family owns it. The city wants to buy it. The last offer made was over three million dollars. It is currently being appraised for the second time. The first appraisal was incomplete. The property has serious environmental issues due to several underground fuel tanks and the cost of that clean up is yet to be determined. Wonder why we have not seen a feature story on that local government maneuver?

How come we did not see a story about council rejecting the first appraisal due to all of the unknowns present? Wonder why we did not see an editorial applauding the council, specifically Tom Phillips, for being awake enough to read the first appraisal and seeing it as incomplete? Did I miss something? Gotta look after the tax payer's money right? When the N&R editor gets up in the morning and goes to work is he more interested in what is good for the elite city staff instead of what is good for the people?

The N&R has also gone right along with the city during this police mess that is being made. Never once has the N&R questioned the structure of the investigation. Just last week the N&R had an article about former Deputy Chief Randall Brady and some of the specifics of a lie detector test he was given. The N&R failed to mention that Brady was given a lie detector test immediately after a four hour interrogation. That is not procedure and it is very much a part of the story. At least to me it is.

The city has confidential information that continues to end up in the N&R's hand. It comes at the oddest moments as well. The Project Homestead investigation is complete and the findings are few. The same time that news came about, the N&R magically gets the confidential RMA report. It has all been reported on the Troublemaker. It is important to mention that the facts of this story have been on the Troublemaker first. We tell you what they are about to tell you. Just check it out Here, Here, and Here.

With all of these ice bergs the N&R and the city elite staff are dodging, it probably wasn't a bad idea to make a nice gesture to the blogging community. Certainly the powers would not want their ship crashing into the wrong ice berg because of meddling bloggers. The N&R may have essentially bought several smaller publications for damage control.

One of my favorite bloggers and certain future Greensboro City Council members, David Hoggard, recently appeared with his first column in the N&R. I could not get past the following text from Hogg's blog post regarding his first column. Hogg reported, "What we know so far about the David Wray matter is bad enough....." The Troublemaker has covered this story closely and Known facts are hard to come by. Did I miss something?Did Hogg see something I did't? Is that even possible?

Dianned Bellamy-Small gave the report to Mazie Ferguson who then gave it to Ahearn. We know what the N&R has told us is in the RMA report. We do not know if the RMA report was fair and unbiased. We also know that there has been no criminal charges made. We know that the RMA investigation lasted around three weeks. We know the N&R would like nothing more than to hand the city David Wray's KKK outfit and his allegiance to white power. We know that has not been found yet. Trust me, it is not because the N&R isn't looking. We know that the city legal department and the city manager's office was in a heated battle with the David Wray police force over the Homestead investigation. There was no love lost between those parties.

There are other things that are known but the only other thing that is necessary to mention in this post is we know the city and the N&R can't go back from their stance. No matter what, Wray must be found guilty of something really bad. If there isn't an ice berg then one will be constructed. That is the real danger.

The city and the N&R need for everyone to shut up and let them tell their story. Just trust them. Trust the N&R. Trust Linda and Mitch. This trusting attitude was painfully displayed in Hogg's debut column. Hogg wrote, "By all indications, Greensboro is on an unavoidable collision course with some pretty nasty stuff. Even though we commoners are able to see hints of what is coming through various leaks and starts, and all we can really do is wait, along with our City Council, for the full extent of the damage to be realized."

The Troublemaker does not see this wait and see approach as the only alternative for the commoners. Don't just wait for the all powerful and omniscient N&R to distribute the results of the city's fair and just investigation. Open your eyes folks. When the ship does hit that ice berg you are going to pay for the repairs. Mutiny is not out of the question when the good of the whole is a stake. There are valid questions that are not being asked. The N&R has already picked their winner. The city has handed them their racists monster.

It all fits right into a nice package just in time for the GTRC final report. The N&R can stand and say, "Yes, we were a very big part of the GTRC process." The city can stand up and say, "Yes, we have removed a cancerous racist from our staff." Nice story. It has a beginning and an end. It is easy to understand and will make the left in Greensboro feel validated. However, the truth usually does not do that. Truth rarely makes folks feel good. The truth usually pisses everyone involved off. What Greensboro needs is some reality about the truth. It is my hope that the GTRC report will make everyone mad. If it does then it is a job well done.

I have fought racism, bad working conditions, slavery, environmental racism and bad local government in Greensboro for over 5 years. Take a deep breath. Do you smell that asbesotos? Exactly.

Because I am against those things all of the time, I can see that this Wray mess aint all it is said to be. Write this down, it will not be too long before the city will begin to announce that the Wray mess has little to do with race. They will say it has little to do with Hinson. I am telling you now it has little to do with truth. That is the biggest problem. If you know more than me let me know. I am sure all of the attorney's and court officials will be glad to read all about it on the Troublemaker.

I have been warned that if I continued to write about the city and the N&R that they would come after me. I have been told they might even try to make me out as a racist. I repsonded by saying that is true. I am a racist. I have always had major problems with white poeple. I really don't mind if they live around me. I just know that if they do I should rember to lock up. Holla!