Why Senator Forrester was against gay marriage

Posted on May 14, 2012 by David Hook

I say “was” because James Forrester is deceased as of October 31st, 2011. One of his last acts was to push Amendment One onto the ballot after eight years of trying to do the same. In this video, he seems unable to come up with a reasonable, cohesive defense for this move. Some of the senator’s reasoning includes certifiably false science, as well as advice from author Frank Turek, a prolific doctor of Christian Apologetics. His works include I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist, Correct, Not Politically Correct and Legislating Morality.

Cheers to the radio host for not backing down.

The New Yorker takes a stance

Posted on May 5, 2012 by David Hook

Here’s a great little op-ed published by the New Yorker’s News Desk. The author, Anne Springfield, gives a nice overview of the gargantuan efforts put forth by the Coalition to Protect NC Family’s (CPNCF) towards defeating Amendment One. As she puts it:

Amendment 1 has drawn scant attention outside of North Carolina so far, but it is poised to be a bellwether fight in the gay civil-rights movement. A defeat for the amendment is looking more and more possible as the Coalition’s momentum grows and the conversation expands.

Only a few more days left to help defeat Amendment One! Please consider helping CPNCF with their Get Out the Vote initiative. They need people to participate in phone banks across the state and to canvas neighborhoods. You can sign up to participate here. If you’re unable to help, at least make sure to get to the polls on May 8th! Tell your friends!

Ides of Love featured in NCSU Technician article

Posted on May 2, 2012 by David Hook

In an article informing students about the ramifications of Amendment One, Technician editors chose to feature two images from Honest NC’s Ides of Love March to highlight student activism. We applaud the Technician (the best student newspaper in the State) for taking the time to inform students of this issue.

The end of the article also mentions the student shuttles to Raleigh’s central Early Voting location at the State Board of Elections office on Salisbury St. Shuttles leave from Reynolds Coliseum every day until Friday, May 4th between the times of 11:00 AM and 6:00 PM.

Vote against!

Follow the money

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Andrew Payne

Virginia lawyer Michael Hamar reveals who is behind the pro-amendment Vote for Marriage NC coalition.

Tami Fitzgerald supports gay marriage

Posted on April 22, 2012 by Andrew Payne

In an unexpected turn of events – Vote for Marriage NC chairwoman Tami Fitzgerald has publicly announced her support for gay marriage:

Her comments were made in a column in the Durham Herald Sun. There is no word from the Vote for Marriage NC coalition as to when Fitzgerald will be asked to step down.

Civil war – can the south win this time?

Posted on April 14, 2012 by Adria Wilson

In the most recent issue of Time magazine, titled “Rethinking Heaven,” in case you’re interested, there is a one-page article in the Economy section surrounded by dozens of little geometric patterns reminiscent of an Alexander Calder sculpture. The article is about state taxes, and as I read the article I discovered that all of those colorful modern art pieces are actually graphs of the magnitude of corporate, property, individual, and sales taxes in each state of our fine union. The article said very simply (not much room left for words) that states are no longer concerned with outsourcing so much as with internal competition. States are battling each other to keep businesses within their borders. Incentives matter. The name of the game is about being a place that people want to live; that’s where businesses will find the talent they’re looking for. I scanned down the page looking for North Carolina. In the bottom left corner I found a fat red blob threatening to spill over its reference axes. The only state that seems to have higher taxes is New Jersey. Sigh.

Despite tremendous state taxes, North Carolina is still one of the most attractive places to do business, according to CNBC which is relieving. If you take a closer look at the ranking categories, you can see very clearly that North Carolina’s pull depends heavily upon the quality of our infrastructure and – super importantly – the quality of our workforce (for this survey, quality is based on the education of workers and the number of available workers). Besides giving us the right to boast about how awesome North Carolinians are, this CNBC article highlights the obvious – to stay competitive, North Carolina needs to continue to take care of its workers. Continue reading →

JOY!

Posted on April 12, 2012 by David Hook

Two weeks ago I sat down at my desk, opened up Chrome and there it was, emblazoned on the front page of NewRaleigh.com: “JOY! now open downtown!”

The owners of JOY!, Raleigh locals, had recently invented a new paradigm in dining. They had set up a restaurant in one of the Warehouse District’s larger buildings, and convinced the city to add a $25 flat tax to every citizen’s yearly bill. In return, residents only had to pay $4.95 for a meal at JOY!, breakfast, lunch or dinner.

And what meals! According to NewRaleigh, both Michelin and Zagat had already bestowed their highest ratings just a week after the grand opening. All of the ingredients Continue reading →

Leaders of the Institute for American Values come out against Amendment One

Posted on April 11, 2012 by David Hook

David Blankenhorn and Elizabeth Marquardt, president and vice president, respectively, for family studies at the Institute for American Values have denounced Amendment One in today’s News and Observer. David had actually testified in California’s Proposition 8 case on behalf of “traditional marriage.” His stance in NC is different, however, due to a lack of any provisions in the State for recognizing same-sex relationships.

For one thing, it means that North Carolina could not, now or ever, take any step or devise any policy to extend legal recognition and protection to same-sex couples. No domestic partnership laws. No civil unions. Nothing.

That’s mighty cold. If you disdain gay and lesbian persons, and don’t care whether they and their families remain permanently outside of the protection of our laws, such a policy might be your cup of tea. But it’s not our view, and we doubt that it’s the view of most North Carolinians.

So while we at Honest NC would like to see same-sex couples given the ability to enter into “traditional” marriage, we’ll take any friend in a storm. The article is worth a read.

Meredith College hosts contentious Amendment One debate

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Melissa Church

Jones Auditorium at Meredith College was standing-room only Monday night for Amendment 1: Religious and Political Dimension of Same Sex Marriage in NC – a panel discussion on the amendment’s religious, legal and civic motivations and consequences.

The panel included Maxine Eichner from the UNC School of Law, Nancy Petty from Pullen Memorial Baptist Church, Caroline Mann from Meredith College, Anthony Biller of Coats and Benner, P.L.L.C., and Patrick Wooden of Upper Room Church of Christ.
Continue reading →

The Ides

Posted on March 16, 2012 by David Hook

3:00 PM on March 15th found me drained, sunburned and deliriously happy. Faced with a 2 mile walk in the middle of a summery spring workday, over 300 people joined together in solidarity against Amendment One! The Raleigh police closed down a long stretch of roads through the middle of the city to allow supporters of Love, Freedom and Marriage to have their voices heard.

Photo by Matthew Huffman

Local and State news stations picked up on the story; it was shown across the State on the morning and evening news and reported in both student and city papers. Some of the most in-depth coverage was provided by WRAL. Last but not least, the blogosphere lit up!

Many thanks to those who rallied on Thursday March 15th to show the State and the world that North Carolina will not let discrimination be written into our State constitution. VOTE AGAINST ON MAY 8TH!