Waste Not, Pay More

The Charlotte area is still feeling the effects of a drought affecting much of the Southeastern US.

Last summer, area residents were told to cut back, and eventually told to stop watering their yards altogether. And they did.

Our reward for conservation efforts? The Charlotte-Mecklenburg Utilities Department wants to hike rates 16% because we're not using enough water.

Wow. I sure hope the oil companies don't find out about this scam. Can you imagine? $4.00 a gallon if you drive an SUV, $6.00 a gallon for people driving a Prius.

Independent's Day

With the North Carolina primary on May 6th fast approaching, those unaffiliated with one of the parties in Charlotte will have a big decision to make. Should they vote in the Democratic party to help choose the winner between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, or do they vote in the Republican primary to vote for or against Mayor Pat McCrory for governor?

Inquiring minds want to know...

Basketball City

Today marks the beginning of three major basketball events over the next month here in Charlotte. This week, it is the CIAA Conference Tournaments. Two weeks later, it's the ACC Tournament, followed by the first and second rounds of the NCAA tournament. All of the events will be held at Bobcats Arena uptown (much to the chagrin of the NBA's Bobcats, who will be on an extended road trip for much of this time).

Now, I know how many of you feel about the arena. Frankly, I don't blame you. The way the whole thing came about, with a big deal campaign, voter rejection, and an outrageous decision by the City Council to build it anyway is not a good way to do civic business. We elect our leaders to lead, and if they were hellbent to build an uptown arena, they should have at least spared us the charade of a meaningless vote.

For some, the arena debacle still makes them mad. I hear some people swaer they'll never set foot in the place, and others cannot have a discussion about local crime, taxes or traffic without bringing up 'that damn arena.' In fact, I honestly think last year's Transit Tax debate was more about leftover arena anger than it was about transit.

But anyone who takes an objective look at the place now would have to admit that the arena is a benefit for Charlotte as a whole, and Uptown in particular. Anyone who's been to a Bobcats or Checkers game, or a concert or other event there, has to admit it's a nice place. And having it uptown, with easy access to restaurants, bars, and the new light rail line can make attending an event there a night out on the town, rather than just an event.

I remember my first visit to Charlotte in 1995, to watch the end of one leg of the Tour DuPont bike race. After 5pm, Uptown was a dead zone. I could swear I saw a tumbleweed roll down Tryon Street. No more. Our guests to the three basketball events will have plenty to see and do, and easy ways to get there without renting a car. As a resident now, I'll probably be avoiding Uptown during these events (unless someone would like to send me tickets to a game), but I'm glad that people might actually go home now and tell their friends that Charlotte is actually a pretty cool place to visit.

So let's all get over the Uptown Arena. It's here, it's open, and, frankly, it's pretty nice. And the better it does financially, the less the city (and its taxpayers) will have to support it.

Shameful Silence

In the 1970's comedy "Oh, God", there's a scene where John Denver's character finally realizes that George Burns is, in fact, the Almighty, and starts peppering Him with some of life's big questions.

"Why do you permit all the war, disease, and suffering in the world?", Denver asks.

"I don't," God replies, "you do."

This scene came to mind when I read about the funeral of Joshua Jackson in today's paper. Jackson is the 12-year-old shot outside a friend's 16th birthday party a week ago at the Rameses Temple on Beatties Ford Road. Police believe there are several, if not dozens, of witnesses who know the identity of the shooter, but so far, no one has come forward, and no arrests have been made. From the Charlotte Observer:

Several mourners at the funeral said they were frustrated over the silence by the lack of witnesses.

"Some of these kids saw something, but they're afraid," said Ron McDaniel, a commissioner of Joshua's youth football league. "They need to come forward. The next time, it could be them."

The newspaper never says it, but reasonable people might conclude from the context and pictures taken at the funeral that there are gang elements involved.

It doesn't matter. If someone killed a friend of mine, and I knew who did it, a field of land mines couldn't keep me from turning them in. I would rather be forced into hiding in Cheyenne, Wyoming than to live with the knowledge that I let a murderer remain free, likely to kill again.

So shame on anyone who knows the identity of Joshua's killer but remains silent. Shame on anyone who knows about violent gang activity in their area, but does nothing about it.

Why do we allow crime and suffering to infiltrate certain neighborhoods in Charlotte? We don't. You do.

A Blog Is Born

Hello, and welcome to The Queen City Chronicles.

This will not be your average "weirdo" blog. I am not a right winger nor a left winger, and I think Creative Loafing's columnists and WBT's talk show hosts are equally full of crap. I'm not a native Charlottean, but after 12 years of living here I feel I've earned the right to speak my mind about local goings on. I am not a member of the Chamber of Commerce, nor part of any Uptown 'cabal' conspiracy. But, I'm also not a habitual civic whiner, either. I like this town. In fact, I love this town, and I plan to stay here awhile and I want to see it get even better.

Local politics will play a significant part in this blog, but will not become its be all and end all. We'll talk about our city's weather, sports, arts, traffic, lifestyle, and media... and whatever else strikes my fancy. You will have the right to comment at will, but I will adhere to the strictest standards of civility, and reserve the right to delete any comments I find offensive. If I find any other well-spoken, thoughtful types who want to contribute, I will add them to the author list.

So, here we go. Hopefully, you'll enjoy this enough to keep coming back to it, even if you don't agree with me all the time. That's all I'm looking for here.