The Chapel Hill News Wednesday, May 16, 2012
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Therapists giving back to community

More than 26 percent of Americans over the age of 18 suffer from a diagnosable mental health disorder each year. But whether or not they receive the help they need often depends on their ability to pay for it. Published: May. 15, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

No escape from persecution

The general public knows little about the Baha’i people, and how they are treated by the Iranian government. It even puts these gentle people into prison for trying to obtain an education. Published: May. 15, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Alternative commencement stands with Occupy

A commencement address is different from other speaking engagements on campus. A commencement address is not a space for open dialogue between varying points of view, rather it is intended to give parting words of wisdom to graduating students. Published: May. 14, 2012 6:46 PM | Full story

Public transit: A clear and urgent need

Whether you live in town or a rural area, we all have an obligation to create a sustainable legacy for those who will come after us. Public transit is an indispensible tool for achieving these goals. Published: May. 12, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Stories my Grandmama never told me

Grandmama used to say I eat people. Not literally, mind. What she meant was that I chat up pretty much everyone I meet each day. Published: May. 12, 2012 10:24 PM | Full story

Report ignores school’s progress

I believe there is some fear FPG will not pass AYP. I know it doesn’t look good for anyone on the Board of Education or at Lincoln Center if the state steps in to take over a school. But how can we abandon ship after bailing this much water? Published: May. 8, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Charterwood developer thwarts democracy

This focus on Planning Board Chairwoman Del Snow misdirects attention away from the truly insidious problem taking root within the Charterwood application which will have far-reaching ramifications not just for the neighborhood bordering this development, but for the entire town. Published: May. 1, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

The Dual-Language dilemma: First do no harm

The CHCCS School Board has a responsibility to represent all 10 of the district’s elementary schools. And in this dual-language report the chosen committee has failed to do that. Published: May. 1, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Let’s talk about ‘The Law’

The Law isn’t right because it’s The Law. The Law is only right so long as it is just. If The Law is being used to defend injustice, The Law is wrong and God changes wants it changed. Published: Apr. 24, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Chapel Hill’s police and fire department challenges

Current budget limitations jeopardize key programming areas. The Town’s public safety budget continues to be strained by an increasing number of special events, including NCAA celebrations and Halloween. Budget cuts over the last three years have delayed replacement of critical equipment and routine maintenance. Published: Apr. 17, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

A grandmother prays for grace

Before the baby’s arrival, I saw only possibility. Now the sight of a grandma cradling a baby girl sends me into a dark hole of grief. Published: Apr. 14, 2012 5:30 PM | Full story

Amendment One: No time for moderation, moderates

I am one of the millions of Americans who has no interest in my neighbors’ religion. I care that they obey the law and rake their leaves. I am grateful that they welcomed me into the neighborhood with brownies and have no idea what choices they make for themselves regarding the private issues of faith, abortion, marriage, love. Published: Apr. 12, 2012 6:17 PM | Full story

Center helps keep hope alive

Maxine Turner Fitts, 58, vice-president of programs and operations at Cornucopia Cancer Support Center, knows why remaining optimistic when dealing with cancer makes a difference. Published: Apr. 10, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Elitism in the room

As an African-American gay man, I was both ashamed of and frustrated with a recent anti-Amendment One social hosted in my godparents’ neighborhood in historic Chapel Hill. Published: Apr. 7, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

My dream letter from CVS

As a resident of "downtown" Carrboro for the most of the past 20 years, I walk or ride my bike past the now-abandoned building at 201 N Greensboro St. now owned by a CVS holding company, the planned site for a 24-hour CVS. What happens to this corner has long-term consequences, and the first criteria should be community support. Here is my idea for an outcome that I believe would have that support, in the form of a fictional letter. Wouldn't it be nice to get this from CVS's foundation? Published: Apr. 12, 2012 10:10 AM | Full story

Northside being left out of downtown Chapel Hill development talks

As a student living in Chapel Hill, the chance to move off campus can be an exciting endeavor. It is a marker of increasing independence and a chance to explore a new space you can call “home,” at least temporarily. Published: Apr. 7, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Help a child by becoming a guardian ad litem

Nobody gets to where they are without a little help along the way. And many children who were part of the child-welfare system in the judicial district of Orange and Chatham counties got to permanent homes in part because of their volunteer guardians ad litem (GAL). Published: Apr. 7, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Chapel Hill-Carrboro Chinese program will pay off after hard winter

Instead of eliminating this Chinese dual language program, the school district should be expanding it. Published: Apr. 3, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Let’s not build more regrets

Nobody was more excited than I was to move to downtown Chapel Hill. That was 17 years ago. Published: Apr. 3, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Buy tickets early for 15th Community Dinner

On Sunday April 15, at 1 p.m. the 15th Annual Community Dinner will begin. This event, celebrating Orange County’s cultural diversity through food and entertainment, will take place at the Mc Dougle Schools “cafetorium” on the Old Fayetteville Road in Carrboro. Published: Apr. 3, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Chapel Hill’s other ‘big, big concern’

Like cellphones, Chapel is a small town, but with lots of very alcohol-impaired young people. And like the cellphone, it should be a “big, big concern.” Published: Mar. 31, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

More time needed to understand consequences of Chapel Hill growth

A certain population or level of growth is not inevitable; it’s a consequence of our choices about things like land-use, zoning, development intensity and our informed acceptance of the consequences those choices represent. Published: Mar. 31, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Orange County commissioners meeting difficult challenges

We are responding to the guest column written by Bonnie Hauser which was published in the March 17 issue. Published: Mar. 27, 2012 7:10 PM | Full story

Survey shows Chapel Hill residents satisfied with town services

It takes courage to ask residents about their perceptions of the job you’re doing. There is even more risk asking them a second time – especially when this time, the economy has worsened and you have had to implement service reductions. Published: Mar. 27, 2012 7:03 PM | Full story

Amendment imperils families

“We couldn’t live under the constant threat,” was how she started her story. Published: Mar. 19, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Community survey keeps Town of Chapel Hill on its itoes

When we conducted the first Community Survey in 2009, it was the first comprehensive and scientifically conducted survey about municipal services undertaken in Chapel Hill. Residents reported their overall satisfaction with town services in high numbers (82 percent satisfied). Their feedback on other topics became part of our planning for the future. Published: Mar. 20, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

New office buildings could choke Durham-Chapel Hill bottleneck

Commercial development at busy intersections is a self-replicating phenomenon, much like a virus that must depend on its host for sustenance. Such is the dizzying intersection of N.C. 54 and Farrington Road in southwest Durham. Published: Mar. 20, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Budgets showcase dysfunctional fiscal policies

This year’s budget season will be interesting. Local governments are already positioning for a tax hike – and blaming others for the problem. Published: Mar. 17, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story

Today’s athletes have fallen off track

The pursuit of the scholarship and age of specialization has soured the playing field. Published: Mar. 13, 2012 7:07 PM | Full story

A modern prescription for reducing Chapel Hill’s deer herd

Our forefathers knew how to reduce a deer herd. They cleared the forest, and ate every deer they brought to ground. This worked. Published: Mar. 13, 2012 7:00 PM | Full story


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