In case you missed it!

December 24, 2025

“It took centuries of intellectual, philosophical development to achieve political freedom…The individual was not left at the mercy of his neighbors or his leaders: the Constitutional system of checks and balances was scientifically devised to protect him from both.” Ayn Rand, Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal, 1986. Russian born author and playwright.

In the very near future, companies will begin using facial recognition to hire employees. AI software is being developed to spot desired job characteristics among potential candidates. Recent reports indicate AI can discern conscientiousness, openness, neuroticism and other factors helping employers to select the best fit for their teams. Sounds great to me. I would screen for laziness and arrogance.

After months of negotiations the EU and America have reach an agreement on tariffs. The agreement will eliminate EU tariffs on many US products and require the EU to purchase $750 billion in US energy products. And-the agreement includes $600 billion of investment from the EU into the US. Wow!!!

North Carolina State University is playing its season opener football game in Brazil. The game will be on August 29th, 2026, against UVa. The game will be played in Rio de Janeiro. Can you imagine the cost involved in taking the entire team and Staff to Brazil for 6-7 days? The trip will take about 20 hours and cost $1,500/person for airfare. Whose idea was this? Why? What about the student body and fans. They will miss this game. And think about the loss of revenue in Raleigh/Charlottesville. And lastly, what about security. This is a very bad idea for a taxpayer supported school.

“Affordable housing” is always in the news. Not enough housing for all the new residents. And units cost more than can be afforded by low-income households. The published data is very clear. Of course, there are several solutions offered by many, but one solution is always missing-reduce immigration into the area. The data show mass immigration has contributed about 10-15% to the housing problem. Same with schools being crowded, and teacher shortages.

See article below. A very newsworthy article in the local paper. Women have formed a lowrider club, whatever the hell that is! Another major gain for women’s rights. I guess men are excluded. I really appreciate the local “fishwrap” keeping me informed about all the important issues. Madness!

Roy Cooper, a Democrat, was governor of NC for 8 years, 2017-2025. Prior to that, he served as Attorney General for 8 years. During Cooper’s 8 years as governor, he vetoed 129 bills passed by the State Legislature. Cooper was an obstructionist. Worse, during his time as governor, 2021 to 2024, the State Dept. of Health and Human Services was late in issuing $83 million in SNAP benefits to low-income families. This work is simple, processing SNAP applications and issuing federal and state payments. In several NC counties, as many as 20-25% of the food aid was late. The DHHS was cited several times and agreed to take corrective action but was delinquent in doing so! Cooper should have handled this mess.