WataugaWatch

The Watauga County Board of Elections was loudly criticized for scheduling the liquor-by-the-drink vote yesterday. They were accused of conspiring to deprive Appalachian State University students of their rights, because the BOE set the date of the liquor election "a full week before classes resume at Appalachian." David Mofford, the president of the ASU Student Government Association (who is incidentally registered to vote in Catawba County), was particularly colorful: "...to not allow students their right to vote is nothing short of a deprivation of democracy."

Whoa, dude. The BOE acted according to the law. How did it "not allow students their right to vote"? When an ASU student registers to vote in Watauga County, that student is declaring Watauga County his/her legal residence for voting purposes, and it's that voter's responsibility to deal with any inconveniences attendant on a special election date. There are a couple of legal remedies: request an absentee ballot, take advantage of more than two weeks of early voting, or make sure you're "home" on election day. The rest of us registered voters take care of these details, rescheduling vacations, writing in for an absentee ballot, setting the alarm clock.

In other words, grow up.

For students to yell "deprivation of democracy" because they've, uh, "gone home" for the summer waves a red flag about where "home" really is and furthermore sounds like whining, because it is whining, and gives aid and comfort to those people who don't want students voting at all. The Supreme Court settled the issue of where students may declare residence for purposes of voting, though the local Republican Party has a permanent case of indigestion over it. Students crying over the "inconvenience" of a special election date gives ammunition to those who really would disenfranchise you, especially in a year when Barack Obama is running.

Having said that, the people pushing for liquor by the drink were not at all confident in the outcome yesterday, which is why they too criticized the BOE for the chosen date of the election. They thought they might need the student vote. The BOE actually did them a favor, since with the referendum passing easily – and without major student involvement – their victory is much less open to the carping and backbiting that would have followed a student-fueled voter turn-out. If you catch my drift.

Labels: Appalachian State University, liquor by the drink, Town of Boone

...in a blow-out.

1,106 for liquor
408 against

Labels: liquor by the drink, Town of Boone

Asheboro wets celebrating the liquor vote last night.

The most complete reporting we've seen is in today's Greensboro News & Record.

The most curious wrinkle to emerge ... the drys are vowing to fight for stricter zoning laws in the city of Asheboro. Wha? Turn away from sin, O my brethren, and turn toward ... the Z Word!

[Asheboro First Baptist Church pastor John] Rogers said Christians in the area should work for strict zoning laws for businesses that serve alcohol and attempt to put church members on the new ABC board. "Someone who won't be afraid to give the Christian perspective," Rogers said.

We'll second that motion for strict zoning laws, but that suggestion about putting Baptists on the ABC Board will take some thought. Where I grew up, you wouldn't necessarily entrust a Baptist with the keys to your liquor cabinet.

Labels: Ashboro, liquor by the drink

From what we can see on the Randolph County Board of Elections site, liquor-by-the-drink seems to be winning, overwhelmingly.

Actually, there were four initiatives on the ballot: malt beverage election, unfortified wine election, ABC store election, and mixed beverage election. All seem to be passing by over 60 percent of the vote.

Sometimes, the threat of hellfire just isn't enough to swing an election.

According to the Ashboro Courier-Tribune, people seeking the election results were barred from going to the Randolph County Courthouse, where people have traditionally gone to see the vote tallied, because "Patsy Foscue, elections director, said she feared the possibility of confrontation between the pro- and anti-alcohol groups, regardless of which side wins."

And we thought Boone town elections were tough.

Labels: Ashboro, liquor by the drink

Ashboro may be a bellwether for Boone on the liquor-by-the-drink issue this coming Tuesday, so we'll be watching the returns with heightened interest. Ashboro, by the way, is the largest municipality left in N.C. that allows no alcoholic beverages whatsoever, not even beer and wine.

The Greensboro N&R has a big article up today on the battle. A few excerpts, just to show that nothing much is new under the sun:

...to many, this is more than a vote. It's a battle for the soul of the city.

On one side: businesses and citizens who feel the city should allow adults to buy alcohol and reap the benefits in economic development when hotels, bars and restaurants flow in.

On the other: church groups and more conservative residents who want to preserve the city's dry tradition and believe alcohol is dangerous to the safety and character of Asheboro.

A furious debate has raged between the two groups for months. Campaigns on both sides have spent tens of thousands of dollars on newspaper and television ads. The arguments continue on blogs and in letters to the editor. Drive through town, and you'll see "For" or "Against" signs in the yard of nearly every house, in the windows of businesses and cars....

Incidentally, the Committee for the Future of Ashboro, the group pushing for legalization, is "a virtual who's-who of the city's business, civic and political leaders." If the vote on Tuesday fails, we suspect that some of those political leaders will be facing hot reelection battles when they have to run again. Come to think of it, if the vote succeeds, they'll all be in hot reelection battles too.

Maybe Ashboro is more conservative than Marion, but we doubt it, and LBD passed in Marion earlier this summer.

Labels: Ashboro, liquor by the drink, Marion

In case you missed the screaming parallels with the upcoming liquor-by-the-drink vote in Boone ... Marion, N.C., recently passed both liquor-by-the-drink sales AND beer sales within its city limits...

1. despite the opposition of a "formidable opposition group" calling itself Citizens for Faith and Family Values, led by two preachers, and a second group called Concerned Christians Against Beer Businesses, the leaders of which say they will now lead a boycott of businesses selling beer

2. despite the howls of outrage by McDowell County residents, who said it wasn't right that they weren't allowed to vote on whether Marion city could sanction liquor sales (reference the comments to the article linked above)

We haven't changed our personal leanings on this issue (against, for fastidiously complicated antediluvian reasons), but we'll be watching to see whether Marion sinks into the Pit of Everlasting Fire in time to offer an object lesson in native economics (you know what an economist is, right? Someone who knows the cost of everything but the value of nothing).

Labels: Boone, liquor by the drink, Marion