Kudos to McCrory for shunning identity politics | Eastern North Carolina Now

    Publisher's note: Brant Clifton mentions Governor Pat McCroy in his "bare knuckles" Conservative online publication known as The Daily Haymaker.

    There are quite a few cases where the new GOP administration in Raleigh has given me heartburn. But the fact that they are standing strong against the lefties and their identity politics games is encouraging.

    The lefties went bonkers over the decision of the McCrory administration to roll the latino affairs office into the constituent relations team. A McCrory spokesman calmly explained that the new regime in Raleigh is not interested in pigeon-holing various groups of voters into identity-based groups. Amen.

    Now, gay rights groups are up in arms over a McCrory appointee to the state board of education:

    Equality NC Monday asked Gov. Pat McCrory to reconsider his appointment of Buddy Collins to the state Board of Education, saying it has concerns about his opposition to anti-bullying measures aimed at protecting gay, lesbian and transgender students.

    Collins, an attorney, serves on the Forsyth County Board of Education, was recently nominated by McCrory to serve on the state board.

    [...]

    According to the group, Collins voted against a policy revision in 2009 that added sexual orientation to the list of characteristics in its rules prohibiting bullying and harassing behavior.

    They also had other complaints. They said Collins told schools Supt. Don Martin in 2003 that he was "disappointed that Martin allowed his staff to to interact with the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Network. In a column in the Winston-Salem Journal, Collins wrote in 2002, that same-sex unions had an effect of "disintegration of the American family.

    And he said in 2002, that the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Network has an agenda to use public schools as a place to seek acceptance of its sexual practices."

    First of all, nice going on this *fair and balanced* story. *An excellent dictation job, if I may say so myself.*

    NOBODY likes bullying. It's been happening in schools for eons. Kids can be mean to each other. Most bullying does not happen in the presence of an adult. The legislation Collins and many others have opposed doles out special penalties for kids who bully other kids (who happen to be gay).

    This is a lot like the hate crimes legislation that has been shoved down our throats at the federal level. These federal rules offer up tougher sentencing for violence committed as a result of racial hatred. Bullying, assault and murder are bad regardless of what demographic the participants belong to.

    I've seen news stories where kids have been punished for wearing American flag T-shirts to school. Administrators said the T-shirts were threatening to students of Hispanic descent. What's next? A sticker on a locker celebrating 'Family Values" being deemed hurtful to gay students?

    Legislation based on identity politics leaves a lot of room for interpretation -- based on the political views of the "judge." Get rid of all of this identity nonsense, and actually enforce tough penalties for violent acts.

    Bureaucrats and politicians want to look like they are cracking down on "bullying." But they regularly tie the hands of administrators and teachers trying to cope with a growing population of hoodlums basically raised by the Department of Social Services and Department of Juvenile Justice.

    (I have a friend who teaches middle school. She told me about an incident in class one day where two deputy sheriffs brought a young man into the room in handcuffs. They placed him in a desk, removed the handcuffs, and left him in the room with my teacher friend and students. If the deputies thought they needed to restrain this punk, why on Earth would they leave him unrestrained in a classroom?)

    Instead of trying to social engineer the public education process, try enforcing the rules with authority. Weed out the kids who are there only because the truant officer makes them be there. They don't want to be there, and their anti-social orientations gum up the educational process for the kids who DO want to actually learn something.

    So, hats off to Gov. Pat for allowing Mr. Collins and his viewpoint onto the state board of education. Hopefully, there will be no tossing of Mr. Collins under the bus to pacify the lefty screamers.

    The next step in the process of ending identity politics is for the administration to SUPPORT and SIGN Senator Thom Goolsby's repeal of The Racial Justice Act.