03/29/2024
Thoughts While Shaving
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A holiday for a retiree, or for this retiree, is, for the most part, just another day.
I did monitor (listen & watched) much of the activities of the State Board of Elections hearing related to the November election for the 9th Congressional race in North Carolina, with much attention on Bladen and Robeson County.  My take away was activities outside the local Board of Elections was where the action was, questionable activities, related to absentee ballot activities of McCray Dowless and his hired help.  Dowless was at the hearing with his attorney, and there were occasional references to some members and activities of the Bladen County Improvement Association.  Mr. Dowless declined an opportunity to take the stand, but some of his workers did.  An audit of what the local elections board staff could control indicated a discrepancy of 4 votes, and a state election official said that small amount could have been by errors of her staff.  The hearing continues today.  A separate investigation relating to the criminal aspect of potential illegal activities is apparently underway.
Bladen County historian Lewis Smith weighed in again on a railroad in Elizabethtown many years ago.  Jim McLaney shared recently that a railroad entering Elizabethtown provided service to a lumber company, sawmill, on the site where Fresh Foods is now located.  The lumber company was owned by the McLaney family in the 40s and 50s.  Smith dug deeper and shared this…”The train came to town in 1911 on what is now Swanzy Street.  It crossed 701 to McCarthy Mill lumber Co.  It was extended to cross 87 at the Knights Inn, to the river to build the locks.  All material to build the locks was brought on the train including big rocks (pictured in my cd).”  Did not see CD..
So now we know the rest of the story.  One other railroad story.  I guess the last rail service in the county was to the DuPont site west of Tar Heel built in the 60s or 70s and still in place.  And as mentioned earlier, Bladenboro and Clarkton have long been associated with rail service.
Saw an article relating to long time newspaper writers being layed-off, across the state and nation, mostly due to merger of newspapers and less local coverage.  The proof is all around us, fewer local owners.  Kinda reminds me of the medical business today, fewer local providers that own their own practice, many more owned by regional conglomerates.  A sign of the times…..
Anything that can be changed will be changed up until there is no time left to change anything.  First Law of Corporate Planning
Everything is in a state of flux, including the status quo.  Robert Byrne (1930)
When we’re young we want to change the world….when we’re old, we want to change the young.  Garth Henrichs
robert g hester
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