Another $*@%&!* school board meeting
It’s always heart-warming to see hardcore Haymaker fans go viral — worldwide, even. The latest occurrence of this phenomenon occurred at Monday’s Moore County Board of Education combined work session / regular business meeting.
Jim Pedersen, a friend of this site, got his three minutes of fame during the public comments period at Monday’s meeting. Pedersen treated the board and the assembled edu-crats and taxpayers to a public reading of a book called “Life Is Funny” — which he said is currently available for student checkout at the Pinecrest High School library.
(If you weren’t aware, Moore County has been hit with a federal complaint against the board’s decision to ban graphic gay propaganda from local school libraries. )
Pedersen’s performance during the comment period made it to YouTube and even caught the eye of the renowned LibsofTikTok Twitter feed.
(The YouTube link is HERE. Pedersen starts at about the 3hr, 20 minute mark. Caution: The audio of Pedersen’s reading includes all of George Carlin’s notorious Seven Dirty Words. There are also quite a few graphic descriptions of sexual activity and incestuous behavior. So, it’s not suitable for work. If you’re going to watch, be sure to do it in a private place outside the earshot of minors.)
Before getting started with his reading, Pedersen noted that the book survived an earlier central office staff review where it was described as having “some vulgarity but also some really good life lessons.”
Judging from board chairman Bob Levy‘s comments at the end of the public comment period, Pedersen’s reading must have upset people in the room off-camera.
Here’s the chairman:
[…]”While certain things are uncomfortable, this is free speech. This is the First Amendment and it’s better to not cut someone off and let them keep going. We’re done. That’s my feeling on that. Let’s go on to board action. I’m sorry if that made people feel uncomfortable. It certainly made me uncomfortable.” […]
Board member David Hensley followed Levy’s remarks with a point-of-order:
[…] “I think the speaker’s point was that it’s uncomfortable. Our take-away from that should be, if it’s not appropriate to be read aloud at a school board meeting it’s not appropriate to be in our school libraries.” […]
It was atrocious how Mr Levy treated Mr Pederson. If you look back on previous meetings, both Chair Levy and VC Davis always deferred to speakers who ran over their time limit, giving them additional time to finish their thoughts. Also, in previous meetings, Levy always let VC Davis run the public speaking portion and rarely interrupted.
However, in this case, when the 3 minute buzzer rang, Levy immediately interrupted the speaker, then went on the above diatribe as if he were scolding Mr Pederson for coming forward and daring to read excerpts from a book in at least one MCS library.
It is also worth noting that while Levy was in the minority and Mr Pederson and others did the exact same thing during public speaking periods, Mr Levy made no objections or apologies. It is only when Mr Levy is in power that he tolerates zero dissention.
Not so ironically, it is Mr Levy’s actions and policies which forced Mr Pederson to step forward and read the excerpts from the book, as Mr Levy developed and passed a policy which took away the right of Moore County citizens to challenge books.
NC General Statute (NC GS) 115C-98 states “A local board of education may establish a community media advisory committee to investigate and evaluate challenges from parents, teachers, and MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC (emphasis mine) to textbooks and supplementary instructional materials”.
Note that the NC GS expressly grants MEMBERS OF THE PUBLIC the right to challenge textbooks and other materials.
In November of 2023, Levy introduced modifications to MCS Policy 3200 which TOOK AWAY THE RIGHTS OF MOORE COUNTY CITIZENS to challenge materials. The new policy, developed and pushed through by Mr Levy gives only school board members and PARENTS who have children in MCS have the ability to challenge materials. Mr Levy has subsequently bragged about passing this policy and defends it.
Every time I pointed out in open session that NC GS out that the NC GS 115C-98 gives citizens the right to challenge books, Levy responds that “citizens have retained that right, but they have to go through a School Board member to make their challenge”.
We all know that is hogwash because what happens if the citizens cannot find a sympathetic School Board member? The answer is that the materials will go unchallenged regardless of the merit of the citizen’s concerns. Also, what true conservative would make elected officials “gate keepers” for the rights of citizens? What happens when the School Board is taken over by the left and there no School Board members sympathetic to the concerns of citizens vis-a-vis inappropriate books?
Back to my original point.
Because of Mr Levy’s policy, Moore County citizens such as Mr Pederson have no choice but to appear before the board during the public speaking period in an attempt to get one or more board members to take up their challenge.
That is the reality of Mr Levy’s policy which took way the rights of citizens to challenge books.
And know you know why I insist, over the objection of Mr Levy and other board members, that we actually publicly review each and every one of the voluminous new policies which Mr Levy and Ms Davis are constantly pushing through the board. Of course in the June meeting, Mr Levy and VC Davis didn’t even let us publicly “scroll through” the policies we were voting on during the SECOND READING of the policy.
In case I did not make it clear enough:
#1. NC GS 115C-98 gives CITIZENS the right to challenge books in NC Public Schools.
#2. Levy wrote and sheparded through a policy taking away the rights of citizens to challenge books.
#3. Conservatives do NOT take away rights, they preserve them.
#4. Levy is not a conservative. He talks a good game, but make no mistake about it, Levy has handed control of the School Board back to the Uniparty Swamp.
Want another example? As we embark on roughly ~$500 million in school construction and renovation, the same architecture firm (SFLA+ Archictects) who gave us the gold plated schools at a cost of $35 million each** is working on designing our new schools. And that firm is being overseen by Stacy Caldwell, who was on the School Board when the previous gold plated Schools were approved. In other words, as for school construction, we are right back to where we were under the previous Libby Carter/Helena Wallen-Miller board.
**Note: MCS paid between $33 and $35 million each for three 800 seat capacity Elementary Schools, all of which were of course for South County. During the exact same time, the Darlington SC School District build three really nice looking 800 seat elementary schools for $20 million/each. Aberdeen/Southern Pines/Pinehust are 60 miles apart as the crow flies.
Construction and land costs are not that different between Moore County and Darlington. It is clear that we overpaid by 65% for our three new schools. We could have, no we SHOULD have had FIVE new elementary schools for that $105 million. Instead, we got three and now we are being asked to build and/or renovate more.
Thanks for providing the background. Some of the things that really trouble me is when local boards and commissions willingly give up their own powers and also provide roadblocks to the very citizens they are supposed to be representing.
I see that your Schwartz is as big as David Hensley’s ego and Beddow and the boys uniparty deep space state and the people of Moore County will not stand for nasty books and Peterson was correct about the filth and Levy is a walking consent agenda that feels uncomfortable.
Moore County would not be on my list of places to live.
Despite this disfunctioal school board, it’s actually a good place to live, but don’t tell nobody.
Carthage is a great place to live! – it happens to be in Moore County.