North Carolina has never been known as a big state for gambling. We adopted a state-run lottery later than most and have been slow to embrace casinos and other forms of legalized games of chance. Video poker remains the subject of a hotly contested battle in the courts.

And yet the pressure is building. For several years now, corporate gambling interests have been ratcheting up their investments in North Carolina. Gambling money can be found in the campaign coffers of politicians of all stripes and gambling corporations are listed amongst the clients of several of the state’s top law and lobbying firms.
The goal of these investments is clear: Gambling corporations seek not just to eliminate government as an impediment to gambling but to make public institutions (from the Department of Revenue to the Department of Commerce to the Department of Public Instruction) full partners in their efforts.

Will it work? Is it just a matter of time until North Carolina follows the road traveled by so many other states? Should we care? Is the expansion of gambling something to be resisted or just a lost cause of which we should simply make the best?

Please join us for an NC Policy Watch Crucial Conversation luncheon at which we will tackle these questions and many more with two very special experts: Les Bernal and Prof. Charles Clotfelter.

Les Bernal (pictured left) is the Executive Director of Stop Predatory Gambling Foundation, a national organization based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to end government’s failed policy of predatory gambling.

Charles Clotfelter (pictured right) is Z. Smith Reynolds Professor of Public Policy Studies and Professor of Economics and Law at Duke University, where he has taught since 1979. He is also director of the Center for the Study of Philanthropy and Voluntarism at Duke and is a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. His major research interests are in the economics of education, the nonprofit sector, public finance and tax policy.

Don’t miss this chance to hear from these knowledgeable people on this critically important matter.

When: Tuesday March 27 – Box lunches will be available at 11:45 a.m. and the program will start at 12:00 noon.

Where: Marbles Kids Museum 210 E. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh. Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch. Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for this event

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

North Carolina has never been known as a big state for gambling. We adopted a state-run lottery later than most and have been slow to embrace casinos and other forms of legalized games of chance. Video poker remains the subject of a hotly contested battle in the courts.

And yet the pressure is building. For several years now, corporate gambling interests have been ratcheting up their investments in North Carolina. Gambling money can be found in the campaign coffers of politicians of all stripes and gambling corporations are listed amongst the clients of several of the state’s top law and lobbying firms.
The goal of these investments is clear: Gambling corporations seek not just to eliminate government as an impediment to gambling but to make public institutions (from the Department of Revenue to the Department of Commerce to the Department of Public Instruction) full partners in their efforts.

Will it work? Is it just a matter of time until North Carolina follows the road traveled by so many other states? Should we care? Is the expansion of gambling something to be resisted or just a lost cause of which we should simply make the best?

Please join us for an NC Policy Watch Crucial Conversation luncheon at which we will tackle these questions and many more with two very special experts: Les Bernal and Prof. Charles Clotfelter.

Les Bernal (pictured left) is the Executive Director of Stop Predatory Gambling Foundation, a national organization based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to end government’s failed policy of predatory gambling.

Charles Clotfelter (pictured right) is Z. Smith Reynolds Professor of Public Policy Studies and Professor of Economics and Law at Duke University, where he has taught since 1979. He is also director of the Center for the Study of Philanthropy and Voluntarism at Duke and is a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. His major research interests are in the economics of education, the nonprofit sector, public finance and tax policy.

Don’t miss this chance to hear from these knowledgeable people on this critically important matter.

When: Tuesday March 27 – Box lunches will be available at 11:45 a.m. and the program will start at 12:00 noon.

Where: Marbles Kids Museum 210 E. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh. Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch. Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for this event

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

North Carolina has never been known as a big state for gambling. We adopted a state-run lottery later than most and have been slow to embrace casinos and other forms of legalized games of chance. Video poker remains the subject of a hotly contested battle in the courts.

And yet the pressure is building. For several years now, corporate gambling interests have been ratcheting up their investments in North Carolina. Gambling money can be found in the campaign coffers of politicians of all stripes and gambling corporations are listed amongst the clients of several of the state’s top law and lobbying firms.
The goal of these investments is clear: Gambling corporations seek not just to eliminate government as an impediment to gambling but to make public institutions (from the Department of Revenue to the Department of Commerce to the Department of Public Instruction) full partners in their efforts.

Will it work? Is it just a matter of time until North Carolina follows the road traveled by so many other states? Should we care? Is the expansion of gambling something to be resisted or just a lost cause of which we should simply make the best?

Please join us for an NC Policy Watch Crucial Conversation luncheon at which we will tackle these questions and many more with two very special experts: Les Bernal and Prof. Charles Clotfelter.

Les Bernal (pictured left) is the Executive Director of Stop Predatory Gambling Foundation, a national organization based in Washington, D.C. whose mission is to end government’s failed policy of predatory gambling.

Charles Clotfelter (pictured right) is Z. Smith Reynolds Professor of Public Policy Studies and Professor of Economics and Law at Duke University, where he has taught since 1979. He is also director of the Center for the Study of Philanthropy and Voluntarism at Duke and is a research associate of the National Bureau of Economic Research. His major research interests are in the economics of education, the nonprofit sector, public finance and tax policy.

Don’t miss this chance to hear from these knowledgeable people on this critically important matter.

When: Tuesday March 27 – Box lunches will be available at 11:45 a.m. and the program will start at 12:00 noon.

Where: Marbles Kids Museum 210 E. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh. Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch. Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for this event

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

It looks like 2012 is going to be one heck of a year in North Carolina politics and public policy — maybe one for the ages.

Between the General Assembly’s “midnight madness” fiasco, other special legislative sessions, a statewide vote on a constitutional amendment to restrict marriage, a presidential primary, a court fight over redistricting, a legislative “short session,” chronic economic and fiscal crises, a presidential/ gubernatorial/ council of state/ legislative election and the most aggressively reactionary state legislature in decades, it’s hard to imagine how things could be much crazier.

So what does public opinion tells us is going to happen? What ought to happen?

Don’t miss a chance to gather some answers to these questions from two of the state’s leading experts. Join us at noon on Thursday, February 2, for a Crucial Conversation lunch featuring: Tom Jensen and Chris Fitzsimon.

Tom Jensen is the Director of the nationally recognized polling firm, Public Policy Polling and oversees its day to day operations. During his time at PPP he has been a frequent guest for television and radio stations across the region, and has been called on for expert analysis by publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Christian Science Monitor, and U.S. News and World Report. He writes PPP’s blog and Twitter account in addition to crafting the content for most of its surveys.

Chris Fitzsimon is the Director of N.C. Policy Watch and North Carolina’s leading progressive media personality. Chris is a veteran journalist and nonprofit leader whose daily commentaries are heard on radio and read online throughout North Carolina.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from these two experts at this critical time.

When: Thursday February 2 – Box lunches will be available at 11:30 a.m. and the program will start at 12:00 noon.

Where: Marbles Kids Museum 210 E. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh. Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch. Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for this event

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

It looks like 2012 is going to be one heck of a year in North Carolina politics and public policy — maybe one for the ages.

Between the General Assembly’s “midnight madness” fiasco, other special legislative sessions, a statewide vote on a constitutional amendment to restrict marriage, a presidential primary, a court fight over redistricting, a legislative “short session,” chronic economic and fiscal crises, a presidential/ gubernatorial/ council of state/ legislative election and the most aggressively reactionary state legislature in decades, it’s hard to imagine how things could be much crazier.

So what does public opinion tells us is going to happen? What ought to happen?

Don’t miss a chance to gather some answers to these questions from two of the state’s leading experts. Join us at noon on Thursday, February 2, for a Crucial Conversation lunch featuring: Tom Jensen and Chris Fitzsimon.

Tom Jensen is the Director of the nationally recognized polling firm, Public Policy Polling and oversees its day to day operations. During his time at PPP he has been a frequent guest for television and radio stations across the region, and has been called on for expert analysis by publications including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Christian Science Monitor, and U.S. News and World Report. He writes PPP’s blog and Twitter account in addition to crafting the content for most of its surveys.

Chris Fitzsimon is the Director of N.C. Policy Watch and North Carolina’s leading progressive media personality. Chris is a veteran journalist and nonprofit leader whose daily commentaries are heard on radio and read online throughout North Carolina.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from these two experts at this critical time.

When: Thursday February 2 – Box lunches will be available at 11:30 a.m. and the program will start at 12:00 noon.

Where: Marbles Kids Museum 210 E. Hargett St. in downtown Raleigh. Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch. Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for this event

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

On Monday December 12 NC Policy Watch staffers Chris Fitzsimon and Rob Schofield will be in western North Carolina for two special Crucial Conversations — a lunch event in Asheville and an evening event in Boone.

Chris Fitzsimon is the Director of N.C. Policy Watch and North Carolina’s leading progressive media personality. Chris is a veteran journalist and nonprofit leader whose daily commentaries are heard on radio and read online throughout North Carolina. His colleague, Rob Schofield is the Director of Research at N.C. Policy Watch. Rob is a lawyer, lobbyist and writer with more than 25 years experience fighting for progressive policies at the state level.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from these two experts at this critical time.

Event #1 -

When: Monday December 12 at 12:00 noon. Lunches will be available at 11:45 and the program will start at noon.

Where: Unitarian Universalist Church of Asheville, One Edwin Place, Asheville, NC 28801 – http://www.uuasheville.org/  -  Click here for a map and directions

Cost: $10  -  Admission includes a box lunch.
Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for the Asheville event.

Event #2 -

When: Monday December 12 at 7:00 p.m. Light refreshments will be available.

Where:  Cooperative Extension Agricultural Conference Center, 252 Poplar Grove Rd,, Boone, NC 28607
Click here for directions.

Admission is free, but space is limited – pre-registration is required.

Click here to register for the Boone event.

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

What a year of conservative control has meant to the North Carolina General Assembly.

What the heck is going on in Raleigh? Why does it seem that state legislative leaders want to repeal most of the good things accomplished during the 20th Century?

Recently, the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives went so far as to say that his goal was to pit disabled people against poor people as part of a “divide and conquer” strategy.

Sadly, this was more than an unguarded moment; it was in fact a neat summary of the strategy employed by conservative legislative leaders during the 2011 state legislative session.

So, how “successful” were they? And is there anything a person can do get a handle on this situation (and maybe even speak out about it)?

If these or other similar questions have occurred to you lately, don’t miss a chance to hear some answers from two of the state’s most prominent voices for sane, sound and progressive public policy.

On Monday December 12 NC Policy Watch staffers Chris Fitzsimon and Rob Schofield will be in western North Carolina for two special Crucial Conversations — a lunch event in Asheville and an evening event in Boone.

Chris Fitzsimon is the Director of N.C. Policy Watch and North Carolina’s leading progressive media personality. Chris is a veteran journalist and nonprofit leader whose daily commentaries are heard on radio and read online throughout North Carolina. His colleague, Rob Schofield is the Director of Research at N.C. Policy Watch. Rob is a lawyer, lobbyist and writer with more than 25 years experience fighting for progressive policies at the state level.

Don’t miss the opportunity to hear from these two experts at this critical time.

Event #1 -

When: Monday December 12 at 12:00 noon. Lunches will be available at 11:45 and the program will start at noon.

Where: Unitarian Universalist Church of Asheville, One Edwin Place, Asheville, NC 28801 – http://www.uuasheville.org/  -  Click here for a map and directions

Cost: $10  -  Admission includes a box lunch.
Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Click here to register for the Asheville event.

Event #2 -

When: Monday December 12 at 7:00 p.m. Light refreshments will be available.

Where:  Cooperative Extension Agricultural Conference Center, 252 Poplar Grove Rd,, Boone, NC 28607
Click here for directions.

Admission is free, but space is limited – pre-registration is required.

Click here to register for the Boone event.

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

“Fracking: Do we really want it in North Carolina?”

Not too long ago, few North Carolinians had ever heard of “fracking” – the name given to the process of hydraulic drilling for natural gas in shale formations. Now after a blitz of publicity and legislative proposals, fracking is being touted by proponents as some kind of magic bullet for North Carolina’s ailing economy. Others, however, worry that fracking could bring terrible harm to the state’s already fragile environment and rural communities and provide new excuses for delays in the transition to a greener economy.

During the 2011 session of the North Carolina General Assembly, state lawmakers advanced legislation that could expedite the introduction of fracking in the Tar Heel state. They seem poised to push further ahead in 2012 (or even sooner).

So, what should we make of all this? How dangerous is fracking? What is the experience in other states? What is the political lay of the land on this controversial issue?

Come and hear some answers to these and other related questions from some people who know.

Carol French and Carolyn Knapp are dairy farmers from Pennsylvania. They’re also the founders of the Pennsylvania Landowner Group for Awareness and Solutions (PLGAS). Working with the advocacy group Clean Water for North Carolina, French and Knapp are coming to North Carolina to share their firsthand experiences with the good, the bad and the ugly aspects of fracking in their home state.

French and Knapp will be joined at the podium by the Policy Director of the North Carolina Conservation network, Grady McCallie. McCallie is one of North Carolina’s most experienced and knowledgeable environmental policy experts.

Don’t miss this chance to hear from these knowledgeable people on this critically important matter.

Co-sponsored by Clean Water for North Carolina.

Admission includes a box lunch. (Box lunches will be available at 11:45 a.m. and the program will start at noon)
Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.

(Photos above of a natural gas drilling location in the U.S. from arimoore’s flickr photostream, used under creative commons license CC BY-NC-SA 2.0)

Click here to register for this event.

When: Thursday, November 10 — Lunches will be available at 11:45 am and the program will begin at noon.

Where: Center for Community Leadership Training Room at the Junior League of Raleigh Building, 711 Hillsborough St. at the corner of Hillsborough and St. Mary’s streets.

Click here for directions and information about convenient parking options.

Cost: $10 – includes a box lunch.
Space is limited – pre-registration required.

Questions?? Contact Rob Schofield at 919-861-2065 or rob@ncpolicywatch.com.