Fitzsimon File

Meticulously misleading

One of the contenders for quote of the week has to be Bob Ford, the Executive Director of the North Carolina Poultry Foundation, for his reaction to proposals from Governor Mike Easley and Senator Dan Clodfelter to increase inspections of poultry plants in the state.

The proposals come after a Charlotte Observer series found that poultry companies were misreporting worker injuries on the job and in some cases threatening or firing employees who were hurt.

State Labor Secretary Cherie Berry, whose job it is to protect workers in the state, has mostly shrugged her shoulders at the troubling revelations in the Observer series, so Easley wants public health officials to get involved.

Ford told the Charlotte Observer that the poultry companies that the Federation represents are "lukewarm to lukecold" about Easley's ideas for increased inspections at the plants.

Sounds like how the companies feel about the workers too. Ford also tells the Observer that the poultry companies are meticulous about taking care of injured employees and reporting workplace injuries.   

With that kind of ability to ignore the facts about the conditions at poultry plants and the suffering of employees who work in them, he'd be a perfect addition to the Secretary of Labor's staff.  They could refuse to help workers together.

Always remember, profit before safety

Senator David Hoyle weighed in this week with a quote worthy of consideration too. It came during a Senate committee debate about legislation to allow trucks with 53-foot trailers on virtually every road in the state.

The trucks are currently only allowed on interstates and major state highways. Senator Clark Jenkins introduced a bill to let the trucks operate on 95 percent of the state's roads, an idea that officials with the N.C. Highway Patrol aren't crazy about, citing safety concerns for other drivers.

Hoyle says it is all about jobs, economic development, and "making North Carolina better." Never mind the danger. An Asheville Citizen-Times editorial this week points out that the trucks would be allowed to go three miles off the roads they are permitted to drive on and suggests that businesses use smaller trucks to make deliveries in areas without major highways.

Sounds like a plan, but Hoyle won't have any of it, telling the committee this week that "government has got to use common sense when dealing with our business community."

That is today's common sense lesson, that a little extra profit for corporations is more important than safety for the rest of us.

The company you keep

Holden Thorp, the Chancellor-elect of UNC-Chapel Hill, made an appearance at the General Assembly this week. That's a wise move for the 43-year-old Thorp, who by all accounts is an amazing person and a bold choice to head the state's flagship university.

He was recognized by House Speaker Joe Hackney and members of the House as he sat in the gallery during the session. Then he greeted some of the school kids visiting the Legislative Building.

There is nothing not to like about Thorp, who takes office July 1 with high expectations. But somebody might suggest that he think a little more about the company he keeps, especially at the General Assembly. 

Thorp was escorted for at least part of his visit to the Legislative Building by one of the lobbyists for Citizens for Higher Education, a political action committee of wealthy UNC-CH supporters that has defended a secret budget provision to help athletic booster clubs and pushed for more autonomy for UNC, threatening the stability of the larger university system.

Citizens for High Education gave $425,000 to legislative candidates in the 2006 election cycle and has already given more than $200,000 to campaigns this year.

UNC-CH has its own lobbyists at the General Assembly and so does the UNC system. Any of them would have been a better host for Thorp than a lobbyist for a PAC that funds lawmakers' campaigns. Thorp will soon be the chancellor for the whole university, not just for its wealthiest donors.

The scratching season

Just in time for the summer four dollar a gallon gas and rising food prices, the North Carolina Exploitation Lottery has announced that "by popular demand" it's bringing back two instant scratch-off games, Platinum Payout and Summertime Cash 2.  Apparently we just couldn't live without them.

In a related story, a South Carolina entomologist tells the Charlotte Observer that we can expect more mosquitoes this summer than last year. 

Instant lottery tickets and mosquitoes have a lot in common when you think about it. They both make you scratch and give you roughly the same odds of striking it rich.

 Email This Post  Print This Post

This entry was posted on Friday, May 30th, 2008 at 1:18 pm and is filed under Fitzsimon File. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.