Opinion Piece by Phil Cordeiro
“A man's true character is not revealed during good times – it is revealed during difficult times.” This aphorism came to mind after reading the December 5th edition of the Pender-Topsail Post & Voice newspaper (and I use the term “newspaper” loosely).
Specifically, after witnessing our Pender County Board of Commissioners meeting on the afternoon of Monday, December 2nd, I recalled what seems to be a never-ending series of occasions upon which the Publisher of that “newspaper” (hereinafter Mr. Publisher) has used it to levy personal attacks upon Commissioner Jerry Groves in the most vitriolic and aggressive manner – including numerous accusations that Commissioner Groves is an ardent and devout racist.
The next thought I had regarding Mr. Publisher's coverage of December 2nd's commissioner meeting – at which Commissioner Brad George nominated Commissioner Jerry Groves to be vice chair of the Pender County Board of Commissioners – was, “Why is Mr. Publisher suddenly at a loss for words when it comes to criticizing Commissioner Groves? He usually has so many.
As an aside – when trying to explain phenomena of any variety I'm a firm believer in Occam's razor. In basic terms, its principle holds when you're given a number of explanations for a specific phenomenon, you should always choose the simplest explanation.
Well, I have an idea. Mr. Publisher doesn't really care whether or not Commissioner Groves is actually a racist. He only cares about using his “newspaper” to attack people who are a threat to him and his group of friends (including Commissioner Brad George and Board of Education Member Beth Burns) retaining an iron fist on the levers of power in Pender County.
Why would I have such a thought? Well, if Mr. Publisher was genuinely interested in driving Commissioner Groves from public life for being a racist, then Mr. Publisher would have excoriated Commissioner George for allying himself with a man he alleges is of such moral turpitude. However, Mr. Publisher seems to be surprisingly mum on this newly forged alliance between Commissioners George and Groves.
Now back to the title of this piece. Why would you read something such as the Pender-Topsail Post & Voice? Well, I guess many of us in Southeastern North Carolina may be enjoying a low country boil over the Christmas season – and we'll need something to put down on the table. And, I guess an act of charity is always a good thing during this time of the year. Surely, if Mr. Publisher continues his moral bankruptcy his “newspaper” will be equally so before long.