I wrote this editorial in August of 2015, shortly after then-Burlington City Manager Harold Owen called me to let me know he planned to retire. He called me again the other day to let me know he might be seeking a return to city government, but this time as an elected member of Burlington's City … Continue reading Flashback Friday, special edition: The return of Harold Owen
Author: madisontdawg
Throwback Thursday: Importance of July 20, 1969 lost on new generations
This is a column from 2014 on the anniversary of the historic landing on the moon. --- How I came to be talking about the moon landing of 1969 to a group of third-graders whose parents weren’t even born when it happened, was sort of an accident. After all, I’m seldom in the company of … Continue reading Throwback Thursday: Importance of July 20, 1969 lost on new generations
A glimpse of a next generation of voters
Suddenly, I don’t feel so anxious about the long-term future of the nation. I’m in the second week now of a two-week volunteer morning gig with the Village Project summer camp at Elon. It’s a cliché to say I’ve learned as much from the 12 to 14 rising eighth and ninth-graders in our class as … Continue reading A glimpse of a next generation of voters
Throwback Thursday: 1968 revisited — only we elected George Wallace this time
I wrote this a year ago for the Times-News in Burlington, North Carolina when the nation was on fire -- shootings were rampant, political turmoil was everywhere and we seemed on the precipice on a major cultural shift. A year later here we are only in this reality America elected George Wallace. This is the … Continue reading Throwback Thursday: 1968 revisited — only we elected George Wallace this time
Summer camp in the Village
Monday I got my summer camp T-shirt. Like the dork that I am, I pulled it immediately over the button-down shirt I put on before leaving home in the morning. Not the best visual impression on a crew of rising eighth and ninth graders, I suspect. I'll do better Tuesday. This T-shirt -- without the … Continue reading Summer camp in the Village
In the labyrinth at Elon
Shortly after my spouse started working at Elon University in the fall of 2012, she mentioned a permanent labyrinth located on campus, not too far from her University Communications office in Truitt Hall. It got her attention as a pathway to pause, reflect or meditate. That is, after all, what it’s there to do. She … Continue reading In the labyrinth at Elon
Fourth of July flashback: Newspaper people should not serve food
The date was July 4, 1999. I was working for the Jacksonville Daily News, a newspaper on the North Carolina coast that serves Onslow County, Camp Lejeune and Carteret County. And by serve, I mean news. Food, well ... Before going further, note that the events you are about to hear occurred before there were … Continue reading Fourth of July flashback: Newspaper people should not serve food
Book review: ‘Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic
Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic (Reggie, Rollie, Catfish and Charlie Finley’s Swingin’ A’s’); by Jason Turbow; 2017; 386 pages; Haughton, Mifflin, Harcourt Publishing Co. “When Roy Eisenhardt showed up at the Coliseum toward the end of the year to familiarize himself with the front office he was stunned by the organizational wasteland before him.” So begins a … Continue reading Book review: ‘Dynastic, Bombastic, Fantastic
Going by the book; or, keeping the wheel of life turning
About 20 years ago a cop reporter I worked with at the Jacksonville Daily News gave me her copy of a famous book written by a cop reporter from Baltimore. “Homicide: A Year on the Killing Streets” by David Simon was published in 1991. By 1993 it had become a TV show on NBC, a … Continue reading Going by the book; or, keeping the wheel of life turning
Remembering The great Tim Duncan
In my life I've only had a handful of favorite NBA players, usually they don't overlap. A favorite is, after all, a favorite. All shared a few characteristics in common. They played the game the right way, they played it well, they conducted themselves professionally, they were intense and refused to back down. And yeah, … Continue reading Remembering The great Tim Duncan
Madison's Avenue 