politics

Chris Knight's avatar

Take this for what it’s worth folks…

I am starting to hear, from “the little birds”, that there are allegations of some voting fraud that took place with this past week’s election.

There are at least a couple of “conspiracy theories” that I’ve been told about since yesterday. To be honest I’m surprised that there haven’t been more than those few by now. But it’s still early so far as these sorts of things go.

One statistic that I have seen a few times in the past twelve hours or so: the number of votes that Republican House of Representatives candidates received during the last mid-term election in 2022, 54.2 million, is close to the 55.6 million that Republican candidates received this year.

The Democratic candidates for the House in 2022 got 51.3 million. This year the votes for the Dems in the House soared to 70.4 million… almost TWENTY ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

Today is Election Day here in the United States. As it’s often being called, “the mid-terms”. Because it’s coming at the halfway point in the four-year term of the president.

I’ve never liked calling these elections “mid-terms”. Every election is supposed to be of grave import, not just those that might swing political power away from or (more rarely) toward whoever the President of the United States is. But for most of this country’s history we have made the president the focal point of American temporal presence. The person most empowered to define the country’s identity. And barring some drastic dislodgment from so-called conventional wisdom, that does not look to change anytime soon.

I’ve been asked quite a few times about what I think about this year’s elections. That I’m in South Carolina has made some especially interested, given the U.S. Senate race here.

What do I think is going ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

A longtime friend is currently running for office.  Tonight on Facebook I left a comment to him.  It was worth making a post all its own, since this is such a political season.  If you ever wondered where I am coming from politically, this passage from the man who was the grandfather figure in my life puts it more succinctly than anything I could come up with on my own.  So I think it’s well worth sharing here too.

From chapter 12 of my book Keeping the Tryst:

At last Eagle was within sight.  For my project I chose to build receptacles for the trash cans at Camp Saurakee, a place for people with severe mental disabilities.  The receptacles would keep the cans stationary, without being a safety hazard if they were knocked around in bad weather.  I made the receptacles, and we delivered them to the camp two ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

Right now at this moment I am doing something that I have not done in many years: watching Sunday morning political talk shows.

And I am shaking my head in disbelief at how little these people are actually saying.

These are partisan hacks, every single one of them, including the hosts.  They are not saying anything at all that is really enlightening or mind-broadening.  They are parroting their party’s agenda, without any legitimate thought processes at all.  There is nothing original they are speaking aloud that I have not heard before.

They are soooooo boring.

I’m reminded of an episode of The Cosby Show that I saw many years ago.  Claire is invited to go on one such Sunday morning show.  Including the hosts there is also a conservative commentator and a liberal scholar and they were PERFECTLY cast and acted.  They were total parodies of real conservatives and liberals. ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar
Phil Berger (left), Sam Page (right)
Image courtesy WRAL.com

Look, I really don’t have much of a dog in this hunt.  I don’t even live in North Carolina anymore, much less live back in the state senate’s 26th district.  But I did spend most of my life in Rockingham County and I maintain strong connections there.  I visit back there every so often.  And I’ve met Phil Berger and Sam Page at various times over the past two decades.  All of that, and the political commentator that’s been inside me for well over thirty years now is just aching to weigh in on this mess.  So that being said, here it goes…

For those who haven’t known, the 2026 race for North Carolina State Senate District 26 has been thrown into beyond the singularity: a place where future events cannot be estimated.  What happened is that Phil Berger, who has ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

 

Jesse Jackson passed away today at the age of 84.

I’m not the kind of person who speaks ill of the recently deceased.  That’s something that I learned during my upbringing in rural North Carolina.

But in the case of Jesse Jackson, I am going to make an exception.  Because I believe that there is much to be learned from his life and the choices he made.

Jesse Jackson had been a very good man.  A great man even.  He preached a terrific message to young black people, encouraging them to rise above their circumstances and make something better for themselves.  Jackson was also – I was shocked to discover – VERY vehemently pro-life and spoke often about the evil of abortion.

The original brand Jesse Jackson was a real leader.  Someone who had earned respect from many, many people.

But then Jackson ran for President in the ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

I’m going to come out and say it:

It is absolutely shameful what is happening right now in Rockingham County politics.

Regardless of distance in its various measures, I have still been proud to be a son of Reidsville and the surrounding area.  But what I’m seeing lately from afar is utterly heartbreaking.

Twenty years ago I was a candidate for public office in Rockingham County.  I didn’t win my race but it still became one of the greatest experiences of my life.  My campaign was an honest, sincere, and upbeat one.  It was FUN!  When the results came in, there was no bitterness at all for not getting a seat on the school board.  There had been too much enjoyment from coming to meet new people, hearing and talking about ideas, harnessing creativity to make signs and shirts and television ads.  I didn’t run against anyone per se.  I ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

I’m reading a number of stories regarding churches turning their nativity scenes into political statements about immigration agents enforcing the laws.  Namely, these churches are replacing Mary, Joseph and the infant Jesus with signs saying “ICE was here”.  At least one church went all the way and has ICE agents surrounding the crèche with zip ties and weapons drawn.

Photo credit: Matthew McDonald

I would not want to visit these churches, because they are demonstrating that they have no grasp of scripture at all.

Here’s the truth of the matter: Jesus and his parents were never refugees or immigrants.  Joseph took his wife to Bethlehem because that was their hometown, and they had to take part in a census that had been ordered by Caesar.  They may not have been fully citizens of Rome (few in Roman territory were) but they were certainly 100% legal residents of the empire. ...

Read more

Chris Knight's avatar

Folks, this one was almost too easy to get behind. Why?  Because I’ve known Kevin Suthard since we were in seventh grade and he has always been someone who I admire and respect and he’s ever abounded in wisdom and vision.  I’ll admit, I was a bit shocked around 1994 or so when I heard that Kevin was going into law enforcement.  But he spent thirty years working at the Rockingham County Sheriff’s Department and those were decades that were laden in public service.  Kevin has a true heart for the people of the county and that hasn’t stopped at all since his retirement.  Now Kevin is moving forward and upward to the next level…

A few days ago Kevin announced that he is running for Rockingham County Board of Commissioners in the 2026 election.  And though I no longer live in Rockingham County, North Carolina, I am declaring for ...

Read more