RDU On the Rise: Big fish, pot and democracy
Hi there! I’m Brian Gordon, the N&O’s technology and innovation reporter delivering this week’s RDU On the Rise.
About a month ago, I rolled down here from Asheville where I had been living for the past three years. I’m still getting used to the Triangle’s flatness and relative lack of Indigo Girls concerts but am making do. Plus there’s much going on here...
What to do this weekend
Check out thousands of vintage clothing items at the North Carolina Vintage Bazaar, which returns this Saturday to Raleigh’s Expo Center at the State Fairgrounds.
Also in Raleigh, the city has live music galore this weekend: OneRepublic plays on Saturday while the likes of Courtney Barnett, Kim Gordon, and Perfume Genius take the City Plaza stage at the 12th annual Hopscotch Music Festival.
Baseball season is winding down, but there’s still time to catch the Durham Bulls who are at home all weekend against the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Railriders.
▪ Fun fact: There’s quite a bit of debate over how to properly pronounce “Barre” in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.
Newsreel: Big fish, big pot
A father and son caught the biggest swordfish ever recorded in North Carolina, Josh Shaffer writes. The fish weighed 504 pounds, and the family is still eating it.
Speaking of pounds, Shaffer also reported on the creative legal argument a man made after he was busted shipping 15 pounds of marijuana at a Raleigh FedEx facility.
The man argued the police performed an unlawful search because they had no way of definitively knowing whether his package contained marijuana or legal hemp. His point briefly makes sense — if you’re high. But the court unanimously disagreed.
Brian Gordon (hey, that’s me!) wrote about the tenuous state of red light traffic camera systems in North Carolina. And to check out really exceptional reporting, take time to read Adam Wagner’s investigative dive into the filthy, stomach-churning risks of anaerobic digesters. Wagner promises a “hog waste lagoon” in the headline, and his story delivers.
North Carolina football was straight silly last weekend. I think UNC and App State are still scoring, while I hope someone has given the ECU kicker a hug. The N&O sports staff did a great job following the action and putting the wacky weekend into context. Check out Chip Alexander’s piece on NC State’s kicker encouraging the ECU kicker after the latter flubbed some key kicks.
Lose yourself in democracy
To promote more affordable housing, a man played a music video of Eminem’s Lose Yourself during a Raleigh City Council, Anna Johnson reports. When asked to stop, Shane Collins began quoting the song instead. “You only get one shot. Right now. Do not miss your chance. This opportunity comes once in a lifetime,’” he said. “Take your opportunity now. Keep negotiating. Don’t give up on affordable housing.”
And a legal theory pushed by North Carolina Republican legislators presents a major development (threat?) to our current election systems, Will Doran writes. It involves the “independent state legislature theory,” which says the legislative branch has sole authority to manage elections — at least those at the federal level.
Goodbye Summer
Reporter Martha Quillin and photojournalist Travis Long ended their six-part Cruising Across Carolina summer travel series in the state’s western-most reaches. Their stops included Chimney Rock (seriously, go), Asheville (seriously, go), and Bryson City (go if you happen to be in the neighborhood). Quillin called this mountainous excursion “the perfect ending to a perfect summer trip.”
Thanks for joining me for this edition of RDU On the Rise.
Look out for next week’s installment, hosted by politics reporter Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi.
Have a great weekend.
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