GIANT REVOLUTION of the
PETER FRANCISCO’S LEGENDARY ROLE IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION AND THE BATTLE OF GUILFORD COURT HOUSE
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On March 15, 1781, Private PETER FRANCISCO “slew in this engagement eleven of the enemy with his own broad sword.” Or so declares a bronze plaque in Guilford Courthouse National Military Park at 2332 New Garden Road in Greensboro. The granite obelisk it adorns is often called the Peter Francisco Monument, but its official name is the Cavalry Monument. A nearby sign titled “Legend vs. Reality” states that Peter Francisco only claimed to have killed four British soldiers.
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The GREEN VALLEY GRILL interior is elegant. You enter through a vine-covered trellis. Brick walls flank a large center arch. As the weather warms, the patio, surrounded by lush greenery, will become increasingly inviting. 6 Family, friends, local leaders, and law enforcement officers will have to continue to wait for definitive answers regarding the officer-involved shooting death of 18-yearold FREDERICK COX. Meanwhile, many of those people came to celebrate the life he has been credited with saving. 7 THE MIMIC, the third feature written and directed by Thomas F. Mazziotti and the first since 1998’s Charlie Hoboken, is a comedy of such churlish quirkiness and unappealing smugness that its 81-minute running time seems much longer. 7 The COVID-19 virus has taught us some painfully valuable lessons. For starters, it showed us how ill-prepared we were to deal with a pandemic, and it underscored disparities in our healthcare system. The pandemic has also given our elected officials an opportunity to either SHINE OR SHRIVEL under pressure.
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With the quintessential monotone squares of a Zoom call dominating the realm of education for the past year, the hopes of many parents and educators anticipating the return of their children to IN-PERSON LEARNING were raised earlier this month. 13 Citing “safety of the community,” a federal judge ruled Friday that former High Point police officer LAURA STEELE cannot be released into the custody of her husband and family but must remain jailed until tried in Federal Court for her part in conspiring to obstruct certification of the 2020 presidential election. 14 The Triad rockers in JIVE MOTHER MARY play up puns, and their 1970s stylings, with a new record, “8 Tracks,” out via Bandcamp on March 5, followed by other streaming platforms on March 12. “We channel everything from rock to folky and singer-songwriter stuff, to funk music, blues, and rock from the 80s,” said founding guitarist Mason Keck of their oft-described “1970s rock vibe.” “We try to absorb it all,” he added.
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DISTRIBUTION JANICE GANTT KYLE MUNRO SHANE MERRIMAN ANDREW WOMACK We at YES! Weekly realize that the interest of our readers goes well beyond the boundaries of the Piedmont Triad. Therefore we are dedicated to informing and entertaining with thought-provoking, debate-spurring, in-depth investigative news stories and features of local, national and international scope, and opinion grounded in reason, as well as providing the most comprehensive entertainment and arts coverage in the Triad. YES! Weekly welcomes submissions of all kinds. Efforts will be made to return those with a self-addressed stamped envelope; however YES! Weekly assumes no responsibility for unsolicited submissions. YES! Weekly is published every Wednesday by Womack Newspapers, Inc. No portion may be reproduced in any form without written permission from the publisher. First copy is free, all additional copies are $1.00. Copyright 2021 Womack Newspapers, Inc.
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[SPOTLIGHT]
YES! WEEKLY WINS 21 PRESS AWARDS BY STAFF
Once again, YES! Weekly has proven that it’s not only your entertainment source but your award-winning alternative newspaper by bringing home more than a dozen editorial and advertising awards to the Triad region. Members of the North Carolina Press Association were honored during the organization’s 148th annual convention on Friday, February 26, 2021. This year’s event, which is typically held in Raleigh, N.C., was held virtually due to COVID-19 protocols and procedures allowing newsrooms to celebrate together safely. NCPA’s editorial and advertising contest is one of the largest in the nation, with over 4,000 entries submitted by more than 100 newspaper and news organizations, according to the organization’s website. Awards covered entries published between October 2019 and September 2020 and were judged by the West Virginia Press Association members. “To be recognized by our peers with an award is extremely gratifying and gives us great pride in knowing what we are doing is making a difference. But to receive 21 evokes a feeling of accomplishment and shows the dedication we exhibit is acknowledged,” said Charles Womack, publisher of YES! Weekly. “We are so happy and proud to serve the Triad and do what we do. I feel very fortunate that our
peers in the media business recognize our quality journalism and design.” YES! Weekly, published by Womack Newspapers Inc., won 21 awards in its division: four 3rd place, four 2nd place, and five 1st place in the advertising category and four 3rd place, three 2nd, and one 1st place in the editorial category. “While we don’t do the job for recognition or awards, I’m extremely proud of my team as they are recognized for consistently creating quality work and producing superior reporting,” said Chanel Davis, editor of YES! Weekly. “We will continue to strive for excellence as that is what our readers expect from us.” Our mission was to bring hard and fair news, insightful commentary, and comprehensive cultural writing to Greensboro. Since then, we have expanded our coverage to include High Point, WinstonSalem, Kernersville, Jamestown, Archdale, Thomasville, Clemmons, Oak Ridge, Summerfield, and the other cities and towns of the North Carolina Piedmont Triad. With a commitment to honest coverage, common-sense editorial policy, and great writing, YES! Weekly has become a vital part of the Triad media scene, breaking stories and uncovering hidden cultural gems. Below is a list of the categories and awards won by YES! Weekly and its staff. !
Third Place Motor Vehicle Ad - Alex Farmer - Frank Myers Auto Maxx Entertainment Ad - Alex Farmer - Duck Donuts Use of Color - Alex Farmer - Mother Herb CBD Newspaper Promotion - Alex Farmer - Triad Coloring Book General News Reporting - Katie Murawski - YES! Weekly’s coverage of the #OccpyWSNC Movement Illustration/Photo Illustration/Print or interactive graphics - Austin Kindley -YES! Weekly Illustration Submissions Use of Photographs - Staff - YES! Weekly’s Use of Photographs in July 2020 Magazine or Niche Publication - YES! Weekly Staff - Triad Coloring Book Second Place Motor Vehicle Ad - Alex Farmer - Taylor’s Discount Tire Entertainment Ad - Alex Farmer - Black Powder Smokehouse Healthcare/Medical Ad - Alex Farmer - Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center Small Ad - Alex Farmer - Elm Street Lounge Editorials - Katie Murawski - COVID-19, Black Lives Matter editorials Community Coverage - Staff - YES! Weekly’s Community Coverage Appearance and Design - Staff - YES! Weekly - Appearance and Design entry
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Chow down with John Batchelor at Green Valley Grill
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n culinary history, and continuing into the present in Europe, highend restaurants have often been associated with hotels. Quaintance-Weaver Restaurants and Hotels (qwrh.com), a Greensboro entrepreneurship, is reestablishing that tradition in the Triad. Proximity and the O.Henry are luxury hotels whose names reflect local history. Both house serious restaurants. I chose Green Valley Grill, in the O.Henry, for this column mainly because some selections in a menu email caught my attention. (I go to Printworks restaurant, in the Proximity Hotel, just as often.) The Green Valley Grill interior is elegant. You enter through a vine-covered trellis. Brick walls flank a large center arch. As the weather warms, the patio, surrounded by lush greenery, will become increasingly inviting. These properties earn special commendations for safety accommodations. Table spacing has been extended, and
TROUT reservations are required (for now, at least) for in-person dining. Dividers have been installed along the bar. If you order takeout, several dedicated parking spaces allow delivery without leaving your car. The wine list has received the exalted Wine Spectator’s “Best of Award of Excellence” status.
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VEAL PORTERHOUSE Vegetarian selections are offered for several courses. Recent menu starters have included Crispy Cauliflower with chermoula (a Middle Eastern style relish) and chives and Wood Fire Roasted Carrots with lemon zest and chive crema. Eggplant or Pesto Flatbread appeared in the menu’s mid-priced section, while Vegetable Paella and Blackened Cauliflower Steak were listed among the entrées. Although I have never been disappointed with vegetarian selections here, for these most recent visits, my wife and I stuck to fishier and meatier options. We started one meal with Blue Crab and Spinach Dip. The primary taste impact comes from the crabmeat, as it should.
Thin lavosh crackers host each spread. Two sandwiches are real standouts. Sherry-Braised Short Rib Sliders host wonderfully tender, flavorful beef, enhanced with citrus-whipped goat cheese and Parmesan-lime aioli. The Darn Good Burger appears pricey ($12.95) at first glance, but its elaborate preparation belies cost. Herbed mayonnaise graces an unusually thick, richly flavored patty, with a choice of cheeses, along with leaf lettuce. Both these come with hand-cut truffle French fries. Also available as a starter, these potatoes are worth a visit in themselves. The Short Ribs are also available as an entrée. Wood-Fired Filet Mignon is another
FILET MIGNON
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SCALLOPS stellar beef main course. The meat itself exhibits a solid depth of flavor, appropriately tender for the cut. A green onion piquillo chimichurri lends an Argentineinfluenced accent. Fingerling potatoes and spinach are the accompaniments. Wood-Fired Grilled Veal Porterhouse is a recent menu addition. This is an exceptional cut of meat, the equivalent in flavor and texture of two veal steaks. The natural veal flavor is extended with rosemary jus, joined by confit-fingerling potatoes and charred broccolini- a personal favorite. (I had this within a few days of its appearance on the menu, and I would hope that in the future, more attention is devoted to the rosemary enhancementunderpowered in my serving.) No disappointments among the seafoods we tried. In Baked Pecan Crusted Trout, a crisp, nutty crust gives way to an abundant, tender fish portion, accented with lemon beurre blanc, presented over polenta, which absorbs and extends the sauce. Al dente green beans are particularly tasty. Five large Pan-Seared Scallops are perfectly browned and tender. These surround saffron rice, scattered with toasted pine nuts, all laced with lemon chili oil. Crab Cakes are based on quality lump crabmeat, their crisp brown exterior sharpened with chive crema. Greek herbed roasted potatoes and green beans, al dente, tossed in butter, round out the presentation. House pickled red onion often appears as an additional side- more a separate WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM
flavor in its own right than a complement for other ingredients. In recognition of both spring weather and (hopefully) emergence from COVID quarantine, Quaintance-Weaver properties have been offering “thaw” specialsovernight hotel rates that include dining options. Whether a Triad resident or an out-of-town guest, that would be a great way to welcome March and April. Check the website and sign up for email notifications to keep up to date with these and other special promotions. ! JOHN BATCHELOR has been writing about eating and drinking since 1981. Over a thousand of his articles have been published. He is also author of two travel/cookbooks: Chefs of the Coast: Restaurants and Recipes from the North Carolina Coast, and Chefs of the Mountains: Restaurants and Recipes from Western North Carolina. Contact him at john.e.batchelor@gmail.com or see his blog, johnbatchelordiningandtravel.blogspot.com.
WANNA
go?
Green Valley Grill, 622 Green Valley Road, Greensboro. 336-854-2015. greenvalleygrill.com Hours: Breakfast: 7-10 a.m. Monday-Friday, Lunch: 11 a.m. 2- p.m. Monday-Friday, Dinner: 5-9 p.m. Monday-Friday & 3:30-9 p.m. Saturday & 3:30-8 p.m. Sunday, Saturday & Sunday Brunch: 7 a.m.3:30 p.m. Small Plates: $8.95-$16.95 | Salads: $5.95-$8.95 Soups: priced daily | Sandwiches and Flatbreads: $12.95-$13.95 | Entrees: $19.95-$33.95 | Desserts: $5.95-$7.95 | Most recent visit: February 23
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Party and Patience: SBI awaits report, Family awaits answers
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Chanel Davis
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amily, friends, local leaders, and law enforcement officers will have to continue to wait for definitive answers regarding the officerinvolved shooting death of 18-year-old Frederick Cox. Meanwhile, many of those people came to celebrate the life he has been credited
with saving. On Wednesday, February 24, 2021, roughly 50 people filled the walkway and steps of the Guilford County Courthouse facing Green Street in High Point to celebrate the birthday of Tavaris Johnson and call for the Guilford County District Attorney to charge the officer that shot at him, his mother and Cox, eventually killing the later, at a local church. The tables filled with gifts, cupcakes, and cake for the birthday boy flanked by black and blue balloon towers topped with game controllers that read “Game On. It’s Your Birthday!” were juxtaposed by shirts of all colors with hashtags of #whatgang and #FredShouldNotBeDead at the event billed as not just a rally but a celebration of the life that Cox saved while dying. High Point National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) President James S. Adams Jr. said that while they were there for a celebration, they were also there looking for justice. “The purpose of everything that we’re doing is to get justice. Justice may come in a couple of different ways, but in this case, we need law enforcement to do what they need to do. We need our neighbors, friends to continue to uplift this family,” he told the crowd. “The road may be long but don’t give up.” Rev. T. Anthony Spearman, state NAACP President, said that Cox entered the world as a marked man yet left it as a hero. “Marked by the color of his skin, Fred’s lot has been the lot of many other marked men. It seems that our lot, our destiny, results in our entering places like jail, institutions, and or death. Eighteen years old is too young to die, and he died a hero. Yet the powers that be would have us to understand or think that Fred was a thug,” Spearman told the crowd. “He was not a YES! WEEKLY
MARCH 3-9, 2021
A - High Point NAACP President James Adams Jr. speaks to the crowd as Cox’s parents stand at his side L-A dessert table for the celebration
thug. He was a son of a powerful mother who was doing the things that she had taught him to do - to help someone else along their way. The one who took his life is actually the thug. We need to make it plain that there are too many officials in prominent places who are unlawful thugs. They’re outlaws if the truth be told.” Calls to not give up may indeed be necessary as the case is currently at a standstill due to a backlog at the state’s Chief Medical Examiner Office. As YES! Weekly’s Editor, I sent an electronic request for the documents in Cox’s case from the state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner at the end of January and followed up with phone calls and emails on February 25 and March 2. Those documents are what is needed to close the ongoing investigation, being led by N.C. State Bureau of Investigation, and decide what the next steps will be in the November 8, 2020, officer-involved shooting that claimed Cox’s life at Living Waters Baptist Church, located on Brentwood Street in High Point. Cox was shot by a Davidson County Sheriff’s Deputy, who was in plainclothes and attending Jonas Thompson’s funeral at the family’s request, when shots were fired from several vehicles following the end of the funeral, according to the media release sent out by High Point Police Department. Angie Grube, public information director with the state SBI, said that there are currently no plans to release the officer’s
name due to the officer’s safety, and she could neither confirm nor deny the name that was floating around. At a press conference in January, the family and their legal counsel Ben Crump and Allen Rogers named a Detective Hill. “Our investigation remains ongoing. Once we complete the investigation, we will submit the case file to the DA, who will determine what, if any, charges, etc.,” Grube said. “The investigation is close to complete. At this point, we are awaiting the autopsy report before we submit the case file to the DA.” When asked if she knew if there was a weapon operated by the deceased on the scene or if she had an account from the officer on hand, she responded: “Those are investigative details we’re not able to provide.” HPPD reports that two vehicles were fleeing from the scene and were informed by witnesses that multiple shots were fired from “the two vehicles toward unknown persons in the crowd.” Officers also report that someone from the crowd shot back at the two vehicles. According to the release, the DCS deputy was still on the church property when this occurred and, “at some point during the incident, discharged his firearm which resulted in the death of Frederick Cox” and the need for SBI to be called. According to Lt. Matt Truitt, public information officer for HPPD, the DCS deputy informed the department that he would be in the city on November 8.
“The officer did give us a courtesy call that he would be attending the service,” he said. HPPD treated the incident as three different crime scenes due to the amount of gunfire and size of the property, where they located and estimated 70-shell casing from a 9mm, .40, .45, and a .223, according to the release. While SBI handled the officer-involved part of the shooting, HPPD was tasked with following up on the cars that drove by the church and started shooting, and according to Truitt, that part of the case has hit a brick wall. “There have been no arrests, and there have been no leads other than the basic car description,” he said. In a release, High Point Police have stated they “suspect the unknown person” that began shooting in the crowd “was from a rival gang.” Cox’s family has emphatically and repeatedly denied that he had gang ties or even owned a gun. As YES! Weekly’s Editor, I asked what brought the department to that conclusion to the point where they felt they could make such as strong statement. “The funeral was for a validated gang member and in the opposing gang’s territory. That’s why we feel the funeral fueled the shooting,” Truitt said. ! CHANEL DAVIS is the current editor of YES! Weekly and graduated from N.C. A&T S.U. in 2011 with a degree in Journalism and Mass Communications. She’s worked at daily and weekly newspapers in the Triad region.
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flicks
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The Mimic musters few laughs
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he Mimic, the third feature written and directed by Thomas F. Mazziotti and the first since 1998’s Charlie Hoboken, is a comMark Burger edy of such churlish quirkiness and unappealing smugness Contributor that its 81-minute running time seems much longer. The premise, as it were, sees the film’s ostensible protagonist, identified as “The Narrator” (Thomas Sadoski), becoming so obsessed with his new neighbor, “The Kid” (Jake Robinson), that he immediately identifies him as a sociopath. How he came to this conclusion doesn’t much matter, as it’s what the narrative, such as it is, hinges upon. The Kid, who hails from New Jersey (so he must be a sociopath, right?), was an Eagle Scout and talks incessantly about a wife we never see, all but attaches himself to The Narrator, their paths inexplicably but inexorably crossing on a regular basis. “We’re on the same wavelength,” he keeps telling The Narrator, an unintentionally ironic statement in that the film is on another – and none too funny — wavelength throughout. When he’s not brushing up on library books about sociopaths, The Narrator is also writing a screenplay about the situation. If it’s anything like The Mimic, said screenplay should be shelved immediately and indefinitely. The banter between The Narrator and The Kid isn’t nearly as clever or interesting as the filmmakers apparently think it is. The Narrator keeps challenging The Kid, and The Kid challenges right back. In that sense, the two characters do tend to mimic one another, although to what point or end is anybody’s guess. The characters are unctuous rather than likable, their eccentricities and neuroses quickly becoming an irritation rather than a consistent source of humor, and Sadoski and Robinson tend to play their roles with more intensity than the situations warrant. They may be trying in vain, but at least they’re trying. In addition to the audience’s time, The Mimic wastes such talents as Gina Gershon, Marilu Henner, Jessica Walter, AusWWW.YESWEEKLY.COM
Pandemic and the right to recall
tin Pendleton, Tammy Blanchard, Josh Pais, Didi Conn, and the always-welcome M. Emmet Walsh in throwaway roles. There are, however, two turns of note: Matthew Maher as “The Waiter” at the restaurant where The Narrator and The Kid have a confrontational dinner and Jessica Keenan Wynn as the local librarian who assists The Narrator’s research. Both bring the appropriate level of quirkiness to their roles. Wynn is an heiress apparent to the Wynn family dynasty, which includes great-grandfather Ed Wynn and grandfather of Keenan Wynn, and proves, even here, that talent runs in the bloodline. In addition, The Mimic has been nicely photographed by cinematographer Timothy Gillis. Filmed in upstate New York, the locations are nothing if not pleasant to look at. Unfortunately, there’s not much else worthy of praise. On the whole, The Mimic is a dead end. - The Mimic is available on VOD/Digital via Comcast, Spectrum, Altice, Cox, Dish, Frontier, Verizon, Sudden Link, MediaCom, Armstrong, iTunes, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Vudu, YouTube, Xbox, Microsoft, Playstation, Fandango Now, and Vimeo. ! See MARK BURGER’s reviews of current movies on Burgervideo.com. © 2021, Mark Burger.
he COVID-19 virus has taught us some painfully valuable lessons. For starters, it showed us how ill-prepared we were to deal with a pandemic, and it Jim Longworth underscored disparities in our healthcare system. The panLongworth demic has also given at Large our elected officials an opportunity to either shine or shrivel under pressure. For example, it is widely accepted that Donald Trump lost last year’s election, in part, due to his inept handling of the virus. But while the White House fell short in identifying a national strategy to protect us, it was the state Houses that people blamed for restricting our movements and closing our local economy. Even those who supported their Governor’s attempts to stop the spread of COVID could be heard complaining about closures and lay-offs. Then there were those who took their complaints to extremes. In Michigan, a radical mob stormed the State Capitol in protest of Gov. Gretchen Whitmire’s handling of the pandemic, and a gang of conspirators even plotted to kidnap her. In California, New York, and other states, Governors were called out for inconsistencies in determining which types of businesses would be closed. Now, after nearly a year of shutdowns, public complaints are turning into political action. As of last week, no less than eight Governors were the subjects of a recall campaign. They include: Kate Brown of Oregon; Doug Ducey of Arizona; Mike Dunleavy of Alaska; John Bell Edwards of Louisiana; Phil Murphy of New Jersey; Gavin Newsome of California; Jared Polis of Colorado; and Gretchen Whitmire of Michigan. If petitioners gather the required number of signatures, they can force a recall election, but doing so is a long shot. In fact, only four recall attempts have ever made it to the ballot, one of which was in California back in 2003. That’s when Democrat Gray Davis was recalled, and Republican movie star Arnold Schwarzenegger was elected Governor. One reason that recalls are rare is that only 20 states allow them. They are: Alaska, Arizona, California,
Colorado, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, Washington, and Wisconsin. Reasons for recalling a Governor vary from state to state. In Alaska, a recall can proceed if the chief executive has, among other things, neglected his or her duties. In Georgia, misappropriating funds will do the trick. A Montana Governor can be recalled for lack of mental fitness, while in Rhode Island, being indicted for a felony is sufficient grounds for removal. In Virginia, a conviction for a drug-related misdemeanor qualifies. Of course, in this COVID era that we inhabit, terms of a recall can be applied and interpreted in a number of ways. Again, though, that’s only in states where it’s legal even to attempt a recall. For example, an increasing number of New Yorkers want their Governor removed for allegedly causing the deaths of thousands of seniors living in nursing homes. However, in the Empire State, a recall is not allowed. Nor is it here in North Carolina where Democrat Roy Cooper has been accused of abusing his emergency powers during the pandemic. That brings me to the need for enacting reforms and re-defining roles. Former Lt. Governor Dan Forest took Cooper to court last year for failing to consult with the Council of State when making decisions to close schools and businesses. Cooper prevailed, but he shouldn’t have. No Governor should have unlimited emergency powers. That’s why, at the very least, our General Assembly needs to re-define the terms of executive powers during an emergency. For example, a Governor’s ability to act unilaterally during a pandemic should be limited to a finite term, such as 90 days (Cooper has been a virtual lone wolf since last April). Second, state lawmakers should hold a special election for voters to decide if we want the power to recall a Governor. If these reforms succeed, we’ll have the pandemic to thank for teaching us that people deserve more power and Governors deserve less. ! JIM LONGWORTH is the host of Triad Today, airing on Saturdays at 7:30 a.m. on ABC45 (cable channel 7) and Sundays at 11 a.m. on WMYV (cable channel 15).
MARCH 3-9, 2021 YES! WEEKLY
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[NEWS OF THE WEIRD] RECENT ALARMING HEADLINES
Shannon Stevens, along with her brother Erik and his girlfriend, snowmobiled to Erik’s yurt in the backcountry near Haines, Alaska, on Chuck Shepherd Feb. 13 and got the scare of a lifetime when she was attacked from below by a bear in an outhouse, the Associated Press reported. Erik heard his sister’s screams and went out to investigate, opening the toilet seat to find “a bear face ... just looking right back up through the hole, right at me,” he said. He shut the lid and ran back to the yurt, where they treated Shannon’s wound with a first aid kit and determined is wasn’t serious. Alaska Department of Fish and Game Wildlife Management biologist Carl Koch said the bear probably swiped at her with its paw, rather than biting her. “She could be the only person on Earth that this has ever happened to,” Koch speculated.
AWWWWWW
Reuters reported on Feb. 24 that a wayward sheep found in a forest in Australia, has been shorn of the more than 77 pounds of fleece he was carrying and is now recovering at Edgar’s Mission Farm Sanctuary near Lancefield, Victoria. Named Baarack by his rescuers, the sheep was “in a bit of a bad way,” said the sanctuary’s Kyle Behrend. “Sheep need to be shorn at least annually, otherwise the fleece continues to grow and grow ... He was underweight and due to all the wool around his face he could barely see.”
FAMILY VALUES
On Feb. 10, prosecutors in Indianapolis charged Jeremy Farmer, 36, with murdering his father, Fred Farmer, 58, who disappeared in November of 2019. Without a body, a weapon or a murder scene, detectives based their case instead on evidence that Jeremy cleaned out his dad’s bank account, used his truck and credit cards, and likely sent fake texts full of emojis that Fred never used from his father’s cellphone to family and friends for two months after the disappearance, WXIN-TV reported. Police hope someone will come forward with information about the fate of Fred Farmer.
GOVERNMENT IN ACTION
Leslie Pilgrim of Huntington Beach, California, waited more than two hours at the DMV in Laguna Hills in early February to get a REAL ID, an upgraded driver’s license that will be required for airline travel starting in
October. Staying compliant with COVID-19 safety rules, Pilgrim left her mask on throughout the process and was startled when officials took her photo while still wearing her mask, she told Fox 11. The clerk realized the error and took another photo, but when the new ID arrived in the mail, Pilgrim’s masked-up face was on the license. The DMV advised her the license is valid, even with the mask, but Pilgrim is not taking any chances: She’s getting a new one made. “(A)t the end of the day, this is funny,” she said. “With all the things happening in the world right now, this is an incredibly minor inconvenience,” she said.
LOST AND FOUND
Phoenix police were called to a home on Feb. 21 by homeowners who unearthed a duffel bag filled with rusted handguns and assault rifles while digging hole in their backyard to plant a tree, Fox News reported. Officers said the guns will be examined to determine if they were used in any crimes. The residents have lived in the house for four years; before that, it was a rental property.
POLICE REPORT
Brandon Soules, 19, was arrested by police in Coolidge, Arizona, on Feb. 17, for falsely reporting to police that he had been kidnapped in an apparent scheme to get out of work. On Feb. 10, police found Soules lying near a water tower with his hands bound behind his back and a bandana in his mouth, the Associated Press reported. Soules told officers two men had kidnapped him from his home, knocked him unconscious and driven him around in his car looking for money his father had hidden around town, but detectives could find no evidence of a kidnapping or assault, and when pressed, Soules confessed he made the story up to avoid work at The Tire Factory, which subsequently fired him.
MATH IS HARD
An unidentified Dunkin’ Donuts customer was captured on video berating store employees on Feb. 15 and demanding she get 50 Munchkin doughnuts after ordering a dozen. “I need more,” she forcefully told the clerk. “Fifty. Five, zero. That’s what a dozen is.” Upworthy reported that another customer tried to correct her, saying “Twelve is a dozen,” to which the woman replied, “I want more than 12! I want 50!” and later continued, “You understand nothing! ... You’re not understanding the English!” Or the math. !
© 2021 Chuck Shepherd. Universal Press Syndicate. Send your weird news items with subject line WEIRD NEWS to WeirdNewsTips@amuniversal.com.
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Plates, e.g. “Star Wars” villain — the Hutt Longtime fashion mag “Got it!” Muslim god Has left the office, say Bilbao locale “Whether — nobler ...” Sudden-death extra in a golf tournament Supermodel Klum Hi-fi platters Cook gently Behave obsequiously Secretive U.S. org. Redding of song Opp. of horizontal Film preview Sort who’s at hand whenever needed Part of a hunting outfit Lucy of “Kung Fu Panda” French painter Rosa Narcissists Bone: Prefix Insult, informally YWCA part Yule, briefly Small Vlasic offering Domestic Explorer Ericson Glossy surface “As above,” in a footnote Morning joe, maybe Tear to bits Gambols Inventory Board, as a ship One who’s distraught with feelings
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Startling cry Light source in a socket Had dinner at a friend’s house, e.g. Note equivalent to 66-Down Not necessarily against Spoke In the — of (during) In readiness Map-filled references Most with it Alleges Ice-cream alternative, for short “Scream” director Craven Sitarist Shankar Weight unit With a sharp picture, briefly Shrek creator William “Gigli” co-star, familiarly Certain nuclear weapon, for short “Be silent!” Adolescent Country’s econ. measure Suffix of medical conditions Free (from) Plump bird “— From Muskogee” (1969 hit) Annoys Circle part Ionian, e.g. Upper crust Purity of a color Razor-sharp Advanced Lead-in to skeleton Give a job to
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Peter Francisco: Hercules of the Revolution and Washington’s One-Man Army
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n March 15, 1781, Private Peter Francisco “slew in this engagement eleven of the enemy with his own broad sword.” Or so declares a Ian McDowell bronze plaque in Guilford Courthouse National Military YES! Writer Park at 2332 New Garden Road in Greensboro. The granite obelisk it adorns is often called the Peter Francisco Monument, but its official name is the Cavalry Monument. A nearby sign titled “Legend vs. Reality” states that Peter Francisco only claimed to have killed four British soldiers. Such discrepancies are unsurprising. Francisco was both the kind of man who inspires legends and the kind overlooked in official histories. Although white, he was a dark-complexioned immigrant who arrived in America speaking no English, was abandoned without family, money, or property, grew up as either an indentured servant or a slave, spent the war as a private, and may not have learned to read or write until his military career was over. Here’s the short version of this tall man’s legend. In 1765, a boy who appeared to be about five years old, and spoke only Portuguese mixed with a little French and Spanish, was found on the docks in what is now Hopewell, Virginia. Because he kept repeating “Pedro Francisco,” this became his name, with Pedro anglicized to Peter. He was later said to have been born in the Azores to an aristocratic family from Portugal but either indentured to an Irish sea captain or kidnapped by Algerian pirates. While none of the contradictory and convoluted stories surrounding his origin have ever been verified, possible clues were uncovered in 1960 by John E. Manahan of the University of Virginia. In Porto Judeu on Terceira in the Portuguese Azores, Manahan found the baptismal record and parental home of a Pedro Francisco. Although there’s no proof this was the same boy found on the Virginia wharf, the dates line up, and there was no record of what happened to that Pedro Francisco after his birth. Whatever his origin, the boy was taken YES! WEEKLY
MARCH 3-9, 2021
to the poor house, then raised by Judge Anthony Wilson of Buckingham County. Accounts vary as to whether Judge Wilson, a cousin of Patrick Henry, kept Francisco as an indentured servant or owned him as a slave. The small boy grew very big, and due to his size and strength, and was trained to be a blacksmith. At fifteen, he was 6’6”, a foot taller than the average American colonist, and 260 pounds. In 1775, he accompanied Judge Winston to St. John’s Church in Richmond for the 2nd Virginia Convention, where Wilson’s cousin uttered the phrase “Give me liberty or give me death!” According to largely unsubstantiated early biographies, this inspired the towering teenager to become one of the greatest heroes of the American Revolution. Francisco allegedly wanted to enlist immediately, but Judge Winston insisted he wait one more year. In December 1776, Winston released him from either servitude or slavery. Francisco, then 16, enlisted as a Private in the 10th Virginia Regiment under Colonel Hugh Woodson and was sent to Middlebrook, N.J., for his basic training. Assigned to General George Washington’s Continental Army, Francisco fought in the Battle of Brandywine on September 11, 1777, where he received the first of what would be many wounds. When healed, he rejoined his regiment just in time to take part in the Battle of Germantown on October 4. From there, Francisco survived the brutal siege of Mud Island on the Delaware and the even more brutal winter at Valley Forge. The following year, he was one of 20 soldiers chosen for Maj. Gen. ‘Mad’ Anthony Wayne’s assault on the British fort atop Stony Point on the Hudson River. Seventeen members of Wayne’s “forlorn hope” (the traditional name for a
The Calvary Monument, also known as the Peter Francisco Monument, is located in the Guilford Courthouse Battleground National Park in Greensboro
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desperate surprise military attack against heavy odds) were killed or wounded, with Francisco receiving a 9-inch bayonet slash across his abdomen, but he is believed to have killed the man who wounded him and two other Redcoats. Despite receiving injuries that would plague him the rest of his life, there is considerable evidence that Francisco fought ferociously for the entire war, his exploits earning him the nicknames “the Virginia Giant” and “the Hercules of the Revolution.” One of the most incredible stories about him allegedly occurred near Camden, South Carolina, in 1780. Like many of the battles of the Southern Campaign, it ended in an American retreat. As the Colonial troops withdrew, they left behind a cannon that had become stuck in the mud. Realizing that the weapon was about to be captured by the British, Francisco lifted the 1,100-pound barrel from its mired carriage and placed it in a wagon so that it could be pulled from the battlefield. Another version of the story claims Francisco pushed the entire gun carriage out of the mud and to safety. No primary documentation has been found for this claim, and Francisco’s own account of the battle does not mention it. In a letter he wrote to the Virginia General Assembly in 1820, he only claimed to have shot a British grenadier who was attempting to bayonet Colonel John Mayo, commander of the Virginia Militia. Then Francisco picked up the bayonet, used it to kill a charging British cavalryman, and rode the dead man’s horse through the British lines while shouting praise to King George. Thinking the giant horseman a loyalist, the enemy let him pass. Circling back, Francisco rejoined the American force and gave his captured horse to the colonel whose he’d saved. Francisco’s rescue of Mayo probably happened. The cannon incident is less likely. In the 2019 History Channel reality show The Strongest Man in History, four “world’s strongest men” had considerable difficulty lifting a 350-pound cannon barrel to their shoulders and carrying it across a field. All agreed that a larger cannon would be an impossibility. Dedicated in 1910, the Greensboro monument is the oldest but not the only memorial to Francisco’s feats. One erected in Hopewell, Virginia, in 1973 commemorates his being found on the docks there. Peter Francisco Park, just outside of Penn Station in Newark, contains a 12-foot obelisk commemorating Francisco. At its 1976 unveiling, congressman Peter W. Rodino Jr. stated the monument “stands not just for Francisco, but for countless men and woman everywhere who, like Peter Francisco, placed everything they owned WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM
A 6’4” descendant holds a replica of Francisco’s legendary sword even their lives – on the altar of freedom.” The Peter Francisco Veteran’s Memorial at the Community Center Groupo Amigos da Terceira in Pawtucket, Rhode Island, was dedicated on September 4, 2006, to all Portuguese-American Veterans. Peter Francisco Square in New Bedford, Massachusetts, contains a monument dedicated in 2008, which attributes the following words to George Washington: “Without him, we would have lost two crucial battles, perhaps the War, and with it our freedom. He was truly a One-Man Army.” Unfortunately, there is no surviving record of Washington ever saying or writing that or any similar sentiment. So, which of the claims about Francisco are most likely true? In “Peter Francisco: Distinguishing Fact from Fiction” (Journal of the American Revolution, July 23, 2013), Michael Schellhammer wrote: “Francisco and his heirs applied several times for pensions from the State of Virginia and the Federal government. Affidavits to his service and bravery from at least six officers who served with him accompanied the applications. Here’s a summary of what I can determine is Francisco’s true Revolutionary War service, based on five of those applications.” According to Schellhammer, Francisco did enlist in the 10th Virginia Regiment in late 1776 and fought at the Battle of Brandywine in 1777, followed quickly by the Battle of Germantown. He then helped defend Mud Island in November 1777. After the awful winter at Valley Forge, he fought at Monmouth, New Jersey, in June 1778, where a musket ball wounded him
in his right thigh. In July 1779, he helped storm the British fortress at Stony Point, New York, with the Corps of Light Infantry under Brig. Gen. Anthony Wayne and suffered his second wound, a bayonet slash on his abdomen. He recovered and returned to Virginia after his enlistment ended in the winter of 1779. In 1780, Francisco joined a militia regiment commanded by Col. William Mayo and fought at the Battle of Camden, where he probably saved his colonel’s life. Returning to Virginia, he joined a militia cavalry company under Capt. Thomas Watkins that was later attached to the Continental cavalry commanded by Col. William Washington. At the battle of Guilford Court House in March of 1781, Francisco suffered a deep bayonet cut into his thigh but fought ferociously. Lt. John Woodson, who fought in the same regiment, later recalled that “when leaving the Battleground [Francisco] was very bloody and also was his Sword from point to hilt.” Francisco was returning home to Virginia after the battle when, as he later wrote, he “fell in accidentally” with a patrol of enemy cavalry. Francisco was unarmed, but when the British troopers confronted him, he seized one of their swords, killed its owner, and “wounded and drove off the others.” This, he would later write after learning how by attending a children’s schoolhouse after the war, “was the last favor I ever did the British.” His Revolutionary service finally ended, he returned home. “Beyond his statements and the affidavits in his pension applications,” wrote Schellhammer, “very few first-hand accounts of his actions exist,” but “there is no doubt that he fought bravely and earned a great reputation; his compatriot John Nichols stated that Francisco’s services ‘were individually equal to six or eight of the best soldiers of the army.’ But the true nature and extent of his heroics is not clear.” Of Francisco’s exploits at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, Schellhammer wrote: “The legend says that Francisco led the charge of Col. William Washington’s cavalry and personally killed 11 British soldiers. As I’ve noted above, an officer of his regiment verified that Francisco fought heroically. But Francisco never said in either of his pension affidavits that he led the charge, and as far as his deathdealing, in his 1820 pension application, he said only that he ‘was seen to kill two men, besides making many other panes which were doubtless fatal to others.’ In his 1829 application, he upped the count to four redcoats. Whatever the reasons for the differing versions of the story, it
appears doubtful that Francisco led the cavalry charge at Guilford Court House or dispatched nearly a dozen enemy soldiers.” I was saddened to find Schellhammer skeptical of one of the claims that drew me to Francisco’s legend. According to that often-repeated but never substantiated story, George Washington noted that a normal sword looked “like a toothpick” in the big man’s hand and ordered a “sixfoot broadsword” be made for him in the early months of 1781. “There is no documentation for this act,” wrote Schellhammer. “It seems unlikely that such a transaction could have taken place since at that time Washington was camped outside New York City and Francisco was over 500 miles away in the Carolinas. It is doubtful that the general would have ordered such a sword made in the first place, and even less likely that he could have ordered it and had it delivered without any mention of Francisco in his correspondence or account books.” Of course, while Washington probably never gave Francisco a huge broadsword, that doesn’t mean he never used one. While my research has turned up no Colonial examples of two-handed broadswords (which one with a five-foot blade would have to be, no matter how big the man using it), one-handed broadswords, the iconic weapon of the eighteenthcentury Highlander, have been found in battlefield sites. Ironically, most Scots highlanders who took part in the Revolution were Loyalists fighting for the British, but there are records of such swords confiscated and used by Colonial forces. Wikipedia states: “Peter Francisco’s famous broadsword was presented by his daughter, Mrs. Edward Pescud of Petersburg, Va., to the Virginia Historical Society. The weapon has since disappeared.” But this passage has no citation, nor do any of the sources that copy it verbatim. Due to Francisco’s postwar fame, his later life is better documented. Although he never had much money, he finally received an education, was granted a pension, and lived to be 70, which is an advanced age for any man of his time, much less such a giant with so many injuries. He spent the last three years of his life as the Sergeant-at-Arms to the Virginia State Senate, died of appendicitis in 1831, and was buried with full military honors in Shockoe Hill Cemetery in Richmond. The Virginia state legislature adjourned for the day, and many legislators attended his funeral. ! IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of. MARCH 3-9, 2021 YES! WEEKLY
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Pencil, Paper, and PPE: Local leaders weigh in on SB 37 and the classroom return BY HABIN HWANG With the quintessential monotone squares of a Zoom call dominating the realm of education for the past year, the hopes of many parents and educators anticipating the return of their children to in-person learning were raised earlier this month. As Senate Bill 37 passed North Carolina’s Senate with a 29-15 vote on Feb. 9, backed heavily by the state’s GOP, as well as the House with a 77-42 vote on Feb. 17, school districts began preparing both students and educators to return to in-person instruction. However, the Feb. 26 veto of the bill by Governor Roy Cooper has many lobbying for the safe return to in-person learning once again. “Senate Bill 37 falls short in two critical areas,” Cooper said. “First, it allows students in middle and high school to go back into the classroom in violation of N.C. Department of Health and Human Services and CDC health guidelines. Second, it hinders local and state officials from protecting students and teachers during an emergency.” Senate Bill 37 is a proposed plan to provide access to partial or full in-person instruction for K-12 children in public education under the StrongSchoolsNC Public Health Toolkit (K-12). Stating that local school districts should offer options for in-person instruction under both Minimum and Moderate Social Distancing guidelines, depending on the needs of each school, Senate Bill 37 pushed many of the formerly fully virtual school systems, such as Durham Public Schools, to adopt hybrid learning policies. Though many school systems such as Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools (WS/FCS) and Guilford County Schools (GCS) began offering in-person instruction prior to the recent veto, including the return of high school students in both counties on Feb. 22, Senate Bill 37 would have mandated similar processes in all school systems that were entirely virtual. Many educators and members of the Board of Education in both counties have strongly supported the return to inperson instruction. However, on the other end of the spectrum are Board members and educators concerned for the safety and well being of their students and staff who strongly oppose the policies entailed in Senate Bill 37. Leah Crowley, a Republican member of YES! WEEKLY
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T. Dianne Bellamy Small
Leah Crowley
Lida Calvert Hayes
the WS/FCS Board of Education, has been a vocal proponent for the return of K-12 children to the classroom and in-person instruction and supports the recently passed Senate Bill 37. “Remote learning has met the needs of some, but we saw an increase in absences and students failing classes when we were all remote,” she commented. “So many students need all [the] things a day at school provides— a quiet and safe learning environment, teachers and counselors, nutrition, technology, physical activity, coaches and teammates, special needs services, and more.” Crowley’s fellow Board member, ViceChair Lida Calvert Hayes, shares similar sentiments on many students’ return to in-person learning in Winston-Salem/ Forsyth County Schools, citing the need for stability. “I feel like our students need stability, and opening schools when it was deemed safe by our authorities was critical,” she said. “It was essential for our teachers, as well as our students, to feel safe, and I am delighted COVID [vaccine] shots are now open for our teachers.” While many welcome the return to the classroom, there are just as many that oppose the notion, including Guilford County Schools’ Board of Education member T.
Dianne Bellamy Small. She points out that it’s practically impossible to make up for the learning loss in what would be almost a year of some North Carolina students not being in the building. “Though GCS is attempting to put in place as many safety precautions as possible without addressing an aged infrastructure and the additional implementation cost, we cannot keep people as safe as they need to be with this highly contagious virus,” she stated. “The data tells us that high school students have a higher transmission incident rate, so we will have more challenges preventing the spread of this virus in our high schools. If the expectation is that we can catch up a year of possible learning loss in the next ten weeks, I don’t think that is possible.” Both Governor Cooper and Board member Small have been vocal that while they are aware of the essential nature of inperson learning, they are focused on and painfully aware of the danger that the virus poses to returning students, educators, and school system staff. A decision that many students and their families in both GCS and WS/FCS are now grappling with - to return to in-person class while being concerned about the rapid spread of a deadly virus. Social media groups such as the WSFCS
Community for Safe Schools have been formed on online platforms, including members who are educators, parents, and students, lobbying for both the formation of stricter safety protocols, and an extended period of time before returning to in-person learning. As older students in GCS and WS/FCS venture through their first month back to school, it is unclear what the future will bring via the various possibilities local education leaders continue to address. However, every member of the education community can share Small’s sentiment during this rapidly changing time. “I am proud of the extraordinary work provided by the District,” she said. “I hope everyone takes to heart what we have to do to stay safe and to eradicate this deadly virus.” For more information on StrongSchoolsNC Public Health Toolkit, visit http:// innovativeschooldistrict.org/news/ strongschoolsnc-public-health-toolkitk-12/. For more information on GCS reopening plans, visit www.gcsnc.com/ reopening. For more information on WS/ FCS reopening plans, visit www.wsfcs.k12. nc.us/Page/115981. ! HABIN HWANG is a 16-year-old Guilford County Schools Early College student at Guilford College.
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Steele cold bars: Former HPPD cop remains jailed for “safety of the community”
Ian McDowell
YES! Writer
Citing “safety of the community,” a federal judge ruled Friday that former High Point police officer Laura Steele cannot be released into the custody of her husband and family but must remain jailed until tried in Federal Court for her part in conspiring to obstruct certification of the 2020 presidential
election. The Federal Bureau of Investigation in Greensboro arrested Steele, 52, on Feb. 17 after being indicted with other paramilitary group members that stormed the Capitol on Jan. 6. Steele, a Thomasville resident, was fired from the High Point Police Department in 2004 and is the wife of recently retired High Point assistant police chief Kenneth Steele. On Feb. 23, Laura Steele’s attorney John Bryson argued in a Durham courtroom that his client should be released into her husband’s custody. On Feb. 26, Federal Magistrate Judge Joe L. Webster denied Bryson’s request, citing “clear and convincing evidence that no combination of available release conditions would reasonably assure the safety of the community.” Webster also stated that releasing Steele into her family’s custody would be inappropriate, as her husband is already a witness against her, and other family members, including her mother and one of her sons, may be called as well. Documents released by the Department of Justice on Feb. 19 describe Steele as a member of The Oath Keepers, a radical far-right anti-government militia that heavily recruits from law-enforcement and the military. A report released by HPPD spokesman Matthew Truitt on Feb. 22 states that Laura Steele was hired by HPPD in 1992 and terminated in 2004 “for conduct toward superior personnel, absence from duty, and violation of communications policy.” According to that report, Kenneth Steele was hired by HPPD on the same date as his wife and promoted to Assistant Police Chief in May of 2015. He retired on Jan. 1 of this year, five days before Laura Steele marched up the Capitol steps in military-style “stack” formation in a group of Oath Keepers who forced their way into the Rotunda. WWW.YESWEEKLY.COM
In February 2001, the News and Record reported that Laura Steele, then working as a school resource officer for HPPD, pepper-sprayed an eleven-year-old female student at Southwest Middle School, and two weeks later, peppersprayed a sixteen-year-old male student at Southwest High School. Former Chief and then department spokesman, Lt. Marty Sumner, told the News and Record that it was “very unusual” for an SRO to use pepper-spray twice in a year and that “less than ten” had done so even once in the previous year. Despite this, Internal Affairs cleared her. At the time, both she and her husband held the rank of Master Police Officer II. At the time of her 2004 firing, she held the rank of Master Police Officer III, and her husband held the rank of Supervisor 1. Steele is one of nine alleged co-conspirators indicted on several charges, including unlawful entry into the U.S. Capitol and conspiring to obstruct certification of the presidential election results. Five of those nine have connections to law enforcement or the military. Named with Steele in the Criminal Complaint are her brother Graydon Young of Englewood, Florida; Connie Meggs of Dunnellon, Florida; and Kelly Meggs, also of Dunnellon. Young is a veteran of the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy Reserves. The Complaint alleges that these four forced their way into the Rotunda in unison with previously arrested Oath Keepers Donovan Crowl, Jessica Watkins, Thomas Caldwell, and Bennie and Sandra Parker. Crowl, from Woodstock, Ohio, is a former corporal in the U.S. Marines. Watkins, also from Woodstock, served in Afghanistan with the U.S. Army and worked as a firefighter in Fayetteville, N.C. Besides being a member of the Oath Keepers, she is also the commanding officer of the Ohio State Regular Militia. Caldwell, from Berryville, Virginia, is a U.S. Navy veteran and a retired lieutenant commander. From 1976 to 1995, he served as an intelligence officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve. He left the armed forces in 2009 and served as a section chief for the FBI from 2009 to 2010, his lawyer stated in a motion filed on February 8, 2021. On page 8 of the Criminal Complaint filed in Federal District Court on Feb. 11 (six days before Steele’s arrest), the FBI Complainant (name redacted in the online document) describes the formation in which Steele, Young, and the other Oath Keepers allegedly moved up the Capitol steps and into the Rotunda.
“Based on my training and experience, a stack or line formation is a tactical formation used by infantrymen in the military. One defining feature of this formation is that members keep their hands on the backs or vests of the person in front of them to remain together while entering a room or weaving through a crowd. The purpose of maintaining direct physical contact with one another is to efficiently communicate with one another, especially in crowded or noisy areas.” On page 30, the Complainant describes an Associated Press video in which: “Laura Steele is seen with a group of personnel, dressed similarly and in a military-style ‘stack’ formation, with hands-on each other’s backs or flak jackets, some with obvious Oath Keeper insignias visible on their clothing, moving up through the crowd towards the door of the US Capitol.” The Complaint also described an alleged membership application form that Steele submitted to the Oath Keepers of Florida on January 3, 2021, stating: “Under ‘skillsets,’ she wrote: ‘I have 13 years of experience in Law Enforcement in North Carolina. I served as a K-9 Officer and a SWAT Team Member. I currently work Private Armed Security for [Company Name Redacted]. I am a licensed PPS through the North Carolina Private Protective Services.” According to Clyde Roper, a spokesman for the N. C. Department of Public Safety, the redacted company name is Novant Health. Roper also announced that, after her arrest, Steele was suspended from working as an armed security guard. The Complaint describes The Oath Keepers as “a large but loosely-organized collection of militias that believe that the federal government has been co-opted by a shadowy conspiracy that is trying to strip American citizens of their rights. Though the Oath Keepers will accept anyone as members, what differentiates them from other anti-government groups is their explicit focus on recruiting current and former military, law enforcement, and first responder personnel. The organization’s name alludes to the oath sworn by members of military and police to defend the Constitution ‘from all enemies, foreign and domestic.’ The Oath Keepers are led by Person One.” According to the Washington Post, Person One is Oath Keepers founder Stewart Rhodes, who called on members to “stand tall in support of President Trump” on Jan. 6. Rhodes was profiled in “A Pro-Trump
Militant Group Has Recruited Thousands of Police, Soldiers, and Veterans,” an article by Mike Giglio published in the November 2020 issue of The Atlantic, which includes this description of how Rhodes’ military ambitions ended: “Rhodes had joined the military just out of high school, hoping to become a Green Beret, but his career was cut short when he fractured his spine during a parachute training jump. After his discharge, he worked as a firearms instructor and parked cars as a valet. In 1993, he dropped a loaded handgun, and it shot him in the face, blinding him in his left eye.” Giglio’s article described Rhodes as founding the Oath Keepers in 2009 and recruiting members with far more law enforcement and/or military experience than he possessed. In 2017, a researcher from the Southern Poverty Law Center allegedly sent Giglio a leaked database about Oath Keeper membership. According to Giglio: “They hailed from every state. About two-thirds had a background in the military or law enforcement. About 10 percent of these members were activeduty. There was a sheriff in Colorado, a SWAT-team member in Indiana, a police patrolman in Miami, the chief of a small police department in Illinois. There were members of the Special Forces, private military contractors, an Army psyops sergeant major, a cavalry scout instructor in Texas, a grunt in Afghanistan. There were Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers, a 20-year special agent in the Secret Service, and two people who said they were in the FBI.” Rhodes is not currently facing any charges related to the Capitol Insurrection, despite being named “Person One” in the Complaint against Steele and her eight alleged Oath Keeper co-conspirators. “While the Court notes that the Defendant poses a minimal risk of flight, the nature of the alleged crime poses a serious and significant threat to the community and the nation at large,” Judge Webster said of Steele on Friday. The Durham court proceeding was only to determine whether or not Steele would be released pre-trial. The rest of the case against her and the others will continue in Washington, D.C. It is not known where she is currently incarcerated. ! IAN MCDOWELL is the author of two published novels, numerous anthologized short stories, and a whole lot of nonfiction and journalism, some of which he’s proud of and none of which he’s ashamed of. MARCH 3-9, 2021 YES! WEEKLY
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HEAR IT!
“8 Tracks” from Jive Mother Mary
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he Triad rockers in Jive Mother Mary play up puns, and their 1970s stylings, with a new record, “8 Tracks,” out via Bandcamp on March 5, followed by other Katei Cranford streaming platforms on March 12. YES! Writer “We channel everything from rock to folky and singersongwriter stuff, to funk music, blues, and rock from the 80s,” said founding guitarist Mason Keck of their oft-described “1970s rock vibe.” “We try to absorb it all,” he added. Rolling-off influences of radio rock hits—Keck once described their sound
as “almost like Aerosmith meets the Eagles”—their material likewise echoes a fandom of more contemporary acts like the Black Crowes, Wilco, and Queens of the Stoneage. “The new record covers a lot of these bases,” he explained, “from big, screaming guitars and in-your-face tunes to laid back ones with just acoustic guitar and vocals.” Keck feels their range comes from an active approach to absorb the stylings of their influences—a practice he developed while growing up around music, with his dad playing in local bands throughout his childhood. “By the time I started playing, he had started a southern rock band called ‘Peach Brandy Band,’” Keck explained, “their equipment stayed set up in a room of our house, and instead of kicking me out of the room while they rehearsed, they’d actually take time and show me
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how to play the songs they were playing.” With all puns intended, Keck considers the experience “truly instrumental,” though he attributes his chops as a front man to an early love of entertaining and fandom of the shock group, KISS. “I used to get in trouble in elementary school for singing KISS on the picnic tables at recess,” he said, noting his first concert was at the Greensboro Coliseum for KISS’ 1999 Psycho Circus Tour. Though all grown-up, Keck remains a KISS fan. “They’re a band that catches a lot of flack for not being that talented,” he said, “but they showed multiple generations of people that anyone can get out there and make music, and most importantly, have a damn good time while doing it.” From first concerts to the band he started in high school, Keck has continued to carry that sentiment for the past 15 years since forming Jive Mother Mary with drummer Seth “Fluff ” Aldridge in 2006, naming the band after misheard lyrics to a Cry of Love song; and adding guitarist Tyler Schulz and bassist Will Sanders. Following graduation, the four moved to Hollywood to attend the Musicians Institute. Alridge received a Marky Ramone Drum Scholarship. Keck auditioned for Slash. And after a few years of experiences, Keck “wouldn’t trade for the world,” the quartet moved to Athens, GA. “That’s where we really tightened-ship as a band,” Keck said of their time in the Peach State. They returned to the Triadarea in 2015, with current bassist Keith Ingalls coming aboard just after their first European tour in 2017. For the new record, their sixth release, they trucked over to Nashville, recording “8 Tracks” over five days with Jay Tooke
at Pentavarit. “It was great to have someone engineering who knew what we were after,” Keck said of the experience, reflecting on touring with Tooke’s band, The Steel Woods, in 2018. “Once we made it to the studio, we felt
right at home.” Ideas of home hang heavy in Keck’s catalog. “I often find myself writing about being on the road or being away from home,” he said. “Writing ends up being almost like therapy about a situation you may want to face, or makes for a good snapshot in time of what was going on.” Sometimes it’s both. The second single off the new record, “Road song #17,” affectionately known as “The Burger King Song,” rings with humor while underlining a longing to get back on the road. “I never thought that I’d miss eating hot trash in a cramped van,” he said, “but I truly do.” With touring on the horizon, Keck hopes that feeling won’t last. They’ve got dates scheduled across the Midwest and east coast through the spring. “Hopefully, they’ll keep rolling-in, and we can tie as many together as possible,” he explained of touring in a new age. “Thankfully, our European tour is still on for January 2022.” “We’re doing everything in our power to make this plane take off and have a smooth ride,” Keck said of their onward trajectory. “I’m thankful to have some amazing friends and people in my corner, and I hope it shows through in our music.” “8 Tracks” from Jive Mother Mary comes out March 5 on Bandcamp before hitting streaming platforms on March 12. ! KATEI CRANFORD is a Triad music nerd who hosts “Katei’s Thursday Tour Report,” a radio show spotlighting artists and events. Thurs from 5:30-7 p.m. on WUAG 103.1FM.
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last call
[THE ADVICE GODDESS] love • sex • dating • marriage • questions
JOB CORPSE
My girlfriend of a year is beautiful, intelligent, sweet, and loving and the first woman I could see having a future with. Last week, I was told I’m being laid off from my job Amy Alkon at a large media conglomerate. I Advice haven’t told anyone, but I’m feeling inGoddess creasingly guilty for keeping it a secret from my girlfriend. The thing is I’m afraid she’ll think less of me, even if she pretends not to. To be honest, I’d rather break up with her than tell her. —Distraught Ideally, when you propose a date-night activity, it isn’t a choice between: “We could go to the grocery store and look at all the food we can’t afford to buy” or “to the bank with a sawed-off shotgun and a wheelbarrow.” However, your heartbreaking “I’d rather break up with her than tell her” probably stems from shortsightedness about female mating psychology. Because men and women co-evolved, men are acutely aware that women seek “providers” as partners. But, in ancestral times, when our current mating psychology was shaped, there was no such thing as wealth: assets that could be stashed (or places to stash them). No money, no banks, no corpse-sized freezer to cram 126 bison burgers into. Accordingly, evolutionary psychologist David Buss explains
that women gauge a man’s mate value by “looking beyond his current position” and evaluating his potential: his ability to acquire status and resources in the future. (Today, Top Ramen. Tomorrow, top surgeon.) Assuming you didn’t get your job because your boss threw darts at LinkedIn and hit you in the neck, you’ve probably got the smarts, talent, and ambition to get a new gig — or start a business of your own. And chances are there’s more to your relationship than two nice people hooking up on the regular. Cobble together the courage to be vulnerable. Tell your girlfriend what you’re going through, including how you feel: perhaps scared, unsure of your value, and maybe like you’ve let her down. Sure, she might drop you like a hot rock — but she might instead show you she loves you and believes in you, even when you’re having a tough time believing in yourself. There’s one way to find out which it is, and it isn’t by spending two months keeping mum about the layoff while having pretend work calls on Zoom with your friend’s dog.
STAINLESS STEAL
I’m a woman in my 20s with a friend who often copies my style. It feels like she’s trying to one-up me, but I’ve tried to ignore it. Well, for years, I’ve rimmed my lower eye with thick black kohl. She commented on it several weeks ago and then started doing it herself. At lunch yesterday, she said (about my eyeliner): “You started doing that? I’ve done it forever.” This is the third time she’s pretended my style she copied was hers first, but I feel petty being upset about it. —Unflattered
Apparently, there could be two snowflakes that are alike — from very tiny snow crystals — but they probably wouldn’t show up at the same bar wearing the same dress and eyeliner. “Monkey see, monkey do” isn’t limited to monkeys or stylejacking female friends. Even fruit flies are copycats, spotting an alpha ladyfly getting it on with a particular dudefly and, afterward, engaging in “mate-choice copying”: the insect sex version of “I’ll have what she’s having!” Like fruit flies, we evolved to copy high-status peeps (friends and celebrities) to advance our evolutionary interests: survival, social survival, and our ability to mate and pass on our genes. Accordingly, evolutionary psychologist Abraham Buunk finds that envy is wrongly maligned as a toxic emotion. Sure, some envious people act in destructive ways (“malicious envy”), but simply noticing others outpacing us and feeling bad about it serves as an internal alarm system: “Hey, Slackerella...better catch up!” We’re told “imitation” is some fabulous form of flattery, so it can feel petty to accuse somebody of stealing your look. However, evolutionary psycholo-
gist Vladas Griskevicius explains that we try to make ourselves attractive to potential partners by seeming unique and special, standing out from the crowd. So, this woman’s ultimately cheating in competing for mates, which is probably why she’s “gaslighting” you. Gaslighting is a form of psychological manipulation in which somebody tries to destabilize your grasp on the facts by denying what you know is true, to the point where you might start questioning it yourself. In other words, what’s creepy here isn’t so much the crime as the cover-up. Probably the only way to stop this is dialing back her presence in your life. You can call the cops if somebody stabs you or steals your TV, but there are no actual fashion police to be dispatched, a la, “911, what is your emergency?” You: “Help! She plagiarized my eyeliner!” ! GOT A PROBLEM? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave., #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or email AdviceAmy@ aol.com (www.advicegoddess.com). Follow her on Twitter @amyalkon. Order her latest “science-help” book, Unf*ckology: A Field Guide to Living with Guts and Confidence. ©2021 Amy Alkon. Distributed by Creators.Com.
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