Monster 12′ Long Gator Stuns Deer and Golfers in South Carolina (Video)

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A video of a massive 12′ long South Carolina alligator (over twice as long as the gator recently captured near Lake Wylie) is now going viral.

The Facebook page “Eat Sleep Play Beaufort” posted the video last Tuesday after being submitted by local resident Jessica Miller.

“There’s some BIG ol’ gators in Beaufort,” the post said. “Check out this HUGE 12ft gator taking a stroll through Ocean Creek Golf Course at Fripp Island recently. Nobody’s messing with him…”

The video has now been viewed over 1.1 million times and shared over 8,000 times;

What would you do if you spotted him?

Video of Young Man Being Choke-Slammed By NC Police Officer Going Viral

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Investigators in North Carolina’s Duplin County are now examining possible wrongdoing after shocking video showing an altercation between a young man and a police officer started going viral.

The video shows 22-year-old Anthony Wall being choke-slammed to the ground by a Warsaw, NC deputy outside a Waffle House on Saturday, May 5th.

According to Warsaw police, deputies were called to the scene after Wall reportedly entered into an argument with a restaurant employee.

Here’s the original footage of the video, which has already received over 1.1 million views and over 43,000 shares on Anthony Wall’s Facebook page;

Wall commented that he was taking his 16-year-old sister to her Union High School’s prom. He said that when the officer approached him, his hands were up and he wasn’t resisting arrest. He said that he felt that there was no need for the officer to choke him or slam him to the ground.

AJ Connors, The Mayor of the Town of Warsaw, just released the following video, in which he essentially dismisses any wrongdoing by the police officer;

The NAACP released this statement on the incident:

On May 8th, a viral video began circulating of a violent police takedown outside of a North Carolina Waffle House. The footage shows Anthony Wall, an unarmed Black man who had just taken his younger sister to prom, get choked and forcefully thrown to the ground by a white Warsaw, North Carolina, police officer. This incident comes just weeks after the overly aggressive arrest of another unarmed Black Waffle House customer, Chikesia Clemons. Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF), issued the following statement:

We’re once again outraged by a video showing police officers using excessive force on an unarmed, non-violent African-American Waffle House customer. Once again this incident was sparked when a Waffle House employee called the police after the patron allegedly complained about customer service. And once again the police responded with violence. Last month, in Saraland, Alabama, a customer’s mere questioning of why she was being charged extra for plastic utensils – when she never had before – appeared to spiral out of control after employees called the police. The dehumanizing arrest of Chikesia Clemons alarmed neither the Saraland Police Department nor Waffle House, who have both failed to accept any responsibility for potential wrongdoing and hold those at fault responsible.

After a reported small disagreement at a Waffle House in Warsaw, North Carolina, it appears that employees unreasonably heightened the situation by calling local law enforcement. Twenty-two-year-old Anthony Wall, who had just taken his sixteen-year-old sister to prom, was then choked and violently thrown on the ground by Warsaw Police Officer Frank Moss. The officer’s actions were grossly inappropriate, and we call on the Warsaw Police Department and District Attorney to conduct a thorough and transparent investigation of the officer’s conduct by publicly releasing any body-worn and/or surveillance camera footage, as well as audio of the call for police service. The officer should also be placed on administrative duty during the investigation.

In both cases, the Black customers were reportedly unarmed and non-violent. Neither situation warranted police intervention, let alone such gratuitous use-of-force. Waffle House must conduct an extensive review and overhaul of its policies to ensure that employees do not needlessly subject customers of color to police contact and brutality. Police officials are not a private security force for untrained Waffle House employees. Waffle House cannot continue to avoid this issue.

What are your thoughts on the incident?

Annual Asian Festival & Dragon Boat Races Return to Lake Norman

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The 19th annual Charlotte Asian Festival and 13th annual Dragon Boat Races return to Ramsey Creek Park on May 19 in Cornelius.  The one-day festival entertains visitors from across the globe with a wide variety of traditional Asian offerings such as authentic food, stage performances, intense Dragon Boat Races, cultural exhibits and a most colorful display of talents.

The Asian Festival and Dragon Boat Races are organized by the Carolinas Asian-American Chamber of Commerce (CAACC) and in partnership with Mecklenburg County Park and Recreation and Visit Lake Norman (VLN).   The CAACC joined forces with Mecklenburg Park and Recreation Department in 1999 as co-organizers to bring the festival as a way to introduce Asian culture and traditions to the greater Charlotte community.  Since its launch in 2006, the event has been a big success in terms of attendance bringing an estimated 5,500 to 7,000 attendees annually.

The festival opens at 10:30am and runs until 5:00pm at Ramsey Creek Park, located at 18441 Nantz Road in Cornelius. Free parking and shuttle services are available at Newell Rubbermaid on 8900 North Pointe Executive Park in Huntersville.  Onsite parking is not available at Ramsey Creek Park.  The festival and races are free and open to the public.  A full schedule of events is available on charlottedragonboat.com

The singing, dancing, and musical instrument performances are a mixture of Asian traditional and contemporary influences. Introduced in 2016, the Asian Music and Dance Fest (AMDF) continues to attract a rising number of young talented performers to the contest. It is open to all Asian Americans of any age, so this is a wonderful opportunity to showcase their talent! Winning categories are Best in Dance Solo, Group Dance, Music Solo, Music Group, Vocal Solo, Special Award and the Judge’s Choice Award.

Dragon Boat racing continues to be the fastest growing water sports event around the globe.  This year’s Dragon Boat race will feature the most boats in the event’s history.  The event embraces and promotes competition, fair play, team building, and community cohesiveness.  Organized competitions are held in North America, Europe, Africa and Asia, culminating in World Cup Championship races annually.  The exciting team competition is an important part of the Chinese traditional calendar and originated over 2,300 years ago on the life-sustaining rivers of southern China.

Charlotte Douglas Banned Uber Driver for Pro-Trump Signs

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An Uber driver has just been banned from driving passengers to and from the Charlotte Douglas Airport after several riders complained about the pro-Trump decorations on his car.

Steven Weiler was asked to remove his “Trump 2020” decal and his two rear “Drain The Swamp” bumper stickers, or he’d no longer be allowed to opperate his Uber service at the airport.

The airport cited an agreement they have with Uber that lists several requirements Uber drivers must follow while on the airport property, including; “No Advertising or Promotions,” which states that, “No vehicle shall post or display, on the exterior thereof, any signage or other displays except for Uber’s name and/or logo.”

Here’s a shot of the back of Weiler’s car, with a full-sized ‘Trump 2020’ window decal and ‘drain the swamp’ bumper stickers;

Weiler also noted that “I’ve did 2575 rides in 17 months and never had anybody refuse a ride or have I ever not given a ride”;

2 days ago, he tweeted an image of a sign taped to the Charlotte Douglas Airport billboard that reads, “America – More evidence that liberals are a forest fire destroying everything”, and said “It’s on with these bozos 🤡🤡” (referring to the airport);

Weiler has refused to remove his decals and bumper stickers and is still hoping to provide Uber rides to and from the airport.

The case is now under review by the Charlotte Douglas Airport and by Uber.

What do you think about this situation?

Do you think his signs are protected as ‘free speech’?

Charlotte Will Host Its First Ever Week-Long Beer Festival Next Week

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Next week, the 5th Annual Hops Fest will be returning to South End, but this year, Center City Partners has partnered with Third Rock Events and RescuedMe to launch Charlotte’s first ever week-long beer festival.

Over the past decade, our craft beer culture has grown to become one of the most vibrant in the nation. Lake Norman’s D9 brewery was ranked as making one of the best pumpkin beers in America, VBGB was ranked as one of the best places in America to drink a beer, and most recently, Charlotte was ranked among the top 10 cities in America for beer lovers.

“Charlotte’s craft beer scene has really blossomed over the past several years, with outstanding and award-winning beers from successful local breweries and new entrepreneurs too. I don’t think it will be long before the secret gets out that exploring the craft beer scene is a great way to get to know Charlotte and explore the different neighborhoods of the city,” commented Megan Liddle Gude with Center City Partners.

Charlotte’s first ever week-long beer festival will kick off on Tuesday night (5/15) with the release of the first ever South End Hops Fest brew created by Triple C Brewing and a meet-and-greet with NASCAR favorite Jeffrey Earnhardt.

On Wednesday, the Golden Cow Creamery will be releasing the first ever South End Hops Fest Brew Ice Cream – two South End loves in perfect unison… beer + ice cream!

Join RescuedMe on Thursday at Pop the Top to find your forever pup! Pop the Top will be the second spot where you’ll get to enjoy a pint of the fest brew.

Friday night will feature renown chef Chris Coleman’s Hoppy Hour bites at the 5 Year Anniversary Hoppy Hour Celebration – enjoy the fest brew inspired bites, music and of course fest brew at Stoke Charlotte.

On Saturday, the Hop’s Fest main event will be taking over a large section of South End – enjoy unlimited beer tastings from over 35 North Carolina breweries, a sprawling beer garden, live music, art, crafts, food and tons of dogs!

The adventure then continues on Sunday for the first ever South End Hops Fest After Party!

Here’s the complete calendar of events for the festival;

RescuedMe thanks you for supporting dogs, the community and being part of Charlotte’s revolutionary week-long beer festival!

All events can be found on the South End Hops Fest Facebook page!

Tickets will likely sell out fast – you can purchase them on the Hops Fest website here.

Charlotte Dunkin’ Donuts to Sell “Braylon Beam” Donut, Benefiting ‘Bring It 4 Braylon Foundation’

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Dunkin’ Donuts will donate 50 cents to the Bring It 4 Braylon Foundation for each Dunkin’ Donuts limited-edition, Braylon-inspired donut sold May 13-19. The ring donut, which has white icing with blue-icing drizzle, is only being sold in the Charlotte metro restaurants. Braylon Beam, who is 9 years old, is a survivor of a brain tumor and became well-known in the area due to his spirited dances post-treatment.

The Charlotte Dunkin’ Donuts started the donut fundraising campaign in May 2017 in honor of Braylon, and during National Brain Tumor Awareness Month, garnering almost $10,000 for the foundation.

“Partnering with the local Dunkin’ Donuts again means that even more families who have a child battling cancer can enjoy some quality time together and financial relief during a very trying time,” states Jesse Beam, Braylon’s father. “That’s because our foundation provides gas cards, groceries, trips and other gifts to the families. With Braylon’s fun-loving personality, it only makes sense to do a fundraiser around something like DONUTS!”

More than 28,000 children (0-19 years of age) are estimated to be living with a brain tumor in the U.S.

Charlotte-Area Rescue Competing in “2018 Saving Pets Challenge” For $25,000 Prize

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Saving Southern Kitties, a volunteer foster-based animal rescue serving the Charlotte area, is competing in the Michelson Found Animals 2018 Saving Pets Challenge, a fundraiser dedicated to raising money and awareness for organizations that work to keep pets out of shelters and into loving homes.

The challenge encourages participating organizations to raise money for their causes and in turn, groups that raise the most money during the challenge will be rewarded with grants of up to $25,000 from Michelson Found Animals.

They are also competing for a 1-week bonus prize of $5,000;

Saving Southern Kitties is raising money to save the lives of cats and kittens from high kill facilities in the Charlotte area.

“Our organization works hard to save cats and kittens, many who are sick, injured and are on their last chance at life,” said Susan Schreck,  President of Saving Southern Kitties. “We are constantly working throughout the Charlotte-area to get these cats the medical attention they need and then, find them the most qualified forever homes.”

As a foster based rescue, the foster parents welcome the kitties into their homes, arrange their vet care, spend lots of hours loving and caring for them often teaching them that it’s okay to trust again until they are able to start seeking their forever homes.

“Our goal is to raise enough funds to support our own rescue facility. This would give Saving Southern Kitties a central location for all our cats and a place for future cat parents to find us, ultimately, allowing us to save the lives of more cats and kittens,” said Schreck.

The 2018 Saving Pets Challenge is currently running on CrowdRise through Thursday, May 31st.

To help Saving Southern Kitties win the 2018 Saving Pets Challenge donations can be made at the following link:

https://www.crowdrise.com/o/en/campaign/saving-southern-kitties1/savingsouthernkitties

Hundreds of NC Schools To Close on May 16th Due To Teacher Protests

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Over 10,000 teachers from across North Carolina are now expected to gather together in Raleigh on May 16th for the “March For Students and Rally For Respect“.

At least 15 school districts have now officially announced they’ll cancel classes due to the protest, including Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools, Wake County Schools, Guilford County Schools, Mooresville Graded School District, Durham Public Schools, Nash-Rocky Mount Schools, Orange County Schools, Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, Asheville City Schools, Iredell-Statesville Schools and Cabarrus County Schools.

If the districts hadn’t decided to shut down, they would have had to scramble to find subs for the thousands of teachers expected to protest in Raleigh.

According to the North Carolina Association of Educators, the protest will be focused on asking our elected officials for:

  • Significant investment in per-pupil spending so our students have the resources to be successful.
  • A multi-year professional pay plan for educators, education support professionals, administrators and all other school personnel. This plan must include restoration of compensation for advanced degrees and longevity. The plan must also stop the flat-lining of experienced educator’s pay.
  • Investing in the health and well-being of our students and making schools safer through increased school nurses, counselors, social workers and other support personnel and expansion of Medicaid to improve the health of our communities.
  • Fix our crumbling schools and large class sizes with a Statewide School Construction Bond.
  • Prioritize classrooms and not corporate board rooms.

CMS originally announced that they would cancel school on May 4th, to line up with the upcoming protests;

All CMS AP tests scheduled for the 16th will be rescheduled before May 25th;

What do you think about the upcoming protest on May 16th?

E-Coli Tainted Romaine Lettuce Outbreak Continues To Spread

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The e-coli romaine lettuce outbreak has now spread to 4 more states and has officially affected 149 people since first being announced by the CDC on April 10th.

They are continuing to warn all US citizens not to eat romaine lettuce, or any products containing romaine lettuce at restaurants and at home.

According to the CDC’s latest May 9th update: 

  • Twenty-eight more ill people from 12 states were added to this investigation since the last update on May 2, 2018.
  • Four more states have reported ill people: Florida, Minnesota, North Dakota, and Texas
  • The most recent illness started on April 25, 2018. Illnesses that occurred in the last two to three weeks might not yet be reported because of the time between when a person becomes ill with E. coli and when the illness is reported to CDC.

Ill people range in age from 1 to 88 years, with a median age of 30. Seventy percent of ill people are female. Thirty-one ill people have been hospitalized, including five people who developed hemolytic uremic syndrome, a type of kidney failure.

The CDC is instructing everyone to “Throw away all chopped romaine lettuce, including salad mixes containing romaine, and any other foods stored with it or touching it…”

They also noted that the infected lettuce is coming out of Yuma, Az;

Do you know anyone who has recently become ill after eating romaine? 

Complete Primary Election Results for North Carolina

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Yesterday our state held the 2018 primary elections for our congressional representatives. North Carolina’s 9th district saw what might be the biggest upset in the nation with Pastor Mark Harris defeating incumbent Robert Pittenger.

Here are the winners and losers of from each district.

U.S. House District 1

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE
G.K. Butterfield*Uncontested

* Incumbent

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
Roger AllisonUncontested

U.S. House District 2

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Linda Coleman 18,346 56.0%
Ken Romley 10,571 32.3
Wendy May 3,834 11.7

32,751 votes, 100% reporting (158 of 158 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
George Holding* 17,655 76.5%
Allen Chesser 5,416 23.5

23,071 votes, 100% reporting (158 of 158 precincts)

* Incumbent

Libertarian Party Primary

CANDIDATE
Jeff MatemuUncontested

U.S. House District 3

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Walter B. Jones* 20,862 43.0%
Phil Law 14,266 29.4
Scott Dacey 13,380 27.6

48,508 votes, 100% reporting (236 of 236 precincts)

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 4

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
David E. Price* 51,989 77.2%
Michelle Laws 11,036 16.4
Richard Watkins 4,341 6.4

67,366 votes, 100% reporting (183 of 183 precincts)

* Incumbent

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
Steve LoorUncontested

Libertarian Party Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Barbara Howe 523 76.7%
Perry Whitlock 159 23.3

682 votes, 100% reporting (183 of 183 precincts)

U.S. House District 5

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
DD Adams 15,428 54.4%
Jenny Marshall 12,919 45.6

28,347 votes, 100% reporting (263 of 263 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Virginia Foxx* 32,518 80.8%
Dillon Gentry 5,669 14.1
Cortland Meader 2,050 5.1

40,237 votes, 100% reporting (263 of 263 precincts)

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 6

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Ryan Watts 25,883 77.2%
Gerald Wong 7,663 22.8

33,546 votes, 100% reporting (172 of 172 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
Mark Walker*Uncontested

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 7

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Kyle Horton 21,403 67.0%
Grayson Parker 10,542 33.0

31,945 votes, 100% reporting (207 of 207 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
David Rouzer*Uncontested

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 8

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Frank McNeill 15,965 56.1%
Scott Huffman 6,545 23.0
Marc Tiegel 5,941 20.9

28,451 votes, 100% reporting (206 of 206 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
Richard Hudson*Uncontested

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 9

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Dan McCready 37,823 82.8%
Christian Cano 7,837 17.2

45,660 votes, 100% reporting (210 of 210 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Mark Harris 17,223 48.5%
Robert Pittenger* 16,409 46.2
Clarence Goins 1,862 5.2

35,494 votes, 100% reporting (210 of 210 precincts)

* Incumbent

Libertarian Party Primary

CANDIDATE
Jeff ScottUncontested

U.S. House District 10

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE
David BrownUncontested

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Patrick T. McHenry* 34,061 70.7%
Gina Collias 6,645 13.8
Jeff Gregory 3,714 7.7
 Others 3,734 7.8

48,154 votes, 100% reporting (197 of 197 precincts)

* Incumbent

U.S. House District 11

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Phillip Price 13,401 40.6%
Steve Woodsmall 10,282 31.1
D. Scott Donaldson 9,325 28.3

33,008 votes, 100% reporting (281 of 281 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Mark Meadows* 35,376 86.4%
Chuck Archerd 5,586 13.6

40,962 votes, 100% reporting (281 of 281 precincts)

* Incumbent

Libertarian Party Primary

CANDIDATE
Clifton IngramUncontested

U.S. House District 12

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Alma Adams* 38,719 85.5%
Keith Young 2,538 5.6
Patrick Register 2,066 4.6
Gabe Ortiz 1,952 4.3

45,275 votes, 100% reporting (146 of 146 precincts)

* Incumbent

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Paul Wright 3,211 43.2%
Paul Bonham 2,344 31.5
Carl Persson 1,880 25.3

7,435 votes, 100% reporting (146 of 146 precincts)

U.S. House District 13

Democratic Primary

CANDIDATE VOTE PCT.
Kathy Manning 19,472 70.1%
Adam Coker 8,289 29.9

27,761 votes, 100% reporting (220 of 220 precincts)

Republican Primary

CANDIDATE
Ted Budd*Uncontested

* Incumbent

Libertarian Party Primary

CANDIDATE
Tom BaileyUncontested

 

Sources: Election results and race calls from The Associated Press