THE CHARLESTON POST AND COURIER IS REPORTING THAT THE U-S JUSTICE DEPARTMENT IS DEMANDING THAT THE STATE HAND OVER ITS COMPLETE VOTER ROLLS THAT INCLUDE NOT JUST OUR NAMES, ADDRESSES AND BIRTHDATES, BUT DRIVERS LICENSE NUMBERS AND THE LAST FOUR DIGITS OF OUR SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBERS- FAR MORE INFORMATION THAN CITIZENS, CAMPAIGNS OR RESEARCHERS CAN GET THEIR HANDS ON, AND OBVIOUSLY COULD BE A GOLDMINE FOR IDENTITY THIEVES IF MISHANDLED. AND THEY WANT ALL THAT BY FRIDAY- DENYING A REQUEST BY THE STATE FOR A 60-DAY EXTENSION. THE D-O-J’S CIVIL RIGHTS DIVISION WON’T SAY WHY IT WANTS THE DATA OR WHAT IT PLANS TO DO WITH IT, ONLY THAT IT HAS A STATUTORY MANDATE TO ENFORCE FEDERAL VOTING RIGHTS LAWS. THE D-O-J ALSO WANTS LISTS OF ELECTED OFFICIALS INVOLVED IN VOTING SINCE 2022. OTHER STATES ARE ALSO UNDER THE SAME MANDATE, BUT SOUTH CAROLINA COULD BE THE FIRST NON-SWING-STATE IN THE SOUTH TO FACE THAT DEMAND.
YOU MIGHT WONDER WHY THIS DOESN’T HAPPEN MORE OFTEN. A FORMER STATE PAROLE OFFICER FROM BEAUFORT FACES TWO COUNTS OF SECOND-DEGREE ASSAULT AND BATTERY AND FIVE COUNTS OF MISCONDUCT IN OFFICE FOR AN ALLEDGED INAPPROPRIATE RELATIONSHIP WITH ONE OF HIS PAROLEES. 47-YEAR-OLD DAVID SHYTLE OF BEAUFORT WAS ALSO ACCUSED OF SENDING INAPPROPRIATE TEXT MESSAGES WITH PHOTOS TO A PAROLEE. HE COULD FACE UP TO THREE YEARS IN PRISON AND A FINE IF CONVICTED.
NEW RULES FOR ALL OF US WHO DRIVE IN SOUTH CAROLINA TODAY, THOUGH ACTUALLY YESTERDAY. WE ALREADY COULD NOT LEGALLY SEND TEXT MESSAGES WHILE DRIVING, BUT NOW YOU CANNOT HAVE THE PHONE IN YOUR HANDS, PERIOD, THOUGH YOU CAN MAKE AND TAKE CALLS ON A SPEAKER-PHONE OR USING AN EARPIECE OR WATCH, OR IF YOU’RE NOT THE DRIVER. YOU CAN MOUNT YOUR PHONE IN THE CAR FOR MUSIC OR NAVIGATION OR CALLS, OR YOU CAN PULL OVER AND MAKE A HANDS-ON CALL OR TO REPORT AN ACCIDENT OR EMERGENCY. UNTIL MARCH FIRST, YOU’LL ONLY GET A WARNING IF YOU’RE STOPPED FOR A VIOLATION OF THE NEW LAW, BUT TICKETS WILL THEN BE ISSUED WITH FINES AND POINTS ON YOUR DRIVING RECORD. DISTRACTED DRIVERS TEXTING OR USING THEIR CELLPHONES CAUSED OVER 15-HUNDRED DOCUMENTED CRASHES OVER THE LAST DECADE.
HOW MANY OF US CAN SAY WE HAD TWO CAREERS THAT MADE US FAMOUS? CHARLES BIERBAUER CERTAINLY COULD. AFTER MORE THAN A DECADE AT ABC NEWS, HE WAS RENOWNED AS A C-N-N POLITICAL AND INTERNATIONAL REPORTER FOR 20 YEARS, THEN SPENT 15 YEARS AS THE DEAN OF U-S-C’S JOURNALISM SCHOOL THAT TURNED OUT HUNDREDS OF STUDENTS WHO WANTED TO BE LIKE HIM. HE PASSED AWAY AT HIS HOME IN THE NORTH CAROLINA MOUNTAINS OVER THE WEEKEND. HE TRAVELED WITH PRESIDENTS TO ALL 50 STATES AND MORE THAN 30 COUNTRIES DATING BACK TO THE FORD ADMINISTRATION AND WROTE COLUMNS AND ESSAYS UNTIL JUST RECENTLY. CHARLES BIERBAUER WAS 83 YEARS OLD.