We recommend Turkey RPCV Sarah Parker for the North Carolina Supreme Court



We recommend Turkey RPCV Sarah Parker for the North Carolina Supreme Court

For Supreme Court

We recommend Sarah Parker and James Wynn

The N.C. Supreme Court is the highest court in the state judicial system. Its seven justices hear appeals from the lower courts and administrative agencies and review death penalty cases, among other duties. In this year's election, voters will choose two members of the court. Here are the Observer's recommendations:

Parker seat

Associate Justice Sarah Parker of Raleigh and Court of Appeals Judge John Tyson of Fayetteville are vying for an eight-year term.Sarah Parker, a Charlotte native, has been a member of the Supreme Court since 1993 and an appellate judge since 1985 when Gov. Jim Hunt appointed her to the Court of Appeals. Before that she was in private practice for 15 years and was a volunteer for the Peace Corps from 1964 to 1966. She has been vice president of the N.C. Bar Association and a member of the N.C. Courts Commission and the advisory council for the N.C. Correctional Center for Women. She has described her political views as similar to those held by the late governor and U.S. Sen. Terry Sanford -- a "North Carolina regular."

Judge John Tyson is running as a conservative jurist who emphasizes his extensive academic credentials, his appetite for hard work and his belief that judges should use restraint and not engage in judicial activism. He is a former probation and parole officer for the N.C. Department of Corrections, was a member of the N.C. Property Tax Commission and has taught at the Campbell University School of Law. He cites statistics showing he is a highly productive judge, churning out decisions at a faster rate than Justice Parker when she was on the appeals court.

Both judges are highly qualified. Judge Tyson has proved to be a hard-working judge on the Court of Appeals, while Justice Parker been a mainstay on the Supreme Court. She is its senior associate justice and the only woman on the court. Because of her long service to the state, her experience and sound judgment, the Observer recommends rep-election of Sarah Parker.

When this story was posted in October 2004, this was on the front page of PCOL:

Kerry reaches out to Returned Volunteers The Kerry campaign wants the RPCV vote. Read our interview with Dave Magnani, Massachusetts State Senator and Founder of "RPCVs for Kerry," and his answers to our questions about Kerry's plan to triple the size of the Peace Corps, should the next PC Director be an RPCV, and Safety and Security issues. Then read the "RPCVs for Kerry" statement of support and statements by Dr. Robert Pastor, Ambassador Parker Borg, and Paul Oostburg Sanz made at the "RPCVs for Kerry" Press Conference. RPCV Carl Pope says the key to winning this election is not swaying undecided voters, but persuading those already willing to vote for your candidate to actually go to the polls. Take our poll and tell us what you are doing to support your candidate. Finally read our wrap-up of the eight RPCVs in Senate and House races around the country and where the candidates are in their races.

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Director Gaddi Vasquez: The PCOL Interview PCOL sits down for an extended interview with Peace Corps Director Gaddi Vasquez. Read the entire interview from start to finish and we promise you will learn something about the Peace Corps you didn't know before. Plus the debate continues over Safety and Security.

Schwarzenegger praises PC at Convention Governor Schwarzenegger praised the Peace Corps at the Republican National Convention: "We're the America that sends out Peace Corps volunteers to teach village children." Schwarzenegger has previously acknowledged his debt to his father-in-law, Peace Corps Founding Director Sargent Shriver, for teaching him "the joy of public service" and Arnold is encouraging volunteerism by creating California Service Corps and tapping his wife, Maria Shriver, to lead it. Leave your comments and who can come up with the best Current Events Funny?

Peace Corps: One of the Best Faces of America Teresa Heinz Kerry celebrates the Peace Corps Volunteer as one of the best faces America has ever projected in a speech to the Democratic Convention. The National Review disagreed and said that Heinz's celebration of the PCV was "truly offensive." What's your opinion and can you come up with a Political Funny?

Read the stories and leave your comments.