Ned Barnett's attempt at humor falls short

On Sunday, March 24, The News & Observer Associate Editor Ned Barnett took a stab at humor in writing about the University of North Carolina Board of Governors. Humor died with his stab. Here's his routine: A funny week for the UNC Board of Governors

I penned a response to Ned's effort, hoping he would give me a forum to counter his assertion, all in good fun and my own attempt at humoring Barnett. It didn't work. He responded quickly, denying access to his circulation. I think he missed my point and took it personally. Anyway, with my own soap box, here's my take which is followed by Ned's turn down. Enjoy!
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NED MISSES THE MARK WITH HUMOR ATTEMPT

Dear Ned,

Your attempt to use humor as criticism in your Sunday column—A funny week for the UNC Board of Governors—didn’t quite get there. Your rehash of past events with your bias of what you want to see without consideration for what others, especially the Republican controlled BOG, visualize as their responsibilities, was not funny.

It’s almost as if you’re looking down at the UNC BOG from your own Fourth Estate Ivory Tower. The established media has a tendency to do that. That’s one of many reasons there’s a Fifth Estate of journalist who publish beyond the mainstream media.

You found it funny Senator Phil Berger said, “There’s a lot of diversity amongst Republicans.” Without fact and not considering fiction, I’d agree with Berger just as, believe it or not, there is multiplicity amongst Democrats. Within the BOG there is a variety of ideas. The current BOG seems to have a common direction, one with which you, Erskine Bowles, Richard Vinroot and, much of time, I don’t agree.

But it is what it is.

Your use of the ouster of ECU Chancellor Cecil Stanton as humor wouldn’t stand a chance at Goodnights Comedy Club. Neither would BOG member Steve Long’s attack of Chairman Harry Smith, who I take from my conversations with Smith seems to want the best for the UNC System with an approach different from a historical perspective. Give him credit for hiring Bill Roper as interim President which lead to the hiring of Kevin Guskiewiczas interim Chancellor at UNC-Chapel Hill.

Speaking of the UNC-CH chancellor, you took a swipe at Carol Folt, the former UNC-CH Chancellor who is the new President of the University of Southern California. “Um, Ok” you wrote about what USC said of her hiring. Much to her disagreement, the BOG closed down Gene Nichol’s Poverty Center among other things, but her decisions on Silent Sam showed her backbone which led to an early dismissal after she announced her resignation. Maybe she gets the last laugh, going to a large private school that has its own issues but with not so many layers of supervision (Trustees, Governors, Berger).

Despite your thoughts and desires, the members of the BOG probably feel they are doing something worthwhile and responsible. The group which disagrees is no larger group than those who did the same years ago when the BOG make-up was primarily from the Democratic Party.

While your stab at humor is lost, you missed one opportunity to make us laugh.

BOG member Thom Goolsby, a former North Carolina State Senator who has been reappointed to the Board by Berger, offered an idea about student loans. Goolsby suggested UNC system schools be co-signers. “Right now it’s just our students that take all the risk,” he said. “(UNC co-signing) puts us in their shoes and holds us just as accountable.”

Goolsby might get kudos if that idea had been an original thought or come from someone with integrity. It wasn’t, and it didn’t. He got it from Tucker Carlson, a FOX News commentator.

From "Tucker Carlson Tonight" on March 18, 2019:
Have colleges co-sign the loans. And why shouldn't they? If you and I enter into a partnership in business and we succeed, we share the rewards. But we also share the risk. If we fail, we're both on the hook for that. That's how honest arrangements work. College loans don't work that way. Colleges get rich, no matter what happens to the kids. The kids are on their own.

If students get a degree and a decent job and repay their loans, that's great. But if they drop out of college, or their degrees turn out to be worthless, as so many are, and they can't repay what they have borrowed, so what? The college doesn't care. They've got no stake in the outcome. Colleges get all of the benefit and none of the risk. That is the definition of a scam. It's amazing it could even be legal. It should not be legal.

Neither Carlson nor Goolsby thought before they spoke. Getting students through school is one thing. Making them pay off the loans after graduation is another. When students default on their loans, the co-signer is stuck with the bill. With the Carlson/Goolsby idea, that would be the members of the UNC system.

That wouldn’t be humorous. But, Ned, you know what is? Goolsby getting his ideas from Tucker Carlson.

Now that’s funny.
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NED'S REBUTTAL:
Thanks for the review of my column. The BOG is doing a great job. They've run off two system presidents and two chancellors and brought UNC unwanted national attention for the Silent Sam mess, but  nobody's perfect.