A fox and a scorpion came to a river and needed to cross.    

“I cannot swim,” mourned the scorpion “and I shall die here on this bank.  Let me ride across the river on your back so I do not drown.”

 “No,” said the fox. “You will sting me and I shall die.  Why should I save you?”

“If I sting you, we both will drown,” replied the scorpion.  “Why would I do such a thing?  It would be disastrous for us both.”

Convinced, the fox allowed the scorpion to ride his nose across the river. 

Halfway across, the scorpion raised his tale and stung the fox, injecting the deadly poison into him.

“Now we shall both die,” cried the fox.  “Why would you do such a thing?”

 “Because I am a scorpion.  It is my nature to sting,” mumbled the scorpion before the water closed over them both.

The moral of this very ancient story is that natures generally do not change.  Scorpions sting – that is what they do.  They inject poison – because that is what they do. 

And Democrats – like that scorpion – will not change either.

Tim Merrick on CNN

Tim Merrick, one of just two Democrats out of seven seats on the New Hanover County Board of Education (NHC BOE), went on CNN to discuss his views on the proposed changes to the United States Department of Education.  His remarks were spurious, deceitful, and divisive – in other words – he toed perfectly the Democrat party line.

Nick Craig, on the Nick Craig Show, outlined the whole conversation on his morning show:

Video courtesy of Nick Craig https://nickcraig.com/

The poison that Tim Merrick is spreading is blatant:

• Republicans don’t care about education. Then why did we pass one of the largest teacher pay increases in North Carolina’s history? Without raising taxes!
• Worst racism since before Jim Crow evident in our schools. Really? According to US News and Report, the minority enrollment in New Hanover is 50%. (https://www.usnews.com/education/k12/north-carolina/districts/new-hanover-county-schools-101193)
• Republicans only want rich kids to go to private schools. In fact, Republicans expanded school choice for all North Carolinians, especially those in lower income brackets. (https://spn.org/articles/north-carolina-passes-school-choice/)
• We need more money to fix education problems. If that were the case, than Washington DC – which spends about $27,000 per pupil annually (https://www.census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024/public-school-spending-per-pupil.html#:~:text=Among%20the%20100%20largest%20school,District%20in%20Michigan%20($21%2C771) to bring it in at the second highest level in the country, would be rated among the best places to get an education. In fact, it is rated around 28^th. (https://www.fox5dc.com/news/dc-school-system-ranked-28th-us-heres-why)

But – we should not be surprised.  Democrats have made lying about education a central plank in their political quests.  They are scorpions who will not change – nor should they be expected to change.  Republicans need to remember their intransigent nature.

The Board of Education Must Take Immediate Action

Working with Democrats NEVER ends well.  While we would all love the days of Ronald Reagan and Tip O’Neill to return (https://www.bc.edu/bc-web/centers/church21/publications/c21-resources/c21-resources-articles/Ronald-Reagan-and-Tip-O-Neill--A-Real-life-Friendship.html), the hard truth of the matter is that the party of Obama, Biden and Harris has a worldview and an agenda that is at complete odds with anything the party of Lincoln and Trump would like to do.  Currently, the Democrats are wading back and forth on the banks of culture and power with a tide rising against them.  Why in the world would we offer to help them escape their own self-wrought destruction?

Democrats are drowning on the Board of Education.  They hold only 2 seats out of 7.  While both Mr. Merrick and his comrade Judy Justice are elected officials, they need to be treated as the poisonous animals they are and not assisted in any way.   In response to Mr. Merrick’s comments on CNN, Ms. Mason and the New Hanover Board of Education should take the following actions:

1. Merrick needs to be immediately removed from any committee assignments, especially chair positions. While he is an elected official, he is only elected to the board. There is no requirement that he be given any duties.
2. Merrick needs to be immediately disciplined by the board. He has blatantly lied to the electorate and needs to be held accountable.
3. Mason needs to better explain why ANY Democrat on a board overwhelmingly controlled by Republicans has ANY position of leadership. Her election as Chair was supported by only one other Republican, opposed by three Republicans, and supported by both Democrats. While a variety of conclusions may be – and have been – drawn, we encourage Ms. Mason to give a clear and thorough defense of her decisions.

The modern Democrat party is beyond redemption.  They advocate for the sterilization of children, the killing of children in the wombs of their mothers, radical agendas that cause division and hatred among our youth, and call for a protected class of teachers and educational bureaucrats that must not be questioned in any way.  While the average Democrat voter may not hold to everything their party believes (as evidenced by the dominance of Republicans in school boards across the country), their party continues to spew and inject venom wherever they can.

It is high time for the fox to leave the scorpion behind.