Reader takes aim at crowd control

I have the complete solution to controlling crowd size for Halloween, Festifall, after-game riots, or whatever.

Chapel Hill can decide how many people are allowed; count as they arrive; then, every person over that number, the bow hunters can shoot them. (Or use other weapons; that's negotiable.) No more crowd problems.

Dana Mochel

Carrboro

Demand investigation into PAC mailer

In 2008, Mark Kleinschmidt voted in favor of allowing Chapel Hill taxpayers' money to fund political campaigns with the idea that "big money" would be kept out of Chapel Hill politics.

Less than a year later, Kleinschmidt decided to take advantage of the very program he voted in favor of and managed to receive $13,000, courtesy of you. What was the catch? Those who opted into the program would be limited to raising $4,500 on their own, not to exceed $20 per donor.

How has this "Voter Owned-Elections" concept worked out?

The short answer is it has not.

A special interest group, calling itself "CHC PAC" managed to sponsor a $1,703.44 mailer that encourages voters to "vote for Mark Kleinschmidt." CHC PAC at the time of the mailer was not registered with the North Carolina or federal PAC database and thus managed to singlehandedly skirt a multitude of North Carolina election and campaign finance laws while conducting its activities. Today, we now know the responsible party was Cam Hill, and even though he claims to have been the only party involved, the magnitude and expense spent on this mailer suggest otherwise.

Evaluating the complexity of this mailer, it is hard to believe there was no cooperation or communication between CHC PAC and a representative of the Kleinschmidt campaign. As such, do these sorts of activities not undermine the original purpose of "Voter-Owned Elections?" Clearly $2,000 greatly exceeds $20. Even though this nearly $2,000 expenditure was not a formal donation to the Kleinschmidt campaign, it is clear this expenditure directly benefited Kleinschmidt's taxpayer-funded campaign, tipping this year's election by 105 votes.

I encourage my fellow citizens to contact the N.C. State Board of Elections and demand an investigation into Cam Hill and his CHC PAC concerning their activities and all those involved.

Kendall Law

Chapel Hill

Put Pohlman in vacant council seat

A citizen's appeal to the new Chapel Hill mayor and Town Council: Please respect the voters of Chapel Hill by appointing the fifth-place finisher to the Town Council, Matt Pohlman.

Rise above former Councilman Bill Strom's calculated exit.

Linda Mews

Chapel Hill