(Podcast coming soon)
Just haven't had time to put it together and wanted to get this out here.
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π§ Opening Reflection:
Reflection: The Charlie Kirk Situation
I don’t really want to write about the Charlie Kirk situation—but I must, for the record. If I had any children, they could be Charlie’s age. The guy was only as controversial as the people who empower themselves with hate made him out to be. Maybe—just maybe—it’s them, and their positions, that are actually controversial.
I know that some of what has been said on here throughout the years has been deemed controversial. I’ve reported on issues here in Hickory, North Carolina, across the United States, and around the world. I’ve laid out history, tried my best to report on situations as they happened, and tried to separate what was my opinion from what the recorded events of record were.
I’ve been through some situations that were uncomfortable. I’ve walked into the lion’s den of hostility and had to worry. I know people who lost their jobs and were personally attacked over public debate. I’ve had people try to get me fired from jobs just because they didn’t like my take on issues.
The thing is, when people have done these kinds of things, it’s always come from cowardice. They didn’t want to have a back-and-forth exchange of ideas—or accept what I had to say and move along. They wanted me shut down. My thoughts were just too dangerous for their mindset to handle. I needed to be shut down and erased.
That’s part of why this blog went dark from 2021 until earlier this year. It was getting harder to promote my subject matter because I was being shadowbanned—and banned outright—during the late stages and aftermath of the 2020 election. My Social, Economic, and Cultural takes tend to be Conservative. I’ve never followed the asserted and opinionated descriptions of what’s labeled “Right-wing” in the American political spectrum—but what I say triggers the algorithmic script labels generated by computer programs. And yes, I am more Conservative than not.
I’ve written about unhinged and unfettered Leftism before. I’ve dealt with it personally. I had people come on this blog and go nuts in the comments section to the point where I had to start moderating, due to vulgarity, threats, and hyper-personal attacks. I know how low people can go—and it’s simply because you might have an opinion they can’t deal with.
I wrote about this warped mindset back in 2020, five years ago to the day, before my long pause:
20/20 in 2020 (Part 2) – The Destructive Left
I want people to think about what happened the other day. A man was murdered for his thoughts—and for his willingness to have open dialogue in public spaces. That’s dangerous. But we saw it last year when they attempted to murder President Trump. In my opinion, if we had moved toward resolving who was behind that, then the Charlie Kirk situation probably doesn’t happen.
There are reasonable people in the Democrat Party, and the minority of Democrats who display pragmatism need to embrace people like Harold Ford Jr., who used to be a Congressman from Tennessee. They called him a Blue Dog Democrat back in the 1990s. He’s more conservative on issues like economics, the military, safety, and law and order. He’s more left of center on issues of personal freedom, representation of the middle class, and advocacy for the poor. I can’t tell Democrats what to do—but this guy is electable, and he’s in his 50s. You have no bench, and the vacuum of leadership in your party has led to the projection of a pretty dark, dystopian culture—a culture of destruction.
And let us not forget who Charlie Kirk was. He was not a man out here yelling, screaming, and frothing at the mouth. The people calling him a fascist haven’t actually listened to him. He was a man of firm Christian faith and resolve—and that’s a positive, not a negative. No one should be forced to accept the atheist and nihilist religions—and make no mistake, they are religions.
Christianity is order, with parameters that allow for interpretation. You have differing interpretations—from liberal to fundamentalist—but they are rooted in Christ. Even the atheists, nihilists, and others are allowed to comment, but they shouldn’t be trying to shut Christian ideas out of the arena of political and cultural discourse just because they don’t like feeling judged. The opinions of atheists and nihilists are judgments too—and much of what they are currently espousing leads to censorship and ultimately, violence.
Charlie Kirk was a husband and a father. He believed in family and was worried about a current culture that is not replacing its population—and the ramifications that will have on the world. It will lead to economic and cultural degradation—and ultimately, collapse. I know the cost of losing a father. My father died when I was two years old, and it wrecks your life from then on out. Charlie Kirk was murdered, and he was real. He isn’t just a statistic—he was a husband, a father, a son, a friend. His death ripped something out of the fabric of every life around him. To justify that loss with ideology is unhinged and depraved.
Don’t be selfish and narcissistic. Don’t even think about it being you. Put yourself in the shoes of Charlie Kirk's survivors. Look at your significant other, your child, your family member, or your friend. What if one of them is murdered? Whether like Charlie’s murder, or like the murder of the girl in Charlotte who was simply getting on a train to go home after a work shift—if you’re ambivalent, what the F is wrong with you? If you’re justifying these things, what is wrong with you?
There are some things that should never be said—and people know better. But they choose to be despicable to draw attention to themselves, because they are mentally ill. And that is the issue—and it needs to be dealt with. There’s nothing wrong with having issues—but your issues aren’t badges of honor. Dealing with them and being a good person—that’s the badge of honor. Become that person.
π€This Week:
Monday - The Foothills Corridor - Part III - Chapter 10: City Walk, Riverwalk, and the Hickory Bet - Revival in a place like the Foothills doesn’t come in sweeping gestures or billion-dollar announcements. It comes in projects that actually get built.
Tuesday - π⭐Hickory vs. Charlotte: The Catawba River Showdown Intensifies⭐π- Charlotte Water’s proposed interbasin transfer from the Catawba River has been paused by North Carolina lawmakers—giving communities upstream, like Hickory, space to fight for fair water access. Here’s what’s at stake in this river-region showdown. #CatawbaRiver #WaterPolicy #RegionalEquity
Thursday - 𧱠Factions of Self-Preservation 2: Locked Out - installment of the Factions of Self‑Preservation series reveals how Hickory’s housing system doubles as a defensive fortress—prioritizing protection over access. With 57% of local renters cost-burdened (spending over 30% of income on housing) and "starter homes" priced well above affordability, the article deconstructs how zoning, tax policy, and residency gatekeeping reinforce civic inequality rather than dismantling it.
Friday - The Foothills Corridor - Chapter 11 - The Valley Datacenter Academy and Microsoft’s Pivot - Microsoft’s decision to invest in data centers across Catawba County signaled a major shift in the region’s economic potential.
π€Next Week:
Monday - (Substack) - The Foothills Corridor - Chapter 12 & 13 New Age Infrastructure and What's Working
Tuesday - π⭐The Dirt Is Moving—But What Are We Really Building? (Part 2)⭐π - Hickory’s Housing Boom and the Risks of Short-Term Growth
Thursday - 𧱠Factions of Self-Preservation 3: Aging Without Anchoring - How Retiree-Centered Growth Disrupts Generational Balance and Civic Adaptability
Friday - (Substack) - The Foothills Corridor - Part IV - Weak Signal Strong Potential - Chapter 14: Reimagined
⭐ Feature Story ⭐
1. Defining the Average & The Bell Curve in Hickory
Using the data available, we can place people on a 1‑10 scale (10 = very well‑off, 1 = in poverty) to map where most residents fall. This helps see how “the middle” is shrinking.
Sources: Median household income ~$63,361. Poverty rate ~16.95%. Owner‐occupancy ~55.9%. (Census Reporter) (World Population Review)
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Executive Feature: The Middle in Hickory — Under Pressure, But Not Invisible
Hickory is at a turning point. The people who once formed its economic center — the working households, the steady incomes, the small business owners, the factory workers — are still here, but many live carefully. They carry more risk than most see. Measuring what life looks like now shows who is flourishing, who is holding on, and who is quietly falling behind.
Setting the Scene: Key Numbers
In 2023, the median household income in Hickory stood at $63,361. (Data USA) The citywide poverty rate was approximately 16.9%, notably higher than national averages. (Data USA) Owner‑occupied homes average around 55.9% of housing units, meaning nearly half of all households rent. (Data USA) Most homes valued by owners average about $248,300. (Data USA) For comparison, Zillow puts the typical home value in the area closer to $291,802, reflecting newer listings and varied housing types. (Zillow)
This data establishes a picture: many people live around “middle” incomes, but almost one in six lives in poverty, and housing values are creeping upward faster than income growth for many.
Where Most Hickory Residents Fit (On a Scale of 1 to 10)
If we imagine everyone in Hickory placed on a scale of 1 (deep poverty) to 10 (financially very well off), the rough distribution is:
· Well off (scores 9‑10): about 5% of the population
· Comfortable (7‑8): roughly 15%
· Solidly middle (5‑6): about 40%
· Struggling (3‑4): about 25%
· In poverty / deeply vulnerable (1‑2): about 15%
In this framework, the “solidly middle” group live with a mix of modest stability and frequent trade‑offs. They can pay rent or mortgage, but often at the cost of delaying other life‑affecting decisions (repairs, health care, savings). The “comfortable” group has more cushion, but a sudden rate hike, job loss, or medical expense can still threaten their security. Those who struggle are a rung closer to uncertainty; those in poverty often have little margin at all.
What Life Looks Like for the Middle
For someone earning near the median income, housing alone consumes a large share of monthly costs. A homeowner with a house valued at $250,000 or more must not only cover mortgage payments, but also property taxes, insurance, and upkeep — roof, plumbing, heating/cooling — plus utilities. For renters, the burden can be just as heavy: rent, utilities, and sometimes maintenance or fees stack up, especially when other costs (transportation, healthcare, food) keep rising.
These households often juggle multiple responsibilities: working full‑time, possibly second jobs or side gigs; delaying purchases or big investments; skipping maintenance; pushing off medical treatment unless urgent. Savings are minimal or non‑existent. When emergencies hit — flat tires, illness, price spikes — the buffer is thin.
Trends & Risk Lines
Several pressures are narrowing the middle’s space:
1. Housing inflation vs income: Home values and listing prices have climbed (Zillow shows ~ $291,802 average value), but many households remain at $60,000–$65,000 incomes. When housing costs rise faster than income, more people drift from “solid middle” to “struggling.” (Zillow)
2. Shrinking job ladders: Traditional stable employment avenues — particularly in manufacturing or trade sectors — have weakened or become less accessible. New jobs are often part‑time, gig‑based, or lower paid, with fewer benefits.
3. Persistent poverty and inequality: With nearly 17% of the city below poverty, obstacles like unreliable transportation, healthcare access, and limited affordable childcare continue to weigh heavily. For many, “just getting by” is full‑time work with no room for error.
4. Transient population dynamics: Some young people leave seeking opportunity; retirees or new buyers come in, sometimes passing closures in civic memory or local tradition. When people don’t stay long, investment in community institutions, clubs, and engagement drops, weakening collective social capacity.
What Must Change: For the Middle to Hold
If Hickory is to protect its middle class — to keep the “solid middle” from slipping — several shifts are needed:
· Affordable housing policies must be re‑examined. This could mean incentivizing smaller, more affordable homes; encouraging accessory dwelling units (ADUs); preserving older housing stock and making it safe; reducing barriers to multi‑family housing.
· Workforce investment must evolve. Vocational training, apprenticeships, technical skill development aligned with future industries (automation, digital work) must be accessible and valued.
· Cultural and civic institutions need support. Libraries, local media, community centers, arts, and storytelling connect people, stabilize neighborhoods, and build resilience when economic pressures grow. Strengthening them is as necessary as roads or utilities.
· Long‑term planning and policy consistency, beyond election cycles. Housing cost inflation, shifts in demographics, aging populations, and infrastructure need forecasting and strategy — not reactive patches.
· Listening to and elevating middle voices: The “average” Hickory resident — working, paying bills, making sacrifices — must be heard in civic decisions. Without their input, policy tends toward extremes or preserves status quo rather than enabling progress.
Conclusion
Hickory’s middle class is not gone — but it is under pressure, stretched thin, and fragile. The data makes that clear: incomes modest, poverty higher than many places, housing values climbing. The risks are real: people pushed out, institutions underfunded, culture diluted.
But there is still time and there is still leverage. If the city, county, business and civic leaders choose to recognize how close so many are to falling, then policy and investment can lean toward protection and growth for the middle. Otherwise, the “solidly middle” may shrink until stability becomes rare rather than expected.
My Own Time Ξ©
I don’t know exactly why I now feel like I’m a stranger in Hickory—but I know things have and will continue to change. I drive past Hickory Chair and remember times when I was riding with Mammaw to pick up Pappaw after his shift, fifty years ago. I remember hanging out downtown at the office where my mother worked, when my grandfather Vic would take me into the Post Office Barbecue just to buy me magazines—because he thought it’d get me to read. Or going up to WIRC and having lunch with Mamie and her coworkers. Back then there were maybe three degrees of separation between people in Hickory. You might not know everybody directly, but someone you did know knew them. Now, it seems like we’re up to Kevin Bacon’s seven. And the town isn’t that much bigger than it was back then. The people around me are different—some new, some passing through—not quite rooted like the folks I grew up with.
I’m in my 50s now, born and raised here. I’ve seen this place change. I remember when factory jobs didn’t pay a lot, but they were enough to raise a family. Friday night dinner eating out, the weekend to relax, Sunday family meals after church. Neighbors felt like family—grilling, talking, sharing. In the early 2000s things shifted; we lost about 40,000 manufacturing jobs, and that collapse didn’t just change our economy—it unstitched a lot of our identity. What stability we had, what many of us counted on, began slipping away. Many of our elders, who were the glue, are no longer here. Without them, much of what wove the tapestry of our community has come unglued.
Today, median household income is $63,361. Poverty is around 17%. More than half of the housing units are owner‑occupied—but housing values, taxes, rent, and other costs are creeping up in a way many incomes cannot match. That mismatch is the pressure point. (Census Reporter)
Transient Culture: I see it in the faces I don’t recognize at the grocery store, in houses bought by people who don’t stay long enough to become part of our story. Census data shows 15.3% of people in Hickory moved in the last year, way higher than many places nearby (Census Reporter). That movement is more than changing addresses—it’s loss of connection. When folks leave, or stay only briefly, they don’t invest in church potlucks, neighborhood schools, in weekend traditions, storytelling, or become familiar faces. It’s hard to feel like “home” is home when your neighbors change every few years. That instability erodes comfort and trust.
What Life Looks Like for the “Middle Class” Now. For many, “middle” means working, paying bills, and always on edge. Rent or mortgage claims 30‑40% of income. House maintenance gets delayed. New clothes, school fees, doctor checkups, going to the dentist—they wait. Jobs exist, yes—but more often they are service hours, gig work, informal labor—not the factory jobs that once supported whole families. That “solid ground” doesn’t feel so solid anymore. To be “comfortable” is a rare luxury; to be “secure” often feels like hoping for something out of reach.
What Might Happen If Trends Keep Up. If housing prices keep rising faster than incomes—and many indicators show they are—we risk more families in “comfortable” sliding into “struggling.” A rent increase, a medical bill, or loss of hours at your job could do it. Fewer folks will put down long roots. Local institutions—churches, schools, community centers—will feel the strain. Civic engagement could decline even more. The tax base may shrink. Services, neighborhoods, roads, parks—things we expect to work or look good—will suffer. The Riverwalk, Citywalk, and trail projects—maintenance, access, quality will be uneven.
So what does all this mean—in the gut, for those of us born here? It means belonging has become conditional. It means looking around and wondering: What does the latter part of my life have in store for me? It means carrying pride in what Hickory was and a fear of what it’s becoming.
Closing Thought. I believe Hickory still has the seeds of renewal. If community leaders really listen—to those working but struggling, those feeling squeezed—then policy can lean toward holding what we already have: affordable housing, job training, neighborhood anchors, youth who become longtime residents. Because if we lose those, the “middle” becomes another story people lose—not because it wasn’t strong, but because we didn’t fight to keep it.
π΄ Haiku
Shadowed by silence
Ideas lit the darkened path—
Faith stood, then fell still.
π₯ Fortune Cookie Reading
“When truth walks softly and still draws fire, you are not in the wrong place—you are on the front line.”
