The watch continues — with an even brighter spotlight

Being a voice in the wilderness is not easy.

People don’t always want to hear what you have to say.

And sometimes those who need to hear the truth — or who know it and don’t want you to say it out loud — do everything they can to silence you.

Many people stay quiet because they are worried — about their jobs, about their families, about pushback or about getting canceled.

They don’t speak about what is really going on — even when it is obvious. There are too many risks.

We understand that. We have been there, done that and collected the T-shirt.

But silence is how we get status quo — or people who get (and who keep) jobs because of politics or power brokering, not because they have the qualifications or because they would be strong leaders.

Good people who could make a difference don’t run for office because they don’t want to play the game. Qualified job candidates get passed over again and again for people with “connections” and decide it’s no longer worth it to throw their names into the hat.

So, we don’t get the best and brightest. We get seat-fillers and box checkers.

Subpar people get hired, appointed — or sometimes elected — by default, backdoor deals, or because of what family they were born or married into.

It is all about power — all of it.

And those decisions have consequences. You have seen some of them right here in Wayne County — in our school district, in county government, in the city of Goldsboro.

One of those in particular has cost this county thousands and thousands of wasted tax dollars.

Elections have consequences — sometimes catastrophic ones — and in less than a month, voters will take to the polls again.

They will make decisions that will impact this community, potentially for generations.

You might think it doesn’t matter. It might seem like no matter which choice you make, you will just get more of the same.

You might be tempted to just “sit this one out.”

So, over the next few weeks, we are going to speak the truth, to talk about the stuff that no one is saying out loud.

You are sharing your concerns with us — every day. And we know it is because it matters to you what happens to the county you love and because you have been charged with making the decisions that will determine the future of our community for your children and grandchildren.

You care, and so do we.

So we are back at the keyboard, ready and willing to speak about that future and the topics that are so important to so many of us.

We deserve better leaders. But we have to do our part — fearlessly, honestly and fairly.

So now, beholden to no one, it is time for us to speak more of that truth, to be a voice that challenges authority, that questions decisions and asks the tough questions.

You deserve no less.

Some of you have already made up your minds — Republican, Democrat, you cannot be dissuaded from how you have always voted.

These discussions will not be for you.

We warn you, however, blind partisanship is dangerous. The evidence is all around you.

But for the rest of you, those who feel like something is not quite right, we will give you some thoughts that we hope might help you make a choice.

Vote how you want. Support whom you want.

All we ask is that you think carefully.

We know from decades of watching communities make these sorts of choices how critical that last piece of advice is.

We have seen it at all levels — miscast votes have fundamentally changed our country.

Now, it is time to take it back, to remind those who think perhaps that they know better that they work for us — not for power, pensions, political stair-stepping, back-scratching, back-door deals or personal profit.

And to do that requires more than shouting, name-calling or simply sitting back and shaking your head.

Some of the topics we will cover won’t be easy to hear. And you might not always agree with our take.

But we will be talking about the stuff no one talks about.

That is what matters.

First stop: Education — and no, it’s not just about the upcoming Board of Education elections, although that is an important discussion to be had and we will help facilitate it.

We’ll give you a hint: The school report cards just came out and there is a lot more to the story of our underperforming schools than COVID-19.

Then, we’ll talk about what’s happening inside Goldsboro City Hall, the leadership vacuum there, and how to ensure it doesn’t threaten our community’s future after November 2023.

Those are just a few of the roads we will be traveling in the coming weeks. We hope you will join us — unafraid to weigh in on the issues that matter to you and your families.

You, our readers, have made invaluable contributions to your community by speaking your mind and pointing our spotlight toward the blindspots.

You have helped us put those in power on notice. It’s time for us, together, to shine that light brighter than ever before.