When the question begins, “First of all, I’m serious,” you know to brace yourself for what follows.
WRAL’s “Ask Anything” feature turns to candidates for the 2nd Congressional District. Bill Boyd of Cary raises a question I admittedly haven’t heard addressed yet this election, either:
There is much ado about the UFO phenomenon. In my mind, we are being visited and some in government know. What should be done to get to the bottom of this? Thank you. ? Bill Boyd, Cary
WILL ADKINS [Libertarian]: With initiatives such as the Patriot Act, the federal government is increasingly infringing upon our right to privacy. I support a restoration of our right to individual privacy while acting as a champion for transparency in government. Other than those documents directly impacting national security, I support the release of significant government documents to the public; further, this should be done in such a fashion that they are accessible to the public in digitized fashion over the Internet. The results of these studies are tax-payer funded and owned; it?s only proper to share these documents with their owners.
BOB ETHERIDGE [incumbent Democrat]: (Mr. Etheridge declined to answer the question.)
DAN MANSELL [Republican]: I have no ideas on this subject for I do not believe in UFOs or until I see one or see undisputable proof of one, I can not talk intelligently about this.
On the other nine questions, the three candidates ran true to form, with the Libertarian linking to tax policy and educational choice and the Democrat supporting government programs that shouldn’t be in Washington anyway.
Props to Dan Mansell for correctly answering questions about education, gas prices, and nursing homes — they’re state issues, not federal.
