Joel Burgess

1 week ago | usatoday.com | Joel Burgess

A request from a parent of two boys to our country's leaders: Please stop monkey wrenching my every attempt to get these kids to resemble presentable, civil, empathetic human beings. I've got some things going for me. Like PBS (which teaches kids great things – but maybe won't be around much anymore). And grandparents – who were raised in an era when presidential candidates didn't publicly insult each other's penis sizes. And schools where teachers condemn bullying and emphasize acceptance.

Jan 27, 2025 | oklahoman.com | Joel Burgess

Our kids faced a unique trauma with the COVID-19 pandemic. And while technology is scary, isolation is worse, especially for a child edging up toward puberty. God help us, we just gave our 11-year-old an iPhone. I generally think technology is terrible. I’m definitely a “late adapter” and prefer to have my friends explain new apps and things to me that I tell them are stupid before the next year flipping and becoming the biggest fan of Spotify or whatever.

Oct 17, 2024 | usatoday.com | Joel Burgess

For me, one of the more surreal pieces of news to come out of post-hurricane North Carolina was this: A U.S. Forest Service staffer relayed a report of truckloads of armed militia members “hunting FEMA” relief workers.

Sep 17, 2024 | yahoo.com | Joel Burgess

Joel Burgess, Asheville Citizen TimesSeptember 17, 2024 at 1:07 PM·2 min readNorth Carolina State House of Representatives District 114The 114 District, like all North Carolina state legislative districts, has been redrawn by Republican legislators. The new version of the 114th will cover eastern and south central Buncombe County. It is a Democratic leaning district. State representatives are elected to two-year terms.

Sep 17, 2024 | citizen-times.com | Joel Burgess

U.S. House of Representatives District 11The 11th District is the farthest west of North Carolina's 14 congressional districts. Like the state's other U.S. House districts it was recently redrawn by Republican state legislators and leans in favor of the GOP. The district has 16 counties and is anchored by Democratic Buncombe County and surrounded by GOP counties. The last three representatives were Republican, including current congressman Chuck Edwards. House members serve two-year terms.