State senators who represent coastal counties are trying again to loosen the ban on sea walls.

Senate Bill 832, which a slew of scientists, environmental groups, and the state environmental agency oppose, would allow seawalls along the shoreline, with the Coastal Resources Commission's okay, Lynn Bonner reports.

Some towns and homeowners want the walls, called terminal groins, near inlets to prevent erosion.

The Senate tried two years ago to pass a similar law, but the House did not discuss the issue.

Sen. Julia Boseman, a Democrat from New Hanover, said the bill had support from Democratic and Republican senators, including Senate leader Marc Basnight, a Democrat from Manteo.

The Senate committee on the environment discussed the measure, but did not vote.

More after the jump.

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A leadership program for middle- and high-school students could be cut.

Started in 1987, the Legislator's School for Youth Leadership Development meets for three weeks each summer at Western Carolina University and East Carolina University.

The first week is for staff training. Sixty to 75 middle schoolers and high schoolers then each attend for a week.

The residential program has students living in dorms while they study leadership and college admissions, write letters on current issues and do community service projects. They also take field trips to a ropes course or a local museum and play sports.

Kim Elliott, who oversees the Western Carolina school, said that students have gone on to become teachers and police officers. The only criteria is that they cannot be in their schools' gifted and talented programs.

"These are typically your B and C students who are aspiring leaders," she said. 

Gov. Beverly Perdue recently proposed cutting the $500,000 program in order to help balance next year's budget. 

A fund for fast-growing colleges could be cut.

Since the late 1990s, the University of North Carolina system has built up a reserve fund for state universities that were growing at a rapid rate.

That included the five historically black colleges, Elizabeth City State University, N.C. A&T, N.C. Central, Fayetteville State and Winston-Salem State. Two others, UNC-Pembroke and Western Carolina, were also helped. 

"All had the capacity to grow at a rate greater then they would naturally," said UNC spokesman Rob Nelson. "The money was appropriated to accommodate the administrative costs of that — to help with infrastructure, administration and financial aid."

In all, Nelson said the fund had provided $30 million for the seven schools.

Gov. Beverly Perdue proposed cutting the annual $1.3 million appropriation in order to help balance next year's budget. 

Gov. Mike Easley appointed one of his transportation board members to a judgeship in Buncombe County.

Alan Z. Thornburg will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Superior Court Judge Ronald K. Payne.

"Alan Thornburg’s wealth of experience as a private practitioner and judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals has prepared him well for this role," Easley said in a news release.  "He will be a fine addition to the Superior Court bench."

Thornburg, who received a law degree from Wake Forest University, is currently a senior policy fellow at Western Carolina University. He was previously a judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals.

Easley appointed Thornburg of Asheville to the transportation board in the spring of 2005. Seats on the transportation board often go to heavy hitters in fundraising circles, but Thornburg was a minor contributor to Easley's campaigns, records show. Since 2000, Thornburg contributed $4,000 to Easley.

Thornburg was a fundraiser for Treasurer Richard Moore in his unsuccessful bid to win the Democratic nomination for governor last year. After Beverly Perdue won the primary, he contributed $1,000 to her campaign.

Western Carolina University Chancellor John Bardo apologized today for the behavior of seven students who deposited on campus a dead bear with its head covered with Barack Obama campaign signs.

The carcass of the bear, which had been shot, was found beneath a statue on the Cullowhee campus Monday.

Today, Bardo held a campuswide discussion of the incident, a university news release said, "to help dispel rumors and misinformation surrounding an incident that some people, both on and off campus, have suggested was politically motivated because the bear was discovered with two Obama campaign posters stuck on its head."

"This was a very inappropriate action taken by seven members of the university community," Bardo told the crowd. "I don't know, and we may never know, what their real motives were. I cannot look into their hearts."

Bardo said regardless of the students' motivation, their actions were wrong. "What also is very real is that seven members of this university community did something that was wrong. Nine thousand members of this community did not do that. We are not going to allow seven people to define who you are. You are better than that. You are Western Carolina University."

Police said their investigation showed there were no political or racial motives. The case will be forwarded to the local prosecutor to determine whether charges should be filed.

Western Carolina University officials say a dead bear found on campus covered with Barack Obama signs was a college prank, not a politically or racially motivated statement.

Tom Johnson, chief of WCU police, said officers had identified seven students who were involved in the incident, according to a news release from the university. Students interviewed told police they had been camping when they stumbled onto the dead bear while searching for firewood and loaded it into the back of a pickup. Later, a student suggested they place the carcass at the base of the Catamount statue at the school's main entrance.

Students told authorities they grabbed some Obama political signs to put over the bear's head in an effort to cover a gunshot wound to prevent bloodstains in the bed of the truck. They told Johnson their actions were not political or racial, the university said.

No charges have been filed, but police and wildlife agents will share their findings with the county district attorney's office. The U.S. Secret Service has also been briefed.

WCU Chancellor John Bardo issued a statement, saying he was pleased to hear that the situation "appears to be a stupid prank."

He added: "I am disappointed in the extremely poor judgment demonstrated by these young people. I hope that this intolerable incident can serve as a learning moment for them and for others, one that reminds us that we must respect one another’s opinions and we should not jump to conclusions without first having all the facts."

The presidential election has gotten ugly in North Carolina.

Recent news stories about the competitive race between Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain read like a rap sheet for a minor thug. To wit: 

* THREATS: Someone shot a 75-pound bear cub in the head, sticks Obama campaign posters on its head and left it at a roundabout at Western Carolina University Monday morning.

* BREAKING THE PEACE: A woman yelled "Socialist, Socialist, Socialist — get out of here" at Obama during a campaign stop at Cape Fear BBQ Sunday.

* VANDALISM: That same day, someone slashed the tires of at least 30 vehicles parked outside an Obama rally at Fayetteville.

* ASSAULT: A bearded Sarah Palin supporter assaulted a Greensboro News-Record reporter at a rally at Elon University last Thursday.

Several surrogates for Barack Obama will promote one-stop voting.

Former Mississippi Gov. Ray Mabus will hold a rally at 3:30 p.m. today in Asheville, while former UNC basketballer Sam Perkins will host a rally at 1 p.m. in Chapel Hill.

The campaign will also host one-stop rallies at Western Carolina University, Sandhills Community College and UNC-Charlotte today and tomorrow. 

Lance Sigmon will run against U.S. Rep. Patrick McHenry.

In a Christmas video message on his Web site, the retired Air Force officer says he will challenge McHenry in the Republican primary.

"I served my country for 21 years in the Air Force and would be privileged to serve again in Congress," he says.

He says he has been concerned about the "respect and attention" the district has received.

Sigmon earned a degree in accounting and economics from Western Carolina University in 1985 and a law degree from Wake Forest University. He then served as a judge advocate general in the Air Force.

He formed an exploratory committee earlier this fall.

Hat Tip: WRAL