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Update, Monday:

"There's more to this than meets the eye" -- Skip Alston, accusing Mike Weaver and Dennis Quaintance of ulterior motives in requesting public records about a proposed downtown hotel. (From today's news story by Don Patterson.

Priceless. You couldn't make up a more ironic statement.

The "more than meets the eye" here was Alston's role in this project. And who would be surprised if there's still more that remains hidden from view?

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Sadly, this story is all too typical of this town. The downtown luxury hotel project is portrayed as a racial issue.

There might be a Feb. 1 march to protest an effort by a couple of hotel operators, Mike Weaver and Dennis Quaintance,  to see the public documents behind the shadowy local government approval of this hotel? Their questions have racial overtones?

It sounds to me as if the organizers of this possible protest, including school board member Deena Hayes, are just trying to cloak themselves in some of the sit-in anniversary glory. The Greensboro Five: McCain, McNeil, Richmond, Blair and Hayes.

As if there's any connection: fighting segregation, fighting for a speculative luxury hotel.

Well, the public process does need to be scrutinized in light of statements by members of the Greensboro City Council and Guilford County Board of Commissioners that they were confused when they voted to endorse the hotel plan, and in the commissioners' case to make it the top priority to the exclusion of other projects.

One who apparently was not confused was Skip Alston, chairman of the county commissioners and, as it turned out, a broker for the $53 million hotel project.

His statement that he stepped away from the project by recusing himself from voting for it (without telling fellow commissioners why) is like setting a wagon on a slope, letting go and saying "I didn't push it" as it rolls downhill.

It's too bad for the prospective hotel developers that Alston's involvement has cast a cloud over this matter, but that's something they should have thought about before pulling him in.

Meanwhile, the "racial overtones" look like a creation of those making the assertion. Yes, somehow the Ole Asheboro Neighborhood Association is promised an ownership interest in the hotel, and Bridgette Chisholm, the principal developer, is black. But others in this partnership, who seem to be actually making an investment, are not. This protest and allegations of racism seem calculated to scare off those who would ask questions. But if last week's confusion showed anything, it's that not nearly enough questions have been asked, or answered, yet.

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Meanwhile, the school board and county commissioners are going another round about SROs.

I sat in on their meeting last Wednesday and frankly was astounded by two things:

One, the hostility toward SROs by a couple of school board members who seem to think they cause most of the trouble in schools;

And two, by the notion that it might be better to replace SROs with private security guards.

On the first point, while Deena Hayes -- there she is again -- made a valid point that someone ought to be able to demonstrate objectively that SROs do indeed help make schools safer, she and Sandra Alexander ought to shoulder the same burden and offer proof, if they have it, that SROs make matters worse.

On the second point, private security guards -- who Mo Green recommended last year should be hired in addition to SROs -- would be very limited in what they could do in an emergency. Basically, they'd have to call for police assistance.

Without SROs on campuses, I believe the police departments and sheriff's office would have to include school campuses -- where they have 24/7 jurisdiction -- on regular patrols. I'm sure school personnel, parents and many students would feel safer knowing real law-enforcement officers were close by.

Of course, the impetus of this discussion is Tasers. Some commissioners and school board members are so opposed to SROs carrying Tasers that they would end the SRO program, possibly using funding as an excuse. The sheriff and police chiefs, who will meet with the school board at 9 a.m. Wednesday, should once again listen to concerns and keep their minds open. But they should make the point, as noted above, that absent SROs on campus, their officers will have a routine patrol presence on GCS campuses, and those officers will carry their full complement of  weapons and equipment.

Some elected officials -- Commissioner Bruce Davis stressed this -- think problems can be prevented by schooling students in "character education" and "conflict resolution." Nothing wrong with those kinds of lessons. But some kids can't seem to learn basic math and reading. Can we be sure that every student is going to pass character education and conflict resolution? What are we willing to risk to find out?

Oh, yeah, at last Wednesday's meeting, Hayes suggested it's the SROs who need character education.

Typically Greensboro.