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Some people just can't keep their lawns wet enough.

One home I jogged by this morning had its watering system going full-blast. After at least five inches of rain in the last two days. A fierce wind was blowing moisture clear across the street.

It's their water bill. Our lakes are overflowing, so they're sure not threatening the water supply.

I just hope they turn it off when morning temperatures fall below freezing, but not everyone has sense enough to do that.

A writer whose letter we'll publish tomorrow praises U.S. Rep. Brad Miller for his "courage" in voting for the House health-care reform bill.

I don't begrudge Miller's vote, but I can't see any way it required courage.

The bill was backed by House Democratic leaders. Miller's part of that leadership. His district is solidly Democratic. In fact, he's the only representative that district has ever had.

Nothing could be safer politically than for him to side with his party on major legislation.

It took exactly the same amount of courage for Republicans like Howard Coble and Virginia Foxx to vote no. Their districts are strongly Republican, and their opposition probably keeps them in line with a majority of their constituents.

For examples of fortitude -- or at least calculated risk-taking -- within North Carolina's congressional delegation, you have to look at the three Democrats who voted against the bill: Mike McIntyre, Larry Kissell and Health Shuler.

Kissell and Shuler ousted Republicans to win their seats (in 2008 and 2006, respectively), and neither one is safe from GOP challenges in the future. They have to keep looking over their right shoulders if they want to stay in office.

McIntyre seems firmly ensconced in his eastern district and likely won't suffer any dent in popularity from his no vote, so his courage level is probably a good bit lower.

Kissell's vote struck me as gutsiest because it crossed some of his most passionate supporters -- liberals who really hated Republican Robin Hayes, whom Kissell defeated in their second go-'round, and placed a lot of faith in Kissell as a progressive champion. You can get a sense of their anger here at Bluenc.

Meanwhile, Republicans in Shuler's western district are dogging him to pledge to vote against Nancy Pelosi's re-election as speaker. Get a grip, GOPers. That vote isn't until January 2011. Hassling a Blue Dog Dem like Shuler just after he voted against his party on major legislation is just not very gracious.

Michael Smerconish says Nidal Hasan's intercepted emails to Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen bolster the case for electronic eavesdropping:

"Absent the horrific scene at Fort Hood, it's not difficult to imagine civil libertarians wringing their hands over the monitoring of e-mails whose content is, by several accounts, far from a smoking gun. Unfortunately, it took the murder of 13 and the wounding of 29 others to put the debate over electronic surveillance, the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and the NSA into focus."

Will the White House, or the chairmen of congressional intelligence and national security committees support this interpretation?

It seems our spy agencies are keeping their ears open. The question, which the Hasan case raises, is what they should do with the information they gather.

The AP story on page A11 of our print edition today is headlined, "Few Americans make end-of-life wishes known."

My mother-in-law and father-in-law were exceptions.

They made their wishes clearly known.

They wanted to die in the home they occupied for almost all of their 59-plus years of marriage.

And they did, both within the last two weeks.

They were under excellent hospice care (Hospice of the Carolina Foothills) at the end, but what really fulfilled their wishes was the extraordinary love and devotion of their daughter (a registered nurse) and son-in-law, who moved into their home more than two years ago, turning it essentially into an assisted-living facility. My wife spent most weekends and most of her summer breaks there over that time to lend a hand.

Not every family can do that for their elderly loved ones. For those that can, it's one of the greatest gifts children can give their parents -- the gift of a dignified death in familiar, comfortable surroundings -- in this case, their own home.

It was very difficult at times, physically and emotionally, for the daughters to make this happen -- but ultimately rewarding. They should always be proud of themselves for granting their parents' final wishes.

Which narrative about Nidal Hasan, the alleged Fort Hood killer, is more credible?

Maladjusted loner, Army shrink overcome by the stress of dealing with traumatized soldiers, in need of mental health help himself?

Or jihadist striking a dramatic blow against the enemies of his faith?

As more information surfaces, the picture will come into clearer focus.

A Dallas Morning News report reveals a new line of inquiry: whether Hasan was sending money to militant Islamic groups in Pakistan.

Combined with his e-mails to radical cleric Anwar al-Awlaki in Yemen, who praised Hasan as a hero, this could provide further clues about motivation.

President Obama's remarks at Fort Hood Tuesday seemed to indicate he believes the shootings were driven by religious conviction.

"It may be hard to comprehend the twisted logic that led to this tragedy," he said. "But this much we do know: no faith justifies these murderous and craven acts; no just and loving God looks upon them with favor. And for what he has done, we know that the killer will be met with justice—in this world, and the next."

My take from that: He's suggesting the killer believed his faith does justify his "murderous" acts, and that his death will result in reward in the next world. Obama is refuting the truth of such belief. Unfortunately, the president is not likely to change any minds among the jihadists of the world.

Investigators need to keep pulling threads to discover what connections Hasan had to radicals here and abroad.

It's too bad those threads could not have been tied together in time to stop this man from allegedly carrying out whatever mission he was on.

Carolina shuts down Duke's offense in Chapel Hill and takes over the top spot in this week's ranking. Wake loses another heartbreaker. State moves up with a much-needed win.

Carolina and Wake lead the Big Four standings at 1-0 but, thanks to ACC scheduling, won't play each other.

Tarheel Top Ten

1. UNC, 6-3 (No. 2 last week)

2. Duke, 5-4 (1)

3. Wake, 4-6 (3)

4. Elon, 8-1 (4)

5. Appalachian State, 7-2 (5)

6. N.C. State, 4-5 (7)

7. East Carolina, 5-4 (6)

8. Gardner-Webb, 5-4 (8)

9. N.C. A&T, 5-5 (9)

10. UNC-Pembroke, 9-1 (10)

Big Four

UNC, 1-0

Wake, 1-0

Duke, 1-1

State, 0-2

Patrice Hinnant is a devout Christian who once was a divinity school student.

But, when it came time for her to take the oath of office as a Superior Court judge this afternoon, there was no Bible to be found.

The ceremony was held in the commissioners meeting room of the Old Guilford County Courthouse, which hasn't been a working courtroom in many years.

Don't commissioners ever have need to refer to the Good Book?

I guess not.

Oh, well.

"We'll make a ceremonial affirmation," suggested Chief Resident Superior Court Judge Catherine Eagles, who administered the oath.

Hinnant raised her right hand and held her left at her side.

She made up for the lack of a Bible later by reciting Scripture: "Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an everlasting stream" (Amos 5:24). Lovely.

Gov. Bev Perdue promoted Hinnant from the District Court bench to replace Henry Frye Jr., who retired, interestingly, to go into full-time ministry.

She was introduced by Lawrence McSwain, a former colleague on the District Court bench who spoke about her fondness for gospel music and her concern for doing the right thing in every case.

Eagles noted that Guilford County now will be the only judicial district in the state with two women on the Superior Court bench. There are three men: Lindsay Davis, Joe Craig and Stuart Albright.

The ceremony was well-attended by judges from every level of the state's court system: Supreme Court, Court of Appeals, Superior Court and District Court. Other retired judges, elected officials, courthouse personnel, Hinnant family members and some local dignitaries, such as former N.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Henry Frye Sr., nearly filled the room. At least two ministers were present.

And no one had a Bible.

Well, Hinnant seems well-versed in its teachings. May they help her find the right balance of justice and mercy in every case she tries.

Say it ain't so.

Gerald Hege tells the High Point Enterprise he's running for sheriff of Davidson County in 2010.

Davidson County just got rid of him in 2004 when he pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice in an attempted cover-up of missing funds in his office. After three years on probation, he regained his voting rights -- and right to run for office -- in 2007.

If the people of Davidson County are foolish enough to vote for this egomaniac again -- incumbent David Grice is seeking re-election -- we can look forward to a return of his embarrassing antics.

The Spider Car, paramilitary gear, the "Bunker" office and wild car chases.

No, I don't live in Davidson County. But Hege led one of those wild car chases into downtown High Point, putting the lives of people there at risk.

Visiting Davidson County will become, once again, an uneasy experience.

What sticks in my mind is attending a High Point Central football game at Ledford during the Hege era. He must have had 20 deputies out there -- and a police dog -- patrolling the Central side of the field. It was an obvious attempt at intimidation, for obvious reasons. Central fans and students never caused any trouble at away games, and such a show of force was insulting and uncalled for. There was a similar scene for a game at East Davidson, minus the dog.

People visiting Davidson County deserve better, and so do residents. They should not rehire Gerald Hege. It's been pleasantly peaceful without him.

John Kime's comments in Taft's story today show why Sen. Kay Hagan had to withdraw her recommendation of state Superior Court Judge Calvin E. Murphy for appointment to the federal bench.

"It was clear to me that we weren't getting an unbiased opinion, based on politics," Kime said.

Kime is executive director of the Piedmont Triad Regional Water Authority.

The not-unbiased opinion, in his view, was rendered by Murphy. He issued an interim decision Oct. 23 favorable to Hydrodyne Industries and other companies suing the water authority over issues related to using water from the Deep River downstream of the Randleman Dam.

Sen. Hagan's husband, Chip, has a stake in Hydrodyne Industries, which apparently stands to gain a lot of money if the lawsuit eventually is decided in its favor.

Nine days before Murphy's ruling, Hagan recommended him as one of three candidates for a seat on the federal district court for Western North Carolina. President Obama will make the nomination.

Somebody could string all that together and surmise that one good turn deserves another.

I don't believe for a moment that's what happened.

I believe Hagan when she says she was not aware that Murphy "was hearing a case in which my husband had an interest."

Whether she should have been aware is another matter.

Nevertheless, her only recourse was to pull Murphy's name. He won't get the federal judgeship -- at least not now.

That's an unfortunate break for him, assuming everything was on the up-and-up.

A lifetime appointment to the federal bench is a big deal. A federal judge holds a very powerful position. He or she must be an outstanding jurist whose integrity is beyond reproach. There should be no place on the bench for anyone touched by even a hint that he would tilt a decision in return for any kind of favor.

Kime did more than hint. He told Taft he thought other judges also seemed to have their eye on the federal vacancy.

That's a very serious insinuation. It certainly casts aspersions on the motives and characters of both Murphy and Hagan if it's meant to imply there was quid pro quo involved.

Without proof, that's an unfair implication.

Even the appearance, however, was enough to scotch Murphy's possible appointment. Hagan had no choice.

As the comment string on Taft's story shows, people are conditioned by recent political malfeasance -- Mike Easley, Jim Black, others -- to assume the worst.

Hagan acted quickly to clear this up. It was the best move she had.

 A Winston-Salem ordinance that prohibits "loitering for the purpose of engaging in drug-related activity" is "unconstitutional on grounds of overbreadth and vagueness," the N.C. Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday.

Greensboro has an ordinance that is virtually identical except for one statement that City Attorney Terry Wood believes would let it pass legal muster.

Here's the Greensboro ordinance:

Sec. 18-46.  Loitering for the purpose of engaging in drug-related activity.