4 low-cost vacation spots in North Carolina
There’s no need to break the bank on a vacation spent enjoying North Carolina's natural beauty, history, and culture.
May
2025
19
Affordability
May
2025
14
A third of parents are putting career plans on hold due to the cost of childcare—even here in North Carolina
We treat childcare as a personal problem that deserves private suffering, instead of political action. I spent years thinking that it was my fault. As another mom said to me: “It feels like I’m the one doing something wrong.”
May
2025
13
House GOP fast-tracks budget bill that would cut off Medicaid funding to Planned Parenthood
Abortion is already excluded from coverage—the new bill is going after all health care services the clinics provide for low-income Americans.
Apr
2025
15
You’re paying taxes today—but are billionaires and big corporations dodging theirs?
Congress is prioritizing the ultra-wealthy and corporate greed over everyday American people this tax season. Now, community organizations across the US are fighting back—here’s how you can get involved.
Mar
2025
24
Gwen Frisbie-Fulton: ‘The people closest to the problem are often the ones who can find the solution’
About two years ago, tents started to show up in my neighborhood along the creek beds and in small stands of trees. Most only became visible when the leaves fell, exposing their orange rainflies and blue tarps. This increase in houselessness didn’t feel surprising...
Mar
2025
11
‘You have cancer’: New Bern native hopes a local lawmaker’s plan will help more men survive ‘the Big C’
Rep. Rodney D. Pierce, a Democrat representing Halifax, Northampton, and Warren counties, has an idea for a statewide screening program to help men detect prostate cancer before it’s too late.
Feb
2025
28
Looking for affordable housing in rural NC? One lawmaker has an idea that could help.
If you live in a small town (or want to) and are struggling to find housing, a new proposal could help—by changing how rural NC housing developments get funded.
Oct
2024
26
Barack Obama rallies for Harris in Charlotte, calls out ‘crazy stuff’ from Mark Robinson and Michele Morrow
Obama touted Kamala Harris’ record and plans, while highlighting Donald Trump’s unfitness and lack of character. The former president also called out NC Republicans for their outlandish behavior and rhetoric.
Oct
2024
16
Trump’s tariff plan would raise prices and ‘reduce the living standard of Americans,’ economists say
Trump’s plan would effectively be a sales tax that disproportionately harms working-class families and could cause a trade war that hurts US companies, economists say.
Sep
2024
11
13 wildest lies Trump told in the debate with Kamala Harris
Ex-President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris met for their first presidential debate—and Trump unleashed a barrage of lies and misleading claims.
Video: Here’s why Charlotte citizens are getting double-taxed
| October 1, 2025
Affordability | Cardinal | Cardinal and Pine Local Politics | CHARLOTTE | EXCO-Player | NORTH CAROLINA NEWS
In the latest edition of "Charlotte Costs," Cardinal & Pine contributor Charles Deloach looks at how residents of the Queen City are being "double-taxed" for public school funding.
11 best North Carolina farms for picking your own pumpkins
| September 30, 2025
Affordability | ANIMALS | CHARLOTTE | Community | CULTURE | DINING IN NC | DURHAM | EAT LOCAL | FAMILY | FARMING | Greenville | HARDGATE | History | HOLIDAYS | Lead Story | LIFESTYLE | Music | North Carolina | OUTDOORS | RALEIGH | RECREATION | SMALL BUSINESS | THINGS TO DO | TRAVEL | WAKE COUNTY | WEATHER | WNC
From jack-o’-lanterns for carving to Sugar Pie for baking, you can find the perfect pumpkin for your needs at these North Carolina u-pick farms.
‘Housing is health care’: Trump’s Medicaid cuts could leave thousands of NC families homeless
| September 25, 2025
Affordability | Community | Donald Trump | Federal Cuts | Federal Harm | HEALTH | health insurance | health insurance denial | HEALTHCARE | HEALTHCARE | Hurricane Helene | insurance | Medicaid | NC GENERAL ASSEMBLY | NC HOUSE
Floodwaters, rats, and mold once threatened to derail a Haywood County family’s future—until Medicaid helped them find safe housing. Now advocates warn stories like theirs may disappear under Republicans’ “big beautiful bill.”
Reduced fine for NC farmworker’s death raises accountability questions
| September 23, 2025
Affordability | EQUALITY | EXTREME WEATHER | FARMING | farmworkers' rights | HEALTH | HEALTHCARE | IMMIGRATION | LIFESTYLE | National Farm Safety and Health Week | NC LAW | NC POLITICS | North Carolina | NORTH CAROLINA NEWS | SAFETY | WEATHER | WORK
During National Farm Safety and Health Week, a massively reduced fine for poor conditions that led to a farmworker's death is leading to questions about worker protections in North Carolina.
Fighting a health insurance denial? Here are 7 tips to help
| September 23, 2025
Affordability | CENTRAL WISCONSIN | Community | CULTURE | EASTERN WISCONSIN | ECONOMY | EDUCATION | Federal Cuts | HARDGATE | HEALTH | health insurance | health insurance denial | HEALTHCARE | insurance | LIFESTYLE | Medicaid | national politics | NORTHERN WISCONSIN | SOUTHERN WISCONSIN | WESTERN WISCONSIN | wisconsin | WISCONSIN POLITICS
To control costs, nearly all health insurers use a system called prior authorization, which requires patients or their providers to seek approval before they can get certain procedures, tests, and prescriptions.