DUPLIN'S BIG NIGHT GOES UP IN SMOKE

The Latin phrase is "de minimus non curat lex." Translated, it means
"the law does not concern itself with trifles." It describes a legal
principle that holds the law should not be focused on insignificant
or minor matters.

But it was trifles -- and not country superstar Willie Nelson -- that
took center stage on the evening of Jan. 28 at the Duplin County
Events Center in Kenansville.

While a nosy contingent of state Alcohol Law Enforcement agents was
putting on a show outside the center, a packed house waited inside
for a performance that, in many ways, would be a dream come true for
country-music lovers in Duplin County and throughout southeastern
North Carolina. The crowd, however, would leave disappointed. The
show was canceled with an announcement that Nelson was suffering pain
in his left hand and would not be performing. The show that could
help establish the Duplin facility as a regional entertainment venue
was not to be.

Attention quickly shifted, however, to the ALE's actions shortly
before the scheduled performance. After smelling marijuana smoke
outside the tour bus carrying Nelson's band, agents had snagged the
apparent culprits -- six band and crew members from Willie's road
show. Along with a small amount of marijuana, the ALE also reportedly
came across a little moonshine. One would be hard-pressed to find any
alarm or surprise over the discoveries. In fairness, it should be
noted that no direct link between the bust and the show's
cancellation has been established. An ALE representative said the six
suspects were only issued citations and were released well before the
show. And Nelson's own folks are sticking with the story about the
pain in Willie's hand, which stem from carpel tunnel.

The speculation that's still rampant, however, is that Willie was
reacting in his own venerable way to a pain he was feeling a little
further south on his body, one that came from the intrusion of law
enforcement into the sanctuary of the band's tour bus. There's no
real proof one way or the other -- Nelson did perform the next night
in Rome, Ga., but he canceled his next appearance in North Carolina
on the following night in Asheville. Was he still miffed at the Tar Heel State?

The disappointment felt by those who organized the Duplin show and
those who bought tickets, however, has evolved into questions about
the timing and necessity of the bust. At some point, it seems the
state ALE agents would have weighed the possibility of the show being
canceled against the gravity of the band's transgressions.

One of the disappointed concert-goers was District Attorney Dewey
Hudson, and he, too, is raising questions about the turn of events.
He has asked for a report on the Calamity in Kenansville.

With more information, people can decide if the ALE agents paid too
much attention to trifles and making headlines -- and not enough to
protecting the real interests of the people who pay their salaries.