We criticize the Record & Landmark when it is wrong, which is most of the time. It is only fair that we give the newspaper credit when it does something right.

We were pleasantly surprised (shocked may be a more accurate word) when we saw the May 8 issue. The front page displayed a three-column, above-the-fold photograph of re-enactors at the Confederate Memorial Day observance at the Old Courthouse. The article by Grayson Mendenhall was informative and objective. The inside editorial was not exactly what we would have written, but it was much fairer than one would expect from a liberal editor.

A few days before, the newspaper ran a front-page story about the Historic Vance House.

In the past the Iredell Neighbors and the Iredell Citizen have published good stories about local Confederate history. But the recent articles are a first for the Record & Landmark.