It is pure power politics - shorn of any pretense of good government, public policy, or even any notion of Christian charity. It is the survival of the fittest.

Besides being a political reporter, I am also a citizen, although a nonvoter, except for municipal races.

As a Cary resident, I currently live in the 4th District which is represented by Democrat David Price.

In the first map rolled out by the Republican legislature, they moved me into the 2nd district represented by Republican Renee Ellmers. But then the Republicans, worried that their map might not pass constitutional muster, revised it.

They now have me in the 13th district represented by Democrat Brad Miller. But the new district is designed to elect a Republican. The likely front runner is former U.S. Attorney George Holding.

So, here is where the legislature's slicing and dicing leaves me. I will be living in a district likely to be represented by A Republican To Be Named Later. If I travel three blocks out of my subdivision I will be in Ellmers' district. And if I travel to any major local store I will likely go into Price's district.

If there is a theory of good governance here, it escapes me. It is probably one of the few suburbs in America which would qualify for its own congressional caucus.

Of course, everyone who attended the Cary Congressional Caucus would have to be color-coordinated in earth tones and wear only natural fibers.

The purpose of the gerrymander is in one swoop to change the makeup of the state's congressional delegation - from its current seven Democrats and six Republicans to 10 Republicans and three Democrats.

Gerrymandering is so much easier than knocking on doors, and cheaper than TV ads.

The Republicans are also trying to lock in control of the General Assembly for the next decade, with new maps designed to keep the House and Senate in GOP hands.

At a legislative meeting this month, Democratic lawmakers looked liked hurricane victims, asking why, why, why?

"How many other incumbents were drawn out of their districts other than me?" asked Democratic Sen. Don Vaughan of Greensboro.

The answer? A bunch.

Sometimes it seemed personal. One of the Democrats targeted was Raleigh Rep. Deborah Ross, who seemed to have a particular talent for getting under the skin of Republican House Speaker Thom Tillis. She was thrown into the same district with Democrat Grier Martin.

"I grew up in a trailer park," Tillis said earlier this year in a speech in Sanford in which he talked about how much he disliked Ross. "I like a good fight."

This is the sort of old-style machine politics that Democrats Marc Basnight, Tony Rand and Jim Black used to practice. But no Democratic gerrymander ever went this far. It may not be good government, but it is good politics.