Medicaid expansion needed in N.C.

To the Editor: North Carolina is one of 14 states that has chosen not to expand Medicaid, which provides health…
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Meadows’ action is unconscionable

To the Editor: Unbelievable that Rep. Mark Meadows (R-Brevard) chose to use a black female HUD employee as a token,…
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We must do better, for our children

To the Editor: Like Andrew Morgan (see Mountaineer, Feb. 25, Guest Columnist), I too am alarmed by the rhetoric from…
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Open government is part of who we are

Whereas the public bodies that administer the legislative, policy-making, quasi-judicial, administrative, and advisory functions of North Carolina and its political…
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Great schools, staff are community assets

Both my parents were teachers. My earliest memories are of my dad sitting at our dining room table grading papers…
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The socialists are coming!
 

The socialists are coming!

To the Editor The socialists are coming, the socialists are coming! Hide your cows and pickup trucks! The green new…
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Thanks for exploration of homelessness issue
 

Thanks for exploration of homelessness issue

To the Editor Cory Vaillancourt created a powerful, informative and moving piece of journalism (“Face to face: local homeless remain…
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The American people are not stupid
 

The American people are not stupid

To the Editor I am not stupid and neither are most people I know. However, numerous politicians, pundits and officials…
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Climate change must be addressed

To the Editor: As the undeniable scientific evidence of climate change and its causes and consequences mount, it is unfortunate…
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Hysteria yes; a national emergency, no

Sandy Hook Elementary School, Newtown, Connecticut. Twenty-eight dead. Virginia Tech University, Blacksburg, Virginia. Thirty-three dead. Stoneman Douglass High School, Parkland,…
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N.C. legislators have a chance at redistricting

By Martin Dyckman • Guest Columnist The North Carolina General Assembly is where good bills go to die. So it…
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We need CLEAN Medicaid Expansion
 

We need CLEAN Medicaid Expansion

To the Editor: When it comes to health insurance, North Carolina has the sixth largest uninsured population in the nation.…
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Careers can wait; it’s time for some adventuring

When the text came letting us know that our daughter Hannah had arrived safely in Costa Rica, a sense of…
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Sandburg’s words are needed now more than ever

When my mom was living, she owned a tour company called Southern Comfort Tours. She opened the business in her…
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Cat Museum will promote Jackson County
 

Cat Museum will promote Jackson County

To the Editor: I am opening The American Museum of the House Cat at a new location in April. I…
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Columns and newspapers can change views

By John Hood • Guest Columnist I have written a syndicated column on politics and public policy for North Carolina…
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Finally, my wife is living the dream

When Tammy and I met almost exactly 15 years ago, there were a few adjustments we had to make, like…
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Will our democracy survive this test?
 

Will our democracy survive this test?

To the Editor: Safe roads. Safe airports. Safe air travel. Clean water. Clean air. Safe streets. Consumer protection. Safe waste…
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Meadows is leader of obstruction, shutdown
 

Meadows is leader of obstruction, shutdown

To the Editor: The “Meadows stands for national security” letter written by Ted Carr clearly linked the word “resist” with…
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The tide is turning on marijuana

The libertarian in me believes in the “live and let live” mantra, which when it comes to legalizing pot means…
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First the boots, then the heavy lifting

“It is a cruel jest to say to a bootless man that he ought to lift himself by his own…
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Rational conclusion: shutdown was all Trump

To the Editor: In last week’s guest opinion column, Isaac Herrin invited us to think rationally about the government shutdown and…
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We need the wall for our security

To the Editor: Cannot the “Resisters of the Wall” and Democrats who suggest we don’t need a wall because it’s…
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Stricter laws will solve problem

To the Editor: For the last 19 years I’ve been reading (frequently) how semi-trucks are a hazard on Highlands Road…
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The inherent flaw of a rush to judgment

His is the face that provoked untold millions of posts on social media, the teenage boy from Kentucky face-to-face with…
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Let’s think rationally about the government shutdown

By Isaac Herrin • Guest Columnist OK, let’s get the opposing comments out of the way: “Rationally, Trump should open…
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Are we acting Christ-like?

To the Editor: The other night I dreamed I talked with Jesus. That’s right! Jesus! Jesus Christ! The same Jesus…
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Rep. Meadows stands for national security

To the Editor: “Government shutdown is not really about a wall.” Correct. It is the Democrat “resist, resist, resist” philosophy.…
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The homeless issue is not going away

A genuine dilemma, or merely some people grousing? You tell me. We’ve been hearing complaints for months now that the…
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Far-reaching consequences of the shutdown

Last week my boys flew on an airplane for the first time without me. I was a nervous wreck to…
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Where are the pesos, Donald?

To the Editor: “I’m gonna build a big, beautiful wall and Mexico is gonna pay for it, I promise you.” 
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Women empowerment is key to future

To the Editor: No living human will witness a return to a preindustrial global climate. Humanity’s best efforts in transitioning…
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We gym rats have our own little cliques

When I was in my teens, I was so skinny that people winced when they saw me. The local druggist…
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Hard-line conservatives own this shutdown

“I think it’s the right thing to do as much as we use the park and as free as this…
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Build the wall at all costs

To the Editor We must save the Trump Presidency. Build the Wall! Never mind that it mortgages our children’s future.…
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My personal happiness project for 2019

What is a New Year’s resolution anyway? Just a statement we make aloud while toasting friends and family with a…
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Government shutdown is not really about a wall

By Norm Hoffman • Guest Columnist Now we have yet another federal government shutdown. We have to ask if there…
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Serving ‘something larger than themselves’

“Stray from the truth, and whoever corrects you can be dismissed as ‘the other side.’ The strategy runs on a…
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Basking in the comfort of holiday traditions

They grow up so fast. Of all the clichés in the parenting handbook, this is the oldest and the truest.…
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Elf Parade provided help for seniors

To the Editor: Last Saturday, a group of merry elves paraded down the sidewalks of Main Street in Waynesville to…
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Graveyard tours are disrespectful

To the Editor:   I have somewhat followed the issues surrounding the Green Hill Cemetery. I have stayed out of…
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