Tweet shows that Trump is unfit
 

Tweet shows that Trump is unfit

To the Editor: After reading that this is Newspaper Week in the U.S., I happened to see an article about…
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Planned Parenthood kills, not the NRA
 

Planned Parenthood kills, not the NRA

To the Editor: When a deranged person like Stephen Paddock, the Las Vegas shooter, randomly kills and wounds hundreds of …
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Tax reform plan won’t help middle class
 

Tax reform plan won’t help middle class

To the Editor: Now that the drama over the ACA is done, it’s time to move on to tax reform.…
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If I had a purple crayon…

Last night I read Harold and the Purple Crayon to my 5-year-old. He sat wide-eyed with an expression of intrigue…
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After tragedy in Vegas, where to from here?

I’ve never shot a gun. Nope. Not once. I come from a family of gun owners. I’ve held plenty of…
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Air Force Academy general deserves praise
 

Air Force Academy general deserves praise

To the Editor: All men and women who have served in the armed forces can hold their heads high when…
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Children’s healthcare must be supported
 

Children’s healthcare must be supported

To the Editor: Last week the US Congress failed to reauthorized the Children’s Health Insurance Plan — CHIP — known…
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We can survive the Trump era
 

We can survive the Trump era

To the Editor: President Trump never ceases to amaze me on his downward spiral to be the worst president in…
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A part of my generation’s soundtrack

We were pretty full of ourselves, I guess. Barely 19, barely finished with our freshman year in college, having left…
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Hand on heart or on bended knee — Americans all

This is what it means to be an American. I’m talking about NFL players and coaches and owners uniting to…
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Park’s fire response was woefully inadequate
 

Park’s fire response was woefully inadequate

To the Editor: Regarding the Chimney Tops 2 wildfire review article, my stomach clenched as I read quotes from the…
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Immigrants need to assimilate
 

Immigrants need to assimilate

To the Editor: A common sense response is necessary to the foolish arguments in a letter printed in a recent…
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‘Stranger Things” and DACA truth
 

‘Stranger Things” and DACA truth

To the Editor: With all the news of DACA and how the changes will affect many people including some family,…
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Learning to let my emotions breathe

I’ve always been prone to bouts of melancholy. I’m not sure if it’s a writer thing or a woman thing…
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The numbers don’t lie, it’s a brave new world

Some things we know, but when someone lays out the numbers and reveals in specific numbers how the big picture…
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Climate change aided Harvey’s wrath
 

Climate change aided Harvey’s wrath

To the Editor: I have seen very little in the corporate media connecting Hurricane Harvey with human-caused climate change. Wonder…
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Trump is unfit to remain in office
 

Trump is unfit to remain in office

To the Editor: Following is the letter former Sen. Gordon Humphrey (R-N.H., 1978-1990) sent to both New Hampshire U.S. senators…
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Taking exception to reporter’s assessment
 

Taking exception to reporter’s assessment

To the Editor: I read reporter Cory Vaillancourt’s account of the Mike Clampitt Town Hall on Sept. 8 with astonishment.…
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Oh, the stories they could tell!

The treehouse that we had built in our backyard when we bought our house eight years ago sits vacant on…
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When you come up blank, remember those who are suffering

The computer stares back, unblinking. Deadline is approaching and I’m fighting to hone in on a topic for my column.…
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Planes, trains and automobiles

Reuniting with my big sister never seems to be an easy jaunt. Whether she’s traveling to North Carolina or I’m…
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Trump just plain wrong on DACA decision

Few presidential decisions have been as unjust, unwise and cruel as Donald Trump's threat to deport nearly 700,000 young Americans…
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Questioning the relevance of Confederate statues

By the faculty of Western Carolina University’s Department of Anthropology and Sociology Recent events in Charlottesville, Virginia, demonstrate the inability…
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Reflections on a divided America

As President Trump’s administration continues to descend further into chaos with each passing week, there are a few truths that…
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Fear of immigrants will hurt this country
 

Fear of immigrants will hurt this country

To the Editor: I was glad to read intelligent responses with a different opinion than that of a recent letter…
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Reasonable benchmarks make for better debate
 

Reasonable benchmarks make for better debate

To the Editor: I’m writing in response to a letter by Tom Enterline in the Aug. 30-Sept. 5 issue. He…
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Illegal signs are a continuing problem

By JoAnna Swanson • Guest Columnist There are all kinds of signs — signs of the times; signs of the…
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Disparaging terms are divisive
 

Disparaging terms are divisive

To the Editor: I am growing increasingly weary of hearing and reading the far right’s use of disparaging terms to…
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Rep. Meadows is hung up on the wall
 

Rep. Meadows is hung up on the wall

To the Editor: Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Asheville, does a disservice to all Americans, but particularly to legal immigrants, by fanning…
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Help needed in Mission-BCBS fight
 

Help needed in Mission-BCBS fight

To the Editor: The ugly fight between Blue Cross and Mission Hospital has no winners. Thousands of Western North Carolina…
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Liberals believe they are righteous
 

Liberals believe they are righteous

To the Editor: I read your article about the monuments. Well-written, but I think you’re missing the point. This current…
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No monuments on public property
 

No monuments on public property

To the Editor: Let’s all agree on one fact: had the South won the war slavery would have persisted in…
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We need some constructive dialogue
 

We need some constructive dialogue

To the Editor: It is very disappointing that a clear and unequivocal condemnation of the KKK, American Nazis and the…
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Get busy living, or get busy dying

During the 1970s, my dad spent some time in prison. For over three years, he taught GED prep classes at…
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Civil War monuments don’t stand a chance

“The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” — Nobel prize winning author William Faulkner This oft-trotted out line from…
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Government prayer has limitations
 

Government prayer has limitations

To the Editor: I appreciate and agree with your well-expressed thoughts on government meetings and prayer. Thank you for taking…
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Honor the dead, not the cause
 

Honor the dead, not the cause

To the Editor: In a recent spate of Confederacy hype, much has been racist and much has been misleading. However,…
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Mission is merely seeking its fair share
 

Mission is merely seeking its fair share

Responding to Jeanne Dupois Editorial: We read with great interest the editorial from Jeanne Dupois regarding the many challenges that…
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There’s somethin’ happenin’ here
 

There’s somethin’ happenin’ here

To the Editor: Donald Trump has vowed to build a wall between the U.S.A. and Mexico. He even claims that…
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Robert E. Lee deserves respect
 

Robert E. Lee deserves respect

To the Editor: There was a man who was born at Stratford Hall, Virginia, and his boyhood home was in…
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Don’t let mobs distort history
 

Don’t let mobs distort history

To the Editor: How many times have we heard or said “history repeats itself?” I’d say often regarding everything from…
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Get insurance out of health care
 

Get insurance out of health care

To the Editor: Can we please stop referring to access to health care insurance as “access to health care” and…
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Comment

Christians will not be silenced
 

Christians will not be silenced

To the Editor: In response to Editor Scott McLeod’s column about public prayers (www.smokymountainnews.com/archives/item/20540), secular society would like nothing better…
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Eclipse reveals glimmer of unity, and it feels good

I can admit now that by the time the day of the eclipse finally arrived, I was so tired of…
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In the words of Belushi, ‘I hate Illinois Nazis’

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate, only love can do that.”…
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Striking a balance between praying and politics

Prayer as part of government meetings has a long — and often contentious — history in this country, and a…
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Mission’s plea falls on deaf ears
 

Mission’s plea falls on deaf ears

To the Editor: Dear Mission Health, I saw your full page ad in the July 19 issue of The Smoky…
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High-speed enforcement too dangerous
 

High-speed enforcement too dangerous

To the Editor: The recent accident involving a state trooper and the elderly couple near Balsam was a tragedy for…
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Franklin 4th of July a huge success
 

Franklin 4th of July a huge success

To the Editor: On behalf of the Franklin Chamber of Commerce, I would like to thank those who helped to…
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