Bernie Sanders excitement builds
To the editor: July 29 Bernie Sanders spoke to the entire country using the Internet. It was an incredible event.…
Read More
The Democrats’ war on babies is in trouble
To the Editor: Now Democrats have once again dredged up the fabricated notion that Republicans are waging a war on…
Read More
Thoughts on my Southern heritage
To the Editor: The controversy in South Carolina revolving around the Confederate Flag has made me think about my Southern…
Read More
Pay attention to new charter school
To the Editor: Every person who pays taxes in Haywood County needs to be aware of, and pay attention to,…
Read More
GOP’s Trump problem won’t be easily resolved
I would wager that I despise politics just about as much as you do. Whatever your political affiliation, we would…
Read More
Another constitutional crisis for Obama
To the Editor: Dear House and Senate national representatives: Are you going to allow Obama to precipitate another constitutional crisis…
Read More
Ashamed of Cherokee Bear Zoo
To the Editor: I am a member of the Eastern Band of Cherokee who has not lived in Cherokee since…
Read More
Some concerns about charter school
To the Editor: Since the proposed Shining Rock Classical Academy Charter School has been in the news lately, I would…
Read More
The public – not the newspaper – deserves to know
I’m sure the founders of Haywood County’s new charter school — Shining Rock Classical Academy — never imagined a week…
Read More
Meaningful gun control deserves passage
To the Editor: House Speaker John Boehner boasted in a mass e-mail that he had gotten ahead of President Obama…
Read More
It seemed like a great idea at the time ...
It looked so good on paper, the way terrible ideas always do. Instead of boarding our miniature dachshund as we…
Read More
Tribal council takes the wrong stand on openness
The Tribal Council kicked us out again. Holly Kays, a reporter for The Smoky Mountain News, was told on July…
Read More
Old steel should be used for footbridge
To the Editor: I have an idea for reducing the cost of the footbridge at the end of the Cullowhee…
Read More
The Battle Flag was indeed about slavery
To the Editor: To get past the emotionality regarding the Virginia Battle Flag, we need to examine its history and…
Read More
Hillary has way too much baggage
To the Editor: When Bill Clinton was president, Hillary assumed authority over health care reform. Even after threats, she couldn't…
Read More
Parents should teach children to drive
To the Editor: The problem of how to fund driver's ed could be easily solved. Since when did it become…
Read More
How can we be proud to be Americans?
To the Editor: USA Today has reported that on average there were 96 cases of a white police officer killing…
Read More
The Confederate flag flap: Rapid policy change? yes; rapid shift in public opinion? no
By Gibbs Knotts & Chris Cooper A longstanding social science finding holds that collective public opinion is fairly sticky on…
Read More
Folkmoot is about more than dancing, watching
By Hannah McLeod • Guest Columnist We all have those memories that lurk in the back of our brain, the hazy,…
Read More
Our Edisto story is still being written
EDISTO ISLAND, SC — Whether it is a time-honored family tradition or simply the very real possibility that, as a…
Read More
State should leave well enough alone at the local level
The North Carolina Senate has become emboldened in its partisanship over the last couple of years, and there appears to…
Read More
The real meaning of religious freedom
To the Editor: The news of the last couple of weeks brings into sharp focus the divided world we live…
Read More
The reality of the Confederate flag legacy
I have seen more Confederate flags flying in the past couple of weeks than I have seen in years. A…
Read More
A story all about good people doing good things
I should get over being astounded by the way the world works. And I’m talking about the good stuff, not…
Read More
Declare independence from meat industry
To the Editor: Nearly 240 years ago, our founding fathers declared our national independence from Great Britain. This Fourth of…
Read More
Waynesville entryways are too junky
To the Editor: This piece could be titled, “How to beat a dead horse in 350 words or less.” First…
Read More
DOT could stand for the Department of Trash
“Cultivators of the earth are the most valuable citizens. They are the most vigorous, the most independent, the most virtuous…
Read More
Symbols matter, and so does removing them
Complicated. Ignorant. Entrenched. It’s easy to come up with words to describe the state of race relations in this country…
Read More
Relationship — and innocence — lost, just like that
Many years ago, in a time and a place that seems so far away to me now, I courted a…
Read More
Do people really believe this stuff?
To the Editor: Sometimes it’s hard to keep up with all the scientific discoveries made on almost a daily basis,…
Read More
Reacting to changing climate of medicine
To the Editor: As a pediatrician, it has been my privilege to serve the families of Western North Carolina for…
Read More
One split-second separates heroism from its alternative
I remember someone once telling me that all the seemingly trivial, decidedly unimportant choices you make every day prepare you…
Read More
Animal shelter needs proper planning
To the Editor: There has been recent news coverage and public discussion about the plans for the new Haywood County…
Read More
Our elected leaders are out of control
To the Editor: It has appeared for a long time that the American people have turned into a flock of…
Read More
Making the case for my future career
By the time I was in the fifth grade, I knew I wanted to grow up to be a lawyer.…
Read More
Coach’s article was great, but let’s clarify
To the Editor: First, and foremost, I want to thank you for the article in The Smoky Mountain News, your…
Read More
Playing the blame game in Jackson County
To the Editor: Have you noticed when officeholders (elected or unelected) are attempting to wiggle out from responsibility for some…
Read More
Reflections on ‘Sweet 16’ and the future
What’s your dream job? Recent college graduates are perhaps honing in on the difficult task of searching for a satisfying…
Read More
Finding a balance in Frog Level won’t be easy
I don’t know if it reaches the magnitude of a moral dilemma, but I feel for the Frog Level merchants…
Read More
Challenge those who would censor you
To the Editor: Referring to a recent letter to the editor, the writer suggested that anything or any opinion that…
Read More
Last Shot weekend was a great success
To the Editor: Our Last Shot Fired May weekend, titled “The Battle of Waynesville and the Surrender of the Western…
Read More
Drug testing good students won’t help
To the Editor: I read with dismay that the Jackson County school system was planning to waste more money on…
Read More
Our veterans deserve to be honored all year
It is just a beautiful day, this Memorial Day. I am able to get a little work done in the…
Read More
Out of the headlines, but not out of the woods
The rioting in Baltimore has settled down and we haven’t heard much out of Ferguson, Missouri, recently. The uproar and…
Read More
Madam, you are indeed a thief
To the Editor: My family and I were enjoying a meal at a local buffet restaurant (on Mothers Day 10…
Read More
Thanks to Waynesville town employees
To the Editor: The Waynesville Public Art Commission would specifically like to thank Waynesville town employees Dave Foster, Daryl Hannah,…
Read More
Fast track legislation a threat to democracy
To the Editor: Fast Track legislation that was prepared in secret by some 600 lobbyists of the largest transnational corporations…
Read More
Exotic pests a continuing threat to our mountains
By Jason Love • Guest Columnist I am writing on behalf of the Western North Carolina Public Lands Council, an advisory…
Read More
In WNC, economic development is a different game
He was tall, maybe 6 feet 8 inches or taller, and was standing at an intersection studying a map. My…
Read More
The mystery of U.S. foreign aid
To the Editor: One of the great mysteries of government in America is how and why we give over $50…
Read More