Too much of a good thing can be dangerous
I wish those planning to open a new charter school in Haywood County the best. Their intentions are completely honorable.…
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Three men walk into a bar ...
To the Editor: A rich man, a middle class man and a poor man walk into a bar. They sit…
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Harris Regional committed to the region
Over the past couple of months there has been a fair amount of coverage in area media outlets about the…
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Pardon the explanation, but I can’t help myself
I am living the days I have dreamed of all my life. “One day,” I said, somewhere ages and ages…
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Facts and beliefs are different animals
To the Editor: Vic Drummond’s recent letter about “The Economic and Employment Costs of Not Expanding Medicaid in NC.” was…
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U.S. youth need unifying experience
To the Editor: Historical injustices, real and perceived, create seeds of terrorism. Today’s policies create a fertile environment for the…
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Hunters and their dogs don’t deserve special protections
By Bill Lea • Guest Columnist In the article about the bear dogs attacking a camper’s dogs (www.smokymountainnews.com/outdoors/item/14952), Wallace Messer (a…
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Surely there is a solution for noise dispute
Here’s hoping No Name Sports Pub and the town of Sylva can work out their differences on noise so that…
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A perspective of a retired ob-gyn on today’s situation
By Gwang S. Han • Guest Columnist Obstetrics is the branch of medicine dealing with parturition, including care before and after…
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Sounds preachy, but it’s right: be true to yourself
One of the pure joys of my job — teaching English on the college level — is getting to spend…
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School boards need to fight the good fight
The Haywood County School Board narrowly voted (5 to 4, with Chairman Chuck Francis breaking a tie) to contribute money…
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Macon leaders should reconsider stance on wilderness
To the Editor: The Nantahala Hiking Club requests that Macon County commissioners reconsider or rescind the resolution passed on July…
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Going ‘all in’ on free speech takes backbone
I watched world leaders with arms linked lead a march of about 1.5 million people in Paris to commemorate the…
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We have to close the widening gap
To the Editor: About 10 years ago I said to a client of mine perhaps the most outrageous thing I’ve…
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New animal shelter is long overdue
To the Editor: I was happy to read the article about the need for a new animal shelter in Haywood…
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Some successional habitat a good thing
To the Editor: The recent announcement by the U.S. Forest Service of more potential logging in the new forest management…
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Time to break the holiday laws of inertia
Two miserable characters — the larger one in a terry cloth bathrobe and fleece pajama bottoms, the smaller one in…
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Canary Coalition works to help WNC
By Thomas Crowe • Guest Columnist In case you didn't know it, right here in our midst we have a gem…
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Time to eschew meat products
To the Editor: It’s time for New Year’s resolutions, particularly those about our health. Although gun violence remains the leading…
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Time for appointed tax collector in Haywood
To the Editor: As we approach the year 2015, I appeal to the decision makers of Haywood County to take…
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The only lesson may be that there is no lesson
One of my wife’s childhood friends lives near Wilmington. Her daughter, a senior at Appalachian State, died last week in…
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Real vs. fake facts, and knowing the difference
To the Editor: Denying facts because they conflict with a belief is a survival tactic for the human race. We…
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All are welcome at Pigeon Center
To the Editor: An article in the Dec. 17-23 issue of The Smoky Mountain News states that the Pigeon Center…
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Lonely this Christmas? Hire an old-time hermit
Serendipity: an aptitude for making significant discoveries by accident. I have always loved that word, and I have had numerous…
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Somehow, I was meant to be right here
By Laura Amour • Guest Columnist “The mountains attract seekers.” That comment was made by a cherished friend that I have…
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Board games – most of the time – are a fun holiday tradition
We’re all at home, on vacation at last. Ella Fitzgerald is wishing us a swinging Christmas, as she does every…
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Faster than thought: two book covers
By Steve Ellis • Guest Columnist As we leave this political season, which has been nasty, brutal and long, I’d…
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This is no time to devalue our wild heritage
By Bill McLarney • Guest Columnist We humans are highly skilled and devilishly clever. We can create ball fields, schools,…
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Letter writer needs help connecting the dots
To the Editor: I certainly hope Santa brings Bob Wilson a “Connect the Dots” book — he could use the…
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Time for many to relearn tolerance
To the Editor: The letter “Democrats hurting African Americans” (SMN, December 3) confuses race with economics. The implication that Democrats…
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Plutocrats drive modern GOP agenda
To the Editor: It’s amusing to hear Republicans and other reactionaries describe Democrats and the Democratic Party. Contrary to their fiction-based…
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What do people really want?
Dr. Graeme Potter • Guest Columnist As one of the practicing, board-certified OB/GYNs in the community who provide prenatal care, I’ve…
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Hard to believe that it has been 14 years
I am in my office between classes, eating egg drop soup out of a little plastic container with a white…
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Democrats hurting African Americans
To the Editor: Kudos to Bruce Gardner whose wise comments appeared in the Nov. 26 Opinion section of The Smoky…
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Ronald Reagan was an economic powerhouse
To the Editor: Even his critics agree that Ronald Regan did great things for the U.S. economy. Just look at…
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Bigger not better when it comes to health care
To the Editor: My husband’s recent illness caused me to have several strong reactions regarding medical care at Haywood Regional…
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Watching grief from across the street
By Melanie Threlkeld McConnell • Guest Columnist He usually arrives in the late afternoon, always before dinner time, and he doesn’t…
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Students are searching for a good life
My seniors are writing letters to themselves today, an activity I have students do every year just before the holidays.…
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The meaningful moments that make memories
Moments, mostly the ones unplanned, are the stuff of important and lasting life memories. We had a great Thanksgiving day…
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Old Democratic Party is just a memory
To the Editor: For the most part, family traditions have been important in helping to bind families together. There are…
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Ebola nothing compared to gun violence
To the Editor: News has recently come of the death of a second ebola victim on U.S. soil — a doctor…
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Obama plan sticks it to legal immigrants
To the Editor: If Editor Scott McLeod thinks that Obama is giving the finger to the GOP with his amnesty for illegals,…
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Social problems permeate classrooms
One in 30 American children are homeless, and, overwhelmingly, the two most common causes are economics and parental abuse. That’s…
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Sorry, I don’t buy meat out of the back of a truck
I cannot take a nap, at least not on purpose. Whenever I try, I twist and turn as if my…
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Erasing ignorance expands opportunities
By Deborah Miles • Guest Columnist As the Director of the Center for Diversity Education, I and other educators have been…
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Don’t make sophs live on campus
To the Editor: First, let me say that I greatly respect Dr. Sam Miller and the administration at Western Carolina…
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Junaluskans should pay for upgrades
To the Editor: Your opinion piece a few months back, “Changing mind now won’t undo the damage,” left out a…
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A briefcase of possibilities
I grade about 2,000 essays a year. I do so because I am a high school English teacher, and because…
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Obama poised to give the GOP the finger
Just as President Obama seems poised to sign an executive order preventing the deportation of up to 5 million illegal…
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SMN editor lacks journalist ethics
To the Editor: Journalists like Scott McLeod, SMN Editor, usually follow a code of ethics that includes fairness and impartiality…
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