Another deadline – not a problem
Everywhere I go, I get the same question: “How do you do it? How do you find the time and…
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In truth, boating won’t harm the Chattooga
By Bruce Hare • Guest Columnist I would like to respond to Mr. James Costa’s letter (March 14, The Smoky…
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Initiative puts a new face on an important issue
Being environmentally conscious has become mainstream, but we still have a long way to go before mankind figures out how…
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Giving up too much for fear
There’s been a lot of discussion about the attack on the student in the cafeteria of Tuscola High School a…
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A mother’s remedy for shark attacks
By Stephanie Wampler It was one of those days .... One of those days when an unnecessarily shrill alarm clock…
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Contacting my hirsute love
Back in the early 1950s when Western Carolina University was still Western Carolina Teachers College, I got a crush on…
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A new approach to smart growth
“What we’re trying to do here is reduce the impact of development. That’s really what conservation is, the wise use…
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Protecting the best of mountain culture
“The highest form of morality is not to feel at home in one’s own home.” “What has become alien to…
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High time for a new morning ritual
I don’t wear a watch. Why should I? Everywhere I look, I see the time of day. In fact, no…
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Upper Chattooga River will suffer from boating
By James Costa • Guest Columnist There has been much discussion in recent weeks regarding the notion of opening the…
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Tax policy can help save rural land
By Susan Ervin • Guest Columnist The recent tax revaluations in Macon County have many people worried — not just…
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Easley’s budget goes wrong way on lottery
Gov. Mike Easley’s proposed budget would decrease the portion of lottery proceeds going to education — before legislators have a…
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The day Uncle Curtis’ rabbits did the town
By Carl Iobst Well if this don’t beat all. Over in eastern Germany where lederhosen, apple strudel, and skinheads are…
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Moratorium will preserve building industry, not destroy it
The Jackson County commissioners should move forward with their temporary subdivision moratorium, notwithstanding all the concerns that have been raised…
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Now what will the wagging tongues talk about?
Jack Cox and Kayden Zollinger (soon to be Cox, pending paperwork) are proud — and relieved — to announce the…
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Tribe, unlike Google and others, isn’t asking for a handout
By David Redman • Guest Columnist There is absolutely no doubt about the economic impact the Eastern Band of Cherokee…
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Common goal is the same – a thriving downtown
Downtown Sylva is a special place. The events of the last couple of months only reinforce that fact, and so…
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Ask not what your county can do for you
Now is the time for all good men and women to come to the aid of their county. Ask not…
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Tipping one back with Baby
By Carl Iobst Gee, what’ll they think of next. In Olympia, the capital of Washington state, there’s a state representative…
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Technology can help us beat global warming
By Doug Wingier • Guest Columnist We American consumers are richer than most in the world, and as voters more…
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Harrah’s success should prompt state to allow live dealers
Gambling at the Harrah’s casino in Cherokee is wildly successful. That success — and the state’s own actions — makes…
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A real-life love story – sort of
It’s an old story, the only one worth telling, really, especially here on Valentine’s Day. It’s a love story, the…
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Jackson leaders take a bold – and wise – step
Jackson County took the first step this week to ban new subdivisions until it can write an ordinance to control…
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A better future for the Pigeon
Few rivers have been the focus of as much controversy over the last century as the Pigeon, a fact that…
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Remembering the spirit of Saide Luck
I grew up thinking that libraries had a lot in common with churches. I guess I need to explain that.
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Filling in the blanks ain’t always easy
When my nephew came walking in with a letter from one of our state’s universities, he handled it like something…
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Encountering my own inner goddess
By Stephanie Wampler I begin this article with a momentous announcement. This announcement will, I think, bring a general feeling of…
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We’re all special, according to Time
When I saw that I had been named Time magazine’s “Person of the Year,” the first thing I felt like…
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County must take role in new Jackson EDC
The business sector in Jackson County will benefit from the renewed efforts to establish a working Economic Development Commission.
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Overcoming a dysfunctional relationship
Haywood Regional Medical Center, the entire medical community and its volunteer board of directors have some work to do. That…
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Suffering through a fever to find the holiday spirit
Sometime before daylight on the day before Christmas Eve, Tammy and I were gently nudged out of sleep by a…
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Hopeful thinking for the coming year
New Year’s resolutions? Don’t believe in most of them, especially those that are akin to a miracle diet or those…
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Abandoned library 06
Well I just received a hurriedly written letter from 2006. (It was on a page torn from a Gideon Bible).…
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Reality, outcomes and education spending
This deserves emphasis, given the central role that public education plays in North Carolina political debate: our schools have vastly…
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It is a sad day, indeed
Thursday night, the Haywood Regional Medical Center Board chose to breach the hospital’s contract with Haywood Emergency Physicians rather than…
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Give the lasting gift of independent media
Several years ago, as Christmas approached, I remember my youngest daughter saying, “I can’t imagine what I want for Christmas;…
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Selling national forest land is just a bad idea
The proposed sale of U.S. Forest Service land to find money for counties who have lost revenue from declining timber…
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Temporary high-rise ban a wise move
The last thing Macon County — or any of the counties west of Asheville — needs is a high-rise condominium…
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Affordable college is available
By Bill Rhodarmer I read with interest a recent column in a local news publication concerning the high cost of…
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Reinstating draft could be a good thing
Jan. 20, 1961. Inauguration Day. The words that stuck in the minds and hearts of all citizens: “Ask not what…
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The joy of jogging was the eating
There was a time, about 18 years and 80 pounds ago, that I actually enjoyed jogging. I was never exactly…
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Sylva’s elected leaders should take the lead
Downtown Sylva Association members are doing all the legwork on discussing the creation of a special downtown taxing district. At…
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Backroom deals should all just go away
In the years I’ve been going to Swain County, David Monteith has emerged as a barometer of sorts. One may…
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A Christmas swap shop atop a mountain – now that’s the spirit
Listen! Did you hear that? I’ve been hearing it for weeks now, the faint but steadily growing whisper of something…
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The meaning of this one escapes me
When tragedy strikes and someone we know is suddenly gone, we are still compelled to go looking for them in…
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Haywood slope law not as good as it could be
Here’s the main problem with the slope development ordinance passed last week by Haywood County commissioners: it wasn’t the ordinance…
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What the system needs now
By Mark Jaben In an earlier column, I discussed whether cutting costs should be the underlying motive for our health…
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A prime time for North Shore debate to end
It’s time to end this debate.With another pro-settlement county board, the election of Swain Count native and pro-settlement congressman Heath…
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Memories prevent me from celebrating Veterans Day
By Jim Joyce In five hours and twenty minutes it will be midnight and Veterans Day 2006 will be over.…
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