Although rational people can (and obviously do) differ on a topic as complex as utility-scale wind power in Western North Carolina, some of the recent rhetoric has been less than rational. I've heard supporters of ridge-top wind turbines cast themselves as “real environmentalists” who are somehow superior to mere “conservationists," standing John Muir's epic battle … Read more
I agree with many of the other [online commenters]: It’s absolutely inexcusable that a local company and/or artist was not employed to do this job. It almost certainly would have been cheaper, would have looked better and lasted longer, would have put money into the local economy, and would have been far easier to fix … Read more
Last month, one of [the Asheville city] bus drivers looked straight at me and went off and left anyway. [The Asheville Transit Authority] gave me a monthly pass for having to walk three and a half hours home. I don't think I ever said thank you. I don't think I did. Second, the buses are … Read more
When did it become okay to attack the unemployed? Lately it seems that unemployed Americans are under constant attack from Republicans. Sitting Senators, candidates for the Senate and House and [other] right-wing leaders are making the claim that people who don't have a job are lazy. As if unemployment wasn't hard enough, Americans most in … Read more
Prejudice is destructive to the fabric of our community. It is appalling that, on the one hand, Mountain Xpress can write such a powerful piece exposing the past prejudice of deeply rooted racism in “Back to Summerlane” [July 28 Xpress] and, in the same issue, promote such blatant prejudice against people who are homeless [in … Read more
In the midst of summer’s abundance, child hunger is actually at its worst. Low-income families who rely on school meal programs to nourish their children during the school year are struggling to feed their families. Some of these children are able to access meals at summer feeding programs, but the vast majority — almost 92 … Read more
Regarding Judith Hallock's letter [“No Nukes: Asheville Resident Explains Why She Protested at Oak Ridge, July 28, Xpress]: While I sincerely respect her patriotism, dedication to [the] cause and [the] courage of conviction demonstrated by facing the shame and inconvenience of arrest and prosecution (in a huge constitutional compromise, considering the supposed right to assemble … Read more
The least restrictive environment policy of the early 1990s, as interpreted and implemented by the principals and boards of education in our public schools, has effectively prevented teaching and learning in most of the classrooms of our country for nearly 20 years now. This policy put students who could not and/or would not behave/learn into … Read more
Buncombe County Board of Commissioners Aug. 3 meeting State grant funds Woodfin sidewalk YMI gears up for Goombay! Veterans committee presents photo collage County seeks transportation grant In their first meeting in more than a month, the Buncombe County commissioners plowed through a laundry list of agenda items that generated little controversy or even discussion. … Read more
[Editor’s update: Randy Bassham, executive director of MAYSA, brought Xpress photocopies of cancelled checks that show that band members and staffers were paid on Sept. 24, 2010, six weeks after the publication of the story below. The checks show that a total of $6,640 was paid out from Bassham to those involved in the July … Read more
