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Bob Plott will discuss his newest book, Colorful Characters of the Great Smoky Mountains, at 3 p.m. on Jan. 14 at Blue Ridge Books.
Plott is a North Carolina native who can trace his family roots in the Old North State back to 1750, when his great-great-great-grandfather Johannes Plott arrived here with five of the family hunting dogs. These dogs would later become renowned as the premier big game hunting dog breed in America — the Plott bear hound.
Blue Ridge Books is located at 152 South Main Street in Waynesville. For more information call 828.456.6000.
The Jackson County Public Library in Sylva will host Sylva resident Curtis Blanton for an evening of storytelling and tall tales at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan.17, in the Community Room.
Always a careful listener to the tales told by friends as well as the old-timers of his parents’ and grandparents’ generation, Blanton teamed up with his boyhood friend, Jim Sellers of Sylva, to create a book of the stories they remembered from the old days. Tales from the Porch was published in 2006 and features illustrations by Sellers, with Blanton as author. Two other books followed: Fireside Tales is another collection of stories, and My Mountains, My Home, is a novel.
Blanton will tell stories and take questions from the audience. His books, which are available at the Library, will also be available for purchase at the event via City Lights Bookstore.
For more information, please call the Jackson County Public Library in Sylva at 828.586.2016.
Prayer breakfast and activities to honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Three events celebrating the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. will be held in Haywood County, organized by the Haywood County MLK Committee.
• 22nd annual Prayer Breakfast at 8 a.m. Jan. 16 in the Lambuth Inn Dining Room at Lake Junaluska. Hilliard Gibbs Jr. of the U.S. Department of Agriculture will be the featured speaker. Music will be provided by the Dellwood Baptist Church Youth Choir. Tickets for the prayer breakfast are $15 for adults and $7 for children and students.
• Pride March at 11 a.m. on Jan. 14. Starts at the Haywood County Justice Center and ends at the Pigeon Multicultural Development Center in Waynesville.
• Commemorative Service at 3 p.m. on Jan. 15 at Mt. Olive Baptist Church in Waynesville. Rev. Marion Crite of Pleasant Grove Baptist Church in Canton will preach.
828.215.0296.
WCU to host Martin Luther King Jr. celebration Jan. 16-21
Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Ed Gordon will be the keynote speaker for Western Carolina University’s annual celebration in honor of slain civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
Gordon, a veteran journalist who hosts the public affairs program “Weekly with Ed Gordon” on Black Entertainment Television, will speak at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18, in the Grandroom of A.K. Hinds University Center as part of a program sponsored by the Division of Student Affairs. The address and all King celebration events at WCU are free and open to the public.
Gordon’s experience includes serving as news anchor at BET News, host of “News and Notes with Ed Gordon” on National Public Radio, and contributor to “Dateline NBC,” “Today” and “60 Minutes II.” His awards include the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People’s Image Award and the Journalist of the Year Award from the National Association of Black Journalists.
Then on Tuesday, Jan. 17, students will re-enact King’s 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech from the UC balcony at 12:30 p.m. Attendees are encouraged to gather on the UC lawn. At 3:30 p.m., Alpha Kappa Psi fraternity members will share personal stories and discuss issues of social justice in the workforce in the UC multipurpose room. At 6 p.m., the Student Government Association Diversity Council will screen the documentary “Freedom Riders,” which chronicles the experience of a group of civil rights activists in segregated communities in 1961, followed by a discussion in the UC theater.
For more information about service activities contact the Center for Service Learning at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.227.7184. For more information about the celebration, visit www.wcu.edu/26376.asp.
Anime, or Japanese animation, returns to its regular schedule at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City with two shows a month starting this Saturday, Jan. 14.
The morning session, from 11 a.m. to 1:10 p.m., features several popular Japanese TV programs. Then, after a brief intermission, a movie will begin at 1:20 p.m. The program ends at 3 p.m.
This week’s movie combines a strong environmental message with gorgeous visuals and spectacular battle scenes. If you’ve ever been curious about Japanese animation, this is a good place to start.
The Bryson City anime club meets at the library from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on the second and fourth Saturday of each month. The next program will be Jan. 28.
The Arts Council of Macon County will sponsor a one-day basket-weaving class from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 21, in the Macon County Cooperative Extension Building.
Participants will construct a functional and decorative tote basket, with open top and distinctive sea grass accents and handles. No experience is needed. $30 fee covers all materials and instruction. Pre-register by Jan. 17 with the Arts Council.
828.524.7683 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts will feature an exhibition of photographs by author Anna Fariello during the month of January.
The photographs explore four different native cultures — the Maya, the Kuna, the Emberá and the Cherokee — and their persistence into modern times.
“Few recognize that today’s Maya still live in Central America or that the Cherokee live close to us on a fraction of their homeland,” said Fariello. The exhibition runs through Jan. 31 and is free and open to the public. A reception will be held from 5-7p.m. on Jan. 12.
Southwestern Community College offers an Associate of Fine Arts degree program at The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts. The Oconaluftee Institute for Cultural Arts is located on Highway 19 North, behind Tribal Bingo at 70 Bingo Loop in Cherokee.
828.497.3945 or on the web at southwesterncc.edu/finearts/.
Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center is offering several classes this winter. Interested participants can register online at stecoahvalleycenter.com or call the Stecoah Gallery 828.479.3364.
• Wool Rug Braiding — Saturdays, Jan. 14, 21, and 28, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. $63. Perfect class for beginners.
• Pansy Wall Hanging — Saturday, Jan. 21, 10 a.m.-3 p.m. $30.
• Knitting for Beginners — Saturdays, Feb.4, Feb. 11, 10 a.m.-1 p.m. $40.
• Quilting for Beginners — Saturdays, Feb. 11, 18, 25, 1-4 p.m. $45.
Stecoah Valley Cultural Arts Center is located in a restored 1926 schoolhouse at 121 Schoolhouse Road off Hwy 28 between Bryson City and Fontana Dam 828.479.3364 or visit www.stecoahvalleycenter.com.
Each winter the theater scene in Waynesville takes off with the opening of the Feichter Studio at Haywood Arts Regional Theater. Area actors mount six shows in 12 weeks in the intimate backstage space at the Performing Arts Center at the Shelton House.
HART has won state, regional and national awards for some of those productions. For many HART supporters, it is their favorite place to see theater. With only 65 seats and the actors within reach, it is impossible not to get involved. The shows regularly sell out, so patrons are able to make reservations any time by simply leaving a message on the box office phone.
This season the Studio kicks off with “The Oxymorons,” an improvisational comedy troupe made up of many HART veterans. The group has been in existence for a number of years and has become quite well known in Asheville. This will be their second appearance at HART, and they will open the season and close it when they return in April.
Original members Graham and Forest Livengood are joined by Strother Stingley, Sarah Felmet and others. For those not familiar with improvisational comedy, the group takes titles, words and ideas from the audience then builds a comic sketch on the spot. It requires actors with quick minds and a great sense of humor. Every performance is different.
“The Oxymorons” will perform at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Jan. 20 and 21, and at 3 p.m. on Sunday, Jan 22. Tickets are $10 for all adults and $6 for students, general admission. For reservations call the HART Box Office at 828.456.6322. All performances are in the Feichter Studio Theatre, 250 Pigeon Street, Waynesville.
The rest of the season will include, “Land’s End and Beyond” by area playwright Gary Carden, beginning Jan. 27; “Collected Stories” by Donald Margueles, beginning Feb. 10; “The Pillowman” by Martin McDonagh opens Feb. 24; a two-character musical titled “The Story of My Life” opens March 9; “The Guys” by Anne Nelson begins March 24; and the Oxymorons close it all out the weekend of April 6.
The work of late painter Pat Passlof will be the focus of a joint exhibition of the Fine Art Museum at Western Carolina University and Black Mountain College Museum and Arts Center in Asheville from Thursday, Jan. 26, through Friday, May 25.
The exhibition, which will simultaneously occupy space in the Cullowhee and Asheville venues, will open with a reception at 6 p.m. Jan. 26 at the WCU Fine Art Museum. The event is free and the public is invited. For the opening reception, the WCU College of Fine and Performing Arts is sponsoring a round-trip bus ride from Asheville to Cullowhee with an additional pickup location in Waynesville.
Art historians acknowledge Passlof as an under-recognized figure in the development of abstract expressionism, whose large canvases vibrate with unpredictable line and thick, luminous color. This long-planned retrospective is among the first since Passlof’s death from cancer in November at the age of 83, and the artist helped select the approximately 60 works represented in the months before her death.
“Pat Passlof: Selections 1948-2011” will feature work from her time as a student at Black Mountain College (where she worked closely with Willem de Kooning, Josef Albers, Buckminster Fuller, M.C. Richards and Merce Cunningham) to her early career in the 1950s cultural ferment of Manhattan to her most recent work, where she broke from her contemporaries and defined her own style as a painter.
The bus to the opening reception will leave at 5 p.m. from the Asheville Visitor Center at 36 Montford Ave., with a 5:30 p.m. pickup at the Kmart parking lot at 1209 Russ Ave. in Waynesville. The bus is scheduled to depart the WCU Fine Art Museum at 8:15 p.m. In addition to a complimentary exhibition catalogue, riders will enjoy a history of abstract expressionism in America and at Black Mountain College narrated by Drury.
Seating on the bus is limited, with registration ongoing for individuals who are supporters of WCU’s Friends of the Arts or who wish to join this initiative at the $50 “supporter level.” Reservations for the general public run from Tuesday, Jan. 17, through Monday, Jan. 23, with tickets priced at $25 per person.
Admission and parking are free. Learn more online at fineartmuseum.wcu.edu.
Catch the Spirit of Appalachia will hold a series of creative writing workshops on the second Saturday of each month from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.
The series, “Writing From The Heart,” will be held with author and publisher Amy Ammons Garza. The workshops will cover material beneficial in writing short stories, novels, articles and enhancing skills in advice, personal experience, essays and sketches, inspiration, nostalgia and humor.
In November, Catch the Spirit has a “Holiday Reception” where the writers will be involved in reading their work in a performance for the public.
The workshops are held at 29 Regal Avenue in Sylva. Cost is $35 per session — each session stands alone — and are held from 10 a.m. until 3 pm. The writers should bring their own lunch.
• Jan. 14 — Introduction to “Writing From the Heart.”
• Feb. 11—Your precious heritage.
• March 10 — Powerful beginnings/endings.
• April 14 —Writing with a purpose/plot.
• May 12 —Weaving fiction into fact.
• June 9—The 4 keys of pacing.
• July 14 — Persuade with power.
• Aug. 11— Selecting and directing your writings.
• Sept. 8 — Overview of writing from the heart.
• Oct. 13 — Run through of the performance.
• November — CSA’s Celebration of the Arts at the Jackson County Library.
828.631.4587 or www.spiritofappalachia.org.
Elementary school-aged children and their families are invited to the Macon County Art Council’s free ARTSaturday workshop from 10 a.m. until noon on Saturday, January 14, in the Macon County Public Library children’s wing.
Make-and-take projects include cottony snowman collages and snowflake and stars thank you notes. ARTSaturday always features live music by keyboardist Lionel Caynon and an activity station where families with younger children can work together. There’s no pre-registration; children should wear play clothes and come for any part of the session. Adults stay with their children.
828.524.7683 or visit www.artscouncilofmacon.org.
Anne Lough, a nationally known traditional musician with 35 years experience who is also a shape-note singer, will lead the Lunch and Learn session at Lake Junaluska’s Bethea Welcome Center at 2 p.m. on Jan. 19.
Lough, who lives in Clyde, will perform on several instruments and discuss the art of shape-note singing.
In addition to being a frequent instructor in mountain and hammered dulcimer at the prestigious John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, Lough has taught at the Swannanoa Gathering, Western Carolina Dulcimer Week, Augusta Heritage Dulcimer Week and at numerous other festivals and workshops throughout the country. She is equally at home on guitar, autoharp, mountain and hammered dulcimer.
She is also well known as an instructor and performer of traditional singing, storytelling, folklore, folk dance and the shaped-note tradition, but her repertoire ranges from classical music to old standards, show tunes and sacred music.
The public is invited. For information, call 800.222.4930, option 2.
The Western Carolina University School of Music will present a “Faculty Showcase” concert at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 17, in the recital hall of the Coulter Building.
The performance, part of a Tuesday evening concert series at WCU, will includes music by Johann Sebastian Bach, Giuseppe Torelli, Georg Philipp Telemann, Daniel Baldwin, John Musto and Roshanne Etezady.
The Jan. 17 concert will include WCU’s new choral director, Michael Lancaster, baritone voice; Eldred Spell and Linda Lancaster, flutes; Shannon Thompson, clarinet; Ian Jeffress, alto saxophone; Will Peebles, bassoon; Travis Bennett, horn; Brad Ulrich and Amy Cherry, trumpets; Daniel Cherry, trombone; and Andrew Adams and Brad Martin, piano.
Free. 828.227.7242.
The Haywood County Arts Council will host blues musician Sleepy Ralow on Jan. 15 and storyteller Lloyd Arneach on Feb. 19 at 3 p.m. at the Waynesville library as part of its Sunday series.
Ralow has played old-style country blues in the North Carolina Piedmont for more than ten years. He has played private parties, juke joints and wineries throughout the state, opening Roy Book Binder and Owen Poteat, among others.
Check out Ralow’s YouTube videos and find a list of his performance dates on Facebook.
Arneach has been telling stories across the U.S. for many years. He mixes both traditional Cherokee stories and personal stories, humorous stories and heartfelt stories to take his audience on an emotional journey.
Both events are free.
828.452.0593 or www.haywoodarts.org.
A segment of the Jackson County variety show “Liars Bench” will be shown on WMYA My40 at 2 p.m. on Jan. 15.
The show was filmed by Carl White, a Charlotte-based journalist whose regular shows are called “Living in the Carolinas.”
The Liars Bench, billed as a Southern Appalachian variety show, has featured several regional artists at previous performances including storytelling by Gary Carden and Lloyd Arneach, poetry by Kathryn Stripling Byer, and other performers such as Barbara Duncan, Paul Iarussi, and Dave Waldrop. The Liars Bench was created in summer 2010 by Carden to promote Southern Appalachian storytelling, music, poetry, drama and folk art.
To the Editor:
Cecil Bothwell is running for U.S. Congress in Western Northern Carolina. He is looking to unseat the conservative pro-corporate Blue Dog Democrat Heath Shuler in the next Democratic Party Primary to be held on May 8.
This is a rare opportunity for the people of Western North Carolina to elect an honest and forward-thinking progressive representative who is not beholding to the corrupt influence of corporations over politicians.
Mr Bothwell represents those of us in this country who are not satisfied with the status quo and believe that our government has a moral obligation to serve its people first and not the financial desires of the few and powerful.
Mr Shuler represents the opposite philosophy. I strongly urge everyone truly concerned with the deep problems facing our children in the very near future to put some action behind their words and complaints and get involved in Cecil’s campaign. Think bold. Vote bold. Act bold.
Stack Kenny
Asheville
To the Editor:
We have been hearing much about taxing the rich more in order to help our debt problem, and yet if you look at the statistics, even if we taxed and took “all” the money and profit away from corporations and the rich, we could only fund our country for about one year. Then, what would be the unintended consequences of the “rich” with no profit and no money?
Our debt is growing at a rate that cannot be sustained, and we cannot continue on with the current tax code. All politicians are playing games with the tax issue because they have their favored lobbyists from big corporations and the wealthy who donate to their campaigns. Money comes pouring in whenever a bill is up that will make the big corporate guys’ lives too structured. So, how do we make a difference?
Grassroots activism starting locally is a good start and a way to make a difference. We, as Americans, cannot continue to turn our heads away from the problem, because the people in power will continue to run amok, worsening America’s debt and disparity among citizens.
What America desperately needs is major tax reform. Many people see this and are in support, but the big guys like hiding the pea and have attorneys working against reform of any kind. The Fair Tax is a step in the right direction for tax reform, where each and every citizen with a Social Security number gets a prebate in the amount of defined poverty level. Income is not taxed at your employer, we would do away with the current tax system, and we would stop all the complicated tax filings that most Americans find hard to understand. Savings are not taxed, thereby encouraging more to save. Capital gains and the death tax would go away! What this would eliminate is the double and sometimes triple taxation on goods and income that is in place now.
We would all be taxed on consumption at a rate set by Congress. Hence, those who have excess money to spend would pay more (i.e., those who can afford to buy Porches, airplanes, yachts, brand new large homes).
Taxes would be collected at each state and sent to Washington, and the system is already in place for a smooth change. Don’t forget the prebate, which each citizen would receive, helping those who are most in need and paying for most of their taxes owed. State and local taxes would most likely stay the same, but some states have also implemented a system similar to the Fair Tax. Americans would be keenly aware of any significant upward change to the rate, and the people would speak up!
There is much more to this, and I urge you to go to www.fairtax.org and take a look and call. Also, take a look at the Flat Tax, the similar but opposing idea. Both have merit.
There are already 57 senators who have signed on to this idea, but I can tell you there are people with big money who want the status quo to remain, so they can hide their money under myriad loopholes and pay far less than their share. Lobbyists are alive and well fighting this change. If we simply stay with the same tax system, those with the big money will continue to find the loopholes, as our system benefits them the most. We must make the lives of Americans easier and fairer with a clear way of taxation!
Let’s get on with real change in Washington and stop the smoke and mirrors game that is currently blinding our citizens. Please do some research into this and contact your congressional members in support of major tax reform.
This real change will help America and all her citizens!
Sonja Thompson,
Franklin
To the Editor:
My grandmother always told me that, “nothing good happens after midnight.” I never quite grasped why until last week. While the vast majority of North Carolinians were sleeping, the radical Republican-controlled legislature was at it again. With zero notice and disallowing debate for a record 35th time this year, Republicans in the legislature convened at 12:45 a.m. to remove the N.C. Association of Educators ability to have a dues check-off payroll deduction.
Why would they convene a post-midnight special session to attack school teachers? Simply, they saw an opportunity. With Rep. Womble in critical but stable condition after a tragic accident; and after Rep. William Wainwright had to excuse himself due to a serious illness; Speaker Thom Tillis could exploit their absence for an advantage albeit completely immoral. Constitutionality aside, no reasonable person would say convening a special midnight session in this manner is honest.
Rob Christensen has watched and/or covered every NC legislature since 1977, and said “I’ve never seen anything quite like last week’s hijinks.”
Last year, Speaker Tillis said that “[Republicans] are living up to their commitment to be more transparent.” How is this transparent? These are the exact antics that anger voters to the point of apathy. As for alleging that Democrats did the same thing when they were in power, is at the outset irrelevant; furthermore, with all the previous legislations reticence they never pulled off something this egregious.
Republican Rep. Tim Moore said at 1:05 a.m., “Whenever the will of the majority is to pass legislation without further delay, we should move forward.” This was the same tactic used to pass the job-killing budget; and leaves North Carolinians sleeping with one eye open when the lights are on at the General Assembly.
Rep. Tillis, the John Locke Foundation, Civitas, and all the other people/organizations with allegiances to Art Pope have came out against the coverage of the midnight session. Seems they like condemning journalists for accurately describing the Republican’s actions. Speaker Tillis seems especially upset over it; so much so he wrote a letter to his supporters and cancelled a newspaper subscription.
The sensible people in North Carolina didn’t vote for this vindictive and unprecedented way of legislating. The budget deficit in North Carolina is an extremely pressing issue, but in addition to that, is the growing leadership, morality, and priority deficit seen in our General Assembly. Our state and its people deserve better. As Elvis Presley sang it best, “funny how things have a way of looking so much brighter in the day light.”
Justin Conley
Franklin native
Sid’s on Main opened for business last Friday in Canton.
The restaurant is housed within the Imperial Hotel, which has been slowly renovated by former Canton mayor Pat Smathers.
The new locale has remained “steadily busy” since it opened, said owner Sid Truesdale. People were “glad we opened,” Truesdale said. “Overall, the feedback was very positive.”
The menu includes a little bit of everything — burgers, pastas, crab cakes, fish and steak, among other items.
The dining area is open from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. every day for lunch and dinner. Brunch is also served starting at 11 a.m. on Sundays. The bar portion of the restaurant remains open until at least 11 p.m. each night.
828.492.0618 or sidsonmain.com.
Teresa Smith completed her first day as the full-time executive director of the Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce Monday.
Smith previously filled in as a volunteer director for four years when the chamber suspended the job of a paid director to save money.
“I had a lot of encouragement from members of the board and different community people, and after much deliberation, I decided I would give it a try,” said Smith, who previously worked at the Maggie Valley Inn.
Smith said she hopes to set long-range goals for the chamber at its 2 p.m. meeting Thursday at Smoky Falls Lodge.
“I am sure that will be very focused toward some goal-setting,” Smith said, adding that the full-time position will allow her to be “more hands-on,” helping and promoting Maggie Valley businesses.
“We hope to be able to have a better presence,” she said.
The search committee for the position received seven applications.
“The committee felt Teresa has a working knowledge of the position and will be able to immediately assume the duties of Executive Director,” wrote Jena Sowers, manager of the chamber’s visitor center, in an email.
The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority approved a $15,000 allocation to the Maggie Valley Chamber of Commerce to cover part of the new director’s salary.
St. John’s Episcopal Church in Sylva is hosting a four-week film discussion program on the recent PBS series, “Women, War & Peace,” from 6-8 p.m. on consecutive Wednesdays beginning Jan. 18.
Film viewings will be followed by a directed discussion.
Call 828.586.8358 to participate so staff can prepare adequate materials and refreshments. For more information, visit www.stjohnssylva.com.
Republican Lt. Gov. candidate Dan Forest will be the guest speaker at a Macon County Republican Party “Meet & Greet” at 11:30 a.m. on Jan. 14 at the Boiler Room in Franklin.
Republican congressional candidates (11th Congressional District) as well as other Republican candidates will attend. This will be a great opportunity to get to know and vet candidates.
The lunch buffet is $13 (all inclusive). RSVP to Chris Murray at 828.421.2191 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
North Carolina will receive a $69.9 million grant award from the federal Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge fund to support early childhood education throughout the state.
“This award is outstanding news for our children, families and educators across North Carolina,” said U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynesville. “Investing in high-quality early education is one of the most important steps we can take to put our children on the path to success in school and in life.
Thirty-five states developed plans to increase access to high-quality early education programs. North Carolina was one of nine states to be selected for an award.
In November, Rep. Shuler and five other members of the North Carolina Congressional Delegation sent a letter to the Secretary of Education and the Secretary of Health and Human Services in strong support of North Carolina’s grant application for the Race to the Top Early Learning Challenge.
MedWest Health System is offering smoking cessation classes starting this month at three of its hospital campuses.
During the seven-week Freedom From Smoking program, participants will learn in small group settings how to overcome tobacco addiction. Classes will be held at:
• MedWest Health & Fitness Center in Clyde from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. weekly, beginning Wednesday, Jan. 18.
• MedWest-Harris Annex in Sylva from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. weekly, beginning Thursday, Jan. 19.
• MedWest-Swain Dining Room in Bryson City from noon to 1 p.m. weekly, beginning Thursday, Jan. 19.
Cost is $25 to participate. 828.452.8089 for more information or to register.
Republicans aren’t the only ones who will have a reason to head to the polls in the May primary.
While Republican voters sort out who their presidential nominee will be, Democrats have a race of their own to narrow down, although with a much-more homegrown flare.
Two well-known Waynesville men are vying for the seat soon to be vacated by long-time N.C. Rep. Phil Haire, D-Sylva. Joe Sam Queen, an architect by trade, and Danny Davis, a former District Court judge, both formally announced their candidacies this week.
The 119th House district includes all of Jackson and Swain counties, as well as Waynesville, Lake Junaluska and part of Maggie Valley in Haywood County.
The political rumor mill has been churning in the two weeks since Haire announced he would retire. But so far, only Davis and Queen have committed. No other candidates have emerged.
When it comes to politicking, Queen has plenty of experience. He served six years in the state Senate and has five elections under his belt, each of them hard-fought races. He is looking forward to what he calls “on-the-ground retail politics,” which puts him in touch with the people of the mountains.
“I like to give stump speeches and shake people’s hands and ask them for their vote,” Queen said. “I like to have some barbeques and square dances and the whole nine yards.”
Queen’s former sprawling Senate district extended as far north as Mitchell County and as far east as McDowell, making a horseshoe around Buncombe County. He became a seasoned road warrior in such a vast district. He also had to raise lots of money to campaign across so many counties, spending around $600,000 or $700,000 each race.
Queen estimates spending only a fraction of that in the House race.
“I don’t think this will be a high-dollar campaign,” Queen said.
While Davis is new to politics, he says there is no better experience than his 27 years as a District Court judge in the seven western counties.
“It is like a front row seat to the picture window of society,” Davis said of his judgeship. “I see how drugs affect families. I see what happens when they lose their job, and they start drinking, and we have to take their kids. I see what happens when they don’t have enough money to pay their bills or child support even though they are working two or three jobs.”
As a judge, Davis couldn’t make position statements or voice concerns over the issues that he felt affected the people of Western North Carolina. Now, he will finally be able to speak out, and his ideas for improving the lives of people and fixing the inner workings of government are voluminous enough for a dissertation, he said.
“I can finally say this is what we need to do and how we need to help these folks,” Davis said.
Davis said he had already been thinking about running when Haire retired.
Davis contends that he is better known in the district than Queen, since he served not only in Haywood but also Jackson and Swain as a judge for so many years.
Queen disagrees, saying he is equally well known outside Haywood.
“I am a homegrown mountain fellow,” Queen said. “I have as strong a name recognition as any politician in the west. I have the polling data to show it.”
Besides, the district is his “own backyard,” compared to the sprawling Senate district he had to work.
Queen, 61, and Davis, 58, both played up their ties to the region. Both men come from a long Haywood County lineage. The Davis and Queen names are both established and prominent Haywood families
Any other takers?
For now, Davis and Queen seem to have the primary race to themselves. Many initially looked to Troy Burns from Bryson City as a possible candidate, as he ran against Haire 10 years ago. But, Burns said this week he has decided not to run. Burns said both Davis and Queen called him over the past few days to find out where he stood on a possible candidacy.
“It is a mutual thing out of respect,” Burns said of his decision not to run.
From Jackson County, the chairman of the county Democratic Party Brian McMahan was also bandied about as a possible candidate, but McMahan said he won’t be running. He has a one-year-old and doesn’t want to spend the time away from home.
The primary between Queen and Davis could prove a tougher battle than the general election in November.
Democrats outnumber Republicans nearly 2 to 1 in the district. So on paper at least, whoever wins the Democratic primary could have an advantage over their Republican opponent in November.
“It is a solid Democratic seat,” Queen said.
Davis, however, isn’t so sure.
“I don’t think they are going to concede this seat,” Davis said of Republicans. “In this day in time, I don’t think it can be politics as usual. I think you are going to have to work very hard to retain the Democratic votes you have.”
Only one Republican has formerly announced his candidacy. Mike Clampitt of Bryson City stepped up to run within hours of Haire’s announcement.
Maybe it’s pie in the sky, but the right ingredients could transform South Main Street into a thriving commercial district. A consultant with LaQuatra Bonci has mapped out a new look for the corridor. The plan banks on new-found aesthetic appeal to create a sense of place, which in turn will make South Main a destination drawing both stores and shoppers.
Problem: Dilapidated buildings, shuttered storeffronts.
Challenge: The prospect of new commercial development is hindered by the ugly appearance and asphalt overload.
Solution: “Green the corridor” with street trees and a planted median.
Problem: How many lanes?
Challenge: The wider the road, the more land that gets lopped off the front of adjacent properties. The resulting lot could be too small to fit anything on. But too few lanes may not support future traffic should it increase substantially.
Solution: Two lanes, except the 0.4-mile stretch in front of Super Walmart between Allens Creek and Hyatt Creek.
Problem: Unfriendly for pedestrians
Challenge: Pedestrian activity can be a magnet for commercial revitalization.
Solution: Create a pedestrian boulevard by installing cross walks, sidewalks and bike lanes.
Problem: Traffic passes through without stopping on its way from point A to point B.
Challenge: South Main lacks a sense of place, giving motorists no reason to slow down or to see South Main as a destination.
Solution: An entrance feature, such as public art piece, to set the stage, along with pedestrian scale lighting and benches.
Problem: Intersections
Challenge: Stoplights require extra turning lanes for cars to queue up in while waiting for the light to change, but the extra turn lanes mean more asphalt and run counter to the street’s new character.
Solution: Use roundabouts instead, which do double duty as a convenient U-turn spot, since the street would have medians preventing left turns in and out of businesses.
The fourth-annual Group Seed Order will take place at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Jackson Street in Sylva on Saturday, Jan. 14, between 9 a.m. and noon.
The Jackson County Farmers Market sponsors this seed-ordering event. The volume from collectively ordering as a group helps reduce costs.
Seeds will be ordered from Fedco Seeds and Johnny’s Selected Seeds, two of the leading seed companies specializing in vegetables that have been chosen for taste. Flower, herb and cover crop seeds, as well as onion transplants and sweet potato slips can be ordered.
Catalogs for Fedco and Johnny’s Seeds with descriptions and prices will be on hand at the ordering event. Catalogs are also available on-line at www.fedcoseeds.com and www.johnnyseeds.com.
Each order needs to be submitted on an order form and be paid for by cash or check on Jan. 14. The seeds will arrive in about three weeks. Those who placed an order will be notified about the date and time to pick up their orders.
“By ordering as a group we can qualified for a 24 percent discount with Fedco and save a lot by ordering in larger quantities,” said Ron Arps, an organizer for the event. “We can also get varieties that are not available locally.”
People who want to start a new garden this year are encouraged to place an order. Many experienced gardeners will be there to give help and advice.
828.586.5478.
Volunteers are needed at Gorges State Park in Sapphire to help build and maintain trails, with work parties scheduled weekly on Saturdays from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m., weather permitting.
The new state park is located on the Jackson-Transylvania county line. A master plan for Gorges is currently being developed, including a new visitor center, two picnic facilities and a maintenance complex under construction. Volunteers are needed to help build a new trail connecting two picnic shelters between Upper Bearwallow Falls and Gorges Overlook. Existing trails need volunteer hands for maintenance, too.
Volunteers should bring their own gloves. Drinking water and hand tools will be provided. Volunteers will meet at the Gorges State Park office, located at 17762 Rosman Highway (U.S. 64) in Sapphire. Participants must be at least 16 years old, in good health, and capable of performing physical labor on mountainous terrain. Pre-registration is not required.
828.966.9099.
Volunteer organizations have donated labor and money to improve cooking and sleeping quarters for campers, while also reducing potential problems with black bears in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
The groups involved were the Friends of the Smokies, the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the Smoky Mountains Hiking Club. They have been working over the past decade to rebuild every backpacker trail shelter in the park. This shelter marked the last one. Twelve of the park’s 15 backcountry shelters are located on the Appalachian Trail.
Reconstruction at the Laurel Gap trail shelter began in September, but weather prevented delivery of roofing materials by helicopter — the remote location makes packing all the supplies and building materials impossible. The volunteer crew returned the first week of December to finish roofing the shelter under the threat of winter snows.
Laurel Gap is located in North Carolina, near the intersection of the Sterling Ridge and Balsam Mountain Trails.
“As with all of the shelter projects over the years, this one required a real team effort,” said Jim Hart, President of Friends of the Smokies. “We are very grateful to all the partners and donors.”
Architect Philip Royer of Knoxville, a member of the Appalachian Trail Maintainers Committee, drew a basic blueprint for every shelter rehab project, incorporating improved natural lighting, a cooking area to separate food odors from the sleeping space, improved bunk access, new roofs and masonry repair, and drainage improvements.
Old trail shelters used to have chain link fences around them to keep bears out of backpackers’ food. The renovations have removed the unattractive fencing from all the shelters, and instead installed bear cables, which are actually more effective at keeping bears out of food by hoisting it out of reach.
Learn topnotch, competitive-level fly-fishing techniques via a filmed fly-fishing competition that took place last year here in Western North Carolina.
Local angler Paul Bourcq captured the fishermen in action and filmed interviews with them during the competition.
The 2011 U.S. National Fly Fishing Championship was held this past spring in Cherokee. In addition to fishing in tribal waters, about 60 of the nation’s top fly-fishing experts tested their angling skills along nearby stretches of water, including the Tuckasegee River below Western Carolina University and the upper and lower sections of the Nantahala River.
This marked the first time the championship was held in the Southeast.
“I worked really hard on this and am excited to show off something that to date has never been filmed,” Bourcq said of the DVD.
Go to www.ncflyfishingteam.com or www.connectthesmokies.com to pre-order. A trailer featuring his work can be found at
The N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission now allows hunting of feral swine and wild hogs at night — but hunters need a special permit. The permit is free and is available at www.ncwildlife.org. The permits are valid through March 31.
The permit does not grant access to any property. Landholders must grant permission to enter private or public property lawfully. The permit does not grant access to take feral swine on state game land.
In an effort to reduce the nuisance and invasive wild hog population, the state has made hunting laws for wild boar as liberal as possible, hoping to solicit the help of hunters to eliminate the invasive beasts. There is now no limit on the number of wild hogs, classified as feral swine, that a hunter can shoot and they can be hunted year-round.
The non-native animals compete with native wildlife and pose significant threats to the environment and agricultural operations.
As for the new night hunting rule, archery and firearm may hunt feral swine after normal shooting hours (an hour before sunrise until an hour past sunset) where local law allows; except by firearms on Sundays.
A local fly-fishing guide and recreational therapy students at Western Carolina University teamed up recently to provide a fly-fishing outing for children with autism.
Jennifer Hinton, WCU associate professor of recreational therapy, organized the event. Alex Bell, retired principal of Smoky Mountain High School and the owner of AB’s Fly Fishing Guide Service, served as “coach” on the project, working with the class throughout the semester.
Through the Adaptive Fly Fishing Institute, Bell teaches adaptive fly fishing and also teaches fellow instructors in the practice. There is limited research on adaptive fly fishing, Hinton said, but the WCU students theorized it would benefit children on the autism spectrum physically, psychologically and socially.
The fly fishing was adapted to the children’s abilities. For instance, when teaching the children to cast, the instructors asked them to aim for hula hoops on the ground rather than the more typical method of using numbers on an imaginary clock face.
“It was amazing the difference once we put down a visual cue. It improved their focus so much,” Bell said.
Autism affects the normal development of the brain in the areas of social interaction, communication skills and cognitive function, according to the National Autism Association. Individuals with autism can show marked differences — thus, they are on the “autism spectrum” — but typically they have difficulties in verbal and nonverbal communication, social interactions and leisure or play activities. The NAA reports that the disorder affects one in 150 people in the U.S. and is diagnosed four times more often in boys than girls.
In honor of the event, staff of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission stocked a section of Cullowhee Creek with about 40 brook trout from the Bobby N. Setzer State Fish Hatchery in Brevard.
“We’re here to provide angling opportunities for various people, and we were proud to step up and make that happen,” said David Deaton, a WRC fish production supervisor.
A week later, Kathy Ralston said her son Isaac was still talking about it.
“He’s looked forward to fly fishing since we moved here,” said Ralston, who with her husband, Bill, an orthopedic surgeon at MedWest Harris, and their four children relocated to Jackson County from Kansas City, Mo., in August 2010. Though it’s unusual for children on the autism spectrum, the Ralstons have always had Isaac, their oldest child, participate in group activities such as organized soccer.
But participation has gotten more difficult as Isaac has grown older and the physical and emotional disparities between Isaac and his peers have become more pronounced. Ralston and other parents expressed a desire for more recreational opportunities for their children with autism spectrum disorder, such as the fly-fishing event.
The Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy transferred 35 acres to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy and the U.S. Forest Service to protect adjacent land along the famous footpath.
Wesser Bald in Macon County was at risk of development when the Southern Appalachian conservancy trust initially purchased it in 2007. The intent was to sell the land to the Forest Service once the Forest Service attained needed funds.
“We are proud to be working with these partners to add an important sight along the AT that’s visible to a lot of people,” said SAHC’s Executive Director Carl Silverstein.
The addition of this tract, along with an adjoining 42 acres on which the land trust holds a conservation easement, closes a wide gap in a swath of contiguous Forest Service lands that were vulnerable.
In addition to providing extraordinary views, this protected land will contribute a multitude of other benefits to the ecosystems of the Little Tennessee River watershed, the Nantahala National Forest, and the Appalachian Trail corridor, group leaders said. The land will serve as a catalyst for the protection of significant watersheds, providing a contiguous wildlife corridor that will provide high quality wildlife habitats and ecosystems for rare plants and will assure that the land will stay pristine for generations to come.
The North Carolina Writers’ Network is now accepting submissions for its 2012 Doris Betts Fiction Prize.
The competition is named in honor of author and North Carolina native Doris Betts, a three-time winner of the Sir Walter Raleigh Award and recipient of the North Carolina Award for Literature, among many other honors.
The Doris Betts Fiction Prize awards the first-prize winner $250 and publication in the North Carolina Literary Review. Finalists will also be considered for publication.
The competition is open to any writer who is a legal resident of the state or a member of the North Carolina Writers’ Network. Submissions must be short stories that are 6,000 words or less, and only one entry is accepted per writer. The authors name should not appear on the manuscript.
Deadline for submissions is Feb. 15.
The Mountain Writers of North Carolina will meet at 1 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan.10, at Blue Ridge Books in Waynesville.
David Madden, an expert in the art of the revision process, is the guest speaker. Madden earned an M.A. at San Francisco State and attended Yale Drama School on a John Golden Fellowship.
He was Writer-in-residence at LSU from 1968 to 1992, director of the Creative Writing Program from 1992-1994, founding director of the United States Civil War Center from 1992-1999, and is now LSU Robert Penn Warren Professor of Creative Writing, Emeritus.
His best-known novel, The Suicide’s Wife, was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and made into a CBS movie. The public is welcome to attend this free event. Blue Ridge Books is located at 152 South Main Street in Waynesville.
828.456.6000.
The Marianna Black Library in Bryson City will host several youth events in the coming weeks.
The library will resume its pre-school program on Jan. 11. The program begins at 10:30 a.m. in the auditorium.
The pre-literacy skill focus for the winter story time session will be learning about compound words. Learning how compound words are created will help increase the variety of words spoken and understood thus increasing vocabulary.
There will also be a home-school meeting at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 18 in the auditorium. Parents and children are invited to attend.
Topics of discussion will include basic research skills and a book talk.
The next community music jam at the Marianna Black Library in Bryson City will be from 6 to 7:30 p.m., Jan. 5, in the library auditorium.
Anyone with a guitar, banjo, mandolin, fiddle, dulcimer — anything acoustic — is invited to join. Singers are also welcomed to join.
Larry Barnett of Grampa’s Music will facilitate the jam. Normally, Barnett starts by calling out a tune and its key signature, and the group plays it together. Then, everyone in the circle gets a chance to choose a song for the group to play.
The community jams is offered for musicians of all ages and levels of ability.
The music jams are offered to the public each first and third Thursday of the month, year-round. 828.488.3030.
The Marianna Black Library in Bryson City will play the live-action adaptation of Richard and Florence Atwater’s children’s book, “Mr. Popper’s Penguins,” at 3:30 p.m. on Jan. 10.
Jim Carrey plays a businessman who inherits a small flock of penguins and must transform his Manhattan apartment into an arctic habitat.
The library shows family movies each Tuesday at 3:30 p.m. The movies are free to the public and projected onto an 8-by-10 foot screen with a theater sound system.
The library also gives away one free movie check out voucher to each patron who attends the movie.
Popcorn, provided by the Friends of the Marianna Black Library, will be served in the library auditorium starting at 3:20 p.m.
828.488.3030.
Tickets for two Chippendales shows at Harrah’s Casino will go on sale Jan. 6.
The shirtless, bowtie-wearing performers will be at Harrah’s in Cherokee on Feb. 11 for two shows — one at 6 p.m. and another at 9 p.m.
The Chippendales dancers are part of an all-male revue. Attendees must be 21 years of age or older.
www.ticketmaster.com or 800.745.3000.
The next Second Sunday Contra Dance will be on Jan. 8. on the second floor of the old courthouse in the library in Sylva. Contra dancing will begin at 2:30 p.m. and go until 5 p.m.
Anne Marie Walters from Asheville will call the dances to the music of Out of the Woodwork.
All dances are done to live music and local musicians are invited to sit in with the band, to jam and learn how to play music for dancing.
There will also be a potluck dinner following the contra dance, starting at 5:30 p.m. Please bring a covered dish, plate, cup and cutlery and a water bottle.
No previous experience with contra dancing is necessary, and all dances will be taught and walked through before dancing. No partner is required.
Contra dancing is a form of English country dancing and uses many of the same figures as square dancing such as circles, stars and swings.
828.586.5478 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Kindermusik International, a publisher of music and movement programs, has named Lori Richards a Maestro Producer for 2011-12.
Richards is an early childhood specialist at The Music Village and teaches Kindermusik in Cullowhee and Waynesville. The Maestro Producer award recognizes excellence for a fast-growing program.
“The Kindermusik Maestro has a mission: helping children become better learners and helping parents understand how to help them reach their highest potential,” said Michael Dougherty, CEO at Kindermusik International.
She will offer classes in Cashiers beginning the week of Feb.7 for newborns to age 7, and enrollment is now open.
Richards joins the company of Maestros identified as the top 5 percent of the 5,000 licensed educators in the world who teach Kindermusik’s music and movement program.
“It is such a blessing to share the gift of music with children and to see the joy it brings them,” Richards said.
828.293.5600 or www.themusicvillage-nc.com.
B.B. King will make a pit stop at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium in Asheville on Jan.14.
All tickets must be reserved and cost $75, $49.50 and $39.50. Tickets are already on sale and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster outlets, via phone at 800.745.3000 or online at Ticketmaster.com. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the show will begin at 8 p.m.
King has one of the most identifiable guitar styles and most identifiable guitars — Lucille. He mixes traditional blues, jazz, swing and mainstream pop.
His songs include “Payin’ The Cost To Be The Boss,” “The Thrill Is Gone,” “How Blue Can You Get,” “Everyday I Have The Blues,” and “Why I Sing The Blues.”
King has had two No. 1 R&B hits and four No. 2 R&B hits. His crossover hit, 1970’s “The Thrill Is Gone,” went to No. 15 on the pop charts.
The Moody Blues will perform at Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Hotel on March 31 as part of their 32-city U.S. tour in 2012.
The tour will celebrate the 45th anniversary of their album “Days of Future Passed,” and will kick off next March 11 at Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, Fla., and continue through April 21, ending in Niagara Falls.
The band’s history spans four decades, during which they sold more than 70 million albums worldwide and received 14 platinum and gold discs. Their set list includes: “Nights In White Satin,” “Tuesday Afternoon,” “Isn’t Life Strange,” “I’m Just A Singer (In A Rock And Roll Band),” and “I Know You’re Out There Somewhere.”
“The rockers played a set that reminded the sold-out Music Hall why (The Moody Blues are) one of the most important rock acts to ever come out of the U.K.,” wrote the New York Times.
Tickets are currently on sale at ticketmaster.com, and prices range from $45 to $75.
800.745.3000.
Eve Haslam and Satin Steel Jazz will perform at Cafe 50 restaurant on Main Street in Waynesville at 7 p.m., Jan. 19.
Haslam is a native of New York City and began singing at the age of 7. In 2007, she moved to Asheville where she joined jazz musicians Zack Page (bass), Brian Felix (piano) and Justin Watts (drums) to form the group known as Eve Haslam and Satin Steel Jazz.
The band currently appears at various locations in Asheville every Friday night.
Among Eve’s recordings are “Simply Me,” “Sunday’s Garden,” and “Book of Changes.”
“Jazz is here to stay in the mountains and I intend to be a part of it for a long time down the road,” Haslam said.
Cafe 50 is hosting this one-time event sponsored by the Haywood County Arts Council and local dentist John Highsmith and his wife.
“Although we’ve presented live music at our other venues, this’ll be the first time we’ve ever tried it here,” said Cafe 50 co-owner Vinnie Schudde. “Our room is both cozy and intimate — just like eating in your own, private dining room. Our acoustics have proven excellent, and we’re most excited to showcase this fine band as part of our dinner offering.”
The entire cost for the dinner and entertainment is $50 per person — half of which can be treated as a tax deduction.
828.452.0593.
Photographer Rachael Bliss will showcase photos at Rosetta’s on Broadway in Asheville.
The photos tell the story of a small bio-dynamic farm with a little more than three acres that helps support a milk cow, nearly 100 chickens, three goats, three cats, a dog and two adults.
Bliss, who has dabbled in photography since her college years at the University of Iowa, started taking her hobby seriously about two years ago and has since shown her work at First Congregational United Church of Christ and at Old Europe Cafe in Asheville. She also coordinated the photo contest for the Asheville Mushroom Club last year.
The show will be on display from Jan. 3 through Jan. 28. The photos will be available for purchase.
An open house will be held Jan. 8 at Rosetta’s from 7 to 8:30 p.m., and Bliss will be on hand to answer questions.
The Groovy Movie Club will host its first screening of the new year at 7 p.m. on Jan. 6. The Haywood County group will show the Sundance Film Festival’s 2011 Audience Award Winner for Documentary “Buck.”
Buck, directed by Cindy Meehl, is about the power of non-violence and horse trainer Buck Brannaman, who uses principles of respect and trust to tame horses. Robert Redford consulted Brannaman while shooting his feature film The Horse Whisperer. Audience members at Sundance remarked that it was the best movie they had seen there in 10 years.
The Groovy Movie Club meets once a month at 6:15 p.m. to share a mostly organic pot-luck dinner, and the film begins at 7 p.m., with a discussion following. It meets at Buffy Queen’s home in Dellwood.
The Groovy Movie Club is beginning its sixth year of presenting films, both documentary and feature, with a message.
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 828.454.5949.
Voices in the Laurel auditions for the 2012 winter season continue at the First Baptist Church, 100 S. Main St., in Waynesville.
Singers in grades one through 12 are welcome to audition.
Voices in the Laurel is a youth choral group that has weekly rehearsals in Waynesville and numerous performances throughout the season.
The choir includes singers from four area counties and has sung around the world, including The National Cathedral, Washington, D.C.; St. Patrick’s Cathedral in Manhattan; Westminster Abbey, London; Chartres Cathedral, France; and with Ronnie Milsap at the Grand Ole Opry in Nashville.
Treble Makers is for first- and second-grade singers. Concert Choir includes singers in third through fifth grades, and Chamber Choir is for students in grades six through 12.
Call 828.734.8413 or 828.734.9163 for an audition. www.voicesinthelaurel.org.
Hank Shuler has opened a new clay studio in Oak Grove.
Having retired from Southwestern Community College two years ago, Shuler and her husband, Bruce, decided to design and build the studio.
“It’s been great fun working with Bruce again. Our individual careers took us in different directions so much of the time,” Shuler said.
Shuler’s clay creations range from functional to decorative.
“I guess I really have a short attention span. I enjoy using the wheel and turning more functional pieces, pieces for the kitchen and dining room table,” Shuler said. “But, I also enjoy creating sculpture and the fun of firing in the Japanese raku tradition.”
Shuler’s last five years with the college were spent in SCC’s Swain Center creating a Heritage Arts Program that featured a ceramic component. Her other activities since retirement include the creation of the Smoky Mountain Clay Guild.
“There are a lot of wonderful potters in the region and more and more are coming out of SCC, WCU, and Haywood Community College all the time,” she said. “North Carolina is the pottery capital of the USA and a number of us feel that this region can benefit from the potters joining together to attract marketing attention.
The studio and gallery are open to visitors by appointment.
828.369.7186 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
To the Editor:
Are you sickened by the millions of dollars spent to elect politicians at a time when too many of our citizens are hungry? Did you get disgusted by the incessant TV ads during the 2008 election season? Well, it’s already started again, and it’s going to get much worse. In 2008, we saw ads from candidates ending with, “I’m Joe Good Guy, and I approved this message.” We’ll still have those, but this year will bring increasingly more and nastier ads bashing the candidates’ opponents using out-of-context quotes, misleading statements, and downright lies. They will end with “Noble Sounding Organization is responsible for the content of this message.” These Noble Sounding Organizations are deep-pocketed special interest groups, corporations, and filthy rich people. They could even be foreign corporations or governments, since the law does not require the organizations to disclose their donors.
The reason for this barrage is the 2010 decision by five ultra-conservative activist members of the Supreme Court who ruled that corporations are people and money is speech, overturning a century-old ban on corporate campaign contributions. This brought on the rise of super Political Action Committees which can raise unlimited amounts of money from undisclosed donors and funnel it into our political process. These super PACs are “supposed” to be independent from the candidates, allowing the candidates to deny personal responsibility for the nastiness. In actuality, they are run by relatives or close associates of the candidates.
We got a bitter taste of this right here during the 2010 election. It has been reported that PACs spent $1 million to defeat incumbent State Sen. John Snow, D-Murphy. Remember the ad portraying Sen. Snow as a spendthrift for voting to build a pier with an aquarium on the coast? What the ad didn’t tell you is that every other member of the North Carolina legislature — Republicans and Democrats — voted for the pier. This is just one example of the many misleading PAC ads from the 2010 election.
Bills have been introduced in the U.S. Senate and House proposing a constitutional amendment to make it clear that corporations are not entitled to the same constitutional rights as people and allow Congress and state legislatures to regulate the role of corporations in the election process.
There will be actions supporting the call for a constitutional amendment all over the country on Jan. 21, the second anniversary of the Supreme Court decision. Look for one near you. And during this election season, be aware that the PACs producing misleading ads and mailers don’t care about our welfare, just about manipulating us. They think we are stupid. Don’t let our democracy be bought out from under us.
Carole Larivee
Waynesville
By Kate Queen • Guest Columnist
At the beginning of December, Mountain Medical Associates, an established, multi-specialty internal medicine practice in Clyde, joined the MedWest Physician Network. Our new affiliation with MedWest is a continuation of Mountain Medical Associates’ longstanding commitment to provide high-quality healthcare in this community.
Mountain Medical Associates grew out of a practice founded in 1964 by Dr. Ralph Feichter, a Haywood County native whose medical training included work at the Mayo Clinic. That experience inspired him to develop a clinic here where physicians could collaborate to meet the needs of patients with complex medical problems, a model we believe has enhanced care as well as physician satisfaction.
Over the past nearly 50 years, Mountain Medical Associates has supported community healthcare initiatives throughout Haywood County. Dr. Feichter led the effort to relocate the hospital to its current central location in Clyde. The members of Mountain Medical Associates also played key roles in the development of the hospital Health and Fitness Center and the Osteoporosis Center, and continue to strive to build innovative programs on the hospital campus.
Mountain Medical Associates has 12 providers who specialize in internal medicine, pulmonary medicine, gastroenterology, rheumatology and neurology. The current environment for recruiting new physicians with the level of knowledge and training we believe our patients deserve is challenging. Most recently trained physicians want the benefits of a formal affiliation with a health care system.
Becoming part of the MedWest Physician Network will help to attract high-quality health practitioners to serve this region and secure the presence of a multispecialty practice like ours in this community.
One of the other benefits to becoming part of the MedWest Physician Network will be the opportunity to use a unified electronic medical record system which will enhance our ability to offer seamless care and avoid the fragmented transfer of information and at times unnecessary duplication of testing that unfortunately has been part of usual care in this country
We want to assure our patients that our commitment to them will not change and that we will all continue to provide care in our current long-term location. We are welcoming patients seeking internal medicine providers and will continue to embrace our commitment to securing excellent health care for all of Haywood County.
(Dr. Kate T. Queen, M.D. has practiced rheumatology at Mountain Medical Associates for 25 years. She received her M.D. from the University of North Carolina in Chapel Hill where she also did her residency in the Department of Medicine. Call 828.452.0331 or visit www.mountainmedicalassociates.com for more about the practice.)
