Heath Shuler [is] wasting our time in Washington! As a voter for him this past November, I am extremely upset at his recent vote on a resolution condemning MoveOn.org. First, it is incredible that someone who claims to be an American would condemn someone’s right to free speech. Second, we have real Americans dying for […]

Forcing The Ellington development to adhere to a minimum LEED [Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design] certification is the correct course of action. There are costs to building in Asheville that far exceed any monetary investment [for] such a massive structure. Those costs include impacts on our air quality, traffic and new development pressure attracted […]

It is time for our City Council and citizens to make a clear choice. What is our highest vision of Asheville? Please reflect on this image: A downtown with three or four or more Ellington-size high-rises blocking out the views and the sunlight. Why are we handing over the future of our city to out-of-state […]

Elaine Lite’s comment at the Sept. 11 City Council meeting that downtown “is already a playground for the rich” is downright silly. If anything, the opposite is true. She has obviously not spent [enough] time around Pritchard Park or Beverly Hills to know the difference. — Steve Woolum Asheville

Serving on City Council is a hard job. Having to go through piles of paper every week, on and on. Friends/supporters [and] others all expect you to agree with them 100 percent on all subjects/issues. If you are associated with business interests/groups that are regulated by city government, it can make good business sense to […]

I was personally appalled by Carl Mumpower’s letter to the editor [“All This, and Council too?”, Sept. 26]. While it certainly must not be fun to be the target of satirists and cartoonists, [that] does not make it acceptable to lash out at his fellow Council members as a response. After all, each has been […]

Like other attractive cities around the country, Asheville is in a tug of war between those who want to build, build, build and those who want to preserve the wonderful attributes enjoyed by people who live and work in our community. As the pro-development forces grow stronger and more persuasive, it’s critical that those who […]

I saw the cover of [the recent] Mountain Xpress and looked forward to reading the story on eco-fashion [“Fall Color Forecast: Green,” Sept. 26]. I fully expected to see something in the article about Spiritex, Asheville’s own organic clothing store. Nothing. A strange omission when you consider that Daniel Sanders and his wife Mary Lou […]

On Earth Day, I visited Greenlife—and there was Elaine Lite in a booth marked “Save Our Slopes.” I stood there, incredulous, staring at giant photos of mudslides covering peoples’ homes, yards and streets. “Where the heck is that?” I asked, glad that it wasn’t my neighborhood. Since then, I know better. The super-rich build on […]

If you feel that developers have too much power in Asheville, then I urge you to vote for City Council candidate Elaine Lite (www.electelaine.org). If you want to know for certain that you have a representative on Council who will vote for clean water, local businesses, neighborhood values, strict enforcement of our development rules and […]

As I read the article “Natural Growth” by Hal L. Millard [Sept. 12 Xpress], it seemed to me [that] Earth Fare director Troy DeGroff’s statement, “We’ve always been pushing the envelope on what it means to be natural, and how you can be better at giving people a high-quality product,” is a little contradictory. I […]

This is in reference to “Should Asheville Eat the Rich?” [Letters, Sept. 19]. In a word, yes, Asheville should eat the rich—or at least the rich who refer to themselves as “affluent” and think they are doing Asheville a favor by being [in town]. I grew up poor and worked hard and could now probably […]

I recently stopped to have a quick dinner at a restaurant on Merrimon Avenue and was appalled when I witnessed the restaurant owner scolding a customer for giving money to a young couple who were outside of the store. I walked past this couple on my way in, and they didn’t ask me for anything, […]

Are you satisfied with the direction of this country? If so, you’re probably supporting one of the so-called main contenders for president of the United States. If not, then it’s time to take a look at Ron Paul, the presidential candidate who is actually speaking the truth about U.S. foreign policy, the Constitution, the Federal […]

President Bush is threatening to veto health care for millions of uninsured kids. Millions of low-income kids will lose their health insurance unless the funding is renewed. The president is playing politics instead of helping sick kids. The new Democratic majority in Congress is working to fix our broken health-care system—starting with our children—but President […]

The Live Earth concerts in July had an official companion book, The Live Earth Global Warming Survival Handbook: 77 Essential Skills to Stop Climate Change—or Live Through It. Like the movies An Inconvenient Truth and The 11th Hour, it suggests individual actions that will reduce our environmental impact, such as recycling and switching to compact-fluorescent […]

Missing from the debate over No Child Left Behind is whether what is tested for is even worth learning. Arithmetic, for instance, was a vital skill to fill the clerical needs of the 19th and 20th centuries. Nobody uses it anymore except elementary school students. This is especially the case with fractions. As for carpenters, […]