PRESS RELEASE FROM HAYDEN ROGERS’ CAMPAIGN: Brasstown, NC –Hayden Rogers, candidate for Congress in North Carolina’s 11th District, released the following statement today after the House of Representatives passed Rep. Paul Ryan’s Fiscal Year 2013 budget proposal along partisan lines. “The Ryan budget passed today by House Republicans is a dangerous gamble for seniors throughout […]
News Bulletins
Jackson, Haywood Counties settle conflict about mental health agency jobs
From the Smoky Mountain News: The mental health agency Smoky Mountain Center will not be buying and moving into Waynesville’s former Department of Social Services office building after all, leaving Haywood County back at Square One trying to unload the large, dated, four-story brick complex built decades ago as a hospital.
Woman creates online petition for different widening plan of US 221 South
From the McDowell News: A Glenwood woman hopes the petition she started online will help change the plans for widening of U.S. 221 South. Christie Wild, who lives along Old Highway 221, started an online petition last week about the proposed widening of U.S. 221 South. The N.C. Department of Transportation plans to widen a […]
Poker machines remain illegal in McDowell County, according to law enforcement, prosecuters
From the McDowell News: Despite a recent ruling by the N.C. Court of Appeals to strike down a ban on video sweepstakes machines, it is still illegal to play or possess them in McDowell County.
North Carolina has one of highest autism rates in nation
From the Charlotte Observer:
Lower body alignment class offered tomorrow at Asheville Community Yoga
From the Asheville Community Yoga Newsletter: Saturday, March 31st, 2:30-5:00pm $40 Suggested Donation Learn basic placement and alignment principles for the body from the hips down, in standing poses, twists, and forward folds. Suitable for all levels of practitioner, this 2 1/2 hour workshop will give you the tools to safely navigate any style yoga […]
Blue Ridge Parkway gearing up for season
The Pisgah Inn on the Blue Ridge Parkway opened this past Tuesday; the Linville Falls campground opens on Sunday, April 1 … the Blue Ridge Parkway and its many parks, facilities and campgrounds await the millions of visitors that tour the scenic route each year, blueridgenow.com reports (the Hendersonville Times-News online edition). More than 14 […]
N.C. Forest Service cautions: No burn debris this weekend
With windy, dry conditions forecast this weekend, and fires like the one that burned at least 40 acres in Mills River, N.C. Forest Service officials are cautioning that “no one should be doing any debris burning this weekend,” News Radio 570 (WWNC) reports. Read more: http://www.wwnc.com/cc-common/mainheadlines3.html?feed=122546&article=9970423#ixzz1qbQS06xK
Poll finds voters confused on constitutional amendment question
Poll results released Thursday indicate 58-percent support for the so-called marriage amendment on the May 8 ballot – until potential voters learn it would ban civil unions. Support then drops to 41 percent.
Rumor Dept: Blogger reports anonymous tip that Philly “dumped” New Belgium bid
Jack Curtin’s Liquid Diet blog has this, which he labels “shaky”: I received this text overnight from an anonymous source* who has not responded to my request for identification: “Heard Philly city government passed on New Belgium. DUMPED IT to PiDc. Do your investigative stuff.” “PiDc” is the Philadelphia Industrial Development Corporation. I’m not quite […]
Patsy Keever weighs in on March 29 Medicare vote
Here’s the press release from the Patsy Keever campaign: House Republicans vote to end Medicare. WASHINGTON, DC—Today House Republicans voted to end the Medicare guarantee for seniors while lowering taxes for the ultra wealthy. The bill voted on was Representative Paul Ryan’s (R-WI) budget plan, which would have several adverse effects. It would replace Medicare […]
Quote from local blog — Moffitt: “All water issues are State issues, not local.”
From Heather Rayburn’s blog, “We’ve had people in the county ask us why they should care if Asheville’s water system is snatched from the City and forced into a regional body. For instance, to someone on well water, why worry? However, consider the opening lines of a response from Rep. Tim Moffitt sent to a […]
Local center uses iPads to help special-needs children communicate
From the Times-News: FLAT ROCK — As Emily Hodges touched a picture on the iPad 2 Wednesday at Helping Hands Developmental Center, an electronic voice said, “Spider.” … The center uses iPads with special needs students who don’t speak, are autistic or need to work on motor skills. Evans said it’s one of the more […]
NC Health Department urges caution when handling live chicks, ducklings
From the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services RALEIGH – Giving live chicks to children is a long-time tradition during the Easter season and for backyard poultry producers, this is the time of year to buy chicks and ducklings for their flocks. The N.C. Department of Health and Human Services’ Division of Public […]
For some UNCA students, spring break was about serving the community
From the press release: Should a week spent cutting sheet metal and sleeping in a converted school be considered a Spring Break? “I think it’s better described as the best spring break ever,” says Flannery Pearson-Clarke, a UNC Asheville junior majoring in Environmental Studies. She and eight other young women, all UNC Asheville students, spent […]
Columnist Glen Greenwald names Bothwell as a congressional challenger “worth supporting”
In an article on Salon.com today, March 29, author Glen Greenwald highlights three U.S. Congressional primary candidates whom he considers “very worth supporting.” One is local Democrat and current Asheville City Council member, Cecil Bothwell, who’s running for the 11th Congressional District. Says Greenwald about the process of making his picks, “three candidates emerged who […]
Holly Jones: Raleigh is waging war on Buncombe County
Here’s the message from Buncombe County Commissioner Holly Jones, sent to supporters via her campaign’s email newsletter: Standing Up to Bullies in Raleigh and Fighting for Buncombe County “There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice, but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.” — Elie Weisel One […]
New festival, Gnarnia, features music and multi-media arts in August
The Festival of Gnarnia, held in Beech Mountain, N.C., Thursday-Saturday, August 9-11, has a heady lineup. There’s world music, jam and funk, rock, hip-hop, electronic and roots. The festival also promises workshops, performance arts, sports (well, bicycle jousting and mud wrestling) as well as healthy eating. And there’s this: “Ski lifts are available for guests […]
Local author Tobias Moore published the memoir, “A Different Road: From Bum to Mystic”
The image on the cover of “A Different Road: From Bum to Mystic,” is compelling: A closeup of a man whose face is half-bearded, half clean-shaven. But the author bio is even more intriguing: “Born in Germany – given up by my first set of parents before I was one. Thrown between foster homes, adopted […]
State legislative committee delays comprehensive immigration reform
Following two hours of testimony regarding legislative overhaul of North Carolina’s immigration laws yesterday, the special committee charted with the review has signaled plans to delay comprehensive immigration legislation until 2013.
Campfire caused Mills River forest fire, officials report
AS REPORTED BY WLOS: “An unattended campfire is to blame for an 80-acre brush fire that damaged two homes and forced some evacuations in Mills River. …”