“If you have several hours a month, you could have a big impact on the life of a child as a volunteer for the guardian ad litem program.”
Letter: Abortion ban violates religious rights
“Abortion access is a Jewish value, and bans on abortion are a violation of Jewish religious freedom and human rights.”
How citizen resistance derailed plan to dam the French Broad
“The more than a thousand citizen activists who came together as the Upper French Broad Defense Association, bolstered by staunch support from state Rep. Charles Taylor, forced TVA to abandon its plans in 1972.”
Letter: Pay teachers what they’re truly worth
“The bottom line is: Without higher salaries for educators, not only will our students suffer, but so will the entire community.”
Letter: Yes on bond referendums
“We do have to stay vigilant as the money is distributed.”
Letter: Education is in crisis
“We have to value our teachers who are tired, underpaid and caught in the crosshairs of a contentious cultural and political climate.”
Meeting the future
Letter: Buncombe needs to boost solar production
“I would not build a new home without solar panels!”
Letter: Traffic engineers fail to tell the whole story
“I believe commissioners and boards of citizen volunteers should take it upon themselves to more heavily scrutinize traffic impact analyses — especially when engaged community stakeholders (who are experts on their own neighborhoods) continue to voice valid concerns.”
Mission impossible
Letter: Smart growth involves tradeoffs
“Smart growth involves tradeoffs, especially as we move to replace energy-wasting urban sprawl with more energy-efficient urban density as the national paradigm.”
Letter: Killing Asheville by a thousand cuts
“Asheville dies by a thousand cuts via high-density development that does not support alternative forms of transportation, with no space for recreational opportunities or neighborly engagement.”
School openings
Letter: We need to transform our way of living
“Promotion of the arms race is a reckless way to create jobs when we need more people in the helping professions, including health care and our schools.”
Letter: Get on with legalizing medical marijuana
‘Why is North Carolina so far behind the other states? We should be moving to legalizing marijuana and mushrooms.’
Letter: Don’t use cats as garden patrols
“Let’s wake up and use our technological savvy to build vole-proof garden enclosures and spare the ones who can’t defend themselves against feline encroachment.”
Letter: Advice for reading Branyon
“A tip for reading Bill Branyon’s letters: Ignore all modifiers — mostly the adjectives, although the adverbs and adverbial phrases are also colorfully irrelevant.”
Letter: Penland offers impressive management expertise
“Buncombe County deserves responsible leadership. Anthony Penland is running for Buncombe County commissioner this fall and very much has earned and deserves your support.”
Letter: There’s no magic bullet for growth issues
“What can our officeholders actually do? They can’t call a halt to growth and development, but they can stop or modify some particularly harmful projects.”
Letter: Celebrate clean water by volunteering
“The enactment of these regulations has allowed us to preserve one of our most vital resources, and we should celebrate this monumental milestone for clean water.”
Letter: Kudos to APD for handling break-in
“By acknowledging both the positive and the negative, we can create a complete picture that can serve as a solid base from which we can move forward as a community.”