Is all free speech not created equal? In response to “A stretch for free speech?” that appeared in the Sept. 13 issue of Mountain Xpress, the irony of their position seems to escape those that opposed the award to Ms. Gordon. Statements like, “I don’t think all free speech is created equal” make me think […]
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Fiesta Latina: Juntos y Unidos
Everywhere you turn, the traditional pulse of Latin American music is heating up the mainstream. The recent hit movie The Buena Vista Social Club is just one example of the way the lively, layered rhythms of Latin percussion have penetrated North American consciousness. And these rhythms are quickly infiltrating everyday life, not only for those […]
Letters to the editor
Don’t blame the shelter — blame bad pet owners In the past year, there has been more than considerable controversy over the Asheville Humane Society (formerly Friends for Animals) management of the Animal Shelter and Animal Control. There was so much at issue that the county commissioners appointed an advisory board and appointed Mike Bradley […]
Building Bridges
So, segregation is over, laws have changed, and now everything is equal between white and black people. Right? Well, how come our churches and neighborhoods are still largely unintegrated, and blacks still have so many more barriers to jobs, education, loans and more? If you’re white, like me, you probably do sense that things are […]
Letters to the editor
Religious freedom has become religious persecution, courtesy of “We Still Pray” proponents I must have been asleep or in a coma. How, otherwise, could I have missed this? I didn’t see it on the news or read it in the papers, but it must have happened: The Constitution has been changed! Is it true that […]
Where did our love go?
“I’m the best-kept secret around,” insists former Supremes superstar Mary Wilson, speaking from her apartment in New York City. It’s not even 10 a.m., and already this lady’s fired up to tell her story. And why not? One of the hottest industry scoops of the summer exposed the acerbic dispute that erupted between the cantankerous […]
Vegetarians invade Asheville
The North American Vegetarian Society (NAVS) recently held its 26th annual Vegetarian Summerfest on the campus of UNCA. Billed as a life-changing experience, Summerfest more than lived up to the expectations of the 600-plus attendees who gathered from around the country and points overseas. Before the event, Mountain Xpress ran a piece about Summerfest by […]
High expectations
“From the beginning, my best friends have been the common people.” — Giuseppe Verdi “Opera is for everyone,” insists David Craig Starkey, the founder (and general and artistic director) of the Asheville Lyric Opera. What’s more, he continues, “It’s always been the ‘people’s music.’” The ALO’s ambitious second season is set to launch Aug. 26, […]
Feeling right at home in San Cristobal
Looking for the perfect mate? The city of Asheville has found it in southeastern Mexico. San Cristobal de Las Casas, Asheville’s official twin in the International Sister Cities Program, is its mirror image in many ways. From the beauty of mountainous surroundings to the relaxed ambiance of downtown streets, the similarities are astonishing. “It’s magical! […]
Letters to the editor
Glass corrections I was gratified by the space devoted to Southeastern glass art — and to my gallery, Vitrum — in the July 19 issue [“Going ga-ga over glass”]. However, I need to point out a few omissions/corrections. First, the original owner, Priscilla Hope, should be credited for the “original vision” of a glass gallery […]
Letters to the editor
Reality pales by Hanke’s comparison I wanted to take a moment to express my appreciation for the work of Ken Hanke, and to make sure you understand what a treasure you have in this man. I am not a rabid movie fan. At least, not of current films, although like most cinema buffs, I have […]
The latest word
Quote of the month Often while reading a book one feels that the author would have preferred to paint rather than write; one can sense the pleasure he derives from describing a landscape or a person, as if he were painting what he is saying, because deep in his heart he would have preferred to […]
Now hear this
“‘Am I growing spiritually’? … Ask your family.” –Edgar Cayce “Guru” is a Sanskrit word meaning “teacher.” And true book lovers know that, as acts of creation, books are slivers of the divine. For many spiritual seekers, listening to audio books is a way to expand their spiritual horizons conveniently and inexpensively — and, most […]
Taking it to the streets
Since age 12, Will Kimbrough has fronted his own rock bands, survived several record deals, served as a sideman for other recording artists, and become a much-in-demand Nashville session guitarist. Now 36, Kimbrough has just released a CD of his own songs on his own label — a coup he views as a kind of […]
CIBO’s last-minute stand
Leaders of the Council of Independent Business Owners have filed a lawsuit seeking to block the formation of the WNC Regional Air Quality Agency’s proposed Clean Air Community Trust Fund, calling the body illegal and objecting to its funding source. CIBO leaders have also sent letters asking state officials to delay their approval of the […]
The beautiful and damned
The still-mysterious inferno that claimed the lives of Zelda Sayre Fitzgerald and eight other women at Asheville’s Highland Hospital in 1948 was only the physical manifestation of an incendiary torment that had stalked her, like a relentless suitor, for nearly two decades. But a violent death in a madhouse before the age of 50 was […]
CIBO sabotages WNC air
With dazzling disregard for the public health and the democratic process, some wily tricksters at the Council of Independent Business Owners are suing Asheville and Buncombe County, in an effort to block state approval of the county’s new air agency. And for this 11th-hour maneuver, they should be held accountable. [See “CIBO’s last-minute stand,” on […]
How to buy a home if you’re not rich
I want a house. I dream of buying my own home: one with a garden space, an airy kitchen with windows, open rooms with high ceilings, friendly neighbors, and a place for a dog. In my apartment building, neighbors’ beds thump against the walls at night; their stereos rattle my china; and their cigarette smoke […]
The Sabbath Project
Sierra Club founder John Muir, raised a Scots Calvinist, learned to see the natural world as “the hospitable, Godful wilderness,” rather than a fallen state where evil and darkness reside (as the doctrines of his Christian upbringing had taught). Other followers of orthodox Christianity also have wrestled with a perceived conflict between the doctrines of […]
The latest word
The pains and pleasures of childhood are highlighted in this month’s column. Bill Brooks reviews Jim the Boy, by Rutherfordton native Tony Earley, and storyteller Marcianne Miller reviews children’s audiobooks — for adults. Quote of the month All good books are alike in that they are truer than if they really happened and after you […]
Fun and games
Ron Meisner and Billy Malone share similar approaches to making art. Yet the results couldn’t be more different. While both create works that are solipsistic, each also draws inspiration from the distinct world that surrounds him. Meisner grew up in Michigan. During the ’70s, he spent eight years in Asheville, earning a B.F.A. at UNCA. […]