Breaking through: Local women challenge political glass ceiling

While the number of women in politics has definitely grown over the last few decades, “Politics is still a gendered space,” says Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics. “Women see these institutions and don’t see a lot of people that look like them in charge, and that may lead to a reluctance to run for office.”

"Yellow Alert!" - cartoon by Brent Brown

Yellow Alert

It would not be a case of yellow journalism to investigate the suspicions that something smells in dark recesses of downtown Asheville’s parking garage stairwells. City leaders should make addressing this a number one priority. It’s one thing to advertise downtown as a drinking destination, but having facilities available to return that rented beer makes the difference […]

Is Hominy Creek Greenway going to the dogs?

Residents using Hominy Creek Greenway in recent weeks may have noticed the sudden disappearance of two herds of goats, which had been put to work clearing invasive species such as Japanese Knotwood. The absence of the hardy herbivores is the result of a June 28 attack on one of the animals by an unrestrained dog and raises questions about the proper use of public spaces.

Update: To the brink and back: Opioid abuse and treatment in WNC

Amid escalating use and abuse of opioids nationwide, the number of local narcotics-related overdoses has increased rapidly in recent years. The drug naloxone can temporarily suspend those drugs’ effects, and the Asheville metropolitan area leads the state in confirmed cases of opioid overdose reversal, according to the N.C. Harm Reduction Coalition.