It’s time to re-program pop culture’s storyline

Pop culture wants to kill us. At the very least, it wants to make us miserable, to ensure that from…
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Shifting the disconnect before it’s too late

A study conducted by the scholarly journal, Science, found that lack of human connection can be more harmful to your…
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Building a community that’s resilient to climate change

On April 17, 2021, volunteers from Haywood Waterways, Haywood Community College, Climate Action Coalition, and others, gathered at River’s Edge…
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Bravo, Chris Cox

To the Editor: I enjoy the articles written by Chris Cox. They are always thoughtful and thought provoking. I particularly appreciated…
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Tapping gently at her door, fate beckoned me in

Some sage once observed that your whole life really comes down to just a handful of moments, and it has…
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Some anti-vaxxers spread lies

To the Editor: I recently read in The Smoky Mountain News the article regarding the January 17, 2023, county commissioner meeting…
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Uncle Joe was 
proud to pay taxes

To the Editor: I don’t like paying taxes. Why should I pay my hard-earned money to a government? Governments are full…
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Important lessons from time spent with my dog

It’s been another hard news week. It seems like that’s becoming the norm in modern American society. No matter which…
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North Carolina economy continues to excel

North Carolina faces many challenges. You and I may disagree with how to rank those challenges, or what to do…
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Many have questions
 about Covid vaccine

To the Editor: I’m writing a very heartfelt concern I have for the health and safety of all the people in…
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Taking a stand when it’s good and bad all at once

(Editor’s note: All the characters in this column are fictitious) Guy walks into his local taproom and is gratified to see…
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Frody stares down the reaper, again!

“What’s wrong with your dog?” If I were an 8-year-old boy on a beach vacation with my family and saw…
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Relying on friends and signs from the universe

January is an annoying month for many people. The hoopla and excitement of the holidays has ended. The weather is…
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The trap of correlation — how science works

Grant Wahl, a well-known sportswriter, collapsed and died while reporting at the World Cup Soccer Tournament in Qatar. He was…
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VA — the best care anywhere!

To the Editor: To crib part of a title from Phillip Longman’s book — “Best Care Anywhere: Why VA Health Care…
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When success is about making communities better

Sometimes an idea hatches first as a kind of mental knot that doesn’t reveal itself but causes me a bit…
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I’ll go for tornados over plane crashes

I’m trying to get a little work done early one morning, sipping on my first cup of coffee, still in…
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Keeping Trump from Trump

To the Editor: “Nothing can work damage to me except myself; the harm that I sustain I carry about with me…
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I owe Rockwell an apology

Working at a newspaper requires thick skin. I’m a columnist and lifestyle writer, so I don’t get nearly as much…
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Let speeders pre-pay for the privilege

I think most of you would agree that there are more people speeding, and speeding faster on the highways with…
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Don’t be fooled;
 climate change is real

To the Editor: A recent letter in the Waynesville Mountaineer claimed that climate change is a myth.
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A sure sign of our moral decay

To the Editor: The headlines read — “Texas governor & others bus immigrants to VP house, and drop them in freezing…
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Your one and only Christmas 2022

As they say, “What screws us up the most in life is the picture in our head of how it’s…
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Trying to tell all sides of the story

Sorry to burst your bubble but this is not a high-quality newspaper. Your version of journalism is laughable at best.…
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The uniforms are all part of growing up

Our son, Jack, is a senior in high school, which means that we are already well into the “season of…
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Omnibus Bill adds too much debt
 

Omnibus Bill adds too much debt

To the Editor: I’ve thought of writing for some time but outdoor sports were more important to me. As a long-time…
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Trimming the tree and taking stock

My grandfather once told me that on Christmas Eve his family would go find a tree in the woods and…
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Can we slow the gentrification of WNC?

Dinner conversation last night with a young couple who live in New Zealand but are here for the holidays —…
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Standing up for suffering women everywhere

Woman, life and freedom. These three words have inspired millions of Iranian women and others internationally. Unfortunately, all of this…
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Word from the Smokies: The staying power of Smokey Bear

Many people of a certain age have a special affection for Smokey Bear, or “Smokey the Bear,” as he has…
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There’s more to life than politics — amen to that

I was blasting classic Rolling Stones in my truck yesterday at a few minutes before 5 p.m. when the phone rang.…
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N.C. Treasurer puts politics ahead of humanity’s future

Can morality play a role in capitalism? Should it? Human society has, of course, wrestled with this dilemma for centuries.
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Is it Trump or 
the Constitution?

Donald Trump is many things most people wouldn’t want in a neighbor, co-worker or son in-law. He’s uncouth, lecherous, manipulative,…
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The truth about climate change is staring us down

The truth, even when it’s staring you down Clint Eastwood style, is easier to ignore than to act on. Just…
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For the love of those gathered at the feast

My wife and I were truly blessed to have our children, some relatives and close friends gathered for Thanksgiving, which…
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Free speech trumps party politics any day

To the Editor: Here I am, a constitutional conservative who for 40-plus years has voted, held office, and worked as a…
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Will Trump answer to the American people?

To the Editor: A college football coach will tell you there are three basic units that comprise a football team: offense,…
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It may be time to amend Constitution

To the Editor: Rob Schofield in last week’s Smoky Mountain News decried the current Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS)…
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Resurrecting the joy of the holidays

I have felt disconnected from the holidays ever since my mom passed away six years ago. Throw a divorce, two…
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Keeping it simple — and local

I was standing at my desk this morning looking forward to the coming Thanksgiving weekend with our grown children and…
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Fears of a politicized court system grow

Maybe the change was an inevitable byproduct of our charged and contentious era.
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After elections, less hate, more love

To the Editor: By the time you read this letter, we will have outcomes of the 2022 mid-term elections.
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