The mountains are calling
To the Editor: As mid-summer escorts me past three personal milestones — the one-year anniversary of the death of my…
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Time to jettison elected leaders
To the Editor: The dead silence of the Republican members in Congress responding to Trump’s blatantly racist comments against sitting…
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The time is now for the Earth
To the Editor: The latest issue of Sierra had to be one of the most depressing in a long time.…
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Independent redistricting is the only answer
As we celebrate Independence Day, it seems an appropriate time to call for an independent commission to address North Carolina’s…
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Budget is about $95 million for Haywood, Jackson and Swain
By Rep. Joe Sam Queen • Guest Columnist I will stand with our governor and uphold his budget veto because…
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Our people are acting crazy again
Our people are leaving. Again. We’ve seen this all before. We see it every year around this time. It’s hot…
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We need God, not Trump
To the Editor: We have this evil problem in the U.S.A. because a stupid woman took God out of our…
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So embarrassed by this President
To the Editor: Two and a half million dollars! $2,500,000!! That was money diverted from the Park Service for an…
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Climate change is in our children’s hands
Last Friday, as I watched the U.S. women’s soccer team defeat France at the Parc des Princes stadium, I kept…
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Disappointed in new aquarium
To the Editor: I visited the new aquarium in Bryson City on Saturday. I was very disappointed. Volunteers put thousands of…
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Educators are indeed professionals
To the Editor: I’m writing to express my outrage regarding the claim in a letter recently printed in local paper…
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The dog’s eating our daughter’s college fund
I think our chihuahua has an eating disorder. He’s a rescue, and since we rescued him, he’s twice the dog…
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Leveraging the best requires better broadband
By Bob Scott • Guest Columnist Those of us fortunate enough to live in communities where natural amenities abound know…
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Impeachment is worth the risks
To the Editor: To impeach or not to impeach, that is the question on the minds of many Americans and…
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Right-wingers spread fake news
To the Editor: FAKE NEWS! While I don’t make a habit of using Trump terms, it’s the best way to…
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Let’s encourage young adults to engage
Many readers know or suspect that Hannah McLeod, who has been publishing columns semi-regularly in The Smoky Mountain News since…
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Potential life lessons of burlesque dancing
Burlesque dancing may be in my future. Some of us gals at The Smoky Mountain News have been invited to…
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‘Reasons’ for war?
To the Editor: In the summer of 1964, I was a 20 year old boiler-man aboard the U.S.S. Preston (DD-795),…
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OWM built the nation
To the Editor: In a recent issue of The Smoky Mountain News, Ms. Hannah McLeod expressed her disdain for evangelical…
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Opposing abortion because of the victim
To the Editor: In the June 5 issue of The Smoky Mountain News, Hannah McLeod imputes the motives of those…
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Thanks for speaking out so forcefully
To the Editor: I commend Hannah McLeod for speaking so forthrightly and forcefully about the new extreme abortion laws.
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Twenty down, 20 more to go
To the Editor: Hats off to Scott McLeod and the staff at SMN for navigating two decades of informative, entertaining…
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Thank the hard-working journalists
To the Editor: Congratulations The Smoky Mountain News for its 20th anniversary. As a fifth-generation journalist, I thoroughly enjoyed reading…
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Respect for others missing in Edwards’ response
In the most recent edition of the SMN (June 5), I read a guest editorial written by Mr. Sam Edwards…
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When the universe offers gifts, unwrap them
The final school bells have rung. When I was teaching, the last few weeks of school were grueling and felt…
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Passion is no excuse for spreading error
Upon seeing Hannah McLeod’s recent guest column published in these pages on May 29, my first reaction was that it…
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You won’t make friends like this again
By the time she was 4-years-old, my daughter was better at making friends than I have ever been. When we…
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Memorial Day is more than flags and speeches
My wife, Lori, and I recently attended the wedding of my nephew in Fayetteville. While there, we wandered around downtown…
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A prayer for Mike and all who served
I wish I knew where Mike is. I haven’t seen or heard from him in 10 years at least. I…
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Evangelical fingerprints all over abortion bills
By Hannah McLeod • Guest Columnist Living outside the United States makes it easier to ignore the day-to-day whirlwind of…
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Why deny health coverage?
To the Editor: Many people in our Western North Carolina counties are in a health care coverage void. Through no…
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Trump threatens our ideals
To the Editor: Thank you for publishing Norman Hoffman’s diagnosis of our president’s obvious disorder. Hoffman’s approach is logical, analytical,…
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HRMC leaders support HB 655
To the Editor: You don’t have to look far to see that many in North Carolina — approximately 500,000 —…
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We have been attacked by Russia
To the Editor: What if you could attack a country without building a single plane, or ship, or even one…
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SRCA should keep searching
To the Editor: After reading a story you reported about Shining Rock Classical Academy, I felt the need to share…
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Placing trust in Shining Rock’s leadership
To the Editor: Pursuant to the article regarding Shining Rock Classical Academy that was published in last week’s edition, as…
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Trump’s personality issues deserve diagnosis
By Norman Hoffman • Guest Columnist Most psychiatric conditions require the clinician to interact directly with the individual to determine a…
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The magic of New York City
I was seven years old when my parents first took me to New York. We couldn’t afford to stay in…
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Combine reason and emotion, Democrats
To the Editor: Reason and emotion are the two fundamental bases for decision-making. We are facing some historic decisions in…
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When will the school shootings end?
“But for the grace of God, it could have been my child.” News of college and school shootings cut straight…
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The friend everyone needs
Let’s be honest for a minute. Most of us lie to our friends on a fairly regular basis and are,…
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Help make schools safer
To the Editor: Each year since the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, the number of incidents of gun violence on…
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Remembering Riley as a seventh-grader, during Teacher Appreciation Week
The thing I miss about teaching is human connection, being part of something bigger than myself. When I was in…
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Diversity strengthens our community
To the Editor: A letter to the editor in The Smoky Mountain News (Let’s All Embrace God’s Healing, March 27,…
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Jesus, health care and a fair system
To the Editor: On Saturday I went to the Jackson County Recreation Center for a workout. I was guided into…
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Imagine this happened to you
To the Editor: Imagine that you go to your general practitioner and she reminds you that it’s time for a…
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We need to stop senseless violence
To the Editor: Doubtless, most of you know about the tragic death of Riley Howell, and if you are like…
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SAWS director steps down
Bill Hodge, longtime executive director of the Southern Appalachian Wilderness Stewards, is stepping down from the organization.
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