Kobe’s swan song turned out to be a masterpiece
 

Kobe’s swan song turned out to be a masterpiece

“Do not go gentle into that good night,Old age should burn and rave at close of day;Rage, rage against the…
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Socialism is not really such a dirty word
 

Socialism is not really such a dirty word

To the Editor: So much paranoia about socialism. We can talk about socialism in theory, in practice, as mixed with other…
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HB2 should be repealed immediately
 

HB2 should be repealed immediately

To the Editor: As members of the Reconciling Conversation Group of First United Methodist Church of Waynesville, we are striving…
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What HB2 is really about — exerting power
 

What HB2 is really about — exerting power

To the Editor: The motivation for HB2 has nothing to do with bathroom safety. The motivation was to slap down…
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Comment

The ‘rich’ show less empathy
 

The ‘rich’ show less empathy

To the Editor:  A recent research project with 200 students at University of California at Berkley explored the  effects of…
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Promoting civility: Online posts prompt discussion about race and inclusiveness at WCU
 

Promoting civility: Online posts prompt discussion about race and inclusiveness at WCU

It started with a poster. Or, more accurately, with a collection of posters in the window of Western Carolina University’s…
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Emergency management changes move forward
 

Emergency management changes move forward

Haywood County is continuing with efforts to update and improve its emergency management ordinance — a local regulation that came…
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Late campaign finance report traced to state computer glitch
 

Late campaign finance report traced to state computer glitch

N.C. Sen. Jim Davis, R-Franklin, is inadvertently 43 days late on his latest campaign finance reports due to a computer…
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Haywood Schools aim to keep standards high despite budget challenges
 

Haywood Schools aim to keep standards high despite budget challenges

Haywood County commissioners are once again standing by their commitment to public education, making good on a long-standing pledge to…
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Sylva leaders cheer affordable housing proposal
 

Sylva leaders cheer affordable housing proposal

Sylva’s leaders are applauding a plan to build a new apartment complex across the road from Harris Hospital as a…
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Vandalism at Judaculla: Leaders discuss how to protect Cherokee landmark
 

Vandalism at Judaculla: Leaders discuss how to protect Cherokee landmark

When Jerry Parker walked by Judaculla Rock on March 26, he saw that some newer markings covered the rock’s millennia-old…
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Haywood leaders asked to endorse Waynesville library renovation
 

Haywood leaders asked to endorse Waynesville library renovation

Preparation and planning for a $6 million renovation and expansion of the Waynesville library have been playing out behind the…
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A 21st century library: Waynesville renovation to address public demand for Internet access
 

A 21st century library: Waynesville renovation to address public demand for Internet access

Howard David Glawson was tucked in to his usual spot at the public computer bank at the Waynesville library last…
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Haywood County passes outdoor shooting range rules
 

Haywood County passes outdoor shooting range rules

New rules are now in place to govern commercial outdoor gun ranges in Haywood County.
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Houseboat owners fight to keep their property
 

Houseboat owners fight to keep their property

Scott Collins’ family has owned a houseboat on Fontana Lake since 1965 — that’s five generations that have made lasting…
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TVA calls for removal of all houseboats
 

TVA calls for removal of all houseboats

The Tennessee Valley Authority has proposed doing away with more than 1,800 houseboats that occupy various lakes under its jurisdiction.
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Maggie Valley town center faces opposition
 

Maggie Valley town center faces opposition

There was a palpable sense of excitement in the air when Maggie Valley first unveiled its town center master plan.…
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Sylva commissioners launch cleanup initiative
 

Sylva commissioners launch cleanup initiative

A slate of monthly litter cleanups in Sylva will kick off at noon Saturday, April 30, at Bryson Park on…
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State looks to combat aquatic invasives
 

State looks to combat aquatic invasives

With nuisance species steadily invading North Carolina waters, state officials have approved a plan designed to curb their onward march. 
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Clean the Tuck
 

Clean the Tuck

Western Carolina University students show off the bags that they will soon fill with trash from the Tuckaseigee River during…
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The Eagle Lady says goodbye to N.C.
 

The Eagle Lady says goodbye to N.C.

After more than 20 years in the Carolina mountains, The Eagle Lady — also known as Doris Mager — is…
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Overnight on the Appalachian Trail
 

Overnight on the Appalachian Trail

To get a taste of trail life on the A.T., I set out on Friday afternoon with a pack, a…
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Hike your own hike: A.T. hikers aim for Maine after crowded start
 

Hike your own hike: A.T. hikers aim for Maine after crowded start

It’s 4 p.m. on the Appalachian Trail, and while the sun will be awake for hours yet, “hiker midnight,” which…
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Changing a flat in a rising creek
 

Changing a flat in a rising creek

Forty years ago this coming July 5, my wife, Elizabeth, and I and our three children moved into a small…
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A book about the good news and the bad news
 

A book about the good news and the bad news

Twenty-five years ago, a pediatrician told my sister that eggs were unhealthy and that she must never serve them to…
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Ramblin’ man: A conversation with Butch Trucks
 

Ramblin’ man: A conversation with Butch Trucks

For 45 years, The Allman Brothers Band took rock-n-roll and stretched it into the unlimited possibilities of blues and jazz.…
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Controlled Chaos Film Festival returns
 

Controlled Chaos Film Festival returns

Films created by Western Carolina University students will be screened at the eighth annual Controlled Chaos Film Festival at 7…
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Nominations sought for Mountain Heritage Awards
 

Nominations sought for Mountain Heritage Awards

Western Carolina University is accepting nominations for the Mountain Heritage Award, an honor bestowed annually on one individual and one…
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‘King of Pop’ tribute show
 

‘King of Pop’ tribute show

The “Man In The Mirror” production will hit the stage at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 30, at Harrah’s Cherokee.
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This must be the place
 

This must be the place

I stepped out of the airport and into the afternoon sunshine.
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Comment

Call the hunting of bears what it is
 

Call the hunting of bears what it is

To the Editor: I would like to request of the N.C. Wildlife Resources Commission that you stop referring to the…
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Comment

Manage forests for wildlife, too
 

Manage forests for wildlife, too

To the Editor: With recent news stories of elk doing damage to farms and the surprising number of bear living…
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Comment

Who would want to lead Waynesville?
 

Who would want to lead Waynesville?

To the Editor: I read your article on the hiring of a new town manager with some amusement and dismay.…
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Comment

N.C. conservatives go off the deep end
 

N.C. conservatives go off the deep end

By Martin Dyckman • Guest Columnist There are two major strains of conservatism in American politics, economic and social, and the…
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My adopted state is an embarrassment
 

My adopted state is an embarrassment

By Stephanie Wampler • Guest Columnist As a North Carolina woman who may or may not have a vagina (NOYB), I…
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Stuttering, understanding race and Merle Haggard
 

Stuttering, understanding race and Merle Haggard

When I was a little girl, I had a stuttering problem. The memories of struggling with words that started with…
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Comment

Help build a community that fights child abuse
 

Help build a community that fights child abuse

By Julie Schroer • Guest Columnist As April is National Child Abuse Prevention Month, I want you to hang in…
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Comment

Hike week returns to Fontana Village
 

Hike week returns to Fontana Village

A week of guided hikes and educational programs will celebrate all that’s great about hiking with Spring Hike Week April…
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Comment

Shoot the Smokies
 

Shoot the Smokies

A crash course in outdoor photography will give shutterbugs an excuse to explore the Smokies’ beauty in a four-week program…
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Comment

Synchronous firefly viewing goes to lottery system
 

Synchronous firefly viewing goes to lottery system

Those wanting to get a peek at the famous synchronous fireflies in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park will have…
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What matters most in life: Local triathlete on road to recovery following accident
 

What matters most in life: Local triathlete on road to recovery following accident

All he heard was the sound of an engine. “I came over the rise, a place I’d ridden hundreds of…
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Comment

Mystery solved
 

Mystery solved

I was having my morning coffee on the small floating dock in the narrow, clear Weeki Wachee River about three…
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Comment

Chaos erupting into beauty
 

Chaos erupting into beauty

Stephanie Storey’s Oil and Marble, which was released this spring, is not only a page-turner but an eye-opener.
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Comment

Charting a new course: Upstart schools face animosity that usually softens over time
 

Charting a new course: Upstart schools face animosity that usually softens over time

A small group of parents had been working quietly for about three years to get the first charter school established…
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Franklin hires new fire chief
 

Franklin hires new fire chief

Kevin Rohrer, a captain with Morrisville Fire and Rescue Department, has been hired as Franklin’s fulltime fire chief to replace…
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Comment

Sylva board faces inevitable property tax increase
 

Sylva board faces inevitable property tax increase

As Sylva’s leaders work toward a new budget for the new fiscal year, there’s one big question on everybody’s mind…
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Comment

Casino board member under investigation
 

Casino board member under investigation

A member of Cherokee’s Tribal Casino Gaming Enterprise board is under investigation following a public uproar surrounding her alleged behavior…
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Lifting spirits: New attitudes toward alcohol move across region
 

Lifting spirits: New attitudes toward alcohol move across region

Haywood County is the latest in steady wave of communities across the mountains to shed its long-standing political and cultural…
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Comment

Vote on Haywood alcohol sales comes out of left field
 

Vote on Haywood alcohol sales comes out of left field

An announcement by Haywood County commissioners last week that a vote to legalize beer and wine sales countywide will appear…
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Comment

Haywood vote on countywide alcohol to pit business interests against religious convictions
 

Haywood vote on countywide alcohol to pit business interests against religious convictions

Beer is good for business. That’s the message supporters of countywide beer and wine sales in Haywood County are hoping…
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