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Bush goes south of the border for popularity
 

Bush goes south of the border for popularity

By Kirkwood Callahan • Guest Columnist Concerned Americans await the concluding acts of the political drama the president and his…
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We can’t stop the changes
 

We can’t stop the changes

Some have charged that the true, underlying sentiment among those who support stringent development regulations in Jackson County — and…
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Life too often revolves around the minutiae
 

Life too often revolves around the minutiae

By Stephanie Wampler Stuff. Life is all about the stuff, isn’t it? We have stuff to amuse us, educate us,…
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Working triple time in Jackson County
 

Working triple time in Jackson County

By Nancy Geiger • Guest Columnist My daughter, Brittany, is staying at Western Caroina Univesity this summer. The hotel she…
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Chattooga at the crossroads
 

Chattooga at the crossroads

A recurring debate between camps in the Chattooga River controversy is how many paddlers would actually come to the river.…
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The hype on hybrids
 

The hype on hybrids

Editor’s note: Naturalist Don Hendershot is writing a series of columns exploring the use of alternative energy and fuels.  …
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The hardest tree in North America
 

The hardest tree in North America

I wrote a tribute to the black locust tree some time back. It’s time to take another look. This time…
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Hiking club rolls out two new trail challenges
 

Hiking club rolls out two new trail challenges

To celebrate its 90th anniversary, the Carolina Mountain Club Challenge committee has added two new hiking challenges this year to…
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Sign-up for behind-the-scenes look at the Smokies
 

Sign-up for behind-the-scenes look at the Smokies

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is beginning a new program that allows nearby residents, business people, teachers and community…
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Conservancy adds on to protected Roan Mountain lands
 

Conservancy adds on to protected Roan Mountain lands

A 601-acre tract in Avery County near Roan Mountain has been purchased and conserved by the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy.…
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Arrrggghh – a wintry mix
 

Arrrggghh – a wintry mix

Limeade, tequila and cointreau is not a wintry mix — that is a margarita; something you may resort to when…
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National A.T. gathering making the trek to Cullowhee this summer
 

National A.T. gathering making the trek to Cullowhee this summer

A large Appalachian Trail gathering is coming to Western Carolina University this summer, and local trail clubs hosting the week-long…
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150 and counting: WCU grad student research helps get a handle on impacts of mounting numbers of elk
 

150 and counting: WCU grad student research helps get a handle on impacts of mounting numbers of elk

By Jill Ingram • Guest writer, WCU public affairs office Covering long distances in and around Cataloochee Valley, a Western…
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Kerouac still matters, though the perspective has shifted
 

Kerouac still matters, though the perspective has shifted

Of all the Beat writers of the 1940s and 1950s — Allen Ginsberg, William Burroughs, John Clellon Holmes, Gary Snyder,…
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We need to keep track of all firearms
 

We need to keep track of all firearms

To the Editor: I miss Martin Luther King. His enlightened reason and fervent advocating for equal rights is sorely missed.…
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Timber harvest at Devil’s Courthouse a good idea
 

Timber harvest at Devil’s Courthouse a good idea

To the Editor: Nature abhors a vacuum. Mother Nature assures change. Organisms are constantly adapting, changing, improving, evolving. Understand-ing life…
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Last issue of SMN painted a vivid picture
 

Last issue of SMN painted a vivid picture

To the Editor: How incredibly serendipitous that your newspaper of Jan. 23 should headline the flooding and landslides that occurred…
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More than ever, schools need forest service money
 

More than ever, schools need forest service money

By Brent Martin • Guest Columnist When the 1911 Weeks Act was passed, allowing the federal government to purchase land…
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Upcoming improvement projects on I-40
 

Upcoming improvement projects on I-40

Tunnel projects to delay work on I-40 The N.C. Department of Transportation will perform work on three tunnels in the…
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Medical foundation appoints new chairman
 

Medical foundation appoints new chairman

The Haywood Regional Medical Center Foundation Board of Trustees recently appointed Laura Leatherwood as the new chairman of the board.…
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Hope on the horizon: Hung up by park service, Swain’s cash settlement has been in limbo
 

Hope on the horizon: Hung up by park service, Swain’s cash settlement has been in limbo

A long overdue $4 million payment may finally make its way to Swain County after languishing for the past year…
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The biggest little show in Haywood
 

The biggest little show in Haywood

Editor’s Note: Given the national debate over gun legislation and controversy swirling around gun shows in particular, The Smoky Mountain…
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Wait for it…a tourism tagline coming soon for Jackson County
 

Wait for it…a tourism tagline coming soon for Jackson County

The newly formed Jackson County Tourism Development Authority is taking on the task of “branding,” an important first step for…
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Smokies landslide could deal crushing blow to tourism if road repairs drag on
 

Smokies landslide could deal crushing blow to tourism if road repairs drag on

A rain-induced landslide in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park left a gaping hole in U.S. 441, but its impact…
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Can the digital age save the Cherokee language? The halls of Facebook, Google and texting
 

Can the digital age save the Cherokee language? The halls of Facebook, Google and texting

Susan Gathers was kicked back in the student union one afternoon, her thumbs poised over her smart phone, simultaneously bantering…
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Haywood TDA introduces site tailored to lodging owners
 

Haywood TDA introduces site tailored to lodging owners

The Haywood County Tourism Development Authority has launched a new website with information specifically for lodging owners.
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Audit finds vacation rentals dodging the lodging tax
 

Audit finds vacation rentals dodging the lodging tax

A company hired by the Haywood County Tourism Development Authority has found a dozen businesses that have been evading a…
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County likely to take over reins of new Jackson economic commission
 

County likely to take over reins of new Jackson economic commission

Although Jackson County’s Economic Development Commission has not met in several years, all its board members’ terms have expired and…
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Is Cashiers ABC store a sure bet? Sylva weighs whether to cast its lot with county’s new liquor store endeavors
 

Is Cashiers ABC store a sure bet? Sylva weighs whether to cast its lot with county’s new liquor store endeavors

As Jackson County officials craft plans to open a liquor store in Cashiers, possibly as soon this summer, they must…
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Lake Junaluska winnows options as merger window narrows
 

Lake Junaluska winnows options as merger window narrows

Lake Junaluskans got their first glimpse this weekend at what it would take for the community to become its own…
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Descendents rekindle Civil War tale of sheriff shot 150 years ago
 

Descendents rekindle Civil War tale of sheriff shot 150 years ago

The death of Haywood County Sheriff John Phillip Noland — a murder story set against the backdrop of the American Civil…
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Time to fish or cut bait in Canton swimming pool dilemma
 

Time to fish or cut bait in Canton swimming pool dilemma

The decrepit state of Canton’s aging outdoor swimming pool has left town leaders with two options — bulldoze it and build…
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Macon ponders raises and salary realignments for county workers
 

Macon ponders raises and salary realignments for county workers

Proposed pay raises for county workers in Macon has prompted skepticism from at least two of the five county commissioners,…
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Macon leaders ponder new method for parceling up commissioner voting districts
 

Macon leaders ponder new method for parceling up commissioner voting districts

Macon County commissioners are analyzing the geographic system of electing county leaders after two commissioners from outlying communities questioned whether…
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HCC craft student wins national award
 

HCC craft student wins national award

Haywood Community College Professional Crafts Fiber student Rebecca Porche is the recipient of the Handweavers Guild of America’s Dendel Scholarship…
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HART makes big leaps in theater fundraising
 

HART makes big leaps in theater fundraising

Haywood Arts Regional Theatre in Waynesville has raised $160,000 since last summer in a capital campaign to build a second…
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Fire & Ice gallery show opens
 

Fire & Ice gallery show opens

Onlooker John Highsmith takes a gander at “Blue Heron,” the latest metal sculpture from Grace Cathey at the “Fire &…
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Theater troupe brings Civil Rights to life for Jackson students
 

Theater troupe brings Civil Rights to life for Jackson students

Theatrical productions of “Struggle for Freedom” and “George Washington Carver and Friends” will be put on for local school students…
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The art of stereotyping: Have Southerners gotten a fair shake from pop culture?
 

The art of stereotyping: Have Southerners gotten a fair shake from pop culture?

Times may change, but stereotypes tend to linger. Venturing into the off-color humor and often offensive images of Southern culture…
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Northern siskins ‘irrupting’ right now at my feeder
 

Northern siskins ‘irrupting’ right now at my feeder

“The opportunistic nature of the species and its partial indifference to constraints of time and space make it an intriguing…
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Big investment made in local bio-fuels
 

Big investment made in local bio-fuels

A consortium of Western North Carolina public agencies and private organizations will receive a grant of $766,000 from the N.C.…
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Working farmland protection plan being crafted in Swain
 

Working farmland protection plan being crafted in Swain

Swain County farmers, landowners, and other interested individuals are invited to share their thoughts and idea on a new farmland…
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I feel the earth move…
 

I feel the earth move…

It may not have shaken the Richter scale like the stampede of Republican lawmakers and their realtor and developer lobbyists…
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Weather or not: Local Yokel Weather fine tunes forecasts for your neck of the woods
 

Weather or not: Local Yokel Weather fine tunes forecasts for your neck of the woods

Have you ever been told by the evening news to expect three inches of snow overnight, but after stocking up…
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Historian presents a factual story of Cleopatra
 

Historian presents a factual story of Cleopatra

“Times are bad. Children no longer obey their parents, and everyone is writing a book.” — Cicero, 106 B.C. Stacy…
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A different perspective on guns and government
 

A different perspective on guns and government

To the Editor: As someone who has lived in four different countries and traveled to several others over the last…
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Shame on Jack Debnam and Jackson’s citizens
 

Shame on Jack Debnam and Jackson’s citizens

To the Editor: Friends, they’ve out-waited us. And, motivated by the smell of money, they appear to have outlasted us…
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Some want to lead by using fear
 

Some want to lead by using fear

To the Editor: Don’t let anyone tell you there’s no conspiracy or that conspirators are not busily at work here…
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‘Gun Free Zones’ are danger zones
 

‘Gun Free Zones’ are danger zones

To the Editor: Legislation has created a zone where the only people protected by a “gun free zone” are the…
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U.S. Postal Service should be left intact
 

U.S. Postal Service should be left intact

To the Editor: We have just been through a holiday season during which the U.S. Postal Service and its workers…
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