ALO’s ’South Pacific’ uplifts, inspires — See REVIEW, Pg. B1
Is there bunkum in Buncombe?
— See WHISTLE-BLOWER, Pg. A14
Expert addresses honeybee die-off — See NEWS STORY, Pg. A2
ILLE V E H AS ASHEVILLEʼS GREATEST NEWSPAPER
August 2014
Vol. 10, No. 9
An Independent Newspaper Serving Greater Asheville www.ashevilledailyplanet.com
Yogis rally against coal
FREE
Protesters slam Israel for ‘assault’ By JOHN NORTH
john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
Photo courtesy of Asheville Yogis Beyond Coal and the Sierra Club
Asheville activist group Yogis Beyond Coal partnered with the Sierra Club in a joint July 12 event at Pack Square Park in downtown Asheville to highlight what they termed “health dangers of coal.” The event, intended to highlight community concerns with the South Asheville coal-fired power plant, focused on “the contradiction between healthy living and dirty power.”
The Advice Goddess
Is U.S. next for global ‘arsonists?’
From a peace-loving vision laid out by U.S. President John F. Kennedy in the early 1960s, the United States — tragically — has morphed into a nation that increasingly encourages international arsonists to ignite the flames Q: My girlfriend and I are mostly happy together, of oppression and war abroad — but we have this ongoing fight where she accuses me and, as fate would have it, that fire is beginning to be burn here, too. of wanting to cheat whenever I so much as glance At least that was the viewpoint at a woman she perceives to be my “type” (any expressed by former Rep. Cynthia woman roughly her age and ethnicity). Even flipping McKinney, who gave the keynote through a magazine that shows a woman in an ad is address at the 29th Annual ConCynthia McKinney enough to set her off. She says I need to eliminate all vention of the National Veterans for Peace on July 26 at the event contact with other women, or I’m being unfaithful. center at Holy Trinity Greek Orthodox Church in Asheville’s But I don’t see how I can stop doing things like talk- Montford community. ing to the checker at the supermarket or looking at Toward the end of her 25-minute speech, McKinney, the someone crossing the street. Green Party’s 2008 nominee for president, asserted, “What I --Blamed want to leave you with is this: If these arsonists would light a fire in Africa, Europe, Asia... Why wouldn’t they light a fire Want to know the answer? right here at home? I hope I’ve demonstrated” — through her See ADVICE GODDESS, Page A13 address — “that that is what is happening.” Amy Alkon
Cheat exhaustion
A rally — held at midday July 25 in downtown Asheville calling for U.S. Sen. Kay Hagan, D-N.C., to end her support of what CODEPINK protest leaders termed the “Israeli assault on Gaza” — was met with a cold shoulder. Specifically, Hagan’s office, just across Patton Avenue from the Pritchard Park rally, was inexplicably closed — and the senator, who the protesters lambasted for characterizing herself as “a liberal,” was nowhere to be seen. “They might have figured we were coming,” Madea Benjamin, a cofounder of CODEPINK who spearheaded the rally, said with a laugh afterward, regarding her thoughts on a possible rationale for Hagan’s office closure. Despite ascertaining the office closure at the beginning of the rally, the 25 to 30 protesters nonetheless carried on their hour-long event, enthusiastically waving signs bearing antiIsraeli and pro-Palestinian sentiments, as various speakers led chants and were applauded as they shared viewpoints that reflected the opinions on their signs. The protesters marched, chanted and waved signs from the park to the sidewalk outside Hagan’s office to a special temporary Veterans for Peace bell tower memorial in Pack Square, in downtown’s hub. See PROTESTERS, Page A8
McKinney, who was the first African-American elected to represent Georgia in the Senate, slammed President Barack Obama, who also is black, for many of his policies. “We now know that blindly voting for a Barack Obama was not going to give us the policies of a Martin Luther King Jr.” The night’s other featured speaker, Matthew Hoh, gave an address titled “Thank You, For Taking the Red Pill,” in a reference to the film “Matrix,” where the premise is that Matthew Hoh mankind is in a comatose state, while apparently being harvested for food. However, one character, Neo, wakes up and realizes that “what’s in his head is not for real,” Hoh recounted. Referring further to the film, he added, “The blue pill will put you back into that comatose state... The red pill will put you into reality... The red pill is pain, frustration, horror — plus, it’s true... I’d like to thank everyone in here for choosing the red pill.” The crowd erupted into cheers. See “ARSONISTS,” Page A12
A2 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Vitality of queens tied to bee colony survival Second of two stories
By JOHN NORTH
john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
MILLS RIVER — Keeping a colony of honeybees healthy in today’s United States that too-often has pollinator-unfriendly expanses of land heavily laden with pesticides — more than ever — requires a queen that is in top egg-laying form. Just as importantly, it requires a beekeeper who keeps a close eye on the activities of the colony, especially monitoring the queen’s performance — and ready to act knowledgeably and quickly, if warranted. So said internationally known bee researcher Jeff Pettis during a talk on “Challenges for Today’s Beekeepers” on June 17 at Mountain Horticultural Crops Research and Extension Center. The program — targeting area beekeepers — drew a standing-roomonly crowd of 172 people. Pettis, research leader at the USDA Beltsville (Md.) Bee Lab, told, in detail, of his department’s testing of sample queens from healthy and failing commercial colonies — from both the East and West coasts. He noted, “There’s a clear pattern... Dead sperm in these queens is causing something” odd, which, in turn, is hurting colony performance. In contrast, with “queens with higher sperm viability — the colony’s doing better.” Pettis added, “The question is... ‘What’s causing the dying sperm?’ ... This was striking. We know there’s a lot of queen turnover. ... On both East and West coasts, we saw the same pattern with queens.” For instance, he said, “We’re looking at poor brood pattern in North Dakota and Beltsville (Md.).” After looking at “the best set of queens and
worse set of queens,” Pettis said he wondered whether it was “the breeder, or the temperature that they (the queens) went in shipment” (to the beekeepers ordering them) that brought about the poorperforming queens? Further, he said, Jeff Pettis “You’re seeing a lot of queen turnover within a few months of arrival” after shipment to beekeepers. “It could have to do with sperm viability.” Generally, temperature exposure to honeybee queens may be even more important than previously thought, the researcher noted. Pettis added that he found that, at least in one shipment, there were two high temperature spikes — and in another “a low — that sent down (the temperature) to 8 degrees. “What could have caused the temperature extremes?” Pettis asked, rhetorically. The airplane?” He noted that airlines are “supposed to put your pet in a temperature-controlled part of plane baggage. I think with queens, they’re just treating them ... as mail,” meaning they are being shipped, at least in some cases, to beekeepers in non-temperaturecontrolled areas of planes, or in other parts of the mail delivery process. “One hour at 50 degrees can kill 50 percent of the sperm” in a queen, Pettis said. Eventually, “the queen becomes immobile. She’ll survive,” but mysteriously be a lessthan-stellar egg-layer. “Guess what? That gets everybody off the hook — except the Postal Service.” “Maybe there’s a simple answer, if you
have hot or cold temperatures,” the queens will be poor egg-layers, resulting in colonies that die off, unless a savvy beekeeper is keeping close watch on the colony operations. A man in audience interjected that “some baggage depts are pressurized and some not.” Nodding, Pettis said, “Guess what happened with 9/11?” Immediately afterward, everyone and “everything got zapped with X-rays... We’re a fragile species.... “I think extreme temperature could be involved. But I’m also testing with chemical exposure. Before I say it’s not the queen breeder, there’s a lot that’s going on on the drone side.” Pettis concluded with the following points: • Researchers need more evidence to determine if queen failures are resulting from factors in the hives, queen rearing or drones. • Queens exposed to Amitraz had reduced sperm viability, about 50 percent of the sperm died regardless of dose. • Testing will continue to study the effects of heat and cold — and other possible shipping issues. However, the bee expert stressed, “Definitely, something’s going on with brood pattern and viability of the colony... If you get poor weather, you’re not going to get good mating” because the bad weather damages the viability of the drone’s sperm. Phyllis Stiles, chief of Asheville’s Bee City USA, the program’s sponsor, read several bee jokes during a pause between Pettis’ address and a question-and-answer session. For instance, Stiles quipped, “Beekeepers make good speakers because of how they drone on.” In a question-and-answer session that followed, a man asked about the effect of genetically modified (GMO) crops on honeybees. “We had a Ph.D student who did test-
ing with GMO corn pollen,” Pettis replied. “They lived as long as those with non-GMO corn pollen. Same studies in New Zealand.... I think the GMO debate is more about personal preference. I’d be more concerned about pesticides than GMOs — that’s more my personal opinion, than USDA opinion.” “How is the ag industry reacting to what’s happening with pollinators?” a man asked. “They’re listening and there’s a lot of concern,” Pettis answered. “There’s a lot of sentiment out there that the guidelines need to be a lot tougher. I think the chemical companies are listening... The public opinion is going to be worse,” insofar as impact is concerned, than the beekeepers’ opinion... We’re a small group... I’m in the middle, working for the Department of Agriculture. But I know the chemical companies are listening — and we’ll just ahve to see what the response is. There’s a lot of research going on.” A woman asked, “One more thing about GMOS — isn’t it true that genetically modified crops” are design so they “don’t need pesticides?” “I call that the sterile field syndrome,” Pettis replied. “The GMO-Roundup Ready part creates another problem. So you have a big area with soybeans blooming, with nothing else around.... People recognize that an agriculatural field (like that) is pretty sterile. Maybe we can plant in the buffers. But the agricultural environment is not the only one to blame. California is the only state in the country with mandatory reporting of pesticide. The agriculatural use is about a third of it... The other is from homeowners and golf courses. Trying to reduce overuse of pesticides in our backyards and golf courses... If you watch the U.S. Open.... Water use and herbicide usage” there is over the top. See COLONY SURVIVAL, Page A4
All We Do Is...
VAPOR!
√ Asheville’s Finest e-liquid √ Best Selection of e-Cig Hardware √ Over 150 Premium Flavors
A
sheville Vapor is made in the beautiful mountains of Asheville North Carolina. Our artisans are zealots for quality and every bottle of liquid is mixed to deliver a delicious and satisfying vaping experience.
NOW OFFERING ORGANIC ALL-NATURAL 100% VG e-LIQUID!
2144-B Hendersonville Rd. • Arden 28704 (Across from Black Forest Restaurant)
10% OFF
Mon.-Fri., 9 a.m.-7 p.m. Sat., 10 a.m.-7 p.m. • Sun., Noon-5 p.m.
With This Coupon
Facebook Us • 828-393-VAPE (8273)
Your Purchase
Not including sale items. One coupon per customer. Cannot be combined with any other offers. Expires 08/31/14
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 - A3
A4 — August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Dems accused of giving ‘preferential treatment’ Clerk of court ‘propped up’ by his party, not held accountable, BCGOP charges
From Staff Reports The Buncombe County Republican Party took direct aim at Buncombe County Register of Deeds Drew Reisinger in late July with a press release titled “Snow Day: Why is there no accountability ... Part of an ongoing pattern we see ... Reisinger consistently propped up by Democrat -controlled County Commission.” The aforementoned was the view expressed on behalf of the BCGOP by Communication Director Nathan West in a July 25 press release, emailed to the Daily Planet and other area news media. Kathy Sinclair, chair of the Buncombe County Democratic Party, contacted twice for a response to the BCGOP allegations by the Daily Planet, but did not reply by the newspaper’s early July 30 press deadline. However, Asheville City Councilman Cecil Bothwell, a progressive Democrat, provided the Daily Planet with an opposition response, asserting, “The N.C. GOP has been skating away from responsible governance for the last four years. If our register of deeds went sledding on one day when
Colony survival
Continued from Page A2 A woman asked, “A lot of the pesticide and chemical use is to increase yield. But research shows if you plant ... the borders (around a crop), you’ll get even higher yield... We need some of that input in wheat.... In fruit and nut and vegetable production, we need smaller plots. And that’s happening.” Pettis, the chief of research at the main U.S. honeybee lab, agreed with her assessment. Another woman queried, “Could you speak on role of other bees in pollination, besides honeybees?” Pettis joked that “there are no other bees” — there are just honeybees, prompting some laughter and cheers from some of the assembled beekeepers. On a more serious note, Pettis said, “There are lots of other native bees that do a lot of pollination.” What’s more, he pointed
Published monthly by Star Fleet Communications Inc. JOHN NORTH Publisher Phone: (828) 252-6565 • Fax: (828) 252-6567 Mailing address: P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 28814-8490 Website: www.ashevilledailyplanet.com E-mail the following departments:
News: news@ashevilledailyplanet.com Letters to the Editor: letters@ashevilledailyplanet.com Display Advertising: advertising@ashevilledailyplanet.com Classified line ads: classads@ashevilledailyplanet.com Circulation: circulation@ashevilledailyplanet.com Publisher: publisher@ashevilledailyplanet.com
To subscribe to the Asheville Daily Planet, send check or money-order to: P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 28814-8490 One-year local subscription (Asheville, Buncombe County, N.C., only)..............................$35 One-year out of area subscription (outside of Asheville, Buncombe County, N.C., but inside the United States).........................................................$50
road travel was deemed too hazardous for school buses, I say sled on!” Speaking for the BCGOP, West noted in the fourth week of July that, “earlier this week, the Buncombe County GOP filed a public Drew Reisinger records request with Buncombe County government to obtain a better understanding of the circumstances surrounding a recent decision by the Democrat-controlled Buncombe County Commission to spend approximately $500,000 on employee vacation time, in the name of fairness. “This decision was prompted by a recent decision by Buncombe County Register of
out that “there are also bats, birds” and other creatures that pollinate plants. However, he noted, honeybees — by far — are the top pollinators, providing a critical service for nearly 30 percent of the food supply. “Honeybees, in a way, are the poster child (for today’s ecological imbalance), but there is much more going on in pollination decline,” Pettis said.
Deeds Drew Reisinger, who shut down the register of deeds (office) in February due to a heavy snow. The scope of this records request will provide the BCGOP with the necessary tools to inform Buncombe County residents who have expressed concern over the situation. BCGOP Chairman Henry Mitchell was quoted in the press release as saying, “As Republicans dedicated to more efficient and smarter government, our goal is to conduct an inquiry that is rooted in fairness, is fact-driven, and worthy of the trust of our community. “The records kept by the Register of Deeds are vital to the fabric of our community. The Register of Deeds holds the birth records of our children, the death certificates of our loved ones, records of our marriages, documents our property transactions, and is entrusted with many other papers critically important to the people of Buncombe,” Mitchell said On Feb. 23, 2011, “the Buncombe County Democratic Executive Committee appointed Mr. Reisinger, then-27 years old, as the successor to Otto DeBruhl. Questions were raised at that time about his experi-
ence and whether he was qualified for the position. Again, serious questions are being raised about his ability to effectively manage the register of deeds,” the BCGOP press release noted. West added, “Mr. Reisinger’s decision to shut down his office and go sledding has us wondering about his commitment to the people of Buncombe and reflects on the lack of trust the community has for his protection and management our records. “Regardless of political affiliation, as a community we need to trust that decisions are being made for the good of our community and not made for political favors. Mr. Reisinger has had a meteoric rise here in Buncombe — and we are seeing a pattern of preferential treatment by County Government towards him,” West said. The BCGOP noted that it “will continue its efforts to inform the public of our findings and, if necessary, will make additional inquiries to provide the community with the information they need to make informed decisions regarding those they are entrusting with their community.”
Foam Foam& &Fabrics FabricsOutlet Outlet Outlet Foam & Fabrics Foam & Fabrics Outlet Foam & Fabrics Outlet Foam & Fabrics Outlet DRIVE DRIVEa little littleSAVE SAVE SAVE lot! a lot! DRIVE aaalittle aaalot! DRIVE little SAVE lot! DRIVE little SAVE lot! DRIVE DRIVE aaa little little SAVE SAVE aaa lot! lot!
Complete CompleteFabric Fabric FabricCenter Center Center Complete Complete Fabric Center Complete Fabric Center Complete Fabric Center
Factory defects, factory returns and closeouts at
FANTASTIC PRICES! Large selection for the entire family
One-year outside U.S. subscription (outside U.S.)..................................................................................$100
ARBY‛S SHOES
Copyright 2011 by Asheville Daily Planet. Advertising copyright 2011. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. The Asheville Daily Planet is available free throughout Western North Carolina. Limit one copy per person. Additional copies may be purchased for $1 per copy, payable at the ADP office in advance. No person may, without prior permission, take more than one copy of each issue.
509 New Leicester Hwy. Asheville
828.258.1128
Drapery DraperyMaterial Material Material Drapery Drapery Material Drapery Material Drapery Material
Roc-Lon Drapery Lining Drapery Print and Solid Waverly
Upholstery UpholsteryFabrics Fabrics Fabrics Upholstery Upholstery Fabrics Upholstery Fabrics Upholstery Fabrics 50,000 50,000 Yards Yardsin in instock stock stockto tochoose to choose choose fromfrom 50,000 Yards from 50,000 Yards in stock to choose from 50,000 Yards in stock to choose from 50,000 Yards stock from 50,000 Yardsin stockto tochoose choose from in 99 9999 $ $$$$ 99 99 99 99 99 99 99 2.2. $$$$$19. 19.
2. 2. $$19. 19.9999 2. 19. 2. 2. 19. 19.
$$ 99 99
FOAM FOAMRUBBER RUBBER RUBBER FOAM FOAM RUBBER FOAM RUBBER FOAM RUBBER Cut Cut to toSize Size Size Cut Cutto to Size Cut to Size Cut Cutto toSize Size
Fabric Fabricby by bythe the the pound pound Fabric pound Fabric by the pound Fabric by the pound Fabric by the pound
AUTOMOBILE AUTOMOBILE AUTOMOBILE AUTOMOBILE AUTOMOBILE AUTOMOBILE
3049 HENDERSONVILLE HIGHWAY
I-26 Exit 44, North miles I-26 I-26 Exit Exit 13, 13,then then thenNorth North North miles 3 miles I-26 Exit 13, then 3333 miles I-26 Exit 13, then North miles
I-26 I-26 Exit Exit 13, 13, then then North North 33 miles miles
684-0801 684-0801 684-0801
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 - A5
Dickie’s August Pork Sale Pork so cheap, it’ll make you squeal!
LUNCH MEATS 2 pks./$1ºº FRENCH-STYLE GREEN BEANS 2 cases of 12 (4.5-oz. cans) CORNBEEF BRISKETS $10ºº 3- to 5-lb avg. $198/lb. PROTEIN BARS...... 5 for $1ºº HAM (several kinds to choose from) $1ºº/lb. BACON thick-cut, 3-lb. pk. for $10ºº CHICKEN (large assortment) $1ºº/lb. 98 1-LB. BACON ... 2 or 4/$10ºº PORK TENDERLOIN $2ºº/lb. PORK CHOPS .......... $150/lb. SAUSAGE ROLLS.......98¢/lb. Buy, sell, Salvage Foods & Overruns LARGE ASSORTMENT CHIPS ... 98¢ LOCAL PRODUCE ARRIVING DAILY! 3 LOCATIONS
DICKIES FOODS
Dickie’s has the cheapest groceries ANYWHERE! #1 1114 Hansel Ave., Asheville, Ph. 253-4415 #2 308 Patton Cove Rd., Swannanoa, Ph. 686-5852 #3 1512 Charlotte Hwy., Fairview, Ph. 826-0834
More food for less money! Owner Buzzy Plemmons
Salvage refers only to slight dents in cans or boxes. They are the same brands found in any supermarket.
All items 100% guaranteed by Dickie’s Contents all 100% guaranteed All items have been rigidly inspected by us and are passed for sale.
Out of date product guaranteed by us. 2 LOCATIONS If not satisfied, return product
#1 310 Weaverville Hwy., Woodfin,forPh. full484-7168 refund. #2 1512 Charlotte Hwy., Fairview, Ph. 628-0834
Visit our web site at DickiesHalfPriceFoods.com
DICKIE’S FOODS Buy, Sell, Salvage Foods & Overruns
A6 — August 2014 — Asheville Daily Planet
Challenger fires torrent of criticisms at sheriff
By JOHN NORTH
At UNC, “I had to go to class many times in my police uniform... Girls wouldn’t talk to me, down at Chapel Hill — ‘There’s a LEICESTER — The Buncop,’ they’d say... My psychology profescombe County Sheriff’s Office sor stopped the class one day and asked me, needs to keep its deputies focused ‘Why are you here?’ I said, ‘because I’m on protecting homes and busitrying to go to college and get a degree’.... It nesses instead of “riding around was fantastic. It was a great experience.” with the Highway Patrol” and Bustle noted that “My Dad was a hardwriting traffic tickets, according ware man down on Merrimon Avenue. He to Mike Bustle, the Republican gave me a hand along the way, but I worked candidate for sheriff. Mike Bustle Christina Merrill several jobs on the side” to help pay his way Bustle and Christina G. Merrill, through college. the latter of whom is the Repub“I came back here to Asheville after I graduated and lican candidate for District 2 county commissioner, each worked for the Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office... I spoke for roughly 15 minutes about their political aspiraworked the (county’s) north end (around Barnardsville) tions during a picnic-dinner meeting of the group Citizens most of the time. After two years... I worked for the city for Change on July 7 at the picnic shelter near the historic (police) for two months and then got a job with the SBI Brick Church. (State Bureau of Investigation) and was assigned to FayAbout 30 people attended the gathering of the group etteville. It was known as the armpit of North Carolina, but that bills itself as nonpartisan. However, all of the officials who attended — and the two speakers — were Republican. it was a wonderful experience. I worked for the SBI almost two years.” Nonetheless, he said a low point was when he Leicester resident Peggy Bennett led the meeting. busted a woman he knew from Asheville “for hooking” Elected officials in attendance were Mike Fryar and (prostitution). Joe Belcher, two GOP members of the Buncombe County Speaking about his political motivation, Bustle said, “I Board of Commissioners; as well as Henry Mitchell, chairloved sheriffing because law enforcement in the sheriff’s deman of the Buncombe County Republican Party. partment is about as close to working with the people as you “I’m a fiscal conservative running for sheriff this Nocan get. I worked in every area of the sheriff’s department vember,” Bustle said, in beginning his address. “I have an — even the jail. Now folks, that’s where you really motivate uphill battle. I’m running against a person who has been people — in the jail.” The meeting attendees laughed with there about eight years now.” Bustle his touch of levity on his observations of jail life. As for why he should be elected, Bustle asserted, “First, Merrill, who spoke first, noted that she just had underI was born here. I grew up over in North Asheville, Atgone spinal surgery... but I’m feeling pretty good now... tended Asheville High and South French Broad (High). I I’m really, really excited about 2014. I think. as conservawas there during the riots. I went to Wingate College and then to UNC Chapel Hill... tives, this will be a good year for us... I think you’d all john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
agree we got robbed” in the last election. She added, “I’ve tried to get to anything I could go to since the start of the year.” At least, in part, Merrill said her efforts were an effort “for fair elections. People who have been getting away with intimidation... here in Buncombe County.” She noted that she took her recent narrow election loss to Ellen Frost, which she felt was the result of political shenanigans, “all the way to the Supreme Court in Raleigh... In 2016, if our case set a precedent... that’s a huge accomplishment for us and for the state.” Continuing, Merrill said, “So as your District 2 nominee, I am a true fiscal conservative. I’m trying to get on the board to help Mike and Joe.... Nobody I know wants their taxes raised. I know people who are Democrats, who are not Republics,” saying that “we need someone who says, ‘We cannot afford it.’” She asserted, “I need to be the voice we have not had up there... We have two voices (Fryar’s and Belcher’s). We need Miranda (DeBruhl) in District 3 and me in District 2 — along with (incumbents) Mike and Joe. “My opponent (Frost) is a very good politician — I’m not. My opponent has managed to give herself two raises in the less than two years... as vice chair. She’s a good politician. I saw her hire the attorney who disenfranchised (thousands of couty votes) — and now he’s the county attorney.” Her reference was to Robert Deutsch. In a verbal blast at Frost, Merrill said, “She’s not a great voice for the people of the county. I want to be that great voice. ... One thing I know about communications is that listening is the most important thing... I’m not a politician — and I’d like to be a servant.... “I feel like there’s not anybody who’s seeing this great recovery. You don’t know how many phone calls I get from friends, asking if I’m going to the meetings (of the Board of Commissioners) — and to be sure to say this and that,” Merrill said.
These venues invite you to visit them in Downtown Asheville Located at the Grove Arcade
COMPARE OUR BUYING PRICE ON GOLD AND SILVER
WE BUY LARGE
OR
SMALL COIN COLLECTIONS
BUYING ALL GOLD & SILVER 1 Page Ave Suite 120 Asheville NC
828-255-0731
0003151683
Mon.-Sat. 10-5
ART + I N D E PE N D E N T FI L M S
Coming in August LAND HO! A MOST WANTED MAN BOYHOOD
$5 Tuesdays Local Brews on Tap Best C oncession Prices Special events/fund-raisers excluded Prices subject to change Upstairs Stadium Seating All films — all day — only $5.00
www.FineArtsT heatre.com
Open D aily
•
36 Biltmore Ave
•
232.1536
Voltage Records Way beyond hip and trendy Visit our new location at 28 Asheland Avenue, Downtown Asheville
• Free parking • Sales, service and repair
New, used and vintage
BICYCLES 253-4800
Asheville Daily Planet To advertise, call 252-6565 or email us at advertising@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
Buy - Sell
LPs & CDs New & Used
Always purchasing LP collections Sell us your records for cash
90 N. Lexington Ave., Asheville
(828) 255-9333
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — A7
DON’T overpay! for auto repairs & new tires
Robert Maybin
Bruce Henderson
Brake Service N.C. Inspection
$99ºº
Installed - most cars
$25ºº
CV Axles
$139ºº Installed - most cars
CALL US Easy Street For a free quote!
• Timing Belts • Starters • Water Pumps • Alternators & More
In Asheville since 1997
Auto & Tire 255-5528
889 Riverside Drive • Near UNCA Exit
A8 — August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Protesters
Continued from Page A1 At each stop, impassioned speeches were given, enhanced by a bullhorn. Two young Palestine natives — a man and a woman — were among those who spoke. Amru Elayan, an Asheville resident who later told the Daily Planet that “most of my family resides in the West Bank,” urged the crowd to “stop the oppression and end the siege” — and that if the Israeli action persists, “it will not end well” for Israel. Meanwhile, Meira Yasin, an Asheville nurse, spoke passionately about the Israeli military — with its bombings — “just killed babies” — and asked her fellow protesters if that was acceptable. “No!” her compatriots shouted back, equally passionate. As for possible solutions to the crisis, Elayan told the Daily Planet afterward that “I’d like to see, at the very least, a return to the 1967 borders as stipulated” by the United Nations. “Also, I would favor a one-state solution,” giving Israelis and Palestinians “equal responsibilities and equal rights.” When pressed further for his views, Elayan said, “Zionism has nothing to do with Judaism,” in reference to his belief that Israel’s actions reflect Zionism. “I have no problems with Jews... There are good Israelis.” However, he added that “this (Israeli bombing) is completely disproportionate” to any perceived provocation by Palestinians — and that creates an untenable situation. At the rally, Benjamin, the protest leader, voiced the most numerous and repeated fiery criticisms of Hagan, other American politicians — and, most of all, of Israel. However, she gladly shared the bullhorn with other protesters wanting to speak. No pro-Israeli comments were heard. During the two marches, among the most repeated — and apparently popular — chants
Anti-Israel protesters hold their banners July 25 during their stop in front of the Bell Tower Memorial, which was erected by Veterans for Peace during the organization’s recent National Convention, which was based at UNC Asheville.
Emu Elayan speaks against what he termed Israeli “oppression,” as Meira Yasin holds a sign that summarizes her viewpoint. Both claim family ties to the Palestinian Territory. were “Not another nickel, not another dime, no more money for Israel’s crime!” and “Brick by brick, wall by wall, Israeli apartheid has to fall!” The stated intent of the rally, according to a CODEPINK press release, was to “call for (an) end to (the) senator’s support for Israeli
assault on Gaza.” (CODEPINK bills itself as a women-initiated grassroots peace and social justice movement working to end U.S.funded wars and occupations — and challenges what it terms “militarism” in general. The name CODEPINK plays on the former Bush administration’s color-coded homeland security alerts.) What’s more, the release noted that the protesters, upon reaching Hagan’s office, would express opposition to “the brutal Israeli bombing campaign of Gaza and call for a end to the ongoing siege.” Activists are dismayed that both Sen. Hagan and Sen. (Richard) Burr from North Carolina voted, along with the rest of the (U.S.) Senate, to support the Israeli assault on Gaza. Protesters will call on both senators to condemn the attacks and show compassion for the Palestinians. “It is outrageous that the Senate unanimously passed a resolution endorsing Israeli war crimes,” Benjamin stated in the release. “Why does Senator Hagan, who is generally a progressive Democrat, support sending over $3 billion in military aid to Israel to enable this violence when that money is needed here in North Carolina?” Benjamin added that, “according to NPR (National Public Radio), as of July 25, 718 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza. Even hospitals are being shelled by Israeli forces, and on July 24, a U.N.-run school was bombed. As U.S. citizens whose tax dollars are underwriting this carnage, we call on Senator Hagan to take a stand and call for an end to the bombing now.” The release added the “action is timed to coincide” with the National Veterans for Peace Conference and the CODEPINK Activist Training Camp, both of which were going on in Asheville, too. “Activists from Asheville and across the country will be present at the protest.”
After about 15 minutes in Pritchard Park, the group marched to Hagan’s office, where various speakers verbally jackhammered the absent Democratic senator for what they termed her hypocrisy in being a “liberal” in many spheres, except when it comes to criticizing Israel. Hagan, along with most elected American leaders, was excoriated for their fear of being perceived as anti-Semitic and for being unable to resist the alleged big donations to their re-election campaign war chests by “the Israeli lobby.” At their brief stop at Hagan’s closed office, Benjamin told the protesters that, “whether you’re a Democrat or a Republican doesn’t seem to matter” when it comes to U.S. elected officials supporting Israel’s current actions. “Why is it there’s this ‘liberal on everything — except on Palestine?’” She reiterated that big campaign donations from the “Israeli lobby” and fears of being labeled “anti-Semitic” were behind otherwise “liberal” elected leaders’ support for Israel’s actions. “Do you know how many millions of people around the world hate Israel for what they’re doing?” Benjamin asked. “The only thing these senators care about is the money from the pro-Israel lobby... We’ve got to step it up,” via sit-ins and other actions. “End the siege of Gaza!” At the bell tower memorial at Pack Square, Roger Ehrlich, speaking on behalf of the Veterans for Peace conference, began by noting that “while it’s not a place for slogans, but for respect,” but then praised the protesters for their efforts on behalf of peace. While the protesters were at the memorial, the names and ages of a number of the Palestinian babies and youths killed in the Israeli bombing in the two weeks prior to the rally were somberly read, as the protesters, along with a few veterans, stood with their heads bowed, amid the bustle of otherwisehappy-looking tourists passing by in apparent puzzlement at the grave proceedings.
Way beyond hip and trendy Asheville Daily Planet
Fully stocked for all of your ammunition needs
NEW AR-15s Starting at
$615
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 - A9
Faith Notes are $20 in advance and $25 at the door, visit Malaprop’s Books/Café at 55 Haywood St., or visit www.brightstarevents.net.
Send us your faith notes
Please submit items to the Faith Notes by noon on the third Wednesday of each month, via email, at spirituality@ashevilledailyplanet.com, or fax to 252-6567, or mail c/o The Daily Planet, P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 28814-8490. Submissions will be accepted and printed at the discretion of the editor, space permitting. To place an ad for a faith event, call 252-6565.
Wednesday, Aug. 20
Saturday, Aug. 2
STORYTELLING DINNER THEATER, 6 p.m., St. John’s Episcopal Church, 290 Old Haw Creek Rd., Asheville. A storytelling dinner theater event will be held as a fundraiser for the church. Dinner is at 6, followed by a performance by the Storytelling Sims — Wayne and Jane. They are billed as humorists, historians and tandem storytellers. Admission is $20 for the dinner and storytelling, or $15 for just the storytelling. The dinner, served in the parish hall, will feature Iannucci’s baked ziti, homemade spaghetti, salad, bread, dessert and tea. For dinner reservations, which are required, call 298-3553, or visit stjohnsasheville@gmail.com. MUSICAL DUETS FUNDRAISER, 7-8:30 p.m., Calvary Episcopal Church, 2840 Hendersonville Rd., Fletcher. A fundraiser for the church’s Food Pantry Ministry will feature musical duets between poet and cellist Carol Pierce Bjorlie and bassist Leo Bjorlie, including a variety of jazz classic. The program, “Poemscapes,” is billed as “a kaleidoscopic event of music, poetry and photography.” Refreshments will be served. Admission is one jar of peanut butter (or more), per person.
Sunday, Aug. 3
SUMMER WORSHIP SERIES FINALE, 10: 30 a.m., Anderson Auditorium, Montreat Conference Center, Montreat. The finale of MCC’s Summer Worship Series will feature a sermon on “Wrestling for a Blessing,” based on Genesis 32:22-31 and Psalm 17:1-7. The sermon will be presented by Rev. Dr. Will Jones, pastor of Germantown Presbyterian Church, Germantown, Tenn. In addition, the sacrament of the Lord’s Supper will be celebrated. CONCERT, 6 p.m., In Jesus’ Name Church, 2934 Sugarloaf Mountain Rd., Hendersonville. The Land of the Sky Boys will perform in concert. MOUNTAIN SPIRIT COFFEEHOUSE CONCERT, 7 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 1 Edwin Place, Asheville. Pat Donohue will perform during the monthly Mountain Spirit Coffeehouse Concert.
Wednesday, Aug. 6
ADULT BIBLE STUDY CLASS, 5:45 p.m., Mills River Presbyterian Church, 10 Presbyterian Church Rd. (off School House Road), Mills River. This one-time, one-hour Bible study class will focus on “How Languages Constantly Change.” Admission is free and all are welcome.
Thursday, Aug. 7
FILM, 7 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Congrega-
Steven Curtis Chapman (top left) and Third Day (inset on right) will perform in concert at 8 p.m. Aug. 21 at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville. tion of Black Mountain, 500 Montreat Rd., Black Mountain. The film “The Story of Citizens United vs. FEC” will be shown in a summer film series about corporate money in politics and how it impacts America’s democracy. Admission is free.
Saturday, Aug. 9
MIND-BODY-SPIRIT DAY, 11 a.m.-5 p.m., The Light Center, 2190 N.C. 9, Black Mountain. Mind-Body-Spirit Day will feature crystal bowls, Reiki circle and toning for peace and healing. Donations will be accepted. CONCERT/MEAL, 5:30 p.m., Bethany United Methodist Church, 212 Bethany Church Rd., Fairview. A concert will feature the group Reflections, followed by a fellowship meal. Admission is one or more cans of food, or staple items for Food for Fairview.
BIBLE STUDY PROGRAM, 5:45-6:45 p.m., Mills River Presbyterian Church, 10 Presbyterian Church Rd. (off School House Road), Mills River. A Bible study program on “The Language of Humor” will be presented by Gene Scruggs, a retired professor with a doctorate in 17th century French literature. Anyone may attend. Admission is free.
Thursday, Aug. 21
STEVEN CHAPMAN/THIRD DAY CONCERT, 8 p.m., Biltmore Estate, Asheville. Steven Curtis Chapman and Third Day will perform in concert. Chapman is billed as an American Christian music singersongwriter, record producer, actor, author and social activist. Third Day is a Christian rock band formed in Marietta, Ga., during the 1990s. For tickets, which are $55 and $60 reserved, and $65 premium, call (866) 336-1255, or visit www.biltmore.com/concerts.
Sunday, Sept. 14
MOUNTAIN SPIRIT COFFEEHOUSE CONCERT, 7 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 1 Edwin Place, Asheville. Robin Bullock will perform during the monthly Mountain Spirit Coffeehouse Concert.
Dave’s
Discount Tires
651-8332
— Used Tires — Singles, pairs and sets available. Wide selection of 14, 15, 16, 17 and 18-plus
— New Tires —
Most brands available
N.C. Emissions & Safety Inspections Rental Cars & Vans 5349 Asheville Hwy, Hendersonville, N.C.
(828) 651-8332
Sunday, Aug. 10
BENEFIT CONCERT, 4 p.m., First Baptist Church, 63 N. Main St., Weaverville. The church will host a benefit gospel concert featuring the Fourever His Quartet. The singers include David Crow, lead; Don Robinson, tenor; Steve Oxner, baritone; and Mal Blankenship, bass. The sound technician is Shane Piere. A free-will offering will be collected for the 2014 North Buncombe Music Scholarship. PUBSING, 6-8 p.m., French Broad Brewery, 101 Fairview Rd., Asheville. Pubsing will offer a gathering to sing old-time gospel and Americana inspirational music. Attendees are asked to bring instruments — or just their voices. CONCERT, 7 p.m., Altamont Theatre, 18 Church St., downtown Asheville. One Heart Productions will present “Paloma Devi in Concert: A Full Moon Evening of Devotional Music.” The performance includes Paloma Devi, vocals; Tripp Dudley, tabla and percussion; Daniel Barbar, guitar, keyboards and hand drums; and Daniel Chambo, silver and bansuri flutes, saxophone and hand drums. The concert celebrates Devi’s first solo CD, “Let It Be So.” For tickets, which
Covenant Reformed
PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 281 Edgewood Rd. • Asheville, N.C. 28804
828-253-6578
www.covenantreformed.net Wednesday— 7 p.m. Prayer/Bible Study Sunday— 9:30 a.m. Sunday School 11 a.m. Worship • 6 p.m. Worship
Celebration Services 11 AM Sunday
Unity Church of Asheville
Carlton Whatley Computer Consulting www.cwhatleyconsulting.com
828.776.3339
cw@carltonwhatley.com
Summer Sunday Service • 10 am
An Informal Spiritual Center of Practical Christianity for Everyday Living.
Bookstore Meeting Rooms
130 Shelburne Road West Asheville 252-5010 www.unityofasheville.com
Sunday mornings Carolina Cinemas
Hendersonville Rd., Asheville
10:30AM
Come just as you are!
Unity Center
A Church Family for ONE and ALL Come as you are! Sunday Services Sunday Services 10:00 a.m 9:30am & 11:00am Serving WNC for 60 years
891-8700 / 684-3798
2041 Old Fanning Bridge Rd. Mills River 28759 Rev. Chad O’Shea
www.unitync.net
A10 — August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
$ 24995 HU800AWD
SUMMER SAVINGS
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — A11
A12 — August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Arsonists
Continued from Page A1 “To go against the grain, to go against what everyone thinks is right, to go against the conventional wisdom — particularly on war... I want to thank you for doing that,” said Hoh, a senior fellow at the Center for International Policy and the former director of the Afghanistan Study Group. Later, he noted his disappointment with Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi for encouraging progressive legislators to back Obama because “this is our president” — in his recently thwarted plans to lead the U.S. into war with Syria. He praised those progressives, notably the VPW, for standing up to Pelosi and Obama — and keeping the nation out of what he termed yet another useless war. Hoh also lamented that if former Sen. Hillary Clinton, also a Democrat, is elected president in 2016, she would — under the same circumstances as Obama — probably try to lead the U.S. into some foreign war, with many progressives like Pelosi backing her, right or wrong, simply because she is a fellow “progressive.” The convention, based at nearby UNC Asheville and hosted by VFP Chapter 099 of Western North Carolina, was held July 23-27. About 250 to 300 people attended the banquet, where the wine ran out early, but the beer — in a city that touts itself as “Beer City USA” supply — held up. During the July 26 event, the St. Louisbased National VFP recognized what it termed the stellar efforts of event coordinator John Spitzer, who, in turn, singled out — for praise — members of the WNC chapter, of which he is a member. One of the convention’s slogans was: “Your silence won’t save you.” The convention’s theme was: “Peace at Home, Peace Abroad.” Among the performers was a quartet of singers, Fruit of Labor, who, in preceding remarks before songs, spoke in favor of “self-determination of the Palestinian nation” and the need “to stand firm with our Palestinian brothers and sisters.” No one at the convention — who spoke or sang on the night of July 26 — voiced any favorable comment toward Israel or the Israelis. The VFP bills itself as “a global organization of military veterans and allies whose collective efforts are to build a culture of peace by using our experiences and lifting our voices. We inform the public of the true causes of war and the enormous costs of wars, with an obligation to heal the wounds of wars. Our network is comprised of over 140 chapters worldwide whose work includes educating the public, advocating for a dismantling of the war economy, providing services that assist veterans and victims of war, and most significantly working to end all wars.” Further, the VPW notes, “To achieve these goals, the members pledge to use nonviolent means and to maintain an organization that is both democratic and open with the understanding that all members are trusted to act in the best interests of the group for the larger purpose of world peace.” McKinney, who spoke last, began by noting that “I lament when our movements for justice are weak at home” because “people suffer at home as well as abroad. I’m sick and tired of war and oppression, when there need not be any... “Either we are actively engaged in the struggle for peace... or we take the side of the perpetrators.... Now, because of policies from the (Bill) Clinton administration to the Obama administration, “we all know that the perpetrators can be do-gooders” among the progressives, she said. “Blindly voting for a Barrack Obama,”
she said, did “not going to give us the change that all of us want and need. There is no substitute for doing personal research on the candidates... to make sure they actually align with our values. “There is no voting for the lesser of two evils, because you end up with a more effective evil,” McKinney said. “Arsonists are at work all over our world... We’ve been called on when the world is on fire... They (the arsonists) want every corner of the world to be aglow... with hatred.” Further, she asserted, “Institutions have trained everyone since the beginning of this country to especially be afraid of black males... Now, it’s become time to move on to the next group to hate — the Latinos,” who, she said,”leave their homes and countries because their governments... made life unbearable for them there. “Today, the United States supposedly is negotiating with Honduras... But just imagine if the U.S. had not interfered with two Honduran elections... Without that foreign policy of the United States, President Obama’s first coup after he came to office, Hondurans would be building their nation, instead of fleeing it. (Her assertion was greeted with loud and sustained cheering and applause.) “If truth is the first casualty of war, it also could be said hatred is the first spoil of war,” McKinney said. “In the last decade or so, we’ve been told Muslims are worthy of our hatred. ... So we’d better kill them before they kill us. ... While we are taught to kill Muslims, from what I’ve seen, they’re doing a pretty good job of killing each other.” (Her quip prompted some laughter from the crowd.) After reciting a long list of countries that, McKinney said, are “on fire,” she noted that Ukraine — “for the moment” — tops the list. While she praised Asheville as “a beautiful hamlet in the heart of the Cherokee Nation,” she nonetheless noted that “what is wraught abroad comes home — and what is made at home is exported abroad.” She then turned to what she termed “media demonization,” noting that while she was in Georgia, “the pro-Israel lobby struck me for the first time. I’ve been quoted as saying.... I became engaged in hand-tohand combat” with Israel. “As with other victims, I was made to look like a deserved what I got. As for the lighting of fires around the world, “It works that way whether the arsonists are lighting the way for a foreign leader, or a domestic one,” she said. After all she has experienced, “I now understand the mechanisms of oppression and repression.” What we struggle against are the tactics and orchestrations of the U.S. government, using as one example what McKinney said she has learned about in two African nations, where “we now know the United State will have targeted assassinations — and lie to get away with it.” She said the actions reinforced to Americans the misperception “that Africans just like killing one another.” She also claimed that declassified documents from Operation Condor “showed the existence of Kill Teams, aimed at people — like us — who just want peace and justice. ... This was brought home and used against U.S. citizens.... Speaking of what she termed “illegal employment by the CIA,” she said that “the Church Committee found that antiwar activists were subject to a broad range of activities to smear them in the press, so whatever happened to them it would appear they deserved what they got.... They even
targeted assassinations, like Malcolm X and Martin Luther King Jr.... McKinney said she has extensively studied the killing of “Dr. King,” noting that nearly one-third of respondents to a poll after civil rights leader’s murder “felt strongest that Dr. King had brought his assassination upon himself.” “We’ve changed United States policy from peace and justice (in the early 1960s), when ‘we the people’ who struggle for peace were on the verge” of success, including Kennedy using the word “peace” 30-some times in a speech at American University — just weeks before he was killed. “So instead of the torch being passed to a new generation... Everyone in this room knows what we have instead.... This conference has covered what it means to be a conscientious objectors. My son is a conscientious objector.” (The crowd applauded.) McKinney added, “I’ve been underneath U.S. bombs in Libya. I’ve been in prison in Israel... I’ve long said, ‘Let’s end U.S. wars and avoid future generations of veterans who will be neglected by their government. (The crowd applauded her words.) “In conclusion, I say: Make my funk and peace... fun.” (Her speech drew a sustained standing ovation.) Speaking earlier in the evening, Hoh began by saying, “Those folks in this room who have been part of the Freedom Flotilla, in Gaza, who have traveled over there, please stand up.” (The crowd applauded.) In his speech “Thank You for Choosing the Red Pill,” Hoh said, “The current state of affairs are nothing to rejoice or be happy about... The Pentagon wants to get bigger all the time — just like any other organization.... But particularly, the romance of war — that somehow there’s honor in it... You hear about wartime presidents, as if that’s something we should strive for. “We’re a nation that waging literally countless wars overseas. I say ‘countless,’ because we have no idea where our drones are taking us.... The reason you might want to take that blue pill is because there is such a clamor to go back to war.” Hoh was greeted with groans from the crowd when he asked if anyone had “seen what next week’s Time magazine cover is going to be — “Cold War II: How the West is Losing to Russia.” As several negative comments were muttered, someone spoke up, saying, “That sounds like (Sen.) John McCain.” He added, “We need to be committed to principles. Not the party, not the ideology, not the politics... We need to use... most of all, our experiences. Everyone in here is an expert on war — not Congress, not people
like me at a think tank. You all are the experts on war.” He told of top congressional leaders — on key military committees — not knowing how many troops the U.S. had stationed in Afghanistan. Also, Hoh lamented, “they spoke of how many people we’d kill in Afghanistan, like a ballgame.” As one top leader told him recently, “We know there’s a discrepancy between what the military and intelligence says on what’s going on in Afghanistan, but it’s not our place to get in the middle of that. (People in the crowd groaned.) “So you can do something... What these guys need is knowledge — they need facts. Seven out of 10 briefings we get come from think tanks” — and they’re mostly funded by military suppliers. What really pushed me over the edge.... Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.) was a big supporter of me — and he brought in all of the Democratic members of the caucus... I spoke and they all got riled up — this was in November of 2009 — before President Obama decided to escalate the war in Afghanistan. “Then House Speaker Pelosi spoke up and said, “This is our president. We have to support him.” To that, Hoh asked the VFP crowd, “How many people have died in Afghanistan?” “If Hillary Clinton had been elected, who thinks the outcome would have been different?” Hoh asked, rhetorically. “How many peace caucuses are there in Congress?” Hoh asked. “Zero,” the crowd said. He then named the many caucuses that exist in Congress. “This is not a negative ... What I’m trying to do is not be negative.... We stopped him (Obama) on Syria... People who are like people in this room. That’s why we’re not at war in Syria today. “We need to be a big tent... You’ve seen the waste and lies of war... or the blood and lies of war... These trillions could be better” spent on more sustainable priorities, Hoh said. “Whether you’re from the left or right, or if you’re like me, and you don’t believe in left or right... You know that war is ineffective. War is wrong. War is madness... And ... it’s a crime.” He received a standing ovation when he finished by saying, “I thank you, again, for taking the red pill!” — By JOHN NORTH
john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
New AR-15s starting at $615!
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — A13
Commentary Ghostly conversations near Grove Park Inn, Part 2 On troubles in the Middle East
I
It was very late Saturday night, July 12th, and another full moon bent down upon the Grove Park Inn’s outside terraces. Jasper (an employee of the Inn) was once again secretly observing our group of spirits, who were leaning back in chairs around a table, but this time the conversation turned on international events: “Surely everyone here can agree that these Muslims, this ISIS, this terror group invading Iraq, are stuck in medieval times…” said Jennings Bryan. “Always the populist, eh, Mr. Bryan?” John D. Rockefeller muttered in a creaking voice, “We have both had time enough to watch the unfolding of events. Yet why have you neglected to consider that the Arab unrest stems back to when, with the help of Lawrence of Arabia, they broke free of the Ottoman Turks in order to have a single independent Arab country during World War I, but only to be double-crossed by the French and the English and divided into all the little despotic Arab states you see today? Notice that in the meantime the Turks in their pride have been able to go from an empire to a democracy. And, what about the fact that in the ‘40s, ‘50s, and early 1960s Muslim cultures were moving somewhat gracefully into the modern world? In the 1960s a young Islamic woman in Cairo could wear what was called a miniskirt. Quite impossible now. This radical Islam is not an old phenomena, rather it’s a relatively new one. It parallels the conservative late 20th century resurgence of fundamentalist religion the world over. And moreover that conservative irrationality parallels the 1960s (and onward) liberal affair with these so-called new-age religions, or this secular libertine hedonism manifested with rampant
Ben Yoke consumerism, careless debt, promiscuity, and ‘recreational’ drug use.” “I agree with the venerable Rockefeller here Bryan,” said Thomas Wolfe, “These later moderns, liberal and conservative, have both rejected the rational principles of the enlightenment.” “And what ‘rational principles’ are those Mr. Wolfe?” said Bryan rather sharply. “Why a reasonable ethos,” replied Wolfe, “derived objectively from nature, Natural Law; rather than from post-1960s subjective whims of ‘if it feels good.’ Which in the conservative temperament has translated into fearfully relying on debunked ‘fundamentalist’ religion and historically failed political values, and in liberals this feckless moral relativism, hedonism, and equally failed political ideas.” Alex Haley said, “But didn’t the West lose its so called ‘enlightened’ authority in the 1960s because of all that bad history? Eugenics, the destruction of indigenous peoples, Hitler, Stalin, Mao, racism, Jim Crow, sexism, two world wars, the very near nuclear apocalypse of the cold war, looming environmental catastrophes, and so on. . . This Western enlightenment of yours surely was, or is, a failure, isn’t it?” They all sat quietly, thinking apparently, gazing at the shimmering lights of Asheville below and the distant panorama of mountains that were themselves silhouetted with stars. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” said Zelda Fitzgerald. “I
Advice Goddess
Continued from Page A1 It’s normal for a girlfriend to expect her boyfriend to “keep it in his pants.” Only yours wants your eyeballs in there, too, as she considers crossing the street with your eyes open a form of cheating. When you love somebody, it isn’t exactly outrageous to fear losing them. And the suspicion that a partner is cheating can often be an instinctive response to subtle signs that they are. But such signs include flimsy excuses for working late or ducking into the hall closet to take phone calls -- not merely daring to open a magazine that includes pictures of females who lack beaks, paws, and tails. There’s a good chance your girlfriend behaves this way because she has a giant crater where her self-worth is supposed to be. As for her paranoia, to be human is to have a tendency toward ridiculous, overblown fears, but we also have the capacity -- gone unused in your girlfriend -- to follow them up with a chaser of reason. The sad thing is, you might have compelled her to work on changing if only you’d told her “enough is enough” instead of just wagging your tail while she tightened your choke collar. Thanks to your enabling, there are now 300 of you in the relationship — you, your girlfriend, and her 298 fears. If you’d like to change that, wait for a moment when you aren’t being prosecuted for something and ask to talk about the relationship. Explain that you love her and want to be with her but that she’s increasingly pushing you away with her irrational (and, frankly, insulting) accusations and behavior. Tell her that she’ll need to see a therapist and show meaningful improvement if she wants to keep you around. (Cognitive behavioral therapy, which helps people use reason to solve emotional problems, is probably the best bet.) See ADVICE GODDESS, Page A18
wish I had appreciated it more when I was alive and able to give more. But I was too possessed with my petty personal dramas.... “Perhaps all of us here betrayed the enlightenment. Perhaps with our selfish whims we failed it rather than it failed us.” “I suspect that’s so Zelda,” said Wolfe, “It is education that will help people become more reasonable regarding the laws of nature.” “Piffle!” replied Bryon, “It’s the loss of religion that has been the problem! Social Darwinism from this scurrilous theory of evolution was the scourge of the 20th century; from capitalist and fascist eugenics, to these Stalinists, ‘liquidating’ their ‘reactionary bourgeoisie!’” “But weren’t you just condemning the Muslim religion?” said Haley. “I meant the loss of the one true religion, Christianity. The gospel of God’s love, where the lion, by accepting Christ, can learn to sleep with the lamb.” “And now aren’t you ignoring Rockefeller’s point?” said Fitzgerald. “I began this conversation with a righteous assertion that these terrorists have a medieval morality!” thundered Bryan, “yet you all see fit to condemn me. I am bemused by the temerity of this illustrious group. And you Mr. Rockefeller, sir, were the worst eugenicist of the lot!” Rather than respond, Rockefeller seemed to hang his head and withdraw into himself. For a moment Jasper thought the old man would disappear, but Fitzgerald spoke, “There now Mr. Bryan, everyone here has done regrettable things.” “Regrettable things!?” said Haley, “being one of history’s worst monopolists, addicting the world to oil, aiding the Nazis and practic-
ing eugenics, are not just regrettable things!” “But what of you young fellow? It was shown in court that you plagiarized the book that is your only claim to fame!” hissed Rockefeller. Haley was about to respond, when Fitzgerald jumped in: “Stop! Must we do this? Arguing forever with this petty drama and never able to move ourselves to a higher level. William, personally I think Mr. Wolfe is correct; enlightenment values, drawn from the majesty of what you may wish to call creation, are the noble path. That path has been ignored because social Darwinism was humanity’s adolescent misunderstanding of the natural laws of life. The core law of life, for the living at least, in order to be life, is surely to survive. Biological evolution may sometimes be necessary for survival, but there is no law that says we have to do it just as a general principle. The 20th century showed us that a society based on that principle would be so brutal that the social contract can break down, randomly jeopardizing most everyone’s survival. I suspect if the living could begin to take that lesson to heart terrorist organizations like this ISIS would be less likely to arise.... Just then someone back in the Grove Park Inn started calling for Jasper, and he had to withdraw, hoping to wait for the next full moon to see if Zelda’s opinion had won any respect. • Ben Yoke, a philosopher and writer, lives with his wife and two sons in Weaverville.
A14 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
The Daily Planet’s Opinion
Poet laureate discord: a tragedy? McCrory takes the road ‘less traveled’ — and shouldn’t have
Gov. Pat McCrory did not make one of his better moves when he appointed Valerie Macon on July 11 as the new North Carolina poet laureate. But, if he was determined to sock it to the so-called “elites,” he did accomplish that. Macon, whose credentials were less than impressive (to say the least), resigned July 17 after her appointment prompted an uproar from the literary community, the public and the news media, far and wide. An employee of the state Department of Health and Human Services, she self-published two books of poetry. The discord over Macon’s appoinment did not seem to be a partisan issue, even though, like McCrory, she is a registered Republican, while the past four poets laureate were Democrats appointed by Democratic governors. As we go to press in late July, no successor had been appointed to this largely ceremonial — albeit somewhat presti-
gious — position, as “ambassador” of North Carolina’s literature. A group of former N.C. poets laureate wrote to McCrory that they were “outraged and deeply disappointed by the circumvention of the established process in place for a number of years to appoint the N.C. poet laureate, a cherished, time-honored and crucial position in service to the citizens of the state.” The circumvention of the process “has resulted in disaster,” they stated. We think McCrory’s failure to follow the established process for selecting a poet laureate was a major misstep, compounded by his demonstration of flawed judgment in choosing someone whose credentials were clearly subpar. McCrory took the road not (often) taken, to his detriminent, but perhaps he could redeem himself by working with the literary commmunity — and, as poet Robert Frost wrote (in a different context), that could make “all the difference.”
Reading others’ views offers perspective
CHAPEL HILL — “I don’t read the Washington Post. That is not where I get my ideas.” Many years ago when there were still lots of conservatives voting in Democratic primaries, a congressional candidate pandered to conservatives by trashing a liberal newspaper. But he lost ground with other voters who thought he should keep up with congressional issues covered in that newspaper even if he disagreed with its views. More recently, a widely respected conservative political commentator also lost a little ground when asked to comment about a recent article about North Carolina in The New York Times. He responded by saying that he did not read that paper because of its liberal slant. His questioner was taken aback and wondered aloud how anyone who followed public affairs could ignore what the influential paper wrote about our state. It would be just the same, the questioner remarked later, if a liberal commentator or politician bragged about ignoring the respected reporting of The Wall Street Journal because of its more conservative editorial stance. Liberal or conservative, we want our political and thought leaders to understand and consider the facts and opinions cited by smart people on all sides. There is another good reason to read papers like the Journal and Times. When they write about North Carolina, we get to see ourselves as others see us. We learn what parts of our public life outsiders judge to be important or interesting enough to command attention throughout the country. For instance, last week (the third week of July) Times’ Atlanta bureau chief Richard Fausset wrote about the tension in North Carolina Republican ranks because of a “move to the center” led by House Speaker Thom Tillis and Governor Pat McCrory. Many Republican legislators are happy with last year’s conservative revolution, which, Fausset writes, “cut taxes, pared unemployment benefits and eliminated business regulations. They allowed concealed guns in bars and restaurants, curtailed access to the voting booth and enacted new rules for abortion clinics.” These legislators believe voters in their districts will endorse these changes in the fall elections. They have no interest in backing away. “But,” writes Fausset, “Mr. McCrory and
D.G. Martin Mr. Tillis must run statewide in an environment where Democrats remain a serious political threat.” However, says Fausset, Tillis is not backing away from his role in taking North Carolina out of a federal program that granted extended benefits to the unemployed, which his campaign says, “played a role in an unemployment rate drop from 10.4 percent, when Mr. Tillis was elected speaker in January 2011, to 6.2 percent today.” If the Tillis campaign persuades voters that taking away unemployment benefits from North Carolina’s unemployed brought about a 4.2 percent drop in unemployment, he could turn a possible negative into a positive issue. So, in the fall North Carolina voters will be asking, Was the drop in unemployment related to the reduction in benefits? Ironically, the Times addressed the question in Sunday’s edition in an article by University of Michigan Professor Justin Wolfers. Republicans, he writes, “argue that ending benefits will spur the long-term jobless to look harder for work” causing employment to rise while Democrats “say that ending benefits will force the unemployed to cut their spending, which may have broader ripple effects that could slow the labor market recovery.” Which side has the winning argument? Seeking an answer, Wolfers compared North Carolina’s unemployment rate changes with those in nearby states that did not follow our state’s reduction in benefits. Finding no significant differences, he concluded, “My reading of the North Carolina experiment is that it provides little support for either side.” With or without help from the Times or the Journal, North Carolina voters can make their own decisions this November. • D.G. Martin hosts “North Carolina Bookwatch,” which airs at 9:30 p.m. Fridays and at 5 p.m. Sundays on UNC-TV.
Letters to the Editor
Debunking the Big Lie: DeBruhl not a Tea Partier
I’m sure most people know by now that Nancy Waldrop (wife of soon to be ex-commissioner, Republican David King) was successful in securing the votes needed to run as an unafilliated candidate in November for her husband’s commission position. The Democrats were unable to get anyone from their own party to run for the job so they decided to throw their support behind ex-Republican, Nancy and her campaign against the primary winner, Republican Miranda Debruhl. I saw an email that Mark Newman, treasurer of the Democrat Party, sent to District Three Precinct chairs, implying what to say when asking people to sign Nancy’s petition to get on the ballot. It says and I quote, “As you know, Commissioner King lost the Republican Primary to Miranda Debruhl, an extreme Tea Party candidate. The unafilliated Nancy Waldrop is the only
chance Democrat and like-minded will have to keep the right-wing Tea Party folks from taking apart everything we hold dear in Buncombe County. In the end, control of the commission and the future of Buncombe County is at stake.” Now for the Big Lie. Amanda Debruhl has never been associated with the Tea Party or any other organization. The Tea Party seemed to favor Mr. Lewis Clay as a candidate to run against Ms. Debruhl. He was touted as very capable for the job. However, Clay unexpectedly chose to withdraw from the race, for reasons left unsaid, although his name remained on the ballot. It appears the Democrats feel they had to spread a serious untruth, known as the Big Lie, in order get people to sign Nancy Waldrop’s Petition. What a sad commentary on running a campaign. Now I must tell you about Miranda. She is a Christian, wife, mother of two, a registered nurse and a small business owner. She is a hard-working, politically knowledgeable conservative and proud of it. See LETTERS, Page A19
The Candid Conservative
Bunkum in Buncombe Local officials smiling all the way to the bank....
“Public servant: Persons chosen by the people to distribute the graft.” — Mark Twain The Problem uncombe County senior officials are exploiting the public trust through an extraordinarily extravagant salary plan. Conducted in open view, their bold cronyism mirrors that of an organized criminal enterprise.
B
The Research The UNC School of Government’s mission is “to improve the lives of North Carolinians by engaging in practical scholarship that helps public officials and citizens understand and improve state and local government.” Noting this tax funded agency has tracked county government salaries for sixtyfive years, we wanted to test the sincerity of Whistle Blower their assignment. What follows is a factual summary of specific data presented by Buncombe and other NC counties to the School of Government for the 2013-15 budget years. Our “to catch a thief” research can be duplicated on the UNC SOG’s website – www.sog.unc.edu/node/518 The Enterprisers According to reports submitted to the School of Government, Buncombe County Commission Chairman David Gantt’s salary is higher than that of any other similarly serving elected official in the State. A highly marketed attorney, Gantt is paid $36,000 a year for his part-time public service function. Under this gentleman’s leadership, Buncombe chooses not to inform the School of Government on salaries, travel expenses and extra compensations for Commission
Carl Mumpower
members. Buncombe is also one of only two reporting counties not providing population numbers – information key to tracking bureaucratic efficiency and costs. Buncombe’s leaders do share their 401K compensation plan for elected officials. At 8 percent it is by far the highest of any county in the state. Mecklenburg and Wake, the two most populated and economically advantaged counties, contribute 5 percent to their leadership’s retirement security. County Manager Wanda Greene is paid $219 thousand a year. Mecklenburg and Wake counties pay their managers $228 and $239 respectively. Those wages make Wanda look a little better until one ponders the reality these two communities are four times larger than our own. In their report to the SOG report, Buncombe identified Kathy Hughes as the Clerk to the Board at $106 thousand a year. For that position that is the highest compensation in the state – double and triple what Gaston and Cabarrus counties (similarly populated to Buncombe) pay their clerks. With two exceptions, Buncombe County’s Elections Director, Trena Parker, is paid more than anyone in the state in a similar position – also $106 thousand. Those exceptions are, again, Mecklenburg and Wake Counties with four times the voting populace found in our part of NC’s 100 piece puzzle. See CANDID CONSERVATIVE, Page A17
Commentary
G
overnor Pat McCrory is doing his best to wreck Medicaid in North Carolina, with loads of help from State House Speaker Thom Tillis and the GOP majority in the General Assembly. Their refusal to accept the Medicaid expansion permitted under Obamacare has denied 377,000 people coverage and forfeited multiple billions of federal dollars. It has arguably cost 20,000 jobs that would have been created as well. Fortunately our well-organized nonprofit organizations have pushed back hard and helped to assure citizens of the coverage they need and deserve, both through government programs and private insurers. Despite the GOP’s refusal to create a state-level insurance exchange and refusal to accept that federally funded expansion of Medicaid, North Carolina is way ahead of other “states of denial” by many measures. Almost 108,000 citizens have signed up for private insurance under Obamacare, the highest per capita rate of any “refusenik” state. And in utter contradiction of McCrory’s repeated claims that our state’s Medicaid system is “broken” — it is working almost impossibly well. As Medicaid spending per person has climbed 6 percent nationally since 2008, it has fallen 11.6 percent here, thanks in large part to the managed care program, Community Care. North Carolina Community Care Networks Inc, (NCCCN) is a public-private partnership. It is a statewide umbrella organization that represents and supports 14 regional networks in designing and implementing care improvement initiatives
Way beyond hip and trendy Asheville Daily Planet
Asheville Daily Planet —August 2014 — A15
On the left
A state of denial Cecil Bothwell for Medicaid recipients and other underserved populations. As noted by Adam Searing, director of the Health Access Coalition of the N.C. Justice Center, “Under Community Care, local doctors, hospitals, health centers, health departments, social service offices, legal service providers and other community leaders have been quietly working together every day, every month and every year for a decade to help people access and use health care.” This well-established organization was ready and able to help our state’s citizens work through the federal health insurance exchange to sign up for both coverage and the federal subsidy available to low income subscribers. One of the amusing, ironic and surely unintended results of the GOP-led refusal to participate in Obamacare (which resulted in North Carolina and 26 other states declining to set up state exchanges) is that the federal exchange is now seen as enormously successful. While the federal Web
site got off to a bad start, once the problems were ironed out it started to work remarkably well. Some of the states which did set up their own exchanges are now opting to switch to the federal system (Oregon first among them, as their state program was beset with problems.) What we see now is that the federal system is laying the organizational groundwork for a nationwide single-payer system. There will be huge resistance from the right, but the demographics favor universal health care in the long run. Millennials are strongly in favor of single-payer according to poll results. A decade or so from now we are very likely to see widespread electoral support for “Medicare for All.” Moreover, Vermont has chosen an option in the Obamacare plan that permits states to set up their own single-payer systems. The Vermont experiment will be closely watched as it comes on line in the next few years. Success there is very likely to infect the rest of the country with the idea that high private insurance rates which go to support excessively paid CEOs and advertising departments are not the best use of health care dollars. The GOP in North Carolina is fighting a rear-guard action, urgently attempting to roll back the calendar to the state’s pre-
WWII status as just another backward, southern plantation. But their redistricting schemes, their slashing of education and health care budgets, their hobbling of environmental regulation and tax cuts for the wealthy will prove temporary at best. The fact that doctors and hospitals are making Medicaid work better here than anywhere else in the country is just one progressive element in a state that has changed radically since the Dixiecrat past. Young voters, relocated elders from the northeast and west coasts, a shrinking white majority and the influx of high-tech employers all point to a long term shift away from the current General Assembly majority. We won’t remain a state of denial forever. • Cecil Bothwell, author of nine books, including “She Walks On Water: A novel” (Brave Ulysses Books, 2013), is a member of Asheville City Council.
Write a Letter to the Editor
The Asheville Daily Planet print letters to the editor, preferably less than 150 words in length. All letters must be signed and include a daytime telephone number for confirmation purposes only. Send your opinions to Asheville Daily Planet, P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 28814-8490 or e-mail them to letters@ AshevilleDailyPlanet.com.
Carlton Whatley Computer Consulting www.cwhatleyconsulting.com
828.776.3339
cw@carltonwhatley.com SHOP with the Asheville Daily Planet’s advertisers today ... and everyday!
WHAT WE DO:
Small Business Consulting Backup Solutions - OnSite + OffSite Network Setup - Wired + Wireless New PC Installations Data Recovery Remote + Onsite Maintenance / Support Windows / Mac Desktop Support Server / Network Adminstration Internet / E-mail / Internet Security Malware / Virus Removal / Prevention Website Design / Maintenance
√ Integrity √ Courtesy √ Reliability “Integrity is the essence of everything successful”
~ Buckminster Fuller
A16 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Commentary Imagining closed-door parties with GOP legislators
D
uring a high school reunion, several of us were talking over breakfast. Inevitably the conversation turned to politics. One of the wives laughingly told how her husband was a fanatic Republican, a GOP cash cow. After Republicans took Congress in 1994, she said, he was joyous. “I suppose you can relax now,” she said to him that night. “No,” he said, “now I go after environmentalists.” My friend confirmed his wife’s story with a fiendish “Huh-huh-huh” laugh. That laugh has stayed with me ever since. In recent years, I’ve wondered if Republicans in Raleigh “Huh-huh-huh” as they look around the General Assembly candy store and savor the wrappers that litter the floor. Yes, I think they do. I imagine closed-door celebrations, like this one from 2012: “I propose a toast,” says Tim Moffitt. “To the city of Asheville!” “Yes,” says Nathan Ramsey. “And to their ongoing lessons in humility!” Laughter. “And to urban well-drilling companies,” says Chuck McGrady. Laughter. “I drink to Citizens United and wide-open money,” someone shouts. “And, boys, let’s don’t forget Tom (Hofeller) the Mapmaker,” says Moffitt. “He drew the districts so I’ll driveI-40 the rest of my life.” Laughter. “Didn’t he do a number on those liberals at Warren Wilson College?” someone shouts. “Zzzzt! Split ‘em right down the middle.” Right about now, a voice comes from the round head perched on the round body sitting at the end of the table: Ralph Hise. “I raise my Diet Sprite to the NCAE. (mumble) uppity teachers (mumble). Let their union dry up faster than Asheville lawns.” That moves Moffitt to stand up. “Gentlemen…to the North Carolina constitution! And the power it gives us in the General Assembly to manage local governments!”
Lee Ballard I imagine them that all standing up, some shouting, “Hear, hear!” and some shouting, “Here, here!” One is shouting, “Yeah, power!” And one is shouting, “North Carostution!” His glass wasn’t Diet Sprite. Do I know that GOP legislators slap down their opposition – like the city of Asheville with their Water Act (Moffitt, McGrady and Ramsey) and the North Carolina Association of Educators (Hise) as payback for past grievances? Nobody can know another person’s heart with certainty. But I can say absolutely that these guys went waaaay out of their way to take unnecessary actions. With priority needs all over the place, they pushed through hostile legislation. The record is clear that Moffitt and Ramsey, who represent Buncombe County interests, and McGrady, representing Henderson County, ambushed Asheville in a sneaky power grab. They didn’t consult the city, or even inform
them that their water system was going to be seized. Incredibly, Moffitt met with a city delegation in Raleigh fifteen days before filing the 2012 bill (HB1009), and he didn’t mention the takeover. Their state law applied only to one city – the finding of the trial judge last month in favoring Asheville over the General Assembly on the water system. And their 2013 law (HB 488) offered no compensation to Asheville for its $100 million water system. That’s being vindictive, wouldn’t you say? Hise’s SB727 (“No Dues Checkoff for School Employees”) similarly singles out one organization. Dues checkoffs for other groups were not affected. It’s been said that Hise had a chip on his shoulder toward the NCAE – or would have if the chip had stayed on his round shoulders. Certainly unnecessary. Folks, these men aren’t legislators. They’re thugs, bullies. They’re aggressive weeds in a garden. They’re prospering for a while, but there are people who love the garden who will yank them up by the roots. And all will be well in the garden again. • Lee Ballard lives in Mars Hill.
State Inspection
State Inspection General $25ºº
$25ºº
Brake Service
$110ºº
Easy Street Auto & Tire 889 Riverside Drive • Asheville • 255-5528
√ Free estimates √ Wholesale new tires √ Complete auto repair √ In business in Asheville since 1997
.22-caliber ammo available! ASHEVILLE PET SUPPLY Holistic before it was cool!
Since 1990 NATURAL AND ORGANIC FOODS AND TREATS Wellness, Solid Gold, Wysong, Nature’s Variety, Raw Frozen, EVO, Innova, California Natural
Herbal remedies Flower Essences Homeopathic Remedies WHAT MORE COULD YOUR PET NEED? Toys! Lots of toys! The fun place to shop for you and your best friend.
ASHEVILLE PET SUPPLY 1451 Merrimon Ave., Asheville (828) 252-2054
Haven’t spent your tax refund money yet?
We offer pepper spray & stun guns for security
Come to the Ammo Depot!
Your local source for:
√ Heirloom seeds √ Freeze-dried and dehydrated food √ Military paracord √ Survival silver — dimes, quarters, half-dollars
• We carry ammo, bulletproof vests
Dale Patterson Owner
• Camo • Tactical Gear • Blackhawk • Flags • Army Surplus • MREs • Water Purifiers • Medical Supplies • Survival Training No Double Discounts
Asheville Daily Planet —August 2014 — A17
Candid Conservative Continued from Page A14 Buncombe’s Human Resource Director, Rob Thornberry , makes $141,000 a year. That’s more – far more – than any of his peers in reporting counties with the exception of two – Mecklenburg and Durham. Any bets on the pressures of managing human resources in those two large high tech super-hubs versus keeping up with things here in Buncombe? Mandy Stone makes $158,000 as our Social Service Director. Although the County’s website lists her as the Health and Human Services Director/Assistant County Manager, per the North Carolina Division of Social Services, Director of Social Work is her role. That is also the title Buncombe reported to the SOG – and, again, at a reported $158,000. No county social services director comes anywhere close to her salary. Looking out for the welfare of others – clearly a fulltime responsibility unto itself – evidently includes covering your own welfare. It was good to learn our Register of Deeds, Drew Reisinger, is paid $80,000 – slightly below the average for the top 10 counties in NC. Unfortunately those same counties employ an average of seven Assistant and Deputy Register of Deeds – Buncombe County employees 20. Wake County has 29, but again, their population is, yep, four times greater than ours. The Emergency Services Director, Republican Jerry Vehaun, is paid $135,000 a year. That’s more than any other similarly employed public official in the state – by a long shot. Raleigh and Wake County pay their guy $82,000. With the exception of Mecklenburg County, our Library Director, Ed Sheary, is paid more than his peers in any reporting county in NC. There must be a whole lot of reading going on for $135,000 a year. Our Public Health Director’s salary is $136,000 a year. Alma Harris’s peer in Mecklenburg – repeat the number 4 for clarity – makes $138,000. That’s a healthy deal for Ms. Harris – not so much for us. Buncombe County’s chief tax collector Gary Roberts is paid $141,000 a year – once again, the highest in the state. We hope he’s good at his job. The millions going to support this team of political
To place a classified line ad in the Daily Planet, call 2526565.
Rates are as little as $10 per month for 25 words or less!
cronies requires an enthusiastic reach into taxpayer pockets. A point of light is found in Sheriff Van Duncan’s salary. At $117,000, his place in the top 10 biggest counties is about average. He is well paid for his public service commitment, but the fact our chief law enforcement officer makes only 8 percent more than our chief clerk and 20 percent less than our chief librarian reveals troubling county priorities. Next time you see Sheriff Duncan, thank him for serving and not taking advantage. As for the rest, with the money they are drawing from public service, no wonder they are sporting big smiles. Behind a facade of virtue and self-sacrifice, these folks are getting away with taxpayer murder. The Method Masking benefits and perks, playing loose with job titles, omitting key information and shifting budget categories are effective ways public officials conceal monkey business. Savvy manipulators know it is harder to hit a moving target. A big part of the government salary game is the pretense that public officials must be paid more to compete with the private sector. That myth is most often sold by those who have never worked in the private sector. Witness that in spite of the economic collapse of 2008, the argument threatening the imminent “loss of good people” to the private sector has remained persistently in place. Money is a weak long-term motivator, yet in today’s America government officials are routinely paid more than their private sector peers. It has little to do with performance, much to do with access to the public trough. Self-preservation reliably stands as the first priority of government. In the Buncombe County budget of 2013-14 the cost of General Government was identified as 9.8 percent – high by any standards. In 2014-15 that figure fell to 4.25 percent – an impressive improvement except the difference is based on cost shifting maneuvers. Buncombe County’s governance costs are impossible to track – conveniently or otherwise. County Manager Wanda Green said it well in her 2014 budget presentation, “As always Buncombe County government is here to SERVE.” Serve who? The Cause Certainly it is coincidental that with the one identified exception, all of the officials noted are Democrats. Surely a party promoting itself as caretakers of the poor, minorities and the otherwise disadvantaged would not intentionally abuse the public trust.
For further insight into why good people go bad in politics, look to the uncomplicated equation of reward and punishment. Those who go along with the power flow are validated with praise, opportunity and the satisfaction of being a member of the incrowd. Those who dissent are punished with a reverse formula. To the extent that all government newbies are uncomfortable and herding is an instinctive response to insecurity, most are unable to resist being seduced into the fold. That is why we have so many selfcongratulating political opportunists in office versus principled public servants. Behind it all is a corrupt click operating on a familiar principle – you scratch my back and I will scratch yours. You may have noticed that print media investigative journalism is a thing of the past. Most outlets are too busy painting a happy face on liberalism to generate the time and resources necessary to searching out bad guys. Cheerleading is not compatible with truth seeking. That so many county leaders have taken advantage of their seats of power for so long says as much about us as it does about them. Bad things grow in the dark and complacency is the blackest of curtains. Then there is the attention whistle blowers attract. Seldom is one endorsed for disturbing tranquility. There was a reason it took a child’s uninformed courage to expose the sham of the Emperor’s new clothes.
1271 Sweeten Creek Road, Asheville Family-owned and operated for 40 years 10:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.
I-40 to Exit 51, turn left, go 1.3 miles
The Solutions We can start by discarding the pretense virtue is affirmed by a smile. Likeability is not the same thing as sincerity. It is also important to remember that actions, good or bad, generally follow an easy path. That which is rewarded is repeated. We call senior public officials “leaders” for a reason. At the apex of this pyramid scheme are two people – the Chairman of the Commission and the County Manager. Accountability begins at the top. Forest Gump’s mom offered an excellent lesson in dealing with unprincipled people. Her “Stupid is as stupid does” assertion was correct. What these public officials are doing is stupid, amoral and a bunch of other things meriting scrutiny, challenge and accountability. A commanding framework for confronting evasive charlatans came to us 25 years ago. Christian psychiatrist Scott Peck, of The Road Less Traveled fame, produced another thought provoking work – People of the Lie. Therein this gentleman suggested America was busy mass producing a generation of con artists in business, industry, government, religion, and education that would one day take the heart out of our country. He was eerily correct. Those wishing to challenge people of the lie can find traction in a dependable truism – the best deceivers deceive themselves first. Buncombe County’s governing elite are clearly not an exception… • (Many thanks to whistle blower Linda Humphries for her investigative doggedness. Find more details at our website – www. NCWhistle.com.) • Do you have information about a source of mischief in our community? You can safely contact us at 828-252-8390 or drmumpower@aol.com. We are offering a $500 reward for information on corruption, crime, or other harms you share in confidence and we reveal in print. Bad things grow in the dark. We have a flashlight – do you have a whistle? • Carl Mumpower, a former member of Asheville City Council, may be contacted at drmumpower@thecandidconservative. com.
The Impact Private sector incomes in Buncombe County run 25 percent lower than those of Wake and Mecklenburg counties. Yet our leader’s salaries match or exceed their peers in these much bigger than us communities. When compared to the norm across the state, Buncombe government’s executive salaries simply slaughter the competition. Our leaders are living infinitely better than we are. For the past decade tax rates have remained stable for one reason – growth. Though individual financial security has stagnated or regressed during this period, local government has expanded – dynamically. An exceptional influx of new residents and businesses has funded the party and the partiers. When the celebration ends – and it always does – the bill will arrive with a vengeance. Expanded government, salaries, debt and expenses is the legacy of this group Old Grouch’s Military Surplus of overpaid happy faces. We will inher82 Main Street, Clyde • 828-627-0361 it the consequences www.oldgrouch.com – they will press on with taxpayer Spring is here - are you ready? The Old Grouch’s Military Surplus funded healthcare, Military is located justArctic 20 minutes west of eight percent retirement contributions Stove s in stock Asheville and is WNC’s oldest REAL now- burns and the inoculating military surplus store. With the best
We buy collector coins and gold and silver bullion
Open Monday-Friday
indifference of denial.
diesel, kerosene,
jet fuel, wood or prices found anywhere, the money you even coal! Great for you hunting camp, garage, orjustify a back the drive. save will more than up heating source for the house!!
We now have real, brand-new military Jerry cans for safe fuel storage! Ammo cans, camo clothFirsting, field gear, aid kits tactical gear — we have Wool Blankets, Military Sleeping and much Western Bags, Immersion heaters, Boots, North USMC backpacks Camo Clothing, andmore. much much Carolinas greatest selection of first-aid drive to Clyde more — well worth the by Arc’teryx in while they kits, from a small hiking to to a complete to see WNC’s best REAL military last for just... $99.95! trauma kit! surplus store!
Follow us on Facebook for announcements of more great deals!
MRE’s — we
stock FRESH, quality meals, complete meals, full cases and even individual entrees.
A18 — August 2014 — Asheville Daily Planet
Advice Goddess
Continued from Page A13 Give yourself a deadline, and reassess — maybe at the three-month mark — so you don’t keep getting used to crazy little by little until crazy becomes the new normal. That’s how a guy ends up being the one apologizing when he comes home to a bonfire of his clothes, computer, and Xbox after his girlfriend catches him in the act — smiling and thanking the supermarket checkout lady instead of staring at his shoes and wordlessly extending his palm for his change.
Fling theory
I’ve been casually seeing a woman for a year. Early on, I told her I wasn’t looking for a girlfriend. I think she was disappointed, but we continued seeing each other nonexclusively. She never pressures me for more commitment, but I suspect she’s getting more attached. I’d like to keep seeing her, but is it on me to break this off? Maybe she should be trying to find a real relationship with another guy. — Informal
Maybe she hopes you’ll eventually come around — at least to the point where you’re standing beside her at the altar, sliding her wedding ring on, and saying, “Hey, don’t read too much into this.” Still, even if she does want more from you, she might prefer having less to having nothing at all. Also, if she is looking for something “real,” this thing with you can help her avoid coming off hungry and desperate, much like
snacking before grocery shopping can help you avoid waking up next to a bunch of empty doughnut boxes. Let her know you’re still up for less, simply by saying you want to make sure she’s still okay with how you want to keep things casual. If it’s too painful or unrewarding for her to continue, it’s on her to break it off. The thing is, though “serious” relationships are supposedly the only “real” relationships, there are people out there — women, too — who are most comfortable with a less intense form of togetherness. This kind of slimmed-down relationship can end up lasting for years — even decades. In other words, 50 years from now, when you’re reserving side-by-side burial plots, you could find yourself whispering to the cemetery guy, “Wouldja do me a favor and bury me a few extra feet from her? I don’t wanna give her the wrong idea.”
Tales from the cryptic
My boyfriend of two years got an early birthday present from his sister and her husband: a really expensive, second-row ticket for a major sporting event next year. The trouble is, it falls on my 30th birthday (a Saturday). He knows I usually don’t care about my birthday, and I confess that I also judge people who care about theirs. Still, I can’t help but feel that my 30th is a bit of a milestone, and I wanted to spend my birthday weekend together somewhere with my boyfriend. I understand that he doesn’t want to seem ungrateful for his sister’s gift, and he’s courteously told me about this conflict
well in advance. Do I need to just get over myself? Or should I raise my concerns? — Neglected As a child, I was not one to turn down birthday loot, but around age 8, I developed a sort of jadedness about birthdays that continues to this day. The way I see it, if you are over 12 and not a cancer patient, do we really need to throw you a party and give you prizes for surviving another year? It seems you communicated some similar thinking to your boyfriend. Bizarrely, he believed you. Yet, apparently out of love and consideration (and perhaps the suspicion men have that all women are at least a little nuts), he let you know a year in advance that hockey or auto racing or whatever’s special day coincides with your usually-not-sospecial day. What more was he supposed to do -- well, other than travel back in time and ask your mom, “Hey, can you hold the baby in one more week? There’ll be a scheduling conflict in 30 years.” Wait…were you expecting him to turn down the ticket? If so, what’s that really about? Maybe a recent public service announcement from your ovaries? “Hi, we’re also turning 30, as in, it won’t be long before we retire, move to the countryside, and take up scrapbooking.” You may also be looking for what evolutionary psychologists call a “costly signal” -- some show of commitment requiring such a big outlay of money, effort, or forgone opportunity that it’s likely to be sincere. (In the absence of a proposal and a diamond,
maybe it seems the least he could do is light that ticket on fire.) If you do want more from the relationship, you may be able to get it, but expecting a man to read your thoughts is like expecting your dog to understand algebra. Tell your boyfriend you’re feeling sensitive about your birthday, your future, or whatever else, and you’ll at least find out where you stand. Assuming you get the reassurance you need, maybe you can do the loving thing and put your partner’s interests up there in importance with your own, perhaps by celebrating your birthday the weekend before the actual day. You might also try to get in the habit of using spoken-word communication — fun as it can be to surprise a man with a game of naked charades, aka “Guess what I’m thinking when I weep inconsolably during sex!” • (c.) 2014, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved. Got a problem? Write Amy Alkon, 171 Pier Ave, #280, Santa Monica, CA 90405, or e-mail AdviceAmy@aol.com
To place a classified ad in the Daily Planet, call 252-6565.
Rates are as little as $10 per month
Carlton Whatley Computer Consulting www.cwhatleyconsulting.com
828.776.3339
cw@carltonwhatley.com State Inspection
General Brake $25ºº Service General
$99ºº $110ºº
Brake Service
Easy Street Auto & Tire 889 Riverside Drive • Asheville • 255-5528
√ Free estimates √ Wholesale new tires √ Complete auto repair √ In business in Asheville since 1997
Get a jump on spring! Commercial & Residential • Instant Sodding Service • Old Yard Renovation • All Types of Shrubbery, Trees & Landscape Design • Spring & Fall Clean-Ups
• All Types of Retaining Walls • Leaf & Debris Removal • No Job Too Large or Too Small • Light Grading - Bobcat & Trackhoe • We Specialize in Large Trees
• Snow Removal CHARLIE’S
Charlie’s Lawn & Landscape Service Fully Insured • Call for Estimates
828.298.3285
Owner: Charles R. Lawrence
Serving Western North Carolina since 1967
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — A19
Letters to the Editor
Classified Advertising 1. Announcements ASHEVILLE PAINT & REMODELING PROS — “One call does it all.” The quality of our people sets us apart. Satisfaction guaranteed. Local company. Recent references. Pictures available upon request. We love good people. (828) 242-2302 or fasthomes21@gmail.com or APRpros.com
STEEL BUILDINGS
Discounted Factory Inventory, 14x36, 38x50, 48x96, 60x150. Misc. Sizes, limited availability www.utilityking.com Source #1GU 866-609-4321.
WANT TO BUY — The Daily Planet is seeking to buy newspaper vending boxes. 713-6336.
4. Employment NOW HIRING ALL PHASES — Asheville Paint & Remodeling Pros. Email resumé to: Fasthomes21@ gmail.com.
4. Employment If interested, please email the Daily Planet at circulation@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com or call 252-6565. ADVERTISE — Call 252-6565 today to place your ad in the Daily Planet to reach our estimated 35,000 readers. Our circulation stretches from Mars Hill to the north to Flat Rock to the south, to Black Mountain to the east and to Waynesville to the west. Rates are as little as $10 for 15 words or less per month. Cleaning — a dependable housekeeper is available and has an opening. Also will do other familyoriented domestic tasks. Call (828) 216-4592.
THANKS for reading the Asheville Daily Planet!
Delivery Drivers needed — Asheville Daily Planet is looking for responsible individuals with reliable trasnportation and safe driving records to deliver newspapers to newsrack locations around the area once a month for several hours. Experience preferred.
Newcomb Tree Service “If you can’t cut ‘em, we’ll Newcomb!”
• Free estimates & • Stump grinding fully insured & lot clearing • Tree removal, • Crane removal trimming & pruning • Trackhoe • Bucket truck & services chipper
Continued from Page A14 She (DeBruhl) will be a real asset to the commission board. Visit her website at electmiranda.com Even if you signed Nancy’s petition, you can still vote for Miranda Debruhl for District 3 commissioner in the November election. It’s not too late. You’ll be thankful you did. Send a message to the Democrats that Big Lies aren’t the way to get candidates elected. Peggy T. Bennett Leicester EDITOR’S NOTE: Peggy Bennett is director of Citizens for Change, a nonpartisan citizens action committee.
2nd look at age restriction needed for concert series
On July 20th, I was inquiring about purchasing tickets to one of Biltmore’s summer entertainment programs — in particular, the Aug. 21st concert of Third Day and Steven Curtis Chapman. It was to be a birthday gift for my wife who is presently on a medical mission trip to Kenya, Africa and a final getaway before my two boys, Jonah 14 and Caleb 11, go back to school. I had read that there were age restrictions to all the summer concert and called them to see if they could make an exception to this particular contemporary Christian event. I made them aware that we have attended many events like this elsewhere and that they were good boys. They would be with us and not running around causing a scene or disrupting the event. It was not as if they were crying babies. I asked to speak to someone in a higher position that may be able to help me. The first person was very polite, told me the policy but didn’t know why 12 was the cut off age. I was shocked by the next two individuals who I was led to believe were members of management in some capacity at Biltmore Estates. Both told me that it was the policy and nothing could be changed. They then proceeded to tell me that they don’t ID children at these events.
Handyman Service 50 years’ experience
779-8119 423-2400
State Inspection State Inspection
$25ºº
$25ºº
$110ºº
$99ºº
$139ºº
$139ºº
Send Gaza Strip residents to Syria, Iran and Iraq?
I suggest closing the Gaza Strip permanently and sending everyone there to Syria, Iran and Iraq to live. They all deserve each other! There would then be permanent peace in Gaza. DWIGHT SCHNIRMAN Banner Elk
Need a Painter Who Will Go
ABOVE & BEYOND? • Drywall & Plaster Repair • Residential & Commercial Painting • Wallpaper Removal • Pressure Cleaning
General Brake General ServiceBrake Service
Axle Replacement Axle Replacement
Mention this ad for a 10% Discount
Easy Street Auto & Tire
828.777.1226
√ Free estimates √ Wholesale new tires √ Complete auto repair √ In business in Asheville since 1997
Pat Newcomb
“Wait,” I interjected “Are you asking me to lie about my sons age for him get in.” As a concerned parent, I found this to be mortifying. I’m trying to raise my boys in a loving environment with the highest set of moral principals in a society that is decreasing in its. How could I ask them to go against what God is telling us to do.? I highly doubt that these are the views of the entire establishment, the views of the advertising bodies such as 106.9 The Light, not to mention the views of Mr. Chapman, or Mr. Powell and the band Third Day. I believe my boys could have understood that exceptions couldn’t be made, but to basically tell them they could be rewarded for dishonesty... don’t we put people in jail for that? Artists like these are trying to bring people to Christ. In the book of Matthew Chapter 19, the disciples who had good intensions, scolded parents for bothering Jesus with their children. Jesus said “Let the Children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these Children.” I hope that this letter gets in the hands of the individuals who make the policies at Biltmore Estates, that they re-evaluate the blanket age restrictions this year, and not wait till next year. As for the ones who are misguided in their morals, well, I’m not to judge or place sentence. To Mr. Chapman and Third Day, I hope your event is spirit-led and you add to His 5000. Who knows if it is His will, we will be seeing you. Dan Slentz Asheville
889 Riverside Drive • Asheville • 255-5528
Call Johnny for a Free Estimate!
828-606-3874
South Asheville
Custom Painting
A20 —August 2014 — Asheville Daily Planet
Show Reviews
and Calendar of Events
Special Section PULLOUT
B1
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014
ALO’s ‘South Pacific?’ A treasure By BARRY PATE JR., M.D. Special to the Daily Planet
Asheville Lyric Opera brought the classic production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s “South Pacific” to Asheville on July 18 weekend — and to say that this reviewer’s opinion is biased would be correct, seeing as I sat on the opera company’s board for the first six of its 15 years. Those were six challenging years for the company, but through much hard work, David Starkey and company have stayed true to the art form and have consistently delivered quality opera and musical theater to the Western North Carolina audience — and “South Pacific” was no exception. The story is based on James Michener’s Pulitzer Prize-winning “Tales of the South Pacific,” which he wrote in 1946 about his U.S. Navy experiences in the South Pacific. Rodgers and Hammerstein then adapted it for Broadway in 1949, and to say this was a masterpiece would be an understatement. While the story was written and is set more than 50 years ago and may seem a bit dated, the brilliance of the music remains as timely as ever. Thomas Joiner conducted a wellbalanced orchestra, which was positioned on stage, behind the performers. I always worry this will make it hard for the singers to be heard, but Joiner kept consistent control of the volume, making a pleasant back-
Photo courtesy of ASHEVILLE LYRIC OPERA
Mark Owen Davis (as Emile de Becque) sings “Some Enchanted Evening” to Michelle Seipel (as nurse Nellie Forbush) in the ALO production of “South Pacific.” ground for some really good singing. Nellie Emile de Becque, who was played by Mark Owen Davis. Seipel and Davis, both with Forbush, the naive nurse from Little Rock, impressive credentials, did not disappoint, Ark., was played by Michelle Seipel. She blending their voices well. Their solid falls in love with the cultured Frenchman
acting carried the audience on a believable journey of love found, love almost lost, and then love found again. Directors Jon and Elizabeth Truitt gave solid guidance in the adaption of this musical, but — for a concert — their efforts seemed too involved. Occasionally, the timing was a little slow during the scene changes, but this hardly affected the overall flow of the show, especially with the strong talent of all the performers. The Chorus Boys and Girls were very strong. Simone Vigilante as Bloody Mary and Strother Stingley as Luther Billis tried to steal the show but, alas, the final embrace of Siepel and Davis (Nellie and Emile) was the true scene-stealer. Yet, the real stars of this classic work are its timeless songs, including “A Cockeyed Optimist,” “There Is Nothin’ Like a Dame” and the very hummable “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair.” Embodying the underlying message of the show is the song “You’ve Got to Be Carefully Taught,” which is preceded by a lyric saying racism is “not born in you! It happens after you’re born....” However, the real workhorse of the musical is “Some Enchanted Evening.” This is probably one of the finest songs ever written for a musical to date, but being a baritone myself and having sung the tune many times, again, I am biased. See “SOUTH PACIFIC,” Page B7
‘Oklahoma!’: Oh, what a beautiful musical Cast excels, show rolls with surrey’s ‘2 bright sidelights winkin’ and blinkin’....’
By JOHN NORTH
john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com
FRANKLIN — After seeing a spirited production of the magnificent musical “Oklahoma!” on July 5 at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts, my enthusiasm for this Broadway classic, which is one of the best (and a genuine masterpiece that I have seen more than a half-dozen times over the years), was tempered by a realization that today’s music, in contrast, is a downright embarrassment. Given that there are more trained musicians alive today than the combined total in all of previous human history, I often wonder: So where is today’s Beethoven or Bach? Along the same lines (and more comparable to “Oklahoma!”), one might ask: Where are today’s brilliant Broadway composers rising to the same stratospheric heights for wit, style and creativity as, say, Rodgers & Hammerstein, Cole Porter or Jerome Kern? Instead of Porter’s clever, sophisticated and timeless lyrics in such songs as “Anything Goes” — “Good authors too who once knew better words / Now only use four-letter words / Writing prose, anything goes....” — today we can boast the trite street refrain of the group 2 in a Room’s “Wiggle It (Just a Little Bit)” — over and over and over.... At this very moment, Pharrell Williams has an insipid mega-hit with “Happy” — a song so sickeningly sweet, it surely will give diabetes to those few Americans who hear it ... and don’t have the disease (yet). On “Wiggle,” composer George Morel couldn’t have spent more than two minutes working on the lyrics. I’m surprised he didn’t just name the song “Awesome!” to encapsulate the extent of the adjectives in the vocabulary of our dumbeddown, techno-crazed, multi-tasking American populace. Almost on a par with “Wiggle” are the several songs out now with the lyrics mainly composed of “Put Your Hands Up,” or some slight derivation. Could it be that, despite programming computers to write many of today’s songs,
Photo courtesy of SMOKY MOUNTAIN CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS
The cast sings a rousing song from The Alliance Theatre’s production of “Oklahoma!” during an early July performance of the musical classic at the Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts in Franklin. composers are shortcutting the process by just thinking up some hip phrase for the lyrics, combining them with simple, catchy riffs — and running it all into the dirt, only to pick up millions of dollars in music sales. In vivid contrast to today’s musical dreck, there’s the infectiously charming “Oklahoma!,” which received a welldeserved standing ovation from an appreciative audience at the conclusion of the two-hour, 15-minute performance, with an intermission. The show, which ended its six-performance SMCPA run on July 6, was directed and choreographed by Broadway veteran Robert Ray for The Alliance Theatre, based in Atlanta, which gave the performance in Franklin. The SMCPA auditorium, which seats 1,500, appeared to be about two-thirds full. “Oklahoma!” marked the first collaboration of composer
Richard Rodgers and lyricist-librettist Oscar Hammerstein II. Theater historian Ethan Mordden credits “Oklahoma!” as the first American musical with an ethnic sound, words and music entirely in the folk idiom. It also constituted a pioneering effort to integrate the action in a musical with the songs to advance the plot to elicit emotional reactions, rather than just laughs. The show opened on Broadway in 1943 and became a long-running box-office smash that continues to be revived periodically on the Great White Way. “Oklahoma!” was released as a highly successful film in 1955, featuring Gordon MacRae and Shirley Jones in the lead roles. In the Franklin performance, the sets were simple, but striking and appropriate, capturing the “genu-wine” cornfields, as well as the breathtaking blue skies and green prairies. See ‘OKLAHOMA!,’ Page B7
B2 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Calendar
of
Events
Send us your calendar items
Please submit items to the Calendar of Events by noon on the third Wednesday of each month, via e-mail, at calendar@ashevilledailyplanet. com, or fax to 252-6567, or mail c/o The Daily Planet, P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 288148490. Submissions will be accepted and printed at the discretion of the editor, space permitting. To place an ad for an event, call 252-6565.
Friday, Aug. 1
“THE SOUND OF MUSIC” MUSICAL, 7 p.m., The Foundation Performing Arts Center, Isothermal Community College, Spindale. The musical “The Sound of Music” will be presented. For tickets, which are $15 to 25 for adults and $10 for students, call the box office at 286-9990. CONCERT/DANCE, 7-9 p.m., parking lot next to Visitors Information Center, 201 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. The band Blind Lemons Philips will perform during the weekly Music on Main Street summer concert-dance series. A car show will be held in conjunction to the show. Concert attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. No pets, alcoholic beverages, backpacks or coolers are allowed. Admission is free. “HELLO, DOLLY!” MUSICAL, 7:30 p.m., Haywood Arts Regional Theatre, 250 Pigeon St., Waynesville. The musical “Hello, Dolly!” will be performed through Aug. 3. The Aug. 2 performance is at 7:30 p.m. and the Aug. 3 performance at 3 p.m. For tickets, which are $24, visit www.harttheatre.com/tickets. ‘60S TRIBUTE SHOW, 8 p.m., Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown, 125 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. The FRPD’s Music on the Rock series will present “The Songs of the ‘60,” a tribute concert featuring the hits of the artists. The show will continue Aug. 2 and Aug. 7-9. For tickets, call 693-0731 or toll-free at (866) 732-8008. “MISS SAIGON” POP OPERA, 8 p.m., Flat Rock Playhouse, 2661 Greenville Hwy., Flat Rock. The FRP will present the epic pop opera “Miss Saigon.” The show will continue at 8 p.m. Aug. 2 and 7, at 2 and 8 p.m. Aug. 9 and at 2 p.m. Aug. 10. The show will conclude at 2 p.m. Aug. 24. For tickets, call 693-0731 or toll-free at (866) 732-8008.
Saturday, Aug. 2
PORSCHE CAR SHOW, 9-11:30 am., Pack Square, downtown Asheville. The Porsche SommerFest car show will feature about 50 to 60 Porsches. Admission is free. “SWEENEY TODD” OPERA PERFORMANCE, 2 p.m., Porter Center, Brevard College, Brevard. The Janiec Opera Company will perform “Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street,” as part of the Brevard Music Center Summer Institute & Festival. The opera is based on a 1979 musical thriller with music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim and book by Hugh Wheeler. Set in 19th century England, the musical tells the story of Benjamin Barker, aka Sweeney Todd, who returns to London after 15 years’ transportation on trumped-up charges. When he finds out that his wife poisoned herself after being raped by the judge who transported him, he vows revenge on the judge and, later, other people too. He teams up with a piemaker, Mrs. Lovett, and opens a barbershop in which he slits the throats of customers and has them baked into pies.”Sweeney Todd” opened on Broadway in 1979 and in the West End in 1980. In addition to several revivals, the musical has been presented by opera companies. It won the Tony Award for Best Musical and Olivier Award for Best New Musical. For tickets, which are $40, call 862-2104, or visit brevardmusic.org. CONCERT/DANCE, 6-8 p.m., parking lot next to Firehouse Subs, 229 Airport Rd., Arden. The group Deano and the Dreamers will play oldies music for listening or dancing. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free. CONCERT, 7-9 p.m., green space in front of Hickory Tavern and Brixx Pizza, Biltmore Park, Asheville. The Michel Jons Band will perform in an outdoor concert. Admission is free. JENNIFER NETTLES CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Event
Center, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, Cherokee. Jennifer Nettles, who became famous as leading vocalist of Sugarland, will perform on her own following her first solo release, “That Girl.” For tickets, visit www. ticketmaster.com, or call (800) 745-3000.
Sunday, Aug. 3
CONCERT, 3 p.m., Whittington-Pfohl Auditorium, Brevard Music Center, Brevard. The BMC will close its annual Summer Institute & Festival with a concert featuring pianist Conrad Tao joining JoAnn Falletta and the BMC Orchestra in a performance of Rachmaninoff’s “Piano Concerto No. 2.” After an intermission, Falletta will lead the BMCO in a performance of Mussorgsky’s ever-popular orchestral suite “Pictures at an Exhibition.” For tickets, which are $50, $45, $40, $35 and, for lawn seating, $15, call 862-2104, or visit brevardmusic.org. Ticket-holders also may attend a pre-concert talk, which begins an hour before the performance in Thomas Hall.
Monday, Aug. 4
PROTEST RALLY, 5-6:30 p.m., Pack Square Park, downtown Asheville. Mountain Moral Monday will return with a protest of recent actions by the North Carolina General Assembly. The event, hosted by the Mountain People’s Assembly, a coalition of Western North Carolina organizations and regional NAACP branches, likely will draw thousands. The Rev. William J. Barber, president of the North Carolina NAACP, will address the crowd, along with several other local speakers to be announced. Organizer Elaine Lite said the event will focus on voting rights and empowerment, part of the statewide “Moral March to the Polls” campaign. STREET DANCE, 7-9 p.m., Visitor Information Center-201 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. A street dance will be held Aug 4 and 11 featuring the Appalachian Fire & J. Creek Cloggers. Attendees are urged to bring a chair. No pets, alcoholic beverages, coolers or backpackstote bags will be allowed. The parking lot seating area opens after 5:30 p.m. — and early admission is prohibited. Admission is free. FUNDRAISER GALA, 8 p.m., Main Stage, Flat Rock Playhouse, Flat Rock. The FRP will present the one-night-only “Dark Night Revue,” an evening of music, dance and laughs. For tickets, which are $125 and $100 for the gourmet picnic and show, and $40 for the performance only, call 693-0731.
Thanks for reading the Asheville Daily Planet
Tuesday, Aug. 5
UNCA TALK, 12:30 p.m., Fellowship Room, St. Mark’s Lutheran Church, corner of North Liberty and East Chestnut streets, Asheville. Anne Ponder, who recently retired after serving a decade as chancellor of UNC Asheville, will address the Kiwanis Club on “Asheville’s University.” Kiwanis meets at St. Mark’s Lutheran Church located on the corner of North Liberty and East Chestnut. Visitors are welcome. SHAG LESSONS/DANCING, 6:30-10 p.m., Showtime Saloon, 97 Underwood Rd., Fletcher. The Mountain Shag Club are offering shag lessons — for free — every Tuesday from 6:30 to 7 p.m. No partner is needed. Shag dancing will follow from 7 to 10 p.m., with rotating DJs and a $5 cover charge.
See CALENDAR, Page B3
LETTERS The Asheville Daily Planet invites Letters to the Editor of 200 words or less. Please include your name, mailing address, daytime telephone number and e-mail address. For more information, call (828) 252-6565. Send mail to: Letters, Asheville Daily Planet P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, NC 28814 Send e-mail to: letters@ashevilledailyplanet.com
Tell our advertisers — who enable us to bring you this newspaper for FREE every month — that you saw their promotions in the Daily Planet!
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — B3
Daily Planet Staff Photo
The group Deano and the Dreamers will perform rock and soul music classics — for listening and dancing — from 6 to 8 p.m. Aug. 9 in front of Firehouse Subs, 825 Spartanburg Hwy., Hendersonville.
Calendar of Events Continued from Page B2
Thursday, Aug. 7
EMBROIDERERS MEETING, 10 a.m.-noon, Cummings United Methodist Church, 3 Banner Farm Rd., Horse Shoe. The Laurel Chapter of the Embroiderers’ Guild of Amercia will feature Sue Osterberg, a chapter member, teaching the needle art techniques required to make a stump work acorn. Registration is from 9:30 to 10 a.m., followed by a brief business meeting and the program. CONCERT 7-9 p.m., next to Lake Tomahawk, 401 Laurel Circle, Black Mountain. Adam Brooks Duddling will perform in the weekly Park Rhythms Summer Concert Series. Duddling is billed as “an internationally acclaimed guitarist, singer, songwriter, recording artist and producer.” He was a co-founder of The Shanghai Newgrass Project and, earlier, played with his jamband Flying Blind. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free. STANDUP COMEDY SHOW, 8 p.m., Marshall Depot, 282 N. Main St., Marshall. Comedy Night, featuring an evening of audience participation comedy hosted by Asheville comic Randy Robins, will be held, with all proceeds going to Neighbors In Need’s Food Shelf. Robins teaches a class in “Performing Stand-Up Comedy” at UNC Asheville. He was a finalist at the Haywood’s Got Talent competition last fall at the HART Theatre in Waynesville. Robins’ performance is suitable for “children,” ages 5-105. Tickets, which will be sold at the door starting at 7 p.m., are $10 for adults and $6 for ages 5-18.
Friday, Aug. 8
CONCERT/DANCE, 7-9 p.m., parking lot next to Visitors Information Center, 201 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. The band Dashboard Blue will perform during the weekly Music on Main Street summer concert-dance series. A Corvette car show will be held in conjunction to the show. Concert attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. No pets, alcoholic beverages, backpacks or coolers are allowed. Admission is free.
Saturday, Aug. 9
RIVERMUSIC CONCERT, 5-10 p.m., Sculp-
ture and Performance Plaza, River Arts District, Riverside Drive (along the French Broad River), Asheville. Featured will be Soldier’s Heart, a Southern Appalachian folk-roots band; Ashley Heath and Plankeye Peggy. Gates open at 5 p.m. Each show in the series features a beer from different breweries and food trucks. Admission is free. CONCERT/DANCE, 6-8 p.m., parking lot next to Firehouse Subs, 825 Spartanburg Hwy., Hendersonville. The band Deano and the Dreamers will play oldies music for listening or dancing. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free. SHINDIG ON THE GREEN, 7-10 p.m., Bascom Lamar Lunsford stage, Pack Square Park, 121 College St., downtown Asheville. The 48th Shindig on the Green, featuring a stage show and informal jam sessions of old-time and bluegrass music, will continue. Also, dancers, singers and storytellers will perform. In addition, Shindig will be held on Aug. 16, 23 and 30. Attendees are urged to bring blankets and lawnchairs. Concessions will be available for purchase. No dogs, alcohol or smoking are permitted in the park. Admission is free.
Sunday, Aug. 10
CONCERT, 3 p.m., Flat Rock Cinema at The Singleton Center, 2700 Greenville Hwy., Flat Rock. Al Petteway and Amy White will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $15, call 697-2463, or visit www.magnoliaconcertseries.com.
Monday, Aug. 11
WIDOWS MEETING, 5-7 p.m., Golden Corral, Hendersonville. The Widows Fellowship meets for a meal and fellowship every second Monday. KNITTERS MEETING, 7-9 p.m., New Hope Presbyterian Church at 3070 Sweeten Creek Rd., Asheville. The Western North Carolina Knitters and Crocheters for Others will meet. The group provides 18 local charities handmade items, including hats, scarves, baby hats and booties, mittens, dolls, blankets, sweaters, afghans and dishcloths. All skill levels are welcome.
See CALENDAR, Page B4
B4 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — B5
Calendar Events
Continued from Page B3
Monday, Aug. 11
STREET DANCE, 7-9 p.m., Visitor Information Center-201 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. The season’s street dance finale will feature Bobby and Blue Ridge Tradition & Lake Lure Cloggers. Attendees are urged to bring a chair. No pets, alcoholic beverages, coolers or backpacks-tote bags will be allowed. The parking lot seating area opens after 5:30 p.m. — and early admission is prohibited. Admission is free.
Tuesday, Aug. 12
LIBERTARIAN MEETING, 7 p.m., Oakleaf Furniture, 130 Miller St., downtown Waynesville. The Haywood County Libertarian Party meets on the second Tuesday of the month. Open discussion and debate are encouraged with all perspectives and persuasions welcomed, regardless of political or religious affiliation.
Wednesday, Aug. 13
Da Throwback Band will perform funk, disco and pop songs from the 1970s from 7:30 to 10:30 p.m. Aug. 30 at a free outdoor show in front of the Historic Courthouse in downtown Hendersonville as part of the 68th Annual North Carolina Apple Festival.
Thursday, Aug. 14
Continued from Page B4
Friday, Aug. 15
MASTERS OF ILLUSION, 7:30 p.m., The Event Center, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, Cherokee. The Masters of Illusions show will be performed. The family-friendly event will feature grand illusions, levitating women, appearances and vanishes, escapes, comedy magic, sleight of hand and beautiful dancers. Guests under age 21 will be restricted to Level 2 of the casino. For tickets, which are $20-$45, visit www.Ticketmaster.com, or (800) 745-3000. BOSTON CONCERT, 8 p.m., Biltmore Estate, Asheville. The group Boston will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $65, $80 (reserved) and $90 (premium), call (866) 336-1255 or visit www.biltmore.com/concerts. MOVIE IN THE PARK, 9-11 p.m., Fletcher Community Park, Fletcher. The Movie in the Park series will feature Disney’s “Planes.” Attendees are urged to bring chairs and blankets. Concessions will be available admission is free.
ICELAND PROGRAM, 6 p.m., Henderson County Public Library, Hendersonville. A program on “Iceland: Land of Fire and Ice” will be presented by the Hendersonville Sister Cities program. Admission is free.
STATE BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL, noon-10 p.m., Tom Johnson Rally Park and Camping Center, 1885 U.S. 70 W., Marion. The North Carolina State Bluegrass Festival will be held daily through Aug. 16. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs (but no high-back chairs) and blankets. No alcoholic beverages are allowed in the concert area. Tickets are $30 in advance until Aug. 4, then $35 at the gate. Children under age 6 are free when accompanied by parents. For tickets, visit www.adamsbluegrass.com or call (800) 225-7802. CONCERT 7-9 p.m., next to Lake Tomahawk, 401 Laurel Circle, Black Mountain. The Asheville-based pop band A Social Function will perform in the weekly Park Rhythms Summer Concert Series. The group plays popular Top 40 and dance music and is billed as one of the Southeast’s “most-sought-after party bands.” Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free. COMEDY SHOW, 8 p.m., Playhouse Downtown, downtown Hendersonville. The Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown will present the comedy “The Mystery of Irma Vep” through Sept. 14. The show runs Wednesdays through Saturdays at 8 pm and Saturdays and Sundays at 2 p.m. For tickets, call 693-0731 or — toll-free — at (866) 732-8008.
DOWNTOWN AFTER 5 STREET FEST, 5-9 p.m., N. Lexington Ave. at the Interstate 240 overpass, downtown Asheville. The 26th annual Downtown After 5 monthly street festival’s highlight will be The Dynamites, featuring Charles Walker and Ruby Velle performing old-school soul and rhythm and blues, influenced by the likes of James Brown. The opener will be the Soulphonics, which plays Georgia-style soul and early 1950s and ‘60 rhythm and blues music. Besides live music, the street concert also will feature a wide selection of local and national beers and food. CONCERT/DANCE, 7-9 p.m., parking lot next to Visitors Information Center, 201 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. The band Tuxedo Junction, which opened the series, will perform during the last of the weekly Music on Main Street summer concerts-dances. A car show will be held in conjunction to the show. Concert attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. No pets, alcoholic beverages, backpacks or coolers are allowed. Admission is free. FARCE, 7:30 p.m., Hendersonville Little Theatre, 229 S. Washington St., Hendersonville. The HLT will present “The Little Shop of Horrors,” a farce about an inadequate florist’s assistant who cultivates a plant that feeds on human flesh and blood, The show plays Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., and Sundays 2 p.m. For tickets, call 692-1082. The show will continue through Aug. 31. DAILEY & VINCENT CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts, Franklin. The Grammy-nominated American bluegrass music group Dailey & Vincent will perform. For tickets, which are $20 and $25, visit www.greatmountainmusic.com. THREE DOG NIGHT/38 SPECIAL CONCERT, 8 p.m., Biltmore Estate, Asheville. The groups Three Dog Night and 38 Special will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $50, $60 (reserved) and $70 (premium), call (866) 336-1255 or visit www.biltmore.com/concerts.
Thursday, Aug. 21
RHYTHM & BREWS CONCERT, 5 p.m., Azalea Parking on King Street between 3rd and 4th avenues, downtown Hendersonville. The summer Rhythm & Brews concert series will feature an outdoor concert by Sol Driven Train. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs. The series will continue Sept. 18. Admission is free. CHAPMAN/THIRD DAY CONCERT, 8 p.m., Biltmore Estate, Asheville. The groups Steven Curtis Chapman and Third Day will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $55, $60 (reserved) and $65 (premium), call (866) 3361255 or visit www.biltmore.com/concerts.
See CALENDAR, Page B5
THANKS for reading the Asheville Daily Planet!
Calendar Events
Saturday, Aug. 23
Saturday, Aug. 28
LYLE LOVETT/EMMYLOU HARRIS CONCERT, 8 p.m., Biltmore Estate, Asheville. Lyle Lovett and Emmylou Harris will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $60, $70 (reserved) and $85 (premium), call (866) 336-1255 or visit www. biltmore.com/concerts.
Friday, Aug. 29
N.C. APPLE FESTIVAl, 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. The 68th North Carolina Apple Festival, running through Sept. 1, will feature a street fair, arts and crafts, entertainment, children’s activities, a parade, food and more. The street fair will be held Friday-Sunday 10 a.m.-8 p.m., and Monday,10 a.m.-5 p.m., from 6th Avenue to Caswell Street. RIVERMUSIC CONCERT, 5-10 p.m., Sculpture and Performance Plaza, River Arts District, Riverside Drive (along the French Broad River), Asheville. Featured will be the Artimus Pyle Band (he was the
drummer with Lynyrd Skynyrd), and opening act Andrew Scotchie and the River Rats, which plays classic rock. Gates open at 5 p.m. Each show in the series features a beer from different breweries and food trucks. Admission is free. BUDDY K BAND CONCERT, 7:45-10 p.m., on stage in front of Historic Courthouse, Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. The Buddy K Big Band will perform as the night’s musical highlight at the 68th North Carolina Apple Festival. The band plays the music of Les Brown, Count Basie, Glenn Miller and Tommy Dorsey. Admission is free.
Saturday, Aug. 30
QUILT/CRAFT SALE, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Crosswalk Building , 577 Buncombe St., , Hendersonville. The Apple Festival Quilt & Craft Sale will be held. KENNY AND DOLLY TRIBUTE SHOW, 5-7 p.m., on stage in front of Historic Courthouse, Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. “Just Two Old Friends: The Kenny and Dolly Tribute Show” will be performed at the 68th North Carolina Apple Festival. The show will feature the hits of Kenny Rodgers and Dolly Parton. Admission is free. DA THROWBACK BAND SHOW, 7:30-10:30 p.m., on stage in front of Historic Courthouse, Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. Da Throwback Band, billed as a “‘70s performance band,” will perform at the 68th North Carolina Apple Festival. “One of the hottest bands in the Southeast, the throwback band offers a spectacular high energy show of funk, disco and pop songs from the ‘70s,” a press release noted. “The throwback band takes you on a nostalgic musical trip back to the hip ‘70s, with an exciting, energetic and colorful show.” Admission is free.
See CALENDAR, Page B6
TO REPORT AN ERROR
The Asheville Daily Planet strives to be accurate in all articles published. Contact the News Department at news@ashevilledailyplanet.com, (828) 252-6565, or P.O. Box 8490, Asheville, N.C. 28814-8490.
MOCK JURY FOCUS GROUP Asheville, North Carolina
We will pay $50 cash and light lunch to assist in mock jury focus group concerning disability discrimination case. Upcoming Saturdays in August. Contact shultslaw@bellsouth.net or call 828-251-9676 for more information and to register.
B6 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet
Calendar
of
Continued from Page B5
Events
Sunday, Aug. 31
ARTS/FUN FESTIVAL, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Lexington Avenue, downtown Asheville. For this year only, the Lexington Avenue Arts and Fun Festival will be revived. LAKESIDE DRIVE BAND SHOW, 4:30-6:30 p.m., on stage in front of Historic Courthouse, Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. The Lakeside Band will play beach and shag music at the 68th North Carolina Apple Festival. “Lakeside Drive’s musical repertoire is varied and entertaining, consisting of a variety of beach music, rock classics, good ol’ boogie tunes, country and jazz,” a press release noted. Admission is free. CAROLINA SOUL SHOW, 7:15 p.m.-10:15 p.m., on stage in front of Historic Courthouse, Main Street, downtown Hendersonville. The band Carolina Soul will perform Motown, beach and soul music at the 68th North Carolina Apple Festival. “Carolina Soul Band performs sweet soul sounds of such legendary groups as The Drifters, The Coasters, The Four Tops, The O’Jays, Little Anthony and the the Imperials, Smokey Robinson, The Temptations and many, many more. The Carolina Soul Band takes you on an exciting journey through the musical history of Motown, beach and soul music,” a press release stated. “You’ll be clapping, dancing and singing along with all your favorite songs of the ‘50s, ‘60s, ‘70s, ‘80s and ‘90s.” Admission is free. TIM MCGRAW CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Event Center, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino, Cherokee. Tim McGraw, a country music singer-songwriter and actor, will perform in concert. For tickets, visit www.ticketmaster. or call (800) 745-3000.
Monday, Sept. 1
King Apple Parade, 2:30 p.m., downtown Hendersonville. As part of the N.C. Apple Festival, the King Apple Parade will be held on Labor Day.
Saturday, Sept. 6
CONCERT/DANCE, 6-8 p.m., parking lot next to Firehouse Subs, 229 Airport Rd., Arden. The 96.5 Band will play oldies music for listening or dancing. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free. CONCERT, 7-9 p.m., green space in front of Hickory Tavern and Brixx Pizza, Biltmore Park, Asheville. Mac Arnold & Plate Full O’ Blues will perform in an outdoor concert. Admission is free.
Friday, Sept. 12
RIVERMUSIC CONCERT, 5-10 p.m., Sculpture and Performance Plaza, River Arts District, River-
side Drive (along the French Broad River), Asheville. Featured will be bluegrass music by Fruition and Fireside Collective. Gates open at 5 p.m. Each show in the series features a beer from different breweries and food trucks. Admission is free.
Saturday, Sept. 13
CONCERT/DANCE, 6-8 p.m., parking lot next to Firehouse Subs, 825 Spartanburg Hwy., Hendersonville. Tom Brown, One Man Band will play oldies music for listening or dancing. Attendees are urged to bring lawnchairs and blankets. Admission is free.
Sunday, Sept. 14
RIDERS IN THE SKY CONCERT, 3 p.m., John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee. The 10th annual WCU Galaxy of Stars Series will launch with a return engagement of country and western icons Riders in the Sky, a Grammy Award-winning group that performed in the inaugural season of the series. The group, featured in the film “Toy Story,” is known for its award-winning harmonies, wacky cowboy wit and high-yodeling adventures. For single-show tickets, which are $21, call 227-2479, or visit www. bardoartscenter.wcu.edu.
Every Monday is Trivia Night
Thursday, Sept. 18
Come compete for fantastic prizes
OUTDOOR CONCERT, 5 p.m., Azalea Parking Lot, between 3rd and 4th Avenues along King Street, downtown Hendersonville. The annual Rhythm & Brews summer concert series will feature the band Blue Dogs. Admission is free.
Starts at 9 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 19
DOWNTOWN AFTER 5 STREET FEST, 5-9 p.m., N. Lexington Ave. at the Interstate 240 overpass, downtown Asheville. The 26th annual Downtown After 5 monthly street festival will wrap up the season with the Asheville All Stars, which includes members of Yo Mama’s Big Fat Booty Band, Asheville Horns, Molly Parti and more. The opener will be Asheville Rock Academy, with its young performers. Besides live music, the street concert also will feature a wide selection of local and national beers and food. GAITHER CONCERT, 7 p.m., Liston B. Ramsey Regional Activity Center, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee. The Gaither Homecoming Tour, featuring the award-winnng gospel band, will perform in concert. The WCU show will showcase the songs on the Gaither Vocal Band’s latest recording, “Hymns.” Also performing will be The Isaacs, the Nelons, Buddy Greene, Charlotte Ritchie, Gene McDonald and Kevin Williams. For tickets, which are $73, $36 or $26 for adults, and $23 for seniors and children, visit gaither.com, or call 227-7677.
Tuesday night is Blues Jam Music and dancing starts at 10 p.m. \
Every Wednesday is Brewery Night, where we feature an array of classic and limited release craft beers. $12 Pitchers! “Buy a Pint, Keep the Glass!”
8/06 - Asheville Brewing Co.
8/20 - Green Man Brewing Co.
8/13 - French Broad Brewing Co.
8/27 - Pisgah Brewing Co.
Saturdays and Sundays brunch starts at 10:30 and goes till we run out. All-you-can-eat breakfast plus a full menu and omelette specials.
Everyday lunch and dinner specials!
We offer 27 beers on tap, a full liquor bar, freshly made eclectic food items with locally sourced ingredients, 2 pool tables, shuffleboard, foosball, video games, full service patio, a wide variety of sports on our 11’ screen and a kid-friendy (till 10pm), dog-friendly (on the patio) great time.
In The Beginning God? A Discussion on God & Science!
Dr. David Wilkinson Astrophysicist and Pastor
Sunday, August 17th, at 6 PM 4 Long Shoals Rd, Unit C (next to Subway)
Everyone welcome! Visit us online at dnachurch.org or call or text us at the number above.
Music Schedule Sat 8/2 Sat 8/9 Sat 8/23 Sat 8/30
Red Hot Sugar Babies Jeff Thompson Band Black Robin Hero The Gravelys
777 Haywood Road West Asheville 828-225-9782 www.westvillepub.com
‘Oklahoma!’
Asheville Daily Planet — August 2014 — B7
But that’s no reason why they cain’t be friends. Territory folks should stick together, Territory folks should all be pals. Cowboys dance with farmer’s daughters, Farmers dance with the ranchers’ gals....”
Continued from Page B1 The small orchestra, led by Musical Director Michael Fauss, seemed to strike the right notes — and especially memorable was a nearly flawless (and lively) performance of the overture. Susan Atkinson, playing Aunt Eller, Brad Thomason played Curly, the handappeared to win over the crowd fast, some and gallant cowboy hero of the tale; even though — as a slight criticism — while Camilla Zaepfel was Laurey, bursting she had more of a Southern accent than with beauty, sweetness and spirit — and the 1906 Oklahoma territory dialect I courted by Curly. have heard from characters in her role “People Will Say We’re In Love” was before. (Still, the settlers came from their best number together, but my perAdo Annie was played by a everywhere, so it’s plausible that Aunt sonal favorite was a rousing “Surrey With hilarious Jesslyn Rollins. Eller could have been a Southerner.) She a Fringe on Top,” showing that, as adverplayed the character who was the glue tised, “love’s journey is as bumpy as a surrey ride down a country road,” especially when the reins are in the hands of that held together the colorful men and women, amid the turmoil of courting, heartbreak and squabbles — and she added these two headstrong romantics. a dollop of compassion to her otherwise rabidly rustic role. Another unforgettable song performance was Curly’s Jody Woodruff’s lanky Will Parker was a model of “Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin’” and, of course, the grand athleticism, good with a lasso but, alas, a dim-witted beau, title song, “Oklahoma!” playing opposite to the flirtatious and occasionally pretenPerhaps the best single group number of the night was “The Farmer and the Cowman,” depicting the highly spirtious Ado Annie, played by Jesslyn Rollins. Arguably, Rolited rivalry between the farmers and the cowboys in what lins — in her first show — turned in the top performance were known as the range wars. The song goes: of the night with her acting and singing. Her rendition of “I Cain’t Say No” was one of the night’s highlights. (She “The farmer and the cowman should be friends, plays the “yes” girl to hilarious effect.) Oh, the farmer and the cowman should be friends. Almost as good was Woodruff’s delightful rendition of One man likes to push a plough, the other likes to chase “Kansas City” — and the choreography was top-notch.The a cow,
‘South Pacific’
Continued from Page B1 The ALO provided an enjoyable evening of theater with “South Pacific,” and I do not believe anyone left disappointed. “South Pacific” was the second-longest running Broadway musical to that point (behind Rodgers and Hammerstein’s earlier “Oklahoma!”), and has remained popular ever since. ALOS’s next season will present “Die Fledermaus” at
song begins:
“Ev’rythin’s up to date in Kansas City They’ve gone about as fur as they c’n go! They went and built a skyscraper seven stories high, About as high as a buildin’ oughta grow. Ev’rythin’s like a dream in Kansas City, It’s better than a magic lantern show! Y’ c’n turn the radiator on whenever you want some heat. With ev’ry kind o’ comfort ev’ry house is all complete. You c’n walk to privies in the rain and never wet your feet....”
Compared with other productions of the show I’ve seen, Vance West’s Jud Fry was believably degenerate and pitiful and surprised me with his powerhouse voice, while Truman Griffith’s Ali Hakim, as the peddler, registered an unusually strong, funny performance. Finally, the “Out of My Dreams” ballet/dream sequence — when Laurey falls asleep after buying some smelling salts from Ali to help her choose between Jud and Curly — was memorable, surreal and sparkled. Also, much to their credit, the women’s voices — overall — were a bit stronger than those of the men in this rendition of “Oklahoma!” The show started with an appropriate bang, firing away with one smashing song after another — and should have also ended on a high note, but instead it seemed to wrap up with somewhat less steam — maybe the cast was worn out. Still, this spirited show was a blast — and terrifically depicted the true grit of the characters that made this the great country that it was ... back then.
8 p.m. Oct. 3 and at 3 p.m. Oct. 5. In 2015, it will present a “Gala” in January, “West Side Story” in April and “Rigoletto” next summer. For more details, visit the ALO’s website at www.ashevillelyric. org. I am proud to say I have been a part of this opera company and the art form it brings to the community — and wish it continued success in the future.
weekend g n i v r e Now s
To place a classified line ad in the Daily Planet, call 252-6565.
Rates are as little as $10 per month for 25 words or less!
brunch
B8 - August 2014 - Asheville Daily Planet