Daily Planet April 2015

Consultants unveil path forward for APD

Asheville earns spot in Monopoly

— See Story, Pg. A14

— See Story, Pg. A4

Shatner skipped Nimoy’s funeral?

— See Story, Pg. B1

ILLE V E H AS ASHEVILLEʼS GREATEST NEWSPAPER

April 2015

Vol. 11, No. 05

An Independent Newspaper Serving Greater Asheville www.ashevilledailyplanet.com FREE

RAD redo to require $50 million

Honoring Eric Clapton at age 70

From Staff Reports

Public spending over the next six years will total about $50 million for improvements — greenways, road rerouting and other infrastructure upgrades — in Asheville’s River Arts District, according to city officials.

What’s more, about $200 million in private investment will accompany the public funding for improving the former industrial district that has been in a state of decay for years.

The overhaul is being led by the city, although about 50 percent of public money is coming from federal and state sources.

Among the most controversial aspects of the projects is the proposal for a roundabout at the intersection of Lyman Street and Riverside Drive, the construction of which would include the removal of the nationally renowned 12 Bones Restaurant and its parking lot.

Chris Peterson, owner of the land currently occupied by 12 Bones, has said he fears the property will fall victim to road rerouting.

However, most changes center on a roughly 2-mile strip of land on the east bank of the French Broad River — an area running from the intersection of Riverside Drive and Hill Street in the north to the intersection of Lyman Street and Amboy Road in the south.

The 2-mile strip is the heart of the former industrial region, now populated by artists. However, the entire area for which funding is allocated and in which projects are happening is larger.

The French Broad River Greenway West is set to start in the north, just above the $140 million New Belgium Brewery under construction. Its new portion will finish at French Broad River Park.

To the east, work will include Town Branch Greenway and Livinston Street “complete street” projects.

In the north, construction associated with the Clingman Forest Greenway will stretch all the way to Hilliard Avenue.

Eyes that light up a womb

The Advice Goddess

Amy Alkon

Q: I’m a 35-year-old guy who’s doing online dating and who’s against having kids for moral reasons. Don’t get me wrong; I love kids. I just don’t think we need any more people on this crowded, violent planet. I’m wondering whether I should make the “no kids” thing clear in my profile. I know this can be a major deal-breaker for many women.

— Nobody’s Daddy See ADVICE GODDESS, Page A13

Special photo courtesy of Ray Mata

An Eric Clapton tribute concert, featuring a number of local musical luminaries (above), was held March 14 at the White Horse nightclub in Black Mountain. The concert honored Clapton, who later in the month celebrated his 70th birthday. Clapton is the only three-time inductee to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame: once as a solo artist and separately as a member of the Yardbirds and Cream. Cream (left, circa 196668) is widely regarded as the first supergroup in rock music history. From left are bassist Jack Bruce, drummer Ginger Baker and guitarist Clapton.

See Review on Page B1

Indoor trampoline park to spring into action this summer in Arden From Staff Reports

An indoor trampoline park — a facility with 60 to 70 trampolines — will open this summer to serve the Asheville area.

Two local families will be operating Launch Trampoline Park of Asheville, potentially in a large building off Glenbridge Road in Arden, beginning in July or August.

Regarding the planned park, Bret Pacheco, one of the owners, told the local news media recently that “I think the Asheville community will love it.” He added

that it will take substantial space with a “really high ceiling” to house it.

In a statement, Jennifer Pacheco, Bret’s wife, added, “The Asheville area is overdue for a local trampoline park.”

The Pachecos, who run a local accounting firm in Arden, said they got the idea for bringing an indoor trampoline park to Asheville after making a day trip to one of the parks in nearby Greenville, S.C. The park also will feature a café inside, offering food and drinks. The operation will be looking to hire about 50 people.

A2 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Meadows says he ‘stands with Israel’

By JOHN NORTH

john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com

SWANNANOA — The United States must “stand with Israel,” U.S. Rep. Mark Meadows, R-Highlands, told the Council of Independent Business Owners on March 12 at the Land of the Sky Shrine Club.

His speech, promoted as an update from Washington, was titled “Things Aren’t Always As They Seem.” About 70 people attended.

To illustrate his speech’s title and begin on a light note, Meadows told what he called “a real story” about the wife of an Episcopal priest in Highlands who needed to pick up some pantyhose from Walmart.

After making her purchase, the woman went out to her car to put on the pantyhose — and saw a man staring at her. She screamed, “What do you want, you pervert!”

To that, the man replied, “I don’t know, but I was wondering why you were sitting in my car.” The crowd laughed heartily.

Getting down to business, Meadows said that Iran is working on missiles that could be used to attack the U.S., additionally noting the Iranian hostage crisis of 1979-91.

Meadows added that Iran is “a country that we’ve been at odds with for over 30 years ...

To say that they’ve changed overnight is not being realistic and it is not actual fact.”

He praised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s March 3 speech to U.S. Congress that warned that talks with Iran to limit its nuclear capabilities will result in “a very bad deal” that would threaten Israel’s security.

“We’ve got to stand firmly; we need to make sure we stand with Israel and the prime minister did an unbelievable job of articulating that,” Meadows. “It is time that we recognize (Iran) for who they are.

They’re the greatest sponsor of terrorism in the world.”

On other matters, Meadows said there will be moves to keep some of the beneficial aspects of the Affordable Care Act, if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns it.

Meadows is a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and its Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa.

He stressed that Israel “has been and is my passion in terms of foreign policy.”

After the meeting, he told the local news media that he expects the Supreme Court to turn back a challenge to the ACA. However, Meadows said that if the decision goes against the ACA, Republicans would work for a transition to new laws regarding health care. One step would be establishment of state-sponsored insurance pools for people with pre-existing conditions who cannot otherwise get insurance, he said.

Meadows has been a strong opponent of the ACA, and was a leader in the 2013 movement to shut down much of the federal government in hopes of stopping implementation of the law.

The congressman also said he listens to the other side on that issues as well as others, sometimes calling constituents who have called his office to disagree with him.

Meadows said he favors “a long-term solution” to bring in more highway revenue for the federal government. One possibility to help the fund would be to make it easier for companies to “repatri-

ate” their earnings held abroad, resulting in a tax windfall for the government, he said.

He also predicted more revelations in the long-running series of investigations into the 2012 attacks on American diplomatic facilities in Benghazi, Libya.

“There’s a whole Rep. Mark lot more to the story,” Meadows Meadows said. “The problem is it’s become political when it ought to be about how do we bring justice to the four Americans who lost their lives and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

Earlier in his talk, Meadows noted that Washington, D.C, is quite different from the business world. He added that he appreciated the way CIBO’s John Carroll had just overseen the election of officers in two minutes, compared to the partisan gridlock in Washington.

Meadows said he puts lives and community above the Republican-Democrat paradigm.

“It’s a bit more difficult” in Washington, “than it was back home in the real estate business,” he noted.

“I wanted to tell you that your voice still matters” — no matter where one stands politically. Meadows emphasized that he was aware that, in addressing CIBO, he was talking to a group widely spread across the political spectrum — and that he respected that.

He said emails, calls and other communications influence votes.

“When we start to look at those issues that are near and dear to our communities, the partisan aspect starts to fall away... It’s much tougher when you look at a community... When we start to look at the people we serve, it will make a difference.... That said, there are some great things happening in Western North Carolina... The economy is starting to come back.”

He said WNC is known in Washington for Asheville’s attractions, including the Grove Park Inn and Biltmore Estate, and “now they know us for our breweries... And the other thing is advanced manufacturing is starting to make a comeback.”

Meadows added, “You people at CIBO are businesspeople — and you’re aware of how creating wealth” happens. “You’ve got countries like ...Turkey and Croatia ... looking to replicate what America’s doing.”

Meadows told of a Turkish official urging him to make sure that America would never stop inspiring the rest of the world.

“So I’d encourage you to invest back in the community to make sure it works,” he said.

In a question-and-answer session that followed the speech, CIBO member Mac Swicegood asked “for your story (Meadows’) on John Boehner.” (Boehner is the speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives — and Meadows opposed his reappointment to the post.) Also, Swicegood asked about Benghazi.

“It really gets back to letting the people’s voice be heard,” Meadows replied. “There are real consequences and I knew they would come. I got 3,000 phone calls, saying they’re dissatisfied with the status quo.... So that’s why I did it (vote against Boehner).

What he’s told me personally and others is that he’s gotten the message.”

As for Benghazi, he said, “I think we’ll see a whole lot more to the story. The problem is, it’s become political ..... We have the best military in the world. We have the best intelligence in the world. And when we use them, it’ll all work out.”

A man asked “about good things...” He also said he appreciated that Meadows takes the strong stands he takes. “Those people in Iran — those are evil people,” the man said.

“Something needs to be done.”

In response, Meadows said he does “look for good things every week in Washington....

The last time the Republicans actually had an agenda was when they had the Contract for America. We do a very good job of telling what we’re against. We need to tell people what we’re for. We need to tell what

we’re for first — and let the ‘what we’re against’ part be second. I hope we can unveil that in the next 45 days.”

A man then asked of the gasoline tax, “Do you see anything happening?”

“What we have is a gas tax, both federal and state,” Meadows replied. “The matrixes are tough because you’ve got more fuel-efficient cars. I think there are a few of us who would look favorably on trying to have a long-term solution. I think we will fund the highway trust fund short-term — about a four-month fix.

Then I think you’ll see a repatriation of foreign capital .... to (help fund the federal gas tax).”

See MEADOWS, Page A7

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:

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Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 - A3

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A4 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

$115K given to repair city’s Vance Monument

Asheville snares orange space on Monopoly board From Staff Reports

From Staff Reports

Asheville City Council accepted a $115,000 donation from Civil War re-enactors to repair the Vance Monument on March 10.

Widely referred to as the city’s most iconic landmark, the obelisk in the middle of downtown has been a gathering spot since its 1897 construction in honor of Zebulon Vance.

A 2008 city assessment of the 75-foot grainite monument showed a significant amount of corrosion, failing mortar joints, corroded markers and overall dirt and stain.

In 2012, the nonprofit 26th North Carolina Regiment, named for the Civil War regiment Vance commanded, took up the cause of raising money for repairs, something the group accomplished this year. The city will contribute $11,000 to repairs.

Chris Roberts, chairman of the preservation project for the 26th North Carolina, said he was looking forward to restoring the monument and re-emphasizing its importance for the city and the entire region.

Roberts grew up in Weaverville — not far from Vance’s birthplace, now maintained as a historic site.

The Vance Monument is considered downtown Asheville’s centerpiece.

A major donor to the restoration project was the Vetust Study Club.

City Councilman Jan Davis thanked Roberts and the other members of his nonprofit, calling for their work and the monument significant.

Asheville has captured a spot on Monopoly, the world’s bestselling board game.

The city was voted into the Here & Now U.S. Edition of Monopoly, making it one of the 20 cities in the country to be featured as a property on the board game that will be coming out this fall.

Charlotte, another North Carolina city, also made the board.

Hasbro, the company that makes Monopoly, teamed up with the social news and entertainment company Buzzfeed to ask fans to write in and vote on the cities they would like to see featured on the game.

The online voting campaign ended March 4, with more than 4 million votes cast in 182 countries.

The two cities that received the most votes got the coveted dark blue spaces, traditionally reserved for the high-priced Boardwalk and Park Place. Asheville’s space will be orange, along with Cleveland and Denver.

“Inviting our fans to get involved in the creation of the newest Monopoly game was a great way to celebrate the 80th anniversary of the brand,” Jonathan Berkowitz, vice president of global marketing for gaming at Hasbro, said in a statement.

“It was amazing to see both fans and local organizations around the world rally

Asheville will be included in a yet-tobe-released variation on the popular board game, Monopoly. behind their cities, and we were wowed by the overwhelming pride people displayed during the Hear & Now vote.”

The announcement comes as part of a celebration of Monopoly’s 80th birthday.

The American cities that will appear in the Monopoly Here & Now U.S. Edition, as organized by their spaces, are: • Dark Blue — Pierre, S.D.; Minneapolis.

• Green — New York; Virginia Beach, Va., Los Angeles.

• Yellow — Chicago, Indianapolis, Charleston, S.C. • Red — Detroit, Boston, Milwaukee.

• Orange — Cleveland, Asheville, Denver.

• Magenta — Atlanta, Little Rock, Ark., Seattle.

• Light Blue — Portsmouth, N.H., Charlotte, Dallas.

• Brown — Waconia, Minn., Chesapeake, Va.

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Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 - A5

Dickie’s Spring Sale You can grow with these prices MORE food for LESS money

Trucks arrive daily

Boxes of Cereals ...

Nothing over $149

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A6 —April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Faith Notes

Cyclone Pam fundraiser

Friday, April 3

100% of gross profits donated

GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE, noon, Black Mountain United Methodist Church, 101 Church St., BlackMountain. A Good Friday service will be held.

Sunday, April 5

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 5-8:30 a.m., Chimney Rock State Park, 431 Main St., Chimney Rock. The Easter sunrise service will include song, scripture and spiritual music at sunrise over Lake Lure. The annual service usually attracts about 1,000 early-risers from around the Southeast. Guests are invited to stay all day.

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 6:45 a.m., lawn, Groce United Methodist Church, 954 Tunnel Rd., Asheville. An Easter sunrise service will be held on the lawn of the church. Music will be provided

by Reflection. In addition, an indoor worship service will be held at 10:55 a.m. at East Asheville UMC, featuring the Easter Cantata.

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 7 a.m., amphitheater, Lake Junaluska Conference & Retreat Center, 91 N. Lakeshore Drive, Lake Junaluska.

The lake’s Easter sunrise service will be held in the amphitheater, with Memorial Chapel serving as the rain location. A breakfast buffet will be served from 7:30 to 9 a.m. at the Lambuth Inn. In addition, Long’s Chapel United Methodist Church will hold an Easter service at 10:30 a.m. at the Lake Junaluska Stuart Auditorium, followed by a lunch buffet from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in The Terrace Hotel.

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 7 a.m., Tabernacle United Methodist Church, 385 Tabernacle Rd., Black Mountain. An Easter sunrise service will be held.

EASTER SUNRISE SERVICE, 7:20 a.m., 1 Glen Falls Road, Beaver Lake, Asheville. An Easter surnrise service will be held along Beaver Lake, hosted by Trinity United Methodist Church. Light refreshments will be served afterward.

EASTER PROGRAM, 10 a.m., First Presbyterian Church, 699 N. Grove St., Hendersonville. The Creative Beginnings preschoolers will perform their annual Easter program. Pianist Gayle Stepp will lead the group.

Sunday, April 12

WORKSHOP, 1-3 p.m., Unity Center, 2041 Old Fanning Bridge Rd., Mills River. A workshop, “Church Making Room for a Miracle,” will be

led by Ester Nicholson. She also will be special guest speaker at the morning service at 10:30 a.m. She also will sing with a group.

Ester Nicolson will lead a workshop at 1 p.m. April 12 at the Unity Center in Mills River.

Admission to the workshop is $35

CONCERT, 7 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 1 Edwin Place, Asheville.

Al Petteway and Amy White will perform in the monthly Mountain Spirit Coffeehouse Concert Series. Admission is $15 for adults and $10 for students.

Wednesday, April 22

PROSPERITY CLASS, 6:30 p.m., Unity Center, 2041 Old Fanning Bridge Rd., Mills River. A class, “Prosperity Plus: 10 Universal Laws for Abundant Living,” will begin April 22 and continue over 10 weeks.

Cyclone Pam, a category 5 storm, has devastated Vanuatu and left not one single structure standing in Isaka village, home of the tribal family of our owner and suppliers of our finest product. In order to help with the recovery, Noble Kava will be donating virtually all of our Friday and Saturday earning to Cyclone Pam relief. We ask you to please join us and make a donation by simply enjoying yourself with some drinks in our relaxing atmosphere. Help us help Vanuatu to rebuild and once again claim the title of “the happiest nation on the earth.” It will not be easy, but every drink you enjoy WILL count. Thank you in advance for your generosity.

Sunday, May 17

CONCERT, 7 p.m., Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Asheville, 1 Edwin Place, Asheville.

A special 10th anniversary show will be presented in the monthly Mountain Spirit Coffeehouse Concert Series. Admission is $15 for adults and $10 for students.

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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.

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Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 - A7

Nathan West elected Meadows new BCGOP chairman

From Staff Reports

The Buncombe County Republican Party recently elected Nathan West of Black Mountain to serve as its chairman.

West defeated J.B. Howard 78-38 to win the post during the BCGOP convention held March 14 in Ferguson Auditorium at Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College.

“It is an honor to serve our party in this capacity,” West said immediately after being elected chairman. “I am looking forward to expanding our base, by reaching out to our local communities, and growing our presence in the county.”

What’s more, he told local news media that he plans “to bring people to the table who feel disenfranchised now.”

“I’d like to treat the party like a yearround campaign and provide Republican candidates and officials with the support they need,” he added.

West, 37, is a Montreat insurance adjuster who has served as the BCGOP’s communications director the past four years.

He succeeds Henry Mitchell, who served

four years as chairman. Mitchell decided not to seek another term. “I feel like after four years, I have done my duty,” Mitchell said.

Meanwhile, Howard said he “felt fine” Nathan West after the loss to his friend, West. “I’m just going to keep trying to get conservatives elected. The party’s pretty well-organized and ready to go forward.”

Howard, 67, ran for sheriff as a Democrat in 2006, but lost in the party primary and later changed his party registration.

The BCGOP elected the following as members of the executive board: • Janet Burhoe-Jones as first vice chair • Christy Fryar as second vice chair • Robert Roland as secretary • Kathy Penland as treasurer Elected at-large board members were Mike Bustle, Fremont V. Brown III, Jerry Green, Roger Kumpf and Robin Ramsey.

Council bans e-cigs in Asheville facilities

From Staff Reports

Asheville City Council voted 7-0 on March 10 to ban the use of vapor-producing e-cigarettes from city buses, parks and greenways as well as in facilities such as the U.S. Cellular Center.

The proposed ban was part of the regular consent agenda, a list of items that are passed together with no discussion.

However, Councilman Gordon Smith asked that the e-cigarette issue be pulled from the consent agenda, so it could be discussed, forcing a standalone vote.

The ban had been recommended by the

council’s three-member public safety committee after it received complaints from city bus riders about people using the devices, committee members said.

E-cigarettes do not burn material, but create vapor using a mechanical heating element, battery or electronic circuit. The devices are used to heat and vaporize a liquid solution in a cartridge usually containing nicotine.

Public safety committee member Cecil Bothwell said that, in his research, he has found that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration still is waiting to make a determination on the safety of e-cigarettes.

Katuah Market closes; vicious competition cited

From Staff Reports

Katuah Market, which opened in Biltmore Village in late 2013, closed its doors permanently on March 31.

The natural food market’s owner, John Swann, said he was forced out of business by high overhead and increased competition.

He said the store has been struggling since its opening and that sales “dropped off a cliff” at the first of the year. “At this point, we can’t continue — we’d need to be 50 percent higher in sales,” he noted.

Swann is a local food pioneer who is a former partner in Asheville’s Greenlife Grocery.

Swann said sales were down 20 percent from last year. “Evidently, Asheville is not interested in what we’re doing.”

He cited a crowded natural foods market as a major factor in Katuah’s closing. “The

town is the most over-saturated market in the United States per capita for natural foods. There’s nowhere in the country that has that number of stores that’s the size of Asheville.”

While Katauh Market was at a break-even point in sales last summer, Swann said that after the opening of the new 30,000-squarefoot Whole Foods on Tunnel Road, his sales to plummeted 25 percent.

Swann also noted that his Biltmore Village location was challenging for shopper access — and the ritzy, tourist-rich village gave shoppers the impression that Katuah’s prices were more expensive that they really were.

As a result of Katuah closing, its 45 employees lost their jobs.

Meanwhile, Swann will work in consulting for a grocery store in development outside the city. He declined to divulge details.

Continued from Page A2 Meadows added, “Part of the reason the gas price is down so low right now is the decrease in demand from China.”

A man then praised Meadows for his efforts in getting funding for a road in Asheville’s River Arts District.

“We were very fortunate to get” the first grant for such a project, Meadows noted.

“Many people deserve credit for that....”

He reiterated that “people from all over the world know where Asheville is.”

A woman asked Meadows to “tell us your stand on Israel... and what it was like to be there when Benjamin Netanahu spoke.”

“It was the most expensive ticket in town,” Meadows said with a smile. “The prime minister laid out not only a cause for Israel, but a cause for the United States.

Along with this ability (for Iran) to have a nuclear bomb, (Netanahu noted) that Americans live in great peace and prosperity and we’re not worried about rockets coming in to get us,” Meadows said, paraphrasing the prime minister.

“For me, Israel is probably my passion on foreign policy... It really is about who we are... I could probably have every Jewish person in my district vote against me — and it wouldn’t make any difference.

“If we think that truly a country that we’ve been at odds with over 30 years... to think that they’ve changed overnight ... is to not be realistic... It’s time we’ve recognized them for who they are — and they are the greatest perpetrator of terrorism” in the world. Meadows comments were greeted with scattered applause.

A man asked if a “change in administration” will be required to get the Keystone

Pipeline passed.

“Yes, it’s going to take a different administration to get that,” Meadows replied.

“Unions are for it. Because of that support, I think you’ll see it eventually. Unless gas prices gets up to $3 or $4 per gallon, I think it will (require a new administration).”

As for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a woman said, “We know the foreign dollar is down. How does foreign investment affect growth?”

Meadows said, “I think foreign investment is a good thing. The reason you’re not seeing so many foreign firms is because the United States has the largest corporate tax in the world. ... The only thing that keeps it on an even playing field is that energy prices in United States have been more favorable.”

He added, “Most of you know about the Roaring ‘20s — that came as the result of lower taxes. John Kennedy lowered taxes and you saw businesses thrive... So I’m all for foreign investment... The real question is it needs to be a quality investment.”

In other action, CIBO — unanimously and with no discussion — elected officers and board members for 2015-16. The slate of officers, presented by the nominating committee led by John Carroll, includes: • President Rod Hudgins, Rod Hudgins Engineering • Vice President Buzzy Cannady, M.B. Haynes Corp.

• Secretary-treasurer Scott Hughes, Johnson Price Sprinkle CPAs • Class 1 board member – Kerney McNeil, Preferred Storage • Class II board member — Jan Davis, Jan Davis Tire Store • Class III board member — Josh Holmes, Ed Holmes & Associates..

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Emerson still owns half the company and it is still in operation today. Emerson was semi-retired and living in Asheville, feeling bored, and decided to start another mattress factory and named it after his son, Colton. Folks here in Asheville really like buying high-quality products that are locally made. Emerson says: “Business has been strong and we can hardly keep up with demand.” He added, “A lot of customers that come into our store are frustrated with the quality of nonflip brand-name mattresses that they have purchased recently that didn’t last as long as they expected. So many products today are made to wear out fairly quickly so you have to replace them. Colton makes mattresses the old-fashioned way so they last longer.”

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A10 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

The Daily Planet’s Opinion

E-cigarette ban? A wise move

A

sheville was wise in recently passing an ordinance that bans the use of e-cigarettes in places where regular cigarette smoking is also banned.

While e-cigarettes use a mechanical heating element, battery or electronic circuit to heat and vaporize a liquid solution in a cartridge usually containing nicotine, it is not known whether they are less addictive than cigarettes and their health affects.

E-cigarettes have been on the market for only a decade, explaining the lack of exhaustive testing necessary to establish whether they are safe for those who use them, or those near those who use them.

“There is no consistency with what is in them, so they haven’t gotten a real take on their safety,” City Councilman Cecil Bothwell said during a March 10 council meeting at which the ban was passed as a noncontro-

versial item.

Deputy City Attorney Martha McGlohon told council that the Food and Drug Administration had conducted a study on two leading ecigarette brands and found “evidence of toxic chemicals in both.”

Some studies have shown the release of measurable amounts of carcinogens from exhaled vapors, she added. “Finally, in the last six months, there have been battery explosions either during charging of the e-cigarette or while in use,” McGlohon noted.

The ban does not affect private restaurants or other establishments, but it — thankfully — prohibits e-cigarette use from city buses, parks and greenways, along with the Asheville Regional Airport, the U.S. Cellular Center and Pack Place Education, Arts and Science Center, except in designated smoking areas.

Politics, literature come together in one column

CHAPEL HILL — Is my weekly column supposed to be about books or about politics?

I get this question sometimes from editors and readers. In fact, one newspaper editor stopped using my column about a year ago.

He wrote that he enjoyed my book columns, but “when I get a column and I have to read it to see if it’s a Bookwatch column or one on politics, I find it to be a waste of time and energy. There are enough political pundits out there that I would prefer not to see my favorite book reviewer playing partisan politics…but since that doesn’t seem to be possible, let me just say so long.”

I will tell you the rest of this story in a minute.

But as a result of action on Dec. 22, politics and literature come together comfortably in the same column.

On that date, Gov. Pat McCrory did something that brought cheers from people of all political persuasions. He appointed Shelby Stephenson as North Carolina’s poet laureate.

We do not need to discuss the governor’s first try at that appointment, except to say that this time he did it right.

Stephenson is a distinguished writer. For many years, he taught at UNC Pembroke and edited Pembroke Magazine. He grew up in the country surrounded by family and other rural and small town characters in Johnston and Harnett counties. These are scenes and people he shared with us in numerous books and poems, including “Family Matters: Homage to July, The Slave Girl,” a long narrative poem that tells his family’s story in an unusual way.

He takes his readers through the imagined experience of a slave girl once owned by his ancestor. Stephenson lives on family land, not far from Stephenson’s Barbecue, east of Raleigh just off I-40. His late brother Paul started the restaurant. Don’t miss the chance to eat there if you are ever close by.

Shelby is also a great musician. He and Paul, along with Shelby’s wife Linda and other family members, regularly played country music at Paul’s restaurant. Still today, when Shelby sings Hank Williams’ “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry,” it is hard for me to hold back the tears.

D.G. Martin Not content with his personal achievements as a distinguished writer and as a great musician, Shelby always seeks to encourage talented people to share their gifts.

A few years ago, I visited one of his writing classes at UNC Pembroke. I saw him listen and respond with positive encouragement to a group of women writing about their experiences as soldiers’ wives and single parents struggling with a host of challenges.

By giving them the tools and the confidence to examine and share their stories, Stephenson was quietly changing their lives.

He has always looked for ways to find and expand appreciative audiences for the good writing of others. Pembroke Magazine gave him the platform to gather and share the work of authors and build an appreciative community of readers. Unselfishly, he poured his heart into this project and made this journal an American literary treasure.

Along the way, his warm words of encouragement to me and to countless others have sometimes made all the difference. I will always be grateful.

As poet laureate he will be doing even more to celebrate and enhance our state’s great literary scene.

So, congratulations to Shelby Stephenson and thanks to Gov. McCrory for making such a fine appointment.

Now for the rest of the story about the editor who ditched my column, just in case others are thinking about doing the same thing. A few months after the newspaper stopped running the column, it closed its doors. Maybe there was no connection. But why take a chance?

• 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

Residents urged to act to cut trash processing

As a part of the new generation emerging, I hear time and time again that we’ve had everything handed to us — education, work, you name it— many believe it is ours for the taking.

But a future free of nuclear weapons does not seem to be something freely given. As a welcoming gift to our generation, many in Congress are determined to make us work a little bit harder for a safer future, free of these threats. Their determination to undermine negotiations with Iran illustrates their indifference to these diplomatic processes.

Last week (in mid-March), a letter addressed to Iran warned that agreements could change along with the presidency, courtesy of Senator Cotton and 46 other members of Congress.

Sadly, two of these signatories represent North Carolina. Was there a statewide memo agreeing upon this?

The real threat does not come from a deal with Iran; it comes from those who believe they know what is best for the American people without consulting them first.

Negotiations with Iran promote an international platform where real progress for a future without nuclear weapons can be achieved.

I believe it is time to take back the responsibility of guaranteeing a safer future for our families.

I know North Carolinians. We are strong.

Demand a nuclear-free future. Demand diplomacy.

Allison Hargus International studies student UNC Asheville Asheville EDITOR’S NOTE: Hargus is also an Action Corps leader for Global Zero and an intern with the Nuclear Information and Resource Service

Residents urged to act to cut trash processing

Every week a large, noisy trash truck stops in front of my house. While idling, the mechanical arm picks up my curbed trash can, dumps it into the truck, then returns it to the curb.

The same amount of energy is used whether or not my trash can is full, half-full, one-eighth full or nearly empty.

Please consider the energy saved if we only put out our dumpster when it is full.

Do the math.

If the truck stops every week, that’s about 52 times; every other week, 26 times; every third week, about 19; once a month, about 12 pick ups.

Please, it’s an easy, common-sense way to reduce pollution.

SUSAN HISE Asheville See LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, Page A14

The Candid Conservative

Where normal isn’t normal

“Nothing strengthens authority so much as silence.” Leonardo da Vinci

The Problem

A

sheville is a slippery hotspot for normal people. Too many struggle to pay the bills, raise kids, secure a decent job, and maintain an upright moral compass.

This gap between the real world and Asheville’s fantasy world is easily measured – just scan our “best of” tributes. There’s absolutely no connection between normal and the best place to drink beer, party, celebrate weirdness, date your own sex, and tweet space on a Monopoly board. Clarity arrives with our unmentioned credits.

Drug City

Cool green Asheville is a not-so-cool drug haven.

Hardly a neighborhood exists without seemingly immune chemistry merchants. Whether sold at the curb in public housWhistle Blower ing; delivered door-todoor by courier; passed hand-to-hand in hip restaurants; or shilled legally by our V.A. Hospital and sorted pain clinics, drugs are a broken Asheville mainspring stopping the clock of a phenomenal number of people.

Those advocating drug legalization overlook the hitch – addicts don’t quietly fade into oblivion. On the way down they pillage their families, friends, neighbors and employers.

When those fountains run dry, they dive into the ever more indulgent public safety net. Free housing, disability dough, food stamps, healthcare without skin in the game, and fire engines and ambulances on command are just some of the perks of being a social predator cloaked as a victim.

Carl Mumpower If you doubt their harm, take a look at the millions Mission Hospital silently invests in a never-ending procession of recovery avoidance addicts.

When these folks exhaust their street options, Mission’s emergency room is “Plan B.” Most know the passwords – phantom chest pains or suicidal thoughts. Per paralyzing and unchallenged laws, character deficient addicts are thus able to pinch “time out” for multiple days and thousands of dollars – repeatedly.

Want to know why Mission is overwhelmed? Look to defensive medicine protocols and government bureaucracy strangling efficiency potentials. Chronic staff shortages are undeclared policy.

Then consider a community mass producing damaged, deranged and dependent drug addicts who, like Humpty-Dumpty, expect to be magically put back together again.

It’s going to get worse. Our mental health system can barely get out of its own way, much less clean-up a drowning pool of drug aficionados. Asheville’s widespread addict reality is a toxic booby-prize you won’t read about in travel magazines.

Power and Money

Good-old-boy elitism remains local bedrock. We’ve recently been exposed to the finest example of bipartisan politics in our city’s history – the systematic theft of Asheville’s water system.

See CANDID CONSERVATIVE, Page A13

Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 — A11

Commentary

Conservative Christians questioned

I

have great respect for conservative Christians.

They live their faith every day.

They obey Christ in providing for the poor. They’re generous with their time and money.

But they have a bad habit – a habit that’s hurting our state and our country in one area.

They use the Bible backwards.

It’s an old habit, actually. When I was a kid, I questioned Jim Crow segregation.

My mother answered from the Bible – Acts 17:26: “And hath made of one blood all nations… and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation.”

Conservative Christians of that era wanted Jim Crow to be moral – so they found Scripture to “support” it. God, they reasoned, had set boundaries for all nations, and that meant races shouldn’t mix.

This is using the Bible backwards. We’re supposed to look to the Bible for guidance, not the other way around – scouring the Bible to justify what we want.

In the 1800s, all western countries had abolished slavery. But the cotton economy of the South needed slaves.

Many Christian leaders, reacting as Southerners, defended slavery. Woodrow Wilson’s father (in my home town) owned slaves and was a secessionist. In 1845 (also in my home town) Baptists formed the Southern Baptist Convention, with slavery as the dividing issue.

Lee Ballard They wanted slavery to be moral, and indeed, Scripture was on their side. The Apostle Paul wrote to Christian slaves in both the Ephesian and Colossian churches to obey their maters, and Ephesians 6:5 even adds: “as you would obey Christ.”

The temptation is great to start with what we want and work backwards to find support in the Bible. Those Southern Christians did that. It’s more difficult to be wise in applying Scripture to the issues of our time. Those Southern Christians didn’t do that.

In First Timothy 2:9-15, Paul tells Christian women to dress simply, not braid their hair or wear jewelry, be submissive, even “shamefaced” and silent.

These teachings fit well in the First Century when they were written. They don’t fit well in our time. Nine percent of doctors were female in 1970. Today it’s 32%. The same is true in all areas of work. Today, few women think twice about jewelry and nice clothes.

Yes, the Bible is clear on drab clothes and silent women. But time changes attitudes.

We may not like it that some parts of the Bible are no longer relevant to our time, but that’s how it is.

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This brings us to homosexuality – a HUGE issue for our day. Pastors pound pulpits against homosexuality, and millions of people vote for candidates who oppose homosexuality. In many elections, their votes are decisive.

And as a result, we have lawmakers who faithfully vote against homosexuality – but after that, wow!

They wander around Raleigh and Washington, saying and doing stupid things. And worse, they’re led around by people with non-Christian motives, people who want to make the rich and powerful richer and more powerful – totally against the teachers of Jesus – while they take away education and healthcare from the needy.

A spiritual issue has become very, very down-to-earth.

Does the Bible condemn homosexuality?

Absolutely.

Leviticus 18:22 is clear. And in First Corinthians 6:9, Paul includes “homosexuals” in a long list of people who “shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” But Leviticus 19, the next chapter, continues with another list – against spreading slander, perverting justice, seeking revenge, holding a grudge, getting tattoos. And Paul’s list of those not included in the Kingdom also includes the greedy, slanderers and crooked business people.

These are the issues we all face every day.

Wouldn’t conservative Christians’ light shine brighter if they were known as anti-gossip, anti-revenge and pro-justice people instead of

the anti-homosexual people?

Pastors face a great temptation. It is far easier to mobilize people against evil “out there” than against evil that’s close to home, like Paul’s “the greedy.”

And it’s easy to confront “now” issues, like the obnoxious “gay rights” movement.

That last one is, to me, particularly sad.

The fact is, homosexuality won’t be a live issue in 20 years. It’s a temporary issue.

When Pew Research polled in 2001, “Americans opposed same-sex marriage by a 57 percent to 35 percent margin.” Last year, “a majority of Americans (52 percent) support same-sex marriage, compared with 40 percent who oppose it.” It will go the way of segregation and silent women.

I hope there’s some wisdom in what I’ve written here.

America and North Carolina need all the wisdom they can get.

• Lee Ballard lives in Mars Hill.

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.

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A12 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Commentary

Horses asses and Buncombe commissioners Pete Kaliner is the host of a daily radio talk show on Asheville’s WWNC (570AM) that airs from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. This column features posts from his daily blog.

• The following was posted March 6: n early January, the Democratic majority on the Buncombe County Commission rammed through a new set of animal control regulations.

It expanded the definition of “neglect,” mandated socialization and exercise, and issued minimum shelter requirements for horses and other equines.

Shortly after the rules were adopted, some problems emerged.

From the Asheville Citizen-Times: Among those protesting the newly passed requirement for a three-sided shelter are the state’s main horse association, a student who uses donkeys to protect sheep and the county’s own horse veterinarian.

The rule puts an unnecessary cost burden on owners and could even result in more horses being abandoned, they said.

Beverly Hargus, a Flat Rock veterinarian who contracts with the county to care for horses at its shelter in Black Mountain, said she wasn’t approached before the new rules were passed last month.

“We don’t need to restrict them to a shelter that is not a natural thing for them,”Hargus [said].

I

But don’t worry!

The same Democratic Commissioner

Pete Kaliner — Ellen Frost — who pushed it through without consulting the county vet or the state Horse Council, vowed to fix it.

“It was great to get all the public comment. It was really, really good feedback... we hear what people said and we will take that to heart.”

But Commissioner Miranda DeBruhl, who along with the two other Republican commissioners voted against all the animal rules, called them “a complete mess” and said they should be suspended and possibly repealed.

“We should all be embarrassed that such a poorly crafted ordinance ever passed in the first place and that’s why I have worked so hard to delay this action until the experts could weigh in,” she said.

And don’t worry!

Commissioner Frost said “... the rules don’t apply to horse owners with farm status, though she wasn’t clear on the details.”

Although that turned out to be false.

But don’t worry!

Frost said “... animal control officers use a great deal of discretion and don’t use heavy-handed tactics. Most of the time, they are responding to complaints, she said.

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“Nobody is going to get bullied,” she said.”

This was a bit of a different argument than the one Frost made a few weeks prior, as she explained the need for the tougher regulations: Frost was a primary proponent of the rules and said the county had made great strides in terms of animal care, but more should be done.

“In 2014, there were over 2,500 calls to 911 for animal cruelty. Those were staggering numbers, and we know if we work together as a community, we can do better,” Frost said.

So, all the complaints were the reason for the new rules, but don’t worry - the new rules won’t be heavy-handed because it’s a complaint-driven system.

Got that?

This week, the commissioners re-wrote their hasty animal control rules again: Facing that opposition, commissioners Tuesday unanimously repealed and made changes to the part of animal rules dealing with horses, donkeys and other equine livestock.

The changes eliminated a requirement for man made shelter and social interaction and allowed livestock to be given away for educational opportunities. The original rules continue to require social interaction for pets such as dogs and make it illegal to give away any other “live animal, fish, reptile or bird as a prize or as an inducement to enter any contest, game or other competition.”

See KALINER, Page A13

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Candid Conservative

Continued from Page A10 It started with Democrats Martin Nesbitt, Susan Fisher, and Bruce Goforth partnering with Republicans Wilma Sherill and Nathan Ramsey to champion Sullivan Acts II & III. Their success grounded former state rep Tim Moffitt’s spirited effort to finalize the rip-off.

The city may yet prevail in court, but don’t hold your breath. When that many red and blue politicians pimp eminent domain on a billion dollar asset, there’s power, money and intrigue in the background.

Going back earlier this century stands another premier coup by elitists – the backdoor deal to terminate the race track. How it went down left a bad taste in the mouth of many locals and symbolizes a tipping point whereby native values are increasingly confined to the back of Asheville’s bus. Our fast-growing puddle of transplants has fondness for drugs, beer, gender swapping, eccentricity, and Obama but they don’t like racecars. Come to think of it they don’t like much of anything about our heritage except Asheville’s mountains and downtown buildings. They’ve squashed most everything else.

Another example of high-powered elitism is the manner by which the Biltmore Estate secured liquor-by-the-drink. Under almost all circumstances, this state graced opportunity would be linked to voluntary annexation into Asheville. The Biltmore Company was mysteriously able to win the former and skip the latter. That’s wrong in too many

Advice Goddess

Continued from Page A1 A: Saying you won’t have kids for “moral reasons” sounds better than my reasons: I find them loud, sticky, and expensive.

There’s also the problem of how long they take to, uh, ripen, which used to be 18 years — before kids started living at home until 30.

(Many murder sentences are shorter.)

And now, bear with me as I put a buzz saw through your reasons.

As for this “violent planet” business, it used to be that somebody was always cracking somebody over the head with a cudgel. But today, as psychologist Steven Pinker reports in “The Better Angels of Our Nature,” the planet is less violent than ever, and violence continues to decline.

As for the “crowded” argument, in 2011, National Geographic’s Robert Kunzig reported that all seven billion earthlings could fit comfortably in Texas — “if Texas were settled as densely as New York City.”

And it turns out that women in the U.S. aren’t having enough children to replace the population dying off. According to World Bank data, American mommies are only having 1.9 children, while demographers put the replacement rate at 2.1 of the screeching, airplane seat-kicking little darlings.

The good news is that if you truly like kids, you don’t have to bring them into the world to bring them into your life. There’s adoption, of course (though most women who can give birth to children will want to instead of importing one “made in China”).

But there are also countless kids already in existence whose divorced, widowed, or otherwise single moms have a harder time finding boyfriends — even if they’re uber-hot and so sweet they make your teeth hurt.

Do profile searches for moms, and say in your profile that you don’t want to create new earthlings but love kids and are open to a woman who already has some. To describe the likely spike in your popularity after hanging the “Welcome, Single Moms!” sign, well, ever watch a pack of wild dingoes descend on a downed cow?

Then again, say you like your life child-free, but went all eco-pacifist so you wouldn’t seem like a big meanie.

Definitely put the “nobody’s daddy” thing in

ways to count – including how it happened, why it happened, who helped it happen and why it never should have happened.

Per these well-screened activities, doubletaxed city residents should be pressing hard for a “Best Backroom Deals” kudo.

Big G

Being a local mover and shaker requires the affections of politicians. That’s accomplished through campaign contributions, cocktail parties, PACs and other efforts to reward the faithful. Very, very few elected officials resist the seductions of being liked, empowered and funded by special interest groups. That’s why today’s America is pretty much dominated by an ever growing convoy of the self-serving.

These groups and hostaged politicians liken the public coffers to a stolen credit card.

It’s fun to spend other people’s money. In just one day last month, Buncombe’ s commission committed 141 million to a host of nice but not necessary construction projects.

Instead of scaled upgrades and expanded utilization to two shifts, they surrendered to Federal pressures and approved a sexy new social services structure for 48 million.

The same governing elitists set sights on a project rivaling the City-owned golf course as middleclass welfare – a new swimming pool facility. According to Manna Food bank we’ve got hungry people all over the place and yet we’re in a dire need of a 38 million swimming

your profile. You might also want to consider a vasectomy (with a surgeon who does loads of them, which lessens the risks).

Unfortunately, getting snipped is not the deterrent to aspiring mommies you might think it would be. Women pining to spawn are prone to chirp, “Vasectomies can be reversed!”

— forgetting that it’s a little harder to reverse a man’s aversion to, say, tapping into a quartermillion-plus dollars of his earnings to fund orthodontia, grad school and rehab.

More bad news: For some women, not wanting kids at the moment seems to be no guarantee of not eventually wanting them.

Badly. Desperately.

And by the way, I’ve always found the “Come on, you’ll want kids someday!” remark insulting, as if some random stranger at a cocktail party could know my mind better than I do.

But a study in the Journal of Evolutionary Psychology by Finnish researcher Anna Rotkirch found that women — like me — who were sure they didn’t want children sometimes found themselves suddenly experiencing “baby fever,” which goes way beyond the wish to have a child.

It’s a painful physical longing to have a baby (often experienced in a woman’s early 20s and between 28 and 35).

One of Rotkirch’s subjects, a woman in her 30s who knew it wasn’t the right time for a child, described feeling an “agonizing” and “all-encompassing desire” to have one, to the point where she was “practically ready to rob a sperm bank.”

In other words, yes: Disclose! Disclose!

Disclose! State your preference in your profile.

But don’t think that this will be any sort of mandate for women to care about what you want. Some will — even some of those with a uterus howling, “I WANT A BAYBEEE!” They’ll be the ones who default to their ethics instead of their biology. So until there’s highly reliable male birth control that doesn’t require a scalpel, make it your priority to find out whether a woman is ethical before having sex with her. It’s really your best — and maybe only — defense against the joy of bringing something into the world that spends half its time hating you and the other half begging you for money.

• (c.) 2015, Amy Alkon, all rights reserved.

Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 — A13

accountabilities and opportunities. Blaming the white culture for the black culture’s well documented regression is easier than challenging the real causes. Spending dollars borrowed on our kids’ futures is easier than balancing a budget. The media is liberal not out of principle, but because they’re rewarded for putting a happy face on the pretense an easy life is a good life. Pick up a paper or watch the news. How often will you hear someone made a bad decision?

Or an addict was personally responsible for their behavior? Or those who have children they can’t support are rash? We live in a culture addicted to the idea of feeling good as job one – the media is liberal because we are. The antidote to this adult version of a pacifier is the real world’s firm link to reality, reason, responsibly, and right. That’s the condensed recipe for conservatism – and a neon marker for those more interested in truth than political comfort food.

• Do you have information about a source of mischief in our community?

You can safely contact us at 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 is a former member of Asheville City Council.

complex? Both are intentionally perpetuated myths, but we’re factually in the running for the “Most Indebted County” award.

Solutions?

Count on the fact our left-leaning political elites will take things to absurd extremes.

Banning the circus, ignoring topless exhibitionism in public parks and displaying a gay pride banner on City Hall are examples of wide-eyed liberalism growing wilder – a prelude to misadventure.

In the meantime the rest of us can serve best by enjoying Asheville’s real blessings and holding onto ordinary. As a Vatican insider once shared, “Martyrs comprised the first generation of Saints.” “The second was made up of great teachers, leaders and people of faith. The last will be those who can be normal in an abnormal world.”

From personal experience, little irritates the left more than a Christian conservative with a smile – and the dawning awareness the accolades Asheville receives will fade under the pressure of the ones we don’t…

Conservative tip of the month

Liberal media bias is not fictional. The incentive for the fraud is simple – walking downhill is easier than up. Everything about the left’s policies is devoted to the equation of ease. Immorality is easier than morality.

Giving the downtrodden get-out-of-jail-free entitlements is easier than seeking uplifting

Kaliner

Continued from Page A12

But don’t worry!

All this just means that the process worked!

Democratic commissioners defended the process, saying it showed county elected officials were responsive to constituents.

Commissioner Ellen Frost who pushed forward the original rules and subsequent revisions said the goal was to get animal neglect “on the front page. We accomplished that.”

“We might stumble along the way, but we fixed this. I don’t think trying could ever be called an embarrassment or a mess.”

Ram through a set of un-vetted rules that experts say are more harmful than helpful just to get news coverage!

Brilliant strategy!

From the Mountain Xpress: “We don’t want to make mistakes,” said Commissioner Holly Jones, but mistakes are bound to happen. “But what is more important in life is that we listen to each other,” listen to members of our community, and strive to “make things better.”

Commissioner Miranda DeBruhl said she hopes the board continues to revisit this and other ordinances in an ongoing effort to improve the conditions of local animals — with the bigger picture of facilitating communication to create a stronger Buncombe County.

“I promise two things to you,” Jones said. “We will listen to you, and we will make mistakes. … But we will make them right” in the end.

It’s good to hear of this newly discovered devotion to listening to people. Perhaps if they had listened to their Republican colleagues back in January they could’ve avoided all of this.

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.

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A14 —April 2015 — Asheville Daily Planet

Consultants unveil plan to fix APD’s problems

From Staff Reports

A report from consultants commissioned by the City of Asheville, unveiled March 24, offers a path forward for eliminating problems in the Asheville Police Department.

The report said the problems in the APD existed long before William Anderson become the chief, and that they continue to exist after his departure this past Dec. 31.

The APD has an organizational system that is broken almost beyond repair, The Matrix Consulting Group noted in its report.

Among the specifics are the following: • Managers receive meager training and are transferred constantly.

• Internal communication is poor.

• Staffers do not hold themselves accountable.

• Staffers do not view promotional/special assignments, disciplinary and internal affairs as “fair.” Specifically, the report says staffers believe standards are not applied consistently.

Calling it an “us vs. them” cutlure, Matrix noted that the result is “a lack of trust betweeen line and command staff” as well as “a perception of a lack of effective leadership in the Asheville Police Department.”

Indeed, the report lists shortcomings in almost every aspect of the department’s operations. The APD should dump its policies and procedures manual and start over, selecting a set that can be customized for Asheville, Matrix President Richard Brady said. Specifically, Brady said that set would come from public-safety consulting group LEXIPRO.

The report also said that it is vitally important when developing new policies that the rank-and-file have input.

“A Chief’s Advisory Committee, comprised of representatives from each major function and rank level, should be created and tasked with establising a process to engage employees as a partner in the development of goals,” the report states.

“No longer can you expect a new chief and management team to come in and ... push down a management philosophy,” Brady told City Council on March 24.

Council responded with a positive reception to the report.

Implementation of an APD overhaul will be the responsibility of City Manager Gary Jackson, the top city executive that council looks to in such cases.

Councilman Jan Davis, who chairs council’s Public Safety Committee, emphasized that the report should not be seen as an indictment of APD personnel. “We have a lot of really good people working in the department,” he said. “I would not want them, in any way, to come out of this feeling like they are damaged goods.”

Mayor Esther Manheimer said of the report, “This is a clear path forward. Now it’s our job to execute.”

In a March 28 editiorial, the Asheville Citizen-Times asserted, “It also is time to end the unproductive debate over whether Anderson, the city’s first African-American chief, was an incompetent manager or the victim of a racist conspiracy.

“Even (councilman) Cecil Bothwell, a staunch defender of Anderson, said of the problems, ‘It is cultural... it’s what evolved over time.’”

Letters to the Editor Continued from Page A10

Mission Health criticized for issues in caring for baby Mission Health must be used to community hospitals doing the dirty work of close observation and having to keep some “atrisk” newborns away from their mothers.

Otherwise, why would they have not followed the American Academy of Pediatrics protocol for low birth weight babies with low blood sugars?

For my great nephew, he was on his third day of life, instead of his third HOUR of life, before getting an IV because his blood sugar remained under 45 (the hospital’s own parameter, instead of the 47 recommended by the AAP).

Actually he did finally get over 45 for a time, when I finally strongly recommended to my nephew and his wife that they either dress, tightly swaddle, or place their son back under the heated crib and get him warm because he was using all his calories trying to keep warm because he was almost naked in room air.

It was like the nurses hadn’t taught them about newborns, especially newborns

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.

under 5 pounds, being at risk for being cold stressed! My concern for brain injury won’t rest until this baby is in college.

Luckily, lawsuits related to birth-related trauma can be lodged for 21 years.

I know because I was an OB nurse for over 20 years myself-at those community hospitals doing the dirty work and shipping our sick babies to the likes of Mission!

Becca Taylor Leicester

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Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 — A15

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A16 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Entertainment,

Calendar of Events & Sports

Special photo by DON TALLEY

Graeme Adams (fourth from the left) hits the right notes with his lead vocals.

Special Section PULLOUT

B1

Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015

Special photo by RAY MATA

Zuzu Welsh (third from right) played many of Clapton’s guitar parts.

Review

Clapton tribute show soars with rendition of ‘Crossroads’

By JOHN NORTH

john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com

BLACK MOUNTAIN — Eric Clapton, arguably the greatest guitarist in the rock and blues music genres, turned 70 on March 30, and a pre-birthday tribute show featuring a collection of top Asheville-area musicians — playing together in sometimes smashingly different combinations — drew a standing-room-only crowd March 14 at White Horse nightclub.

Clapton, who is British, is the only three-time inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, including as a solo artist, as a member of the Yardbirds and as a member of Cream.

Rolling Stone magazine reported that the phrase “Clapton is God” first appeared in 1965 on the walls of a London subway, shortly after he left the Yardbirds to join John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers.

The guitarist is known for his improvisational verve that has dazzled fans and peers for more than 40 years. The “God” reference, Rolling Stone reported, was based on Clapton’s ability to pack power into his soul-searing guitar work.

At the time, Clapton reportedly deadpanned that the moniker was “quite justified,” inasmuch as he was in the music business “to save the friggin’ world, not to meet girls or some other dodgy reason.”

This reviewer attended one Clapton concert — June 19, 2004 — at the sold-out Bi-Lo Center in nearby Greenville, S.C., and he was dazzling.

Zuzu Welsh played most of the Clapton solos with depth and dexterity through the tribute show — and he told the Daily Planet afterward that he has attended 23 Clapton concerts in his lifetime — so far. Jokingly, he asked this

From left are Eric Clapton in the ‘60s, Clapton as he appears now, and “Layla” muse, Pattie Boyd, in her youth. reviewer, “Do you think that’s excessive?”

Meanwhile, Graeme Adams, who sang lead on a number of the best songs of the night and also played some mean saxophone, was the standout performer of the show.

(Welsh and Adams are members of the The Zulu Welsh Band, based in Asheville.)

The fifth song of the night, a rendition of Clapton’s version of the 1936 Robert Johnson blues classic “Crossroads,” virtually brought down the house, with a number of

the 200-plus “Slowhand” fans in attendance jumping up from their seats and erupting in cheering and applause.

As the intensity of the mesmerizing beat and the soulful singing made it seem as if the performers had indeed sold their souls to the devil ... and would soon propel themselves from the misty mountains of Black Mountain to a supernatural rural intersection in a mystical Mississippi Delta.

See CLAPTON, Page B7

Shatner misses Nimoy’s funeral; debate erupts Asheville Star Trek Club weighs in on controversy

By JOHN NORTH

john@AshevilleDailyPlanet.com

The decision by William Shatner (who played Capt. James T. Kirk) to skip the March 3 funeral of Leonard Nimoy (who played Mr. Spock) — attended by 300 people including Shatner’s two daughters in Los Angeles — prompted some mild derision, but was not regarded as a big issue, according to members of The U.S.S. Alaric, aka The Asheville Star Trek Club during a Richard R. Heim Jr. March 21 meeting.

Shatner was derided as “Captain Jerk” by a headline in The New York Daily News and by some Trekkies for missing the

funeral of Nimoy, his “Star Trek” co-star and — arguably — his best friend. The News’ subhead was: “(Shatner) claims night event in Florida means he can’t ‘beam up’ to L.A. in time.”

Shatner countered that he was doing charity work at a Red Cross ball in Florida. “One of the other misconceptions seems to be that folks think flights to LAX occur all night long,” Shatner replied to one fan, who asked why he didn’t catch a late-night flight there.

Yet some fans held that the well-to-do Shatner could have — and should have — chartered a jet to be at the funeral. To one angry post, Shatner wrote, “Walking out on a major fundraiser wouldn’t have you calling me a jerk for leaving a charity high & dry? Hmm.” In an interview with the Daily Planet afterward, Richard R. Heim Jr., the club’s captain and a long-time “Star Trek” enthusiast, expounded on his feeling that Shatner never has understood that “Star Trek” is more than just a television show or film series.

See STAR TREK, Page B6

Capt. James T. Kirk and First Officer/Science Officer Spock in the original television series.

B2 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Calendar

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.

Thursday, April 2

STEM LecturE, 4:30 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A STEM lecture, “New Developments in Digital Dentistry,” will be presented by Mark Knollman, dentist. The interdisciplinary lecture series, which focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, features UNCA faculty and OLLI members. Admisson is free and open to the public.

LECTURE, 7:30 p.m., Whitman Room, Ramsey Library, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Ladies Who Lunch: Female Portraiture in Roman Palmyra” will be presented by Maura Heyn, associate professor in the Department of Classical Studies at UNC Greensboro.

Friday, April 3

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Modernism” will be presented by Lorena Russell, associate professor of literature, and Melodie Galloway, associate professor of music. Admission is free and open to the public.

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Popular Culture” will be presented by Trey Adcock, assistant professor of education and director of American Indian outreach. Admission is free and open to the public.

Fab Friday LECTURE, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Reuter Center, at UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Finding the Emeralds in Our Own Backyard” will be presented by George Briggs, executive director of the North Carolina Arboretum. Admission is free and open to the public.

Sunday, April 4

CONCERT, 3 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. The Brevard Music Center Sunday Concert series offers hour-long solo and chamber recitals by members of the BMC’s faculty. Admission is free and open to the public.

Monday, April 6

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Northern Renaissance and Reformations” will be presented by Lothar Dohse, professor of mathematics. Admission is free and open to the public.

World Affairs Council LECTURE, 7:30 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Russia and the Near Abroad” will be presented by the World Affairs Council. Admission is $10 for nonmembers.

Tuesday, April 7

LECTURE, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Einstein in Berlin” will be presented by Northwestern University professor Peter Fenves. His talk is part of UNCA’s “Evenings at the Cabaret Weimar” series. Admission is free and open to the public.

Wednesday, April 8

JUST PEACE MEETING, 9:30 a.m., Black Mountain Presbyterian Church, 117 Montreat Rd., Black Mountain. Just Peace for Israel/ Palestine, a group formerly known as Western Carolinians for Peace and Justice in the Middle East, will meet.

OPEN REHEARSAL, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. The Blue Ridge Orchestra will hold an open rehearsal. The community orchestra is directed by Milton Crotts. Admission is free and open to the public.

ROMANTIC COMEDY, 7:30 p.m., Carol Belk Theatre, UNC Asheville. “Almost, Maine,” a whimsical romantic comedy, will be performed

by UNCA students. The show also will be presented at 10 a.m. April 10 and 1 p.m. April 12.

Admission is free and open to the public. The event is part of UNC Asheville’s Arts Fest.

Thursday, April 9

STEM Lecture, 4:30 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “New Developments in Our Understanding of Brain Structure and Function” will be presented by Don Martin, research professor in UNCA’s Chemistry Department. The interdisciplinary lecture series focuses on science, technology, engineering and mathematics, featuring UNCA faculty and OLLI members. Admission is free and open to the public.

CONCERT, 5 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. Studio 18 Jazz Ensemble Concert will be held. Students will perform “It Might As Well Be Swing” under the direction of Wendy Jones and Brian Felix. Admission is free and open to the public — and donations will be accepted.

Friday, April 10

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “The Rise of Totalitarianism and the Interwar Years” will be presented by John McClain, humanities lecturer.

Admission is free and open to the public.

Fab Friday LECTURE,11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Integrative Medicine” will be presented by Brian Lewis, MD, of Integrative Family Medicine of Asheville.

Admission is free and open to the public.

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Ethics of Science and Emergent Technologies” will be presented by Loan Muntean, humanities lecturer.

Admission is free and open to the public.

Opera Talks, 3 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. Asheville Lyric Opera Director David Craig Starkey and a cast of industry professionals will guide attendees of their program through their operatic world. Admission is free and open to the public.

PERFORMANCE, 7 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. Bolokada Conde, master drummer and djembe player, will perform with local drummers and dancers as part of UNCA’s Arts Fest.

For tickets, which are $6, visit cesap.unca.edu.

NEW YORK VOICES CONCERT, 8 p.m., Tryon Fine Arts Theatre, downtown Tryon. New York Voices, a Grammy Award-winning quartet celebrated for its arrangements and close-knit harmonies, will perform in concert. The group’s music — deeply rooted in jazz, Brazilian, rhythm and blues, classic and pop music — mixes traditional sensibilities with more than a dash of the unexpected.

Saturday, April 11

MOTHER EARTH NEWS FAIR, 9 a.m.-7 p.m.

Saturday, and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, WNC Agricultural Center, Fletcher. The family-friendly sustainable living event, which concludes on April 12, features 200 hands-on workshops and demonstrations from experts on real food, organic gardening, homesteading, renewable energy, green building and remodeling, DIY projects, small-scale livestock, green transportation, natural health, and related topics. Also on the grounds: hands-on children’s projects; heritagebreed livestock; an alternative-fuel vehicle display; vendor, livestock and craft demonstrations; and local and organic food offerings. Pre-order weekend wristband passes will cost $25. Passes will cost $30 at the gate. Children 17 and under will be admitted for free.

JUST PEACE PROTEST, noon-2 p.m., Vance Monument, Pack Square, downtown Asheville.

A street protest will be held by Just Peace for Israel/Palestine. The protest will focus on stopping the flow of U.S. tax dollars that support Israel’s military occupation.

FESTIVAL ON THE QUAD, noon-5 p.m., main quad, UNC Asheville. UNCA’s Festival on the Quad will be held, featuring music and dance performances, visiting Cherokee artists, interactive adventure, food and crafts. Admission is free and open to the public. The event is part of UNCA’s Arts Fest.

LORETTA LYNN CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Event Center, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Resort, Cherokee. Loretta Lynn will perform in her “Here Comes the Truth” show. For tickets, which are $41 to $259, visit www.Ticketmaster.com or call (800) 745-3000.

See CALENDAR, Page B3

Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 - B3

The Garden State Guys will perform “A Tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons” at 8 p.m. April 16-19 and April 23-26 at the Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown at 125 S. Main St. in downtown Hendersonville.

Calendar of Events

Continued from Page B2

Saturday, April 11

Dance ConceRT, 7:30 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A dance concert will be presented as part of UNCA’s Arts Fest. Tickets are $5.

NEW YORK VOICES CONCERT, 8 p.m., Diana Wortham Theatre, downtown Asheville. New York Voices, a Grammy Award-winning quartet celebrated for its arrangements and harmonies, will perform in concert.

Sunday, April 12

CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A symphony and wind ensembles concert will feature UNCA students performing under the direction of Milton Crotts and Will Talley. Admission is free and open to the public ­— will be donations accepted.

employee Peter Van Buren on rebuilding Iraq.

Admission is free and open to the public.

OBJECTIVISTS’ MEETING/DISCUSSION, 6 p.m., meeting room, North Asheville Library, 1030 Merrimon Ave., Asheville. The Asheville Objectivists will discuss “Logical Fallacies,” followed by an open forum for questions.

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 — and all are welcome.

Wednesday, April 15

OPEN REHEARSAL, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. The Blue Ridge Orchestra will hold an open rehearsal. The community orchestra is directed by Milton Crotts. Admission is free and open to the public.

Tell our advertisers — who enable us to bring you this newspaper for FREE every month — that you saw their promotions in the Daily Planet!

See CALENDAR, Page B4

Monday, April 13

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Renaissance and Baroque Politics and Literature” will be presented by Gary Ettari, associate professor of literature. Admission is free and open to the public.

TRANSITION ASHEVILLE SOCIAL, 6:30-8 p.m., St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, 337 Charlotte St., Asheville. The Transition Asheville social will feature an address on “Humanitarian Consequences of Nuclear War” by Steve Gilman, MC from Physicians for Social Responsibility.

Tuesday, April 14

LECTURE, 4 p.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture, “We Meant Well,” will be presented by former State Department

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Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 — B5

Calendar Events

Continued from Page B3

Thursday, April 16

Early Wildflower Walk 9:15 a.m., Ingles parking lot, Long Shoals Road (for carpooling), or 10 a.m., Pearson’s Falls parking area, off Hwy. 176 between Saluda and Tryon. Blue Ridge Naturalist Network member and wildflower expert Bonnie Arbuckle will lead participants through a rich habitat for spring ephemerals.

READING/DISCUSSION, 12:20 p.m., Laurel Forum, Karpen Hall, UNC Asheville. UNCA faculty members Gary Ettari, an associate professor of literature; and Lori Horvtiz, a professor of literature, will read from their recent works and discuss their road to publication. Admission is free and open to the public.

LECTURE, 12:30 p.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “The Good, The Bad, and The Dirty: The Emotion of Disgust and its Role in Moral and Political Judgment” will be presented by David Pizarro. Admission is free and open to the public. The event is part of UNCA’s “Moral Challenges” speaker series.

CRYSTAL BALL ECONOMIC FORUM, 7 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. Crystal Ball XXXI will feature two highly acclaimed economists — David W. Berson and James F. Smith — predicting the future of the local, state, national and world economies over the next 12 months. They also will address “The Fed: When Will It Tighten?” A reception will precede the forum — from 6:15 to 7 p.m. — in Lipinsky’s lobby. Admission is free and open to the public.

FRANKIE VALLI & FOUR SEASONS TRIBUTE, 8 p.m., Flat Rock Playhouse Downtown, 125 S. Main St., downtown Hendersonville. “A Tribute to Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons” will be presented at 8 p.m. April 16-19 and April 23-26. Performing will be The Garden State Guys. Among the hits to be performed include “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Walk Like a Man,” “Rag Doll,” “Working My Way Back to You” and “Oh, What a Night.” For tickets, which range from $15 to $25, call 693-0731 or visit www.flatrockplayhouse.org.

Friday, April 17

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “World War Two and the Holocaust” will be presented by Tracey Rizzo, associate professor of history, and Eric Roubinek, history lecturer. Admission is free and open to the public.

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Environmental Ethics” will be presented by Grace Campbell, lecturer in humanities. Admission is free and open to the public.

CONCERT, 9 p.m., Isis Restaurant and Music Hall, 743 Haywood Rd., Asheville. The Honeycutters will perform in concert. Tickets are $15.

Saturday, April 18

LINCOLN-REAGAN DINNER/SPEECHES, 7 p.m., Renaissance Hotel, downtown Asheville. The Buncombe County Republican Party will host the 2015 Lincoln-Reagan Dinner. The keynote speaker will be Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C. A reception will precede the dinner at 5 p.m.

Sunday, April 19

ETHICAL SOCIETY TALK, 2-3:30 p.m., The Friends Meeting House, 227 Edgewood Rd., Asheville. “Closing the Insurance Gap in North Carolina — the Health and Financial Benefits to the State” will be addressed by Jim Tobin, a retired pediatrician, and Peggy Hughes Weil, WNCAP advocacy co-ordinator, at the monthly meeting of the Ethical Humanist Society of Asheville. Tobin and Weil will present their case that the decision of North Carolina to refuse the federal funding to expand Medicaid to 500,000 state residents has a huge impact on health outcomes in the state — and that it also has a huge negative financial impact locally and statewide. The impacts will be quantified and highlighted. Following the presentation will be time for questions and group discussion. Following the meeting, informal conversation and light refreshments will be available. All are welcome.

David Sedaris SHOW, 3 p.m., Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, U.S. Cellular Center, downtown Asheville. New York Times bestselling author David Sedaris will visit Asheville for an afternoon of what are billed as engaging recollections and readings.

He is the author of the bestsellers “Naked,” “When You Are Engulfed in Flames,” “Me Talk Pretty One Day” and “Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim.” Sedaris also is a regular National Public Radio contributor. For tickets, which are $33 to $50, visit www.ticketmaster.com.

Music Department Gala Concert, 3 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A festive end-of-year performance featuring many UNCA student ensembles will be held. Admission is free and open to the public.

BOOK LAUNCH, 3 p.m., Malaprop’s Bookstore and Café, 55 Haywood St., Asheville. Poet Tina Barr will launch her second book, “Kaleidoscope.” Admission is free and open to the public.

Monday, April 20

HUMANITIES LECTURE, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Renaissance and Baroque Art & Music” will be presented by Melodie Galloway, associate professor of music; and Ann Dunn, lecturer in humanities. Admission is free and open to the public.

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The show, Donny Edwards: An Authentic Heart & Soul Tribute to “The King” (Elvis Presley), will be performed at 8 p.m. April 23-26 at the Mainstage of the Flat Rock Playhouse, 2661 Greenville Highway in Flat Rock. In addition, 2 p.m. matinees will be offered April 24-26.

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Tuesday, April 21

LECTURE, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. “The Poet of Crossing Boundaries” — a lecture on the long-forgotten avant-garde poetry, prose and drama of Else Lasker-Schuler — will be presented. The lecture is part of UNCA’s “Evenings at the Cabaret Weimar” series. Admission is free and open to the public.

CONCERT, 5 p.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A percussion ensemble concert wil feature UNCA students performing under the direction of Matthew Richmond. Admission is free admission; donations accepted.

Wednesday, April 22

OPEN REHEARSAL, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. The Blue Ridge Orchestra will hold an open rehearsal. The community orchestra is directed by Milton Crotts. Admission is free and open to the public.

Thursday, April 23

ELVIS PRESLEY TRIBUTE SHOW, 8 p.m., mainstage, Flat Rock Playhouse, 2661 Greenville Highway, Flat Rock. The FRP will present the premiere performance of Donny Edwards: An Authentic Heart & Soul Tribute to “The King” (Elvis Presley). The show will be presented at 8 p.m. April 23-26. In addition, 2 p.m. matinees will be offered April 24-26. Edwards is billed as an international, mutli-award-winning profession Elvis tribute artist.” Also, the FRP is touting Edwards as “a versatile performer with the ability to re-enact each era of Elvis’ life and career.” For tickets, which range from $15 to $25, call 6930731 or visit www.flatrockplayhouse.org.

Friday, April 24

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Lipinsky Auditorium, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “1948” will be presented by Duane Davis, professor of philosophy; and Grace Campbell, humanities lecturer. Admission is free and open to the public.

Fab Friday LECTURE, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Africa: A Photo Journey” will focus on African safari photographs of the wildlife of Kenya and Tanzania. Admission is free and open to the public.

“DREAMGIRLS” MUSICAL, 7:30 p.m., 229 S. Washington St., Hendersonville. The Hendersonville Little Theatre will continue its 50th season with the award-winning musical “Dreamgirls” from April 24 to May 10. The show tells the story of the rise to fame of a 1960s’ female singing trio featuring Kimbela McMinn, Nicky Sampson and Gaysha Snipes with musical direction by Daniel Hensley. Performance times are 7:30 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays and at 2 p.m. Sundays.

Tickets are $24 for adults, $18 for ages 18-25 and $12 for students age 17 and under. For tickets, call 692-1082 or visit hendersonvillelittletheatre.org.

CONCERT, 9 p.m., The Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Avenue, downtown Asheville. Rapperproducer Earl Sweatshirt will perform in concert. Tickets are $25 in advance and $28 on the day of the show.

See CALENDAR, Page B5

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Calendar

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Continued from Page B4

Events

Saturday, April 25

DON WILLIAMS CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts, Franklin.

Country music singer Don Williams will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $35, $45 and $55, visit www.GreatMountainMusic.com, or call 524-1598.

Sunday, April 26

THE CARPENTERS TRIBUTE CONCERT, 3 p.m., John W. Bardo Fine and Performing Arts Center, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee. The tribute show, “We’ve Only Just Begun: Carpenters Remembered,” will be presented. Featured will be vocalist Michelle Berting Britt, accompanied by a seven-piece Nashville band, recreating the sound of The Carpenters, billed as “one of the most successful recording acts of all time.” For tickets, which are $21, visit http://bardoartscenter.wcu. edu, or call 227-2479.

BOB DYLAN CONCERT, 8 p.m., Peace Center Concert Hall, 101 W. Broad St., downtown Greenville, S.C. Singer-songwriter Bob Dylan will perform in concert. Tickets start at $64.

CONCERT, 9 p.m., The Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Avenue, downtown Asheville. Brandy Clark will perform in concert. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 on day of the show.

Monday, April 27

Humanities Lecture, 11:25 a.m., Humanities Lecture Hall, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Where have we been? Where are we? Where are we going? The Ebb and Flow of Empires” will be presented by Ann Dunn, lecturer in humanities, and Sam Kaplan, professor of mathematics.

Admission is free and open to the public.

Humanities Lecture: “Silk Road,” panel of UNC Asheville faculty. 11:25 a.m. in UNC Asheville’s Lipinsky Auditorium. Free and open to the public.

Info: humanities.unca.edu or 828/251-6808.

Tuesday, April 28

LECTURE, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A lecture on “Martin Buber: Jewish Existentialist” will be presented by noted theologian Claire Sufrin. The talk is part of UNCA’s “Evenings at the Cabaret Weimar” series. Admission is free and open to the public.

CONCERT, 9 p.m., The Orange Peel, 101 Biltmore Avenue, downtown Asheville. The Tallest Man on Earth will perform in concert. Tickets are $20 in advance and $25 on day of the show.

Wednesday, April 29

OPEN REHEARSAL, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. The Blue Ridge Orchestra will hold an open rehearsal. The community orchestra is directed by Milton Crotts. Admission is free and open to the public.

Thursday, April 30

HEALTH TALK, 7 p.m., Reuter Center, UNC Asheville. A talk on “Human Hearing: The Science and Innovations in Technology to Enhance Performance” will be presented by Dr. Beth Fountain and Dr. Perry Sprawls. Admission is free and open to the public.

Friday, May 1

CONCERT, 5:30-10 p.m., River Arts District, Asheville. RiverLink’s RiverMusic series will make its season debut with the bands The Movement, Satta Roots and Franklin’s Kite. Gates open at 5.

Music starts at 5:30 with the second band playing at 6:45 and the headliner at 8:15. Admission is free.

“WEST SIDE STORY” PRODCTION, 7 p.m., Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts, Franklin. Asheville Lyric Opera will present its production of Leonard Bernstein’s “West Side Story,” billed as “Broadway’s classic musical love story.”

The show tells a story of the consequences of ethnic violence and romance on the streets of New York City. Among its classic hits are “Tonight,” “America,” “One Hand, One Heart,” “Somewhere” and “I Feel Pretty.” For tickets, which are $20 and $25, visit www.GreatMountainMusic.com, or call 524-1598.

Saturday, May 2

CALEB JOHNSON CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Event Center, Harrah’s Cherokee Casino and Resort, Cherokee. Asheville’s Caleb Johnson, who won last year’s televised “American Idol” competition series, will perform in concert. For tickets, which are $42 to $64, visit www.ticketmaster.com, or call (800) 745-3000.

ANNIE MOSES BAND CONCERT, 8 p.m., Diana Wortham Theatre, downtown Asheville. The Annie Moses Band, featuring a blend of fiddle, jazz and classical influences, will perform in concert.

Friday, May 8

LAURA STORY CONCERT, 7:30 p.m., Smoky Mountain Center for the Performing Arts, Franklin.

Gospel singer Laura Story will perform in concert.

For tickets, which are $18, visit www.GreatMountainMusic.com, or call 524-1598.

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828-674-2658 • JenniferWCS@aol.com • www.facebook.com/2umbao

B6 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet

Star Trek

Continued from Page B1 Indeed, the spirit of the series has influenced an interest in space exploration and an optimistic vision of a future in which human beings work together in peace and harmony to create a “Garden of Eden,” according to Heilm, who is a meteorologist for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and lives in Candler.

Heim termed the spirituality or philosophy of “Star Trek” as “humanism.”

Heim, who joined the Asheville club in 1989, noted that it is the first and oldest STARFLEET chapter in North Carolina, formed around 1982. (STARFLEET, the International Star Trek Fan Association, claims with more than 3,400 members.)

Heim explained that “people really liked ‘Star Trek’ — and they wanted to get together to discuss the show, the philsophy, the characters, the special effects,” so Starfleet was started to serve that purpose.

Rather than discussing Shatner at length, Heim preferred to focus on the show’s founder, Gene Roddenberry. And he said his favorite character from the original TV show — as is the case with many other fans — was First Officer-Science Officer Spock.

“Of course, Gene Roddenberry was a genius. For me, I got an interested in ‘Star Trek’ in the ‘60s when we had the Apollo program.”

A few famous Roddenberry phrases from the original TV show are as follows: “Space...the final frontier.

These are the voyages of the Starship Enterprise, its five-year mission. ....to explore strange new worlds ...to seek out new life and new civilizations ...to boldly go where no man has gone before.”

Roddenberry died on Oct. 24, 1991, but his legacy remains as “Star Trek” reportedly continues to flourish and grow, as there has been 10 movies, and seven television series, all of which maintained his vision of the future.

In 1966, when Roddenberry created and produced “Star Trek,” the first of the two pilots were pronounced “too cerebral” by the network and rejected.

Once on the air, however, “Star Trek” developed a loyal following as viewers grew to love the Starship Enterprise and its crew, which included the heroic Captain Kirk and the logical Vulcan, Mr. Spock.

Heim emphasized, “Spock was my favorite character — he was a scientist.”

Inspired by the show, Heim noted that Spock was part of the reason that he, too, became a scientist.

“And as a (half-) Vulcan, he (Spock) controlled his emotions, but he was constantly struggling,” as he also was half-earthling — and that trait in Spock proved endearing to many other young outsiders, Heim said.

At the March 21 meeting, 12 of the club’s 33 members congregated at South Buncombe County Public Library in Asheville on the balmy spring afternoon.

Highlights of the meeting included: • A science and education presentation on Ganymede, Jupiter’s largest moon and the largest moon in the solar system, was given.

“It may require a much-larger telescope than Hubble. Hubble’s 25th anniversary being celebrated this year. In its 25 years in orbit, Hubble has made many discoveries,” noted Ken Wheeler, the club’s chief science officer. “In 2022, a probe is going to Jupiter and its moons....”

As for Ganymede’s interior, its “oceans are much deeper than Earth’s, with ice that is 90 to 95 miles thick,” Wheeler said.

• The next three monthly business meetings of the club were scheduled for 1 p.m.

We do beer, wine, cider, and mead.

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The March 1 edition of The New York Daily News ripped William Shatner. on April 18, May 9 and June 20 at South Buncombe County Public Library.

• Fundraisers for MANNA foodbank, AHOPE Shelter for the Homeless, aluminum cans recycling efforts, and used books collections were discussed • Upcoming activities by the local Rocketry Club and stargazing opportunitiess with the Asheville Astronomy Club were announced.

• Details of one of the most famous episodes — “The City on the Edge of Forever” — from the original TV series were discussed, as well as training for fans.

“You’d have to know how to function like a real officer,” one club member noted.

Another said, “There’s someone who does Vulcan Academy Sciences” at STARFLEET. • Club member Diana Sanderson, a museum curator/archivist, spoke on the fourth major restoration of the 11-foot model of the Starship Enterprise, which was used on the original show, being done by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C., where it is housed.

The Smithsonian announced that the restored Enterprise, which had most recently been hanging in the basement gift shop, will be available for public viewing for one day only.

In a twist that delighted at least some “Star Trek” fans, Shatner playfully tweeted to the Smithsonian on Jan. 24 the following: “Did you break my ship?”

He also tweeted, “Smithsonian! I let you borrow my ship and you broke it?”

SmithsonianAirSpace responded: “In spacedock for conservation. Would you like to come for an inspection, Captain?”

In jest, Shatner responded, “Why isn’t NASA doing it? And thanks for the invite but it’s more fun to complain later if you screw it up!”

SmithsonianAirSpace responded: “Starfleet Command entrusted Enterprise to our care. We’ll keep you apprised of progress.”

Keeping with his feisty character in the show, Shatner responded, “Yes do that and no superglue a la King Tut to fix her!”

The meeting was adjourned to host a discussion of the book “Martian: A Novel”

by Andy Weir in the café at Biltmore Park Barnes & Noble bookstore program.

Given that the club is now finished with its reading and discussion of “The Martian,” Heim noted, we’re doing the ‘Star Trek Destiny’ trilogy... It involves characters from the ‘Original Series’ and ‘Next Generation series’ by David Mack. One (book) will be done every other month” at club meetings.

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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

Clapton

Continued from Page B1 “Crossroads” is widely considered one of Clapton’s best guitar virtuoso efforts. The derivation of his “Slowhand” nickname is up for debate, as some claim it came from Clapton’s practice — while playing for the Yardbirds — of slowly replacing guitar strings after they broke on stage. At one particular concert, the audience gave him a slow clap or a “slow hand” until he had fixed it and was ready to play again. However, Rolling Stone magazine say it’s “an ironic reference to the velocity of his lead breaks.”

Three other songs that triggered major crowd response — and really rocked — were searing and poignant renditions of “I Shot the Sheriff,” “Lay Down Sally” and “Tears in Heaven.”

Among the other standout songs of the evening were “White Room,” “Badge,” “After Midnight,” “Sunshine of Your Love,” “Let It Rain” and “Wonderful Tonight.” Two Clapton songs sorely missed from the show — at least by this reviewer — were “Cocaine” and “I’m So Glad.”

The biggest disappointment of the show was the treatment of what many consider Clapton’s tour de force, “Layla,” with what seemed like — and sounded like — a halfhearted, perfunctory performance to conclude the show. The music started at 8:15 p.m. and, by the time “Layla” — the highly anticipated and perhaps best-loved of Clapton’s songs — was performed at roughly 11:35, less than 15 percent of the audience remained. (There was a short intermission between the two sets.) The song was given just a casual introduction and, despite the crowd’s enthusiasm and assumed desire for an extended version, was performed for the usual seven-plus minutes.

As noted at the beginning of the show, “Layla” is considered one of the loveobsession classics in the rock canon and was inspired by Clapton’s affections for Pattie Boyd, the then-wife of his best friend, George Harrison, formerly of the Beatles. Clapton later got the object of his dreams — Boyd, who divorced Harrison and married Clapton — all with Harrison’s blessing. Indeed, Harrison served as best man at the Clapton-Boyd wedding. The two guitarists reportedly remained friends until Harrison’s death in 2001.

Asheville Daily Planet — April 2015 — B7

(Clapton reportedly has said he wrote “Layla” after reading 12th century poet Nizami Ganjavi’s “The Story of Layla and Majnun,” about a man driven mad by his love for a woman he cannot have. However, he first played it for, and dedicated it to, Boyd.)

Clapton married Boyd in 1979, but the marriage did not last long. Clapton’s drinking problem and infidelity caused them to separate in 1984, with the divorce coming in 1988. She wrote about her marriages to both men in her 2007 memoir “Wonderful Tonight: George Harrison, Eric Clapton, and Me.” As noted during the concert, the gorgeous and sexy Boyd inspired three topselling rock classics — “Something” by Harrison while he was still with the Beatles and “Wonderful Tonight” by Clapton as a solo artist, as well as “Layla” by Clapton with his group Derek and the Dominos.

To the concert organizers’ credit, much effort was made to showcase Clapton’s works, but two shorter sets of 45-minute each (instead of two roughly 75-minute sets) would have made for a tighter and more digestible tribute concert, emulating “Slowhand’s” powerful-yet-economical approach to his guitar breaks, too. There also were the expected sound problems, with so many different musicians rotating on and off stage.

And there was one incident where some of the stage lights went out, albeit briefly.

Much to their credit, the musicians had volunteered to perform for free — on a key work night in the business — for the concert, which was a benefit for two charities, MANNA Food Bank and Homeward Bound. Among the other featured performers were B.J. Leiderman, Eric Congdon, Jake Wolf, Chuck Beattie, Patrick Todd and Sean McTavish.

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Sports Commentary

Fair-weather fans... it’s a new tradition

Tank Spencer is the host of a weekly sports talk show, “The Sports Tank,” on Asheville’s News Radio WWNC (570AM) that airs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturdays. Spencer also serves as WWNC’s news anchor, reporter and afternoon producer. This column features posts from his blog.

• The following was posted March 24: As the fight song so aptly describes: “I’m a Tar Heel born and a Tar Heel bred and when I die, I’ll be a Tar Heel dead.”

In fact, that very phrase hung above my crib.

Even with the academic scandal, the Matt Doherty years, and even John Bunting, I’ve never been more ashamed of being a Tar Heel fan than this past weekend.

Sitting at the Wild Wing Café Saturday night, I was surrounded by Tar Heel fans, all of us enjoying the spectacle that is March Madness.

As we watched the Heels take care of business against Arkansas, the other TVs were tuned to NC State’s upset bid against Villanova.

As the minutes ticked off the clock in that game, I got a sick feeling when I realized 95 percent of the Carolina Blue-clad were actually cheering for the Wolfpack!

Moments later, a Blue Devils fan approached my father and me and waved his cap in our faces. Not longer after that, he says “I’m actually pulling for you guys tonight.” …mind blowing, in 3…2…1…

Had I stepped into bizzaro world? Is this some sort of “Twilight Zone” episode? No? Apparently this is now the world of toothless fandom. When it comes to college sports (at least in North Carolina), for some, it’s no longer a dog-eat-dog world.

It’s a world where some pull for the CONFERENCE to do well over, as the Beach Boys put it, staying true to their school.

Some of the worst culprits surround me every day: my family, my coworkers, and my friends. I’m apparently the lone wolf (I mean, lone Heel) on this one.

I’m calling for a revolution! Let’s get back to the days where being a Tar Heel, a Blue Devil, a whatever, meant something.

Where are the days when a fist fight might break out if some jack-wagon in red dissed the Heels. How can you honestly root for a rival to do well? It escapes me.

As I rose out of my chair when Nova pulled down a key rebound in the waning seconds of the game vs State, I was told by one so-called Tar Heel fan to sit the *bleep* down. Shame on you.

Of course, these people are the same ones that would NEVER root for the Yankees to win under the auspice of “We gotta pull for the AL East.”

In the same light, Dolphin fan would NEVER root for the Patriots, or Braves fan would NEVER pull for the Mets.

What has happened to our fandom?

Reclaim it!

Tank Spencer The following was posted June 2, 2014:

Are the PC police taking over sports world, too?

The PC police are in full outrage mode these days and the sports world is not immune. This is not another Donald Sterling article, but that case clearly falls into that category. This past week two athletes received heavy criticism over things they said to the media, neither of which were important – nor worthy of the vast amount backlash and vitriol. Our sense of what IS important or worth raising our blood pressure appears to have diminished to next to nothing.

The first occurrence was Latvian tennis player Ernests Gulbis speaking to the media during the French Open. He was asked about the tennis careers of his sisters. He quickly replied he hoped his sisters didn’t choose to become tennis pros. He said, “I wouldn’t like my sisters to become professional tennis players.

It’s tough choice of life.” “A woman needs to enjoy life a little bit more. Needs to think about family, needs to think about kids.” “It’s tough for a woman, I think.” It’s that last part that no one has paid attention to. Typically when you have an opinion about something, you’re not ordering someone else to do anything.

It’s amazing the number of irrational, feminist males that took to the message boards and social media blasting Gulbis for thinking that starting and maintaining a family while staying competitive in an athletic world would be harder for the mother than the father. The knee-jerk “women can do anything a man can do and damn you for saying otherwise” reaction is not only irrational, it’s false. If it was true, women’s sports would be much more profitable.

The second “butt-hurt moment of the week” came when Boston Red Sox slugger David Ortiz responded to being hit by a pitch from Tampa Bay Rays pitcher David Price. Ortiz said after the game “it’s war.” This started (as Pete Kaliner says) the wheel of the perpetually offended spinning. Even J.P., whose service to our country in the U.S.M.C. is to be commended, had a knee-jerk reaction saying Ortiz shouldn’t try to compare a game to actual war.

I recommend we put all our Amelia Bedelia books away and think logically.

Ortiz’s statement in no way likened getting hit by a pitch to being bombed in Fallujah. I hope these same people who took offense have never jokingly said “this means war” when they have been wronged in some way.

I hope they’ve never played a game of “Tug of War” or the card games “War” or “Tegwar.”** The offended surely have never listened to “Love Is A Battlefield” and not been offended or uttered the words “he’s battling at the plate” or said someone “lost the battle but won the war” when referencing something trivial.

Get a grip people. ** If you’re unfamiliar with the card game Tegwar... see the film “Bang The Drum Slowly” (1973) starring Robert DeNiro.

B8 - April 2015 - Asheville Daily Planet