‘The scariest man in America’ shares apocalyptic concerns — See Story, Pg. 8
Bill Forstchen
How Asheville grew from zero breweries in ‘93 ... to ‘Beer City’ Tony Kiss
— See Story, Pg. 10
ILLE V E H AS ASHEVILLEʼS GREATEST NEWSPAPER
October 2012
Vol. 8, No.11
An Independent Newspaper Serving Greater Asheville
www.ashevilledailyplanet.com
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Biden rips GOP rivals in speech at UNCA
By JOHN NORTH
john@ashevilledailyplanet.com
Photo by Perry Hebard, courtesy of UNC Asheville
Vice President Joe Biden (above) makes a point during an Oct. 2 campaign stop at a jammed UNC Asheville’s Justice Center. At one point, the line of those seeking admission wound around the UNCA track (bottom right).
Daily Planet Staff Photo
Photo by Erin Daniell, courtesy of UNC Asheville
Vice President Joe Biden emphasized growing the economy and creating middle-class jobs, while slamming his and President Barack Obama’s Republican rivals — whom he characterized as extremist conservatives who are out-of-touch with the American people — during his Oct. 2 campaign swing through Asheville. Biden’s visit filled all of the 1,100 seats in UNC Asheville’s Justice Center, with a total attendance estimated at 1,320, with another 200 people viewing the action in an overflow room. (The Justice Center was used because UNCA is leasing its new Kimmel Arena, with 3,400 seats, to the Charlotte Bobcats professional basketball team for preseason practices.) The vice president’s address began about 30 minutes late — and was preceded by speeches from U.S. Rep. Heath Shuler, D-Waynseville; Democratic Lt. Gov. Walter Dalton and others. Campaign hoopla in Justice began 2-1/2 hours before Biden finally took the stage at 4 p.m. Greeted with roaring applause, Biden called his “friends” Shuler and Dalton to join him on the stage. Dalton is running for governor, while Shuler is not running again. See BIDEN, Page 26
‘Little’ Israel destined to KO Iran’s nukes, Bolton says
By JOHN NORTH
john@ashevilledailyplanet.com
BREVARD — “Litte” Israel likely will be the lone nation willing to stand up and knock out Iran’s nuclear missile capability — and it’s a sure bet that the United States will be blamed, “so we (the U.S.) might as well help them and make sure they do it right.” So said John Bolton, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, who received a standing ovation following his address on “Threats to American Security: A Closer Look at the World’s Trouble Spots” on Sept. 25 at Brevard College’s Porter Center. “If Israel does it (makes a strike at Iran’s weaponry), it will be at the last possible moment,” he said during a question-and-answer session after his speech. Given the current U.S. leadership’s luke-
warm support of Israel, “they’d have to do it entirely alone.” However, Bolton said America should give Israel the backing to ensure it is successful in its strike. Bolton’s John Bolton presentation, painting a possibly apocalyptic future for the world, did not prompt many smiles, but a rare moment of levity occured during the Q&A, when a man praised him “for one-upping Clint Eastwood. He (Eastwood) had one empty chair (on stage during a surprise appearance at the GOP Convention in Tampa, Fla.) and you’ve got three
empty chairs (in Brevard).” The audience cheered and Bolton smiled. A mostly older crowd of about 700 people packed the Porter Center in a near sellout to hear Bolton’s 45-minute speech, followed by a 25-minute question-and-answer session. Only a few BC students were spotted in the audience. Bolton, who has been a harsh critic of President Barack Obama’s policies, is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute. He is a commentator for Fox News Channel, as well as a frequent op-ed writer for The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Times and The National Review. A Baltimore, Md., native with workingclass roots, Bolton earned a scholarship to Yale University, where received a bachelor’s summa cum laude in 1970 and a law degree in 1974. He shared classes with his friend, fu-
ture Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, as well as Bill and Hillary Clinton. At Brevard, Bolton discussed threats to American security, highlighting his views on threats to U.S. national security and the way in which he believes businesses, investors and governments should respond. He also presented an up-close look at the world’s trouble spots, presenting his candid discussion of potential areas of concern on the horizon and explored how these areas of unrest could influence the potential landscape of the U.S. “It’s a great pleasure to be here this evening and in this part of North Carolina — I’ve never been here before,” Bolton said in greeting the crowd. He prompted laughter when he quipped, “You’re only getting the short version of ‘The Speech’ — not the six-hour version.” See EX-AMBASSADOR, Page 19