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Chastine Creek Road should be paved
To the Editor:
This letter is concerning Chastine Creek Road in Cullowhee. To pave or not to pave, that is the question.
My family and I live at the end of Chastine Creek. We have three vehicles that travel down and up this road daily, if not twice a day.
Our vote would be to pave the road. Unfortunately, we do not get to vote on the matter, because our property does not adjoin the state-maintained part of Chastine Creek.
Those that own land adjoining the state-maintained part get to decide what the rest of us drive on. I think this is ridiculous. Owning property without a home on it or living here five or six months out of the year should not give them any more rights than my family. If everyone traveled on this road like I do, believe me, they would be begging for it to be paved.
Hurricane Ivan did a great job of demolishing Chastine Creek, as he did on many other roads. I just want to tell the Department of Transportation to be in no hurry to fix this road. They may want to leave it until the last of April or first of May; that way we all can enjoy the same conditions.
Some of the landowners asked if we wanted it paved and that is why they voted in favor of it. They know that we travel this road more than anyone and would benefit from it. To the landowners that have said yes to the paving of Chastine Creek, I say thank you very much.
I hope those of you that oppose the paving can fit it in your schedules to take a ride up Chastine Creek real soon. You'll need to bring a truck, preferably a four-wheel drive. Enjoy your ride!
Teresa Shular
Cullowhee
Hurricane brings insight about failures in Iraq
To the Editor:
Sitting at home one night while waiting for the restoration of power after Ivan, I finally realized what went wrong with the occupation in Iraq.
We lost power, water, phones and roads due to an "act of nature." We then set about restoring these basic necessities of life quickly. In Iraq, we destroyed these same necessities and have not bothered to rebuild them. Hepatitis B is endemic and hepatitis A is widespread. Children are sick. Pregnant women are dying and having miscarriages because of contaminated water supplies.
Any government which fails to provide for the basic needs of its citizens invites rebellion. Apparently President Bush has not even spent the money Congress allocated (nearly a year ago) for "rebuilding." He now plans to spend it on "security."
The sad truth is that we are not fighting "terrorists" in Iraq. We are fighting a desperate people rebelling against a lousy government making no attempt to provide for their basic needs.
Barbara Eberly
Cullowhee
DOT does good job
To the Editor:
In the past few weeks our Department of Transportation guys have worked hard getting our roads back to normal.
And what do I see when I open up the paper this week but non-local people in our little town complaining about how slow the work is going. I know people would like to have things back to normal here, and so would I.
My husband has to drive through Cullowhee Mountain to get to a lot of his jobs. But he doesn't complain one bit. He knows that DOT is doing the job as fast as they can.
My brother and a lot of good people work for the DOT, and they have done a great job. I know they have lost a lot of time with their own families to make our roads better for us.
Let's support them, not harp at them.
Janet Logan
Sylva
It's time to support SMHS football staff, players
To the Editor:
It amazes me to see how people around the community can maliciously go after the Smoky Mountain High coaching staff, either in the paper or behind their back. Being a former player of that same coaching staff, I can say that staff opened my eyes to how much they know about the game and how they care about Jackson County's young men.
Regardless of the outcome of this season, there are many wins that Smoky Mountain has had. Individuals have improved their game and shown great skill for a new and promising future.
Remember that the Mountain Athletic Conference has been the toughest-ever. By the end of the season, the Mustangs will have played five teams that are ranked in the top 10 in the state. No one should be saying anything about this team or its coaching staff. This is only one season. Those making negative comments about the SMHS coaching staff are too quick to judge. In fact, most of the things that have been said are unfounded and have no justification.
My senior year started out a lot like the end of my junior year – losing. We were 0-and-4 that year in the beginning. Somehow we pulled together and made the playoffs in one of the toughest 3-A conferences in the state. We didn't have any Division 1 or large university prospects. We were just a bunch of kids having fun, learning how to be men, and doing something we loved since we were little boys. We had some good athletes – for example, the Day brothers, Justin Roper, Shawn Blanton, Dustin Melton, Andrew Maney, Matt Nicholson and some others – but there were none of us that were just spectacular. A lot of that credit goes to a coaching staff, similar to the one we have today, for helping to stoke the fire inside of us and make us see what we were capable of doing.
It's just funny to me that after taking three straight teams to the playoffs, people want rid of the current coaching staff. Remember that out of those three teams there were no really outstanding athletes. They just had good, persistent coaches and players that believed in the system. The system prevailed and proved itself with Coach Hawkins leading the 'Stangs to the playoffs in his first three years at the helm.
And, for one last point, before the 2001 football season, Coach Babe Howell came and spoke to our football team at a team unity retreat we had at Deep Creek in Bryson City. I specifically remember him looking at us and then pointing to our coaching staff and telling us to respect those coaches and do what they want us to do because they're looking out for what's best for us. He also stated for us as a team to always have confidence in each other and show respect to our coaches because he knew they would not lead us astray.
Believe in Coach Hawkins and staff and then maybe the glory days of the '70s and '80s will revisit us. I guarantee you that he and his staff hate losing just as much as everyone in the community does. But until everybody starts believing in the system, it's going to be sad era for Smoky Mountain Football. It's time for a positive atmosphere around Carr-Hooper Stadium instead of all this finger-pointing.
Instead of being negative all the time, bring all your family and friends to the game, swarm the banks around Babe Howell Field and let these young men know there are people in Jackson County that are going to support them now matter what, win or lose, because ultimately we're proud of them till the end.
Most of the people who are making bad comments about our coaches have never been to a game, don't understand the game, never even played a down in a football game, or believe that everything is political. It is time that they stopped throwing rocks at the coach. Instead, they should take those rocks to the next game, put them in a gallon milk jug and shake them until their arms falls off supporting our Smoky Mountain Mustangs.
Zeke Cooper
Cherokee
Rep. Taylor shows lack of knowledge on air-quality issues
To the Editor:
I would like to thank Rebecca Heppel from Rep. Charles Taylor's office for responding in the Sept. 30 Sylva Herald to my letter the week before, and for allowing the opportunity to continue this important public discussion of the congressman's record in relation to clean air issues.
Through Ms. Heppel's letter, Rep. Taylor's office continues to imply that the legislation he introduced, the Great Smoky Mountains Clean Air Act, was somehow a meaningful, successful and important effort because shortly after its introduction the Tennessee Valley Authority announced that it was going to install scrubbers on some of its coal-burning power plants.
In fact, TVA had been under investigation by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Clinton administration for violations of the New Source Review Provision of the Clean Air Act and elected to install the scrubbers to avoid a costly lawsuit that would inevitably have forced them to undergo major renovations in the emission control systems of almost all their old and dirty power plants.
TVA's actions were unrelated to Taylor's legislation, which, again, had no support in either house of Congress and was no threat.
Ironically, in 2002 and 2003, the EPA issued a revised interpretation of the New Source Review provision of the Clean Air Act, severely weakening its impact. If these revisions had been in place earlier, TVA would not have been forced to reduce their emissions. Rep. Taylor's party, including the president, pushed strongly for this weakening of the Clean Air Act. I believe Rep. Taylor also supports this revision, along with the president's "Clear Skies Initiative" that further weakens the Clean Air Act by lowering ultimate emission-reduction goals and expanding completion timelines for heavily-polluting industries.
The scrubbers that TVA is installing are a technology designed to reduce only one major pollutant from coal-burning facilities: sulfur dioxide.
Taylor's proposed bill recognized that there is more than one pollutant to be concerned about. His bill, as stated, would have addressed sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide, mercury and carbon dioxide in TVA's power plants, but TVA is not reducing all of these emissions. Yet Taylor has done nothing to promote further reductions, having failed to reintroduce his bill in the 108th Congress. Nor has he addressed any of the other sources of air pollution, outside TVA, that account for most of western North Carolina's air-quality problems, according to the General Accounting Office report he commissioned.
Because of the complexity of the regulatory and legislative processes surrounding air-quality issues, it's important to differentiate between state and federal legislation that has been passed and is pending. Between the Clean Air Act, the Smoky Mountain Clean Air Act and the Clean Smokestacks Act, it would be possible for many people to be misled unless they are completely familiar with the issues. That is why it is important to make it clear that Taylor had no role in passing or promoting the Clean Air Act or the N.C. Clean Smokestacks Act, while he is making broad claims of accomplishment for introducing the failed Smoky Mountain Clean Air Act.
Rep. Taylor's office is revealing a disturbing lack of knowledge on an issue that is very important to his constituents. The Clean Air Act was first passed by Congress, and signed into law by President Nixon in 1970, not in 1990. This was a time when many people who called themselves conservatives believed in conservation. It seems disingenuous for Rep. Taylor to make this claim.
Avram Friedman
Sylva
SMHS football coach is talented, devoted mentor
To the Editor:
We are writing this letter to voice our support for Tim Hawkins, the varsity football coach and a physical education instructor at Smoky Mountain High School.
It is very difficult to entrust our children to the care and leadership of other human beings, and we are very thankful to have an upstanding citizen like Tim Hawkins in our school system. Tim is a positive role model for our young people and demonstrates what it means to be a loving dad and husband, faithful church member, deacon and Sunday school teacher, solid friend, knowledgeable educator and a skilled, hard-working coach.
Tim's leadership has led our football team to the state playoffs for three consecutive years. He is also capable of teaching players how to persevere during losing seasons which occur at all schools, in all football programs, and under all coaches.
He demonstrates determination coupled with patience in training fine young men who are new to the game of football, reminding them that they can reach their goals through diligent dedication. We are thankful that Tim eagerly teaches, trains and plays children from all ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds. We know for a fact that Tim also serves as a mentor and counselor to young people who come to him, regardless of who they are or where they are from. We are aware of the countless times he has counseled and encouraged various young men, going far above and beyond the call of duty, sacrificing his personal time to help them. He actually cares about them and wants them to be outstanding citizens.
Tim also cares about our school and football program and he spends multiple hours planning and implementing ways to make them more successful. We consider him to be a highly skilled coach and believe that he has the ability to lead Smoky Mountain in a positive direction. He has demonstrated this fact by taking teams who many said could not be successful to the state playoffs. Tim has helped lead the Smoky Mountain junior varsity team in a positive direction, and because of his leadership, the stadium is now filled with enthusiastic fans.
We know he can be trusted to direct and mold the lives of our young people. It is our hope that the people of our county will support this outstanding young man and the team he coaches.
And, always remember that we must support them in difficult seasons as well as victorious ones. We are the ones who are responsible for filling the stands and supporting our team. If the stadium is not filled in support of our young athletes, we cannot blame Tim Hawkins. We must blame the members of our community who only support our school and athletes when they are winning. If we support our athletic teams only when things are going well, we fail them miserably.
We call on our community to support our team in a positive way and to refrain from public displays of displeasure toward coaches and players during athletic events. We need to respect one another and be an example to our young people of what it means to "do unto others as you would have them do unto you."
It would be a shame for our county to lose a talented and devoted coach, educator and mentor like Tim Hawkins, and we are proud to lend him our full support.
Eric and April Lambert
Sylva
Caney Fork meeting was needed and appreciated
To the Editor:
I am writing in response to Norma Coggins' letter ("Following flood, quit complaining and get to work") in the Sept. 30 edition of The Sylva Herald.
I am a resident of Caney Fork and I do not attend the Caney Fork Community Center meetings. I also do not attend church on Caney Fork, nor do I help in the roadside garbage pickup.
So does this mean that just because some people who live on Caney Fork and don't have the time to attend those meetings or to help in the litter pickup shouldn't have a voice in our community? I do not think so.
I got a flyer in my mailbox concerning a meeting with Mr. Mike Ensley from the Jackson County Emergency Management Services and a representative from the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The meeting was set up by two concerned men from Caney Fork so that their neighbors, some of whom may not be able to get out and contact the appropriate people on their own, could get some questions, comments and concerns about flood damage to their property answered.
This is the same flyer that was passed out all over Caney Fork and I did not read or hear one complaint from either man. I think that if anybody needs to quit complaining, it should be somebody else.
I personally did not have any flood damage, but my neighbors did, and I thank those two men (they know who they are and deserve a big pat on the back) for taking the time to establish the meeting, make the flyers and deliver them to every individual on Caney Fork.
I don't think it matters whether you attend regular meetings or not. The point is that these two men made an effort to get some help to all of us that needed it.
In her letter, Norma Coggins also states that God permits things like this to happen all over the world, as in the days of Noah. I agree, but doesn't God also state that only he shall pass judgment on other people?
Once again, I would like to say "thank you" to the men for caring enough about all of their neighbors in the Caney Fork community. Your kind help was needed and appreciated in our time of disaster.
Kristin Cogdill
Cullowhee |
