Drinking Liberally: First Amendment Vs. National Security

Conservative pundits, bloggers, and representatives are saying that Bill Keller and the New York Times ought to be tried for treason. No, really. They're actually saying that. What's got these folks so atwitter?

The New York Times ran a story this week explaining a program that identifies terrorist elements by tracking international banking through something called the SWIFT program. This, of course, is on the heels of the NYT story about the domestic spying/terrorist surveillance program.

"For people to leak that program and for a newspaper to publish it does great harm to the United States of America." - President Bush

"We're at war, and for the Times to release information about secret operations and methods is treasonous," - Republican Congressman Peter King

"One almost thinks the liberal press would delight in the next act of terror on US soil almost as much as they seem to relish body counts of our military." - Tigerhawk Blogger, CardinalPark

"If America is going to wage a war against terrorism, it must indeed act on all fronts. In 2006, it needs to act on the home front and direct its attention to those whose war on the administration is unconstrained by the espionage laws of the United States." - Powerline blogger, Scott Johnson

Wow! The Neocons were already busy fighting Al Qaeda, Saddamists, Insurgents, and Liberals. Now they're going to declare war on the Free Press as well. You couple those wars with the theocons' War on Gay, the paleocons' War on Mexicans, and the O'Reilly army's stalwart defense of Christmas, and there's nowhere left for the peace-seeking among us to lay our heads.

Drinking Liberally, that weekly gathering of Constitutional scholars, journalistic wunderkinds, and unabashed patriots, meets again this week to discuss the dynamic tension between the Freedom of the Press and Security Interests of the nation. Though we've come to learn the "secret" program "exposed" in the New York Times has been public for years, the principle is still floating out there for consideration: When is the public's "Right to Know" overshadowed by national security? Is anything fair game for publication by a free press, or are there limits that ought to be voluntarily or forcibly adopted? When does journalism become aiding the enemy? Is there a war on journalism being conducted by a secrecy-obsessed Bush administration, or does President Bush have a valid point of view in condemning the New York Times for printing this information?

I'm still working on this, and that's why I'd like to get together and hash it out. At the risk of revealing sensitive information that may get you killed... Drinking Liberally happens every Thursday night from 7-10pm at the Asheville Brewing Company on Coxe Avenue in downtown Asheville. It's a casual assembly of left-leaning individuals with a passion for politics. Everyone's welcome, so come see who you've been missing!

Our Congressman in Photomosaic Form

(click to enlarge - 9.44 mb hi-res version available here.)

Rally For An Oil Free Congress

Gas Up Haywood Rd
28 Jun 05:00 PM

Encouraging the use of alternative fuels. Let Congress know it is not acceptable for them to keep taking major contributions from oil companies!!


Location: Asheville, NC 28806
Host: Tressa O'Brien
Status: Public, open for RSVP, 16 Guests (Max 50)

Sponsored by MoveOn.org

I see they're having one in Waynesville tomorrow, too.

link

Public Radio A-Go-Go in WNC

You may have heard that WCQS is having a Capital Campaign, as I did while driving to and from somewhere. In the blurb, the reader announced that a new radio station was to be funded, which piqued my interest. I called the station and learned that the new station's license, WYQS 90.5, was purchased from Mars Hill College and will be used for...

[drum roll]

...an actual proper public radio news and information station, a la WFAE in Charlotte. I stream WFAE and Philly's WHYY because I really enjoy that type of programming. Don't get me wrong, I dig hours of classical music as well, but infohounds like myself live for Talk of the Nation, Here and Now, and other shows that have never graced our airwaves (unless an engineer at WCQS is late to the button). I'm thrilled, as you can tell, and WYQS could go live as early as this this summer or as late as next year. Fingers crossed for sooner rather than later.

Ashvegas in the National News--Thanks, Joe!

Our beloved Asheville Tourists' manager made us proud yesterday. Here's the clip featured on Good Morning, America today.

Check it out!

Ridgetop Development in Madison County

From an article in the Christian Science Monitor:

"MARS HILL, N.C. – Nearly 5,000 feet high, Charles and Deborah Ericksons' ridge-top cabin is perched like a falcon's nest on a cliff face. It's one of a rapidly growing subset of vacation homes called "ridge-top development" - where homes are literally bolted to the mountaintop.

"It's almost heaven," says Ms. Erickson, a retiree who spends half the year in these mountains, the other half in Naples, Fla. She has been drawn to the Smoky Mountains since she visited in her childhood.

The price range for these mountaintop homes? $225,000 to $1.5 million.

But these scenic views come with other costs: Ridge-top building may cause downstream water pollution and wreck trout streams by causing too much silt to pour off denuded slopes. Others worry that as rooftops, decks, and greens poke out from the ridges, this pursuit of the perfect view may ruin the view for others - and compromise the region's most precious asset: its beauty.

"These mountain communities face a dilemma where they've got an eroding economic system and the only choice is to take in things that are going to damage the environment and change the culture," says Charlie Derber, a sociologist at Boston College."
[...]
As the overall real estate market slowly cools, high-end resort development is booming, experts say. For example, in 2000, just over 500,000 vacation homes were sold. That figure tipped 1 million homes for the first time last year, according to Reach Advisors.

The trend of mounting homes onto ridge tops also results from lax zoning laws, a culture that values property rights, and the skill of savvy resort developers who can easily influence local communities hungry for tax revenue and job opportunities, experts say.

"Ridge-top development is in part a geographical quirk of the Appalachians and in part [the result of the fact] that people are wealthy enough to actually be able to afford the high cost of construction and engineering that make it possible," says Mr. Chung.

The largest ridge-top enclaves in these parts are Wolf Laurel near Mars Hill and Mountain Air in Burnsville, N.C., but there are dozens of smaller developments in the North Carolina towns of Boone, Highlands, and Cashiers.

Here at Wolf Laurel, developers, including Rick Bussey and Orville English, have already built more than 600 homes and have plans for a total of 1,000 homes in the next few years."
[...]
"Indeed, many local residents, environmentalists, and advocates for the Appalachian Trail have been speaking out against such construction. A citizens' committee around Boone is trying to convince elected officials to outlaw construction on steep slopes. In March, 300 local residents showed up at a planning board meeting to oppose rezoning proposals at Wolf Laurel, which were eventually approved.

At Mountain Air, investigators with the North Carolina Division of Land Quality found that developers had shifted the course of a trout stream by diverting it through a culvert without permits. Higher-than-usual amounts of silt in the water have been found, which can affect trout breeding.

Also under scrutiny is a possible air- strip at Wolf Laurel just a few hundred yards from the watershed for Mars Hill."

Read the rest.

A History of Asheville: Part VI of X

Part One and explanation
Parts Two and Three
Part Four
Part Five

Asheville 1930-1940

Asheville's financial boom was silenced abruptly on Nov. 20, 1930, when the Central Bank and Trust Company, major holder of county funds, became insolvent. The great depression descended on Buncombe County as holdings plummeted from nearly $180 million in 1927 to $80 million in 1933. Massive debt for the city and county loomed as schools and sanitary districts were deprived of much-needed funds.

It is no wonder this area gave birth to the Appalachian Park Movement, resulting in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park in 1934, and in 1939 the Blue Ridge Parkway. That tradition thrives with the greenway movement and RiverLink's preservation of the French Broad River for recreation and health.

Asheville retained the highest per capita debt of any city in the country, yet the city officials vowed to pay every cent the city owed. Creditors received their payments and Asheville struggled until 1977—the year the city finally reached the black on the books and all bonds were paid.

Contrasting the lavish atmosphere surrounding the city in the early 1900s, the Great Depression of the early 1930s sent Asheville on a downward spiral economically and psychologically. The depression brought financial devastation to Asheville from which it was slow to recover.

In the mid 1930s, Asheville struggled to recuperate from the Depression and plans were made for two projects which would add someday to Asheville's reputation as a tourist destination throughout the world. Under the Franklin D. Roosevelt administration, construction of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Blue Ridge Parkway gave much-needed employment to members of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC).

Despite Asheville's suffering, the Land of the Sky reaped unrivaled architectural benefits from the Great Depression. After the Stock Market Crash in 1929, many cities chose to default on Depression-era bonds and liabilities. Asheville city fathers decided to pay back every dime of the city's debts. Many generations paid the price for this decision until the slate was cleared in 1977.

NC Blog Index

Lance over at BlueNC has created an excellent new resource and invites all NC bloggers to get involved. (Click here to go straight to the NC Blog Index post}:

If you woke up this morning wishing there were a better way to discover North Carolina blogs, today is your lucky day! It's my pleasure to introduce the NC Blog Index—a dynamic, community-driven database of information about the blogs and bloggers that call our fair state home. Though the Blog Index is hosted here at BlueNC, it's not about politics. Blogs from all across the political spectrum and from all areas of interest will be listed.

If you're a blogger, you should include your blog right now.

Guilt-Free, 100% Organic Plug

This infrequent contributor to BlogAsheville will be delivering the sermon meditation mystically inspired rant at Jubilee! this Sunday. I've not delivered words nor metaphorical pizzas from a pulpit of any denomination in two years (weddings excluded), so I'm both excited at the chance and utterly terrified simultaneously. Come on down, if ya like, and bring your own earplugs cuz I'm having to sing a tish. 8:30, 9:45, and 11:15.

Drinking Liberally: Steady Your Nerves

George W. Bush is a busy bee. After inviting his Iraq War Team to Camp David to tell the decider about how steadfastly he must stay the course, Bush whisked the Press away to the Green Zone in Baghdad. Bush stalked and strutted, "the full jaunty" according to Joe Klein. Then he was back to tie 9/11 to Iraq to the War on Terror to Iran while Karl Rove and his hive of busy bees got the word out. Stay the course or surrender, the Republicans say. Which side are you on?

Stay the course. Or surrender.

A Joe Lieberman backer compared Democratic Party faithful to terrorists. Dick Cheney told us again about how the last throes of the insurgency are here. The Japanese decided to pull out of Iraq. Days after Iran's Ahmadinejad announced that talks about talks were making progress, Bush issued an ultimatum. No talks will take place until after Iran stops their uranium enrichment. U.S. Soldiers are kidnapped and murdered by Al Qaeda. Car bombs explode. The Taliban rise from the ashes in Afghanistan.

2,507 American soldiers are dead, and another 18,356 are wounded. Forty thousand Iraqi civilians are dead, and 1,100 Iraqi Security forces were killed just last month. 21,000 U.S. troops are activated for another Iraq deployment. Rumsfeld insists that it's easy to focus on the bad news. Bill O'Reilly announces that if the U.S. wants to win, then they ought to run Iraq the way Saddam did. Ann Coulter openly despises 9/11 widows for speaking against the President.

Papers reveal that Bush inquired about the torture of a mentally ill Al Qaeda member, whose 'tips' kept Homeland Security scrambling after wild geese for months. Three Guantanamo Bay detainees killed themselves, one who was scheduled to be released the following week. They were described as "the worst of the worst" and accused of waging "asymetric warfare" by taking their own lives and ending the interrogations.

Russia is arming Iran, Syria, Sudan, and Venezuela. North Korea is testing another ballistic missile they claim can hit the west coast of the United States. The U.S. military activated our missile defense system, never proven to work and costing $10 billion dollars per year to operate. India anxiously awaits Congressional passage of a deal that will allow them all the nuclear fuel the U.S. can provide.

There's more, but I can't go into it all right now. I need a drink. Who's with me?

Drinking Liberally, that weekly alliance of peace loving political thinkers, gathers again at the Asheville Brewing Company at 77 Coxe Avenue to sift the laughs from this chaff and to wonder aloud what we can do to change the trajectory of the conservative hawks.

Would working for a change in Congressional leadership be enough? Would it come soon enough? Should we be marching in the streets or battening down the hatches? Like Terry Schiavo, is the corporate media being force-fed by the administration?

It's heady stuff and scary, Liberal Drinkers, especially when we let all these frightening facts linger in the cobwebs and shadows of our consciousness. This Thursday, bring your fears into the light buy them a drink. Fear and anxiety are overcome by empowerment and action... or by ingestion of copious amounts of alcohol. Whichever you prefer, come down to Asheville Brewing Company for another week of casual, left-leaning conversation with people as thirsty as you are.

See you there.

URTV Gears Up

URTV, Asheville's public access television channel soon to debut on Charter Channel 20, is opening its doors to the public soon. You have a few opportunities to check it out in the near future.

URTV Mission Statement: "The mission of URTV is to empower every resident of our community by providing equal opportunities to create and present television programming in keeping with First Amendment principles of free speech."

This station has been years in the making. Conservatives all over the county have opposed it for years, fearing that the lesbian witches and the vegan anarchists would poison the minds of Buncombe County's youth. Well, it appears that there's room for every point of view at the station now, and they're planning a big open house for August 1st. Before then you have three opportunities to find out more:

Nonprofit INFO-Exchange at URTV Studio
June 20th at 6 pm

Learn how your nonprofit can reach 60,000 viewers by putting your message on URTV, Channel 20. This will be a sneak peak at the studio as we prepare for our August 1st Grand Opening.

We will provide a tour of the facility and give an overview of how to become a member. Information and forms for submitting programming and signing up for camera certification will also be available.

Open to nonprofit organizations only.

Seating is limited. Please email kurt@urtv.org with your RSVP.

URTV Annual Board Meeting

The Annual Membership Meeting of URTV will take place at 5PM on June 22, 2006. All members are invited and urged to attend and vote for the new Board position allocated to a membership representative. The 3 candidates are Linda Wells, Louise O'Conner and Peter Brezney. Each has written a paragraph about why they want to be on the board which was sent out to the membership on June 10th. Each member will have one vote. Please attend, meet the present Board members and VOTE! Click here for directions.

INFO-Exchange at URTV Studio
June 27th at 6 pm

Learn more about URTV, Channel 20 at our first public event June 27th at 6 pm. This will be a sneak peak at the studio as we prepare for our August 1st Grand Opening.

We will provide a tour of the facility and give an overview of how to become a member. Information and forms for submitting programming and signing up for camera certification will also be available.

Seating is limited. Please email kurt@urtv.org with your RSVP.

You can sign up for the URTV email newsletter here.

And The Photos Are Here

Extravablogiversapaloozathon PARTY photos here! Everyone looks fabulous, a great time was had by all, and huge thanks to EM for organizing it & generously hosting it & tolerating all the wild party goings on at her PNAV and to Screwy Hoolie for going off & counting up all the ballots in an undisclosed location and to Rocky, for being just so devastatingly handsome and debonair. I personally had rather WAY too much fun: if there's any beer left over, well, it certainly wasn't my fault. Thanks again to everyone, big fun, BIG FUN!

Party's over, but what does it mean?

As Extravablogiversapaloozathon 2006 begins to settle in our consciousness, like the stench of stale beer settles into one posh North Ashvegas villa, it's time to try to figure our what it all means. We at Ashvegas are feeling a little existential, but we'll do what we always do - try to put some perspective on the proceedings.

First, we'll state the obvious: Jolt Wagon absolutely made the nerdfest cool. T'aints were successfully rocked off. We're just now getting early reports in, but we're sure that the t'aint replacement surgeons in town will be kept busy this week. Thank you, Jolt Wagon. You guys were great. Come back next year?

Second, we must flag a major party foul - the pnav ran dry. That's right. Edgy Mama ran out of beer. How does that happen? Inexplicable. And potentially unforgiveable. But we said we're feeling a little existential, so we'll give her a pass.

What's not clear is the greater meaning of a bunch of bloggers coming together to sit and eat and drink and talk. Who are we? Where are we going? Picking through memory, we recall bits and pieces of a number of critical discussions that could have led to some meaningful answers.

Ford or Chevy? Boomer or Number Six? PBR or Rolling Rock? Carolina or Edmonton? Nobody decided anything. Which could be good. Or bad.

We look around, and we can say that nobody died at Extravablogiversapaloozathon, unlike at Bonnaroo, where a kid got run down by a Ricky Skaggs bus. We can say that nobody at the party got a red card, unlike the USA in its World Cup match against Italy (it was a 1-1 tie and the USA lives on). We can say that bloggers did shake the pnav foundations, much like an earthquake shook WNC last week.

But the male strippers were a no-show. Nobody did a nekkid scooter ride around the block. Nobody got into a heated political debate about Heath Shuler (also a no-show). And nobody took a header off Edgy Mama's pnav porch.

So what does it all mean?

Extravablogiversapaloozathon 2006

-Photograph by Zen-

Well...One year has come and gone here at BlogAsheville, and last night we gathered together at the beautiful home of Edgy Mama and her Envirospouse (who gave wonderful and extensive tours of their jealousy-producing garden in the backyard; we were all eating sugarsnap peas off the vine).

Jolt Wagon played through the night, and I should say, if you haven't seen these guys, you should!

Bloggers came from throughout the land. In attendance, and please shoot me an email here at BlogAsheville if I leave someone out (I'll add you!), were the following: Modern Peasant, Edgy Mama, Domestic Bliss, 3 of the Scrutiny Hooligans, Ashvegas, Bird on the Moon, Hangover Journals, Brainshrub, Restless Mama, The Syntax of Things, Lies and Myths, Virtual Inanity, Undercover Blue, How to Take a Fall,
and Urbantrail/AshevillePubCrawl.

And now the 2006 BlogAsheville Award Winners

Most Likely to Make Money by Blogging

Brainshrub

Least Likely to Make Money by Blogging

Modern Peasant

Best Design

Edgy Mama

Most Likely to Make You Laugh Out Loud

Hangover Journals

Best Art/Photos

TIE - Lowell Allen's Serial Photo and Blue Ridge Blog

Blogger you'd most like to see naked

Scrutiny Hooligans

Best Local Happenings

Ashvegas

Best Political

Scrutiny Hooligans

Makes Me Feel Happiest

Domestic Bliss

Most Inspirational

Bird on the Moon

Most in Need of a Redesign

Ashvegas

Most Likely to Have New Material

Ashvegas

Best BlogAsheville Post 2005-2006

TIE btw:

To the Witch Who Hit My Van and Ran by Edgy Mama

and

Happy Marriage Protection Sunday by Jim Jenkins

Most Deserving of Wider Recognition

TIE: Hangover Journals, Scrutiny Hooligans, BlogAsheville, Edgy Mama, Brainshrub, and Stitch'n'Bitch

Best Writing

Edgy Mama

Best Overall

Scrutiny Hooligans

Blogger I'd Most Like to Have a Beer With

Susan of Easy Bake Coven

Least Likely to Care About Traffic

Modern Peasant

Biggest Slacker

Restless Mama

It was great to meet some new bloggers last night, and it nice spending time with those other folks (you know who you are!) who came to help us celebrate our first year in cyberspace.

I'm sure some pictures of the event will be posted when folks sufficiently recover; and I will try to either make a Nominee/Winners button for the 2006 BlogAsheville Awards, or beg Jim Jenkins to do it.

/grin

Today's the Day

Date: Saturday, June 17
Time: 6:30 ish until the beer runs out, or someone starts dancing nekkid in the treehouse, whichever comes first

Place: Pnavistan, home of just a few high-minded North Asheville liberals and two cats (if you've never been here, e-mail me for directions at janusatannefittenglenndotcom)

Who's invited: You. BA bloggers, Asheville bloggers, NC bloggers, their family members, blogger groupies, male strippers.

Dress: The less, the better.

Bring: Food to share. Alcohol, if you don't want beer. Prizes (wrapped).
A sleeping bag if you plan on being overserved.

Voting for the First Annual BlogAsheville awards will take place from 6:30 - 8, so don't be too late to cast your vote. All the nominations are in, and every category is rife with competition.

Bring a prize. It can be anything you deem prizeworthy. Please wrap the prize.

Edgy Mama will supply some keg beer, so bring something if you don't care for beer. All food ought to be pick and carry since we're trying to keep plates/forks/etc. to a minimum.

For you last minute folks - email Edgy Mama at janusATannefittenglennDOTcom for directions to the pnav.

Asheville Gem Fest at Pack Place This Weekend

It's time for you to spend some money on rocks. Yes. You need more rocks, you know you do, and you probably also need a fossilized trilobite and some sharks teeth and some ultra fabulous surprisingly cheap jewelry and, while you're at it, you totally need to gawk at the huge and incredible chunks o' shiny stone that are spread all over Pack Place this weekend. The Colburn Earth Science Museum, probably Asheville's best kept secret, located conveniently in the dark lower level of Pack Place, sponsors this annual weekend long event and it is SO much fun. Not only can you stare happily at rocks, learn about minerals and buy some almost frighteningly cool stuff, there are even kids' activities (and who says you have to be a kid to crack a geode or pan for gold?) The whole shebang helps out the Colburn Museum and it only happens once a year.

Where: Pack Place
When: 10 - 8 Friday (coinciding nicely with Downtown After Five)
10 - 5 Saturday (coinciding nicely with the Chili Cookoff in Pack Square)
1 - 5 Sunday (coinciding nicely with possible on street parking)
Cost: FREE! Except a nominal fee for activities, and, of course, whatever you buy. Because you will buy.

Disclaimer: Okay, I've been working there for the past couple of days but nobody's paying me to shill for it - I just genuinely love the museum AND the chance to spend my paycheck on jewelry. Not to mention that I brought along an old ring that had lost its stone, and one of the dealers found me a piece of gorgeous labradorite that fit it perfectly AND he popped it into the setting AND it cost me $6, as in SIX DOLLARS. So you see why I am so enthused.

Drinking Liberally: It's OUR Internet... Isn't It?

Fellow DL'ers:

We were initially thinking that tomorrow's topic would address hypocrisy - from The Hill to Pack Square and all points in between elsewhere, and how it seems to only help careers in public service - but that's for another Thursday. Today, we gotta talk about net neutrality.

In a nutshell, network neutrality is a basic principle that preserves a free (as in speech, not as in beer) and open Internet. A level playing field where everyone can access content or run any application or device they choose. All you need is imagination and know-how... and a little bit of venture capital couldn't hurt either. eBay, Google, Yahoo!, and Skype are but a few examples of this, and we have the principle of net neutrality to thank for it. What's at issue here is the desire of the big telecommunications companies - AT&T, BellSouth, Verizon, Charter, et al - to change all of that in their favor. The telcos, who already control the greater majority of Internet access, want the power to select who gets access to high-speed lines, essentially deciding whose content gets seen first and fastest. Anyone who can't (or won't) pay those fees will have their content relegated to slower, more congested lines.

What's in it for the telcos? $$$! Ed Whitacre, CEO of AT&T, said that "the Internet can't be free... for a Google or Yahoo or Vonage or anybody to expect to use these pipes free is nuts."

What's in it for the politicos who support the demise of net neutrality? Do I really need to ask?

The House bill in question, HR 5252, passed last week with overwhelmingly partisan support from the right side of the aisle, and the Senate is set to vote on this issue next week. (For the record, Rep. Charles Taylor voted no on an amendment that was introduced to HR 5252 that would have ensured net neutrality and voted yes on the final bill - We'll let you make up your own mind which side of the coin he's on.)

What's in it for us? Well... imagine it taking two minutes instead of two seconds for your e-mail program to get this message. Imagine not being able to read some peoples' blog pages because Blogger wouldn't play ball with AT&T. Imagine not being able to use a VOIP service like Vonage. Imagine not being able to use Google or Yahoo! because your ISP, in conjunction with their paid partners, would rather you use *their* search engine that lets you browse *their* content.

I don't know about you, but after typing all of this I can really use a beer or two.

And it just so happens that they make and serve some really fantastic beer as well as some tasty pizza at our new location, the Asheville Brewing Company on Coxe Ave.! Come on out tonight and join us -- help us make our second week even more successful than our first!

Thanks again, and we'll see you on the patio!

syntax (co-host, Asheville Drinking Liberally)

---------------------------
for more information on net neutrality:

http://www.google.com/help/netneutrality.html
http://www.netfreedomnow.org/
http://www.freepress.net/netfreedom/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_neutrality (LOTS of info and links here)

Blogging Inspiration...

The First Annual BlogAsheville Awards

The Rules: In the comments section below or by email to scrutinyhooligans(AT)yahoo(DOT)com, you can nominate up to three BlogAsheville blogs in each category. You may also add more categories, to which anyone may nominate favored blogs/bloggers. Anyone may nominate blogs in this competition, so please post about it at your blogs and email me the results. Only bloggers on the BlogAsheville blogroll are eligible for nominations. Nominations will close Friday, June 15 at 11:59 pm.

The Vote: On Saturday you'll receive a ballot and vote for your favorites from the blogs that are nominated. Polling will close when the band starts playing. The winners will be announced at the set break or thereabouts.

All rules are subject to abject changes.

The Superlatives:

Most Likely to Make Money by Blogging

Least Likely to Make Money by Blogging

Best Design

Most Likely to Make You Laugh Out Loud

Best Art/Photos

Blogger you'd most like to see naked

Best Local Happenings

Best Political

Makes Me Feel Happiest

Most Inspirational

Most in Need of a Redesign

Most Likely to Have New Material

Best BlogAsheville Post 2005-2006

Best Post 2006

Most Deserving of Wider Recognition

Best Writing

Best Overall

UPDATED WITH NEW SUPERLATIVES:

Blogger I'd Most Like to Have a Beer With

Least Likely to Care About Traffic

Biggest Slacker

Extravablogiversapaloozathon 2006, feat. Jolt Wagon

Smilefest has faded like a weak hangover. The spring edition of the Lake Eden Arts Festival has been washed away with the other bohemian manfunk, and the fall edition is a distant hope on the horizon. Dylan and Haggard have been and gone. Bele Chere is yet a month away. And how many times can you see Phil Lesh?

No, folks. It's time to focus. On Saturday. Extrablogiversapaloozathon 2006.

That's when Pnavistan will be invaded - nay - rocked. Rocked right down to the gristle of its Greenlife lamb burgers; rocked right down to the trucked-in top soil of all those quarter-million dollar mansions (or more); and rocked right down, down, down to the highminded liberals' misbegotten dreams that Karl Rove is going to jail any time soon.

That's right, posh North Ashvegas - hold on to yer highwaisted panties. Yer going for a reality ride on the Jolt Wagon.

They're gonna rock yer balls off. And if you don't have balls, they're gonna rock your taint off. (special thanks to the MTV music awards for that little intro.)

We saw Jolt Wagon perform live a scant few weeks ago at the Montford arts fest, and we were mightily impressed. We're no good at describing music, except to say that we know what we like when we hear it. We'll let Jolt Wagon speak for itself in a moment.

We love the fact that the group sings its original music. We love the fact that the music sounds rough and hearty and a real. (More like Haywood Road than Merrimon Avenue, if ya know what we mean.) And we love the fact that they're willing to come hang with a bunch of nerdy bloggers.

Anyway, here's the music Jolt Wagon says it likes:

Richard Thompson Richard Buckner Neil Young Yo La Tengo Camper Van Beethoven Camper Van Chadbourne Eugene Chadbourne Green on Red Carter Family Freakwater Charles Mingus Bob Dylan Miles Davis Frank Zappa John Coltrane Buck Owens The Band Pink Floyd Beatles Beck Rolling Stones Meat Puppets Big Star R Crumb David Bowie The Clash Elton John Johnny Cash Elvis Costello Dinosaur Jr. Hank Williams Doc Watson Bill Monroe Gram Parsons Velvet Underground Fairport Convention Warren Zevon John Hartford Doug Sahm Joe Henry Elliot Smith Jayhawks Sonic Youth Thelonius Monk

And here's what Jolt Wagon says about itself:

Jolt Wagon is an Ashvegas-based band that focuses on writing and performing original music. We care primarily about the songs, and prefer a melody and a harmony rather than an extended jam. The band mixes a variety of acoustic and electric instrumentation — acoustic and electric guitars, banjo, mandolin, steel guitars, bass and drums — to create a wide-ranging blend of original music with roots in rock & pop, old country, hillbilly, and folk rock. If you have to label us, call it "Gritty Americana/Eclecticana."

So all you bloggers lurking out there, get off yer lazy asses and come out for a history-making party. Pnavistan will never be the same again.

Farewell, In Your Ear Music Emporium

This is probably old news to most West Ashevillians, but I just found out that In Your Ear Music Emporium, on the corner of Haywood Rd. and Mildred Ave. (next door to the Westville Pub) is closing its doors on the 17th.

It's difficult for an independent record store to survive in this day and age, having to compete against online music retailers and brick-and-mortar loss leaders. It's even more difficult for music fans with more, um, selective tastes to actually walk into a shop and find what they're looking for almost every time they shop there. Plus, I don't think I've ever gotten the "record store guy" attitude at all from In Your Ear's staff - having been a "record store guy" for several years when I was younger, I know the attitude quite well, unfortunately...

Anyway, from now until the 17th they're selling off their remaining stock at a discount, so this might be a good opportunity to save some money on music and wish the staff the best of luck in their future endeavors.

Thanks for existing, In Your Ear. You'll be missed.

Party Countdown

Four more days until the whatever we decided to call it BlogAsheville one-year anniverary party!

I have a few further exciting details to share!

We have booked a band! Yes, men playing instruments and singing, hopefully well, will be jamming in the pnav living room (also, known as my office, the media center, the playroom, and the par-tay room).

The band is called Jolt Wagon, and they look and sound edgy! Ash saw them play at the Montford Arts Festival and loved them. He'll post a photo and a little review later. Hurray!

Secondly, regarding food and other comestibles--if you're bringing such, can you make it finger food, dippy food, or otherwise easy-to-pick-up-and-eat food, please? Thanks. I don't want to mess with plates, silverware, etc. I will have napkins.

Finally, a subject to titillate the soul--yes, that's it, baby--parking.

There is street parking in my 'hood. Do not, however, park on the wrong side of the street (that would be the side with the signs that read "No Parking This Side". If you can't find street parking, you can park down at Grace Covenant Church or in the lot where Citizen's Hardware was recently razed.

Again, if you need directions, e-mail me at janusatannefittenglenndotcom.

Looking forward to seeing you all and celebrating with verve.

Volvo To Add 265 Jobs

Great news for 265 motivated future job-seekers - "Nathan Ramsey, Chairman of the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, said “When the Board of Commissioners learned of the opportunity to assist with the retention and expansion of this great company, we wanted to show Volvo we appreciate what the expansion means to Buncombe County.” The County granted Volvo a $4 million economic development incentive paid over 10 years.

Volvo Construction Equipment of North America, Inc. announced plans to add the firm’s excavator product line to their existing operations. This expansion involves the investment of approximately $30-$50 million in new equipment and is expected to add approximately 265 highly-skilled positions during the next three to five years. The expansion project for the Asheville plant is scheduled to begin in mid-2007. The new positions will primarily be production jobs. While individual wages will vary by job function, the anticipated average annual salary for all of the new positions will be more than $38,000 plus benefits, which is more than the Buncombe County average annual salary of $30,160, not including benefits. The Volvo Construction Equipment Sales Division is headquartered at One Volvo Drive.

Dave Million, Vice President and General Manager of operations at the Asheville site said: “We are grateful to state and local leaders for helping to make our expansion project a reality. We are truly in a highly competitive global economy and without the support of Buncombe County, the City of Asheville, the North Carolina Department of Commerce, A-B Tech., the Golden Leaf Foundation, and others, we would not be here today.” Mr. Million attributes the decision to bring the North American excavator production to Asheville to the quality and productivity of Volvo Construction Equipment’s workforce."

Pretention Square

So we were wandering around downtown Ashvegas Saturday night when we came upon this scene. A brand new Escalade was parked right under the Pack Place electronic sign, and a chubby photographer in a tight vest was flitting about, worrying about "my models" and the lighting.

Of course we stopped, hoping to see some bikini-clad babes drape themselves over an expensive car. Instead, it turned out to be hair models. Hair models. We should have known.

So as we hung around, we started getting attitude from one guy, who said, "I'm going to have to ask you not to take any photos of the models." We said, in a nutshell, you're crazy. The guy kept giving us a hard time. The models are under contract and you can't use their images. Who are you with? You're flash will mess up our photographer.

We calmly explained that we wouldn't shoot with a flash, we'd stay well out of the way, and if you didn't want anyone else taking pictures, you shouldn't have set up on a public sidewalk.

All in all, quite an interesting scene in downtown Ashvegas. You never know what you'll find.

Drum and dance

Westfest cloggers

Bonfires for peace

Bloggers: Saviors or sell-outs? You decide

The New York Times covered a blogger con in Vegas the other day. Here's the start of the story:

"There were the bloggers — nearly a thousand of them, many of them familiar names by now — emerging from the shadows of their computers for a three-day blur of workshops, panels and speeches about politics, the power of the Internet and the shortcomings of the Washington media. And right behind them was a parade of prospective Democratic presidential candidates and party leaders, their presence a tribute to just how much the often rowdy voices of the Web have been absorbed into the very political process they frequently disdain, much to the amazement, and perhaps discomfort, of some of the bloggers themselves."

Let's stop there. Just how big a force are political bloggers these days? Well, it seems the jury's still out, despite all the flash. And here's an observation, from the NYT again:

"As became clear from the rather large and diverse crowd here, the blogosphere has become for the left what talk radio has been for the right: a way of organizing and communicating to supporters. Blogging is nowhere near the force among Republicans as it is among Democrats, and talk radio is a much more effective tool for Republicans."

Then there's the question of selling out. Just who do these bloggers think they are? The NYT offers this:

"They may think of themselves as rebels, separate from mainstream politics and media. But by the end of a day on which the convention halls were shoulder to shoulder with bloggers, Democratic operatives, candidates and Washington reporters, it seemed that bloggers were well on the way to becoming — dare we say it? — part of the American political establishment. Indeed, the convention, the first of what organizers said would become an annual event, seems on the way to becoming as much a part of the Democratic political circuit as the Iowa State Fair.

"And for whatever disdain that could be picked up toward mainstream politicians and news media, it seems fair to say that the bloggers and the people who love them were fascinated by their favorite targets. Jennifer Palmieri, a deputy White House press secretary under President Bill Clinton, held a "pundit project training," where she told bloggers how to present themselves in television interviews — what to wear, how to sit and what to say."

Read the NYT story here

Welcome Newest Blogroll Addition

Please stop by and say howdy to Blogasheville's newest addition to the blogroll, the effervescent What the Hell?.

Let's Recap, Shall We?

Everyone who's coming can contact Egdy Mama for directions. Bring your family and fans if you like. If everyone could choose an unmet blogger from the blogroll and contact them about the extravablogiversapaloozathon, that'd be great. There are too many of you who haven't come out of the cybershadows into our BlogAsheville extravirtual gatherings, and I'm as curious as can be.

Date: Saturday, June 17
Time: 6:30 ish until the beer runs out, or someone starts dancing nekkid in the treehouse, whichever comes first

Place: Pnavistan, home of just a few high-minded North Asheville liberals and two cats (if you've never been here, e-mail me for directions at janusatannefittenglenndotcom)

Who's invited: You. BA bloggers, Asheville bloggers, NC bloggers, their family members, blogger groupies, male strippers.



Dress: The less, the better.

Bring: Food to share. Alcohol, if you don't want beer. Prizes (wrapped).
A sleeping bag if you plan on being overserved.

The Extravablogiversapaloozathon is a chance to celebrate our achievements, our friendships, our creativity, and our future. I can't wait to see everybody
there.

Thank You Drinking Liberally!

37 Liberal Drinkers turned out for our first night at the Asheville Brewing Company on Coxe Avenue. That's a record. It was good to meet Kevin, Dari, Carrie, Carl's family, Ziggy, and all the rest of the first timers. Thanks Jim for bringing the Spike Jones 1992 documentary on Al Gore (it was 12 minutes long and had Al at his most relaxed and most charming.).

The bar staff was thrilled to have us, and enjoying the evening breezes while slurping down that delicious local brew couldn't be beat. This new location is really going to work out.

Thanks for the best DL yet, everybody. See you next week!

Drinking Liberally: Splitsville

Splits are nice things, right? We like to see limber gymnasts do them. We like the banana variety with nuts and fudge. We like to hear from the corporate media that the Republicans are splitting over the immigration issue. But the split that menaces, the split that may be emerging as the mule in the room, is the split in the Democratic Party.

You've got your single issue voters and your pragmatists, your ecogreens and your Lieberman's alrighters, your incrementalists and your revolutionaries. The big tent is bursting with various interests, and how will we ever get them all to turn out for liberal democracy? Just tonight I heard a wildly progressive person explain again to me why he will not vote this year. Can we do anything about this?

Drinking Liberally, at our fantastic new Asheville Brewing Company at 77 Coxe Avenue location, comes together this week to discuss the split in the Democratic Party. "What split?", you ask. The split that divides the folks who think John Kerry and Hillary Clinton are the standard bearers from those who think that John Conyers, Russ Feingold, and Barbara Boxer are the standard bearers. And that's not even mentioning the lefty lefties who think they're all full of entrenched corporate crap.

It's time to pull the splinters, mend the wounds, and find a way to motivate an electorate disenfranchised by 6 years of suspect elections, naked power grabs, corporate dominance, and the arrogance of a Republican party drunk on war.

Drinking Liberally, that weekly gathering of Clintonistas, Naderites, Edwardsians, Clarkers, Deaniacs, and 'Where's Bill the Cat?"ers, invites you all to join us at the Asheville Brewing Company on Coxe Avenue in downtown Asheville for an easy place for like-minded left-leaners to drain some pints, eat some slices, and create some community. Our numbers are growing every week, so come see who you've been missing.



{Drinking Liberally does not endorse any particular candidates or positions. We are not an activist group. We are a drinking group. We drink. Quite a lot. And talk politics. And whatever else comes up. So, FEC trolls, don't mistake this group for an activist group. We're a drinking group. - This disclaimer brought to you by the co-hosts of Drinking Liberally.}

Battery Park rubble

Can't give it away

I was cruising by Daggitts Pawn Shop on Haywood Road in West Ashvegas when I noticed this little rocking horse. I thought it might make a cool photo, so I stopped to check it out. Upon closer inspection, I noticed the "Free" sign taped to the side. Wonder how long it will stay up for grabs...

Two Years Already?

Today is Scrutiny Hooligans' second blogiversary. Thanks to everyone who reads.

Nice tree

People appear to be fascinated by this tree on the grounds of the Biltmore Estate. Here's the flickr pool to discuss it.

Join the Conspiracy!

A History of Asheville: Part V of X

Part One and explanation here
Parts Two and Three here
Part Four here

Asheville - 1920-1930

Like many American cities, Asheville celebrated a booming economy in the 1920s, blissfully ignorant of an awaiting financial doom. Consumer confidence soared in Asheville as a thriving downtown quickly filled with shops and buildings to become known as the hub of Western North Carolina. The Pack Memorial Public Library moved into a new building in 1926. The striking new structure was constructed out of Georgia White Marble. Also during this era, a new courthouse, built of brick and Tennessee limestone, was dedicated on Dec. 1, 1928.

During the early 1920s, dignitaries and celebrities from across the world ventured to Asheville seeking fresh mountain air. It was a time when famous author F. Scott Fitzgerald enjoyed the luxuriousness of the Grove Park Inn along with presidents and other statesmen. Thomas Wolfe came back home to visit, and was well received. Numerous new housing developments accompanied Asheville's economic expansion. Grovemont, Kenilworth, Malvern Hills, Beverly Hills and Hollywood were clipped from surrounding farmland and advertised through the local media.

Doctors around the country recommended the mountains of Western North Carolina, particularly Asheville, to patients for respiratory problems. Many tuberculosis (consumption) sanitariums sprang up in the Asheville area

The Asheville City Hall, built in 1926 - 1928, exemplifies Art Deco architecture and represents the style exercised by internationally known architect Douglas Ellington. City Hall also stands as a magnificent symbol of the development boom of the twenties when civic projects were undertaken in the "Program of Progress" to keep pace with speculative construction throughout Asheville.

Asheville City Hall is a colorful and massive "fortress-like" structure rising eight full stories into the Asheville sky. The materials chosen for the building included marble, brick and terra cotta and were selected in colors to parallel the clay-pink shades of the local Asheville soil. The building is topped with a stepped octagonal roof covered with bands of elongated triangular terra-cotta red tiles and crowned by a heavy conical tower.

The City Building was designed by Douglas D. Ellington, an architect then living in Asheville. Born in Clayton, North Carolina, on June 26, 1886, Ellington was educated at Randolph-Macon College, Drexel Institute, the University of Pennsylvania, and the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris. Ellington first came to Asheville in the 1920s. Among the buildings he designed in Asheville were the Lee Edwards High School, the First Baptist Church, Biltmore Hospital, the S & W Cafeteria Building, and the Merrimon Avenue Fire Station. (all of which are still standing).

In May of 1927, Asheville Mayor John H. Cathey reported "that the City was completing a municipal home that would prove an attraction to visitors and a pride to residents." He also announced that the cost of the new City Hall was $750,000.

Be Afraid, Be Very Afraid

Tomorrow is the Day of the Beast and frankly, it's just kind of hard to decide how best to celebrate. I mean, should you crawl under your bed? Go to the movies? Get married? Get drunk? Play Slayer? Well, clearly, yeah, the Slayer is the way to go: something we can all get behind. Personally, I'm going to wear black. I know, that's a stretch. And you? It might be the end of the world!

The Unofficial Heath Shuler Forum

Paul V. at Brainshrub is the architect of a new site for Progressives to talk about the conservative Democratic candidate for Congress, Heath Shuler.

Click here to read Paul's introduction at Brainshrub.

Click here to read my introduction at Scrutiny Hooligans.

Or just click here to go straight to the forum.

Circus protest

Animal rights protesters gathered in front of the Ashvegas Civic Center Saturday to stand against the visiting Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey circus. Animal rights advocates say it's inherently inhumane to seperate elephants from their herds and train them for a circus. Check out this CNN story about all the legal wrangling.

Happy Marriage Protection Sunday

click for full size image

Bill Frist, the Senate majority leader said the other day that the assault on the institution of marriage is one of the most important matters facing America today. It's so bad in fact, that the President is going to give a speech Monday night laying out his plan to deal with the crisis. Considering the facts that we're at war with both terror and terrorism, we're at war with Iraq, we're revving up for war in Iran, we're dangerously dependent on fossil fuels, the globe is warming at an alarming rate, and we've developed something of an image problem in the rest of the world, you figure this marriage thing must be huge.

Here's the deal. Homosexuals want to marry each other. Many states have passed laws saying that they can't, but Massachusetts seemed to think that gay marriage doesn't necessarily signal the onset of Armageddon and so what the hell. As it stands now, if a man and a woman get married in North Carolina and move to say Ohio, their marriage is recognized there as well. If different states have different rules and other states aren't required to recognize those rules, it could be messy. Not "war on terra" kinda messy mind you, but messy none-the-less. So to deal with this catastrophic situation, the Congress is going to debate changing our constitution to make sure that boys can only marry girls and vice-versa.

I'm one of those live and let live types and in the interest of full disclosure, I'm also one of those homosexual types. I've been grappling with why this is such a huge issue. To find out I've been reading work by a man named James Dobson who is so focused on the family that he started an organization called Focus on the Family. This guy has got his panties in a wad over this whole gay marriage thing. In fact, he wrote a book about it. I'm not going to link to it because I don't like him very much. His argument, best I can tell, goes something like this. Homosexuals don't really want to get married. They are incapable of fidelity and most of them have thousands of different sex partners in their lifetime. (Partly why I don't like him is that he makes me feel so inadequate.) There is a full scale homosexual conspiracy to pretend to want to get married so that they can devalue the institution to the point that it is meaningless for everyone. Dobson just doesn't strike me as a big thinker.

A few months back, I attended the rally in downtown Asheville of the godly who were assembled to express their outrage at homosexuality in general. I was amazed at the turnout. They not only don't want faggots to get married, they also don't want them to work or rent or even it seems breath their righteous air. Both of our candidates for Congress are steadfastly opposed to gay marriage. I've met many of you who frequent this blog and I'd like to know your opinion. First do you think this is the crisis that our leaders believe it is? Also, since most of you are married, do you believe that the desire of two committed gay people to marry has adversely affected, or (heaven forbid) destroyed your marriage? Lastly, will you be spending Marriage Protection Sunday fighting the good fight against the homosexual menace, or doing something more along the lines of frisbee golf?