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Scrutiny Hooligans

  • Opposable Thumbs

    If you’ve been paying attention to the site in the last few days, you’ll notice that some wacky little thumb buttons have appeared beneath each person’s post. Thumbs can be useful things: they’ve allowed humans to operate tools, like Playstation; they’re good for sticking in dykes and in pies; there’s [...]
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    Posted: December 11, 2009, 6:10pm EST
    by Michael Muller

  • Friday Open Thread: Away We Go!

    For the last few weeks, I’ve been having meetings with folks all over Asheville to hear their ideas and coordinate the advancement of the priorities I discussed during my campaign. Affordable Housing, sustainability, transportation, domestic partner benefits, and more have been occupying the bulk of my time. It’s been exciting [...]
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    Posted: December 11, 2009, 1:42pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • City Council Agenda 12/15/09

    Click Read More to have a look at this Tuesday’s City Council agenda. Click here to read the agenda at the City of Asheville’s website with accompanying documentation for each agenda item. Regular Meeting – December 15, 2009 – 5:00 p.m. Council Chamber – City Hall Building The following has been set as [...]
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    Posted: December 11, 2009, 1:33pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • More Real Reform

    Nate Silver finds evidence in an Ipsos/McClatchy poll (because they asked why people supported or opposed health care reform) that some of the opposition to reform is because the bills being considered … well, let him tell you: One way to look at this: 43 percent of people favor health care [...]
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    Posted: December 11, 2009, 12:40pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Buncombe County By The Numbers

    These statistics were presented at the 12/10 Affordable Housing and Development public meeting put on by the city. They’re based on 2007 census update data. There’s more where these came from. Total estimated population of Buncombe County – 229,047 County residents age 55 or older – 28.7% County residents age 19 or younger [...]
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    Posted: December 10, 2009, 10:43pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • It’s Not Real Reform If It Doesn’t End The Need For This

    From the National Association of Free Clinics event going on now in Kansas City, MO: Over at Firedoglake, nyceve has more. At timestamp 3:06, she starts losing it: [...]
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    Posted: December 10, 2009, 12:53pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Your Asheville

    Applications to serve on one of Asheville’s many Boards and Commissions are due no later than January 6th. The community builders over at Green Drinks are inviting you to come find out how you can bring your enthusiasm and expertise to shaping the future of Asheville. Friday from 6 – [...]
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    Posted: December 09, 2009, 11:16pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Saturday Shopping Bonanza

    I’m not one to use ‘bonanza’ lightly, but this Saturday’s smorgasbord of shopping options to stuff your stockings and support your local economy is bonanzatastic. Robert Gardner is selling oodles of blown glass products from his studio in the River Arts District from 11am – 5pm There’s a pottery sale going on [...]
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    Posted: December 09, 2009, 1:00pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Affordable Housing and Community Development

    Help build the future at this event Thursday night. The Community Development office will host a public meeting on Thursday, Dec. 10 at 6:30 p.m. in the Public Works Building at 161 S. Charlotte Street to discuss the Consolodated Plan for 2010-2014. This meeting will cover: affordable housing and other community development needs, priorities [...]
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    Posted: December 09, 2009, 10:25am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Councilman

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    Posted: December 09, 2009, 7:38am EST
    by Michael Muller

  • “I Don’t Believe In Global Warming…” C’mon, Everybody Sing…

    Dip a little Copenhagen? [...]
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    Posted: December 08, 2009, 8:00am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Swearing

    Tomorrow at 5pm, Judge Cash will administer the oath of office to Esther Manheimer, Terry Bellamy, Cecil Bothwell, and yours truly.  Then the new Council will honor the outgoing Council members’ service, and will elect a new Vice Mayor.  After that I’m headed down to Barley’s Taproom to celebrate Day [...]
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    Posted: December 07, 2009, 9:45am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Will Somebody Please Revive WNC’s Manufacturing Economy?

    It’s almost time again for the annual Homecoming Jobs Fair at Biltmore Square Mall (Tuesday, December 29, 2009 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.) sponsored by the Economic Development Coalition and the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce. When I went last year, cars were backed up down the exit onto I-26. Two [...]
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    Posted: December 06, 2009, 2:28pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Sunday Morning Music – XTC

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    Posted: December 06, 2009, 9:02am EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Nevadans Not Wild About Harry

    (Updated below) Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake has been warning that Harry Reid will pay a steep price if he doesn’t do whatever it takes (including using reconciliation) to pass a Senate health care bill with a public option intact. A recent Mason-Dixon poll shows that Reid has plenty of trouble ahead [...]
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    Posted: December 05, 2009, 11:24am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Friday Open Thread: Invocation

    Happy Friday, Hooligans. There’s quite a scuttlebutt regarding whether governmental bodies ought to have religious invocations prior to meetings. County Attorney Michael Frue has advised Buncombe County Commissioners that the practice leaves them open to a lawsuit. Here’s an excerpt from today’s AC-T article: Buncombe County commissioners may stop having an [...]
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    Posted: December 04, 2009, 11:07am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • 12/8/09 City Council Agenda

    Click through to Readmoreland for a look at the short agenda for Tuesday’s City Council meeting. Welcome – Mayor-Elect Terry M. Bellamy Pledge of Allegiance – Marine Corp JROTC – Asheville High School Invocation – The Reverend James V. King, Family of Faith Fellowship Oaths of Office Administered by the Honorable Gary S. [...]
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    Posted: December 04, 2009, 10:58am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • How Gordon Won the Election

    I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: Gordon Smith ran the best damn campaign I have ever seen. I had the pleasure of experiencing it all close-up — and what I found were some of the nicest, most enthusiastic, intelligent, well-spoken, creative, and diverse group of people I’ve ever [...]
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    Posted: December 04, 2009, 2:55am EST
    by Michael Muller

  • But They Can’t Take It

    Politico reported Wednesday that some Senate Republicans are none too happy with Sen. Al Franken (D-MN): The Republicans are steamed at Franken because partisans on the left are using a measure he sponsored to paint them as rapist sympathizers — and because Franken isn’t doing much to stop them. “Trying to tap [...]
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    Posted: December 03, 2009, 8:30am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Warren Wilson’s Economic Impact

    I thought y’all might be interested in these fun facts produced by Dr. Steb Hipple of ETSU: During 2009, Warren Wilson College added $54.5 million to the economy of Buncombe County, generated $19.1 million in household earnings, and created the equivalent of 477 full-time jobs. The average pay for each job [...]
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    Posted: December 02, 2009, 9:36am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • The Elephant’s Graveyard

    I’ve gotten a lot of guff for my post last week handicapping the Republican congressional primary field here in the 11th…not for what I predicted so much as the fact that the prediction appeared here in this pinko e-rag and under my own shiny new byline. You see, for today’s [...]
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    Posted: December 01, 2009, 3:02pm EST
    by Michael Muller

  • World AIDS Day

    It is perhaps a testament to how far I’ve come that I woke up this morning not realizing that today is World AIDS Day. I say this because I was given an AIDS diagnosis twelve years ago. You get this dubious honor if your CD4 count falls below 200 T cells, [...]
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    Posted: December 01, 2009, 7:41am EST
    by Michael Muller

  • The Courage To Be Civil

    E.J. Dionne’s column this morning holds up former Republican member of Congress, Jim Leach, as a profile in civility. He has, Dionne, writes, “a lot of the old moderate Republican in him” and “an immoderate dose of courage.” Leach lost his Iowa seat in the 2006 Democratic sweep, but became [...]
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    Posted: November 30, 2009, 9:25am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Local Monday

    Having journeyed to the wilds of central Florida and back, I’m right and ready to tuck in to the work before me here in AVL.  Today the work is counseling, and tomorrow it’s a’counciling.  For a couple of hours tomorrow, the folks up at City Hall are going to show [...]
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    Posted: November 30, 2009, 9:24am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Morning Music: Toots

    I caught the sunrise over the Atlantic this morning.  It looked like the sky was on fire.  Michael Muller was haunting Twitter and mentioned this artist – Toots Thielemans.  Here are a couple of pieces for your Sunday morning pleasure. [...]
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    Posted: November 29, 2009, 7:18am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Flogging a Dead Warhorse

    Charles Krauthammer is out this morning with a column of predictably conservative answers to the health care crisis, and leading off with the requisite genuflect: “The United States has the best health care in the world…” “If you can afford it,” he doesn’t say. The House and Senate bills are “monstrous,” and [...]
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    Posted: November 27, 2009, 12:55pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Today is Buy Nothing Day

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    Posted: November 27, 2009, 3:00am EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Happy Thanksgiving! (5)

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    Posted: November 26, 2009, 10:00pm EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Happy Thanksgiving! (4)

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    Posted: November 26, 2009, 6:00pm EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Happy Thanksgiving! (3)

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    Posted: November 26, 2009, 2:00pm EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Happy Thanksgiving! (2)

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    Posted: November 26, 2009, 10:00am EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Happy Thanksgiving! (1)

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    Posted: November 26, 2009, 6:00am EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Sustainable Las Vegas

    I was recently on the floor of the Luxor walking in between craps and blackjack tables when I seemed to have gotten the most absurd idea in my head: Sustainable Las Vegas.  I thought about whether there might be an organization advocating for a more sustainable way of doing things in [...]
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    Posted: November 25, 2009, 8:01am EST
    by writ of summons

  • A Doctor in the House?

    Yesterday, I mentioned in a post that I believed Dr. Dan Eichenbaum would win the Republican congressional primary here in the 11th six months from now. Of course, ridiculously early predictions are just that; obviously a lot can happen, and I could be way off the mark. But let me [...]
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    Posted: November 24, 2009, 10:03am EST
    by Michael Muller

  • The Fear of God (and Voters)

    Enclosure: [download]
    My ears pricked up this weekend when I heard freshman Sen. Michael Bennet (D-CO) say he would support a health care reform bill even if he knew he could lose his job. How refreshing, I thought. Jon Walker at FireDogLake provides one reason Bennet was, for a politician, so uncharacteristically [...]
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    Posted: November 23, 2009, 3:09pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • More Thread!

    I’m in the midst of a hectic one-day workweek before heading out of town for holiday hilarity. Do your worst. [...]
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    Posted: November 23, 2009, 12:00pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Morning Music – The Grid

    The Philip Glass Ensemble, from Koyaanisqatsi Part One (more below the fold): Part Two: Part Three: [...]
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    Posted: November 22, 2009, 10:09am EST
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Windiana

    Our trip to Chicago this week took us up I-65 through Benton County, Indiana and past the midwest’s newest and largest wind farm, the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm 90 miles north of Indianapolis. A project of BP Wind Energy and Virginia-based Dominion Resources, the site is now producing about 400 [...]
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    Posted: November 20, 2009, 7:05pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Friday Open Thread: Starting With Shuler

    Quite a lot of you are debating the merits of our Azure Canine Congressman in the wake of revelations about TVA and Genentech and after his vote against health care reform.  I’m of a mind that the district isn’t going to get anyone better anytime soon, but I’m willing to [...]
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    Posted: November 20, 2009, 10:44am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Reason #1,487 We Love Susan Fisher

    AC-T: Rep. Susan Fisher, D-Buncombe, followed other state legislators Wednesday in calling for an investigation into Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina’s campaign against a public health-insurance plan. The insurer has called and sent mailers to voters urging opposition to a public plan that would compete with private insurers. In a [...]
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    Posted: November 20, 2009, 10:25am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Another Two-Thousand Page Page-Turner

    We haven’t even gotten done going over the things wrong with the House health care bill, and now the Senate bill has been released. Another two thousand pages. More will be revealed this morning, no doubt. In the meantime, let’s hope it’s a better read than the House bill: The House [...]
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    Posted: November 19, 2009, 1:30am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Elaine Marshall To Answer Your Questions

    Democratic candidate for the US Senate, Elaine Marshall, will be live-blogging at BlueNC tonight.  Head over now to post your questions.  This is the message I received via Facemail: U.S. Senate candidate Elaine Marshall will be blogging live at BlueNC tonight at 7:00 p.m. Please follow the link below to stop [...]
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    Posted: November 18, 2009, 2:47pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Media Arts Project and Asheville Affiliates

    (Important note: In order for the Media Arts Project to get the booty, you must enter The Media Arts Project into the “Nonprofit Affiliation” line in the online order form.) The Media Arts Project is a local nonprofit dedicated to promoting media arts and artists in western North Carolina. I’m on [...]
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    Posted: November 18, 2009, 12:25pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Wednesday Reading

    I’m nursing a cold this morning, and I thought I’d share some of the good reads I’ve found while sipping hot beverage and blowing my nose. While the singularly uninspiring Harry Reid announces that the President’s energy bill won’t be taken up in the Senate until spring, others are making it [...]
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    Posted: November 18, 2009, 10:43am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Majority Leader Martin Nesbitt

    AC-T: Senate Democrats today unanimously chose Martin Nesbitt as Senate majority leader, picking an experienced legislator from Asheville to lead them into their most important election in a decade. Majority leader is the No. 2 post in the Senate and in recent years has been one of the most powerful positions in [...]
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    Posted: November 17, 2009, 8:36pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Future Building

    “Our goal is for the phrase ‘green building’ to become obsolete, by making all building and retrofits green — and transforming every job in our industry into a green job,” said Rick Fedrizzi, president, CEO and founding chairman of USGBC. “The authors” of a new study from the US Green Building [...]
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    Posted: November 17, 2009, 11:06am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Information Superhighway Tonight

    This stellar group from Chicago is in town for one night only.  I caught them last time I was there and was blown away by the powerhouse lead singer Leslie Beukelman (who happens to be shacked up with my brother-in-law) and the musicianship of the band.  Come to Bobo Gallery [...]
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    Posted: November 16, 2009, 8:18am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Corporate Ventriloquism

    (Update 1 & 2 below) Jane Hamsher of Firedoglake had a dustup a few weeks ago with Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-CA) over an amendment to H.R. 3200 that Eshoo sponsored governing the licensing of biologic drugs. Hamsher, a three-time breast cancer survivor, contended that a loophole allowed manufacturers to extend their [...]
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    Posted: November 15, 2009, 2:27pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Sunday Morning Music: Pomplamoose

    My musical obsession for the week.  I’ve gone to their YouTube page and watched everything there.  Here are three selections for you.  Beyonce’s “Single Ladies” is first.  After the jump you’ll find this duo covering The Chordette’s “Mr. Sandman” and Michael Jackson’s “Beat It”.  Enjoy! [...]
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    Posted: November 15, 2009, 8:11am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Arithmophobia

    I’m still waiting to meet someone unemployed who is more worried about federal deficits than his or her own family’s. But to hear the Beltway punditocracy tell it, deficits are all we should care about. Chris Hayes comments on a Politico piece at The Nation: There’s one big maddening conceptual error at [...]
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    Posted: November 14, 2009, 3:59pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Asheville Needs You

    In addition to the thousand-plus employees and seven City Councilcritters, the future of our city is planned and implemented by a multitude of Boards and Commissions.  Most everything that comes before City Council first makes its way through one or more of these citizen-led bodies.  If you’ve wanted to get [...]
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    Posted: November 13, 2009, 9:55am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Back

    I got to sign some proclamations today.  I don’t often get to proclaim. How y’all been? [...]
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    Posted: November 12, 2009, 5:58pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • East of the Balsams

    Last night was a monumental one in Washington, where the health care bill H.R. 3962 passed with one Democratic vote to spare, and help from one Republican. For all the kabuki hand-wringing, the choice to be made was not this health care bill verses a better one waiting to be [...]
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    Posted: November 08, 2009, 2:59pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Sunday Morning Music

    I was driving through Los Banos, California last weekend.  It was Sunday morning and I was on the California 152.  In the last couple years, this relatively small stretch of road that runs through the town has been almost completely taken over by every conceivable big box retailer and chain [...]
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    Posted: November 08, 2009, 6:25am EST
    by writ of summons

  • Not Progresive Enough

    From Sam Stein at HuffPost: A Research 2000 Virginia Poll conducted for the Progressive Change Campaign Committee reveals that 64 percent of Virginia voters who supported Barack Obama said that the party’s gubernatorial candidate, Creigh Deeds, was “not progressive enough.” Driving the point home further, 58 percent of Virginia voters who [...]
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    Posted: November 07, 2009, 5:13pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Well, which is it, Congressman?

    Up or down on health care reform? [U.S. Rep. Phil] Roe [R-TN] also said he does not think another Democrat whose district borders his, Rep. Heath Shuler, D-N.C., of Western North Carolina, will vote for the bill. I’m sure your doubts stem from your desire for a single-payer system. Or maybe you [...]
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    Posted: November 07, 2009, 8:47am EST
    by Doug Gibson

  • Friday Open Thread

    Hiya Hooligans!  What an exciting week it was.  Yet our hearts go out to the families and friends of the victims in Ft. Hood.  In brief, in review: Congratulations Gordon!  You deserved to win for such a well thought and well fought campaign.  Go get ‘em! The broader election results from Tuesday [...]
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    Posted: November 06, 2009, 4:03pm EST
    by writ of summons

  • Is Red a Primary Color?

    Ever since August, when we all got an earful of what Heath Shuler thought about health care reform (he was pretty much against any proposed Democratic legislation, and had so few concrete suggestions for what he would support you kind of got the impression that reform wasn’t high on his [...]
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    Posted: November 06, 2009, 8:47am EST
    by Doug Gibson

  • “Our Weapon Is Fear”

    [As we witnessed in the just-completed Asheville City Council election, the far right seems unable to get its head out of its anti-communism. This piece is cross-posted from the Huffington Post.] On Halloween, just ahead of Tuesday’s local elections, we received a second attack flyer in the mail from conservative activists. [...]
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    Posted: November 05, 2009, 6:18pm EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • The Councilman Elect

    Hiya Hooligans, I slept eleven hours last night.  It’s the first time in years I can remember such a lengthy slumber.  After a ten-month campaign and a humdinger of an election night party, I’m going to recuse myself from blogging for a few days. I’ll be catching up on things at work [...]
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    Posted: November 05, 2009, 2:02pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Thank You, Asheville!

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    Posted: November 04, 2009, 2:10am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Election Day Open Thread

    Late predictions?  News from the polls?  Hopes?  Fears?  Random link to a dancing cat? This thread is open for business. [...]
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    Posted: November 03, 2009, 7:56am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Vote (and one other thing).

    We’ve come full circle. Last winter we were knocking on doors, building a campaign. Spring came, and so did the volunteers. Summer came, and so did the donors. October 6th came, and this grassroots campaign was 145 votes out of first place. Now autumn is breathing her colorful symphony, and [...]
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    Posted: November 02, 2009, 11:01pm EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Lucky or Good?

    The congressman’s staffer said her goodbyes and left the service desk. The cashier, pleasant-looking and about fifty, had listened to the health care conversation from behind the counter. Now that it was just the two of them, she opened up to my wife. It has been a bad three years. [...]
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    Posted: November 02, 2009, 11:23am EST
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Nice Going (So Far)

    “In Asheville, a record 3,357 people have already cast ballots during the early voting period.” – Joel Burgess, AC-T. High-fives to everyone who got out and voted already.  This lightens the load on our election day staff and decreases the impact of last-minute smear campaigns. On Tuesday I need all of you [...]
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    Posted: November 01, 2009, 11:42am EST
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Morning Music: I Go To Work

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    Posted: November 01, 2009, 12:34am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Tonight!

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    Posted: October 30, 2009, 3:59pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Predictions

    In about 134 hours we’re going to know who’s been elected to Asheville City Council.  This is your thread to make predictions as to the winners.  So far a little over 2,000 of you have voted. Thanks to everyone who’s participated in my campaign.  Whether you’ve volunteered, donated, or simply voted [...]
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    Posted: October 29, 2009, 9:40am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Other Votes, Other Races

    While voting for City Council is underway from now ’til November 3rd, there’s another race with a voting deadline of tomorrow, Wednesday, Oct. 28th. BlogAsheville’s 4th Blogiversary Awards will be, er, awarded this Friday night.  The party, known affectionately as Extravablogiversapaloozathon 4.0 – Spookyblogapaloozananny, will bring bloggers and social media mavens [...]
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    Posted: October 27, 2009, 9:09am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Early Voting All Over The Place

    Asheville City Council wisely decided to open additional voting locations during the final week of early voting in order to increase access to all of our citizens. Voting is open from 10am-6pm Monday through Friday and 8am – 1pm on Saturday at all of the following locations. You can stop [...]
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    Posted: October 26, 2009, 12:43pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Afternoon Music – Mention Another Venue, Get Thrown Off Stage

    The next time you think about attending or performing a show at The Garage at Biltmore, consider this… Local indie band Hatori Hanzo were thrown offstage during their show there last night. You’d think that they would have had to do something really outrageous along the lines of, say, G.G. Allin [...]
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    Posted: October 25, 2009, 11:59am EDT
    by Admin Hooligan

  • Not Exactly the Mercury Theatre on the Air

    At least the damage was minimal, Frank Rich suggests in this morning’s New York Times. It’s not as if the “balloon boy” fraud led the country into invading a sovereign country in search of nonexistent WMDs, or into investing in dot-coms with no business plans, or into buying oversized homes [...]
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    Posted: October 25, 2009, 10:30am EDT
    by Tom Sullivan

  • We’re Number Last!

    FactCheck.org sent out one of its regular e-mail updates this week. They examine the “37th in the world” statistic bandied about in the health reform debate. The 2000 World Health Organization report has not been updated, they note, and has its critics and limitations. The Annenberg Public Policy Center looks at [...]
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    Posted: October 24, 2009, 12:41pm EDT
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Further, Faster

    A Green Economy is not the wave of the future. It’s happening right now. If we’re not leading then we’re trailing behind. [...]
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    Posted: October 24, 2009, 8:54am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Extrava 4.0 is Coming…

    Vote for your fave bloggers and Twitterati at the votin’ place –> Righ’chere! [...]
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    Posted: October 23, 2009, 4:25pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Friday Open Thread and 350 Reminder

    You will do with it as you wish, but first a note to duly open this thread… Tomorrow from 2-4pm, come down to City Hall for 350.  350 is a global event to let our decision makers know that we want them to lead the way to reducing CO2 in the [...]
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    Posted: October 23, 2009, 9:49am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Today is a Good Day to Dial

    Bring your cell phone when you’re voting early today for one of Asheville’s best politicians. After 8:30 or so, you might want to call Heath Shuler’s office. If you weren’t one of the 315,000 or so callers who heeded OFA’s advice and rang up their congresspeople on Wednesday (and even if [...]
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    Posted: October 23, 2009, 8:30am EDT
    by Doug Gibson

  • Walking While Talking

    Here’s the newest campaign video – straight outta Wu Media. Please share it with your friends via email, FB, Twitter, etc. Early voting is happening today from 8am-6pm. Let’s do this thing. [...]
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    Posted: October 23, 2009, 12:52am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Study Shows Testosterone Levels Drop for Losers on Election Night

    I don’t know what this means for Asheville’s municipal elections on November 3, but be forewarned: Republican men nationwide may have experienced a drop in testosterone levels the night Barack Obama was elected president, according to the results of a small study that found another link between testosterone and men’s moods [...]
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    Posted: October 23, 2009, 12:13am EDT
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Republicans Lining Up To Have A Go At Shuler

    While I find this HT-N editorial impossibly optimistic about Republicans’ chances in the Congressional elections next year, it’s interesting enough to give a read: A few weeks ago, Henderson County Republican Party Chairman Robert Danos trumpeted efforts by local Republicans to clear the primary field for Greg Newman, the Hendersonville mayor [...]
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    Posted: October 20, 2009, 8:59am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Wealthy developers smear progressive council candidate. Dog bites man.

    Ever wonder how to run a city council smear campaign? No? Ok, I’ll tell you anyway. 1) Get a few people together and get them to pledge to give you money if and when you form a political action committee. 2) Wait until the last minute to form that committee. (The state [...]
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    Posted: October 19, 2009, 4:58pm EDT
    by Doug Gibson

  • Don’t You Love Voting?

    Over two hundred people love voting so much that they got out and voted in the first two days of early voting last week.  It’s pretty fantastic.  If you’re driving, you can pull up to one of the free, reserved parking spaces right in front of the Board of Elections [...]
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    Posted: October 18, 2009, 10:51pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Afternoon Music

    [...]
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    Posted: October 18, 2009, 3:47pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Saturday Morning Reading (with bonus exhortation)

    Is everyone here familiar with the significance of the number 350?  It’s the most important number for the world.  “350 is the number that leading scientists say is the safe upper limit for carbon dioxide–measured in “Parts Per Million” in our atmosphere. 350 ppm–it’s the number humanity needs to get [...]
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    Posted: October 17, 2009, 8:07am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Protecting our Streams and Rivers

    Hartwell Carson, Riverkeeper over at RiverLink, wrote an excellent op-ed for the AC-T the other day.  Asheville’s Planning and Zoning Board will consider changes to the stream buffer rules.  The current rules call for a 30 foot buffer, and only two requests for variances have been made in the two [...]
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    Posted: October 16, 2009, 12:26pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Extrava 4.0

    Lifted wholesale from Ashvegas: Just a quick reminder that Spookyblogapalooza, Asheville’s annual blogga and Twitta party, is happening next weekend. We’re inviting everyone to come out and have a good time, and help us raise money for AHOPE. Since the party is the day before Halloween, we’re encouraging everyone to come [...]
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    Posted: October 16, 2009, 10:54am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Gordon Smith For City Council

    This video was produced by Peter Brezny. Have a look, and share it with your friends, families, and colleagues. Voting begins today, and we have a unique opportunity to implement an optimistic vision for Asheville’s future. [...]
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    Posted: October 15, 2009, 1:56pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Another Voting Sunrise Breaks the Horizon

    Time to vote! Voters will begin today to make their final choices for Asheville City Council. There’s new drama to the race with the addition of Ryan Croft to the ballot. Mr. Croft, head of Asheville’s 9/12 organization, will join Dr. Mumpower and J. Neal Jackson to form a bona fide [...]
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    Posted: October 15, 2009, 9:49am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Those Wacky Europeans

    I have a health care thread going on HuffPo, entitled What Civilized Country Operates Like This? that you can read here. TheBlackCat left the following story in the comments: When my husband and I first arrived in the Netherlands, we were shocked because in Amsterdam there was a drive to raise [...]
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    Posted: October 13, 2009, 9:18pm EDT
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Ten Dollar Tuesday – This Means You

    Happy Tuesday, Hooligans! There are a few things I know to be true. Over 210 people have come out to volunteer for this campaign.  That is, they’ve shown up to canvass, phone bank, work events, or kick it as an election day poll ambassador.  Dozens of them are regulars.  Hats off to [...]
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    Posted: October 13, 2009, 9:16am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Parkside: Almost Time To Retire This Category

    For over a year and a half we have watched the terrible tale of Parkside.  Today it appears the condominium side of the story has come to an end.  If the court rules in favor of the Pack family, then the land will revert to the public, and this story [...]
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    Posted: October 12, 2009, 6:08pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Shuler Draws a 2010 Challenger

    WLOS: News13 has learned that Hendersonville Mayor Greg Newman will enter the race for North Carolina’s 11th Congressional district. Mayor Newman, a republican, was elected in 2005, and his term ends in December. He previously announced he would not seek a second term. [...]
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    Posted: October 12, 2009, 11:50am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • This Week: Forums A’Plenty

    Last week brought heapin’ helpin’s of political drama in the Asheville City Council election. Cecil Bothwell mobilized his voters and came in first place in the primary. My own grassroots campaign surprised many in the political establishment by coming in a solid second, only 145 votes behind Cecil. Esther Manheimer [...]
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    Posted: October 11, 2009, 8:57pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Sunday Morning Music (Coming Down)

    Johnny Cash covering one of Kris Kristofferson’s finest. [...]
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    Posted: October 11, 2009, 10:40am EDT
    by Admin Hooligan

  • It’s The Least We Could Do

    This morning’s New York Times editorial critiques the Senate Finance Committee’s health reform bill (the Baucus bill) to be voted on this week. The Times finds little to recommend, including its lack of a public plan. The Baucus bill was the focus of conservative rage – and the whole of [...]
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    Posted: October 11, 2009, 1:43am EDT
    by Tom Sullivan

  • Bike Story

    This video documents how Boulder, Colorado planned for multimodal transportation and implemented a high-functioning bike system. Let’s learn these lessons and make it happen here in Asheville. [...]
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    Posted: October 10, 2009, 6:30am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Kelly Miller Bows Out of City Council Race

    UPDATE – Ashvegas uploaded this video to YouTube. Mr. Miller announces his withdrawal. From Mr. Miller’s website: “At noon today, I announced my withdrawal as a candidate in the race for Asheville’s City Council. I will, however, continue to serve on City Council through the completion of my current term, which ends [...]
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    Posted: October 09, 2009, 12:27pm EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • Friday Open Thread: Big Voices

    Good morning, Hooligans.   I hope to see some of y’all out and about this weekend.  I’ll be at Blue Ridge Pride from 5-7pm tomorrow, and speaking from the main stage at 6.  The festival takes place from Noon ’til 9 at MLK, Jr. Park on the east side of downtown.  [...]
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    Posted: October 09, 2009, 9:18am EDT
    by Gordon Smith

  • EPA to Cap DDT Hot Spot in Palos Verdes Superfund Site

    The EPA plans to spend $50 million on a project that will “cap” or cover a hot spot within a DDT laden ocean deposit off the Palos Verdes Peninsula near Los Angeles.  The Palos Verdes Shelf was made an official EPA Superfund site in 1996.  The accumulation of DDT on [...]
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    Posted: October 08, 2009, 7:59am EDT
    by writ of summons

  • Local Dems Back Public Option

    Saw this at the Progressive Pulse: the Progressive States Network — a fabulous organization that works to educate legislators and the public about progressive policy at the state level — has asked state legislators across the country to sign a letter supporting health care reform including a nationally-available public health [...]
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    Posted: October 07, 2009, 8:46pm EDT
    by Doug Gibson
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