I don’t understand people who have compassion for dogs, but little respect for people.

Dog-owners often do not obey the local leash laws. I don’t think it’s cute to be jumped on or slobbered on.

My child was terrified while walking in Bent Creek, when a dog knocked her down and took her peanut-butter-and-jelly sandwich. 

Dogs running free chase game. My friend was bitten. Dogs should not have more rights than people. If I did these things, I’d be in jail.

Some of the things you find if you don’t limit information searches to supporting your own beliefs.

The proponents of evolution over creation are many times citing the obvious errors in the Bible and one of the biggest is “The earth could have not been created in a single week. It has taken billions of years.”

However in the March 22 issue (of the Asheville Citizen-Times) we find an article (scientific) concerning the universe and the Big Bang Theory.

From evidence recently discovered it would appear that not a single planet, but entire visible portion of the universe exploded, cooled and expanded faster than the speed of light in less than a single second. Just what could have been done with remaining 604,799 seconds left in that week?

Evolution and creation are not mutually exclusive as we are finding more and more each day.

Question: Does the Bible, written by man, but maybe, inspired by God the Creator, have some scientific basis?

Utter destruction termed certain if U.S. fails to get right with God

 EDITOR’S NOTE: The following letter began with this assertion: “Answer to Lee Ballard’s steam-release valve, which worked instead of blowing this up.” Ballard writes an opinion column for the Daily Planet and this letterwas in reference to his essay in the March edition.

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Whether or not (Daily Planet columnist) Lee Ballard and others of like-minded viewpoints disagree, the truth remains, our United States is a democratic-republic-form of government, birthed by a Christian, biblical-minded, gentle-minded people.

 His statement, “I’m ready for pitchforks and torches” is the wrong attitude.

 I am of the conservative Republican standpoint. I, too, along with millions of others, see the wrong path the Republicans are on.

 Example, the first thing on their things-to-do list? Put in financial raises for all their elite politcians. This is nationwide. No backbone, guts or honesty to do what their platform stated. More corruption going on by both parties daily. Tell lies to cover it up.

 To save our United States from the dictatorship of England and to end up with what we’ve got (a freedom-based nation), we had to have the war for indendence. 

 The only thing that will stop us from a nosedive into self-destruction is Prayer Power, along with repentence for our nation’s sinful ways, which are getting worse every day.

 The alternative?

 Destruction by the creator God.

Educator’s comments on classes for autistic? Mean

It is a fact that one in every 88 children will be diagnosed with autism and one in every 54 males. That percentage is just unreal.

Maybe there are some individuals that are still unaware of these vital statistics. I am the grandmother of an autistic grandson of whom I am very proud of.

Recently certain statements where brought to my attention made by an educator in your city. The statements I took offense to and just would like the public to be aware of such prejudice and small-minded people in this world, holding positions they should not be holding.

Upon a conversation with the educator regarding autistic children in his school, of which there are NO classes, his first comment was: “I guess we should place a Statue of Liberty out in front of our school.” The second comment was: “We only accept healthy children in our school.”

When comments such as above are voiced, maybe the person should take a look at the big picture and think before speaking. As an educated person he needs to be reprimanded for his actions and comments.

 EDITOR’S NOTE: Sterner’s grandson lives in Asheville.

‘Top-free’ organizer says Mumpower right on issue

I want to thank Carl Mumpower for his response to my (March 12) email. I agree with him that it is wrong to change a state law based on perceived problems in just one city.

However, local ordinances are subject to the same federal laws as the state. A local ordinance based on gender must pass the same constitutional tests as does the state of North Carolina. The local ordinances for Wilmington and Waynesville, for example, were passed prior to 1971, but their public indecency ordinances are clearly unconstitutional.

The year 1971 is important because that is the year that the Supreme Court of the U.S.A. began interpreting the 14th Amendment Equal Protection Clause to include gender and sexual orientation ( See Reed vs. Reed 1971).

N.C. State Reps. (Tim) Moffitt and (Rayne) Brown erroneously quote the Supreme Court ruling on Fly (1998). This ruling was not about public indecency pertaining to “mooning” in public. The ruling, was instead, about the intent of mooning. “The defendant willfully exposed his private parts in the presence of a member of the opposite sex, apparently for the shock value of the act and its hoped — for effect on Ms. Glover.”

Thus the indecency exposure is held to depend on the intent and would not apply to a woman who is merely top-free, pursuing normal activities. This case was decided 15 years ago, yet no one in the entire state has officially raised issue with this ruling over that lengthy time period.

The top-free women in Asheville have pursued normal activities. The intent was to peacefully protest inequality in the interpretation and enforcement of public indecency law. That intent was written on the permit that I purchased. We verbalized this intent in our speeches during the event and those comments can easily be seen on many social media outlets. Our activities are clearly constitutional.

I believe that Dr. Mumpower and Mr. (Chad) Nesbitt are honorable men of principle. I don’t believe that the two of them would knowingly want an unconstitutional law to be purposely passed in order to temporarily stop women from their constitutionally protected top-free activities.   

EDITOR’S NOTE: Johnson, who bills himself as a “civil rights advocate,” was the organizer of last year’s GoTopless rally in downtown Asheville.

Dr. Tim Tyson’s very long response last month (in the Daily Planet) to my brief column made me think of Shakespeare, that Tyson “doth protest too much, methinks.”

I touched upon only two topics very narrow in scope, the Duke historian’s likely role in killing off the Vance-Aycock Dinner, and false publications to Duke students accusing Charles Aycock of leading a mob in Wilmington that committed arson, anarchy and murder.  His rebuttal (which rebutted nothing I said and supported much of it) ranged from pre-Civil War through conditions in North Carolina’s public schools today.  Dr. Tyson, who called me “cranky” because I questioned his objectivity, seems touchy about being challenged.  He should be.

Readers may search for “Dr Tim Tyson” on line and review critiques by others of his work and public posturing, and judge for themselves.

Families written about in “Blood Done Sign My Name” have presented a substantial criticism of that book.  While they have a personal interest, there is at least one impartial review of their study that deserves to be taken seriously.  Dr. Tyson’s public response to the Duke lacrosse scandal has met with significant criticism.  Readers may judge for themselves.

Duke student publications and blogs falsely published that Charles Aycock led the mob at Wilmington in November 1898,  which is completely refuted by the state’s Wilmington Race Riot Commission Report.  Dr. Tyson and Duke President Richard Brodhead were indifferent to their students’ exposure to lies about a former governor, libel the students would not have read were they not students at Duke.  Their defense seemed to be that it would be “censorship” for a historian and the school administration to see that their students know the facts.  However, -winner, Frank Barrows, former managing editor of The Charlotte Observer, to supervise its student newspaper when it went over the line in its reporting.  Which university had it right?

To his credit, Dr. Tyson played a part in achieving pardons for the Wilmington 10 late in the Governor Perdue administration.  These pardons were not based upon guilt or innocence (somebody did commit those crimes) but upon misconduct by the prosecution.  But Dr. Tyson has known for several years of false charges on his campus against a former governor, and has disdained to see the injustice right there under his eyes.  I thought justice was color blind. 

The N.C. Democratic Party will soon hold its Jefferson-Jackson Dinner, an annual fundraiser that honors two men who owned slaves.  I have no knowledge that Dr. Tyson ever had a problem with that, though he is hostile to a governor who did all in his power to educate children of slaves.

Is this objective, fair and balanced? How does he make these decisions?

The Republicans controlled both Houses of the state legislature and the governor’s office before the riot in 1898.  The legislature gave the governor power to appoint one half of the Wilmington City Council.

The Democrats sued to overturn the legislation and lost.  Imagine the anger today if Gov. Pat McCrory were given the power to appoint one half of the Asheville City Council.  Now after regaining that dominance more than a century later, the GOP legislature is taking over local governments again, water systems, airports, the structureof local government, etc.  And they are gutting our public schools.

And the Democrats will not even whisper Charles Aycock’s name.

 EDITOR’S NOTE; Former N.C. Gov. Charles Brantley Aycock was Jim Aycock’s great-grandfather’s brother.