Congressman G.K. Butterfield, a Wilson Democrat in his first term representing the 1st District, including northern Vance County and all of Henderson, took the driving cleanup tour of the city Thursday morning, then had lunch at Uptown Rose with Mayor Clem Seifert and other city representatives.
The heat is on for city management
City Manager Eric Williams could be in for a rough Monday evening if a radio audience Wednesday morning was representative of city residents’ reaction to Henderson disappearing fund balance.
Opinion: WIZS does us all a favor
WIZS-AM proprietor John Rose deserves the thanks of Hendersonians for dedicating an entire edition of “Town Talk” to the difficult topic of the city’s financial problems Wednesday.
The LGC speaks
The following is the text of the two-page letter sent from the state Local Government Commission to the Henderson city government in response to the fund balance problem documented by the audit for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2004. The letter was sent on the official stationery of State and Local Government Finance Division and the Local Government Commission of the Department of State Treasurer, a Council of State post held by Kittrell-area resident Richard Moore.
Embassy at heart of city budget hole, state finds
North Carolina’s Local Government Commission has spoken in response to Henderson’s fiscal crisis, and it has found problems with Embassy Square, tax collections and the fund balance.
Opinion: Let’s go all in
Gov. Mike Easley renewed his flirtation with an “education lottery” during his State of the State address Monday, but the feeling here is that he’s chasing the wrong form of gambling.
An appropriate path to cleanup cash
It would cost somewhere between $300,000 and $900,000 to eliminate abandoned houses in Henderson (an estimated 150 houses at $2,000 to $6,000 apiece). After a work session Tuesday morning, the Clean Up Henderson Committee has a strategy for getting some or all of that money in Raleigh.
Opinion: Medicaid key to state of this county
Gov. Mike Easley’s State of the State address offered much to cheer and much to jeer, but the most important thing for Vance County may have been a word he never used: Medicaid.
Butterfield to visit South Henderson
Rep. G.K. Butterfield will follow in the footsteps of predecessor Frank Ballance and 2nd District colleague Bob Etheridge by riding around Henderson this week.
Cleanup committee goes for gold
The Clean Up Henderson Committee seized the initiative Wednesday in legislative lobbying on behalf of the city.
Forum to address audit questions
Hendersonians will get a chance to help dissect city finances at a special forum before the City Council’s regular meeting Feb. 28.
Opinion: Time for a plan
At the very least, the City Council forum planned for Feb. 28 will launch the public phase of the city’s budget process much earlier this year, and that’s a good thing.
‘The Whole Equation’
“The Whole Equation: A History of Hollywood” by David Thomson: This is the sad, true tale of a movie critic falling out of love and blaming the object of his fading ardor, Hollywood. He shares those feelings in the introduction to his “The New Biographical Dictionary of Film” and expounds on the theme in this 400-page essay. He movingly mourns the loss of quality in favor of ever-advancing digital wizardry. Thomson’s title comes from a passage in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s …
“Survive!” by Peter DeLeo: The author gives a first-person account of how he crashed his bush plane in a forested area of the Sierra Nevada in late November 1994 and hobbled into a diner 30 miles away 12 days later. It’s an unbelievable mountain journey without maps, trails, food, shelter or proper clothing as DeLeo faces waist-deep snow drifts, freezing temperatures that plummeted at night, a blizzard, steep climbs and a bear — all with a shattered left ankle, a …
“Savage Summit” by Jennifer Jordan: This tortured tale follows five women through extraordinary achievements and cataclysmic failures in their pursuit of the world’s second-highest peak, K2 in the Himalayas. Until last summer, they were the only women to stand atop the 28,268-foot mountain; they also had been dead at least six years. That last fact is just one insurmountable obstacle for Jordan in her quest to expose the sexist world of mountain climbing and its forgotten heroines. The former National …
‘The Longest Winter’
“The Longest Winter” by Alex Kershaw: The 99th Infantry Division’s 394th Regiment’s Intelligence and Reconnaissance Platoon had 18 men dug in above Lanzerath on Dec. 16, 1944, when a German thrust through the Ardennes slammed into the Belgian town at the start of the Battle of the Bulge. Kershaw follows the platoon’s desperate fight and the soldier’s exploits until the end of the war in Europe five months later. The Americans, at the front only a month and in Lanzerath …
“It’s Only a Movie: Alfred Hitchcock — A Personal Biography” by Charlotte Chandler: Alfred Hitchcock focused on entertainment rather than art, yet he won more acclaim from the public and his peers than did a genius like Orson Welles. Hitchcock often reminded people that “it’s only a movie,” supplying the ideal title for this affectionate biography. Chandler describes each film but doesn’t critique Hitchcock’s work or thinking. Instead, she creates an extended newspaper profile, with lengthy quotes from the man, …
‘The Great Movies II’
“The Great Movies II” by Roger Ebert: This is an essential reference for movie lovers. It’s not a list of the best leftovers from 2002’s “The Great Movies,” but a selection of works worthy of admiration and, except for “The Birth of a Nation,” repeated viewing. Ebert’s infectious passion fills the 100 essays, ranging from the silent classic “The Last Laugh” to the musical mockumentary “This Is Spinal Tap.” It’s a joy to relive “A Christmas Story” and an education …
‘The Fellowship of the Ring’
“The Fellowship of the Ring” by J.R.R. Tolkien: The first part of the “Lord of the Rings” trilogy was a good book. I definitely think every home should have a copy or three of this book. It is about a hobbit named Frodo who inherits a dark ring from his uncle. With help from his friends, Frodo realizes that he must destroy the ring. A fellowship of nine — Frodo and three other hobbits, two men, a wizard, a dwarf …
‘Despite the System’
“Despite the System: Orson Welles Versus the Hollywood Studios” by Clinton Heylin: Orson Welles earned a place in Hollywood history as the flawed genius who created the most critically acclaimed movie of all time, “Citizen Kane,” then couldn’t live up to his own legend for the rest of his career. Heylin aims to counter critics such as Pauline Kael and Simon Callow, who blame Welles for his unfulfilled potential. Heylin sees Welles as an innovative artist for whom “Citizen Kane” …