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        {mosimage}Today’s music has a wide range of styles and influences. Some of it can be over the top. If you long to spend a quiet evening relaxing to music that makes sense and tells a story, then you don’t have to look any further than the Givens Performing Arts Center on the campus of The University of North Carolina at Pembroke.
        Each year Givens puts on one of the best shows in town when it brings its Nostalgia Series to the stage. This year’s series opened in September with the incomparable Glenn Campbell, and continues on Friday, Oct. 17, with the Commodores.
        The band formed at Tuskegee Institute in 1968, and went on to become one of the biggest funk and soul bands in the ‘70s and ‘80s. The group is best known for its ballads, “Remember,” “Easy” and “Three Times a Lady?” Those mellow sounds launched many a romance and were the centerpiece of a number of weddings.
        But just as the band could mellow you out, they can also rock you out — with hits like “Brick House,” “Say Yeah,” and “Too Hot Ta Trot.” “Machine Gun” the instrumental title track from the band’s debut album, became a staple at American sporting events, and is similarly featured in many films, including Boogie Nights and Looking for Mr. Goodbar. Another instrumental, “Cebu” (named after an island in the Philippines), later became a staple in the Quiet Storm format. Three albums released in years 1975 and 1976 (Caught in the Act, Movin’ On, Hot On The Tracks) are considered the peak of their harder funk period. After those recordings the group started to move towards softer sound.
        Originally known as The Jays, the band changed names over confusion with the O’Jays. To get their new name, they opened a dictionary and pointed. Band member William King noted, that it was sheer luck that the band wasn’t called the Commodes.
        The band is much different today than it was in its heyday; popular front man Lionel Richie left the band in the early ‘80s, and today, only two original members — Clyde Orange and William “WAK” King” — remain. The band performs 50 concerts a year, always to a sold-out house.
        The show at Givens begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $40, $38, $20* / $12 child or student,
    $5 UNCP student and $15 for faculty or staff. For more information, visit the Givens Web site at www.uncp.edu/gpac/nostalgia.

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        “Step inside my house Babe / I’ll sing for you a song / I’ll tell you ‘bout where I’ve been / It shouldn’t take too long / I’ll show you all the things I own / My treasures you might say / Couldn’t be more’n ten dollars worth / But they brighten up my day.”
     — “Step Inside This House,” Guy Clark

        There’s a time capsule on Arsenal Avenue.
        It’s a white, Victorian mansion with its 13 rooms decorated as if the residents of the home simply disappeared on a cool fall day in 1917, leaving the artifacts and artifices of their existence untouched and unchanged for these 91 years — a child’s rag doll; a boy’s tin bugle; a Bible containing a lock of hair serving as a book mark in Acts. Lean in … listen to the old black-and-white photos lining the walls, speaking of days spent on the front porch watching the young men march off to the Great War, or carriages parading down Fayetteville streets when horse power really meant horse power.{mosimage}
        On Oct. 10-11, the public will get a glimpse into these days gone by when the Museum of The Cape Fear sponsors the 10th anniversary of the opening of the historic Poe House; the event will be from 1-5 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., on Saturday. Activities will include refreshments and games, crafts and cooking demonstrations. Admission is free.
        The Fayetteville landmark, built in 1897 by brick maker and former local politician E.A. Poe — a time also of unrest and inequity. The Poe House – donated to the state in 1987 and now a part of the Museum of the Cape Fear Historical Complex — is preserved with period-correct furniture and fixings from the 20-year period of 18 — full of memories come to life.
        “The house is a wonderful vehicle to interpret a time period,” says Bleazey, the Poe House’s education coordinator. “A hugely transitional time period … It’s a wonderful opportunity to talk about local servitude in a Jim Crowe era and women’s rights and the availability of education and employment opportunities for them.
        “And it’s a great old house full of ‘antiquey’ things,” adds Bleazey. “Everybody says ‘I remember or my mom remembers’ castor oil and chamber pots. It’s like a trip down memory lane for them.”
    Recently, one of those travelers was a member of the Poe family. Bleazey says one of the Poe’s granddaughters, now 93, sat on a sofa in the parlor and took a journey back to her childhood — a trip that gave some insight into the eating habits of Mr. Poe.
        “There were times she just glazed over and she was in that parlor as a young girl, sitting with whom she called ‘Mama and Papa Poe,’” said Bleazey. “And her voice got really deep and she said, ‘Oh, Papa Poe was so fat.’”
        A walk through the huge and well-stocked historic kitchen located separately from the main house — to protect the house from both the threat of fire and the oppressive heat generated by the leviathan black iron stove — gives gravity to Mr. Poe’s roundness, just as a trip through the daughters’ room gives depth to the connection between today’s modern teen and the blossoming divas of yesteryear.
        {mosimage}“We don’t have docents dressed in period-correct clothing doing guided tours,” said Bleazey, relating information about a recent school field trip. “You get to walk right in that room, which is very different from say, the Biltmore House, where rooms are roped off or there is Plexiglas to block you off.
        “We walked into the girls’ room and I told the children to look around, you might think you have nothing in common with these girls from 100 years ago, but look there’s a dresser — I bet you’ve got a dresser,” said Bleazey.  “You don’t have a fireplace, but what you do have is probably similar to what these children had almost 100 years ago. It takes history off the pages of a textbook and they (the children) can really see it for themselves.”
        For more information, contact the Museum of the Cape Fear at 486-1330.

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        Several years ago Dr. Eric Mansfield left the Army and started his private ENT practice in Fayetteville. Mansfield and his then partner, Dr. Edward Dickerson, agreed that they needed to give something back to the community. They were committed to the idea to offer a hand to others — and that commitment was the impetus for the start of the Fathers Foundation.
        The foundation, formed three years ago, offers scholarships to those who otherwise might not have the opportunity to continue their education. Since its inception, the foundation has helped a number of individuals — individuals like a high school student whose parents — one who was in prison, the other who was on crack — attend school. That young man was living in an apartment, taking care of his siblings and working a job. His drive and determination to succeed are what the foundation is all about.{mosimage}
        “None of us make it on our own,” said Mansfield. “We’ve all gotten a hand from someone. Fayetteville has been so kind and generous to myself and my family, so I feel obligated to help someone else.”
        During the first year of the foundation’s existence, the board awarded $10,000 in scholarships. This year, the third year, $30,000 will be given away. The scholarships are for all four years of a student’s education. Students must maintain a 3.0 grade point average to maintain their scholarship. But it isn’t just about giving money. During the school year Mansfield stays in contact with the students to encourage them, to let them know they aren’t in it alone. “We try to develop a relationship with them, so they know someone is rooting for them,” said Mansfield.
        He explained that the scholarships are awarded to people who have a compelling need and a compelling desire to succeed. “If a person has a 4.1 GPA, a strong family support system and scholarships out the wazoo, they will never get our scholarship,” said Mansfield. “We look at people who have financial difficulties. We look at their grades, other circumstances and a personal interview. We look at those compelling stories.”
        In addition to funding those scholarships, the Fathers Foundation also strives to bring a unique entertainment to the community at least once a year. This year the foundation is proud to present “Ballet Identity — Celebrating Individuality through Dance” on Oct. 10 and 11 at the Cape Fear Regional Theatre.
    Mansfield is excited about the ballet because it features a “homegrown” talent,” Monica Stephenson. “This is a local girl who has done well,” he said. “She attended the local dance schools — schools where people are told they’ll never make it. But she did. She has one of those compelling stories you never hear about. And she wants to come back and find more exceptional people and help them do well.”
        Stephenson, the daughter of local physician Dr. Shelby Stephenson and Alice Stephenson, has performed with the Los Angeles Ballet, the Dance Theatre of Harlem, the Washington Ballet, Ballet Black in London, Ballet New York and the Pennsylvania Ballet. She received her training from the Houston Ballet Academy and the North Carolina School of the Arts. She will be joined by a number of other talented dancers, many of whom she met at the N.C. School of the Arts.
        Tickets for the VIP reception and performance on Friday, Oct. 10, are $50. Tickets for the show only on Saturday are $25. Group discounts are available for the show on Saturday, Oct.11. For ticket information, please visit w or call (910) 574-8029.

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        {mosimage}Oktoberfest at Fort Bragg is a Fayetteville tradition. The 10-day fair brings the community out in droves to celebrate the cooler weather, and of course, the spectacle of the fair.
        The 2008 OKTOBERFEST, held at the Fort Bragg Fairgrounds will be held Oct. 9-19. The fair combines some really great things: rides, food, music and people. It’s a not to be missed good time.
        The OKTOBEFEST has at its center food — lots and lots of food. And, taking a looking at the name of the fair, it’s pretty obvious that a lot of the food will have a German flair. For those of you who crave sausages and kielbasa, you’re sure to leave with a smile on your face.
        Giving yet another nod to its namesake, there is the inevitable Beer Garden. Just remember, you are not in Europe, so you must be 21 to enjoy the adult beverages.
        If you really want to get a natural high, take a spin on one of the many rides that dot the fairgrounds. There are unlimited rides with the price of admission, which makes the fair one of the most economical events  in town.
    So we’ve covered, food and rides — now there’s music. The fair is known for its diverse live musical offerings, with this event focusing on a numbef of the talented musicians who call Fayetteville home.
        On Thursday, Oct. 9, the Holtz Hackren Band, a German band, will take to the stage at 7 and 9 p.m. On Friday, Oct. 10, the Soul Shakers, a variety band, will be on stage at 7 and 9 p.m.
        The Fifth, one of the area’s most popular rock bands, will put on three shows on Saturday, Oct. 11 at 5, 7 and 9 p.m. Sunday will pay tribute to country music, with Craig Boyd and Southland hitting the stage at 3, 5 and 7 p.m. Music resumes on Thursday, Oct. 1, with Dan Speller and his Bluespell blues band at 7 and 9 p.m. On Friday, the Time Machine Band is on stage at 3, 5 and 7 p.m. Morris Cardenas will rock the fairgrounds on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 5, 7 and 9 p.m. the Holtz Hackren Band will wind up the musical offerings on Sunday, Oct. 19 with three shows — 3, 5 and 7 p.m.
        The fairgrounds are publicly accessbile to the public from Bragg Boulevard via Howell Street. Gates open at 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Columbus Day (Monday, Oct. 13).
        Take advantage of Customer Appreciation Days, Mondays through Thursdays, 5-7 p.m. with admission at $5 for ages 3 and over. Children under 2 are admitted free of charge throughout the fair, and there is no charge for parking.
    Admission prices are as follows: Monday to Thursday, $5 for entrance between 5-7 p.m.; $10 general admission; $8 children ages 3-9; $8 military and Department of Defense civilians; $5 for handicapped invidividuals, seniors and non riders.
        Admission Friday to Sunday is $14 general admission; $12 children ages 3-9; $12 military and DoD Civilians; and $5 for handicapped invidividuals, seniors and non riders.
        For more information, call 396-9126 or 396-6126.

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        Relive favorite Disneyland® memories when Disney/Pixar’s The Incredibles meet Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse and other beloved Disney characters while experiencing famed Disneyland attractions like the Haunted Mansion, “It’s a Small World” and Pirates of the Caribbean in the Disney On Ice spectacular, a Disneyland Adventure.
        A Disneyland Adventure, a one-of-a-kind, action-packed production, produced by Feld Entertainment, visits Fayetteville from Oct. 23 - 26 for six performances at the Crown Coliseum.
        {mosimage}As the park gates open, Disney characters fill the arena with excitement. Audiences swing with Baloo through the Jungle Cruise, fly like a space ranger through Space Mountain® with Buzz Lightyear and accompany Snow White and Cinderella during the Main Street USA® parade.  And just when things get a little too crazy, audiences help everyone’s favorite super family — The Incredibles — save the day. Disney on Ice is a fun family-oriented event that is sure to steal the hearts of children of all ages.
        Tickets for Disney On Ice presents a Disneyland Adventure are $13.50 to $19.50 for reserved seats and $26.50 to $36.50 for VIP and Rinkside seating and are on sale now. Group and military discounts are available. All seats excluding VIP and rinkside are only $12 for opening night. Additional fees may apply.
        Tickets may be purchased at the Crown Center Box Office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com or by calling (910) 223-2900. The Crown Center main box office is located at the Crown Coliseum and is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
        Showtimes: Thursday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.; Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 25 at 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.; Sunday, Oct. 26 at 2 p.m.
     

     

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        For 37 years, Fayetteville’s Vance Neal has battled the gas wars. {mosimage}
        The founder of Short Stop Food Marts, Neal possesses a perspective on the volatile nature of gas prices few men can boast. With 51 stores under his rein, he has an intimate knowledge of the ebb and flow at the pumps; and with more than three decades of retail experience, he has a very simple message for consumers who see red when they trade wads of green for precious gasoline: There’s no gouging on his watch.
        Neal recently opened his books to Up and Coming Weekly to show just how little profit his Short Stop convenience stores are making on inflated gas prices. Neal’s own records show that during the month of July, the Short Stop franchise sold approximately 2 million gallons of gasoline to consumers — yet made a profit of just 2.5 cents per gallon.
        “The general public, if you ask how them how much we make per gallon, I have heard in the neighborhood of 30 cents per gallon,” said Neal, speaking from his Arsenal Avenue office. “I don’t ever remember making 30 cents per gallon. The retailers, generally speaking, are reputable businessmen in the community and they are not out to gouge anyone.”
        When Hurricane Ike swept through the Gulf of Mexico in early September, threatening this nation’s oil supply, retailers across the nation raised prices sharply — some charging as much as $6 a gallon. Here in North Carolina, Gov. Mike Easley declared a state of “abnormal market disruption” and signed an order allowing Attorney General Roy Cooper to enforce the state’s anti-gouging law.
        The Consumer Protection Division of the attorney general’s office issued 26 subpoenas demanding information from gas stations in Cumberland, Buncombe, Craven, Guilford, McDowell, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Anson, Ashe, Cherokee, Stanley, Transylvania and Yadkin counties asking them to explain why their prices were so high — these retailers reportedly sold gas for as high as $5.35 a gallon. Cooper’s office has received more than 4,300 complaints of gouging since Sept 12. The Circle B in Fayetteville was among those subpoenaed, reportedly selling regular gas for $5.49 following the hurricane.
        Neal refused to call out his competitor for gouging, saying the store’s owner may have simply “panicked.”
    Neal says that generally, when he gets a price increase from one of his fuel suppliers, he receives it in the form of a fax. On the day that Hurricane Ike hit, he received a fax from one of the companies showing the next load would cost $4.80 a gallon, plus 52 cents for road tax.
        “So, if we’d bought that product and put it in our locations and then in a few days didn’t sell that product, we would have had to drop our prices to meet the competition, otherwise, we would have sat there with a price out of the market,” said Neal. “And that’s generally the way the market works around Fayetteville.
        “We price according to the competition,” said Neal. “Locally, I noticed there was one competitor that went out of the market. He, being a small independent man, probably panicked. I know of one retailer from another city who got the same letter (from the fuel supplier) who said ‘I’m not going to buy it.’ He put bags on his pumps and just went home. He said he wasn’t going to ask his customers to pay that kind of price.”
    Neal said he and most other local retailers “sweated it out,” waiting for the prices to go down — which they eventually did.
        Neal said another factor adding to the hike in gas prices is the consumer, who he says also goes into a “panic” mode when there is a gas crunch.
            “People panicked and you had lines all over town,” said Neal. “In fact, the day that I had to go out of town, they were backed up in the streets buying and topping off. That creates a problem.”
            The demand got so high, in fact, that The Pantry posted signs at its 1,600-plus gas stations in 11 Southeastern states asking customers to pump only 10 gallons of gas each.
        Neal says that he’s just as upset as the consumer over the seemingly arbitrary price hikes in gasoline, but he says don’t blame the local retailer; instead, cast your eyes toward the real culprit: Big Oil.
        “About five years ago, when they (the oil companies) were buying each other out they eliminated all their competition,” said Neal. “So they can pretty much do what they want to. You haven’t got 12 fighting for the market share — you’ve got six, so they can do pretty much what they want to as far as pricing.”
        Neal says you also have to look at other factors affecting the cost of gas, such as the state and federal taxes on fuel. The nationwide average tax on gasoline is 47 cents per gallon. The federal tax on gasoline is 18.4 cents per gallon. The average state gasoline excise tax is about 18.2 cents per gallon. Other taxes add 10.4 cents per gallon to the average tax on gasoline. These other taxes include applicable sales taxes, gross receipts taxes, oil inspection fees, underground storage tank fees and other miscellaneous environmental fees. Adding these taxes and fees to the state excise taxes results in a volume-weighted average state tax of 28.6 cents per gallon. North Carolina has the 15th highest gas tax in the nation at 48 cents a gallon; California is first at 64 cents, while our neighbor, South Carolina, ranks 47th  at 35 cents a gallon.
        And then there are the credit card fees. Neal said VISA and MasterCard tack on approximately a 2 percent fee per gallon of gas.
        “So, if you got a $4 price for fuel, we have to give 8 cents a gallon to the credit card company,” said Neal.
        As far as the pricing among individual retailers, Neal explained that at each Short Stop, supervisors, or “runners,” travel the area to see what the competitors are charging, then report back to the home office.
        “We have to meet competition,” said Neal. “When it gets in a crunch, the shortage is chaotic and people don’t shop for gas — they’ll pay whatever is put on the pump. But that’s a situation where we (the retailers) have to live here and we’re going to have these customers for a long, long time. So we don’t want to make them mad … We try to do what is reasonable.”

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        My parents were both young children during the years of the Great Depression. I am not sure how much they actually remembered about it, but a few things they related still stand out in my mind. Both remembered people coming to their homes, one in Fayetteville and one in Kinston, begging for work. Sometimes men and women with children came begging for food. My grandmothers apparently kept some provisions in their pantries for this purpose. Both my parents remembered their fathers, one a physician and one an attorney, taking produce, chickens and other foodstuffs in payment for their professional services.{mosimage}
        By they time my parents grew up, married and were joined by my sister and me, the Great Depression was long past, and we were a young family of the 1950s and ‘60s. I do not remember anyone ever begging at our door. The Depression, though, clearly marked my parents. My sister and I probably did not understand why at the time, but we did chuckle behind our father’s back when he followed us from room to room in our house turning off the lights if no one was there. Even before there was a hint of an energy shortage, he jealously guarded the thermostat, lest anyone turn the heat up too high or the air conditioning down too low. Our mother had her own ways of economizing. My sister and I were probably teenagers before we realized that not every mother thought of spaghetti sauce as a way to use refrigerator leftovers.
        We thought all families had peas and carrots in their sauce.
        The words “Great Depression” have been tossed around quite a bit in recent weeks, as the world watched the United States recognize and try to come to terms with our financial crisis. It has been an agonizing process as Americans of my generation see our retirements go poof and young people see their dreams postponed. Many of us have some idea about what went wrong - “toxic” mortgages and other debt, frozen credit markets and the like, but almost no one, it seems, has an acceptable fix. No American wants to go any further into debt to foreign nations, but neither do we want to see our nation’s economy grind to a halt, with the inevitable job losses and vanishing resources.
        I do not think we are on the verge of another Great Depression. I think we learned a good bit from the first one and put instruments in place, like the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), to shield us from the worst consequences.
        At the same time, we did not learn enough — or maybe we just forgot — the lessons of human greed.
    Before the stock market crash of 1929, the United States did not have many business regulations. Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, people made astonishing fortunes in the largely unregulated business world. After the financial devastation of 1929, our government did take steps to reel in the excesses of some business activities, and over time life slowly settled down.
        Times were good again with the economic growth that followed World War II, and my parents and their contemporaries raised my sister and me and millions of other Baby Boomers in relative prosperity. As we Boomers grew up and started our families, a cry went up for less government regulation of business and industry, and probably rightly so in many instances.
        The fabulous business successes and glittering fortunes made in the late 20th and early 21st centuries were generated in vastly different business arenas, but they have common origins in creativity, entrepreneurship, and little government interference. No one told the captains of industry in 1880 that their employees should work a 40 hour week, and no one told the financial wizards of 2000 that people should be credit worthy and be capable of making a down payment before they got a mortgage.
        So here we are again, stewing in our own economic juices.
    None of us, even those who think they do, really know how all this is going to turn out and certainly not when we are going to feel — and to be — secure again.
        As a Baby Boomer, I hope my Echos are paying attention.
        I hope they are receiving the message that almost nobody deserves salaries in eight or nine or more figures, that few markets should ever be completely “free,” and that there really is no such thing as a free lunch or a free mortgage.
        I hope they are learning to read the fine print of every document they sign and to find out about the things they do not understand.
        I hope they are learning that even the most careful planning and execution can be swept away by forces outside one’s control and that the only safety net in such situations is to pay close attention.
        This is my take for all the Echos whose lives are stretching out before them, but I did not experience the Great Depression firsthand.
        I wonder what my parents would say to all this.

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        Man’s best friend now has a big playground in Fayetteville. The Riverside Dog Park, operated by Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks & Recreation, is now open. The park is located at 355 N. Eastern Blvd, also known as U.S. 301, across from the Cape Fear Botanical Garden.
        {mosimage}Dogs can roam within 6 feet high fenced areas at the 5-acre park. Small dogs under 25 pounds have a playpen of their own with three benches for owners. Larger K-9s have two sections to gallivant in, one with six benches, another with three.
        Parks staff constructed and landscaped the park, which includes two bridges, one connecting the parking lot to the park and another between the two large dog spaces.
        A committee, called Bark for a Park, raised approximately $20,000 for the park construction. The committee did research on rules and regulations and the setup of the park.
        Judie Stoddard, committee chair, thanked Liliana Parker, the original committee chair and current committee member, for her work and said a petition signed by 900 people helped give the dog a bone, so to speak. The committee presented the petition to the Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks and Recreation advisory board along with their proposal.
        To get to the park: Citizens coming from downtown or western Fayetteville will access the park from N. Eastern Blvd/U.S. 301/Interstate 95 Business by turning right onto the service road at the entrance to the botanical garden and going under the bridge and around the U-shaped service road.
        Residents coming from the other direction, from Eastover, Wade and Godwin, turn right onto the service road and then make a left.
        Rules — When you get to the park, remember to abide by these rules:
        • The hours are from dawn to dusk;
        • All dogs must be legally licensed and have current vaccinations. Tags must be securely attached to the dogs collar;
        •Owners are liable for any injury or damage caused by their dog and are fully responsible for the actions of their dog;
        •Dogs must be at least four months old;
        •Dogs in heat or that are sick or injured are prohibited;
        •No animals other than dogs may be brought into the dog park;
        •All dogs outside the enclosed fenced area must be on a six-foot maximum leash;
        •Dog owners must carry a leash and remain inside the fenced area within view and voice command of their dogs at all times;
        •Dogs showing aggressive behavior must be removed immediately. Owners must immediately leash their dog and leave the park;
        •Excessive barking is prohibited. Dogs barking excessively must be removed from the dog park;
        •Owners must collect and dispose of all dog waste. On-site containers are provided;
        •Smoking and food are not allowed in the park;
        •No more than two dogs per person are allowed on any single visit;
        •No spiked, pronged, pinch or choke collars are allowed in park;
        •Children accompanying dog owners must be strictly supervised and at least 12 years old to be allowed inside the dog park. Spectators should remain outside the fenced area;
        •The small dog enclosure is for dogs weighing less than 25 pounds;
        •Fayetteville-Cumberland Parks and Recreation staff has the authority to close the park for maintenance, weather related problems, emergencies and special events;
        •For emergencies, call 911.
        For more information about the park, call Stoddard at 484-6619.

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        The North Carolina State Fair is one of the most anticipated events of the fall season. For two weeks, North Carolinians celebrate their farm heritage with rides, food and entertainment — lots of entertainment.
    The 2008 N.C. State Fair entertainment lineup will bring a mix of country music stars, an R&B singer, Christian rockers, a television chef, and a North Carolina native to the stage in Dorton Arena.
        From Oct. 16 to Oct. 26, some of the world’s biggest music names will descend on North Carolina to provide the nightly entertainment at the fair.
        Kicking off the two weeks of entertainment is country singer Josh Turner. He will be joined later in the week by other country music stars, including Jason Aldean, Bucky Covington, Rodney Atkins, Joe Nichols and country mega stars Montgomery Gentry.{mosimage}
        Other performers include Christian rapper Toby Mac, Lady Antebellum and Heidi Newfield and Bobby Flay.
        Contemporary Christian singer Toby Mac will hit the stage on Saturday, Oct. 18, and will perform some of his biggest hits.
        World-renowned chef Bobby Flay will add some extra spice to the entertainment mix on Monday, Oct. 20. The host of  Throwdown! With Bobby Flay and Boy Meets Grill with Bobby Flay will be cooking up some culinary treats on stage in Dorton Arena.
        Rockingham native and American Idol finalist Bucky Covington will show his unique country-rock flair on Tuesday, Oct. 21. Covington will perform hits off his debut album, including “A Different World” and “It’s Good to Be Us.”
        Smooth R&B singer Mario, who appeared on Dancing with the Stars this year, will perform Thursday, Oct. 23, and Christian rock groups Skillet and Leeland will take the stage Friday, Oct. 24.
    All shows begin at 7:30 p.m. and doors open at 6:30 p.m.
        Tickets to the concerts, held nightly in Dorton Arena, range in price from $10 to $32. Tickets can be purchased oneline only at  www.ncstatefair.org through the start of the fair. Any concert tickets remaining after the start of the fair can be purchased at the Dorton Arena box office. Remaining tickets will likely be limited, so purchasing online and in advance is recommended. Tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 10.
        If you decide to take in one of these great concerts, plan on making a day of your visit to Raleigh and enjoy all of the wonders of the fair. This year’s fair is bigger and better than ever.
        Tickets to the fair are $7 for adults; $2 for children 6-12; children 5 and under are free; senior adults (65-years-old and up) are also free. Tickets for the midway are $1 per ticket. Sheets of 18 tickets are $10.
        For more information, visit www.ncstatefair.org.

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        Murder always makes for a fascinating story. It’s even better when it fleshes out some of America’s sordid history. Gilbert Theater’s opening production takes a look at those devilish folks who use guns rather than pens as a means of making history, i.e., the assassins of the Presidents of the United States of America.
        {mosimage}From John Wilkes Booth to Lee Harvey Oswald, creators Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman bend the rules of time and space, taking us on a rollercoaster ride in which assassins and would-be assassins from different historical periods meet, interact and ultimately inspire each other to harrowing acts in the name of the American Dream. In exploration of the dark side of the American experience, Assassins is bold, surreal, scary, yet still ridiculously funny.
    Director Marcela Casals is pleased with the outcome of the production. The feeling is that though the subject matter is dark, just when you think the play is belly up (pun intended) it slices a smile across your face from its sick wit.
        Originally, Sondheim and Weidman intended to explore the lives of assassins throughout history beginning with Brutus and Julius Caesar. Considering the massive number of murderers in history, they became overwhelmed and realized it better to shorten their scope. As the project developed, their task soon became clear — to dramatize the unpopular thesis that the most notorious killers in our culture are as much a product of that culture as the famous leaders they attempt and successfully murder.
        Casals noted that “It’s very funny, but it’s very dark,” said Casals. “Sondheim is very good at putting two things completely opposite each other together.”
        She said the play gives the audience the opportunity to see inside the heads of some very mad individuals. She explained that many of these individuals were either depressed or confused, while others thought they were doing a service to the country.
        “Through this musical, you get to see inside their heads and see how they got to that point. There is a lot of humor, even though there is a lot of darkness.”
        She noted that each of these individuals thought they were going to change the course of history. For some, like Wilkes Booth and Oswald, their names have become pieces of the American lexicon. For others, they simply had their five minutes of fame and then slipped away.
        She said that she had gathered a “fabulous” cast of men and women to fill the ensemble and the leads. “Their voices just blend beautifully,” she said. “They just sound fabulous.”
        She cautioned that the play does have some offensive language, but hopes that it does not put people off from coming to a performance. “It’s a part of our history,” she said. “And we hope that high school students and others who have a love for history will come and see the show.”
        Tickets for the show are $12. The play opens Oct. 2-19. The theater is at 116 Green St., above Fascinate-U Children’s Museum. Call 678-7186 or e-mail gilberttheater@aol.com for more information.

  • Details
        It’s too easy to focus on what’s wrong with our schools, so the people in the Westover School District are taking time to celebrate what’s right with their schools and their students. On Saturday, Oct. 4, Westover High School will host the 7th Annual Westside Festival from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.  {mosimage}
        “The Westside Festival was started by John Smith, who was the principal of Westover High School before me,” said Mark Smith, the current principal. “The purpose of the event is to get the community involved by celebrating the successes of all the schools in the Westover School District.” 
    Smith added that the event was not held last year and his students questioned him about why the event was not taking place.
        “It is an event that they like and enjoy,” said Smith. “It was heartwarming for me to hear this from them.”        
        Community officials, Cumberland County school board members and political candidates will be in attendance at the event. The Board of Elections will register voters for the upcoming election. Health professionals will be onsite to check blood pressure and blood sugar levels.       
        “My goal is to let everyone in Cumberland County know that Westover is a positive place,” said Erica Fenner, administrative intern at Westover High School. “Our students and dedicated staff are highly involved and we have great things going on at our school.”  
        Vendors will be on hand to sell their food and wares. Westover’s school clubs will also have tables set up with face painting, storytelling and games for the children. Popcorn, snow cones, homemade items and candy will be for sale.  
    The Westover High School marching band and cheerleaders will also be performing at the event.
        {mosimage}“Singing acts scheduled to perform include David Leathers Jr., Westover students, recording artist Quenita Todd along with the group, Truly Anointed and Westover’s gospel choir,” said Fenner. “The Westover students will have a talent show at the festival.” 
        Poet Val Jones will read poetry. The Pink Kat cheerleaders and a group of recreational cheerleaders are also slated to perform. Raffle tickets will be sold and the winner will receive a brand new car.   
        “Our goal is to build a family collegial atmosphere,” said Smith. “We invite Cumberland County and the surrounding areas to come out and have a good time with the Westover District.”   
        The vendor fee is $40. There will be a mandatory vendor meeting on Thursday, Oct. 2 at 6 p.m. in the Westover High School Auditorium. For more information call 864-0190.

  • Details
        {mosimage}The Cape Fear Botanical Garden’s fifth annual Heritage Festival will take place on Sunday, Oct. 5, from 1–4 p.m. in the Heritage Garden Complex of Cape Fear Botanical Garden come rain or shine. 
    “The purpose of Heritage Festival is to educate visitors on typical farm lifestyles from 1880-1920,” said Angela Dennis, marketing and development officer of Cape Fear Botanical Garden.  “It helps us meet our mission of education and promoting the enjoyment of nature.”  
        The community festival includes a “travel back in time” theme that features exhibits and demonstrations depicting typical farm life from 1880-1920. With an expected attendance of 1,000 people, the festival has been a tremendous success the last four years.  Other activities include hands-on games and activities for all ages, hay rides, pony rides, barnyard animals, exhibits of farm machinery and agricultural demonstrations including corn, tobacco and peanuts. There will be tours of the 1886 farmhouse, old general store, old corn crib and tobacco barn. These historical buildings were donated to the gardens from a family in Eastover. 
        The games include checkers, an egg race, marbles, jump rope, rolling candles from beeswax, digging for peanuts, corn husk figure making, finger cotton spinning, washing clothes on a washboard and other activities that add to the fun of the festival. The children get to make things from the materials from this time period and take them home.         
        The most popular part of the festival is the pony rides.
        “We ask for a $1 donation for the pony ride,” said Dennis. “The kids  love to ride the pony.”
        Typical farm animals will be on display for the children to pet. Families will also have the opportunity to enjoy a hay ride around the garden.   
        The crafts of sewing, tatting, spinning and basketry will also be on display. Vendors will have their displays set up to teach the public about these different crafts.
        “They will teach the students how to do basketry,” said Dennis.
        The Parsons, a local group, will perform live bluegrass music for the event.  Hot dogs, chips, popcorn and soda will be for sale. 
        “This is a great family activity,” said Dennis. “It is an opportunity to teach children about farm living.”            
        Cape Fear Botanical Garden is on 79 acres located at 536 North Eastern Blvd. Founded in 1989, the garden now boasts more than 2,000 varieties of ornamental plants and has several specialty gardens, including camellia, day lily and hosta gardens. 
        Admission is $3-$5 for adults and free for children under 12. Garden members, AAA members and military personnel admission is $3. For more information or to volunteer for the event call 486-0221 or visit www.capefearbg.org. 

  • Details
        There’s a sorry old saying: “Those who can’t do, teach.”
        Well, Karen Koonce, Cumberland County’s 2008 Teacher of the Year, burns that ugly proverb down to the water line by involving students, parents and fellow teachers in a learning process that is certainly “can do.”
        “She is a really, really hard worker,” said Betty Musselwhite — Koonce’s boss, principal and “mentor” at VanStory Hills Elementary. “She soaks up everything that is around her to help students, and she shares with fellow teachers.”
        {mosimage}Koonce, who teaches third grade at VanStory Hills was chosen from a group of eight finalists last week at a ceremony held at the Crown Coliseum, where she said teaching is all about “empowerment.”
        “When we empower teachers, we empower children,” Koonce told an audience of educators and their families.
        Despite reaching the pinnacle of her craft, Koonce didn’t figure out she was going to be an educator until late in life. She attended Wake Forest University believing she wanted to become a pediatric oncologist. But then, she hit a wall... a wall made of test tubes and beakers and autoclaves.
        “I thought I would be an oncologist,” said Koonce, “but then I took an introductory chemistry course and changed my mind about following a career in medicine.”
        While studying education, Koonce said a pair of professors impressed her so much that she decided to teach elementary school. She later obtained a master’s degree in education leadership from George Mason University.
        Koonce, who has earned her certification from the National Board for Professional Teaching Standard,  began her journey as a teacher in Prince George County, Md., where she figured out from the start she had something in common with her students: “I realized I had a lot to learn. But it didn’t stop me... I just worked harder.”
        Koonce and the other 84 candidates for teacher of the year assembled portfolios and were interviewed by a selection committee that included last year’s winner, Vickie L. Ferguson, a math teacher at Seventy-First High School.
        Before the award presentation, Superintendent Bill Harrison had encouraging words for all the teacher-of-the-year candidates.
        Harrison said he can remember the names of all of his teachers from his school days in suburban Philadelphia, however, “I can’t for the life of me remember who the superintendent was,” he joked.
    But Harrison said teaching is much more difficult than when he broke in as a student teacher back in 1974 — coincidentally enough, at VanStory Elementary.
        “We didn’t have children coming to school with the baggage that they do today,” Harrison said. “We should celebrate what you do every day.”
        Koonce will move on to a regional competition, with an eye toward the awarding of North Carolina Teacher of the Year laurels next spring.
        As the Cumberland representative, Koonce will receive $500 from the county school system, another $200 from the county education foundation, a gift certificate to use at Cross Creek Mall, a commemorative ring, a plaque and flowers.
        First runner-up was Heather Kurtz of Cape Fear High School and second runner-up was Richard Bailey of Jack Britt High School.
        But perhaps the greatest prizes endowed up on Koonce are the love and respect of her students.
        “We had so much fun the day after I won the award,” said Koonce. “I gave them a homework pass and we had doughnuts and decorated the classroom. It was great.
        “I was just shocked by this award,” added Koonce. “And I love teaching here at Vanstory... I’m in the place every teacher deserves to be.”

  • Details
        Ghastly ghouls, murder trials and legendary ghosts … Yes, it’s that time of year again. The Fayetteville Dogwood Festival is kicking off its annual fundraiser, Historic Hauntings: A Ghastly Ghost Tour. Tour dates for this year’s historic hay ride will be Oct. 16, 17, 18 and 23, 24 and 25. Tractors will depart at 6:30 p.m., 7 p.m., 7:30 p.m., 8 p.m., 8:30 p.m., 9 p.m. and 9:30 p.m. on all six nights.
        Board the hay ride at Liberty Point — 145 Person St., and prepare to explore downtown Fayetteville’s eerie past. {mosimage}The hour-long tour features ghostly reenactors and storytellers highlighting the history of Fayetteville and the spooky legends of our past. This year’s hay ride includes stops at many of Fayetteville’s historic sites, including the Transportation Museum, the Market House and Cross Creek Cemetery. After the winding tour through downtown Fayetteville, you will return to the boarding site for the finale, which takes place in Fayetteville’s oldest commercial building, Liberty Point.  This hay ride is safe and exciting for passengers of all ages.
        Tickets are $15 and must be purchased in advance. Tickets will be on sale during 4th Friday and at the International Folk Festival for a reduced rate of $13 — just look for our booth at both events.

    Hallows Eve Cemetery Walk
        This year will also feature a onetime Cemetery Walk through Cross Creek Cemetery on Thursday, Oct. 30.  City Historian Bruce Daws will take those who are interested in learning more about the people and events that have happened in the cemetery on an hour-long walking tour. Tickets for this event are sold separately by calling the Dogwood Festival office at 323-1934 and specifying the Hallows Eve Cemetery Walk. Tickets for this event are $10 and walking tours begin at 7 p.m., with the last tour at 9 p.m. All proceeds for this particular event go to the restoration of Cross Creek Cemetery.    
        The Fayetteville Dogwood Festival is a community organization committed to providing a variety of family-centered activities held downtown and around town. This is done to entertain, promote new business, enhance a positive community image, attract visitors, share cultural and recreational opportunities of our community, encourage unity through the celebration of our diversity, promote the education of our rich history and foster civic pride.
        For more information or to purchase tickets, contact Zack May at 323-1934 or visit the Web site: www.faydogwoodfestival.com.

  • Details

        {mosimage}Down on the Cape Fear River, the staff at Campbellton Landing is gearing up to make its first big event the first of many memorable events at the historic landmark. The landing, which was created by the late Sol Rose, was purchased earlier this year by Kevin Summers, a Raleigh restauranteur. Summers has big plans for the property and he plans to unveil them this month.
        Campbellton Landing includes a restaurant, outdoor store, grill and amphitheater. Summers will put all of those assets to use when he unveils Truman’s Pumpkin Patch on Saturday, Oct. 4, and the restaurant mid-month.
    Truman’s Pumpkin Patch is a collaborative effort between Summers, the corporate offices of Kidsville News! — whose mascot Truman lends his name to the event — Cumberland County Communicare and Docks at the Capitol.
    The event, which is open every weekend throughout the month of October, is designed specifically for families, according to Summers.
        “It is a family-friendly event,” said Summers. He added that there are going to be multiple activities going on throughout the day — pony rides, inflatable bounce houses and slides and a hay ride. Each child who purchases a ticket will also receive a free pumpkin. In addition to the children’s events, there will be a farmer’s market offering the obvious pumpkins, other fall produce and mums.
        If you spend the day at the river and find yourself hungry, there will also be food on hand. “We will be serving burgers and hot dogs, snow cones, cotton candy and popcorn throughout the day,” he explained.
    Burgers and dogs are also on the menu at The Riverside Grill, which is a new addition to the property. The grill, which is located inside The Riverside Outdoor Store, will be opening within the next week. The grill will serve breakfast and lunch and an early dinner. Summers said the fare will be fresh and simple.
        While you’re taking a break from the activities, you can sit a spell in the amphitheater and listen to the entertainment that will be on stage daily. Music ranging from country to blues to folk will be an integral part of the pumpkin patch, and every day at 3 p.m. there will be a Pumpkin Carving Contest. The winner of the contest will receive a gift certificate to Dock’s at the Capitol.
        Summers said the hay ride will give folks a pretty good view of the development. The ride, about 15 minutes in length, will parallel the river down to Lock’s Creek, where it will wind around the creek before ending at the amphitheater.
    “We’re doing a lot to beautify what’s already here,” said Summers. “We are building a nature trail and clearing some areas. Our goal is to get people outside to enjoy the river with entertainment and family-friendly events. We believe this project is going to be a really great addition to the community.”
        Summers said he and his supporters see the project, which is only in its initial development, becoming a centerpiece for Fayetteville. “We think it will help grow the east side of downtown and give the community something to be very proud of,” he added.
        The word community comes quickly to Summers’ lips. That’s why he sought out community partners for this event. Cumberland County Communicare is the event’s nonprofit partner. The agency is selling tickets and is keeping a percentage of ticket sales to help fund its work in the community. “What they do in our community — for children who are in need of guidance and support — made a lot of sense to us, and we wanted them to be a part of this event,” said Summers.
        The partnership with Docks made a lot of sense as well. The two companies share a common audience, families, and a common mission, entertainment. “Docks wanted to get involved and they were willing to donate a $5 game card for every ticket purchased,” said Summers. “We see that as a great value, because families are really getting their tickets for $3 with the game card for use at a later date.”
        Valerie Jackson, of Docks, is excited about the event and the partnership. “This event is really exciting because it is for children. It’s for families and we are a family entertainment center,” said Jackson. “This is a way for us to reach out to our community. And we are glad to support the efforts at Campbellton Landing and happy to see them join our community.”
        Summers said this is only the first of many events at the landing. There will also be a Christmas-themed festival later this year. Next year, when the site is up and running, local residents can expect to see a full calendar of events at the landing with everything from concerts to plays to festivals. In all, organizers are expecting to put on 30 to 35 events.
        The event runs Saturday and Sunday throughout the month of October. On Saturdays, Truman’s Pumpkin Patch is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m, and on Sundays from noon to 5 p.m. Tickets are $8 and can be purchased in advance at the Riverside Outdoor Store, Docks or through Communicare.
        For more information, call Docks at 423-6257.

    {mosimage} 

  • Details
        News flash: You’re all rubes.
        At least, that is, every American who doesn’t drink the far left, liberal Democratic brand of socialist Kool-Aid and froth at the mouth indignantly about the lack of governmental experience and general incompetency of vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.
        That’s the scoop according to the media — the overwhelming majority of whom are registered (if registered at all) Democrats.
        How do I know most members of the media are Democrats? Because I am a card carrying member of that pack of journalistic jackals who fancy themselves king makers and king breakers. In my 20 years of working in newspapers, attending journalism conferences, and drinking hard whisky in seedy bars with my brothers and sisters of the fourth estate, I’ve found Republican reporters to be about as common as attractive females at a convention of the National Organization of Women.
        Did you know that in journalism school aspiring reporters are taught to write copy at a fourth- to fifth-grade level so the readers can “get it?” That’s what the media elite thinks of everyman’s ability to grasp such difficult concepts as “What the definition of is, is.”
        Celebrities are another group who believe anyone not fawning over Barack Obama like a 12-year-old girl worshipping at the altar of the Jonas Brothers is a by-God, gun obsessed, Bible slinging yokel with an IQ measured in single digits.
        {mosimage}Recently, intellectual titan and spokesman savant for PETA and the Democratic Party, Pamela Anderson-Kid Rock-Lee, flexed her silicone … uh … muscles by slamming Palin with the following erudite barb: “I can’t stand her! She can suck it!”
        Bravo, Pam. Simply brilliant. Those seven years spent earning your bachelor’s degree at the Nancy Pelosi Community College and Home for Wayward Internet Porn Sensations is really paying off.
        Another celebrity who has taken Palin to task for her inexperience and “radical” views (Oh my God! The woman actually believes in God! She owns guns! She supports our military!) is thespian Matt Damon, who, when he’s not earning his living making films featuring the latest in submachine guns and rocket launchers, is enlightening and educating the illiterate, unwashed masses about such left wing talking points as the need for stricter gun control laws. Uh, Mr. Damon, sorry to interupt today’s lesson, but you’re needed on the set to kill about a million or so Ruskie spies with an unregistered Tec-9.
        Actress Annette Benning also dissed Palin, in between flying with hubby Warren Beatty around the globe in private jets, attending film premiers via a fleet of de rigueur limousines, and hitching a ride in Barbra Streisand’s Hummer — all so she could join Michael Moore and George Clooney for the latest lecture/rant by Al Gore about how we can reduce our carbon footprint by reducing America’s dependence on fossil fuels.
        Yes, folks, the media and celebrities are much smarter and much more enlightened than you and I when it comes to making decisions on who should be our political leaders — don’t take my word for it, just check out the nightly liberal love fests emceed by Katie Couric or Keith Olbermann under the guise of “real news.” Or, give a listen to economics wonk Paris Hilton, who reportedly recently reviewed every morsel of Obama’s campaign platform … all three lines of it … before exclaiming, “Like, you know, that Sally Palintino lady would be, like, a really bad choice for … uh … whatever she’s running for.”
        So, fellow rubes, break out your voting guide and go ahead and pencil in the Obama/ Biden ticket without examining their pasts or their past voting records (or lack thereof) — Lord knows the media’s not going to delve into the bone yard that’s rattling around in Barack’s or Tailgunner Joe’s closets. So relax and park your little brains in front of the tube for another episode of The Real World and ignore the real issues that are taking America down faster than Teddy Kennedy can knock back a tumbler of scotch.
        It’s just the right thing to do … stupid.

  • Details

        Remember the old joke about Mrs. Lincoln after Honest Abe had his unfortunate meeting with John Wilkes Booth? “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how did you enjoy the play?” U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is asking America the same thing now. “Other than that, Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer, how did you like financial deregulation?” Are you enjoying watching the stock market, your retirement and various financial institutions tumble into a black hole of deregulatory fun? Hank is singing the old Limbo song, “How low can you go?”
        Nobody knows the trouble Wall Street has seen. Nobody knows the sorrow. Except for Hank. He knows because he’s from the Planet of a Major Investment Bank and is a creature of Wall Street. He wallows in credit default swaps, hedge funds, short sales, dark matter and charmed quarks. The Wall Street Wizards live in a parallel world that we mere mortals cannot hope to understand. The Wizards are better than us, smarter than us and unmoved by human emotion or ethics. We should trust them. Only they know how to unravel the large ball of poo into which they have driven the American economy. Do not think of Charlie Brown trying to kick the football that Lucy always pulls away at the last minute. Trust the Wizards. {mosimage}
        In Hank’s world when a corporate CEO drives his company off a financial bridge to Chappaquiddick, that’s OK. Pucker up America. You must remember this, a kiss is just a kiss. While the taxpayers are not going to get kissed by Bush’s bailout bill, they will experience another form of love that dare not speak its name in polite society.
        According to the Bush Administration, the event horizon of deregulation is going to suck the entire U.S. economy into it in 72 hours unless we give $700 billion and some groovy new superpowers to Hank Paulson to bail out his Wall Street buddies. Hank wants $700 billion of your dollars to spread around as good-bye gifts from the Bush Administration to the Greedheads of Wall Street. He wants superpowers to go with the pile of cash. Section 8 of the Administration’s Money Dump bill provides, and I quote: “Decisions by the Secretary pursuant to the authority of this Act are non-reviewable and committed to agency discretion, and may not be reviewed by any court of law or any administrative agency.”
        This means that Hank can spend all of our money anyway he wants to and no one can say diddly boo. Section 8 enables Hank to speak ex cathedra on how he spends the money. Pope Hank, I will be infallible on financial matters. Like Richard Nixon once said, “When the President does it, that means it’s not illegal.” When Pope Hank blows the taxpayers’ money on his Wall Street buddies, that means it’s not illegal.
        Section 8 is an advance pardon for whatever Hank decides to do. Normally, pardons are issued after the wrong doing. Curiously, Section 8 issues the pardon in advance. That’s a pretty nifty superpower. Wouldn’t it be great to do whatever you want and no one could call you on it because you were protected by a Section 8 Force Field? Wall Street contends that Section 8 is necessary to save us from the mess the Wizards and the Bush Administration got us into. Some people will contend that Section 8 is a sanity test. If Congress just says no to Superpowers, it passes the sanity test.
        Section 8 once was what the armed forces used to discharge military folks who were deemed to be mentally unfit for service. There are no coincidences. Calling the Superpowers Section 8 of the bailout bill is just Hank Paulson’s idea of a little joke to go with his $700 billion going away present to Wall Street. The $700 billion is just the first estimate of what the bailout will cost. When was the last time the government’s first estimate of the cost of a project was accurate? The memory of man runneth not to such a time.
        Next time you’re at the Walmart buy up a whole bunch of Mason jars. Put your money in the jars. Bury the jars in the back yard. Be like Mrs. Lincoln, try to enjoy the play.

  • Details
        {mosimage}Like many Americans, I spend an impressive number of hours in my car, although I have to confess that I do monitor that time more zealously given today’s pain at the pump.
        I spend my car time in several ways — talking on the phone, with an earpiece, of course. I also listen to the radio, mostly NPR, oldies and the occasional book on CD. After growing up in a family of radio broadcasters and learning Motown along with their nursery rhymes, my children are encouraging me to broaden my musical horizons, and they are probably right, though old habits do die hard.
        Sometimes I just drive along and think.
        I also read every bumper sticker I can get close enough to see.
        We Americans may be tightlipped about our personal finances, but beyond that we wear our hearts on our sleeves and on our bumpers. Our bumpers celebrate our pride in our children by telling the world they are “Terrific Kids” and “Accelerated Readers,” and bragging about our grandchildren, who if we had only known how wonderful they were going to be, we would have had them first. We also crow about our favorite vacation spots at the beach with decals announcing WB, TI, HH, OBX, MB, BHI and MB. Most of us do brake for animals, but I have seen at least one Fayetteville bumper sticker advocating human consumption of cats. One of my favorites decorates the bumper of a member of my church — it reads, “Not so close. I am not that kind of car.” Another is not really a sticker per se, but the back of a motorcyclist T-shirt functioning as one. It reads, “If you can read this, she fell off.” 
        We Americans also wear our politics on our bumpers. I suspect this has been around since we have had cars to have bumpers. I have always liked these stickers and remember particularly the hot pink ones reading only “LURA,” which were the signature design of former State Senator Lura Tally.
        I have been a bit disappointed this political season, though, by the quality of campaign stickers. I have seen plenty of plain McCains and simple Obamas which now seem to be morphing into Obama/Biden and McCain/Palin without other comment. The closest I have seen to clever is “Jesus was a community organizer.”
        I have also been somewhat surprised by the  number of old, faded, and dated political stickers still riding the roads, particularly from the 2004 Presidential campaign. I see several variations of the discreet “W. The President” on both bumpers and windows. I also see a few red and blue Kerry/Edwards riding around forlornly. There are candidates from lesser races still holding on as well. Promoting those particular candidates is no longer an issue, so why do folks continue to show their undying support?
        Though it pains me to say so, I think our refusal to set aside partisan feelings from a bygone election reflects not only deep political divisions among our fellow Americans but deep social and cultural ones as well. These stickers tell us more about the people inside the cars than they do about the candidates they once supported, and drivers of those cars want the rest of us to get the message. It is all about perception, not persuasion. We are trying to say that not only our politics but our values are the same as those of our chosen candidate, and we want everyone else to know it.
    The same is true this political season, perhaps more so. The McCain/Palin stickers and the Obama/Biden ones demonstrate the driver’s support for their candidates but they also speak to values shared with their candidates, or at least the perception of shared values by both the person who put the sticker on the car and those who see it.
        {mosimage}Bumper stickers are without question a form of protected free speech, a right to be cherished. But I have to wonder as well, are they fanning the flames of partisan divisions, especially when they are left to ride around for months and years after an election — long after any political persuasion value has passed.
        We Americans are blessed to live in a country where we can express ourselves politically without fear of retribution. We are blessed to work within a political system in which campaigns are hard fought but eventually someone wins and someone else loses, leaving some Americans happy and some distressed. The point is, though, that the contest is over and it is time to look ahead to the next opportunity.
        We are going to be gripped by highly partisan politics for another few weeks in a political season made more vivid by the unprecedented financial uncertainty which has overtaken us. Rhetoric and negative ads will be with us until this election is over, even though pollsters tell us that most of us have already decided on our candidate for president.
        My fear is that whatever Nov. 4 brings, Obama/Biden and McCain/Palin are going to be on the roads with us for the foreseeable future.

  • Details
    Dear Editor:
        After reading Mr. Dickey’s column in your magazine, I’m not sure I ever want to read your magazine again. Of course, his (Sarah) Palin bashing was probably found to be very humorous by yourself and your staff, but how about printing the other side and telling the truth about Sarah Palin? And how about some truths about Mr. Obama that have not made it into your paper.{mosimage}
        Sarah Palin did not try to censor books at the Public Library. She has stated that again and again in the press conferences and one-on-one reports she has done with many of our liberal press members. And as for her foreign policy experience, apparently Pitt doesn’t read anything that doesn’t agree with his point of view, or he would know she leads the Alaska military and has to know what’s going on over the border in Russia and elsewhere, because Alaska is the site of one our first-line defenses.
        Has Pitt heard anything about his Obama taking millions from Fannie Mae? Maybe that’s why they had to be bailed out. Has he heard anything about Obama’s relationships with people who really hate America? That’s a great qualification for our Commander-in-Chief, to be anti-American, as is his wife, Michelle, who is only just now proud of her country. 
        Do you really think that leftist-leaning (perhaps a socialist?) is going to get us out of a mess that our Congress and past leaders have gotten us into? There are so many people who have come here from socialist and communist countries to get away from that kind of regime — why are we allowing it on our soil?
        What ever happened to personal responsibility and people taking care of their own? If parents had a child who became pregnant or who caused a pregnancy, it used to be up to the parents to deal with the problems. Not anymore. Now it’s everyone else’s problem. At least Sarah’s family is taking care of their daughter personally, along with the baby’s father, and not putting her on welfare for everyone else to take care of. That is what is going on in this country. Nothing is anyone’s fault anymore. Why should we bail out people who made stupid loans that they couldn’t afford? Years ago, when purchasing a house, we hadn’t investigated thoroughly into what all of the closing costs would be, and we got caught short. We almost lost the house, but borrowed money, finally, from a family member, whom we had to pay back. We didn’t expect the government to bail us out. It was our fault and our responsibility.  Borrowers know that the interest rate on an ARM loan will go up, and if they don’t, they need to read their paperwork better. And, of course, the banks are going to lend them money with the knowledge that they may make more money when the rate does go up. Where have all these people been? Living underground? A variable interest rate means the INTEREST WILL CHANGE, maybe down, usually up. Why is that everyone else’s fault?
        But it is the way our entire society is going. The few who work have to constantly bail out those who think it’s easier to live off of everyone else. What is wrong with people being well-off if they have worked hard to earn it? It’s OK with me.
        And just so you don’t think I am one of those wealthy people, at this point I am 64 years old and through circumstances, have no health insurance and live on $13,000 a year. Could you do that? But I have to make my own way, and I don’t expect everyone else to take care of me or my problems. That is what this country was built on and the way it should be. I don’t mind helping those who try to help themselves, but I do mind helping those who blame everyone else for their problems and they need to get off their duffs and help themselves.
        Lois Croxton, Autryville

    Stop Picking on Palin
    Dear Editor:
        Today I read the article in the Up & Coming entitled, “Palin Is More Of The Same Washington Politics.” I was so appalled by it that I was compelled to write. It left me so shocked that I immediately grabbed a highlighter and started to mark everything I thought was obscene and unnecessary.
        So, let us begin.(And yes, I do expect this entire email to be read and responded to.)
        You started your article, saying, “Sarah Palin reminds me of Marge Simpson on steroids...” Why was this needed? It was not. Just because you are against a certain party member, does NOT mean you can go and reference them to a fictional character on “steroids.” Where did that come from? Steroids of all things? I find it horrible that you actually could stand yourself putting down another person like this!
        Next.
        You now go on to say how “white” the Republican convention was.
        WHAT!?
        What does that have to with politics? Just because they don’t have an African-American representative standing there does not mean anything! Also... Look at yourself! You are also Caucasian. Perhaps you are stuck in a dream where the world is perfect and all have the same skin color. Perhaps in your dream world, these “Republicans” are the odd ones out, and have snow-white skin!
        “It won’t matter if the arctic ice cap melts, as we will always have a sea of Caucasian delegates at Republican conventions to remind us of what a blizzard of white looks like.”
    Wow, that took some guts to say.
        So, let’s look at some Democrats: Kerry — white; Edwards — white; Biden — white; Clinton (both) — white.
        I could go on. My point being you cannot judge an entire party by the color of their skin! Just because Barrack Obama is black, does not mean that every other politician has to be!
        Now, onto the subject of lobbyists, censorship, the Bridge etc. Sarah Palin is indeed in a pickle about these subjects. Remember, she has not answered all the questions behind these subjects. Perhaps she doesn’t because she doesn’t want to raise publicity, or maybe she’s afraid the answer will not be want the people want. Whatever her reasons are, the point is that she HASN’T settled these debates. So, do not go and speak of these matters as if you know for a fact that you know the answer.
        I shall now go onto a subject that I hate in any party — the invasion of personal lives.
        “Queen of moose burgers?”
        Might I say that Alaskans are very used to hunting for moose. Why do we make such a deal out of this? My explanation: We do not hunt for moose.  Because we are from a different environment when anything out of our regular lives comes into play, for some reason we have to go insane! I felt as if this could’ve been left out.
    “Change is coming! Change is coming!”
        You complain about his chanting of this saying. Tell me sir... What politician hasn’t? Obama says, “America will change.”
        “The conventional theory is when you find yourself in a hole, the first thing to do is to stop digging.” That is true, but if you’re in a hole... you can’t get out. You either struggle crawling up the sides, only finding that you will only fall back down in a pitiful fail — you use your shovel and start digging up the sides of the hole you created, trying to fix it.
    Stop making references to John McCain’s age! Reagan was up in his years when he became president, and he became one of the greatest leaders this country has had!
        I could go on, telling of my resentment towards politicians because of how they do nothing but eat each other alive. I could go into my beliefs of how elections should be handled, but I won’t. I won’t lower myself down to your level. Can you dig it?
        Yours Truly,
    Sarah Brown, 14 years old, Fayetteville

    IT’S OBAMA TIME
    Dear Editor:
        I will vote for Sen. Barack Obama for president on Nov. 4. His policies are fine. He has enough experience — as much as John Kennedy in 1960. What seals the deal for me, though, is simple yet intangible: He inspires me and I believe he will inspire this country. This candidate effortlessly weaves the Preamble to the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence and Lincoln’s first Inaugural Speech into his message to us.
        At the heart of Sen. Obama’s message are these values of America itself: that government is of the people, by the people, for the people; that we journey together to aspire to a more perfect Union; that these truths are self-evident, that all men are created equal, they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and that government is instituted to secure these rights; that we must respect each other and seek common ground despite our differences.
        Our country has turned away from these uplifting sentiments in the last eight years. This administration has cut corners with Constitutional rights. It ran up a reckless trillion dollar deficit with boondoggle after boondoggle to buy votes in Congress. It mangled its response to the natural disaster of Hurricane Katrina when incompetent cronies at FEMA let anarchy reign until New Orleans was ravished. It lied about whether Iraq had weapons of mass destruction to justify a useless, endless war that has killed too many Americans to prop up a people and government that do not respect us. It used illegal political loyalty tests in hiring at the Department of Justice and fired U.S. Attorneys deemed politically unreliable. It censored scientific opinion at regulatory agencies like the Food and Drug Administration, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Securities and Exchange Commission to fit a slanted political agenda. It worsened the energy crisis by cozying up to Middle East potentates and Big Oil and failing to provide incentives for conservation measures that are the most economical way to reduce our oil addiction.
        I hear Sen. Obama urging us to get away from government for special interests and lobbyists, to turn away from government that divides us and turns us against each other. He offers government that can provide a safety net and not be our enemy. We cannot be selfish and ask how government can stuff our wallets. President John F. Kennedy said “If a society cannot help the many who are poor, it cannot save the few who are rich.” Every American should be entitled to a good job, a decent home, a safe neighborhood, health care, food and a sound education.
        I will close with a perhaps less familiar passage from Lincoln’s First Inaugural: “By the frame of the government under which we live, this same people have wisely given their public servants but little power for mischief; and have, with equal wisdom, provided for the return of that little to their own hands at very short intervals. While the people retain their virtue and vigilance, no administration, by any extreme of wickedness or folly, can very seriously injure the government in the short space of four years.”
        I have had enough of folly these last eight years. On Nov. 4 I will vote for Sen. Obama for President of the United States of America. I trust he will lead us to sunlit upland meadows. God bless America, land that I love.
        Grainger Barrett, Fayetteville

    SUPPORT CROP WALK
    Dear Editor:
        A teenage girl celebrating her birthday after asking all of her guests to bring along canned goods for Second Harvest Food bank.
        A young girl in Parkton inviting her little friends to collect money and walk in the Oct. 19 CROP walk.
        Young soldiers driving out to Second Harvest to ask how they can help feed the hungry.
        What do these and many other heartwarming stories have in common? They’re all in response to Tim Wilkins’ excellent Sept. 3-9 article, “Travel a Mile in Shoes of Hungry During CROP Walk.”
        And did I mention that Tim volunteered to walk and invite donations from his friends and coworkers? When Tim Wilkins talks the talk he — literally — walks the walk. (To sponsor Tim, please call Up & Coming Weekly at 484-6200.)
        As for the “other” paper in town, while they have reported our region’s food crisis, they still haven’t reported on strategies to solve the problem. Once, they gave an incorrect number for CROP Walk, and twice they omitted the the phone number and address of Second Harvest. Thank God for Up & Coming!
        In terms of increased requests for food assistance, Fayetteville has the third largest food bank crisis in the nation. At 59 percent, we rival Katrina-ravaged New Orleans’ rate of 63 percent. Veterans, single mothers with small children, old folks... indeed, all kinds of folks are hungry.
        A community-wide attack on hunger is urgently needed. Faith groups, businesses, fraternal organizations, schools, military units, politicians and all individuals with a heart for the hungry have to take a strong, compassionate action.
    To help immediately with donations of food, money, or your time, please contact David Griffin or Denise Giles at Second Harvest Food Bank, 406 Deep Creek Road, 485-6923, or www.ccap-inc.org.
        To join 1,000 of our neighbors in our Oct. 19 walk to fight hunger here and around the world, see crophungerwalk.org., or call Michelle Bedsole at 401-5653 or the Rev. Laura Lupton at 868-8293. Our goal is to give Fayetteville the biggest percentage increase in CROP Walk results in the entire nation. Up & Coming is certainly doing its part. Now, it’s up to us. Let’s defeat hunger NOW!
    Jeffrey Brooke Allen, CROP Walk Planning Volunteer, Fort Bragg

  • Details
        “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” More than 200 years ago, the French writer Voltaire expressed that thought. 
        I agree whole heartedly. That thought should be the mantra of every journalist and every newspaper in our country. If it isn’t, then they have missed the boat. And I can tell you, there are a lot of journalists standing out on the dock wondering where the boat is.
        {mosimage}We are the Fourth Estate and it is not our job to decide the issues. It is our job to report the issues. It is not a reporter’s job to slant an issue, make assumptions or add in their opinion. A reporter’s job is to report the facts. Just the facts and nothing but the facts. That seems to have gotten lost somewhere along the way.
    Over the past few months, we have taken much criticism from readers who think we should go further in reporting a story. They want us to take conjecture and hearsay and incorporate it into a story. That’s not going to happen. Not under my name and not on my watch.
        If you find an opinion in this paper, it’s going to be clearly labeled under the header Opinion or it’s going to be here in the publisher’s notes. That’s where it belongs. And, in the confines of those opinion pages, you’re going to read a lot of stuff you might not agree with. I know I do.
        It is not our job to silence that opinion — but rather to give it voice. And we’re happy to do so. The ideal that Voltaire communicated so clearly 200 years ago is alive and well at Up & Coming Weekly.
        Over the past two weeks, we have come under a firestorm of criticism for allowing  contributing writers to express their opinions about the upcoming election — most notably columns that have been less than complimentary to Sarah Palin. We’ve been called a “liberal rag,” we have had folks tell us they won’t read our newspaper anymore and we even had one business owner remove our rack from his business.
        Good. We’re doing our job.
        In a free society, one of the greatest ways for an individual to express his thoughts and opinions is through the editorial pages of a newspaper. Again, those thoughts and opinions, by design, fall under a heading that reads “Opinion.” Up & Coming Weekly has built its reputation on being Fayetteville and Cumberland County’s community newspaper. We are the people’s alternative voice. We are the communities “other side of the story.” We have been your voice for more than 13 years. We don’t take sides, and we welcome contributions from all sides of the political spectrum. We have never refused to accept articles from individuals because of race, religion or political affiliation.
     If readers want to read more conservative opinion pieces rather than the recent liberal point of views then write it and send it in. Then, if we don’t put it in the newspaper then you can call us a “liberal rag.” To date, we have only heard from one side.
        Do you have an opinion? Then share it with us as long as it is not libelous or slanderous. We love hearing from you and invite your letters and opinions. Our address is on almost every page of this publication. Let me give it to you again — send any letters, opinions, features and articles to me personally at editor@upandcomingweekly.com.
    I look forward to reading and printing them. There’s a chance that I may not agree with your opinion, but I surely support your right to have it and express it.

  • Details
        I’m an attractive, 42-year-old single mom with a 13-year-old son. I’ve been widowed for three years, and I’m finally ready to date. I’ve found myself increasingly attracted to this man (actually, I’m yearning to jump his bones), but he’s only 32. I sense the attraction may be mutual. The problem is, I’m the queen of mixed signals. If a good-looking guy checks me out in the grocery store, I scurry to another aisle and kick myself later. After this guy went out of his way to call to say he wished our conversation hadn’t been interrupted at a party the night before, I told him, “I’m just needy; I’ll talk to anyone who’ll listen.” Please don’t tell me to find a man my age. They don’t give me the time of day — except for the ones who creep me out. What I can say or do to let this man know I’m interested without coming off as a desperate older woman?
                          —Own Worst Enemy

        You’re right to worry about coming off as a desperate older woman. You probably do sound desperate — desperate to get rid of the guy: “I’m just needy; I’ll talk to anyone who’ll listen.” Should he call back, maybe add, “You’ll do, since the suicide hotline guys started hanging up on me when they realized I don’t want to kill myself, just bore them to death.”
        Your signals to the guy might be mixed, but they’re coming through loud and clear to me: You want a relationship; you’re just too terrified to have one. You’re probably scared of both success and failure: What if Stud Boy likes you? What if he likes you, then leaves you?! And you’re sure the grocery store guy, upon closer appraisal, will realize he’s made a terrible mistake, so you scurry away like a bug after the lights come on: “Yes, yes, I look like a woman, but I’m really a giant cockroach wearing a lot of Better Separates.”
        There’s something in you that doesn’t think all that highly of you — the part that suspects this guy’ll see you as some ridiculous old bag. Wowee, a whole 10-year age difference. (Any excuse’ll do!)
        When you do meet a guy who creeps you out, your old insecure-speak should come in handy. Nothing usually makes a man on the make want to bolt like the words “I’m needy,” except maybe for the announcement “I’m off my meds, I’ve got a loaded gun in my purse, and what a cool coincidence that the back of your shirt looks so much like a bullseye.”

  • Details
        The New York Post spotted several Manhattan businesses that tried to appeal to nudists this summer with special events. Among the most challenging were John Ordover’s monthly dinners at selected restaurants (such as the Mercantile Grill), where about 50 diners eat and drink naked (served by the restaurant’s regular, clothed staff), and the Naked Comedy Showcase at People’s Improv Theater in the Chelsea district, where once a month, naked comedians perform (and a section in the audience is reserved for naked patrons).
     
    Weird Science
        In July, microbiologists writing in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported that the Malaysian pen-tailed tree shrew subsists on a diet of fermented palm nectar that is roughly the equivalent of 100 percent beer. “They seem to have developed some type of mechanism to deal with that high level of alcohol and not get drunk,” according to one researcher, who hoped further study could help with human cases of alcohol poisoning (and other rare instances in which people ingest alcohol for purposes other than getting drunk.) 

    Intelligent Design
        Among the photo exhibits at New York City’s Museum of Sex in July was the display of the genitalia of the spotted hyena, which was described by Bloomberg News: “(B)oth the male and female have penises. The female, it turns out, has a scrotal sack, too. For reproductive purposes, the male transfers his sperm through the female’s penis, which doubles as her clitoris.” Other exhibits included “Gay Dolphin Blow-Hole Sex” and a “Deer Threesome,” featuring a “Bambi” with two stags. Said the museum’s curator, the exhibit simply compensates for museums’ traditional animal exhibits in which depictions of genitalia are suppressed. 

    It’s Good to be a British Prisoner
        Ian Brady, now age 70 and perhaps the most famous British murderer of the 20th century, complained recently that the psychiatric inmates housed with him in Ashworth Hospital still qualify for government allowances up to the equivalent of about $200 per week whereas prison transfers like him receive “only” one-fourth that amount.

  • Details
    Even The Spirits Seem Confused in The Ghost Whisperer

        {mosimage}In The Ghost Whisperer’s season premiere (Friday, 8 p.m., CBS), Jennifer Love Hewitt returns as a woman who solves supernatural mysteries by talking to spooks. Why this is best accomplished in skimpy negligees I’ve never known. This week, Hewitt’s Melinda helps a psychologist who died in a fire along with a sexy patient. Then the psychologist comes back to life. The patient doesn’t, but he can hear her ghost talking to him. Melinda can both hear and see the ghost, and she hopes to ask it who started the fire. But that won’t be easy, not the way the damn thing keeps disappearing at dramatically convenient moments.
    “Ok,” says the skeptical psychologist. “Let’s just pretend for a minute that this whole thing isn’t nuts.”
    I tried pretending for a minute, but I only got as far as six seconds. This whole thing is nuts.

    GARY UNMARRIED
    Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. (CBS) 
        The scenario feels familiar: A slob (Jay Mohr) is recently divorced from his prissy wife (Paula Marshall), raising kids who have one character trait apiece. The script is full of non-punchlines from the lazy-sitcom-writer’s handbook: “I haven’t seen you this freaked out since that swan chased you at Disneyland!”
        But wait. Mohr and Marshall are solid comedians, and Ed Begley Jr. adds a welcome dose of eccentricity as the ex-wife’s egghead fiancé. Despite the mediocre script, I detect signs of chemistry among these actors. I haven’t laughed at Gary Unmarried yet, but I expect to sometime before the end of ’08.

    STAR WARS: THE CLONE WARS
    Friday, 9 p.m. (Cartoon Network) 
        George Lucas milks his Star Wars franchise in this animated series. Sadly, The Clone Wars takes its cue from the last three Star Wars films rather than the first three. It’s heavy-handed and humorless, lacking the charm that made Star Wars a force (or Force) to be reckoned with in the 1970s and ‘80s. The characters speak in grave tones about matters of great importance — to them, not us. Yoda is trotted out for the umpteenth time to utter wise words with inverted syntax: “Tragic are these losses. But prevent more we must.” You’d at least expect stunning visuals in a Lucas production, but the animated characters look like escapees from a PlayStation 1 videogame.
        Stupid is The Clone Wars. Star Wars post-1983 I hate.

    SANCTUARY
    Friday, 9 p.m. (Sci Fi)
        A forensic psychiatrist (Robin Dunne) investigates a routine murder that, on closer inspection, looks anything but routine. A boy with strange powers accidentally kills three people with a squishy tentacle that grows out of his body.
        The psychiatrist follows a trail that leads to a fantastical mansion presided over by a kindly British doctor (Amanda Tapping). It houses mermaids, flying creatures and other “abnormals” who are feared and misunderstood by regular folk.
        Sci Fi’s new series is a little too much like X-Men, though it can’t match the movie franchise in terms of emotion or excitement.
        I’m going to stick with it, though, having long been a sucker for squishy tentacles.

  • Details
        Over at Cape Fear Harley-Davidson, the retailer’s All Harley Drag Racing Association team (AHDRA) — in just it’s first full season of competition — has ridden 125 horses to second in the overall points standing in the AHDRA’s Super Sport division.                                                                                                                                                                            {mosimage}And the four-person team is chomping at the bit for first.
        Steve Lowery, who, when he isn’t tinkering around in the guts of engines in the service bays of Fayetteville’s only authorized Harley-Davidson dealer, tears down the quarter-mile track aboard a 99 cubic-inch rocket that reaches speeds of 128 mph on the straightaway.
        And on the weekend of Oct. 10-12, Lowery hopes to spur that steel stallion on to victory at Rockingham Dragway in Richmond County and inch the team closer to the Super Sport championship.
        “We really want to be number one,” said Andre Mitchell, the team’s coordinator. “That’s what it’s about.”
    The AHDRA — which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary — sanctions and promotes drag racing events across the United States. What began as a club racing organization in the late ‘70s has expanded into a hugely popular motor sport boasting 16 different classes ranging from 224-mph Top Fuel bikes to the aforementioned Super Sport division. Currently, the Cape Fear Harley-Davidson team, formed last spring, sits atop the Eastern Division points standings and trails the overall leader by just 79 points with one race to go — the Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts Nationals at The Rock.
        “Sam was racing on his own and we decided that we would form our own race team,” said Mitchell, who, like the other team members, is employed with Cape Fear Harley-Davidson. “Sam had purchased a frame before we started the team and then we bought an engine. We were in three races — Bristol, Richmond and Rockingham — last year at the tail end of the season. But this is our first full season.”
        The team has rocketed to success in it’s inaugural season, challenging for the Super Sport championship despite missing several races (Mitchell says the high cost of gas kept the team from traveling to several races out West). Lowery rode the stripped down Harley — no lights and no charging system on a bike he has to almost lay down on to ride — to the victory circle in the   Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts Bike Week Nationals in  Gainesville, Fla., on the weekend of Feb. 29, tearing down the track in a hide-peeling 10.390 seconds.
        The unprecendented success of the first-year team has not only left other teams gasping in the wake of Lowery’s exhaust, it’s also brought out a little bit of the green monster in some of the Cape Fear team’s more established rivals.
        “They’re a little bit jealous,” said the team’s crew chief, Mike Bradley. “At this last race (the S&S Jim McClure Nationals in Dinwiddie, Va.) the team that’s actually in first place, when we went out were actually jumping up and down, glad we were gone.
        “Despite that, it really is a tight-knit community of racers,” added Bradley. “Everybody, knows everybody, and everybody helps everybody … Your opponent will lend you spare parts.”
        And unlike some other motor sports, this one is extremely fan-friendly, says Mitchell.
        {mosimage}“The pits are open,” said Mitchell. “You can go right in the pit and hang out. You can watch the guys tuning up their bikes … You can walk just about up to their bikes.”
        Mitchell says the team is also good for Cape Fear Harley-Davidson’s business.
        “It goes a long way for advertising,” said Mitchell. “If we can make horsepower on the track, we can make it for you.”
        The team, which also includes Cape Fear Harley-Davidson’s service manager, Billy Lawton, (he directs the racing operation) isn’t exactly filling its pockets with cash from all its success — if the team wins the points championship it will take home just $3,000 in prize money.
        “We do it for the advertising it brings Cape Fear Harley-Davidson … and the thrill of winning,” said Mitchell. “It’s costs about $1,200 a race for us, counting travel and putting fuel in the bike. We earn the money to pay our expenses. We do have sponsors … but we sold raffle tickets for $3,500 in parts and labor that the dealership was nice enough to let us buy at cost.
        “Harry Hawks won the raffle back in May,” said Mitchell. “We raised almost $10,000 and that’s what we’ve raced on this season, plus help from our sponsors.”
        The team’s sponsors include Cape Fear Harley-Davidson, Valley Auto World Inc., Dale Harris CPA and Smoking Gun Tattoos.
        The team — which has finished in the money in five of its eight races — will go for the points championship Oct. 10-12 at Rockingham Dragway, which is 10 miles northeast of Rockingham. The gates will open at 8 a.m. on Friday, Oct. 10, with qualifying at 4 p.m. Gates will open at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday; there will be qualifying runs all day and the  Screamin’ Eagle Performance Parts Shootout kicks off at 5 p.m.     On Sunday, Oct, 12, gates open at 8 a.m., with the Cape Fear Harley-Davidson team (hopefully) going for the gold beginning at 12:30 p.m.
        For information and ticket prices, you can call The Rock at (910) 582-3400, or check out the Web site at www.rockinghamdragway.com.

  • Details
        Igor (86 minutes) goes above and beyond the standard animated fare, thus begging the question, where has director Anthony Leondis been hiding himself? Even more importantly, why hasn’t writer Chris McKenna done anything besides this and American Dad scripts? For two relative unknowns like Leondis and McKenna, creating the first animated movie out of a new production studio, the work is doubly impressive. The dialogue is unexpectedly clever, the characters compelling, the humor sly and sophisticated. For what initially seemed like a Tim Burton wannabe picture, Igor stands on its own as an animated film with adult appeal.
        {mosimage}Once upon a time, there was a fantasy world named Malaria. A change in climate caused the entire economy of this once beautiful land to revolve around being evil, under the guidance of King Malbert (Jay Leno). In this Brave New World, the upper-class becomes the scientists, and those born with humpbacks are forced to serve as Igors, trained as bootlicking stereotypes. 
        Even our hero Igor (John Cusack) is forced to hide his brilliance and serve a master named Dr. Glickenstein (John Cleese). Despite his conformity to social expectations, Igor fiddles around with mad science on the side, giving Scamper the Rabbit (Steven Buscemi) immortality, and keeping a Brain (Sean Hayes) alive in a robotic jar.   
        A series of unfortunate events leads Igor to create a Frankenfemale, filled with pure evil. Sadly, his plans go awry and instead of a killing machine, Eva (Molly Shannon) is a sweet and cuddly doll. Despite Igor’s attempts to turn into a force for calamitous destruction, Eva refuses to change. 
        Meanwhile, the evilest of all evil madmen, Dr. Schadenfreude (Eddie Izzard, brilliant as always) is trying to cheat his way to victory in the upcoming Mad Scientists Fair with the help of Jaclyn (Jennifer Coolidge). All the wackiness culminates in a revelation that most of the audience probably saw coming, but was satisfying, nonetheless.   
        Of course, if you wanted to get intellectual and search for philosophical themes amongst the cuteness, this is the film for you. On the surface, this is a nice update of the Frankenstein story with a subversive vent, making the Igor the hero instead of the scientist. The film also easily illustrates Marxist themes, with the Igors serving as the oppressed proletariat to the mad scientists’ exploitative bourgeoisie. Scamper the Rabbit, who totally steals the show, is a tribute to the basic existential dilemma. Though he is essentially immortal, he kills himself over and over again, only to return to a life made meaningless by that very same immortality. This is a movie with something for everyone.
        Although music is used in a very clever way, I was not completely on board with all the selections. As rife with irony (and therefore hilarity) as it may be to have blind orphans dancing to “I Can See Clearly Now,” it’s still a missed opportunity to offer a more subtle brand of humor, which the filmmakers manage to do in almost every other area. 

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