in, will undoubtedly come
A
OUR
OPINION
Dr. White
L
NION -.......
Ee
finally did
right thing
Dr. Chris White created a
crisis at Gardner-Webb, and
the only way to resolve it
was to resign.
When he instructed an
employee to change a fail-
ing grade to a passing grade
for a basketball player,
White made a big mistake,
regardless of his reason for
the act. If he had an under-
lying reason for what he
did, he should have made it
public.
Instead, when it became
public knowledge it caused
an uproar among students,
alumni, and just plain citi-
Zens.
The school has always
been looked upon as the
epitome of fairness and
sound Christian principles,
but this incident had people
threatening to sever their
‘Andy,
ILDMUNS a
GARY STEWART / HERALD
With the November general election just around the corner, political signs are popping up at just about every corner.
ties with Gardner-Webb. | This grassy area on U.S. 74 near the Kings Mountain Armory is always a popular place for politicians to seek votes.
What's worse is a board
of trustees who refused to
reprimand White for his
manipulation of a grade.
Instead, they demoted at
least two individuals who
brought attention to the
sorry situation.
White seemed to have
holed up in his office hop-
ing the storm would pass,
but it didn’t. And wisely,
last Friday he resigned dur-
We weren't
always as united
as we are NOW
In the wake of all the 9/11 ceremonies Alan Hod
ing a meeting of the board ge
of trustees at a church in that took place last month, the plethora Guest Column
Shelby. of E Pluribus paraphernalia, flags, wn
Had he not done so the
school was sure to lose sup-
port from alumni groups,
funding, and worst of all,
academic respect.
The basketball program,
which White is so interested
bumper stickers, etc, and the current big talk about kick-
ing Saddam Hussein so hard his momma would feel it, I
don’t think there are many people in the nation or world
who can look at our country today and say we are not
united as a people. But, brothers and sisters, there was a
time when just the opposite was the case.
My wife Sharon (AKA Lil Petey) and I have just
returned from taking part in a reenactment of the 140th
anniversary of the Battle of Antietam near Sharpsburg,
Maryland. It was an event that will long linger not only in
our minds, but in the hearts, minds and souls of the
60,000 or so folks who came to watch 14,000 of us try to
recreate what was the bloodiest day in American history.
Here's a brief history lesson on the fight that took place
on September 17, 1862. The opponents were about 40,000
Confederates led by Robert E. Lee and Stonewall Jackson
against 60,000 Union men led by George B. McClellan,
Joseph Hooker, and Ambrose Burnside.
The fighting near the village of Sharpsburg took place
on verdant fields of ripening corn, sections of forest, farm
yards, and along a creek called the Antietam. The shoot-
ing started at 5 a.m. and by 6 p.m. when it ended, over
23,000 Americans were killed, wounded, or missing. Look
at that number again. All in one day.
Except for times when someone slips and skins their
knee, Civil War reenactments are for the most part blood-
less affairs. Nonetheless, at a really big reenactment you
can get some small idea of what the blue and gray armies
looked like on the march, the sound of a heavy cannon-
ade, and the crash, crash, crash, of volleys from thousands
of muskets. Every American should see this at least once.
As some of you know, I am a keen observer of my fel-
low man. At the 140th anniversary event, as thousands of
us pseudo-Rebs marched to a rousing fife and drum
accompaniment in a column four men wide and over a
half mile long, I had the chance to look upon the faces of
some of the many spectators than jammed the road lead-
ing to the field of pretend glory.
If I had to chose one word to describe the reaction most
of these folks were expressing it would have to be awe-
struck, and I'm sure our blue-clad opponents/ friends on
the other end of the 600-acre farm we did our thing on
saw the same sight as they marched to the battlefield.
Besides awe, the next emotion that most spectators were
expressing was pride. Pride in a time long ago when men
were men, women were women, the term political cor-
rectness did not exist, and when folks in their simple way
stood and fell for what they believed in. Pride in the rich
fabric of a nation that has tolerated little or no foolishness
from any regime past or present.
After the reenactment spectacle, we drove over to the
site of the actual 1862 battle. It is a sobering thought to
stand on ground that was once saturated with the blood
of North Carolinians and boys from all the other states
that made up the Union and non-Union of that time.
To pause in Bloody Lane, or on the Burnside Bridge, or
See Alan, 5A
under the NCAA micro-
scope, and is almost sure to
undergo sanctions.
The Board of Trustees
should have taken care of
this matter several weeks
ago. Now, its members who
refused to terminate White
should also be resigning. If
not The N.C. Baptist Con-
vention should step in and
replace them.
Sad state of affairs
What are children being
taught these days?
A mob of 16, ranging in
age from 10-18, attacked a
man and beat him to death -
in Milwaukee recently. They
used shovels, baseball bats,
rakes, a folding chair and
anything they could get
their hands on.
This was not a mad dog
killer they murdered. This
was a simple citizen, on his
way home from work.
The older children pres-
sured a 10-year-old to throw
an egg at the man, which he
did. When the man chased
the egg tosser, he was
jumped and pummeled to
death.
The young gang treated it
as a game, encouraging one
another to “pass the bat, so I
can take a shot.”
It is a sad commentary
that people so young have
such low regard for human
life.
If society wants to weed
out the worst of us, these
hoodlums should be pun-
ished to the fullest extent
allowed by law. :
EEE
wa i ]
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Someone sneaked in a sign (front right) that probably reflects the opinion of a lot of voters.
Teddy bears:
What a revoltin’
development
i
Some of you are going to think I'm los- Jim Heffne
ing it, but I'm tired of Teddy bears. You Columnist
heard it right, Teddy bears. That's not to ms——
be confused with Teddy boys, those scroungy British kids
who think they're tough guys and walk around the streets
of London dressed in Edwardian clothes.
Every time I turn around somebody is telling me some-
thing wonderful about Teddy bears. There's even a com-
pany in New England whose sole purpose in life is to
spread those things all over the world. They don’t come
cheaply either, |, iA
You can get Teddy, bears in football goad bikinis, diving
regalia, motorcycle boots and any kirld of uniform imagi-
nable. ;
Elvis even had a hit record about a Teddy bear: “Baby
let me be, your loving Teddy bear. Put a chain around my
neck and lead me anywhere.”
Children refuse to go to bed at night unless they are
cuddled up with their Teddy bears, or some other stuffed
animal. I have two young grandsons who refuse to close
their eyes until they have their Teddy bears in bed with
them.
Now, Molly, my six-year-old granddaughter, is a little
different. She’s more like a Marine drill instructor and
would probably rather sleep with a toy M-16 or a billy
club.
President Theodore Roosevelt started it all by sparing a
bear cub’s life while on a hunting trip. The political car-
toonists got hold of the story, and before long newspapers
. all across the country were showing cartoons with
Roosevelt snuggling up to a small bear, and after that
some of the unfriendlier reporters began referring to him
as President Teddy Bear. There was no stopping the Teddy
bear explosion after that.
It gets under my skin that some people substitute
Teddy bears for birthday, Christmas and anniversary gifts.
Have a birthday, get a Teddy bear, get married, get a cou-
ple of Teddy bears dressed in a tux and a wedding gown,
graduate from college, get a Teddy bear clutching a tiny
rolled up diploma. Get arrested, get a Teddy bear in a
striped uniform. As Jimmy Durante used to say, “What a
revoltin’ development this is.”
I once heard a young woman describe John Goodman
as being “just a big old Teddy bear.” When somebody
refers to a man as a big old Teddy bear, to me, it means
he’s a big fat ugly slob she wouldn't wipe her feet on, but
he’s so nice.
Maybe we could settle the problem in the Middle East if
somebody would just send a Teddy bear to Saddam
Hussein, who is incidentally, just a big old Teddy bear, but
don’t count on it.
I wouldn't be surprised to see politicians embrace the
Teddy bear phenomena. Can't you just picture Erskine
and Elizabeth making a commercial and saying something
like “Vote for me, I'm for education, Social Security and
two Teddy bears in every household.”
I wouldn't put it past Governor Easley to institute a
new tax for the education of Teddy bears, especially if
they're four years old or less.
Enough about Teddy bears, I said I was tired of them.
Thursday, October 17, 2002
Editor: Gary Stewart ¢ 739-7496
LOOK BACK
| Wares Farm
Family of
Year in ‘77
From the October 20.,
1977 files of the Kings
Mountain Mirror-Herald:
The Cameron Ware fami-
ly of Kings Mountain was
honored as Cleveland
County’s Farm Bureau
Family of the Year Tuesday
night.
Kiddie parks, electrical
power, electric bills and
surface drainage were the
subjects citizens of district
six were interest in dis-
cussing Tuesday night. The
fifth local government one-
on-one meeting was held
at Trinity Episcopal Church
on Phifer Rd. and a large
number of citizens turned
out to hear and speak.
Mayor John Moss was
elected Tuesday as a mem-
ber of the N.C. League of
Municipalities Board of
Directors.
A broken water line near
the water plant pump sta-
tion is the reason KMers
found muddy water pour-
ing from their faucets
Wednesday morning. The
first section of pipe leading
from the pump station
blew about 1:30 p.m.
Tuesday and the city cut
off water to the mills and
to Bessemer City.
Employees of Spectrum
Textured Fibers, Inc. pre-
sented a check for $12,825
to the 1978 Kings
Mountain United Fund
campaign.
Kings Mountain's
Mountaineers will be try-
ing to pull the upset of the
i eyear in Southwestern 3A
Conference play Friday
night at John Gamble
Stadium when they host
undefeated South Point.
Good Buys - Some of the
advertising specials in the
Mirror-Herald included:
Men's flannel PJ.’s for
$7.95 at McGinnis
Department Store...64-
ounce Coca Colas for 69
cents (limit 3) at Smith
Drugs in the KM Plaza
Shopping Center...
A 24-ounce bottle of
Crisco Oil (limit 2) for 95
cents and a 10 pound, 11
ounce box of Tide
Detergent for $3.99 (limit 2)
at Scottie Stores Discount
Center in downtown KM...
Thermal underwear,
$3.75 for men and $2.75 for
boys, at Belk...Halloween
costumes with mask,
including Star Wars cos-
tumes, $1.77 to $4.57 and
black and orange candy
kisses, 2 bags for 99 cents,
at TG&Y n the West Gate
Plaza...
Ladies “Grasshopper”
zipper dress boots, $34
value, just $28 at Plonk
Brothers...No Nonsense
panty hose, 3 pair for
$1.99, at Family Dollar in
Gastonia...
A 12-ounce can of Spam
was 99 cents and T-bone
steak $1.99 a pound at
Winn Dixie...A whole 14-17
pound pork loin was 88
cents a pound at Lowes
Foods, and ground beef (5
pounds or more) was 68
cents at Harris Teeter...
To the editor:
I would like to thank some very
thoughtful and qualified citizens in
Kings Mountain for the outstand-
ing job they performed Saturday,
September 28, 2002.
My husband, William C. Carroll,
had been hospitalized prior to this
date, and after bringing him home
I suddenly realized he was not
breathing and did not have a
pulse. After making a 911 call the
Kings Mountain Police were the
first to arrive and quickly started
CPR. Then the Emergency Medical
Services arrived and immediately
inserted a tube into the lungs.
Thanks to all these men and
women that took charge and were
very confident in the medical
knowledge of their jobs my hus-
band is alive today.
Also, I would like to thank the
Kings Mountain Hospital E.R. staff
for their performance,. The doctor
and nurses were very kind to me
informed.
Thanks again,
Shirley Carroll
To the editor:
and my family and kept us well
Our hats are off to all of you!
Kings Mountain
KM Police Chief
supports Young
As Chief of Police in Kings
‘Mountain, I fully support Bill
Young for District Attorney in
November's election. have had
the privilege of working with Bill
Young for the past 15 years. [ have
tried cases with him in District
Court as well as Superior Court
and always found him very
involved in his cases, putting in
many hours of preparation. He has
always visited the areas where the
crime occurred to get a better feel
Fast response and action saved husband's life
for the cases. Ads
After being promoted to
Assistant Chief, I left the detective
with 2 murder cases pending. Bill
Young prosecuted both cases and
convicted both men in jury trials.
His commitment to those cases
were astounding. He is profession-
al and is what this county needs in
November's election. You will find
that most of all law enforcement
throughout this county support
See Letters, 5A
OI
es
mC