Apparently, I live in a "cesspool of sin"

[AshevilleKate]

I missed the original article and quote by a learned gentleman down the road from Asheville that he considers Asheville a "cesspool of sin." I joined this forum only a few days ago as AshevilleKate, as I am proud of my little cosmopolitan adopted hometown.

I came here 6 years ago after Katrina and was welcomed with mostly open arms. Yes, I occasionally laughed about becoming a hillbilly or running into one, especially when I could not talk to some people in my little retirement community over the likes of Limbaugh and O'Reilly. I was thrilled at how many people there were in this little city, however, that actually knew what politics were and how many strong smart voices we had.

Culturally diverse -- one cannot even believe just how much. We were one of only two cities in the United States to have a group called "Smashing Pumpkins" do a concert prior to their European tour, the other being San Francisco. Down the street, and equally packed, "Carmen" was selling out. (I have taken some poetic license here, because we have had opera performances here but I cannot say for certain it was indeed Carmen.)

Recently, very recently, Asheville was hyped up by ABC's "Good Morning America" as one of the Top 10 Most Beautiful Places in America. The piece was cheesy, badly written and not something I would not have used to promote "us", but I am doing this to again, tell you that a lot of us here in the Blue Ridge Mountains really love our incredible beauty.

The festivals we have here are A-MA-ZING! We have Bele Chere, Goombay, Moogfest, a film festival that is becoming well known, and some of the artists in this little mountain home of mine should be hanging in the museums of the world.

Obama came here on the campaign trail. He liked it so much, he came back for his vacation.

This is not to say everything is perfect here. We, like so many small towns and big cities in every corner of this country of ours, have poor, unemployed, and a terrible amount of personal bankruptcies. We have a horrible dropout rate, an unacceptable teenage pregnancy rate, and a whole lot of the same issues everyone else does.

But, ssshhh, here is our dirty little secret...we are, ssshhh, gay friendly. Oh my god, I said it. I can feel myself sinking into the cesspool of sin. Yes, a Republic politician, poli-shit-in if you are dyslexic or want to coin a new phrase, is trying to pass a state amendment banning gay marriage. His name is Senator Jim Forester and he represents Gastonia, NC.

Check out his quotes -- then make some noise. And should I change my name in DU? Should I be CesspoolofSinKate instead of AshevilleKate? I mean, it is kinda catchy.

I have to sign off for a couple of days as I will be out of town in a place that I cannot get internet. I hope a ton of you will get this post and find out some more about a certain nitwit whose goal should be to get himself to the land of Oz for both a heart and a brain. This man represents people -- god help us all!

Peace out!

[GoCubsGo]

1. Is there any room in that cesspool for me?

I would love to be able to live in Asheville. Wish there was a job there for me.

[RKP5637]

2. Sounds wonderful and peaceful. Can't be part of the US. n/t

[dawg]

3. Asheville is just a lovely place.

I seldom make it up there, but it is a real treat when I do.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

4. So did you see the Pumpkins in concert?

My all time favorite band. They did the Asheville concerts right after re-forming (sans two original members, unfortunately). From what I heard, they were terrific.

[dionysus]

6. isn't it basically just Billy now? he burned his bridges with darcy and iha a while back.

i know jimmy was back drumming for a while but i think he quit again too :(

[Tommy_Carcetti]

8. Sadly, yes, Jimmy quit.

Billy's a bit of a egomaniac. But the man is pure, pure genius. His voice takes a little getting used to, but he shreds a guitar and is a master at lyrics.

In the end, D'arcy and Iha were only support players. Jimmy's the only loss that I think might be a true negative on the band's quality. The story is that Siamese Dream (a.k.a. the greatest rock album ever known to man) was recorded using only Billy and Jimmy, and D'arcy and Iha just joined them for the tours.

[dionysus]

9. sadly, i never got to see them;out of my 90s list i've seen pearl jam (x4), rage, stp, NIN, but i'll

never get to see pumpkins or nirvana. i really hope now that soundgarden is back together they'll play out this way...

[Tommy_Carcetti]

10. Well, the new Pumpkins (with only Billy left) should still tour.

So you could technically still see them. I don't know if you would count it, though.

But damn, the 1990s were some great years for rock, don't you think?

[dionysus]

11. excellent era for rock. there's spme good bands out there now but 90s was a golden age.

[salin]

5. k & r... sent

from what some Hoosiers call "The People's Republic of Bloomington". Not quite ranking up there with cesspoolofsin ... but a long lasting mocking moniker from those who simply can not understand how so many people can be so... *gasp* .... tolerant.

[yodermon]

7. Will Pitt has a fantastic piece about Asheville floating around somewhere...

will try to find it.

[Frustratedlady]

12. I visited Asheville for a week in July with my daughter and sil...

We ate at some fun restaurants (followed Obama's choices with Corner Kitchen and 12 Bones, I think it was called), spent time in the mountains and the Blue Ridge Highway. You have some of the BEST ice cream shops (scrumptious) and many great artisans. I brought home a tee shirt I wear a lot - Asheville Where Normal is Weird!

I truly didn't find anything weird about it. I'd love to see the area in the Fall.