Text The Times.

Text The Times.

Re: Permaculture Farming story — So much wrong here i don't no where to start. smdh [ Editor’s Note: “ Begin at the beginning,' the King said, very gravely, ' and go on till you come to the end: then stop.” That was Lewin Carroll’s take on it in Alice in Wonderland, anyway. So, now that you “ no” where to start, I’m all ears]

*** “A City Lost” After reading the article about the former Mayor of Sunset Kirby Massey, about all that he did in such a small town & all of the money he paid out to his wife (keeping income in house) & himself, all I could do was shake my head. It’s sad to see people in power take advantage of a situation just because they can. Where were the checks & balances? Why didn’t anyone speak up? I’m sure the same is happening now with the sitting Mayor of Sunset. He has his girlfriend & his girlfriend’s daughter working for the City getting paid who knows how much. What are they getting paid for because when I pass through the town (Monday – Friday) the City Hall is always closed. I can remember people talking about the former Mayor & nepotism, why doesn’t it apply now? Who’s doing the checks & balances now & what is the City Council of that town doing to make sure what Mr. Massey did will not happen again with their new Mayor? [ Editor’s Note: I think you might be overestimating the capacity for a rural town of less than 190 people and a total size of less than one- half a square mile to have a fully-functioning municipal government. In the recent election, exactly zero candidates filed for the town’s five council seats. The most surprising thing coming out of the story was the dollar amount — $ 52,850.

I wouldn’t have thought there was $ 50,000 in all of Sunset to steal. I’m all for checks and balances, but with an operating budget of practically nothing and no commerce or industry in the community, I honestly don’t know what you’d be checking on or what is in need of balancing. Now, I’ve never heard a bad word about the current mayor, but I think it’s worth pointing out that your use of “ nepotism” doesn’t necessarily apply just because a city official’s relative works for the city. It’s just as likely to be a matter of hiring someone to do a job they are qualified to do.

Ultimately, I think Sunset’s days are nearing, well, its sunset. Which is kind of sad, because as a kid growing up on the north end of old Marion, it was not unusual for the kids in my neighborhood on Henry Street to play football or whatever in the vacant lot between Marion and Sunset. But all of these rural towns are disappearing here in the 21st century]

*** Pray for Gatlinburg!

[ Editor’s Note: Indeed.

That is a very nice place and the fires there aren’t something that will be “ a problem solved” once they go out. That’s a situation that will impact that entire region for a pretty long time. There are a number of relief efforts going on right now, so if you have the means here in this season of giving, by all means be a part of that. Just please make sure you do a little research to find out if you’re giving to a legiti-mate charitable organization]

*** 106 Willow, Marion. Well it’s 5:15 p.m. and No paper!!!! Know you had problems Monday, got Monday and Tuesday papers WEDNESDAY MORNING IN UNTIED BAG AND BOTH WERE SOAKED BY THE RAIN! Got Wednesday paper after 6:30 p.m. and now waiting again! Have been a subscriber for 25 years, am 65 years old and have NEVER HAD A DELIVERY PERSON AS BAD AS THIS ONE!!!!!!

SURE WISH I HAD MY OTHER GUY BACK, HE WAS “THE BEST”, never had any problem, paper was here no later than 3 p.m.!!!! Sorry Mr. Nick, guess your talk with them fell on deaf ears!!!!!!!

[ Editor’s Note: I’m sure everyone is tired of reading about delivery problems, but I do want to make sure that folks who take enough time to text in their concerns know that we got the message, complete with multiple exclamation points to emphasize the most important parts. I have it on good authority that we’ll be back on our own press schedule as early as today, so my hope is that our susbscribers new and old will be able to get their papers on time and not wet. I’ve also been asked to pass on the word that our online edition is posted and available for viewing between noon and 1 p. m., just in time for your lunch break. Anyhoo, we do value all of our readers, and the last thing we want to do is aggravate anyone, so please stick with us as we work through our issues]

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