To the Editor,

In a recent Mt. Airy News report of Fibrowatt officials meeting with the Mt. Airy Rotary Club, Richard Loftis, a member of the club, is quoted as saying, “I thought they did a great job. It sounds like they’ll be great corporate citizens.” Loftis went on to say that he thinks most of the negative comments about Fibrowatt comes from Elkin, where the plant would be based. He said, “I’ve heard nothing negative at all (in Mount Airy).”

I would like to suggest that Mr. Loftis and those in Mt. Airy who are so enamored of Fibrowatt invite the company to site somewhere in the northern portion of the county. Fibrowatt likes a site close to an interstate, and Mt. Airy has both I-77 and I-74 available. They also prefer to be close to a river, and while Mt. Airy can't provide as viable a waterway as the Yadkin, it does have access to the Ararat, a tributary. Since there is no negativity toward the plant in Mt. Airy, there should be no opposition.

Honestly, I can't think of a better solution to the problem. Mt. Airy would welcome Fibrowatt with open arms, earn the gratitude of those of us opposed to the plant being sited in Elkin, and be able to take advantage of those "80" jobs Terry Warmsley has promised.

It seems to be a win-win situation--with one minor flaw. Those of us who have been investigating the company for the past year believe strongly that not only is Fibrowatt a bad choice for our backyard, it's a bad choice for anybody's back yard. That's one reason we're helping Sampson and Montgomery counties in North Carolina, and why we helped Page County, Va. We are convinced that if the Mt. Airy Rotary Club and the Mt. Airy Chamber of Commerce were as willing to listen to us as they are to listen to Fibrowatt, there definitely would be negativity toward this company in that area.

However, our offer stands. Invite Fibrowatt to site there, and then let us know how you feel.



Sincerely,

Sam Tesh

State Road

To the Editor,

Hi. My family and I have always enjoyed the Andy Griffith Show. It’s a good, clean wholesome show, that’s based on Andy’s home town of Mt. Airy, NC. Mayberry had one town drunk, and when he started drinking, he would spend the weekend in jail. My, how times have changed.

Mt. Airy is now hosting the upcoming wine festival which will be this weekend. I will not be supporting this event at all. I think it’s a shame and disgrace that our city leaders voted to support this event, and from what I understand, alcohol will be legal in other festivals. We will have people walking the downtown streets of Mt. Airy consuming alcohol. This will not be a good thing at all. This will not help revenue. It will increase drunkeness, and alcohol consumption. The law enforcement will be busy keeping people from doing what the city leaders voted to let them do.

Why would you want to encourage alcohol consumption when it causes so much trouble such as Domestic problems, Murder, Rape, Homelessness, Child Abuse, Poverty, Etc. I don’t live in the city limits of Mt. Airy, but I’ve lived in the Mt. Airy area for about 28 years. I can’t vote on the city leaders, but I wish I could. Mt. Airy needs leadership that believes in moral values, not public consumption of alcohol on our city streets.

I am against alcohol because I’ve seen what it can do to homes. It makes them a wreck for those being abused by the effects of it. The word of God has a lot to say about the foolishness of it. Proverbs 20:1 says Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. By the way, our Lord Jesus Christ didn’t turn the water into an alcoholic wine. It was the best grape juice they had ever drunk. He wouldn’t have turned water into something that would cause them to be unwise, and drunk.

I hope we have enough Christians in Mt. Airy to get this new law changed. It sure needs to be. If our town wants to be more like Andy’s home town, we need to do away with alcohol, instead of encouraging it. Any revenue brought in will be offset tremendously by the problems it will cause.



Pastor Tommy Nichols

Mount Airy

To the Editor,



I find it ironic that just as a landmark clean energy and climate bill is going to be introduced to the Senate, Fibrowatt executive Terry Walmsley is visiting the county to sell his air-polluting, health endangering, town destroying incinerator. He has come as a result of an ultimatum from the Surry County Board of Commissioners that carried a stern warning to Fibrowatt that ii was losing community support.

Over the past few weeks, Walmsley visited (wined and dined) some of our Country Commissioners. Waste of time, you already had them sold. Walmsley also went to the meeting of the Surry Sunrise Rotary Club in Mount Airy for a question and answer session. Let me say, it took a long time for the people of Elkin to become aware of how devastating this incinerator will be and I don’t think the majority of the people in Mount Airy are up to speed on this issue. One member said he understands why no one would want to live next to and industrial facility. Fibrowatt is not an industrial facility, it’s an INCINERATOR! The residents of Elkin already live next to industrial facilities and that is not the issue. Elkin residents are not anti industry, they are anti air pollution.Plus, Mount Airy can afford to be cavalier; they have received at least four new or expanded business’ within the last year with a total almost 800 jobs. On April 12, Walmsley attended the Elkin Town Board of Commissioner’s meeting, who are up to speed on the issue but did not address the board. Hum, nothing to say to the officials of the town you are willing to decimate?

The Fibrowatt V.P. said he would like to meet with Dr. Bill Blackley and some other opponents of Fibrowatt in the future but he will be careful about how the meetings take place. I have the utmost respect and admiration for Dr. Bill Blackley and appreciate the amount of time he has spent researching Fibrowatt and the complete truthfulness of his data. But, I can almost predict what will happen at this meeting. Dr. Blackley will be honest and sincere. Walmsley will give lip service and wish he was out of there! Walmsley is not going to wring his hands and say “sorry, we didn’t know about the pollution and now that we know we won’t do that to your community.” Walmsley’s company is going to make millions of dollars at our expense. Do you think they really care what they do to Elkin?

The Editorial in the Mount Airy News on Sunday, April 25, 2010 was titled “Fibrowatt’s talking, we hope all are listening.” The Mount Airy News is pro Fibrowatt and slants information towards that position. The editorial said that they understand some honest opposition and that they empathize, because no one wants to be living within the sight of a factory. Hello, it’s not a factory! Factories make things. FIBROWATT BURNS THINGS. And, by the way, polluted air will blow to Mount Airy as well. He goes on to compare those who are against Fibrowatt with those who are against a prison. Boy, that’s apple and oranges. A prison won’t pollute the air. Fibrowatt will. A prison won’t bring 180 trucks a day. Fibrowatt will. A prison will provide hundreds of jobs. Fibrowatt won’t. The editor is naïve to think that the federal guidelines are so strict that people don’t have anything to worry about. Doesn’t he know that the guidelines are being relaxed? And for the editor to dismiss “an occasional incident of a few extra parts per million of any given substance” as an “oops” moment that runs afoul of the guidelines is absurd. Tell the people of Love Canal, Three Mile Island and Chernobyl about “oops” incidents. There is no safe level of dioxins to a human being.

In summary, instead of asking all concerned to listen to Fibrowatt, how about Fibrowatt listening to those all concerned.

Joan Vasata

Elkin

To the Editor,

After attending a forum last Thursday night between Senator Don East and Paul Johnson, I feel I must encourage all voters in the 30th District to get out and vote on May 4th once again for Senator East. Paul Johnson is simply not able to look after the best interest of the citizens of the district, he is full of bluster and volume and I fear little else. Don East will go back to Raleigh with the people at heart and mind just as he always has.

Mr. Johnson has made some sweeping accusations against Senator East; and as his daughter I am in a position to set the record straight. My Dad has always been in attendance while the Senate was in session. As far as I know, the only time he has missed even a meeting, would have been when my Mother was spending her last days in the hospital, and I do not believe even the harshest critic would hold that against him. He does not stay in the lap of luxury on the taxpayers dime; but a small Hotel room he pays for himself, and I'm sure there are many nights he would rather be in his own home like you and I. There are no “kick-backs,” no “lavish parties,” certainly no “night club acts” as Johnson intimated for this Public Service job my Dad does; Mr. Johnson watches too much TV.

My Dad taught me many things as I was growing up on our little farm; (yes Mr. Johnson some of the rest of us were “raised” and “learned how to work” right there in Surry County) how to drive a tractor, when to plant the garden, when the barn was cured; but two things have stuck with me every day of my life; Work hard for what you need and Always do what you say you’ll do. Senator Don East will Always work hard for what You need and he will Always do what he says he’ll do.

Gina East Southern

Kernersville