By Pruett Norris
In local news, my favorite event of the year happened this past weekend, and I wasn’t home to see it! For those of you who were, Banner Elk hosted the 45th annual Wooly Worm Festival across a beautiful fall weekend, reports the Appalachian. The Wooly Worm fest is a yearly event where wooly worm fans flock to the High Country from all around the country in order to celebrate the coming of winter. It’s kind of like groundhog day, but with the winner of a wooly worm RACE determining how long the season will last. This year’s victorious racer is named Porta Potty, after the porta potty near which he was found, says Emma Denton, a 3rd year Appalachian State student and the owner of the winning worm. Denton will bring home a $1000 cash prize, while Porta Potty soaks up the glory. Congratulations to both!
Statewide, and in serious news, the parents of the recent Raleigh shooter have issued a statement according to the Associated Press. Alan and Elise Thompson confirmed on Tuesday night that one of the five victims of the Thursday shooting was Austin Thompson’s brother sixteen-year-old James. “Our son Austin inflicted immeasurable pain on the Raleigh community, and we are overcome with grief for the innocent lives lost,” the two said. As the Raleigh community grieves, the investigation into the cause of the crimes is ongoing.
Nationally, Ye, the artist formerly known as Kanye West, has been sued in a $250 million defamation lawsuit by the family of George Floyd, reports NPR. Ye had appeared on the podcast “Drink Champs” and falsely claimed that Floyd had died from fentanyl use, rather than at the hands of his murderer Derek Chauvin. “Drink Champs” issued an apology for the episode and took it down, while Ye has remained silent on the suit thus far. There is a debate about the validity of the lawsuit considering Ye’s first amendment right to speech and complications regarding defamation without a living plaintiff, but proving such a case is not impossible, as seen recently in the Alex Jones Sandy Hook trials. We shall see.
Finally, the weather as ever from Boone Weather DOT COM. The high is sitting at a brisk 44 degrees today with a low of 27… that’s a chilly one! Stay warm, Boone. This is Pruett Norris, for 90.5 WASU The App FM.