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Monday letters: Conservative solutions, cause for celebration, 2C support, out of touch

Well-played

In your “Opinion” section of last Friday’s paper (9/23) you printed the pro and con of the wild horse situation, printed on one page opposing each other, so as not to have to try to find the opposing viewpoint possibly printed in another edition on a different day. 

I found it interesting that both writers write for “Writers on the Range” which I would not have noticed without this presentation.

Thank you! Well done!



Corkie Ramey, Gypsum

Don’t stop there

I read Superintendent Rodriguez’s recent letter and my first thought was: why are we stopping at the “bare minimum” of just “honoring names, pronouns, genders, and sexual orientation in our schools”? I think Re-1 can be more progressive and start taking action to really lean into this subject. Here are just two ideas: 



1. Bring in doctors to discuss options for students. I think some Q&A with doctors to perform gender altering surgeries or starting hormone therapy would be welcomed.

2. Partner with Drag Queens Story Hour. Pre-school through elementary school should be open for drag queens to come dance, read and enjoy our children. 

Students and parents need to remember “trust the experts” just like they did when it came to managing COVID. Every topic when it comes to our children should be left to experts. Educational topics, health decisions, discussions about sex, etc. should all be left to school officials.

If you are a parent seeing other parents struggle to accept this, I suggest reading the book “Nudge” by Cass Sunstein. It is a favorite among bureaucrats because it is essentially a playbook for how to gradually “nudge” people into making decisions or getting people to accept certain things they wouldn’t normally if you presented it all at once. For example, rather than go immediately to having minors meet with doctors about hormone therapy, you might start with writing a letter like Superintendent Rodriguez. That’s the first nudge. Then you keep nudging from there.

I think the Roaring Fork Valley is progressive enough where this type of nudging isn’t needed. As a community we can be shoved into making the correct progressive decisions. 

And let’s make sure to not stop at sexual identity discussions. Superintendent Rodriguez’s Re-1 bio page lists “Caste” by Isabel Wilkerson as his favorite book. I highly recommend all parents read this book to get an idea of what’s to come for our students.

Thomas Mises, Carbondale

You want solutions?

Mr. Glockman writes in his PI letter of 9/19 that I’m all grievances sans solutions. He says I define the Make America Great Again part of the GOP.

OK, here are some solutions. Our “non-crisis” at our “secure” southern border that’s been invaded by millions of unvetted, unvaxed illegals from 160 countries could be solved by returning to Trump’s migration policies. Crime is out of control in Dem-ruled hell holes; solution: Refund police, repeal no bail laws, and replace Soros backed, pro-criminal DAs.

We spend more per student than any country on Earth, yet our kids rank 35th globally; solution: destroy the unholy alliance between teachers’ unions and the Dem party. 

Biden’s betrayal of our allies in Afghanistan exemplifies decades of foreign policy ineptitude; solution: Find a POTUS who can complete a sentence without a teleprompter.

Rampant inflation is hurting the poor and seniors the most; solution: Regain energy independence because energy is the most essential component of a prosperous economy and we have plenty.

From Mr. G’s climate of doom hysteria, his glass  of optimism is empty. And I believe Mr. G is a liberal sheep in RINO disguise. A conservative sans grievances against the Biden cabal is not a conservative.

Bruno Kirchenwitz, Rifle

Celebrate fall with Ascendigo

Come celebrate with us at Ascendigo’s Fall Fest at Batch Provisions on Wednesday, Oct. 5. Ascendigo is a Carbondale-based nonprofit with a mission to elevate the spectrum by empowering people, inspiring lives and shattering expectations. We do this by supporting kids and adults with autism through therapeutic recreation, vocational support, behavioral therapy and more. 

Our Visionary Goal is a community where all individuals with autism can thrive in the pursuit of a meaningful and purposeful life. Carbondale and the Roaring Fork Valley is this community and so we are celebrating our phenomenal community partners who are indispensable in achieving this goal. 

Some ways our community helps us include supporting and sponsoring our fundraising events, and making donations that are crucial to our sustainability; employing and welcoming Ascendigo adults as employees and volunteers; welcoming the autistic community when they see us out and about – a warm smile and understanding can go a long way. 

Or you can come celebrate with us at Fall Fest at Batch. Your admission will get you pizza and snacks, two drink tickets and free entry in our “beer stein holding” contest. If you cannot attend, consider donating the cost of a ticket and we will make that ticket available to an adult in our community with autism. Tickets available at: http://www.ascendigo.org

Whether you join us for Fall Fest or not, we invite you to join us and our community partners in empowering our clients and participants with meaning and purpose.

Dan Richardson, Carbondale

Supporting Glenwood 2C

I’ve read through the details of Measure 2C and I am absolutely for it. Measure 2C creates much needed resources for homes our workforce needs and can afford. It specifically supports Glenwood’s workforce. It is paid for by a modest increase in lodging tax that keeps us competitive with other communities. So, visitors, rather than us locals, provide the resources we need to tackle this critical issue. If you’re on the side of our community and our businesses and the people who work in them, this one seems very sensible. Sign me up as a yes for 2C.

Kayce Anderson, Glenwood Springs

BOCC out of touch

Before the start of the Sept. 19 Garfield County Commissioner meeting, Mike Samson commented that there was certainly not a lot of love for the commissioners recently. Presumably he was referring to columns and letters in the local papers. John Martin responded by saying that there are just a lot of bitter people out there who make their voices heard around election time.

The concerns currently being raised regarding the commissioners aren’t the result of “bitterness,” but are based on dissatisfaction with the commissioners’ dismal record. Time and time again the commissioners miss the boat on issues critical to the future health and well-being of our community. They refuse to work in collaboration with other governmental and non-governmental entities; they neglect to take advantage of grant-funding opportunities; they spend endless amounts of our county dollars fighting environmental protections, not to mention the recent lawyering up against the development of a Sweetwater Lake state park; and they foolishly continue to bank on the notion of a new oil and gas boom to fill the county coffers.

In contrast, we see commissioners in neighboring counties who are forward-thinking and proactive. They are working collaboratively with other entities to tackle substantive issues – and they are getting things done.

That our commissioners see specific critiques of their actions as simply the complaints of bitter people shows just how out of touch they are with the people they are elected to serve. It’s time for new blood and new ideas on the Garfield County Board of Commissioners.

Marc Bruell, Carbondale


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