Editorials

Editorial cartoon: Interest rate hike

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Our View: School leaders need PERA compromise

As rural schools struggle with teacher shortages, we need all capable hands on deck. Recent House bills signed into law helped retired teachers and other employees return to work without…

Code talker Sandoval a hero

I was very saddened to learn of the passing of Navajo code talker Samuel Sandoval. I had the honor of introducing him at his talks at the Cortez Cultural Center…

‘Count me yes’ on redesign

My hand is raised in favor of a downtown redesign. In 40 years of residence, the physical has changed little as use and business have grown. The timing is right…

‘Thousands of ditches nothing less than beloved’

Dave Marstoncca Annette Choszczyk lives in rural western Colorado these days, but when she was a kid, the Highline Canal in Denver was her summer paradise. “To us, it was…

Durangoans ‘duped’ on e-bikes

I am shocked by the number of people in Durango riding electric bikes. This is bike-town USA! Home of world-class athletes and a biking mecca. We don’t need a motor.…

Our View: Spend excess revenue on new purposes

It’s a good problem to have roughly $1.2 million, the equivalent of two years’ worth of excess lodgers tax revenue, to either refund to residents or keep and spend. City…

‘Doubt majority negatively affected’ by train whistle

Re letter on Wednesday about the train whistle. First of all, the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad is the historic cornerstone of Durango. Durango businesses, such as stores and…

1,000+ responses ‘not consensus’

To expand on previous letters to the editor about the historic Main Avenue redo, 1,000-plus responses to the questionnaire from a voting population of 13,000-plus in the city does not…

Biden ‘horrible for retirement funds’

The Thrift Savings Plan demonstrates the destruction of our economy. This quarter, all funds, except the G Fund, are losing by an average of -16.37%. Horrible for retirement funds. To…

Editorial cartoon: Pilot shortage

Editorial cartoon: Purple Cliffs and pickleball

‘Language police,’ homeless and unhoused

Since the Language Police have made it illegal to use the word “homeless” and replaced it with “unhoused,” why do you use the term “homelessness?” You repeatedly use the term…

5 things Frisch must do to beat Boebert

Steve Mandelldu1-i-syn Can Democrat Adam Frisch beat Republican incumbent Lauren Boebert? Up front, I should admit that I am not a Boebert fan. Her rhetoric makes gridlock easy and problem-solving…

Single-payer system benefits patients, physicians

U.S. physician organizations are shifting positions toward a single-payer healthcare system to benefit both doctors and patients. The single-payer system is a streamlined financing mechanism where one entity administers funding…

No charge in ‘terminate presidency’ tweet?

Why hasn’t Boebert been charged for tweeting, ”We need to terminate this presidency.” Isn’t she asking someone to shoot President Biden? John Hopkins Durango

Main Avenue survey ‘manipulation’

Do you remember when your grade-school teachers wanted you to feel like you were part of a decision? They came up with a few things they wanted you to do…

‘Lay off’ the train whistle

I noted that the county turned off the clock chimes downtown this summer (boo!) in response to a few complaints. It is too bad nothing is being done to address…

Bill Roberts: Dolphin program brings new perception

For more than 60 years, the U.S. Navy has used dolphins to detect underwater mines. It is a successful and cost-effective program that is now threatened by budget cuts. It…

Editorial cartoon: Don’t want summer to end

cca

‘Leave it alone’ a design choice

Not that many years ago, the city had plans to repair downtown sidewalks. Somebody in city management decided that before the sidewalk repair work was to begin, the city needed…

How did fires start around Durango?

Durango Fire Protection District, Durango City Council, La Plata County, Bureau of Land Management, San Juan National Forest officials: Please, you are obligated to let the residents of Durango know…

‘Pay (accordingly) for international educators’

RE: The editorial on Wednesday, “International teachers good hires.” Both my wife and I are retired international educators. We earned our degrees, a bachelor’s degree and master’s degree, in the…

Turn on comfort TV, turn off the strife

cca Like you, I can watch anything I want to on television right now. Between cable, streaming and YouTube, I can experience any adventure, get involved in any romance or…

Our View: Survivalist companies profit off fears

Have the Jan. 6 hearings galvanized the already prolific marketing for 4Patriots, the survivalist company out of Nashville? 4Patriots’ ads popped up everywhere soon after the attack on the Capitol.…

Our View: Pulling plug on city’s broadcasts reasonable

Following a June 25 story in The Durango Herald on the City of Durango potentially scrapping its DGOV broadcast services, one commenter wrote: “Lip service to transparency is just that.”…

Our View: Who exactly is Heidi Ganahl?

It’s a bit of a surprise that Heidi Ganahl, Colorado’s Republican nominee for governor, selected an election denier as her running mate. Navy veteran and business consultant Danny Moore was…

‘Patriots’ sold out country cheaply

I have strived to understand the continued attachment of many conservatives to the gifted demagogue former President Donald Trump and his election lie by talking to Trump supporters. The secret…

Spend lodgers tax on parking garage

I actually live outside of Durango city limits. My wife and I buy “stuff” in Durango and frequent the restaurants in town. Why not spend the extra funds from the…

Take on Democratic Party logic, agenda

My take on Democratic Party logic. Shut down the timber industry in the Northwest to protect the nesting spotted owl. Stop pipeline construction in the Midwest to protect the nesting…