Opinion Columns - The Durango Herald

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Katie Stewart is young people’s and Southwest Colorado’s next champion

You know we’re close to an election when every commercial is a political ad. With Nov. 5 rapidly approaching, it’s important that people in Southwest Colorado know that there’s an opportunit...

DATE: Nov 2, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Invest in ethical hunting and recreation for the true balance of nature

Walk with me. I’ll show you Proposition 127. See that metal cage on public land, covered in snow. There’s a bobcat inside. A fur trapper used cat food as bait. She’s cold, wet and terrorized...

DATE: Nov 2, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Making endorsements is the right, courageous and ethical thing to do

In late October, The Durango Herald ran endorsements for items on the general election ballot of La Plata County, as well as for president of the United States. Such journalism runs in the f...

DATE: Nov 2, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Donald Trump’s secret weapon? Latinos

Latinos are the ultimate swing voter. Most come from countries with socially liberal policies, but are culturally steeped in conservative values and norms rooted in the Catholic Church. And ...

DATE: Nov 1, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Voting ‘yes’ on 1A: For our families, our children and the future of La Plata County

As a third-generation La Plata County native, I’ve always cherished this place. It’s where my family put down roots, where I grew up and where I’ve chosen to raise my own children. But for t...

DATE: Oct 31, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

This November, we must protect election officials

The attorney general of the United States, Merrick Garland, had a reminder for the American people in remarks before a recent meeting of the Justice Department’s Election Threats Task Force:...

DATE: Oct 24, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Mike Elliott at the center of nordic ski achievements and memories on Saturday

On the patio at the Powerhouse on the banks of the Animas River on Saturday afternoon were many of the Nordic skiers who put Durango in the news in the 1960s and 1970s for their cross-countr...

DATE: Oct 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Paul Black for county commissioner

In America, we’re often encouraged to think out of the box, look at situations from different points of view and examine a problem not from a standard perspective. Diversity is a positive in...

DATE: Oct 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

Not opposed to cell service, just tower location

For over eight months our neighborhood group has been working to oppose the proposed location of a cell tower near our homes. In the Herald article (Herald, Oct. 16), there were many mislead...

DATE: Oct 19, 2024 | CATEGORY: Letters to the Editor

The seduction of scapegoating

Immigration has risen to the top of the issue list for a clear majority of Americans. For many voters, it is now more important than the economy, inequality, health care, education, housing,...

DATE: Oct 17, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Mountain lions: Truth not myth

When scientists become advocates during an election and tell you “just the facts,” you can be certain they are only telling you part of the facts. As Colorado’s carnivore biologist with Colo...

DATE: Oct 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Report estimates more than 18K Coloradans disenfranchised while imprisoned for felonies

A new report from The Sentencing Project estimates more than 18,000 Coloradans serving time for a felony conviction in prison or jail won’t be able to vote in the 2024 election. The Sentenci...

DATE: Oct 12, 2024 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Durango High School girls basketball wins bigDHS girls basketball defeat Montrose in Sweet 16 game at DHS on Wednesday

DHS girls basketball defeat Montrose in Sweet 16 game at DHS on Wednesday

Photos: Horsing around

Photos: Winter storm leaves over a foot of snow

Photos: FLC hoops at WhalenSkyhawks women’s and men’s basketball teams lose to Colorado Mesa

Skyhawks women’s and men’s basketball teams lose to Colorado Mesa

Photos: Fashion at its bestSnowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts

Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts

Photos: Snowdown on SaturdaySnowdown’s Canine Fashion Show and Outlaw Josie Pete’s Golf

Snowdown’s Canine Fashion Show and Outlaw Josie Pete’s Golf

Photos: Snowdown Rock-em-Sock-em Snowbots pillow fights

Snowdown Light Parade can boast another successful yearLights flashed, fire trucks wailed and a foam cannon spewed suds

Bright lights, screaming fire trucks and children bundled up so thoroughly it seemed like an army of Michelin men had taken over downtown Durango. Yep. It’s the much anticipated Snowdown light parade, this year distinguished by a crowd of onlookers peppered with scrabble tiles, Clue characters and playing cards.

Locals flocked to Main Avenue on Friday to get a look (and maybe a Smartie or two) at the floats parading through town on various, creatively decorated vehicles. There were some obvious standouts at this year’s board game-themed parade. After a fire truck’s opening sirens came the Purgatory car, toting a brightly lit ski bum moonlighting as a DJ, likely giving the women of Durango some unpleasant déjà vu. Best dressed had to go to the Colorado Department of Transportation’s bulldozer, wearing the most believable Hungry Hungry Hippos costume seen yet. Biggest crowd pleaser? The dancers boogieing to Chappell Roan’s “HOT TO GO!” while the crowd sang and wiggled along. But what got the biggest rise out of the onlookers was the white plumes of motorcycle exhaust, courtesy of the Harley-Davidson club. The smell of burning octane was a convincing enough reason for people to briefly unclutch the rails and step away from their coveted positions at the front of the fence. Last but not least, another machine spewing its interior into the crowd: a foam cannon, the first one to make an appearance in the history of Snowdown. Much better received than exhaust, it extracted gleeful screams from kids and adults alike. jbowman@durangoherald.com