Opinion Columns - The Durango Herald

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Government growth got us into this mess, it won’t get us out

Like sunburns and mosquito swarms, the Special Legislative Session has become an unpleasant seasonal tradition in Colorado, courtesy of Gov. Jared Polis’ restless pen. For the third year in ...

DATE: Aug 20, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Harsh fire season brings out the best in La Plata County

Drought conditions have been increasing for more than 20 years in Southwest Colorado, and this summer we’re seeing the results of that drying trend on a disturbing scale. The entirety of La ...

DATE: Aug 17, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Is JD Vance right about Democrats?

Last month, Vice President JD Vance delivered a speech for the right-wing think tank the Claremont Institute about statesmanship: what it means to lead a country. The speech was delivered on...

DATE: Aug 17, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

We will regret not standing up to this venomous cruelty

Fifteen years ago, when Arizona enacted a notorious anti-immigrant “show me your papers” law, I wrote an essay in The Times that began: “I’m glad I’ve already seen the Grand Canyon. Because ...

DATE: Aug 17, 2025 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Boebert’s bill to delist gray wolves not surprising given her ‘little hats’ comment

Recent media coverage of U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert’s bill calling to delist the gray wolf from federal protection misses the most salient point: Boebert loathes wolves. Three years ago, Boebe...

DATE: Aug 15, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Will RFK Jr. and the ‘Make America Healthy Again’ movement change America?

The movement that helped make Robert F. Kennedy Jr. the secretary of health and human services converged politically with right-wing populism only in the last few years, but in spirit the ho...

DATE: Aug 13, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

HR1’s $1.2 billion impact on Colorado’s budget shifts costs to state, increases health care costs 30% to 40%

As we head into the last weeks of summer break, my family has been preparing for back-to-school, and now I’m prepping for back-to-the-Capitol for Special Session. Before I head back to Denve...

DATE: Aug 10, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

The BBB and Medicaid, when money matters more than humanity

Before the Epstein story caught the attention of the people and the national media, the focus had been on the “BBB” budget bill. Supporters of the bill claim that we are broke, that we need ...

DATE: Aug 10, 2025 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

President Trump missed a key budget cut in the ‘Big Beautiful Bill’

Congress recently approved a sweeping budget measure that includes deep reductions in clean energy tax incentives as part of an effort to curb federal expenditures. President Donald Trump, d...

DATE: Aug 10, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Join me in reminiscing and remembering toys and games from our childhood

I recently read an article on Joan Anderson, the woman who brought the hula hoop from Australia to 1950s America. She died in July at the age of 101. She and her husband pitched the idea to ...

DATE: Aug 8, 2025 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Coal gets a boost while renewables – and life on Earth – are gutted

A few years back, my friend Norm told me that when he was growing up in northern New Mexico in the 1950s and early ‘60s, his family often drove up to the La Plata Mountains in southwestern C...

DATE: Aug 6, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion

Rep. Jeff Hurd has turned his back on Colorado’s 3rd District

When Rep. Jeff Hurd voted in favor of the final version of H.R. 1 – the bill that was ultimately signed into law – he didn’t just fall in line with Washington politics. He turned his back on...

DATE: Aug 3, 2025 | CATEGORY: Opinion