Mary Estill Buchanan: Labor Day: Martin’s article is powerful reminder of local suffering
Hats and bonnets, caps and helmets off to Jim Martin for his opinion article, “Labor Day is about more than sales and BBQs,” which reminded us of the meaning of Labor Day and its celebration of America’s working people on the slow to organize physical work of our industrial enterprises. Colorado and Boulder’s history of suffering is no less than elsewhere. And is among the last for unions to organize because of the Coors family’s financial and political opposition.
Thanks, Jim, for this powerful, well-researched, thoughtful and caring work on our country’s unfinished business of weighing the strength in people numbers with the strength in dollars behind their managers.
Mary Estill Buchanan, Boulder
Curt Brown: CU South: University’s professed commitments ring hollow
The opinion piece by CU Chancellor Phil DiStefano et al., “Protecting our community and looking forward,” that asks us to support annexation of the university’s CU South property, would be amusingly ironic if the issues were not so serious. First, the authors say the annexation is critical to address increasingly severe flooding under climate change. What they don’t say is that the Boulder City Council, at one point, adopted a flood plan for CU South that would provide protection for the 500-year flood event. The university immediately said something like, “No, absolutely not, you may only have a flood project that protects for the 100-year flood, even if you grant us annexation.” This makes the university’s professed concern for climate change laughable.
The second, perhaps even greater irony, is the authors’ professed concern over housing costs in Boulder. As everyone knows, a significant driver of the limited supply and the rising cost of housing are the ever-increasing thousands of students and faculty that the university brings to Boulder but does not provide a place to live. So, the university now offers to allocate a part of CU South to student and faculty housing on the annexed land. What the university does not offer is to cap or reduce enrollment at CU Boulder, something that would actually address the problem. Because CU will not cap enrollment, any benefit of the CU South housing will soon be nullified by its increasing numbers of students and faculty. CU could show that it actually cares about the housing crisis by capping enrollment. Instead, the additional space and new facilities at CU South will provide the university with yet more justification to continue increasing enrollment.
The university’s professed commitments to addressing climate change and our housing crisis are hollow.
Curt Brown, Boulder
Grace Gamm: Election: George Will is blinded by fool’s gold
George Will’s recent column, “In Colorado, this Republican offers something appealing, not appalling,” got my knickers all in a twist. George thinks Coloradans should pick the Republican nominee for U.S. Senate because Joe O’Dea’s “not appalling” like the rest of his Trump-grovelling conservative gang. George says O’Dea proved himself by working at a pizza joint, and why do you high-horse Coloradans prefer experienced, educated, effective leader Sen. Michael Bennet anyway? Joe’s a “moderate” man who’s reluctant to speak his mind on social issues, but definitely wants your bad boyfriends to have their guns!
Don’t blink, because Joe O’Dea makes his moderate mark with disappearing ink. O’Dea’s abortion restrictions would snatch healthcare options away from Coloradans. George Will says never mind gals, chances are decent you’ll survive. These problems can be solved with adoption, says O’Dea. So what’s he really aiming for?
This nominee’s other fine feature, according to George, is the absolute least qualification for a gentleman: He declares President Biden won, fair and square.
Shucks, folks. Serious George Will proposes we oughta wrangle those appalling Republican politicians into renouncing their leading conman, then rejigger their collapsing party. They certainly can’t manage it themselves. Do it, pleads George, and Coloradans can heal the nation! We just have to sacrifice our freedom and safety and dignity first, by electing conservative shill, “Boss” Joe O’Dea.
Listen up now, don’t be like George, blinded by fool’s gold. Vote for Sen. Michael Bennet.
Grace Gamm, Boulder
Bill Butler: Student loans: Debt forgiveness comes with mixed feelings
My wife and I both worked our way through college and, like many others, took out loans as our parents could not help with financing. Part of my mixed feelings about the loan forgiveness program stems from the fact that many of the students claiming financial hardship are also the same ones who buy a $30,000 car, and are able to pay off their car loan in four or five years, but they claim poverty and thus cannot pay off student loans of the same amount. Seems to me a better solution to the “forgiveness” program, would be to forgive some debt if the individual would teach or practice medicine in a rural area or in the inner city. Moreover, the fly-by-night for-profit phony colleges of education should be made to repay the government for any loans taken out by their students.
Bill Butler, Longmont
