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Let ‘em in: Refugees Benefit Our Economy

Let ‘em in: Refugees Benefit Our Economy

“You don’t build a nine foot fence along the border between two friendly nations…Rather than put up a fence, why don’t we work out our mutual problems?…Document the undocumented and let them stay.”

—Ronald Reagan campaign speech, 1980

  By Bear Gebhardt

The violent, inhumane and impoverished conditions that refugees now experience on the border of the world’s most prosperous country are…

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How Small Communities Can Rally to Protect Themselves

How Small Communities Can Rally to Protect Themselves

LaPorte, Colo., is a good example for communities that face adverse impacts to their public safety, health, and heritage.

By Janet Duvall

All across America, small communities with distinctive heritages often face a similar problem: Encroachment by industry and others whose intentions may easily disrupt the treasured lifestyle of residents.

Janet Duvall is a writer who lives in LaPorte, Colo.Lea…

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Growing up with “benign violence”

Growing up with “benign violence”

By George N. Wallace

We went to high school and college with shotguns or rifles in the gun rack because we might go hunting after class. We carried pocket knives and tobacco. There were occasional fights in the bathroom or out behind the school surrounded by other students.

George N. Wallace is a farmer and rancher, and emeritus college professor who lives in Colorado. Learn more about him...

If…

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Lesson for Paul Manafort and all of us: Honesty can lead to financial freedom

Lesson for Paul Manafort and all of us: Honesty can lead to financial freedom

By Bear Gebhardt

I experience more financial freedom than Paul Manafort, even before he went to jail.

My more financial freedom than pre-jail Manafort came as somewhat of a surprise since Mr. Manafort recently earned over $60 million dollars in a single five-year period.

Bear Gebhardt is a Colorado writer. Learn more about him…

By “financial freedom” I mean free from excessive worry when it comes…

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From Harriet Tubman to John Carlos and Colin Kaepernick: Are Things Better?

From Harriet Tubman to John Carlos and Colin Kaepernick: Are Things Better?

By Pete Simon

On October 16, 1968—50 years ago—I entered the gates of the Great Lakes Naval Training Center, an hour’s train ride north of Chicago. It would become a gut-wrenching time with endless belittlement, tedious routines, and unreachable deadlines.

Pete Simon is a writer living in Colorado. Learn more about Pete…

Outside of this military asylum, our cities were burning. Back in August,…

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How Do You Define Greatness?

How Do You Define Greatness?

By Pete Simon

Recently, someone asked me: How is it that some places in this world are filled with affluence, modernity and relative comfort, while in other places people still live in grass huts without electricity and short life spans?  Are we supposed to feel guilty about that?

My answer was no, but we must be aware of history, understand why certain things are arranged so disproportionately,…

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A Poem for Our Times, Thanks to Ken Burns

A Poem for Our Times, Thanks to Ken Burns

Editor’s note: The dramatic documentary, The Vietnam War, captured the attention and minds of audiences as it told the story of one of the most consequential, divisive, and controversial events in American history. The subject of this documentary makes pale the current news of Donald Trump, Hillary Clinton, the Game of Thrones, Powerball, NFL, Google, YouTube, Amazon, Facebook, Russian hacking,…

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The Deplorable Who Once Sat Next to Me

The Deplorable Who Once Sat Next to Me

By David Adamson

Early most days I go to a nearby Starbucks. It’s a big store, with lots of seating. The choice seating if you’re alone is at one of the eight small tables arranged in a row along a faux-leather, padded bench.

Right after opening the crowd is sparse, but there’s always a cadre of regulars, mainly grey hairs who seek that padded bench. Through the years, I’ve formed what you might…

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Why don’cha speak English?

Why don’cha speak English?

By John Gascoyne

Politely stated, English is a polyglot language – a tongue derived from many sources, many parent tongues.

Less politely said, ours is a mongrel language, a convoluted bastard tongue resulting from someone doing a cannonball in the gene pool.

John Gascoyne is a writer and lawyer in Fort Collins, Colo. Learn more about him…

Thus, when someone archly asks, “Why don’cha speak…

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The True Privileged Class

The True Privileged Class

By Bear Gebhardt

I recently recognized that I am privileged—that most of us are privileged—in ways that our President is not. Such recognition of my own privilege helped me find more compassion for that underprivileged man.

Here’s how it happened: I recently found myself hooked on a very well-done, in-depth, four-part  Netflix documentary called, “Trump: An American Dream.“   It’s a…

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Born in the USA

Born in the USA

By Mary Roberts

I lay on my yoga mat in savasana, the sweat dripping in my right ear. The teacher walks around with lavender-infused cold face cloths she places in our open palms. I put it on my forehead, covering my eyes. I feel the tears well up. No one knows that I’m crying. Hot yoga makes us all look like we’re weeping.

Mary Roberts is a writer living in Fort Collins, Colo. Click here to…

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Trump's ICE Agents Break At Least Four Ten Commandments By Stealing Kids

Trump’s ICE Agents Break At Least Four Ten Commandments By Stealing Kids

Trump’s immigration agents should disobey orders to tear families apart

 By Bear Gebhardt

Conservatives and liberals quickly agree (though for different reasons) that our current immigration system is badly broken.

Bear Gebhardt is a writer living in Colorado. Learn more about him…

There are approximately 11 million undocumented immigrant workers and their families living in the United States.Six…

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We Are So Mad!

We Are So Mad!

By Alan Vitello

I Was So Mad!

That’s the name of the 1983 children’s book by author and illustrator Mercer Mayer. It is a great book that features Mayer’s recurring character, Little Critter. The book was one of our son’s favorite back in the days when we read to him at bedtime.

Alan Vitello is a writer and an award-winning cartoonist who lives in Colorado. Learn more about Alan…

In the story,…

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The Fault in Our NFL Stars

The Fault in Our NFL Stars

By David Adamson While channel-surfing the night before Super Bowl 52 early in February, I happened upon the movie “Concussion,” a biopic about Dr. Bennet Omalu. He’s the neuropathologist who discovered Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) while performing a post-mortem on the brain of a 50-year-old Pro Football Hall of Famer in 2002. For some reason, the movie made me remember Charlie Tolar.…

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Amazon: Stay out of Colorado for your headquarters

Amazon: Stay out of Colorado for your headquarters

Editor’s Note: Amazon is looking for a site in either the U.S. or Canada to build a second headquarters. The list of potential locations has been narrowed from 238 to 20 cities, including Denver. The letter’s author: Alan Apt is a modest person who downplays his many accomplishments as a writer, environmentalist, politician, and volunteer. Learn more about Alan… The Amazon site will offer…

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Little Plays in Four Acts

Little Plays in Four Acts

By John Gascoyne You’ve settled down with your spouse and the kidlets to eat popcorn and watch a bit of after-dinner TV. The program, only so-so, invites lassitude, but the commercial jolts you into wide-eyed, amazed alertness. John Gascoyne is a writer and lawyer living in Fort Collins, Colo. Learn more about John… The ad is a cartoon representation of Joe’s gastrointestinal tract. There is…

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Trump and Africa: Has he done us in?

Trump and Africa: Has he done us in?

By Pete Simon The great American undoing could have started foolishly enough with Donald Trump’s “S—hole” comment on January 12. He spoke it with all of the grace of a drunken redneck sailor while stumbling down an alley in Mombasa in a forgotten decade when our C.I.A. still controlled everything across Africa. Just eight days later, during a meeting with the chairman of the African Union, Trump…