Childish Washington gotcha politics

While we used to think of Doug Lamborn (R-Colo.) just in terms of arrogance and bad judgment, he has now digressed to another level of arrogance and no judgment whatsoever.

North Korea has spent the last three weeks upping the ante in bellicose threats and rising tensions. Why would Lamborn make statements and release information from a classified Defense Intelligence Agency document (even though the specific sentence may have been erroneously declassified) that encourage and support North Korea’s position of threats and tension? He could have easily verified the information ahead of time, rather than perpetuating another cycle of childish Washington gotcha politics.

Why would Colorado voters support this clown in the next election?

Alan Fisher

Colorado Springs

Educators have a hard enough job

I am writing in response to the Saturday, April 13 editorial criticizing teachers for outrageous assignments like asking students to make a persuasive argument blaming Jews for the problems of Nazi Germany. While exposing poor judgment is a positive contribution of journalism to push for responsible action on the part of teachers, I take exception to The Gazette for cherry picking these cases as broad evidence that “today’s educators are not even making an effort to teach common sense.”

My experience as a parent of three children in District 11 is that teachers by and large do a great job of balancing moral messages and content in the classroom and the overall school environment.

This editorial reflects a broad trend in The Gazette to make condescending statements regarding education and educators, an attitude that can extend to the Colorado Springs community. Our educators have a hard enough job without receiving demoralizing and largely unfounded criticisms such as these.

Todd Nelson

Colorado Springs

Elections do have consequences

State Sen. John Morse of Senate District 11 (essentially southwest Colorado Springs) is again trying to impose his, and his constituents, values on everyone else. After pushing several restrictive and meaningless gun control bills (the worst of which thankfully failed) he is now, with SB252 trying to increase the electric bills of people living in rural areas with more meaningless, expensive increases in required renewable energy to be supplied by rural electric associations. The reasons HB252 is not good for the people in rural areas and for the rural electric associations are many and have been addressed previously by The Gazette. Basically, in addition to increased costs with dubious benefits, the associations need to be able to produce the same amount of backup electricity for when the irregular, unreliable renewable energy is not available to keep up with demand. Maybe they should be released from that responsibility or do environmentalists want it both ways?

Because elections have consequences, as the Democrats are so fond of saying lately, I urge all residents with the delivery areas of rural electric associations, all gun owners, all who understand and value the constitution and all patriots to join me in boycotting the businesses within the boundaries of Senate District 11, especially Old Colorado City and Manitou Springs. These people elected Sen. Morse and let’s show them that, yes, elections do have consequences.

Ken Pearce

Divide

The real costs of going to war

It amazes me when those with the least to lose prefer gung-ho action over quiet diplomacy. (April 12, Letters, “Those days are but a memory”) Joseph Simkins accuses President Obama of letting the North Korean leader go unchallenged while pursuing his personal agenda.

Perhaps Simkins doesn’t remember that Uncle Sam engaged a much-weaker North Korea in combat, 1950-1953. That combat ended with a truce, not a victory. The cost to us was enormous in both blood and treasure. What would the cost be this time?

Because that war never reached closure, American troops have been sitting on the border between the North & South countries ever since — that’s 63 years! During which there has been bloodshed many times as well as being a drain on the military budget.

Perhaps Simkins has forgotten how a former president had the courage to take our troops into a slam-dunk war that has been a waste of precious blood and $2 billion a week.

Perhaps Simkins hasn’t heard the advice of another former president who said, “Speak softly and carry a big stick!”

Simkins said that, “In the past, we have (had) presidents with the moral courage to confront idiots . . . Sadly, those days are but a memory.” Perhaps to Simkins those days of confrontation are nothing more than a memory, but to many thousands of us those days were/are life-changing experiences. Thousands of grieving families of warriors who didn’t come home.

Thousands of warriors who came home (are still coming home) to live out their lives suffering the wounds of war.

No, Mr. Simkins, it doesn’t take courage to start a war, but it does take courage to go off to war. Therefore, shouldn’t we expect our leaders to expend every effort before committing our bravest to battle?

Past or present, no war is nothing more than a memory to those of us who live with the life-changing experiences of war!

Mrs. Bill (Irene) Merrill

Colorado Springs