2015 Toy Run canceled

I want to thank the city of Colorado Springs. Grinch lives in the city government. Colorado Springs toy run organizers canceled after being denied police escort. This is what I woke up to on Sept. 16. I heard that this might happen but really did not think the people in city government would force the toy run to do a special event permit. I truly believe this is a way to end events that do not make money for the city tax collectors. What I think they forget to see is these bikers have to go buy new toys for this event, which by my simple accounting means a loss of around $1,000 in sales taxes on those toys that are purchased just for this event. I know that is small amount in the larger picture but all those toys help so many kids. The 1,000 bikes on the road for about 30 minutes, going to the end stop where the event attendees spend more money buying drinks and food which is all taxed.

I have been going to this toy run for the last 10 years and over that time I would say between the toys and cash donations I and my wife have given at least $1,500. I know that some will think I am one of those dirty old bikers but I am a veteran that enjoys riding a motorcycle more than driving a car. The biking community is a more giving as a group with their time and money to what they believe to be a good cause. The toy run is one of those events.

I will not go into all the events I have covered this year but from the beginning of September was the Bikers United For America run that raised money for a breast cancer patient. The Vets4Vets run raised money to help with the homeless veterans in El Paso County. I will be helping the firefighters run and a run for suicide prevention. The next few weekends after that is a food drive and a breast cancer run (that goes to the Susan B. Komen).

Just so you know that there are a lot veterans that do just as much because we that are with the American Legion. We follow what the two lines in our preamble states: To inculcate a sense of individual obligation to the community, state and nation. To consecrate and sanctify our comradeship by our devotion to mutual helpfulness.

Keith LaMee

Colorado Springs

Everything’s relative

Speaking as a Johnny-Come-Lately (I’ve only been here for 22 years) I always chuckle when I see a “Native” bumper sticker going by. I totally get it – this is a great state, and we’re all lucky to be living here. If you were actually born here, then it can be a special point of pride. Congratulations! But unless you’re Ute, Shoshone, Apache, Arapaho, etc. or unless your ancestors were one of the recipients of the Mexican government land grants in the 1830s. … well then, I wonder if the term “anchor baby” applies. Every thing’s relative, folks. History can be ugly, nasty, violent stuff. “Settlement” is such a neutral term, isn’t it? I have hopes that our present and future doesn’t have to be ugly, nasty and violent. No matter how we got here, we’re all here now. Let’s build and prosper!

Richard George

Colorado Springs

May need to use ATVs

$100 million for bike trails? Are you kidding us? With our highways and streets the worst in the country for maintenance and improvement? And us needing the six-lane freeway extended between Monument and Castle Rock? That money spent on our roads will attract more visitors than new bike trails! Otherwise, the only way tourists will even get here will soon be by ATV.

Vic Ecklund

Colorado Springs

Prohibiting exercise of religion

I had to chuckle at the recent letter by Gary King in the Sept. 18 edition of The Gazette. In it he expresses his viewpoint that each of us “have our own personal freedom of religion, but do not have the right to impose our beliefs on others.” He also quotes part of the First Amendment to the Constitution that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion,.” but leaves out the rest of it.”or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances,” to bolster his argument.

Religious people, individually or collectively, have the same rights as anybody else to express their viewpoints and you, the recipient, have the option to accept or reject those opinions. If you want to accept or reject the Lord in your life, you can. But that is not good enough for Gary King. It appears he wants to prohibit the free exercise of religion but still wants the freedom to express and impose his anti-religious sentiments (opposition to vouchers).

Allan Emery

Colorado Springs

A solution from city’s history?

Relative to the Colorado Springs “sit-lie” ordinance, there might be a logical solution one could get from a piece of Colorado Springs history.

When I was a kid in Colorado Springs, the Ute Theater had bathrooms downstairs by the Magic Wishing Well. Every male youth tried to chin himself on the bars across the stalls once. There were dull spikes on top of the bar, and one time impressed the wrong behavior in our minds and hands. Make the planters uncomfortable upon which to sit or recline. They could still retain beauty, just not comfort.

Still miss the old Ute, Chief, and Trail Theaters and old Colorado Springs, where the Street Breakfast/Range Ride and Pikes Peak Or Bust Rodeo week were the highlights of the summer and downtown!

Patrick W. Dawson

Peyton