Singing the
Blues
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| copyright Scripps Media, Inc. 2012 |
DOUBLE WHAMMY … As a newspaper columnist in Telluride since 1982 (30 years!), it was
hard having to give up my freelance gig, at the same time my main job was in
jeopardy. But I think the folks at the Watch
wanted to be sure that my weekly opinions weren’t an unfair advantage in the
election, and that was reasonable … Instead of a column, I did write letters to
the editor (both paid and unpaid). But a lot of issues that I would have liked
to have seen in print locally didn’t see the light of day. So, I’m grateful,
now that the elections are behind us, that I’m able to resume Up Bear Creek.
BACK IN THE SADDLE … First of all, thanks to the citizens of San Miguel County for
returning me to local elected office for a fifth time. With special thanks to
those that worked on and contributed to my campaign, and those who voted Green
locally this time around … Campaigning is tough in small communities. So many
of the folks we call friends are not on the same political page as we are. And
yet having real choices and going to the ballot box to reaffirm or oust elected
officials is an important part of the democratic process in our country. I’ve
long been an advocate for making the ballot box our term limits (a position
this county has adopted). Elections become report card time … Greens have long
pushed for Instant Runoff Voting – but Colorado
statute doesn’t allow counties to use that system. With IRV (as the Town of Telluride has adopted as
a home rule municipality), you vote your candidate choices in order of
preference. Basically, it’s like having a run-off vote simultaneous with your
first-vote, instead of afterwards. The calculations can get a little daunting,
but the winner is always elected with the majority support of the citizens … As
it was, once again I won office without gaining a majority vote, since in a
three-way for commissioner in Colorado the one with the largest plurality wins.
This time I got 42% of the votes cast county-wide – down 6 % from four years
ago when I received 48% … Actually, checking comparisons from 2008 it was
interesting that only 29 more people voted this time from four years ago in the
District 3 Commissioner race (4,118 versus 4,089). Republican Kevin Kell scored
the biggest increase by garnering 1000 votes this time (24%) versus Bill
Wenger’s 813 votes (20%) in 2008. Democrat Dan Chancellor got 63 more votes
(1375 / 33%) than Oak Smith did last time (1312 / 32%). And my numbers dropped
from 1,964 to 1,743 (48% to 42%).
GETTING BLUER … Our local election results were only a small part of a larger picture
in Colorado
that saw our purple status moving into a deeper shade of blue. And nationally,
it was a delight to see Obama win (and great to see the president take
Colorado, where Gabe Lifton-Zoline, a local boy I got to mentor in politics
back when he attended the Telluride School, managed Obama’s state campaign) … As
the Watch has reported, the amazing
Lynn Padgett won re-election in Ouray County against a concerted Republican
push to unseat her. Lynn
won Colorado Counties’ Commissioner of the Year award in 2011, and is one of
the Western Slope’s brightest political lights. Let’s hope she aims even higher
up the political chain next time … Montrose County remained its
arch-conservative self, although Dems gave both White and Henderson a run for
their money (the two were architects of an unsuccessful water grab that saw
Montrose County try to claim water rights and build a reservoir on Zadra and
Skalla ranches in San Miguel County) … However, things were different in San
Juan and La Plata counties … San Juan has been a rock red county for decades,
in spite of the efforts of Dem Pete McKay (my buddy and one third of what Gov.
Ritter termed “the ponytail caucus”). Yet, Pete ran unopposed for a third term
this year, and long-time colleague Terry Rhoades lost to Dem challenger Scott
Fetchinheir (239 to 274) – giving San Juan County a Dem majority for the first
time in recent memory … In another blue upset, Dem challenger and long-time oil
& gas enviro activist Gwen Lachelt appears to have beaten incumbent
Republican Kellie Hotter. Dem Julie Westendorff took the seat vacated by
term-limited Dem Wally White (the other third of the “ponytail caucus”). That
means, finally, La Plata
County will have a
majority of Dems in control. And Dem Mike McLachlan beat incumbent Repub J.
Paul Brown for the 59th State House seat – a district Telluride
would be in, except for a state Supreme Court nix … Viva la Blue! … However, it
wasn’t a blue landslide, as Dem Sal Pace lost to Repub Scott Tipton in the U.S. 3rd
Congressional District, and Joe Miklosi lost to Mike Coffman in the 6th.
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| County by county vote on Cannabis Legalization in Colorado |
CANNABIS LEGALIZED … When I was a Haight-Ashbury hippie,
I thought legalization was right around the corner. And yet it took 30 more
years before Colorado and Washington led the nation in turning around the
archaic and unscientific prohibition of cannabis (“marijuana” is a racist
nickname as popularized by the Hearst newspapers and now commonly adopted in
the U.S. for a kind of plant that has been used medicinally and recreationally
for thousands of years under dozens of names – I personally refuse to
perpetuate the racist term, and prefer its scientific name) … Imagine what
Telluride would be like as a resort town if alcohol was still outlawed? How
wonderful that we’ve begun to dig ourselves out of the expensive and socially
disastrous pit that cannabis prohibition has been.
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| Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein speaking |
FREE SPEECH SCANDAL … Without question, the Dems and Repubs ought to be ashamed that the
Commission on Presidential Debates prevented Green presidential candidate Dr.
Jill Stein and her running mate Cheri Honkala from even entering Hofstra
University for the second national presidential debate back in October, let
alone participating. Stein and Honkala were arrested and handcuffed to a metal
chair in a police warehouse in Long Island for eight hours, while Obama and Romney
debated … It’s clear that a lot of foreign nations think our “free speech” laws
are a joke, when the two major political parties are afraid to hold an open
debate with all legitimate candidates and even have opponents arrested and handcuffed
to keep them from speaking to a national audience … If you’re one of those that
think our system of government is the best and most democratic in the world,
think again … Gore wins the popular vote, and loses the presidency. The
Supremes allow big money to pour unlimited funds into political campaigns.
Stein tries to run as a Green, and is handcuffed to prevent her from debating
with Dems and Repubs … Until America gets electoral reform, our version of democracy
is truly a flawed system.
THE TALKING GOURD
San Miguel Election
Night Sky
contrails crisscross
pure cirrus
in streaked cacophony
against a deaf & dumb blue
all of it tinged orange
above the Abajos
