Opinion

Editor’s note: Each of the candidates for Clear Creek County commissioner has been given an opportuniy to write a column for the editorial page before the Nov. 6 election. This week, Randy Wheelock, a Democrat running for the District 3 seat, discusses his qualifications.

Editor’s note: Each of the candidates for the 5th Judicial District Attorney’s Office have been given an opportunity to write a column for the Opinion page before the Nov. 6 election. Here, Democrat Bruce Brown, an Idaho Springs attorney, discusses his qualifications.

The middle class is nothing to fear

Editor:

 It’s not likely Adam Ochs, R-Evergreen, will unseat Rep. Claire Levy, D-Boulder, in House District 13 that includes Clear Creek, but that didn’t stop Ochs from entering the race or coming onto KYGT to engage with Levy, with me facilitating, in an open-ended conversation.

After the show, I told Ochs he’s a rare local Republican candidate: no fear of stating unequivocally what he stands for in an unscripted manner and having his words recorded for future reference.

 As we learned last week, the county commissioner is one of the most influential people over your day-to-day life. I’ve had a few occasions to work with Joan Drury on issues regarding several projects. Joan is always accessible, friendly and is someone who takes our concerns seriously. Personally, I am sad to see her term-limited but also wish her the very best.

Fifteen years ago this month, I had stopped by the post office in Idaho Springs — the former one in the 1500 block of Colorado Boulevard — taking a break from writing my master’s thesis to grab the mail for my parents.

I greeted Dean St. John, a longtime family friend who my dad had worked with underground for a time at the Henderson Mine on the drill bench and who I knew as a longtime volunteer firefighter in Idaho Springs. It was the latter topic that came up in our brief conversation that day.

Buckland would make an excellent county commissioner

Editor:

It is my pleasure to recommend Phil Buckland for the position of county commissioner. I have been a neighbor and friend of Phil’s for many years and have always known him to be honest and fair with everyone he dealt with. 

 A proposed state constitutional amendment would legalize the recreational use and widespread commercial distribution of marijuana. It would allow anyone 21 years or older to possess and consume up to 1 ounce of marijuana. That’s roughly enough to roll about 60 joints or bake eight pans of marijuana-laced brownies.

 Last week I gave an overview of American economic historical events beginning with the Great Depression. It’s a story of a pragmatic people shaped by reality. They subscribed to essential values including hard work and personal responsibility, and understanding titanic forces of impersonal capitalism are greater than they, and those forces can easily be and often are manipulated and corrupted.