Mail to the Chieftain: The power of unaffiliated voters
Unaffiliated voters are in the driver’s seat
There are more registered unaffiliated voters than Democrats and Republicans in the 3rd Congressional District. According to the Colorado Secretary of State’s website, as of May 29, 2022, there were 120,391 registered Democrats, 151,597 registered Republicans, and 206,234 Unaffiliated voters. We are in the driver’s seat!
With power comes responsibility and I believe the responsible choice for those of us in this largest voting sector is to ensure that election deniers like Lauren Boebert, Tina Peters, and Ron Hanks don’t get through to the general election ballot.
By voting for well-qualified, reasonable people who don’t believe the “big lie” we can ensure a general election that moves candidates forward who reflect the integrity of our democracy, follow the constitution, and who represent all their constituents.
Clare Hydock, Delta, Colo.
Dems voting for Coram is a mistake
Some Democrats in the 3rd Congressional District have changed to unaffiliated as a method to vote against Lauren Boebert in the primary. I am a registered Democrat, I am absolutely opposed to Boebert, but Dems should not vote in the Republican primary. Democrats must focus fully on electing someone who can beat Boebert.
Boebert’s opponent in the primary is Don Coram, a reasonable, bipartisan state legislator. But he won’t beat Boebert. She has $4 million in the bank and national support. Coram has less than $100,000 and is unknown.
Boebert beat Scott Tipton by 10,000 votes in the 2020 Republican primary and it’s likely she’ll get more votes this time from her base. So, that means at least 15,000 unaffiliated would need to vote for Coram. That’s a massive amount of votes in a primary.
By voting for Coram, Democrats also send a terrible message to actual independent/unaffiliated voters. This election will hinge on independents — the largest block of voters in the 3rd District. They need to know that Dems are firmly behind the Democratic nominee.
Boebert can be defeated. She beat Diane Mitsch-Bush by 51 percent to 45 percent. But Mitsch-Bush chose not to campaign because of COVID and still gathered nearly 200,000 votes.
Dems must put all our effort — and money — into winning the 3rd Congressional District. That work starts with Democrats voting for Democrats in the primary.
Joe Lewandowski, Durango
'Banal commentary' after Uvalde
A recent opinion proclaimed: "Spare me your thoughts and prayers". Roger that! None coming your way.
This common rhetoric is from liberal elitists that would not jump in line to give up their arms, nor should they. It is more of the same knee-jerk response to any crisis that needn't go unwasted. No solutions proposed, just reaching into the history of the wild west to promote a weak response.
Leave your guns with Wyatt! Our government's primary function is to protect our citizenry. So why not offer a way to protect our schools rather than disarm law-abiding Americans?
The current mantra is defund the police and release the criminal. And then disarm Americans so they can't protect their loved ones from the criminals and mentally disturbed?
So please spare us the banal commentary and bullying puffery that is just more of the same tripe. It is tiresome hearing from the "It's for thee, not for me" crowd.
Frank Passanante, Pueblo West
Part of this letter was omitted because it made unsubstantiated or false claims. The writer was given the opportunity to back up his claims with facts but had not done so by our deadline.
Take action against climate change
According to meteorologists at Colorado State University, some of the worst droughts in Colorado history occurred in 2002, 2012, 2018, and 2020. Additionally, a recent study carried out by scientists from the University of California Los Angeles and Columbia University determined that the Colorado River Basin drought is the worst drought since 800 A.D.!
Researchers attribute about 42% of this drought severity to climate change. Every year is getting drier and hotter – to a greater degree than normal climate variations can account for. And of course, this inevitably leads to more frequent and severe wildfires.
The Colorado Division of Fire Prevention and Control attests that 20 of the largest wildfires in Colorado history have occurred in the last 20 years. Perhaps even more sobering is the fact that 4 out of 5 of the largest wildfires in Colorado history have occurred in the last 3 years.
We can no longer compartmentalize these climate disasters. Everything is connected – our insatiable appetite for consumerism, the mass poisoning of our planet from industrialization, the warming of our planet, the drying of our planet, the increased frequency and severity of wildfires and other natural disasters, the destruction of our natural ecosystems, and the diseases, deaths, and displacement of people affected by all these factors.
We can no longer afford to wait when it comes to climate change – take action now!
Joel Wilson, Colorado Springs
Submit letters to the editor to kzeitvogel@chieftain.com. Letters must include the writer's name and address. Those containing dis- or misinformation, or inciting hatred or violence will not be accepted.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Mail to the Chieftain: readers' letters to the editor
