Editorials

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Toppling a drug ring

The dozens of arrests made last week in what is believed to be one of the largest drug rings ever to operate in western Colorado prompt a number of observations. First, almost no community, no matter how small and isolated, is immune from the ...

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Tax online sellers 
to level retail field

Soon, perhaps as early as today, the U.S. Senate will take up debate on the Marketplace Fairness Act, which would require online retailers with annual sales of more than $1 million to collect state and local sales taxes. There are certainly ...

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Paying the (right) price for legalized marijuana

Today in Denver, a legislative committee is expected to take up a bill that would ultimately present voters with the opportunity to establish a sales tax and excise tax on recreational marijuana. The debate will not be about whether we should ...

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Standard still needed for driving while stoned

State Sen. Steve King has worked hard the past few years to develop better laws for determining when a driver is operating a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana. But the Grand Junction Republican’s efforts were thwarted again ...

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Attack on Reiner is anything but fair

The Citizens for Free and Fair Elections has an imposing-sounding name. But its attack on Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Sheila Reiner is not at all fair. Nor are the group’s actions those of responsible citizens, since it has failed to ...

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What would Smokey say about water rights?

Smokey Bear became famous for advocating extra precautions to prevent forest fires. Smokey’s predilection for precaution, however, goes only so far, it would seem. The Forest Service has agreed to pay $125,000 to the National Ski Areas ...

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IRS email snooping an affront to privacy

The acting head of the Internal Revenue Service on Tuesday told a Senate Finance Committee in Washington that his agency will no longer attempt to access the private emails of American citizens without a search warrant. Big deal? Absolutely. ...

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Wishing Jewell well

Sally Jewell has taken up her post as the nation’s 51st secretary of the Interior, moving into the job with Senate confirmation on Ken Salazar’s retirement.     We wish Jewell well as she negotiates the straits ...

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Partnership proven

Colorado Mesa University and the University of Colorado are, you should forgive the terminology, engineering a new pathway to higher education in Colorado, and doing so in smart fashion. Kelsi Middleton of Olathe is to graduate from the ...

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Another surreal tragedy

The world turned surreal again when smoke and flames filled an urban canyon of a major American city on Monday. Another cowardly, vicious attack took the lives and limbs of Americans who were minding their own business at the finish line of ...

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