Fair? Pay attention…

Some have advised me to not write about national politics. Stick to local issues, they say. It’s a little paper in the mountains. Fair. But instead of opining this week about something like the CB town council giving up some major oversight to the look of town’s main business district by handing over flower boxes to local businesses, or commenting on the rogue ski area moose, I think I’ll touch on the greater madness. After all, when national politics impact our lives in the mountains, I think it is fair to touch on those issues. I’ll keep it short.

While a war in Iran doesn’t directly threaten our safety while dining at an Elk Avenue parklet, it does have ramifications when the price of gas goes up a dime a day or more like it did Monday (and will probably continue to do). That will impact who can afford gas or airline tickets to come and have a beer in those parklets. The people who live here and depend on people packing the parklets to leave a tip or buy a dinner to put money in the bank to pay the rent or mortgage are impacted. Those living here that have friends and relatives in the military will feel the impact. Being the citizen of a country that could (accidentally or not) kill innocents like 100+ students at a girls’ school located near an Iranian military base puts a stain on the national conscience.

Entering a war of choice by someone who is not exactly the most trustworthy public figure in the world is weird but gets weirder when Operation Epstein Fury is tied to Operation Stop the Vote. It’s all a barrage of grievances and questionable excuses. It’s as if Donald couldn’t accept what looked to be a great success in his administration’s negotiations with Iran. According to the Oman middlemen facilitating the recent nuclear talks, the negotiations were thisclose to a nuclear deal better than Obama’s. But Donald apparently couldn’t accept the art of that deal and listened to the world’s other most trustworthy leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, more than the people closing a significant transaction. Fair?

Anyway…Donald says this will be over in four or five weeks. It might be. And with the deadly precision of American firepower shown that first day with the Iran leadership, it all might end up in a better place. Let’s hope so. Cat videos might again soon top the algorithm order of stories on Google.

The craggy path of war winding through the dark forest leads everywhere — including Crested Butte and the North Valley. So, fill up the gas tank soon and don’t stop paying attention. Don’t be shocked when some on the right push for an emergency declaration because of this war to hinder you and your friends from casting a vote this November. Just sayin’.

Fair?

Now about those flower boxes…

—Mark Reaman