Why so much anger and fuss?

One might imagine from all the wailing and gnashing of teeth in the Tri-Lakes area that Beelzebub himself is planning to build a den of iniquity at the corner of I-25 and County Line Road. Why so much anger and fuss over a Buc-ee’s?

Few would disagree that unspoiled beauty in our fine state is preferable to rampant development, but along the I-25 corridor, that ship has long since sailed. Our communities could have worse neighbors than Buc-ee’s, a family-friendly, well-run, clean, safe, welcoming travel center—one that is willing to mitigate as many concerns (traffic, water usage, loss of trees) as it can.

Travelers will pull off the highway, fill up with gas, use the bathroom, grab a snack, buy Colorado souvenirs, and get back on the highway and on their way. Buc-ee’s doesn’t allow semis, so truckers will continue to visit businesses to the north and south that cater to them. I live in Woodmoor and would rather see a kitschy, ship-shape Buc-ee’s on that corner than yet another pre-fab apartment complex or soulless rectangle of office space.

To my frustrated neighbors, I urge you to take a road trip and visit a Buc-ee’s. Worse development exists and could end up next door.

Cullin Christian

Monument

Dogged resistance to information

It has been reported that the leadership of James Irwin Middle school have recently decided to remove any mention of creationism from their curriculum. Further, that this decision came about due to public complaint.

The two main purposes of K-12 education are to present students with information and, more importantly, teach them how to think. In so doing, teachers endorse the relief of being uninformed, rather than remaining ignorant. While we are each uninformed about many things, the open-minded willingness to learn that which we do not know is the hallmark of good education. Conversely, dogged resistance to information is the hallmark of ignorance.

The Founders of our great nation understood the importance of separating church and state. This guiding principle was, and is still, essential to ensure that a secular government does not favor or oppress any of its citizens based on religious principles. It is meant to be one of the essential safeguards against a tyrannical government and ensure the fair treatment of all citizens.

This concept does not mean that many of our Founding leaders were devoid of religious beliefs and convictions, but rather, that they understood the absolute necessity of impartial and respectful governance in a diverse society. Such impartiality and respect for others can only be achieved from a knowledge of the other person’s views. Their values. Their moral compass. Their guiding principles. This does not mean that you must agree with them, but you must understand and respect their right to hold opposing views.

Which brings us to the epic, inexcusable, and absolute failure of James Irwin Middle School. Their irresponsible decision to remove any mention of creationism from the curriculum based on the objections of narrow-minded zealots is contrary to the very essence of both our countries founding values and sound educational principles.

Let me be clear: while secular schools should predominantly teach evolutionary theory which is based on the best available science , the decision to remove any mention of creationism is unforgivable. They were not preaching to children. They were not teaching creationism over evolutionary theory. They were not attempting to influence vulnerable children to alter their moral values. During PART OF ONE DAY the concept of creationism was to be briefly presented in an objective format in order for the students to understand the world views of many citizens within our society and allow them to compare and contrast these views with the evolutionary theory that is taught throughout their K-12 education.

The decision to remove any mention of this subject, at the behest of whining insular tyrants (people and organizations, not only governments, can be tyrannical) is contrary to sound educational principles and the development of essential critical thinking skills that educators are responsible for providing. This type of decision ultimately leads to intolerance of others based on ignorance and the polarization of society.

Mark Homan, MPA

Colorado Springs

The reality is simpler

Regarding the March 18 letter to the Gazette claiming James Irwin Charter Schools “caved” by removing creationism from science curriculum, the reality is simpler. As a public charter school, it complied with the Constitution. Colorado law is clear that charter schools are public schools, and James Irwin’s charter requires adherence to federal and state law. The Supreme Court has already ruled that public schools can’t reshape science curriculum to advance religious doctrine, and courts have rejected intelligent design as science.

The argument against evolution doesn’t hold up. Evolution doesn’t claim “something comes from nothing.” It doesn’t address the origin of the universe or try to ground morality. It explains how life changes over time through observable, testable processes. Folding evolution into cosmology, abiogenesis, and moral philosophy isn’t a critique. It’s a category mistake.

Some claims don’t just miss. They collapse. The idea that critics of intelligent design “can’t live consistently” because they use their intelligence sounds clever until you sit with it. Then it doesn’t. Evolutionary theory doesn’t deny human intelligence. It explains how it could arise. There’s no contradiction there.

The letter also leans on familiar fallacies. A straw man version of evolution. A forced choice between design and chaos. Personal disbelief standing in for evidence.

Here’s the part that matters. Public schools serve families with many beliefs and none at all. They aren’t vehicles for advancing a single religious worldview. Calling constitutional compliance cowardice doesn’t make it so.

Families are free to pursue religious instruction. A publicly funded science classroom isn’t the place for it.

That’s not surrender. That’s the boundary.

Rob Rogers

Colorado Springs

Agendas over the will of the people

When we vote for candidates, we vote for those who will best represent the will of the people. We now find that those who occupy the Colorado Capitol actually implement their own agendas instead the will of the people.
We voters now find our taxes doubling.

Every day there seems to be a proposal that will minimize our Tabor rebate. Gun bills are proposed and passed that have already been struck down in other states. Instead of providing the federal government voter lists which is a federal requirement, the state sues the federal government using tax payer funds. There was a proposal to legalize prostitution that did fail. Our State Department sent out thousands of letters to illegals urging them to register to vote. Our government supports sanctuary cities.

Our government has increased so many regulations for businesses that a major business is leaving and many others are failing or considering leaving.
Now, we the people are being asked to answer a very simple question that our government is not capable of answering. Should only women be able to compete in women sports? It is long past time to clean out our capitol and replace the personnel there with real thinking Americans who will govern our state using the will of the people instead of individual agendas.

Randy Fritz

Colorado Springs

Jeff Crank is doing a great job of representing President Donald Trump but he is doing nothing to represent us, his constituents. Most of us voted for him including me.

While he seemed more qualified and reasonable than his opponent last time, he has proven to be a literal cheerleader for everything Trump does, including bashing Colorado publicly, removing Space Force from its rightfully appropriated location here and is unlawfully excluding us Coloradans from funding that is rightfully ours.

‘m no progressive. I can’t stand the tax and spend history of the democratic party. I used to joke that the federal government took our taxes, kept 30% and sent the rest back. Trump is worse. He’s taking our tax dollars that we paid and keeping them for whatever he wants and spending out of control. In Crank’s last Trump cheerleading newsletter, he applauded the self declared war against Iran and said Trump has the authority to do so. No he doesn’t. Congress alone has the authority to declare war.

It’s obvious that Trump does not care about the Constitution, but it is worse that Crank, like almost all Republicans now, is a doormat and does not know and respect his constitutional duties enough to execute them.

John Bittner

Colorado Springs