Editor’s note: The following was written by a 38-year subscriber to The Gazette, who drove all the way from Calhan to submit the letter.

Making money at checkpoints

In every state that I have lived in, including Colorado, the law states that a police officer cannot legally pull a motorist over unless he has a legitimate reason. But now we have the “police checkpoint.” Now instead of the police officer having to have a reason for pulling you over, you are pulled over by a police officer for the purpose of finding a reason. Is the police checkpoint a way of getting around that law and at the same time bringing in more revenue for the city and state? Isn’t the police checkpoint equivalent to a person being judged guilty until proving themselves innocent? Think about it.

I am strongly against drunken driving, but is the checkpoint really the prime reason for stopping drunken drivers, or is that just a pretext to win citizen approval for a way to bypass a good existing law and make more money?

Sure, several drunken drivers may be caught after pulling over dozens of motorists. But is the intent the traffic tickets written during this illegal stop for things like no proof of insurance, expired license plates, tail light or headlight out, cracked windshield, etc.? To me the traffic tickets and revenue resulting from them appear to be the prime objective.

Notice too that these checkpoints used to be set up during the holidays like New Year’s and Christmas. But now, after public acceptance and their being so financially rewarding, they include almost every holiday and event on the calendar except Groundhog Day. But don’t count that one out.

David Hicks, Calhan

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HBA influencing local elections

The Colorado Springs HBA has taken off the gloves in attempting to influence local elections at the expense of existing home owners. They are endorsing candidates who they consider to be “pro-industry” in local elections for Black Forest Fire District Board, Falcon Fire District Board and Cherokee Water District Board. They may have a right to influence local elections, but I consider this to be an assault on the interests of existing homeowners and communities.

The primary product of HBA interests is new homes and developments. How many times have we read of conflicts between existing homeowners and housing developers that end up testing the interests of homeowners and their neighborhoods against new development plans. This is especially sensitive when developers are pushing against existing county plans such as the Black Forest Preservation Plan and the Falcon Plan.

Check out the HBA website “csba.com” and click on “Endorsements for Special Elections” to see how blatant the HBA meddling is in local elections. Does it make you wonder who is seeking to “own” elected officials?

Phil Hosmer, Black Forest

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Case that’s ripe for the ACLU?

The last time I looked, this was still the United States of America where every single citizen is guaranteed freedom of speech by the First Amendment to the Constitution. Now Donald Sterling, low-life racist bigot as he is, has a private conversation which is surreptitiously recorded and expresses his own misguided opinion. Shameful as that opinion is, Sterling still has the right to have it and to voice it. The only thing he harmed was a lot of intolerant egos.

Now one of those intolerant egos, NBA commissioner Adam Silver wants to do serious financial harm to Sterling by fining him $2.5 million, banning him from the NBA for life, and trying to force the sale of the Clippers. As much as I would like to see that happen, I hate even more to see anyone’s Constitutional rights violated. I think this would be a case ripe for picking by the ACLU.

Joe Thompson, Colorado Springs

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Airport’s inability to deliver

Mayor Steve Bach’s efforts to promote increased use and travel out of the city’s airport were undermined last week. I’m a frequent flyer and travel to DIA from northern Colorado Springs twice a week for business travel. But I decided to try the city’s airport for a direct flight round trip.

When I returned, the valet took 20 minutes to retrieve my car. The expectation is that the car would be ready and waiting upon my arrival. That’s why you pay the premium for valet.

The next day, I was contacted by the valet and informed they had misplaced another driver’s keys in my car, and that owner was due to land shortly and would be expecting his car upon arrival. They drove 30 minutes to my house to retrieve the keys to get them back in time for the unknowing owner.

It seems the mayor’s rhetoric does not yet match the city’s ability to deliver the airport services to meet the demands of the frequent business travelers they seek to court. Back to DIA.

Kristin Cummings, Colorado Springs

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Much-needed veterans cemetery

My thanks to Congressman Doug Lamborn for the work he has done in bringing a new veterans’ cemetery to southern Colorado. As a widow of a veteran buried at Fort Logan cemetery, I personally know how much we need the new cemetery and how much veterans and their families of southern Colorado appreciate the effort of Lamborn on our behalf.

Much progress has been made with the purchase of land on the Rolling Hills Ranch and, currently, work is being done to get the architectural and engineering plans started. Thanks, Congressman Lamborn. Your work on this is just one of many times you have shown how much you care about the veterans in the 5th Congressional District.

Mary McKean, Colorado Springs