Reflecting on the Past and Looking to the Future
Another year has flown by and the New Year is about to get very busy. But before I go into that, maybe it’s good to reflect on the past year.
To say it’s been a challenge would be an understatement. Covid has lasted longer than almost anyone expected and it appears that it is still with us and probably will always be. The ever-changing rules are hard to keep up with and seem to defy logic in many instances. I for one have had my shots. I’m not convinced they were necessary since I was hospitalized with the virus for 6 days and assumed that my immunity had been established. Yet getting the shots was originally billed as your ticket for functioning maskless in the world- so I got them. Now I’m told I have to wear a mask to protect those who have chosen to ignore science and refuse to get their shots. Somehow that has not settled well with me but when the bureaucrats get a chance to wield power, not only will they do it to “save us from a crisis”, they will continue to use fear as the mechanism. To quote Bill Murray “We are now in year 3 of 15 days to flatten the curve ”. And while he is a comedian, it is anything but funny.
In my opinion, it is time to deal with the reality that this virus is here to stay. We’ll probably get a shot every year like the flu shot. But we must learn to live with that reality also, as we have the flu, and move on with our lives. We cannot function in a world where a sneeze or cough somewhere results in the entire world going underground and covering their faces with a piece of paper that many doctors will tell you is like using a chain-link fence to keep out mosquitoes.
Yet we’re lucky to live here, in an environment where we can spend endless hours outdoors, the population is fitter and healthier than most places, the rules have been overdone but not as bad as the crazy cities/states on either coast and when bad things do happen, we have a community that pulls together. It could be a whole lot worse. We have a lot to be thankful for.
Enough of that. The busy I referred to is about to hit us full force. Redistricting, which happens once every 10 years as a result of the census, requires that new officers be elected to reflect the new district lines. Because of Colorado’s increase in population, we gained another Congressional seat bringing us from 7 to 8.
As many of you know, we fought the battle to stay in Congressional District 3 with most of the western slope- but we lost. We are almost entirely back in CD2 (with Boulder, unfortunately) with only a very small part of Eagle County left in CD3- mostly over in the Roaring Fork Valley. Having said that, we will undoubtedly be dominated in that district by the Ds for the next 10 years. The good news is that of the 8 districts, the prognosis is there are 4 likely to go R, 4 D, and one toss-up. We’ll see.
We’re also in a new Senate District 8 and still in-House District 26 which is the same number but different counties. The Judicial Districts didn’t change so we’re still in 5 with the same counties. This leads me to what’s next.
CD2 will meet in person in Loveland on 1/8, CD3 on zoom 1/22, Senate 8, and House 26 on zooming 1/12. In all cases, new officers will be elected, by-laws ratified and other miscellaneous housekeeping issues discussed.
On January 20 we will hold our Eagle County Quarterly meeting. With the new virus restrictions, the place has yet to be determined but we’ll notify you asap. From there we move to Caucus which is followed by the County assembly (both TBD) and the State Assembly on April 9. For all of these, details will follow. What is essential for you to know is that each of these meetings is a stepping stone to the next.
At the Quarterly we will hopefully have all of the details for the Caucus. At Caucus we elect delegates to County; at County, we elected delegates to State; and at State, we elect candidates who will represent us for the various positions on the November ballots.
These are all very important decisions that only you can make and only if you participate in the meetings and get elected to move along through the process. As you know, our main goal is to steamroll over the Ds next November. We MUST stop the insanity that’s going on in the current government both at the state and federal levels and we can only do it with all hands-on deck.
As an FYI, mid-term elections are huge. On a federal level, we have a US Senate seat and 8 CDs up for election. State races include Governor (including Lt Gov), Attorney General, Secretary of State, CU Regents, State BOE, all State House seats, and many State Senate seats. For Eagle County 2 County Commissioners (districts 2 and 3) and all other county offices including Treasurer, Clerk and Recorder, Assessor, Surveyor, and Sheriff. At this point, I don’t have a list of ballot questions but there are sure to be some and we’ll deal with those as they are certified.
So, as I said – crazy busy is coming up! And then we roll right into the next election season. It seems like that’s all we do. And it does pretty much dominate our lives in many ways but it’s a small price to pay for the luxury of freedom.
I think that’s something a lot of people forget. Freedom is a luxury.
It’s not a given. It’s not a right. It’s not easy. It’s not free.
It takes work. It requires commitment. It demands vigilance. And has resulted in many dedicated heroes paying the ultimate sacrifice to ensure it.
But most importantly, it can be lost in a blink of an eye. Venezuela is a perfect and most current example.
History has shown that major civilizations have fallen. People get lazy. They are not willing to fight against hypocrisy. They don’t demand truth and honor from their elected officials. They close their eyes to injustice. They think only government can solve their problems. They stop taking personal responsibility for their actions and those results. They place value on things over people. They lose their moral compass. And ultimately, they refuse to see the signs of a decaying society- until it’s too late.
Over the years, some of these signs started creeping into our society. And recently, creeping has been overtaken by a full-scale gallop. We must wake up to what lies ahead if we fail to step up and do our part to reverse the course we’re on.
It’s up to us. You and I and the rest of our community value freedom and family and capitalism and personal responsibility. We need to lead by example. We need to fight for what’s right. We need to stand for what we believe in and we need to be open and verbal about it. Silence is not an option when you’re fighting oppression and government control.
No more should we worry about offending our neighbors. No more should “being politically correct” be our beacon. It’s time to be proud and open about being a Republican. It’s time to shake things up--while we still can. It is no longer an option to get involved; it’s a requirement. Now- today- is the time to commit to being part of the process of saving this country. It won’t be easy or convenient but it is absolutely necessary and, in my mind, mandatory
And it’s time to let the world know -and I paraphrase the movie Network-
WE’RE MAD AS HELL. AND WE’RE NOT GOING TO TAKE IT ANYMORE!
It’s been an honor being part of Eagle County Republicans for these many years.
I look forward to working with all of you in making this a better place for ourselves and future generations.
Kaye Ferry, Eagle County Republicans Executive Committee Chair
kaye@kayeferry.com
(970)-376-5100
Happy New Year. And here’s hoping we can make it a better new year.
