Editorials
Editorial content. Content posted here may or may not reflect the opinions of the Beat. They reflect the opinions of the author.
NIMBY, anyone?
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 12 October 2022 12 October 2022
Do you want running water in your houses? Do you want your cell phones, computers and televisions? Do you want the "necessities" of modern life?
What would you do, if one morning, you woke up and no water came out of your bathroom faucet and the lights wouldn't turn on? You would probably try to call your plumber and your electrician, but you have no dial tone on your phone. You take your cell phone off the charger, except, oh no! It was down to 10 percent last night and it's only at 15 percent now.
You glance over at your electric clock. It is stuck at 11:32. It must be last night because it's only 6:30 a.m. The electricity has been out since last night?
And it's still out. No use plugging in the coffee maker or turning on the radio or TV for the news.
What's at stake in this election?
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 11 October 2022 11 October 2022
Today is the first day of early voting and I'm going to use my time to remind you what's at stake in this election.
First, I want to remind everyone out there that there are people with bad intentions and people with good intentions in every single walk of life. Despite that and regardless of our party affiliation, our incredible commitment to the idea that all people in the opposition party are bad people with bad intentions is deeply damaging our civil society.
Our evolution from a society that rolls up its sleeves and gets to work--to an entitled society that blames everyone else for our problems is also deeply damaging our country.
Mogollon in the Crosshairs
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 11 October 2022 11 October 2022
In the remote and tiny town of Mogollon, New Mexico, an impending disaster of broad proportions is underway.
Much like the lone prospector with 'gold fever' of days-gone-by, Summa Silver Corporation, a foreign- owned junior mineral exploration company, has begun drilling exploratory cores in the Mogollon area in hopes of finding high grade ore that the miners of the past missed. And just like the old-time prospector motivated by the greed of striking it rich, Summa Silver has recently staked additional mining claims expanding deep into Forest Service land encompassing thousands of acres of private and public lands.
TREK, a new acronym for success
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 07 October 2022 07 October 2022
In an effort to counter and replace divisive acronyms like ESG, environmental social governance and DIE (which kills businesses), diversity, inclusion and equity, I have come up with a new acronym.
Every job requires TREK. Actually, life requires TREK.
T stands for training. Take a law enforcement officer as an example. Without training, a policeman or deputy can become involved in a dangerous situation that he may not be able to manage. How about a miner? A miner is not born understanding how to look for and process ore He is trained in the skills he needs to do his job. He better have training to run one of those huge ore carrying trucks. I, as an editor and writer, wasn't born with the ability to edit and write. It has taken a full life of training, studying, learning to achieve the skills required for an editor.
GO Bond 3 Op-Ed from Secretary Witte
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 07 October 2022 07 October 2022
By Jeff M. Witte
New Mexico Secretary of Agriculture
With early voting rapidly approaching, I encourage New Mexicans to vote on General Obligation Bond 3 for Higher Education. The New Mexico Department of Agriculture (NMDA), which is headquartered at New Mexico State University's (NMSU) main campus but serves the entire state of New Mexico, would receive $10.5 million to replace its outdated and unsafe headquarters facility.
For those that are not aware, the original New Mexico Constitution, ratified in 1911 and the basis for statehood in 1912, created the state department of agriculture. In 1955, NMSU's Board of Regents unified a number of regulatory services and the individuals responsible for administering them under a single administrative organization: the New Mexico Department of Agriculture. Our current building was constructed in 1973.
If the bond passes, there will be no tax rate increase. It is not a new tax or an increase in the rate of the existing property tax. If passed, the 2022 GO Bond to support higher education will maintain the states bonding capacity to address future capital improvement needs. These bonds are a replacement of general obligation bonds for higher education that are expiring or have already expired.
New Mexico's Minerals Will Assist Our Nation's Transition to a Greener Economy
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 06 October 2022 06 October 2022
Working in the Mogollon Area We Will Create Economic Opportunities and Protect the Environment While Providing for Our Nation's Growing Mineral Needs
MOGOLLON, NEW MEXICO— At Summa Silver environmental stewardship and creating economic opportunities are values we act on every day while we seek to assist our Nation's transition to a greener economy.
Recently Leia Barnett with Wild Earth Guardians placed an editorial in this paper about Summa Silver's Mogollon Project that was misleading to your readers. We want to set the record straight.
Our current permitted Mogollon project is entirely on private, patented and fee lands, and will not impact public lands.
Canadian mining company stakes new claims on the edge of America's first wilderness
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 22 September 2022 22 September 2022
Expansion threatens Mexican spotted owl, Gila trout, and multiple critical watersheds
MOGOLLON, NEW MEXICO—Canadian mining company Summa Silver Corporation just released a statement that it has staked a large package of contiguous mining claims at its Mogollon Project near Silver City, New Mexico. Mogollon sits in the heart of the Greater Gila region, and the new claims more than double the company's project size, now significantly encroaching onto National Forest lands, including areas where threatened Mexican spotted owl and Gila trout have been documented.
Summa Silver's exploratory drilling operations are taking place just a few miles from the boundary of the Gila Wilderness, this country's first, designated almost 100 years ago through the efforts of the visionary conservationist Aldo Leopold. The Greater Gila region is known for its exceptional biodiversity, hosting more species of birds and mammals than any other region in the Southwest, including the only population of Mexican gray wolves. The Greater Gila is home to over 200 rare plant and animal species, with over 30 listed as threatened or endangered.
New Radio Ad Praising Governor's Education Record Gets an "F" for Fraudulence
- Category: Editorials Editorials
- Published: 21 September 2022 21 September 2022
Lujan Grisham's Education Record is Horrendous While New Mexico Remains 50th in Nation in Education
Albuquerque, September 21—New Mexico's education system is the worst in the country, according to U.S News & World Report, Forbes and Wallethub, but a new radio ad has the audacity to falsely claim that Gov. Lujan Grisham's record on education is strong and that she's fighting for students and parents.
The radio spot, released in Spanish, by the American Federation of Teachers and Latino Victory Fund is an absolute falsehood.
Lujan Grisham has consistently failed our students, schools and our state, and the record proves it.
New Mexico is dead last in the nation in education.