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Another bribe?

The federal executive branch has put out notice that it plans to "forgive" up to $10,000 of student debt for every student holding loans they took out for a college degree, and some up to $20,000.

Why should you or I, who did not have student debt or paid it off as soon as we could, pay through our taxes someone else's loans they took on, never thinking about how they were going to pay them off?

When you borrow money for whatever reason, to buy a home, to purchase a car or to go to college to study some useless degree, you have a responsibility to pay that loan off to the entity that you borrowed from. Granted some loans come through the federal government's loan programs, but you still agreed when you took out the loan that you would pay it off.

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Letter to Editor on Indian boarding schools

Dear Editor,

The Santa Fe Friends Meeting (Quakers) requests publication of the following letter on Indian boarding schools. Thank you.

Between 1796 and 1969, in 408 schools across 37 states and in over 1,000 other institutions, including Indian day schools, orphanages, and asylums, Native American and Alaska Native children were forcibly removed from their homes and placed in Indian boarding schools. There, the children were forced to reject their Native languages, cultures, and spiritual practices, and adopt Euro-American culture. Native Americans continue to suffer from the multi-generational trauma caused by policies of forced assimilation and cultural genocide.

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NM's self-inflicted doctor shortage

NM's self-inflicted doctor shortage
By Paul Gessing

There is a life-or-death issue facing New Mexicans. It has been widely reported on in the media and is important to New Mexicans from all walks of life. Voters will have a lot to say about it this November. The issue is our shortage of medical professionals. 

If you live in rural New Mexico you have likely faced severe challenges in finding specialists for years, but according to one recent report, 32 of New Mexico's 33 counties (excepting Los Alamos) face a shortage of primary care physicians. This doesn't even consider the shortage of specialists which is even more pronounced in certain fields. 

Reports have reiterated the fact that (as our population ages and our doctors age as well), our State faces an even greater need for doctors in the years ahead.

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Will you vote in the midterms?

Many registered voters believe that the only time they need to vote is during a presidential election year. Think again. Don’t you want to pick who runs your town, your school, your neighborhood and your state?

Because as an American citizen, you have the privilege of voting for your local, state and federal officials, you should take every opportunity to vote. Your vote lets those officials, especially the local ones, know that you have chosen them to represent you. If you don’t vote, then those chosen may not have your best interests in mind.

If you have concerns about what may have been potential fraud in the 2020 election, did you know that your voter history is available online?

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New Mexico's Workforce Participation Challenge

By Brendyn Toersbijns

One of the most important, yet underreported issues in New Mexico is our State's poor workforce participation rate. Currently, New Mexico has plenty of jobs, yet too many New Mexicans remain outside the workforce. Workforce participation in New Mexico first dipped during the global recession of 2008-2009 but it took another big dip during the COVID 19 pandemic and unlike most of our neighboring states, it has not recovered.

Our Governor's strict COVID lockdowns played a role in pushing New Mexico's workforce participation rate downward. In January of 2020 the workforce participation rate in New Mexico was 58.7%. That rate dropped to just 54.4% by April. Just over two years later the workforce participation rate still sits nearly 2% below where it was before the pandemic at 56.9%.

According to one report, "The Department [of Workforce Solutions] has experienced an increase in the number of unemployed who are receiving benefits without following through on their job searching requirements." The Department was flooded with new accounts and hasn't been able to properly enforce these requirements. In addition to the overwhelming number of recipients, the additional funds meant to alleviate damage caused by the pandemic have created a reverse incentive for reluctant workers.

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CDC LONG OVERDUE: no distinction between vaxxed and unvaxxed

You may have heard that the CDC changed their COVID guidance on Thursday August 11th.  They have dropped any distinction between how the unvaccinated and vaccinated should be treated in their newest guidance.  Here is a snapshot of the CDC's updates (copied from Children's Health Defense): "Here are the biggest changes to the CDC's guidance:

  • Unvaccinated people now have the same guidance as vaccinated people.
  • Those who are exposed to the virus are no longer required to quarantine regardless of vaccination status.
  • Students may stay in class even if they've been exposed to COVID-19.
  • Six-foot social distancing is no longer recommended.
  • Contact tracing and routine surveillance testing of symptomatic people are no longer recommended in most settings."

This CDC guidance change is long overdue.

  

They had ample evidence over a year ago that COVID-19 vaccines would not prevent either catching or transmitting of the illness.

  

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Jan. 6, 2021 truths you shouldn't forget

On January 6, 2021 . . .

* Gasoline prices averaged $1.93 – $2.12 per gallon
* Inflation was approximately zero
* Americans were not facing critical shortages
* America's economy was at its strongest in 50 years – despite immoral "Covid" lockdowns
* America's southern border was not in crisis with 7,000 illegal-alien crossings daily
* The Taliban was not armed with $85,000,000,000 in abandoned U.S.-military weaponry
* Stock values were averaging record highs

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It's time for school choice for students, parents, and educators

By Rebecca Dow (R-Truth or Consequences)

Back in 2018, a state district judge issued an historic decision identifying the long-time shortcomings and faults of New Mexico's Public Education System. Judge Sarah Singleton described in great detail how our Native American, English learners, disabled, and economically disadvantaged students were not receiving the education they were promised by our state constitution. In turn, she demanded state policymakers fix the problem.

Since then, we have seen the governor declare an educational "moonshot," a billion-dollar increase in K-12 education spending and implemented the progressive theology of equity, inclusion, and diversity to help these at-risk students. Our governor then shut down our public schools for more than a year and mandated remote learning for which these same at-risk students would likely have less access to computers and Internet service than other students.

What results has this education "Hail Mary" created? Students across all grades and backgrounds are falling farther behind compared to their peers in other states, schools are seeing more students with behavioral health problems and higher rates of absenteeism, and NM's schools are still ranked 50th in the nation. There is also growing recognition among parents that the Department of Public Education (PED) is more concerned with promoting political agendas than ensuring kids can read, write, and do math, a travesty by any measure.

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