LETTERS: Support the right to know; having a Kodak moment

Support the right to know

Why am I voting Yes on 105, the GMO labeling initiative that will be on the Colorado statewide ballot Nov. 4? The better question might be: Why wouldn't I? Proposition 105 is not a ban on GMO foods, it is merely a label. A label simply stating, "Produced with Genetic Engineering." That's it. Labeling GMO's is already required in 64 other countries, so why isn't it required in the USA?

Like you, when I shop for groceries I read the labels for nutritional information, ingredients, and other information to help me decide if it's something I want my family to eat . or not. If I do not want to feed my family GMO foods, at this point in time, I have no way of knowing which foods are or are not genetically modified. I want to know.

And to those who are opposed to putting a label on GMO foods, I ask you: What is the harm in letting us know? What could possibly be a good enough reason for you to not want us to know which foods we are buying and feeding our children and families are genetically modified? If we are paying for it and eating it, we have the right to know what is in it, including GMO's. We deserve the right to know, Colorado.

Susan Demander

Parker

Having a Kodak moment

Tourism is incredibly valuable to our community. Who can argue the value of tourism dollars spent flying, driving, and biking into our business community? And why wouldn't people travel here with all the sights and recreational values we offer? Millions of awestruck tourists have enjoyed their Kodak moment in the Pikes Peak region and we have enjoyed the economic gain received from these adventurers.

However, when I think about the Colorado Springs "brand", I feel a sense of Kodak vision. The Kodak Company began to fail when it stubbornly held on to a profit model that no longer worked. Like the ostrich with its head stuck in the ground, Kodak refused to embrace the digital revolution because it wanted to hold on to its business model of selling both film and development. The world changed and Kodak didn't.

Sometimes fundamental shifts take place in the market that change everything. Companies can either retool or reconfigure to leverage their equity and remain vital and dominant, or they can sow the seeds of failure. Kodak chose the latter.

In 2013, Colorado Springs had 5.2 million visitors who spent $1.37 billion. 25 percent of our sales tax revenue comes from these tourists. Tourism is vital to our economic outlook. But some City Council members conclude that investing in the Colorado tourism industry is too costly. While other cities across our nation are reaping rewards from urban revitalization projects that have provided the spark to grow new economic opportunities, we allow politicians who like to simply talk to steal the message. They shoot down ideas rather working to find a solution.

As a community, just as a business, we need to keep pace with competing cities. Tourism buyers have choices and, as markets change, Colorado Springs needs to keep pace. We need to make sure we provide great Kodak moments for our guests instead of becoming another Kodak casualty.

My business is not an island. I depend on the health and vibrancy of the Colorado Springs community. In the bigger story, I don't compete against the new Bass Pro Shop. I am competing against Bozeman, Park City, Louisville, Minneapolis/St. Paul, Albuquerque, and Portland, just to name a few communities that have come together to grow tourism in their market.

The City for Champions projects are strategic, forward-thinking business opportunities that will expand our tourism industry and bring more dollars into our community. Without these projects, our community will not have the tools to compete with other cities. We need to grow and City for Champions is one of the ways we can.

David Leinweber, Angler's Covey

Colorado Springs

Littwin way off the mark

Michael Littwin presumes to know what is most important to women in Colorado "you know female stuff (personhood/abortion/birth control)". He could not be more off the mark. Colorado women are not preoccupied with their ability to kill their unborn children and having someone else pay for their birth control options. Their primary concerns are economic issues and their ability to earn a living to feed their children.

Janna Blanter

Colorado Springs

Our drains must be maintained

At a minimum, stormwater is a county-wide issue and affects everyone directly. Whether it is our houses being flooded, or not being able to get affordable house insurance because of potential flooding, or our neighborhood roads flooding because the storm inlets are too small, or the bridge on which we drive back and forth to work becomes unsafe due to erosion and soil undercutting, or the drainage channel along which our kids walk back and forth to school is a safety hazard every time it rains. We need to address the issues now and not wait another 20 years to fix the long overdue problems.

Stormwater in a city our size requires numerous conveyance systems (pipes, inlets, drainage channels, etc.) to take the water from higher elevations to lower elevations in a safe, reasonable and responsible manner. Similar to roads, these conveyance systems have to be maintained or they start to fail. The more we delay addressing these problems, the more we will have to pay later to fix them and the more potential personal property damage, expense, and loss of life may occur.

For these reasons, I am supporting the ballot proposal this November.

Liz Rockwell

Colorado Springs

Need to be culled, not coddled

You don't have to be too smart to understand what is wrong with education anymore. Enough Jefferson County teachers called in sick to cancel classes at two high schools. The reason: the school board wants to deny pay raises to ineffective teachers. This is idiotic, bordering on absurd. Where in this world is it reasonable to expect a pay raise for not performing to even minimum standards? Not only did these teachers "strike" to support useless teachers but they denied their own students the opportunity to attend classes, which is supposedly their profession. Ineffective teachers need to be culled, not coddled. Get rid of them.

Dennis Wied

Canon City