What a drag
Having worked as a TV writer in Hollywood for a quarter century, I spent a lot of time figuring out motives for the characters I created. By extension, I began to examine my own motives and those of people in general. Recently, some friends told me about a “Drag Queen Story Hour” in Niwot. This made me wonder what motivates grown men to dress in the most grotesque characterization of womanhood and perform for children, whether reading books or dancing at a drag show. What comes to mind is a severe mockery of femininity, emphasizing our sexual components in explicit and exaggerated ways. Is tucked inside those costumes a hatred of women?
Even more disturbing are my musings as a parent as to what would motivate a mother or father to bring their children to one of these performances. Is it a salvo in the current culture war, a screw you to the convention of the retired grandmother enjoying the innocence of reading to children? Does it satisfy some strange desire of these parents?
What if the performance was a white man in blackface, acting out the most reviled depiction of a Black man? Or dressing up in a medieval caricature of Jewry and strutting around? Can you not see how offensive this would be to a Black person or a Jew?
My motive is to encourage you to think through this bizarre trend and examine why people find this spectacle entertaining.
— Sibyl Gardner, Glen
Haven owned almost half of all of the wealth in America. The richest 20 percent of families in America own 80 percent of the wealth. The poorest 40 percent of families in America own 0.3 percent of the wealth.
Income is another way to measure inequality. According to the 2018 census, income inequality reached the highest level ever recorded. In 39 states, the richest 1% of households make more than one half of all the income in the state. Fifty years ago the average CEO made 50 times more than the average employee. Today that number is 350 times more. Since 1980 the average income for a household in the top 1% has doubled. The average income for a household in the bottom 20% of earners increased only 19%.
When a country allows this kind of inequality to develop, it creates resentment, anger and political instability. Fox News and other right wing media have lied to Americans for their own financial gain. Yes, we do need to get our facts straight and hold our government, political establishments, and media accountable. Income inequality is not a myth.
— Jerry Chase, Loveland the pockets of developers and the people buying the homes get screwed. Because their taxes are so high, they have to sell their homes because they cannot afford to pay the taxes. I know for a fact this is happening. And, look at all the foreclosures going on in the paper. Metro districts should not ever be allowed. People are moving out of state because of all the traffic problems and crime that has come to town, and what is going on in the schools. People need to make sure they are not buying a home in a metro district. There should not be any. If developers and builders cannot pay their own way, they can go somewhere else. Loveland has no room on the streets anymore.
— Karen Keys, Loveland