Trade good – tariffs bad I took my first economics course in the fall of 1962. At the opening class the professor said that 90% of Americans were economically illiterate. I thought, wow, I’m going to learn something important here. Subsequently I took more economics classes in my undergraduat e and graduate studies. The message has always been the same. “Trade Good -Tariffs Bad.” This month the Kiel Institute, a prestigious German thinktank, published a paper on the efficacy of American tariffs. Their findings were “Trade Good – Tariffs Bad.” The first shoe to drop: $200 billion flowed into the U.S. treasury. That doesn’t sound too bad. The other shoe: 4% of it came from foreign exporters, 96% came from U.S. citizens and importers. Welcome to your new consumption tax folks. The report went on to further find that foreign exporters did not lower their prices, instead they shipped less to the U.S. and looked for new markets. The result? U.S. importers have narrower margins, U.S. consumers pay higher prices, and U.S. global influence, leadership, and dependability has further declined. Conclusion: “Trade Good- Tariffs Bad.” Don’t buy the gaslighting! Sam Gould, Divide Kids are waiting In Mick Bates’ interview on resigning from school board, he indicated how very proud he was of the accomplishments of a conservative board. One accomplishment cited was the 2024 academic improvement, ranking Woodland Park 29th of 169 Colorado districts. “That is spectacular, and I’m very proud of that,” Bates said. What I wish he had said was, “That is spectacular. I’m so proud of the amazing teachers who continued to work incredibly hard during tumultuous times. Those are the caring and steadfast adults who created classrooms where trust and calm still existed, and where engaging and challenging lessons happened every day.” Mr. Bates was disappointed that “the turnout for conservatives was poor” in the recent election. In reading about the backgrounds of the new members, I am thankful that this is not a ‘liberal’ or a ‘conservative’ board, but just a group of dedicated community volunteers and parents who want to ensure our students’ well-being and academic success. There are two hallmarks of stellar school boards. They build systems of support for teachers and students to flourish. And they represent all constituents equally without partisan affiliations influencing their judgment. It’s pretty simple: every child, every parent, and every teacher matters to them. Let’s wish this board well. The new transparency and collaborative decision-making will now offer everyone in our community plentiful chances to help shape what happens. Let’s come together to help Woodland Park schools excel in every educational arena. Kids are waiting! Billie Donegan, Woodland Park Thank you all Jeanie and I thank each and every member of our community, our family, our friends, our acquaintances. My wife and I have been here for many years but have never reached out for help before. What a great group of people that have reached out to help; reached down to pick us up at a most dreadful time in our lives. All of you have filled our hearts with the most generous of offerings, your help, kindness and love. I do hope Ealr will be found safe and uninjured, but if the worst case should be discovered, it was all of you that made our pain so much more tolerable. Please accept our profound thank you and may God bless each of you. Mark and Jeanie Fahey, Woodland Park ...read more read less