Columns

You never know when you’re going to have a life changing experience.
    Stories about both the untimely death of former CU and CSU track coach Jerry Quiller at the age of 69 and his funeral in the last couple of weeks reminded me of the impact Quiller had on my development in a way that I’m sure he never even realized.

When I was a kid, my family took a trip to Washington, D.C., to see the sights. I especially remember the day we sat in the Senate gallery, watching a debate. There, I saw something strange — Teddy Kennedy, a Democrat, and Orrin Hatch, a Republican, sharing a friendly conversation and a laugh together. I later read those two were the best of friends, despite their vast differences on matters of policy.

A little less than five years ago, Evergreen Newspapers had a sudden opening for a photo editor. Though I’ve never had kids myself, that week I experienced a taste of what it must be like.
Two students of whom I was particularly fond had recently moved to the East Coast, and I was fairly certain that either would hurry back to join our team. And therein lay the dilemma: Who would come home, and whom would we go on missing?

This past month, I saw something I never thought I’d see: a Republican presidential candidate attacking an opponent for his participation in free-market capitalism. Newt Gingrich launched the first volley several weeks ago, going after Mitt Romney for his past work at a buyout firm, Bain Capital.
The Wall Street Journal took notice of the unusual attack, saying that “a super-PAC supporting the former House speaker plans to spend $3.4 million in TV ads in South Carolina portraying Mr. Romney as Gordon Gekko without the social conscience.”