“Bravo, Boulder” for climate fight
Re: “Justices will consider climate-change suit,” Feb. 10 news story
Bravo, Boulder, for firing off a “rock” at Suncor and Exxon (a David and Goliath fight) with the argument that the oil and producers are impacting our access to clean air and favorable climate now and for the future.
Members of the north Denver communities of Globeville, Elyria-Swansea, and Commerce City have been battling Suncor for years, demanding that it clean up its act. The argument that EarthRights is making on behalf of Boulder may speak more forcefully, highlighting the disastrous economic consequences of not putting some brakes on oil and gas emissions.
Catherine Welch, Denver
A special Valentine’s Day gift and now a state treasure
As a Denver native with interest in local history and a volunteer at Denver Botanic Gardens, here is a timely story about a special Valentine’s Day gift.
Around this time of year, many people wonder about a proper gift for a sweetheart — usually candy, flowers, cards, jewelry, or a dinner out.
One of the most notable February 14 gifts was the one presented by Claude Boettcher to his wife Edna in 1924. It was the deed to the house now called “The Governor’s Residence at the Boettcher Mansion.”
The Colonial Revival mansion was built in 1908 by architects Marean and Norton as a residence for Alice Cheesman and her daughter Gladys. Mrs. Cheesman lived there until her passing in 1923, when Claude purchased it and would then present it to Edna on the following Valentine’s Day.
After Claude and Edna’s passings in 1957 and 1958, Edna left the house to the Boettcher Foundation, which would then present it to the state of Colorado. After its acceptance in 1959, it has served as the home of our various governors, although some have also maintained separate residences.
At Denver Botanic Gardens, the Edna Boettcher and Claude Boettcher Memorial Conservatory is another special local building made possible through the generosity of the Boettcher Foundation with nearly $1 million in grants in the early 1960s. Since its establishment in 1937, the Boettcher Foundation has contributed more than $430 million in grants and scholarships to our state.
You may look at this large house at 8th and Logan differently, knowing more about its history and the special Valentine’s Day gift it became just over a hundred years ago.
Jim Arneill, Centennial
Divvying up Ukraine: Some historical perspective
Re: “Trump upends policy on Ukraine,” Feb. 13 news story
So President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin have had an hour-long conversation about Ukraine, “going around that country’s government.” It reminds me of the meeting of British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain and Adolf Hitler in 1938, settling the fate of independent Czechoslovakia, with no representative of that country present.
Trump commented, “I think we’re on the way to getting peace,” just as Chamberlain claimed that he had secured “peace for our time.” Well, in 1938, Hitler marched into the Czech area of Sudetenland and followed it up in early 1939, breaking the agreement with Chamberlain by seizing the rest of the country. Similarly, Putin would like to take all of Ukraine, not just the area he has illegally occupied already. An agreement with him brings no more than a pause before his army invades Ukraine again. He has in mind the reconstruction of the old Soviet empire.
The collapse of the Munich agreement led in a short time to a broader war to expand the Nazi German empire. The leaders of Poland, Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania (to mention a few) should be very nervous now that the United States is bowing out of the defense of Europe.
Marshall S. Clough, Greeley
The current discussions between President Donald Trump, Russian leader Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy remind me of the cautionary tale about the wolf, the coyote and the sheep sitting down together to decide what’s for dinner.
Al White, Winter Park
Sign up for Sound Off to get a weekly roundup of our columns, editorials and more.
To send a letter to the editor about this article, submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail.