*Note: This essay was published in the Salt Lake Tribune print edition on November 18, 2018. It can also be found online here. “Why would he go?” Recently, a relative called from Salt Lake City to talk about the tragic death of Utah Army National Guard Maj. Brent Taylor(who in civilian life had also served as mayor…
*Note: This essay was published in the Pikes Peak Bulletin print edition on November 15, 2018. It can also be found online here, an image of the column is included below, as well as the text of the essay. When it’s expanded and upgraded, the library will have a far larger economic impact on the citizens of…
*Note: This essay was originally published on the Modern War Institute’s Commentary & Analysis site. Last week’s midterm election reinforced and amplified America’s deep divisions. What’s worse, today, many Americans even fear this partisan divide will lead to political violence. And as the start line for the 2020 presidential race draws near, it’s virtually certain…
*Note: This essay was published in the Colorado Springs Gazette print edition on November 11, 2018. It can also be found online here. This month, Maj. Brent Taylor of the Utah Army National Guard — who was also the mayor of North Ogden, Utah — was killed in Afghanistan. His voice may now be silent, but his…
A version of these remarks were delivered on Friday, October 19, 2018, for the annual Founders Day lecture at Lyon College in Batesville, Arkansas. ******************************* I believe in heroes and you should too. Here’s the story of one. On January 2, 2007, about midday, Wesley James Autrey, a 50-year-old construction worker was waiting for a train…
*Note: This essay was published in the Pikes Peak Bulletin print edition on November 8, 2018. It can also be found online here, an image of the column is included below, as well as the text of the essay. It’s time to fix Manitou’s library — it’s far too small and impossible to access for our disabled…
*Note: This essay was published in the Colorado Springs Gazette print edition on November 3, 2018. It can also be found online here. The Manitou Incline has some wicked problems, but they’re still solvable. However, if key stakeholders, including the cities of Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs, don’t come together soon — the Incline will continue on…
*Note: This essay was published at Military.com on October 31, 2018. It can also be found online here. Being an army officer in the park with my kids down the street from our home in Manitou Springs, Colorado, it was pretty hard to miss the enormous World War I-era “Doughboy” statue. But there was no plaque,…
*Note: This essay was published in the Colorado Springs Gazette print edition on October 15, 2018. It can also be found online here. At his recent “State of the City” address, Mayor John Suthers claimed that “Colorado Springs has taken its place among the great cities of America.” He’s not the first Springs mayor to concern himself…
*Note: This essay was published in the Colorado Springs Gazette print edition on September 30, 2018. It can also be found online here. One hundred twenty-five years ago this week — Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne and empire, came to town. He arrived in Colorado Springs on Sept. 30, 1893, spent the day in…