Today's Opinions

Political talk has had its substance wither away for the sake of style. In this country, business is conducted the most clearly and quickly using the American standard style of talk, which is also known as the “straight” style.

In stark contrast, political exchanges today rely on ... are reduced to ... styles of metaphor, mimicry, sarcasm, sound bites and slogans. These popular styles would fail in business and they fail our country.

Worse yet, the styles shift weirdly. In a political exchange, one style intrudes on the next style where they mix up for a spell before styles flip again. Shifts come too fast for the ear to know what style is in play. How much is metaphor? How much is sarcasm? What is told as a slogan? Or a joke?

Parts of the talking from enemy sides are done in straight style. Yet, even the straight parts are lost in the crowd of talking styles.

Examples tell more.

Black lives matter” and “All lives matter”are two simple facts that are equally true when they are meant in the straight style. Now start every word with a capital letter and refashion the style as metaphor, mimicry, sarcasm or slogans. What happens?

I’m Mick Rich, and I’m running for the U.S. Senate. I’m not a career politician. I’m an outsider and a proven job creator.

From the time I was in grade school, I wanted to build big things. I worked my way through college in construction and started my own company here in New Mexico. 

Along the way, learning Hard Hat Values. 

What are Hard Hat Values? Always do your best work. Use teamwork for every job. And do what it takes to get the job done. 

Thirty-five years ago, I chose to start my construction business in New Mexico, because I loved the beauty of this state and the character of its people, and I knew I could make a difference here. This is where my wife, Marion, and I chose to make our home and raise our family.

With the help of Marion and our four children, along with the efforts of scores of skilled and dedicated employees, I have helped to build communities around our state.

New Mexico’s strongest resource is you and me, the people. People who work hard, treat one another with respect, and do what it takes to get the job done. We care for others and take pride our in our lives. That’s Hard Hat Values.

Ithink you should know that my deadline for writing is well before you receive the paper on Wednesday. So needless to say, I feel like I need to comment on the events last week, in Parkland, Florida.

As a nation, we will never come to agreement on gun control. I believe that the issue of mental health is too difficult of topic to tackle in a short-term solutions kind of way.

So, when I hear the statements made by so many after a shooting that, “Now isn’t the time to talk, it’s a time to heal,” we have to realize that it happens so often that we are never talking about it.

If that is the case, then I say let’s change the conversation! Let us look at it from a perspective at 180 degrees. What school is doing something that is making a shift in the area of bullying? Someone, somewhere is doing this work at gold standard level. If that is the case, then I call on all media outlets to sing their praises again and again.