The Try-Works

Given the editorial bent of this site, you can probably imagine how fucking amusing I found this.

An ethics group has filed a complaint accusing Republican Jim Geddes of ducking campaign-finance laws in his run for a CU regent seat that’s highly coveted by conservatives.

Colorado Ethics Watch, a nonpartisan legal watchdog group, filed the campaign-finance complaint Wednesday with the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office, saying Geddes’ campaign hasn’t filed two sets of contribution and expenditure reports that were due May 1 and June 2.

Geddes, a trauma surgeon from Sedalia, could face late fees exceeding $4,000, and critics question whether he’s committed to CU’s mission to be open and accountable to the public.

Geddes’ campaign could not be reached for comment Thursday after repeated attempts.

Geddes is the lone GOP candidate for the Republican-heavy 6th Congressional District, which blankets Douglas, Arapahoe and Elbert counties. He will face Democrat AJ Clemmons.

CU Regent Paul Schauer, R-Centennial, last month said he wouldn’t seek re-election — an announcement that came amid complaints from conservatives that he was ideologically soft. Schauer, managing director of the Colorado Ready Mixed Concrete Association, has said he is not running to defend his seat because he’s busy changing occupations.

Some observers speculate whether a stricter conservative on the already Republican-heavy board would give the GOP more power over highereducation in the state.

Split in conservative opinion

Schauer — a moderate Republican who has been a swing vote on the CU board — has been slammed by conservatives for not getting behind the creation of a Western civilization department that was pushed by his GOP colleagues.

Regent Tom Lucero, R-Johnstown, proposed that CU start Western civilization departments on its campuses in December 2006. The board voted unanimously to table the motion, and in January 2007, Lucero asked that it be scrapped, acknowledging shared governance among faculty members, administrators and the board. The Boulder campus offers a program that awards certificates, which are similar to minors, in Western civilization studies.

An outside conservative political organization called Coloradoans for Reform in Higher Education circulated fliers in 6th Congressional District neighborhoods this spring comparing Schauer with fired professor Ward Churchill, who ignited national furor with an essay he wrote comparing 9/11 victims with “little Eichmanns.” The fliers said both Schauer and Churchill opposed Western civilization.

The rest.

I think I’ve done this before, but I’d really like to challenge Tom Lucero to a debate, just for shits and grins.  You pick any single period you think best exemplifies “Western civilization”, Mr. Lucero, and let’s roll up our sleeves, get dirty, and see who has a better grasp of the works therein.  My guess is your knowledge consists of half-remembered quotes from David Horowitz.