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Lance Scranton: Good friends

Lance Scranton/For Craig Press
Lance Scranton
Courtesy photo

I have many good friends in Craig, Colorado where I have made my home for almost 22 years. What makes a good friend are all the things we take for granted such as support, care, and empathy. When things go well or go bad, a good friend is always there to help you through it or is by your side to celebrate. Many of our good friends are oftentimes the very people we work with and with so much time spent together you are bound to come across a few differences.

Today’s political climate associates differences with all the reason you need to completely reject different viewpoints. But good friends understand that just because you don’t always agree; it’s no reason to think any less of the other person. Some of the best conversations to be had center around our differences of opinion and viewpoints.

Debating issues passionately and persuasively doesn’t mean we reject each other just because we disagree. The great ideal about friendship is that we can still work together and support each other even if we are at odds philosophically.



I’m not supportive of the advancement of relaxed drug laws in our city which may result in the passage of local ordinances that would allow the opening of pot shops. Most of my good friends tell me that it is no big deal and that it can help our community financially with increased tax revenue. It’s difficult to argue the practicalities but more places to purchase drugs just doesn’t sit well with me philosophically.

It seems as though people are so very concerned about the condition of the planet, but the condition of the people who live on it just is ​laissez-faire​. Various groups rail against pollution from our power plant while being perfectly fine with using huge amounts of power to grow marijuana. It’s as if some people are more committed to saving the planet by shutting down power plants than they are to helping save the people that populate the planet they are so concerned about.



Maybe my thinking doesn’t match up to some of my good friends viewpoints, but at least they hear me out and don’t think I’m their enemy for holding a different position. That’s what a good friend is supposed to do and one of the many reasons we lean on each other when things seem confusing and we need a sounding board to try and figure all this stuff out.


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