The Line opinion panel takes up a topic on everyone’s sweat-soaked brow this week: the unseasonably hot late-spring temperatures. Climate change and megafires to the west have combined to turn mid-June into a miserable slog for much of the state. With record-setting temperatures and prolonged drought conditions becoming the new normal, the question comes up as July 4th approaches: should fireworks be banned for personal use?

The Line panel also talks about upcoming cannabis legalization and potential pitfalls. Conflicts of interest have started cropping up as members of New Mexico’s citizen legislature stand to profit from the cannabis industry. 

The group also looks at what progress – if any – has been made by city leaders in Santa Fe and Albuquerque after protests of colonialist statues and monuments last summer. The eyesore left behind by the toppled obelisk in the Santa Fe Plaza is a reminder that a path forward has not yet opened. And in Albuquerque, the fate of the Oñate sculpture removed after last year's protest also remains undecided.

Host:

The Line Opinion Panel:

Dede Feldman, former state senator

Inez Russell Gomez, editorial page editor, Santa Fe New Mexican

TJ Trout, radio host, KKOB