By Bob Steiner

Located inside Smith’s supermarket in Edgewood,we find an innocent-appearing coffee bar. Outwardly, it would seem that this is just another of the many Starbuck’s locations in our state.  If you were to stop by briefly, pick up a latte’, and take it with you, you probably wouldn’t notice the political undercurrent that exists here. On the other hand , if you were to sit down to enjoy your brown brew, it would soon become aware to you that you  have  inadvertently discovered an active meeting place for those engaged in local political intrigue..

We have all heard the stories about smoke-filled back rooms where political decisions are made in secret (Perhaps the  honorable Senator Harry Reid‘s recent cajoling of individual senators in back rooms to support Obama Care is the most recent example of such underhanded and questionable ethical conduct), You really don’t need to worry about back room dealings here in our sheltered corner of New Mexico. When the politicians get together here with their constituents and like-minded  associates, everything is truly transparent. There are no back rooms(except in Santa Fe, of course).

As one who frequents Starbucks for a couple of hours , three or four times weekly I can assure you that, though they all seem to be normal ordinary citizens,  there are many political activists who pass through our coffee bar.  For those who would doubt me, I can only suggest that you  go by  Starbucks, grab a newspaper and a cup of coffee and without being too obvious, listen to the conversations going on around you. While for the most part the politics discussed is local,  national and international events of political significance are not forgotten, either.

With regard to those local political figures who pass through the establishment, I can say I have met state representaives, county managers, mayors (past and present), political candidates, sheriffs, police officers,  Ex-CIA officers, and even pastors.  Perhaps the most interesting person I have encountered is a lady who helped Russian Jews leave the Soviet Union and go to Israel.  Every time I go in for coffee I seem to meet  someone new who has an interesting life story to tell. For those of our readers who haven’t spent an hour or two at our Starbucks, affectionately referred to as “the office” by those of us who enjoy politics, I would encourage  you to relax and spend some time there.

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