60 Minutes, that long running secular progressive program, so adored by secular progressives like yourself, comes to mind as a prime candidate for your wicked funny pen.
As I recall, Joanne Ostrow called Bill O’Reilly, a racist - that debate ending secular progressive epithet of which secular progressive are so fond - then refused an interview to defend her position, until providing her pathetic comments in the “ambush interview
Certainly, no one was responsible, just “mistakes were made
Ms. Ostrow and Ms. Jones dress up like a soccer balls, then they (and you) whine when they get kicked.
It is so much fun to hear the squeal of SP’s when they get a dose of their favorite tactics.
As usually, you are so far off base, it is hardly worth printing or commenting on, but I couldn’t resist.
The RMN might do well to emulate the Denver Post’s dismissal of Spencer and Carmen: a little subtraction to increase the RMN’s “balance
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‘Redneck’
I have a genuinely honest and open question for the, what,’ European American’ community. Is it alright to use the word Redneck? My gutbrain as Stephen Colbert would say tells me no, that it is in fact an insult. A serious insult. However after querying exactly ten White males I know I was told absolutely not. ‘I’m proud to be Redneck (sometimes)’ was a common refrain. And yet I still find this difficult to get my head wrapped around. Could this be true though? Maybe I’ve just heard one too many ‘Brothers’ I know use the word vehemently and prefacing it with the vicious mother ‘hubbard’ word to ever be comfortable addressing anyone with it.
Jeff Foxworthy aside I would invite anyone to tell me if the majority of people feel it is appropriate to use this word. Gracias por este.
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Concerts & the disabled
A symphony concert is an auditory experience primarily. Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act, the CSO is required to seat ADA patrons with the general population. As a result, my most recent auditory experiences at the symphony have been punctuated by the relentless mechanical breathing of oxygen machines. In an effort to solve the problem for myself, I have changed seats at intermission and learned that one oxygen machine is enough to pollute the sound in half of the auditorium. I threw in the towel after several concerts that were ruined for me by the mechanized accompaniment: walked out on Van Cliburn, did not renew the seasons tickets that I had held for at least 25 years, and refuse any invitations to attend the CSO.
In general, the Americans with Disabilities Act has been an improvement for the segment of the population to which it applies and no detriment to the able-bodied majority. It has been peripheral in my life. Waiting for a wheelchair to be loaded onto a bus is certainly no big deal. Ramps entering buildings seem common sensical. A section of seats behind glass at Boettcher Concert Hall with unimpaired sightlines and sound for people in need of oxygen would seem to be a workable compromise, except, I am told, to ADA proponents.
I have not consulted a sound engineer, but assume that improving the acoustics in Boettcher will make not only the music, but the oxygen machines, more clearly heard. The federal government mandated the Americans with Disabilities Act. Is the Denver City Council going to mandate $75 million to enhance the irritation of the approximately 175,000 annual attendees at the CSO’s performances? As a taxpayer, I sincerely hope not!
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Reporting on gangs
And, hey, how about putting a little depth into the article? “There’s so much tension right now,” Katie quotes the Reverend. He is “always concerned because of the violence that is taking place on a daily basis.” Yeah, just like the violence in Iraq, Israel, Afghanistan, etc. Why not do a follow-up interview with the “older, black” Leon Kelly and find out why he claims this level of tension is worse now than at another time, or if he knows of some new element for its cause and if he has any ideas for diffusing it?
And the quote, “Kelly keeps a list of gang-related deaths in Colorado and has added 17 victims this year,” would be much improved with some context.
As written, it doesn’t tell me if that’s more or less than last year at this time or the year before that or the year before the birth of the “older, print reporter” Katie Kerwin McCrimmon.
Look, I’m still young enough to buy green bananas but too old to have my time wasted. I look forward to my morning coffee and paper. I expect substantive, filler-free writing that challenges my intellect. So get on it. You’re burning my daylight.
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The media
I myself have made numerous submissions that differ with the road the papers seem to be traveling down. Yet on talk radio my opinion for or against is aired shortly after calling. I can also here the opinion of the listening audience which is not owing to an editor. I personally have great respect for someone that provides a outlet for free speech and for some reason is actually dealing with current events that haven’t been dropped from view because some subscribers may not like reading the truth of the issue. One last point America was structured on free speech, and government by the people, if the people don’t like slanted, twisted up, big business leaning reporting of the news, they have the right to protect their freedom in any manor they choose. Politicians must not like finding out that the majority of the peoples view is different from the views of the wealthy and big business that bought them into office.
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The Rocky
You might discern that I am a more-than-mildly-disillusioned subscriber.
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Fuel standards, ethanol, etc.
In closing, this is a reminder to our politicians that we do vote our pocket books and the consequences of poor legislation will most assuredly live to at least the next election, if not well beyond.
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Motorcycle noise
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President Bush
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Health care
Media amazes me. I have repeatedly heard Moore use the analogy that fire protection, provided as a socialized necessity, is an example of how medicine should also be socialized. No report about that analogy has brought attention to the fact that most homeowners carry private fire insurance. Although a “fire department” will try to save life and property, and prevent a fire from spreading to the next house, they do not provide compensation for losses.
Most homeowners pay fire insurance as part of their PITI house payment every month. PITI is an abbreviation for Principal, Interest, Taxes, and Insurance. Fire insurance is priced according to the value of the property or the value of the mortgage on a property.
A fire department emergency response might be compared to how a government will respond to a “public health” crisis, but individual medical needs are more comparable to the choices we make for private fire and mortgage protection insurance. We have choices not a government edict.
If Michael Moore has a toothache, it is not my responsibility to pay for his dentistry. If it were, then I would have the right to tell him not to eat sweets. I don’t want that kind of government-paid medical policy. Do you?
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Larry Manzanares
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Iraq war
After all, it’s a superpower’s prerogative to make these determinations.
A large majority of Americans want our troops out sooner rather than later.
Others, most notably the President, have floated the sobering idea that we might keep significant forces there for more than fifty years.
Divergent views on the issue exist among congressional Democrats. Hillary Clinton, for instance, has allowed that a ten year duration in Iraq feels just about right to her. Meanwhile, our own Mark Udall has endorsed the Baker/Hamilton report’s quiet allusion to an enduring U.S. presence of some 70,000 troops, if only to defend Iraq’s presumedly then privatized petroleum assets.
But, while we dither over these matters, events in Iraq may soon compel what many a Cassandra has long predicted. The insurgents are systematically blowing up every bridge in Baghdad, gradually encircling the increasingly isolated & vulnerable Green Zone. Whatever fatuous timelines may be set in Washington, the insurgency seems to be inexorably moving ahead with its plan to overrun the Green Zone before the enormously secretive new U.S. embassy there is scheduled to open for official business in August.
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Climate change
Lynn Highland of Morrison writes: Now that that the Post and the News have crucified Larry Manzanares in the court of public opinion, it is hoped that you will turn your attention with equal zealousness to reporting the criminal activity going on right under our noses, in the current U.S. administration. This letter has not been edited. When I read Doyla Lundstrom’s letter to the editor in this morning’s Rocky Mountain News (“Still mourning a son lost to sniper’s bullet,” June 14) I felt like a knife went through me. Marilyn Mattson, Denver I’m tempted to respond to Mike Rosen’s ridiculous column on the Democratic National Convention (“Let’s not re-create ’68,” June 15) with a Jewish curse he may know: Er zol vaksen vi a tzibeleh, mit dem kop in drerd (You should grow like an onion, with your head in the ground). But to judge by Rosen’s ignorance of historical fact (a government commission called what happened in Chicago in 1968 a “police riot,” unprovoked by the demonstrators) and of the most basic constitutional rights (exercising the First Amendment right to “petition the government for redress of grievances” is hardly “harassing” delegates), not to mention his apparent failure even to read the proposed proclamation, which did no more than commit the city to accord demonstrators the same respect as delegates, apparently his head is already, like an ostrich, stuck in the ground. Mark Cohen, Denver In the June 23 Rocky Mountain News, there appeared a column by Sharon Begley about psychotherapy, “Words will never hurt?/Some psychotherapies make matters worse.” Michael E. Holtby, Denver Regarding Tuesday’s editorial on the Supreme Court rulings on free speech (“Free speech sanity”): Chief Justice John Roberts, recently appointed by President Bush, was quoted as saying in reference to the McCain-Feingold campaign finance law, “Where the First Amendment is implicated, the tie goes to the speaker, not the censor.” Todd Runestad is a resident of Boulder. Kathie Reinhardt of Englewood writes: Nice job, Scott Storey and the Jeffco DA’s Office. It isn’t every day that we are allowed to see a character assination displayed before our very eyes. While it may be that Larry Manzanares did, in fact, have illegal possession of a laptop belonging to the City of Denver, the charges brought upon him by the Jeffco DA’s office are excessive to say the least. Furthermore, it is NONE of the public’s business what lays in the 80 page indictment, nor is it anyone’s business if Mr. Manzanares had downloaded ADULT porn. This letter has not been edited. R. Kiefer of Arvada writes: Jim Underhill of Greenwood Village writes: Jefferson County District Attorney Scott Storey, has shown that for a bit of press time and in order to appear on TV, he is willing to vilify and destroy a decent man. The pornography found on the computer Larry Manzanares was accused of stealing was not illegal. Even the trumped up and inflated charges that Storey brought against Mr. Manzanares did not charge any crime relating to pornography. Yet Storey, in his quest to have his 15 minutes in the spotlight, published an 80 page affidavit which contained virtually no information except a catalog of porn — solely to insure that the media would give Storey air time. After all, the alleged theft of a $600 computer where three other governmental decision makers declined to prosecute isn’t much of a case to catapult an ambitious and ruthless DA into the spotlight, is it? This letter has not been edited. Y Letter writer Kathy Hansen is right — we do need to “Keep the heat on Denver Public Schools” (June 12). Yes, DPS needs to make real revelations and reform, but not at the expense of the pension plan. Pat Lemster, Denver I applaud the Rocky Mountain News’ position against corporate welfare for corn farmers (“Congress should get off ethanol bandwagon,” June 19). The ethanol industry has provided an almost Kafkaesque assortment of moving targets to justify its extortion of subsidies from the American taxpayer and its solicitation of high tariffs from the American government. Dmitry Vilner, Centennial So George W. Bush vetoes the stem cell bill because he believes that it is wrong to destroy potential human life in an attempt to save human lives. Camille Accountius, Longmont I believe that Sen. Wayne Allard hasn’t made a decision on Piñon Canyon because President Bush hasn’t told him what to say yet (“Allard undecided on Piñon Canyon plan,” June 22). Brad Dale, Wheat Ridge I have never before been a supporter of “socialized medicine,” but we certainly need a major improvement in our health-care system. First of all, get the pharmaceutical companies and health-care providers out of the profit market — that’s totally insane to put profits above the health of American citizens. Additionally, stop providing free care to illegals. Barbara Green, Denver The Rocky Mountain News editorial on the Democrats’ utter failure to truly reform earmarks (“Waffling on an ‘earmark’ pledge,” June 15) reminds me of the story of the frog and the scorpion: Ross Kaminsky, Nederland Regarding the June 14 Rocky Mountain News article, “Gangs at City Park Jazz spur officials to action,” how many of us have had our heads buried in the sand, and for how long? This culture of savages has infiltrated the Front Range for a while now (try walking through LoDo some weekend night and see how safe you feel). The gang tags and graffiti scrawls that are appearing everywhere and scarring the appearance of one of the most beautiful cities in the country are appalling. K.J. Munro, Lakewood Many Americans claim we need government intervention to reform the unaffordable and inaccessible health care system because “health care is a right.” Gina M. Liggett, Denver Thank you for making my Sunday morning amusing when I read the Rocky editorial “Secrecy and judges.” The opinion that judges should be held to a higher standard is correct. What I found tragically omitted, however, is that other professions are shielded from disclosure as well. Jeanne Moore is a resident of Denver. I was amazed that the president fearlessly waded into a throng of Albanians. Why does he never appear before a group of U.S. citizens? The only time I see him in a public forum he is always backed up by a group of military personnel. It must be painful to be a prisoner in the White House. George Couchman, Littleton In view of local and congressional opposition to the expansion of the Fort Carson training area in Piñon Canyon, there is a simple solution. Helmuth Froeschle, Lakewood H.D.S. Greenway’s column June 6, “The Palestinian cage,” is so shallow. Debra Zinik, Englewood The Rocky Mountain News included the following assertion in its story of June 11, “Denver targets global warming”: “Seattle Mayor Greg Nickels, frustrated with the Bush administration’s opposition to ratifying the international Kyoto treaty on emissions, began the effort two years ago.” Mike Sigman, Durango I appreciate that the Rocky Mountain News was able to alert the public to the situation faced by the students of the former Ute Creek Secondary Academy (“Charter school’s demise leaves students in lurch,” June 15). Tug Levy, Rollinsville If you want partisan bickering — both at the citizen level and congressional level — look no further than the immigration legislation. Louis Lieb, Golden So Boettcher Hall is an acoustical albatross (“Decision on bond projects delayed/Doubts over fixes for Boettcher hall prompt move,” June 16). That’s no news. Who designed it? Who approved and paid for the design? And who paid for its construction? Jim Bahrenburg, Wheat Ridge Leroy M. Martinez of Denver writes: Conerening ex judge Larry Manzanares. I wonder if he killed himself because he felt bad about the recent trouble with the laptop or because he has sent many people to jail and now he might be going to jail and face them? This letter has not been edited. Larry De Cicco of Evergreen writes: Public Trust; it’s a double-edged sword, isn’t it? When Nixon got caught planning and abetting breaking and entering, dirty tricks, and other violations of the Public Trust, he seemed to believe that his position would exempt him from scrutiny. Quite indignant about it, as I recall. This letter has not been edited. Bill Geist of Denver writes: People are claiming that Larry Manzanares was driven to suicide because of the media coverage. Question, was Larry Manzanares a member of the media or was he just a member of society? If he was a member of the media, he would have been accorded some respect and only the pertinent facts would have be reported, whereas being just a member of society, the media is doing what they do best which is to sell the story. They do this by laying out his complete life story, whether or not the facts are germane to the story. The problem with this is that society gobbles up this kind of sensationalistic and bombastic story like a drug. The subject of the story is then crucified and vilified by the public because of these sensational and bombastic stories. This letter has not been edited. The Rev. It’s not very difficult to connect the dots after two oil tycoons took office and gas prices have gone up about 200 percent! Not to mention the largest corporate profit in the world’s history was taken by none other than ExxonMobil, while citizens continue to get gouged at the pumps! Jeff Darden, Littleton So, the Republicans in Congress think that the no-confidence resolution for Attorney General Alberto Gonzales was just a big waste of time. “This is a nonbinding, irrelevant resolution proving what? Nothing,” said Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss. “Maybe we should be considering a vote of no confidence on the Senate or on the Congress for malfunction and an inability to produce anything.” Mark A. Seberger, Larkspur Here we go again. Larry Manzanares was a good, decent man. He messed up. He happened to be a judge who knew exactly what he was doing when he allegedly stole property, downloaded porn and lied. He also knew better than the average citizen the penalties he would face if caught. Now, because he was Latino, the prosecutors and the Rocky Mountain News are not only accused of racial bias, but are responsible for his death. No one has mentioned the turmoil, disappointment and embarrassment he may have faced at home. Holly Bjornsen, Parker John Temple’s From the Publisher column on Saturday spoke of his pride in the extensive coverage the Rocky Mountain News has done in many articles recently. Francie Miran, Aurora Mayor John Hickenlooper insists that Denver isn’t a sanctuary city, yet I would argue that many of the gang members in the city are illegal aliens. Rhonda Roseto, Westminster I couldn’t help but react to an item on the nine o’clock news recently (June 14). It mentioned a woman with a 5-month-old baby who had the audacity to nurse her hungry child in public, at the Elitch Gardens Water Park. Outrage! The offended public immediately brought this seditious act to the attention of management. No one must be subjected to the image of a mother nursing her baby! Marie Bowman, Lakewood Jason McVean’s body (along with bombs) has been found and it appears he committed suicide (“9 years later, search over in killing of Cortez officer/Remains believed to be 3rd gunman in 1998 slaying,” June 7). Christopher Thiry, Golden This letter has not been edited. Cheers to Colorado state Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald and House Speaker Andrew Romanoff for supporting cuts to global warming pollution from motor vehicles (“Colo. lawmakers support Calif.’s push for emissions limits,” May 30). The EPA should approve California’s waiver and the right for states such as Colorado to address this important problem. Colorado is already feeling the effects of global warming, and is predicted to be affected in the future. The effects of global warming on the Rocky Mountain West include declining snowpack, increasing risk for wildfire, and longer and more severe droughts. Meghan McCloskey, Colorado Springs The Army needs a larger maneuvering site. The people want more control of the border with Mexico to stop illegal immigration. I believe the Army’s larger maneuver site can best be obtained and justified by moving to an entirely new location. The resulting border monitoring would be a secondary benefit. Instead of practicing on beautiful grassland country, the more realistic dry canyon, hot desert and bare mountainous country would be more like Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran — terrain they will be in for the next 50 years. The original owners of the existing Piñon Canyon training site should be given first option to buy back their property. The remainder could be offered to adjoining owners or sold at auction. T.L. Beckley, Littleton Remember the fable about Chicken Little? “The sky is falling” he frantically proclaims — scaring everyone to death that the end is near. It’s an allegory about not believing everything you are told. In modern times, we have our own tall tales sold with fear and misinformation (June 21 editorial, “Saving secret ballots”). Today’s Chicken Littles — anti-union employers, business associations, and their allied lawmakers — use double- speak about jobs and the economy to scare the public into putting corporate profits above fair treatment for workers. Fear mongers currently are gunning for legislation being debated in the Senate that would stop unscrupulous employers from denying workers a free choice to form a union. Their latest false alarm asserts that the proposed reforms will steal workers’ right to vote by secret ballot. Rest assured, the sky is not falling. The Employee Free Choice Act does not take away elections. What the bill does prevent is an employer manipulating the flawed voting process in its favor. Under the proposed legislation, workers get to choose the union formation process—elections or majority signup, a method where workers have a union when a third party verifies signed cards indicating that a majority wants one. Under the existing system involving secret ballots, when faced with organizing drives: 25 percent of employers illegally fire pro-union employees; 51 percent illegally coerce workers into opposing unions with bribery and favoritism; and, 91 percent force employees to attend one-on-one anti-union meetings with supervisors. The Employee Free Choice Act would level the playing field by strengthening penalties against offending employers and give workers a fair shot at forming a union when they want one. Above all else, in America we believe in the right of all people to freely choose what’s best for themselves and their families. Actually the “era of denial” is only over for members of the Church of Global Warming ... which evidently includes the Denver mayor and much of the city’s populace. Feel free to worship at the altar of nuttiness, but as a proud denier of global warming, I will continue to enjoy producing all my carbon emissions and be reminded of Chicken Little every time these stupid stories hit the paper. And on the off chance that I’m wrong (which we wouldn’t know for hundreds of years) and that your arrogance at thinking you can do anything about the purported man-made causes of global warming is correct, did it ever occur to you that maybe it might be beneficial for it to get just a bit warmer? Dave Schallert, Parker I listened to the debate regarding the vote on Rep. Diana DeGette’s embryonic stem cell bill, which recently passed both the House and the Senate and was vetoed by our president. Those opposed to the bill stated that they did not want public tax dollars going to the destruction of human embryos — never mind that the majority of taxpayers who fund the congressional budget actually favor this type of research and budget spending. When we vote, are we electing someone to represent us as a whole, or are we electing a “parent” figure to dictate laws to us that he or she thinks are in our own best interest? Cheryl Redmond Doyle, Littleton Current research tells us that the human brain is not completely developed until approximately age 23 and that one of the last areas to mature involves decision-making. Certainly, there are some high school students who demonstrate exceptional skills, but the majority are still in need of guidance and positive role-modeling in their decision-making around life-altering choices such as drug use and sexual experiences. As a recently retired Boulder Valley School District health educator, I feel the drug-and-sex panel at Boulder High lacked experience in teaching adolescents and overstepped board policies in their dialogues. This panel may have been better suited to a college freshman audience. Lori Sinsel-Temanson, Golden Since the news broke on the latest debacle to come out of Boulder (“Drug-sex talk spurs more talk,” June 13), it has been interesting to watch the fur fly. The Boulder High School administrators should be proud of their enlightened and tolerant decision to subject their impressionable students to the morally bankrupt agenda of a panel of perverted “experts” who encouraged the students to experiment with sex and illegal drugs. The immediate fallout from this is not unexpected. Arguing in support of the administration are the usual misguided teenagers spurred on by their depraved Boulderite parents. On the other side of the ring, a small minority clamor for some semblance of sanity while faced with the reality that trying to promote anything righteous in Boulder is like pushing on a rope. Addressing the school board on June 12, a distraught parent reportedly made the incredulous statement, “Shame on all of you. If this is what living in Boulder is all about, then count me out.” So why should there be any surprise when these things continue to surface? Dwight Kinney, Longmont Your June 11 article “Denver targets global warming,” hardly makes me want to rush out to buy some LED lamps. I’ll just wait until I’m forced to. While I am all for becoming more efficient regarding energy usage, I think the Hickenlooper administration is ramming the climate change scare down my throat. There is no scientific evidence that we are causing global warming or that we can stop natural global warming. If the glacial ice sheet decides to cover Colorado again, how do we stop its advancement or prod it to recede? Maybe Hickenlooper will have an answer. Please don’t insult me, mayor, by tagging what we should all be doing to be less wasteful with this climate change hysteria. Will Volskis, Aurora I have read published excerpts of readers’ comments left on the Rocky Mountain News Web site, and I am ashamed of some of my metro area neighbors who write such hateful and hurtful words against undocumented immigrants and those of us who only seek justice and fair play. These people who stand for the status quo and have such high ideals for our country and who don’t want to open the doors to people seeking a better life as we have done in the past, should at least have the guts to have their names printed next to their shameful excess of hollow and bigoted words. They understand that if the people they know actually knew they could spew such awful and hate-filled words and thoughts so freely, some of their friends might actually walk away. After all, no one really wants to be considered a bigot. Fidel “Butch” Montoya, Denver Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel rips apart the New York Post and the New York Daily News for publishing A-Rod’s indiscretion on their front pages (“A-Rod’s indiscretion has no place on front page/Denver dailies wisely shun lurid tale,” On the Media, June 16). It seems the married Alex Rodriguez, a New York Yankee baseball star, was seen in a Toronto hotel with a stripper. Kopel goes on to point out that the Denver papers would never follow these bad examples and publish salacious material on their front pages. This is three or four days after the Rocky completely filled its front page with the photo of the city attorney who allegedly stole a laptop computer. The stolen laptop was old Page 3 news, but now that pornographic material was discovered on its hard drive, it became a front-page story. Jim Threlkeld, Denver I have adjusted to the new size while wondering what is missing. But wait! In your zeal to update, you have rendered the TV guide nearly useless! I don’t miss the sophomoric puzzles, etc., but I do deplore the absence of the numerical designations for the cable channels. Please modify. Donna L. Mattson, Wheat Ridge I love newspapers. I love having something tangible to hold onto as I read about the day, or what might be happening tomorrow; I love writing that helps us understand the people we live around and the world we’re shaping; I even love getting black ink smeared all over my fingers by the time I’m done scanning the pages. I guess that’s why I became a news writer. But now, it would seem, the future of the industry I love so dearly is faced with serious challenges. Some of the largest newsrooms across the country, including The Denver Post, continue to offer buyouts and make “involuntary separations” with quality staffers amid budget shortfalls and declining revenues. The reality certainly exists that many publicly traded news companies are ultimately accountable to their stockholders. Even private news venders have a bottom line to look after. But, as I see it, it is the newspaper industry itself that’s to blame for its own downturn. As a whole, we do not yet understand how to make money selling to online readers; we no longer offer a diversity of news coverage, because we’ve fired writers who do it with excellence; and we don’t remember what a newspaper is supposed to be all about — offering our readers quality, complete coverage each day. Relaying the news is a profession we should feel privileged to be a part of. Let’s make readers feel the same way. Heath Urie, Thornton Please pay careful attention when editing the crossword puzzle. On June 9, the clue for 34-across was “sppeal.” I finally figured out it was a misspelling — it should have been “appeal.” One-down was “aject one.” “Aject” wasn’t listed in either of my dictionaries — I tried to find it on an online dictionary, and it said there was no such word. A few weeks ago, there were two 54-downs. Your readers who do the crossword puzzle need to figure out the answers — we should not be expected to figure out the clues also! You may not think the crossword puzzle is that important, but for me it is a bonding experience with my 81-year-old mother. We call one another every day to see if each of us “got it.” The crossword puzzle needs to be numbered correctly and include the proper spelling of words. Patricia R. Henson, Denver This letter has not been edited. This letter has not been edited. What a great human interest picture on the front page of the June 12 Rocky Mountain News: a newborn in an incubator being transported from the old hospital to the new hospital! How many times have you been in an office when a mother brings her new baby to work? Doesn’t everybody congregate around the two of them? Isn’t it amazing that we can have this attitude as individuals, but as a society we condone the killing of 3,000 babies per day by abortion? Jay and Dianne Moyers, Centennial Regarding the new motorcycle exhaust law, I vote with my money, Denver. I spend a lot of money at motorcycle and gear stores in Denver proper, sometimes driving miles to get a good deal or go to a great store. In case you haven’t checked lately, jackets, boots, helmets, etc., cost hundreds of dollars. The tax on those purchases goes to Denver. I think I won’t do that anymore. I’d hate to get caught with an after-market exhaust system on my used bike, even though it isn’t loud. I guess I will just have to shop the suburbs instead. Tina Cook, Broomfield June 1 marked the 40th anniversary of the release of the Beatles album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band. Rocky Mountain News columnist Mike Rosen missed a prime opportunity to analyze and deconstruct this radical piece of progressive pablum as he did when he masterfully critiqued the dated but still socialist Imagine in his column of Nov. 17, 2006, “It’s hard to ‘Imagine’ that.” K. Parker, Parker The Rocky’s June 17 editorial (“Leavitt needs to step in”) suggests that good data do not always exist showing that some Rocky Flats workers were exposed to dangerous levels of radiation. I disagree. There are literally volumes of data in the 1989-1992 federal grand jury investigation, including the sworn testimony of workers, Rockwell supervisors and federal investigators, describing shoddy security procedures and radioactive spills. When the then-U.S. attorney allowed the contractor to plead guilty in lieu of a possible criminal indictment, the grand jury was dismissed and the record sealed. Grand jurors were even told not to speak publicly about what they had seen or heard during grand jury proceedings. If Secretary of Health and Human Services Michael Leavitt is truly interested in the welfare of Flats workers, he could show that concern by petitioning the government to open the grand jury report. Jere Joiner lives in Divide. U.S. Rep. This letter has not been edited. If anyone is in need of affirmation that our judicial system is getting out of hand with its determination to make headlines out of nothing, one only needs to look at the decision of District Attorney Carol Chambers to charge 17-year-old Ponderosa High School student Caleb Pegues as an adult for his obviously stupid prank with a smoke bomb (“Was explosive a kid’s prank or a felony?” June 9). David R. Forward, Aurora I noted that the Colorado State Patrol issued 15,500 citations during the Memorial Day weekend, as their annual campaign to crack down on drunken drivers goes into effect (“Sobering statistics from Memorial Day,” Extra!, May 30). Mark Herzfeld, Denver So Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper intends to go green. What a fool ... or should I say, what a Democrat? Douglas Dillon, Castle Rock It’s now popular for city and state authorities to promote energy conservation. Yet Denver continues to approve building permits for mega-mansions requiring large air conditioning units because all the trees have been removed for the building bulk. A bit hypocritical? Nan Graham, Denver Forty years ago, Israel “Pearl Harbored” Egypt’s Air Force in a destructive, sucker-punch, pre-emptive airstrike. Israel won the West Bank, Gaza, Sinai, etc., by military force in the subsequent Six Day War. Eric Bard, Denver Many on the far right feel Scooter Libby is being unfairly persecuted through his 30-month jail sentence. But hey, he is dutifully taking the rap for the team, or more precisely for the vice president, for an arrogant act of partisan hackery, the outing of CIA agent Valerie Plame. He then obstructed justice by lying to the grand jury and investigative agencies of the United States. This wasn’t about a dalliance with an intern. What happened to all the outrage about the rule of law? Mike Clow, Colorado Springs Paul Campos states in his June 12 column (“And justice for all?”) that Scooter Libby “lied under oath about some details of a campaign to smear opponents of Iraq war.” He asserts that these lies were morally reprehensible and damaging to the nation. R. Hartwell, Littleton Barack Obama cannot lose. That is, if he doesn’t win the Democratic nomination he has still earned such a stellar reputation and planetary name recognition that with a powerful position in a Democratic administration for four years he’ll be more than ready in the following election. Grant D. Cyrus, Boulder If Whole Foods would be foolish enough to raise prices and reduce quality as a result of a merger with Wild Oats, let the market decide. Don’t we still have a free enterprise system, or did Hillary already become president? Ira Indich, Denver Letter writer Richard Colwell (June 11) asks, “Who won in Iraq?” John R. Pack, Parker I see that a one-year suspension has been recommended for Ward Churchill. Scott Strohmeier, Arvada By voting “no” on cloture on the immigration reform bill earlier this month, Sen. Wayne Allard showed that he recognizes the sanctity of the law. J.F. Meyer, Olathe I had to laugh at the article “Mayors target guns database” (June 8). Why am I amused? Supporters cited in the article include the American Hunters and Shooters Association. This group with a name that sounds like it supports shooters and hunters is actually a front for several gun-control organizations. Todd Jacobson, Lyons In the FasTracks Annual Program Evaluation for the Gold Line, published on May 29, it was reported that: “The Gold Line Team ... eliminated diesel commuter rail from its evaluation late last year (2006) based on overwhelming support form the public for the electric commuter rail technology ... ” William G. Ross, Arvada The next time you are sitting at a traffic light with no traffic on the cross street, ask yourself whether the government really does all it could to save fuel. Steve Miller, Westminster Seventeen-year-old Ponderosa High student Caleb Pegues lobbed an incendiary device toward a group of fellow students because he felt that their pro-marijuana rally was “stupid. I guess that is how I was raised” (“Was explosive a kid’s prank or a felony?” June 9). Jon Richard, Denver George Lilly of Denver writes: Educator Francis Wardle offered a thought-provoking Speakout column in the May 26 Rocky, “Einsteins in our midst?” Everything he says makes sense. We should include many dimensions in education including the items he suggests. Where his article melts down is his attack on teaching literacy and math, and testing for competency. It is not one approach or the other that is necessary; it is both. For too long the schools fell down on the basics, so there needed to be a strong push for that essential aspect of education. At the same time, we need to nurture whole people and that means art, music, sports and vocations are just as important. From what I can tell, Colorado schools are doing a pretty good job in all areas, and the CSAP has helped educators focus on an area that was slipping. Don’t throw it out. Keep it and keep the arts, too. It is not a matter of time or money. It is a simple matter of balancing the curriculum and expecting educators to do their jobs instead of whining about having to teach literacy and math. Steve Wille lives in Centennial. Well, I see another activist judge has decided that the people of Colorado cannot think for themselves. Denver District Court Judge Christina Habas overturned Amendment 41, which was approved by a landslide vote of the citizens of Colorado (“Judge lifts lobbyist gift ban,” June 1). The judge ruled that the amendment has a chilling effect on free speech and association — which are code words in this instance for crimping the graft-giving and -receiving. She advises that the measure has wording that is vague at best. Then she goes on to say that the measure went far beyond what was intended. If it was so vague, how does she know what was intended? Jim Weber, Denver My lawn is green, the greenbelts, parks and golf courses are lush, the reservoirs are full — everyone is happy, right? Not so! The state of Colorado is still refusing to let the 440 farmers northeast of Denver use their wells. All great civilizations destroy themselves from within. Where are we heading? The state of Colorado has put water for greenbelts, golf courses and parks ahead of water for food. I blame Gov. Bill Ritter and the state legislature for allowing this to happen and for doing nothing to help these 440 farmers. Dan Porreco, Arvada To those Boulderites who want sanity back in their children’s schools, come to western Colorado. You won’t hear would-be professionals promoting healthy sexual relationships that include active experimentation in single, group, same-sex or any combination thereof, or equating casual and committed relationships. I visited with a local superintendent of our local school system, and this concerned child activist was assured that our local schools have a rigid policy with regard to such topics, that the school system serves to protect the rights of children in their parents’ stead (rather than supplanting the parents’ authority), and furthermore that a mandatory STD class may be in violation of the students’ civil rights as well as a violation of state statute. Betty Scranton, Glenwood Springs There are thousands of illegal aliens registered to vote — and who have voted in our elections— even though, legally, one must be a United States citizen to vote. The problem here is that Colorado does not require proof of citizenship to vote. Colorado will register people to vote with a cable bill, a utility bill, etc., as proof of residency. The right to vote should be in the hands of American citizens and American citizens only. Only American citizens should decide America’s destiny. No foreign power should dictate America’s future. No person who swears allegiance to a foreign power should be allowed to vote in our elections. Helen Loar, Denver Forget finding a border fence, let Christo build one! This would accomplish several goals, and he could charge admission to view yet another masterpiece of contemporary public art. A fence (my preference would be silk with lavender hues) would discourage border crossings (if his previous works are any guide) by the simple visual repulsiveness. Patrick R. Ritchen, Brighton It is time for us to end our dependence on foreign oil and begin our journey toward the independence provided by alternative fuels for our automobiles. The time has come to support more walking and bus riding to implement this action. Only when we walk or ride the bus will the people who promote the rise in oil prices feel the pinch enough to make the changes needed to promote alternative fuels. All Americans need to become more fuel-conscious, conserve, and care about this green planet. If you love the beauty of this world, support it by driving less and riding with others more. Your household budget and kids will thank you, as will the rest of the world that is still walking to and from work. J. Serio, Arvada Have we Americans no pride? Look and wonder what happened to our beloved country when the government took our voice away and gave amnesty to the last million people a few years back. How did they repay our good intentions and friendship? By overloading our school systems and still not learning the English language, by taking our gifts of free medical care, food stamps, low-cost and sometimes free housing, also using our Medicaid system even though some have not paid into the system. Dear Government, why not let the American public vote this time around for this broken system that you are trying to correct — you may be surprised at how mad we really are. Jack Wedding, Arvada Leroy M. Martinez of Denver writes: Brian Stuckey of Denver writes: Dr. Blithely dismissing the lies and exaggerations the Bush administration used to inveigle the United States into the current disaster in Iraq, Bob Beauprez trots out right-wing talking points, as if these had suddenly regained credibility (“Ignoring the facts,” Speakout, June 2). He refers to congressmen who “agreed” with Bush about the threat posed by Saddam Hussein, but neglects to mention the manipulation of intelligence reports that produced this consensus. He warns about “enemies of freedom” and Osama bin Laden’s “stated objective,” but either doesn’t know or doesn’t care what bin Laden actually said about his motives, which consisted of ejecting U.S. troops from Muslim holy lands. Dr. A.J. Hill, Nederland How comical to read Jason Salzman’s dark speculation “whether [former Senate President John] Andrews is lying” with my admission that on the 2004 property tax increase bill, I and other Republicans fell for a misrepresentation and voted wrong (“Senate Republicans hardly duped in 2004,” On the Media, June 9). What’s to lie about? A dumb vote is just that, and some of us were guilty. In the end, though, no tax hike passed the Republican legislature that year, whereas a big one passed the Democratic legislature this year, and Gov. Ritter signed it. Voters might frown on that in 2008. John Andrews, Centennial, Former Senate president That quote from the very first Spider-Man comic book that led off Dave Kopel’s On the Media column of June 2, “Talk-show hosts amok,” was very good, but check out this one by Mark Twain: “In the first place, God made idiots. This was for practice. Then he made school boards.” Does Kopel think Batman and Dick Tracy will support his efforts to “refocus” the Caplis & Silverman Show away from Boulder? By the way, how many comic books did Kopel have to read to qualify as a media critic? Patrick O’Connor, Castle Rock I have written previously, exclaiming how much I appreciate the Rocky Mountain News and how much I enjoy Vincent Carroll and numerous others. While I am decidedly conservative, that doesn’t prevent me from enjoying liberal columnists such as Maureen Dowd and, yes, Paul Campos. In his June 5 column, “Removed from reality,” Campos proclaims that 72 percent of the population is aligned with Nancy Pelosi, Harry Reid and — you guessed it — Paul Campos. This is preposterous. Who are these people, this 72 percent? I only know six. I submit that Pelosi would have been destroyed by Bob Beauprez in a Colorado gubernatorial race and Pete Coors would be our senator had Ken Salazar run on the liberal record and statements of Harry Reid. Campos is a radical leftist, out of touch with all save the progressive lynch mob in which he circulates. Mr. Campos, it is fine to paint your columns from a progressive position, but when you look in the mirror, don’t kid yourself — the mainstream isn’t what’s looking back. Stan Byers, Arvada My brother has served in the Army since 2002 and is facing his third tour to Iraq in October. He is currently being treated for post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms he has exhibited since returning from his second tour in November 2006. When he is redeployed, he does not know if he will continue to have access to his Zoloft medication or weekly talk therapy currently being used to treat his symptoms. Due to the extended 15-month deployments and his October leave date, he will be in Iraq for two consecutive Christmases. When is enough enough? This war is being fought on the backs of our working class while the rest of America worries about gas prices and summer movie releases. When will the odds catch up with my brother as they have for so many other service members who return with brain injuries, amputations or worse? What will it take for the American people to demand an end to this destructive war? While the Democrats and Republicans debate over which lifelong bureaucrat should limp into office to succeed the current underachiever, the American people need to make their voices heard. Lisa Sevcik, Highlands Ranch On important issues such as immigration, it is essential that we have leadership that reflects the wishes of the people and considers the importance to the welfare of this country. Since many of our elected officials no longer wish to represent us, act only in their own self-serving interests and have reduced us to being their wallet or pocketbook, is it time to put these issues on a national referendum? We can no longer support a system that passes laws and then chooses not to enforce them, claims to act in our best interest but refuses to tell us the cost and long-term impact and expedites the passage of laws so that the full meaning cannot be determined. We extend the opportunity to develop democratic forms of government to other nations of the world but seem to have lost the principles at home. Jack Lintz, Littleton Buying a Sunday newspaper for $1.50 that a few months ago was $1 is probably the result of increased cost of newsprint, and management is attempting to maintain a certain level of earnings. It was while reading this newspaper at Starbucks, after paying $1.57 for an 8-ounce cup of regular coffee, that the numerous articles about gasoline prices of $3 per gallon needed to be explained. Gasoline inventories are at their lowest level in six years because refineries had been processing heating oil for East Coast consumers. They got a very late start in changing over to process gasoline, to build up inventories for the driving season, which refineries have always considered to begin May 28. The other reasons for this shortage of gasoline are due to the shutdown of the refinery in Texas because of a fire, and also a crude oil shortage on the Gulf Coast because of a loss of supply from Nigeria. This will not make consumers feel any better, but there are 128 ounces in a gallon, and that 8-ounce cup of coffee at $1.57 would make a gallon of coffee cost $25.12. Therefore, the economic and safety issue is, “Don’t drink and drive, you might hit a bump and spill some expensive coffee.” Doyle Grogan, Denver The military needs soldiers. The illegals want jobs. ’Nuff said. And while we’re at it, let’s empty some prison cells! Tom Zehnle, Morrison We read with interest — but were not persuaded by — the Rocky’s June 11 editorial (“The Roan reaction”) opposing our efforts to seek a “timeout” of the Bureau of Land Management’s efforts to open up yet more of Colorado’s Western Slope to gas drilling — particularly the special unspoiled acreage atop the Roan Plateau A one-year delay will also give us an opportunity to insist on other protections. The gas isn’t going anywhere, but the wildlife habitat, the sensitive species, and the beauty of this unique Western landscape could be lost forever. That seems worth a timeout to us. Mark Udall represents Colorado’s 2nd Congressional District. John Salazar represents Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District. For years, President Bush and his enablers have been telling us we have to fight the terrorists in Iraq so we don’t have to fight them here. The stupidity of that statement should be obvious, but now we hear about recent terrorist plots targeting New York and New Jersey. Why can’t these Guyanese, Yugoslavians, Turks and Jordanians get with the program and go to Iraq? Maybe, like many Americans, they couldn’t find Iraq on a map. It is high time to also retire another ludicrous talking point, that if we retreat from Iraq the terrorists will “follow us home.” Don’t you think the terrorists already know where we live? In fact, they are already here, and the debacle in Iraq has only increased the danger. Fred Koster, Nederland Al-Qaida tortures and decapitates civilians and captured soldiers and casually kills people by the hundreds in mass executions while we prosecute our troops when they overstep civilized behavior. Border smugglers kill civilians and shoot at Border Patrol guards and we prosecute the guards for minor transgressions on the testimony of criminals. Perhaps the idea is that al-Qaida and border criminals will laugh themselves to death at our antic actions. Robert Lipton, Lakewood The prevalence of graffiti throughout Denver and the metropolitan area is disgraceful — yes, even disgusting. I don’t know the answer for prevention, but I believe one place to start is to stop calling them “graffiti artists” or “taggers.” The former name lends unwarranted dignity, and the latter implies a certain bravado and shouldn’t be used either. The only term used in reference to these criminals should be “graffiti vandals.” If they are caught, they should be punished as vandals, the same as if they had been found burning down a neighbor’s garage or fence. Jeanette Murgatroyd, Denver Concerning the two young children who drowned in a condominium community’s pool (“‘Now it’s a very sad life for them’/Pool victims had arrived in U.S. in ’06 from Ethiopia,” May 30): The Rocky Mountain News story states that a resident found the children in the pool, called 911 and firefighters pulled the bodies out of the water. Why in God’s name didn’t the resident who called 911 pull — or try to pull — the kids out of the pool? Time is always important. Leroy M. Martinez, Denver There is no immigration problem in the United States of America. What we have is a law enforcement problem! If you illegally cross the U.S. border, you will or should be immediately arrested and deported. If you are an employer who hires illegals, you will or should be immediately arrested, fined and/or jailed. Is that so complicated? No! The employers who complain and whine about a lack of workers will have to do just like the rest of us when we buy gasoline — pay up! It’s just supply and demand, after all. Well, the employers must do the same — pay a decent wage to available American or legal immigrant workers. No amnesty, no political interference, no special-interest interference, no religious interference, just honest law enforcement. Leon Rodriguez, Denver Hundreds of human rights and international governmental organizations (including Israeli and Jewish groups and the United Nations) and millions of people around the globe have called for an end to the Israeli occupation of the West Bank and East Jerusalem and for a just and equitable peace. June marks the 40th anniversary of the ongoing Israeli occupation. Because the United States has played such a key role in supporting Israel’s illegal occupation — both financially and diplomatically — people in the United States have a special obligation to speak out and pressure our politicians to end their support for this unjust situation. Julia Blechar, Louisville I disagree with letter writer Melanie Maish, who says America should send Marines back to the Halls of Montezuma and move the United States’ southern border to Guatemala in a spirit of reconquista (“Let’s just move the border to Guatemala,” June 4). Isn’t Panama the shortest place to build a good fence for North America? Steve Schweitzberger, Littleton The official total precipitation for the Denver area for the month of May was 1.79 inches. This amount, of course, was measured at Denver International Airport. The core city and surrounding areas, being closer to the mountains — where people live and grow things — received a lot more ... closer to 4 inches in some cases. Snow amounts are invariably lighter as the distance from the mountains is increased, so the year-to-date figure is off, too. I can’t understand why the official measurements have to be made at the airport, while those closer to downtown, which reflect what really is happening, are not even considered. Dale Major, Denver Letter writer Ray Coffman (“The root of all our ills,” May 31) recommends abortion as one way to reduce the population. In the very next sentence he says we should “live and let live.” How can someone hold these two thoughts simultaneously without blowing a “mental contradiction” gasket? Clarence Manion, Lyons In response to “Horse slaughter not always a bad thing,” a letter published on June 5: Horse slaughter is always a bad thing ... particularly for the horse. Pam Levien, Castle Rock Though not on the order of Iraqi deaths (a la the U.S. invasion and war) nor nuclear threats, loud motorcycles destroy the serenity when one has a chance to decompress away from the “madding crowd” — in cemeteries, on one’s front porch or balcony, at an outdoor celebration or enjoying nature. K. and L. Johnson, Littleton Littleton residents are being asked to support or rebuff their City Council’s decision to rezone part of Santa Fe Drive and the South Platte greenway for a huge 24-hour Wal-Mart store (ballot question 1A). Paul Trantow, Littleton Bonnie Erbe’s May 31 column in the Rocky Mountain News, “Ruling an ill wind for civil rights,” is a terrific example of obfuscation via the red herring. She wrote critically about a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision denying Lilly Ledbetter’s claim of unlawful pay discrimination based on gender. John Dendahl, Littleton My name is Doyla Lundstrom and I lost my oldest son in Fallujah, Iraq, on Jan. 7, 2006. Doyla Lundstrom, Broomfield Editor’s note: See the Rocky’s coverage about Brett and Edward Lundstrom online at http:// If a person of faith uses her talents to bring attention to important issues, is this a violation of the First Amendment? On the contrary, it is a celebration of First Amendment rights — the right to free speech, freedom of religion and the right to petition for redress. The Rev. Leah Daughtry is using her God-given gifts to do what she sees as right to improve the world (“Pastor’s mission to bring ‘values voters’ into Dems’ flock,” June 1). Kevin Snyder, Lafayette Terri L. Thaler of Denver writes: At the risk of sounding like a Negative Nellie I’m afraid I have to say that John Temple’s final inspiring words to 17 staffers leaving the Rocky Mountain News (Departing friends leave a legacy 5/26/07) did little, in my opinion, to encourage an optimistic point of view on the stability or continuity of the Rocky — or the newspaper business in general. In the distance I can hear a bell tolling and it makes me sad. This letter has not been edited. P This letter has not been edited. I am still scratching my head over the University of Colorado panel’s recommendation to merely suspend Ward Churchill. If either of my kids plagiarized, made up their own version of history and turned in papers with outright lies, they would be kicked out of school. Michele Austin, Englewood I would like to thank Rep. Dan Gibbs and Senate President Joan Fitz-Gerald for co-sponsoring HB 1130, a forest restoration bill. The bill, recently signed by Gov. Bill Ritter at a ceremony in Frisco, provides $1 million for forest restoration projects in response to the pine-beetle infestation. Greg Clifton, Ridgway It no longer takes a “rocket scientist” to prevent identity theft. All it takes is the common sense to take solutions already at hand and put them to use. Edwin R. Anderson, Arvada It is refreshing to find valiant leadership in the pro-life community (“Abortion opponents blast Dobson,” May 24). Colorado Right to Life is that sweet fragrance of morality that this country has needed amid the stench of moral relativism that has abetted the deaths of 50 million American children since Roe v. Wade. M.D. Bernhardt, Arvada The Colorado School of Mines and Conoco Phillips recently held a public forum called “A Conversation on Energy.” Too bad our two resident conservative cranks, Jon Caldara and John Andrews, weren’t there, because a couple of salient points made throughout the conference were that we need to achieve efficiencies in our energy usage now and we need to start conserving more and driving less. Tom Sabel, Lakewood It is great to have women and men like those involved with Recreate 68 teaching people what democracy looks like. The Democratic National Convention is a great opportunity for the people of Denver to have an open conversation with their representatives. There is no inherent conflict between the need for public safety and the right of the people to engage in peaceful protest. St. Paul, Minn., which is hosting the Republican National Convention has already passed a proclamation. Denver should also. Barbara Cohen, Denver Applicants for food stamps must fill out a 21-page form? (“Food stamps unused in state/Red tape, shame, lengthy forms may be reasons,” June 5.) Virginia L. Wielgot, Aurora Regarding the boos given Miss USA Rachel Smith at the Miss Universe contest in Mexico City by Mexicans in the audience, this is nothing new. For years Mexicans have been conflicted; they wake up in the morning and wonder, “What shall I do today — hate the United States or emigrate there?” John E. Dreier, Golden The Roan Plateau is a relatively undisturbed island of public lands amid one of the nation’s most active gas fields. Lands all around the plateau are available for oil and gas leasing, are already leased, or are currently being drilled or in production. Although the plan would limit development activity to 1 percent of the public lands atop the plateau, over half the planning area is already owned or leased by the gas industry, where this limitation would not apply. And the Rocky’s claim that drillers would have to “restore their drilling sites to a natural state” before drilling elsewhere is a fabrication. Rather drill sites would have to meet two years’ goals toward a five-year standard. Down with trickle-down lies! Vincent Carroll would have us believe that Hillary Clinton (tops in her Yale Law School class) is an intellectual lightweight because she made a negative reference to the “robber barons” (“Beneficent barons,” On Point, June 1). He would have us believe that some robber barons were great people because they created new wealth. What he doesn’t say is that it was at the expense of thousands of lives. But consider the fact that the Soviet Union went from a feudal, agrarian society to defeat Hitler and put the first man in space in merely 40 years. By Carroll’s standards, Papa Joe Stalin is the greatest man who ever lived. Dan Badger is a resident of Denver. Ken Bonetti of Boulder writes: The delusions of CU administrators and its apologists are truly breathtaking. K In his May 29 column, “The elites’ war,” Rocky Mountain News columnist Paul Campos refers to the Vietnam War and makes a comment about losing face. Vietnam and Iraq, linked all across the political gamut, are deeper than simply a warning about losing face. Bruce E. Cairns, Aurora In her May 26 Speakout column, “Abstinence programs useless,” Rep. Diana DeGette referred to President Bush’s policies on abstinence education and stem-cell research as sticking his head in the sand “when presented with evidence contrary to his preconceived ideas.” Mary Pott, Golden It’s time for a new national debate on U.S. nuclear weapons policy. The Colorado congressional delegation should lead the way. Bob Kinsey, Denver and Edwards I ask the Rocky Mountain News to please keep the heat on Denver Public Schools until some real revelations and reform have taken place. Kathy Hansen, Bailey In his recent Speakout column, “Einsteins in our midst?” (May 26), Francis Wardle made some recommendations for producing original thinkers like Einstein. Michael Jenulis, Denver Bob Beauprez’s June 2 Speakout column, “Ignoring the facts,” highlights the distorted thinking of a George Bush apologist. Mike Dubrovich, Parker I am amazed at the blatant racism or “minority-ism” in Rhonda Hackett’s Speakout of May 18, “Affirmative action still needed here,” particularly in the example of supplementing “oral for written applicant testing in those cases where pen-and-paper exam unfairly biases against minority applicants.” David F. Robinson, Centennial This letter has not been edited. This letter has not been edited. Judy Helen Padilla (no hometown provided) writes: THE ROCKY FLATS LEGACY Just west of Denver where Golden’s foothills slant, This letter has not been edited. Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel’s June 2 commentary about the controversial Conference on World Affairs panel discussion at Boulder High School, “Talk-show hosts amok,” is disappointing. Don R. Sherwood, Boulder The required sex/drugs assembly at Boulder High School with the so-called panel of experts proved one thing: Liberalism truly is a mental disorder. Michael Meyer, Parker I’d like to extend my thanks to Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel for an intelligent defense of the Boulder community (“Talk-show hosts amok,” On the Media, June 2). Intelligent discourse trumps drama kings and yellow journalists every time! Cynthia Stephens, Boulder I just wanted to respond to Kevin Watson and his letter to the editor in the May 17 Rocky Mountain News, “Greedy oil companies.” Hallett Newman, Las Animas I thought American society was beginning to embrace the environmentalist philosophy. But after reading the May 22 article, “SUV sales up despite gas prices,” it is plain that the philosophy applies to “the other guy.” Dean Manfrin, Cañon City We commonly sing the first verse of our national anthem at the start of sporting events but seldom, if ever, hear the magnificent words of the other poignant verses. Dale Buechele, Centennial Chicken Littles unite! Richard Colwell, Parker Congratulations to Dick Cheney and his daughter Mary on the birth of her baby. If Iraqi grandparents have time to pay attention to such things, they probably are envious that Grandpa Cheney doesn’t have to worry about his new grandson being murdered by an American bomb falling out of the sky or soldiers bursting into his home looking for “insurgents.” Juan Alberdi, Conifer It is interesting that the Rocky Mountain News editorial board would call legitimate protest a “nuisance” (“An abuse of protest,” May 26). The act considered by the jury (of putting dog feces in a political mailer and leaving it at the office of Rep. Marilyn Musgrave) deserves the same constitutional protections that the Rocky enjoys. Also, the Rocky’s choice of terms is ironic in light of an important decision by the U.S. Supreme Court that still serves as the basis for these protections, particularly as they apply to newspapers: In 1931, the court struck down a Minnesota statute that made it possible for the government to declare a newspaper a “public nuisance” and permanently enjoin it from any further publication. This decision might seem like a “slam dunk” today, following a series of important court rulings that further define our protections for free speech and press. But back then, the Minnesota Supreme Court upheld the “nuisance” statute, and the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision came in a split 5-4 vote. Democracy can be messy, and one person’s (newspaper’s) protected speech can often be someone else’s (government’s) nuisance. Vern Keel is a resident of Denver. Kennie Gyurman of Model writes: The Colorado legislature and Governor Bill Ritter have given their support to the people and groups opposing the expansion of the “Pinon Canyon Maneuver Site.” They did this by passing HB-1069 with an overwhelming majority of votes in favor of the bill. Representative John Salazar and Representative Marilyn Musgrave have also stated they are opposed to the expansion. We thank every organization and everybody who has given us his or her support in opposition to this expansion. Now we need Senator Ken Salazar and Senator Wayne Allard to publicly oppose this expansion. The Army has stated they will not use condemnation to obtain land needed for the expansion. Then they said they may use it. Senators Allard and Salazar have both stated they are opposed to the Army using condemnation. Both Senators need to tell the Army that if they use condemnation that they will oppose the expansion and refuse to fund it in congress. This would make the Army live up to its word about not using condemnation. We need to keep this part of Colorado as it is. The property owners in the proposed area of expansion should not have to live under the fear of having their land taken for any reason for an expansion that could be done using land already owned and controlled by the federal government. This letter has not been edited. Susan A. Schiller of Denver writes: The G-8 Summit is taking place as I write this. I understand that the US is unwilling to go along with the recommendations of most of the European nations to make significant reductions in greenhouse gases and take other necessary steps to recognize the seriousness of the global warming catastrophe which is the major issue facing the world today. This letter has not been edited. In a world of sound bites, it is always nice to have a newspaper give us some historical background, which the Rocky Mountain News did (courtesy ofThe Associated Press) in its May 29 editions, as a sidebar to the announcement that we had resumed official diplomatic relations with Iran for the first time in 29 years. Gregg Painter, Denver Kudos to Rocky Mountain News photographer Matt McClain for the May 31 front page picture of graduating cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy celebrating by tossing their caps into the air as the Thunderbirds fly overhead. It brilliantly captured the moment. Pulitzer? R.J. Ceremsak, Evergreen Since Comcast, in its “motivated by greed” marketing wisdom, has chosen to drop the TV Guide Channel (among others) from its basic analog cable package (“Comcast trims analog cable lineup,” Business, May 31), it would seem that the Rocky Mountain News might want to revisit its decision to not carry the TV schedules in its weekday papers. Floyd Scharlemann, Lafayette Washington is our “capital city,” objectively recognized as such by law and the fact that it is the seat of our government. New York City is, among other things, a “port city” because large ships moor in its harbor. Stephen Kapnik, Denver With the plethora of news available, I was extremely surprised and dismayed to find the Rocky Mountain News could only find another article and picture about the “poor” Hispanic students in Denver (“The longest odds”) who have difficulty staying in school for its May 30 front page. Lou Hylton, Denver Dr. Louise Benson of Broomfield writes: The strange occurrence of a conservative defending the indefensible at Boulder High School was explained in the second to last paragraph: “As a Boulder High parent....” Aha! School spirit, Go BHS! Kopel further explains that tolerance and freedom of speech is what makes BHS special. Surely he knows that tolerance for such things as corruption of juveniles is societal suicide, and that the First Amendment has special limitations in schools. It does make a difference what other citizens think, and what community standards and school conduct codes are. It’s not just the business of Boulder High parents, because the mental and physical health of youth affects all of us. This letter has not been edited. In the May 16 Jean Allen of Littleton writes: Paul Bunyan’s bookkeeper, Johnny lnkslinger, saved one and a half barrels of ink one winter by not dotting the “i’s” or crossing the “t’s”. This letter has not been edited. Rosemary Marshall, a Democrat from Denver, represents House District 8 in the Colorado General Assembly. In response to Michal Kucera’s letter of May 31, “It’s our actions that have fueled terrorism,” someone please help me with this one. Stephen McBrayer, Aurora Ward Churchill is a far more profound, original, knowledgeable, productive and important scholar than any of his critics. Tom Mayer, Boulder To renew a Colorado driver’s license you need documents, one of which can be a United States passport. To get a United States passport you need a birth certificate. If you were born in Pennsylvania, to get a birth certificate you must supply them with a copy of your Colorado driver’s license. Allison F. Page, Highlands Ranch In its editorial of May 29, “Yes, they’re terrorists,” the One way to protect our citizens’ health, our economy, our environment and our future is to cut pollution. But the Rocky thinks “Clean Cars” legislation, already adopted by 12 states to slash greenhouse gas emissions, is the wrong way to go (“California dreaming,” June 4). A year ago, the Rocky reported that Colorado was in jeopardy of violating federal clean air standards. The head of air programs for the EPA in Denver was quoted as saying “the consequences of lapsing into (dirty air) status would be rather devastating.” I agree. Transportation projects would be delayed and economic development would be stymied. Unfortunately, the federal government has been slow or unwilling to act on climate change. The Clean Air Act explicitly grants states the authority to pass air quality regulations so long as they meet minimum federal standards. In 2002, California passed legislation requiring cars and light-duty trucks to limit emissions that contribute to climate change. Since then, 11 other states have adopted the California tailpipe emissions standards. Together, these states account for more than one-third of the U.S. auto market. While Colorado has yet to pass a similar “Clean Cars” program, we want to protect our right to set strong air quality standards if we choose. We need to find solutions. The Rocky should not be so quick to dismiss such feasible, cost-effective ideas as “Clean Cars” legislation. Too much is at stake. Andrew Romanoff is speaker of the House in the Colorado General Assembly. The question you may one day be asked is this: Were you there when they tore apart our country? Gary Neiens, Pueblo Jim Dillie (“Penalize those who hire illegals — big time,” May 25) says employers should be severely punished for hiring illegal aliens. Assuming Dillie’s a conservative, I have a question for him: Conservatives traditionally support free enterprise; does it bother him in the least that he wants to fine and arrest people for committing voluntary, consensual acts of free enterprise (hiring workers, accepting jobs, renting apartments)? Will Devanter, Wheat Ridge After 21/2 very quiet years in the Senate, Ken Salazar has finally found a cause that is worth his passion and effort. According to news accounts, he has spent much of the past few months negotiating the details of the first major change to immigration law in 20 years. Philip Cafaro, Fort Collins Ten percent of Mexico’s population resides in the United States — illegally. “Judas” Bush and the pro-amnesty faction in Congress are proposing to sell these invaders citizenship for a few pieces of silver. Alan Hale, Brighton The U.S. commanding general in Iraq recently admonished the troops to “take the moral high ground” regarding illegal and unnecessary violence and property destruction by our troops. Randall Nelson, Golden If people are so upset by Spanish-speaking folks working at McDonald’s (“McLanguage barrier,” May 17), I offer them a simple solution: don’t eat there. Paul Preston, Denver Regarding Rep. Diana DeGette’s Speakout column of May 26, “Abstinence programs useless,” here’s the deal: Steve Cummings, Thornton Now that costs for FasTracks have gone over budget by nearly $1.5 billion, and with the Regional Transportation District short nearly $670 million, we are being told that there will be a proposed plan on the table to “put all of the new transit lines out for bidding by private companies.” Marilyn Kopelman, Greenwood Village There’s been so much confusion around House Bill 1313, which I sponsored, that I think it’s having an identity crisis! (“Driver’s license sanity,” Rocky editorial, June 5.) Rosemary Marshall, a Democrat from Denver, represents House District 8 in the Colorado General Assembly. This letter has not been edited. This letter has not been edited. I’d like to thank Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel for “Talk-show hosts amok,” his well-written On the Media column of June 2 about the Caplis & Silverman Show radio vendetta against Boulder High School. Tim Sandsmark, Littleton The subheadline on Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel’s June 2 defense of the recent Conference on World Affairs panel discussion at Boulder High School asks, “If most parents aren’t upset, why do Caplis, Silverman carry on so?” R.P. Traynor, Denver Recently, the Rocky Mountain News condemned as terrorists activists from the Earth and Animal Liberation Fronts for their strikes against Vail Mountain, SUVs and similar targets (“Yes, they’re terrorists,” May 29). While one might hold objections to the tactics of activists who damage institutions that perpetuate environmental destruction and animal suffering, labeling them as terrorists is highly shortsighted. Violence committed against the government or private property within this nation is denounced and avenged without a second thought. Regardless, the violence committed by these sectors is defended as progress. For proponents of global destruction, the homemade bombs, spray paint and fires of direct activism are convenient to label as terrorism. However, when put to scale, it is clear to see that the factory farms, toxic waste, overfishing, expansion, habitat destruction and climate change caused by government and business are truly the most reprehensible form of violence. Zoë Williams is a resident of Denver. As an effective insecticide it was tough to beat DDT. Unfortunately, we eventually realized that DDT was also an environmental disaster. Ken Regelson, Boulder “ ... I think some significant progress has been made toward establishing a process for political stability in Iraq.” Ellen Stark, Boulder Why are some now surprised at the most recent Republican ethical scandal, this time in our own secretary of state’s office? (“Coffman restricts workers’ activities/Under new policy, election personnel must avoid politics,” May 18.) Joe Felice, Aurora History has not been kind to Sen. Joseph McCarthy. Although there really was an alarming penetration of the U.S. government by Soviet agents, “McCarthyism” is the common term to describe political intimidation and stifling of dissent. “Tailgunner Joe” rode a wave of popular support in the early 1950s until his ever-expanding charges went too far. Douglas Steinshouer, Denver The bills H.R. 503 and S. 311, which would essentially ban the practice of horse slaughter, should be taken into consideration on another level. Ingrid Kaessner, Aurora How unfortunate that Kathleen Ensz chose to communicate her displeasure with congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave’s politics with such a base, despicable tactic (“Woman acquitted of illegal poop use,” May 25). From her actions, it appears she lacks the good judgment and aptitude to convey her views in a rational, dignified, persuasive verbal manner. Susan Cox, Denver Well, well, well. The Rocky Mountain News finally comes clean in its May 26 editorial (“A deal begins at the border”) and admits that it favors amnesty for illegal aliens, as set forth in Sen. Ken Salazar’s Give Away America Act of 2007, aka “comprehensive immigration reform.” Problem is, it’s been done before. In 1986 Americans were promised that the government would finally seal the borders if only we would grant amnesty to the 3 million illegals then in the U.S. So, Congress granted amnesty, and promptly forgot about the rest of the deal. Twenty years later, we now have 12 million to 20 million more illegals in the U.S., and Salazar, President Bush and company think Americans are stupid enough to fall for the same old scam again. They are wrong. Nearly 3,000 innocent Americans were killed on 9/11 in part because the government still refuses to get a handle on immigration. Why? Because the real agenda of the faith-based economic theorists, including apparently the Rocky, is open borders and a North American Union of Canada, the U.S. and Mexico. Richard J. Bowles is a resident of Woodland Park. Patrick Forrey’s Differing View of May 21, “Air traffic controllers want safer skies,” which took issue with a recent Rocky editorial, is difficult to square with the history of his organization, the National Air Traffic Controllers Association. When President Reagan fired the air traffic controllers in 1981 for striking, their union was destroyed. During that same decade, the government allowed NATCA to represent the controllers. Since another strike was feared by the Federal Aviation Administration, concession after concession was made to the new union. For years the union held the FAA and air safety hostage. Last fall, the FAA realized the union would never call a strike. So it held fast on a labor contract that NATCA reluctantly accepted. It was time to “pay the piper.” For NATCA, it’s always been about pay with very little concern for job performance or safety. Jim McCann is a resident of Pine. I was saddened to hear of the closure of the Country Dinner Playhouse, for more than one reason (“Dinner Playhouse closes,” May 23). Sherril Smiley, Denver The new amnesty plan encourages some interesting arithmetic. Melanie Maish, Boulder I am very upset about the panel discussion on sex and drugs at Boulder High School in early April and the lack of media coverage describing this atrocity (“Organizers defend sex talk at Boulder High,” May 16). This is ridiculous and typical of anything that goes on in Boulder. Jessica Sandgren, Thornton In a recent letter to the Rocky Mountain News, Denis Gessing asked that troops be polled on their feelings about the “unjust war” in Iraq (“Survey the troops”). Foster D. Wendell, Denver I can’t believe that the Democrats are already giving in to the Bush administration (especially when it comes to a timetable for Iraq). Cindy Lowry, Arvada The towns along Interstate 70 already live with the constant noise and pollution from highway traffic. Making I-70 three lanes would only make this problem worse, not to mention the loss of valuable land in the towns to make the highway wider. John Ryden, Boulder In the May 16 Mini Page there was a write-up about the Ninth and 10th amendments to the U.S. Constitution. In it, writer Betty Debnam stated that the “right to privacy is not listed in the Bill of Rights or in the Constitution.” Dennis Hammond, Lakewood I was really disappointed by the last paragraph in the May 18 Rocky Mountain News article on the tragic death of John Nicolette (“Skateboarder dies while ‘skitching’”). Brian Fuller, Centennial In his Speakout column of May 23, “Public broadcasting is ‘the third way,’” KBDI-Channel 12 President and CEO Wick Rowland proclaims that it is “ludicrous” to lump NPR and PBS into the “corporate media” category. R. Barry Crook, Aspen The photo on the front page of the May 23 Rocky Mountain News, of Jairo Landeros helping his son Nikko walk, was very moving. Nikko lost his legs in a car accident and was being assisted by his father and physical therapist. David Gesundheit, Denver Finally, something worth looking at on the front page of a local newspaper. Bob Harrison and family, Conifer bor-ing (n) 1. a tiresome activity; 2. something devoid of any interest; 3. watching the Indianapolis 500 on television. Bill Fountain, Aurora . . . .
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Mapleton School District
Students become bored in class, are not challenged enough or are not given the time and attention they deserve, and need, in order to be successful.
When I was in school, I was merely a shadow on the wall. Sure, I got good grades, but did anyone notice I was bored? Many of my friends and family dropped out simply because the class was no fun and it seemed the teacher did not care. Although I am sure they did, the class sizes were simply too large for the teacher to really get to know the students.
If the teachers had been given the chance to teach in a way the students were interested in, instead of reading directly from a textbook, and in a smaller class size maybe my Freshman class of over 300 would not have only graduated 96? Now is the time for other school districts to take notice in what Mapleton is doing and realize there must be a change. Write your local School District Superintendent now and let them know you support the change Mapleton is making.
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‘Social responsibility’
In his letter Mr. Pirkey used a single mom with two kids working two minimum wage jobs as an example of someone who was being ill-treated by those who practice personal responsibility over social responsibility. He believes we all should chip in to pay for or provide the medical care such a single mom needs.
When those who believe in social over personal responsibility come to me for my contribution to this poor woman’s plight I will simply ask, “Why are you asking me to do anything for her? I thought you believed in social responsibility. Why don’t you have society take care of her? Go ask it.”
Indeed, anyone who agrees with Mr. Pirkey can’t honestly ask anyone to do anything, because asking depends on each person being asked to take personal responsibility for meeting the request.
Mr. Pirkey and his brethren don’t seem to grasp that there is no ‘society’ per se and therefore no such thing as ‘social’ responsibility. Certainly there are groups of people who work together, but any such group is ultimately dependent on the actions of each individual person in the group, i.e. each individual taking personal responsibility.
What Mr. Pirkey really wants is not for the single mom and me to work together for a common purpose, but for me to provide for the single mom. He wants those who have succeeded through personal effort to provide for those who have not, and he would not be bashful about pointing the government gun at us to force us to do it.
Please remember; this is the true meaning of ‘social responsibility’ the next time you hear it.
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The Rocky & the Post
Outing a CIA agent, extreme rendition, torture, bungled wars, lying to Congress, illegal spying on American citizens, bogus firing of attorneys, and the murder and death of over 600,000 innocent Iraqis certainly warrants the front-page treatment that you gave the Larry Manzanares case! It is no wonder newspapers are failing — they’re turning into tabloids, fiddling while Rome burns — aiding and abetting the REAL criminals in this world, by failing to garner the courage to report the truth — a duty that is incumbent on the 4th estate. Maybe you should all rethink your mission statement.
Ethanol
Additionally, we may be facing the imminent prospect of an ecological and environmental disaster of epic proportions. For the first time in the history of the modern environmental movement, there has never been to my knowledge, a substantive study of the potential for a massive toxic environmental impact following the combustion of ethanol in the millions of tiny combustion chambers in the engines of our millions of automobiles. The possibility of the wide-spread manifestation of toxic side-effects in our human population is enormous, given the absence of environmental impact data showing otherwise.
It is most dismaying to me that scientific benefit-to-risk discourse in such an important matter seems to have been sidetracked by the popular but illusory win/win situation that development of bio-fuels are supposed to be providing us.
I hope that it is not too late for more rational, scientific and economics based inquiry into the real consequences of this misguided effort. The economic damage to our agricultural sector particularly the livestock industry is already being felt, with a lot more in the offing.
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Illegal immigrants
Pretty soon you will be at your local Wal Mart store or any other store for that matter and you will hear, “May we please have an English speaking associate come to Customer Service".
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Farm Bill
What stands in the way is our current system of commodity payments, which benefit a few wealthy farmers at the expense of many people who really need the help.
In the world
This farm bill needs to strengthen the Food Stamp Program so that our country ensures low-income people an adequate, nutritious diet.
In addition, this new farm bill should provide more help for struggling rural communities, which have much higher poverty rates than in cities; help U.S. farmers of modest means earn a sufficient livelihood; and allow small-scale farmers in poor countries to earn their way out of poverty.
The House Agriculture Committee will mark up the farm bill after Independence Day. We are not just running out of time, but also out of excuses. Colorado’s congressional delegation
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Stem cell research
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Farm Bill
The largest 10 percent of U
In addition to neglecting America’s family farmers, the misguided commodity subsidies threaten the livelihoods of millions of poor farmers in developing countries. Twenty million African farmers depend on cotton farming for their income, compared to the 25,000 American cotton farmers who receive up to $4 billion a year in subsidies. This $4 billion
We have an amazing opportunity right now to urge our
By shifting money from commodity subsidies to these other programs, the 2007 Farm Bill can create a system that rewards more of America’s family farmers and gives poor farmers in developing countries a fighting chance to pull themselves out of poverty.
Children’s healt insurance
The faith community represented by Metro Organizations for People offers our encouragement to Senator Salazar to stand firm, accept no less than the $50 billion pledged to SCHIP in the recent budget resolution, ensuring that children will no longer have to use an emergency room as their primary care physician. Further, efforts should also be made to streamline the SCHIP enrollment process.
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Smoking
Smoking kills. Ban smoking at all working places. I have an area where people smoke and it is littered with cigarette butts. When will people learn to properly extinguish your cigarettes.
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A knife to the heart
I, too, have a son deployed in Iraq and I, too, dread the day the news may come that my son has been killed. I agree with Lundstrom that we need to end this terrible occupation in Iraq and bring our sons and daughters home.
My heart goes out to you, Doyla, for your terrible loss. You should not have had to lose your son because of such a poorly conceived invasion and occupation.
Mike Rosen the ostrich
Discarded therapies
Begley sites two examples of destructive psychotherapy: critical incident debriefing, and the process of “bringing out hidden identities, called alters, through hypnosis” for dissociative identity disorders.
The latter was common practice ... 20 years ago, and the former was popular about 10 years ago. I don’t know any therapists still using these strategies today.
Psychotherapy can be destructive, but it’s more likely destructive when the current standards of practice are not followed.
Licensed clinical social worker
A DIFFERING VIEW: Court’s defense of free speech selective
However, this sentiment clearly did not extend to another ruling issued the very same day. An Alaska high school student was punished by his school district — at an off-campus event, no less — for unfurling a banner that read “Bong Hits 4 Jesus” while the Olympic torch passed by. The high court (no pun intended) ruled that free speech does not extend to the student because the message on the banner conflicted with the school’s anti-drug messages. These clearly inconsistent rulings demonstrate the court’s true fealty, which is not to the freedom of speech but to big-monied interests and the authorities.
And THREE felonies? What were the other people who had illegal possession of missing laptops charged with? With the onslaught of these charges, the public humiliation of the excessive information and the medIa’s neverending quest for an extra dime, a fine man now lies dead.
Is everyone surprised at the outcome? You shouldn’t be.
Larry Manzanares was a man who did a lot of good work in this community. He will be remembered by his last few months headlines by those who didn’t know of his excellent reputation…. Thanks, Jeffco DA Storey and the media.
Congress
Over its 70 year history, The Gallup Poll has become one of the most recognized and respected polling sources. However, the recent release of their “confidence in congress” results leaves me with grave concern. How can it be that that the percentage of Americans with a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in Congress is at 14%? Evaluating poll results involves two necessary considerations - objectivity on the part of the pollster and relevance as to the source of the data. In this case, I do feel that Gallup was fair and impartial because the poor performance on the part of our Congress continues to earn well deserved public disapproval. While the 14% a new all time low, I really question the validity of this outcome.
How could there possibly be a legitimate poll where this HIGH a percentage of Americans would express ANY confidence in our inept legislature.
Without benefit of the polling results, my guess would have been “less than 5%” which would have been a really significant new low.
Who are these “14 per-centers?” What is their source for news? Where do they live? When did they last vote? Are they really American citizens? How in the world can they feel positive toward this “do nothing constructive” Congress?
Since most polls have a “percentage of error” consideration, I’ll speculate that many of these “14 per centers” simply didn’t understand the question.
God Bless America!
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Pollution
Super-scientist Sir Isaac Newton
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PrideFest
The emperor has no clothes, but the people still cheer him on.
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Andrews’ response
Because of the economy, we have rising sales tax, rising State Income Tax, rising Federal Income Taxes, rising Personal Property Taxes. In times when the economy is rising and people are benefiting from rising home prices (which may be moderating and therefore real estate taxes will moderate), all taxes are rising.
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Scooter Libby
As columnists Richard Cohen and Christopher Hitchens would have it, there are serious questions which have yet to be addressed. What, for example, constitutes lying? If journalist, Tim Russert and Libby have different recollections about a long-ago conversation, does that mean that Libby was lying and Russert was not? Or, to put in another way, does one’s inability to recall a particular event constitute lying? If that is not the case, then Libby could hardly be charged of a crime. It is one thing to be jailed for a crime. It is quite another thing to be jailed when no crime has been committed.
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Larry Manzanares
BEWARE when the DA does not care about justice, its time to be looking over your shoulder Jefferson County — you, your child, spouse, parents, or neighbor will be the next victim of a staged media witch hunt, after all, Storey needs the publicity. Come re-election time voters should remember this disgraceful act and vote for someone else.
Remember, “The dead cannot cry out for justice; it is a duty of the living to do so for them.” (Lois McMaster Bujold 2002). Its too late for justice for Larry Manzanares, but its not too late to get rid of a bad district attorney and save his future victims.
Renewable energy tax credit
The Windsor wind turbine plant and the Kremmling beetle-kill wood pellet plant prove that jobs are created for manufacturing and installation of renewable systems, reduce our need for imported oil, and reduce our increases in climate change.
Federal tax laws offer a tax credit of up to 30% of the investment in Solar, Wind, Biomass, etc. as a home improvement (capped at $2,000). At the present time, Colorado provides only a Sales Tax Waiver on an installation. Generally, that incentive is only a few hundred dollars. It’s now time to add a meaningful Tax Credit to encourage more of us to Go Renewable, as the U.S. and many other states already do.
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Motorcycle noise
As someone who is sick and tired of these thoughtless people disturbing the peace everywhere they go, I say, well don’t shop in Denver and do us a favor and never set your noisy wheels here ever again. You won’t be missed.
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Colorado Ballet
After a sixteen year career with Colorado Ballet, principal dancer Koichi Kubo made the difficult decision to leave the company when his wife, Mickey, was offered a position with the San Francisco Ballet School. While we will all miss Koichi, we respect and appreciate his sizable contribution to Colorado Ballet’s history and we hope he can return for a proper farewell performance in Dracula.
The reality of the ballet world is that it is very comparable to professional sports. This is a physical profession and a career in the field is relatively short. At the end of each season, every dancer is a free agent again and there will be times when circumstances dictate that a roster must be changed. Injury, family decisions and other opportunities are always possibilities in this field. The dancers may necessarily change, but the goal of the organization never wavers from giving our best and my role as artistic director obligates me to always be prepared to do that. I want to assure our audiences that we’ve acquired some very talented new dancers whose artistry will further the reputation of Colorado Ballet as a nationally recognized dance company.
Thanks to Marc and all the other critics for this past season’s great reviews! I’m confident that our continuing commitment to quality will be evident in our productions this coming season.
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Scooter Libby
Mr. Clow went on to tell us that it is Congressional interest in the good of the country that spares us being dragged through (yet another) impeachment process. Mr. Clow wonders “What happened to all the outrage about the rule of law?” among far right wingers in the face of this lawlessness.
It’s time for a reality check.
Secret Agent Plame was not “outed” by Dick Cheney. Plame was “outed” by former Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage in interviews with Bob Woodward and Bob Novak. This fact has been widely reported. Mr. Armitage was not charged with any crime because, as it turns out, even before posing for photo spreads in “Vanity Fair", Plame was not all that secret after all.
The truth is that Mr. Libby faces a prison for obstructing an investigation into a crime that no one has ever been charged with. The facts of the case would make it a bit tricky for Congress to bring impeach charges against Vice-President Cheney.
Mr. Clow’s respect for the rule of law is instructed more by what he terms partisan hackery than interest in the plain truth.
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Climate change
In Mr. Schallert’s letter, he says, “as a proud denier of global warming, I will continue to enjoy producing all my carbon emissions and be reminded of Chicken Little every time one of these stupid stories hits the paper.” Mr. Volskis states that, “There is no scientific evidence that we are causing global warming.” The deniers of Climate Change seem to have a disregard for the mountain of evidence documenting that Climate Change is a real threat and that the major crisis we now face is of our own making. The evidence is well-documented in peer-reviewed scientific journals. No legitimate scientist questions Climate Change anymore. They only resistance comes from paid pundits in newspapers and, sadly, our own government.
The problem goes beyond this issue. We live in a time where the gut is trusted more than logic. We live in a time where the media makes it seem like, in every issue, both sides are equally valid. This is not always the case. How can one, being in his or her right mind, deny evidence when it is presented, without legitimate counter-evidence? Sometimes, we must swallow our pride and bow to the evidence, and to the correct conclusion that our capability for rational thought must lead us to.
Why would one knowingly continue wasteful, hurtful behavior? Aristotle reminds us that when the mind knows one action to be good, it will always incline to that action. How could it ever make sense to deny overwhelming evidence in order to continue destructive behavior?
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DPS pension plan not dependent on closures
Hansen has the facts wrong. Schools do not have to be closed to maintain the pension plan. The pension plan, which serves all employees, is separately managed by a professional, and it has professional investment counselors (read the annual report).
DPS makes contributions per employee just like other corporations. All employees can buy “years of service” if certain criteria are met and they pay into those years.
As for releasing personnel information, there are laws preventing this. For the rest, read the DPS annual report. Keep the heat on, but get the facts straight.
Ethanol industry’s ploys Kafkaesque
Be it energy independence, unfair competition, national security or whatever excuse happens to suit the industry at the time, the common denominator always lies in finding innovative ways to distort free market forces for the gain of a few (the industry) at the expense of many (American consumers and other businesses).
Bush two-faced on life
If his belief is genuine, why is he on record as one of the governors who executed the most people on death row?
If he values human life so much, why did we invade Iraq and cause thousands of American and Iraqi deaths for “freedom” and “democracy”? Why is he so intent on losing more American lives for a false premise? Why hasn’t he found Osama Bin Laden? I’m confused.
Waiting on the word
Health care wanting
Health care is one of the greatest concerns of most Americans today. I heard a story recently on Good Morning America about Blue Cross of California denying benefits for a young college student going blind.
Our whole country seems to be motivated only by profits at the expense of the average hard-working American. I would like to see the day when the opinions of voting Americans are actually listened to and acted upon.
The sting of Democratic betrayal
The scorpion asks for a ride across the river and the frog hesitatingly obliges. Halfway across, the scorpion stings the frog and, as they are both sinking to their watery deaths, the frog asks the scorpion, “Why did you sting me, knowing that it would kill us both?” The scorpion replies simply, “It’s my nature.”
Raising taxes, wasting money and buying votes is simply in the Democrats’ nature. They know no other way, and it is the height of folly to expect anything from them other than failing on pledges aimed at fiscal responsibility or simple good government.
Democrats are proving once again that the best argument on behalf of Republicans is Democrats.
Until the GOP gives an even better reason to vote for Republicans, however, we may be stuck swimming with political scorpions. Just don’t be surprised when you feel the sting.
Time to take back our cities from the gangs
It’s time to quit coddling these vermin, step up and take it back.
I have to laugh when I hear these pieces of filth talk about their “territory” or read about the stunt they pulled at City Park. I don’t know about the rest of you, but I work to pay my mortgage (or rent), that’s how we stake our territory (home). Not simply by claiming it with a can of spray paint or some cowardly display of numbers to some innocent concertgoers and families. I wish I would have known they would be all together that night at the park doing their little intimidation parade, I would have brought a big net.
Find out what you can do locally in your neighborhood, report gang activity and graffiti ASAP. As for the city governments of the area, please do not overlook this problem any longer, round ’em up, lock ’em up, throw away the keys.
Health care is not a ‘right’; it’s a need
The system certainly is a mess, but health care is not a “right” — it is a need, like food and shelter. A “right” is not simply possessing what we need for survival regardless of who provides it; it means the freedom to obtain what we need without force. For example, I should be free to buy soup from whoever offers the best quality for the price. But it would be a violation of my neighbor’s rights to get a law passed making him pay for my soup.
In the same way, a person should be free to purchase health care based on his or her health concerns, but it is not that person’s right to give the bill to taxpayers.
The 208 Commission on Health Care Reform will present a final plan to the Colorado legislature later this year. So far, the four runner-up proposals recommend greatly increased government control of health care access and funding. This means that Coloradans may get some kind of health care, they just won’t have the right to obtain it as they individually see fit. Only a free market can provide that right.
A DIFFERING VIEW: Doctors need to operate in the open, too
Have you ever tried to look up a physician in Colorado for past grievances? Have you ever tried to actually complain about a misguided (or unethical) physician? Let me tell you, it’s a farce.
Everything is super secret — including the physician’s reply or lack of reply to a complaint. You literally have to have a doctor stand up and say “Yep, I killed him all right” before the board of medical examiners will sanction a physician in this state (and maybe not even then).
Doctors can do whatever they want, whenever they want and there is absolutely no accountability. You think complaints against judges should be disclosed? I submit that a judge may take away your license, your freedom or even your money. But a doctor can kill you without any consequences to his license whatsoever — and live to kill another day.
How about some accountability (and less shielding from liability) for doctors?
Under the REAL Act, the US Congress could set up the first-ever federal funding stream for the purpose of conducting comprehensive sex education programs. The education would be: evidence-based, medically accurate, age appropriate, and broad, providing full information about multiple topics, including both abstinence and contraception.
The GDP Act would prohibit the denial of US funds to overseas groups based on the medical services they provide. It would remove restrictions on funding for voluntary family planning programs, and would help to moderate population growth, reduce poverty, and ease environmental pressures.
Senator Salazar’s constituents that support comprehensive sex education and worldwide access to voluntary family planning services should urge him to co-sponsor the REAL Act and to support the Global Democracy Promotion Act.
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Health insurance
Why can a small nation in
Larry Manzanares
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Renewable energy
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Jeffco dog licenses
This should have been addressed by the taxpayers. As a responsible dog owner, I resent being commanded to pay indulgences meant to build the basilica called Table Mountain Animal Center. “When a coin in the coffer rings, a dog from Table Mountain springs!” Last time I looked, a large number of dogs over there are pit bulls and pit bull mix. I think Table Mountain harbors all those refused by Denver shelters. Thank goodness for the shelter’s spay and neuter rule. I wouldn’t want to be any part of the continuation of ill-bred fighting dogs. Also, last time I looked, there are cats at TMAC.
I can’t remember how much I paid to get my dog micro-chipped a few years ago. Will I get to waive the dog license? If any dog of mine were to inconvenience the staff and cost them a dime to help them relocate their owner, I will be obliged to pay that expense in the form of a fee. This does need to be reconsidered. A fee increase makes much more sense than a mandatory license.
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Climate change
Or you could become concerned about how the millions of true environmentalists will react when they inevitably learn of the fraud behind global warming. Now that could become a true disaster.
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Israel & Palestinians
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Police procedures
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Media’s religious favoritism
President Bush
There are those who would join hands on national television to say, “Neither Mr. Gore or I will claim a victory in this election until America is united in its belief that the results are accurate, legitimate, and beyond reproach,” and those who sue to halt the counting of votes. Those who have regard for the will of the voters, and those more interested in other things.
There are those who would willingly relinquish power in January, 2009, and those who might look for a loophole.
There are those who, with regret, will accept that the fun is over, the dream is dead, and it CAN happen here, if Cheney and Bush doesn’t hand over the keys. They will flee their beloved country of birth as refugees from what our government has become, with its hidden torture camps, its lust for conquest, theocracy, raw power over the lives of its subjects, and the souls, governments, and natural resources of the rest of the world.
There will be those who will stay, feeling protected from “terrorists.” And those of us who wish you luck. You’ll need it.
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Iraq war
One doesn’t just discard diplomacy with disdain and then go about the business of kicking peoples’ doors down in the hopes of winning friends and influencing people as we have in Iraq. When in history has that ever worked? Afghanistan was truly a different story. It was justified and even honorable to go after the insane Taliban. But then someone we know who, just had to get dirty greedy and put us on this hellish road in Iraq. Faulty intelligence indeed! It’s tragic.
I see more and more letters to the editors across the country with people calling for the impeachment of Bush and Cheney and then throwing in Rumsfeld for prosecution for crimes against the country. I think I’d go along with that. If this is to actually happen though it will take a new Independent/Democratic administration in 577 days, 6 hours and 17 minutes from now. Democrats, Independents, the Politically/Intellectually Integrated and others who just want the madness stopped MUST find more patient faith and strength in the Congress as they are doing everything within their power I believe. But then that’s another story.
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Fearless leader
Simple solution
The Army should announce that it will immediately begin phasing down operations at Fort Carson with the objective of closing the installation in five years.
Blame shouldn’t be shared equally
Both sides are contributors, continuing violence, blah, blah, blah. It is total ignorance of the facts.
Compare the content of Palestinian newspapers, children’s TV shows, school textbooks, and news shows to the content of Israeli papers, books and shows. Palestinian children watch a Mickey Mouse character teach jihad.
Their school books show maps of Israel and call it Palestine. Mosques are at the center of extremism, preaching martyrdom and hatred.
Children are sent to summer camps to learn to be suicide bombers. The elected government of the people wants Israel destroyed. A culture of hatred against Israel has developed in Palestinian society for the last 60 years (long before the “occupation” started).
These two sides are not equal in who is responsible for the level of violence. There is no equivalence on the Israeli side of this kind of incitement. Did Greenway forget this or just think it did not matter?
Why blame Bush for Clinton’s failure?
Assuming that a competent reporter is capable of doing research, it is public record that President Clinton was the one who refused to submit the Kyoto Treaty to the Congress for ratification; the reason being that the Congress overwhelmingly passed a resolution to the effect that they weren’t willing to give up U.S. jobs for an unfairly applied set of restrictions that penalized the United States.
I’d be curious to learn why the Rocky blamed President Bush for the problem. But I am aware that it seems to be a common form of dishonesty that seems to be justified on the left as “the right thing to do.”
Frankly, I moved from the Front Range because it was becoming absurd. A little more silliness about Denver-area restrictions on everything but population shouldn’t hurt its image much more. But are these lip-service “fixes” going to do much other than give newspapers something to print? It’s doubtful.
Ute Creek teachers expect full payment
I was a teacher at Ute Creek. I wish my former students all the best as they consider options for next year.
I would like to point out that neither the charter school’s former board nor the St. Vrain Valley School District had any contingency plan for paying the teachers.
I met with all of the teachers and the St. Vrain human resources department on the 13th of this month. They offered us 60 percent to 100 percent of one month’s pay of the two remaining as per our contracts.
I appreciate some breathing room, but I also expect to be paid in full for a job well done. We all do!
Stop the bickering
It is easier to call the legislation and its supporters racist or supporting amnesty or that “they just don’t get it,” than trying to negotiate a solution to a problem as complicated as immigration.
The legislation has the support of President Bush and some members of Congress, who should be respected for trying to negotiate a workable solution to the complicated problem of immigration as opposed to name-calling.
Make designers fix it
Once again the taxpayer will be asked to pour more money into it? I think not.
I suggest that we back up and go after those who are responsible for creating the albatross rather than sock it to each and every local property taxpayer.
Larry Manzanares
Today, Nixon, Jr., is doing the same thing by pushing to endanger the middle class through amnesty and not going after the employers who hire illegals, but who give campaign contributions. It seems a clear violation of the Public Trust; that is, if you consider the public to be those who can legally vote.
Now we have a Denver judge who stole public property, got caught, and committed suicide rather than to live with the consequences of his flawed decisions. The RACISTS (LARAZA) and other defenders are saying that his problem was over-prosecution of his crime or too much publicity, or that because Hispanics are breaking the laws, people are now racist for holding them accountable . People who seek the Public Trust need to be held to a higher standard. If they cannot stand up to it, it is their choice not to serve. But once in office, you cannot blame the light of public opinion if the person has become a cockroach, uncomfortable with their actions being exposed.
Larry Manzanares
The media has an “Us and Them” mentality; fellow members of the media will be accorded respect and only the pertinent facts will be reported, everyone else will have their life story published regardless of the facts and whether or not the information is relevant to the story. Case in point, in September 1990, Wendy Bergen, a reporter for Channel 4 News, did a story about the local underground of pit bull/dog fights. Jefferson County did their investigation and found that she help stage/coordinate the dog fight. She was indicted for perjury for lying to the grand jury on three different occasions regarding her involvement with the dog fight. The two dog handlers were also charged and convicted for their involvement but the interesting thing is the way this story was covered. The public was given all kinds of information regarding the dog handlers but only the pertinent facts regarding the investigative reporter were given to the public. Her privacy was respected but the privacy of the handlers not respected. A very clear case of the double standard the media uses.
At the end of the day, the media will do whatever is necessary to sell the story. They will manipulate the facts so that they can sell the story in the most sensationalistic and bombastic manner possible. Larry Manzanares was just another victim of this hypocrisy.
Immigration
There are many immigrants who work hard to become Americans, who appreciate what this great nation can do for them and their families and they contribute to our society as a whole. Their dedication and industry are welcome and respected. English is indeed a difficult language to learn, and I have immense respect for those non-native English speakers who put forth the effort. We don’t ask that you speak perfect English, but that you make an attempt.
Finally, the most successful immigrant groups had a profound respect for education. They encouraged their children to take advantage of the educational opportunities this country has to offer. Schooling was rightly seen as the foundation on which to build success. I am saddened to see this tradition fall by the wayside while immigrant groups insulate themselves in their own cultures and reject what America has to offer.
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Health insurance
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Stem-cell veto
Perhaps Hillary mis-spoke, but I’ll bet she doesn’t apologize, and I’ll bet the main-stream media doesn’t hold her to account for this bizarre statement.
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Sex education
Where was O’Rielly , Calpis and Silverman and Parents when the State of Colorado promoted “Comprehensive Sex education over abstinence based education? Comprehensive sex education is code for young people have no self-control and they are going to do it anyway. No different than what the experts in Boulder stated. I for one applaud the experts in Boulder. They at least are honest in their assessment of our young people. House bill 1292 makes school district like Boulder Teach young people that they have no control over their bodies and need to use contraception to prevent pregnancy and use condoms to prevent disease. HB 1292 dismisses local control and the great strides that abstinence education has made in the past 15 years. HB 1292 was supported by Planned Parenthood and give a monopoly of ideas to Planned Parenthood. The only difference between the bill sponsored by Todd and Windels and the experts in Boulder is that Todd and Windels are smart enough and have the political savvy not to be honest about what 1292 will do to our Children and how little they think of our young people.
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Health care
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Israel & Gaza
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Piñon Canyon expansion
Now those very lives are in our Senators hands. Will they do the right thing as the Congresswoman and Congressman have done and support their state and their constituents? Or will they shame their brothers (literally) and sisters and the people that elected them to office? They can stand up for what’s right or they can turn away – if the Musgrave/Salazar amendment isn’t carried through the Senate then we will all know their true loyalties.
But we know they can do it. When Republicans and Democrats work together things can get done. Take this past weekend when Marilyn Musgrave (Republican) and John Salazar (Democrat) joined forces to stop the land grab by the Army. It is good to see our representatives working together for the good of Colorado. I encourage our other representatives to follow the lead of Salazar and Musgrave.
I also wanted to say a quick Thank You to Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave.
The Congresswoman has worked very hard to be in touch with her constituents and it has shown. Marilyn is easily one of the most accessible representatives we have in Colorado. Regardless if you are a Republican, a Democrat, or a Green Party, Marilyn and her staff are always willing to listen and do what they can to help you out. I for one appreciate her effort to do so.
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Connect the dots
Do-nothing GOP reps are hypocrites
This is funny considering the six years of a Republican-controlled Congress under President Bush that ignored its responsibility to provide “checks and balances” on the administrative branch. Congressional Republicans keep promoting the ideal of a democratic society in Iraq, but turn a blind eye to this administration’s attack on democracy in our own country.
Along with the well-known controversies, Congress should also be debating the vote caging (removing valid voters from voting rolls due to mass-mailing tricks, which was mentioned in the hearings on the U.S. attorney firings) by the Republican Party, or Bush’s plan to control all three branches of government in the event of another attack on U.S. soil (National Continuity Policy, signed May 9).
Which is more important, Mr. Lott? Impeaching President Clinton over lying about an affair, or debating the issue of an independent judiciary?
Rocky eminently fair in Manzanares stories
This comes down to the fact that everyone is responsible for his own actions.
If one cannot face up to the consequences of breaking the law and the publicity that follows, then that’s his choice, regardless of race, religion or social position. The Rocky was more than fair in presenting all the commendable aspects and achievements of Manzanares and his positive influence over the years.
Though we grieve for this man whom we believe could have recovered in time with the support of family and friends, we will continue to support the Rocky Mountain News. Larry Manzanares chose his own fate.
Proud of coverage?
It made me think of the Rocky’s extensive reporting on the Larry Manzanares case, where there were pages of stories and his picture filling much of the front cover of the Rocky, for an alleged theft totaling less than $2,000.
In light of his suicide, I wonder if Temple is proud of this coverage, too?
Sanctuary Denver
The police are perfectly capable of reporting them to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, if they had the political will to do so.
The House appropriations bill passed recently for the Department of Homeland Security includes a provision that prohibits Homeland Security funds from being distributed to states and localities with sanctuary policies in place. Denver needs to review its approach to criminal illegal aliens, including known gang members, residing in the city.
Nursing mothers? Man the breastworks!
What a bunch of hypocrites!
How many of those offended people were spilling out of their skimpy tops? I am offended daily by the latest rage — show your cleavage if you work at the bank, if you are shopping, if you are at church. I have written letters to my bank where the tellers dress as if they are clubbing.
Nobody pays any attention to those of us who are offended by the assault of overexposed mammary glands, unless of course someone is using them for the purpose they were intended.
Good riddance to cop-killer McVean
I hope he suffered. He and his fellow terrorists, Alan Pilon and Robert Mason, murdered Cortez police office Dale Claxton in 1998. Claxton was not some “dirty” cop; he was a good, honest man who had a family. Claxton was not harassing the three men, he merely pulled over a stolen water truck. For doing his duty, McVean, Pilon, and Mason shot him 19 times before Claxton could leave his patrol car.
These three terrorists have their own rooms in hell. I hope they are tormented for eternity. The rooms next to them are reserved for the right-wing “law and order” wackos like G. Gordon Liddy who called these men “heroes.” At the time, the right-wing talk shows were all abuzz with comments about how McVean, Pilon and Mason merely carried out their “mission” incorrectly, not mentioning that stealing or, much less, murder, is wrong.
Claxton should be remembered as an honorable man who died doing his duty. If the three murderers had been from the Middle East, everyone would know Claxton’s name. But because McVean, Pilon and Mason were white and “Christian,” the slain officer has become a footnote. It is very sad to say that most forget (and even sometimes confuse) the heroes of our country. It is equally sad to say that sometimes terrorists are home-grown.
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Immigration legislation
After the 2006 election, several Democrat members of Congress proclaimed that fencing part of the bill would never be completed, and the President has all but abandoned the pledges of the original bill. Now, the President and several members of Congress want a new immigration bill that instantly gives people here illegally a right to stay. The bill also promises better boarder security if the whole bill is passed.
The question is can any of these politicians be trusted to secure the border after more than 12 million people here illegally are allowed to stay. The border was not secured after the 1986 amnesty, and the promises of President Bush and the current Democrat Congress are unreliable because of past failures.
The only action that is fair to legal immigrants, those applying to become legal residents, and citizens is a certified secured border prior to giving a pass to anyone here illegally.
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Tibet protest at game
I was seated in the same section where this all happened. The event raises some unsettling questions:
2. From what I could see, police officers removed the folks with the banner, not Dick’s Stadium employees. So the police now enforces a private organization’s rules that violate a constitutional right? I think we’re on slippery slope here.
3. I can’t help seeing the irony of this little episode. I assume that one of the demonstrators’ grievances with the Chinese regime in Tibet is that they violate freedom of speech there. Dick’s Stadium, assisted by the police, then does the same against these demonstrators in our own country.
Come on, we should do better than that!
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DPS pension
Many thanks to David Milstead and Nancy Mitchell. Milstead, your excellent business reporter, is intimately acquainted with the Denver Public Schools Retirement System (DPSRS). Your education reporter, Nancy Mitchell, is well acquainted with the ins-and-outs of the Denver Public Schools. On June 7th Mr. Milstead and Ms. Mitchell published an article that laid out the positions of both sides. Not only did Milstead and Mitchell help clarify the A+ Denver proposals and the opposing position of the DPSRS, but they provided much needed transparency.
We cannot stress this last point enough. The community needs the assurance that all relevant facts are “on the table” and the entire decision making process is open to public scrutiny. As Justice Brandeis once said about the democratic process, “Sunlight is said to be the best of disinfectants.” Mr. Milstead and Ms. Mitchell have provided some much needed “sunlight.” We trust that the Rocky Mountain News will continue to follow all future plans and negotiations.
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Gang violence
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President Bush
Politics, dependent on money, Republicans are coming up bupkis. A Democrat somewhat funded can take any office in 2008.
Erasing Ronald Reagan and the tireless work of a few broadcast commentators, Bush is bringing down the house and for what, cheap labor and his Latino nephew Preston’s political future.
Bush is doing more for the fortunes of Democrats in 2008 than the networks and Hollywood put together. Bush is doing more for Democrats than Herbert Hoover.
Rank and file Republicans are distressed with “trickled on” economics. Too many Republicans, proud self-employed painters, roofers, framers are being replaced by illegal aliens. Welcome to the Bush Revolution.
According to a study by the Heritage Foundation, for every one dollar of taxes paid by illegals, they receive in tax-financed services, three.
The bad news is local party organizations are broke. To the chortling delight of Ted Kennedy there is no candidate to challenge Ed Perlmutter in the Seventh. A Paula Noonan, with unlimited funding, could easily pick off Republican Jim Kerr in HD 28.
Thanks to the Bush wrecking machine, the amazing Kerr will be personally funding his own race.
Republicans not speaking out against Bush for fear of violating Reagan’s 11th Commandment may be in a violation of the other ten, not to mention committing political suicide.
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Candidates
What qualifies Slick Hilly to be our president when her husband, Slick Willie, is one of the two presidents ever impeached, and she tried, and failed, to socialize the medical profession in this country?
What qualifies our tobacco baron, Alfon
If Ketchup Kerry was born at Fitzsimmons General Hospital he must be an Army Brat. Was his Father a private or a general? What qualifies him to criticize our country when he is more of less proven to be an unqualified liar?
Just wondering.
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Ethanol
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Heart Walk noncoverage
I have searched the news for a mention of the event and was dismayed that not one of the mainstream Denver media saw fit to even mention it. This was a large group of volunteers whose only desire was to raise money to help in the fight against heart disease, the
It seems that the media ha
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Hurting farmers
Hamas & Gaza
Now let us consider Gaza. HAMAS has just announced the “establishment of Islamic rule and justice". Their first official act has been to draw up a death list of hundreds of Al Fatah to be murdered. Yet the Progressives are calling for “humanitarian aid” for the 1.5 million people in Gaza! But is not their care and feeding the primary responsibility of the local government, which is now HAMAS? There have been Middle Eastern despotisms for 7,000 years! How can the Progressives now call for caring of the poor and feeding the starving when this is no more than “imposing Western (Christian) values”
which supposedly are no better than any other? Are we not interfering with a process that has been in place for millennia? The bottom line is that humanitarian aid lets HAMAS off the hook in meeting its primary responsibility to care for the people under its control. HAMAS is thereby freed it to continue to devote its resources to conduct Jihad on Israel and the West, not a good thing. I say no aid and let HAMAS meet its responsibilities. Let the world see what"Islamic rule and justice” really look like.
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American janjaweed
However, how is it that the United States of America differs from the Janjaweed, the muslim militia group who with the sanction of the Sudan government kills, rapes, and displaces the people who have fled to Darfur? We have maimed, killed, destroyed and brutalized the people of Iraq through our invasion and occupation of their country, a country that never attacked us first, an invasion for which the president felt he could lie and deceive us into. Does it make us feel better to take up the cause of Darfur and disavow and ignore the fact that we, the United States of America have caused over 2,000,000 refugees to flee Iraq, condemning them to live in abject poverty and have been responsible for the deaths of 600,000 more? The Janjaweed and Sudan have blood on their hands—so do the American people. We should be working harder to end the horrendous occupation of Iraq, and only then, might we reclaim the moral ground to condemn others their evil deeds.
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Colorado, too, should push for limits
Colorado’s communities depend on deep mountain snowpack to drive our tourism and agricultural economies, nourish our environment and support our unique quality of life.
Colorado should not only join the other 11 states that have adopted the Clean Cars program, but Colorado should also set hard goals and create a comprehensive plan for cutting global warming pollution. It’s time for us to start taking real action on global warming.
Border a better choice than Piñon Canyon
The new location would be along the United States-Mexico border from Columbus, N.M., east about 50 miles and to the north for about 20 miles (640,000 acres).
Applicable archaeological locations should be added to the Comanche National Grassland.
A DIFFERING VIEW: Free Choice Act merely levels playing field
Mary Beth Maxwell is executive director of American Rights at Work in Washington, D.C.
Proud to be a denier
Conscience vs. constituents
The interesting aspect of the debate was the testimony given by individual House members. Each member seemed to inject his or her own personal opinion and personal conscience regarding his or her support or lack of support for the bill, rather than concentrating on debating facts and the merits of the bill. Each member then seemed to vote his or her individual conscience, and not vote what polls state is the consensus of the constituency.
Apology warranted
Mistakes happen in the public arena, and this was one of them. An investigation and apology are warranted.
What do you expect from ‘city of wackos’?
Excuse me? Did this person just fall off the turnip truck? Of course this is what living in Boulder is all about. For as long as I can remember, Boulder has maintained its dubious and much-deserved reputation as a city of wackos.
A lot of hysteria on climate change
CDOT should be participating in a statewide taskforce with law enforcement to use the existing cameras in place to catch the miscreants that like to deface other’s property.
Option #2, form vigilante groups armed with paintball guns to watch the 11pm to 7am shifts when the little taggers are out to catch and mark them, bind them with duct tape and deliver them to the police stations with photos and videotape of their latest graffiti artwork attached for proof of their misdeeds.
I personally favor option #2, after trying to fight the growing graffiti problem for the past 9 years by having CDOT’s graffiti cleanup crew on speed dial, who have valliantly tried to keep up with this problem.
This should be a PRIORITY for all cities, as it breeds more crime. It’s not a glamorous glad-handing “soft” political event type of topic like smiling and handing out good citizenship awards, but it should be given the proper treatment for the criminal element that engages in it. It is way past time to protect our property values and reclaim our cities from the gangs.
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Denver & climate change
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Gun violence
Just over 1% of federally licensed dealers account for over 60% of firearms used in crimes. Under Mr. Tiahrt’s amendment, law enforcement is restricted to viewing only trace data for one crime gun at a time. This prevents them from identifying patterns of where the crime guns originate and to take action to shut down supply before more within their community are injured or killed by gang members or other criminals.
We need to ask who is really being protected. Could it be recently resigned NRA Board Member Sandy Abrams whose gun shop, Valley Gun in Baltimore, was cited for 900 violations of federal gun laws making his gun shop one of the leading supplier of crime guns in America?
In Denver-Aurora, 4 gun dealers supplied 29% of the guns used in crime. Who are they? The ATF is prohibited from releasing this information by Mr. Tiahrt. Isn’t it important that Denver police know who they are? It may be a long, hot summer.
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Gangs
First of all, Justin Box got off easy and his light sentence does nothing to get existing gang members and potential young future gang members attention! He should have got life as a minimum, and if I were sentencing him I would have given him death.
These gangs are as dangerous to Americas future as Islamic and Al-Qaida terrorists. The gang issue in Denver and the USA will never be solved until laws are written to make any arrested gang member, no matter what age, subject to life in prison for any crime other than murder or attempted murder. If related to murder or attempted murder then an automatic life or death penalty should be imposed. I strongly believe that kind of message would solve the current gang problem and curtail any future new member recruitment. Yes, Justin Box’s sentence was very light! The judge who sentenced him should be ashamed of himself. With that light sentence he did nothing to help police curtail gang activity in Denver.
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Colorado Ballet
As a former dancer for 17 years with similarly sized companies, I would like to offer a different interpretation. I have been in Denver for 9 years and up until the hiring of Gil Boggs, I found myself unable to fully support Colorado Ballet. The ballet has always had a reasonable rooster of talented dancers, but the quality of choreography and productions was sub par. I attempted time and again to attend performances only to be disappointed and left feeling sorry for the disservice done to the fine dancers. Under Gil Boggs’ leadership (and noted in the Rocky Mountain News’ own reviews), the quality of the productions has taken a dramatic turn for the better, as is evidenced by the energy displayed by the dancers. I would also like to address the negativity placed on the departure of several of the dancers in the company. While Maria Mosina is starting a family she returned her letter of intent for the coming season and is very much on the roster for next year.. Koichi Kubo is also making a family decision. His wife, Mickey, received a job offer from San Francisco Ballet as a pianist in their school. Mickey and Koichi made the decision to move from the standpoint of what was best for their family. Chauncey Parsons is making a career decision to join a more contemporary company. As dancers grow and evolve in their very short careers, these things happen. In a ranked (Principal, Soloist and Corps de Ballet) company that does not have the luxury of six week seasons, it is a challenge for an artistic director to bring up new talent and a similar challenge for the younger dancers to have the opportunity to grow and develop as artists. Opportunity comes when principal dancers leave (for whatever reasons) and this brings excitement to the company. After a year of positive reviews for the company, I was truly disappointed with the negative overview of the upcoming season. There are new dancers, new works, and finally, a first class ballet company in the city of Denver. For that, my dancer soul is grateful.
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Immigration legislation
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Little wonder bigoted words unattributed
Denver dailies holier than New York’s? Hah!
A-Rod with a stripper is bad. The city attorney with pornographic material is good. Go figure!
‘Look, Honey, I shrunk the paper.’ Indeed!
Newspapers need to offer complete coverage
Reporter, Evergreen Newspapers
Crossword confusion calls for better editing
I thank God that I was born in this country. I thank God for keeping me in good health all these years. However, I always said that I would climb any mountain, cross any ocean no matter how wet my back got to keep my children from getting hungry. (Go through hell or high water, I think they call it here). My ancestors the conquistadors did just exactly that 500 years ago.
Yet Mr. Sowell believes that a fence, a mere fence, or any wall for that matter would keep hungry migrants out. Something else that they say here, “you gotta be kidding me.”
I know what would solve the problem without fences of any kind or political Bush or Tancredo crap. Do what Jesus said 2000 years ago, “love your neighbor.” Love your neighbor and l little bit of common sense that goes along with that love. Instead of sending hundreds of thousands of our soldiers to die or at the least to get wounded in some kind of stupid futile effort across the ocean send a few economists, engineers, and agrarians south across the Rio Grande river. Instead of spending scientists and astronauts into orbit for God knows what, send them across the border to do God’s work; to assist our neighbor to take better care of their own.
Those neighbors of ours would love them dearly with Mariachi music and tasty tacos. All the while our country would be providing a worthwhile service that would not only keep those people home where they would rather be, but would also keep us from erecting some kind of of expensive but useless, worthless wall. How quickly we forget, it seems that not too long ago a very famous peson in this country shouted, “ Mr. Gorbachov bring that wall down.”
Boulder Valley Schools
No big deal. Free Dr. Barta ... it just feels good. In fact, Dr. Barta should be promoted. He should be the next superintendent of Boulder Valley School District.
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Gangs & illegal immigration
I worked in Sidney
Why is there not more conversation about what has happened to the jobs that somebody needs to do, but not everyone wants to do, unless they are being paid a wage worthy of their time? Is it because illegal immigration has provided a cheap form of politically-correct slavery, off the books?
Entry-level jobs in labor, agriculture and construction, are exactly the kind of jobs young men once performed to begin a life founded on work ethics and productivity. Young men having nothing better to do than hang out in groups, wearing gang colors, while politicians whine about lack of jobs for them, seems to illuminate a correlation between Americans needing jobs and Jobs Americans supposedly will no longer do. The jobs belong to our own citizens first.
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Smoking
Last week, Gov. Ritter signed House Bill 1269 into law, which will require all casinos in Black Hawk, Central City and Cripple Creek to be smoke-free as of Jan. 1, 2008.
Our state
We applaud our state
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TV listings
I visited my Comcast Customer Service Center and was told the discontinued information channels were to expand programming. I can continue to receive on-screen TV scheduling, it would be FREE for the first year and and $l, each year thereafter.
Whoopppeee!
My question to Comcast and The Rocky Mountain News is this...why do your subscribers have to pay to find out what is on T.V. when they already are paying for your service and buying your paper?
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Immigration legislation
The reason the public raised such heck is not because of a word
Abortion
I am pro-life — but I am also a realist. It’s one thing to be ultra-pro-life amongst ourselves (among Christians and/or ultra pro-lifers), but the fact is we live, work, and vote for politicians in a fallen world — and a marathon race is never won with one giant leap; it’s won one step at a time for 26 miles. Even the Apostle Paul talked about running the race, completing the race — and we do that one step at a time, one small victory at a time if need be.
When Christ started His ministry on earth almost 2,000 years ago, He didn’t heal EVERYONE ALL AT ONCE in one BIG SWOOP. He spent 3 years healing one or two here, one or two there.
We’ve had 30 years of Roe vs Wade. After 30 years, the CRLC should figure out that it is not going to go away all at once, if at all. If we can count a small victory here or there, so be it. Small victories mean small changes in the hearts, in the minds, and in the attitudes of some people. If we get enough small victories upon which to build bigger victories, great; that’s what it’s all about, isn’t it?
Fuel-efficient vehicles
Instead of spending their time and resources manufacturing cars that won’t cost consumers a ton of money to operate, they have managed to convince a few elected officials from Colorado to support their misguided, anti-consumer agenda once again. These poor (or maybe not-so poor?) gentlemen have been duped into thinking that constantly refueling their SUVs at today’s gas prices is a good thing. They must not live on a budget like most families do. More efficient pick-up trucks, minivans and SUVs will make sure that Coloradans and their families will stop lining the pockets of Big Oil with their hard earned cash. If the public wants to drive more efficient versions of these vehicles, why can’t we require automobile manufacturers to make them? Say no to gas-guzzling vehicles because Colorado deserves better.
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Iraq
After all, it’s a superpower’s prerogative to make these determinations.
A large majority of Americans want our troops out sooner rather than later.
Others, most notably the President, have floated the sobering idea that we might keep significant forces there for more than fifty years.
Divergent views on the issue exist among congressional Democrats. Hillary Clinton, for instance, has allowed that a ten year duration in Iraq feels just about right to her. Meanwhile, our own Mark Udall has endorsed the Baker/Hamilton report’s quiet allusion to an enduring U.S. presence of some 70,000 troops, if only to defend Iraq’s presumedly then privatized petroleum assets.
But, while we dither over these matters, events in Iraq may soon compel what many a Cassandra has long predicted. The insurgents are systematically blowing up every bridge in Baghdad, gradually encircling the increasingly isolated & vulnerable Green Zone. Whatever fatuous timelines may be set in Washington, the insurgency seems to be inexorably moving ahead with its plan to overrun the Green Zone before the enormously secretive new U.S. embassy there is scheduled to open for official business in August.
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Veterans
It is time for U.S. senators Allard and Salazar, to scuttle or dry-dock, S.S. AMNESTY (just another slave ship). All of their efforts in this vessel, have been expended, solely for the financial gain of the Vatican, GOP, Mexican gov’t, ag and construction industries, Wal-Mart, U.S. Chamber of Commerce, etc. The Amnesty’s crew-members got far more jobs and contracts (preference) in our local federal projects, than vets. Flats workers (nuke) and veterans issues have been off Allard’s and Skipper Salazar’s political radar, and we should remember this at the polls. Allard has promised, he won’t seek re-election. “I thank God and Greyhound, you’re gone".
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Double standard
Leaving tax money in the dust in Denver
Just another Day in the Life for Mike Rosen
To wit, A Little Help from My Friends is a transparent anthem to our confiscatory welfare state and When I’m Sixty-Four is certainly an homage to our fatally flawed Social Security system. The legendary album cover is filled with images of miscreants (Oscar Wilde and Aleister Crowley, sexual deviants) and the politically misguided (Karl Marx [Marxist], John Lennon [Lennonist] and Karl Jung [Nazi]) to name a few.
Instead of the Sgt. Pepper’s deconstruction, Rosen gave us, literally, dog do-do (“Protest is going to the dogs,” June 1). Let’s leave it to the psychologists to analyze Rosen’s scatology.
A DIFFERING VIEW: Evidence of Flats’ exposure in grand jury record
Including the gangs might help all involved get a balanced, realistic understanding of all the issues involved and deliver practical, long-term solutions.
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Mark Udall & Iraq
The congressman’s most recent voting record says it all.
May 10:
May 24:
Health care for children
That’s why it’s in the best interest of every Coloradan to want everyone in our state to be insured. Legislators, health providers and business leaders are all working together to develop strategies to do just that.
We can start by encouraging Congress to expand funding for the State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP). This successful program combines state and federal money to cover low-income children whose families don’t qualify for Medicaid.
Right now, more than 50,000 Colorado children and pregnant women are covered by the program. These children get the shots and checkups they need, and mothers-to-be get the prenatal care that will contribute to a healthy baby. But another 56,000 who would qualify for the program aren’t enrolled. Colorado can cover some of these children with current funding, but in order to give all of them the care they need, we must have more money from the federal government.
On the flip side, if Congress does not expand funding, Colorado will run a deficit in its SCHIP program in just a few years and Colorado children already covered by SCHIP will be in danger of losing that care.
I urge all members of Colorado’s congressional delegation to do the right thing for Colorado’s children and families. Expand funding for SCHIP; we’ll all benefit.
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Roan Plateau drilling
The
In addition, well pad
The Roan Plateau is a prized destination for hunting and fishing, yet the BLM failed to use the best available science when estimating how drilling will damage wildlife habitat. The BLM’s faulty assumptions about the pace at which drilling occurs and the frequency with which wildlife protections are waived, make it clear that the negative
Adding insult to injury, the Bush administration asks us to trust the oil and gas industry to comply with an untested package of drilling guidelines
Roan Plateau is an ecological treasure, a recreational paradise and a key cog in the regional economy. It is not the place to “test” new industry guidelines or to rush into drilling when the governor and congressional delegation ask for more time to ensure that the BLM has adequately assessed the economic and environmental costs of drilling.
Denver’s green plan
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Missile defense
Ward Churchill
After reading the good professor’s letter, I would’ve bet a paycheck he worked at the University of where? Oh, Boulder. That he lived where?
May I suggest the good professor and his “love light” Ward Churchill do us all a favor and purchase 2 one-way tickets for themselves out of this country? Bon voyage and good riddance.
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Israel & Palestinians
The article mentions an “often-violent struggle", citing the 9 June failed attempt by “Palestinian gunmen” to abduct an Israeli soldier. While abduction by Palestinians is virtually unprecedented, Israeli forces enter Palestine and abduct 5-10 persons every day.
On the same day cited (June 9th) Israeli Army forces abducted at least 9 Palestine citizens: 6 from Hebron and Aroub, and 3 from Yatta (So. Hebron).
Further, I find it odd that RMN did not mention that Israel has so far abducted some 44 members of Palestine’s legislature. What would happen if any nation were to capture and incarcerate a single member of Israel’s governing body, the Knesset (much less 1/2 of them)? Would that not be considered an act of terror? In the past month, Israeli forces have also abducted at least 6 mayors of West Bank towns. How is Palestine to govern, with much of its legislative body sitting in Israeli prisons? If RMN chooses to contextualize a local event by adding information about events in Israel and Palestine, the items chosen should serve to educate, and should not skew the information to create a false sense of reality to the reader.
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War on terror
Plain old common sense should tell you that that there’s no place for outside forces in Iraq because in that deadly, suspicious environment, outsiders would probably be shot on sight. Who would they know, where would they live,?
Of course the media mentions al Qaeda (the list) every time they get the chance, but only because it has much more reader appeal than just the samo, samo civil war.
Beware of the evil list.
The way the media tells the Sunni from the Shi’a is by the neighborhoods, and that’s about as far as they can realistically go. I can’t see a captured Arab admitting anything, let alone that he’s al-Qaeda or even Sunni, and they probably don’t have identity cards or tattoos of OBL on their chests.
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Immigration
They can hide behind the difficulty of the latter to avoid acting on the former.. What a bunch of dissembling clowns.
Teen needs help, not prison time
Young Pegues was only guilty of gross immaturity when he set off a harmless smoke bomb in an attempt to disrupt pot smokers on campus. He has already been dealt with, appropriately, by the school expelling him. To “Nifong” him with adult felony charges in lieu of some serious counseling and a diversion program is in itself criminal.
Is it worth a few soon-to-be-forgotten subheadlines to persecute a young man? A persecution that could lead to the eventual development of an unproductive if not truly criminal individual?
Although I don’t know Pegues, I don’t believe another notch in the judicial bench is worth destroying a young life, which only needs a little corrective nudge to become a productive asset to society.
Patrol’s harassment campaign in full swing
I further noted that, of those 15,500 tickets issued, there were apparently only 298 issued for DUI and DUID (driving under the influence of drugs). In other words, despite their constitutionally dubious DUI roadblocks (“Probable cause?” “We don’t need no stinking probable cause!”) and their mobilizing all available patrolmen, fewer than 2 percent(!) of citations issued were for the stated cause of curbing drunk driving.
On the other hand, they did issue 6,651 speeding tickets, which works out to 43 percent of the total number issued. All those tickets will no doubt bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue to the state — anyone care to hazard a guess what the real reason is for their motorist-harassment campaign?
Man-made warming is junk science
The myth of man-made global warming is the current religion of the left. Why? Because, like Hick’s proposal, it provides a means for increasing taxes, fees, regulations and red tape, leaving us citizens with less freedom and less money.
Is mankind causing the environment to warm, leading to disasters of unimaginable proportions? Of course not! Such “science” is junk science and can best be described as a religion. What causes the Earth to warm (and cool) over time? In decreasing order they are solar activity, atmospheric moisture (clouds) and, a distant third, so-called greenhouse gases. Among those things that produce greenhouse gases, oceans and nature (i.e., volcanic eruptions) far exceed anything done by mankind. So, you see, cutting back on our production of greenhouse gases will have little if any effect.
I can understand this because I do not benefit directly from promoting this junk science. I am not a government-employed scientist or a leftist politician looking for a pseudocrisis to advance my agenda. I am just a citizen who knows that this is a lie which, when repeated often enough in the media, becomes truth. Neither am I a hypocrite like Al Gore who has a “carbon footprint” many times that of the average citizen.
Hypocritical stance
Expose the occupiers
This land taken and kept by military force hints that it can be taken back by military force. Thus the Geneva Convention outlaws it because there might be no end to the cycle.
Israel attacked our ship the USS Liberty during the conflict, carefully shooting the Americans who tried to leave the severely damaged ship.
The skilled mendacity that will be spun doesn’t change this. It must be exposed so Americans might understand that our interests are not those of this vicious militaristic theocracy. Question the loyalty of our politicians who threaten American security trying to please their real constituency: Israeli occupiers.
Libby takes one for the team
Luckily, the current Congress cares more about the country than to drag everyone through an impeachment trial, if we can possibly avoid it for the next 17 months.
Plame probe political
Scooter Libby was found guilty of revealing classified information in the investigation of the leak of the identity of a CIA agent.
Since the prosecutor knew before the investigation who first disclosed the classified information concerning Valerie Plame’s CIA affliliation, it is easy to assume the whole investigation was intended to find more damaging information and failed to do so.
Obama can’t lose
And then again, if he were to win, he wins.
Either way.
Let market decide
Then Stephen McBrayer asks “Who held American hostages for 44 days in 1979? the answer is Iran, not Iraq.
He asks about other attacks on the U. S. overseas and since it has been so long, I don’t remember,but I do know it was not Iraq.
The only thing Iraq did was invade Kuwait in 1990.
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Rocky Flats workers
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Foreign exchange students
I personally have had a student from France. This coming school year we will host a student from Korea. We bought a globe (what a learning experience for my kids!) to see where our host kids lived in relation to us, not to mention the size of their country compared to ours. Have you heard of Azerbaijan? We hadn’t (except maybe at opening ceremonies of the Olympics when we always wonder where in the world ARE all of those countries?). Now, we know. We learned. It’s great!
By having these students live with our families, we break down the barriers that divide people, not only across international borders, but also within our own community. It’s a great opportunity to experience another country without leaving your own home. The rewards a family will reap are unlimited.
I urge everyone to consider the possibility of volunteering to host an exchange student. The nonprofit company I work with is CIEE (Council on International Education Exchange) www.ciee.org. I would be happy to help anyone that’s interested.
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Carbon offsets
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Boulder High controversy
To a youngster, the reason they cannot do many things that they would like to is that their parents won’t let them. Many years later, maturity and life experience bring an understanding that there are underlying reasons for doing (or refraining from) many things, and that adults in authority (parents, teachers, clergy, etc
The truly dangerous period in life is the time when the child has learned the limits of their parents’ or teachers’ control and how to circumvent that control, but have not yet acquired an understanding of the underlying reasons for doing (or refraining from) certain things.
That’s called Adolescence, and it appears that most Boulder School Board members never outgrew that period. Nor did most of the rest in Boulder, apparently.
The message those members are sending these kids is that there are no boundaries and morals are all relative, so go ahead and experiment with drugs and have unprotected sex while not worrying that any attempt will be made to limit that behavior because you’re considered a mature adult at the age of fifteen.
The fact that the Boulder School Board is so clueless about what responsibilities they hold toward their students indicates that they experienced arrested development as adolescents. That’s the only explanation as to why they could fail to understand how many lines were crossed during those presentations.
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Piñon Canyon expansion
They know the plans implementation only delays the economic devastation of a whole section of the state. That, no matter what the Army says, their continued actions demonstrate a total disregard for the obvious impact to the people, towns and environment of the area. That, the new revised plan only means the Army will come back in a few years wanting more after the result of this
The Army’s argument of need is fabricated with justifications being made by an agency accountable only to its own interests. Public meetings have been conducted as
Reporters and letters to the editor have noted that the Middle East is not a landscape of grassland, cattle or sage. That, the conflicts in Iraq were initiated with air strikes that concluded in a matter of days and afterwards were fought in cities.
They note that the Army has alternatives and is underutilizing existing facilities throughout the country.
Elected state representatives must know the devastation that the Pinon Canyon Expansion will bring to a whole section of the state and they need act beyond passive resolutions. Each and every
Working with our congressional representatives, the Governor and state legislators should commission a committee to examine and expose each and every claim made by the Army. They must act now with content and conviction for the residents of southeastern Colorado. Resolutions and
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Stalker victim
Current Colorado law does not provide for a “Guilty, Insane” verdict. When the stalker was deemed insane, therefore, he was found “Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity” with no conviction and no sentence. He was remanded to the Colorado Mental Health Institute for an undetermined period of time.
If new charges were pressed, in all likelihood, the stalker would again be found “Not Guilty, Insane,” and he would be committed, just as he is now. If he were found sane and guilty, charges would apply to new contacts only, and the outcome would likely be a short prison sentence and release. In 2003, the stalker was released from prison without parole. Within two days, an intense stalking episode ensued.
All new contacts are reported to the police. When a change in the stalker’s status is requested, this evidence will be presented for consideration in determining if he meets the criteria for release or conditional release. By law, these criteria include level of dangerousness, ability to distinguish right from wrong, and the capacity to conform to the law.
While current Colorado statutes provide mental-health treatment and hospital confinement for the perpetrator in “insanity” cases, they do not hold him accountable for his crimes and are wholly inadequate to protect the crime victim or the community. A provision for a “Guilty, Insane” verdict, which ensures public safety, addresses the mental-health issues, and upholds the rights of the crime victim, is needed.
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Health insurance
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Dixie Chicks & President Bush
Not the yellow-bellied tinhorn dictator wannabe currently residing at 1600 Pennsylvania.
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Immigration legislation
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Nobody. So far there are only losers. The 3,500 dead American soldiers lost. The tens of thousands of dead Shiites, Sunnis and Kurds have lost. Saddam Hussein lost. George W. Bush and the Republicans lost (although they were winning in 2002). American citizens lost. The U.S. Constitution lost.
I’ve opposed this war from before it started, but even I know that we could still win. But first we have to define what constitutes victory.
Putting more troops on the ground in Iraq is not a victory. In fact, it’s not even a means to an end when we have no idea what that end ought to be.
Interestingly, the secret to winning may be in our own Constitution — a federal government with extremely limited power built on many smaller sovereign states. It allowed colonies with different official religions, economies and views on human rights to create a united nation.
Unfortunately, I don’t think our president has ever read the Constitution he swore to protect. If he had, he might know that torture, pre-emptive war, warrantless wiretapping, holding prisoners indefinitely and ignoring treaties (e.g., the Geneva Conventions) are high crimes.
Perhaps we should win the war being waged against our own Constitution.
In doing so, we can show the Iraqis how citizens can save their own country and salvage a victory. But we have nothing to show the Iraqis while we’re surrendering our own rights.
CU too well funded
I think that the University of Colorado must be getting too much money from the state. Any research and educational organization that doesn’t react to such a significant number of falsifications and plagiarisms from one of its faculty, in the strongest and most forceful way, clearly doesn’t have the drive and desire to excel.
This being the case, I am no longer in favor of increasing the budget for CU. Let them receive donations from others, not my hard-earned tax dollars.
Allard stands up for Americans
The day of that vote was a significant day in the fight against illegal immigration and against those who propose and support amnesty. Many scientific and governmental commissions over the past three decades have come to the conclusion that stabilizing the population of the United States is necessary in order to maintain our nation’s economic growth and prosperity. On June 7, one of our Colorado senators proved that he understands this necessity.
Many members of Congress feel that amnesty is the way to move America forward. Sen. Ken Salazar is one of them. Other senators believe that while the reform bill is not perfect, it is better than nothing. Allard proved that he is not among these misguided individuals.
Allard clearly realizes the struggles and challenges that face American families every day. Big businesses wish to import workers to use as slave labor, and foreign nations desire to offload their excess populations on our economy. Coloradans should thank Allard for standing up to both entities and standing up for all hard-working, patriotic Americans.
Some things the gun story didn’t include
New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a known firearms hater and organizer of this campaign, has succeeded in recruiting 224 U.S. mayors, including Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper. What isn’t included in the article are the thousands of mayors who did not join or the mayors who did join but dropped out after seeing that this database campaign was nothing more than an advancement of gun control, not crime prevention.
As for the 33 national and state police groups said to support this campaign, I would like to see what the “beat cop” thinks of this. Not his puppet-stringed supervisors.
I hope in the future that the writers of articles like this in the Rocky take some time to research the source of the supporters or groups to see where they really stand. Good stories will be found there.
Why can’t RTD board keep its promises?
Yet the Rocky Mountain News reported on that same day that the Regional Transportation District board now wants to use diesel technology for the Gold Line (“Diesel lines or electric? RTD divided/Board breaks with staff on upcoming FasTracks decision”).
The voters approved the FasTracks initiative with the understanding that the metro area would receive the same type of service at about the same time. Why are Arvada/Wheat Ridge being singled out to be burdened with a technology that is slow, loud and dirty in place of electric commuter rail technology that is fast, quiet and clean?
Does the RTD board just not pay any attention to its own consultants or the voters? What is going on?
Commuter interests in conflict with system
Are the lights timed to maximize traffic flow? Or are they timed to catch someone on camera trying to beat the light so they can issue a ticket and get some more revenue? Is government more likely to invest in maximizing the efficiency of any new system so that everyone gets to where they are going more quickly with less stop-and-go, or more likely to build a new lane for the 5 percent of commuters who car pool? Are they investing in a computerized system that maximizes the efficiencies of traffic flow or trying to legislate the laws of physics? Are they selling a new 19th century trolley system or considering how to allow individuals to maximize their time and productivity?
Faulty upbringing
Now Pegues faces jail time, and his parents face substantial legal costs, and they all seem to view themselves as misunderstood victims.
One can only wonder: What exactly in Pegues’ upbringing led him to believe that the correct way to respond to disagreements on social issues is to construct and hurl bombs at other humans? Perhaps the parents should spend less time feeling sorry for themselves and more time thinking about how they raised a kid who could conceive of such a vicious and stupid act.
Tom, I’m confident we will all survive your “immense loss’ at Wards hopeful departure. I must concede that of the five traits you attributed to him you were correct with one - he is original. Unfortunately the committee chose a different term - fraudulent.
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Harry Reid & Iraq
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Al Gore’s book
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Pinon Canyon expansion
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Ward Churchill
Apparently Mayer believes Churchill is persecuted for merely expressing his reflexive contempt for America by insulting the victims of 9/11. Mayer’s uncritical idolization is instructive.
His letter makes it clear that the hygienic procedures required to maintain intellectual integrity at CU are insufficient and need repair. Let’s hope the Churchill matter shines a brighter light on what’s going on in the faculty lounge.
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A DIFFERING VIEW: 2-pronged approach to education is vital
Judge second-guesses Colorado voters
You cannot have it both ways, judge. I read the amendment at the time I voted for it. It was not vague to me then and is not vague to me now.
The amendment was read, voted on and approved by the voting citizens of the state. Give us credit here. We know a politicians’ pot-of-gold arrangement when we see one.
Farmers hurting while urban greenery thrives
I do not know how many acres have been taken out of food production, but I do know there are 440 farmers in trouble because they cannot raise their crops (i.e., food) for us.
It is my understanding that the city of Highlands Ranch and the tolerant, progressive city of Boulder sued the state to shut down those wells and they refuse to compromise. They even hired people to check up on those farmers to see if they were using water to raise crops. Heaven forbid they would raise food!
W. Colorado has saner approach to schooling
You also won’t hear favorable references to psychologists “routinely” using the drug Ecstasy in their sessions, nor allowing the invitation for students to try it if they “had some” as the presenter stated he himself would like to do.
In western Colorado they would be thrown off campus as fast as their caravan could take them home.
Citizens-only voting
Christo’s border fence
The Christo Line of Death would encourage tourism to an otherwise inhospitable land (think Area 51) and would provide a more pleasing work environment — with concomitant increased efficiency — for our band of Inspector Clouseaus currently on the job.
Walk more, drive less
Look what happened after the last amnesty
Some don’t even pay taxes — this includes state and federal taxes — because they are paid under the table. But let one get hurt on the job, well, baby, they take our compensation system for a wild ride.
By the way, do we not know who pays for all those items listed above? I know and I cannot do any thing about it.
If anyone thinks anything different is going to happen this time around except more of the same, he is insane and needs immediate medical attention.
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Guantanamo
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Bob Beauprez vs. Paul Campos
According to Beauprez, Bush has “routinely” called on and comforted families of the fallen “and more.” This is patently false. George Bush has not attended the funeral of a single soldier killed in Iraq, nor has he ever greeted wounded soldiers on their arrival back in America. Early in the war the White House suppressed the publication of photographs of the coffins of deceased soldiers arriving at U.S. air bases in order to avoid adverse publicity. Bush has only paid attention to disabled troops, when he could engineer a “photo-op” for publicity purposes, like handing out Purple Hearts at Walter Reed on Memorial Day.
To top it all off, the Bush administration has worked assiduously to cut soldiers’ pay and benefits and has repeatedly extended their combat duty. To claim that this President actually cares about the men and women he sends off to fight and die merely adds insult to their injury.
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Health care
According to Dr. Hsieh the key to Colorado’s health care needs is the “free market” and the magic of “personal responsibility.” Never mind that these same principles have already given Americans one of the most expensive medical systems in the world (consuming more than 15% of our GDP) while leaving forty-five million of us uninsured and helping us to rank among the lowest 25% of industrialized nations in things like life expectancy and infant mortality.
Besides the amount of money we spend on health care, the U.S. ranks near the top in only one other category: physicians’ incomes. Funny that Dr. Hseih didn’t think to mention that.
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Jason Salzman & protesters
One first has to only look at the source of his pro-protester argument-Ben Cohen, a committed leftist.
But more importantly he goes on to say these protesters would “spend money” and thus be an economic boom to the area as a result.
What poppycock! Like most, if not all liberal arguments, it does not take into account the negative consequences. How about these to name a few. First, as is clear from results of these protests in other cities, these type of protesters are very destructive to property.
They smash windows, destroy other public property and tie up police resources that could be used more efficiently elsewhere.
Also they disrupt and may for a time, put legitimate businesses out of operation while the protest is taking place and the eventual clean up and repair of their businesses. Some economic boom!!!
Also, how about the longer-term negative consequences on future tourism to Denver and Colorado with the sight of these out of control protesters in the street?
Lastly, insurance companies will undoubtedly be paying some claims.
They in turn will raise premiums at some point to both businesses damaged and those not damaged. And as everyone knows-we all pay the cost of rising insurance.
But I guess common sense and rationality never has entered into the liberal argument and is unlikely to anytime soon.
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Beauprez trots out discredited excuses
He cites the arrest of terrorist wannabes whose schemes never got beyond daydreams, as if these substantiated a viable threat to our nation’s existence. Facts? My eye! This is nothing more than the same old Republican fear-mongering and I, for one, am “real tired” of it.
A dumb vote — no lie
Pow! Wham!
Campos mainstream? Don’t kid yourself
When is enough enough for soldiers?
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Cindy Sheehan
‘You are not the country that I love’/Anti-war mom Sheehan submits resignation to American people on blog,” May 30)
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Archbishop Chaput & immigration
Why, oh, why do you do it? It is just one reason why I do not subscribe to the RMN.
The Comprehensive Immigration Reform Act of 2007 does NOT deserve our support. The archbishop ought NOT to meddle in politics! Shame on the RMN.
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Supreme Court vs. women
It ruled against a woman whose male coworkers were
Supposedly, it was her tardiness that the court ruled against, not the validity of the complaint. Does America need nine Supreme Court injustices to interpret a law that any eight-year old could read and interpret
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Immigration
The current system is obviously bad from a national security standpoint. There are an estimated 12 million people here illegally—meaning we don’t know who they are, where they are from or why they are here. The Senate bill would have corrected this. The Senate bill also mandated the hiring of additional border security agents, electronic monitoring of the southern border and additional fencing along the Southern border. None of this is likely to happen now.
The status quo is also bad for US workers, who now must compete against a pool of easily exploited illegal workers who often work for less than minimum wage and in substandard working conditions. The Senate bill would have evened the playing field between these workers and their American counterparts, thus ending the unfair competition that American workers now face.
The system is also bad for US businesses which, under the current immigration system, must contend with unreasonable amounts of bureaucratic red tape and extensive delays even to get the best and brightest foreign workers into the US.
Perhaps the only ones who benefit are those looking for a scapegoat on which to blame all social ills including crime, disease and environmental degradation. Had the Senate bill become law perhaps these people would no longer have been able to point their fingers at “illegals” and would have had to look for real solutions to social problems. Good for them, bad for the rest of us.
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Unresponsive
Think gas is costly? Try that Starbucks
Untapped resource
A DIFFERING VIEW: A timeout would not prevent all Roan drilling
.
As the editorial said, the BLM’s plan for the Roan Plateau has been gestating for some time. But many of its provisions are being seen for the first time by the public. That doesn’t seem to us to be in keeping with the letter or spirit of the law, nor the right way to manage public lands.
While many Coloradans, including most if not all of the surrounding communities, have repeatedly said they support some drilling in the planning area of the Roan, a strong public consensus has been opposed to drilling on the top of the plateau.
The editorial goes on to suggest that our timeout is a ruse for halting gas development. Far from it. Anyone driving along Interstate 70 near Rifle or flying overhead can see the evidence of drill rigs lining the interstate and the base of the the Roan Plateau. In addition, drilling is already occurring on the privately owned acreage on the top of this plateau — areas not under federal management.
Our timeout is designed to allow a new governor and our fellow Coloradans an opportunity to take a closer look at plans to allow drilling on the publicly owned portions of the Roan, and to mitigate conflicts with other important resources and uses, like grazing, watershed protection, recreation, hunting and fishing. Annually, the Roan Plateau generates nearly $5 million for the local economy.
Retire talking points
Funny strategies
They’re vandals
Why didn’t caller act?
Enforcement the key
End the occupation
Even farther south
The trouble with DIA
McBrayer lists a number of terrorist acts against us and asks which terrorists committed them. I remember specific countries where the terrorists originated for most but not all of those attacks. As far as I remember, though, none were from Iraq.
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Bob Beauprez & the Middle East
No doubt it was that old Conservative bugaboo, the Liberal Media Conspiracy, that kept Mr. Beauprez in the dark about the massive, peaceful, ant-war demonstrations throughout Europe, and the reluctance of most of our allies to participate. The fact is that much of the so-called support for the war was based on opinion-poll governance, a propaganda coup that equated opposition to the war with disrespect for the troops, and an almost total lack of political spine due to knee-jerk paranoia about losing votes.
Americans have been aware since the 1970’s that politics in the Middle East will have a major impact on the world’s economy, yet politicians continue to favor oil and automobile companies with liberal economic policy, and most politicians apparently believe that the Middle East political situation can be manipulated to our advantage. That contradicts both our belief in the sovereignty of nations and common sense. At the same time, the response to bureaucratic failure has been to create yet another wasteful, ineffective bureau (Homeland Security). Where are the Conservative’s when you need them?
And why have they allowed this administration nearly carte blanche power to intrude upon our lives? Yes, it is a risky world, but despite some success in breaking up terror cells, which I admit may be due to increased surveillance, current policy for managing those risks has come at a high price in blood and treasure, and arguably destabilized the Middle East irreversibly.
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Boulder High controversy
maybe the next time some poor kid is killed in a car wreck involving drugs or alcohol you’ll think back to this shameful event.
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Aurora police
The Aurora city government, is at odds with President Bush’s “diversity” policy regarding blacks being utilized in potentially dangerous jobs. Bush wants to strike diversity from all federal funded jobs, contracts, and educational programs. However, to protect white folks blood and treasure, Bush is allowing all of my military service academies to have diversity plans, so more black officers can be subjected to combat situations. A version of U.S. Sen. Obama’s “Quiet Riot", is sorely needed in Aurora.
I’ve also been afflicted with the black public sector jobs exam flunking disease. I recently applied for RTD’s Safety Manager’s position, and I flunked the exam. I went one better than Williams though, I had a “10 point” disabled combat veterans preference going-in, derived from federal appropriation laws associated with the T-REX and Fas Tracks projects. I served for 23 years in the U.S. Navy as a steam propulsion engineering officer and shipboard CHIEF ENGINEER in 3 nuclear powered submarines, 4 surface combat ships, and 3 deployments to Vietnam.
I earned the following college degrees: MSM (Project Mgt.); MABA; BBA; and AAS. Additionally, I was formally trained in the following engineering disciplines: nuclear, electrical, chemical, mechanical, structural, fire sciences, and biological. I’ve worked as a global consultant and executive in the following industries: railroad; oil and gas; highway construction; telecommunications; surface and underground mining; and electrical power generation. I proudly join U.S. Rep. John Murtha (USMC Vietnam War-hero), “I wouldn’t serve in today’s armed forces with these guys and their deferments".
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President Bush & VP Cheney
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Live and ... let live?
Let’s treat horses well
The argument that horse owners will be forced to abandon or neglect their animals without the slaughter option is not valid. Yes, it will cost a few hundred dollars to have a veterinarian euthanize the animal and have a recovery service take it away. However, it costs many times that amount to maintain a healthy horse for just a year. If someone can afford to keep a horse in the first place, they can certainly afford a humane end. If they cannot afford a humane end, they have no business keeping horses.
Even with the slaughter option, horses are abused, abandoned and neglected every day. So let’s just do the right thing for our equine friends.
Chopper noise awful
I’m glad Denver has the courage to do something about it — congratulations City Council (“Law to muffle rowdy cycles,” June 6).
To smokers and other obnoxious people: Your rights stop where ours begin.
Real Littleton friends will nix Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart has even started a faux grass-roots group called “Littleton Friends” to support this zoning. The issue here is clear: The City Council is out of ideas on city funding and have sold out to the highest bidder; to even consider such an eyesore is proof.
Real friends of Littleton appreciate the fresh air, mountain views and greenway bike and walking paths.
Real friends of Littleton expect traffic and environment reports to be made available on the city’s Web site (they aren’t.)
And real friends of Littleton are happy to leave the city limits to experience traffic jams and gross overdevelopment.
So, the real friends and contented residents of Littleton will vote “yes” to save the charm of our town.
Alito’s provenance irrelevant to ruling
All five of my children are adult women, four of whom take home a paycheck. I’m not sure I know that each is or isn’t paid as well as a man doing the same work for each of their employers. I wish anyone honestly pursuing this matter well.
Erbe, however, leveled her fire at the author of the majority opinion, Justice Samuel Alito, and the president who appointed him, George W. Bush.
Alito sinned in Erbe’s view by applying federal law as written. She advocates the sort of all-too-common interpretation where judges advance sophistic arguments to make laws suit the policy preferences of the judge(s).
The red herring Erbe used is that “Alito’s judicial perspective is a remnant of the political past.” He was nominated, you see, by a president “whose popularity has been battered ... ” by his “now wildly unpopular invasion of Iraq.”
Only a Bush-hater would understand how this is relevant to a justice’s strict application of a law written by Congress.
Still mourning a son lost to sniper’s bullet
I have not been the same since.
Luckily, my youngest son, who is in the Army, Spc. Edward Lundstrom Jr., made it home after serving a year there.
Both of my sons deployed within 18 days of each other. My Marine, Brett, on Sept. 18, 2005, and my soldier, Edward, on Oct. 6, 2005.
One hundred eleven days into Brett's deployment, his life was cut short by a sniper’s bullet to the back of his neck. He never stood a chance. He knew he wasn’t coming home, but he went anyway, because he had to.
June 12 would have been his 24th birthday.
The pain of losing a child is excruciating. Not a moment goes by that I am not thinking of my son. He was a beautiful child.
I want the president to know that I am very upset that this war is still going on and we are losing more of our babies every day. Every time I hear on the news that more of our kids were killed, I feel the same pain for another mother somewhere.
I wish he could feel the pain we do.
Every day when I would come home from work and there wasn’t a government vehicle parked in front of my house, I was ecstatic. That meant both of my babies were fine. On Jan. 7, 2006, I wasn’t home when they did come to my door.
It was a good thing that I wasn’t.
I am left with one son now who is still serving his country. He went back to war in Tikrit after taking two weeks of emergency leave.
He did what he wanted to, and so did my oldest son, but that doesn’t keep the pain away.
I am very proud of my two sons; they are my heroes.
Ask the president to bring our boys and girls home now.
www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_4405009,00.html and at http://www.rockymountainnews.com/drmn/local/article/0,1299,DRMN_15_5135682,00.html.
Separation of church, state for thee, not me
I wonder, however, how many people will attack her for violating the so-called wall of separation between church and state. Sadly, I believe that many who excoriate Pat Robertson or Jerry Falwell will applaud Daughtry because they belong to the same political party as she.
For this country to be restored to the ideals and values that once guided us, we need to look beyond the good of a particular political party or religious organization to that which is good for the country.
As a Christian and a fiscal conservative, I know I can find much more in common with Daughtry than I find differences. The trick is to see where we agree, and then to see what we can do about our disagreements.
Imagine you want to have your gallbladder removed. Your doctor determines the safest procedure for you, but because some people who aren’t doctors, don’t approve of ANY cholycystectomies, and won’t be in the operating room find that safer procedure “gruesome”, you must take a greater risk of hemorrhaging or being maimed. Your gallbladder will still be removed, just not in the safest way.
This is the logic the Roberts court just exhibited in their decision upholding the ban on intact D+E abortion. Supposedly the right to an abortion has not been infringed because you can still get one using a different procedure.
It’s like saying your right to vote is not infringed upon if they close all the vote centers in Denver and you have to go to Durango. You still have the right to vote, even if eventually the only vote center in the country is in New York.
For the first time, the Court permits congressional judgment to replace medical judgment.
The 5-to-4 decision in Gonzales v. Carhart, occasioned by a change in the makeup of the Supreme Court, illustrates how fragile reproductive rights are.
If you think private personal decisions are best made by women and their doctors, be sure to vote for a pro-choice presidential candidate next year.
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Unintended pregnancies & sex education
More interesting than the standard leftist fear-mongering is the planted axiom that the teen becomes impregnated because she did not understand how not to. Given contemporary culture, this is hard to imagine. And there are, of course, no studies offered to persuade us that teens in Colorado do not know how babies are made.
If Ms. Annison and her colleagues want to dip even more deeply into the public coffers, then it is incumbent on them to explain the extraordinary number of hours of classroom instruction they tell us are required to teach the young how to avoid pregnancy. Sex education is not, after all, an intellectual problem. In fact learning the techniques are considerably less challenging then learning to drive a car.
If it’s a question of teaching morality, then obviously the instruction is better left to the family. That way the schools can focus on teaching reading and science.
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Councilwoman-elect Carla Madison
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Gas tax
The state excise tax for motor fuels have not risen in over a decade, yet the cost of road construction or reconstruction has more than doubled over that same period. The tax should be keeping pace with the cost of road maintenance and be tied to the actual escalation of the cost of road maintenance. Our expectations of low excise taxes are out wack with the cost of road upkeep. The environmental conditions experienced in Colorado are arguably the toughest on road infrastructure in the country, yet we have the 29th and 35th lowest state excise taxes for gas and diesel (ie road funding) respectively, and they certainly show it.
The excise tax remains the fairest way to pay for road usage as the heavier, lower gas mileage vehicles will pay proportionally more tax/mile based on fuel usage/weight. Compared to tolling, a 3 ton SUV/pick-up currently pays the same rate as the 1.5 ton car based on cost /axle, yet the SUV/pickup arguably adds twice the wear and tear on the road. It makes current local tolling practices seem like a subsidy to the heavier 2 axle vehicles.
The cost of fuel did not deter road travel over the Memorial Day week end. It proves the additional .30/gal tax is a non-issue.
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The Rocky
I can’t imagine starting my day without a REAL time newspaper in my hands — the kind I can read while slouched in my favorite living room chair or while perched at the kitchen table — where it’s no big deal if I drop a few crumbs or spill something hot or cold over words printed on PAPER.
Not only do I become unnerved at the thought of having to read my newspaper off a computer screen, but imagining the damage that would occur to that clever little electronic keyboard sitting below my chin, should I wish to munch on a cookie or sip a glass of wine while doing so, practically paralyzes my entire being!
Possibly, my anxieties over this issue have been overblown due to my having recently arrived at an age where we humans are generally known to think in negative terms just for the sport of it! However, my salvation might lie in the fact that I think quite highly of Temple and of the job he has done in overseeing the publication of the Rocky these past many years. So I’m going to give him and his remaining staffers a chance to continue their best efforts in maintaining the Rocky’s “ .. . special identity as Denver’s primary source of local news” — not only to make their departing colleagues proud — but their devoted readers, as well.
I cannot afford to continue subscribing to your paper if I’m also going to have to pay some computer engineer to come to my house each day to clean out crumbs and sop up wet spills from my clever electronic keyboard!
Dave Kopel & Boulder High controversy
Since Kopel possesses at least two conflicts of interest in writing on this subject—his offspring attends the school involved (so why not tie superlatives to the principal’s name?) and he is recognized as a libertarian whose goal it is to legalize most drugs—I’m flabbergasted that the Rocky Mountain News would allow him to use the OTM column in such a personally advantageous manner.
Kopel pooh-poohs minority rights by saying only one parent formally objected to the content of the guest-panel event. He admits that the presentation violated school district policy and says school employees were reprimanded, but doesn’t say as to what extent.
He slams two detractors (who are his peers) for “harping” on the need to protect the children by “arrogating” to
Kopel scolds libertarian-nemesis D.A.R.E. for its “reckless exaggerations” (in pursuing its anti-drug policy) after he exaggerates that a criticism directed at a panelist was “literally true, but nearly libelous.” Rarely actionable, especially in public debate, libel is a serious charge that Kopel knows will have a chilling effect on public discourse just to mention it. He should apologize.
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Salazar & immigration bill
- SA 1184 would have denied legal status to certain classes of criminal aliens including aliens deemed inadmissible or deportable as security risks (e.g.
-
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Now you tell me how Senator Salazar really feels about strengthening our borders and enforcing our laws. Who do you think he’s looking out for?
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Bob Beauprez vs. Paul Campos
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Crime in Aurora
This does not sound like a City with a reduced Crime Rate; unless we were in the top 10 worst City’s in the Country and have gotten better. These headlines sound more like we live in Los Angeles, New York or Chicago and not in peaceful Aurora.
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Congressional Democrats
Illegal immigrants
Of course, lots of folks who’re far more sophisticated then me snicker at my (so far’s I know) one-family boycott. These are the same folks, typically, who venerate the bus and department store boycotts carried out by African Americans in Alabama and Mississippi in the 1950s and ‘60s, by the way. Though there’s no organization, I can’t possibly be alone, in my boycott and it’s only likely to grow as more and more real Americans get sick and tired of what’s going on.
Preston is right on a second count: we crank boycotters don’t need the government’s help. Government “help” is what caused the problem. And Bush and his friend Teddy Kennedy and our own Senator Salazar, author of the “Shamnesty” bill, are working hard to make the problem even worse for legal citizens and residents of America.
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War on terror
We elected to change the dynamics of a one-party-in-control-of-all-three-branches scenario, but we apparently got shafted anyhow with new leadership-without-the-courage-of-OUR-convictions scenario.
If we don’t learn from the mistakes of the former USSR, we will soon follow them into oblivion.
The “war” in Afghanistan was the costly last straw for the USSR and Osama-Bin-Laden is playing the same game with us. And,unfortunately, it seems, he’s succeeding.
With the latest 100 billion approved for our little “war", that brings the total to over 600 billion, and that’s over and above the war departments’ budget that they claim is 23 %. (The number is considerably higher when you figure in how many other departments contribute to keeping the military afloat, eg; food stamps for underpaid troops families, housing costs ,fuel costs,maintenance scams and pork projects, to name a few) The actual costs have been estimated at closer to 50 % of our budget.
We can’t afford to keep the Military Industrial Complex in business.( Ike warned us of exactly this 50 years ago.) Unless , of course,you want to be like our ol’ buddies, the Commies, as well as make Osama a very happy man.
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Racism & justice
Black Denver U.S. Marshal Benny Bailey (26 years service), also committed perjury. Bailey lied under oath about his consensual sexual affair with a white female alternate juror (Tim McVeigh OK City bombing trial). He was ratted-out by the woman’s husband. USAG John “Disco” Ashcroft, flew into a rage, when he was notified that a black man had placed his hands on a white woman. Shades of Emmett Till. Disco and Bush, mounted their steeds, donned their “white” cowboy-hats, and rode to this woman’s rescue. Their posse consisted solely of Denver federal judge, Ed “Pretty-Boy” Nottingham. Both Notty and Disco were political appointees of the Bush-clan.
Notty, Bush, and Disco, decided they would sentence Bailey to 6 years in federal prison, for his “nookie-gate.
Wolves
Late last month, federal officials approved a wolf management plan for Wyoming very similar to those they had earlier rejected. The plan allows wolves to be shot on sight if they wander outside the protected areas of Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks and surrounding wilderness areas.
In another related development, a proposed federal rule change would allow Wyoming to kill wolves if they cause harm to wildlife — perhaps Wyoming legislators do not consider wolves as wildlife! Wyoming has a long history of intense hostility towards predators mainly because of its ranching history. Ranching and wildife can and should survive simultaneously but it requires a more modern view of protecting our predators rather than seeing them as “pests” to be exterminated! See
Please speak up and write to your legislators and let them know you care about protecting our native predators such as wolves. These magnificent and unfairly persecuted animals should not be treated like diseased rats! They deserve our protection!
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Ward Churchill
And then like a true, hard core liberal, Professor Mayer cannot come out and make a direct point but he would rather slam Hank Brown without mentioning his name.
Professor Mayer and others like him should be embarrassed and disgusted in having someone like Churchill as a fellow educator. I would hope that the professors at CU have more pride in their profession and in educating the students to put up with someone like Churchill. Professor Mayer and others like him at CU should show some intelligence and support the removal of this fraud from our fine university.
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CU double standard
How can teachers, who are the supposed role models for the students, possibly be allowed to get away with academic infractions that — if done by a student — would otherwise have serious consequences?
I agree with CU President Hank Brown that the man should be fired. Churchill’s multiple and severe infractions of what should be high academic standards cannot be tolerated.
Reforestation bill will aid woodlands, youth
The bill encourages the use of youth conservation corps accredited by the Colorado Youth Corps Association on these important forest restoration projects. Youth corps will work with in partnership with local, state and federal agencies to mitigate fuel buildup and replant forest areas to help prevent wildfires and erosion.
The 11 youth corps serving the state are thrilled to involve their 900 participating youth and young adults in this important work while offering them a wage and an AmeriCorps scholarship. Youth corps will help improve the health of Colorado’s forests and protect water quality for local communities while simultaneously training the next generation of natural resources workers.
Chairman of the board,
Colorado Youth Corps Association
Town manager, Ridgway
Biometrics a solution to privacy concerns
The solution to proof of identity lies in biometrics. For about $100, Joe Sixpack can buy a fingerprint scanner and prevent anyone but Joe himself from gaining access to his computer. That same device can help prove the identity of anyone. All it takes is a third-party repository to verify that the print belongs with the identity.
This is not a privacy problem but a privacy solution.
We already use third-party repositories (credit agencies) to verify that Joe has good credit. What we lack is a way to prove a person is really Joe. Without that, anybody can steal Joe’s Social Security, birthday, address and phone number and take advantage of Joe’s good credit. Worse than that, people can re-enter the country illegally after deportation, get a job using fake ID, etc.
Abortion ruling is no win for ‘pro-life’ side
Focus on the Family and others are celebrating our Supreme Court’s recent ruling on partial-birth abortion while abortionists must be grateful. This so-called ban is nothing more than a public relations mandate for those bold enough to kill a baby under the brightest light. The “pro-life” justices ruled that the baby may now be dismembered no later than halfway through live birth rather than the previous three-quarters. In other words, “Stay in the shadows where your deeds are a little less shocking.”
This evil ruling will save not one child and no respecter of innocent human life should celebrate its adjudication.
All who know that personhood begins before leaving the purposed safety of a mother’s womb should rally around the likes of Colorado Right to Life and rebuke those who reek of moral compromise.
Light rail one answer to our energy woes
The continued support of a light-rail system in Denver would achieve both of these goals. These two cranks sit on the sidelines and lob verbal grenades at the cost overruns of this project and, certainly, they are alarming. But don’t forget: Our resident cranks and their ilk supported a frivolous war that has raised the cost of oil and building materials across the board. That isn’t the planners’ fault.
Too bad the cranks didn’t have the foresight to see that supporting public transportation across the board was a more reasonable response to the 9/11 attacks than inevitably getting mired in a quagmre in Iraq with no viable options or exit strategies.
It is time for the opposition to these projects to get out of the way or work toward a more energy-efficient future. Even Conoco Phillips sees that this is the wave of the future.
Proclamation needed
Wasn’t always this way
When I was a member of the Denver Board of Social Services in the Webb administration, we monitored these types of bureaucratic nightmares to weed out extraneous, invasive and complicated wording on forms. What are the board members of the Hickenlooper administration doing about this?
Mexican quandary
A DIFFERING VIEW: No need to rush leasing on the Roan
A biological hot spot, the plateau is one of Colorado’s most important places for rare and sensitive species, is home to large populations of deer and elk, and includes incredible backcountry. The Bureau of Land Management, which recently issued a decision to lease the Roan Plateau for oil and gas drilling and development, estimates the developable natural gas reserve over the 20-year plan as enough to satisfy the nation’s energy appetite for less than two months.
The Rocky calls the BLM’s plan “one of the most environmentally friendly blueprints imaginable” (“The Roan reaction, June 12), but the document itself concludes oil and gas development “would effectively eliminate wilderness character ... as a whole,” that “outfitters and the big game they hunt will be ... displaced” as will many backcountry and other recreational opportunities.
There is no need to rush leasing. The “immense natural gas reserves” will remain where they are, for a year and longer, as the energy industry stays busy with the hundreds of thousands of acres already available, leased or under production. The reserves will still be there when rapidly advancing technologies allow extraction with less disturbance to the area’s public lands and public resources.
Pete Kolbenschlag lives in Paonia.
But I think not. FDR and the union movement from the 1930s through the 1950s created the great American middle class. They conceived an economic tide that actually did raise all boats. Long live percolate-up truth!
Immigration bill
I’m old enough to remember when a janitor or construction worker could support a family. Of course, forty years ago illegal immigration was not a large problem because native born Americans were paid a fair wage to pick up trash and frame walls, and Mexico was still a poor country. Those who criticize illegal immigration cannot have it both ways; either support the return of living wages and associated higher costs or stop comlaining about Mexican immigrants.
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Council campaign
The bully tactics, described by the campaign manager as “aggressive campaigning” are no more than political graffiti. The scarce resources of Neighborhood Inspection Services, Parks and Recreation, and the City’s other maintenance crews have been stretched thin trying to meet citizen demand for the removal of these illegal signs. Trashing an entire district with campaign signs is serious enough but worse is the attitude from the campaign headquarters: “This is how it’s always been done", “The City will take care of the problem” and “If you mess with our campaign, there will be trouble".
City ordinance clearly defines where signs can be placed and in a letter from the City on March 23, 2007, these rules were clearly laid out for all District 8 candidates. This intentional disregard of the laws and the misuse of precious City resources to clean up her mess is irresponsible, blatant, and criminal.
The very worst part is that the candidate, Sharon Bailey, is asking for votes to uphold the City’s charter and laws and to maintain the integrity and beauty of our neighborhoods - all while trashing the district. Shame! Is THIS who you want on City Council?
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Poisons
First was the rat poison/insecticide known as fluoride. The FDA finally recognized that it was poison, so they required a DO NOT SWALLOW label.
Now it’s anti-freeze in toothpaste. You know what happens when your pet laps up some anti-freeze when a neighbor drains his radiator: kidney failure.
But the European Union says it’s all right. They are the ones who made coins with so high nickel content that the coin handlers are being poisoned from it.
Aren’t we glad they have such high standards?
Remember, the Chinese are the ones who brought us the poisoned pet food.
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Country Club Gardens development
Also, the neighborhood should feel fortunate that a larger more intrusive rental property development wasn’t being built. People in the area have expressed concern since 2001 about the potential traffic and parking problems, but the developer has not even bothered yet to conduct either an environmental impact or traffic study. We are affected everyday by the overflow parking from Broe’s rental property at the Country Club Tower. Right now Ogden Street is so narrow and packed with cars that two SUV’s are not able to pass each other at the same time. Perhaps some evening out of curiosity the developer could drive around the area about 6:30 pm to see how many parking spaces are available. As proposed having up to another 500 cars vying for limited parking in the area is very irresponsible.
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Paper or plastic?
String bags can be had very inexpensively online, and stores like Vitamin Cottage sell sturdy bags and synthetic stuff bags. Want to reduce your carbon ‘bagprint’? Turn down a bag whenever possible.
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President Bush & VP Cheney
Those in Democratic areas had to stand in the rain and cold for hours and poles closed. Not sure what happened in other States. So in my thinking both elections for President were a farce. George W. Bush wasn’t duly elected and dosen’t have the mental capacity fo serve as our President. He is a joke. Ask the rest of the World.
Even though the Congress authorized Goerge Bush to go to war, it was based on a bunch of lies by he, VP Cheney and their cohorts. These lies and trumped up intelligence were used to get Congress to agree for war. Where are the WMD’s and the proof of Sadam being involved in 911. George Bush did it for Daddy. How many of our young people have to die for his lies?
Look at what is going on in the Justice Department, what does that tell you about this guy. Also what about this guy wanting to establish an American Union with Mexico and Canada. He selling our Country done the tubes with this and Free trade agreements. He only wants to protect the wealthy since he dosen’t know what it’s like to work for a living. He even made a joke of the National Guard.
Maybe if he and VP Cheney served in the military they would not have approved torture. Daddy got George out of the war and Dick Cheney had 5 differnents.
What leaders we have. Again I say how many of our young people have to die for these two?
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Ward Churchill
To hear it from them, judgment was passed on Ward Churchill’s alleged plagiarism and fabrication. Faculty Council chair RL Widmann crows, the process was “absolutely fair.” The guardians of academic integrity at CU bravely defended academia against horrific fraud and abuse!
Back in the real world, there is one simple reason Ward Churchill may be fired. He wrote his infamous 9/11 essay. Recall, some pundits and politicians didn’t like what Churchill said and demanded he be punished.
Rather than stand up for free speech, cowardly CU administrators complied. Charges of ‘research misconduct’ were concocted to facilitate the hack job demanded by those who detest Churchill and the First Amendment. Churchill was judged ‘guilty’ after a lengthy ‘investigation’ of some footnotes.
Unfortunately for the deluded, Cornell University expert Eric Cheyfitz showed the official report to be a fabrication, itself a fine example of research misconduct. Several CU faculty and others have since filed charges against the committee that wrote the report. The CU administration will likely weasel out of hearing those charges, but the Cheyfitz piece will be valuable evidence in the court action that is sure to follow if Churchill is dismissed.
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Diabetes
Coroner’s officials were still trying to determine how 20-year-old John Atchley died. He was last seen May 19.
His father, Randy, said John Atchley was an insulin-dependent diabetic who only had a 48-hour supply of insulin with him.
More than 50 relatives and volunteers spent Memorial Day searching for the missing man without success.
John Atchley was last seen leaving a party.
Witnesses have said he was walking in a “dazed state.” A jogger found the body near Grand Junction shortly before 7 a.m.
“KNOW THE SYMPTOMS. SAVE A LIFE!”
Witnesses in this tragedy reported that the young man was seen walking in a “dazed state” prior to his disappearance. It is important to recognize that people who have diabetes and are experiencing a low blood sugar may exhibit symptoms similar to intoxication. Symptoms of low blood sugar can include the following: combative, shaky, slurred speech, confusion, and unconsciousness. Notice that these symptoms are similar to a person who is intoxicated. Sugar is the main energy source for the brain and if the blood sugar is low, the brain does not work normally.
If these signs are present and a diabetes ID is located, firmly encourage the person to take some form of sugar. A regular sugar soda or juice can be lifesaving. If they resist treatment or are unable to respond appropriately, call 911.
The Education and Public Awareness Committee of the Children’s Diabetes Foundation at Denver promotes public awareness of symptoms of diabetes and provides information to schools about diabetes care. For additional information on diabetes, visit the Children’s Diabetes Foundation website at www.ChildrensDiabetesFdn.org.
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‘Scooter’ Libby
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Education reform
The parents of school age children have been held hostage by the public school system long enough. The public education machine uses scare tactics and dishonesty to fight true school choice. They infer that the money belongs to the public school system. Yet, the source of the revenue is taxes, which are paid by the very parents who are then forced to either send their children to public school, or pay a second time to have true school choice. The worst is that the very people who most need true school choice are those who cannot afford it.
It seems ironic to me that many of the people who support a “woman’s right to choose” to end the life of an unborn baby do not support a mother’s right to choose where her own children are educated. It is time for this hypocrisy to end. True school choice must be enacted in Colorado immediately. It is time for the Colorado Legislature to support low income families and the right to choose by providing vouchers or tax rebates to parents who do not utilize the public school system.
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Hypocritical politicians
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Photo of soldier
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Denver Zoo tragedy coverage
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Vincent Carroll & Howard Zinn
Gas prices
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Lesson of Vietnam is one of leaving too soon
There are many legitimate, free-market, discourse-of-ideas arguments regarding the entry and exit of Vietnam and Iraq. We can discuss the tactics and strategy of being there, how the authority and responsibility is turned over to our allies, and how much Congress supports the ally after leaving. As a Vietnam veteran, having been there, and realizing the will of at least the leadership level of the people wanting freedom, I am well aware of the resulting messes.
Thousands of our allies in Southeast Asia were put into “re-education camps” by the communists, and now the world knows that 2-plus million were killed by the Cambodian communist Khmer Rouge.
Yes, the emotions of Campos’ ex-student — whose Marine boyfriend is being deployed to Iraq — are awful. But worse emotions will befall the civilized world if we cut and run. Vietnam’s lesson is not of going, but of leaving too soon.
I know Paul Campos is a caring man, civilly and intellectually engaged, because he met with part of our caucus when I served in the Colorado Senate, but on the cut-and-run issue he is in error.
It’s DeGette herself who won’t face facts
It seems this analogy applies to her policies as well.
She champions government funding for embryonic stem-cell research as the remedy for countless diseases when nothing has come of this research from the private sector. If investors, who may or may not care about the ethical issues surrounding this research, do not elect to fund embryonic stem-cell research, why should the taxpayer, especially when many of us believe it is morally unacceptable?
On the other hand, adult stem-cell research has yielded more than 70 therapies for many illnesses and diseases. Seems to me this is a better investment all the way around.
But, perhaps DeGette’s position and passion on this issue stems (pardon the pun) from her ideological ideas on the value of every human life at every stage of development. Whose head is in the sand?
A referendum on nuclear weapons
The Department of Energy has proposed renewing the Weapons Production Complex to enable the production of 125 new nuclear weapons per year by 2030. Most polls suggest citizens would feel safer in a world without nuclear weapons. Former secretaries of state and defense are calling for a world free of nuclear weapons. But this new nuclear weapons complex is already in the appropriations pipeline.
Citizens who are being asked to pay the lowball budget figure of $150 billion should be included in this debate. It will cost a lot more both in taxes, environmental pollution and loss of any real progress on the nonproliferation treaty goal of elimination of these weapons.
The coming election of a new Congress and president in 2008 should also be a referendum on our nuclear weapons policy. Every candidate should be required to take a clear stand on this issue.
Keep the heat on Denver Public Schools
The public needs to understand that schools are going to have to close so that the district can maintain its pension plan. The facts of this debacle have been hidden in the district’s refusal to disclose “personnel” information. But I have confidence that the Rocky will expose anyway that myriad administrators have retired after serving DPS a brief period of time (five years) and will receive lifetime benefits. Others bought “years of service” so they didn’t have to work out the years represented by their pension benefits.
I am also confident that, sooner or later, the Rocky will expose the fact that, dollar-for-dollar, the pension plan serves mainly administrators, not teachers.
Thank you, Rocky Mountain News, for your continuing efforts. They really are appreciated.
Dubious philosophy
One of them proposed that our schools teach a positivist philosophy which grounds students in “a healthy scientism that argued that if something cannot be observed, it must be doubted.”
Since his proposed philosophical framework is unobservable or scientifically testable, by its own standards it must be doubted. David Hume’s and the positivists’ philosophy is self-contradicting.
Finding ways to enable students to think for themselves is a laudable goal. Teaching students to think within a self-contradicting philosophical framework does not seem to me to be the way to get there.
Ringing hollow
Predictably, he attacks the patriotism of those who criticize “The Decider.” According to Beauprez, just because our president authorizes torture, secret prisons and warrantless wiretaps of American citizens, we shouldn’t be so critical of him. After all, he’s doing these things to protect us from the terrorists in our midst.
Like a loyal Republican, Beauprez did his level best at fearmongering, but his arguments are starting to ring a little hollow. Maybe that’s why, as is listed in his tagline, he’s a former member of Congress. I expect there will be more of you in the not-too-distant future.
Blatant ‘minority-ism’
I am not aware of a minority whose members have an inherent inability to take written tests.
Motorcycle noise
While I appreciate the motivation for the change in the code, I have a few issues that I feel need to be addressed: 1) Whenever you give the power of “reasonable suspicion” to a law enforcement officer, you are giving that officer a legal power that is open for abuse. I have no doubt that you have heard the term “driving while black” to describe the racial profiling that often occurs to African-American drivers. You also need to appreciate that motorcyclists are often profiled as lawbreakers due simply to their appearance and reputation, justified or not. This type of loosely defined ordinance gives an officer legal “cover” to harass otherwise law-abiding citizens.
Current noise ordinances are at best selectively enforced (the number of “noise ordinance” violations during Cinco De Mayo celebrations as one example), and are already an easily abused tool.
2) What system do we have in place to check the legality of a muffler system and issue the required permit? For example, I have a motorcycle with an aftermarket muffler system that is well within the current legal range of sound. If this ordinance passes, I will be in violation of the law, not for the volume of my motorcycle, but because I lack the proper stamp.
3) Will this ordinance be enforced on automobiles as well? As written, it certainly applies equally to all motor vehicles, even though the existing federal standards require cars and light trucks to adhere to lower levels than motorcycles. Many of these vehicles are in violation of the existing noise ordinances, but are seldom cited.
4) The existing federal standards call for the noise level to be measured at 50 feet. Why is the Denver ordinance requiring a measurement at 25 feet?
5) Will the city be providing the extra training needed for police officers to be able to recognize excess noise, or a modified exhaust system? If so, how will we pay for this training? Our neighborhood organization has been told explicitly by our council members that there isn’t enough money in the budget to properly enforce the speed limits on our residential streets. I resent that the limited budget would be further stretched for enforcement of an aesthetic problem over safety issues.
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The Rocky & Memorial Day
Immigration
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Health care
But the biggest surprise is that the Commission’s eleven Evaluation Criteria required that the proposals offer only specified government-oriented methods for reforming health care. Free-market proposals couldn’t possibly have had a chance.
For example, the only way a proposal received a “high” score on the criterion of “Access” was to “Increase Medicaid Provider Participation AND Serve Geographically Underserved Areas.” On the criterion of “Coverage,” a high-scoring proposal must “Require purchase of coverage AND Subsidize coverage AND Ensure availability of coverage” OR “..provide direct coverage to all..through a single-payer system.”
These mandates built into the Evaluation Criteria and thereby into the selected proposals dictate the who, what, when, where and how. This disqualified any free-market-oriented solutions.
I only wonder why the Commission bothered to solicit various proposals in the first place. They had already designed their first choice, and it’s called “Socialized Medicine for Colorado.”
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Iraq war
He hit us and he hit us hard almost six years ago and he is still out there. Sooner or later he will hit us again. Meanwhile he has this country where he wants it, bogged down in Iraq where he can get to our soldiers. He has done a good job at it too, almost 3,500 of our best soldiers and cost us hundreds of billions of dollars. More important to him perhaps is that now we are a nation divided. And we may not have seen the worst of it yet. Lucky old devil we had no business in Iraq.
Osama had a master plan on how to destroy a super power but without such luck. First he brought us the 9/11 disaster, then Bush retaliates by going after him in Iraq of all places. Osama beaming with his new found luck obliges by sending bomb experts there to kill and maim our soldiers. To add to our demise, Osama and his Al-Queda big wheels can recruit at will from through out the Middle East to fight us the invaders. So these insurgents, as we call them, keep coming out of the wood work to play a deadly game of hide and seek in their own backyard with our soldiers. Al-Queda has had plenty of experience in this type of warfare after all they got the mighty Russian military to retreat from Afghanistan with their tails between their legs much like we did with our quick exit from Viet Nams.
Thus, it now appears that the end of 2008 will come and go before we are able to have any relief from seeing the suffering that families go through as casket after casket arrive in this country from Iraq. As a matter of keeping his spirit up, President Bush likes to say that Osama bin Laden is hiding in a cave somewhere. He may be hiding in a cave, but from that cave he has brought all kinds of chaos to us and the Bush presidency. But what the heck in a couple of years Bush will be in his ranch in Texas far removed from the hellatious eight years that a man named Osama brought to him and our beloved country.
Big Oil
WTF??????????
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Sexual abuse
According to the Darkness and Light Organization:
Sexual abuse can occur at all ages, probably younger than you think.
These molestations lead to Health and Behavioral problems; drug and/or Alcohol problems; Teenage Pregnancy and Crime.
Most perpetrators don’t molest only one child if they are not reported and stopped.
Nearly 70% of child sex offenders have between 1 and 9 victims; and at least 20% have 10 to 40 victims. An average serial child molester may have as many as 400 victims.
For a lot more information info. And how Darkness to Light can help innocent victims of child molestation - call 1-866-367-544. Their web site is: darkness2light.org.
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Gas prices
To not act on it, would need a major explanation as to why not. I’m all for getting people to use less gas, but that’s another issue and still we are cornered into this position, thanks to other things which have governmental influence. More work should also be done in getting us out of this dependency, instead of saying a few false words and doing fake actions to get us to shut up for a while.
But getting back to the main point, it shouldn’t have to be our signing a petition to get our government to hold an investigation on gas prices, it’s a major issue, it should be something that’s just done.
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Immigration bill
Bush had the chutzpah to assert that the scheme he is pushing to legalize the Mexican invasion “isn’t amnesty
The politicians who concocted this scheme with input from some Mexicans but without any from the majority of Americans are obviously more concerned about the problems of Mexico than of the United States. Yet all of them swore to defend the United States. Therefore: shouldn’t they be not only impeached, but indicted for conspiracy to commit treason?
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Bob Beauprez vs. Paul Campos
The former gubernatorial candidate claims that it is difficult to have a legitimate debate on coping with the enemy. Why? Perhaps because people as Mr. Beauprez express themselves with loaded words, which negate objectivity.
Allegations as Campos being infuriated. Did Mr. Beauprez have a private audience with Mr. Campos? What was printed in the May 29th article can under no sane reading be judged as the expression of an infuriated person. And what about the other loaded words Mr Beauprez uses, “fabrications, temper tantrum, fantasies, spew his hatred".....ad nauseum. Yes, Mr Campos injudicious use of the term serial killer describing the president of the United States is also counterproductive.
Mr Beauprez complains that he’s tired of the blame America first crowd. I infer from this that what he is really complaining about is someone taking a position that runs counter to his opinion. What has made our country great is Freedom of Speech, lively dissent, varying positions. And when these differences are expressed, they earn respect when not couched in the kind of loaded words that were used by Mr Beauprez. and his eagerness to dismiss the legitimacy of an opposing position.
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Boulder High controversy
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Rocky Flats
Written on Memorial Day 2007
Stood nuclear weapons site-Rocky Flats Plant.
There loyal Americans toiled day and night,
To fight the Cold War at the Rocky Flats Site.
They followed procedures, these brave Dads and Moms,
To manufacture triggers for America’s atomic bombs.
When working with dangerous nuclear radiation,
The best defense available is Time, Distance, and Shielding.
(Time) means long exposures to penetrating ray.
(Distance) means how far it is away.
(Shielding) What’s between you and the source.
Including the knowledge of the energy’s force.
Our dosemetry badges were tracking our dose,
So we didn’t worry about details like those.
Penetrating beta, gamma, and neutron rays,
Were just typical hazards in those manufacturing days.
But now those records are lost, miscounted, or both,
And we are sick with cancers and have lost all our hopes.
Some of us are bankrupt with medical bills.
Others suffer from all kinds of physical ills.
But NIOSH keeps saying “We counted all that we got.”
“And your dose reconstruction wasn’t AS LEAST LIKELY AS NOT!
“You can’t argue with science, even if it IS bad”
“You can’t live forever, so go home and be glad.”
“At NIOSH we gave you our best ESTIMATIONS.”
“So call up the morticians for burials and cremations.”
The President had no kind words to soften,
The sad realization-No Flags on our Coffins.
Yes, we sick Cold War Veterans did our patriotic duty,
We even had Q clearances for National Security.
To protect America, we laid our lives on the line.
And gave to our country the BEST of our time.
We sacrificed our health, lives, families, and today,
You slap our faces with YEARS of delay.
Excuses and guesswork and pure false deduction,
How much more of graft, greed, and corruption?
We are free to speak because of Americans who died.
Now we are dying, because of NIOSH who tried
To side-step the issues of insufficient data,
And tell us that our lives just do not matter.
Yes, we are just statistics to you smug, arrogant guys,
But from this experience, at least we got wise.
To ALL nuke workers, we say BEWARE!
When you need your Government’s protection,
Guess What? IT’S NOT THERE!
Taxpayers also have a say about high school
As a Boulder High School parent, Kopel must be aware (if he pays any attention to what goes on) that Boulder and the CWA embrace all manner of loopy liberal ideas, but are very closed to any alternative thoughts and certainly any presentation of such thoughts. Just try to conduct a panel on a conservative subject at either the CWA or Boulder High School. Wouldn’t happen.
As a Boulder taxpayer, I am affected by the products of the left-wing Boulder High School education. Thus, not only do parents have a say about the kinds of things that are not only tolerated but encouraged by the far-left leaders of that school, but so do I.
That there is limited reaction among parents means little. Parents only have marginal impact on their kids at the high school age. When the school finds such behavior acceptable, that far outweighs what the parents think. Besides, few of these parents exercise any constraints anyway. They’ve given up.
I thank Dan Caplis, Craig Silverman and Bill O’Reilly for bringing attention to the kinds of things that have become the norm at Boulder High School. Since there is no adult supervision at Boulder High School, someone has to take action.
Caplis, Silverman should be applauded
Dan Caplis and Craig Silverman should be complimented, not chastised, for exposing and pursuing this issue and the pathetic school district officials who condone this kind of absurdity (“Talk-show hosts amok,” On the Media, June 2).
I’ve listened to many of the recordings and the responses by the school district officials and their mysterious change of heart (they were against it, now they are for it) and I find it very sad and disturbing this kind of thing was allowed. I suppose this should not be a shock since this happened in the People’s Republic of Boulder.
Rocky Mountain News media critic Dave Kopel’s assertion that Boulder High is more tolerant than the average high school is obviously true, especially when it comes to deviance and lack of respect. If an assembly were held there that promoted owning and responsibly using a gun, the school superintendent and principal would be fired and a protest march would be held.
Intelligent discourse
Oil companies are not the real culprits
It’s not the oil companies! The oil companies don’t set the price — the world oil market does. Can Watson not see this? The oil companies pay to find it, extract it, refine it and get it to you, but they don’t set the price. The oil companies make about eight cents profit on each gallon. When the people of this country buy about 350 million gallons a day, the profits do tend to mount quickly.
Now let’s look at who really makes a profit off gasoline. It’s someone who isn’t involved in exploration, extraction, refining, transportation or sales. They don’t have to pay a dime to get it to your car, but they have a hand out for about 50 cents a gallon. Yes, that is your government at work!
Now, who is raping whom?
The SUV is doomed
In the meantime, people continue to buy and drive these “pigs” as if there was no end to crude oil supplies. Contrary to what the quoted analyst Alex Redmond believes, the SUV will go the way of the dodo bird. Just check your local junkyards and count all the wrecked SUVs sitting there.
Good riddance to the SUV.
Truly grateful for those who defend U.S.
Reflecting recently upon the meaning of Memorial Day, I truly appreciate these touching words from the fourth verse: “Oh! thus be it ever, when freemen shall stand/Between their loved homes and the war’s desolation.”
I truly am grateful for those that have, and continue to sacrifice so much to protect our beloved homelands from the horrors that others would inflict upon us. I know that freedom isn’t free; it will continue to be paid for by the suffering of those in our armed services and by the pain of those who lose loved ones in this great service.
Whenever we hear our beloved national anthem, may we always take a few moments to truly appreciate what we have, and why we have it.
Who won in Iraq?
Almost since the war in Iraq began, the Democrats in Congress have said and done whatever they could to strengthen the morale of the insurgents, and to weaken ours. Why, just recently, Sen. Harry Reid upped the ante by claiming the U.S. has now “lost the war in Iraq.”
If we choose to ignore Gen. David Petraeus’ more-positive assessment, and assume what the senator said is true, then who won? Al-Qaida? Iran? Sunni terrorists? Which group of insurgents and their supporters, all of whom share the same ideology responsible for the nearly 3,000 deaths on 9/11, did we lose to in Iraq?
Don’t hold your breath waiting for a straight answer. They’ll just keep telling you the sky is falling, and leave it at that.
Other grandparents
A DIFFERING VIEW: Odd that Rocky should object to a ‘nuisance’
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Parolee housing
The other 25% are judged to be living in temporary housing because their address is shared by another parolee. We’re not told what percentage of parolees are required to be in permanent housing to halt the crisis (perhaps 90%) but an accompanying article but Jeff Kass provides insight.
The Kass story reports on the plight of a 44-year-old former drug dealer who is living in a Salvation Army shelter. The former drug dealer is awoken at 5.30 am, goes to another shelter at 6.30 am for a free breakfast and then to yet another shelter where he showers and makes his daily phone calls. The problem is that he has to be back at the Salvation Army center by 3.30 pm to secure a place for the night which makes it difficult, he tells us, to find a job.
The former drug dealer claims he is grateful for a place to stay, “But you shouldn’t put people in a place like this.” He goes on to complain, “Its like we’re a step behind already, and then they put us two more steps behind.”
This “crisis” then appears to be not so much inadequate housing, not to mention board, but the lack of personal responsibility. Our former drug dealer obviously does not comprehend that it is him, not us, who put him in the shelter and that it is him, not us, who puts him two steps behind. When he comes to realize that it is him, not us, who is responsible for his own life; he will begin the road to happiness.
But what of the 75% of the parolees who do live in permanent housing? We don’t know much about them because the newspapers are not interested in their story - they’re able to look after themselves without making excuses.
I hope someone tells our former drug dealer about personal responsibility being essential to happiness. He won’t learn the lesson by reading the newspapers.
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Piñon Canyon expansion
Ward Churchill
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Jerry Falwell & Moral Majority
Here’s a clue: Most of those who think of themselves as being wise are foolish; most of those who think of themselves as moral are immoral; and most of those who think of themselves as being intellectual are anything but — and “Tom” is no exception.
Jesus Christ himself stated that the road to hell is very wide and that many (most of the world) will take that road, while the path that leads to heaven is narrow and only the few will take that one narrow path.
Homosexuality is part of the wide road that leads to hell. Abortion is part of the wide road that leads to hell. Evolution is part of the wide road that leads to hell. Enablers who condone, encourage and teach pro-homosexuality, pro-abortion and pro-evolution are on that wide road to hell.
Only those who believe in the Word of God (and Christ is the Word) are on the narrow path to heaven.
Those on the wide road to hell naturally scoff and laugh at Jerry Falwell, Pat Robertson and James Dobson (just to name a few) just as about 4,300 years ago Noah’s neighbors scoffed and laughed at Noah.
But in the end, no one was laughing when God saved the few that believed His Word and drowned everyone else.
Jesus Christ himself stated that the End Times would be just as it was in the days of Noah. And “Tom’s” world-view proves that to be absolutely correct. And just like Noah’s neighbors, “Tom” and the world don’t understand that they are completely wrong and “Tom” and the world won’t accept that they are completely wrong until it may be too late — and the door has closed and any chance at salvation has passed.
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U.S. & Europe
The Russian and Chinese administrations have questioned the position espoused by President Bush about the need for a weapons shield in the Czech Republic and Poland to head off any attempt by Iran or other hostile nations to attack Europe. If the seriousness of protecting Europe is of such a high importance why has this issue not had a thorough debate in the US Congress? Is this another issue that was slipped in a bill without the members of Congress reading the full text?
Here we are in the year 2007, and the United States is trying to protect Europe? Didn’t we do that in World War II? The economies of most of the European nations today, especially those in the European Union using the Euro as their currency, are experiencing a high quality of life for their people. Why is it that the US needs to protect Europeans? In some trade transactions, in fact, the Euro is being considered above the Dollar as the currency of choice.
We are waging a war in Iraq and in Afghanistan and find we will be facing other major crises with immigration, trade, maintaining a middle class society that provides health care for its citizens, and the present Administration is worrying about protecting Europe. What is wrong with this picture?
Archbishop Chaput & immigration bill
At issue is also his own status as having sworn sworn alliance two a foreign potentate, the pope, who is also the political head of the Vatican State. Having done so, he must be aware that he may have forfeited his US Citizenship. He is also most likely acting as an agent of a foreign power and as such is most likely to have registered! However, his Eminence has also an tax exempted status granted to his group by the IRS and is most likely enjoying not having to pay any state or local taxes for his organizations many enterprises! Thus clearly, he should be much more reserved in his statements. He is very much the shepherd of his flock with all the associated power over it as prescribed and bestowed upon him by his superior- the pope-and is always recognized as such whenever he speaks out on a political issue like immigration.
His Eminence should take care of the spiritual needs of his flock and stay out of politics. I know that is very hard to do given the long and mostly destructive history of the catholic church and her meddling into political affairs of the states throughout. This especially when it is to her financial benefit as well as to increase the Vatican’s power in the US.
I wish he would have shown the same compassion to the many victims of the church as he is showing for this law breakers.
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Elitch Gardens
Students from Jefferson Academy and many, many other schools were there, too. It was a little cool, but promised to be a fun day. Then the rain came. It poured. Then hail came, and came, and came. Everyone gathered in buildings to wait it out. Severe weather is certainly not the park’s fault. The next thing that happened was their fault. Elitch’s announced that the park was closing. Everyone was to immediately leave the park.
Our school would not have transportation for our hundreds of students until 4
One young girl was crying because she found a place out of the slush and just didn’t know how to make herself step back into it. At the entrance no one was allowed to stay in the entrance area, but were forced to move outside. It began to hail again. This treatment by the park toward its customers was dangerous, disrespectful, and unnecessary. The park could have found a way for all those school groups to remain under
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Children’s Health Insurance Program
Current federal regulations prohibit states from using federal funds for Medicaid or SCHIP on legal immigrants during their first five years as permanent residents. The proposed “Immigrant Children’s Health Improvement Act” (ICHIA) would allow states to cover these children and pregnant women under both programs.
It’s bad for public health, fiscally unwise and fundamentally unfair to deny health coverage to immigrant children and pregnant women. These children are the future of this country and their families contribute to our communities and economy. Nobody stands to benefit when children and pregnant mothers can’t access the health care they need.
As our U.S. Senators, Wayne Allard and Ken Salazar pursue their vital task of covering all of Colorado’s uninsured and underinsured children, it is important that they and Governor Ritter, who has not yet signed on in support of the measure, support ICHIA as part of the children’s health plan reauthorization. It’s time to restore health care equity to immigrant children and pregnant women.
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Archbishop Chaput & immigration
I have reflected prayerfully. I pray the leaders of the United States work to strengthen our border security and work diligently and efficiently to deport as many illegal immigrants as possible. I, as do many Catholics, feel more immigration raids are necessary to act as a deterrent to the corporations hiring illegal immigrants for labor. The current laws need to be enforced uniformly throughout the United States before any meaningful immigration dialogue can take place.
Burglars are worthy of our Christian forgiveness and even sympathy, but we do not allow them to keep the objects they steal after they are arrested. I feel compassion for illegal immigrants, but I will not be shamed into thinking I am a bad Catholic for respecting the laws of our country and wanting enforcement.
There are thousands of Mexicans following the law and applying for entrance to the United States in accordance with our laws. Does Chaput feel the humanitarian issue of slapping them in the face for respecting order while their neighbors break our laws?
I would think the sex abuse scandals across the United States would have taught the Catholic Church to tread lightly in lecturing the faithful on criminal law enforcement issues. I would like to see the Church robustly support the enforcement of all criminal statutes to protect our citizens from abuse, criminal invasion or violence.
My guess is Chaput knows just how much fuller the collection basket would be each Sunday if the Catholic Church receives an influx of new members from Mexico.
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Immigration bill
Even if you accept as accurate the laughably low number of 12 million “undocumented workers,” the Amnesty-That-Isn’t bill’s provisions permit millions more to enter the country on the shirttails of this original group. It works like this: You have the original 12 million. Add a spouse to each of these. Add to this couple their children (minor or adult? It’s not specified. Step-kids, too?). Being equitably PC, we’ll say each couple has only three kids. Now, add to that number the parents (why?) of both the original “undocumented worker” and his/her spouse. By the way, the bill is conveniently silent on the matter of the minor children of these parents, allowing us to assume these will be 60-something retirees looking only for a good game of canasta down to the community center.
Now, let’s do the math (in millions): 12 + 12 + 36 + 48 =108. Th’s 108 —million—. If my 8th grade math serves, this effectively increases the population of this nation by one-third. In five years. And let’s not forget that despite what the man behind the curtain in the Oval Office and his winged monkeys on both sides of the aisle in Congress are telling us, the actual base number of “undocumented workers” is certainly more than 20 million, and perhaps as high as 30 million.
Whether it’s with the cooked number they’re offering, or the real, much higher number, nobody advocating for Amnesty-that-Isn’t—whether in the media, politics (save Tom Tancredo) or in public and private activism—seems able to do the math.
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Oil
Everytime I listen a Network News broadcast about the spiraling cost of gas, the oil companies always say the same thing — we don’t have enough oil refineries, the American public isn’t cutting back on its oil consumption — there is a greater need for demand than supply — we are not goug
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Ward Churchill
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Iraq war
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Drunken patient
Diana DeGette & stem cell research
Illegal immigrants
Close to my home is a liquor store frequented by illegals working in the area. I observed a truck load of at least five
I attempted to call the Colorado State Patrol three times, *CSP once and twice on the land line, but only got the run-around and was passed off to someone else. This would have been a true daily double if they just got moving – five illegals drinking beer while driving. The government is hopelessly incompetent and looks the other way concerning illegals activities. If an American were to perform the same stunt, the CSP would have responded with a dozen patrol cars on the spot.
I am now convinced that the CSP is only interested in shaking down American motorists through numerous speed traps. Locking up drunken Mexicans is not a revenue stream, particularly when governments require more and more revenue to pay for less and less labor not performed.
The Rocky Mexican News and its staff writers can be so proud of illegals getting away with another one. Maybe a few photos could accompany a pity-me story on why Mexicans have it so hard, take American jobs, and drinking and driving is not a violation.
Teenagers
Obviously, we would all love a chance to change the irresponsible teen and their poor attitude, right? However, a serious part of resolving this problem lies in understanding why teenagers act as they do. Many reasons exist, as teenage behavior has been attributed to everything from hormones to poor potty training, but one part of the why behind the whine may come as a surprise.
I ought to admit right now that I am a teenager myself. While this does give me a bit of a bias, I can tell you from personal experience that adopting the hamster view is extremely discouraging to us as well. I have been involved in ballet, music, competitive speaking, and drama and have met exceptional teenagers who have discarded the stereotype and have achieved incredible things. The sad parts of these teen’s stories are the many shocked adults that wonder how someone that age could possibly have risen to those levels.
Herein lies the problem: One of the main reasons teens lean towards the stereotype is simply because the stereotype exists. Young people between ages thirteen and nineteen must reach a point in their lives where they step out of childhood and into adulthood. Believe it or not, teens do have a desire to be acceptable to adults. They want to fit into the generation they will interact with for the rest of their lives. But too often teens find themselves conveniently tucked away into the stereotype when others expect too little of them because of their age. America must give them points for something; they do meet the expectations of the culture. Teens want to achieve what is expected of them, but when people expect little, they get little.
They the first to turning teens away from this downward spiral is to expect more of them. This should not be done in the sense that they will be punished at every fault, but that adults tell them they can surpass the typical and achieve the excellent. The second step is arguably more important; adults must help them overcome difficulties, teach them to shine, and encourage them for a job well done. The book of Titus from the Bible shows us how to “teach the older. then they can train the younger” (see Titus 2:1-5). Whenever the next generation understands that adults want them to succeed and are willing to help them, instead of simply giving up on them due to their age, we may very well see a change in the stereotype.
Culture must shift from the idea of “You can’t help the way you are; you’re hopeless” to the message of “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example. in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity” (1 Timothy 4:12).
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300-foot towers
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Immigration reform
Is that the same as being “Nativist?” (Heaven forbid!) Incidentally, you identified Chaput (as did he) as “the Archbishop of Denver.” This is incorrect. He is the Archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese headquartered in Denver. This is a common error in identifying the title of an Archibishop. I know you are desirous of accuracy in the “Rocky.”
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Hispanic youth
Had they only picked parents who were not born in this country, and/or are here illegally, taking advantage of the “free” education system, why then everyone and his tio would be bending over backward helping them get through the Byzantine college application process and navigating the financial aid minefield. Unfortunately, my kids picked parents whose grandparents were born here, who speak English like, well, natives
I guess taking it upon themselves to earn straight-As in the absence of any taxpayer funded “community involvement” programs, counseling, tutoring and events designed to propel them into college (along with their poor choice in parents) only goes to show that my kids ain’t the sharpest knives in the drawer!
Say, maybe they can get jobs mowing lawns or cleaning toilets for some of those “Hispanic” kids in the article?
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Immigration bill
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Immigration bill
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Key U.S.-Iranian history unmentioned
Unfortunately, in a region where centuries of memories fuel present-day conflicts, this “history” does not go back further than 29 years.
The most important historical fact about U.S.-Iranian relations was as unmentioned as has been our even more recent military support for the late Saddam Hussein.
And that is this: The CIA, along with the Brits and some Iranian allies, overthrew the democratically elected Mohammad Mossadegh in 1953 (Time magazine’s Man of the Year in 1951). The shah took over. Oil, of course, was the underlying issue.
Iranians know about this; we should, too. Incidentally, the word “blowback,” which encapsulates our current troubles with the radical Islamicists, was first used in a CIA document describing our unfortunate history with Iran.
Brilliant photo
Things have changed; will the Rocky?
For those of us who won’t be coerced into spending more money on cable TV than we presently do, it would be greatly appreciated if the good old reliable daily paper could provide that information.
Some Muslim cities not inherently ‘holy’
Rome, Salt Lake City and Jerusalem are celebrated by some for the religious events that occurred and shrines located in or near these places. News stories about and originating in these cities identify them only by their names.
Kufa, Iraq, is also just a city. It is “newsworthy” only because a notorious Muslim military leader spoke at a mosque there. Why does the Rocky Mountain News (May 26 caption) refer to it “the holy city”? That Kufa has a shrine does not distinguish it from numerous other cities and places the Rocky does not honor with the objective description “holy” — or indeed, any other honorific or descriptive title.
That some Shiites consider Kufa “holy” is an interesting cultural phenomenon. However, Kufa is not objectively “holy.” The Rocky’s characterization of Kufa (and Najaf, for that matter) as “holy” is not news, it is opinion — and it suggests a bias in the Rocky’s reporting about the Muslim world.
Questionable choice
Surely there was other more deserving news, i.e., about our loyal soldiers in Iraq, the latest news about President Bush and his woes and troubles, or the story about Roger Baxter (“Dodging death a 2nd time”) that would have been a better front-page choice and of more interest to more American citizens!
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Democrats & Iraq war
The Democrats take over as the leading party, promising the American voters that a timetable will be given to our withdrawal from Iraq and to show how serious they are, they deny funding the war.
Now, they buckle, giving Bush all the time and money he wants.
Nobody, especially a large number of people, suddenly ‘changes’ their minds for no reason. Even one person doesn’t change their mind so drastically.
When it does happen, it’s rare, and with purpose.
The only thing I can think of is two things: One, Bush has somehow found a way to blackmail anyone and everyone standing in his way. Two, Bush has come into some convincing information that Iraq is about to buckle like the Democratic party.
I say it’s time for the donkey, instead of buckling, buck the elephant in the gonads.
We’ve done all we can in Iraq. The Iraqi people had a taste of Democracy by voting for their own government and new freedoms. If they want to keep it, THEY have to fight for it like America did during the Revolutionary war. I know the real problem is the insurgents. If the Iraqi people want to keep Democracy, friends and families must turn in loved ones who are insurgents, and we must promise them that they won’t be harmed, just imprisoned and reeducated. You can’t convince me that all these Iraqi people we’ve given Democracy to don’t know any insurgents. You can’t have your cake and eat it too. War is not supposed to be polite and compromising.
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Rosie O’Donnell
She was the one who was wagging her finger at
Iraqi Parliament
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Boulder High controversy
As a physician, I know that most teenager’s brains are not mature enough for complex, emotionally involved decisions such as drugs, sex and alcohol, so telling them to “do it responsibly,” and “know your limits” is dangerous nonsense that will get many teens in deep trouble. In addition, the younger children begin to use drugs and alcohol, the more likely they are to become addicted and have more difficulty quitting, much more so than adults. Even marijuana is psychologically addictive for some individuals, and it is harder on the lungs than tobacco.
Boulder got it’s back up in the face of criticism. Admit the mistake, correct the harm, and move on: it’s the adult thing to do.
Diana DeGette & abstinence
She cites research done Mathematica. The Family Research Council reports:
At least, Rep. DeGette should give full information in her analysis.
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Iraq war
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Immigration bill
The bill is seriously flawed on multiple grounds. A few are listed below:
The text of the bill is available on the Heritage Foundation web-site as well as an analysis of provisions and costs. If you find it difficult to believe my points listed above (and there are many more), I urge you to review the bill for yourself.
Our Senators from Colorado appear to support this flawed bill and only a flood of calls and contacts from their constituents are going to do anything to slow their support. One senator seems to have an excess of ethnic solidarity and pride of authorship and the other is following a President who would sign a little yellow rubber ducky if someone would call it “comprehensive immigration reform".
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Privacy
Has Deb
The Rocky
How much ink did the Rocky save last month by decreasing the font size and fading the text? What’s next? No dots on “i’s” or crosses on “t’s”?
Iraq war spending
We elected to change the dynamics of a one-party-in-control-of-all-three-branches scenario, but we apparently got shafted anyhow with new leadership-without-the-courage-of-OUR-convictions scenario.
If we don’t learn from the mistakes of the former USSR, we will soon follow them into oblivion.
The “war” in Afghanistan was the costly last straw for the USSR and Osama-Bin-Laden is playing the same game with us. And,unfortunately, it seems, he’s succeeding.
With the latest 100 billion approved for our little “war", that brings the total to over 600 billion, and that’s over and above the war departments’ budget that they claim is 23 %. (The number is considerably higher when you figure in how many other departments contribute to keeping the military afloat, eg; food stamps for underpaid troops families, housing costs ,fuel costs,maintenance scams and pork projects, to name a few) The actual costs have been estimated at closer to 50 % of our budget.
We can’t afford to keep the Military Industrial Complex in business.( Ike warned us of exactly this 50 years ago.) Unless , of course,you want to be like our ol’ buddies, the Commies, as well as make Osama a very happy man.
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Creationism
People think that if you don’t believe in millions of years, you are unscientific, deceptive, and/or delusional. This is understandable because cartoons, movies, schools, natural history museums, and zoos all express millions of years as undisputed fact.
In reality, creationists embrace science. Many top engineers and scientists believe in a young earth, including MRI pioneer Dr. Raymond Damadian. The scientific method itself stems from belief in an orderly God who established natural laws we could discover through repeatable tests. Therefore, most of our current scientific disciplines were founded by creationists.
Evolutionary thinking has actually held back scientific discovery. Organs with unknown functionality were considered “vestigial” and went decades without being properly researched. Then there was “junk” DNA, which we now know has key functions. Please keep an open mind and find out more than a caricature of what creationists believe.
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A DIFFERING VIEW: Immigration opponents killed driver’s license bill
There’s been so much confusion around House Bill 1313, which I sponsored, that I think it’s having an identity crisis! (“Driver’s license sanity,” Rocky editorial, June 5.)
As widely reported, Colorado citizens were unable to get driver’s licenses or photo ID cards because the Division of Motor Vehicles had adopted overly stringent rules. The bill would have clarified the documents legal residents must present to get a state ID.
Applicants could use government-issued documents, such as U.S. passports, some out-of-state licenses, birth certificates and military IDs as proof of legal status. All documents provided must be secure and verifiable in accordance with current law. Staff at the DMV were free to take more time to verify documents that are not in wide use.
Opponents, led largely by right-wing radio talk-show hosts, trumped up concerns that the bill would allow illegal immigrants to get identification. Through misrepresentation and politically motivated rhetoric, the legislation was mischaracterized as an immigration issue.
Illegal immigration is a legitimate concern, one that I share. That’s why a year ago, the legislature passed the toughest package of immigration laws in the country.
Unfortunately, anti-immigration activists who misrepresented HB 1313 managed to get their voices heard. Subsequently, the governor vetoed the bill.
Now citizens must rely on the DMV to ensure that legal residents who are entitled to receive a state ID will be able to do so. I hope the DMV will provide appropriate and responsive customer service to the citizens of Colorado.
The politically correct will destroy this nation
Among Kucera’s “head-in-the-sand” drivel, he states, “ ... it was our invasion of Iraq that created or brought the terrorists there. Had we not invaded, we would not be fighting Iraqi terrorists in Baghdad or Main Street U.S.A.”
Really, Mr. Kucera? Let me ask you which terrorists held American hostages for 444 days in 1979? Who blew up the Pan Am flight over Scotland in the ’80s? Which terrorists blew up the Marine barracks or the various embassies? Which terrorists blew a hole in the side of the USS Cole? Which terrorists blew out the World Trade Center parking garage in 1993?
Ignorance of the Bush administration? How about the ignorance of granola-munching pacifists like Kucera whose political correctness is what will destroy this country.
Churchill profound, knowledgeable
Comparing his scholarly credentials to those of the man who has recommended his dismissal is perfectly ludicrous. The case against Churchill is without intellectual substance and without ethical merit.
The firing of Churchill would be an immense blow to academic freedom and to the educational quality that academic freedom protects. It would also be an immense loss to the intellectual community at the University of Colorado. I will continue to do everything within my power to prevent this from happening.
Professor, Department of Sociology
University of Colorado at Boulder
Driver’s license Catch-22
Round and round she goes and where she stops nobody knows.
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Iraq war
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Iraq war
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Ward Churchill
The recommendation of the P&T Committee was the end result of due process.
It was Ward Churchill’s final appeal, necessitated by the laughable ignorance of American Indian studies demonstrated by the Standing Committee on Research Misconduct, which recommended termination. It was an ignorance which presumably accounts for the marked disparity in penalties recommended by the two committees, and is verified by the charges of academic misconduct being filed against the Standing Committee by numerous scholars who are actually conversant in the field.
That Hank Brown can ignore this final result of due process should send icewater chills down every CU faculty member’s spine. And given that it’s been their refusal to stand up for even their own rights that’s allowed it, I hope they understand the ramifications.
I hope they understand that any expression deviating from mainstream opinion — as dictated by Clear Channel, of course — will result in their being purged. I hope they understand that they’ve been complicit in the destruction of every protection afforded them in the name of academic freedom, not to mention their constitutional rights. I hope they understand that the only career path left for them at CU is to keep their mouths shut and their heads under their desks.
Not that doing so should be a problem.
That’s what they do best.
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Eco-terrorists
Illegal immigrants
The news likes to report that the jobs are “unwanted” by Americans, but I highly doubt this is true. I am aware of several Denver area companies that purposefully advertise only on Hispanic radio and newspapers for open positions. This pretty much ensures they can pay less for those jobs and doesn’t give the opportunities to our own legal citizens first!
What about all of our own people — legal U.S. citizens living in poverty in the U.S.? Are our own legal citizens not as important as those who snuck into our nation illegally? Charity begins at home!
What strange priorities people seem to have these days!
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Prison gangs
I wonder if your AP guest reporter, Susan Montoya Bryan, could shed light on the practice (which I have come to believe is very widespread) of jail administrators, at all levels of jurisdiction, allowing gangs to thrive inside prison walls.
My concern is the “favors owed” factor amid gang retention of ex-cons. A gang leader in prison lent his Sport Utility Vehicle to other gang members on the outside, and that vehicle was used in a drive-by killing. Connections to gang-related financial opportunities and guns is certain.
Of course I am remembering Denver Bronco Darrent Williams. I sense very little political will to deal with gang loyalties in prisons because, I am told, the prison administrators use internal gangs to help control the wards. This gang-culture mentality is not much different than how well-armed militias controlled Iraq for Saddam Hussein. Look at the big picture of that.
The problem with prisons letting gangs function, and strengthen, is that the associations bring gang ethics back into our communities (about 100,000 prisoners are released in Colorado every year). Even if they didn’t have gang allegiances when they entered prisons, most convicts have formed allegiances by the time they are released back into civilization.
Gang affiliation has become a survival instinct for prisoners. I presume a lot of the gang mayhem in our communities is a direct result of our not caring about gangs within the institutions of incarceration. And yet we see the long list of gang victims and ask why?
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Ward Churchill
Now some new whack job professor, Tom Mayer, has emerged from the L
Why would CU consider the defensive rantings of these whack-job academic terrorists? Does ethnic intimidation, fraud in resume representation, thuggery and intimidation in the classroom, minority mis-representation for hiring quota fulfillment, and overall academic fraud matter to CU, outside of the lunatic fringe of Ward defenders? Will David Lane continue to represent Ward while it is becoming more and more apparent that their positioning is just nitpicking, instead of an actual defense?
In a country where more people vote for American Idol than cast ballots in an election, anything can happen. My hope is that sanity will prevail, and this tempest in a teapot will slip beneath the waves, as Ward retires to the un-Native American reservation somewhere.
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Immigration bill
Thats roughly 200,000 to a 800,000 new homes in Colorado, to house these new residents. Thats great for real estate agents and construction companies, but not for those of us that love Colorado’s open space and clean natural environment. This many new people will require MORE schools, more roads, more doctors, more hospitals, more cars, more stores, more oil refineries...in short more everything! Except, that means less for everybody already here, less open space, less forest, less quality of life, less access to doctors or medical care, less clean air.
This is an “amnesty” bill, no matter what President Bush or Senator Salazar says it is. The other shame on this bill, is that these new “legal” residents will be entitled to Social Security payments, and Medicare almost immediately (after becoming “legal”) under current court decisions. These programs are so underfunded now that they stand little chance of being viable in 20 years. Adding millions of new people to the benefit roles will only speed that collapse.
We need to oppose this bad bill for very many reasons. This bill will change our way of life forever! Lets at least slow down, and not rush this through the Senate without examining every detail and every possible consequence before it changes all our lives forever.
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Diana DeGette & abstinence
Jesus Christ to an adulterous woman: Go, and sin no more.
Rep. Diane DeGette to school children: Here’s a condom; here’s how to use it; go, and sin.
Jesus Christ focused simply on the problem: Sin.
Jesus Christ focused very simply on the solution: STOP SINNING.
But people like Rep. DeGette must think that “sin” is not the problem; they must think that God/Jesus Christ is the problem. So their solution is more condoms, more contraceptives, more treatments, more cures; more money spent on condoms, contraceptives, treatments and cures; more abortions and more sinning.
There are earthly consequences to committing a crime/sin and there are eternal consequences to committing a crime/sin — just as there are eternal consequences to being an enabler who condo
There’s Christ’s way and there’s DeGette’s way. And plain and simply, the two are opposed to one another.
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A DIFFERING VIEW: ‘Clean Cars’ law would protect health, environment
The problem is we’re still on the verge of violating these standards. I think we should do something about it.
Immigration bill costly, inept
The Bush-Kennedy-Salazar approach is to create a complicated bill with vast government regulations that will, of course, ineptly deal with the nuances and nonsense of their own new amnesty bill. None apparently believe that the rule of law means too much anymore.
This bill masquerading as “immigration reform” will do more to change your life than any other legislation. Heritage Foundation studies (Kennedy-Bush-Salazar don’t have any) suggest that the amnesty bill will cost the American taxpayer about $2 trillion in the coming years and would allow another perhaps 100 million people to enter the country. Can you imagine the economic, the cultural and the environmental impact of this approach? Your senators and the president are thoughtless and probably corrupt.
Sen. Ken Salazar, much like last summer, has become Kennedy’s lapdog on this issue. He virtually sees no evil when it comes to Mexicans illegally among us. Perhaps we can all remember this for the 2010 election.
Conflicted conservative
On this issue, conservatives are as enthusiastic for social engineering as any socialist. They are willing to curtail economic freedom when it clashes with their cherished goal of planning the composition of the U.S. population. With friends like these, free enterprise hardly needs enemies.
Salazar owes us an explanation
Unfortunately, the proposed bill is a disaster. Its most important impact would be to greatly increase the numbers of immigrants, legal and illegal, flowing into our country. Who really thinks rewarding more than 10 million illegal immigrants with legal residency will help get our borders under control?
Salazar owes his constituents an explanation of how this massive increase in immigration will be good for our country. He is a senator from Colorado, not Mexico.
Yet no such explanation has been forthcoming. He has even called opponents of his bill “bomb throwers” on the floor of the U.S. Senate, where we sent him to represent us.
Yet the questions remain: How will flooding our labor markets help working Americans negotiate better wages?
How will doubling the U.S. population over the next 35 years, as this bill promises to do, help us protect our environment and create a sustainable society?
Still time to stop this immigration betrayal
In his prophetic new book, State of Emergency, Pat Buchanan discusses the effects of immigration, legal and illegal, and its danger to our nation. He, along with many others, concludes that unless action is taken to restore the sovereignty of this country, its destruction is assured.
There is still time to put a stop to this betrayal. Write, call or e-mail the White House, your senators and representatives immediately and demand they vote to stop this travesty.
The mindless mob rants “racism” and “nativism” when alerted to this peril. The call to action of the patriot must be “Attrition, yes! Amnesty, no!”
Moral high ground?
Taking the moral high ground is problematic when the commander-in-chief and the vice president have violated U.S. citizens’ civil rights and have decided that the Geneva Conventions are optional.
I am an honorably discharged veteran from the Vietnam era. I am disappointed by the president’s and vice president’s disregard for law.
A simple solution
If you don’t like what a company is doing, don’t give it your money. This is how capitalism works. If enough people stop giving McDonald’s money, the company will change its ways.
The best part of this plan? You don’t need the government to make it work.
Abstinence provides very happy results
If “Abstinence-only programs fly in the face of scientific and medical research, public opinion and common sense ... ” could DeGette please explain how I and my wife followed that philosophy before our marriage, and we have three adult children (one still single) who have followed an abstinence-only (until marriage) way of living, and we have found great joy, fulfillment, no guilt, no abortions, no STDs, no emotional baggage to deal with?
And we are not unique. We know many who have followed this same lifestyle to very good results.
So here is my question for DeGette: Could she give me the “scientific and medical research” that demonstrates how one can get pregnant or get STDs by practicing abstinence?
A pole-and-wire scar
As far as I am concerned, this new measure comes too late. We already have an abundance of mistakes in parking deficiencies, ridiculously long and exposed walkways, unsafe stations and high costs of usage, not to mention a line that goes nowhere. Most regretfully of all, we have a pole-and-wire scar on the face of what once was a beautiful Colorado. Progress — where were you when we needed you?
A DIFFERING VIEW: Immigration opponents killed driver’s license bill
As widely reported, Colorado citizens were unable to get driver’s licenses or photo ID cards because the Division of Motor Vehicles had adopted overly stringent rules. The bill would have clarified the documents legal residents must present to get a state ID.
Applicants could use government-issued documents, such as U.S. passports, some out-of-state licenses, birth certificates and military IDs as proof of legal status. All documents provided must be secure and verifiable in accordance with current law. Staff at the DMV were free to take more time to verify documents that are not in wide use.
Opponents, led largely by right-wing radio talk-show hosts, trumped up concerns that the bill would allow illegal immigrants to get identification. Through misrepresentation and politically motivated rhetoric, the legislation was mischaracterized as an immigration issue.
Illegal immigration is a legitimate concern, one that I share. That’s why a year ago, the legislature passed the toughest package of immigration laws in the country.
Unfortunately, anti-immigration activists who misrepresented HB 1313 managed to get their voices heard. Subsequently, the governor vetoed the bill.
Now citizens must rely on the DMV to ensure that legal residents who are entitled to receive a state ID will be able to do so. I hope the DMV will provide appropriate and responsive customer service to the citizens of Colorado.
When Congress diverts funds from social programs to the war machine, they devastate the conditions necessary for equality, justice and democracy in our society. As a result, our collective well-being suffers. When we kill the innocent of other lands by the thousands and destroy the lives of millions with our tanks, artillery, bombers, and other weapons, we become a feared and hated nation. And we become subjects for attack because the victims will want to strike back.
Come join us at a Town Hall meeting on Thursday, June 7 to discuss what we can do to stop these illegal actions that are being committed in our name.
The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at Humanities 1B50, University of Colorado, Boulder.
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Virginia Tech killer
Anyone who claims that Seung-Hui
Carbon dioxide
Ironically, many of the same people now say we must act IMMEDIATELY to stop emission of CO2 - which may cause global warming - which may be more than 2 degrees F - which may be a crisis (according to Gore) - which may be acting too quickly, on the basis of bad information.
Unfortunately our knowledge of “global warming” is even less certain than our knowledge of Saddam’s WMD. Let’s not make war on carbon dioxide, and the American economy, until we know more about “global warming” than we did about IRAQ’s WMD.
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Illegal immigrants
Evidently, the letter writer is not a business owner, business manager, investor, or a religous person. In case Crosier didn’t know, business owners and business managers are very much in need of hiring good workers.
In case Crosier was not aware, these immigrants numbering in the millions are just what the business owners and managers are looking for and they greet them with open arms. Investors by the hundreds of thousands greet them with open arms also because these people who Crosier so very much maligns, help keep our economy going. As an investor, home owner, avid grocery store customer, English teacher, deeply religious person, I love and welcome, these immigrants from the South.
Iraq war
The poignant photograph of the incredibly courageous, paralyzed Staff Sgt. Matthew Keil, held in the warm embrace of his loving family, is heartbreaking.
Heartbreaking, too, is the headline below: “Congress bends to Bush, approves Iraq funds without timeline.”
If there is no timeline, when will the war that George Bush proclaimed as “Mission Accomplished” over four years ago end?
How many other Matthews will there be? When, and in what condition, will they come home?
In light of last November’s election, widely considered a mandate against the President’s Iraq policy, why did only one member of the Colorado Congressional delegation, the principled Ed Permutter, vote against pouring $95,000,000,000 more into it?
I wonder how the others from Colorado, from Congress, would vote if Matthew Keil were their child? For in truth, I believe, he is.
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Military pay raise
Sunday Denver Post, too, had great articles about the fallen and our need to remember them. No doubt, the Post/News supports our troops.
Then I turn to the Spotlight section, and the comics. I’ve only a few favorites; I’m anxious to check their take on the day.
I get to “Candorville,” and there’s something about President Bush refusing to give our troops a 3.5% pay raise. Hmm. I go back through the news and editorial sections of the Rocky, looking for more about this. Nothing.
So I go to the RockyMountainNews online, do a search for “Military Pay Raise.” Still nothing.
So I go to Google, where the same search instantly brings up the story - U.S. House of Representatives votes overwhelmingly for 3.5% pay raise for the military, but White House says it’s too much - wants only 3.0%. The half-percent difference amounts to $265 million a year. A tiny percentage of the military budget.
Yet our supposedly pro-troop President threatens to veto it! We have a son on his second tour in Baghdad right now, and are only too familiar with the strain this interminable war is creating on servicemen and women, and their families. And now, on Memorial Day, I learn that his Commander-in-Chief, who personally engineered billions in tax cuts for this country’s increasingly wealthy super-rich, and who recently extended the tours of those paying the full measure of sacrifice to protect them, and all of us, begrudges those same servicemen and women a 3.5% pay raise! Not only that, but my first knowledge of this comes not from my hometown newspaper’s news or editorial sections, but from its comics section!
The San Jose Mercury News saw fit to publish a David Broder editorial on this situation in its Memorial Day edition. Why has the Rocky apparently ignored it? Who is controlling what appears in our paper, and why?
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Iraq war
As the old saying goes meanwhile back in the Pacific, the Japanese once mighty Army, Navy and Air Force was just a shell of itself. People in the Government and the Military still would not admit defeat. Even after two atomic bombs some believed that total annihilation of the Japanese Nation was better than admit defeat. It wasn’t till the Emperor of Japan when on radio and told the people that the war had gone the way it was planed (dose this sound familiar) that peace was finally at hand.
I don’t know if these questions have even been asked, so I will.
How many American lives would it take before you started to think that this may be a bad idea? A
How long would you have us stay in Iraq? A
Also we would just some money back in from of tax. Then FEMA could take over from the Military (oops bad idea).
I do see some down side. 1 when uses the phone, press 1 for English
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Teen sexuality & pregnancy
Immigration bill
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‘Islamofascists’
So what might an Islamofascist be, a Moslem who supports the control of government by the corporate sector? After all, Benito Mussolini, the father of fascism, explained that, “fascism should more appropriately be called Corporatism because it is a merger of State and Corporate power.” Doesn’t sound like Islamic extremism to me.
Accordingly, in this country we no doubt have many Christofascists and Semitofascists. And while we’re making up words, how about informofascists? Those are corporate-owned news media folks who publish government pronouncements without regard for truth or accuracy, thus lending credibility to questionable propaganda.
Of course, we can’t ignore the ignoramofascists, the folks who have adopted the term Islamofascist without question, and now will respond to this letter with ad hominem attacks (against the messenger not the message), calling me a “socialist” and “America-hater,” when all I’m doing is helping our Administration label all the enemies of freedom and democracy. Can anyone be opposed to that? (Cue the patriotic music, unfurl the flag, drop the red, white and blue balloons, stir the emotions.)
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Iraq war
Freedom does not result in democracy, not in all cases, not in every context. The Bush-administration neoconservatives deluded the President and the people with promises, that all we had to do is unclear the oppressed Iraqis and a thousand democratic flowers would bloom. It is not a criticism of Iraqi ethnicity, this is not a racist claim nor argument of mental deficiency to say that they can’t handle freedom. But they are not prepared: there is not a culture or tradition of public trust and informed participation in self-governance; on the contrary, there are many traditions of tribalism, vendetta, and charismatic factionalism. You open the stops on that, and you don’t get heavenly organ music. The neoconservatives are inherently averse to academic liberal thought — the educational background of the Jeffersonian-era philosophy which founded our nation — but rather put blind faith in the corrective powers of capitalistic market forces. As if Iraq’s oil wealth would trickle down and magically transform them into happy burqa- and turban-wearing western-style consumers. They didn’t understand what is primary — liberal democratic philosophy — and what is secondary, or consequential: a prosperous and peaceful society. Instead, they thrust freedom and wealth (including pallets — LITERALLY TONS — of cash intended to lubricate commerce) upon an unprepared society and assumed democracy would spontaneously erupt as a side-effect. I suppose they give their teenaged children buckets of cash and keys to new cars, too, eh?
Pre-emptive invasion must not be rewarded. Tyrannical aggressive shock-and-awe warfare must not become profitable policy. Crass and calculated manipulation of press and public by lies, big lies, and repeated propagandistic lies must not succeed. No future administration or generation can be allowed to evaluate that as heinous as it was, it was worth it in the end.
We must lose in Iraq, or we will lose the American soul.
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Immigration bill
Virtually every step that Congress and the Administration have taken toward securing the border has been backed into under pressure from the voters. The National Guardsmen who were sent to the border but not assigned to guard the border, the 700-mile fence on paper that has become the two-mile fence in practice, and the existing “tough” penalties for the crime of crossing the border illegally that in practice mean turning the illegal border crossers loose so that they can try again.
The new immigration bill supposedly would secure the borders administratively, but does not wait to see if administration in fact reduces the flow of illegal immigrants before taking the irrevocable step of making American citizenship available to 12 million who came here illegally. This solves the problem of those illegal immigrants who want to get citizenship; the steps that they have to go through only allow politicians to say that this is not amnesty because these steps are “tough". There is nothing to say that any of the 12 million people here illegally shall start the process of becoming citizens.
This bill gets the issue out of the political spotlight solving the problem of politicians to mollify American voters without risking loss of the Hispanic vote. Meaning the growth of the illegal population is irreversible but the means of controlling the growth of illegal’s are quite reversible Both de facto through the watering down of the enforcement of “tough”
requirements and de jure through later repeals deeming the requirements too “tough” on the privileged class.
But no penalties are likely to be enforced against state and local politicians who openly declare “sanctuary” for illegal immigrants. Officials sworn to uphold the law instead forbid the police to report the illegal status of immigrants to federal officials when these illegal’s are arrested for other crimes. This is perfectly consistent for a bill that seeks above all to solve politicians’ problems, not the country’s.
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Diana DeGette & abstinence
We all know this, but maybe don’t understand it. We discount the conclusions and doubt the science of those with whom we disagree. I might discount Global Warming, for example. I don’t doubt the observations of those scientists, but I doubt the conclusions pundits have about those observations. And we shouldn’t despise people who refuse to fall in line behind our conclusions, at least not publicly. Maybe our politics cloud our vision, and prejudice our grasp of the facts.
DeGette states that the US has the highest teen pregnancy rate in the Western world, “clearly what we are doing is not working”. I don’t doubt her statistics. But her point is that we’ve been pursuing a solution, the problem is still bad, so that solution doesn’t work. She states that children must be educated, implying that until now, they have not been.
I’d say she oversimplifies a cultural problem that has many origins that needs addressing from many directions.
My personal preference for a solution, if I had a magic wand, would be for parents to be better parents; for government to be responsible for almost nothing in society (certainly not the reduction of teen pregnancy); and especially keeping legislators from legislating things they don’t understand. When government resources are dedicated to a problem, existing resources are redirected elsewhere, leaving no one but feckless bureaucrats to solve the problem in question.
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Gas prices
The Bloomberg “double dividend” tax misallocation scheme would result in a major drag on the economy, incomes and jobs by extracting money from the economic pipeline. It would put Detroit and related infrastructure industries out of business in a heartbeat. It also destroys a system best served by market forces; there is no such thing as a “free lunch” in a market driven economy. You simply can’t tax your way into prosperity.
Mr. Bloomberg is an engineer employed by yet another solar energy company that supplies little or no energy. Such companies are not part of the solution. It is no wonder that he failed to consider increasing the “supply” of crude oil in the “supply and demand” equation. After all, with 85% of the outer continental shelf out of bounds, ANWR out of bounds, no new crude oil refineries or nuclear power plants built in the past 30 years, Mr.
Bloomberg lives at the trough of a very friendly misallocation of resources.
It is understandable, therefore, that his solar agenda could not get past channeling energy from the stars rather than advocating the more obvious solutions. His attempt to re-engineer the law of supply and demand with a tax scheme, moreover, would only further misallocate financial, economic and natural resources. Karl Marx would be happy to see Bloomberg’s America driving down “the road to serfdom.” No thanks.
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Drunken patient
The next day I may be embarrassed about my conduct and only grudgingly tell others about my reckless debauch. Or with my ego bristling I lash out at those who tried to help me and keep me from hurting myself and others. Seems to me that Howe has been psychologically injured before this event and perceiving herself a victim doesn’t mind being publicly humiliated so long as she can get some money out of it. Personal responsibility becomes casualty to ego and greed. How’s that for cruel and snidely vicious?
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Time to drop Boulder High controversy
Dan Caplis and Craig Silverman are blowing this out of proportion.
I listen to C&S when I can and have found the show to be interesting and entertaining especially when both sides of the issues are presented fairly and thoughtfully and would like to see the same done here. The show came closer to doing this recently when a psychologist from Boulder and Kopel were interviewed.
After listening to the tape from the workshop in question, I don’t like or condone much of what was said and I agree with the steps that BHS has already taken to make it clear that these workshops are optional. There may even be justification for a letter from Boulder school officials disavowing their support for some of what was said, but the “off with their heads” sentiment is way over the top.
Let’s give some credit to our young people who, I believe, are very capable of thinking for themselves. And let’s also credit BHS for the things it does in making it one of only two Colorado high schools listed in the Top 200 in Newsweek’s annual Top 1,200 High Schools in America listing (www.msnbc.
msn.com/id/12532678/site/newsweek/), surpassed only by Lakewood High School.
It’s time to let this story drop and get on to the far more important subjects that deserve attention and thoughtful discussion.
Parents the problem
That is one of the major problems of parents today: They are not upset with what their kids are taught. They don’t give them moral guidance or slap their little behinds. If it makes you feel good, have at it.
If I had a child in Boulder High School, I would pull him or her out of there so fast the suction of that withdrawal would whisk the three principals in this degrading episode out into the street where the trash men would pick them up and toss them and the rest of their garbage at the nearest dump.
A DIFFERING VIEW: Greatest terrorists are industry, government
Global studies show that 80 percent of the forests on this planet are cleared, 75 percent of marine life is exploited and 23 percent of all mammals are threatened species as a direct result of the industrial expansion of the developed world. One million animals raised in squalid and cruel conditions are slaughtered every hour for American consumption and industry profit. All of this occurs with the acquiescence and support of the U.S. government.
This brought to mind a true incident of several years ago. I was driving East on 16th Ave., where the side streets have stop signs. A car pulled up to the stop sign and, as I approached, the driver pulled out in front of me and drove away. I missed striking his car by inches, so I used lights and siren to pull him over. As I approached, I noticed he was a Foreign National. After some effort in explaining I needed his driver’s license and registration, I finally had them in hand and began explaining why I had stopped him. I stated “You didn’t stop completely at the stop sign.” He stated in broken English “I stop!” I then knew he did not know he had to remain stopped until traffic was clear. With my limited knowledge of his language and 15 minutes, I explained the Rules of the Road.
This brings the point of this article. We need to take the drivers testing out of the hands of the “All Mighty Dollar”, chasers “Dept. of Revenue” and put it in the hands (along with additional resources) of the people who pick up the dead bodies off our highways, “The State Patrol”. The Dept. of Revenue allows too many “Translators” to take the tests for these Foreign National in an effort to increase revenues. We need to increase safety and if that is at the cost of revenues in this area, “then so be it”. Our safety is more important than a few bucks in the coffers and RTD needs more people to take the newly opened mass transit system. TWO PROBLEMS SOLVED!
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Rep. Diana DeGette & abstinence
What doesn’t work is to deviate from the age-old time tested wisdom which is eminently reasonable and which is expressed in the rock solid ten commandments. Despite the vagaries of well-meaning but incredibly ignorant efforts of legislators like Diana DeGette, we should always teach and hold as self-evident that we should not steal, not kill, not lie and not fornicate despite the dubious track record of a struggling humanity. We see the right and approve it, too.
We see the wrong and the wrong pursue.
That’s the fact. Let’s own up to it...but not give up. Abstinence is not useless. It works!
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Iraq war
Ultimately time conflates and events transpose irregardless of the so-called casus belli, (a burning Reichstag or a 9/11). Add the Nazi-styled helmet adopted by our military and it only crystallizes what we apparently don’t want to see. Add private/covert mercenary armies like Blackwater USA (a latter-day “SS”) and the fog begins to lift.
Both “crusades” require(d) abundant lies and steady supplies of paranoia: “Liberating the oppressed,” “safeguarding the homeland,” hunting “terrorists” hostile to the domestic weltanschauung, leaders answering to “a higher authority” while pledged to divide et impera, Dei gratia!, and, lastly, feeling as if in “the eye of a storm. All around us winds are swirling” (Bush, 5/23/07). History does indeed repeat what isn’t learned.
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National Guard legislation
Supporting this legislation supports
Coloradans can see a glimmer of
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Illegal immigrants
We do not owe illegal aliens this great gift of legitimacy and potential citizenship, permission to radically alter our culture and heavily dilute our workforce with people who place little value on education. If Mexico allows dual citizenship and Mexicans comprise the lion’s share of illegal aliens, why would any Mexican give up Mexican citizenship when he can be both? We must secure our borders, enforce current law, and eliminate jobs for illegal workers. We must penalize American companies that fill their pockets while the rest of us pay the costs.
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Denver Public Schools
How do we help students and families overcome barriers to achieve academic success? Support staff work to meet needs created by poverty, but the job is difficult. Currently most of the support staff in DPS are staffed at about 1/3 of nationally recommended levels.
The multiple problems that students face must be validated and addressed, whichever school systems they and their families choose.
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Oil
Instead, the proposals we get from DC are more of the same old same old. Drilling our pristine areas for every last drop of oil. But guess what? Less than 2% of the world’s remaining oil supply is here in the U.S., and we need to wake up to the fact that we’ll never drill our way to energy independence.
What we need is to promote renewable energy as a country and independently. Also, we need to start working and living closer to home. This means driving less and getting to know your neighbors and community.
If the people in Denver would work in Denver, and the people in Boulder would work in Boulder... We would have a substantial decrease in traffic, just by this step step alone.
Also, Corporate America needs to start analyzing the need to have workers commute to a specific location every day. With today’s technological advancements, it is possible to have remote workers. This would save our planet by reducing carbon emissions.
Corporations and Families would also benefit from this practice by reducing the costs of commuting, and reducing Corporate costs to house employees in buildings that are no longer necessary to have.
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Unintended pregnancies
The federal government recently commissioned a study by The Mathematica Institute to look at the effectiveness of the abstinence only until marriage programs that, thus far, have received nearly one billion dollars from the federal government. The result? “Findings indicate that youth in the [abstinence only] program group were no more likely than the control group youth to have abstained from sex, and among those who reported having had sex, they had similar numbers of sexual partners and initiated sex at the same mean age.”
Colorado ranks 22nd in the nation in total teen pregnancies. Every hour in Colorado a teenager becomes pregnant. We can do better for our young people. It is time to put our resources toward programs that put prevention first like House Bill 1292. Now if a school teaches human sexuality the information used must be medically-accurate, age-appropriate and comprehensive. We know that teens with good information make good decisions.
Unplanned pregnancy can represent a real challenge for women and their families. Let’s start getting at the root of the problem and give our young people the education, information and services they need to make responsible choices.
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Republican leadership
Gov. Ritter, patriot, recently signed a bill giving gays protection in the workplace, a bill that Owens has repeatedly vetoed. Owens and his GOP posse with their gay marriage and flag-burning bans, should cough up a few apologizes here. They weren’t publicly vocal against gays, when gays were fighting and dying in their stead in Vietnam. They weren’t even vocal in opposition when black “soldier-draftees
Where did the GOP’s blood and treasure break to? I proudly join U.S. Rep. Jack Murtha (USMC Vietnam War hero), “I wouldn’t serve in today’s armed forces with these guys and their deferments
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Boulder High controversy
They were emphasizing the point that ignorance can lead to the spread of STD’s and unwanted pregnancies and that education about safe sex and drug use can prevent these calamities. This was not a one-sided argument either as each panelist did clearly state that abstinence is the only 100% effective way to not get pregnant and to not contract STD’s. Also, we were not FORCED to go to these conferences. The auditorium was used as a outside location for certain conferences and was open to the general public. This was not a scheme designed to poison children’s minds with evil thoughts, but an informative and engaging conference. Also, the school board and administration, including our principal Bud Jenkins, had no part in organizing this conference. All of the conferences at Boulder High were sponsored by students. They decided on the topic and contacted the panelists. Therefore, it is unfair to judge our school’s administration for “promoting” the views of the panelists. In your report, you not only portrayed a false claim, but wrongfully humiliated us. This whole issue has been blown WAY out of proportion. This report is the perfect example of corruption and political agenda in today’s media. It is so pathetic and I am disgusted that someone like you have used a well-renowned source to slander us. No one is going to be fired because they had NOTHING to do with the conference, and you had no right to say those outrageous claims. YOU should be the one that is held accountable for YOUR actions. Check your facts and your sources before you present another report. We demand that you to make a public apology to our city, our school, our administration, and the students. You cannot slander us without repercussions. We will not stay quiet and lets these lies be spread.
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Baseload power not friendly to renewables
Now, as we learn more and more about the environmental disaster that is coal-fired electricity, Rocky Mountain News columnist Linda Seebach and the electric company Tri-State are telling us how effective coal-fired electricity is (“Energy conservation a small piece of the pie,” May 19).
What the electric companies aren’t telling us, is that every baseload power plant they build now is just that much less renewable energy that we will be able to build later.
Baseload electricity plants — be they conventional “dirty” coal, integrated gasification combined cycle “cleaner” coal or nuclear — do not play nicely in the grid sandbox with intermittent renewables like wind and solar.
Instead of planning lots of 50-plus-years’ commitment baseload plants and then allowing small amounts of renewable power, I want our power companies to be designing a grid and electric system that can support as much renewable energy as possible — and that means that every baseload power plant under construction or being planned is a mistake.
I guess I wouldn’t mind so much if electric companies paid for their own mistakes, but they don’t. We do.
Can Udall be trusted in the Senate?
Sound like George Bush? Actually it’s our own 2nd Congressional District Rep. Mark Udall. On May 10, Udall joined Republicans and voted against 168 of his own Democrats to vote no on Rep. Jim McGovern’s bill that would have begun redeployment of U.S. forces from Iraq within 90 days and completed withdrawal of most U.S. forces within 180 days after that — basically, nine months in all.
This vote happened only one day after more than half of the Iraqi Parliament signed a legislative bill calling on the U.S. to set a timetable for withdrawal. A March poll showed that 69 percent of Iraqis surveyed said the presence of U.S. soldiers is making the situation in their country worse.
The terrifying human and financial costs of this war are bankrupting the U.S. and endangering our security here at home as Hurricane Katrina and the recent tornado in Kansas have demonstrated.
Udall is deaf to the people of the 2nd District and has proved himself unworthy to be our representative. If we cannot trust him to represent us now, why should he merit our trust in the Senate?
Coffman’s ‘lapses’ are not surprising
To those who pay attention, Mike Coffman’s “lapses of judgment” and “failures in leadership” are nothing new. This is a man who flies into a rage when someone disagrees with him, and who, at his advanced age, abandoned his state post and sent himself to Iraq in a grandstanding ploy to show his blind support for this administration’s failed policies in the Middle East.
In the 2006 election for secretary of state, voters had a choice between this man and a much more qualified and ethical opponent, but chose the former, in spite of efforts to educate them.
The Republicans dearly need Coffman in this position to oversee elections in Colorado in order to carry out their plan for the 2008 presidential election. It’s “politics as usual” in this country, and we got what we asked for in this case. The upcoming election will be determined by the secretaries of state and other election officials, not by the candidates, as we witnessed in 2000 and 2004.
Is Al Gore the new ‘Tailgunner Joe’?
Could Albert Gore Jr. suffer a similar fate?
With each announcement that the science of climate change is “settled,” more scientists become uneasy with politicians dictating what the scientific “consensus” shall be. Skeptics and dissidents are derided as “deniers,” and there have been calls for their expulsion from professional organizations.
The most visible spokesman of this philosophy is the former vice president.
When honest disagreement is answered by allegations of bad moral character, a familiar chill seriously weakens our search for answers.
Horse slaughter not always a bad thing
Many people believe that horse slaughter is a cruel and inhumane practice. However, without the option of slaughter, many horse owners would be forced to abandon their animals in the event of an economic crisis. The option of horse slaughter is a valuable alternative for those who can’t afford to have their horse put down by a professional.
Horse meat, which is primarily exported to European and Asian countries, brings in a rather large revenue. Should horse slaughter be banned in the U.S., not only would the horse industry suffer, due to a surplus of horses with no homes, but the economy would be damaged as well.
As a horse lover, I understand how no one would want their horse to be served for dinner in some foreign country; however, under the circumstances, there are very few options.
A base tactic
It is possible to send a clear and convincing message to those with whom we disagree using diplomacy and tact. Adults should aspire to be role models for our youth and should, therefore, attempt to conduct themselves with dignity and thoughtfulness. Ensz did neither; she should be ashamed of herself.
A DIFFERING VIEW: Amnesty for immigrants is still a loser
If NAFTA has taught us anything, it is that such a scheme will bankrupt this country, and forever destroy the American dream for succeeding generations.
Playhouse performer treated shabbily
My daughter was a Barnstormer (a pre-show performer) and also appeared in the current show Evita. While it is true, as the Rocky Mountain News reported, that Equity actors got paid for their performances, the Barnstormers did not.
My daughter and, I’m sure, other Barnstormers were not only not paid for their work as Barnstormers or for acting in Evita, but many of them had paid hundreds of dollars just to be in the show, knowing that she would recoup the cost of that during the run of the show. (She paid $400 for the cost of her child care during rehearsals.)
She and her husband were in the process of moving to a new residence when she got the call about the closure. She had hired movers knowing that between barnstorming and the show she would not have the time to move their belongings. So, in essence, the closing of the playhouse without warning to the employees, cost this one employee in excess of $1,500 which she would not have spent without her signed contract to do the show.
I understand the state of the economy is not good in Colorado, but I think to treat good employees so shabbily is almost a crime.
Let’s just move the border to Guatemala
Since it allows for 20 million new citizens and their families, it is easy to calculate it allows that the entire 100 million-plus population of Mexico could move here and become citizens.
Now let’s be humane — that’s a lot of unnecessary travel. Think of the stress on children and old people.
It is clear the Mexican people have voted with their feet that the American government is better than theirs. The Mexican government encourages this and thus agrees. Thus a reconquista is both legal and moral in the most liberal sense. Let us send the Marines back to the Halls of Montezuma and liberate Mexico as the 51st state!
Rather than inhumanely forcing the Mexican people to have to migrate from their homes to enjoy the blessings of America, let us instead liberate them from their corrupt and inefficient government and remake Mexico to be more like America. The teachers union alone should be jumping with joy at the opportunity to teach a million people English.
And just think, then their oil would be ours.
Sweet.
Sex, drug discussion at high school upsets
What kind of school leaders allow this type of discussion to occur in the school? What do they think we have been teaching our kids for their entire lives? I have heard some of the topics from the panel discussion on the radio and I am completely outraged! We are going down the wrong path if this is what we are going to teach our children.
No wonder our society is in the shape it is. Do we really want our children “experimenting” with sex and drugs? Are AIDS and teenage overdose no longer a problem? I am very happy my children and I do not live in Boulder and/or attend Boulder schools where this type of behavior is accepted.
We must not cut, run
I am a veteran of the Vietnam War and this is how I feel: We must not cut and run.
I have talked to many active- duty soldiers and veterans who have served in Iraq. My daughter was in Iraq. Ninety percent felt that we have to stay.
Gessing needs to stop relying on feelings and think about what would happen if we pulled out: Bloodbaths, many Iraqis coming to the United States and, finally, more terrorist attacks here.
Gessing should check out the vets4victory.com Web site if he really wants to know what vets are thinking.
Don’t give in, Dems
The Democrats must be strong and not surrender to the will of President George W. Bush.
The American public has started to even lose faith in Congress. They can’t and must not surrender to George W. Bush. They have no backbone. If the president is allowed to continue to have his way, nothing will change in the face of the war.
Put I-70 underground
They should consider building tunnels and move the whole highway underground. This would not only eliminate the noise, but might also free up more land for the towns. The reclaimed land would cover some of the cost of the tunnels. I would bet that this is less expensive than building a mass transit system.
Has Debnam ever read the Fourth Amendment?
“The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized.”
Privacy was most definitely on the minds of our Founders; in fact, they placed it fourth in importance in the Bill of Rights.
Insensitivity in report about teenager decried
The story reported that the family had no comment in a phone call apparently from a Rocky reporter, except to say that they “really need time to grieve and be together.”
What is wrong with the Rocky staff? Why would a reporter call a family on the phone who had only hours before learned of this tragic death?
If the reporter was trying to be thorough and get “all the news” related to this story, then please give your reporter the following advice: It is not news that the family would be grieving.
If the reporter was making an inquiry in an effort to more fully inform her readers, then as a reader I say, “Please don’t be inhumane on my behalf.”
PBS, NPR should wean themselves from taxpayers
But why?
They are every bit as corporate as ABC, CBS, NBC and CNN. (And why didn’t Rowland include Fox News? Is that part of his bias showing?)
Now, don’t get me wrong: I like PBS and NPR — or much of what they offer. And I’m not terribly bothered by their failure to offer counter viewpoints — I know what I will get with PBS/NPR programming. The great thing about America is that I can find the other point of view on other channels.
What I do object to is their use of the government “gun” to take money from me to support their programming. I am not forced to give my tax dollars to Rupert Murdoch or the barons at the other major networks, just to PBS and NPR. That is wrong.
There is no longer anything about today’s media world that compels me to fund these entities.
There is plenty of great programming (contrary to the claims of Rowland’s self-serving diatribe) on the History Channel, Discovery Channel and the myriad other channels offering original programming.
PBS and NPR need to stop believing they are some kind of savior to the rest of us and get about the business of weaning themselves from taxpayer takings.
A father’s love
Nikko’s father’s body is bent almost in the shape of an “L,” symbolic of the intense love he has for his son. All parents should see Nikko’s father as an example of showing intense love for our children.
Photo of joyous homecoming worth a look
And both newspapers, to boot!
Thank you for publishing the joyous picture of Staff Sgt. Matthew Keil and relatives on the front page of the May 25 Rocky Mountain News(“All that matters: he’s home”).
The smiles on their faces temporarily erased the pain that we all feel for the casualties of war.
God bless the soldiers who continue to sacrifice so much after the terror that struck our country on 9/11.
Please help us follow his story and others at Craig Hospital.
Defining moment
Gonzales will go just like Paul Wolfowitz did, but a certain script must be followed in these things, so, as to ease the embarrassment to the president about a long time friend forced to resign for nefarious reasons.
Honest people wonder why Mr Gonzales hasn’t resigned, but honor has not been a prerequsite in the Bush administration. Honor, in any admin- istration starts at the top, but only those with an intractable devotion to Mr Bush, believes he and the vice president has honor of any consequence If Bush had an ounce of honor, he would have resigned for the horrible manner in which he managed his Iraq war. Dick Cheney should have quit for being the sinister, corrupt force behind the president. Now, Gonzales’ is being tested and he is failing. Caught in deception after deception by congress, he discards any measure of integrity, defiantly clings to his job and his buddy Bush is a willing accomplice to his brazen behavior.
Just as a spouse will settle a messy divorce so as to not reveal any of the sordid details, Gonzales will leave the scene before anymore of his polluted misdeeds are disclosed—can’t wait!
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Congressional Democrats
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Middle East policy
It is time to remove US troops from the Middle East, we will survive... and hopefully the world and the US will learn from the experience.
My sympathy goes out to the families of those that have lost their lives, both US Troops and Iraqi’s It is time for this to end, (it never should have started)!!
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Resistant admiral
Risking his nomination and political favor with the Bush administration, Fallon continuously refused this plan, arguing that there was no military requirement for extra warships. Fallon’s resistance seems to have successfully frustrated the Gates-Bush plan. Fallon’s bravery in the face of powerful opposition and strong interests deserves honorable recognition. More important than recognition, however, his acts deserve reflection and (re)action. If Fallon could risk political favor by opposing what he perceived to be a move to further an unjust, hawk agenda, then what can we, as citizens, do? We must use our political voice to demand justice and peace in US international affairs.
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Teachers
Currently, first-year teachers are paid around $30,000 dollars a year.
It should be said, however, that this does not include the hours upon hours of work that a teacher does from home. Indeed, my sister spends almost the same amo