Denver International Airport - Purchasing Fraud - Part II

Warning! This is an esoteric post that may prove really, really boring to those who really don't have much interest in public procurement process/procedure.

Suffice it to say, within any organization, public or private, there are and forever will be those who will not hesitate to take advantage of any opportunity to "beat the system;" to exploit any weakness in established process or procedure to protect the integrity of that system. I contend that the exploitation of such a weakness in a public sector system--specifically a public sector purchasing system--where public monies (local, federal or state taxes, fees, surcharges, grants, public/private co-op funding) are expended, is a crime of higher order than those perpetrated upon private sector entities. I contend that the fiduciary responsibility to protect the best interests of "the people," rather than the best interests of the corporation, is tantamount.

Part I of this post provided an overview of the alleged fraud that occurred at Denver International Airport, presumably within the Airport's Technical Services Purchasing Section. The alleged fraud, discovered by internal auditors, appears to have amounted to $50,000 in overcharges just this year. The alleged fraud has, apparently, been ongoing for up to seven years. One employee has been placed on investigatory leave and the currently known facts have been submitted to the Denver District Attorney's Office. A forensic accountant has been brought on-board to delve further into the matter and, hopefully, to determine the chain of failed responsibility that led to the breakdown in process/procedure; where, ultimately, the buck stops.

Part I also noted that the alleged fraud involved purchases from one or more of the companies owned by Richard S. Joselit who, in 2002, pleaded guilty to Petit Larceny in connection with a similar scheme perpetrated against (and with the assistance of some employees of) the New York Mets. The fraud against the Mets amounted to $2Million. Mr. Joselit, by the way, was sentenced to "Conditional Discharge," on October 15, 2003. I am not aware of the "conditions" related to Mr. Joselit's discharge. One would think, however, that one of those conditions was that he cease perpetrating or enabling fraud.

Since these kinds of posts seem to go on and on and on (who really has that much time to read this stuff) let me confine this post to some of the basics that, I suggest, need to be understood before one can make any conclusions about the chain of responsibility for what allegedly occurred at Denver International Airport.

The City and County of Denver operates under a codified central purchasing function, that requires all agencies (except those defined as "Independent" agencies by the City's Charter) to route requests (requisitions) for goods and services (excluding some "professional" services--the definition of "professional" remaining intentionally vague) through the Central Purchasing Division of the Department of General Services. The Purchasing Division procures--via requisitions, annual or term bids, "piggy-backing" on State, Federal or Cooperative contracts--in excess of $150Million in goods and services per year. Denver International Airport is NOT an "independent" agency, as defined by the Charter, and is subject to applicable law, policy and procedure as defined in the City Charter, the Denver Revised Municipal Code (RMC) and Executive Order(s) relating to the purchase of goods and services. (Note: Denver International Airport is further defined as an "Enterprise Fund" agency, which means--in general terms--that it's operational funding does NOT come from the City and County of Denver's General Fund. It is important to note also that Denver International Airport--most management and supervisory personnel--have been foaming out both sides of their mouths for years for the opportunity to become disconnected from the City and County of Denver and the oversight/control therefrom, by becoming a Port Authority, much like Denver Health and Hospitals became an independent authority (Denver Health Medical) in the mid to latter '90s.)

Mayoral Executive Orders can be described as documents which provide the essential detail, process and procedure for Charter or RMC mandates, imperatives. For those Charter and RMC sections that related to the purchase of goods/services, Executive Order No. 33 is applicable.

Part of Executive Order No. 33 relates to what is called "Delegated Purchasing Authority (DPA)." This authority is defined in XO33 as:

Delegated Purchasing Authority (DPA): The authority provided by the Director of Purchasing to agencies under the Mayor to conduct small dollar and contract-based procurements without the necessity to requisition through the Purchasing Division.

The alleged fraud that occurred at Denver International Airport was, without a doubt, perpetrated under the DPA authority described above. Let me end Part II of this multi-part post by noting the chain of responsibility promulgated in Executive Order No. 33 with regard to DPA and the process/procedure set forth to safeguard the integrity of the DPA program:

6.1 Agency Head/Expending Authority DPA Responsibility:
Notwithstanding anything in this Memorandum, the Agency Head or the Agency’s Expending Authority shall be ultimately responsible for Delegated Purchasing Authority within their agency. DPA responsibility encompasses tracking, appropriateness of purchases, centralized documentation of purchases, reporting, due diligence reviews of all DPA purchases and the agency management and utilization of PCards in conjunction with the use of DPA . The Agency Head or Expending Authority shall be responsible for establishing clearly articulated internal processes and procedures to assure that DPA purchases at the agency are in the best interests of the City and in support of the mission of the agency.

It is the responsibility of the Agency Head to assure that utilization of DPA is administered and conducted with the utmost integrity. The practical application of that delegation of authority must adhere, without exception, to all legally mandated, policy and procedural rules and regulations established:
1. through legislative processes, or
2. mayoral fiat, or
3. established by the Director of Purchasing pursuant to this Executive Order.

Each Agency Head must develop, institute and maintain a formally documented and widely disseminated system of internal due diligence “checks and balances” for DPA. The Agency Head must assure that these processes and procedures are fully understood and faithfully followed by agency personnel who conduct or are responsible for purchasing activities.

6.2 DPA Authorization: Delegated Purchasing Authority shall be authorized for an individual only if the agency head or designee approves that individual by their signature on the Delegated Purchasing Authority document PURDIVDPA#1, Exhibit 1B. Requests for changes or deletions to those authorized to participate in Delegated Purchasing Authority must be made to the Purchasing Division by memorandum to the Director of Purchasing.

Prior to any individual being authorized to use DPA, that individual must successfully complete DPA training provided by the Purchasing Division or under the auspices of the Purchasing Division. Temporary approval of a DPA number may be granted with the written approval of the Director of Purchasing. Successful completion of DPA training shall require that the individual receive a score of at least 70% on a written examination given at the conclusion of the training session.

7.0 DPA Due Diligence:
The delegation of Purchasing Authority requires conscientious efforts by the user-agency to assure that misuse or abuse of that authority is prevented. If misuse or abuse occurs, it must be remedied appropriately. Whether an agency utilizes the traditional “vouchering” method of payment or the PCard program, the following suggested “best practices” are provided as guidance for establishment of internal Due Diligence processes and procedures.

7.1 Monthly Random Review of Transactions: Review of at least ten (10) per cent of all DPA purchases made at your agency to ensure they are proper. Some items you may wish to look for are:

a) Was the purchase of an item utilized in the purchaser’s area of responsibility?
b) Was there a second authorized signature (supervisor) approving the purchase?
c) Did someone other than the purchaser authorize payment for the purchase?
d) Did the purchase follow internal and city policy and procedure?

All persons at an agency who are authorized to utilize DPA must be made aware that a random audit can and will be conducted on their DPA transactions.

7.2 Non-Random Selected Transaction Review: Review transactions in specific area of the agency to determine if:

a) Is the purchase normally made in the purchaser’s functional (job-related) area? Example: It is expected that a mechanic will buy tires or car parts, while administrative or clerical support personnel will, most likely, not have a legitimate reason to purchase tires or car parts;

b) Is the purchase for consumables? If so, is there an Official Function Form included in the documentation? The purchase of coffee for the office, or donuts for the staff, or pizza for a retirement luncheon is not an appropriate use of DPA;

c) Does the vendor that was utilized provide what is typically needed in the DPA user’s area of responsibility. Example: A trades worker’s purchase from a hobby shop is more likely to be questioned than a Recreation Center Director making the same purchase;

d) Are the required/proper signatures on the documentation? If a PCard is being used, is someone other than the person to whom the PCard has been issued using the card?

e) Look for purchases that are consistently from the same vendor in a relatively short timeframe, with the same dollar amount. This is a good indication that the DPA user is “splitting” purchases or conducting “repetitive” purchases in violation of this Executive Order;

f) Did someone other than or in addition to the purchaser authorize payment for the purchase?

7.3 Audit of Agency Due Diligence Procedures and Transactions: The Auditor of the City and County of Denver has the authority and has been requested by the Purchasing Division to audit agency due diligence procedures and/or actual PCard transactions on a semi-annual basis.

7.4 On-Request/Quarterly Review of Due Diligence Procedures: Agencies shall be required to comply with any request for information or any request for documentation made by the Purchasing Division for the purpose of reviewing, clarifying or auditing agency due diligence procedures and/or actual PCard transactions. Additionally, agencies shall, on a quarterly basis, provide the completed Exhibit 3B to the Director of Purchasing to document their DPA Due Diligence procedures.

8.0 Suspension or Termination of DPA Authority:
If an agency has not developed, instituted and/or maintained an effective “due diligence” program to assure Delegated Purchasing Authority is being conducted according to all applicable law, policy and procedure, the Director of Purchasing may suspend or terminate the agency’s Delegated Purchasing Authority as provided in Section 12 of this Memorandum 33A.

9.0 Purchasing Contact Representative (PCR):
The Agency Head or Expending Authority shall appoint, per the requirements of this Executive Order, Memorandum 33A, Section 2 a Purchasing Contact Representative (PCR) who shall be the liaison between the agency and the Purchasing Division with regard to the administration of DPA at the agency level. The PCR shall report to the Purchasing Division any opportunities to incorporate DPA procurement of goods or services into annual bids and/or other competitive purchasing best practices. The PCR shall also be responsible for providing any necessary coordination between the agency’s PCard Coordinator and the Purchasing Division and/or the PCard Administrator. The PCR shall also be responsible for maintaining or coordinating the maintenance of justification documentation for audit review of categories of authorized DPA purchases that require a written justification as provided in Section 2.0.

Part III of this ongoing post will, most likely, concentrate on the most likely breakdown of responsibility at Denver International Airport that contributed to and provided the opportunity for the alleged fraud.

Thank you, Mister Olbermann

"Are YOURS the actions of a true American," Mr. President?


From Crooks and Liars, watch the video. The text is also provided.

Really Cute, But...

I wonder how many times daddy and mommy will be able to listen to this before they up the valium, xanax, vodka or bourbon intake? I remember tinker toys and erector sets; little red wagons and new puppy dogs. What's this world coming to!!! :-]

The Politics of Privilege (The Masses are Asses!)

A piece from the New York Times, July, 2003, entitled, "For a Shaper of Landscapes, a Cliffhanger," by Patricia Leigh Brown, former City Councilperson-At-Large Susan Barnes-Gelt was quoted--with regard to Lawrence Halprin's now defunct (erased) Skyline Park: "The park was never loved. Denverites do not warm up to modernism. We don't really get the built environment, and we for sure don't get it if it's not red brick and at least 75 years old. Against that, Halprin's esthetic [sic] was not respected or frankly, enjoyed."

Okay. So, Ms. Barnes-Gelt's perception of those not privileged to breathe the rarefied air of so-called "citizen's" committees or commissions, is clear: We--the rest of us, the taxpayers, just don't get it with regard to what's best for our city, our parks, our public buildings, our streets, our zoning issues... I could go on.

Actually beside the point, but let me point out that the old Skyline Park--which I actually liked--became the victim of city neglect and the virtually undisputed realm of the 16th Street mall rats, their skateboards, Goth nihilism, drugs, alcohol, garbage, begging. Interestingly, Halprin (the architect of the original Skyline Park) views/viewed his work as contributing to the rejuvenation of urban communities; designs that were/are, in his words, "...memorable, intense, passionate rather than pretty."

Forgive me, but I kind of like "pretty." The view of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains from Thirteenth Avenue and Grant--a high point on Capitol Hill--used to be "pretty." Now, from that vantage point, one sees Daniel Libeskind's big old beige phallic, scrotum and all, jutting through the view where once mountains reigned supreme.

Ms. Barnes-Gelt, writing in the Denver Post on September 9, 2006, (Playing all the angles - Art museum's twice-in-a-lifetime opportunity) tells us that, "The seed of the Denver Art Museum's new wing [the Libeskind abortion enshrined as the Frederick C. Hamilton Building] was really planted in 1965, when trustees of the the Denver Art Museum, at the urging of museum architect James Sudler, hired Italian architect Gio Ponti to work with Sudler on what they believed was a 'once-in-a-lifetime building project.'"

Ms. Barnes-Gelt continues:

Sudler persuaded the trustees that Gio Ponti was the right high-profile architect to use. ...[Art Museum] Board member Willaim V. Warren pointed out the advantages of hiring..."the glamour that a famous international name such as Ponti will add to our program. This should add greater saleability locally, and most certainly nationally, and could attract substantial figts from outside our immediate area."

Ponti, Sudler and museum trustees were committed to giving Denver an iconic building, a museum very different from a more predictable classic Beaux Arts jewel box or modernist white cube.

Again, okay. I really like the Ponti building. It's great. It's different. It's utilitarian and, forgive me, it doesn't really give rise to the regular guy/gal (folks who are not privileged to have received an appointment to a "citizens" committee or commission) standing there at Thirteenth and Bannock, studying the Libeskind "thingy" (as one person described it), scratching their head and wondering, "What the fuck!"

Now, here's Ms. Barnes-Gelts description of how Libeskind's "vision" was chosen by "city committee" to be the architect for the Art Museum addition:

Libeskind--cerebral, articulate and a brilliant marketer--dressed his presentation team in black T-shirts with DAM [Denver Art Museum] emblazoned in bright white. He delivered a message everyone in the room could understand. With two markers, one bronze and one silver, he drew intersecting lines on a white board to illustrate his concept, describing it as "two lines taking a walk."

Nearly everyone in the room nodded in understanding, as if thinking, "I get it. All this archi-babble really comes down to something quite simple--two lines taking a walk."

"Two lines taking a walk." What the fuck! She continues:

Perhaps it's time for Denver to concentrate its energies on strengthening the structure and character of the broader city to provide a worthy setting for the eureka moments of Libeskind, Ponti and other star architects.

"Eureka." What the fuck!

Ms. Barnes-Gelt is, I believe, infatuated with diadems like the word "iconic." If you wrap the concept, the person, the "vision," within the idolatrous cocoon of "icon," then no more needs to be said; no more needs to be studied; no more needs to be considered; regular folk need take a fucking hike, 'cause the politics of privilege have spoken.

Interestingly, shorty after the commencement of the Hickenlooper administration, I believe it was Denver Magazine that showcased hizzoner's mug on its cover with the caption--something like--"Instant Icon."

What this post is really about is Civic Center Park and the Libeskind "vision" for the rejuvenation of that space, that has become the rock upon which the city mothers and fathers--including those "citizen" commissions and committees--are making their stand.

In spite of immense and reasonable objections to shamelessly glitzing up (ala Libeskind) that venerated icon of an open space right smack dab in the middle of Denver, city mothers and fathers keep telling us to relax; the process will be transparent; citizen input will be considered but, BUT, the final decision on the fate of Civic Center will be left to the Manager of Parks and Recreation, Kim Bailey. (You remember Kim Bailey. One of the "stars" of Hick's administration who, in the name "City Beautiful" spent what was probably a veritable fortune on assuring park fountains (the kind you watch, not drink from) spew their pretty spray while the infrastructure of Denver's park system is so disgracefully neglected that it will probably take the next twenty years to even put a dent in dilapidated irrigation systems, not to mention bathrooms, recreation centers, walkways, trees, swimming pools.

I do go on.

Let me end with two lists that hint, oh, just a wee bit at the nature of the politics of privilege.

The Civic Center Conservancy (Those folks who hired Libeskind for $75,000 to provide his "vision." You might want to take a look from whence that vision comes, in Libeskind's own words.

Take a look a who makes up the Conservancy at this site. Nope, no regular folk there. But, then, us regular folk are artistically and probably intellectual lightweights who have no business being involved in this (winky-wink) public/private partnership. Oh,but Ms. Barnes-Gelt is there.

And, just for the fun of it, let's take a look at the task force that has been/will be redoing Denver's zoning code; you know, that codified mass of edicts that control the what, where, when, how; the cans and cant's that apply directly, intimately, at times oppressively, to what you may want to do with your property.

Appointed to the Zoning Code Task Force are:
Co-Chairs
Stephen Kaplan
Attorney/Partner, Kaplan Kirsch & Rockwell; former City Attorney
Diane Barrett
Recently retired Attorney/Partner, Holmes Roberts & Owens
Members
Stephanie Garcia
Real estate investor and developer
Susan Barnes-Gelt
Former Denver City Councilwoman, At-Large
Brad Buchanan
Principal, Buchanan Yonushewski Group; Member, Denver Planning Board
Michael Henry
Zoning and Planning Chair, Inter-Neighborhood Cooperation
John Hindlemann
Member, Board of Adjustment
John Lucero
Board of Directors, Denver Board of Realtors; Broker, Keller Williams Realty
Rich McClintock
Program Director, Livable Communities Support Center
Peter Park
Manager of Community Planning & Development, City & County of Denver
Jeanne Robb
City Councilwoman, District #10; Chair, Blueprint Denver Council Committee
John Ross
Vice President/Denver Division., Gillis Thomas Company
Molly Urbina
Director of Governmental Affairs, Oakwood Homes
Ken Walker
Principal, Walker-Dilworth, LLC
Carolynne White
Land Use/Real Estate Attorney, Brownstein Hyatt & Farber PC
A.J. Zabbia
Principal, 68 West Engineering, Inc.

Yeah, Barnes-Gelt is there, too. No, Joe the carpenter, Jake the electrician, Marene the plumber, Al the small shopkeeper, Jules and Norma the homeowners aren't there.

The masses are asses, ya'll. Plain and simple.

P.S. Susan Barnes-Gelt has a remarkable record as a public servant and civic activist. She is one of the brightest and most articulate persons ever to serve on the Denver City Council. That said, public policy should not, must not continue to be pretty much exclusively within the purview of good people who, somewhere along the way, have lost touch with the realities, the likes the dislikes, the everyday drudge of the common man/woman who have not been "blessed" with the ability to know what's best for the rest of us.

September, 2004 - Sweet Melissa

Just curious how pics appear in my newly formatted blog. (And, of course, missing Sweet Melissa still, always.)

Yes, It's Still George

Made some major changes to the old blog. I'll be updating omissions over the next few days. Whadaya think??? Unfortunately, comments have not come across, nor my hit counter. But, hopefully I'll be able to work that out soon.

Sgt. Joe Friday's Clapper Caper

Something for us older folk...

Dubya's Speech to General Assembly - UN

If you're short on time, Happy Furry Puppy Story Time with Norbizness, has a condensed version of Dubya's speech that pretty much provides all you need or want to know.

Denver International Airport - Purchasing Fraud? Nonfeasance? Misfeasance? Malfeasance? PART I

Three things: 1) I am--for what it's worth--intimately knowledgeable with regard to public sector procurement; 2) Black's Law Dictionary: "'Nonfeasance' means the omission of an act which a person ought to do; 'misfeasance' is the improper doing of an act which a person might lawfully do; and 'malfeasance' is the doing of an act which a person ought not to do at all;'" 3) There are some very fine, intelligent, capable, honest, articulate, hard working public servants who serve at Denver International Airport and who are dedicated to providing the traveling public and the citizens of Denver with impeccable effort, untiring dedication to public sector "best practices."

This post is NOT about those good people.

Here's the story from the Rocky Mountain News of a week or so ago that caught my eye:

Audit shows DIA paid overcharges

Denver International Airport might have paid more than $50,000 this year in overcharges for toner and ink cartridges, according to initial results of an internal audit looking at discrepancies in inventory.

The airport said some purchase orders and receipts appear to have been falsified, and it has placed one employee on investigatory leave. The findings also have been turned over to the district attorney's office.

The airport said it doesn't know the full extent of the dicrepancies but that the activities may have spanned more than seven years.

DIA management said it was unaware that an employee had been transacting business with companies owned by Richard S. Joselit, who pleaded guilty to larceny in connection with a 2002 scam against the New York Mets.

In a news release from DIA on September 1, 2006, came the following information:

"'We discovered a problem. We stopped it, and took a number of appropriate actions to make sure it doesn't happen again,' stated Turner West (Manager of Aviation). 'We believe it is important that other organizations and governmental agencies be aware of the schemes and the questionable companies. To that end, we have created a watch list of these office supply companies. We will be sharing this list with other agencies and governmental entities in Colorado.'

"...In order to maintain the integrity of the investigation, the City (City and County of Denver) will not be making any additional statements."

The Airport also advised that a "forensic accountant" had been hired to assist in the investigation of the alleged fraud. Additionally, it is axiomatic that the forensic accountant--simply given the nature of work he/she is hired to do (see link)--will provide the string of evidentiary data necessary to support litigation and, presumably, to identify the lack of accountability that, I believe, necessarily led to this shameful--possibly seven-year--breakdown in a segment of DIA's purchasing process.

The alleged purchasing fraud at Denver International Airport was, as is noted in the News story above, perpetrated by an employee of the airport in sync with the self-admitted larcenous machinations of one Richard S. Joselit who, in October, 2002 was indicted by the Queens County (New York) District Attorney Richard A. Brown as part of what was described by the DA as a "...$2.0 Million ripoff of [the] New York Mets. The news release of the Queens County DA reads, in part:

"Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown today announced the indictment of six individuals--including the former technical services director and three other former employees of the New York Mets, as well as two vendors --on charges of stealing over a six-year-period between 1994 and 2000 nearly $2.0Million from Sterling Doubleday Enterprises (SDE), the baseball team's parent company, in five separate white-collar schemes involving bribes, kickbacks and other illicit payments of nearly $600,000, fictitious companies, fraudulent invoices, phantom merchandise and inflated prices.

"District Attorney Brown said, 'The defendants are alleged to have ripped off the New York Mets organization for almost $2.0 million over a six year period. The key player in the alleged ripoff was a trusted employee of the baseball organization who was responsible for approving purchases of data processing, telephone equipment and services, office supplies and printing services. He is alleged to have traded his insider position for a windfall of bribes totaling nearly $600,000.'

"The District Attorney said that his investigation began in August 2000 when the new York Mets discovered apparent purchasing irregularities during an internal audit..."

Suffice it to say, the recapitulation of the 2002 indictments in Queens County and the story coming out of DIA are eerily similar: Internal auditors scratching their heads when digging into the books (significantly, it is NOT higher authority, management at the institutions discovering the alleged fraud); trusted long-time employee(s) allegedly involved in the so similar despicable schemes.

Part II of this post will examine how this alleged fraud could have occurred at Denver International Airport and, additionally, where, in my opinion, the buck should stop with regard to the ultimate accountability in the public procurement process.

P.S. The comments attached to this post were copied from Haloscan which I utilized prior to moving over to my new format. I include these two comments because I think--as this will be a multi-part piece--they highlight important issues. The first comment was posted by "Roger M.," my comments follow Roger's.

Ann Richards - Classy Lady - An Inspiring Legacy

Also, Suz has a nice tribute to Governor Richards on her site.

And, again from Suz's site, Ann Richards' How To Be a Good Republican .

American Heroes

Bring them home!

Rocky Mountain News - A Shameful Inclusion

Today's Rocky Mountain News includes a political cartoon on page 51A that depicts Abraham Lincoln reading the Gettysburg Address: "Four score and seven years ago..." In the lower right of the cartoon is a donkey with a "DEMS" button pinned to his chest and in the thought bubble above his head are the words, "How dare he politicize a national tragedy." I cannot read the artist's name, but the cartoon came from the San Diego Union-Tribune, Copley News Service.

The cartoon, of course, makes that wildly shameful jingoistic leap; a leap that Dubya's neocon wingnut constituency blindly gobbles up like apple pie on the 4th of July; a leap that simply ignores false premises and celebrates invalid conclusions. The Rove-inspired Neocon revisionistic history represented by the cartoon, suggests that-all things being equal--Dubya stands tall with Abraham Lincoln.

All things are NOT equal. Before you lose your last meal (this is surely sickening stuff from this morning's Rocky) consider:

Lincoln's eloquence on November 19, 1863, in dedication of the battlefield of the American Civil War where over 51,000 soldiers--Union and Confederate alike--lost their lives, consisted of two-hundred and seventy-eight words.

Dubya's address to the nation on September 11, 2006, consisted of 2,623 words.

Which address, I wonder, will stand the test of time? Do I even need to ask such a question?

Dubya's address consisted of a recapitulation of the Neocon polemic with regard to the axis of evil and what Dubya's (Rove, Cheney, Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz) believe a "mission accomplished" will consist of against the evildoers...although, hmmm..., didn't we already celebrate "mission accomplished." Dubya's speech was (How stupid do you believe the American people to be, Mr. President) conceptualized, designed, written and delivered to play to an ever decreasing Neocon base; it was a shameful ad campaign that hitched onto, exploited the tragedy of 9/11 for the sole, unabashed purpose of propping-up Republicans for the November elections. The immense, dishonorable failures of Dubya's reign during these dangerous, destructive times cannot be ameliorated with a plethora of words from speechwriters.

From Abraham Lincoln Online.org:

"Of the five known manuscript copies of the Gettysburg Address, the Library of Congress has two. President Lincoln gave one of these to each of his two private secretaries, John Nicolay and John Hay. The copy on exhibit, which belonged to Nicolay, is often called the "first draft" because it is believed to be the earliest copy that exists.

"Considerable scholarly debate continues about whether the Nicolay copy is the "reading" copy. In 1894 Nicolay wrote that Lincoln had brought with him the first part of the speech, written in ink on Executive Mansion stationery, and that he had written the second page in pencil on lined paper before the dedication on November 19, 1863. Matching folds are still evident on the two pages shown here, suggesting it could be the copy that eyewitnesses say Lincoln took from his coat pocket and read at the ceremony."

The Gettysburg Address ends with the words: "It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us -- that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion -- that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain -- that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

I'm sorry, I've got to repeat: "...that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom--and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

Abraham Lincoln was desperately, quietly but powerfully, trying to pull a broken nation back together.

Dubya's jingoistic hoopla, his 2,623 words are rightly dwarfed by the heartfelt pleading of Lincoln's two-hundred and seventy-eight words; words that were meant to heal, not frighten, not hide the catastrophic failures of a "...bring 'em on..." cowboy who didn't ever and still hasn't got a clue what's embodied in those words: "of the people, by the people, for the people..."

And, shame on the Rocky Mountain News!

A Wednesday Smile

Patches rules!

Denver City Council - Kumbaya

Denver's City Council, indubitably to a person bend-over-backward imbued with the litany and ideology best described as liberalistic multicultural humanism (with the possible exception of Jeanne Faatz), emerged from their annual retreat defining "outcomes" they have set for themselves over the next year. That's fine. To be expected.

Two points emphasized in their "outcome" document read: First: "...Parks, the heart of the city, will become a focal point for Council in their efforts towards the development of a parks preservation plan to protect the City's green infrastructure." Second: "Recognizing the unique demographics of their citizenry, Council will also work towards policies that will serve to integrate all populations into the City and further develop their relationships with the Denver Public Schools, in recognition of the interdependence of the two entities in the development of a healthy, vibrant city."

I'll make this short.

Humbly I entreat, Denver's 4,000 acres of parks and parkways do not need another PLAN coming from a City Council which has yet to aggressively push for a means of funding for the implementation of the plethora of specific park Master Plans already extant. Those Master Plans have already been developed, have been placed on that top shelf--in some cases for years and years--where the dust weighs heavy. Hey, how's this for novel idea: There's really no need for another study, another plan. We've already got the studies and the plans. IMPLEMENT THE EXISTING MASTER PLANS BY INITIATING A MEANS TO FUND THOSE MASTER PLANS! Yes, I know, you, City Council, and your Mayor, John Hickenlooper, have chosen to submit to the voters this November a ballot issue that will impose a sales tax increase to fund pre-school education initiatives. No, there are no general obligation bond measures on the ballot that would fund the remediation of the disgraceful negligence of Denver's park's infrastructure, much less to fund park Master Plan initiatives. Instead, the Kumbaya mentality between Mayor/Council, has placed on the ballot a measure that is wholly outside the legal, codified responsibility of the entity, the City and County of Denver. Excuse me, but the Denver School Board--to which a substantial portion of Denver's property owner's property taxes are siphoned--is responsible for education initiatives in this city, not the Mayor, not the City Council--regardless of where, yes, your liberalistic multicultural humanistic (politically correct) leanings tend to lead. Excuse me but, SAVE WHAT YOU CALL THE "HEART" OF THE CITY BY PUSHING, FUNDING, SUPPORTING THE ALREADY EXISTING PARK MASTER PLANS!

Now, for the second issue: "Recognizing the unique demographics of their citizenry, Council will also work towards policies that will serve to integrate all populations into the City and further develop their relationships with the Denver Public Schools, in recognition of the interdependence of the two entities in the development of a healthy, vibrant city."

Okay, granted, a "...healthy, vibrant city..." depends, in part, on the quality of and citizen support for the city's education system. Resolutions from Denver's City Council supporting the Denver School Board and wunderkind, Superintendent Michael Bennett, is fine, appropriate, great stuff guys, Kumbaya for all. But, with the particular makeup of this Council, the words, "...further develop their [the Council's] relationships with the Denver Public Schools..." wreaks of the stuff that will see a ballot issue to increase Denver's sales tax to fund pre-school education. And, what else will be forthcoming from this Council which doesn't appear to understand their responsibilities under the Charter and Revised Municipal Code of the City and County of Denver? How much of Denver's General Fund will be earmarked for education initiatives that are indisputably solely within the purview of the Denver School Board?

Finally, the Council's intent to "...work towards policies that will serve to integrate all populations into the City..." is, for me, a winky-wink intent to (dare I mention this particular bugaboo) to further advance, support, probably fund the notion of SANCTUARY in this city. Having said this, and understanding the soulful, feel-good mantra of Kumbaya from this particular Council, I absolutely suspect the Denver City Council to create an additional seat in their august body for Denver's Catholic Archbishop Charles Chaput. Who better to articulate the specifics of what a SANCTUARY CITY (for illegal immigrants) should be? Of course, with Chaput on the Council, Kumbaya may be compromised in the area of a woman's right to control her own body and, oh my goodness, what about them pesky queers suggesting the First and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution should also apply to them.

Thank You, Mister Olbermann

Keith Olbermann (MSNBC), once again, provides an impassioned response to Dubya's and crew's shameful hucksterism. How ignorant do you believe the American people to be, Mr. President?

Daniel Libeskind vs. Denver's Civic Center Park

"It seems to me that architecture is, in fact, the machine that produces the universe which produces the gods. It does so not fully through theories or reflection, but in the ever non-repeatable and optimistic act of construction. The qualities of its resistance, which are as pragmatic as the materials from which it is built, form an irascible and volatile field whose smile is not that of Buddha." Daniel Libeskind

What the hell does this mean? It's either very, very profound (so profound that I am, in fact, having trouble digesting it) or is it so much bullshit from someone who likes to talk fast because, in doing so, he can just slipslide his way through the moment without really giving anyone an opportunity to contemplate what he's just said. I agree; it sounds good. But, what the hell does it mean? God is a product of the universe which is a product of architecture? I don't know...

It was instructive that both the the Rocky Mountain News and the Denver Post columnists, who usually write about historical preservation and parks and art and environmental issues, were less than enthusiastic with Libeskind's "conceptual vision" for Civic Center Park.

Voelz Chandler, News columnist, noted:

"You know you are in trouble when one of the first comments from the architect [Libeskind, during the unveiling of his 'vision'] is 'We left all the historic elements."

Forgive me, but did the epitome of architectural haute couture--Libeskind--actually believe the "...historic elements..." of Civic Center Park were available for removal; up for grabs?

Voelz Chandler continues: "That is true. The Greek Theater is there, and the Voorhies Memorial, and the balustrades. But they are obscured by so many other things that a statement like Libeskind's becomes as much apology as defense. ...This would be a busy, busy place -- not the serene ambience intended by a Beaux Art assemblage of buildings, sculpture and landscaping elements."

Let's look for a moment at Joanne Ditmer's column in the Denver Post: "Busy, busy, busy --and too much of a good thing.

"That was my conclusion after attending two presentations Wednesday on New York architecDanielle Libeskind's proposal for revitalizing 88-year-old Civic Center. Initially, his design -- with a major pondcontemporaryry fountains, glass house cafes, canopied walkways and a soaring bridge -- seemed fresh, exciting and imaginative. And it is. It would be a beautifulexhilaratingng park -- somewhere else.

"These amenities were not meant to enhance this cherished, historic public park and gathering place, tucked between Denver City Hall and the State Capitol.

"The look-at-me design is a showcase of a celebrity architect's fertile imagination, not a sensitive enhancement of a city park so special that it is on the Nation Register ohistoricalri Places, one of just 7 percent on the register with the rating 'site of national significance.' It [the Libeskind vision] is a frivolity superimposed on one of downtown's last green spaces..."

The Libeskind "vision" for Civic Center Park is an incongruous assemblage of disparate components that only do not enhance the preservation of the historical elements in the precious open space, but pose a kind of amusement park crassness to the space. (What on earth is the torqued extravaganza that Libeskindnd calls a bridge that spans from the park to Sixteenth Street? Was this inspired from a visit to Six Flags where the Sidewinder for the Boomerang--roller coaster type rides--bare a striking resemblance to Libeskind's "vision" for a bridge?) Ditmer, the Post's columnist, observes that the design of this pedestrian bridge looks something "...like a whale's skeleton."

One of the most curious comments with regard to the revitalization, remake, preservation, enhancement--whatever you want to call it--of Civic Center Park came from Mayor John Hickenlooper. When asked about the issue of all the homeless folk who tend to congregate in the park, the Hick said, "If we create a great park [shades of Federico Pena's, "Imagine a great city..."], people will fill it, and I guarantee you that the people who are struggling to get their lives together aren't going to stick around."

The comment is curious because the mayor'euphemism--"...people who are struggling to get their lives together..."--colors the reality that those folks who hang in Civic Center Park today are drug dealers, drug seekers, mall rats, homeless, mentally disturbed, criminals, crooks, crass cranks, and hopheads who--when, as the mayor says, Civic Center Park becomes "...great..." ain't gonna be goin' nowhere, your honor. You bring good, decent, hard-working decent folk into the park and guess who's gonna be hangin' around, hopin' for handout, hopin' for a transaction, hopin' to intimidate, plead, cajole or simply steal from the other half who most of these pitiful souls believe caused their problems in the first place.

There is a wee bit of comfort in knowing that I am not alone in wondering what the hell this Libeskind "vision" for Civic Center Park accomplishes. Indeed:

Two Blowhards

If you'’ve got a little curiosity about contempo architecture and you take a peek at its coverage in the mainstream press (as well as the specialist architectural press), you'’re probably running into names like Daniel (WTC-site) Libeskind, Herbert Muschamp, Rem Koolhaas, Zaha Hadid, and Coop Himmelblau. You'’re probably also running into a lot of photos of zigzaggy, blown-to-bits buildings that look a bit like an L.A. kitchen the morning after the big one.

Chances are that, unless you'’ve gone to architecture school or have been otherwise marinated in contempo "theory," you probably have some variation on what I think of as the "Huh? What the fuck?" response. The writing and thinking seem almost incomprehensible and, when comprehensible, engaged with issues and ideas that seem of no conceivable human interest whatsoever. The designs themselves sometimes seem kind of cool and flashy -- but, lordy, imagine having to live in, or work in, or even have to pass regularly by such heaps of self-referential showboating.

Or:

City Comforts, the Blog

Syncophants Arise
I can hear their shrieks now: Libeskind's Denver Art Museum Expansion
Now calm down. It's not that I am immune to the spectacular. I like the Rockettes and I like Liberace and I like the movie theaters of the 1920s. And I even like this Libeskind design, as much of its interior as is shown anyway. But as an advancement of culture it's so irrelevant...so nothing-to-do with the daily texture of life...so striving, so arty. But I grant him an A for intention: Libeskind would like to be relevant. In fact he writes about the importance of architecture:

It seems to me that architecture is, in fact, the machine that produces the universe which produces the gods. It does so not fully through theories or reflections, but in the ever non-repeatable and optimistic act of construction. The qualities of its resistance, which are as pragmatic as the materials from which it is built, form an irascible and volatile field whose smile is not that of Buddha.

The only problem is that his words are too unclear to have any real substance. It would be nice if a (probably) talented fellow like Libeskind could get down from his high horse and just talk plain English.

One does not suffer lightly the machinations of someone, an architect for christ's sake, whose mantra includes the poo-poo of any further consideration of form/function in the design of buildings/landscapes that folks are going to live and/or work in or around. That's probably because I've not gotten an architectural degree in the last five or so years from a university where, I'm told, the form/function given is no longer a given and, well, let your imagination go, young'uns. It don't matter what the functional necessities of the rabble who have to live with, in or around your designs want/desire. What matters is that architectural design creates the universe which creates God...as Libeskind has imparted to us.

What more needs to be said.

For Dog Lovers Only

Ah!

Keith Olbermann on Rumsfeld's (Dubya's) Fascism

This is as articulate as I've ever heard Olbermann. This video should be shown in high school civics classes, if, indeed, high schools still provide lessons is civics.

Imagine There's No Libeskind (It's easy if you try)

Vietnam War Memorial (Obelisk) in front of Capitol, originally uploaded by George In Denver.

This pristine view, from the center of Civic Center Park (in Denver) would be compromised by Daniel Libeskind's "conceputal vision" for the park with a pedestrian bridge that would right-angle over Broadway directly within this current wonderfully pristine line-of-sight toward the east, toward the Colorado State Capitol. As a matter of fact, the Libeskind "conceptual vision" wouldn't even allow for a picture such as this to be taken from the middle of Civic Center Park, because there'd be a 72 foot water and light extravaganza centered in the park. Oy!!!!

Piney Lake - Gore Range in the Background

Piney Lake - Gore Range in the Background, originally uploaded by George In Denver.

Just a Friday picture. Three-day weekend coming up.

Dear Lady Denver*

(Note: In 1981, after experiencing more than a decade of the destruction of Denver's historical crown jewels under the guise of "Urban Renewal," I wrote the following poem, which was published in Denver's "Out Front" magazine in July, 1981. I suspect that no one who is not a native of Denver and pretty close to my age will recognize the references I make. But, in light of my posts on the Libeskind "conceptual vision" for Civic Center Park, I thought I'd repeat this particular post from December, 2005. So, this pretty much represents where George is coming from: a deep, abiding respect for the significance of Denver's history and the representation of that history in the city's architecture, including parks. That history, of course, must be maintained, cherished and, certainly enhanced when necessary. As I don't/didn't believe the mindless rapaciousness of "Urban Renewal" was justified decades ago, I don't believe an "art for art's sake" remake of Civic Center Park in the Libeskind "vision" is a solution to the very real, serious issues extant with the park today.)

Dear Lady Denver

So,
tell me old girl
does the face-lifting still go on?
And
do those thick-fingered surgeons of
steel and stone
still build up
where your soul was torn down?

Now,
hear me out.
I am your native son
(and there are precious few of us).
So,
take some time from your
fancy modern gyrations and
listen to one who remembers.



I am one who remembers
when the Old Prospector
was as untouchable as the clouds
and as curious to a young boy
as a jet plane in a steep climb or
a Colorado Winter's first snowfall.

And now...
Now the Old Prospector has come down to earth.
He collects pennies at the Towers and
silently stares as he is touched by tourists
and passed by an endless parade
of fume-spewing autos.
I cannot help but think
his shoulders have stooped a bit.

Do you know Old Girl
that I am one who remembers when
there was no Zeckendorf
where noontime loafers putt
on fake green grass and
there was a time--I know you recall it--
when those long-robed
pony-tailed devotees of Hare Krishna
didn't dance their simple jig
to the tinny sounds of finger cymbals
on 16th Street.



Listen, Dear Lady,
Do you know
there used to be a Windsor
where Hayden Simpson and his friends
played Ragtime
in a room where the echoes of your youth
still haunted those
elegant high ceilings and
broad hallways?



And,
there was an opera house called Tabor
that was your pride and joy
'til the sleazy cinema
corrupted its foundation and
brought the bulldozers
to rid you of its plight.

Ah...
there is so much
to remember Old Girl.
And,
there is so much to be sorry for.
All that which used to be
could still be
if only...
If only you would have realized
what you were losing.

Excuse me, Dear Lady:
The wine is gone;
The music has stopped;
The fire is out.
I feel that I must be going.

But, Dear Friend,
The next time a high-rise
rises
let's get drunk on the heady wine of our memories,
to the sweet sounds of ragtime.

(NOTE: The Old Prospector used to stand atop the Mining Exchange Building. The Old Prospector now stands outside Brooks Towers. Status of the Mining Exchange Building - gone. Status of the Tabor Grand Opera House - gone. Staus of the Windsor Hotel - gone.)

*Yeah, I know, who wants to read poetry on a blog. But, I couldn't help it.

Libeskind's $75,000 "conceptual design" for Civic Center Park - OMG!

BWB - Both Ways Bob (Beauprez) - Republican Candidate for Colorado Governor

Ah, another wannabe soldier when it becomes politically expedient to put on the olive drab. Problme is, though, with BWB, Both Ways Bob Beauprez, never served. See, he had this ulcer thing in high school or college and, well... See for yourself.

You Know You're From Denver When...

The People's Republic of Boulder Does it Again!

First of all--not that it has any relevance to this post--I heard on the national news this morning Mississippi is the fattest state (people's girths), and Colorado is the skinniest. That's the good news about Colorado.

Now for the bad news.

It is, of course, no secret that the People's Republic of Boulder has, once again, thrust Colorado into the international spotlight, first with Mary Keenan Lacy's--Boulder's District Attorney--decision to go after the nutcase, John Mark Karr--who happened to be slithering about Bangkok, Thailand--as the murderer of JonBenet Ramsey. Much of Lacy's "probable cause" came from emails a University of Colorado journalism professor, Michael Tracey, exchanged with Crazy Karr and shared with Ms. Lacy. Tracey, by the way, has made one "documentary" on the JonBenet case that attempted to turn attention for the murder away from the Ramsey family and toward an outside "intruder." And, by the way, Tracey is currently hawking a book with regard to his delusional theories about the case. So, Ms. Lacy gets a warrant from a Boulder judge (dare we wonder about the competence of the judge who issued the warrant) and off to Bangkok the Boulder cops go--at the expense of Colorado taxpayers--and bring Crazy Karr back to Boulder, with a stop in California because of a kiddy porn case.

Curiously, Ms. Lacy was depending upon a DNA match to prove Crazy Karr was the guy, the murderer. Here's the thing about the DNA. There was a trace of "Caucasian male" DNA found in the poor child's panties. There was also DNA found under JonBenet's fingernails. But, wouldn't you know it, the DNA under her fingernails was compromised, contaminated--we are told--by a "dirty" scalpel during the autopsy. Now, it has been shown, demonstrated that there are traces of DNA in panties that have just been removed from the plastic wrapping in which they are sold at your local Wal-Mart or Target or--probably in the case of the Ramsey's--from Dillards or Lord and Taylor.

Okay. Still with me?

So, the Boulder cops get to Bangkok to, we are told, not only to arrest Crazy Karr but also to get a DNA sample--a mouth swab--from the nutcase. What happens? Well, it seems that the Boulder cops misplaced the DNA swab kit--or, perhaps, didn't even bring a kit--and no DNA test was conducted in Bangkok. In fact, the DNA swab was not taken until Crazy Karr got to Boulder from California. The Denver Police Department crime lab ran the DNA match test and WALLAH!--big surprise--there was no match.

I take no comfort in my prior posts--the first one on the morning the arrest of Crazy Karr was announced--that proclaimed no way, no how was Crazy Karr guilty of the JonBenet murder. I take comfort only in the fact that Karr is, indeed, crazy (sorry if I'm being politically incorrect, here) and will, hopefully, be institutionalized and, therefore, unable to destroy the innocence of children with his sickeningly despicable desires.

Yes, not only is Colorado the home of James Dobson's "Focus on the Family," Miss Chubby Pinkness, U.S. Congresswoman Marilyn Musgrave (defender of the sanctity of man/woman marriage in the U.S. House of Representatives), U.S. Senator Wayne--Dullard, Do Nothing--Allard who, of course, also plays to his Colorado flatlander base decrying the "homa-sex-yall" agenda; yes, as if we didn't have enough craziness to contend with, the People's Republic of Boulder shines resplendent today, as an international laughing stock.

Yeah, I know. Generalizations are empirically invalid. In fact, the University of Colorado is my alma mater--although I spent only one year in Boulder and four years at the University of Colorado, Denver Center. But, goodness, dare I ask what next, what absurd illogicalness will emanate from the People's Republic of Boulder?

And, remember, Denver ain't Boulder. Thank God.

P.S. "Fair and Balanced," here's a post from my bud Suz-at-Large that paints a wee bit different picture than I've provided with this post.

You Can Get Anything You Want (Great way to begin a Monday)

This came from youtube.com this morning.

With reflection on every damned thing going on in the world today, these short videos--at least for me--provide some evidence that within the heartland of this great country, there persists some modicum of charm, easy charm that cannot help but bring a momentary smile, a good feeling that life goes on in spite of the headlines, in spite of all the crap I read every day from the New York Times, AlterNet, the Rocky Mountain News, the Washington Post, MoveOn.org, etc. etc. etc.

This is John Young--somewhere in the heartland--on a vintage Martin 0018.

AND, his Pet Feeder invention is really cool.

Enjoy.

This-n-That

Alice's Restaurant

Pet Feeder

Civic Center Redux

If you have an interest in Denver's parks and Civic Center Park in particular please take a look at my friend Suz's post on this subject. The Libeskind vision for Civici Center Park (for which the Civic Center Conservancy paid, I believe, $78,000) will be revealed shortly and Suz has the schedule.

Suz also provides some editorial comment on Daniel Libeskind's "vision" that will open in October where, um, "art" will be displayed.

Fall

Fall whispers: a delicate, if not subtle susurration.

I have taken lately to sitting on the front porch of our old house this past week. I sip shiraz-cabernet and puff gently on the Swisher Sweets that, still being cigars regardless of their charming moniker, disgust David. I cannot explain why I've taken up the nightly puffing except that, I suppose, I'm passing through another phase (my "crotchety" phase, as some family members have suggested) and the little cigars with the plastic tips seem, well. appropriate right now. I am, after all, too young to be "crotchety." Or am I?

I listen to the cicadas (do we have cicadas in Denver?) or the crickets, in unison, pulse their hypnotic song against the darkening night and I wonder why they still try; why, this late in the summer, they still call to that, apparently as yet unidentified, mate; the primordial pulse of the promise of propagation. It is a wonderful sound. I lose myself in its monotony.

The giant and ancient Silver Maple that fronts our property appears almost black--the hanging branches so profuse this year, so happily replete with ten? a hundred?-thousand leaves. The black shape flows slightly with the breeze, moving ever so gently as an ocean tide at no moon.

The clutch of three Aspen trees that have grown thick and tall this spring and summer huddle there at the corner of our little yard. The coruscation of their leaves--caught in the gentle breeze--is a playful dance, reflecting the gleam from the streetlamp four houses down.

Did you know that an Aspen grove--six, seven thousand trees, or more--is the largest living organism on the face of the earth? Did you know that an Aspen grove will give extra nourishment and water to trees in its clutch which are failing, ill? Did you know that if the ailing trees in the grove do not respond to the good deeds of the whole, the whole will withdraw the extra care and let the trees pass on, die? Or, at least that is what our guide told us (Greg, Clayton and me) on our recent horseback ride at Piney Lake, in the Eagle's Nest Wilderness area of the White River National Forest.

Yes, and then there is the Blue Spruce that our neighbor, Sue, planted ten, twelve, fifteen years ago close to the fence that separates our front yards. It was so small, so beautiful then. She planted it close to our fence because, she said, it would grow to complement the extreme pitch of the roof of our old Victorian. And, now, as I sit upon the porch and sip my wine and puff the poison from my Swisher Sweet, the Blue Spruce looms huge, full, against and through the fence that separates our property from our neighbor's. The Blue Spruce is also--now, at night--just a shadow against the sky.

By the third of fourth summer of a total of ten summers of lifguarding at city pools (this was at least a thousand years ago, by the way) by mid-August, the signs, the portend of fall did not escape me. The daytime shadows moved and--albeit still experiencing days of ninety or more degrees--the very air, the sky, the precious paltry whiff of a breeze foretold the ineluctable adjoining of seasons. This lesson learned from all those hours upon hours of sitting, walking or standing--clad only in one brightly colored Speedo or another (green, blue, red, orange) with a whistle around my neck--and , with intense vigilance, caring (I really did care!) for the lives of the kids and the parents and the jerks and the idiots and the rest of them, including "tax payers," who took to the water; yes, by the third or fourth summer of eight to ten hours in the sun, the subtleness of the seasonal change became, perhaps subliminally at first, obvious.

Two things came from those long hours in the sun. One, like the other creatures of the earth, I learned to understand the hints of nature--hints, that to some species, send them south or from the highlands to the lower valleys or upstream or downstream or cajole them to gather the sustenance that will take them through the big freeze ahead. Two, the cumulative affects of all that glorious sunshine, all that ultraviolet contagion has left me with only half of the top of my right ear. Squamous cell carcinoma. I await the certainty when another part of me will be sliced away. (Please, don't let it be the nose. I have such a nice nose.)

I have four Swisher Sweets left. I've told David that once this box is finished, then I will be finished with the nastiness of what I have promised myself will not become a habit. I'm indulging in the puffing only because I'm going through my "crotchety" phase anyway. Aren't I?

I believe, though, I will continue to sit myself down in one of the two Adirondack chairs on our old front porch, sip the shiraz-cabernet and just simply be amongst it all, amongst the sublime mystery of it all.

Dear Marilyn Musgrave

Click on the title to see a video of the lady in pink explain why she should be reelected to the U.S. House from Colorado's flatlander district where God is in his heaven and all is right with the world.

Calvin

I noticed that my last "Letters to Melissa..." post included a picture of Melissa with an errant tail exposed in the upper right of the pic. With apologies to our big guy, Calvin--who passed from lymphoma several years ago (you'll notice the biopsy scar on the left side of his neck)--I thought I'd better get him in the picture, too. He was no less loved than Sweet Melissa. He, too, is missed still, always

Magnificent Fraud - John Mark Creepster Karr - Michael Tracey Does it Again

The Broward-Palm Beach New Times, a publication much like our Westword, provides this piece on University of Colorado Journalism professor, Michael Tracey, and his particular Ward Churchillish absurdly sickening grasp for fame (and money, of course).

Like I said the morning this fraud broke, Karr ain't the guy folks.

Letters to Melissa - Piney Lake (Part IV)

Sweet Melissa:

Sweetheart, we did it again. Yes, David and I went camping with John and Fred, Clayton and Richard and two "newbies," Greg and Daniel. I know, it's hard to believe that we would--for the third time, for goodness sake!--forsake the comforts of a warm bed, immediately accessible bathroom, fine restaurant, outdoor patio (a Maker's Mark and 7, in hand) framed by mountains of Pine, Spruce and Aspen in Silverthorne or Vail. But, we lived in a tent for two days. It was fun...mostly.

You'll be happy to hear that the attack of the voracious suicide flies from our July camping trip was not repeated. I believe an early fall is hanging in the air up there, quietly whispering of the big freeze just around the corner. The nights were cold. Indeed, that two or three a.m. bladder-splitting necessity to crawl out of the sleeping bag, open up the tent and shakily navigate through the profuse willow fields in order to release the goods, was, dear heart, icily painful. But, the flies have not really survived that cold. There are still some hardy suicide suckers buzzing about. But, they're now manageable. Thank God!

Yes, this camping event followed pretty much the established protocols: pack the vehicle with six days of supplies (clothing, food, booze) when the intended stay is two nights; drive the hour and a half to Vail, head north to Piney Lake (dirt road, pretty well maintained); unpack the vehicle; set-up the tent, the camp chairs; pour yourself a drink and settle in around the fire.

Then, there was the hike to the waterfall (Fred and the newbies went all the way; David, John and I went half way; and the rest took Roo and Sydney--the Golden Retrievers--to the lake for a swim); the horseback ride (Clayton, Greg and me); the obligatory press-on tattoos.

Yes, honey, we had fun. Again, many thoughts those days in the
hills were about how much you would have loved the experience--demanding proper respect and deference from the Goldens, of course.

Loving you still, always

George

Letters to Melissa - Piney Lake (Part III)

Dear Sweet Melissa:

Well, sweetheart, here we go again. Heading back up to Piney Lake where, the advance crew (our friends, John and Fred) have reported the flies are gone (too cold), and--as I said--it's cold and where, it's reported, there will be rain in the next couple days.

But, what the hey! There will actually be between nine to twelve of us up there together, doing what guys (gay or straight with the exception that, as you know, the gay guys don't kill things for the helluva it! Sport? You've got to be kidding!) do on a camping trip which I've explained in prior posts.

I bought a new lens for my camera and, hopefully, I can get some great shots this time.

Anyway, wish you were here; wish you could hop in the car with us and spend some time in that wee slice of paradise--(that is, if the flies are truly dormant).

Loving you still, always

George

This Is Absolutely Insane - Rocky Mountain News

The Rocky Mountain News has outdone itself today with an absolutely insane, absurd, crazy, asinine litany of nutty stories, cartoons and editorials attacking Peter Boyles of KHOW radio who has, since the murder of JonBenet Ramsey, maintained that this tragedy was not the work of an intruder as John and Patsy Ramsey, the parents, (as well as their official mouthpiece, the Rocky Mountain News) asserted/assert. Boyles further has identified the "confession" of John Mark Karr as the ramblings of a nutcase who had nothing whatsoever to do with murder of JonBenet.

Whatever you think of Peter Boyles and whoever is ultimately proven to have committed this heinous act, please consider some of the facts:

1) Karr claims to have picked JonBenet up at her school, taken her to the Ramsey home and therein did the deed. Fact: The murder occurred during the Christmas holiday. School was not in session.

2) Karr claims JonBenet's death was accidental. Fact: The poor child's head was viciously bashed with what was probably a flashlight. She was then strangled with a garotte.

3) Karr claims he drugged JonBenet. Fact: The toxicology report from the autopsy found no drugs in JonBenet's body.

4) Karr claims to have had sex with JonBenet. Fact: No semen was found.

Good people, Karr's confession--as well as the ramblings of the Rocky Mountain News, as well as the machinations of the People's Republic of Boulder's DA and police department--is (God, what's the best word???) absurd. Wish I had a better, more descriptive word. But, that's it.

Jesus, we live in strange times....

WHOA! Somthin' Ain't Right With this JonBenet Thing

Have you had a look at John Mark Karr who claims to have killed JonBenet Ramsey? Have you listened to his voice? Have you read the facts that led to his confession? Have you considered the relative merits of prison time in Thailand as opposed to the United States?

More later. But, good people, my gut tells me this guy is a nut.

No More Binkies

Okay. No more liquid-filled binkies on airplanes. I can understand that. I mean, some crazy son-of-a-bitch could stick the business end of an electrode attached to a battery or a cell phone detonator into the binkie and set off an explosion proportionate to... Well, I guess the amount of peroxide based or whatever liquid explosive the crazy (now, stupid!) son-of-a-bitch put in the binkie would, most likely poof pretty much like a beer fart and burn the guy's nose hairs, while scaring the shit out of the baby, for Christ's sake. That is, of course, if he had a baby and if he didn't, what the fuck was he doing with the binkie in the first place? Satisfaction of a fetish, maybe?

I'm wondering here if the issue of Preparation H came up in a Chertoff staff meeting. Although--thank the good Lord--I don't have to use this stuff, the wipes are smothered in some kind of liquid and, I understand, there are suppositories that, most likely, also contain some kind of liquid. What about hemorrhoids? If you're on a four or six or eight hour flight, I guarantee you that, if you've got the nasty buggers, hemorrhoids, you're going to need to soothe their certain-to-occur complaints during the flight. What about Prep H? Or, is one simply left with locking oneself in the toilet and massaging oneself with one's index finger which, most likely, will ease the discomfort for about five minutes? But, then, liquid hand soap has been banned, so what means of cleanin' up is okey-dokey according to Chertoff? Yeah, I guess the airline's supply their bathrooms with those little bars of soap. I wouldn't know. Of all the thousands of miles I've flown, I've never used the bathroom in an airplane, except, of course in my novel, "A Cirlec of Magic," available at... Never mind.

Today, I heard that those liquid filled inserts Dr. Scholls makes for your shoes have gone on the banned list. I've got a couple of those in one pair of my trail shoes and they're great for the stressed arches. I'm wondering though, if Chertoff and company are banning all electronics on airplanes, how would one detonate the peroxide paste-based explosive in one's shoes? Of course, this assumes that--the by and large non-English-as-a-primary-language federalized mafia who meet and greet us as we pass through the beeping machines--those pesky Dr. Scholls inserts haven't been spotted and ripped out and confiscated before we ever get on the plane.

Now, I'm hearing that mascara is a banned substance. Gawd!

This whole knee-jerk reaction from Chertoff and crew is, of course, reactionary and, sadly, really doesn't provide or invoke any real confidence that Chertoff and crew know what the hell they're doing. Remember Katrina, ya'll? Why'd Chertoff keep his ass on that one?

Recalling the initial hysteria with the onset of the AIDS pandemic, I'm reminded that, in time, hysteria kind of slipslides--for most of us--into a non-hysterical logicality that respects fact over fiction (and hysteria) and centers on what measures are really, truly effective in the fight against the demon, the bug, the fearfull entity that has been visited upon the human condition.

Fundamentalistic Islamic terrorism is the demon, the bug, the fearfull entity that has been visited upon us. Does one really believe that banning binkies from aircraft is the answer?

Forgive me, but I do believe there is another direction--political correctness be damned to the particular hell it deserves--that might be a wee bit more effective in assuring the safety of what Chertoff calls the "traveling public." Islamic Fundamentalists fit a profile. Or, at least the pictures and descriptions I've reviewed tend to indicate--100 fucking percent of the time--that Islamic Fundamentalists--forgive me--kind of all look alike. Would it be too much for Chertoff and crew to consider that reality rather than honing in on binkies and Prep H?

Letters to Melissa - Piney Lake (Part II)

Dear Sweet Melissa*:

Okay, I've told you about the first four parts of camping. Now, for the fifth part.

The fifth part of camping is, perhaps, the most important. This is the part where the "newbies" (those who are camping for the first time or are camping for the first time with US) sip their favorite beverage as the whole group stares into the magnificent fire with the close and holy darkness of forest caressing each of us, with the divine lightshow above--the ten-billion stars, pulsating, alive and framed by the tops of pines that surround the campfire. (Often, it's necessary to take a little walk out to the dirt road fity yards from the campsite, to actually see the astral fantasmagoria above.) It is, you see, incumbent upon the newbies to bare their souls before the round of boys sitting before the campfire. Those are the rules.

Baring one's soul has, in the past, focused on things as trivial as what one has loaded into their iPod or, indeed, what or whom one has, um, intimately interacted with in the most recent past--lovers, boyfriends, partners aside.

Now, dear heart, let me tell you that the newbies are not required to reveal anything. They're simply urged to do so as a right of passage necessary to the particular camping experience we've all come to love since we started the same (for David and me, just a year ago) but for John and Fred and whomever they've coaxed into the hills for years and years past, yes, this right of passage has been around for a while.

Okay. Here's a primer on what the newbie tell-all entails. Well, see, I was in this bar and they had strippers, okay?, and the strippers weren't really strippers but they were, well, boys for hire and all I had was twenty bucks and, well, twenty bucks don't get you laid in Denver, buckaroo--no matter how pretty you are--and, well, I had to go to the ATM and it was out of money and then I had to go to the bartender with a check for $200 bucks and he cashed it and then I went looking for him, the beauty who'd smiled at me, and, damn, I couldn't find him, so I went to the tubs, to the baths and the sights there were probably as disgusting as--tee hee--the group around this campfire and, well, I just went home and satisfied myself and fell asleep immediately without any actual physical contact with anyone, save myself and, well...

Ah, Sweet Melissa. You don't really need to know about this factor five of the camping experience. I think most of those tales told around the campfire are enhanced for affect anyway. And, besides, the doggies that have experienced this fifth component of the camping experience just sleep through it all, not caring a whit for the content or, indeed, recognizing bullshit when they hear it.

*Sweet Melissa was the absolute joy of David's and my life for twelve years and ten months. When her osteoarthritis became so bad that she literally could not stand up, she went to heaven, with the blessings of us all...

Elton - Sorry

Letters to Melissa - Sorrow

Dear Sweet Melissa:

As always, I know you already know this. You are, after all, there, ensconced in the trappings of painless, guiltless, serene acceptance and understanding of those things that we here don't fully understand or comprehend. But, I thought I'd just let you know that life here amongst the temporal machinations of human beings is still pretty screwed up; still pretty unfathomable by those of us whose perception of the world is encased in the essential worth of the full gamut of Western Civilization.

Seems China is killing dogs. There has been a five-day massacre in Yunnan province's Mouding county, that has taken the lives of an estimated 50,000 dogs.

The report is that since three human beings died from the affects of rabies from dog bites in this Chinese province, the solution is to kill all the dogs; 50,000 at least.

The CNN report of this horrible event reports that: Dogs being walked were taken from their owners and beaten to death on the spot, it said. Other killing teams entered villages at night creating noise to get dogs barking, then homing in on their prey.

About 360 of the county's 200,000 residents suffered dog bites this year, with three reported deaths, including a 4-year-old girl, the report said.

"With the aim to keep this horrible disease from people, we decided to kill the dogs," Li Haibo, a spokesman for the county government was quoted as saying by the official Xinhua News Agency.

Yes, honey, I know... The killing of dogs in China is nuts, crazy. Why can't they initiate a program to immunize the dogs against rabies? But, then, we're talking about a country where folks eat dogs.

Ah, can you imagine what my reaction would be if some "committee" or "team" tried to beat you? Yeah, it wouldn't happen. Or, yes, it would not have happened. Wishful thinking, I guess; wishing you were still here. (Sometimes I hear the jingle/jangle of the tags on your collar and I turn my head with a smile, knowing you have climbed the stairs to my second story lair, just to check up on me, just to suggest a goodie might be in order. But, I realize, of course, you're no longer here. And, I turn my head back to the computer, as a thousand images of your life with David and me course through my mind.)

So, anyway, I'm sorry this is happening. Eastern civilization confuses me. Always has. I think I got a D+ at the University of Colorado when I took a course in this complex and confusing subject. It remains complex and confusing.

Now, having admitted to being stumped by the gyrations of Eastern civilization--they eat dogs, for God's sake!--I'm reminded that I can't even explain as rational much of what this country, this jewel of Western civilization is up to lately. I mean , look at us. Look at the oaf in the White House who chews his food with his mouth open while talkin' tough pardner with the Prime Minister of Great Britain; the fuc_ing fratboy genius "world leader" who, heh heh!, gives an unwanted neck rub to the female leader of the German nation state. Hell, I would have been fired from my workplace if I'd layed hands upon a female coworker.

Well, back to the dogs.

I keep rereading this; I keep digesting this; I keep loving these words:

“We need another and wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals. Remote from universal nature, and living by complicated artifice, man in civilization surveys the creature through the glass of his knowledge and sees thereby a feather magnified and the whole image in distortion. We patronize them for their incompleteness, for their tragic fate of having taken form so far below ourselves. And therein we err, and greatly err. For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings; they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendor and travail of the earth.”

Henry Beston, The Outmost House

The Death of Trees

This morning's Denver Post provided a piece on the tragic loss of the lodgepole pines in the White River National Forest. The devastation, the killing of these wonderful trees is the result of the voracious appetite of the pine beetle that, it is estimated, will eventually take 80 to 90 percent of the lodgepoll pines in the west. The picture at the left was taken (Ed Andrieski, The Associated Press) in Colorado's White River National Forest near Frisco.

I took the picture below last month also in the White River National Forest ten miles east of Vail. In both pictures, the lodgepole pines being attacked first lose their foliage and turn brown; they then turn gray and, eventually, fall to the ground.

Sadly, the vista on the right will probably disappear in the not too distant future.

Some say it's nature's way; that the fires that will naturally occur and burn away the rotted lodgepole pines will give new life to this old forest. That may be so. But, Mama Nature--from the short view--sometimes really sucks.

EXTRA! North Denver Tribune Removes George From Its Subscription List!

I, of course, asked for it. I dared to bring up some salient points in an emailed letter to the Tribune's managing editor, Elisa Cohen, with regard to the city's failure to provide for the proper infrastructure maintenance of Denver's Parks. Ms. Cohen took umbrage with my remarks that, by the way, actually, in my opinion, pointed out her lack of reportorial skills. HOW COULD I DO SUCH A THING! HOW DARE I DO SUCH A THING!

The picture of the beautiful welcome sign to Highland Park will become relevant as you continue. (If you do continue. I had a comment on one of my posts not too long ago that I ought to stop worrying about the parks; that I ought to just chill at the seal pond in Civic Center Park. Um, yup, now THAT would be chillin'. Denverites will know what I mean.)

Anyway, here's my letter:

Elisa Cohen’s, “Is the grass greener?” which appeared in the August 3rd edition of the Tribune recounts her “investigative” efforts to determine if Sloan’s Lake Park’s perceived grass/lawn/flower deficiencies are the result of some bureaucratic bias which favor—specifically, in Cohen’s piece—Washington Park. The conclusion? With the help of middle management Denver Parks' personnel, Cohen concluded that God is pretty much in His heaven and all is right and equal with the care of maintenance of Denver’s 5,500 acres of parks.

What bothers me most about Cohen’s piece is, I hope, obvious. To make the conclusions she made and to accept the relatively rosy rhetoric from the Parks folks by comparing two parks, Sloan’s and Washington, is akin to determining one can get a pretty good handle on Christianity by contrasting Catholicism to Methodism. (Spend a Good News Sunday over at New Hope Baptist and you’ll see what I mean.)

The problem with Denver’s parks is, of course, the infrastructure. The problem with the grass in Denver’s parks is pumps and pipes and sprinkler heads and crews to maintain them. This issue is endemic throughout Denver’s park system. Granted, a little less endemic in certain parts of town than others.

I was struck not long ago with the irony of an editorial in the Denver Post that heralded Denver’s Manager of Parks and Recreation, Kim Bailey, as a “diamond” of the Hickenlooper administration. Why? Well, according to the editorialist, Ms. Bailey has reactivated five of Denver’s water fountains (the one’s you sit and watch, not the ones from which you sip). The editorialist characterized this “accomplishment” as a rejuvenation of the City Beautiful movement…a legacy from Mayor Robert W. Speer’s administration.

The irony of the rejuvenation of fountains is that there is probably no more costly or maintenance intensive undertaking in any park, anywhere than that of a fountain. Fountains bleed resources. Yet, the grass doesn’t get watered, flowers don’t get planted, weeds infest with gleeful effusion, asphalt paths deteriorate, play areas fall into disrepair.

It would have been worthwhile if Ms. Cohen and the Parks folks had sauntered through Highland Park or Berkeley Park or Rocky Mountain Park, all of which are also in the Northwest Park District. It would have been interesting if Ms. Cohen had asked the Parks folks a few more cogent questions about what appears to be deliberate neglect of portions of each of the parks I’ve mentioned. (I’m not concerned about Sloan’s because, as Ms. Cohen reports, the Sloan’s neighbors are doing quite well in playing the role of squeaky wheel.) It would have been interesting if Ms. Cohen had asked the Parks folks if all that money spent on the rejuvenation of fountains might have been better spent, for example, on the replacement of the rocky, slumped, jagged, deteriorating path through Highland Park or, indeed, just the planting of one flowerbed.

Sloan’s Lake Park is a marvelous environment for people and critters. The pelicans alone, which grace the lake, are literally evidence of God’s good work. Unfortunately, the evidence of man’s neglect weighs heavy on other parks where the neighbor’s clout, the neighbor’s “…demands…” (as Ms. Cohen reports) are a wee less influential at City Hall.

Shamefully heartless, wasn't I.

Home is the sailor, home from the sea...

Actually, just home from the shore, the Jersey shore. Someone--my brother-in-law, I think--suggested that when one says they're going to the shore, it is universally understood (in the states, at least) that one is going to New Jersey, to the New Jersey shoreline where the Atlantic rumbles and spits, ebbs and floods; a robust gush of white-crested, moon-pulled saltwater that captures the essential fancy of even the most cynical.

The picture above, by the way, was taken about 7 a.m., about a half-hour to forty-five minutes after the sunrise turns from a basketball of orange fire to what you see in the picture. I pointed my camera directly at the sun--from the balcony of our bed and breakfast--and the affect of seeming sunset, the dark land, the coruscation of the sunlight on the sea is, at least, interesting.

Incidentally, as I titled this post, above, I googled the words just to take a look at the complete poem by A.E. Hausman and discovered--yes, I'll admit I didn't know it--that those words were first written (conceived) by Robert Louis Stevenson in his Requiem. Lest you think less of Hausman, he did acknowledge and credit Stevenson.

This is my third trip to the Jersey Shore, to Ocean Grove for the purpose of celebrating my nephew's birthday. He, Jack, became eight this year. Of all the pics I took of him and his sister, Kate, and their mom and dad and David, I'm fascinated with this pensive image of him as he and his mom and sister awaited the departure of ride at Point Pleasant Amusement Park which is about an hour south of Ocean Grove.
Yes, there are scads of pics with smiles. And, to be fair, here's another pic of Jack on the balcony of our bed and breakfast. He's a good boy, with a fine mind,
a wonderful sense of humor,
the ability to counter, tit for tat,
his Uncle George's quips and
comments, arguments and logic
or illogic, as it may be.

Much more to be said about the trip to the shore. But, as is my
habit, I'm going on here and probably losing your interest. So, I'll
end this post here and take up the adventure again in a future, or several future posts.

Back From the Shore - Back to the Routine

That's me in the orange pants! :-] I missed my treadmill!