Ken Salazar extinguishes a Bush fire sale

Ken Salazar, the new Secretary of the Interior, who spent much of last week traipsing around the Denver area declaring that there’s a new sheriff in town, has taken what he calls “an important first step” in restoring balance to federal public lands policy — pulling the plug on a…

Denver police look clueless in 9News identity-theft reports

Denver Police Department spokesman Sonny Jackson probably cringes every time he gets a phone call from Channel 9 reporter Deborah Sherman. Twice in recent days, questions she’s posed to him related to an identity-theft story have made him, and the DPD as a whole, seem like Keystone cops. The tale…

George Karl upset at Nuggets in victory — as well he should be

Last night, your Denver Nuggets defeated the San Antonio Spurs, one of the NBA’s elite franchises. But afterward, coach George Karl (pictured) blistered his players in private before expressing his disappointment in their performance to the collected media. And good for him. First of all, the Nuggets were at home,…

Wayne Allard adds half of “lawyer/lobbyist” tag to his résumé

As pointed out in this morning’s Wake-Up Call, ex-Senator Wayne Allard has taken a job with a Washington, D.C., lobbying firm, The Livingston Group. But in reporting about this development, neither the Denver Post, which blurbed the item, nor the Rocky Mountain News, which published a slightly larger offering that’s…

The Westword.com blog shortcut, February 3 edition

It’s the fiftieth anniversary of the day the music died. But don’t blame us. Today in Backbeat Online: • Herman Gauche delights and disgusts equally. • Jim Dalton joins Roger Clyne and the Peacemakers. • Good morning, America. Today’s the Fray. Today in Cafe Society: • Are you the best…

Denver Blogs: Democrats, meet your new nemesis

Behold, our daily tour of the local blogosphere. Send tips. Colorado Republicans react to new GOP boss. They seem to like him. Weird, eh? (Mount Vitrus, via Slapstick Politics) Stimulus money will not keep that highway from crumbling beneath your tires. (Colorado Independent) Builders are totally over the whole rent-control…

No justice for Van Cise?

A task force has named four finalists in the naming-rights battle over the new Denver Justice Center — and historic gangbuster Philip Van Cise isn’t among them. To those who know anything of Van Cise’s remarkable but much-neglected story, the news is a bit puzzling, and disheartening. Not that the…

Metro mayors’ ears open (a bit) when it comes to FasTracks

The January 27 blog “Timing Dubious in Push to Raise FasTracks Taxes” suggested that area mayors were exhibiting political tone-deafness by promoting a tax hike to pay for completion of the FasTracks system amid the worst economic downturn in years. But not so fast. As noted in reports by the…

Where have you gone, Sunshine Megatron?

Oh, hell. Sunshine Megatron, millionaire titan of obnoxious Internet humor, name-changing scoundrel of dubious sanity and random Denver transplant is closing up shop on T-Shirt Hell, his notorious and wildly successful T-shirt site. That’s bad news for all those hoping to stock on up casual wear emblazoned with the likes…

Ramsey Mountain News” farms out JonBenét coverage

The 2006 Message column “She’s Back” begins like so: “There was never any danger of the Rocky Mountain News underplaying the August 16 arrest of alleged child-porn fan John Mark Karr in the 1996 slaying of JonBenét Ramsey. After all, the paper’s previous coverage of this tragic episode had exhibited…

One-day fund drive works again for KUNC

Even those public-radio fans who financially support their favorite stations tend to despise fundraisers that eat into regularly scheduled programming — particularly the ones that stretch out for the better part of a week, if not longer, as is usually the case at Colorado Public Radio, which is currently prepping…

The Westword.com blog shortcut, February 2 edition

Blogs guaranteed to appeal to your groundhog. Today in Backbeat Online: • Spinning the wheel. • Charles Spearin: The Happiness Project. • Live review: Hot Congress Show 1 at Moe’s Original Barbecue. • The Boss was made for loving you. • See video of Reno Divorce at the Ogden Theatre…