Two groups of singers bumped into each other on the corner of 16th St. and Wynkoop. A barbershop quartet had just sung for Dick Gephardt and a jolly band of Denver locals was singing “Goodnight Bush” (a parody of Goodnight Moon) up and down the mall. We had the good fortune of hearing each of […]
Choirs on the corner
Posted inDnc 08
The many faces of protest at the DNC
From anti-abortion activists to 9/11 conspiracy theorists to Hillary supporters, the convention is hopping with protesters.
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
Riparian repair
How can we put the West’s broken rivers back together again?
Posted inDnc 08
Little consensus among energy experts
One of the near-unanimous take home messages from the Energy and Climate Change panels held at the Denver Performing Arts Complex on Tuesday was this: start pricing carbon emissions as soon as possible. The most important role that government will play as the U.S. moves to new, cleaner energy sources is pricing carbon, whether it’s […]
Posted inDnc 08
Schweitzer speaks!
The West got a fairly prominent place on the Convention agenda Tuesday when Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer spoke just before Hillary Clinton. The Pepsi Center was packed for the event (in anticipation of Clinton). It was so full that many journalists and other credentialed folks actually had to watch both Schweitzer’s and Clinton’s speeches on […]
Posted inDnc 08
Lobbypalooza, Denver ’08
There’s energy in the air here in Denver, and as HCN’s resident youngun, I like to think it’s because of all the fired-up young people – bloggers, protesters, volunteers – who are here to demand progressive change. But there are plenty of folks here who are trying to keep change from happening – especially change […]
Posted inDnc 08
Gratuitous Celebrity (and editor) Photo
Actress and Activist Daryl Hannah with yours truly.
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
Peace on the Gila, too?
“Peace on the Klamath.” Words like that, used on a recent cover, might compel one to believe that there are no insurmountable water problems (HCN, 6/23/08). And they give us hope for the Gila. The situation in the Gila Basin of New Mexico is a bit different from that in the Klamath. Rather than arguing […]
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
On a wing and a pledge
I very much appreciated Eric Wagner’s adept account of the Butterfly Big Year on which I am embarked (HCN, 8/04/08). There was, however, one vital omission, no doubt due to space. I would greatly appreciate your noting that the Big Year is being conducted as a Butterfly-a-thon to benefit the habitat conservation programs of the […]
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
A spotty future
Regarding your recent barred owl story, it’s hard not to shake my head (HCN, 8/4/08). I wonder how good we will ever be at playing God with the animal kingdom. We shoot ’em, then we bring them back, but only where we want them (buffalo). We trapped them for their fur and took them to […]
Posted inDnc 08
Drill Here. Drill Now. Part II
You’ve got to give the Democrats credit. They tried to make some noise about energy today here in Denver. But no one heard them. Finally, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, along with other key Democratic house leaders, arrived. And then, just as she began to speak about her plan for American energy independence, the chants began: […]
Posted inDnc 08
Freegin’ the Convention
Jack Shafer, of Slate.com, while making his argument that the press should boycott the conventions, wrote: … he may argue that meeting all the important politicos up close at the convention will produce future news dividends. But he’ll pout if you ask him whether the intimacy justifies the expense, which can easily exceed $3,000 per […]
Posted inDnc 08
Drill Here. Drill Now. Pay Less?
If you’re attending the Democratic National Convention, and you can get past the Stormtrooper-looking police in riot gear, and past the people selling Obama buttons for $3 a pop, and you can keep plugging along even after running across the guy riding his bicycle with a giant flag reading: “You are going to Hell”, or […]
Posted inDnc 08
The Las Vegas of Politics
Denver, this week, feels a bit like Vegas. Okay, the lights aren’t so bright. And I haven’t run into any slot machines, yet. Or, for that matter, giant fountains spewing water into the dry desert air. Still. You know how, along the Vegas strip, there’s guys flipping those little cards at you, emblazoned with pics […]
Posted inDnc 08
The entrepreneurs
A crowd stood at the corner of Blake Street and the 16th Street Mall on Monday, flanking a pushcart overflowing with t-shirts. A painfully cheery young man named Toby wore one that was blazoned with the Qdoba Mexican Grill cartoon cactus. On the front it said “Burritos for Obama.” Other t-shirts offered up quesadillas and […]
Posted inDnc 08
Walking for Obama
This summer, I walked in the Paonia Cherry Days parade on the Fourth of July— past many of my former classmates, teachers and community—carrying a hand-painted “Obama’08” sign. The experience filled me with excitement and determination, not to mention a keen sense of my own vulnerability in this small, mostly Republican community. I spent most […]
Posted inAugust 25, 2008: Hot Wheels
McCain: T.R. or W?
The GOP nominee often invokes Teddy Roosevelt, but his conservation record is closer to a more recent president’s
Posted inDnc 08
WELCOME TO DENVER!
Downtown Denver, Aug. 25, where there are nearly as many journalists as there are riot-gear-clad cops. The High Country News team has just arrived. Stay tuned for more coverage from the Democratic National Convention in Denver.
Posted inWotr
The NRA needs someone like me
Like every hunter worthy of the name, I want to protect our hunting heritage so men and women many years from now can experience the same love, awe and respect for wild animals that I’ve been privileged to know. But the two bedrock requirements for that to happen are the health of animal populations and […]