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Elevated Voices | Michael de Yoanna  Michael de Yoanna While most Coloradans sleep soundly in their beds, Michael de Yoanna rises in the cold darkness to embark on his lonely morning commute—a stumble to his bathroom to splash cold water on his face and then straight to his coffee maker. Minutes later, he arrives at his humble home office desk and turns on his battered Mac to scour the headlines—great and obscure—for an intriguing and quirky roundup of the day's news for 5280's blogs and newsletters. Michael's articles have appeared in many publications, including 5280, Salon, and The Washington Times. He has also collaborated with the CBS Evening News and is working on a novel he calls "the next Deer Hunter." Prior to freelancing, Michael reported for several newspapers along the Front Range, winning 12 awards for features and investigations. Video: Chicken Visits Durango City CouncilFriday, November 20, 2009A person in a chicken costume entered Durango’s city hall this week to address city council on the issue of backyard chicken farming. The “chicken” entered, made a few moves and some noises, flapped its wings, held up a sign, then took a seat in the nearly empty gallery. H/T Durango Herald.
Posted at 3:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna What President Obama Wants You to Do This ThanksgivingFriday, November 20, 2009Last year, U.S. spending to treat obesity hit $86 billion—a figure that could quadruple as America’s waistlines keep bulging in years to come, points out Medill News Service, which cites a study finding that almost half of U.S. adults are expected to be obese by 2018. But you can’t blame Boulder for the trend. A federal analysis of obesity rates across the nation concludes that Boulder County is the nation’s thinnest, writes the Daily Camera. That’s according to 2007 data—the most recent available—showing that less than 13 percent of people in the county are obese and just four percent reported diabetes, a health problem closely linked to obesity. Meanwhile, some counties in Alabama and Mississippi are more than 40 percent obese. Denver’s rate is about 16.3 percent. What’s President Barack Obama doing about the problem? Taking to the airwaves on Thanksgiving Day. In a public service announcement with the NFL, viewers will see New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees toss a pass to an unseen player. Wait! It’s Barack Obama—and he’s taking on Pittsburgh Steelers safety Troy Polamalu. And they’re playing on the White House lawn (via USA Today). The message: Get out and exercise, kids
Posted at 2:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Why Tom Tancredo Is Reconsidering a Run for GovernorFriday, November 20, 2009
Apparently, it’s something he began pondering as he walked through a local mall. He tells Westword, “I know that for everybody who comes up and says, ‘Go, Tom, go!,’ there are probably five people who passed me by saying, ‘Go to hell, Tom Tancredo!’” Tancredo says he might be convinced to stay out of the race if he can be assured by fellow Republicans, including McInnis, that a truly conservative agenda will be offered in the 2010 race. The Denver Post’s Mike Rosen highlights what that agenda—a platform of sorts—could look like, citing “recent meetings” between McInnis, Tancredo, GOP state Chairman Dick Wadhams, and others. Among the subjects: a commitment to limit taxes and state spending, rescinding Governor Bill Ritter’s executive order unionizing state employees, appointing conservative judges “to balance the court and reign in judicial activism,” and “responsible development of renewable energy and Colorado’s abundant oil and natural gas resources, as well as nuclear energy.”
Posted at 1:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna The New Foreclosures DemographicFriday, November 20, 2009The foreclosure crisis isn’t over. It’s expected to persist into next year, as high unemployment will probably translate into more people losing their homes. And the crisis has now spread to homeowners with relatively manageable fixed-interest rates. Across the United States, 14 percent of homeowners with a mortgage were either behind on payments or in foreclosure as of the end of September, according to The Associated Press. In Colorado, there were 12,468 foreclosure filings in the third quarter, setting an all-time quarterly record, reports the Denver Business Journal. That’s the fourth consecutive quarter in which foreclosures in Colorado have increased; foreclosure filings in the state for the period ending September 30 were up 18 percent from the same period last year. “At the pace we’re going for this year, we’ll almost certainly have more than 40,000 for the year, probably up [to] more than 42,000, 43,000,” Ryan McMacken of the Colorado Division of Housing tells 9News. “So, there’s plenty of new people entering the foreclosure process right now.” Patrick Dolan, a Re/Max of Boulder Inc. Realtor, tells the Boulder County Business Report that on the other side of the coin, homebuyers who were once happy with a 13 percent interest rate now complain if they get only five percent, expecting lower.
Posted at 11:00 am by Michael de Yoanna In Memoriam: Jeanne-ClaudeFriday, November 20, 2009
Jeanne-Claude was 74. She met Christo Javacheff, a Bulgarian refugee, in Paris in 1958. Christo was already wrapping small objects at that time. Three years later, the two collaborated on a temporary installation in Cologne, Germany—oil drums and rolls of industrial paper wrapped in tarpaulin. To establish an artistic brand, they used only Christo’s name, but in 1994 they retroactively applied the joint name “Christo and Jeanne-Claude” to their outdoor and large-scale temporary indoor works, according to The New York Times. In an online statement, Christo says he is saddened by his wife’s death but remains “committed to honor the promise they made to each other many years ago: that the art of Christo and Jeanne-Claude would continue.” That means completing their controversial “Over The River” installation project on the Arkansas River in Colorado. But even with Christo’s determination to finish the $50 million project, it has many hurdles to clear. The Bureau of Land Management is reviewing the artists’ proposal and is assessing the environmental impacts, the Colorado Springs Gazette points out, after Cañon City-based Rags Over the Arkansas River stated its opposition to the project. Christo and Jeanne-Claude first visited the Arkansas River Valley 14 years ago, notes The Pueblo Chieftain, which interviews the couple’s local independent consultant.
Posted at 10:00 am by Michael de Yoanna Another Reason to Support Colorado Public RadioThursday, November 19, 2009
But between November 30 and December 2, CPR, known for its love of classical music, will conduct a rare, on-air fundraising drive with the Colorado Symphony that culminates in a live broadcast of cellist Yo-Yo Ma from Boettcher Concert Hall (via press statement). In September, CSO musicians agreed to a 12.5 percent pay cut, as many as four weeks of unpaid vacation, and suspension of employer contributions to their retirement fund. “Colorado Public Radio recognizes the CSO’s unique role as one of Colorado’s key cultural assets and petitioned the Federal Communications Corporation for permission to conduct a one-time-only, on-air fundraising drive to support its major classical music provider, the Colorado Symphony,” CPR President Max Wycisk says in a statement (via the Denver Business Journal). Wycisk notes the FCC hasn’t authorized a broadcast station to run this sort of fundraiser for another group since 1993.
Posted at 2:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Why John Fielder Is on TourThursday, November 19, 2009
He’s touring to promote his latest book, “Ranches of Colorado,” which includes a stop for a slideshow and book signing tomorrow night on the Colorado State University campus in Fort Collins—an event that will help support the Legacy Land Trust, a nonprofit land-conservation organization, notes the Northern Colorado Business Report. Here’s his complete book promotion schedule. The ornate book is Fielder’s “most beautiful innovation so far,” writes the Estes Park Trail Gazette, with 232 pages and 375 color photographs of working cattle ranches. The book is meant to bring attention to the rapid loss of ranchland in Colorado to development. As Senior Editor Luc Hatlestad wrote recently for 5280, Fielder has focused his lens on the outdoors for more than three decades. Now, he’s beginning to recognize the value of putting people into the frame.
Posted at 1:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Will the Monolith Festival Rock On?Thursday, November 19, 2009Despite some kind of promotional relationship with that cute Esurance gal, the future of the Monolith festival is “very grim.” Those words come straight from the “Monolith team” that puts on the two-day indie-music festival at Red Rocks. “A tough economic year and an opening day of chilling rain combined to put a serious dent in our humble operation,” the team writes in a note on Monolith’s Web site. “We have continued to pursue any and all options that would allow us to recover from this year and head into 2010 with full steam. At this point in time, we have been unable to secure any options.” This year’s turnout seemed solid, as did the acts—which included the Mars Volta and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, among many others. But the outcome “unfortunately, seemed foreseeable, especially when organizers parted ways with AEG Live, the promoter who produced the 2008 installment of the festival and who opted out this year,” writes Westword. There’s a glimmer of hope: The festival could go on if a new promoter who appreciates Monolith’s ear for great music can be found to provide the needed cash.
Posted at 12:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Mark Udall’s Last StandThursday, November 19, 2009As the U.S. Senate rolled out an $849 billion health-care-reform bill yesterday, you may have missed the other big policy story of the day. In an impassioned plea that fell on many deaf ears, Colorado Democrat Mark Udall argued that something needed to be done about credit card gouging. He asked his fellow senators to support a House bill meant to put the reforms of the Credit Card Accountability, Responsibility and Disclosure Act into place two months early. “The last thing our families need are higher interest rates and extra fees, especially on consumers who are already playing by the rules,” Udall said (via the Fort Collins Coloradoan). But his calls for a vote, which would have frozen credit card rates and fees until stricter regulations go into effect in February, were shot down by Republicans. Senator Thad Cochran, a Mississippi Republican, delivered the death blow “on behalf of several senators on this side of the aisle.” Half of Americans report that their interest rates have been raised in the past six months while Congress has considered limits on them, according to a Rasmussen Reports survey (via Deseret News). A majority of Americans, 77 percent, think credit card companies are taking advantage of consumers with their interest charges. McClatchy Newspapers, meanwhile, tries to figure out what you can do about high credit card rates. The answer: “Not much.”
Posted at 11:00 am by Michael de Yoanna Where to Find Chipotle in EuropeWednesday, November 18, 2009Denver is keeping up its end of the bargain when it comes to globalization. Not only can you get authentic sushi in Denver and a properly poured Guinness at a pub, you can now go to London and eat a belly-busting burrito at Chipotle. Denver-based Chipotle Mexican Grill Incorporated has grown to more than 900 restaurants and is now expanding into Europe, reports the Denver Business Journal. The London restaurant will open on Charing Cross Road next April, writes Britain’s Big Hospitality. “I think we’ll be able to source beautiful ingredients from local and sustainable sources from the time we open in the UK, and establish sustainable supply chains elsewhere as we look at other European markets,” says Chipotle Chairman/CEO Steve Ells. Additional London sites could be added next year, as well as locations in Paris and Munich. Chipotle seems recession-proof: For the first three quarters of this year, the company reported a 14.6 percent increase in revenue, up to $1.13 billion, notes the Nation’s Restaurant News.
Posted at 2:30 pm by Michael de Yoanna Video: Balloon Boy Family Has Sushi With ABCWednesday, November 18, 2009Convicted “balloon boy” hoaxter Richard Heene and his family were caught by TMZ exiting a sushi restaurant in New York. What were they doing there? Meeting with ABC, the same network that put the family on the reality show “Wife Swap.”
Posted at 2:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna How Competitive Is Colorado?Wednesday, November 18, 2009Compared to nearby states, Colorado is falling behind when it comes to winning new jobs that increase earnings, according to a new report, “Toward a More Competitive Colorado,” by the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation. The report isn’t all doom and gloom, however. It’s meant to nudge forward a state that aspires to have it all. Consider: Colorado is the leanest state in the nation (an indicator of health), high school students rank number one in SAT/ACT scores, and just one other state boasts more college degrees. But investments made in the late 1980s have run their course, and Colorado could enter an era of complacency if officials aren’t careful, notes The Denver Post. Among the challenges are low funding levels for higher education (Colorado is 47th nationally) and sagging high school graduation rates (Colorado is 29th). Moreover, personal income is showing signs of slipping, falling from eighth in the nation to 13th in recent years. “There is a soft underbelly in the Colorado economy,” Metro Denver EDC Vice President Tom Clark tells the Denver Business Journal. “After five years, over 60 percent of our measures have either not changed or gone in the wrong direction.” (more…)
Posted at 1:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Happy Deathday, Frozen Dead GuyWednesday, November 18, 2009Twenty years ago, Bredo Morstoel died of heart failure. His body was put into a steel casket, the casket was put into a Tuff Shed in Nederland, and each month Bo Shaffer piles dry ice onto it to make sure Morstoel stays nice and chilly—more than 100 degrees below zero. Morstoel, who is cryonically preserved in his box, is the celebrated “frozen dead guy” of Nederland’s annual Frozen Dead Guy Days. And while he does a lot for the local economy, this is about as exciting as Morstoel gets in a story by Longmont’s Daily Times-Call. Yet, in some far-off, sci-fi future, the idea is that Morstoel will be defrosted, rub his eyes and rise from his icy tomb. Let’s hope a Norwegian translator is on hand when it happens. Morstoel was a public servant from Norway, who was whisked by his grandson, Trygve, to a California cryonics lab before being laid to rest in the Tuff Shed. Trygve had hoped to ride the cryonics wave and start a clinic in Nederland, just west of Boulder, but it never happened. Trygve’s visa expired, he was deported, and Shaffer, “The Ice Man,” became caretaker, notes 7News. Shaffer, who is working on a book about the experience, says Trygve funds the deep freeze with his mother’s pension, sending $800 per month for dry ice and labor. To hear the story put to song, watch the following video, produced by the Nederland Chamber of Commerce.
Posted at 12:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna What Army Suicides Have in CommonWednesday, November 18, 2009As the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq rage on, suicides among U.S. Army soldiers have set a record for a fifth straight year. The Army says it suspects 140 active duty soldiers had ended their lives in 2009 as of the count they had taken on Monday. That’s the same number confirmed last year and up from 102 in 2006, according to The Associated Press. The Army has struggled to slow the trend, even with new suicide-prevention efforts. The Comprehensive Soldier Fitness program, which emphasizes mental and emotional health as much as physical strength, was added in October. Army Vice Chief of Staff General Peter W. Chiarelli said during a press conference at the Pentagon yesterday, “This is horrible. Every single loss is devastating” (via The Washington Post). Yet, Chiarelli also says the Army remains befuddled by the problem and has yet to identify any causal links among the cases: “Each suicide case is as unique as the individuals themselves.” However, a special investigation that I worked on with Salon earlier this year identified some common threads, including the habitual mistreatment of soldiers suffering from combat stress by commanders—even medical workers. The Salon series also identified suicides that could have been prevented if Army officials had paid better attention to the plight of soldiers with hidden wounds, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injuries. Suicide isn’t the only risk for returning soldiers. Rolling Stone recently detailed the violence and homicides committed by a group of soldiers at Fort Carson in Colorado Springs.
Posted at 11:00 am by Michael de Yoanna Video: A Look Inside the Rio Grande Scenic Ski TrainTuesday, November 17, 2009The Colorado Ski Train is back, but with a new name: the Rio Grande Scenic Ski Train. It’s expected to make an inaugural run on December 27 (h/t Huffington Post).
Posted at 2:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna Mantria in Speed of Wealth: A “Green” Ponzi SchemeTuesday, November 17, 2009Wayde and Donna McKelvys promoted a green dream—Mantria in Speed of Wealth—in seminars and webinars, urging people to invest in “carbon negative” housing developments in rural Tennessee while marketing biochar, a charcoal substitute made from organic waste. Investors were urged to cash out their stock or retirement funds, or even borrow against their homes, with the promise of returns of 17 percent or higher. The McKelvys, whose lies included that biochar facilities were producing some 25 tons a day, then reaped a 12.5 percent commission for themselves without telling investors. But now, the apparent $30 million Ponzi scheme is over, as the Securities Exchange Commission moved Monday to freeze assets in Colorado and Pennsylvania, accusing the McKelvys, who are the principals of Speed of Wealth LLC in Centennial, and Mantria executives Troy Wragg and Amanda Knorr in Philadelphia of using new investment cash to pay off earlier investors, reports The Denver Post. An SEC complaint accuses each of the defendants of violating anti-fraud and other aspects of securities law, writes the Denver Business Journal, adding that the SEC seeks injunctions, disgorgement, and financial penalties.
Posted at 1:00 pm by Michael de Yoanna There’s a Burglar in Your ShortsTuesday, November 17, 2009When an unnamed man arrived home to the 1200 block of Mesa Court in Golden on November 9, he noticed someone else’s white Lexus parked in his garage. Items in his home were out of place, too, so he grabbed a pistol from his bedroom and called out. Intruder Timothy P. Gonzales, 24, of Golden, emerged wearing nothing but the homeowner’s underwear—stolen underwear, according to 7News. Gonzales had showered, done laundry, and even stocked up the refrigerator in the home, which is for sale. When real estate agents came by with clients, Gonzales pretended that he was the owner. When the owner confronted Gonzales, the alleged robber and squatter argued that the pistol was fake and “moved aggressively.” That’s when the homeowner fired the warning shot that kept Gonzales at bay until police arrived. Gonzales was arrested for burglary, drug violations, and possession of a burglar’s tools, notes CBS4. Burglary charges, I presume, will include stealing another man’s underwear.
Posted at 11:00 am by Michael de Yoanna Where Guantanamo Detainees May End UpTuesday, November 17, 2009Depending on your perspective, it could be a good thing that federal officials have not contacted Governor Bill Ritter or state Representative Buffie McFayden about the possibility of moving suspected terrorists now held in the Guantanamo Bay prison to Supermax in Florence. The Associated Press, which reports that Colorado officials have not yet been contacted despite rumors the detainees could come to Colorado, adds a caveat: the U.S. Justice Department says the task force studying where to house the detainees hasn’t made any final decisions. Still, an indication of where the 100 foreign detainees might end up came yesterday as federal officials toured the mostly unused, 1,600-cell Thomson Correctional Center in rural Illinois, reigniting the partisan debate over the closure of Gitmo (via Reuters). Meanwhile, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder’s decision to try five detainees, including self-professed 9/11 mastermind Kalid Sheikh Mohammed, has spawned intense criticism from many Republican lawmakers, as well as some of the family members who lost loved ones in the 2001 attacks, according to CBS News. Republicans have argued the attacks were war crimes and support military tribunals, while Democrats backing Holder say a trial in New York would illustrate the ideals of the American legal system to the world.
Posted at 9:09 am by Michael de Yoanna What Would Willy Wonka Do?Monday, November 16, 2009
For Ritter, the proposed higher cost for candy and soda is a matter of eliminating a sales-tax exemption, not creating a new tax. Doing so would generate $17.9 million and help ease budget cuts to schools, writes The Denver Post. But critics, such as Jon Caldara, president of the libertarian-minded Independence Institute, are none too pleased: “I think the governor needs to sit down and watch Willy Wonka a couple of times and stop being such a buzz kill.” Yet, such criticisms seem to be the least of the governor’s problems. Ritter is attempting more than $1 billion in budget-balancing maneuvers, and the “candy and soda” tax is just one of more than $130 million in proposed temporary eliminations of tax exemptions, notes the Denver Business Journal. Among others, Ritter has also proposed suspending an exemption for industrial and manufacturing energy use, which could reap $48 million. Critics say the cuts will hurt Colorado’s economy.
Posted at 3:30 pm by Michael de Yoanna The Tweet That Won’t DieMonday, November 16, 2009
To recap, Schultheis had written: “Don’t for a second think Obama wants what is best for U.S. He is flying the U.S. plane right into the ground at full speed. Let’s roll.” The “let’s roll” statement is where the controversy lies: A victim of the flight that went down in Pennsylvania declared the same words before ambushing the cockpit to recapture control of a jetliner. The Denver Post editorial board slammed Schultheis with a series of tweets, mocking his claims that his words were misunderstood: “Don’t think we buy your claim you didn’t mean to equate the president with terrorists. No one is buying it.” And: “To believe that the American people elected a president intent on destroying the U.S. is hateful and absurd. Such debate is debasing.” As well as: “Casting Obama as a terrorist trying to destroy the U.S. only hurts legitimate critics concerned about growth of gov spending and meddling.” Meanwhile, Schultheis, who has said his remark was taken out of context, continues to defend himself, including on Peter Boyles’ radio show, saying that Obama is “taking this country down fast;” trying to take control of every facet of government (via The Colorado Independent). “It is fascism and Marxism,” Schultheis says.
Posted at 2:30 pm by Michael de Yoanna Bad Behavior has blocked 5907 access attempts in the last 7 days. |
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Former Congressman and presidential candidate Tom Tancredo made waves recently when he announced he 
Jeanne-Claude, one half of the art team that wrapped the Pont Neuf in Paris and the Reichstag in Berlin and installed 7,503 vinyl gates with saffron-colored nylon panels in Central Park, died yesterday in Manhattan, where she lived with her husband, Christo.
Usually, when Colorado Public Radio asks its listeners for cash, the station keeps it.
Popular Colorado photographer John Fielder is zig-zagging the state after spending a year with ranchers.
There are few people in the world who would seriously argue that junk food and soda pop are good for you. But the question, as far as Bill Ritter’s critics are concerned, is whether people ought to pay higher taxes for them. The governor isn’t alone. Several states are considering the idea, which would put sweets in the same category as sin items like liquor and cigarettes.
State Senator Dave Schultheis’ tweet—the one that led to an outpouring of criticism claiming that he’d compared the hijackers of the 9/11 terrorist attacks to President Barack Obama—just won’t go away.