CO-04 (Special Election) See Full Big Line

(R) Greg Lopez

(R) Trisha Calvarese

90%

10%

President (To Win Colorado) See Full Big Line

(D) Joe Biden*

(R) Donald Trump

80%

20%↓

CO-01 (Denver) See Full Big Line

(D) Diana DeGette*

90%

CO-02 (Boulder-ish) See Full Big Line

(D) Joe Neguse*

90%

CO-03 (West & Southern CO) See Full Big Line

(D) Adam Frisch

(R) Jeff Hurd

(R) Ron Hanks

40%

30%

20%

CO-04 (Northeast-ish Colorado) See Full Big Line

(R) Lauren Boebert

(R) Deborah Flora

(R) J. Sonnenberg

30%↑

15%↑

10%↓

CO-05 (Colorado Springs) See Full Big Line

(R) Dave Williams

(R) Jeff Crank

50%↓

50%↑

CO-06 (Aurora) See Full Big Line

(D) Jason Crow*

90%

CO-07 (Jefferson County) See Full Big Line

(D) Brittany Pettersen

85%↑

 

CO-08 (Northern Colo.) See Full Big Line

(D) Yadira Caraveo

(R) Gabe Evans

(R) Janak Joshi

60%↑

35%↓

30%↑

State Senate Majority See Full Big Line

DEMOCRATS

REPUBLICANS

80%

20%

State House Majority See Full Big Line

DEMOCRATS

REPUBLICANS

95%

5%

Generic selectors
Exact matches only
Search in title
Search in content
Post Type Selectors
July 04, 2014 12:36 AM UTC

4th of July Weekend Open Thread

  • 88 Comments
  • by: Colorado Pols

Tweet
Share

Comments

88 thoughts on “4th of July Weekend Open Thread”

    1. Yes, trollboy, you're an extremist.  And I ain't even King George.

      But you don't have half the guts that those guys had.  Instead of fighting for liberty on the battlefield, you fight from the safety of mom's basement with a computer. A real patriot!

      You're meek, disgusting, hypocritical little piece of snot.

      1. Ralphie the buffalo ain't King George?

        Who would have thought?

        If we are talking Georges, I would have thought Boy George.

        But that would require some musical talent.

        Alas, responding without calling people names would require thought, something which is in short supply with Ralphie the buffalo.

    1. Nothing screams #liberty! and #freedom! for our trollboy like digging up dinosaur poop in a country not-our-own, creating 22 permanent jobs for a pipeline that transects our nation's heartland and the worlds largest fresh water supply – so we can increase the prices of gasoline at our Colorado pumps – and provide the Chinese with the finished product – so they can make more cheap shit to sell us at the local WallyWorld – and make the Walton heirs even richer yet. (and let's don't forget the near-poverty Koch boys). 

      I bet he pound nails with his morning wood fantasizing about this mythical future he so longs for. 

      Udall understands that's a model not worth the societal costs – there are better ideas.  And Coloradans in November aren't going to buy the shit sandwich ConMan is selling. 

          1. Ciruli compiled the data from a Rasmussen pol.

            The poll suggests that Udall's positions on Obamacare and Keystone are out of step with the voters and responsible for the tight polling in the race.

                1. DC- Can one wrap the aluminum foil around one's own point using a mirror or does one require another's help?Those polls put me in mind of the character Inigo Montoya from Princess Bride. I do not think they mean what AC thinks they mean. Rassmussen too so you know they're pushed rightward at least a point or two.

  3.  

    DRILL, BABY, DRILL…then… Inject, baby, inject

     

    Scientists are increasingly linking hundreds of earthquakes near Jones, Oklahoma to wastewater wells used in fracking operations.

    Research published in Thursday’s edition of the journal, Science, shows that just four of these wells could be responsible for one-fifth of the region’s earthquakes experienced between 2008 and 2013. These are four high-volume wells used in disposal operations near Oklahoma City, researchers at Cornell University found.

    “The pressure of the water in the pore space of rock can reduce the forces keeping a fault locked, and potentially trigger a rupture,” reports Science news.

    This is a possible explanation for the recent surge of earthquakes in the region. Since the start of the year, the state has already seen 240 quakes measuring a magnitude of 3.0 or greater.

     

    http://www.pbs.org/newshour/rundown/hundreds-earthquakes-oklahoma-linked-fracking/

  4. On this, America's birthday, this is four minutes worth watching. From where have we come? What lies ahead? Are we creating a future worth inheriting for our children? For our grandchildren? Will we once again aspire to great things? Will we fight for moral causes? Will we wage war on poverty, not the poor? The first step in solving a problem is admitting there is one…

     

    1. I saw this when it aired on the program and I was in awe. Someone who actully told the truth! Of course, it was a program by that lefty bleeding heart, Sorkin, so the righties couldn't bash it enough. that, or it struck a nerve.

      1. I have seen it before and had the same reaction.. I showed the piece to my wife a little while ago and it kinda blew her away as well.

        We should all have so much courage…

        1. My wife hadn't seen it either. She just nodded and asked where it was from. I told her and she said "it's true, depressing, but true".  

  5. A question:

    I keep seeing that anti-Udall commercial with the young girl and the 10% college unemployment rate. She walks down an ally and then goes opens a door……does anyone recognize that setting as Colorado?  I keep thinking it looks like Britian or Philadelphia.  It may well be a very famous spot in Colorado, but I just don't recognize it and it is driving me crazy.   Anyone know where it is.

      1. Fair enough.  It is playing frequently, but by  the time I find the remote to change the station or manage to get up, the ad is alreadyover. 

        What I am wondering is if this is a generic ad and the woman attack Udall in Colorado and another Democratic senator in another state. 

            1. Info collected from various web locations on orgs that use the same PO Box in Arlington, Va.

               

              Users of
              PO Box 100716 Arlington, VA 22210 

              generationopportunity.org

              Contact: Sean Kibby 
              Address: PO Box 100716 Arlington, VA 22210 
              Phone: 202-445-3323 
              E-mail:sean@generationopportunity.org

              Corie Whalen
              Spokesperson
              Local Address: Houston, Texas, United States
              Generation Opportunity 
              PO Box 100716
              Arlington, Virginia 22210
              United States 
              Company Description: Generation Opportunity is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization that seeks to educate and organize young Americans on the challenges facing our nation. 

              http://www.asgaonline.com

              https://freethefuture.org

              PolicyExperts.org

              PolicyExperts.org is a product of The Heritage Foundation. 
              © 1995 – 2014 The Heritage Foundation

              214 Massachusetts Ave NE | Washington DC 20002-4999
              ph 202.546.4400 | fax 202.546.8328 | heritage.org

              Really scary stuff:
              chimeraincorporated.com/privacy-policy
              http://chimeraincorporated.com/news    

              Must see: Catch the Kronies at 
              http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hw2cP00zbgQ&feature=youtu.be

              Enabling ads against Hagan (probably similar for Udall)
              https://stations.fcc.gov/collect/files/72064/Political%20File/2014/Non-Candidate%20Issue%20Ads/Generation%20Opportunity/Gen%20Opp%20NAB%200611%20(14024338886349)_.pdf

          1. @mj55

            I have now read your posts.  They only commercial I have seen is the one I referenced above.  With all that money, why have an ad to be viewed in Colorado that looks like it was made back East.  I think it showed a real contempt for Colorado voters….maybe back East, they think we would not have noticed.

            Also, I read your critique of the NPR commissioned poll.  I woud note that the poll was only of "likely" voters.  In mid-terms, "likely voters" tend to be older.  From 2010, we know republicans vote in mid-terms.  I think this might account for the apparent "bias" towards conservative or republican voters being the ones polled.

            If dems don't GOTV, then the poll is probably going to be accurate.

            1. My point, which you missed, was that I had already done an analysis of the Koch-financed "Generation Opportunity" ads, which are constantly shown on MSNBC and other cable TV, online. Not too surprising considering the ad buy in Colorado alone is $900,000.

              In my analysis, I broke down where  the money came from, who the intended audience was (18-34 year olds), and I speculated about what the purpose of it might be (in my opinion, the purpose was not as much to get millenial voters to vote for Cory Gardner, as it was to suppress their votes entirely, by fostering a cynical "It doesn't matter – all politicians are corrupt" attitude.

              If you had read my piece, you would also have read that the ad was indeed a generic ad only slightly adapted for different states (i.e. Udall, or Landrieu are both the "big spenders".

              Then AC had to jump in in his usual way, trying to shift the discussion from the ad in my post to an NPR poll which showed Udall losing. Pcat and I both dissected that poll, but it really was not about millenial voters – it was, as I said, mainly comprised of older "likely" cell phone voters spread across 12 states, not just Colorado.

              So feel free to come back at me with some kind of snarky comment. For a little old lady, you're mean. But you'll probably be gratified to know that my follow up on my facebook page with my own millenial age friends led to results depressing and disheartening enough even for you.

              That is, young millenials I asked about the "Shopping spree" ad said that it didn't influence them one way or the other, but that they already blamed both Republicans and Democrats for the likely collapse of the world's ecosystem and the crappy job outlook they experience. So, the cynicism and apathy and vote suppression which I think was the intent of this ad may already be happening. Happy, dwyer?

              1. Look, Lady, I have no idea what your problem is.  You said to read your previous posts.  I had not. So I read them.  I may indeed read your posts again. I have only seen one of the commercials. That is the one I asked about the scene.   I have never seen the shopping one.  

                I think the npr commissioned poll is worth paying attention to.  That's it, Lady, that is all.

                I have always been honest about my age; I never comment on my gender or my sexual orientation.

                If you think I am "mean" or if you think this is a "snarky"

                remark, then count yourself blessed as having led a very sheltered life.  

                 

                 

                 

                    1. Huh.

                      i do not recall you (or anyone else) responding at all when Dwyer responded so to me.

                      so I guess if a Pols poster is a stated liberal, say whatever to whomever. But other posters need hobbies.

                2. dwyer, I'm sorry. I had decided not to engage with you in argument and I broke my promise. Bad idea. Won't happen again. I actually do find some of the rightie radio news you bring in informative.

                  But my opinion is that you are meaner than you really need to be.

                  And I'm egotistical enough that I can't stand being misquoted. Perhaps we all need to get over ourselves.

                  1. I still have no idea what you are talking about…..I never deliberated misquoted you.  You lecture as if I were your student and I am not.  Just how mean do you think "elderly citizens" are allowed to be?  And who gets to decide? 

                    Let me tell you how oblivous I have been to all the name calling and hostility.  I was getting ready to post  a comment about Beauprez choice of a running mate.  I think she has an interesting history and it paralllels what I believe was your family's experience with busing in Denver and I believe your parents were part of the heroic stand against white flight in Park Hill………and I had intended to post my comment and then say, that I would defer to Coloradopols' own mj55 who know better than anyone about that time……..

                    I won't do that now. 

                    I will reiterate I think that Democrats are complacent.  I think that Udall has, hands down, the best political commercial.  But I don't know what else is going on.  I might suggest, not only to you, but to others here, to listen to Randy Corporon on KLZ from 5 to 8. There is a real debate going on between teaparty regulars, of which he is one, who are not committed to the Republican ticket and those who want to support Beauprez, regardless,  so that the dems don't win.  Corporon conducts a very vigorous debate….but no name calling .  It is an excellent example, IMHO, as to how intra party contflicts should be discussed.  Right now, the dems do not have that kind of forum to have that kind of debate on fracking.  

                     

                     

                3. Didn't dwyer once make some disparaging statements about how women vote (emotionally vs. logically, based on a candidate's looks/hair, or somesuch?); I always thought he was a he.   But then, I'm easily confused about those things. 

                  1. Holly came from Miami, F.L.A.
                    Hitch-hiked her way across the U.S.A.
                    Plucked her eyebrows on the way
                    Shaved her legs and then he was a she
                    She says, "Hey, babe,
                    Take a walk on the wild side."

                  2. I think it was about Rachel Maddow talking about stuff like birth control and abortion because, you know, she's a lesbian so it's not her problem. Apparently a lesbian couldn't ever get raped or have a pregnancy that might endanger her life or anything so nobody except heterosexual females are qualified to have an opinion. Or something like that. I'm going to be blissfully unaware of any of her (and I do recall finding out at some point it's a her) post-July 4 remarks.

    3. Yeah, that ad is my fave, pinch faced, elf ears, say’n Udall voted all these bills that just ruined the economy! Let’s see, that economy would be the one George the 2Nd took on a crash dive in the waning days of 2008. Stimulus? That contained tax cuts?  She checks all this on her Smartie phone.  As for location, the guy exiting that alley door, before she goes in, is clad in short sleeves( I think) white shirt & tie, that’s East coast attire for DC, Check the dumpster style ( perhaps a company name to pin it down. This ad is multi faceted, it appeals to the authoritarian mind frame (beneath mere party labels lie frames which form world views) where citizens are reliant upon a Daddy figure to give moral & economic guidance to make it in this tumultuous world.

      1. If that's east coast attire for DC it has changed in the last twenty years.  Back in the mid-'90s, I was working on a proposal for a government contract and was bivouacked for much of June-August at a proposal house in McLean, VA.  ALL of the males wore long-sleeved white shirts with starched collars and cuffs, no matter how hot and muggy it was (and no place is muggier than inside the Beltway in the summer).  They looked at me like I was a freakin' goober because I wore short sleeves.

        1. Got my pocket protectors mixed up. Will gladly defer to your experience on this one, think I’m fixated on that Michael Douglas movie (where he loses his job) wandering hazy Los Angles freeways. I like the way e-coasters tan due to their unique haze, kind of a burnt orange. Ralphie, did you get the contract & money ?

          1. I got paid for my time.  That's always important.  We were first in the technical evaluation but somebody underbid us in the cost proposal by screwing the employees on health care and pension, so we lost.

            West-coasters can wear short sleeves.  The guys from the company that was actually bidding the job and paying the proposal house were retired military from California.  They wore short sleeves.

        2. I am sure they looked at you like a freakin' goober, but it was not the short sleeves.  It was likely because you have a New Jersey accent and pretended to be from Colorado.

          Not the last time people looked at you like a freakin' goober I am sure.

                  1. The out-of-staters that Coloradans really don't tolerate are from Texas, reinforced by a current Denver Water Dept. advertisement.  The message is that the only person worse than someone watering their lawn at noon is a Texan at a ski area trying to find the "Gandolah".  Not sure if I should be supporting this type of discrimination, but it sure is funny.

          3. AC- I'm a Colorado native but even other Coloradans have seldom heard of,or been to the town where I was born. I can sort of identify with Ralphie in the early 60s I was stationed at Ft.Belvoir VA, then the engineer training school for the U,S. Army, since removed, I am told to  Ft, Leonard Wood MO. The Army gave me one MOS and when I got to my first duty station they recognized the engineer part and assigned me to a combat engineer unit ,then when I got to Asia the Army recognized the combat part and thought I was infantry.If short sleeves, which we were not permitted to wear, in that former malarial swamp are not everyday wear, they ought to be,neckties should be banned.Even in Asia they permitted us to rollup our sleeves.

  7. We need to show some compassion for our right wing friends today.  Their spiritual and intellectual leader, Richard Mellon Scaife, died.

  8. Happy Independence Day. We'll be celebrating at a friendly cul de sac block party with live Blues band and lots of great BBQ. I'm starting my celebratory mood off right by scrolling right past anything from AC or dwyer but wish them a Happy Fourth too. For AC that's just for July fourth. I see November election Tues. is also the fourth. So, wishing AC as much disappointment as possible for that one.  May we soon have the political will to wake up, ignore the rightie spin machine's distractions and appeals to naked bigotry and fear and free ourselves from the vise grip of the corporate elite .01%!

    Go middle class America!  Rise again like in the good old union dominated days when we had the most prosperous upwardly mobile middle class on earth!  The unions that raised us to solid living wage then are now crushed but we can still raise our minimum wage at the ballot box. Pitchforks optional. Hurrah! cool

  9. Thanksgiving on the 4th of July

    I am thankful for this rich and beautiful land, and the Native Americans we took it from.

    And I am thankful for all those unknown or dimly remembered ones who stood up to the predatory elites who exploited them and bought and defended the rights that we enjoy every day–often with their lives; and when faced with external enemies, laid down their lives for our country with equal willingness. 

    Long may you wave.

    Have a great holiday y'all!  –RD

     

  11. Pueblo West Water Wet/Dry parade. 4 miles of non stop water shooting.  I was on one of the Pueblo Dems floats. Everyone was drenched. It was fun for the first two miles.

     

      1. It was refreshing, all right!  Next time, I'll dress and be "armed" appropriately. We had a bunch of single-shot squirters on our truck, and people lining the parade route had fricking firehoses in stock tanks, homemade PVC water guns which held a couple of gallons, buckets, etc. Trust Pueblo West to escalate a fun time into a water war.

        As I said, it was fun for the first couple of miles. Then, it got kind of old having people aim at my head with a hose, and trying to get revenge with a little water pistol. Might have been something about being on a Democratic float in Pueblo West. I retired to the pickup truck bed, canopied by giant signs, where the young kids and teens that were trying to get out of the action were hiding – and damned if some yahoos didn't aim their hoses in there.

        1. My brother told me about this.Yep, everyone gets drenched.Next time bring a Supersoaker and an umbrella to fend off the firehoses.

  12. Declaration of Independence, voiced by NFL all stars and friends

    I used to show this to students, who grasped the language of the Declaration for the first time.

     

            2. There was a "60 minutes" episode that featured drones and what they can do…I was as blown away as was Morley Safer. The potential for search and rescue alone is amazing.

              1. Mesa County uses one, but fixed-wing. They had a quadcopter on loan from a manufacturer but I think they sent it back when it was time to buy it. The MC drone is equipped with a FLIR (Foreward-looking Infrared) thermal imaging camera.  Not only can they use it for search and rescue, they can hunt fleeing suspects at night.  Lately they have been using it a lot to map the Collbran slide.  It can fly a lot lower than a manned aircraft.

                 

                    1. “These discrepancies are substantial”

                      ~Lead author Gabrielle Petron, an atmospheric scientist with NOAA’s Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences at the University of Colorado.

                      During two days of intensive airborne measurements, oil and gas operations in Colorado’s Front Range leaked nearly three times as much methane, a greenhouse gas, as predicted based on inventory estimates, and seven times as much benzene, a regulated air toxic. Emissions of other chemicals that contribute to summertime ozone pollution were about twice as high as estimates, according to the new paper, accepted for publication in the American Geophysical Union’s Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres.

                      If you don't think the fox is watching the hen house, you're not paying attention.

                    1. Who was it said that our technology always outstrips our morality? Something like that. We come up with amazing tools to make life better, but can't define "better", and for whom. 

                    2. It's like the industry's descrtiption of new technology as 'disruptive'.  I think we should start calling it what it is, 'empowering'.   It's only disruptive to those who don't want anything to change – for the rest of us it offers 'hope'.

                      I had a great conversation with a Nebraska Rural Electric board member this past week.  We were discussing how technology is at the door of over-running the REA business model.  As he said, "technology doesn't honor tradition".  They are linear thinkers in an expotential world. 

                    3. Duke, lest we forget:  (I know you haven't…)

                      “The industry has to belly up to the bar and hold themselves to a zero tolerance and I think they’ll do it.”

                      We’re working to inherit a healthy planet, and specifically a healthy Colorado. Natural gas is only a better fuel source than coal and oil if extraction, storage and transportation is done right. And since emissions of methane and volatile organic compounds negate the positive impact this cleaner-burning fuel can have, creating a zero tolerance standard for harmful emissions–which often come from leaky or improperly operated equipment–is a critical and reasonable standard to set."
                       

            3. I was on a farm in western Nebraska on Thursday where they are using a drone like this equipped with a very sophisticated camera to monitor their irrigated crops for weeds, dry spots, fertilizer deficiencies, etc.  Very cool stuff.

  14. Hope everyone had a 4th of July as wonderful as ours was. Greatest cul de sac party ever, especially because it's such a multicultural island (both residents and invited friends of) in the burbs, a mix of colors, countries of origin, native born, immigrant, here to work temporarily and lots of happy kids.

    Looking around it was hard to understand what's not to like and why so many white Americans feel threatened by the pleasure of less boring block parties with great food instead of the same ol', same ol'.

    I also have so enjoyed not reading AC or dwyer for the day I just might make it a permanent habit. They'd probably enjoy not reading me so I highly recommend it to them and anyone else who finds me annoying.  Have a nice long weekend everyone.

      1. I'm afraid it's going to be a long three day weekend for the doggies with folks using up the left over stuff all weekend after dark. My cats occasionally lift their heads or twitch an ear and that's about it.

Leave a Comment

Recent Comments


Posts about

Donald Trump
SEE MORE

Posts about

Rep. Lauren Boebert
SEE MORE

Posts about

Rep. Yadira Caraveo
SEE MORE

Posts about

Colorado House
SEE MORE

Posts about

Colorado Senate
SEE MORE

97 readers online now

Newsletter

Subscribe to our monthly newsletter to stay in the loop with regular updates!