Archive | June, 2009
Reports of Newspaper demise not greatly exaggerated
It’s too bad that we can’t say of daily newspapers, as Mark Twain once quipped, that the reports of their demise have been greatly exaggerated. In the last couple of weeks, the industry has continued to shrink both workforce and product. The New York Times radically reduced the size of its iconic Sunday Times magazine, which [...]
Continue reading...No ‘poena’ in subpoena
25. June 2009
Last Friday, the Colorado Springs Independent Ethics Commission asked Central Bancorp CEO Ron Johnson to provide a list of all individuals whom he believes possess relevant information about the conflict of interest allegations that Johnson has made concerning Mayor Lionel Rivera. In a reply dated June 19, consisting of 15 rambling pages of often-turgid prose, [...]
Continue reading...Justice balks, UBS walks
23. June 2009
This morning the New York Times reported that the Justice Department may drop a closely watched legal case aimed at forcing the Swiss bank UBS to divulge the names of 52,000 wealthy American clients suspected of offshore tax evasion, a United States official briefed on the matter said Monday. The move, which would halt an unusually [...]
Continue reading...The Pikes Peak region needs a slogan
19. June 2009
The estimable folks who brought us the “Dream City” project are searching for a slogan. Appealing to the public, they wrote that “The Pikes Peak region needs a slogan, words that suggest all the great reasons to visit or live here. As part of the community engagement project Dream City: Vision 2020, we’re collecting your [...]
Continue reading...Ray Marshall (doesn’t) take the stand
17. June 2009
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Time/date: 8:30 a.m., Monday, June 14 Place: El Paso County Courthouse, Judge Ronald Crowder’s chambers The event: The long-delayed trial of Case # 08CV3286, North County Land LLC et al v. Mason Investments III LLC et al. Defendants and plaintiffs in attendance: Jack Mason and two lawyers. Ray Marshall, five lawyers, and a paralegal. Interested [...]
Continue reading...What the city charter has to say about initiatives, ethics and recall elections
16. June 2009
The city charter is not exactly a pleasure to read. Unlike the United States Constitution, its words were not composed by highly literate, profoundly intelligent men who were deeply conscious of the weight of history and who together deliberated at length over each phrase, each word and each article. The Constitution was written by our [...]
Continue reading...Now what, Mr. Mayor?
12. June 2009
It’s not often that you have the privilege of witnessing history. Today’s hearing of the city’s Independent Ethics Commission might, in retrospect, become a defining moment in the city’s history. After veteran Springs attorney Lindsay Fischer, who has practiced law in Colorado Springs for 45 years, made his presentation on behalf of his client, Central Bancorp [...]
Continue reading...USOC/LandCo/City circus ending?
10. June 2009
This morning’s joint press release from the USOC and LandCo, announcing that they have “resolved all disputes relating to the USOC and LandCo’s relationship as part of the project to retain the USOC in Colorado Springs” almost certainly signals that a similar resolution between the city and LandCo is in the offing. So here’s the question: [...]
Continue reading...Council meets privately with power brokers
4. June 2009
The Colorado open meetings law, which governs every elected body in Colorado, is written in clear, direct, and forceful language. Its purpose is simple: to prevent elected officials from conducting closed meetings, unless limited to a very narrow range of subjects. It is lawful for a council to meet behind close doors to discuss lawsuits, [...]
Continue reading...My thoughts on the mayor’s speech
3. June 2009
One of the few perks available to the Mayor of Colorado Springs is, one hopes, a speechwriter. If not, Mayor Lionel Rivera would have been obliged to labor late into the night to produce many thousands of words of flat, turgid prose. If he did, my sympathies! And if he didn’t, speaking as one with a demonstrated ability to [...]
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30. June 2009
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