At 2:10 a.m. on December 19, Denver police officer Timothy Campbell was standing in the middle of the street in a west Denver neighborhood, his gun pointed at a man. The patrolman had been driving north on Irving Street when he’d passed a 1997 Saturn that seemed suspicious. When Campbell…
Jared Jacang Maher’s April 3 feature, “Target Practice Racism and Police Shootings Are No Game,” profiles a new video game system created at the University of Chicago that Denver cops have used to determine whether officers are more are less likely than your average Joe to shoot someone based on…
Of the many contributions of the Irish to world culture—from colcannon and those silly snap-brim tweed hats of which my father is so fond to the music of the Pogues and the films of Jim Sheridan—I don’t think anyone would argue with my saying that whiskey is the best. There’s…
The April 3 Message column about recent controversies involving the Denver Post’s fine “Trashing the Truth” series, a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize to be announced on April 7, focuses on credibility assaults made by outsiders – a reporter from the Charlotte Observer, who initially felt the Post used some…
The April 3 Message column looks at two separate attacks on “Trashing the Truth,” a series of articles about the use and abuse of DNA evidence in prosecutions that was published by The Denver Post in July 2007. The pieces are among three finalists for an investigative Pulitzer Prize; the…
Of all the things to be celebrated cross-culturally, to have the potential to bring people of the world closer together, it would have to be April Fool’s Day. Seriously, any other holiday would be better, don’t you think? Instead of turning our friends into dupes, maybe we could all do…
College kids, when not sexing and boozing, are attending Obama rallies. When there isn’t an Obama rally to attend, they’ll make one up. Perhaps because April Fools’ Day fast approaches or perhaps because they got tired of the election year sex and beer, unnamed miscreants on the University of Pennsylvania…
April Fool’s Day: the most irritating holiday or undeniably the most irritating holiday? The date tends to bring out the dumbness in even the smartest people. Every once in a while, though, a prank actually produces a chuckle — like, for instance, the one the lefties at ProgressNow pulled on…
My friend and the waitress were still talking about recycling, about the re-use and re-application of found objects, cast-off materials. And though I was concentrating on the food, some of their conversation must’ve penetrated, because I found myself thinking about recycling, too. About the salvage and reclamation of forgotten things…
The exodus from the Rocky Mountain News and its affiliates continues at such a dizzying pace that the front door is in danger of flying off its hinges. Among the recent departees is Travis Henry, the editor of YourHub.com, whose farewell piece, published on March 20, reveals that he’s accepted…
Preston Peerman continues to hunt for Senator Larry Craig in the bathrooms at DIA. Here’s his latest report: Location: Men’s room in the main DIA terminal, just to the right where passengers exit at the top of the escalator (in front of the fountain). I’m currently in the middle stall…
While most of the Best of Denver 2008 fallout has been outside the office, there’s been plenty of talk here at Bite Me World HQ regarding my Best Green Chile award for Jack-n-Grill. Backbeat editor Dave Herrera takes it very personally when I say things about Colorado-style verde being just…
View larger species In order to make more sense of the world around us, illustrator and public house naturalist Nate Stone is compiling here a taxonomy of different barflies. While you’re out and about in Denver, if you spot any of these specimens please add your observations about their habitat…
View larger image North Carolina Total Number of Delegates: 134 Pledged: 115 Unpledged: 19 How to Recognize a North Carolina Delegate: Ahh, the Land of the Sky — such a lovely state, full of beautiful people who are impossible to understand. The only reason that John Edwards is not the…
Denver has been getting a lot of plugs in the national media over the last few months, and nearly all of it has to do with the Democratic National Convention. The city is typically characterized as a vital and prosperous regional center with a personality reflecting both its status as…
Newspaper editorialists spend more time opining about local politics and global brinksmanship than they do musing about fun and games. As a result, their occasional forays into sports can feel clunky, odd and forced. But understanding that still won’t prepare readers for “Broncos Taking Hits On, Off Field,” a March…
The Wall Street Journal gave Hank Brown a heckuva going-away present when the former Colorado senator left his job as president of University of Colorado earlier this month. In a March 22 editorial, the paper called Brown “the best college president you’ve never heard of,” praising his common-sense handling of…
In early March, The Fan, a sports-talk station long heard at 950 AM, announced its move to 104.3 FM — and as noted in this More Messages blog on the topic, a simulcast on its old dial spot was slated to continue until March 31. Well, the last date has…
For the first time in 25 years, Westword’s readers showed the collective good taste to choose something other than McDonald’s french fries as the Best French Fries.Their choice? Bistro Vendome, which makes its delicious fries even more addictive with a salty/sweet sprinkle of spices. The editorial choice for Best French…
Beer lovers at Lodo’s Falling Rock Taphouse got to try a unique Colorado pairing Friday night when the staff from Oskar Blues brewery passed out samples of their winter seasonal, Ten FIDY imperial stout, as well as the same beer after it had been aged for three months in a…
Every year, our work on the Best of Denver reminds us of not just what’s new and wonderful in this city, but what we’ve lost — although you don’t see the latter in the final issue. We just take note of the dearly departed as we research, then discard, potential…
Trey Deuce original gangster Brad Braxton had been locked up before. He’d been to jail for assault and to prison for selling crack and caught cases for weapons, too. But no one ever called him a sex offender, not until Denver Sheriff’s deputies arrested him last summer when he went…
