Opinion & Commentary

Spam is enjoying unprecedented popularity in these trying economic times, which means that the 2009 Great American SPAM Championship, a recipe competition that includes a qualifier at the Colorado State Fair, could be the toughest contest on record. Last year, a Colorado man, Ron Pearman, took the national prize with…

Yes, the University of Colorado has big budget troubles — so, of course, school officials have done the only thing they could do: issued a $780,000 contract to an international branding company, Landor, to design a new logo that will unite all branches of the CU system under one common…

Denver District Court Judge Larry Naves played the tough guy last week when he issued his ruling in the Ward Churchill case — not only refusing to give the controversial former University of Colorado prof his job back, but also tossing the entire lawsuit, determining that the CU Board of…

Gustavo Arelleno, author of Ask a Mexican, is getting ready to travel around Estados Unidos to do research for his upcoming book on the history of Mexican food in the U.S.– and he could use your help. He’s looking for favorite Mexican restaurants, and is running a contest for the…

The original casket of Emmett Till was among the missing items uncovered in the Alsip, Illinois, cemetery scandal. After the body of the fourteen-year-old civil rights martyr was exhumed in 2005 for an investigation into Till’s lynching back in 1955, when the Chicago boy dared to talk to a white…

The Cherry Cricket’s expansive new patio is a hit — and the kitchen has taken a major hit trying to handle all the business. “Needless to say, the patio has been an overwhelming success,” says Mark Schiffler, the chef who was an original partner in the Wynkoop Brewing Co., which…

Pulling up to Denver International Airport yesterday, I was already feeling nostalgic. New aviation director Kim Day is working on a master plan that could turn the grand, tented terminal into a giant mall that would be off limits to anyone who hasn’t gone through security — and security itself…

The Wazee Supper Club was just three years old when I first walked in — but it felt like it had been there forever, a great hideaway tucked under the still-standing 15th Street Viaduct, in an area of lower downtown that was still a decade away from being nicknamed “LoDo.”…

On Saturday, as railroad enthusiasts chased the 65-year-old Union Pacific steam engine powering the Denver Post train to Cheyenne Frontier Days, the chase was also on inside the train: to find out if Bob Beauprez is going to throw his cowboy hat in the ring for the U.S. Senate seat…

Yesterday, a reader sent me this note: The other day I got a letter in my mail box from Governor Bill Ritter about Long Term Care. It is great to see him helping out Coloradans with a very important life experience issue. I applaud his efforts. However, it pained me…

At the entrance to my local Safeway, just off Federal at 26th Avenue, a small plaque in the ground commemorates two grocery-store workers who were killed when a car crashed into the store’s parking lot back in 1996. On a door to the store are fliers advertising job opportunities at…

Westword’s first office was located in the 1400 block of Market Street, before that area was nicknamed LoDo, before Larimer Square a block away was one of the hottest restaurant neighborhoods in town, back when our neighbors were parking lots and restaurant and hospital supply companies. The space right below…

Mayor John Hickenlooper delivered his seventh State of the City speech yesterday, standing on the Greek Pavilion in Civic Center Park at the start of the work day. It was a stunning setting for a sobering speech; the park’s lushness made Hickenlooper’s message all the more stark: There’s no money…

At 8 a.m. today, Mayor John Hickenlooper will deliver his seventh, and certainly most challenging, State of the City speech. Last year, Denver’s biggest worry was making sure the Democratic National Convention ran smoothly (the controversy that would erupt over Renee Marie’s Star-Spangled bungle at Hickenlooper’s speech wouldn’t help). Today,…

Toshi and Yasu Kizaki, the owners of the beloved Sushi Den at 1487 South Pearl Street, weren’t content with putting a world-famous sushi restaurant in the heart of Denver’s South Pearl neighborhood. In August 2007, they expanded their empire by opening Izakaya Den across the street at 1518 South Pearl,…

Everywhere I go in Denver, in Colorado, I’m reminded of John Parr and Sandy Widener, the much-loved couple who did so much to change the psychic landscape of this state before they were killed in a car crash with their daughter, Chase, in December 2007. I think of them when…

Colorado, New Mexico and Texas officials announced yesterday that they’ve joined in an effort to secure the country’s eleventh high-speed rail corridor — and the billions in federal dollars that would go to such an enterprise. The concept of a high-speed train zooming up from the border has promise. But…

While some people count out-of-state license plates on their road trips, we look for out-of-place green chile offerings. It’s not hard to find Denver’s favorite dish if you’re staying in-state; just about every town in Colorado has a Mexican restaurant that offers its own version of green chile. And if…

Chris Loffelmacher serves up plenty of food for thought at Fresh City Life, his cultural/social series that’s turned the Denver Public Library into the hottest ticket in town. Now, in celebration of summer and this hot, hot weather, Fresh City Life is teaming up with Whole Foods Market, Dazzle Restaurant…

“You put me out in Denver because I wouldn’t suck your dick.” That’s what Donna Watts-Brighthaupt, a lobbyist hired last year by former D.C. mayor and current councilmember Marion Barry to be his driver and personal assistant, shouted at Barry in June — shortly before he was arrested and jailed…