My Page: Howard Rothman

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Sex and the (New) City

I live south of Denver in Centennial, a city that instantly became one of the largest in Colorado four years ago when a huge swath of Arapahoe County incorporated in an efforts to prevent a neighboring municipality from annexing some of its most lucrative commercial properties. There have been growing pains aplenty in that time, and one of the most striking has been the area's fits and starts in attempts to establish a sense of community among disparate residents who were suddenly thrown into a makeshift one by the chance intersection of an election and their position on a map. Now, though, my neighbors seem to be finding common ground as city officials grapple with the issue of Sexually-Oriented Businesses, or SOBs, and exactly where and how they can operate in a cobbled together community that is still trying to find its way. The issue will come to a head Monday night, when hundreds are expected at a City Council meeting that could result in a coalesced and empowered citizenry.

Update: Centennial officials postponed a decision on where strip joints can be located within the city until Sept. 7, but are leaning toward their originally targeted site. [more]

Missing the Point

Just the other day my friends and I were pondering the chances of the twin Colorado proposals that would effectively shut down the onerous Taxpayer Bill of Rights for five years, when one of them said, "Hey, I wonder what the New York Times has to say on the subject?" Yeah, right. The Oracle of the East did choose to weigh in on our very own Referenda C and D over the weekend in a story by Jason DeParle called Colorado Conservatives at War Over Tax Cap, but, to my mind, the results were more than a tad underwhelming. Framing the election purely as a local political struggle with potential national ramifications, the piece ends up ignoring TABOR's serious local implications and positioning the fight to derail it solely as a battle between a governor who once had ambition for higher office and a cadre of former allies who are trying to make their mark by opposing him. There's some discussion about similar efforts springing up elsewhere, but precious little on the details that make this election so critical for those of us who actually live here -- and in other places where TABOR-like proposals surely will crop up if the two measures are defeated here at the polls.

Apology Demand

We know you enjoy a good "discussion" as much as we do, and therefore figured you'd appreciate an update on how the battle between Focus on the Family’s James Dobson and ProgressNow.org’s Michael Huttner is shaping up. The spat between these Colorado-based activists began when Huttner called on Dobson to apologize for publicly comparing stem cell research to Nazi concentration camp atrocities. It continued when Dobson not only refused to apologize, but used his national radio broadcasts and an appearance on Fox News to repeat his statements and call on supporters to telephone and email Huttner personally to express their feelings. Now Huttner says some of these, um, expressions were actually threatening and have been turned over to the authorities. In response he's circulating an online petition pressing his demand for an apology as well as a link to an interview with Holocaust survivor Jack Adler. And, of course, the blogosphere outside our state has gotten deeply involved.

The International

Spent much of the weekend south of Denver at Castle Pines Golf Club for the 20th version of The International golf tournament. I know, I know... golf is a decadent bourgeois pastime and professional athletes are nothing but selfish druggie elitists. I can't help but like the thing anyway. What other big-time event lets you choose your vantage point(s), soak up magnificent scenery with your bare feet splayed in the cool grass, and watch a parade of global sports stars plying their trade so up close and personal? Nonetheless, I have a few comments and suggestions for the PGA tour event's organizers and backers. [more]

Lunar Standstill

This morning, at breakfast, my daughter asked me what Stonehenge, the Great Pyramid, Machu Picchu and the Chimney Rock Archaeological Area in southwestern Colorado had in common. I had no clue, of course, so she handed me the front page of the Denver Post where Electa Draper explains that this year -- for the first time in nearly 900 years -- Chimney Rock was joining the others as a preferred public site for viewing an astrological rarity called a "lunar standstill." The phenomenon was celebrated in ancient times at all four of these spectacular spots, which are considered perfect observation points because they naturally frame the moment when moonrise occurs at its northernmost point along the horizon. Now, small groups of visitors are being allowed to see it in Colorado for the first time since the year 1125. [more]

Sticking Its Neck Out

Kudos to Rick Ashton and the Denver Public Library Commission, which voted unanimously to publicize the literary community’s battle against several privacy-related provisions of the USA Patriot Act by wrapping the main Denver Public Library yesterday with banners announcing their opposition. As recounted by Michelle Wallar in the Denver Post, the library strung white plastic tape between its east pillars that proclaimed "Privacy Line - Do Not Cross" while City Librarian Ashton read a resolution opposing the federal government's continued push to open records from libraries, bookstores and similar venues to scrutiny. Ashton's peers locally and nationally have been deeply involved in various behind-the-scenes efforts designed to derail these controversial provisions, but this is the first public activity I know of in which a library has stuck its neck out in such a way to make a case against the legislation. [more]

A Saner Perspective

I know the nomination of John G. Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court is more important to the future of our Republic than, say, the rantings of suburban Denver Congressman Tom Tancredo. It just isn't nearly as entertaining. And when you hear that more people in the U.S. are aware that Judge Wapner presides over the People's Court than are aware that Chief Justice William Rehnquist has been a member of the Supremes for 17 years, well, it kinda shakes your faith in the system. Nonetheless, President Bush's Tuesday night nomination will truly have long-lasting impacts on all of us and a perspective on the matter worth noting is that of former Colorado Supreme Court Justice Jean Dubofsky, who spoke about the position and other issues recently with local liberal think tank ProgressNow.org.

Trujillo Now at Telstra

Just back from an extended stay Down Under, where news of the Rocky Mountain West is pretty much non-existent. But one old friend from our region did make the newspapers there on a daily basis: Sol Trujillo, the former CEO of US West who just this month took over the top spot at Australia's largest telecommunications company. Speculation about his ability to turn the fortunes at Telstra around, how long he might stay at the helm, and the amount he is being paid dominated the initial coverage, but even as he started his new job by sacking about 100 executives most observers seemed to believe Trujillo may be exactly the right man for a very difficult job. [more]

See Tom Run

Colorado's increasingly high-profile anti-immigration crusader, U.S. Rep. Tom Tancredo, announced this week in New Hampshire that he may run for president in 2008 if no other candidate takes up his pet cause. The Littleton Republican also blasted the Denver Public Library for being "blatantly discriminatory" by purchasing Spanish-language books and hiring Spanish-speaking librarians. ¿Usted está loco, Tom?

Update: Denver Rep. Diana DeGette tells Tancredo to stop bashing her constituents. [more]

Will Wonders Never Cease?

Colorado's often maligned 4th district U.S. Rep. Marilyn Musgrave was among the brave Republican House members who broke party ranks on Wednesday and joined the Democratic minority in voting to block the FBI and the Justice Department from searching library and bookstore records under the auspices of the Patriot Act. The final vote, 238-187, was a stinging rebuke to President Bush and the Act's supporters, who argued that the hastily conceived legislation was critical to national security. Could the vote indicate that Democrats (and sensible Republicans) are finally growing a backbone and refusing to roll over to Administration demands?

Update: While the Bush administration insists it has never used the Patriot Act to demand records from libraries or bookstores, the New York Times reports that a new study says at least 200 such inquiries have been made since October 2001. [more]

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