Dougie, Dougie, Dougie

So Mr. Doug Bruce has been charged with tax evasion for failing to report interest that he allegedly deposited interest into an account for Active Citizens Together. I admire Doug for his intelligence. But that's all. I am not a fan. Look, I don't want my taxes to be any higher than they need to be. However we can't operate like its the dark ages. Its bad enough we have half the streetlights off in the city. How attractive is that to potential new employers? When people hear the city Colorado Springs, many of them think of Doug Bruce. Do you want that to be the first impression people get when talking about the city? Thought so.............Steve Bach is the new Mayor of Colorado Springs. Steve, a piece of advice. 3 words...JOBS JOBS JOBS-get those, and everything else takes care of itself.......

Got Em

I will not forget where I was when it was announced the United States had taken down Osama Bin Laden. It was a nearly ten year chase that had faded at times from our consciousness. But all the while our fine men and women in the military and in our intelligence services continued to dig and piece together scant clues that turned into a focus on a house in Pakistan. And what does this so called defiant leader of terrorism do when we show up? He flees. He hires minnions to fly planes into building and kills innocent Americans, yet runs when he's face to face with us. Watching and listening to news coverage after the Presidents announcement brought home once again the emotions of September 11th 2001. And in the days that follow listening to so many people ask, should he have been taken alive, did we do the right thing, and all these secondary issues, one thing remains clear: The Bastard is dead, and thats good enough for me.

Odds N Ends

In the slideshow at KVOR.com there is a story about yet another conspiracy tied to the death of John Kennedy. Whether you believe it or not its a fascinating read and it will make you pause and think......So Doug Bruce is in trouble with the Colorado Attorney General. He is accused of not filing income taxes for a 3 year period. John Suthers is the Attorney General, as solid a man as you will meet. I wouldn't bet against him......Many of you won't like this-the story of the foster parents who will be tried for allegedly accepting money from the county to raise two young boys who have since disappeared really bothers me. In the past, and again in this case I am all for torture. These two boys didn't simply walk away on their own. One has been missing since 2001, the other since 2003 and we know these two adults know where the children are and if they are dead or alive. I'm sorry. If I had my way I would use "creative" ways to get them to tell authorities what happened to these kids. Before you start nailing me with emails, think about if your child is missing. If authorities had people in custody connected to the crime you would do the same thing.

Oh Happy Days

I was thrilled when I heard on KVOR that all 5 Reform Party members failed to win any seat on City Council. I admire the intelligence of their leader Doug Bruce. However I think his ideas are simply bad for the city. The 4 other candidates that joined him meant well I'm sure. But the city will be better off with the winners of those at-large seats. I have been in town over 20 years, and thankfully, slowly, but surely the landscape has changed to a population that understands yes, we need to be cautious on our spending. However, we better know when we are slicing into the bone. The Reform Party Candidates, in my opinion did not grasp that part of it. We need aggresive marketers and thinkers for this city so we can grow sales tax revenue. All I heard from the reform party and like-minded followers was cut, cut cut. Small thinking for a town of about 400 thousand. And, as we move into the age of a Strong Mayor with either Richard Skorman or Steve Bach, its nice to finally see Colorado Springs kick the training wheels off and look to the future.

Down The Stretch They Come

Closing in on Election Day. We have a poll at KVOR.com on our Mayoral Slide. Its unscientific, however it should give us a picture of how Colorado Springs is feeling about our next Mayor. And by the way-Gotta hand it to Lionel Rivera. I thought he did an amazing job given the current limitations of that office. He represented the city with class and dignity and always had Colorado Springs best interests at heart......The Battle for Libya has repercussions that could reach all of us in this country. Should rebels take over the country, what kind of government will they install? And how will the ongoing conflict affect oil, and thus gasoline prices? Some experts are saying we could see 5 dollars a gallon gas by this summer. What really exacerbates the situation is we are entering spring and summer and the demand for fuel is going to go up, and with it, prices.......Congratulations to Richmond and former Air Force Basketball Coach Chris Mooney. His team made it to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament, and he has been rewarded with a 10 year contract extension. Got to spend some time with him in Denver where his team was playing in the regionals. He has not changed at all. Humble, unassuming, laughs easy, a great great guy. A lot of basketball head coaches are not fun to be around. He is the exception.

Timing

So the United States, Frances, Canada, and other countries bomb the military forces of Moammar Gadhafi over the weekend, and also begin enforcing a no fly zone. This as Libya struggles with uprisings that threaten to overthrow Gadhafi. However, in my opinion, the move came too late. It should have been done two weeks ago. It seems the immediate goal was to cripple Gadahfi's army and give rebel forces a bit more of a level playing field to oust the Libyan leader. Sounds like we don't want the blood of Gadhafi on our hands, however, we don't mind the helping the rebels who would love to see Gadhafi out of power, or worse, dead.......The Springs mayoral race still has 7 candidates. What I am hearing is we may have a runoff because the race is expected to be so tight. So things may not get decided on April 5th. Continuing election coverage can be found on KVOR and KVOR.com..........Had a great visit over the weekend with High School Basketball Officials at their annual banquet here in town. The men and women who worked high school basketball games don't get enough credit. They don't do it for a paycheck, but for the love of the game and working with children.

Me-Sick

I never get sick....Well I do, but rarely, and usually I don't let it affect me. But I am sick and I just hate it. I really believe you can talk yourself out of being sick. I have done so for years, But for once I didn't listen to myself. So I present my notes-Under the Weather......I watched the horror, like you, on TV last week during the Japanese earthquake and Tsunami. No words describe what flashed across the TV, and what the Japanese people are experiencing. If you would like to help, please go to KVOR.com and click on our Japanese Relief slide in conjunction with the American Red Cross....And now they are battling to control their nuclear reactors. Does it make you worry about California, and all the predictions we have had for years of a major quake?....Speaking of KVOR.com, we have a great slide up on the Mayors Race. You can listen to interviews conducted by Jackie Craddock and Jeff Crank, and give us your thoughts on who the next mayor will be. That person will have a lot of pressure. They need to figure out how to create jobs and get the damn street lights back on in town....The Group of 5 running for City Council led by Doug Bruce-it will be fascinating to watch how well they do. To me, they represent old Colorado Springs when I first arrived in 1989. There is a portion of this population that doesn't want to see any spending at all. They will clash with the more modern populace that has arrived in town over the last 10-15 years who understand you just can't keep cutting and cutting. Old Blood vs New-who wins out?