Enormous Broncos News: Sean Payton hired as new head coach
Sean Payton Lands New NFL Coaching Job: Report | KOA 850 AM & 94.1 FM (iheart.com)
Given how disappointed I was last season I'm going to keep my expectations in check. That said, unlike Nathaniel Hackett, who's back to being an offensive coordinator after the Broncos' failed experiment with him, Payton is a proven top-notch coach. And separate from whatever salary he'll be getting, the draft picks given up by the Broncos weren't as big a sacrifice as I thought might end up being the case.
From the KOA story linked above:
Payton had reportedly interviewed with the Broncos, as well as the Texans, Arizona Cardinals and Carolina Panthers. The 58-year-old is the winningest head coach in Saints franchise history with a 152-89 (.631 winning percentage) regular season and 9-8 (.529) playoff record since being hired in 2006, having led New Orleans to its only Super Bowl victory in franchise history during the 2009-10 season, defeating the Indianapolis Colts, 31-17, in Super Bowl XLIV.
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Just One Thing: Water is for Fighting
Mark Twain is thought to have come up with the line Whiskey is for Drinking. Water is for Fighting. That, of course, is about the incredible value of water in the mostly dry American west. Between years of low rainfall and even drought and years of massive population growth in places like Arizona and Las Vegas, the supply-demand balance of Colorado River water has become unsustainable. If the 7 states that are part of the system can’t reach an agreement, the Federal gov’t may do it for them. On Monday, 6 of the states, Colorado, Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Wyoming announced an agreement on reducing water usage, but the biggest user of water, California, is not on board. I think we’re soon going to prove Twain right: water is for fighting.
6 of 7 states along Colorado River agree to cut back on water usage - UPI.com
States miss deadline for agreement on Colorado River water - Los Angeles Times (latimes.com)
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One More Thing: Corruption in Erie, CO?
Among the list of grant applications before the city of Erie, Colorado's board of trustees last year (or whichever sub-group is delegated the power to give away the taxpayers' money) was an organization (that still exists) called "Being Better Neighbors". In fact, of the non-profits asking for money to fund particular events, the $20,000 the organization requested is just slightly less than the amount requested by all other groups combined. Here's the problem: The president of the organization is none other than the town's mayor, Justin Brooks. I humbly suggest that Mr. Brooks has 3 choices going forward, resign as mayor, resign his affiliation with the non-profit, or withdraw all of Being Better Neighbors' applications to the city for grant money. This is a conflict of interest that, in the interest of good government, cannot be allowed to stand. 23-027 - Complete list of grant applications.pdf (legistar.com)
Separately, Mr. Brooks appears to be quite the racist and one wonders how such a person gets elected to office in a lovely town like Erie: A few thoughts: - I... - Justin Brooks, Mayor Town of Erie Colorado | Facebook
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Today's Guests
Angela Erickson is Strategic Research Director at Pacific Legal Foundation. We're going to discuss the fact that in many states, including Colorado, it's possible for a person to have the government, or an "investor" who paid the government, take your home and all your equity for a tax debt you owe to your county that might be a small fraction of your home equity. This is rightfully called "home equity theft" and it's time to put a stop to it.
Colorado | Home Equity Theft | Pacific Legal Foundation
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Rick Leventhal is the former senior correspondent for Fox News. His new book (memoir, really) is “Chasing Catastrophe: My 35 Years Covering Wars, Hurricanes, Terror Attacks, and Other Breaking News”: https://www.amazon.com/Chasing-Catastrophe-Covering-Hurricanes-Breaking/dp/1637584946
I hope he's feeling better! Former Fox News Reporter Rick Leventhal Hospitalized After Car Accident & Suffers 4 Broken Ribs; Ex-‘RHOC’ Star Wife Kelly Dodd Weighs In – Deadline
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Colorado State Rep Ty Winter represents a massive swath southeastern Colorado including Pueblo County. We'll discuss a bill that's being heard in committee on Monday that would allow owners, managers, and employees of businesses, or any person in that business, who legally possess a firearm to use that firearm within the business if someone makes illegal entry and the person defending the business believes the illegal entrant has committed, or is about to commit, a crime, or may use ANY physical force against a person in the business. It's much like the "Castle Doctrine" for our homes but extended to businesses.
Ty Winter | Colorado General Assembly
Protection Of Business From Unlawful Entry | Colorado General Assembly
Other Stuff
No, it's for good this time. Really. Tom Brady retires, insisting this time it’s for good | The Hill
Gotta say that IF (and I have no information you don't have) Tom Brady lost his marriage over his decision to come out of retirement, it wasn't worth it. And wouldn't have been worth it even if his team had won the Super Bowl again. Yes, his reported new girlfriend is super-hot but as much as we'd like to focus on those attributes (and hers are literally remarkable) they are not the basis of life-long happiness together. As someone once said, you might put physical attraction in the category of "necessary but not sufficient." And, in case I forgot to mention, Tom's ex, Giselle Bundchen, is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful in the world.
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Remember when she said she would never run against Trump? Glad she changed her mind but I think she's changed her views too many times on too many things. That said, if she gets the nomination I'd support her and I'm sure I'll prefer her to some others who will get into the race: Nikki Haley, once Trump's UN ambassador, to take him on in 2024 | Reuters
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A sad and lovely story: And So Begins the Long Goodbye - The American Spectator | USA News and Politics
And another lovely story, though with the same ending that seems historically to accompany most long-lasting human endeavors: https://theathletic.com/4139219/2023/01/30/john-adams-cleveland-guardians-drummer-dies
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I know we don't pay much attention to Indiana politics here, but with Mitch Daniels announcing that he will not run for Senate, you'd have to think that Rep Jim Banks is now the favorite to win the GOP nomination. I'm a big fan of Jim's although I do think he made a significant mistake on January 6, 2021 going along with the move to try to block certification of the 2020 election's Electoral College vote. Overall, Jim's body of work and what I see as a commitment to constitutional principles makes him someone I can and do support though I hope that at some point he apologizes for Jan 6. (I suspect he won't out of political considerations given that the party base is likely fairly pro-Trump still.)
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/01/31/mitch-daniels-opts-against-a-run-for-the-senate-00080323
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Remember this when you see your lower paycheck and when your boss can't give you a raise because he's got higher payroll taxes for you: https://www.koaa.com/news/covering-colorado/dozens-of-local-governments-opt-out-of-state-run-insurance-benefit
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Why do people on the left ALWAYS misunderestimate how many people will come get "free money" or "free" stuff or "free" services (like Colorado's "free" preschool for which the providers get paid $6,000 per kid per year)? Here's the latest VERY expensive mistake: https://www.axios.com/2023/02/01/electric-car-ev-tax-incentives-biden
Not that you need another example, but here is one: The latest round of e-bike rebates ran out fast again - Denverite, the Denver site!
But, hey, as long as you know that politicians are giving away other people's money, let's just call it a billion, shall we? https://www.nationalreview.com/news/5-million-reparations-payment-for-black-residents-not-enough-san-francisco-official-says
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Good: RTD wants to ban passengers from riding with nowhere to go - Denverite, the Denver site!
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Leave her on the committee. Shout-out to Rep Ken Buck for not going along with the mob: https://www.axios.com/2023/01/31/mccarthy-finds-escape-hatch-on-omar-vote
By the way, Ilhan Omar is the worst member of Congress. She's a racist anti-American anti-Semite. But she's duly elected by the apparent racist anti-American anti-Semites of her district and she should be allowed to do her job even if she's bad at it unless she truly violates ethics provisions or the law. Being horrendous is a separate question.
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Some welcome good news for the gun industry. There will be a LOT of lawsuits about new gun laws in Colorado, I expect.
Court blocks New Jersey law that allows state to sue gun industry (yahoo.com)
Biden judge delivers gun industry huge win in NJ (msn.com)
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I'm adding this back to the blogcast today because I didn't mention it on the show yesterday, and it's a truly gorgeous story (in both words and images): https://hakaimagazine.com/videos-visuals/for-humpbacks-bubbles-can-be-tools
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More on the end of an aviation era: Boeing says farewell to 'Queen of the Skies' with last 747 delivery | CNN
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Today's question...email me your thoughts at ross@koadenver.com!
When’s the last time you owned an answering machine? Do you know anyone who still does?
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Something I never really thought about before but I guess the answer is "not unless I actually see dirt": Do You Really Need to Wash Your Legs in the Shower? — Best Life (bestlifeonline.com)
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Today's Videos
Earlier this week I shared the story of huge YouTube star MrBeast paying for cataract surgery to cure the blindness for 1,000 low-income (or even homeless) people in various countries. MrBeast helps 1,000 blind people see again by sponsoring cataract surgeries | CNN
Here's an interesting interview of MrBeast with one of the more popular podcast hosts, Lex Fridman:
And on the ugly side of the internet, this was a lie to scam good-hearted donors out of money:
Iowa woman, 19, charged with scamming $37k in donations by faking cancer | Daily Mail Online