by Mark Smiley | Dec 17, 2018 | Editorials
It is said that politicians are attracted to money like
flies to a dung heap. In Denver no one loves the smell of money more than City
Council President Albus Brooks, a close ally of ethically challenged Mayor
Michael Hancock. He is expected to succeed Hancock in four years assuming
Hancock prevails in his quest for a third term this spring.
Brooks has the full confidence and support of the
high-density developers that own and control Mayor Hancock. Brooks’
subservience to developers has gotten him in trouble at times with some of his
constituents in District 9. Developers have begun to gentrify his district with
high-density developments driving some African American families out of Denver
where they have lived for generations. His tone deafness over the Ink! Coffee
shop controversy highlighted how out of touch he was with the many issues
important to the residents of his District. Brooks has only exasperated his
problems by his remarks on Colorado Public Radio where he appeared not to grasp
the concept that “involuntary displacement” was very much of a concern to
homeowners in Five Points, Elyria-Swansea and other neighborhoods in his
District.
Brooks infamously declared on the radio: “Displacement is
not in the home ownership category. It’s in the rental category and someone
cannot afford what their landowner is jacking up the price with, right? And so,
that is something that we are working very hard on.”
These comments helped Candi CdeBaca decide to run against
him this spring in the city election. She has stated: “He didn’t understand the
nuances of involuntary displacement. That is directly connected to his power
and his purview. He should know all of the ins and outs of it.”
What Brooks does understand is money or more specifically
how as a politician he gets his hands on as much of it as possible. While high
density developers strongly support him as he does their bidding, he is not
particularly liked by them on a personal basis. His cryptic nickname among some
developers and lobbyists is “The Buddha.” It is not that he has any interest in
that Eastern religion but rather the fact that many statues of the Buddha have
him sitting with his left palm pointing upward. According to his critics Brooks
shakes your hand with his right hand while his left palm points upward to be
greased.
This leads to his latest money-making scheme — heroin
injection sites. There is big money to be had by politicians in drugs these
days. On the Republican side Colorado Senator Cory Gardner and former Speaker
of the U.S. House John Boehner have become ardent advocates for the
legalization of marijuana across the country notwithstanding spending most of
their political careers adamantly opposed the same. What changed? Once pot was
legalized in states like Colorado and California there arrived a river of money
for politicians and lobbyists who would help overcome federal constraints on
the drug.
Brooks’ nose for money has led him to an even more lucrative
drug field — heroin. Mexican drug cartels are facing a crisis. With
legalization of marijuana in various states no one needs the cartels to grow
marijuana in Mexico and ship it across the border. Moreover, cocaine is no
longer the drug of the young and the hip and usage is dramatically down. What
is up is opioid addiction and in particular heroin addiction. What is holding
back this growth market is the terrible stigma attached to heroin use.
That is where politicians like Brooks can help. He has
gotten the Denver City Council to approve so called “safe injection sites.”
Heroin users are provided free needles, syringes, septic pads and a private
place to shoot up. Medical attendants will be there to administer Naloxone in
case of an overdose. Of course, once you have one site you will need many more
as addicts driving to and from a single injection site to get their multiple
daily fixes is generally not to be encouraged.
If you want more of something you subsidize it, but that is
not the key service Brooks is providing to the cartels. What the cartels need
to grow their heroin businesses is for the stigma of heroin use to disappear.
What better way than state and municipal sanctioned and supported “safe”
injection sites to say to today’s youth that the hellish existence of a heroin
addict is just one of many different but acceptable lifestyle choices. In
places like Vancouver, Canada where there are safe injection sites, the use of
heroin has skyrocketed and while there are no reported deaths at the sites
there plenty nearby.
The Buddha, of course, is just trying to be “compassionate”
to heroin users and the cartels who support and nurture them. Brooks will get
rich in the process. If there is any justice in this world, kids and their
families who become addicted to heroin because of the actions of Councilman
Albus Brooks will someday go visit him in what grand mansion he will be
ensconced in to personally thank him for the destruction and damage he has wrought to them.
Albus Brooks
by Mark Smiley | Dec 17, 2018 | Feature Story Bottom Left
by Danny Foster, Esq.
As 2018 ends and 2019 peeks its head around the corner I
have a news flash that should not come as a news flash: raising kids is damn
hard! It appears as if raising kids in 2019 will be as challenging as raising
kids in 2018. As a father of three teenagers I face the daily struggle of
limiting phone time, arbitrating sibling arguments, and trying to figure out
where the heck they are all the time and who they are with.
Teenagers can really test a parent’s patience and sanity.
Don’t get me wrong, I like my kids. A lot. But parenting is really hard. And
now that my kids are knee deep in high school and middle school we have to
address the alcohol and marijuana issue. You know, that issue.
It’s a balancing act talking to your kids about the dangers
of drugs/alcohol and at the same time letting them know that IF they choose to
indulge that we absolutely do not want them to be afraid to let us know if they
need a safe ride home or need our help if they are struggling with substance
issues.
On the one hand we cannot, as mature, law-abiding parents,
condone our kids engaging in illegal and self-destructive behavior, but on the
other hand we don’t want to see their bad choices have deadly consequences. Our
law firm has for years hosted a free community seminar titled “High School Boot
Camp” for parents and students to address the dangers associated with
alcohol/drugs as well as a host of other issues. Even with all my knowledge and
training I am often frustrated by the complexities of how to raise kids.
Telling our kids that we will be there for them, no
questions asked, if ever they need our help during such a drug/alcohol crisis
is a mixed message. However, it is a mixed message that is entirely reasonable
in light of the fact that teenagers’ decision making can often be suspect. I am
willing to say that in this case a mixed message is pragmatic and essential to
the well-being of our children.
But the mixed messages our children face are even more
complicated now that marijuana has become ubiquitous in Colorado. What once was
taboo a few years ago is now mainstream. And now just in time for 2019, the
City of Denver is making it even harder for parents to teach our children correctly
with the nation’s first legal heroin injection sites. Yes, you read that
correctly.
Just this past month the Denver City Council voted 12-1 to
legalize heroin injection sites with city support. Call me old-school but I
don’t think we should be making it easier to shoot heroin; yet the Denver City
Council thinks that the benefit of being able to provide “safe places” for
heroin addicts to get high outweighs the negative impact this will have on the
City. This is the city’s attempt to play parent to the teenager. Except we are
not talking about being too drunk to drive home from a party and getting a safe
ride home, we are talking about engaging in highly illegal and self-destructive
behavior that ruins lives and destroys neighborhoods.
Trying to rationalize this city ordinance in any context is
dangerous. I applaud the city council’s desire to save lives, but this proposal
normalizes and essentially condones heroin use, with zero evidence that it will
save lives. Further, the crime and homeless problem will only get worse. Been
to Civic Center Park lately? Neither have I. It has become a mecca for heroin
abuse and violent encounters. That problem will only worsen. If you build it,
they will come.
While it is highly unlikely this heroin ordinance will survive
the state legislature’s ratification or U.S. Attorney’s challenge, the fact
that the city council wants to make our beautiful city more enticing to heroin
abuse is a sad commentary on what we deem to be permissible nowadays.
Thankfully councilman Kevin Flynn voted against this ordinance and I urge
everyone to call his office and thank him for his courage to do the right
thing. I also urge everyone to call their state representative and urge them to
vote against this bill if it comes up for discussion in 2019. It is an
unreasonable and dangerous response to a national epidemic. There are not a lot
of easy solutions to the opioid epidemic, but this is certainly going in the
opposite direction.
So parents, I hope 2019 brings joy, peace and lots of love to
your families. I hope you can devise a way to discuss these complicated issues
with your teenagers because I for one am tired of seeing good kids suffer
because their parents refused to engage in these challenging discussions. And I
hope the state legislature puts a swift and resounding end to Denver’s decision
to normalize heroin use in our city.
Danny is a managing partner of Foster, Graham, Milstein
& Calisher (FGMC). His practice focuses on personal injury. The law firm of
FGMC, located in Cherry Creek, is a full service law firm focusing on: criminal
defense, personal injury, real estate, litigation, liquor licensing,
construction law, tax/estate planning, bankruptcy and zoning. This article does
not create an attorney-client relationship and is for informational use only
(what do you expect from an attorney!)
by Mark Smiley | Nov 19, 2018 | General Featured
Denver Landmark Holds Retirement Sale
Holiday shoppers will find bargains galore at Le Grue’s flower and Christmas store. LeGrue’s has been a must see decorating destination for 40 years at 476 South Broadway in Denver. The expansive store has one of the largest galleries of artificial Christmas trees in the area and has every style of holiday lights and decorations you could imagine.
But the owners are retiring after receiving an offer to purchase the building that was too good to pass up. That’s resulting in a new adventure for them and great deals for shoppers.
You will be able to find high quality artificial Christmas trees and decorations as well as silk flowers and plants. Le Grue’s also offers antiques and unique gifts. And everything in the store is for sale at huge discounts, as much as 50% off or more. “Everything must go,” the owners explain. They expect it will go fast and suggest people stop by and check it out sooner rather than later.
LeGrue’s owners say their customers and business neighbors have become their friends over the years and they say a special “Thank You” for all the support and great memories. “Le Grue’s has been an amazing journey,” they say. “And we are looking forward to new possibilities, adventures and beginnings.”
Le Grue’s is centrally located at 476 S. Broadway in Denver. The retirement sale is underway and will run through the beginning of the New Year.
Denver Landmark Closing: Le Grue’s, a shopper’s destination for 40 years on South Broadway, is closing its doors and holding a retirement sale.
