by Mark Smiley | Dec 17, 2021 | Travel
by Mark Smiley
After record-breaking performances in Dallas, Texas, the Jurassic World Exhibition will open in Denver on March 4, 2022, at the National Western Center, located at the Washington Street exit of I-70. For the first time ever, Denver fans of the Jurassic World film and television franchises can experience the dinosaurs in their own community inside a 20,000 square foot immersive experience.
This experience is based on one of the biggest blockbusters in cinema history. Visitors will walk through the world-famous “Jurassic World” gates, encounter life-sized dinosaurs, and explore richly themed environments. Guests will have an up-close look at a Velociraptor, stand under a towering Brachiosaurus, and encounter the most fearsome of them all, the Tyrannosaurus Rex.
Guests will be able to imagine what it would have been like to roam among these creatures and even interact with new baby dinosaurs, including “Bumpy” from the popular animated series Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous which airs on Netflix.
Following an initial launch in Melbourne, Australia, JURASSIC WORLD: THE EXHIBITION has become a global success with over three million visitors since 2016. The Exhibition has opened its gates to fans in Dallas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Paris, Madrid, Seoul, Chengdu, Guangzhou, and Shanghai.
Universal Parks & Resorts’ President of Global Business Development, Michael Silver said, “What excites us about JURA
Jurassic World: The Exhibition: An immersive 20,000-square-foot experience based on the movies that have grossed over $5 billion worldwide. The exhibit has had over three million visitors since 2016 in Dallas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Paris, Madrid, Seoul, Chengdu, Guangzhou, and Shanghai.
SSIC WORLD: THE EXHIBITION is the opportunity to give fans a real-world, immersive experience based on the amazing adventures of the films and delivered to a location near them. Visitors will come face-to-face with life-sized dinosaurs and walk through richly themed environments, all inspired by the beloved global franchise.”
Cityneon’s Executive Chairman & Group CEO, Ron Tan said, “JURASSIC WORLD: THE EXHIBITION features cutting-edge, state-of-the-art technology that is powered by Animax Designs, our animatronics powerhouse located in the U.S. This immersive exhibition is definitely a once-in-a-lifetime experience that our friends in Denver can look forward to. With sold-out shows in Dallas since its opening there in June 2021, we are confident that our fans in Denver will be wowed by this exhilarating experience.”
“After record breaking sales in Dallas, we are incredibly excited to bring this show to Denver to share with our millions of fans,” said Stephen Shaw, Founder and Co-President of Round Room Live. “The ability to walk amongst these HUGE creatures will amaze and entertain fans with this breathtaking and truly immersive experience.” Shaw went on to explain that the dinosaurs are animatronic but “shockingly realistic.”
“Denver was a chosen city because we love the city,” said Shaw. “There is always a great response to entertainment in Denver, whether it be concerts, touring shows, or family shows. We have always loved going to Denver.”
Tickets to JURASSIC WORLD: THE EXHIBITION start at $29.50 for adults (16 years +) and $19.50 for youth (3-15 years). Children under three years of age are free with accompanying parent or guardian. Flex Passes are available, as well as special pricing for senior citizens and military. Group sales packages are available for groups greater than 10.
For more information, visit JurassicWorldExhibition.com. The exhibition will be at the National Western Center’s new Stockyards Event Center until Labor Day, 2022, 5004 National Western Drive, Denver, CO 80216.
by Charles Bonniwell | Dec 17, 2021 | Editorials
Now is the winter of Denver Mayor Michael Hancock’s discontent. A pitiable individual who has been deserted by all but the developer vultures and others that feed off his political carcass for fun and profit. Even his wife of 28 years, Mary Louise Lee, has deserted the philandering mayor and is seeking a divorce. His Honor’s biggest problem is that his final day isn’t officially until July 23, 2023.
He has told friends that he plans to move to Florida once his term is over. Who could blame him? In places with traditional corruption like Mexico, you pay a politician off upfront and then get the actions from the politician you need. In this country it’s just the opposite. The politician does not get paid off until after he leaves office in the form of consulting contracts, board positions, and other sinecures. That form of payoff is deemed perfectly acceptable in America. Still, it’s better off to retire to Florida before getting your just rewards. That way it will be done far from the probing eyes of the Denver media.
Still, every day left in political office, Hancock must take one more humiliating bite of the proverbial sh*t sandwich. After waiting weeks for Governor Polis to reinstitute statewide COVID-19 mask mandates, and after surrounding counties did so, Hancock finally acted. Then Polis announced that the pandemic is over and there is no need for mask mandates. Polis then goes on a triumphant national media blitz on his “courageous” announcement while Hancock once again looks clueless.
Governor Polis seems to take delight in embarrassing this Denver mayor. When Major League Baseball decided to move the All-Star Game from Atlanta because the Commissioner didn’t like new Georgia voting laws, the Colorado Governor’s Office announced that: “The Governor will be burning up the phones the next few days to see if there is an opening to bring the All-Star game to Denver.” Other notable Colorado politicians like Denver Congresswoman Diana DeGette and Secretary of State Jena Griswold encouraged MLB to come to Denver. Notably absent was the mayor of Denver. Why would anyone care what the useless politically inert mayor thought?
Polis isn’t the only one who likes to humiliate Hancock. Hancock has put all his political might and a lot of the Denver taxpayer’s money behind the effort by Westside Development to get rid of the conservation easement on the Park Hill Golf Course area, and destroy the open space with a development. Denver’s first African American mayor Wellington Webb decided to take on Westside Development and behind the scenes Hancock.
The white developers who support Hancock love to play the race card. They successfully turned Hancock’s opponent in the last election, Jamie Giellis, into a caricature of a white supremist. For the November Initiative 301 and 302 which initially determined the Park Hill Golf Course area fate, they tried to make believe, as stated by Wellington Webb, that “Park Hill is inhabited by racist bullies.” But Webb was a more formidable force than Giellis and this time Hancock’s race baiting failed overwhelmingly at the polls.
Hancock’s own City Council also likes to kick him around these days. For Hancock’s first two terms the extraordinary powers of the mayor in the city charter kept the Councilmembers at bay, but not for the third term. The Council put three proposals on the November 2020 ballot, opposed by Hancock, that expanded the Council’s powers and limited those of the mayor. The first allowed the Council to hire their own professionals, including legal council, without the approval of the executive branch. The second, which was even opposed by former Mayor Webb, mandated Council approval for 14 mayoral appointments. The third one gave the Council the power to initiate appropriation of new and excess revenue. The voters gleefully approved all three and for the first time in over 100 years the strong mayor form of Denver government was not so strong.
Having lost the voters, his City Council, and his wife, Hancock appears to do little more than spend his days working out at the Denver Athletic Club getting his “beach body” ready. Perhaps the City Council should pass a provision whereby he could move to Florida and work virtually as mayor of Denver from the beach. It would cheer him up and it is doubtful anyone in Denver would notice.
— Editorial Board
by Glendale Sports Center | Dec 17, 2021 | Glendale City News
by Jessica L. Giffin, MPH, CHES, NBC-HWC, Director of Health Partnerships, YMCA of Metro Denver
Take a second and picture your neighborhood. Where is the closest grocery store? Is it easy to get there? Some communities have multiple grocery stores within walking distance, but many communities don’t have easy access to a full-service grocery store. They may have to travel far to find one or rely on convenience stores which are often more expensive and have fewer healthy options.
Communities that don’t have access to affordable and nutritious food are known as “food deserts.” You can often find food deserts in urban spaces, rural areas, and low-income neighborhoods. People with chronic illnesses or disabilities may also have less access to grocery stores. This lack of access can lead to food insecurity and impact overall health.
It’s difficult to eat healthy if someone doesn’t have access to fresh produce or if their neighborhood is full of fast-food restaurants. Access to foods that aid healthy eating affects someone’s health throughout their life. Because healthy eating can lower your risk for certain chronic health conditions, people that can’t regularly get nutritious foods are more likely to develop obesity and diabetes.1
The YMCA of Metro Denver also runs a program for the community called Beyond Hunger to give food to people in our community who need it. Our nutritionists work with Beyond Hunger to make sure people get items that will nourish them, help them feel good, and are culturally relevant.
Health is more than what medicines you take or how often you see a health care provider. Your lifestyle, including what you eat, plays a big role in your health! That’s why it’s important that everyone has access to affordable and nutritious food.
We hope that we can learn more about how environment and lifestyle can impact health. That will take more research! If you want to help scientists find out more about health and how every community has different experiences, here’s how you can play a part.
The National Institutes of Health’s All of Us Research Program is bringing together at least a million volunteers to share information about their lifestyle, health needs, where they live, and more to get a better picture of everything that makes up health. That way health care providers, nutritionists, maybe even city planners, can make more personalized choices for every person and community.
There are a number of ways you can help advance health research with All of Us, including taking their newest survey about social determinants of health. These are your life experiences that impact your health – like how close your nearest grocery store is and what kind of food it sells!
If you’re interested in helping researchers learn more about how your lifestyle and community impact health, visit Join AllofUs.org/togetherDENVER.
1 HealthyPeople.gov, “Access to Foods that Support Healthy Eating Patterns.”
by Peter Boyles | Dec 17, 2021 | Blasting with Boyles
The tradition of a boycott goes back to my people in the Emerald Island when they were being overrun and had their culture destroyed by imperial Britain — oh, by the way, the British managed to do that in about 85 percent of the known world. But the Irish struck back with a tactic known as boycotting, as they stole the name from a British captain by the name of Boycott. So now you get the idea.
Now suddenly after years and years of the world’s biggest multinational corporations removing the means of production from Pittsburgh, Gary, Birmingham, and any other industrial city in this country, into the People’s Republic of China, our woke culture decides they want to boycott the Winter Olympics. I’ve been doing some reading on Olympic boycotts and they don’t work. The first one was in 1956 by Spain, Switzerland, and the Netherlands over the Soviet invasion of Hungary. Remember how much impact that had.
Recall most of the world failed to join Jimmy Carter in the 1980 boycott of the Soviet Games and the Soviets then won all the medals. And Jimmy Carter just screwed a whole generation of young athletes who waited their entire lives to compete in the Games.
So in the 2022 Olympic Games Joe Biden is pulling something called a diplomatic boycott, to which the Chinese retort we didn’t invite you anyway. This is the equivalent of that kid’s birthday party that you weren’t invited to and you told him you didn’t want to come anyhow.
But the real choice involves multi-nation corporations. They’re running the show and if you really want to boycott, go throw away your television and computer screens that you may have in your home, a lot of the parts in your car, any and all things you have that have anything to do with technology, and take them to the city dump. Now you’re showing the Chinese what for.
In reading about the woke corporations that have discovered the Chinese actually use slave labor, I came across LeBron James’ basketball shoe deal with Nike. A reminder, LeBron hates America. His shoes are made in very suspect places with interesting factors. He will make one billion dollars by the time his contract expires when he turns 64. Now a lot of my friends’ dads growing up lost their jobs when their jobs went to China, along with steel and iron workers’ jobs. They were replaced by Walmart, Amazon, Apple, CVC Health, and a couple of big car dealers like Toyota and Volkswagen. They run the show.
These boycotts are meaningless in a woke world where I am now forced to live. NBC will be carrying the Games. I for one will be watching skiing, and a whole lot of people are going to make a whole lot of money.
Next up for Joe, the Ukraine. What a beauty that’s going to be. As they said in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, “Who are those guys?”
— Peter Boyles
