Representative Mark Udall from Colorado has been holding a series of meetings where citizens can meet and give him ideas for how to fix this broken country.  His staff take the written or video reports and prepare them so that he can get them fairly straight from the citizens not just of his district but throughout Colorado.  Last Saturday at North High School in Denver he held a large gathering (also attended by Representative Ed Perlmutter) to share some of the stories of citizens who have attended these earlier gatherings as Representative Udall tries to expand the participation in the program.  It's refreshing to have an opportunity to address a US Representative and have them hear unscripted questions.

My problem with this is, he asks for ideas but ignores the biggest one - supporting the US Constitution.  We need to go after those who have broken America and make them pay for their lawbreaking and he refuses to consider it when it is thrust before him.  I went there eager to see my next Senator, and came away disgusted with a Representative who puts personal political advancement above the will of the people.

Last Thursday, AP had a story I found on the 9 News website where Colorado's Senator Ken Salazar was complaining that the Republicans were violating the agreement of the Gang of Fourteen.  He says the agreement was meant to have an agreement over the appointment of federal judges, but that names were being submitted without his acceptance.

Like many of you in the Kossak community, I have problems with Walmart, both for how it particularly does business and also in a more general sense of what it represents.  I know many people in this country can't afford to shop for better quality goods because their wages have been driven down by job losses, rising expenses for health care, food and fuel, and because many of the traditional shops and manufacturers have closed due to competition spurred on Walmart's business model.  I try and avoid ever going there.  Still, I went there last night because I was looking for something that I couldn't seem to find in other stores.  Join me below the fold for my impressions for the visit to the world's largest store.

I received an email this morning from James Carville and the DSCC.  They have an exceedingly lame video (showing bored, unimaginitive staffers dreading another meeting with a bored, unimaginitive James Carville).  The topic is an effort to have a bumper sticker that would help spark voters in 2008.

I still have my "Had Enough" bumper sticker on the back of my American Union-built hybrid, but at least I didn't have to have the one that encouraged us to vote for Democrats.  Mine spells out corruption, cronyism, but it says for the kicker "whatever happened to the common good?".  I like it because it doesn't specify a party, it promotes an idea.

I got the idea from a poster (and I apologize that I don't recall your name for proper attribution - I read so many diaries last night), so yesterday, July 4th, I displayed my flag upside down to emphasize the distress I feel over the state of affairs in the US.

This particular flag had definitely seen better days.  It was a little stained and it was starting to get torn in a couple of locations.  I inherited it from an aunt who had passed on after leading a very active, exemplary life as a citizen activist, a state legislator and a very progressive politician.  A lifelong Democrat who was ever on the lookout for efforts to thwart fairness and honesty, she would very quickly rally her town to right these wrongs.  I decided displaying her flag today would be a nice way to honor her memory, and it would be the last action that particular flag would make before being retired and destroyed in the proper manner.

For several hours, I never received any response.  For the neighbors' reaction, please come across the fold.

I kick things off early every year on the Saturday before Memorial Day weekend with my Crawfish Boil and BBQ.  This year's was by far the biggest and most successful, but it has me thinking about how my fellow Kossaks might put on a backyard (or park or beach, or ...) party centered around food, cooked outdoors.

My party was attended by over 50 people.  In past years, I've had 20-30 people show up; the numbers have been going up but this year it seemed like the date worked for many folks.  Fortunately, I had RSVP's so I knew to expect the number and I also have a backyard big enough to accommodate the party (and the weather cooperated).  

More on my party is below the fold, but I'd also like to hear from you for more ideas.  Please come along....

Night to me is a wonderful time of day.  So different from the daylight hours, yet it's based upon the same reality.  

With the approach of dusk, the world seems to start slowing down and taking on new rhythms, but it doesn't just stop when the sun goes down.  It changes; there are many things that begin at dusk, and carry on through till the morning sun comes up again.  This time to me is a wonderful time of contemplation, when I can digest all that the day has fed my brain.  I do much of my best thinking after dark.

If you're someone who doesn't stop just because there's some darkness, but instead you relish new ways of exploring the world from fresh perspectives, come beneath the fold, see how I've expressed myself, and see if you agree, disagree or wish to explore further.

In my recently completed business trip to Dallas, I made multiple efforts to try and eat in some Texas BBQ restaurants hoping for some good, representative meals.  If what follows in the diary is typical for Dallas, I'd appreciate any suggestions that folks have, because I was very disappointed.  This week I am making a second, shorter trip to Dallas and I'll perhaps have only one or two sit-down meals in the NE area (towards Richardson).  I'm beginning to doubt whether Dallas has any good BBQ at all.

More on the flip, where I give results of my efforts...

Earlier this month, Karma showed its positive side when a snowstorm caused problems for folks driving around the Denver metro area.  Now, we're currently beset with a much more powerful storm.  Will Karma return, and what are the consequences if it does?

In my earlier diary here I asked folks what they might do when their neighbors might need a hand, and now that we've got a much larger, nastier snowstorm burying us, I wanted to see if people have committed to doing anything for their neighbors.  Are you on Karma's good side?

Follow me below the fold for some ideas:

Winter has arrived here in Colorado, after burying Washington state and is now on its march east across the country.  For my first-ever diary entry, I wanted to share with you a tale of Karma and invite you to help make your part of the country a little better as the weather becomes tough for so many.

The storm arrived Tuesday evening in the Denver area, and the city was slow getting their snow clearing underway meaning that traffic across the evening rush was slow, accidents were plentiful, and ice caused many people to spin their wheels.

My ride home took about two hours.  I have a new all-wheel drive Escape, and this was my first real experience in snow with it.  It performed marvelously, and I was able to drive up hills and through trouble spots that caused others to stack up.  On one hill, there were several people who were trying to get their rear-wheel and front-wheel drive cars up it. (more down the slope)