The Colorado State Open Thread will be published each Monday, about 7PM Mountain time, and sometimes there will be original content, sometimes just a placeholder as I step back in this end-of-year time to truly spend more time with my family. If anyone would like to guest-write an entry for this column, please let me know through Kosmail.
Today it was odd to automatically start to wish people who called my tech support line “Happy Veteran’s Day”. Wishing people happiness on a day when the world finally stopped killing millions, only to keep losing millions more to the Spanish Flu. I managed to remember to look at the clock at the 11th minute of the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the time of the cease fire in the “War to End All Wars” and I posted that to our chat room at work. Of course, it was several hours later than the moment marked in Europe for that time, but it was still significant. I did tell a couple of folks to hug a veteran, but some I just could barely get out an “Enjoy your Monday” before they were off the phone on their way to help someone who wasn’t afflicted by war wounds or similar misery. And so many Trumpists are eagerly looking forward to the onset of the next war, which they discuss in terms of “Civil War”, as if any war is civil and not horrific. Their dear leader will be among the first to flee the battlefield — probably to Russia if he has any say in things — leaving his minions to try to do their worst on anyone who isn’t as melanin-challenged and bigoted as they are.
I do wish I could watch the hearings live, but instead I’ll have to catch up on the Internet or on Rachel’s program. If you’re watching them, please don’t overdo it with popcorn and leftover Halloween candy. We will need you for the long election season ahead, no matter what happens over the next couple of months.
I do wish to keep in your mind a few things as you make your list of things you’d like for the holiday gift-giving season.
- The Netroots Nation convention is coming to Denver next August 13-15th. It will be held in the Convention Center downtown, and being an election year, truly one of the most important in my lifetime, perhaps surpassed only by 2016 which went the absolute wrong way, we will be seeing many national figures not only on panels but walking around to get their names, faces and opinions onto blog posts. The website is www.netrootsnation.org/… I would really like it if there were a Colorado Kossack meeting area, so not only can we meet the folks we’ve seen online or at some of our meetups, but also to see if we can recruit some new writers and faces. What do you think?
- Daily Kos has many ways to contribute money for good causes. You now don’t have to think about ways that you can disguise that scarf or tie pin in some clever way. You can make a contribution to your friends by one of many different stores that Kossacks have on Etsy, or if the recipient is a Kossack, you can give them items from the Daily Kos store like T-shirts and buttons (will wear well at Netroots Nation) or give them the gift of a membership so they don’t have to see all those ads for the next year. You can also give them donations in their name to help out fellow Kossacks in need this holiday season.
I’m going to put up this piece or something else every week so that you can have a place to gather and discuss Colorado and issues that concern you — the floor will be yours as always. I just may or may not participate, but that’s ok. After some dozen years here, I can haz a break.