Aurora Passes Restricted Breed Service Dog Ordinance

The Neighborhood Services Policy Committee of Aurora, Colorado, met to revise an ordinance passed relating to Pit Bulls or restricted breeds of dogs used as service dogs. Since the Pit Bull ban was passed in May 2005, there has been speculation whether Aurora has been more lenient towards the ban. Could this ordinance allow more doors to be opened in regards to revoking the ban?

Just recently, Aurora resident Allen Grider, a Vietnam War Veteran with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, filed a lawsuit against the city. He stated that the city had no right to mandate how his service dog is maintained, regardless of the ban.

Grider said that, “She’s my protector,”during an interview earlier this year with the Aurora Sentinel. “I can’t sleep if she’s not here. If I’m tense, she’ll bother me until I calm down.”

The Pit Bull ban has been a long fought battle. The ban was enforced in 1989, challenged, and brought back in full force in 2005 in response to two cases of attacks that resulted in injuries caused by Pit Bull breeds in the Denver Metro area. In 2006, Aurora chose to adopt the ban as well. The ordinance states that Aurora bans any "restricted breed of dog", meaning any American Bulldog (Old Country Bulldog), Dogo Argentino, Canary Dog, Presa Mallorquin, Tosa Inu (Tosa Fighting Dog, Japanese Fighting Dog, Japanese Mastiff), Cane Corso, Fila Brasileiro or any dog displaying the majority of physical traits of any one or more of the above breeds. The ban includes dogs that display the "majority of the physical traits" of these breeds or "distinguishing characteristics that substantially conform" to AKC or UKC breed standards.

If a Pit Bull is reported in the area, the dog is taken away and transported to a local shelter. A judge evaluates the case and the dog either: remains in the shelter and is adopted out by a family that lives in a city that does not participate in the ordinance, or the dog is euthanized. A person owning a Pit Bull may apply for a license 60 days after the ban has been enforced, but they must follow certain restrictions, like wearing a muzzle and signage claiming you have a Pit Bull.

On November 18th, 2010, provided by Cherly Conway, public relations specialist of Animal Care Division, city council members passed a revised issue of the ordinance with a vote of 3-1.

The ordinance now sates that:

New ADA regulations addressing RB service dogs will take effect on March 15, 2011. Municipalities will no longer be allowed to prohibit a disabled person from keeping a Pit Bull or RB as a service dog. In light of these pending regulations and the potential for new dogs to come into the City, even after all grandfathered dogs expire, it is recommended the City revise the ordinance to formally address these animals.

The citizen owning a Pit Bull service dog is required to obtain a license; however the ordinance will:

• Waives the annual license fee

• Adjust the minimum age to meet the handler

• Waives insurance requirement

• Waives gate signage requirement

• Waives Pit Bulls from not being allowed on porch or patio if it interferes with duties

• Waives requirement of dog to be on 4-feet or shorter leash and muzzled if it interferes with duties as well.

The biggest contributing factor in this new ordinance is the fact that, a citizen of Aurora now has the ability to claim the need for a Pit Bull service dog without providing any proof of their disability due to discrimination. During the council meeting, it was addressed that there remains the possibility of any person claiming they have a disability in order to obtain or retain a Pit Bull.

“I don’t agree that they do not require certification for a service dog. I can’t take my dog into the hospital because I want it to be there and didn’t want to be there. Of course you need certification—I think,” said Molly Markert, city council member.

This new ordinance protects Pit Bulls from being taken out of the city and possibly enables more Pit Bulls to come into the city. Therefore, is this ordinance the new gateway to revoking the ban in Aurora, and how many people will take advantage of it?

Small Price, Big Impact for Local Food in Denver

SAME Cafe serves up a whole lot of different. Wonderfully different, they tell customers. A small cafe, brown awning and gaggles of hipsters and homeless at tables outside and in. Several floral arrangements, donations of course, drape the shelves and table tops inside the restaurant. Simplicity and yet, something intricate taking place here. Meals such as Smoked Salmon & Red Onion Pizza, Mixed Greens w/ Fruit Salad, and Pomegranate Arugula Salad feature a delicious, yet healthy arrangement of ingredients.

Be prepared. Meals like this come at no small cost, or do they? At SAME Cafe, which stands for So All May Eat, a customer may pay for their meal in terms of a donation the size they see fit, or in fact just volunteer an hour of their time.

Diners in Denver looking for healthy food options at a low cost often have to sacrifice one desire for the other. The misconception is typically as follows: cheap options available include fast food and national chains, while health conscious, local farmers, and organic meals come at a higher price. The menu at SAME Cafe, for example, breaks the stereotype by offering healthy, locally grown food options at a potentially small price, whatever the customer can pay or an hour of service in the restaurant.

Groups like ColoradoLocalFirst.com and LocalHarvest.org are taking charge in ending this prevelant steryotpe; SAME Cafe as only one of the examples they post on their Local Flavor Guide, a guide for "finding locally sourced food food at independent local restaurants and markets". They firmly believe that "local food is just one aspect of building a better economy."

The initiative to eat healthily and locally is also supported by the Mile High Business Alliance who believes that "local businesses are the foundation of a resilient, connected and healthy economy. [There are] ways to strengthen the local food system and connect with locally owned restaurants and independent markets committed to supporting local farmers."

ColoradoLocalFirst.com and the Mile High Business Alliance have released the print Flavor Guide to different restaurants and businesses to raise awareness in the Denver community of local, healthy, and price-specific options. The guide includes restaurants such as City O' City and Watercourse, sister restaurants that both serve all vegetarian and vegan meal "comfort food" options. While these restaurants often get into the pricer range, they are not the only options for low-cost local food. In the Flavor Guide, Organixx, Sazza, Snooze AM Eatery all list as single $ (meaning entrees under $10) places in Denver to eat.

The guide ranges in dollar signs from $ to $$$ to signify the different pricing of entrees, so that consumers in Denver can be aware of how much they sre spending. SAME Cafe offers healthy and local options even to the down and out of Denver, as they leave it up to the customer to decide how to pay for their meal.

*Photos curtsey of http://foodieforthought.blogspot.com/

Video of Brad Birky from SAME Cafe:

Experts concerned for media’s teen pregnancy forecast

While teen pregnancy rates are on the LINK decline across the United States, a prevalence in the media viewed by young people is apparent. However, experts can only predict the effects of such content in their lives based on that of previous studies.

According to Renee Botta, chair and associate professor in the department of media, film and journalism at the LINK University of Denver, the media has been efficiently glamorizing the presence of teen pregnancies for pubic figures and turning pregnant mothers into public figures, but the outcome of such influences brings a cloudy forecast.

“My daughter is 11-years-old and when she sees the headlines of tabloids about teens being pregnant she asks me, ‘Why are so many girls pregnant?’”

The truth is not all teen girls are getting pregnant. In fact, only approximately LINK 6 percent of teens are pregnant in the United States with an overall decrease in pregnancies across the country.

“While we know that the media has a very low impact, it certainly glamorizes this idea that being a teen and pregnant is cool,” says Botta.

LINK Studies show that young people who have a heavy diet of sexual content are more likely to initiate sex. With the average teenager viewing approximately LINK 4.2 hours of television per day, there is a substantial amount of leeway for sexual content to enter the minds of young people.

LINK A 2008 study also predicts that a high level of sexual content will result in young girls being 2-to-3 times more likely to become pregnant in three years.

While young people absorb these topics, both with their direct textual content and subtextual content, they’re not getting the whole picture.

Some tough discussions occur in the public eye through television shows such as 16 & Pregnant, but the traditional stigma of the young girl’s pregnancy has not been attached to these shows. Rather, the girls receive media attention, care from their families and financial support in some cases. In reality, everyone is not so lucky.

“The media is meant to be glamorous,” says Botta. “They want to sort of have that glamour and be that, so I think it’s a very negative thing to hand that to young girls when they’re not ready for it.”

Further, health communication effects experts, such as Botta, face a number of media effects theories to ponder when facing the issue of teen pregnancy’s portrayal in the media.

LINK Cultivation theory is one which fits the issue almost to a tee. Cultivation theory states that television in particular maintains people’s ideas of themselves, their world and events. Therefore, media literally cultivate a vision of the world that is similar to reality, but it is a distorted mirror of “reality.”

With this model, it’s easy to understand how young teens, especially girls, are able to believe that there teen pregnancy is an every day occurrence and very commonplace for young girls. The media has inadvertently normalized the concept of young girls being pregnant, essentially removing the stigma, difficulties and sacrifices they face in the real world.

This distorted vision of the world and what being a teen mother entails leaving young girls with only half of the puzzle pieces to make an educated decision.

“I think it’s very confusing for young girls,” I mentioned my daughter before and they are very much so encourages to be sexualized but they’re not ready to be sexualized an they don’t understand the ramifications to doing so.”

While the teen pregnancy rates are decreasing overall, some states maintain significant increases in teen pregnancy rates. LINK Particularly in the southern states, Teen pregnancy consists of at least a 10 percent increase. While there is a distinct pattern in the pregnancy rates based on geography, there are currently only hypotheses for these trends.

“It could be that abstinence only practices have increased the rate of teen pregnancies in the South due to a culture that highly values religion,” says Botta.

Coloradans Look to the Future After Midterm Elections

(From Politico.com)

Denver democrats are gearing up for possibly another vote a mere two weeks after the midterm election results reestablished John Hickenlooper as mayor and Michael Bennet as state senator. But despite Chris Romer’s win of the senate seat in House District 32, local political leaders are speculating that he will resign by December.

As a result, more than 30 members of House District 1 gathered over breakfast last Saturday at Sooper’s Credit Union to meet four possible replacements for Romer, as well as discuss the future of Colorado.

Before introducing State Representative Beth McCann, Healthcare for all Colorado President Irene Aguilar, Denver County Secretary Owen Perkins, and former EPA manager Jeffrey Hart, State Representative Jeanne Labuda commented on the consequences of republicans retaking control of the House of Representatives.

“Colorado is the only state that didn’t lose money in the economic downturn because of Kerry Kennedy,” Labuda said. “And she [was] kicked out because of this unstoppable force that’s out there.”

That unstoppable force, also known as the GOP, has been gaining momentum over the past few months due to strong reactions against the Obama Administration’s financial and healthcare policies. So it was no surprise that these issues were at the top of the meeting’s agenda including the shrinking middle class, immigration law, and education.

Each probable candidate has a particular concern that they were especially passionate about addressing if given the opportunity to fill Romer’s seat. For McCann, it is providing adequate funding for schools.

“If we cannot give our children affordable and quality education both at the K-12 level and at the higher [education] level,” McCann said, “it is really going to cost this state in terms of our productivity, in terms of the quality of our lives, and our children’s lives.”

Aguilar echoed McCann’s sentiments, especially when it comes to education for children of undocumented immigrants.

“I’m very concerned about people who already have to overcome barriers to succeed in life getting other barriers as well,” said Aguilar. “Unfortunately, a lot of times children don’t even know that they’re undocumented” so to deny them in-state tuition would be “putting on the children the sins of the father.”

Aguilar’s primary interest, however, is “providing quality health care for Coloradans.” Using her experience as a physician for credibility, Aguilar argued that hospitals merely treat diseases instead of focusing on preventative measures that could save citizens (and the government) time and money—not to mention unnecessary suffering.

Hart also mentioned finances, but specifically how they are being grossly mismanaged to support party agendas.

“I don’t know about you,” he said as he addressed the attentive crowd, “but I am absolutely sick about this Citizen’s United Supreme Court decision that has poured all this money into our campaign—especially this last cycle.”

According to the Los Angeles Times, both republicans and democrats spent close to $4 billion dollars during the last campaign.

“Imagine what we could have done in this country with $4 billion dollars on things that really matter, that really account for something,” he emphasized.

Unlike Hart, Perkins seemed more interested in earning money for the state than the allocation of its resources.

“The environment is one of my biggest issues,” he said while stressing the importance of preserving Colorado’s ecosystems for tourists. A surprising fact is that tourism in the form of bed and breakfasts, ski resorts, casinos, and campgrounds is one of the largest employers in the state of Colorado. These seasonal occupations provide work for 200,000 Coloradans which, for Perkins, is reason enough to preserve them at all cost.

Once the potential candidates finished stating their case, the floor was opened for a question and answer session. A moderator passed the microphone between the four as they took turns addressing the audience’s inquiries on everything from medical marijuana to foreclosures and what illegal substances constitutes a child’s suspension from school.

But regardless of the breadth of topics discussed during the meeting, one thing was clear—Colorado democrats believe that they are more equipped to handle them than republicans.

“We all have to stay together and we have to protect our democratic values because they’re under assault.” McCann said. For instance, the Tea Party has made it very clear that they would like to see Obama’s presidency restricted to one-term. And political commentators are already speculating that former Alaskan governor Sarah Palin will make a run for the white house in 2012.

Time will only tell if local and national democrats can regain their authority.

DU Student-Athletes Break Stereotypes- Final Blog

Within any social society there are controlling stereotypes. These common beliefs held by a dominating popular group about individuals are based purely on assumption. Like the 1985 movie, “The Breakfast Club” there are always ruling stereotype except in college they are more prevalent and make up your four years of education;“The skater,” “the frat guy,” “the drunk,” “the sorority girl,” “the hippie,”the nerd” and “ the athlete.”

Research shows that there are more too these stereotypes then just appearance. Examining closely the University of Denver athletic teams “the jock” stereotype is purely faulty.

When talking with everyone associated with Denver Athletics their insight focused on the demanding schedule student-athletes have at DU. A schedule that is both overwhelming and demanding. Carey Benson, University of Denver’s student-athlete advisor says, “Learning how to balance all of the pressures, both from the academic side and the athletic side present to a student athlete…is the most important part [of being a collegiate student-athlete.]”

Despite popular belief student-athletes at DU aren’t here to play their sport and engage in social activities. DU athletes are here first and foremost for the education. “You are a student first at the University of Denver. We encourage our athletes to succeed at their very best in both the classroom and on the field,” says Peg-Bradly-Doppes, University of Denver’s Direct of Athletics. Strength and condition coach, Kathryn Wartenby agrees by saying, “The most important part is the student part, that’s what’s going to get you far in life.”

DU requires its first year student-athletes a six-hour minimum of study hall,a place monitored by DU staff for athletes to get their homework done. Athletes are also required by team to meet a specific GPA to get out of study hall sessions. For Denver men's lacrosse, the GPA is 3.2 anything under that requires a six-hour study hall session per week. If study hall hours aren’t completed the athletic staff implements punishment on not just the athlete but also the entire team.

In 2006, DU “shattered a 74 percent graduation rate which is equivalent to the overall student graduation rate at the University of Denver and 10 percent higher then the NCAA national average (Denverpioneers.com).”

Student-athletes at the University of Denver despite contrary belief, care about their studies and strive their best for perfection. In 2002, Denver women’s basketball was ranked 23rd nationally for having a GPA of 3.26. In 2009, Denver swimming and diving congratulated themselves of posting multiple Academic All-Americans. The men's team ranked 12 out of 44 with a GPA of 3.24 and the women recognized a swimmer who had a perfect 4.0 GPA.

What most people don’t realize about student-athletes is that they manage two full time jobs. One job being their commitment to their team; rigorous hours of strength and conditioning, practicing and traveling and their other job being a student, that is required to meet GPA requirements for both DU and the NCAA’s.

A Look Beyond The Music

The music industry is a world filled with many different jobs and perspectives. A few key pieces include managing, promoting, and the artist themselves. It was interesting to explore how they do, or do not work together to become successful. It is also interesting to uncover how today's technology has or has not changed the game.

After talking with Ryan Kingsbury, a successful manager for Red Light Management, it became clear to me that the job description has generally stayed the same over the past few years, even with the impact of the Internet. Kingsbury joked that his job is easy to explain and hard to execute,"My job is to do everything possible to make sure that all the band/artist has to do is get on stage and play."

Kingsbury is in charge of a multitude of things, from finding gigs for bands to play at to making sure that they are getting a fair amount of the income made. In his opinion the Internet hasn't effected the way he does his job at all, "It's more beneficial in terms of circulating music but it hasn't helped or hurt the way I perform my job."

Eric Pirrit, a promotor for Live nation, feels the opposite way about how the Internet has effected his work, "The Internet has totally flipped how we do things because everything has switched over to the web. When we go to promote a show we don't go to the Denver Post, because no one is really reading the newspaper anymore. Everyone is online so in order for us to be successful when promoting shows we have to have advertising space on as many popular sites as we can."

Pirrit went on to say that because of the technology available promoters can track how many times someone has clicked on their add for a concert and they can also find out how many tickets were sold online. Pirrit said, " I can't say that we are selling more tickets than we used to but I can say we are selling tickets more efficiently than we used too."

When talking to Pirrit about the monetary logistics that go on when a promoter is trying to book an artist he explained that it depends on the venue and the level that the artist is at in their career. Pirrit explained that when artists get to a point where they can play at popular local venues, like the Fillmore, they need to make more than$25,000, because that's how much it costs just to open the doors. Often the band and the promoter get a cut of the ticket's sold, and the venue takes the rest.

When getting in the mind of an artist on the topic of the Internet and money a different perspective is exposed. When meeting with Rob Drabkin, a well-known local artist in Denver, money and the internet where not topics he was expecting to discuss.

Drabkin started his career after he finished college, where he received a degree in chemistry and molecular biology, with a minor in Spanish. One would not think after such a successful college career that music would be the next step. But Drabkin is unlike the rest. He explained, " A couple of weeks before I graduated I decided I was going to give music a shot. I mean I have been playing my whole life so I thought why not."

Getting down to serious matters, Drabkin addressed a personal question about how he is able to make a living off his music, " I would say I am my own manager because I just do tons of the work myself, and its terrible. I mean the business side of music is just an endless void of promoting, but I do it myself because I don't think I am at a point in my career when I need a full-time manager."

Being a self-promoting artist is no easy task in the economy today but Drabkin has been able to weather the storm and build a name for himself. When talking about logistics of booking a show he said it depends on the venue, "Festivals, like the Mile High Musical Festival, call different musicians and ask them how much they will play for. So when that situation comes along I can pretty much name my price, if its too much though I absolutely negotiate because I enjoy performing."





When asked about the Internet and the impact its had on his career, Drabkin didn't seem that bothered, "I started working on my music in 2006 so the Internet has been at its peak of existence while I have been building up my career...I honestly don't use it that much to circulate my music so I find it more annoying than useful."

Drabkin was able to give some honest insight into how tough life is when music is your career path. Even though Drabkin isn't right where he wants to be in his career he is doing it mostly by himself. Drabkin is a rare case, according to Kingsbury, because he has been able to deal with the musical and business side of the job and he is still performing.

Music is not an easy career and the music industry is a very hard place to stay on top. If one chooses to enter it then they should enter with caution, because not everyone can be successful, and those that are have worked extremely hard to get there and stay there.

RLM Logo: Google Image
Live Nation: Google Image

In class wrap up

This is not a test.... but it could be!

1. Compare and contrast: This story and this story.

2. Read this tiny web story. What are its qualities? How is it different than a newspaper story?

3. A lesson in online journalism in two sorta gross but important stories: This one and then this one.

4. Two from the Denver Post today. What's wrong with these stories? How would you improve them? This one and this one.