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Before tearing down dams, remember why they were built
GregWalcher.com, Approved, Commentary, National

Before tearing down dams, remember why they were built

By Greg Walcher | Commentary, GregWalcher.com A Montana friend reminded me of an old cowboy adage: “Before you take down a fence, you ought to pause long enough to ask why it was put there.” It’s a principle called “Chesterton’s Fence,” coined by writer G.K. Chesterton who cautioned against acting rashly. He wrote, “a ‘modern reformer’ says of the fence, ‘I don’t see the use of this; let us clear it away.’ But someone more intelligent refuses until learning why it’s there.” It is the perfect analogy for today’s debate about removing dams, a popular global trend for the past few years. Chesterton’s 1929 book, The Thing, explains the logic that should prevail: “This paradox rests on the most elementary common sense. The gate or fence did not grow there. It was not set up by somnambulis...
DEA Whistleblower Says Biden Era Operation Let Million Fentanyl Pills Hit Streets
Just The News, Approved, National

DEA Whistleblower Says Biden Era Operation Let Million Fentanyl Pills Hit Streets

By Katherine Pugh | Just the News The scandal, mirroring that of the 2009-2011 Operation Fast and Furious, was used to gain intel for cases against major drug traffickers in an effort to eventually save more lives. A U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent has evidence that his agency and federal prosecutors let more than 1 million fentanyl pills flow onto the streets of New Mexico during the Biden era and then tried to silence him from testifying after he blew the whistle, the agent's lawyer tells Just the News. "DEA has a campaign that says one pill can kill, and so the DEA allowing this to happen was really significant. It was driven also by the US Attorney's Office in New Mexico," Attorney Tristan Leavitt, president of the Empower Oversight, whistleblower cent...
Federal Judge Clears Path for Release of Biden Interview Tapes
The Federalist, Approved, National

Federal Judge Clears Path for Release of Biden Interview Tapes

By: Luke Miller | The Federalist The DOJ ‘explicitly relied on the Zwonitzer materials in deciding not to prosecute Biden because of his mental state.’ A United States District Court judge released an opinion on Friday denying former President Joe Biden’s request for a preliminary injunction to block the release of tapes and transcripts from a set of 2016-2017 interviews that reportedly show Biden’s illegal handling of classified materials. In May 2026, Biden sued the U.S. Department of Justice to block the release of more than 70 hours of audio recordings of conversations between himself and his biographer, Mark Zwonitzer. After making redactions for privacy purposes, the DOJ was set to release the tapes to The Heritage Foundation as a result of a 2024 Fre...
GOP Candidate Michael Allen Calls for Return to Basics on Crime and Public Safety
Colorado Politics, Approved, State

GOP Candidate Michael Allen Calls for Return to Basics on Crime and Public Safety

By Thelma Grimes | Colorado Politics Michael Allen said he is running for attorney general because he believes Colorado’s criminal justice system has been weakened by recent legislation and that rising crime is directly increasing the cost of living. A Navy veteran and longtime prosecutor, Allen argued that Colorado needs an attorney general who focuses on public safety, rather than on “political lawsuits,” and who understands how crime drives up insurance rates, retail prices and business costs. He said his goal is to “get back to basics” — reducing crime to reduce costs. Allen is running against David Willson in the Republican primary. The winner of the GOP primary will advance to the general election to face one of the four Democratic candidates: Jena Griswol...
Ex Jeffco Schools Security Guard Faces Dozens of Child Sex Abuse and Exploitation Charges
The Denver Gazette, Approved, Local

Ex Jeffco Schools Security Guard Faces Dozens of Child Sex Abuse and Exploitation Charges

By Matt Kyle | The Denver Gazette A former security guard for Jeffco Public Schools was arrested Monday over charges of child sexual abuse. Brian C. Richie, 67, was arrested by Longmont police and booked into the Boulder County jail. He faces several charges, including sexual assault of a child by a person in a position of trust, 12 counts of sexual exploitation of a child by possessing videos, 16 counts of sexual exploitation of a child by possessing photos, invasion of privacy for sexual gratification of a person under 15 and invasion of privacy for sexual gratification, according to the jail log and Richie’s arrest affidavit. Richie’s LinkedIn and Facebook pages showed he was employed by Jeffco as a “patrol sergeant” from April 2015 to February 2026, when he ...
Before blaming alfalfa for Colorado’s water woes, consider what the headlines leave out
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Before blaming alfalfa for Colorado’s water woes, consider what the headlines leave out

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project Alfalfa and water use: comparing apples to oranges There is a media narrative out there about alfalfa which, though not entirely wrong, is desperately in need of context; this being another example of why reporters parachuting into rural areas of the state to report on things prior to running back to the Front Range is doing no one any good (rural or urban). The claim was recently repeated in a Sun article, along with its natural follow-on. Quoting from the first link below: “It takes 44 inches of water a year in Burlington to grow alfalfa. Only about 10 inches of water drops on Burlington in a year. It only takes 15 inches of water to grow a healthy crop of black-eyed peas in Burlington. So. The numbers ...
Citizen Movements Across Colorado Gain Ground at City Hall
Complete Colorado, Approved, Local

Citizen Movements Across Colorado Gain Ground at City Hall

By: Mike Krause | Complete Colorado In a recent episode of  Independence Institute’s public affairs tv show, Devil’s Advocate, host Jon Caldara sits down with Brandon Wark, creator of Free State Colorado, to look a the the rise of citizen activism, and how ordinary Coloradans can influence local government. The two dive deep into the idea idea that meaningful political change often begins not under Colorado’s gold dome, but at city councils, school boards, and local ballot boxes. You can see the entire episode on YouTube. READ THE FULL ARTICLE AT COMPLETE COLORADO
Freedom 250 Rodeo Aims to Bring Western Tradition to Nation’s Capital
Washington Examiner, Approved, National

Freedom 250 Rodeo Aims to Bring Western Tradition to Nation’s Capital

By Emily Hallas | Washington Examiner The American rodeo is coming to Washington, D.C., this summer for the country’s 250th birthday, over four decades since the last presidential rodeo. Freedom 250, an organization linked to President Donald Trump, is spearheading the show set to take place on the National Mall as part of the Great American State Fair, planned from June 25 to July 10. Led by the Cervi Championship Rodeo, organizers are aiming to celebrate 250 years of U.S. history, embodied by the American cowboy, as the United States marks the semiquincentennial. Binion Cervi, who leads the Cervi rodeo, told the Washington Examiner that cowboy runs in his blood. His family was involved in the last presidential rodeo during the Reagan era, back in ...
Before the funding push: How Colorado’s childcare case is being built
Colorado Accountability Project, Approved, Commentary, State

Before the funding push: How Colorado’s childcare case is being built

By Cory Gaines | Commentary, Colorado Accountability Project The building of the childcare narrative, ahead of a taxpayer funding push This is a lengthy story, so I want to start with a quick introduction/overview. There is a push to get government to pay for (and/or perhaps operate?) childcare in Colorado. I am sure that the policy moves will be in the legislature and/or on the ballot soon enough, but you and I are lucky enough to be witness to it in its infancy. We are lucky enough to see the narrative being built from the ground up. What I have for you today is a couple of posts falling loosely into the categories of “how do the media work in concert with market research and evaluation consultants to help drive your opinions?” and then “how are the high ups in...
Gonzales Challenges Hickenlooper While Baisley Awaits November Matchup for Colorado Senate Seat
DENVER7, Approved, State

Gonzales Challenges Hickenlooper While Baisley Awaits November Matchup for Colorado Senate Seat

By: Colette Bordelon | Denver7 Denver7 spoke with Senator John Hickenlooper, State Sen. Julie Gonzales, and State Sen. Mark Baisley ahead of the June 30 primary election. DENVER — With less than two weeks until Colorado's primary election, voters have a number of important decisions to make. At the top of both ballots are the candidates vying to either win — or maintain — one of the coveted two spots in the U.S. Senate. The seat is currently held by Democratic Sen. John Hickenlooper, who is being challenged by State Sen. Julie Gonzales in the primary election. State Sen. Mark Baisley is running unopposed on the Republican ballot. Unaffiliated voters in Colorado can choose between the two primary ballots, but cannot submit both. Ballots must be receiv...