Today's News

The Jefferson County commissioners eliminated the county’s internal audit department on Feb. 17, citing the need “to reduce administrative overhead costs” and saying the department’s functions were duplicative.

But the now-former internal auditor said that’s not the reason at all.

Susan Johnson, who lost her job along with her assistant, says it’s all about accountability.

EVERGREEN — Good teams are like art museums. They represent talent and inspire outsiders to dream of ways of finding a weakness to plunder.

Against rival Evergreen, the Conifer Lobos got a long dose of physical, grinding girls basketball in a tournament-like atmosphere. And they passed with flying colors – even if those colors might be black and blue.

The Lobos made their one run count in the second quarter as they built and maintained a comfortable lead Feb. 11 for a 46-34 Class 4A Jefferson County League victory before a packed house.

Aside from the usual nuthatches, chickadees, woodpeckers, siskins and juncos, there haven’t been many unusual birds around this winter. I have had several Townsend’s solitaries reported, crows and magpies, and a few red-winged blackbirds, but nothing really unusual or exciting. The red-winged blackbirds seem to be a remnant of birds that never left last fall. They have stayed on at the lake because there are plenty of feeders available in the area, and they return to the lake every evening to roost in the cattails overnight.

By Hannah Hayes

There’s no doubt Jan. 20, 2009, ushered in a color change. Still, racial bigotry is a stubborn, often deeply entrenched characteristic. It’s been only three weeks since the inauguration, three months since the election, and a new president couldn’t possibly jar that manner of thinking loose in such a short time. Could he?