Columns

I’ve never been much of a believer in governmental conspiracy theories. First of all, I’ve not met many people creative enough to think of them. Second, there are few, if any, people who could actually carry one out. Finally, if it could be crafted and carried out, how in the world would you keep it a secret?

Several months ago, I asked in this column, “At what point will we finally have enough surveillance cameras? It’s hard to go anywhere without being watched by at least one, and often several, closed-circuit eyes in the sky.”
Well, as it turns out, there’s no longer any need to worry about external technology spying on us. Thanks to the intrepid work of two British techies named Alasdair Allan and Pete Warden, we now know that we’re spying on ourselves.

By Paula Noonan
Thirty Jefferson County public schools recently received the John Irwin School of Excellence Award or the Governor’s Distinguished Improvement Award for academic achievement and academic growth in 2010. The Colorado Board of Education and governor give the awards to the 8 percent of schools that score highest in each category.
Other numbers for Jeffco are not so great. The state legislature has finally put together the school finance bill that provides funding for all school districts in Colorado. Funding is on the down side of an arc.

In more than 30 years, it’s hard to remember wildfire season starting so early. The combination of dry fuels and high winds has led to a dangerous situation. This year, especially, it’s worth being extra vigilant.
Without human intervention, healthy forests burn. It’s a natural process. The seeds of some types of trees even need fire to germinate. But since people have moved into the foothills, a longstanding policy of fire suppression has interrupted this natural burning process, leading to greater accumulation of fuels and therefore greater fire hazard.