NEW YEAR'S EVE CELEBRATION

Where is the celebration being held?

There are two events:

The Gala New Year's Eve Ball will be held inside The Antlers Hilton's Grand Ballroom. Tickets required!
The outdoor celebration (ala Time's Square) will take place on Palmer Center, directly in front of The Antlers Hilton, located at the intersection of Cascade and E. Pikes Peak in beautiful downtown Colorado Springs. Admission is free!


How do I purchase my tickets to The Gala New Year's Eve Ball?

Tickets will be available for purchase starting November 1, 2010 from Tickets West. Call 1-866-464-2626 or www.ticketswest.com or go to any King Soopers.


What about the weather?

The event will take place "snow or shine". As they do in Time's Square, revelers will have to brave the elements so please dress appropriately. As we all know, Colorado weather can change in an instant.




What is the cost for the outdoor celebration?

Admission is free, but contributions, donations, and sponsorships are respectfully requested and will be much appreciated.



What can we bring to the outdoor celebration?

Yourselves, your family, your neighbors, your friends (hell, you can even bring your enemies). Just come ready to celebrate and show the rest of the country what a Rocky Mountain High really is!


What should we not bring to the outdoor celebration?

Alcohol, drugs, fireworks, firearms, weapons of any kind, pets or other animals, and a bad disposition.




What time does the outdoor celebration start?

9:30pm (just in time to join the Times Square Celebration on the GIGANTIC SCREEN TVs provided by Ultimate Electronics)



What about parking?

As with any large event, parking can always be a challenge. Public parking garages will be open and parking is free. Many side streets will have available parking, but expect to walk several blocks to get to the event.




What are some other activities?

The Gala New Year's Eve Ball will be held inside The Antlers Hilton Hotel's Grand Ballroom. Admission requires a prepaid ticket, which includes: a cash bar Cocktail Hour from 6:00pm to 7:00pm followed by a Full Holiday Buffet (see menu below); dancing up to and past Midnight; and party favors. There will be a "Limbo" competition with prizes; "The Hokey Pokey"; "The Stroll"; and our famous "Texas Line Dance". Please call in advance to reserve a table for you and your party. Tickets are $70.00 per person and a table of ten is only $600.00! If you intend to eat elsewhere, and only want to attend The Ball, (from 9:00pm to 1:00am), tickets are only $35.00!


Buffet Menu


SALADS

Baby Field Greens and Fresh Herbs with Dried Cranberries Spiced Walnuts and Honey Dijon Dressing.

Hearts of Palm Salad with marinated Artichoke Hearts, Green Beans and roasted red peppers dressed with Provence Mustard Vinaigrette.

ENTREES

Roasted Beef Strip Loin with Cabernet Sauce

Sautéed Chicken Breast with Wild Mushroom Marsala Sauce

Three Cheese Ravioli with Roasted Tomato Cream Sauce

SIDES

Roasted Red Potatoes

Chef’s Seasonal Vegetables

Rolls and Butter

DESSERT

Chef’s Dessert Display

BEVERAGES

Freshly Brewed Coffee, Decaffeinated Coffee, Hot Tea and Iced Tea

$615,000 of YOUR taxpayer money to Grateful Dead

U.S. Senator Tom Coburn, M.D. (R-OK) today released a new oversight report, “Wastebook 2010” that highlights some of the most egregious examples of government waste in 2010.

“As 2010 ends, millions of Americans are still struggling to find work. Even those lucky enough to have jobs have had to tighten their belts. Yet, Congress continues to find new and extravagant ways to waste tax dollars. In today’s economy, we can’t afford to spend nearly $2 million to showcase neon signs no longer in use at Las Vegas Casinos, nor can Congress and federal agencies afford to spend nearly $1 billion a year on unnecessary printing costs,” Dr. Coburn said.

“Our national debt is the greatest threat to our national security according to our own military leaders,” Dr. Coburn added. “Well-intentioned people across the political spectrum will argue about the best way to get us back on track. But we can all agree that cutting wasteful and low priority spending from the budget is not only sensible, but essential.”

“I hope this report will give taxpayers and concerned citizens the information they need to hold Washington accountable. As dysfunctional as our politics can seem, our system still works when ordinary citizens get informed and engaged,” Dr. Coburn said.

Examples of wasteful spending highlighted in “Wastebook 2010” include:

• The city of Las Vegas has received a $5.2 million federal grant to build the Neon Boneyard Park and Museum, including $1.8 million in 2010. For over the last decade, Museum supporters have gathered and displayed over 150 old Las Vegas neon signs, such as the Golden Nugget and Silver Slipper casinos.

• The National Science Foundation provided more than to $200,000 to study of why political candidates make vague statements.

• The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) spends $175 million every year to maintain hundreds of buildings it does not use, including a pink, octagonal monkey house in Dayton, Ohio.

• Medicare paid out over $35 million to a vast network of 118 “phantom” medical clinics, allegedly established by members of a criminal gang to submit phony reimbursement claims.

• The Government Printing Office (GPO) is using a “video game space mouse” (and nearly $60,000 in taxpayer funds) to teach children the history of printing.

• In July, nearly half a million taxpayer dollars went to the XVIII International AIDS Conference in Vienna, where wine tasting and castle tours were among the events planned for the conference participants.

• The Internal Revenue Service paid out $112 million in undeserved tax refunds to prisoners who filed fraudulent returns, according to the Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA).

• The National Science Foundation directed nearly a quarter million dollars to a Stanford University professor’s study of how Americans use the Internet to find love.

• The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) took the term “cold case” to a new level in 2010. The agency spent over $20,000 in taxpayer money “to unravel the anonymity of a 2,500-year-old mummy.”

• The National Institutes of Health (NIH) spent nearly $442,340 million to study the number of male prostitutes in Vietnam and their social setting.

• This year, taxpayers forked over $60,000 for the “first-of-its kind” promotion of the Vidalia onion in conjunction with the movie, Shrek Forever After. ”

• The National Science Foundation (NSF) awarded over $600,000 to the Minnesota Zoo to create a wolf “avatar” video game called “WolfQuest.”

• A $700,000 federal grant paid for researchers to examine “greenhouse gas emission from organic dairies, which are cause by cow burps, among other things.”

The NH Tornado Jarred Talked about

This tornado here was less than 1/2 a mile from Jarred's house in college.

He doesn't think the wind today is this bad

Coalition for a Prosperous America

You heard Ben Franklin reenactor extraordinaire Chris Lowell talking on the show this morning about this common sense solutions-based group, Coalition for a Prosperous America.

More information can be found at prosperousamerica.com and by sending an email to fdshannon@gmail.com

I TOLD YOU IT WOULD HAPPEN PART TWO - JOSH McDANIELS IS FIRED (AND DESERVES IT)

I said when he was hired it was a mistake. I said how he treated Jay Cutler and Peyton Hillis were HUGE errors and showed an insecure, power hungry, young man who was in over his head. Was I right or what? Offense??? Yes maybe he could have handled that. Head coach???? Probably was to soon. Head Coach and real GM???? No way. Time and the Broncos record show it. In this case I really take no pleasure in being right. Broncos and fans deserved better.
Richard

///////////////////////


Josh McDaniels' tenure as the Denver Broncos' head coach has come to an end less than two seasons after it started.

The team announced Monday that the 34-year-old McDaniels has been "relieved of his head coaching duties."

Josh McDaniels started 6-0 as the Broncos' head coach, but things quickly went south over the next 22 games.

Broncos under Josh McDaniels
1st 6 GAMES
W-L 6-0
Last 22 GAMES
W-L 5-17

The team has not announced who will succeed McDaniels but the team is having internal staff meetings and expects to announce an interim head coach tonight, a source with knowledge of situation told NFL Network insider Jason La Canfora.

Several league sources said they believe secondary coach Ed Donatell will be interim coach, according to La Canfora.

unlike many members of the Broncos staff, Donatell has roots in Denver beyond McDaniels' tenure. He is among the most experienced coaches on staff and was a part of their Super Bowl staffs under coach Mike Shanahan.

McDaniels has been under fire of late thanks in part to a 3-9 season made worse by revelations that Steve Scarnecchia, Denver's video operations director under McDaniels, videotaped a San Francisco 49ers walkthrough prior to the teams' Week 8 matchup in London.

The NFL fined the Broncos and coach McDaniels $50,000 each for the violation and Scarnecchia was subsequently fired.

Earlier Monday, McDaniels expressed confidence in his future with the Broncos.

"I'm not worried about that," McDaniels said when asked about potentially losing his job. "I'm going to coach as hard as I can because that is my job. That's somebody else's decision. ... We're all being evaluated with everything we do."

McDaniels' head-coaching career got off to a good start. The Broncos won their first six games last season. But that success would not last, as the team dropped eight of its last 10 games in 2009. With a 3-9 record this season, McDaniels has gone 5-17 following his hot start and finished with an 11-17 record.

The Broncos have lost seven of their last eight games.

The recent videotaping controversy was not the only questionable decision under McDaniels' watch. The coach openly clashed with quarterback Jay Cutler after arriving in Denver, leading the team to trade Cutler to the Chicago Bears for quarterback Kyle Orton.

This offseason, McDaniels traded away Peyton Hillis to the Browns in exchange for backup quarterback Brady Quinn. While Quinn has remained on the team's bench as Orton's backup, Hillis has found success in Cleveland as a power running back under coach Eric Mangini.

I TOLD YOU THIS WOULD HAPPEN PART ONE - NOW IT HAS

'Baywatch' Beauty Feels Overexposed After TSA ScanUpdated: 59 minutes ago
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David Moye
Contributor

AOL News (Dec. 6) -- A former "Baywatch" beauty is feeling overexposed after going through what she says was a humiliating body scan by Transportation Security Administration agents at Los Angeles International Airport.

Donna D'Errico, who was the Playboy Playmate in September 1995, says she got a few leers along with the scan and isn't happy about it.

D'Errico, 42, says the encounter occurred at LAX while trying to catch a flight to Pittsburgh with her son, Rhyan, 17.

"We were on our way to see Rhyan's aunt, who had just been put on life support in the ICU," D'Errico told AOL News in an exclusive interview. "My boyfriend and his business partner happened to be flying the same airline [American] on their way to New York for business. We got checked in and headed to security."

After waiting in a long line of holiday travelers, D'Errico and her son finally made it to the moving carrier where all the carry-on bags are placed. That's when a TSA agent took her by the elbow and told her she needed to "come this way."


Rebecca Sanabria
Donna D'Errico says she felt overexposed at LAX airport after being forced to go through a body scan that she suspects was ordered because she was pretty and not because she was a terrorist suspect.
"I said I was traveling with my son, motioning to him, and the agent said he was to come along with me as well," D'Errico said. "I immediately asked why we were having to go through an extra search, and no one else was being made to do so, indicating the long line of other passengers in front of and behind where we had been in line. In a very sarcastic tone, and still holding me by the elbow, the agent responded, 'Because you caught my eye, and they' -- pointing to the other passengers -- 'didn't.'"

D'Errico is still wondering how she caught his eye while others didn't.

"My boyfriend and his partner sailed through with no problems, which is rather ironic in that my boyfriend fits the stereotypical 'look' of a terrorist when his beard has grown in a bit, which it was that evening," she said.

Although D'Errico was a regular on "Baywatch" from 1996 to 1998, a period when it was one of the most popular shows worldwide, she doesn't know whether she was singled out because of her fame.


Getty Images
Donna D'Errico is seen in this 1996 photo on the set of "Baywatch.""I'm not sure whether they had recognized me or not," she admitted. "If they did, they didn't say anything. However, it is my personal belief that they pulled me aside because they thought I was attractive. My boyfriend, as I mentioned before, looks much more like a terrorist than either I or my son do, and he went through security with no problems."

The TSA rules regarding scans and searches dictate that passengers can select a scan or a search. D'Errico says that was never an option.

"They never even told me what they were doing at all, or that I had any choice," she said. "It was just, 'Stand here. Raise your arms above your head like this.' They never told me that they were going to be conducting a full-body scan, or that I had the option of being searched instead. Had they explained what they were doing, I would have opted for the search. As a matter of fact, my son was made to not only go through the full-body scan, but they also conducted a pat-down search on him as well.

"After the search, I noticed that the male TSA agent who had pulled me out of line was smiling and whispering with two other TSA agents and glancing at me. I was outraged."

So was her boyfriend, Roy J. Bank, the president of Merv Griffin Entertainment, who says he was in disbelief at what had just occurred.

"Anything that upsets Donna upsets me," he said. "I hated her being humiliated like that. I was genuinely shocked by both Donna and Rhyan being pulled aside for the extensive scanning.

"I'm all for measures to make us safer when traveling, but when it is so incredibly arbitrary, I don't feel any safer ... and I can promise you that her getting additional screening and the line full of people I saw around us not getting additional screening is not making us any safer!"

Although some might wonder why a woman who appeared nude in Playboy and wore a red bathing suit for three seasons of "Baywatch" is bothered about having one or two TSA agents see a computer scanned image of her naked body, but D'Errico says they are two separate issues.

"I must have overlooked the clause in both my Playboy and 'Baywatch' contracts stating that once appearing in that magazine, or on that show, I would forever be subject to being seen naked live and in person by anyone, at anytime, under any conditions, whether I agree to it or not, and for free," she said sarcastically.

"I posed for Playboy 15 years ago. I was on 'Baywatch' 13 years ago. Both of those were controlled environments, with proper lighting, makeup, etc., and were jobs. I contractually agreed to do both of those jobs. I could have stopped or changed my mind at any time. None of those conditions are present when TSA decides for you that you will consent to being scanned or felt up, or you simply won't be allowed your constitutional right to travel from one place to another freely."



David McNew, AFP / Getty Images
A picture taken on April 17, 2008 shows the image from a TSA body scanner.TSA spokesman Nico Melendez thinks D'Errico's claims aren't accurate.

"If you see the images, you'll know it's not a naked picture," he said. "The passengers are selected at random and not because they're celebrities."

As far as her claims that the agents were smiling and whispering, Melendez said that people who are celebrities shouldn't be surprised if and when they're recognized.

But D'Errico says that even though she has a higher profile than other people, she fears other women may be victims of this invasion of privacy.

"This could, and I'm sure does, happen to other women," she said. "It isn't right to hide behind the veil of security and safety in order to take advantage of women, or even men for that matter, so that you can see them naked. It's a misuse of power and authority, and as much a personal violation as a Peeping Tom. The difference is that Peeping Toms can have charges pressed against them."

Melendez says that the agents who are looking at the scan are in a closed room and have no communication with anyone other than the person handling the machine.

"It could be a woman or a man," he said.

D'Errico doesn't know of any other actresses or models who've had the same experience, but she believes other more effective and less invasive security measures should be implemented.

"One of my best friends was flying to New York for business, and at some point during the flight, she stood up to retrieve something from her bag in the overhead compartment," she said. "When she reached into her bag, something cut her hand. She looked into her bag and discovered a pair of 6-inch gardening shears which she had forgotten to remove prior to packing her bag.

"The bag, and my friend, had passed through security with no issues. How is this full-body scan supposed to be making us safer if 6-inch gardening shears can still make it aboard domestic flights undetected?"

Pear Harbor Anniversary Event

Hi all, On Dec. 7th,Pearl Harbor day the Peak Grill again will be offering a FREE lunch or breakfast for all WWII /Korean war veterans at 11am.The Peak Grill is on Centennial Blvd for those of you who have not been to the Restaurant. This is the first anniversary of our WWII/Korean war luncheons that I have been involved with at the Peak Grill so please come and help us celebrate with songs from each of our veterans branch of service and come and say Hello to these brave veterans of old. Some of our new visitors will be a group from Ft.Carson [I am told about 40 or 50 young soldiers] who want to come out and meet some of our older veterans. Plus a group from NORAD also will be joining us that we met on our recent NORAD tour.

Anyone with a Legacy Medallion please remember to wear it to this luncheon for a group picture and to show others this great Medallion . And please bring an old war photo of yourself. Thanks to all and God bless. See you all on Dec. 7th at 11am . If you have a uniform please don't forget to wear it otherwise your hats will do ! Jane

Jane Rodgers
1098 Fontmore Rd. #C
Colorado Springs, Colorado,80904
719-638-1770

THANKSGIVING PIES FOR STAFF FROM BAKERY LIKE NO OTHER

Thanks to Bakery Like No Other.... on 8th Street behind the Radio Shack. Nancy & Keith look out for us "like no other"

THIS IS WHAT OBAMA AND HIS PEOPLE SAY ABOUT "DON'T ASK, DON'T TELL"

THIS IS WHAT WAS SENT OT ME VIA E-MAIL FROM THE OBAMA ADMINISTARTION. Expect a push for this in the lame duck that is the next few weeks. Expect me to be talking about it. Richard

Richard --

It's time.

The Pentagon study released yesterday confirms what we've long known: The military is ready to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

The report found that 70 percent of troops do not believe the change would have a negative impact on morale, and troop readiness would not be affected.

This important news means that we are closer than ever to ending this discriminatory policy that punishes patriotic men and women who want nothing more than to serve our country -- and harms our own security by preventing qualified and much-needed Americans from serving.

Last time, we were just two votes shy of passing repeal in the Senate. And now the lawmakers who have been dragging their feet have no excuses left.

Neither do we. On this issue, our voices may not get more powerful than they are today -- after the military has weighed in, when the media is paying close attention, just before the Senate starts its debate.

Let's ensure the Senate passes repeal -- and sends it to President Obama's desk -- before the end of the year.

Please add your name to the President's call to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" now.

The release of the Pentagon's report is just one more sign that the days are numbered for "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

But the Republican opposition in the Senate -- led by Senator John McCain -- is already digging in its heels.

People like Sen. McCain said they would defer to military leadership -- and then refused to budge when people like Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Admiral Mike Mullen, Defense Secretary Robert Gates, and former Secretary of State Colin Powell all came forward to support repeal.

These senators said they were worried about how repeal would weaken our military or hurt troop morale -- and that we should wait for the results of the Pentagon study.

Well, the results are in: Our military believes the time has come to end "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."

We know that some of these senators are going to do everything they can to shift their standards once again. But we don't need them all to agree with us -- we just need two more votes to end this policy once and for all.

With the hearings set to begin tomorrow, it's important we make our voices heard now.

Join President Obama -- and add your name to the call for repeal:

http://my.barackobama.com/RepealDADT

Thanks -- now let's make history,

Mitch

Mitch Stewart
Director
Organizing for America

THE MASON JAR - SPONSORS OF OUR HISTORY QUOTE

WE HAVE MADE IT EASY FOR YOU TO DROP OFF YOUR QUOTES FOR US TO USE ON THE AIR AT EITHER OF THE MASON JAR LOCATIONS.

The Mason Jar Colorado Springs, Colorado would love to show you what's made them famous and kept their regulars coming back since 1982. At each location you will find a box that you can submit quotes for us to use during "The Richard Randall Show". We broadcast the quotes at 9:05 a.m. every day.

North Location
5905 Corporate Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80919.

Telephone: (719) 260-6555

Directions:
Southbound 1-25 from Denver:
Take I-25 South to Exit 148, Rockrimmon, Nevada and Corporate Dr Exit, at the 1st set of lights make a right and The Mason Jar is on the right.

Northbound I-25:
Take I-25 North to Exit 148, Rockrimmon, Nevada and Corporate Dr Exit, at the 2nd set of lights make a left and go straight, The Mason Jar is on the right.

Westside Location:
2925 West Colorado Avenue, Colorado Springs, CO 80904.
At the corner of 30th Street and Colorado Ave. (Old Colorado City)

Telephone: (719) 632-4820

Directions:
From I-25 take exit 141 (Cimarron St, US-24 W)
Travel west 2 and a half miles on US 24 to 31st St
Turn right on 31st, take the next right on Colorado Ave one block.

THE MASON JAR'S "HISTORY QUOTE OF THE DAY"

"Liberty lies in the hearts of men and women; when it dies there, no constitution, no law, no court can save it; no constitution, no law, no court can even do much to help it… The spirit of liberty is the spirit which is not too sure that it is right; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which seeks to understand the minds of other men and women; the spirit of liberty is the spirit which weighs their interests alongside its own without bias; the spirit of liberty remembers that not even a sparrow falls to earth unheeded; the spirit of liberty is the spirit of Him who, near two thousand years ago, taught mankind that lesson it has never learned, but has never quite forgotten; that there may be a kingdom where the least shall be heard and considered side by side with the greatest."
JUSTICE LEARNED HAND, 1944

"No government ever voluntarily reduces itself in size. Government programs, once launched, never disappear. Actually, a government bureau is the nearest thing to eternal life we'll ever see on this earth!"
RONALD REAGAN

"These are the times that try men's souls. The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of their country; but he that stands it now, deserves the love and thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph. What we obtain too cheap, we esteem too lightly. Heaven knows how to put a proper price upon its goods; and it would be strange indeed, if so celestial an article as Freedom should not be highly rated."
THOMAS PAINE, 1821

"I now make it my earnest prayer that God would have you, and the State over which you preside, in his holy protection; that he would incline the hearts of the citizens to cultivate a spirit of subordination and obedience to government, to entertain a brotherly affection and love for one another, for their fellow-citizens of the United States at large, and particularly for brethren who have served in the field; and finally that he would most graciously be pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind, which were the characteristics of the Divine Author of our blessed religion, and without an humble imitation of whose example in these things, we can never hope to be a happy nation."
GEORGE WASHINGTON,1783

A president either is constantly on top of events or, if he hesitates, events will soon be on top of him. I never felt that I could let up for a moment.
HARRY S. TRUMAN

"Perfect happiness, I believe, was never intended by the Deity to be the lot of one of his creatures in this world; but that he has very much put in our power the nearness of our approaches to it, is what I have steadfastly believed."
THOMAS JEFFERSON, 1763

A man who is good enough to shed his blood for the country is good enough to be given a square deal afterwards.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT

You know, the greatest epitaph in the country is here in Arizona. Its in Tombstone, Ariz. , and this epitaph says, Here lies Jack Williams. He done his damndest. I think that is the greatest epitaph a man could have. Whenever a man does the best he can, then that is all he can do; and that is what your President has been trying to do for the last 3 years for this country.
HARRY TRUMAN, 1948

A wise and frugal government, which shall leave men free to regulate their own pursuits of industry and improvement, and shall not take from the mouth of labor the bread it has earned - this is the sum of good government.
THOMAS JEFFERSON

A pessimist is one who makes difficulties of his opportunities and an optimist is one who makes opportunities of his difficulties.
HARRY S. TRUMAN

A typical vice of American politics is the avoidance of saying anything real on real issues.
THEODORE ROOSEVELT