Whew. Glad that one’s over.
The year 2008 was historic, to be sure, with Barack Obama’s election and Hillary Clinton’s ground-breaking presidential run. And we’re certainly proud of Denver’s role in the election, successfully hosting the convention that springboarded Obama into the White House.
But with the sour economic news and our 401(k)s in the tank, we greet Baby New Year with arms wide open.
Goodbye 2008, hello 2009. A year for change. A year for recovery. A year for renewal.
A year we get a new Broncos coach.
We know that just turning a page in your daily planner doesn’t change anything. But that doesn’t mean we won’t continue to offer our annual wishes for the new year. Sure, a few may be far-fetched or downright impossible, but this is the year of hope and change, right?
Dream big.
In 2009, we’d like to see:
• Recovery. What a glorious sight it would be to see the arrows on CNBC routinely pointing skyward as the markets begin to recover, the financial crisis thaws and investments in renewable energy projects begin to turn around our economic woes.
• A sense of unity and mission as this country faces difficult economic times. Just as this country came together during the Great Depression and World War II, it would be constructive if we, as a nation, could put aside hyper-partisanship and work together for the greater good.
• Massive government bailouts banished to the history books.
• The Volt. GM and other American car manufacturers have promised that the plug-in vehicle is the answer to all of their problems. It’s due in 2010. Let’s see it sooner.
• A new head coach for the Broncos who can draft quality defensive players and lift our hometown heroes back into the playoffs. Is it too early to book rooms in Miami, site of the 2010 Super Bowl?
• A sensible immigration fix that secures the country’s borders and creates a path to citizenship for hardworking people who are assets to their communities. It will take political courage to resolve this issue, but it’s necessary so the country can heal and move forward.
And do it now, in a down economy, when there are fewer undocumented workers here.
• A shot at the Winter Olympic Games. Maybe Illinois’ frightful governor has doomed Chicago’s chance to host the Summer Games in 2016. That would allow another U.S. city to compete for the 2018 Winter Games, and our decidedly more even-keel governor has signaled he would like to see Denver win the chance. Sure, Denver balked when awarded the slot in the 1970s, but we’re a much different town now, as we showed by hosting the Democratic National Convention.
Meanwhile, some of the best skiers, snowboarders and other winter sports athletes call Colorado home. And, unlike in 1976, the Olympics are big money, given all the TV revenue.
• A national solution to the crisis befalling higher education. As states face dire budgetary shortfalls, higher education funding is increasingly taking big budget hits.
Underinvestment in the education of our young people is short-sighted and ultimately will be detrimental to the country. It is a moral outrage to give short-shrift to the educations of a generation of young people who will be stuck paying off the budget deficits we are now accumulating.
• F-f-f-f-freezing temperatures up in the high country.
We’ve hosted that cursed bark beetle in our great state long enough. Here’s hoping in 2009 we give the pest that’s killing our lodgepole pine the cold shoulder — the really cold shoulder. We just need a week to 10 days of frigid cold in the high country to kill off the horde. Yes, 20 below or colder would raise our heating bills, but not nearly as much as beetle-killed forests are costing us.
• A sports champion crowned in Colorado. We don’t care who, we just want another victory parade downtown. Nuggets? Mammoth? We have at least a dozen pro teams here — someone has to come up big.
Hey, it’s a new year. We can dream, right?
