Audio By Carbonatix
Remember those five dreamy days last August when the 2008 Democratic National Convention made every Denver moment seem like magic? It’s all such a daze. My, how things have changed….
2008 DNC Dream Daze: With 15,000 members of the media in town, journalists could be seen standing every ten feet along the 16th Street Mall, recording every sight and sound for posterity and/or ridicule.
One Year Later: Due to layoffs, buyouts and closures, nearly 26,000 journalism jobs have been lost since August of 2008. Now, journalists are more likely found standing in lines at job fairs.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: Glenn Spagnuolo invited Medea Benjamin and Cidy Sheehan to protest with Re-create ’68!
One Year Later: Glenn has developed a DNC memoir, a comedy of errors that chronicles the escapades of the trio’s misunderstandings, social lives and struggles to keep up with the rent while putting down “the man.”
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: Dozens of plastic piss-filled jugs, believed to be the projectiles that protesters would throw at police, were found in an abandoned home in Aurora.
One Year Later: All of the jugs were purchased and removed by a local energy drink manufacturer.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: The Greek temple stage design lent a classic look to Obama’s Invesco Field nomination acceptance speech.
One Year Later: The set was pulled from a stadium dumpster and is now being used to decorate an exhibitionist’s shower in the orgy room of a local swingers’ club.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: The local art scene was overwhelmed when the Andenken Gallery filled with Hollywood celebs: Death Cab For Cutie, Shepard Fairey, Fergie, Spike Lee, Gavin Newsom, Sarah Silverman, Jennifer Lopez, Kanye West, Rosario Dawson, Jessica Alba, That ’70s Show‘s Fez.
One Year Later: Andenken Gallery shines once again with a galaxy of Denver’s A-list art stars: Matt Creat, Tuyet Nguyen, Geoff Allen, Sandi Calstro, Laura Goldhamer, Shannon Bonatakis, Michael Muirheid Moore, Scot Lafavor and Katie Wells.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: Independent presidential candidate Ralph Nader staged a super rally (with Sean Penn!) at the University of Denver.
One Year Later: Ralph Nader is still around, reminding everyone that Obama’s Democratic politics are going nowhere.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: In an astounding display of homelandish heroism, area police departments spent $50 million on security toys ranging from HDTV flat-screen street cam monitors to matching bike uniforms and S.U.V. running boards big enough to transport ten cops.
One Year Later: Due to budget deficits, armored tanks are now parked behind police stations and only used for storage and “poker patrol.”
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: The 16th Street Mall got 105 new planters, all of which were bursting with gorgeous flowers, and the homeless were given tickets to the zoo.
One Year Later: The Flower budget has been greatly reduced and the homeless sleep in the empty planters.
*****
2008 DNC Dream Daze: After five days of self-aggrandizement, Democrats and Denverites were truly convinced that they had made history and that their dreams of hope will change America, forever.
One Year Later: The Teabaggers arrive to revive the national nightmare.
