Boulder Valley Frequency

Flocking to dystopia, Part 2: Bill to regulate tech fails in Colorado Capitol

FLOCKING TO DYSTOPIA, PART 2: BILL TO REGULATE TECH FAILS IN COLORADO CAPITOL Friday, May 22, 2026 First Thing: Thread video that went viral last week https://www.threads.com/@mikenetson/post/DYVnK16kY5O/be-aware-beware/ [https://www.threads.com/@mikenetson/post/DYVnK16kY5O/be-aware-beware/] Eyes Off Colorado: Local cybersecurity experts push back against Flock license plate readers “Right now, it's completely unfettered access to the location and personal privacy of every Coloradan.” – Andrew Gentry, Golden-based cybersecurity professional A bill to regulate Flock and its fleet of Automatic License Plate Reader (ALPRs) cameras died in the Colorado Senate. Sponsor Judy Amabile of Boulder said her fellow lawmakers wouldn’t vote for even the simplest regulations amid harsh opposition from law enforcement. Read more from The Colorado Sun [https://coloradosun.com/2026/04/29/senate-bill-70-lay-over-colorado-surveillance-technology/]. After this development, we’re releasing our full interview with Andrew Gentry, quoted above. In it, Gentry outlines his concerns with the technology itself and with Flock in particular, including * Flock’s documented security vulnerabilities: “ When companies are actively trying to hide their flaws or silence people asking questions, that's usually a sign that there's some kind of other interest involved or negligence or laziness or some combination of the three.” * They’re collecting a lot more than just pictures of our license plates, Gentry says: facial recognition, age, race, etc. Every time you pass a camera, data is collected… * …. And sold to private companies that train AI models on it. Those companies then sell products back to police, promising to “solve crime with the click of a button” and, even scarier, predict who will commit a crime before it happens. Learn more + get involved Gentry founded Eyes Off Colorado [https://www.eyesoffcolorado.org/] to raise awareness about local use of Flock cameras. The organization grades communities using Flock based on their policies around transparency, data storage and sharing and the amount of cameras in the community. Here’s the local report card: Boulder: D Longmont: C Golden: F

‘Swift + silent’ - Community responds to ICE in Boulder County

‘SWIFT + SILENT’ - COMMUNITY RESPONDS TO ICE IN BOULDER COUNTY May 20, 2026 HEADLINES - LINKS Primary Elections 2026: League of Women Voters Candidate Forums HD19 (Democrats) Primary - VIRTUAL Monday, June 8, 2026 at 4pm   Join the webinar here: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81614440096 [https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81614440096]     Have questions for the candidates? Questions must be submitted in advance HERE [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfDn8hoVLCz38TMdLi2m3LI59iAAxFne9cxKV_yg2gN4RtR6Q/viewform?usp=publish-editor].    Boulder County Treasurer (Democrats) - IN PERSON & VIRTUAL Thursday, June 11, 2026 at 6pm   Two ways to view this forum: * In-person at Longmont Public Media, 457 4th Avenue, Longmont * DUE TO SPACE LIMITATIONS, REGISTRATION IS REQUIRED for in-person attendance on the LPM website HERE [https://longmontpublicmedia.org/events/2026-boulder-county-treasurer-democrats-primary-candidate-forum/] * Watch the livestream here: https://www.youtube.com/live/WrkBJKY4mj0 [https://www.youtube.com/live/WrkBJKY4mj0]      Have questions for the candidates? Questions must be submitted in advance HERE [https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSePEG7S743a4mqk7eCJJXUnInBU8pTeJLjQJPGb-NWoohlYeA/viewform?usp=publish-editor]. (We will not be taking questions from the live audience.) Raucous Caucus date, location announced for Boulder City Council Candidates https://blog.boulderprogressives.org/raucous-caucus-2026-were-going-back-to-back/ [https://blog.boulderprogressives.org/raucous-caucus-2026-were-going-back-to-back/] Boulder’s new flag https://museumofboulder.org/museum-of-boulder-announces-winning-design-in-unofficial-boulder-flag-competition/ [https://museumofboulder.org/museum-of-boulder-announces-winning-design-in-unofficial-boulder-flag-competition/] ‘SWIFT + SILENT’ - COMMUNITY RESPONDS TO ICE IN BOULDER COUNTY Local organizers with the Colorado Rapid Response Network (CORRN) give a report from the front lines in the fight against ICE. There was a huge surge in interest after the murders of Alex Pretti and Renee Good in Minnesota, but now they’re in a “lull.”  What/who they need * Dispatchers: Answer calls to the 24/7 CORRN hotline. Must be bilingual and can quickly work under pressure to share resources (know your rights, etc.) * Contact coloradorapidresponsenetwork.com/volunteer [http://coloradorapidresponsenetwork.com/volunteer] Support these community organizations Colorado Rapid Response Network [https://coloradorapidresponsenetwork.com/donate] El Comite [https://crm.bloomerang.co/HostedDonation?ApiKey=pub_48957436-da68-11ee-a499-0a3287177f03&WidgetId=4024320] El Centro Amistad [https://www.coloradogives.org/organization/elcentroamistad] EFAA [https://www.efaa.org/donate/] OUR Center [https://www.ourcenter.org/donate/] Sister Carmen [https://sistercarmen.org/give-help/] Esperanza Fund - Longmont Community Foundation [https://longmont.fcsuite.com/erp/donate/create/fund?funit_id=6049] Friday Golden-based cybersecurity expert Andrew Gentry on Flock and the dangers of license plate reading technology.  Next week Frequency co-founder Jeff Rozic interviews local Grayson Haver Currin, a prominent freelance music journalist and long-distance hiker whose writing has appeared in The New York Times [https://www.nytimes.com/by/grayson-haver-currin], Pitchfork [https://pitchfork.com/staff/grayson-haver-currin/], MOJO Magazine [https://www.mojo4music.com/author/grayson-haver-currin/], and NPR [https://www.npr.org/people/610516915/grayson-haver-currin]. He also writes a personal Substack newsletter, Out + Back [https://currincy.substack.com/]. One More Thing “May the song of joy be the song that you sing in your heart” 1st grade BVSD Class sing-a-long with piano playing teacher --------------------------- Produced by BVHz [https://boulderfrequency.com/] in partnership with The Mountain Ear [https://themtnear.com/] Independent, local journalism for Boulder County Our team Journalist + producer: Shay Castle Audio producer + music: Kelly Garry Additional support provided by Jeff Rozic and Tyler Hickman *Find bonus content and support us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/c/BoulderFrequencyPod]

Modern-day mining in Nederland — and what it means for Boulder’s watershed

MODERN-DAY MINING IN NED — AND WHAT IT MEANS FOR BOULDER’S WATERSHED  May 15, 2026 A gold mine near Nederland is attempting to reopen after numerous violations of Colorado’s Water Control Act. The mine’s owners also sought to expand the mine from 10 acres to 200. The final hearing on that application was set for this month. But just a few days ago, the application was withdrawn amid a sale of the mine to another company, The Mountain Ear reported. The mine sits just a few miles from Nederland, which means the Town is watching the outcome very closely. We interviewed Nederland’s Town Manager, Jonathan Cain, ahead of the planned May hearing, in collaboration with The Mountain-Ear’s Tyler Hickman. Even though the mine’s reopening has been delayed, that doesn’t mean it will never reopen. Cain believes the new owners will reapply to restart operations there. If and when they do, Nederland will also be watching. So will we: We’ll keep you updated as this story develops. For now, here’s our interview with Nederland’s Jonathan Cain.  UPCOMING EVENTS: Outside Days Festival May 29-31 https://outsidedays.outsideonline.com/ [https://outsidedays.outsideonline.com/] Bonnie Pain at the Fox Theater May 16 https://www.z2ent.com/events/detail/bonnie-paine-2026-fox [https://www.z2ent.com/events/detail/bonnie-paine-2026-fox]

Unmarked graves, ICE raids + Bonnie Paine

UNMARKED GRAVES, ICE RAIDS + BONNIE PAINE May 13, 2026 HEADLINES - SOURCES Pearl Street firebombing suspect pleads guilty; gets life in prison cbsnews.com/colorado/news/boulder-firebombing-suspect-mohamed-soliman-pleads-guilty/ [https://www.cbsnews.com/colorado/news/boulder-firebombing-suspect-mohamed-soliman-pleads-guilty/] CU Boulder study: ICE raids correlated with higher unemployment colorado.edu/today/2026/05/04/heightened-ice-enforcement-harms-us-born-workers-shrinks-workforce [https://www.colorado.edu/today/2026/05/04/heightened-ice-enforcement-harms-us-born-workers-shrinks-workforce] Radar mapping: 750-1,000 unmarked graves in Lafayette Cemetery lafayetteco.gov/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/10049 [https://www.lafayetteco.gov/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/10049] The unseen in between: Bonnie Paine of Elephant Revival steps into the spotlight Read Jezy Gray’s profile on Bonnie Paine at cariboucurrent.com/stories/bonnie-paine-unseen-solo-album-fox-theatre,91885 [https://www.cariboucurrent.com/stories/bonnie-paine-unseen-solo-album-fox-theatre,91885] Listen Full interview with Bonnie Paine at themtnear.com/podcast [https://themtnear.com/podcast/] Did you know? Elephant Revival is from Nederland. Member Dango Rose used to write for The Mountain-Ear Friday: Heavy metal mining could re-start in Ned Listen to our interview with Nederland’s Town Manager Jonathan Cain on the sale and potential reopening of a historic gold mine near the town Next week: Community responds to ICE Boulder County Rapid Response Network on the influx of volunteers after the murders of Alex Preti and Renee Good in Minnesota, and why more people wanting to help isn’t always the most helpful. --------------------------- Produced by BVHz [https://boulderfrequency.com/] in partnership with The Mountain Ear [https://themtnear.com/] Independent, local journalism for Boulder County Our team Journalist + producer: Shay Castle Audio producer + music: Kelly Garry Additional support provided by Jeff Rozic and Tyler Hickman *Find bonus content and support us on Patreon [https://www.patreon.com/c/BoulderFrequencyPod]

Meet Lafayette’s poet laureate, Michele Battiste

MEET LAFAYETTE’S POET LAUREATE, MICHELE BATTISTE Michele Battiste was named Lafayette’s poet laureate on April 7. She will serve a two-year term. Read more from the City of Lafayette [https://www.lafayetteco.gov/2740/Poet-Laureate] Find more of Michele’s work and keep track of her events + public appearances: michelebattiste.net [https://www.michelebattiste.net/]