Colorado Politics: Forty years ago, communications with and among Colorado legislators was a largely observable phenomenon. There were no cell phones, no emails — only beepers that would notify you when a message was waiting in your electronic mailbox. Just off the House floor at the Capitol were wall phones available for placing calls together with boxes cradling each legislator’s snail mail. I recall at the end of one session witnessing Ken Chlouber, the mule-racing ex-miner from Leadville, pulling a trash can under his box and dumping the entire session’s mail into the bin — unopened. So much for writing your legislator!

Today legislators either trot between meetings hunched over, while thumbing cell phones, or type single-handedly on their notepads. Many younger members have gone 100% digital, both for handling work papers and replying to correspondence. It’s not uncommon to find a majority of committee members tapping away as citizens testify on a pending bill at a hearing. This feels more disrespectful than dozing off during an “after-lunch” nap. As I discard the hundred or more scams that accumulate in my own email overnight, I can’t help wondering why this alleged time saver eats up so much of mine.

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