Last month The Ticket wrote that officials in Denver, worried about the impression that 50,000 visitors to the Democratic National Convention would get next week, were planning to hide the estimated 4,000 homeless people who hang around the city's downtown area.

They arranged for free movie passes and bingo games to get them off the street, as well as temporary housing and free tickets to the zoo and Museum of Nature and Science.

Now, with a Hat Tip to our pal Jeralyn over at TalkLeft, comes word, as Sen. Barack Obama prepares to announce his vice presidential running mate pick, that Denver is even spiffing up the coiffures of its homeless. They're giving free haircuts to the homeless this week in preparation for the visiting crowds who'll arrive this weekend.

No, really.

According to Rick Sallinger of the CBS TV station, Denver Human Services has been handing out coupons for free homeless haircuts.

The idea was to make the homeless feel better about themselves. And maybe then they'd get jobs or something.

Rusty Johnson told Rick he hadn't had a haircut in three or four months and, frankly, didn't much care about the Democrats caring about his appearance. "I just want to look good and feel good for myself," he said.

--Andrew Malcolm

Photo credit: Denver Cityscape