Chaos Monkey, Inc., gave a trifle $20,000 donation to Rocky Mountain Way (RMW), the independent expenditure committee (IEC) supporting U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet for Colorado governor. But why, Coloradans should ask, would a guy who has assigned his contributor name in Colorado Secretary of State (SOS) records as Chaos Monkey, Inc., who has a beach-front property in Gulf Stream, Florida but who teaches market branding at New York University, give that much money to Bennet’s Rocky Mountain Way?

Chaos Monkey, Inc., is not a registered corporation that multiple “AI” search platforms could find in any state. But Chaos Monkey, Inc., is apparently a corporate entity associated with Scott Galloway, aka Prof G. He runs Prof G Media, No Mercy/No Malice newsletter, and is a worrier about the manliness of boys and men in his recent book, “Notes on Being a Man.”

Some delving reveals Galloway has definite views on the nation’s markets and about boys and men. The views are related through free-market principles. He thinks lonely boys and men become “real men” when they add “super value” to their relationships. That concept asserts successful companies become successful by somehow adding “super value” to whatever it is they’re selling. Perhaps Galloway sees Sen. Bennet as the “super value” male governor who’s earned that $20 grand to win the office?

Coloradans may want to query why Rocky Mountain Way would solicit money from this New York Floridian who’s feeding the lonely young male trend. RMW’s response could help us voters understand the meaning behind the money.

The Galloway example is just one of many. Jeremy Mindich of Scopia Capital Management with offices near Carnegie Hall in New York City placed $200,000 into RMW. It’s sweet, perhaps, that retired Joan Ganz Cooney of Sesame Street fame donated $100,000, but why has Jonathan Gruskin, the real-estate developer, pitched in $100,000? Then there’s Andrew Schwartzberg, another real-estate developer, with an additional $100,000. That’s super value to Bennet and potential ROI to the developers.

Many donors for Bennet’s RMW are from New York. According to SubTerrainSights.com, RMW’s total pull from New York state is $3.6 million-plus. RMW’s take from California is not a close second at $831,000. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is the big fish in this big New York pond, pushing out $2.5 million. He’s rich enough, one supposes, maybe there is no quid pro quo involved?

In our home state, Colorado Trial Lawyers are a top contributor to RMW. They’ve put in just under the amount of California donors at $825,000. It’s understandable. Bennet’s main opponent Attorney General Phil Weiser is the state’s attorney general, after all. The honest news is the Trial Lawyers aren’t hiding behind a disguising name.

Another organization, Brighter Future for Colorado, is hiding its donors. This fund was organized in 2024. Its IRS 501c4 tax report puts Ashley Stevens, a frequent registered agent of Democratic committee funds, as its president. Its address is a post office box in Cherry Creek. But the behind-the-scenes operator is an entity named Policy Pathfinders that received $250,000 for consulting work from Brighter Future for Colorado in 2024 according to IRS filings. The principal of Policy Pathfinders is Jen Walmer, the current chair of the Colorado Commission on Higher Education.

Walmer has a long history as a Bennet supporter. She was chief of staff for former Denver Public Schools Superintendent Tom Boasberg who inherited his office from Bennet when Bennet was appointed by Gov. Bill Ritter to former U.S. Sen. Ken Salazar’s seat in the U.S. Senate. Bennet and Boasberg were the DPS superintendents who brought in the vast charter-school presence to DPS to put competitive pressure on district schools. Bennet was best known for closing neighborhood and community schools such as Manual High. Boasberg continued that work. Today, DPS has the largest number of charter schools of any district in the state as well as the most segregated schools.

After her time as chief of staff to Boasberg, Walmer became executive director of Democrats for Education Reform. In 2024, this entity was roundly rejected by Democrats in their policy platform. Brighter Future carries political weight from its wealthy unidentified donors who are likely the same individuals who pitched more than a million dollars into the 2025 Denver school board election to put pro-charter candidates in place. They lost that campaign.

Brighter Future for Colorado has moved $1.05 million from its accounts to RMW. The Colorado League of Charter Schools that supports schools taking public tax dollars to operate has thrown down $200,000. Stand for Children and 50CAN Action Fund have tossed in another $395,000. Given Bloomberg’s commitment to the charter-school industry, that’s more than $4 million in RMW campaign dollars. If dollars mean free speech, that speech is pricey, but cheap if the result is right. Traditional public schools are not represented anywhere in RMW’s disclosures.

Two testers for Colorado voters exist given RMW’s activities. It’s unsettling Bennet has more money supporting him from an IEC than from his own candidate committee. It’s creepy $20,000 to Bennet’s IEC comes from an entity known as Chaos Monkey, Inc.

Paula Noonan owns CapitolCommons.ai, the state’s premier legislature tracking platform.