Doing its duty in support of the Left-liberal Colorado coalition, the Bell Policy Center released a report today that expends a lot of megabytes (and ink?) to say almost nothing relevant. The Rocky Mountain News first picked up on the story:Labor-management partnerships such as the one Gov. Bill Ritter ordered for state government are positive on balance, according to a report by the Bell Policy Center — a group that consulted with Ritter's staff as he launched his partnership plan. However, such agreements mostly have been used to turn around adversarial labor-management relations in already unionized workplaces with collective bargaining, the report points out. [emphasis added]The report presents zero evidence of so-called … [Read more...]
Archives for December 2007
The Time for a Fred Comeback Would Be Now
Erick at Red State charts a path for Fred Thompson's tired campaign to come back and make a surprising resurgence. And let me tell you, I'd be pleased to see him do it. If Colorado's caucus were held today, Fred would get my vote. The most recent Rasmussen results show the Centennial State is a wide open playing field for Republican candidates, as a lot of GOP members like myself are adopting a wait-and-see attitude:Which of the following Republican candidates is most in tune with the attitudes and needs of Colorado? 19% John McCain. 14% Rudy Giuliani 14% Fred Thompson 12% Ron Paul 9% Mike Huckabee 8% Mitt Romney 16% None of the above 8% Not sure So here's hoping Fred has really found his stride. Today's … [Read more...]
Take a Step Back in Looking at Murderer’s Upbringing
The journalistic peep show into the life of a murderer continues, as witnessed in this morning's Denver Post:The ultra-religious home-school curriculum that Matthew Murray ranted about in Web postings before he opened fire at two Christian centers forbids dating, rock music and "wrong clothes." It advises young men and women to live at home until their parents release them and counsels parents to choose marriage partners for their offspring. I suppose this information is interesting as far as it goes, but needs to be carefully qualified with three other vital insights, some of which are covered in the article: 1. The clearly misguided and inappropriate approach of the highlighted facets of this home-school curriculum represent the … [Read more...]
More Unions Jockeying to Get a Piece of State Employee Action
From this week's edition of the always insightful & entertaining Education Intelligence Agency Communique:2) Colorado Public Employees Union Hooks Up with CWA. Organized labor in Colorado is about to become very volatile. The dust has yet to settle from Gov. Bill Ritter's executive order establishing "partnerships" between state agencies and labor unions, which is clearly the prelude to public sector collective bargaining. The plans of Colorado WINS, a coalition of SEIU, AFSCME and AFT, are in evidence in the new organization's founding documents, first released exclusively by EIA on November 19. But Colorado WINS will have some competition. The formerly AFT-affiliated Colorado Federation of Public Employees has dissolved and … [Read more...]
Sick Moonbat Spits on Fresh Graves of Murder Victims
Brought to you solely in the interest of heightening awareness of what kind of perverse hatred is out there... El Presidente is keeping close tabs on the twin violent shooting incidents at Christian facilities today, including the murder of Tiffany Johnson and Philip Crouse. The first - and fatal - attack occurred within close proximity of my home, and thus elicits a strong reaction in itself. Even so,most disgusting so far is the comment attached to El President's post, a comment written by an obviously deranged and perverted coward who gives a whole new meaning to "freedom of religion":So the shooter killed only two and wounded two others. Too bad he didn't have more time to get some more. Religious missionaries are very legitimate … [Read more...]
Huckabee Surge is Bad News for Serious, Coherent Conservatives
I have written little here about the Presidential campaign. While I have no horse in the race, I do have some clear opinions and preferences. For the most part I've been sitting back and watching things unfold as the frontrunners vie for my support. However, the recent overpublicized "Huckabee Surge" has stirred me from my silence. That's because the thought that the former Arkansas governor and would-be Preacher-in-Chief could actually secure the Republican nomination is quite disturbing. Largely well known has been Huckabee's very apparent fiscal liberalism and economic populism. The problem is about more than taxes and spending - his positions on trade, regulation, and school choice leave a lot wanting, as well. (Not to mention … [Read more...]
On a Transparency Kick
In case you care to read them, below are my two latest published pieces for your perusal, and they strike a common theme: transparency in government. On Nov. 24, the Rocky Mountain News published (printed in the Sunday Denver Post, of all places) my Speakout submission in response to Gov. Ritter's unionization executive order. This Sunday, the Pueblo Chieftain published my op-ed calling for greater online transparency of school district budgets. Want to figure out as a taxpayer just how much your local schools are spending on different items? Think it's easy? Hence, the purpose of the op-ed. So yes, I've been writing on a transparency in government kick lately. It's an important issue more people on both sides of the aisle might … [Read more...]
Blackfive: Polis Trip to Iraq “Showboating”
Two weeks ago I wrote about Congressional candidate Jared Polis' impending visit to Iraq: Look, Polis’ trip to Iraq may turn out to be all for show. But then again he may be genuine, in which case I hope he takes time to meet with some of our enlisted troops, our young officers, as well as local Iraqi leaders and tribal chiefs. Was the trip all for show? Blackfive has the answer: So, here's Mr. Richie Rich, scratching for Congress, looking for an 'in', and decides to fund a trip to Iraq; see the natives, bash the Bush, just to say 'been there, seen that'. Unfortunately, about all HE saw was the inside of a hotel and the view from a car window. So, he's ready to be ambassador, now? So why do I care about this? Because I … [Read more...]
College Football Playoffs Needed Now!
This is off topic from what I usually write about here. But after tonight's 1-2 knockout of Missouri & West Virginia, I think college football fans of all political stripes can agree that the time for a playoff system is now! No matter who ends up being selected for the BCS Championship Game at the end of this wackiest of all seasons, unending controversy will ensue. If it leads us to a playoff system next year, it will be well worth the result. … [Read more...]