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Home Archives for 2008

Archives for 2008

2/14/2008 By Ben 2 Comments

Getting Beyond “Conservative”

Thought-provoking read for the day: Selwyn Duke at American Thinker questions where adhering to "conservatism" has gotten us and whether we need to re-assess our approach:I don't want to preserve the cultural status quo, I want to overthrow it. Then we can pull the statist weeds up by the roots and burn them in freedom's fire, just like our Founding Fathers did. Do you think they were conservatives? Conservatives don't start revolutions; they simply make sure their shackles are made no heavier. Political victory rests on cultural victory, and changing the culture starts with changing our mentality. We have only two choices: We can be revolutionary. Or we can be wrong. Read the whole thing. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Cultural Conservatism, General, National Politics Tagged With: American Thinker, Conservatism, Founding Fathers

2/13/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

Next Free People, Free Markets Class: Sign Up Before It’s Too Late

Coloradans: Have you always wanted to learn more about the history, the moral philosophy, and the sound economic principles that undergird our liberty through free-market capitalism? Then you'll want to sign up for the next edition of the Free People, Free Markets class, which starts this Saturday, February 16. It's not too late to sign up. From the Independence Institute website:You have a strong love of freedom. It's a natural part of being human. But too few people were taught the fundamentals of a free society. We have a wonderful seminar to offer you. It pulls together the basic principles of liberty and a free market, showing you that these cohesive fundamentals allow society to work well,and to honor the individual. The course … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Education, General Tagged With: Free Markets, Independence Institute

2/13/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Denver Teachers Union Backs Down on Autonomy Issue

I've been especially hard on the Denver teachers union (DCTA) lately, but when they do something (mostly) right it would be petty and disingenuous of me not to give credit where due. The Rocky Mountain News reports today that DCTA has decided to acquiesce to the requests of Bruce Randolph and Manual High School for autonomy from school district red-tape and negotiated work rules: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Education, General, Labor Tagged With: Bruce Randolph, Denver Classroom Teachers Association, Dr. Kristin Waters, Manual High School, Montbello High School, Rocky Mountain News, school reform, teacher grievance and tenure

2/12/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Need a Break from Presidential Politics? Support Bob Schaffer

Are you tired of the give-and-take of Presidential primary politics? Are you a conservative Republican who needs to step back and take some time to consider whether or not you want to jump on the John McCain bandwagon? Do you want to help the Republican Party down ticket by supporting a candidate with integrity and independent conservative principles? Well, then... How about celebrating the 199th anniversary of Republican forefather Abraham Lincoln's birthday by giving a tangible contribution to Old Abe's legacy? How about showing support for a superb Colorado Republican while you let the national party work on getting back its conservative bearings? How about getting behind sending a candidate to Washington, DC, who … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, National Politics Tagged With: Abraham Lincoln, Bob Schaffer, Colorado Republicans, presidential primary

2/11/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Date Set for Tax Hike Suit Showdown

Face the State has the latest on the court case requesting a vote of the people on Gov. Bill Ritter's statewide property tax increase:The State Board of Education, claiming that CDE is the wrong agency to be targeted, has asked the court to be removed as a defendant. Meanwhile, Ritter has sought to intervene as defendant. A Denver District Court hearing has been set for May 5. State Board of Education member Bob Schaffer, R-Fort Collins, believes Ritter has a lot at stake in the courts’ pending decision, having approved a property tax hike over the objections of the state’s attorney general. “He has a clear interest in proving the attorney general wrong,” said Schaffer. “While the massive tax increase bill was passing, the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, General Tagged With: Bob Schaffer, Colorado Board of Education, Colorado Supreme Court, Face the State, Gov. Bill Ritter, Janet Rowland, Mesa County, Property Tax Increase

2/11/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

The School Autonomy Roadblock outside Bruce Randolph

My first op-ed for the Boulder-based Colorado Daily appears in today's edition. The topic is the school autonomy movement growing out of events at Bruce Randolph School. I've pasted the entire op-ed below, for fear that the link provided soon will be broken: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Education, General, Labor Tagged With: Bruce Randolph School, Colorado Daily, Denver Classroom Teachers Association, Innovation Schools Act of 2008, Manual High School, Sen. Peter Groff

2/11/2008 By Ben 6 Comments

Huckabee Camp’s Washington Complaints: Nothing There

One of Saturday's three Republican presidential caucuses stirred up some controversy, an unfortunate occurrence that needlessly poured fuel onto the Huckabee campaign's conspiratorial fire, with his chairman reviving memories of Al Gore in Florida 2000:Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee is crying foul after John McCain's apparent victory in the Washington caucuses on Saturday. Huckabee's campaign released a statement Sunday saying it will be exploring all available legal options regarding the ''dubious final results.'' Arizona Sen. McCain was announced as the victor in the caucuses with 26 percent of the vote to Huckabee's 24 percent. But Huckabee's campaign chairman, Ed Rollins, said Luke Esser, Washington's Republican … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, National Politics Tagged With: , Al Gore, Captain's Quarters, Ed Rollins, election scandal, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, presidential primary, Washington caucus

2/8/2008 By Ben 12 Comments

VDH on McCain’s Appeal to Conservatives

Over at the Corner, Victor Davis Hanson spells out why conservatives should support McCain over the Democrat alternatives, and what the Arizona Senator can do to close the deal. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, National Politics Tagged With: conservatives, GWOT, immigration, John McCain, National Review, taxes, Victor Davis Hanson

2/8/2008 By Ben 6 Comments

Romney Out: Let the Unifying Begin

Well, Mitt Romney's candidacy is over (but his political future may not be done). Not much more I can say that hasn't been repeated across the blogosphere in the past 20 hours or so. I have to say it's quite jarring to witness an overwhelming Romney win at my local caucus, and in the state of Colorado as a whole, and less than 48 hours later to see his campaign come to an end. But the former Massachusetts governor's withdrawal speech at CPAC only confirmed my confidence in him. The speech was full of class and grace and poise, but also resounded on the pre-eminent theme of victory in the GWOT. Though initially disappointed to see the result of Romney's Super Tuesday performance, hopefully we will look back in months to come and probably … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, National Politics Tagged With: CPAC, GWOT, John McCain, Mike Huckabee, Mitt Romney, presidential primary, Ron Paul, Wayne Allard

2/7/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Meet the CAGEUG

My creative (and apparently not-too-busy) colleagues at the Independence Institute put together this fun little (less than 2-minute) YouTube video to highlight some recent revelations following Gov. Ritter's executive order: How accurate is this parody? You can find the original story here. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: CAGEUG, Executive Order, Gov. Bill Ritter, Independence Institute, labor unions, parody, YouTube video

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About Me

Ben DeGrow
Grateful and growing Christian, devoted husband and father of 3, public policy analyst, returned to Michigan by way of Colorado, conservative writer, lifelong learner, Detroit Tigers fan.

Recent Posts

  • AI-Enhanced Cyberbullying: The Dark Side of Teen Innovation
  • My Baker’s Dozen of Top 2023 Reads
  • Common Learning Disabilities in Children
  • Tips to Teach Kids to Set and Achieve Goals
  • The Christmas Music Countdown You’ve Been Looking For: 2022 Edition

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Blogs Extraordinaire

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Completing the Blogroll

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Christian Commentary et al.

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Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

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To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

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