Mount Virtus

"Happy to come back to Michigan, but I miss the mountains!"

Ben on Social Media

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Home
  • About Ben
  • Mount Virtus?
  • Writer / Editor For Hire
  • What I’m Thankful For
  • Colorado Ballot Reviews
    • Colorado Ballot 2008
    • Colorado Ballot 2010
    • Colorado Ballot 2012
  • Archives
  • Passion and Purpose:
    The Rise & Fall of Al Gansee
  • Mary and Jacob: From the Forgotten Dust
  • The Westfield Gardener
Home Archives for 2009

Archives for 2009

1/22/2009 By Ben 2 Comments

Intriguing… A Ryan Frazier Run for U.S. Senate Might Not Be a Bad Idea

Update, 1/23: Slapstick Politics has great analysis on the speculation and ideas for the GOP to seize these sorts of unique opportunities that 2010 provides. Face The State went deep into the rumor mill today:The U.S. Senate race recently made its way on to Republican radar after Ritter appointed the little known Michael Bennet, who at the time was serving as DPS superintendent, to the seat. Bennet’s biggest weakness right now is that he’s part of the East Coast political aristocracy. Republicans need a fresh face and a down to earth candidate to challenge him, which is why we were so excited to hear that Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier may be considering a run for the seat. “It’s fair to say that right now I’m considering … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General, National Politics Tagged With: aristocracy, Aurora, Big Line, Bill Ritter, candidate, Colorado, councilman, Dead Governors, Denver Public Schools, down to earth, East Coast, Face the State, fresh face, intriguing, Left-leaning, liberty-loving, Michael Bennet, outside the box, political establishment, Republican, Republican Party, Ryan Frazier, strong credentials, superintendent, U.S. Senate, youthfulness

1/22/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Remembering the Clarion Call for Life After 36 Years of Roe v Wade

Update II: El Presidente has posted an excellent video produced by Catholic Votes, which makes the case against abortion using Barack Obama's own story. Updates: Gateway Pundit notes that Obama is using the occasion to expand American taxpayer funding of abortions overseas. Kyle-Anne Shiver appreciates taking on intellectually honest, pro-abortion atheists in debates. And LaShawn Barber points us to a sad account of a woman who deeply regrets her abortion. Lest all the pomp and circumstance accompanying the 44th President's bold new Leftward agenda drown it out, we should pause to remember that today is the 36th anniversary of the Roe v Wade decision. The devastating consequences of this terribly rendered Supreme Court ruling rest … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Cultural Conservatism, General, Labor, My Life, National Politics, Random and Miscellaneous Tagged With: 36th anniversary, Alternatives Pregnancy Center, Americans United for Life, Barack Obama, belongs, births, Blogs for Life conference, circumstance, Colorado, conservative, daughters, decision, demoralizing, Denver, disagree, emotionally, establishment media, fantastic work, friends, intellectually, Leftward agenda, March for Life, middle, nation's capital, neglected, occupant, overturning, personal, persuade, poignant, policy differences, pomp, pray, pregnancy, President, private groups, pro-life, ranking, Roe v Wade, speak out, spectrum, spiritually, state lawmakers, states, support, theoretical, U.S. Supreme Court, unborn child, Washington DC, White House

1/21/2009 By Ben 129 Comments

Sign the “No Stimulus!” Petition

Update, 2/9, Noon MST: Here is a wonderful, brief article by Dr. Paul Prentice explaining the fallacy of the name "stimulus" for this bill and why it's a terrible economic prescription. Update, 2/9, 11:30 AM MST: Many, many visitors report difficulty getting to Americans for Prosperity's No Stimulus petition. Thanks to one commenter for pointing out another No Stimulus petition you can sign (from John McCain's Country First PAC). Keep up the good fight, everyone! Update, 2/2, 2 PM MST: Numerous commenters have pointed out they've had problems getting on the site linked below to sign the No Stimulus petition. Site hosts confirmed to me that a sudden and dramatic increase in traffic occurred after a mention on Rush Limbaugh's show, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Christianity and Faith, Fiscal Policy, General, My Life, National Politics, Random and Miscellaneous Tagged With: Americans, Americans for Prosperity, Barack Obama, debt, Democrats, future, generations, government boondoggles, leap, mortgage, nation, No Stimulus, online petition, pork bill, socialism, vent, voice, waste time

1/21/2009 By Ben 1 Comment

Beware the Kremulakian Invasion

This may be the funniest thing I've read in a long time. (Tell me again why Iowahawk wasn't even nominated for Best Humor Blog?) I triple dog dare you to read through it without breaking out into uproarious, teary-eyed laughter. And that's saying a lot, as I also have been perusing through this book recently. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, National Politics, Random and Miscellaneous Tagged With: Amazon, book, funniest, Gastroanomalies, Humor, Iowahawk, James Lileks, laughter, nominated, satire, triple dog dare, Weblog awards

1/21/2009 By Ben 3 Comments

On Best Behavior, Patriotic Opposition Rejects Obama-Lincoln Analogy

I don't have time to put down much original thought this morning, so here are three pieces I commend to readers on the Morning After the inauguration. First, the Denver Post's David Harsanyi eloquently asks the rhetorical question many of us have wanted to ask:Do all Americans truly have a yearning to fundamentally "remake" our nation? There must be a subversive minority out there that still believes the United States — even with its imperfections and sporadic recessions — is, in context, still a wildly prosperous and free country worth preserving. Some of you must still believe that politicians are meant to serve rather than be worshiped. And there must be someone out there who considers partisanship a healthy, organic reflection … [Read more...]

Filed Under: blogging, General, History, National Politics Tagged With: "un-American", Abraham Lincoln, American Thinker, Andy Levy, apologize, Barack Obama, Bizarro flaws, compelling argument, Confederate Slave States, contrived imagery, counterproductive, David Harsanyi, Denver Post, differences, dissent, divisive, foreigners, free country, guidelines, healthy, historical scholarship, imperfections, inauguration, Jefferson Davis, Joseph Ashby, loyal opposition, morning after, organic, original thought, partisanship, patriotic, pieces, politicians, President, readers, recessions, rhetorical question, serve, souls, subjective, subversive minority, thesis, United States, unity, untenable, worshiped

1/20/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

“Consider Yourself” Ready to Refute Inflated Colorado Child Poverty Claim

Oftentimes big, misleading headlines can circumnavigate the globe many times over before the much more nuanced truth gets a chance to catch up. Well, here's a terrific case in point that figures to pop up in Colorado policy debates. Last June the Colorado Children's Campaign released its annual Kids Count report. Latching on to that report, newspapers from the Denver Post to the New York Times climbed on board the claim that Colorado leads the nation with a 73 percent rise in child poverty from 2000 to 2006. In case you were confused, and wondered why you weren't seeing scenes like this one in and around our great state, the Independence Institute's Linda Gorman cleared up the picture a bit for you in last Friday's Denver Daily … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Education, Fiscal Policy, General, Health Care Tagged With: 73 percent, Annie E. Casey Foundation, artificially low numbers, catch up, child poverty, circumnavigate, Colorado, Colorado Children's Campaign, column, conversation, data, Denver Daily News, Denver Post, details, globe, headline-grabbing, headlines, Independence Institute, inflated claim, issue paper, iVoices, Kids Count, Linda Gorman, misleading, New York Times, newspapers, nuanced, podcast, policy debates, report, tall grass, true story, truth

1/20/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

Rocky Mtn Alliance Blog Talk Radio at 8:30 PM: Todd Shepherd, Mark Hillman

Tune in starting at 8:30 PM local Mountain Time this evening for the 10th edition of Rocky Mountain Alliance Blog Talk Radio, the third of 2009. Tonight's guests are my Independence Institute colleague Todd Shepherd and Republican National Committeeman and former state legislative leader Mark Hillman. Topics are likely to include the probable demise of the Rocky Mountain News, the local media scene, the inauguration, the contest for the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee, the unfolding state legislative session, and more. Don't forget. If you miss the live broadcast of tonight’s show, you can go back and download the podcast, or just use the handy widget on my sidebar to listen directly from Mount Virtus. More … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, My Life Tagged With: Blog Talk Radio, chairman, episodes, inauguration, Independence Institute, legislative leader, legislative session, Mark Hillman, media, Mount Virtus, podcast, Republican National Committee, Republican National Committeeman, Rocky Mountain Alliance, Rocky Mountain News, sidebar, Slapstick Politics, Todd Shepherd, topics

1/20/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

iVoices: What the $632 Million in State Budget Cuts Actually Represents

More than once I've discussed the $632 million or so in state budget cuts being proposed in these rough economic times. But it's important to note what this figure represents (the drop-off from projected spending) and what it does not (the amount of actual reduction in spending from the previous year). On this iVoices podcast, the Independence Institute's Penn Pfiffner explains with host Jon Caldara: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, Fiscal Policy, General Tagged With: actual reduction, figure, Independence Institute, iVoices, Jon Caldara, Penn Pfiffner, podcast, previous year, projected spending, rough economic times, state budget cuts

1/20/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

A Day of Transition

Today is Barack Obama's day. I see it as a break from taking critical stock of his policies and recognizing both the peaceful transition of power that still is a tremendous blessing to our Republic and the historic nature of installing a non-white person into the nation's highest office. This two-fold recognition is a fulfillment of the great and remarkable promise of the Declaration of Independence that gave birth to our nation. Yet the surviving spirit of the Declaration and the importance of Liberty embodied and codified in our Constitution depends more on the character and vigilance of the American people than on the cultish popularity of its leaders. And what of other Right-leaning Colorado bloggers? What do they say? Here's a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, National Politics Tagged With: American people, Barack Obama, Best Destiny, blessing, bloggers, character, Colorado, Constitution, Constructively Reasonable, critical stock, cultish popularity, Declaration of Independence, embodied, historic nature, Inauguration Day, leaders, non-white person, peaceful transition, policies, remarkable promise, Republic, Rossputin, surviving spirit, vigilance

1/19/2009 By Ben Leave a Comment

How Much Will Barack Obama’s “Stimulus” – er, Pork – Proposal Cost Us?

From the Competitive Enterprise Institute: … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Fiscal Policy, General, Health Care, National Politics Tagged With: Barack Obama, Competitive Enterprise Institute, YouTube

  • « Previous Page
  • 1
  • …
  • 58
  • 59
  • 60
  • 61
  • 62
  • …
  • 65
  • Next Page »

Inside

  • About Ben
  • Archives
  • Colorado Ballot Reviews
    • Colorado Ballot 2008
    • Colorado Ballot 2010
    • Colorado Ballot 2012
    • Colorado Ballot 2014
  • Mary and Jacob: From the Forgotten Dust
  • Mount Virtus?
  • Passion and Purpose:
    The Rise & Fall of Al Gansee
  • The Westfield Gardener
  • What I’m Thankful For
  • Writer / Editor For Hire

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

Colorado News

  • Colorado Senate News
  • Complete Colorado
  • Independence Institute
  • Loveland Politics
  • The Colorado Observer

National News and Politics

  • Drudge Report
  • Hot Air
  • National Review
  • Politico
  • Real Clear Politics
  • Reason
  • The Washington Times
  • TownHall
  • Wall Street Journal
  • Weekly Standard
  • World Magazine

Blogs Extraordinaire

  • American Thinker
  • David Harsanyi’s Blog
  • E!! The True Conservative Story
  • EIA Intercepts
  • Evangelical Outpost
  • Hugh Hewitt
  • Instapundit
  • LaShawn Barber
  • Lileks
  • Little Green Footballs
  • Michelle Malkin
  • NRO's The Corner
  • Power Line
  • Red State

Completing the Blogroll

  • Alarming News
  • Black Five
  • Blogs of War
  • Eduwonk
  • Flypaper
  • Fraters Libertas
  • Historical Conversations
  • IMAO
  • Jay P. Greene
  • Mike Anderson
  • Mullings
  • Professor Bainbridge
  • Right Thinking
  • Right Wing News
  • Right Wing Nuthouse
  • Shot in the Dark
  • Talking Points Memo
  • Virginia Postrel
  • Volokh Conspiracy

Christian Commentary et al.

  • Kevin Pierpont
  • Sharper Iron

Conservative and GOP Sites

  • Backbone America
  • Cal Thomas
  • Colorado Republican Party
  • Colorado Republican Study Committee
  • Dennis Prager
  • Denver Metro Young Republicans
  • Free Republic
  • Heritage Foundation
  • Jefferson County Republican Party
  • Mackinac Center for Public Policy
  • Mark Steyn
  • Michael Medved
  • Rush Limbaugh

Colorado Blogs

  • American Kestrel
  • Bob Agard
  • Colorado Charter Schools
  • Colorado Peak Politics
  • Colorado Pols
  • Colorado Right
  • Conservative Libertarian Outpost
  • Coyote Gulch
  • Ed Is Watching
  • Free Colorado
  • Jeff Crank Show
  • Mark Hillman
  • Patient Power
  • PirateBallerina
  • Protein Wisdom
  • Reagan Girl
  • Rocky Mountain Alliance 1.0 (Archive)
  • Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0 (Archive)
  • Rossputin
  • Stop the ACLU Blog
  • The Spot (Denver Post)
  • We Stand Firm

Other Sites

  • Technorati
  • Word Press

Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

  • Reclaim the Blue
  • The Business Word
  • The Daily Blogster
  • View from a Height

To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

Copyright © 2025 RSS Feed · WordPress · Log in