I've been meaning to post this one for several days now. But enough excuses. Without further ado, here's a creative video that will make you laugh and put a catchy tune in your head: I give you the inimitable Mary Katharine Ham with "Obama on Your Shoulder." Depending on how you look at it, the video could either make you feel a lot more lighthearted or a lot sicker to your stomach. Or maybe a bit of both. But laughter is the best medicine, they say. … [Read more...]
Bad News for Colorado Lefties
From Face The State's latest "Buzz":Americans for Prosperity, a center-right grassroots organization currently focusing on encouraging responsible energy policy, has announced that it is opening shop in Colorado with its 22nd chapter. The effort is being headed up by social conservative Jim Pfaff, a former president of the Colorado Family Council known and praised for his ability to make nice with social libertarians. This can't be seen as a positive development by Colorado's liberal Tim Gill-Pat Stryker-Mark Udall-Bill Ritter axis. Whenever the fiscal conservatives and social conservatives start playing nice, working behind a savvy and respected person like Jim Pfaff, that means the Left can't fall back so easily on its "divide and … [Read more...]
News Like This Could Make the DNC Much More Interesting for Me
From the Denver Post's PoliticsWest:A heated labor disagreement over Denver's teacher contract appears to be heading into late August and could reach a boiling point during the Democratic National Convention, reports Jeremy P. Meyer. Teachers and the administration are at odds over changes to the district's compensation system. It's one of the issues that led union officials to warn teachers in their May newsletter to prepare for a strike. Mediation with a professional arbiter has been set for Aug. 20-22, ending the Friday before the Democrats arrive for the convention. This has the potential to be ugly. I will be keeping a close eye not only on the broader political ramifications but on what this potential clash could portend for … [Read more...]
Beautifying the Street Where I Live
How surprised I was this morning as I went to the driveway to collect the newspapers to also find a cleverly packaged piece of white supremacist "nationalist" hate-group literature nearby on the ground. After opening it and being repulsed, I then looked around and saw that our house wasn't the only one on the block to have been so greeted. With the help of my 2-year-old daughter, we walked the block and cleaned up more than a dozen pieces of trash littered along the sidewalk and street. After writing this, I may come to find out that I inadvertently insulted the work of some local neo-Con blogger's friends. Nevertheless, the kind of ideology littered along my street this morning is a repulsive affront to true Christian religion and our … [Read more...]
Bill Ritter, Tax Increases, Unions, and the Colorado Supreme Court
With a little shameless self-promotion, I tie it all together on the longest day of the calendar year. First, news broke earlier this week that Gov. Bill Ritter has done the inevitable, by agreeing to appeal a district court ruling that came to the clear and appropriate conclusion that Ritter erred in raising school property taxes without voter permission. Sure, I could link to lots of articles that highlight this news, but only the one in the Denver Daily News quotes the author of this blog:"I believe the district court judge did the right thing by recognizing that Colorado voters should be asked before they endure a tax increase," said Ben DeGrow, a policy analyst at the Independence Institute. "It's simply a matter of honoring the … [Read more...]
Right-to-Work States Outpace Forced Union States in Economic Growth
A couple days ago I had the pleasure of pointing out the defects in Denver Post editorialist Bob Ewegen's arguments against Right-to-Work. I wrote:Even more telling than comparisons of static earnings are rates of growth. In both job growth and in overall economic growth, Right-to-Work states have performed better. I therefore found it interesting that another insightful blogger only last week posted an analysis of new economic growth data. Here's the chart Will Franklin produced showing just how much Right-to-Work states outperform states that allow union coercion: Combined with the other flaws in Bob Ewegen's argument, this interesting find only makes the case for Right-to-Work look even stronger. … [Read more...]
Bill Ritter: MORE Campaign Violations?
From KRDO in Colorado Springs:Colorado Gov. Bill Ritter has notified prosecutors that more spending violations have been uncovered from his 2006 campaign, and that a former aide has written his campaign a check for $10,340 to correct the problem. Sure, it's not as much as the $200,000+ illegally spent out of Bill Ritter's inaugural fund that got him into hot water in the first place. But every time another one of these campaign violations trickles out - or word spreads that a computer with key facts pertaining to the investigation conveniently disappeared - it further calls into question the governor's leadership. If Bill Ritter can't provide oversight to his own campaign funds, how can he provide oversight to the state budget and … [Read more...]
Bob Ewegen Uses Less Than Complete Facts to Attack Right-to-Work
In his weekend column, liberal Denver Post editorialist Bob Ewegen carried the water for Big Labor leaders who are working to undermine Colorado's Right-to-Work initiative. Once you move past his weak attempt at irony, you find problems with the facts he chose to use to make his case:If you're lucky enough to find a job at all, the only right the Coors plan gives you is the right to work for less. Quite a bit less, actually. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that an average worker in the 22 states with right-to-work laws earns about $7,131 a year less than workers in free bargaining states ($30,656 versus $37,787). Nationwide, union members earn $9,308 a year more than non-union workers, $41,652 versus $32,344. These facts … [Read more...]
Jason Janz and Juneteenth
Jason Janz - a personal acquaintance I met through his launching and running the successful Christian website Sharper Iron - wrote a Speakout published in today's Rocky Mountain News about Denver's upcoming Juneteenth celebration:I am not African-American and I am going to Juneteenth. In fact, I believe that people of all ethnicities should attend if they are able. Why? Juneteenth is a celebration of freedom and equality, values that every American should embrace. Just because the peak of the civil rights movement has passed does not mean that racial tension in our community is gone. There is still much work to do. By standing next to the African-American community, you are showing solidarity with them as a partner for peace and harmony in … [Read more...]
“Slightly Incoherent”? Not Bad
Joshua Sharf yesterday had the mild misfortune of having to endure our Independence Institute's candidate briefing. Glad to know my highly-compressed 15-minute presentation on school finance and teacher quality only came across as "slightly incoherent," and that Joshua seems to have had a good time. … [Read more...]
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