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Mount Virtus?

Every day is seeking to rise to the challenge, 'neath the shadow of the mighty Rockies.

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Colorado Ballot Reviews

Sometimes the choices are daunting or confusing, sometimes they're as clear as a Mile High view.

Writer / Editor For Hire

If I had five more writers just like him, I think my job would be the easiest in journalism....

10/4/2008 By Ben 4 Comments

Backroom Deal Sheds Light on Colorado Labor Union Leader Priorities

Much ado has been made out of the 11th-hour deal that pulled four labor union-sponsored initiatives from the Colorado ballot. As opined by the editors of the Rocky Mountain News:On Thursday, labor peace was restored in Colorado. At least until the 2009 legislature convenes. The announcement that two labor-backed groups would remove Amendments 53, 55, 56 and 57 from the November ballot - and in return business groups would fund a joint business-labor campaign to defeat Amendments 47, 49 and 54 - is a positive development. The state's economic health was in the crosshairs of the labor measures, a couple of which probably had a good shot at passage. There's no doubt that the "economic health" and well-being of Colorado families and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "bread-and-butter" initiatives, 11th-hour, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 53, Amendment 54, Amendment 55, Amendment 56, Amendment 57, business groups, business-labor deal, coercive, coffers, Colorado ballot, Colorado businesses, Colorado families, Colorado voters, cynical ploy, dues collection, economic health, editors, fees, fool, government payroll systems, labor peace, negotiating chips, non-negotiable, November ballot, political extortion, priorities, rhetoric, Rocky Mountain News, smoke-filled backroom, special interests, union leaders, union members, welfare, workers, working class

10/4/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Time to “Educate the Idiots” about the Authenticity of CoDA Documents?

A controversy is brewing over the authenticity of the Colorado Democracy Alliance (CoDA) documents, specifically the memo discussing their plan to "Educate the Idiots". Ironically, the satire blog by the same name has all the scoop on the controversy - here and here. Can't wait for Sunday's story in the Denver Post. It looks to me like the Lefties in CoDA are scrambling hard to cover up. We'll see. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General Tagged With: "Educate the Idiots", Colorado Democracy Alliance, controversy, Denver Post, documents, Lefties, satire blog, scoop, Sunday story

10/3/2008 By Ben 3 Comments

“Experienced” Joe Biden is All Confused about the Office He Is Running For

Apparently, "experienced" Joe Biden doesn't know much about the high office of vice president he is running to fill. My first-year law school friend Tyler at Constructively Reasonable has the details (and as Tyler points out, so do the legal minds at the Volokh Conspiracy). So does the Washington Times. A man who has been in the U.S. Senate for 35 years could be so ignorant about how our federal government works? What if it had been Sarah Palin who had made the gaffe? You can imagine the mainstream media reports would be swift, harsh, and unforgiving. But since it's Slow Joe Biden at the Wilmington, Delaware Home Depot, representing their favored Democratic Party ticket, for the most part there's been nothing but the sounds of crickets … [Read more...]

Filed Under: General, National Politics Tagged With: CNN, Constructively Reasonable, David Gergen, Delaware, Democrats, experienced, extremely well informed, favored ticket, gaffe, high office, Home Depot, Joe Biden, law school, legal minds, mainstream media, Sarah Palin, Tyler, U.S. Constitution, U.S. Senate, vice president, Volokh Conspiracy, Washington Times

10/3/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

I’m On KBDI Channel 12 Tonight to Discuss Colorado Amendment 49

Update: A trusted reader says you can also watch on Channel 23 in Colorado Springs. Update: I added a link to Michael's blog. Please tune in tonight at 7:30 PM to KBDI 12 (in the Denver metro area) for an important episode of Independent Thinking with host Jon Caldara. Guests Jefferson County teacher Michael Alcorn and I will discuss what Amendment 49, the Ethical Standards initiative, does, and the effects it has (and doesn't have) on teachers and other public employees. For those of you heading out to theaters to catch the premiere of An American Carol, please don't forget to set your TiVo or VCR to record. But in case you forget, the episode is scheduled to re-air next Tuesday, October 7, at 5:00 PM on KBDI. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, My Life Tagged With: Amendment 49, An American Carol, Ethical Standards initiative, Independent Thinking, Jefferson County, Jon Caldara, KBDI Channel 12, Michael Alcorn, premiere, public employees, record, teacher, teachers, TiVo, VCR

10/3/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Ben’s Colorado Ballot Updated

With four measures pulled off the ballot and a new guide to link to, I have updated my Colorado Ballot 2008 page this morning. Please be sure to check it out for the latest. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Colorado Politics, General

10/2/2008 By Ben 7 Comments

Vice Presidential Debate: Group Liveblog

… [Read more...]

Filed Under: blogging, General, National Politics

10/2/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Reminders: VP Debate LiveBlog Tonight, GOP Volunteer Opportunities

A couple quick reminders for readers: Tonight Mount Virtus and several other Right-leaning Colorado sites will host a group live blog of the vice presidential debate, starting at 7 PM local Mountain time. One more participant has joined us: NightTwister. Just log on to the main page of this site at 7:00 or thereafter, and you'll see the live blog going. One more reminder: If you have the slightest interest in volunteering to help the Republican presidential ticket and your state and local candidates, this weekend is the best time to get involved. Details of where to go and who to contact are here. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: blogging, Colorado Politics, General, National Politics Tagged With: Colorado blogs, group live blog, local candidates, Mount Virtus, NightTwister, presidential tickets, Republicans, state candidates, vice-presidential debate, volunteer

10/2/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

Ted Trimpa: Extortion Negotiator, Gill Adviser, “Educate the Idiots” Insider

Denver attorney Ted Trimpa is being touted as the great mediator, the great savior, in negotiating a compromise between business and labor to remove four anti-business initiatives from the ballot. Who's doing the touting? Why, the liberal Dead Governors blog, of course:For those of you who don't know about Hogan and Hartson's Ted Trimpa, well, you should. He's the one who brought this pact, the most unlikely partnership since Referendum C, together, helping reinforce his growing waterwalker mystique. It's also true that labor wasn't really looking forward to taking the blame for the potentially serious unintended consequences of a couple of these proposals. The infusion of cash to fight the anti-labor initiatives will help, as will the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "Educate the Idiots", 527 Coordinating Operatives, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 53, Amendment 54, Amendment 55, Amendment 56, Amendment 57, Andrew Romanoff, anti-business initiatives, attorney, business, Cole Finegan, Colorado Democracy Alliance, ColoradoPols, compromise, Dead Governors, Denver, Denver Post, disinterested party, economy-busting, glib, Hogan & Hartson, Hogan and Hartson, inner workings, Labor, labor leader, liberal billionaire, lies, mediator, partnership, political advisor, praises, progressive, Referendum C, Rutt Bridges, strategy group, Ted Trimpa, Tim Gill, union power, waterwalker

10/2/2008 By Ben 1 Comment

CoDA’s “Educate the Idiots” Members Biggest Funders of Protect Colorado’s Future’s Campaign of Deception

If you haven't seen or heard it by now, Colorado's "progressive" Democrat coalition got a little more behind-the-scenes exposure yesterday than they would like. A series of slowly leaked documents by Face The State are uncovering the inner workings of the coalition - known as the Colorado Democracy Alliance (CoDA). The light of the day has given us some useful insights. We are starting to see what the Left's agenda for Colorado is, why they have coordinated the spending of so much money to take over the state legislature, the governor's office, and so much more. No document has received quite as much attention as this one:In a confidential internal memorandum obtained by Face The State (PDF), the Colorado Democracy Alliance outlines a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General, Labor Tagged With: "Educate the Idiots", AFL-CIO, African-American, agenda, Amendment 47, Amendment 49, Amendment 54, Andrew Romanoff, behind-the-scenes exposure, Bill Ritter, Bridget Johnson, campaign message, campaign of deception, change we can believe in, children of color, Colorado, Colorado Democracy Alliance, Colorado Education Association, Colorado Ethics Watch, confidential, covert, Democrat, Democrat leaders, document, donors, dropouts, dues, education employees, Evan Dreyer, exclusive list, Face the State, freedom, GEDs, government ethics, Governor, Hispanic, hoodwinked, idiots, indignant response, individual rights, institutional members, issue committee, Joan Fitz-Gerald, John Stocks, leaked documents, Left, liberal structure, lies, members, memorandum, minorities, National Education Association, Native American, off the record, Okie Campaigns, operatives, progressive, ProgressNow, Protect Colorado's Future, represent, Rocky Mountain News, Rocky Mountain Right, SEIU, Slapstick Politics, smart people, special interest groups, state legislature, state Republican Party leaders, strategy group, teachers, The Daily Blogster, union elite, union leaders, union power, worker welfare

10/1/2008 By Ben Leave a Comment

Yes, This is My Crazy Boss, But He’s Right about Colorado Amendment 49

(Compliments of Jon Caldara's blog) It's kind of nice seeing all those major newspaper endorsements of Amendment 49 at the end, too. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: clean government, Colorado Politics, General Tagged With: Amendment 49, endorsements, Ethical Standards, Jon Caldara, major newspapers, YouTube

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Inside

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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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National News and Politics

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Completing the Blogroll

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Christian Commentary et al.

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Colorado Blogs

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Other Sites

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Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0

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To Contact Me:
bendegrow-at-gmail.com

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