Harmful Card Check Bill Union Cash Cow, Michael Bennet Still Undecided

by Ben DeGrow | 8:15 am, June 10, 2009

Update: It’s also worth noting that EFCA supporters have engaged in a full-fledged campaign of deception. Someone should ask Senator Michael Bennet if he’s buying it.
We know the so-called Employee Free Choice Act (aka card-check):

Deprives workers of a secret ballot in workplace elections, exposing them to intimidation
Imposes costly government bureaucratic intervention in private workplace negotiations
Threatens [...]

Calling All Colorado Congressmen to Back Federal Reserve Transparency

by Ben DeGrow | 7:51 am, June 10, 2009

Update, 6/11, 10:30 AM: Impressively, HR 1207 now has 208 Congressional co-sponsors. But only two from Colorado: Republican Doug Lamborn and Democrat Ed Perlmutter. Open government is an important non-partisan issue.
I recently brought readers’ attention to the need to persuade Republican Congressman Mike Coffman to sign on in support of transparency for the nation’s Federal [...]

Brook Addresses Virginia Republicans

by Ari Armstrong | 11:22 pm, June 9, 2009

Yaron Brook of the Ayn Rand Center recently offered a keynote address for the 2009 Republican convention in Virginia.

If you are a Republican — or if, like me, you hope for a Republican resurgence along proper ideals — please listen to this speech. The future of your party — and the future of our nation — depends upon the kinds of ideas that Brook discusses.

If you are an advocate of liberty and individual rights, watch the speech from the perspective of how to craft an effective message.

Shotgun Taser Caldara?

by wesley | 6:10 pm, June 9, 2009

Like every year, the Independence Institute is holding its 7th Annual Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Party at Kiowa Creek Shotgun Club, but unlike previous years, this year they’re also holding an ATF pre-party that you have GOT to attend. On Friday June 19th, clear your schedule and head for the Warwick Hotel for the Freedom Underground Pre-ATF [...]

RMA 2.0: Rocky Mtn Blogs Radio Show #30

by elpresidente | 3:32 pm, June 9, 2009

**Every Tuesday–next show June 9, 8:30 pm.

The Blog Talk Radio version of the Rocky Mountain Alliance. A weekly discussion about politics–national, state, and local–featuring RMA members bloggers led by featured host and producer Joshua Sharf, with rotating co-host duties from Ben DeGrow of Mount Virtus, Randy Ketner of Night Twister, and Michael Alcorn of Best Destiny.

June 9 lineup–Dan Maes, candidate for governor.

Exclusive, Star-Studded pre-ATF Event!

by Jon Caldara | 1:38 pm, June 9, 2009

Freedom Underground – Nanny State Policy Panel
Friday, June 19, 2009
The Warwick Hotel, (The former Playboy Club) 1776 Grant Street, Denver, CO

***Don’t forget to sign up for the ATF Party the next day!***
Listen to Jon Caldara and Amy Oliver talk nannyism, the ATF party, and this great panel event!
Agenda
11:00a.m. — Registration
11:30a.m. — Lunch
Keynote Speaker: David Martosko, [...]

Obama promises 600,000 new “stimulus” jobs this summer

by Rossputin | 3:44 am, June 9, 2009

{As Greg Staff points out, here’s a WSJ article with a take similar to mine: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB124451592762396883.html]

Despite the Obama Administration’s claims that the “stimulus” has created 150,000 jobs, the President’s claim on Monday that accelerated stimulus spending would create 600,000 more jobs this summer is full of holes and problems.

In the interest of time, I’ll keep this to more of a list format than a full-blown discussion. If any of you wants more of a discussion let me know and I’ll elaborate.

First, there is little reason to believe the “stimulus” will create any private sector jobs and little reason to believe they will meet their overall goals of job creation even in the government sector (and I sure hope they don’t meet those goals). (In my view, public sector jobs are generally a long-term net economic negative in terms of productivity comparison with a private sector job, not to mention the fact that they’re paid for by you and me.)

Second, there is almost no way to measure the “stimulus”’s impact. (I love this line from the NY Times: “The 600,000 figure is based on macroeconomic estimates, not an actual counting of jobs.”)

Third, many proposed jobs such as new policemen and more teachers are simply ways to permanently expand unions and government; they most certainly are not true “stimulus”. Furthermore, training for law enforcement or teaching is a multi-month or even multi-year process, so it’s hard to see how Obama will even meet these goals within any short-term time frame. (Again, I hope Obama fails if simply growing the public sector and unions is his definition of success – which I’m convinced it is.) Anyway, aren’t most teachers off during the summer?

Fourth, the economy “knows” that the money for this spending is simply presaging higher taxes and weaker growth in the future. Therefore, the recovery will likely be slower and weaker than it would have been without the “stimulus”. Keynsian pump-priming has never, ever worked, and it won’t now.

CSU spends $60,000 on food

by Amy Oliver | 1:12 am, June 9, 2009

According to a recent article in the Fort Collins Coloradoan, Colorado State University “workers with university-issued purchasing cards spent more than $60,000 on everything from pizzas, coffee and bottled water to steak, seafood and sushi — all in a single month.”
Some of the expenditures were well justified by CSU employees.  For example:
CSU Athletic Director Paul Kowalczyk [...]

Health care reform: coverage is not care.

by Brian T. Schwartz | 12:15 am, June 9, 2009

Remember this about politically-controlled health care: “coverage” does not guarantee care. Not just in Canada and England, but in Massachusetts, where everyone must buy insurance — as politicians define it.

Last week the New York Times reported that while more Massachusetts residents gained coverage in the past year, “one in five …

Clear The Bench Colorado Director on Rocky Mountain Radio (AM1060 Longmont, AM 1580 Colorado Springs) 10 June 2009

by CTBC Director | 11:55 pm, June 8, 2009

Clear The Bench Colorado Director Matt Arnold is appearing on Rocky Mountain Radio this Wednesday, 10 June 2009 from 9-11PM.  Rocky Mountain Radio’s Bob Glass will interview Matt on why it’s time to restore accountability to our out-of-control Colorado Supreme Court, rein in their assaults on Colorado’s Constitution and the rule of law through their outrageous rulings [...]

Government Outlaws

by Prospector | 6:12 pm, June 8, 2009

This morning our President hyped the slowing job loss numbers and expressed confidence that the Porkulous will create 600,000 jobs this summer, and the stock market recently has shown some signs of a little improvement. However, it’s important to know where we’ve been, are, and may be headed – to understand the market as well [...]

Breaking: Supreme Court temporarily blocks sale of Chrysler to Fiat

by Rossputin | 2:41 pm, June 8, 2009

In a bit of what may be short-lived excellent news, Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who has jurisdiction over matters that come from the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in New York has put a stay on the sale of Chrysler (or more precisely many of Chrysler’s assets) to Italian car maker Fiat.

The sale has been challenged by several Indiana pension funds which claim irreparable harm will be done if the sale is allowed. The Obama Administration had essentially argued that the greater harm will come from blocking the sale, (even temporarily because it could allow Fiat to back out of the deal) because the other option is essentially liquidation of Chrysler.

The Indiana pension funds lost at the Second Circuit last week, but the Second Circuit put a hold on the deal’s closing until this afternoon to give the Supreme Court a chance to decide if it wanted to delve further into the issue.

While this has the potential to be very good news, i.e. the highest court in the nation standing up against the Obama Administration forcing a bad deal down the throat of private investors (including reported threats against those investors), it also would not surprise me to see Justice Ginsburg lift her own order within 24-48 hours, possibly much sooner, particularly if she doesn’t get a sense that many of the other Justices want to weigh in and would rather not take this on by herself (which it seems clear she could to some degree).

A decent summary of the situation can be found at the Legal Times blog.

And another interesting take over at Reason.

Are You a Conservative or a Liberal?

by Ari Armstrong | 12:32 pm, June 8, 2009

The following article originally was published June 8, 2009, by Grand Junction’s Free Press.

The recent Tea Party in Grand Junction arose in response to increasing government intervention in the economy. It was a spirited event, attended by old friends and people from all social and economic backgrounds.

The Western Slope Conservative Alliance held a follow-up rally, where the word “conservative” echoed through nearly every sentence. Unfortunately, nobody seemed to use the term with a common meaning.

What does it mean to be a conservative? Many of the same conservatives who claim to support free markets and liberty also endorse economic protectionism, censorship, welfare spending, corporate welfare, immigration restrictions, prohibitions of various substances and activities that violate nobody’s rights, abortion bans, and so on.

Liberalism, one might think, has something to do with liberty. Yet today’s liberals endorse political economic planning on a vast scale. They typically want to forcibly redistribute more wealth, impose controls on private property, and impose more “enlightened” forms of censorship.

Many of today’s conservatives and liberals find common cause in the belief that politicians should largely control your life.

Economist and freedom fighter F. A. von Hayek said, “Conservatism, though a necessary element in any stable society, is not a social program; in its paternalistic, nationalistic, and power-adoring tendencies it is often closer to socialism than true liberalism…”

Russian immigrant Ayn Rand, known for her strong anti-socialist, anti- communist views, wondered, “What are the ‘conservatives’? What is it that they are seeking to ‘conserve’?” She wrote, “If the ‘conservatives’ do not stand for capitalism, they stand for and are nothing; they have no goal, no direction, no political principles, no social ideals, no intellectual values, no leadership to offer anyone.”

Yet smug liberals who mock “backward” conservatives have more than a thing or two to learn themselves. They could begin by reviewing Thomas Paine’s discussions with Edmund Burke regarding the French Revolution, mob law, and the rule of the masses.

Self-proclaimed liberals might also review Thomas Jefferson’s Virginia Statute for Religious Freedom, with its emphasis on natural rights, free speech, and freedom of religion.

Hayek was as critical of liberals as he was of conservatives, writing that “‘liberal’ has come to mean the advocacy of almost every kind of government control. I am still puzzled why those in the United States who truly believe in liberty should not only have allowed the left to appropriate this almost indispensable term but should have assisted by beginning to use it themselves as a term of opprobrium.”

Rand was yet more severe: “The majority of those who are loosely identified by the term ‘liberals’ are afraid to let themselves discover that what they advocate is statism. They do not want to accept the full meaning of their goal; they want to keep all the advantages and effects of capitalism, while destroying the cause, and they want to establish statism without its necessary effects. They do not want to know or to admit that they are the champions of dictatorship and slavery.”

Rand also wrote, “The basic and crucial political issue of our age is: capitalism versus socialism, or freedom versus statism. For decades, this issue has been silenced, suppressed, evaded, and hidden under the foggy, undefined rubber-terms of ‘conservatism’ and ‘liberalism’ which had lost their original meaning and could be stretched to mean all things to all men.”

Or, as a local friend (Roger) summarized, “If we cannot succinctly and accurately define what distinguishes a conservative from a liberal, the label is meaningless.”

If you call yourself a conservative, what is it that you are trying to conserve? The massive welfare state built up in the 20th Century? A religious conception of law? The tradition of encroaching political power?

Or if you fancy yourself a liberal, are you trying to liberate bureaucrats to oversee our lives?

We suggest that conservatives busy themselves with conserving the founding principles of our nation, the ideals of life, liberty, property, and the pursuit of happiness free from political interference.

Likewise, liberals should liberate people to run their own lives and control their own resources, according to their own judgment, free from political controls.

In either case, the proper purpose of government may be summarized as the protection of individual rights, which in the economic sphere means the establishment of capitalism.

We appreciate the perspective of economist George Reisman, who argues, “To the extent that present conditions departed from [capitalism, its defenders] would be radicals in seeking to change present conditions. To the extent that conditions in the past had approximated laissez-faire capitalism, they would be reactionary in seeking to reestablish such conditions. To the extent that present conditions were consistent with laissez-faire capitalism, they would be conservative in seeking to preserve those conditions.”

We really don’t care whether you call yourself conservative or liberal. What we care about is whether you defend or undermine individual rights.

Sam Adams Alliance Awards Videos

by Ari Armstrong | 12:15 pm, June 8, 2009

I went to Chicago on April 18 to pick up an award from the Sam Adams Alliance. My speech is transcribed elsewhere.

I strongly encourage other liberty-oriented activists in Colorado (and around the nation) to check out the Sam Adams Alliance web page and think about entering the contest next year.

Now the Sam Adams Alliance has released a short YouTube video with highlights of the event.

The video of my speech, and the introduction by Paul Jacob, is also available:

The organization’s YouTube page offers more videos of the event.

Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier On 9NEWS’ “Your Show”

by elpresidente | 11:14 am, June 8, 2009

Aurora City Councilman Ryan Frazier answered viewers’ questions on 9NEWS’ “Your Show” this past Sunday.

Frazier’s GOP primary opponent Ken Buck appeared on the show in May.

The “Strength” of Humility

by TJ Wihera | 10:36 am, June 8, 2009

According to Fox News: The United States may have to offer some form of “good will gesture” to secure the release of the two American journalists sentenced to prison Monday in North Korea, sources said, despite the State Department’s tough talk over the weekend. With the anniversary of D-Day still fresh in our minds, it [...]

The ATF Party’s Special Guest?

by Jon Caldara | 10:30 am, June 8, 2009

Just in case you were wondering what would happen if Obama showed up to our 7th Annual Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Party coming up next Saturday, the 20th.

If you don’t have your tickets yet, pick up the phone right now and call us @ 303.279.6536 or sign up online here. This event sells out [...]

Doing nothing would have been better than “stimulus”

by Mr. Bob | 9:34 am, June 8, 2009

#tcot #stimulus #tax #
Remember the mantra, repeated over an over until the media and half the country believed it? We MUST DO SOMETHING! Turns out that doing nothing would have helped the economy better than the something they did. Click here to read about why This is now OBAMA’s RECESSION (click on link for full size graph

Learning from Bill Ritter’s Four Mistakes (so far) in the Senate Bill 180 Veto

by Ben DeGrow | 8:30 am, June 8, 2009

I asked before if Bill Ritter called the bluff of Big Labor with his veto of Senate Bill 180. If we’re to judge by last Friday’s union-organized rally, then Ritter made a mistake. To see what I mean, take a step over to Face The State’s slideshow, and see signs like “Why does Ritter hate [...]

Weather weirdness, Colorado

by Mr. Bob | 8:17 am, June 8, 2009

#redco

I heard the tornado warnings out east of Denver yesterday but we saw NONE of it in Arvada, not even really any rain! Sounds like it may happen again today. Batten down the hatches.

I have to laugh when they say in the warnings if you live in a trailer, find the lowest spot in the nearest field, lie down and cover your head. They leave out the last part…and kiss your arse goodbye but I digress.

For someone who like to ride his bike at least partway to work, this morning was COOOOOLD…where is the global warming?

Pictures of tornadoes from yesterday here, here, here , here and here.

Some real history of “green jobs”

by Rossputin | 1:19 am, June 8, 2009

In a June 1st editorial entitled “Foreclosures: No End in Sight”, the New York Times correctly suggests that robust job creation and economic growth is likely to be the only real solution for the “relentless rise in foreclosures.”

However, their prescription to create that growth is replete with errors and economic fallacies. The Times says:

President Obama needs to put more effort and political capital into promoting the middle-class agenda that he outlined during the campaign, including a push for new jobs in new industries, expanded union membership and a fairer distribution of profits among shareholders, executives and employees.

Many people will readily understand why a push for expanded union membership may not be conducive to economic growth (with GM the poster child for that discussion) as well as why a “fairer distribution of profits” – to be determined by politicians – is anathema to a functioning capitalist system.

A more subtle argument, however, is the idea of “jobs in new industries”, a plan likely to be as destructive in practice as it is seductive in rhetoric, if history is any guide.

The only “new industries” which President Obama speaks about with any frequency relate to renewable energy, with his calls for “green jobs”. However, a study from Rey Juan Carlos University in Madrid, “the very first…critical analysis of the actual performance and impact…of the Spanish/EU-style ‘green jobs’ agenda”, shows that we can expect President Obama’s focus to substantially raise unemployment at great cost to taxpayers.

Some of the key findings of the study:

• “For every renewable energy job that the State manages to finance, Spain’s experience cited by President Obama as a model reveals with high confidence, by two different methods, that the U.S. should expect a loss of at least 2.2 jobs on average, or about 9 jobs lost for every 4 created, to which we have to add those jobs that non-subsidized investments with the same resources would have created.” Therefore, the US should expect to lose up to 11 million jobs in President Obama’s quest to create 5 million “green jobs”.

• “Since 2000 Spain spent (over $800,000) to create each ‘green job’, including subsidies of more than $1.4 million per wind industry job.”

• “Each “green” megawatt installed destroys 5.28 jobs on average elsewhere in the economy: 8.99 by photovoltaics, 4.27 by wind energy, 5.05 by mini-hydro. These costs do not appear to be unique to Spain’s approach but instead are largely inherent in schemes to promote renewable energy sources.”

• Despite “creating a surprisingly low number of jobs”, 90% of those jobs were essentially temporary, i.e. in construction and marketing, “and just one out of ten jobs has been created at (a) more permanent level.”

• Renewables consume enormous taxpayer resources. In Spain, the average annuity payable to renewables is equivalent to 4.35% of all VAT (national sales tax) collected, 3.45% of the household income tax, or 5.6% of the corporate income tax for 2007.

The New York Times does recognize the importance of economic growth in solving our nation’s housing woes, but then lapses into an economic prescription much more likely to kill the patient than to cure it.

Reader input requested

by Rossputin | 1:08 am, June 8, 2009

Dear reader of Rossputin.com,

As I think more about how I might further my (mostly unpaid) foray into the world of news, opinion, and media, a close friend has suggested that if I ever want to get serious about it as a potential career or at least more serious sideline, I need to understand what value I might bring to a larger publication or media outlet, what I might do differently or better than most others which would make me an interesting fit, i.e. for a syndicated column, in a market that’s full of people who want to do the same thing.

Therefore, I’m asking you to offer me your honest opinion about what you like and don’t like about my writing on these pages or other places where you may have seen it.

You can offer comments either with your name or anonymously in the comment section of this blog note, or you can e-mail me directly at rossputin(at)rossputin(dot)com.

Although everybody loves compliments and I’m happy to receive them, I would appreciate not just your telling me what you think I do well or what makes you keep reading these pages, but also what you think I could do better or where you think I have a weakness, particularly if it’s a weakness that you see as relatively persistent.

Thank you in advance for any time you spend responding to me.

The Real Hollywood Ten

by The Constitutional Reporter | 11:15 pm, June 7, 2009

by Kirk Barbera, staff writer for The Constitutional ReporterThe Hollywood Ten were humanitarian heroes. They were ten individuals, who were fired for holding certain beliefs, beliefs which just happened to be communist. These individuals were fired fr…

Sheeple Watch #20: Mon Dieu

by T.L. James | 9:38 pm, June 7, 2009

Just when it seemed like the French were coming to their senses, The Obamessiah graces Paris with a visit and another date night  and they get all swoony before His holy radiance: President Barack Obama, wife Michelle and their two daughters touched lives in simple ways during a private stay in the French capital that [...]

Denver’s KBDI PBS Affiliate Smiles on 9/11 Truth Movement, Shames Self

by T.L. James | 11:48 pm, June 6, 2009

Denver PBS affiliate KBDI is being hailed by left-wing media website Media Channel for this week being the first broadcast channel in the U.S. to air 9/11: Press for Truth, a documentary covering efforts by the Jersey Girls and others to uncover the Troof™ about the September 11 terrorist attacks: Following the attacks of September 11th, a [...]

Seng Center 6/6 – Featuring Dan Maes, Republican candidate for Colorado Governor

by Jimmy Sengenberger | 8:00 pm, June 6, 2009

The following is our June 6th edition of Seng Center, featuring our exclusive interview with Dan Maes, Republican candidate for Governor of Colorado,
preceded by
our special commemoration of the 65th anniversary of D-Day, featuring
the words of President Ronald Reagan.  We dedicate this show fully to
those who served this country with honor and dignity and gave their
lives so that our freedom may be preserved.

For more information on “Friends of Dan Maes,” the campaign for Dan Maes for Governor, visit him online at www.DanMaes.com.

43.6 MB Download

Comments are more than welcome!  E-mail Jimmy at Jimmy@SengCenter.com
or post on the site!  As always, please be respectful in your remarks.

Bill Ritter’s campaign latest to engage in astroturfing

by RMR | 3:22 pm, June 6, 2009

Proving that hatred of sock-puppetry and astroturfing is a truly bipartisan issue, left-leaning blog Steam Powered Opinions today called out Bill Ritter’s camapign for a clumsy attempt at astroturfing:

I wake up this morning to find 4 comments on my post "More Bumbling From Ritter" waiting for my approval. 4 comments is a lot for any post of mine on my personal blog so that seemed a bit suspicious. Each comment was from an "Anonymous" account and each comment was in support of Ritter’s veto. I check my site stats just now and there are 14 visits yesterday that arrived at my blog via a direct link from a GoogleDoc. I dig a little deeper and I have 35 visits to my site between June 4th and June 5th, some directly from the GoogleDoc link and others just coming straight here, from IP addresses registered to… The Kenney Group. This the outfit that led the Ritter’s severance tax measure to a crushing defeat last fall and who’s sole named partner is currently managing Ritter’s re-elect campaign.

Read the full post at Steam Powered Opinions. Ritter’s campaign may be even more desperate than anyone thought if the Kenney Group is screwing around spending their time on things like this.

D-Day 65th Anniversary

by elpresidente | 12:07 pm, June 6, 2009

BlackFive has an enormous D-Day blogburst roundup, with tons of great links.

Ben DeGrow has excerpts from General Dwight D. Eisenhower’s D-Day charge and President Ronald Reagan’s 40th anniversary commemoration.

President Barack Obama noted the passing of one Normandy veteran on the eve of the 65th anniversary of D-Day (h/t Mary):

Obama saluted the contributions of individual veterans of the Normandy landings, including one veteran, Jim Norene, who fought as a member of the 101st Airborne Division.

“Last night, after visiting this cemetery for one last time, he passed away in his sleep,” the president said. “Jim was gravely ill when he left his home, and he knew that he might not return. But just as he did 65 years ago, he came anyway. May he now rest in peace with the boys he once bled with, and may his family always find solace in the heroism he showed here.

Hot Air commemorates the soldiers:

Usually we celebrate the great leaders when we reflect on World War II, but the anniversary of D-Day is a day to reflect on the heroes who clawed their way onto and off of the beaches in the face of withering fire, overwhelmed a truly evil regime, and set the stage for its destruction.

The Denver Post profiles an Army Diver and D-Day veteran.

Moving Minutes: The Aviator

by Joss Armstrong | 8:46 am, June 6, 2009

In this scene from Martin Scorsese’s “The Aviator,” the mentality of inheritors and the mentality of earners clash at the dinner table of a New England estate. The Hepburns—supporters of Roosevelt’s expansionist policies—reveal the aristocratic socialism that is sometimes promoted by those comfortably born into money. Although he was himself born into wealth, the entrepreneur [...]

D-Day Plus 65 Years

by Ben DeGrow | 6:55 am, June 6, 2009

Last night I watched again the opening scenes of Saving Private Ryan. It’s hard to put such moving sacrifice into perspective, on this the 65th anniversary of the D-Day invasion to begin the liberation of Europe. But I leave you with portions of two relevant addresses — one contemporaneous and one retrospective. First, from General [...]

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