re-make or rescue the GOP? Michael at Best Destiny has some great thoughts

by Mr. Bob | 11:26 am, July 15, 2009

#tcot #redco #conservative #stimulus
Conservative Politicians would do well to read the article below. The blogger expresses the frustration with most people on the right, it explains the lack of voter turnout among conservative Christians during the last election, in spite of the bone thrown to us in the form of Palin, and it explains why Republicans will continue to lose if they can’t show real smart leadership and an ability to cut through the media so hell bent against them.

“The Left is overreaching in breathtaking fashion; the Right is incompetent. The case needs to be made for a smarter approach to running the country, and I would welcome it from within the GOP.

But I’m open to it from without.” READ IT ALL at Best Destiny

On Amy Oliver Show at 10:00 AM: Teachers Unions and Ed Reform Politics

by Ben DeGrow | 8:02 am, July 15, 2009

For those who are interested and have the time to kill, I will be appearing as a guest at 10:00 this morning (Wednesday, July 15) on News Talk 1310 KFKA’s Amy Oliver Show. The topic will be the shifting politics surrounding national teachers unions — as explained in somewhat greater length in this recent blog [...]

ObamaCare: Massive socialist overreach

by Rossputin | 6:21 am, July 15, 2009

While I certainly don’t overestimate the intelligence of the average politician (something rather easy to do), I generally give them credit, especially at the leadership level, for being clever. And when they do something that seems nonsensical, it usually makes sense to sit back and carefully consider the real motivation, particularly in two areas: 1) Who benefits financially (looking for contributors to politicians who are likely to benefit) and 2) how the measure is likely to increase the power of its supporters.

And with such analysis, if you’re patient and open-minded, you can often find an explanation for what otherwise might seem to be a poorly-conceived bill or policy. For example, while the Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill is a fiasco and unlikely to pass the Senate, there’s no doubt that the measure would immensely increase the power of government over the economy, generally something which benefits Democrats, thus explaining why it was proposed and why it passed.

But with Tuesday’s announcement by the House leadership of their 1018-page health care plan (text of bill here), I can honestly say that Pelosi and friends have been truly stupid.

The bill has zero chance of passing the Senate but an extremely high chance of showing to the few people in America still so smitten with President Obama that they haven’t noticed what he’s doing to the country that the Democrats are dangerous socialist liars. This bill will hammer Democrats’ approval ratings more than anything since the last election and will have Democrats on their heels for months…maybe even all the way until the next election. The Democratic leadership in the Senate is probably secretly furious.

Let’s go over some of the highlights of this bill compiled from a few sources, including the AP, the San Jose Mercury News, and The American Spectator.

• Imposes income surtaxes as follows: An additional 1% for individuals making over $280,000 or families making over $350,000. 1.5% for family incomes over $500,000 (individuals over $400,000). And an astonishing 5.4% for family incomes over $1,000,000 (individuals earning over $800,000).
• If (when) the government does not find that “Federal health reform savings” have saved at least $150 billion per year by the end of 2012, the first two surtaxes increase to 2% for families making over $350,000 and 3% for families making over $500,000.
• Creates a “tax on individuals without acceptable health care coverage” (Yes, they will decide what is “acceptable”) of 2.5% of income in excess of the filer’s exemptions (essentially $3,300 for a spouse and for each dependent).
• Penalizes employers “8 percent of the average wages paid by the employer” during the relevant time period if the employer does not offer acceptable coverage, with an exemption for companies with annual payroll under $250,000, going up by 2% increments every $50,000 of payroll to reaching 8% at $400,000.
• Subsidizes families with income up to 400% of the Federal Poverty Level, i.e. up to $88,000 of income for a family of four.
• Offers these subsidies to many or most non-citizen legal immigrants
• Create an Advisory Committee of people who have expertise in health care, whether as providers, market analysts, administrators, educators, etc., but which must include at least one representative of a union. Yes, that’s right.
• Is reported as being expected to cost $1 trillion over 10 years, but that cost substantially understates the cost of the bill because spending doesn’t ramp up until 2012. According to the CBO’s initial analysis (text here), the cost in 2019 is expected to be over $200 billion net of penalties assessed against employers, with an average subsidy of $6,000 per subsidized enrollee. Yes, an AVERAGE $6,000 subsidy.

Nobody will be able to say with a straight face that the Democratic leadership is not socialist. And while people generally like a free lunch, this travesty of a bill is anything but tasty and anything but free. It will simply add to our nation’s impending healthcare cost bankruptcy from out-of-control Medicare. Beyond that, however, this nation is not a nation of beggar-thy-neighbor supporters or class warriors, even among Democrats (outside the Beltway, that is).

Prior to today’s news, support for this plan was polling poorly, with Rasmussen showing 49% of voters “now at least somewhat” opposed and 46% somewhat in favor. That 3 percent difference with opposition ahead of support represents an 8 percent shift in opinion against the bill in two weeks.

And while a new USA Today/Gallup poll shows that people still favor some health care reform bill passing this year, “52% choose controlling costs as more important; 42% cite expanding coverage.” Of course, USA Today doesn’t mention that part of the poll result until the very last sentence of their article.

Don’t forget, HillaryCare polled well before the details began to become known to the public. Then it didn’t even get a vote in the Senate. That’s fairly likely to happen again. If politicians want to pass a massive tax-and-spend measure that will likely destroy our health care system, they probably need to have extremely high support for their measure at the outset because it can only decline over time.

As if the obvious parts of the bill weren’t bad enough, Philip Klein points out that it “would add hundreds of billions of dollars of spending to state budgets” – “a bankrupting increase”, according to Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN).

When I say that the Democratic bill is stupid, I’m not implying that you can’t do the analysis as I described at the beginning of this note. Follow the money and the power. And in this case, they go to the same place: Unions.

This bill, as well as the Senate’s likely version, is even a bigger gift to unions than was the bailout of General Motors. First, if the government is involved in health care and the Democrats are running government, they will try to unionize as much of the industry as possible. They will offer benefits to union members and exclude them from costs (such as the Senate bill’s likely attempt to carve unions out of a requirement to have to pay taxes on “gold-plated” health insurance plans). You can see the beginnings in the House bill as well: In the last few pages of the bill is a measure which requires the Secretary of Labor to offer grants for providing education to nurses, but only if the entity that provides the education “is jointly administered by a health care employer and a labor union representing the employees…”

And, most importantly, consider this: The vast majority of the $20 billion going to the United Auto Workers in the GM “reorganization” (i.e. the screwing of the bondholders by Barack Obama) is needed to be spent on retiree health care costs. If socialized medicine becomes the law of the land, the UAW will suddenly have a slush fund of the better part of $20 billion. That can buy a LOT of elections – and you can rest assured that none of those purchases will be to the benefit of Republicans.

How unions would benefit from fair tax treatment of insurance

by Brian Schwartz | 1:30 am, July 15, 2009

From an op-ed in the Washington Post:
With union membership shrinking and wages strained, it might sound crazy to argue that labor should voluntarily give up a huge fringe benefit: tax-free health insurance provided by employers. But it should. In the long run, capping the amount of health insurance that employers can provide tax-free would raise [...]

Clear The Bench Colorado Director Matt Arnold appearing on Pirate Radio (104.7FM, Greeley) Wednesday 15 July

by CTBC Director | 9:27 pm, July 14, 2009

Clear The Bench Colorado Director Matt Arnold is appearing on Pirate Radio (104.7 FM, Greeley) Wednesday July 15th from 11-12AM.  Pirate Radio was recently profiled in a Denver Post feature article (”Good times for old-time radio“) for its independent ownership, innovative/retro format (”a formula of old-time radio schtick along with playlists of the top 100 songs [...]

Walker Stapleton: Record Quarter for Non-Incumbent Treasurer Candidate

by Ben DeGrow | 5:34 pm, July 14, 2009

Rocky Mountain Right reports that GOP state treasurer candidate Walker Stapleton made a very impressive showing during his first quarter of fundraising:

Setting a record fundraising quarter for a non-incumbent candidate for State Treasurer, Republican businessman Walker Stapleton raised $138,211 – with two-thirds of donors being Colorado residents. The three-month effort leaves the Stapleton campaign [...]

Initiative to Protect Secret Ballot Reminder of Michael Bennet’s Hall-of-Fame Indecision

by Ben DeGrow | 4:00 pm, July 14, 2009

In case you need a reminder of how much Big Labor bosses hate the secret ballot, Face The State brings a story today about a simple, newly proposed 2010 initiative and the union legal challenge facing it:

Unions have challenged the language of a ballot initiative that would amend the Colorado Constitution to guarantee employees’ right [...]

Three Days Left for You to Chime in on Colorado’s Political Temperature

by Ben DeGrow | 6:49 am, July 14, 2009

Last week I introduced readers to a one-of-a-kind, in-depth survey of Colorado’s political temperature co-created by El Presidente and myself. The response so far has been great, with hundreds registering their opinions on key national and state issues, as well as candidates for national and state office. Everybody else is doing it … why not [...]

Coloradans getting stimulus money doesn’t add up

by Amy Oliver | 6:41 am, July 14, 2009

COST loves summer!  We don’t have to track bills at the state capitol or remind legislators about how they are voting for special interests over taxpayers.  Summer gives us time to do fun things like poke around Governor Bill Ritter’s status report on our “stimulus” dollars, a.k.a. your hard-earned tax dollars — more like your children and [...]

Why I’m Boycotting Wal-Mart

by Ari Armstrong | 2:09 am, July 14, 2009

I doubt Wal-Mart notices, but I’m boycotting Wal-Mart because Wal-Mart endorses political control of health care. Forcing people to buy politically-controlled products against their will is a basic violation of individual rights. So long as Wal-Mart endorses this gross violation of rights, I’m certainly not going to contribute any money to the chain to help them do it. I complained to Wal-Mart, and the reply I got back from the store only turned my irritation to outrage. Here is the reply:

Dear Ari,

My name is Ruel. I am with the Walmart.com Customer Service Team. Thank you for allowing me to assist you today.

We appreciate your interest in Wal-Mart’s views on the efforts in Congress to craft and pass legislation for Healthcare Reform. At Wal-Mart, we believe in a shared responsibility and support an employer mandate that is broad and fair for all parties involved. We believe this mandate should cover as many businesses as possible, part-time as well as full time employees.

We believe that a mandate must also be accompanied by strong provisions that will reduce health cost and improve the value we get for our health care dollar. Any mandate should guarantee savings for the federal government and for employers who provide health insurance.

Wal-Mart is committed to helping people save money so they can live better and will offer our support to any initiative that will improve the quality of life for our employees and patrons. Wal-Mart will remain consistent by continuing to implement our core beliefs; respect for the individual, service to our customers and striving for excellence.

We apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced.

Thank you for visiting Walmart.com. We appreciate the opportunity to serve you and look forward to your next visit.

Sincerely,

Ruel
Customer Service at Walmart.com

For a more honest evaluation of Wal-Mart’s motives, see the critique at FIRM.

May Wal-Mart be damned for selling out American rights and values.

Shikha Dalmia: Obama’s Top Five Health Care Lies

by Rossputin | 1:39 am, July 14, 2009

Shikha Dalmia’s article about “Obama’s Top Five Health Care Lies” is an excellent summary of why people should be extremely afraid of further government involvement, much less outright government control, of our nation’s health care system:

http://www.forbes.com/2009/06/30/obama-health-care-reform-opinions-columnists-public-option-medicare_print.html

Reduce drug prices by reducing FDA’s authority

by Brian Schwartz | 1:30 am, July 14, 2009

David R. Henderson and Charles L. Hooper have an excellent column in Forbes. An excerpt:
Do you need a government agency to tell you which TV has a vivid picture? Do you need a government agency to tell you which car is reliable? How about which coffee tastes yummy or which MP3 player is attractive and [...]

Josh Penry Hits the Stump: A Promising GOP Candidate for Governor Emerges

by Ben DeGrow | 10:43 pm, July 13, 2009

Earlier this evening I got the opportunity briefly to attend a Josh Penry for Governor meet-and-greet session in Broomfield. The campaign is just out of the gate, and the Grand Junction native is busily plowing his way around Colorado. No doubt he’s been on a hectic schedule, but Penry demonstrated a good stump speech delivery, [...]

Steven Crowder’s Canadian Field Trip Highlights Obama Care Problems

by Ben DeGrow | 10:19 pm, July 13, 2009

So you like the idea of Obama Care? You want to go in the direction of the Canadian health care system? Follow the creative and energetic Steven Crowder into the waiting rooms of Quebec clinics and doctors offices, and take a reality check. If you have 20 minutes to spare and you aren’t convinced about [...]

More Pro-Capitalist Propaganda from the Archives

by T.L. James | 10:01 pm, July 13, 2009

A fine little cartoon from the Prelinger Collection at the Internet Archive: Make Mine Freedom (1948) Watch as the silver-tongued snake-oil salesman for “ISM” (and you know which “-ism” he’s talking about) makes his sales pitch to a bunch of squabbling citizens, and then is taken to task over the “fine print” in his bargain [...]

Forty-Nine Reasons to Vote Ritter Out

by Ari Armstrong | 5:35 pm, July 13, 2009

On May 30, 2008, my vehicle registration cost $37.17. On July 13, 2009, my vehicle registration cost $86.48.

That’s about a $49 difference. For me, that’s forty-nine reasons to vote Bill Ritter out of office. State politicians are doing everything they can to squeeze residents at the exact time when many residents are suffering from the recession (my wife took a ten percent pay cut, for example).

And I drive a cheap clunker; most people will find that they have many more reasons to vote against Ritter.

I also had to pay $30 to the City and County of Denver for expired tags, but obviously I won’t hold that against Ritter. (My only satisfaction in the matter was writing “Legalized Theft” in the “For” line of the check.) The reason my tags expired is that the DMV sent my notification form to my old address, so obviously I never got it. (My wife thinks we sent in change of address forms.) I didn’t notice that the month tag was out of date, but the meter maid sure noticed. Because, you know, it’s not enough that I pay taxes to pave Denver’s roads or feed quarters into Denver’s meters.

I should note that the registration fee seems to have covered an extra two months to cover the expiration, but still, that’s a hefty “fee” increase.

Tomorrow I have to take my wife’s car in for the same reason, and then I suspect I’ll have about another hundred reasons to hate Ritter and his Democratic party. [Update: to my pleasant surprise, the tax on our second car actually went down substantially, apparently because the car hit its tenth year.]

Of course, my whole plan of helping to vote Ritter out of office depends upon Republicans running a candidate who’s not even worse than Ritter, which was the problem last time around.

The Truth About Canadian Single Payer Universal Health Care – FIRST HAND!

by Mr. Bob | 4:35 pm, July 13, 2009

#tcot #healthcare #ppc #socialism

Crowder does a great job and gave the Canadian system a fighting chance to show its true colors…and it did.

Grasp of basic economics not seen in this administration

by Mr. Bob | 3:25 pm, July 13, 2009

#tcot #taxes #florida #tobacco

Just one of soon to be many victims of the Obama tax increases;

experpted from GrantsRants

Hav-A-Tampa Cigar Company(located in the Tampa neighborhood known as Ybor City) announced it has no other choice but to close its factory leaving its 500 workers unemployed, all due to the 700% tax increase levied with the passage of the S-CHIP legislation.

Now before all you non-smokers smirk and and celebrate, let me paraphrase Martin Niemöller:

“When they came for the tobacco users, I remained silent, because I don’t smoke.”

Once the tobacco industry has been wiped out in this country, what makes you think for a moment Obama and his bunch of grinning idiots won’t go after a hefty tax on soft drinks, candy bars, beer, wine, ice cream and snack foods? After all, these are all ”weapons of ass destruction” in the war on obesity are they not?

If a business has to raise the federal tax on its product by 700%, customers will simply give up the product. In the case of Hav-A-Tampa cigars, these were cigars for the average working man: high quality and, most important, affordable to those on a tight budget. But no more. Most of their customers will simply have to stop smoking cigars. That’s exactly what’s happening now, and the parent company of Hav-A-Tampa, J.C. Newman, has done the math. They’re finished in Tampa. Not because of the prolonged recession. They made it through 2 World Wars and a depression. But they can’t survive the Obama administration. So they will re-locate their cigar production, out of necessity, to an off-shore location where lower wages will help make up the difference, leaving 500 more skilled workers unemployed in Tampa. READ The Audacity of Dopes

Wheatridge High – Man dumps camper sewage down storm drain

by Mr. Bob | 2:07 pm, July 13, 2009

#redco #colorado
hat tip to Complete Colorado
This is one of those stories that makes you angry that someone is this stupid and/or uncaring about the community.

Do you know this man, or this camper? Anyone with information regarding the identity of the man pictured in the photo is asked to contact the Wheat Ridge Police Department at 303-237-2220.

Wheat Ridge residents were angered to learn Wednesday that a man drove his camper pickup into the high school parking lot and dumped raw sewage down the storm drain.That drain emptied into a retention pond just a few feet away from the school’s soccer fields.

Ironically, he could have dumped his sewage a few blocks down 44th Ave for $10. When/if he is caught, this could end up costing him over a 1/4 million dollars. FULL STORY AND VIDEO HERE

Deficit over 1 Trillion 9 months into fiscal year

by Mr. Bob | 1:53 pm, July 13, 2009

Polling Colorado: Taking Colorado’s Political Temperature July 2009

by elpresidente | 1:52 pm, July 13, 2009

Do you think that Colorado’s Supreme Court is, on balance, too partisan?

Are TEA Parties an effective method of voicing opinions on the size of government and taxation?

Is Health Care reform, also known as “single payer” program, on balance a good idea?

Do you dislike party labels?

How about the primary race for Colorado Governor? Are you amazed by Maes? Should Ritter move over for McInnis? Or is Penry your pick?

Same for US Senate–Is Wiens a winner? Are you a Frazier fanatic? Team Tidwell? Backing Buck?

Let us know–Help Reveal Colorado’s Political Temperature!

It’s the middle of the summer. The limelight surrounding Colorado politics is hazy. Blogs like this one experience a yawn in their already modest traffic. It’s time for something new to talk about. And if you can’t report the news or comment the news, it’s time to make a little news. And time to take the online temperature of Colorado political activists about the leading issues and candidates of the day — in our state and nationwide.

Ben DeGrow and I have commissioned and fashioned a survey that we hope you will take 10 minutes or so to complete — especially if you’re from Colorado. We didn’t want to make another run-of-the-mill quick-hit poll. We want to take it a little more in-depth.

Click here to take the July 2009 Colorado online political survey

Your opinion counts. Take a few moments to make it happen. Not only show your support for candidates, but also let us know where you stand on key issues and give us some honest prognostication about the 2010 elections. The survey won’t be there forever, only until next Friday, July 17, 5 PM local Mountain time . . . Thanks for participating! We’ll get back to you with the results soon. Stay tuned.

Original press release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2009

Time to Take Colorado’s Political Temperature
Right-Leaning Bloggers Want to Know Where YOU Stand!

Two of Colorado’s most established and respected conservative voices in the political blogosphere invite the state’s political observers and activists to share their opinions in an online survey to shed light on current state and national issues, candidates, and trends. The survey takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete.

The survey is available online at:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=0Y5MO2_2bj08iRwT0VIGbMQg_3d_3d

“This isn’t your run-of-the-mill, quick-click, random straw poll. We have created a user-friendly survey that goes a little more in-depth,” said Michael Sandoval, also known as El Presidente, of the blog Slapstick Politics (http://slapstickpolitics.blogspot.com). “With enough people adding their two cents, we may gain some useful insights into the state of play for some major races heading into 2010.”

Recipients are invited not only to take the survey, but also to pass it on to anyone they know who might appreciate the opportunity. Only one vote per computer or unique IP will be allowed to help ensure accuracy.

“We hope to hear from as many Coloradans as possible who pay attention to the political scene—the movers and shakers at all levels, anyone who has opinions and insights and cares about the future of our great state and country,” said Ben DeGrow of the blog Mount Virtus (http://bendegrow.com). “Besides, some kind of fresh online news has to break us out of these summer doldrums and give us a little hope.”

The survey will be open until Friday, July 17, 5 PM local time. The survey is not affiliated with any political candidate, political party organization, or any third-party entity.

Sandoval and DeGrow are both members of the Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0 (http://rma2.blogspot.com) and the People’s Press Collective (http://peoplespresscollective.org), informal networks of Right-leaning, pro-liberty new media activists in Colorado. Poll editing graciously provided by Mary Ila MacFarlane.

Contact:
Michael Sandoval, tabascoii-at-gmail.com
Ben DeGrow, bendegrow-at-gmail.com

Josh Penry Off to Great Start as Bill Ritter Kicks Door of Opportunity Open

by Ben DeGrow | 8:04 am, July 13, 2009

The big local political news for the weekend, of course, was the worst-kept secret: Republican Josh Penry officially threw his hat into the ring to run for governor in 2010. By all honest admissions, Penry’s entry into the race has been well-executed and well-timed.
First glimpses on the campaign trail indicate the strong delivery of [...]

Taking Colorado’s Political Temperature–July 2009

by elpresidente | 8:00 am, July 13, 2009

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 9, 2009

Time to Take Colorado’s Political Temperature
Right-Leaning Bloggers Want to Know Where YOU Stand!

Two of Colorado’s most established and respected conservative voices in the political blogosphere invite the state’s political observers and activists to share their opinions in an online survey to shed light on current state and national issues, candidates, and trends. The survey takes about 10 to 15 minutes to complete.

The survey is available online at:
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=0Y5MO2_2bj08iRwT0VIGbMQg_3d_3d

“This isn’t your run-of-the-mill, quick-click, random straw poll. We have created a user-friendly survey that goes a little more in-depth,” said Michael Sandoval, also known as El Presidente, of the blog Slapstick Politics (http://slapstickpolitics.blogspot.com). “With enough people adding their two cents, we may gain some useful insights into the state of play for some major races heading into 2010.”

Recipients are invited not only to take the survey, but also to pass it on to anyone they know who might appreciate the opportunity. Only one vote per computer or unique IP will be allowed to help ensure accuracy.

“We hope to hear from as many Coloradans as possible who pay attention to the political scene—the movers and shakers at all levels, anyone who has opinions and insights and cares about the future of our great state and country,” said Ben DeGrow of the blog Mount Virtus (http://bendegrow.com). “Besides, some kind of fresh online news has to break us out of these summer doldrums and give us a little hope.”

The survey will be open until Friday, July 17, 5 PM local time. The survey is not affiliated with any political candidate, political party organization, or any third-party entity.

Sandoval and DeGrow are both members of the Rocky Mountain Alliance 2.0 (http://rma2.blogspot.com) and the People’s Press Collective (http://peoplespresscollective.org), informal networks of Right-leaning, pro-liberty new media activists in Colorado. Poll editing graciously provided by Mary Ila MacFarlane.

Contact:
Michael Sandoval, tabascoii-at-gmail.com
Ben DeGrow, bendegrow-at-gmail.com

Sotomayor confirmation hearings start today

by Rossputin | 1:54 am, July 13, 2009

Let’s make two things absolutely clear: Sonia Sotomayor is not qualified to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. And she will almost certainly be confirmed.

Many of us heard about her statement that a Latina woman would likely make a better decision than a white man. What many of you may not have heard is that more digging into her past public appearances show that that statement was not an outlier, but part of an extremely consistent pattern of thought.

Sotomayor not only believes that impartiality before the law may not be possible, she’s not even sure that it’s desirable.

In comparison to others at her level in the federal judiciary, she’s clearly of less-than-average intelligence and competence, with a trail of poorly-written and poorly-conceived rulings followed by repeatedly being overturned by the Supreme Court and being criticized for shoddy legal thinking even when not overturned. She is, by her own admission, where she is because of affirmative action. The Supreme Court is no place to demonstrate the Peter Princple.

One other thing to be clear about: Sotomayor’s nomination is not an accident. Her repugnant views about how a judge should approach decisions were no secret and she was nominated by Obama because of them, not despite them. Obama also does not believe that justice should be blind. During the presidential campaign, I said that the Supreme Court was the only reason to vote for McCain (rather than voting Libertarian – I was always clear that nobody should vote for Obama.) Sotomayor proves that warning (which is not to say that it was wrong to vote Libertarian). She is the latest foray in Barack Obama’s mission to remake the United States in the vision of the radical leftist Saul Alinsky and his communist America-hating father-figure Frank Marshall Davis.

One can only hope that Sotomayor’s tenure on the Court is a short one and that she’s prevented from destroying the fabric of our nation to the degree that she wants to by making every decision through the filters of race and gender and turning “equal protection under the law” on its head.

Even Democrats should be ashamed of Sotomayor, but of course you’ll never hear even a whisper of such thoughts…

CO Medicaid cuts reimbursement rates. Will your insurance premiums go up?

by Brian Schwartz | 1:20 am, July 13, 2009

“Doctors in Colorado began to see reductions in their reimbursements from the Medicaid program on Wednesday as an effort to fill financial gaps in the state’s budget,” reports a recent Denver Business Journal article. This could mean higher premiums for those who with a non-government health plan. Last year Bloomberg reported that
Inadequate reimbursements by programs [...]

Dr. Schroeder Replies to Grand Junction Model

by Ari Armstrong | 10:02 am, July 12, 2009

Dr. James Schroeder wrote an important article for Friday’s Free Press of Grand Junction. He responds to media hype about the “Grand Junction Model” for health reform.

[A] large study done at Dartmouth University looking at variations in Medicare spending was released in April 2008…. The Dartmouth Atlas is being overstated. … All the data showed is that some hospitals spent more than others. … The death rate in this particular study was 100 percent. … The only logical conclusion to be made is that Grand Junction is efficient at getting people to the point of death.

Hang on to your wallet, because the Dartmouth Atlas will now be touted as showing that some regions (Grand Junction being the shining example) are “more efficient” at delivering health care while saving money! This in turn will serve as the anvil upon which health care spending throughout the country will be hammered into line by a federally controlled health care system. …

The current administration advocates a system that will take those difficult value judgments out of your hands and put them in the hands of a nice, caring, compassionate bureaucrat. … The (barely) unspoken message is that you have a duty to die cheaply in order to save money for everybody else. …

Please read the entire article for yourself.

I have but a couple of nits to pick. Schroeder writes, “Health care services are finite, just like any other commodity. At its core, the entire health care debate boils down to distributing a finite number of dollars for the purchase of health care services for a diverse population of 300 million. The only way to do that is by allocating expenditures and resources, or in other words rationing.”

That paragraph is wrong for two reasons. First, while the availability of doctors, hospitals, drugs, etc. at any given time is limited, the amount of health care services can change dramatically over time. Today vastly more health care is available than was the case a century ago. One of the effects of socialized medicine would be to reduce the amount and quality of health care available, particularly as the better doctors left the field and the better students looked for careers elsewhere.

Second, “rationing” pertains only to political distribution of goods or services. For example, if you walk into a grocery store and purchase hamburger instead of steak, that’s not “rationing;” that’s a rational response to prices. If you choose to go to an urgent care office rather than an emergency room, that’s not “rationing” the emergency care. A free market involves willing agreements among buyers and sellers, consumers and producers. That’s not rationing. Rationing is when politicians and bureaucrats decide who gets what, and how much they get.

A free market in health care involves no rationing. The partly-socialized medicine we live under today involves considerable rationing. A completely socialized system involves nothing but rationing.

Additional Eminent Domain Abuse – will the Mullarkey Court back Boulder’s Land Grab, too?

by CTBC Director | 10:27 pm, July 11, 2009

Assuming that the Mullarkey Court follows its own precedent (set with last summer’s Telluride Land Grab ruling), Boulder-area land owners (Feeling stepped on in Boulder) are in for some rude treatment at the hands of local government, backed by the Colorado state Supreme Court.
Boulder County appears dead set on following Telluride’s example in seizing private property [...]

July 17th Ft. Collins Tea Party

by Rossputin | 6:47 am, July 11, 2009

A few people have been asking for information on the Fort Collins Tea Party on July 17th. As promised, here’s the information…

From the website of the organizer, FortCollinsTeaParty.com:

Join us on the sidewalks surrounding Rep Betsy Markey’s Fort Collins office from 10:00 am to 11:00 am on Friday, July 17th, to express your opposition to socialized medicine. This will be a nationwide rally. Across the country, from New York to California, concerned citizens will be in front of their own representatives offices, in their own districts, in their own states with the exact same message, at the exact same time. Take 1 hour off of work on July 17th to show up and make your voice heard. Bring your healthcare related protest signs, flags, and unbreakable American spirit. Please don’t hesitate to contact me for additional information.

UK Spectator: Meet the man who has exposed the great climate change con

by Rossputin | 1:22 am, July 11, 2009

(H/T to Christopher S. and Max B., each of whom sent me a link to this article in the last 8 hours…)

Professor Ian Plimer, an Australian geologist, has written a book that’s taken his country by storm – and should soon do the same here and in Europe. It’s called “Heaven and Earth: Global Warming, the Missing Science” and it’s now available in the US.

The article which was sent to me is on the web site for the UK’s Spectator magazine, and it’s a discussion with and about Dr. Plimer. You can read the article here:
http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/features/3755623/meet-the-man-who-has-exposed-the-great-climate-change-con-trick.thtml

One interesting things with books like this which intended to gore (pun intended) someone’s ox is the reviews they get. And there has clearly been a push in the early days of the book to put out bad reviews, such as the customer reviews on Amazon. Of the 14 reviews posted at the time of my writing this note, 8 were either 4 or 5 stars (out of a possible 5) and 6 were 1 star.

What’s particularly interesting is that the six 1-star ratings were the first 6 ratings posted, implying to me a political, possibly concerted (though only 6 would cast some doubt on that hypothesis) effort to discredit the book early. (If you don’t want to take the time to read about the essentially bogus 1-star ratings, at least read the last paragraph below, about one of the 1-star ratings in particular.)

The very first 1-star rating begins “I haven’t read this book, but I think it’s simply awful.” ‘nuf said about that one.

The second 1-star rating says “I’m not a climate scientist. Neither is Ian Plimer. So I read a few web postings to find out why Plimer’s views are apparently so different from those of the ‘consensus’…” (Did anybody tell this guy that Plimer is a geologist and that the long-term study of climate is an integral part of that science?)

The third 1-star rating says “Plimer is correct about Global Warming (er, Climate Change) being a fraud perpetrated by wealthy interest groups, but he demonstrates a poor understanding of our local Sun and its total Plasma environment.” Hmmm….hardly a reason to give the book one star if its fundamental premise is correct. The sun’s plasma must be a close relative of the comment’s author.

The fourth 1-star rating is an aggressive attack: “This is a disgraceful effort by a scientist to use numerous unverified assertions…” It’s fairly clear from the “review” that the reviewer has not read the book but rather “Google(d) the book”, as he suggests we do, to find detractors.

The fifth 1-star rating is a longer version of the second. He basically argues that since Plimer is a geologist rather than a climatologist, he’s not qualified to write about the subject. This guy gives a 1-star ranking without actually criticizing anything in the book – but how could he, because he almost certainly didn’t read it.

And my favorite, and the most recent 1-star rating, is from one Matthew Andrews who writes a litany of charges including that “the book is full of fundamentally misleading statements” and that Plimer has “engaged in flat-out deception in some cases.” However, Andrews does not cite one actual sentence of the book. Instead like most or all of the other 1-star ratings, he seems to have just read criticisms by scientists and others who are part of the global warming alarmist bandwagon – and who have something to gain from it. Which, by the way, is precisely the case with Mr. Andrews who is a New Zealand-based lawyer and lobbyist who stands to generate big fees when a complex “cap and trade” system is instituted, causing private companies to need to lobby government for favors and hire lawyers to help them comply and understand the law. Andrews is, much like Al Gore, simply another climate huckster, or in this case shyster.

Penny Wise and Pound Foolish – Ritter’s Car Tax, Late Fees spur tax protest, refusals to pay

by The Peripatetic Pundit | 6:56 pm, July 10, 2009

In what might be the understatement of the week (if not the entire month), even the frequently big-government-friendly Denver Post editorial board recognized that the introduction of vastly increased vehicle registration taxes – er, ”important new fees… was marred by negative public reaction.” Seldom has a “state tax policy change (er, fee increase) … resulting in a net tax revenue [...]

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