It’s About Politics, Not Governance, With Guns

by Joshua Sharf | 10:15 am, April 9, 2013

As the US Senate begins today’s debate on gun control, Coloradoans can be forgiven for having a feeling of deja vu.  That’s because the debate in Congress is intended to mimic the one in Colorado, and because it’s about politics, not about governance. The one piece of the president’s broad gun control agenda that has [...]

Why PERA’s Presumptions Are Faulty

by Joshua Sharf | 7:33 am, March 28, 2013

Did you recognize the faulty presumptions in PERA’s spirited defense of defined benefit plans? You have been given a false choice about why defined benefits plans are better than defined contribution plans. In a recent EdNews Colorado Voices column, Colorado PERA Executive Director Greg Smith avers that PERA’s existing defined benefit structure best serves both the teachers and [...]

It’s A National Political Strategy

by Joshua Sharf | 11:21 pm, March 18, 2013

On Friday’s Grassroots Radio, the discussion of Rep. Mike McLachlan’s (D-Durango) deceptive advertising of his own gun control positions turned to the national agenda being rammed down Colorado’s throat.  I pointed out that while other states with Democrat majorities and governors – Illinois and Washington came to mind – had rejected similar proposals, Colorado had [...]

Hick Nick Chicks’ Boomsticks

by Joshua Sharf | 9:47 pm, March 18, 2013

Governor John Hickenlooper (D) has announced that on Wednesday, he will sign the gun control bills passed by the Colorado legislature last week.  These include the magazine ban and the background checks, even for temporary transfers between individuals who know each other.  A number of women legislators today protested the disparate impact that this law [...]

Rep. McLachlan Hopes His Constituents Don’t Have Internet

by Joshua Sharf | 12:45 pm, March 14, 2013

I’m not sure what other explanation there is for this remarkable statement in today’s Durango Herald.  Commenting on his eventual vote for HB-1224, the magazine limit that would essentially ban all magazines, McLachlan had this to say to his constituents: Fields originally wanted the limit set at 10 bullets, but McLachlan successfully amended it in February [...]

Forty Years of PERA

by Joshua Sharf | 11:59 am, March 13, 2013

We’ve been here before with PERA.  Sort of.  Most people following the issue remember that in 2000, PERA was over 100% funded, and that its funding ratio has fallen steadily since then.  What they don’t know is that back in 1974, PERA was woefully under-funded, at about the same 60% funded ratio that it is [...]

Public Pensions and Real Returns

by Joshua Sharf | 10:15 am, March 4, 2013

In the discussion on public pensions, there’s been a great deal of focus on the projected rate of return.  I’ve posted on what I think is PERA’s optimistic 8% here, and on the fact that that’s actually an improvement from the 8.75% that they were projecting as recently as 2002.  That said, for pension estimates, [...]

Sharyl Attkisson Brings Us Up To Date On Benghazi

by Joshua Sharf | 10:48 pm, March 3, 2013

Not everyone has forgotten about Benghazi.  Among those who’ve been pursuing the story, none has been more dogged than CBS’s Sharyl Attkisson.  A few days ago, she tweeted out the current state of affairs.  Here are the collected tweets: As promised, I will give an update on the Benghazi info CBS asked the Admin. to [...]

PERA – More Retirees, Fewer Workers

by Joshua Sharf | 2:44 am, March 3, 2013

This chart is more or less self-explanatory.  Over the last 20 years, the number of workers per beneficiary within PERA has dropped from about 3.6 to just over 2.0: PERA’s CAFR includes the following disclaimer: By itself, a declining ratio of actives to retirees and beneficiaries does not pose a problem to a Division Trust [...]

Purim as an Argument Against Gun Control

by Joshua Sharf | 6:09 pm, February 22, 2013

I’m always reluctant to re-read religious texts with a political slant.  The Left has, for the most part, sought to replace religion with politics with the sort of baleful results we saw in 20th Century Europe and Russia.  Even today, the American Jewish left uses such Jewish concepts as “Tikkun Olam” to justify pretty much [...]

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