Taiwan: China-free Zone
In his second inaugural address, President Bush told the nations of the world, “When you stand for your liberty, we will stand with you.”
The Asian nation of Taiwan is a young and dynamic representative democracy, so you might think the U.S. gladly stands with Taiwan in its desire for United Nations membership and international recognition…you are wrong.
The U.S. Should Support Taiwan’s Bid For United Nations Membership, Even If It Does Annoy China
In September, a United Nations General Assembly committee voted to deny Taiwan’s most recent request to become a UN member state, citing Communist China’s ongoing and absurd claim of sovereignty over Taiwan—even though it is plainly obvious that Taiwan functions as an independent state—and that only Beijing may represent Taiwan’s 23 million citizens in international organizations.
Redefining “Poor”
Recently I’ve read a series of articles about the working poor in El Paso County. Two things struck me. First, for the people profiled, dating, getting married, having children and then staying married was not a big part of the picture. Second, everyone profiled was richer than almost everyone else on the planet.
Low Expectations Won’t Help Anybody
Full disclosure: My wife got good grades in law school. She graduated third in her class. She practices law with a firm downtown that only hires lawyers with good grades, just like every attorney there.
How will Colorado pay for the coming prison boom?
Opinion Editorial August 6, 2007 By Mike Krause This year the legislature created the Colorado Criminal and Juvenile Justice Commission, tasked with examining the state’s sentencing structure and making recommendations to the legislature to address the ever-increasing prison population. But if lawmakers lack the will to actually act on sentencing, then the commission will be […]
Real problems with Real ID
Near the end of the 2007 legislative session, the Colorado House of Representatives enacted a joint, non-binding resolution against the looming federal takeover of state driver’s license standards and issuance. But Montana recently took its own opposition a step further by passing a law outright refusing to implement the federal Real ID Act.
The road to Darfur runs through the 2008 Olympics in Beijing
The Communist government in China just can’t help but show its true colors.
The same authoritarian regime that is desperately trying to put on a friendly face for the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing recently detained and then deported Colorado resident Kirsten Westby and four other Americans for peacefully displaying a banner saying “One World, One Dream, Free Tibet 2008” on the Tibetan side of Mount Everest.
Seat belt laws trivialize law enforcement
In the book Go Directly to Jail: The Criminalization of Almost Everything, author James V. DeLong writes, “When the government criminalizes almost everything, it also trivializes the very concept of criminality.”
A perfect example of this is Senate Bill 151, the primary seat belt law currently under consideration in the Colorado Legislature. Far from a legitimate public safety measure, this law is little more than a finger-wagging nanny state edict, with high potential to distract police from their public safety mission in favor of trivial enforcement of unpopular personal behavior.
Prison Spending in Colorado: Anatomy of a Fiscal Train-Wreck
After decades of an ambitious incarceration campaign, Colorado’s booming prison population requires thousands of new prison beds.
In other words, Colorado faces a prison spending meltdown that will likely require Governor Ritter and the Democrat Legislature to put aside any grand new spending plans in order to pay for a hugely expensive long-term prison expansion project.
Social Security Numbers: Original Intent or Identity Theft?
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), it was identity theft that led to recent raids on meatpacking plants in Greeley, Colorado and other states. “I can tell you that identity theft is a very real threat,” said an ICE spokesman, about the raids.
Fallout from Failed Immigration Policy
I live in Greeley. I love everything about it – the people, the politics, the culture, yes, even the smell, which by the way has been outlawed, well almost.
I have a daily, two-hour talk show on Greeley’s own 1310 KFKA, the oldest radio station in Colorado. Mostly, I focus on local, regional and state issues. Of all the issues I’ve covered, few are as divisive as illegal immigration. Our agricultural industry attracts a substantial number of immigrants both legal and illegal. As residents of Greeley and Northern Colorado we must grapple with the difficult reality of two different cultures that are bound to collide – not Anglo versus Latino but legal versus illegal.
Real ID: Intrusive, Unnecessary, Costly
How do you feel about the prospect of having to painstakingly document who you are next time you get a driver’s license, and then do the same thing five years later when you have to renew?
