LIBERTARIAN PARTY OF COLORADO BLOG

This BLOG is Moving

In an effort to more fully incorporate this blog with the official LPColorado website and to also make it more of a multi-user blog site, this blog is shutting down and new posts will be posted at:

http://www.lpcolorado.org/blog

 

If you could all please update your links to redirect to the new site it would be appreciated.

I have enjoyed running this blog since May of 2004. I will still post entries to the new site, but I hope that with the change will come a more diverse number of folks posting their thoughts and feelings on Colorado issues and so it is not just me all of the time. I appreciate those who have helped contribute to the success of this site over the years and hope you follow us to the new site. The LPCO board of directors will have more influence over the look of the new site than they did on this site and the plan is to make the look more uniform. You can email me at [email protected] if you have a Colorado related news topic or are a Colorado Libertarian running for office who would like to get attention for any press you receive for your campaign and I will post the information on the new site if it is appropriate.

Hero arrested for saving girl and upstaging police in the process

Alan Snodgrass a rafting guide with Arkansas Valley Adventures Rafting saves a 13 year girl, while the police and other rescuers are still trying to organize their plan, get their equipment together, etc., this would make him a hero right? No, it makes him a criminal in the eyes of the police. They charged him with obstructing a government operation (the rescue of the girl) by rescuing the girl before they carried out their “operation”. I understand that there was a chance he could have had a problem and then there would be two people in need of rescue, but that did not happen and the girl was saved in less time and with less expense than the government would have required to save her. I don't see the reason for not just appreciating his heroics and moving on, instead the police felt they should arrest a real hero.

Ritter vetoes bill to ease restrictions on traditional Phone service and ban future regulations on VOIP products

Gov. Bill Ritter’s veto earlier this week of a measure exempting Internet phone service from state regulation–and easing up as well on regulation of traditional phone service –ignores the realities of today’s telecommunications market, a sponsor of the bill said.

http://www.coloradonewsagency.com/2010/06/11/ritter-rapped-for-derailing-bill-on-net-phone-service/

I think Ritter didn't sign the bill because he is just itching to get the government involved in the regulation of VOIP products. There is no reason to and from a logistical standpoint it would be almost impossible to regulate the industry because if you have a VOIP service like Vonage your service is very dependent on the speed and quality of your internet connection, so if you have a poor internet connection or a good internet connection but are trying to make a phone call at a time when there is something bogging down the network you are on your service is likely to not be good. There are also many Skype like services and more coming up everyday, many free or almost free.

New Colorado Liberty Newsletter online

If you do not receive the Colorado Liberty Newsletter via email, the latest edition is now online.

http://lpcolorado.org/coloradoliberty/HTML/colib039-06.html

Xcel once again proves they need some competition, too bad the government prevents that from ever happening

DENVER - Xcel Energy spokesperson Tom Henley says in the future customers may see an increase on their bill to pay for repairs to the substation that exploded Monday, citing it as part of the operational costs.

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=140726&catid=339

This explosion provides yet another excuse for Xcel to raise rates. If it were not for the government providing Xcel with a monopoly then this would probably not be an issue, because Xcel could not just raise rates when their equipment malfunctions, not if they had competition whose equipment didn't malfunction and would have no need to raise rates. Most companies factor into the cost of doing business the replacement of equipment and so do not need to raise rates when this happens.

 Xcel is telling customers not to use as much electricity while this gets fixed. Imagine if your phone company said “we had a telephone switch go down, so don't make any calls during daylight hours for the next two months and we are going to raise your rates as well to cover the cost of the new switch. Would you stay with that company? Probably not, because now that the government no longer enforces a monopoly on phone service, you have a choice. Too bad you still do not have a choice when it comes to electricity.

Low-Income Telephone Assistance Program mired in waste and incompetence

The Low-Income Telephone Assistance Program for years has doled out $16.50 in monthly telephone subsidies to nearly 10,000 people who didn't qualify for it, state auditors said.

Program oversight was so lax that no one — not the Public Utilities Commission that administers it or the Department of Human Services that determines who gets it — knew how bad the problems had gotten. Each blamed a lack of funding for getting the job done.

As a result, the state annually has credited $920,000 to people wrongly getting the aid and might have to repay the federal government another $1.4 million because the state subsidy is tied to a federal one. Of the $16.50 credit, $10 comes from the federal Universal Service Fund.

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_15255468

Lack of funding? They had the funds to subsidize people who don't even meet the government qualifications at a cost of nearly a million dollars a year, and yet blame lack of funding for bureaucratic incompetence? So what should be done, should we reward incompetence with higher funding levels? That is what these bureaucrats would have you believe is the solution.

Denver cops try to find better way to deal with dogs

The Denver Police Department is re-examining its training for how officers are taught to react when they encounter potentially aggressive dogs following a recent legal settlement between the city and a man whose German Shepard was shot in the head by a Denver cop.

http://facethestate.com/articles/18850-cops-bite-bigger-dogs-bark

Have you ever noticed that dog catchers rarely shoot dogs while on duty? It is hard for me to believe that the dog killing cops had no other choice, when animal control officers rarely need to employ lethal force against the animals they capture.

Sorry for the limited postings recently

I have been out of town, in New York City without access to the internet in my Hotel so I have not posted recently.

While I was away Christine Smith got even more press coverage, she requested I share with you guys. Also if you listen to Free Talk Live, Christine has became a regular caller as of late so if you are a fan of FTL she should be familiar to you by now, and if you are just a fan of Christine, then you might want to tune into Free Talk Live and see why she likes the show.

Two More Newspaper Articles Regarding Christine Smith

Christine Smith, Libertarian candidate for HD60, had two more newspaper articles appear about her campaign appear this week which you may read.

1. The Tuesday, June 1, 2010 Mountain Mail newspaper print edition, with a headline of: Libertarian candidate responds to legislative session results
Read here: http://electchristinesmith.com/2010/06/01/mountain-mail-interview-june-1-2010-newspaper/

2. The June 2010 Crestone Eagle newspaper with a headline of: Christine Smith, Libertarian candidate for State House, is running on a platform of 'Freedom'
Read here: http://electchristinesmith.com/2010/06/03/crestone-eagle-newspaper-article/

Aurora mall tee-shirt wearer raises questions as to where to draw the line between public and private property

A shopping mall in Aurora, Colorado, has banned John Gailey, a medical marijuana patient, for a year because he insisted on wearing his "Yes We Cannabis" T-shirt on a "family night.

http://reason.com/blog/2010/05/27/yes-you-cannabis-but-not-in-ou

Read the whole blog post, like most of reason's posts it is worthwhile.

They are going to claim this is a right to free speeh. A right you do not have on other people's private property. However, where does the line between public and private property meet? I ask this because I know the Aurora government was heavily involved in the recent remodel of the Aurora Mall and offered the company that owns the mall millions of dollars in tax breaks to do the remodel. So if they got a break at the expense of those who did not get the same break, then is it still completely private property? Or should there be an expectation that it should be treated as government owned property, at least in part?

Of course the libertarian answer is that the government should not help pay for any privately owned facilities, then the line between public and private property is clear.

Blighted farm land or just another unjust government land grab?

CASTLE PINES NORTH — The City Council late Tuesday declared blighted more than 3,000 acres of prime land for a new development despite concerns from residents that the process was rushed.

On Tuesday, a new law kicks in that, with a few exceptions, prevents local governments from using urban-renewal authority to declare agricultural land blighted.

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_15162961

Empty farm land blighted? Really. Coincidentally the city government made this declaration just days before it would become illegal for them to do it.

Excel energy increase rates

Currently, Xcel customers pay 3.1 cents per kWh. After the rate change, customers using less than 500 kWh will fall into the Tier I category and pay 9.8 cents per kWh.

If you use more than 500 kWh, the rate will increase to 14.3 cents per kWh.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/money/23677368/detail.html

The problem is that because government grants Excel a monopoly on energy it means that market cannot dictate the price. Is this price increase truly justified? It is impossible to say because in a free market, there would be competition and if a company raised its prices unnecessarily the competition would see it as an opportunity to take customers from the offending competitor, so these decisions would not be made lightly. In a free market the tendency is for prices to drop over time, once you adjust for the government's printing of money (inflation).

This price increase was approved by the PUC (government) so in theory Excel had to prove the increase was needed, but in reality it only means they to convince a couple of people of the need for the increase, in a market based system they would need to convince each of their customers of the need for the increase, because if they made an increase in price and their competition did not, they would lose profit instead of gaining it. This also acts as a market incentive to be as efficient as possible.

Alas we will never know what the market would dictate as the price, because there is no competition. I might be able to add a windmill or solar panels to my house (as long as that doesn't violate any city codes, and I can get a building permit from the government, etc), but it would be completely illegal for me to sell off my extra energy to you for retail. I can sell it back to the electric company, but at the rate they are willing to pay, which might be much less than what you might be willing to pay.

Aurora to place medical marijuana dispensaries on ballot

AURORA (AP) - In Aurora, the question of whether to allow medical marijuana dispensaries is going to voters.

Aurora City Council members agreed Saturday to place marijuana on November ballots. Voters will decide whether the city should allow dispensaries.

http://www.9news.com/news/article.aspx?storyid=139554&catid=188

I hope this passes with flying colors. It just doesn't seem right for the government to block access to a drug that really does help people, simply because some people who use the drug do not suffer from a medical condition that those against the MMJ's think is not a valid enough illness to qualify for a prescription.

Jaimes Brown - Libertarian candidate for Governor on LPCO primary ballot

(Centennial) - Jaimes Brown, Libertarian candidate for Governor, announced he has secured a position on the Colorado August 10th Libertarian state primary ballot for governor of Colorado.

During the recent annual Libertarian Party of Colorado state convention, Brown qualified for the summer primary.  This Libertarian state primary is a first for Colorado.   

 Brown noted that his campaign will focus on:

- Jobs
- Heath Care Diversification
- Energy Diversity
- Education
- Taxes
- Criminal Justice Reform
- Civil Rights

Brown will also target reducing state government spending, reprioritizing victimless crimes, and maximizing state educational opportunities.

In addition, Brown noted that he will encourage the Colorado legislature and Attorney General to assert Colorado's 10th Amendment rights when dealing with the federal government.

Brown, a front range real estate appraiser, is a local political activist and musician.  He resides in Centennial with his wife and two children.

To learn more about Jaimes Brown, you can visit his website at:

www.jaimesbrown.com

The Canon City Daily Record Interviewed Christine Smith

Libertarian Colorado House District 60 candidate Christine Smith was interviewed by the Canon City Daily Record newspaper. 

The article appeared in their Friday, May 14, 2010 print/hard copy newspaper and is also available to be read online:

http://www.canoncitydailyrecord.com/Top-Story.asp?id=13650

Old person, we need more money from you - says government

Senior citizens and big businesses would be affected under two bills that lawmakers passed yesterday.

Senate Bill 190 would eliminate part of the property tax exemptions that qualifying senior citizens get in Colorado, while House Bill 1200 would delay tax credits for Colorado’s largest businesses that operate in enterprise zones. The bills seek to help close an estimated $85 million budget gap in the state budget.

http://www.thedenverdailynews.com/article.php?aID=8434

Politicians care only about government budget gaps. They sure don't seem to care about the budget gaps that old people and businesses are encountering.

Springs police harrass MMJ dispensaries

Colorado Springs police searched seven medical marijuana dispensaries in the city Wednesday as part of an ongoing investigation, said Sgt. B. Poole of the region's Metro Vice, Narcotics and Intelligence squad.

No arrests were made and Poole declined to say what police were looking into, saying it was an ongoing investigaiton and would be reviewed by the 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office before any information could be released.

http://www.gazette.com/articles/dispensaries-98627-searched-police.html

Just make marijuana fully legal and let's end this. This is incremental criminalization when the goal of the MMJ ballot initiative was incremental legalization.

TV Interview with Christine Smith

Here is a recent television news interview with Christine Smith, on KENY TV which was aired on Colorado television: Alamosa CH 39, Bressnan Ch 20, and throughout the San Luis Valley on Valley-wide Channel 67.

Their interview with Christine Smith, Libertarian candidate for Colorado House District 60, may also be viewed at the station's website here:

http://www.kenytv.com/video/christine-smith-running-house-district-60

Using wildlife as an excuse to raise revenue

An Aspen lawmaker wants people to slow down when driving on stretches of road where wildlife are frequent by creating wildlife crossing zones—and then wants to double the fine for those who speed in these zones to encourage them to slow down.  Some lawmakers pushed back against what they said is government overreach by seeking new revenue in the name of safety.  But despite any arguments to the contrary, the bill passed the Senate today with modest bipartisan support.

http://www.coloradonewsagency.com/2010/05/10/bill-would-create-highway-wildlife-crossing-zones-along-with-fines/

The "wildlife zones" can be no more than 100 miles long, as if this is reasonable and will limit the zones so they don't blanket the state. One zone will basically end on one side of a town and start up on the other side, there are almost no stretches of more than 100 miles before encountering a town or city in Colorado. This is just a way to double the speeding fines across the state without generating quite as much negative publicity as a straight up increase in the fines would generate.

MMJ registry checks go uncashed by the government

DENVER -- A CALL7 Investigation has uncovered nearly $5 million worth of checks are sitting in envelopes in a state office, unopened and uncashed.

The checks, for $90 each, come from people who want to be on the state’s medical marijuana registry.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/23488571/detail.html

Somehow I cannot imagine a business letting 5 million in checks go uncashed. It seems like it is just another example of government inefficiency. Sure the only “product” the government is selling here is a slightly reduced chance that the government will throw these people in jail. 

1972 Libertarian Presidential nominee Hospers endorses Root for LP Chair

WAYNE ALLYN ROOT:  The Right Choice for LP National Chairman

by Dr. John Hospers

In these precarious times, with the future of freedom, liberty and America herself hanging in the balance by the barest of threads held in the hands of self-serving enemies and traitors of this nation – I hear the voice of hope, and that of a patriot in the person of Wayne Allyn Root.

My steady support for Mr. Root’s political positions and ambitions are reinforced each time I hear him speak or read his commentaries, editorials and writings. Root’s words ring with truth, reflecting the values of libertarianism the political philosophy, as well as the well-defined original Libertarian Party principles, of which I am proud to say I helped craft long ago.

A small central government, states’ rights, individual freedom, national security, and especially an immediate cessation of the insane spending and bankrupting of America purposefully perpetrated by the current administration. This is what Root understands better than any other candidate seeking the LP National Chair.

Read more...
http://www.independentpoliticalreport.com/2010/04/hospers-endorses-root/

Medical marijuana killing bill HB1284 - Passes Full House on Second Reading

Sent in by the cannabis therapy institute

For immediate release: May 5, 2010
 
HB1284 Passes Full House on Second Reading
 
A Report by the Cannabis Therapy Institute
 
Contact: Cannabis Therapy Institute
1-877-420-4205
 
{Denver} -- The Colorado state Senate today voted in favor of HB1284 by a voice vote, with what sounded like only a handful of dissenting votes. According to Senator Chris Romer (D-Denver), the bill's main sponsor, the bill will eliminate from 50% to 80% of the current 1,100 dispensaries in Colorado.
 
In a surprise vote, the Senate narrowly adopted Amendment 173 to the bill, proposed by Senator Josh Penry (R-Grand Junction), which would eliminate the sales tax on medical marijuana. Senator Penry pointed out that 95% of prescription medicines in the state are not subject to sales tax. Sen. Penry said it would be "inappropriate, crass and wrong" to take money from the sick and disabled people who use medical marijuana to help fund other state programs. Sen. Penry said, "This bill should not be a revenue bill."
 
Senator Romer said he did not support the amendment to strike the sales tax because "we're not at the point that we are treating this as medicine." Sen. Romer said that medical marijuana should be taxed "until we get evidenced-based medicine" and "until it's like other supplements."
 
Senator Penry countered that Senator Romer "can't say it's medicinal on one hand and then on the other say it's not medicinal."
 
The amendment was adopted by a vote of 18 to 17. Senator Romer, unable to accept defeat, promised that he would bring the amendment up for another vote at the Third (and final) Reading of the bill to see if he could get the full Senate to again approve creating a revenue stream off of the backs of sick and dying people.
 
HB1284 will now go to its final vote in the Senate, called the Third Reading. This has yet to be scheduled. The Third Reading will require a roll call vote, so the Senators will be forced to go on the record with their vote.
 
Senator Joyce Foster (D-Denver) unapologetically pointed out that the bill was not written for the patients, but rather for the police. "We're basing this on the public safety model, and not the medical model. If we were basing it on the medical model, it would be a completely different bill," Sen. Foster said.
 
"This bill seems like it was more about Chris Romer than about medical patients," says K. Evan Rude, patient advocate for the American Medical Marijuana Standards Association. "He didn't consult with any medical professionals or disability activists or patient advocate groups. He obviously had his own agenda going into this to make the medical marijuana program a police state that will be operated only by well-funded dispensaries with little care for the patients. The patients will now pay more for their medicine and have their access severely restricted. This bill is so restrictive that it is clearly a blatant violation of patient's
Constitutional rights."
 
The Cannabis Therapy Institute is urging the state to instead set up a Commission to study the issue to make sure the needs of the patient are foremost in any legislation and to make sure this complicated issue gets addressed properly.
 
CALL AND EMAIL
Click here to contact your state senators:
http://www.cannabistherapyinstitute.com/advocacy/contact.colorado.state.legislature.html
 
READ THE BILL
Here is a link to the General Assembly Home Page. Look for House Bill 1284.
The versions keep changing, so we cannot provide a direct link.
http://www.leg.state.co.us/

MMJ grower formally charged, for growing legal marijuana

In February, HIghlands Ranch's Chris Bartkowicz showed off his home medical marijuana grow to Channel 9, after which he was promptly busted by the DEA -- an arrest that earned criticism from MMJ advocate Rob Corry and even Representative Jared Polis.

Despite such support, Bartkowicz reportedly planned to plead guilty in relation to the charges against him -- but last month, he changed his mind. That led to the U.S. Attorney's Office formally indicting Bartkowicz on three counts related to possession and intent to distribute marijuana. And the potential punishment if he's found guilty could be hefty.

http://blogs.westword.com/latestword/2010/05/chris_bartkowicz_indicted_face.php

Of course he intended to distribute the marijuana, he supplied the medical marijuana stores with product. Someone has to grow the stuff, it seems silly to me for the government to claim that selling the marijuana is not illegal if it is for MMJ patients, but growing it to supply the stores that sell it is illegal. What tangled webs the government creates when they interfere in commerce.

Wine still not allowed in grocery stores

The legislature today once again refused to allow beer, wine and liquor from grocery store shelves.

http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2010/05/05/booze-bill-booted-at-sponsors-request/

Once again, it should be stores who decide what products they wish to carry, not politicians. I don't know if I can make it any more clear.

CSU repeals gun ban

The Colorado State University Board of Governors today rescinded a system-wide ban on concealed weapons, citing a Colorado Court of Appeals ruling that struck down a similar ban at the University of Colorado.

http://www.denverpost.com/ci_15024173

I expect that the gun haters will continue to try and bring this back up, but it is a rare win for liberty.

Parking ticket quotas in Boulder are not about revenue... does anyone buy this?

Boulder parking-enforcement officers have a new directive: Each write an average of 900 tickets a month.

Parking tickets over the last five years have generally produced about $2 million a year for the city. But the new policy is not, according to Matthews, aimed at filling the city's coffers.

"It's not for revenue production, it's not for punishment, it's not for meeting numbers," he said. "It is to manage the parking and the limited resource that we have downtown, primarily."

Read more: http://www.dailycamera.com/ci_15009955

It's not for revenue generation, that is just a happy side effect. It's not for punishment, that is also just a happy side effect. It's not for meeting numbers, but those parking attendants who don't meet their numbers are going to be punished. Does anyone really believe any of this? Of course it is about revenue, punishment and quotas.

I generally encourage people to try and be productive at their jobs, but when it comes to government jobs, sometimes being worse is being better, those parking cops who write the fewest tickets are the best of the bunch. So thank you lazy parking cops, thank you for not ruining someone's day because their job interview went longer than expected. Thank you for not ticketing the person who decided to have desert at the nearby restaurant and doing so meant the meter expired. Thank you for a million other reasons that one will never know.