‘Voices & Thoughts’ Archives
Republicans are the Big Government Party
Unemployment Rate Would be 7.1 Percent Without Government Cuts March 11th, 2013 By Jason Sattler One of the biggest Republican myths of the last four years is that the government has been exploding in size. The truth is that federal, state and local governments have cut more than 750,000 jobs since June of 2009. If those jobs hadn’t been lost, the unemployment rate would now be 7.1 percent, according to the Labor Department. The total number of people ... Full Story
Renewable Energy – Why Fossil Fuel and Nuclear
By Grant Smith Courtesy of the American Forum The makeup of the electric grid of the future is at stake as the fossil fuel industry continues to falsely lessen the impact of renewable energy. So it’s no wonder that the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) and the Solar Energy Industries Associations have recently rescinded their membership in the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC). ALEC has mounted ... Full Story
Yellowstone gets real about budget cuts
By Lisa Rein MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, Wyo. — The giant yellow snowplows that wake Yellowstone from its winter slumber every March are idled, waiting for the sun to make up for federal budget cuts that are forcing the park to open late for peak season. Mandatory cuts kicked in three days before the plows were to start clearing snow and ice from 300 roads at altitudes that reach 11,000 feet. Faced with an order from Washington to slice $1.8 million from his budget, the park ... Full Story
Study Finds Stricter Gun Laws Mean Fewer Fatalities
By Allison Brito A study released last week by JAMA (Journal of the American Medical Association): Internal Medicine shows a direct correlation between gun laws and gun-related fatalities. While the study is mainly based on the number of gun laws, not the type (it doesn’t, for example, specify which particular laws are the most effective), it confirms that generally speaking, stricter gun laws result in fewer deaths. The report, entitled “Firearm Legislation and ... Full Story
‘Good Guys With Guns’ Will Not Stop Gun
By Bob Cesca On HBO's Real Time with Bill Maher last Friday there was an extended and heated debate about gun control. The participants included Newark, NJ mayor Cory Booker and author Sam Harris, who, in case you don't recognize the name, happens to be an insufferable marketeer of the "both sides are awful" false equivalence. The debate mostly centered around Cory Booker arguing for a massive effort to seize illegally-obtained firearms, with Maher and Harris telling him he's ... Full Story
Sequester-Pain for the neediest of our society
The Sequester and the Tea Party Plot By Robert Reich Imagine a plot to undermine the government of the United States, to destroy much of its capacity to do the public's business, and to sow distrust among the population. Imagine further that the plotters infiltrate Congress and state governments, reshape their districts to give them disproportionate influence in Washington, and use the media to spread big lies about the government. Finally, imagine they not ... Full Story
Social Security Trust Fund
To the Editor, Is the Social Security Trust Fund empty because Congress borrowed and spent the money? No. The Fund invested the money in U.S. treasuries, and it will be repaid as needed. Suppose you were in charge of the Fund. Once the current year’s payments were made, what would you do with the billions of left-over dollars needed to fund future payments? Would you stuff them in a coffee can and bury them in the back yard, where they would earn no interest and ... Full Story
Obituary: Malachi Bilson
Malachi Bilson was born March 23, 1992, in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. Our Artist, Angel went to be with our Lord and Savior this past Friday, Feb. 15, in a tragic accident in Berthoud, Colorado. Malachi's charm, grace and humor lit up the lives of everyone he touched. His compassionate intelligence and exceptional talent and creativity helped him pursue his dreams in film and photography. He was so full of life. His million-dollar smile and passion will live on in those who will carry on ... Full Story
Doing the Opposite
David Packman In the Seinfeld episode “The Opposite,” George Costanza, played by Jason Alexander, decides that because his instincts in life have served him wrong for so long, he will live his life under the paradigm of doing the opposite of what naturally comes to him. This way of life is launched, for that episode, when while sitting in a coffee shop George declares, after placing his typical lunch order: “No, no, no, wait a minute, I always have tuna on toast. Nothing’s ever ... Full Story
The KKK glorified as Confederacy grows in the South
The Confederacy Making a Comeback in the South? KKK Grand Wizard Glorified, Civil Rights Heroes Ignored As Southern whites sink into economic despair, more and more are retreating into a fictional past. January 28, 2013 | On a windy afternoon a few days ago I went to a depressed section of North Memphis to visit an old clapboard house that was once owned by a German immigrant named Jacob Burkle. Oral history—and oral history is all anyone has in this case since no ... Full Story
