Around Colorado: 1/30/09

Make My Day Better

Colorado Republicans announce: “Republican efforts to extend to the workplace the same rights Colorado citizens already have to protect their homes from violent intruders were stymied by ruling Democrats today [January 28].”

Ritter Right on Immigration

The Rocky Mountain News reports: “The Democratic governor [Bill Ritter] also said he personally supported a guest worker policy similar to the one former President George W. Bush embraced. Ritter added he endorses a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants, but that they should not necessarily be first in line.” Good for him. Colorado business owners have a right to hire whomever they want, and peaceable immigrants have a right to seek a better life here — as all of our forefathers did. The proper way to end illegal immigration is to make immigration legal.

‘Plastic Bag Reduction Education Fund’

You’ve got to be kidding. What could these Democrats possibly be thinking? The Rocky editorializes:

Merchants would keep half the fee; the rest would underwrite a state “plastic bag reduction education fund . . . for the purpose of educating consumers” about the other part of the bill: an outright ban on plastic bags taking effect July 1, 2012.

The “fee” is almost certainly a tax, as it’s not connected to the cost of providing plastic bags (which run about a penny apiece) or disposing of them. Besides, half of the revenue from the fees would support the “education” project, which is also unrelated to the cost or handling of the bags.

Because the 6-cent arbitrary charge appears to be a tax, it must be presented to voters for approval, according to TABOR.

Moreover, a plastic bag ban actually hurts the environment by encouraging paper bag use. But the fundamental reason to oppose the ban, as I’ve noted, is that it violates individual rights of property and free exchange.

Rosen on Pera

Mike Rosen criticizes the state’s pension plan. I’d like to see a history of how pensions even got started. They strike me as a stupid idea, for the very reasons PERA is struggling: pensions promise future payments when future revenues are not known and cannot possibly be known (a problem worse in the private sector, where businesses can face bankruptcy). Why not simply do away with the pension for all new employees, and pay them commensurately more so that they can invest however they want?

Force as Recreation

The “co-chairs of the Denver Recreation Center Task Force” talk about how the city of Denver can better provide people’s recreation, as though it were perfectly obvious that a legitimate governmental function is to provide (tax subsidized) recreation. Might it be possible that recreation is one of those things that people can pursue without the “help” of politicians?

Political Growth

The Denver Post reports that Colorado politicians want to “help” the economy through discriminatory taxes, tax-subsidized loans, tax-subsidized training, and tax hikes. This is the exact opposite of what is really needed: economic liberty.

Harsanyi, Sirota

David Harsanyi criticizes the new bailout package.

Meanwhile, David Sirota claims that George W. Bush drove the American economy “over [a] laissez-faire cliff.” What? Bush dramatically expanded federal spending, federal entitlements, and federal economic controls. His policies were the opposite of “laissez faire.” But Sirota is not exactly known for having the slightest clue what he’s talking about.