en-us Colorado's Free Market Think Tank Independence Institute Independence Institute: Colorado's Free Market Think Tank Independence Institute: Colorado's Free Market Think Tank http://www.ivoices.org Webmaster@i2i.org (Editor) 2007 Webmaster@i2i.org (webmaster) clean iVoices.org by the Independence Institute feedback@i2i.org Tue, 14 Mar 2006 23:13:30 GMT http://www.ivoices.org/images/i2iprintlogo.jpg http://www.ivoices.org Independence Institute, Free Market, Colorado, Jon Caldara, Dave Kopel, Randal O'Toole Rep. Cheri Gerou fills Amy Oliver in on the proceedings concerning the "dirty dozen" tax increases. What were the debates like? How many citizen activists showed up and how long did they stay to testify? Rep. Gerou also shares her ideas on how to fix budget shortfalls. Mon, Feb 08, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 12:50 Amy Oliver feedback@i2i.org (Amy Oliver) tax increase, TABOR, dirty dozen, cheri gerou, amy oliver Though a few Colorado policies promote quality teaching in our K-12 schools, the state has plenty of room to improve in this area. Sandi Jacobs from the National Council on Teacher Quality explains how Colorado stacks up in her groups new comprehensive 2009 State Teacher Policy Yearbook, and what the state can do to get better than its current D+ grade. Thu, Feb 04, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 10:37 Ben DeGrow feedback@i2i.org (Ben DeGrow) education, teacher, quality, degrow Should parents know when their school's staff and administrators get arrested for crimes involving the students? The Poudre Valley School district didn't think so. Bob Moore from the Fort Collins Coloradoan joins Amy Oliver to discuss school district transparency in the case of criminal behavior. Wed, Feb 03, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 11:45 Amy Oliver feedback@i2i.org (Amy Oliver) fort collins, coloradoan, bob moore, amy oliver, education The Representative currently sponsoring the bill to eliminate mandatory state income tax withholding joins transparency superstar Amy Oliver. They discuss how HB1087 finally brings transparency to the issue of income tax collection. Wed, Feb 03, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 09:57 Amy Oliver feedback@i2i.org (Amy Oliver) income tax, swalm, transparency, hb1087 Jefferson County Public Schools, Colorados largest school district, has established itself as a financial transparency leader with the creation and launch of its online searchable expenditure database. Jeffco Chief Financial Officer Lorie Gillis explains the motivation for the project and the benefits of increased transparency, as well as how users can find and access the districts online spending data. Thu, Jan 28, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 11:26 Ben DeGrow feedback@i2i.org (Ben DeGrow) transparency, jeffco, school, union, CEA, NEA According to recently released statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor, a majority of our nations union members for the first time ever work in the public sector rather than the private sector. Brian Johnson, executive director of the Alliance for Worker Freedom, explains how the newly constituted labor movement affects the fight to control the size and scope of government. Wed, Jan 27, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 09:07 Ben DeGrow feedback@i2i.org (Ben DeGrow) union, labor, public, sector, private In a scam Al Capone wished he cooked up, the state of Colorado is currently taxing a tire disposal "fee." What that actually means is that they are taxing a tax. Investigative reporter Todd Shepherd uncovered the scam for Independence Investigates and then sat down with Jon Caldara. Mon, Jan 25, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 08:15 Jon Caldara feedback@i2i.org (Jon Caldara) tire, fee, tax, sales, ritter HB1087 looks to do away with the mandatory tax withholding such that, if an employee chose to do so, they could pay their state taxes at a later date via check, EFT, or what have you. Mike Krause and Amy Oliver discuss this idea and how it would impact state revenues and citizens' view of their burden of taxes. Mon, Jan 25, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 08:52 Mike Krause feedback@i2i.org (Mike Krause) income, tax, state, withholding Senior Fellow Penn Pfiffner sits down with Clear the Bench Colorado director Matt Arnold to discuss Colorado's Supreme Court. Why should the voters of Colorado have beef with the Justices and what can we do about it? Tune in to find out. Thu, Jan 14, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 08:44 Penn Pfiffner feedback@i2i.org (Penn Pfiffner) colorado, supreme, court, justice, mullarkey, matt arnold Senior Fellow in Jurisprudence and Constitutional Law professor Rob Natelson joins Penn Pfiffner to discuss whether he believes Obama Care, with all its individual mandates, is Constitutional or not. Our elected officials seem to not care by outright dodging that question. Listen to what Professor Natelson has to say on the matter, and how he responds to the most common arguments for Obama Care. Tue, Jan 12, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 07:23 Penn Pfiffner feedback@i2i.org (Penn Pfiffner) obama care, health care, constitution, pelosi Greeley City Manager Roy Otto joins Amy Oliver to discuss how the city of Greeley is taking transparency seriously, and openness is helping both the citizens and their government. Fri, Jan 08, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 10:30 Amy Oliver feedback@i2i.org (Amy Oliver) greeley, colorado, transparency, amy oliver A website to track spending from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) shows that Colorado has received millions in funding or grants in zip codes that are erroneous or don't belong in Colorado. Reporter Todd Shepherd sits down with Jon Caldara to discuss these stimulus funding errors in our state of Colorado. Thu, Jan 07, 2010 22:39:00 GMT 06:35 Jon Caldara feedback@i2i.org (Jon Caldara) stimulus, fraud, waste, funding, obama For the past three decades, Stephen Halbrook has been the leading Second Amendment attorney in the United States. In this podcast with Second Amendment wizard Dave Kopel, Mr. Halbrook discusses how he first got into gun rights, and his views on McDonald v. Chicago and the 14th Amendment. Thu, Dec 17, 2009 22:39:00 GMT 52:37 Dave Kopel feedback@i2i.org (Dave Kopel) second, amendment, gun, rights, chicago, mcdonald Investigative reporter Todd Shepherd sits down with Jon Caldara to discuss the current state of media (newspapers, TV, radio, blogs) and the future of media, which appears to be leaning more towards a decentralized model. Thu, Dec 17, 2009 22:39:00 GMT 10:44 Jon Caldara feedback@i2i.org (Jon Caldara) media, newspaper, radio, television, TV Every year the Independence Institute notifies teachers across Colorado of the availability of the Every Member Option political refund. Listen as Jon Caldara and education policy analyst Ben DeGrow discuss the refund option and the flattering reaction of the Jefferson County Education Association (JCEA), the state's largest local teachers union. Wed, Dec 16, 2009 22:39:00 GMT 09:29 Jon Caldara feedback@i2i.org (Jon Caldara) JCEA, CEA, DCTA, teacher, union, school, education