Last fall, a man broke into a family’s home in Wisconsin, murdered both parents and kidnapped their 13-year-old girl. After suffering three months in captivity, the girl escaped, thank goodness, and authorities arrested the suspect. When I read about this story, my immediate reaction was that “they” should kill the perpetrator, after due process, of […]
Ari Armstrong
Special to The Colorado Sun
Twitter: @ariarmstrong
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Congress should free Colorado’s brewers from onerous regulations
Can you think of a good reason why federal bureaucrats should approve beer labels or the opening of breweries? Neither can I. Among the victims of the government shutdown were brewers in Colorado and across the nation, whose product was held up by delays in government action. Part of the problem, as Hope Kirwan reports […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Colorado’s convoluted sales tax rules punish small businesses
Jerry “Wiggy” Wigutow takes pride in making sleeping bags in Grand Junction, where he employs more than 30 people in his factory. “If you buy our product, the Wiggy’s name comes on it. That means it’s our reputation and my name on the line,” he says on his web page. For years, whenever my family […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: For better politics, let’s separate party and state
Imagine there’s no political party on the ballot. It’s easy if you try. And, unlike John Lennon’s utopia, my proposed reforms are both possible and prudent. Early in our state’s history people tried letting political parties largely run elections. That was a disaster. Now we try letting government run political parties in important ways. Our […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Liberty voters can find silver linings to Jared Polis’ victory
As I’ve warned, single-party dominance of Colorado government by Democrats probably will be, on net, a bummer for Colorado’s liberty voters. Yet those who advocate economic and personal freedom also can find major reasons to celebrate the recent elections, particularly in the victory of Jared Polis for governor. Sure, Polis is a Progressive Democrat — […]
Posted inNews, Opinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: How Colorado Republicans can rebuild
It’s official: Colorado is a blue state. Can Republicans recover? Democrats did far better even than I expected. I thought Wayne Williams would cruise to re-election for Secretary of State and that George Brauchler would edge out Phil Weiser for Attorney General. Wrong! My worry that Libertarian candidates might endanger key Republican victories now seems […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Training unarmed civilians would reduce mass murder
Yes, let’s talk about gun laws. Colorado’s Democratic legislature is sure to do that in the coming session. But let’s also talk about something that would make a large, immediate difference in reducing casualties of gun-related mass murders and in helping to deter such crimes. Let’s talk about what unarmed civilians can do, especially with […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Let Colorado voters pick more than one candidate in a race
“Thou shalt not vote for more than one candidate in a given race,” it says nowhere in the Bible. Our system of voting is not an immutable law of nature, nor a divine commandment, nor the outcome of common sense. It is instead a longstanding legal and cultural tradition — one that we can and […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Single-party dominance could spell turmoil for Colorado
For the strategic voter, here’s what the Colorado race for governor comes down to. If Democrat Jared Polis wins, he stands a good chance to work with a Democrat-dominated legislature for at least part of his term to sign whatever bills the Progressive left can dream up to hike taxes and fees, expand economic regulations, […]
Posted inOpinion, Opinion Columns
Armstrong: Amendments Y and Z discriminate against members of Colorado’s minor parties
Gerrymandering undermines democratic institutions. Unfortunately, the Colorado ballot measures intended to fix the problem, Amendments Y and Z, however well-intentioned, are the wrong solution. The measures blatantly discriminate against members of minor parties — 58,219 active voters as of last count — by excluding them from participating in proposed redistricting commissions. Such discrimination is wrong, […]