Voice For Liberty

Month: February 2010

  • Why Obama is wrong about net neutrality

    “Net neutrality” sounds like a noble concept, doesn’t it? It’s another example of one political position co-opting language in a way that mislabels the underlying agenda.

  • It’s not the same as pee in the swimming pool

    In a column in the February 27, 2008 Wichita Eagle (“Smoking ban issue not one to negotiate”), columnist Mark McCormick quotes Charlie Claycomb, co-chair of Tobacco Free Wichita, as equating a smoking section in a restaurant with “a urinating section in a swimming pool.” This is a ridiculous comparison. A person can’t tell upon entering…

  • Kansas can’t afford a cigarette tax hike

    The Kansas Health Policy Authority’s recommendation to use a 75-cent cigarette tax increase to pay for health costs should be worrisome — not only to smokers, but also to non-smokers and fiscally responsible legislators as well. The approach may seem appealing at first, but such tax increases are notoriously unpredictable and regressive. Funding a high-profile…

  • Smoking is healthier than fascism

    There’s a Facebook group named Vote NO on Statewide Smoking Ban (Smoking is healthier than fascism). Started by Wichita activist Wendy Aylworth, the description of the group starts with the rallying cry “We must stop this tyranny of the majority!” Yes, we must.

  • Kansas historic preservation building tax credits discussed

    Sometimes on blogs people don’t take the time to read comments left to posts. Sometimes those comments provide valuable discussion and illumination of public policy issues. So here I take a moment to elevate a few comments left to a recent blog post.

  • Kansas school spending advocates exaggerate employment losses

    Yesterday I reported how Kansas school spending advocates lie about facts in order to score political points with their constituencies. Today we again see how the school spending lobby distorts facts, this time in a very substantial way concerning an important matter.

  • The changing face of journalism

    As newspapers and other forms of traditional news media experience economic difficulty, a gap has been created that needs to be filled. One of the solutions is the rise of non-profit organizations that have stepped in to provide the watchdog service that investigative journalism provides. Jason Stverak, author of the piece below, is president of…

  • Hayek vs. Keynes: the video

    There’s a video concerning some obscure but vitally important ideas in economics that’s getting a lot of play on YouTube. Titled “Fear the Boom and Bust” a Hayek vs. Keynes Rap Anthem, the video tells the story about two competing theories of how the world works — the theories of John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich…

  • Ad spotlights Kansas school spending

    A television advertisement is calling attention to some facts that Kansas school spending advocates don’t want you to know.

  • Wichita downtown planners hosting events

    The Wichita Downtown Development Corporation is holding two events in February that should be of interest to those concerned about the future of downtown Wichita and the city and region as a whole.

  • The myth of the smoking ban ‘miracle’

    Supporters of comprehensive bans on smoking often point to research findings that heart attacks decrease when smoking bans are implemented. But is this true?

  • Randal O’Toole on Wichita’s WaterWalk and government planning

    As part of Randal O’Toole’s visit to Wichita, he recorded some remarks in front of a few of Wichita’s monuments to government planning. Paul Soutar of Kansas Watchdog recorded video and assembled the remarks. His reporting is Randal O’Toole on Wichita’s WaterWalk and Government Planning.