Justin Katz

Office worker sleeping with Post-It Note eyes

Politics This Week: A Political Class Without a Care

By Justin Katz | July 31, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz discuss the curious lack of real disagreement in RI politics.

A water drop and ripples

Lovely. We have poison hemlock in RI, now.

By Justin Katz | July 27, 2023 |

Keep an eye out for weeds that have purple-spotted stems and white, umbrella-like flowers: Poison hemlock has made its way to all 50 states, including Rhode Island, except for Alaska, Florida, Hawaii, and Mississippi, so it’s something we’ll all likely deal with at some time or another. Commonly found in yards and fields, on the…

Ivan Vladimirov's Night Robbery of Humanitarian Aid

Rhode Island must come to grips with its decline and reverse it.

By Justin Katz | July 26, 2023 |

For all the talk about equity and living wages in the Ocean State, we hear surprisingly little about the lack of opportunity and earnings growth for working people.  A recent Wall Street Journal editorial understandably focuses on larger states, but Rhode Island makes an appearance, nonetheless: Earnings nationwide rose 5.4% on average between the first…

Homeless man "seeking human kindness"

To reduce homelessness, Rhode Island should reduce the minimum wage.

By Justin Katz | July 25, 2023 |

Homelessness may be the most striking issue on the table in the degree to which proposed solutions conspicuously ignore causes.  The attitude of the advocates and journalists seems to be that homelessness falls like an original cause on a metro area and can only be addressed through direct government reduction.  That’s a careless approach; an…

A "Submit Nomination" button on a keyboard

Politics This Week: Trespassing on Political Grounds

By Justin Katz | July 24, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz dissect the CD1 signature fraud controversy and the implications of the state claiming oceanfront property.

Mail ballot envelope

What did McKee pay Holly $1,500 a month for during the election?

By Justin Katz | July 19, 2023 |

Kathy Gregg reports in the Providence Journal that the person who collected the nomination signatures for Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos’s congressional run that are being scrutinized as fraudulent in multiple communities is Holly Cekala McClaren, who is the Holly with the (found to be exaggerated) Rhode Island accent in Governor Dan McKee’s dark and disgusting “you’re…

Yellow schoolbus.

RIPEC illustrates why government meddling in education is to be avoided.

By Justin Katz | July 18, 2023 |

A crucial bit of advice in our quick-communication, social-media age is to force yourself to leave space between reading something that bothers you and responding to it.  Usually, this tactic will help you avoid responding heatedly to things that simply don’t matter that much.  Sometimes, you’ll avoid unforced interpersonal errors.  But sometimes, giving things further…

A hand reaches for chains

Politics This Week: Unions Versus the People in RI

By Justin Katz | July 17, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz discuss evidence of unions’ tightening grip on Rhode Island and other political topics.

People gathered around a bonfire

The independent contractor form is just another stick on the bonfire.

By Justin Katz | July 13, 2023 |

A form declaring status as an “independent contractor” isn’t quite as dramatic as some are saying, but it’s still an indication of Rhode Island’s terrible priorities and special-interest favoratism.

Business people leap over a chasm.

Politics This Week: Media, Population Changes, and a Poll

By Justin Katz | July 10, 2023 |

John DePetro and Justin Katz review the political news of the day in Rhode Island.