Under the Government’s Wing

A fisherman with his net

Fishing boats are another example of government bragging about easing problems it caused.

By Justin Katz | July 20, 2021 |

Liberty Rhode Island caught the RI House of Representatives bragging about softening its grip around the Ocean State’s economic neck.  The example comes from the House’s Facebook page, which appears to be a partisan outlet to promote newspaper clippings that say nice things about House Democrats.  The page quotes an article by Ryan Blessing in The…

Vincent Van Gogh Tree Roots

Elorza’s view of poverty perfectly encapsulates progressives’ error.

By Justin Katz | July 14, 2021 |

No doubt many smart progressives would spot Democrat Mayor of Providence Jorge Elorza’s error in thinking, but this statement, as quoted on GoLocalProv, perfectly summarizes the progressive approach to policy: “If there’s one thing that causes poverty, it’s the lack of money,” said Elorza of the program that is currently funded through private donations —…

A water mill on a river

Matos’s Census Lessons and the Formation of a “Company State”

By Justin Katz | May 4, 2021 |

RI Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos took to the pages of the Boston Globe to herald the state’s Census-count success as a model for the provision of services, but progressives like her are redefining the relationship of the people with their government.

Aaron Regunberg tweet about free markets

The government is competing for workers, but paying them as service beneficiaries.

By Justin Katz | May 3, 2021 |

Leave it to Ivy League progressive Aaron Regunberg to stick with the far-left line no matter how clueless or heartless it might seem in the tweet shown as the featured image of this post: Just wild how the folks most invested in the Giant Spaghetti Monster idea of an all-knowing free market are complaining that…

A room with pealing paint

Watch out for attempts to resell you, for more money, what you’ve already paid for.

By Justin Katz | April 29, 2021 |

A line from Joe Biden’s speech yesterday should be a discussion point about how we look at public policy and at education.  Eric Quintanar highlighted it for the Daily Wire: “Twelve years is no longer enough today to compete with the rest of the world in the 21st century. That’s why my American Families Plan guarantees…

Government Employees Get Paychecks, Not Handouts

By Justin Katz | April 18, 2013 |

While I don’t expect to change his final assessment, I’d like to correct a misunderstanding in Thomas Kolodziejczak’s letter in today’s Providence Journal, “Katz’s rightist ravings.” Responding to an op-ed of mine from the previous Saturday (“Apathy, fear as R.I. dusk turns to night”), Mr. Kolodziejczak paraphrases that I meant to suggest “that nearly 20…

The Story of Rebecka and Jourie

By Marc Comtois | March 17, 2013 |

The piece detailing “EBT day” in Woonsocket in the Washington Post this Sunday was sad and frustrating all at once. That’s what made it a good piece. It showed how Woonsocket has come to rely on 12 days a year for its economic health: the first day of each month when SNAP EBT cards are…

Block Report: Food Stamps Abused For Oxy and Vike

By Marc Comtois | March 13, 2013 |

According to the Waste and Fraud Report formulated by Ken Block and released in a redacted version by Governor Chafee this afternoon (pdf), there’s a whole lotta Oxy and Vike on the market thanks to Food Stamps: We performed a study where we looked at Medicaid drug utilizations for Vicodin and Oxycontin (and all of…

Kicking Off the Office Pool on the Size of the Block-Report Scandal

By Justin Katz | March 13, 2013 |

With Governor Lincoln Chafee planning a “media availability” at 2:30 this afternoon related to an analysis by Ken Block’s Simpatico Software to find waste, fraud, and abuse in Rhode Island’s social services programs, many residents are wondering whether he’s been hoping to hide something. Governor Chafee has excused his early decision not to release the…

Selective Standards in Legislation (Uneducated and Unemployed)

By Justin Katz | January 28, 2013 |

Senate bill S0117 is one of those pieces of legislation that disguises its major effect in the description that most people will see (even among the minority of people who actually dig that deeply). The five initial sponsors of the bill are Senators Harold Metts (D, Providence), Elizabeth Crowley (D, Central Falls, Pawtucket), Paul Jabour…