In an insightful discussion, Kim Monson and her guests explore local politics and the seemingly nationwide overhaul of zoning regulations. From the intricacies of choosing the right paint colors to the larger question of housing density and government influence, we uncover how these decisions impact our communities. Discover the significant role community banks play in supporting local ventures amidst the backdrop of changing economic policies.
SPEAKER 15 :
It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
SPEAKER 05 :
I find that it takes work to get your brain around these ideas, and it takes work to engage in these conversations.
SPEAKER 15 :
The latest in politics and world affairs.
SPEAKER 05 :
With what is happening down at the Statehouse, I used to think that it was above my pay grade to read the legislation, and it’s not.
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Today’s Current Opinions and Ideas.
SPEAKER 05 :
I see big danger in as much as we will be giving an unelected bureaucrat the power to make rules about what we inject into our bodies.
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Is it freedom or is it force? Let’s have a conversation.
SPEAKER 05 :
Indeed, let’s have a conversation. And welcome to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You each are treasured, you’re valued, you have purpose. Today, strive for excellence. Take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment in history. And thank you to the team. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie, Mike, Teresa, Amanda, and all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting. Happy Thursday, Producer Joe. Happy Thursday, Kim. And we’ve got another great show planned for you today, so stay tuned. Let’s jump into some of the things that we like to talk about. The first is our word of the day. And our word of the day is dichotomy. And it’s spelled D-I-C-H-O-T-O-M-Y. And it could be a division into two contrasting things or parts. So, for example, it says the phase of the moon, Mercury, or Venus, when half the disk is illuminated, branching a characteristic by successive forking into approximately equal divisions. And I think that it’s a real dichotomy of what Mayor Mike Johnston of Denver is doing to this city. He, on one hand, says that he wants to bring people back downtown. And so they’re going to invest over $100 million primarily in public projects. but yet is not addressing the things that have really been the problem and that’s homelessness dirty dangerous all of those things and it’s going to take a lot to get this turned around for people to want to go back to downtown Denver I know people that no longer will travel to Denver that used to come to Denver on a regular basis and it will take a lot to get this turned around And so I think it’s a real dichotomy that he does not understand why this is happening here in our city. And it’s just so tragic. It just breaks my heart of what is happening to Denver. Our quote of the day is from Ludwig Heinrich von Mises, and he was born in 1881. He died in 1973. He was an Austrian-American political economist and philosopher of the Austrian school. He wrote and lectured extensively on the social contributions of classical liberalism and the central role of consumers in a market economy. He’s best known for his work in praxeology, particularly for studies comparing communism and capitalism and as well as for being a defender of classical liberalism in the face of rising illiberalism and authoritarianism throughout much of Europe during the 20th century. And he said this. He said that a society that chooses between capitalism and socialism does not choose between two social systems. It chooses between social cooperation and the disintegration of society. Socialism is not an alternative to capitalism. It is an alternative to any system under which men can live as human beings. And that is Ludwig von Mises. Wanted to mention some of our sponsors. I always like to say thank you to the Harris family for their goal sponsorship of the show. Susan Harris was on earlier this week. She lives in Arizona now. She’s lived in Colorado for many, many years. And there’s so many parallels of what is happening across all of these different states. And so I think it’s important to know that. We are going to have, and thank you to Jenny for the suggestion, a woman in New Jersey who is running for city council or town council. in her town, and that will be on Monday. And she is seeing in New Jersey the same things that we’re seeing here in Colorado with all of these different rewrites of land use codes and zoning regulations. And it seems to be happening throughout the country. And it’s coming at us like a freight train. And so that’s why I like to talk with people in other states as well. And so again, thank you to the Harris family. for their gold sponsorship of the show. And then also Hooters Restaurants has been a great sponsor of the show for many years and also a sponsor of America’s Veterans Stories as well. They have locations in Loveland, Westminster, and on Parker Road here in Aurora. Great specials Monday through Friday for lunch and happy hour. And they really have, I understand they have great fish tacos. I’m not a real fish taco fan, but everybody that has them says that they are fantastic. So again, thank you to Hooters for their great sponsorship of the show. And we have on the line with us Karen Gorday. And she is an entrepreneur, owner of Radiant Painting and Lighting, a sponsor of the show. And I wanted to get a weekly update from her. She’s a busy girl. Karen, welcome to the show. Good morning, Kim. How are you? Well, I am well. And so radiant painting and lighting. First thing I wanted to ask you, Karen, about people choosing paint color. And I’ve been in the fashion business for many, many years, and I realize there are some people that are colorblind. There are some people that just it’s not one of the things they do is to be able to see how colors can work together. Do you find that in your business as well?
SPEAKER 08 :
Absolutely. All the time. Colors are super important. And I run into, you know, there’s over 100 different whites. So, you know, it can be challenging to narrow down colors. And it’s a whole process to choose the colors.
SPEAKER 05 :
Is that something that you help your clients with, Karen?
SPEAKER 08 :
Sometimes I help them, but then I also have a color consultant who is an interior designer and is really good with the colors and talking to people to see what they like and also understands that certain colors have undertones. So while you might choose like a black paint, it may have a brown undertone or even a purple undertone. And so making sure you get that right color so that those undertones aren’t coming out in the wrong light.
SPEAKER 05 :
Boy, that is truly, I know that as well, because I’ve seen the same thing with fabrics. What about, it’s really important also when people are looking on an outside painting job to talk with their homeowners associations and get all that taken care of as well, yes?
SPEAKER 08 :
Absolutely, 100%. The HOAs are way too powerful in this state, and so you really need to understand their guidelines first before you pick out paint colors. A lot of them have certain color schemes that you’re allowed to paint, and they don’t want you to deviate from pre-selected color schemes. And then we just finished up a job yesterday in Littleton where they have to actually paint the samples of the colors and a two foot by two foot square on the garage door before they can even get approval to paint. And if you don’t get HOA approval, they can make you repaint. And you only wanna have to do that one time.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, that’s not fun at all. So you want to make sure that you have all those things buttoned up. And for example, I know on outside jobs, you want to make sure you may, somebody may like a certain color, but you want to make sure that it matches the roof, that everything, that it works together. Yes?
SPEAKER 08 :
yes absolutely and then you also want to look at your neighbor’s house and make sure your colors even if you don’t have an hoa you probably don’t want to have the same color as your neighbor right next to you or across the street and just make sure that it’s not too close and some people don’t care but then there are a lot of people that do care if their neighbors have the same color
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, so that you have that individualism, and there’s plenty of color choices out there so that you can do that. And so I know also, I can’t believe that August is right around the corner. You were running these specials of Christmas in July. Do those run out here soon, or are you going to extend that?
SPEAKER 08 :
They will stop at the end of the day.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay, and what are those? Yes.
SPEAKER 08 :
So we’re giving $200 off of Christmas lights if you book now or 20% off of interior painting done between December and the end of March.
SPEAKER 05 :
So there’s obviously not time probably for you to go out and consult on all that. So how could that work today so that people are sure they take advantage of that?
SPEAKER 08 :
Right. Contact me today. I will still honor it because I will be honest with you, my schedule is booked solid through the end of the week. So I’ll honor it. I’ll come out next week and still honor the specials. Okay.
SPEAKER 05 :
So how can people reach you, Karen Gorday?
SPEAKER 08 :
Two ways. You can give us a call at 720-940-3887 or our website at www.paintwithradiant.com.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay. And let’s talk about the other hat that you have decided to put on, and that is to run for Lakewood City Council. So how’s that coming along?
SPEAKER 08 :
That’s coming along great. The website is done. I’m waiting on my fundraising platform to be approved before I put the website live. In Lakewood, you have to have petitions signed in order to get on the ballot. Those come out next week. So I’ll be walking around and getting my petition signed to get the right number of signatures. to get on the ballot, and then, you know, really it’s campaign season from there on out.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right, and this is a November election, right? That is correct, yes. Wow, okay. And I mentioned just a few moments ago that I got connected via one of our listeners, Jenny, with a woman that is running for town or city council in her district, where she lives in new jersey and one of the catalysts for her is what we are seeing across the country now with all of these zoning rewrites and these land use rewrites that is it’s almost like it’s coming like a freight train to all of our communities karen and that was one of the things that really got your attention
SPEAKER 08 :
Yes, absolutely. I feel like it’s a national agenda to rewrite all the zoning laws just because we’re seeing it, to your point, in New Jersey. And we’re seeing it all out west and even in Wisconsin. I heard yesterday that they’re trying to change zoning. So it seems like it’s nationwide, and it’s not a good thing.
SPEAKER 05 :
And Karen, what we’re seeing is, and people are really being sold that we have to live in more and more density. And getting people on top of each other and then not providing enough parking where people are having to drive around and find parking, it’s putting more and more stress on people. And I think it’s almost by design. What do you think?
SPEAKER 08 :
I think it’s almost by design, and it’s not just parking. It’s the infrastructure. So, especially out here, where is the water going to come from when you increase this density? And, you know, I’m for high density if the infrastructure can support it. I’m not convinced that the infrastructure can support it. The other argument I’m hearing is Well, it worked in Minneapolis and Salt Lake City and Portland. Well, those are major cities. Those are not the suburbs. And the reality is I don’t know that it will work in the suburbs.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and the other thing is that you see government putting its finger on the lever by special financing, special permitting, and everything. And so if this density works and people want it from a free market standpoint, and like you say, if the infrastructure can support it, because if the infrastructure can’t support it, that’s an assault upon the property rights of people that are already here, Karen. Right.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, absolutely. And then the other piece of the Lakewood zoning is they want to restrict the size of new homes. They do have a clause where you can continue. Your house becomes nonconforming, but you can continue with that indefinitely, at least right now. But if your house is destroyed, if you do not start the rebuild process within 18 months, then you are going to fall into, well, you need to follow the new zoning code. Buried in the 398-page zoning code is the government essentially is becoming the HOA in that they want to limit things like the size of your front porch, the size of your planter. That’s not the proper role of government. Oh, my gosh. I mean, it’s really bad. And when I’m flipping through this, I’m like, how do I shorten this for my website, for my campaign? Because it’s really, it’s government overreach.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and you just said a word that I’ve not used from one of our force words, and that is conform. So I think I’m going to have to add that in because that’s another force word. Yes. Well, Karen Gorday, owner of Radiant Painting and Lighting and great sponsor of the show. Thank you for the two hats that you’re wearing to be out there in the business world and also to be running for Lakewood City Council. And we’ll be excited when your website is up and going.
SPEAKER 08 :
All right. I appreciate it. Thank you for letting me on the show this weekend.
SPEAKER 05 :
Oh, absolutely. And again, that’s Karen Gorday. And the website is paintwithradiant.com. I got that right, Karen, right?
SPEAKER 10 :
Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay, paintwithradiant.com. And I know each and every one of our sponsors personally, they all strive for excellence. Another great sponsor of the show is the Roger Mangin State Farm Insurance Team. And he’s been in business for over 50 years, serving his customers and taking care of his family and giving back to the community. And if you bundle your insurance together, you might be able to save some money. The only way to find out is give them a call at 303-795-8855. Like a good neighbor, the Roger Mangin Team is there.
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Focused and wise marketing is essential for your success, especially during tough economic times. If you love The Kim Monson Show, strive for excellence and understand the importance of engaging in the battle of ideas that is raging in America. Then talk with Kim about partnership, sponsorship opportunities. Email Kim at KimMonson.com. Kim focuses on creating relationships with individuals and businesses that are tops in their fields. So they are the trusted experts listeners turn to when looking for products or services. Kim personally endorses each of her sponsors. Again, reach out to Kim at KimMonson.com.
SPEAKER 05 :
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When you’re looking for a premium quality painting experience or professional temporary outdoor lighting, call our friends at Radiant Painting and Lighting. The owner, Karen Gorday, spent over 20 years in the customer service industry. She and her experienced professionals will treat your home as if it were their own. They only deliver excellence. When giving your home a beautiful new paint job, they use premium caulk and paint and will always deliver what they say. They don’t just enhance your space, they transform it. When you want excellence, call Radiant Painting and Lighting at 720-940-3887.
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SPEAKER 05 :
And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. We are talking with Jay Davidson. He is the founder and CEO of First American State Bank, which is a community bank located right here in the metro area in Greenwood Village. A great sponsor of the show. Jay Davidson, welcome.
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, thank you, Kim. It’s an honor to be on with you.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and congratulations. First American State Bank just celebrated their 30th anniversary. That is something. Congratulations.
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, thank you. It’s amazing to look back at all the changes that have happened and look at all the successes that our customers have enjoyed over the years. It’s a real delight.
SPEAKER 05 :
It is a real delight. And our community banks are the banks that really are, I would say, helping to finance the American dream for everyday people for Main Street. And certainly, First American State Bank is an important component in the area on that. Let’s talk a little bit about moving forward in 30 years. Your daughter is with you as well in the bank, and she is really kind of a driving force to bring those of us out of the dark ages into the current ages, right?
SPEAKER 16 :
Yeah, and I’m kicking and screaming and yelling and resisting every step of the way, but she’s a millennial, and her husband’s a millennial. Her husband’s also on the board. He’s a well-known and well-respected real estate person here in town. And they’re both helping us get up to speed on what millennials and Gen Xers and the younger folks, and I say younger as anybody under 40 now is kind of young at my age, into the bank. And well, they don’t come into banks. They do everything online on their mobile device, et cetera. So we have a A wealth of highly technical products, very intuitive, very easy to use, and very powerful products to help with treasury management, cash management. And yeah, Michelle is really doing everything she can to create awareness on social media and other places.
SPEAKER 05 :
And you and your family, Michelle, have done great work also in supporting charities in the community. And just let’s give a shout out to Michelle as well, because she does a lot of great work for the programs for Volunteers of America. And she was awarded a big award this last year as well, correct?
SPEAKER 16 :
She was. And it was a great honor to be there to see her receive it. This is something she just took on by herself. I mean, she just drove this. It’s her annual toy drive and get incredible participation from the community and from the schools and people’s parents. Kids come here and wrap gifts. I think we do it in September, October time frame and then give the gifts to underprivileged children at the VOA facilities over Christmas so they all have something. And these are really nice little gifts. In fact, I’ve tried to get a couple myself and play with them, but they won’t let me.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah. It’s not supposed to be used gifts. And I’ve actually come over and helped wrap gifts as well. You have. Yeah. That’s right. And what you are doing and what Michelle is doing is really fantastic. So thank you. But let’s get over here to our subject. The first one I wanted to start with is something that you had commented on. And just recently, it’s an independent Fed is sacrosanct. And in your commentary, you said that the Fed’s first directive was to maintain the value, the purchasing power of the dollar. And they have not done a very good job on that, Jay.
SPEAKER 16 :
No, they definitely have not. The Fed was formed, this particular central bank, the Fed Reserve was formed in 1913 under President Wilson. And the concept of the Fed is a good concept. It has a lot of different moving parts. But the one part we’re talking about is implementation of what’s called monetary policy. That’s as opposed to fiscal policy. Fiscal policy is handled by the Congress and the president and has to do with the way that we regulate and tax people. Monetary policy has to do with the value of the dollar, and that is the only thing that the Fed Reserve should be doing. And it’s done, as you said, a poor job. The value of the United States dollar has declined by 97 percent since 1913. So I would say the Fed has been a dismal failure in maintaining the value of the United States dollar. And people should say, well, why does that matter? Why do I care? I mean, a dollar buys a dollar. No, actually, if you go to the grocery store today and you buy the same goods that you did last year, a dollar costs you $1.25 because the value of the dollar has gone down. And I’m sure we’ll get into why that is. So it is significant to us that the value of the United States dollar, a dollar, Stay flat, stay in place instead of devaluing the dollar as the Fed has done over these past hundred years.
SPEAKER 05 :
So, Jay, my father, a farmer from western Kansas, but very wise man, talked to me about monetary policy. He said that government-induced inflation is the silent thief. And it’s true. It’s like a thief comes in and takes money out of your pocket because you’re not able to buy as much money. as you used to. Can this also be tied to my, I remember my father was really concerned when America went off of the gold standard. Are those two things connected?
SPEAKER 16 :
Sure, absolutely. Unfortunately, President Nixon, a Republican, took us off the gold standard, which kind of is anathema to my idea of who a Republican is. But yes, it definitely has an impact. And The gold standard said that the United States Federal Reserve can only issue as many U.S. dollars, paper dollars, or what are called Federal Reserve notes, as they have gold backing it up. So people using the dollar in exchange, particularly foreign nations, use so many dollars in an exchange that a small variation in the value of the dollar has big impact on their bottom line. So they’re very careful about watching it. And so you’re right. The gold standard, I mean, it’s not realistic to think that we can get back to the gold standard. I don’t think there’s enough gold in the world to cover the number of United States dollars that have been printed since 1913. But if there is some criteria that whereby, um, We can control the Fed’s use of what’s called money supply. You might hear the term M2 or M1. But money supply is the critical issue here. The number of dollars printed is a really critical thing, and everybody ignores it. It blows my mind that they’re not picking up on this one. They want to talk about interest rates. Well, how good has… 525 basis point increase by the Federal Reserve on overnight funds done in fighting inflation. And I’m telling you, it hasn’t helped at all because this inflationary cycle that we’re in right now is not caused by demand-supply imbalance, which is a typical form of an inflationary event. This is caused strictly because in 2008, Barack Obama, Chairman Ben Bernanke, And the head of the United States Treasury Department colluded and started a process called quantitative easing or QE. And all that is, is that they started to print United States dollars with no limit in sight. And by the time they were done printing several years later, there was nine trillion additional United States dollars in our economy. And everyone and not this economy. The basic economy was like 18 trillion. The basic cash in the economy was 18 trillion. So they went up 50 percent in a few years. Well, guess what, folks? That’s why you’re feeling inflation. It’s not really inflation. It is devaluation of the dollar.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, several questions. I guess the first question, let’s go back to Nixon and the gold standard. What was his purported reason that he would support taking the United States off of the gold standard?
SPEAKER 16 :
He wanted a loose money policy. The more U.S. dollars you put into the economy, the more liquid it is, the more transactions it will have. It’s called the velocity of money. The more times money will change. And that’s part of what Trump wants, but I think he’s smart enough to know that he can’t improve the economy by liquefying more of the economy. He can’t print more dollars. I think he sees that. So Nixon just wanted a little pickup for the polls. It was very selfish, inappropriate.
SPEAKER 05 :
And it sounds like connecting a dot, it’s a precursor possibly to what Obama and Bernanke did?
SPEAKER 16 :
Absolutely. Oh, yeah. Obama’s fiscal policy, now this is the policy having to do with regulation and taxation, was extremely heavy on businesses. I mean, it was unbelievable taxation. what these regulators were doing, the taxes and the fines that they were imposing on us. And guess what? When you increase tax, a tax on an item, the sales of that item goes down. The transactions associated therewith go down. It’s not like, oh, I’m going to increase the tax rate 5% and I’m going to get 5% more. No, you’ll actually get less revenue by increasing the taxes. And so Obama’s fiscal policy was very socialistic, almost communistic in the sense that it was more central controlled than even than it is today. He couldn’t get the economy to generate. Well, of course, I mean, the uncertainty that he imposed on us in the business world says to me, I’m not investing for the future. i can’t when i have such an unstable government condition where i don’t know what the next rule and regulation is going to be i can’t invest for the long term so i’m just going to sit on my money and not just us banks did that everybody did that so his answer to the whole thing was his brilliant economic economist is what i would call keynesian uh economists or modern monetary theory guys same difference would come to him and say, well, we could print all these dollars. And we can’t sell our bonds, our treasury bonds, because nobody wants to buy them right now. So we’ll just buy it ourselves. And that’s what happened. Fed created all this money supply, $9 trillion worth of it, sent it over to the Treasury Department, who issued bonds to offset. Those treasury bonds are debt on every citizen today and every future citizen in the future. That’s debt. That’s all it is, pure and simple as debt. We have to pay it off. They didn’t, Gladys.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, it’s one thing, Jay, if we are not paying attention or whatever. This happened under our watch, and I think it’s immoral to do what was done there. But it definitely is immoral to saddle the next generation with debt that they had no say in incurring. There is something really wrong with that picture.
SPEAKER 16 :
Yeah, and it’s even wrong for our government, our federal government, to saddle us existing citizens with that kind of debt. But it’s even worse, and it’s on our shoulders, I think is the point you’re getting. It’s on our shoulders as parents and grandparents to correct this evil that exists, this incredible debt burden that we’re putting on our grandchildren.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and Jay, one other thing that I’ve realized is we’ve had all of these conversations and we have talked about federal debt. And certainly I’m concerned about that. But what I’m also seeing is we are continually being asked as we go to the ballot box to, well, and we have tapered Colorado’s Taxpayers Bill of Rights, which is an amendment to the Constitution. that is to keep government spending limited. It says three things. It says, hey, PBIs, politicians, bureaucrats, and interested parties, if you want to raise our taxes, you have to ask us. If you want to incur debt, you have to ask us. And if you want to keep excess revenue that you’ve collected from us or excess of our money that you’ve collected above a generous formula of population plus inflation, you just have to ask us. So there will be questions on the ballot to ask. For example, Denver, it looks like they’re going to be asking the voters to extend debt that would be paid off to the tune of $935 million. So we talk about the federal debt, but my gosh, Jay, we’ve got to say no on new debt here in our communities. And there’s always a good reason, and it’s always sold to us, oh, this is just the price of a cup of coffee each day or whatever it is. We’ve got to start to say no to debt on the local, county, and state level as well.
SPEAKER 16 :
Yeah, that’s an excellent point across the board. And the way that people sell it, both Republicans and Democrats, mostly Democrats, sell debt additional debt, new taxation, et cetera, is look at this one individual. You know, I feel so sorry for, and we do. I mean, we all do. In fact, those of us in the private sector spend a lot more money on charitable giving than the politicians ever could. So we believe in helping the individual. I just don’t believe in the government helping the individual because I don’t think the government is capable of In fact, they are proving themselves time and again absolutely incapable of taking care of the individual. That’s up to the individual. That’s up to private enterprise.
SPEAKER 05 :
I totally agree, and the other point to make on that is as the money is forcibly taken via taxes or fees from producing individuals, as the money goes by to purportedly get to this person that they’ve shown needs something, these PBIs have their hands in the till as all the money goes by, and I think that’s important to realize. as well. Jay, we’re going to go to break. I’m talking with Jay Davidson. He is the CEO and founder of First American State Bank. Another great sponsor of the show is Lorne Levy for Everything Mortgages.
SPEAKER 13 :
That’s 303-880-8881. Call now.
SPEAKER 17 :
All of Kim’s sponsors are an inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Monson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmonson.com. That’s kimmonson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 18 :
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SPEAKER 05 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. We are talking with Jay Davidson. He is the founder and CEO of First American State Bank, which is a community bank located right here in the Denver metro area, and also a great sponsor of the show. And, Jay Davidson, we were talking in this previous segment about the Federal Reserve, that their directive was to maintain banks The value of the dollar. They’ve not done a great job because the dollar has declined in value 97% since the Fed was instituted. So that doesn’t seem like that’s doing a very good job. But part of this is because of printing money. and the spending, and we talked about the federal level, but I mentioned on the local level, we need to say no to new debt here at the local level as well. And there’s something when the question is on the ballot, whenever you see the words, without raising taxes, it’s like Katie barred the door, because what they’re probably doing is… extending a tax that would have otherwise been paid off. So I think that really is a tax increase because your taxes would have gone down if you didn’t pass whatever the question is that they’re asking for more of your money.
SPEAKER 16 :
Yeah, that’s a very good point. At every level, any government level, whether it’s municipal, state, or national, we need to be on top of the politicians, commissioners, et cetera, that are deciding to take our money away from us through taxation or fees. And when they say it’s, you said Denver was looking at almost a billion dollars in additional debt or something. Right. And just like, well, wait a minute, you guys are bankrupt right now. You can’t handle what you’re doing. And you want to go into more debt? How does that work? I mean, what’s the mechanism by which you pay that back? Well, the mechanism is real simple for these politicians. They don’t pay it back. Every citizen in Denver and Denver County pays it back, which means you individuals in that area will have less spendable income because they’re going to tax it out of you or take it on fees. People need to make this leap. This is not such a big leap. It’s like, hey, government doesn’t make money. They can print it, but they don’t make it. Well, only the Fed can print. Excuse me. I need to be precise there. But, you know, the city and county of Denver can’t print money, but they can take it. They can tax you. They can add fees. They can find different ways to get money from you. And, you know, you can say, well, this is just a little increment increase in my tax rate. And I’m OK with that because I’m a good person. Well, buddy, where where does it destroy you? Right. And are we getting pretty close to that right now? And then on the other side of the ledger, look at what the mayor has done, what he spent money on, the money that you individual citizens have coughed up. Where is he spending it? Why are the roads in Denver so pathetic? You know, why is crime so bad? Why are homeless everywhere? The whole circle of negative feedback is just mind-boggling to me of big cities like Denver. And the mistakes that these politicians are making is just unconscionable. If they’d only read a little bit of history, they would know that what they’re doing is exactly wrong. It’s all right there. The lessons are already there. They’ve already been learned time and time again. Why can’t you people wake up and start to study these issues?
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and so you had referenced, you recently had sent something out referencing a report by the Common Sense Institute. And what happens is people, the producers and the taxpayers will eventually make a choice, and many times they may leave. And so this referenced that Denver retail sales dropped 1.2% from late 2024 to the first quarter of 2025. And that also that Denver, among 387 metro areas, is ranked third worst in growth. There used to be a real Denver vibe, and they are destroying that, Jay Davidson.
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, exactly. And this is the same mentality as we see at the national level. And to me, the question is very simple. Do you believe that your central government, whatever it is, municipal, state, or national, should have more power or less power over your decisions as an individual? And that’s the crux of the decision point. Now, people that are going to advocate for more government, more taxation, tax the rich, et cetera, don’t put two and two together, in my opinion, huh? And well, what you’re really saying is that you think a bureaucrat, a federal employee or a state employee can decide better what you should be doing with your money than you can. And we all know that’s a falsehood. That’s a lie. So put two and two together. And every time you ask for more taxation, you’re taking more and more away from the private sector. And if we look at the formation of our country, our nation, back 250, 49 years ago, our Constitution did one thing and one thing only. It limited the power of the federal government. That’s all it does. It says nothing about the citizen because the citizen is supposed to be free. In fact, the Second Amendment, all amendments are pointing toward freedom of of the individual citizen of America to make his or her own choices. And so the whole issue that we’re talking about is do you believe in more government or less? And if you really believe in more government, then I would ask you, I would demand that you start to justify to me how you think the government is solving any problem that it’s put its mind to. How’s the war on drugs doing? How about the war on poverty? Name it. There’s very few things that the federal government can do. The one thing they can do is protect our borders, which I’m thankful that President Trump is doing that. But that’s it. There’s not a lot more that the government can or should do, and that’s written in the Constitution. It’s all there. The fact that the progressive left has taken over the Democratic Party is one of the greatest travesties in the history of our nation. The Democrats I’ve known over the years have been very proud, strong Americans. The progressive left that have taken over your party is like, are you people serious? You’re going to nominate a communist to run the greatest city in the United States, New York? Are you people nuts? What is going on with you? I’m sorry, but it’s just like we’re committing suicide and we’re doing it slowly. I don’t get it.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and also through elections, which is crazy as well, as you mentioned, to have a avowed socialist communist possibly be running the the largest city in America, it really is unbelievable. And so, Jay, you and I, over the years, both, we’ve known, as you mentioned, Democrats that love our country. And this big, broad middle of America, the moderate Democrats and unaffiliateds and libertarians, Republicans, conservatives, we need to come together and unite and reclaim this state, Colorado, that we love. and our country, and what’s happened is conservatism has, the word has been demonized so much that people don’t understand that, and I know there’s different definitions, but in my mind, conservatism, conserve, being a conservative is to conserve this idea of America that all men are created equal with these rights from God of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. which plays into what you say on a regular basis, is that the individual is basically sacred in the American idea.
SPEAKER 16 :
That’s the bottom line. That really is what it’s all about. And that’s got to be the differentiating point. And, you know, we can complain about our politicians, but you know what, citizens? You elected them. It’s your fault. It’s my fault. You know, I was asleep at the switch. I didn’t pay attention. I let things go. I didn’t, you know, well, that’s we elected these people and we can unelect them. And, you know, when they’re asking us for money, which is before they’re elected, that’s the only time you can influence them. Honestly, tell them if I see you spend one more dollar of my dollars, I will actively vote against you. I’ll go after you. I will advocate against you.
SPEAKER 05 :
And when you say go after it, you mean from an ideological standpoint to talk about their ideas?
SPEAKER 16 :
Oh, God, yes, yes. Thank you for clarifying that. Yeah, I’m not talking any kind of violence here. That’s disgusting. But, you know, arguing the point with a politician, you know, they’re very smooth at what they do. They know all the little games that have to be played. Well, don’t let them get away with it. You know, if they’re going to Washington or to the state capitol to pass one law, that’s one law too many. How many laws do we have on the books today? All because these politicians think their job is to increase laws, to make laws. And their underlying thought process is that I can solve your problem for you. No politician, you can’t. and for me to think that you or any other government entity can solve my problems is absolutely absurd tell you what leave me alone i’ll solve my own problems and that’s that’s the mindset that the american citizen has that’s what built our nation that’s what is in the core of every american citizen alive today we need to awaken that core
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and that’s what you’re doing as far as you are keeping people really informed. That’s what we’re working on. You said something that’s interesting, and language is so important. And I am encouraging people to refer to electeds as elected representatives, not elected officials, because then it sounds like they can officiate over my life, and they can’t. But one other thing, and I’ve never really mentioned this, but I’ve really felt uncomfortable with our legislators saying, being called lawmakers. Now, granted, they do make laws, but that is not the directive that we give to them. The directive is that they be a representative of the people, and first and foremost, to protect this American idea, that we’re all created equal, with rights from God, of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. So when you have lawmakers, I have that in air quotes, that are passing laws, that are picking winners and losers, It’s antithetical to the American idea, and I would submit to you that it’s probably unconstitutional, but we see it all the time.
SPEAKER 16 :
It is definitely unconstitutional, and that’s the crux of the matter. That’s a very good point.
SPEAKER 05 :
And so we need to be engaged and citizens understand these issues and get through all the fluff. I can only imagine this is going to be so interesting, Jay Davidson, to watch the Denver mayor and the Denver City Council members try to spend $935 million in in new debt. And they’ve been out shopping around in each of the districts, promising each of the districts something to try to get the people to vote for it. So it’s going to be really interesting to watch this. I think it’s going to be fun to shed light on this, because we’re going to work really hard to defeat this.
SPEAKER 16 :
Good for you. I don’t live in Denver, and I chose not to live in Denver for this very reason. I would hope that the citizens of Denver would stand up to the the mayor and the city council and tell them enough of this stuff. You know what? I can spend my money better than you can, and you need to stop taking my money away from me in fees and taxes.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well done, Jay Davidson. Jay Davidson, how would you like to button this up?
SPEAKER 16 :
Well, just back to monetary policy, we talked a little bit about it. It’s kind of a nerdy economics idea, but the fact of the matter is, is that for every dollar that’s printed in excess of that needed to liquefy the economy, to provide liquidity for the economy, that dollar devalues every other dollar in existence. And that’s the reason that we’re experiencing inflation today. And so interest rates are not touching inflation because that’s not the problem. The problem is too many dollars printed. And the dollars were printed in order for Congress and the president’s to spend money, to further control our lives. When the government spends a dollar, hey, that’s your money, my friends, every one of you citizens. And don’t be disheartened. You can and we can change this entire mess that our government has become. That is within our rights constitutionally and morally and ethically.
SPEAKER 05 :
And that’s why we engage in this battle of ideas, because ideas are so important. Jay Davidson, as always, thank you. And you would think that I had that you and I’d work together on the end of the show quote, which we haven’t. But it’s by Ludwig von Mises, who’s one of your favorite guys. He said, if you increase the quantity of money, you bring about the lowering of purchasing power of the monetary unit. So there you have it. So, Jay, as always, thank you. We will talk next month.
SPEAKER 16 :
Thank you, Kim. It’s been a great pleasure.
SPEAKER 05 :
And today, my friends, be grateful, read great books, think good thoughts, listen to beautiful music, communicate and listen well, live honestly and authentically, strive for high ideals, and like Superman, stand for truth, justice, and the American way. My friends, you are not alone. God bless you. God bless America. And stay tuned for hour number two.
SPEAKER 09 :
To live in freedom Talking about
SPEAKER 02 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
SPEAKER 15 :
It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
SPEAKER 05 :
I find that it takes work to get your brain around these ideas, and it takes work to engage in these conversations.
SPEAKER 15 :
The latest in politics and world affairs.
SPEAKER 05 :
With what is happening down at the Statehouse, I used to think that it was above my pay grade to read the legislation, and it’s not.
SPEAKER 15 :
Today’s current opinions and ideas.
SPEAKER 05 :
I see big danger in as much as we will be giving an unelected bureaucrat the power to make rules about what we inject into our bodies.
SPEAKER 15 :
Is it freedom or is it force? Let’s have a conversation.
SPEAKER 05 :
Indeed, let’s have a conversation. And welcome to our number two of the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You each are treasured, you’re valued, you have purpose. Today, strive for excellence, take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment in history. And thank you to the team. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie, Mike, Teresa, Amanda, and all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting. Happy Thursday, Producer Joe.
SPEAKER 19 :
Happy Thursday, Kim.
SPEAKER 05 :
And boy, a lot is going on in our world. Let’s jump into, first of all, our word of the day is dichotomy. And it is spelled D-I-C-H-O-T-O-M-Y. It could be a division into two contrasting things or parts. It could be the phase of the moon, Mercury, or Venus when half of the disk is illuminated. Or it could be branching characterized by successive forking in two approximately equal divisions. And I think it’s a real dichotomy that Mike Johnston, the mayor of Denver and the Denver City Council, on one hand say that they want to promote business in Denver. And the downtown Denver partnership, there was a tax question, I think it was this last election, where the people of Denver voted to continue taxing themselves for this partnership, which that’s where the money is coming from for these projects that will be funded over $100 million. Right. But it’s a real dichotomy that they say that they want to support small businesses, but yet this money will be used to pick winners and losers. So your challenge is to use the word dichotomy in a sentence today. In the last hour, we talked with Jay Davidson. and he is a real fan of Ludwig von Mises. Von Mises was an Austrian-American political economist and philosopher of the Austrian School of Economics. He was born in 1881, he died in 1973. And he said this, a society that chooses between capitalism and socialism does not choose between two social systems. It chooses between social cooperation and the disintegration of society. Socialism is not an alternative to capitalism. It is an alternative to any system under which men can live as human beings. And that’s one of the things when you get to government housing and government handouts, people are no longer being treated as human beings. And really they’re treated more as pets. And meantime, there’s a lot of money that goes into PBI’s pockets for all of these different programs. And we need to continue to reclaim the dignity of each human and the dignity of work, of providing for oneself. And so that’s one of the differences really, I would say, between capitalism and socialism is is are people being treated as pets by the government? Or are we reclaiming our own human dignity through work and industriousness and creativity and innovation? I think that those are some of the big questions out there. Some of the, one of the headlines, let’s see. I’m not quite sure what I want to talk about exactly. Let’s go to one of these headlines here. And this is the city and county of Denver said they’re going to invest $100 million in 10 projects to bring, I have this in air quotes, to bring people back downtown. And it says one of the first things that they are going to do is to have more of a police presence. Well, people are very frustrated with crime. The city is dirty. It’s dangerous. There’s homelessness, drug use on our streets. So that really needs to be addressed. But this is from Denver 7. And I just wanted to go through some of these projects that they and again, this is picking winners and losers. And so one of the first things is $2.7 million is going to go to green spaces market. This is not the proper role of government to be subsidizing private enterprise and picking winners and losers. And as I looked at Greenspace’s market, many of them, well, for example, during Pride Month, they had a BIPOC pride market, which BIPOC stands for Black Indigenous People of Color and Pride Market. And again, if people want to… exercise their freedom of speech freely without government dollars doing that that’s important but we should not be using government subsidies for for this kind of stuff next thing four hundred thousand dollars will go to renovate the denver immersive repertory theater again not the proper rule of government 640 000 to relocate milk tea people $750,000 to expand Sunday Artisan Ice Cream. $31 million to convert two historic buildings to residential. And some of that will be subsidized by the government. So again, government housing. $23 million to purchase two parking lots by the Denver pavilions and redevelop those. So that means there will be less places to park. And so what that means is less people will be driving into Denver because it will be more difficult and more expensive to park. And then $42 million will go to public spaces. That does not seem like the proper use of money whatsoever. The next headline that I wanted to mention, this is from USA Today, which was rather surprising that they would publish this. This is an opinion piece by Nicole Russell. And it says that GDP soars and Trump economy roars. Liberals still won’t give him credit. And she says, thanks to President Donald Trump’s bold policies, it appears that the United States will avoid a recession this year, one that so many liberals were predicting only months ago. She asked, will Democrats put politics aside and applaud as the American economy shows a strength and resilience that so many of them doubted? She said, probably not. She said the Bureau of Economic Analysis on July 30th released more good news about our nation’s vibrant economy. Gross domestic product grew a healthy annual rate of 3% in the second quarter after recording a less than 1% decline in the first three months of this year. Fears of recession should now dissipate like morning haze after the sunrise. Nearly all markers of a strong economy are in top form. Unemployment is low, hovering at 4.1%, and the past three months have seen steady job growth. Average hourly earnings for U.S. workers grew 3.7% over the 12 months ending in June. And I know that from an economic standpoint, there are those that have said that businesses have been standing on the sideline, that there is uncertainty because of the tariffs. But this kind of news is great news. And so I’m very excited that we can report that. I’m a little surprised that USA Today actually had that in their newspaper. So I wanted to mention the Roger Mangan State Farm Insurance Team, and they can help you with coverage for your boat, your home, your motorcycle, your condo. Don’t forget renter’s coverage. If you bundle your insurance together, you might save some money. I know that one of my friends reached out to them, and she was able to save over $1,000. thousand dollars a year when she bundled everything together. And the only way to find out if they can help you with that is to give them a call. That number is 303-795-8855. Like a good neighbor, the Roger Manga team is there.
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SPEAKER 05 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter there, and you can email me at Kim at KimMonson.com as well. I want to hear from you. The text line is 720-605-0647. And do you have big dreams for your future? but you’re not quite sure how to get there, call our friends at Mint Financial Strategies. They know your financial life is unique, and as an independent firm and an accredited investment fiduciary, they build personalized strategies that put your freedom and goals first. No sales pressure, no one-size-fits-all approach, just thoughtful guidance built around you. So take that first step toward your future. Call Mint Financial Strategies at 303-285-3080. That’s 303-285-3080. And another great sponsor of the show is the Second Syndicate. And the Second Syndicate has been created to protect our Second Amendment rights. And the co-founders are on the line with me right now. That is Alicia Garcia and Teddy Collins. Alicia, welcome to the show. Good morning, Kim. How are you doing? I am well. And Teddy Collins, welcome.
SPEAKER 04 :
Thanks for having us, Kim.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, and both of you have been writing essays that we’ve published at the Kim Monson Show. And there are a lot of eyeballs that are getting on these different essays that you are writing because people, I think, are hungry to understand what is happening regarding our Second Amendment rights. And your most recent one, Teddy, regarding the big, beautiful bill, you basically said there was some good stuff in there, but it didn’t go far enough. And people really were… I think they really appreciated your honest approach in this particular essay.
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, that’s good. I mean, there was definitely some good things in there, but again, we had an opportunity to do some real change for the Second Amendment and to bring back some rights that have been taken from us through legislation over the years, and we kind of dropped the ball.
SPEAKER 05 :
So it’s important that we shed light on it. And again, we acknowledge good things, but we have to also be honest about the challenges that we are facing. And here in Colorado, we are really facing significant challenges on our Second Amendment. But before we get into that, I’d like to talk a little bit about Spartan Defense, which is your business. Teddy, tell us a little bit about Spartan Defense, which is located in Colorado Springs.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, so Spartan Defense is the firearm store and retail store that my wife and I own down in Colorado Springs. One of the largest family-owned and operated firearms stores in the state of Colorado. We specialize in hard-to-find items and things that you just don’t usually see at other stores. We have some exclusive brands that are statewide, if not at least citywide. Everything from Staccato to Alice to Lago Arms to Cabot and Alchemy, Bull Armory, you name it. We probably carry it over at Spartan Defense.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay. And Alicia Garcia, you also, you work with Teddy, you are the co-founders of the Second Syndicate, but you do firearms training for people, yes? I absolutely do. Tell us a little bit about that, Alicia.
SPEAKER 07 :
So I also do firearms education and training through my company, the concealed carry class of Denver. We’re actually getting a new office that we’re opening up in North Denver to accommodate the need that we have right now. When the new requirements for concealed carry went into effect this month, one of the requirements for that is that educators also are permitted through the state of Colorado. We have noticed a significant dip in educators who actually got that permission slip, quote unquote, from the state of Colorado in order to continue training. And my company, Concealed Carry Class of Denver, is one of those organizations.
SPEAKER 05 :
Okay. Well, I appreciate all that you do. And so you and Teddy have created the Second Syndicate because there were these disparate voices regarding our Second Amendment. We need to come together so that we can protect these rights. So tell us a little bit about the Second Syndicate, how people can support you, get more information.
SPEAKER 07 :
So we do have a website. It is thesecondsyndicate.com, the2ndsyndicate.com. We really appreciate donations. If you want to head over to the website and hit that donate button, we are a 501c4, so… everything that we do 50 of all the funds that we raise have to go to political uh you know a political movement and that political movement is protecting and preserving the second amendment so we are very very interested in making sure that we have our ducks in a row and we have the second amendment represented in the gold dome down there in denver to make sure that our interests are being protected uh we have heard from the Republican Party here in Colorado that there is going to be an emergency legislative session that is happening. I think it’s August 18th. So we are very concerned as to what they are going to be hearing and what they’re going to be attacking. We do believe it’s because of the big, beautiful bill, some taxing. We will not put it past these people to want to find a reason to attack the Second Amendment and take away more rights. So we want the people to understand that We will be there. We will be representing the voices of the people, of the free people. And we would really appreciate that support.
SPEAKER 05 :
Very important to support these freedom voices out there. And so, Teddy Collins, there has been a lot of new gun laws here in Colorado that makes it more difficult for everyday people to keep and bear firearms, have ammunition. to protect ourselves against bad actors and that is why the founders put the second amendment into the the constitution into the bill of rights is to protect ourselves against bad actors and it’s somewhat unique about america as well but colorado is just chipping away at these rights so tell us about some of these gun laws and we’ve talked about them on the show but it’s important to re you know revisit them so people know what’s going on out there
SPEAKER 04 :
Well, I mean, it all started back in 2013 with the magazine capacity limitation. And then as of recent, we’ve had a three-day wait instituted upon our rights where now we have to go into a store, do a background check, and wait three days to actually pick up our purchase and exercise our Second Amendment. And as of this last year, now we have… SB-003 that passed, which is going to be essentially a semi-automatic ban. In order to purchase a semi-automatic gas-operated firearm, such as an AR-15, you’re going to have to go through three days of training and pay the state a large fee and receive a license in order to actually go into a store and purchase an AR-15 or another semi-automatic gas-operated firearm. So I have a feeling we’re going to see more coming as well on 2026 for the legislative session. I hope I’m wrong, but, you know, I think that’s what we’re going to see.
SPEAKER 05 :
There’s part of me, Teddy, that’s wondering what more can they do? I know I should not ask that question because we’re going to find out, but I wonder what more can they do?
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, I mean, I could see them, you know, during this last legislative session, they stated that 003 would not apply to, you know, recoil-operated pistols such as a Glock 19 or something of that nature. I think they could go as far as to make this a license required for any semi-automatic firearm. And to be honest, 003 is worded very poorly. It could be left up to interpretation that it already does require a license to purchase something like a Glock 19, a recoil-operated firearm. Because it doesn’t really define what a gas-operated system or hybrid-operated system is. At the end of the day, all semi-automatics use gas and recoil to operate the firearm.
SPEAKER 05 :
And, Alicia, I think sometimes when the language on these bills or these initiatives or amendments that are on our ballot seem somewhat difficult to understand, sometimes I think that’s by design, Alicia.
SPEAKER 07 :
It absolutely is. One of the things that we’re noticing, and you know, there’s always the repercussions of what we do and how we vote, right? So one of the examples for that is, I believe back in 2021, Colorado passed the Office of Gun Violence Prevention. That cost Colorado $3 million to create and initiate. What they had found in their studies that they’ve conducted is that the first two years they published studies, which, by the way, they have taken down from their website that we can’t access, good thing that I downloaded those things, is that they’ve shown that the… amount of gun deaths that happen in the state of colorado the first year i believe it was 75 percent the second year that they provided a study it was 73 percent all were self-inflicted gun violence so self-harm or suicide they’re using those numbers to inflate The way that it looks to the public saying, you know, we have a significant amount of gun deaths in Colorado. They’re not talking about the mental health aspect of it. And this is the result of how people vote because they’re leading these bills saying, oh, this is a public health issue. This is good for the people because we’re going to be solution oriented and we’re going to conduct these studies, which we all know are very biased to prove that guns are also correlated with violence. And this is how they do it. The result of that is what we’re seeing right now. They are actually now using the Office of Gun Violence Prevention through an organization called Let’s Talk About Guns. And what they’re doing is helping mental health professionals such as your doctor’s office and teachers and teachers. People of that nature, they’re giving him a blue book of saying, hey, here, follow these laws and these rules on how to red flag your patients by asking them when they come into the doctor’s office about their lifestyle. Do you own guns in the house? Hey, children, do you have these types of things in your home? And they’re using that to groom not only the people but future generations to respect. make guns synonymous with a bad thing rather than exercising a civil right and a opportunity to defense the way they should be represented. So this is a slippery slope that we’re seeing being implemented right now.
SPEAKER 05 :
And and we just had this come in from one of our listeners that said when this happens, that gun sales will just go underground. What what would be your comment on that, Teddy Collins?
SPEAKER 04 :
I mean, I understand if all guns are illegal, that, you know, people will become outlaws. I understand that. But at the same time, you know, we try to become we try to be law abiding citizens and For the majority of gun owners out there that want to comply with the law, that don’t want to put their families, their livelihoods, their They’re at risk. They’re going to comply. A lot of people also think that they’re just going to be able to leave the state to purchase, and unfortunately, federal law doesn’t allow that. When you go out of state and purchase a firearm, first and foremost, you can only purchase a long gun. And secondly, the store cannot sell you anything that is not compliant in your state of residence. So unless you’re a resident of that state, you’re not going to be buying items that are illegal in Colorado. It’s something I don’t agree with, but that’s the way it is. So, you know, I mean, you can become a criminal or you can obey the laws. It’s one of the two. I mean, for me, unfortunately, it’s going to be obey the laws. I’m going to continue to fight. I’m going to do what I can do through litigation, through taking this up with the courts. But at the end of the day, you know, I’m not going to put my family and my life at risk.
SPEAKER 05 :
Right. And that is why the work you’re doing at the Second Syndicate is so important and so appreciate you all as our sponsor. We’re going to go to break. We’ll be right back.
SPEAKER 19 :
The Second Amendment was established to ensure that all individuals have the right to resist oppression, stand firm against government overreach, and protect our ability to defend ourselves, our families, and our freedoms. Today, that right is under relentless attack in Colorado. Colorado’s premier grassroots Second Amendment organization, the Second Syndicate, is on the front lines fighting to preserve and protect your constitutional rights. We expose the most pressing threats to the Second Amendment and provide the education, resources, and tools to stay informed, empowered, and prepared. Join the movement. Protect your rights. Visit thesecondsyndicate.com. That’s thesecondsyndicate.com, where the second is first.
SPEAKER 01 :
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SPEAKER 14 :
There’s so much noise coming at us. Sometimes it is difficult to make sense of it all. How can you sift through the clamor for your attention and get to the truth? The Kim Monson Show is here to help. Kim searches for truth and clarity by examining issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. Tune in to The Kim Monson Show each weekday, 6 to 8 a.m., with encores 1 to 2 p.m. and 10 to 11 p.m. on KLZ 560 AM, KLZ 100.7 FM. The KLZ website, the KLZ app, and Alexa. Play KLZ. Shows can also be found at kimmonson.com, Spotify, and iTunes.
SPEAKER 17 :
All of Kim’s sponsors are an inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Monson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmonson.com. That’s kimmonson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 06 :
Welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. Be sure to check out our website. That is KimMonson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. And sign up for our weekly email newsletter. The text line is 720-605-0647. And I know that this seems a little discombobulated this morning. And, of course, live radio is always interesting. And I know that the sound is different now because I am in my car. And I wanted to let you know that I’ve got a little grandchild that has decided… to be born and it looks like it’s showtime right now. So I would really appreciate your prayers for mama and baby as we are going through this right now. and really pleased and so grateful for the flexibility of my sponsors, Alicia Garcia and Teddy Collins with the Second Syndicate. This is their featured segment this month, and I just really appreciate your flexibility on helping me out on all of this, Alicia Garcia.
SPEAKER 07 :
Hey, Kim, congratulations. And you know what? Coming from I’m an aunt of eight children, little ones, it’s never, ever, ever less important, no matter how many there are. So God bless. And we really, really hope that everybody is safe and you have a perfectly healthy little baby.
SPEAKER 06 :
Oh, I so appreciate that. And thank you to you and Teddy for your flexibility and helping on this as well. So let’s continue with our discussion because Alicia, the reason we have this duty to from our founders, that they put their lives on the line for this great American idea, and our Bill of Rights, and our Constitution, and of course these ideas that all men are created equal, with these rights from God of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. And that, it is our duty to protect that. And the Second Amendment, as you always say, Alicia, was put in place to protect everything else. So expound upon that just a little bit, Alicia Garcia.
SPEAKER 07 :
So one of the things that I hear all the time is people arguing the Second Amendment and say, you know, it’s not for modern guns. Those things didn’t exist, and those were different times, which is highly untrue. These are talking points that are force-fed narratives that come from anti-gunners to indoctrinate people into believing, hey, it’s okay to give up your civil rights because the truth is they can’t take them from us. We have to give them over. And the way we’re giving them over is allowing them to continually – trample on these rights by creating these ridiculous laws and my comeback for that is usually you know the second amendment doesn’t give us the right to bear arms it affirms it these are god-given rights these are rights that we have as human beings and we have a right to stand up for ourselves to defend ourselves to make sure that we have you know liberty and prosperity and happiness and all these wonderful things and when we’re talking about the right to self-defense We’re talking about a right that protects our ability to continue as free individuals, to be able to have shows like this, to be able to exercise our rights, to create families, to protect our families, to see that we have generations that understand what it means to have freedoms. It understands what it means to have privacy. And what we’re seeing in these bills that they’re passing is that They’re using the guise of public safety and, hey, we have to do something as a reason for creating these laws. But what we don’t understand and what people aren’t seeing is that they’re using these laws to also protect infringe on other constitutional rights, your right to privacy, your right to, you know, organize, your right to express yourself. We’re seeing that in bills such as the merchant verification codes that we have that are being passed that are actually enacted in Colorado right now. So if you go to a gun shop and you purchase ammunition, you purchase firearms, there are merchant verification codes through your credit card processing companies that alert these organizations that say, hey, you know what? Joe Bob just bought guns. And what they can do is say, you know what, this person’s buying an arsenal, so we’re going to flag him for potentially dangerous behavior, and now we’re going to investigate you and get the government in your home. They’re putting anti-gun materials and rhetoric that they’re handing out to parents and students in schools now that’s force-feeding a narrative to associate guns as a relic and not a right and something to be feared rather than embraced. These are things that we’re seeing happening right now, and that’s why it’s so important that people get involved in pushing back against these things and saying, hey, no, it’s time to stop. This is too much, and we’re going to hold our ground, and we’re going to make sure that people like us at the Second Syndicate, people at the Kim Monson Show, are supported in making sure we’re organizing, educating, and fighting back these types of infringements because it doesn’t stop with the Second Amendment. They will still continue to trample on all of our rights, and they’re using the Second Amendment as a whipping boy to do so.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, absolutely. And I want to talk with Teddy and mention this. Teddy, I was looking for some different quotes regarding actually with Supreme Court justices. And I came across this quote from Andrew Napolitano, who is formerly a judge and he’s a commentator. But he said, of all the presidents, Jefferson was the only one that’s gotten it right. that all other presidents have thought that their job as president was to keep the American people safe. But Jefferson understood that the job is to keep Americans free. And that really stopped me in my tracks when I read that quote, Teddy.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, no, absolutely right. And, you know, I think he truly understood, you know, the point of the Constitution and the point of limited government in a very Jeffersonian way. So 100% he’s correct there. Okay. And so with that…
SPEAKER 06 :
Let’s go to break. I’m talking with Alicia Garcia and Teddy Collins. They’re both with Spartan Defense as well as the founders of the Second Syndicate. We’re going to go to break. We’ll be right back.
SPEAKER 20 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
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SPEAKER 18 :
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SPEAKER 06 :
And welcome back to the Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That’s kimmonson.com. On the line with me is show sponsors of the show. That is Alicia Garcia and Teddy Collins with the Second Syndicate. And also with Spartan Defense, which is a gun shop that is located in Colorado Springs. And, Teddy, I think it’s so important that we all be educated on our… on our Constitution, on our rights, but we need to be teaching our children and our grandchildren and talking with our friends and colleagues about this as well. And so you at the Second Syndicate have also started a podcast series. So tell us a little bit about that.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, so our podcast runs on YouTube and our social medias. We do it every Wednesday to every other Wednesday, depending on the time of year. Right now we’re in our off political season because the legislature hasn’t started back up. But when the special session starts back up on August 18th, we will be going weekly. We’ve had guests from gubernatorial candidates to national icons and figures, people such as John Fabricatori, you know, You know, you name them, we’ve probably had them on the show. We’ve had Scott Bottoms, who’s running for governor, Mike Soule, and we talk about 2A topics. We talk about the Second Amendment and what it means to them as well as what our goals are to progress the Second Amendment here in the United States. You know, you brought up something very important about training your children. That’s huge. Our children are the next generation, and with the way that the left is is doing things. They do not want children to be changed. They do not want another generation of gun owners. It’s our responsibility. It’s our duty to raise that next generation and to make sure that they’re prepared to take up this same mantle that we have taken up to protect our rights and to protect the Second Amendment.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, and Alicia Garcia, it has been very subtle what we have seen regarding those that are trying to make people afraid of guns. We’ve seen surveys that are given at school that ask intrusive questions about maybe gun ownership at the home with a variety of other things. And I know that there’s some things that you’re really concerned about that people should know.
SPEAKER 07 :
One of the things that we’re doing is being solution-oriented here at the Second Syndicate. We have organized, we’ve been working with Carlos Barron, the new minority whip for the Colorado Republican Party, to organize a firearms education and training range day through the Second Syndicate for all legislators and their aides down at the Gold Dome. We’re also looking to reach out to the Democratic Party. We’re going to extend an invitation to them because one of the things that we’re noticing is they’re creating these laws based on guns, and none of these people that are proposing these laws for quote-unquote gun safety is… familiar with how firearms work. They’re terrified of guns, and yet they’re controlling this narrative that guns are bad, so we need to eradicate them from society. That’s absolutely false. What we’re seeing is a rise in violence with a rise of gun control. Colorado is second in the nation for violence. as well as a third in the nation for gun control. So the more laws we have infringing on the rights of the people to defend themselves, the more of a free-for-all it becomes to violent offenders, and that’s exactly what’s happening and what we want to change. So we’re working with them to provide them some safety education and training. We’re also creating more events to bring more people out. We have an event. on, excuse me, September 13th at the Damage Factory in the Denver Tech Center to have a Celebrating Heroes to celebrate a lot of first responders, the victims of September 11th, and put a spotlight on all the things that we can do as patriots to come together and celebrate the rights that we have and organize and communicate and get to know each other and bring that sense of community back to Colorado in freedom. We also have an event that we are organizing, I believe, in October with Spartan Defense to have a lot of vendors come out where we can have some fun on range and educate people with firearms and just remind everyone exactly what we are fighting for. I think sometimes that it gets caught up in the war of the fire and brimstone of you know, all these laws that we don’t remember why this is such an important right that we have. And that’s also something enjoyable. It’s not something to be feared. It’s something to be embraced that we also have a great time doing.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, and I love that to be solution orientated, I think is so important. And I want to get Teddy’s take on this. I find it’s, I think we all saw the headlines over the weekend that there was a gunman that walked into a building and And I think it’s where the NFL is headquartered, and I think I saw where Blackstone was headquartered as well. And one of the first things that happened was the gunmen took out, or I think they survived, but I think the security guard and someone else that was there to help. to a security to protect the building. So that’s one of the first things that the bad people do is they will go after those that have been put in place to protect the property. And the other thing is, Teddy, is I find it so interesting that My understanding is New York has very onerous gun laws supposedly to keep the people safe. But it’s so ironic that the bad guys somehow are able to find and have a firearm. I’m pretty sure they didn’t have a three-day waiting period. And I think that just connect the dots. Here you have New York with these onerous gun laws, but yet you’ve got a guy in Manhattan that’s shooting people up.
SPEAKER 04 :
Yeah, no, that’s the way it goes, is in the states where gun laws are most restrictive, you have some of the highest gun crime, because at the end of the day, criminals don’t care about the laws. They’re going to find a way to purchase those firearms. Just like one of your viewers asked earlier, if the gun laws are so strict here in Colorado, then the black market will thrive. That’s exactly what happens. And in this situation in New York, not only was he in possession of an item that was completely illegal in the state of New York, I mean, you cannot have… The way that you cannot have an AR-15 in the state of New York or in the city of New York. On top of that, he also was in possession of body armor, which is also illegal in the state of New York without a license, which he did not possess. So it seems like their gun laws, just like gun laws in general, aren’t working over there. And of course, you’ve got Mayor Adams going on to the news and saying that it’s as easy to buy an automatic firearm as it is to purchase a cell phone, which is complete BS. And it’s a semi-automatic firearm that was used, not an automatic, just to be clear. So it just goes to show that gun laws only work for those who are willing to abide by the law, not to those that are intent to cause evil and harm on other individuals.
SPEAKER 06 :
So ultimately what that means, Teddy, is that government is restricting the right of law-abiding citizens to keep and bear a firearm to protect ourselves against bad actors. And then we’ve seen in Denver policies which have created crime. And the last line of defense should be us to take care of ourselves and our property, Teddy.
SPEAKER 04 :
Absolutely. I mean, especially here in Colorado, we’ve seen the laws since 2013 that have gone into place and the laws more recently as of 2020 and 2022 and 2025. And what we’ve seen in Colorado is we’ve seen a trend of crime increasing. Colorado is now one of the worst crime states in the United States, whether it be car theft, whether it be rape, whether it be violent crimes in general. We’ve seen those increase versus decrease. So these gun laws are having the opposite effect. that they were intended. Surprise, surprise. That being said, we need some competent leadership. In 2026, we have an election coming up where we no longer have an incumbent governor. We have a bunch of Republican candidates that are running right now to replace Governor Polis, and hopefully one of them will win, but they’re definitely a little outnumbered and they’re a little bit outfunded. The funding right now, we really need to get some funding into these gubernatorial races and choose a candidate to rally behind. Same thing with our state legislator. I’ve talked to the Republican Party. I’ve talked to the GOP. And it seems like a lot of their focus is on congressional seats to try to pick up more congressional seats for Colorado. But Congress isn’t affecting our lives here in Colorado right now. With Trump, we have the power of veto for another three years. And we need to really focus on our state governments, the legislator and the governorship here in order to make some real change for our state and for our people here.
SPEAKER 06 :
Well, absolutely. And Teddy Collins and Alicia Garcia, I so appreciate all that you are doing. I so appreciate the Second Syndicate as a sponsor and partner of the Kim Monson Show. And Alicia, your quick final thought. I know that Joe is getting these phone lines going back and forth here. So Alicia, do we have you? Yes, you do.
SPEAKER 07 :
Okay, your final thoughts. Can you hear me? Sorry, everyone. So I want everybody to understand that not making a choice to get involved is a choice. No action is an action. We need everybody to start taking initiative to register to vote, get involved in what’s going on with politics, support the second syndicate, head to our website, donate, reach out. If you have a skill set, you would like to volunteer. We need people in the fight. Join us now. Join the syndicate.
SPEAKER 06 :
Okay, and again, that’s Teddy Collins, Alicia Garcia with the Sex Syndicate. I appreciate all your flexibility on all that’s going on, and we will talk to all of you tomorrow.
SPEAKER 02 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
