Virginia Blog Carnival LXIV (Yes, That's 64, Can You Believe It?)

We've been doing this for one and one quarter years now. That's 64 Carnivals. Well, 64 weeks anyway, I think there were one or two Holiday weeks when it's been skipped.
In the final weeks before Christmas we have quite a few posts submitted to Virginia Blog Carnival LXIV.

Let's start with a theme that I've been thinking quite a bit about lately, ethics in the Virginia Blog community. Conaway, who is justifiably proud of being named President of the 2006 class of the Sorensen Institute’s Political Leaders Fellows leads with this;

The speeches are done, the sessions have concluded, and now we have our lapel pins, certificates, and secret handshakes. It was a fascinating experience, traveling all over Virginia to learn about different conceptions and misconceptions of leadership, the myriad of issues facing our diverse communities, and meeting with key players in the Commonwealth's government and politics.

He goes on to discuss his "Society of Bloggers" idea and how difficult it is to remain true to such a concept. Read the entire article here.

As one who beats the drums in the blogosphere for the "Society of Bloggers" idea, I am well aware that I have fallen short and will continue to fall short of the very notions of ethics that I an others are promoting. As one who laments some of the seedier elements of media & political activism, I am also guilty of countenancing and sometimes participating in the very actions that I criticize. While it may make me a hypocrite on occasion, it also makes me quite human.

Thanks Conaway, and congratulations to you and all of your classmates. All I ask is that you keep an eye on my late night posts as you did once before. After all, friends don't let friends blog drunk.

Two more somewhat related posts this week are from Hampton Roads. First, Vivian J. Paige touches on a subject that leads to many, if not most of the ad hominem attacks found in the blog community, truthiness.

Truthiness, as opposed to truth, requires a suspension of logic, an ignoring of the facts. It is what we would like things to be, as opposed to the way they are.

From the other side of the argument for a "kinder and gentler" community we have The Squeaky Wheel.

Also I need to return to a place where people understand that I am not here to kiss anyone's ass. Unlike so many bloggers around here, I am not trying to run for office, get a job working in politics, start some political group or be in charge of something to boost my ego. Also I am not going to adhere to some mysterious, non-existant, unspoken blog rule that says everyone has to be nice to everyone all of the time.

Squeaky, I don't think your brand of caustic satire is actually what Conaway has in mind in his critical look at blogging. Sure, you can be brutally satirical, but I've never read a personal attack from your keyboard. And you always attempt to remain true to the concept of "truth vs. truthiness". Instead, I think he means the type of stuff Ward is referring to in his Carnival contribution.

Speaking of Squeaky, his compadre Jim at Bearing Drift e-mailed the ODBA just a few nights ago with a crisis. It seems his blog host had hosed his entire blog, or something like that. He also expressed his dissatisfaction with his current website designer, E-webscapes.

Well buck up there Jim, there just happen to be two Virginia bloggers who submitted articles to the Carnival this week on just that subject. And it appears to me that both actually design websites, if not for a living, at least as an avocation. First from somewhere in the Appalachians, via the Cascades, comes High Desert Wanderer. He is a former cowboy, turned graphics designer. Within the past week he has examined the design of both Michelle Malkin's Hot Air and Markos Moulitsas' Daily Kos. The two critiques are; Malkin's here, and Kos' here.

Our next Virginia website designer is Douglas T. Working for a University in SWVA while also creating some nice website designs. In his latest post he showcases a site he's designed for Bethlehem Evangelical Lutheran Church in Brainerd, Minnesota.

Hmm, Douglas has a couple of degrees from Washington State University, High Desert Wanderer mentions homesickness for the Cascades in an earlier post. The Cascades are in Washington State (and Oregon). HDW says he's in the Appalachians now, and Douglas T cites his career at a University in SWVA. Could they both be the same guy? At any rate, Jim, one of these guys may be just what you are looking for.

While we are out here in SWVA let's turn to One Wise Girl, Kilo's blog parner at Spark It Up! The Girl has been posting on the subject of Christmas traditions, especially traditions related to food. So far there have been four, with number two almost certain to make it into my oven before the 25th. Check them all out here. Christmas Traditions Part One, Part Two, Part Three.
& Part four.

Part four has a nice video of the modern Christmas song, "Mary Did You Know?". I remember growing up in the hills around Bassett, it never seemed like Christmas until I heard one particular Christmas song. That song was "Christmas Time's A Coming", written by Tex Logan and originally recorded by Bill Monroe. The version I remember best was from Don Reno and Red Smiley, who had a morning show on WSLS Channel 10 in Roanoke when I was a kid. If anyone has a copy of that, please send it to me. I'll be forever grateful. In lieu of that one, listen to what I consider to be the next best version.


A couple of other good Christmas themed posts from the past week; The Ward View, Ms. Elenaeous in Roanoke and this little shopping tip from Roci.

Changing subjects now I want to point out that just a few days ago was Pearl Harbor Day. A few days before that I mentioned to someone here at work that Pearl Harbor Day was coming up. Someone else asked, "What is Pearl Harbor Day?". I suppose that can be expected, it was, after all, 65 years ago that our Naval base in Hawaii was attacked. The Japanese and the Germans are both our allies now, and have been all of my life. Some people either have no sense of history, or no real concern for it, so things like that lose their importance to those folks.

Kilo had a great Pearl Harbor Day post, and I showed it to the guy who had no idea what Doug and I had been discussing a few days earlier. I only hope that in 65 years the state of our Union will such that someone will be able to ask, "What was 9/11?". Unfortunately, if the Iraq Study Group's recommendations are followed to the letter, I don't think we'll ever see the day that question can reasonably be asked. If the pressure is removed from Al Qaeda in Iraq now, we'll eventually have to return to the region, and quite possibly be forced to leave it in the condition Japan found itself one August day in 1945. As Kat relates in this article, in this war against Islamic fundamentalism we must remain true to our God and our beliefs.

"Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world."
I belong to the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords, who will one day cast this satanic "god" into the eternal pit of fire - and he won't need to exert the least amount of effort to do so.

My Lord and Savior is the Creator of all, the Lord God Almighty, the Lord my Provider, the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End.

Allah? ***pfft!*** A little Johnny-Come-Lately upstart with delusions of grandeur.

Michael Oliver, the Dogwood Pundit, follows up with a notice and some advice for those Islamic Fundamentalists in his article titled "The Worlds Biggest Scandal, Treatment Of Women In The Third World".

The emancipation of women, in all ways, is the greatest achievement of the West, and I believe, one of the reasons the West grew prosperous. The virtual enslavement and abuse of girls and women all but ensures that the Third World, especially in the arc that runs from the Muslim world to Sub-Saharan Africa, will remain mired in backwardness and poverty until something is done about it.

Also last week Kilo returned to the Sago Mine disaster, one of many through the years in that area of the Commonwealth. I miss mining, I truly do, but I do not miss going underground. I've always been one to throw myself completely at a project, especially at work. I'll have to take a deep look inside to see if I'm at risk of going beyond the "Golden Mean", as described by John Wesley at Pick The Brain.

Now to round out this week's Carnival, I have five more articles of note;

• Equality Loudoun on Reason.
  
• Doug, at Below the Beltway applauds BB&T's stance on Eminent Domain.
• Leslie Carbone, who could write about beating rugs with a baseball bat and make it interesting, explains how Willis Haviland Carrier's invention has caused us so much trouble.
• Fact of the Matter, announces the premier of "Virginia Time Travel", a new television show he's been involved with. The show will air new episodes every month on the fourth week of the month: Tuesday 600 am, Thursday 530 pm, and Friday 930 pm on Channel 10 (Cox Cable in Fairfax).
• And finally, a blog that is quickly climbing my chart of favorites, John Maxfield's "Journal of the Common Man". Read his recent comparison between "then" and "now", and realize how true it is.

That's all Folks. Thanks so much for sticking with me this far down what has become a rather long post. Be sure to check j's notes next week for the 65th Virginia Blog Carnival.

Just A Reminder...

Kat temporarily lost her mind and gave me hosting duties for the Virginia Blog Carnival this week.

Go back through your most recent posts, pick the one you are the most proud of and send it in. You can submit it via this submission form, click here. If you prefer to just e-mail a permalink, send it to either vablogcarnival@gmail.com or you can e-mail the permalink directly to me at the e-mail address shown right over there ---> on the right. Take your time, I'll begin putting it together tonight but I'll not publish until sometime late morning tomorrow.

I'll also be poking around some of your blogs this evening to find a few "Host's Choice" submissions, so don't be surprised to see something from yourself, even if you didn't submit anything.

Jerry Has Been Warning Us...

Heh.

She Made It!

After several rounds of testing, both physical and mental, a couple of interviews, and a firearms proficiency test my little girl is now a Pittsylvania County Sheriff's deputy.

I told you last week of her sense of trepidation at having to pass the firearms portion of the test. Hmph, she passed that with ease. Using a Smith & Wesson Model 5906 9mm, and firing 30 rounds (the final 6 being rapid fire), she had one round outside the scoring ring.

Proud? You better believe I am. Somewhat anxious? Yes, I am that too. I know that her first assignment will be in the jail. Tonya has worked previously as a nurse at Southwestern Virginia Mental Health Institute, working primarily with those awaiting testing prior to trial. The jail environment will not be very much different.

But, even though I will occasionally worry for her safety, I know this is something she has always wanted. I am happy that she has achieved her goal.

Virginia Blog Carnival Is Up At Cathouse Chat

For some time now I've not been very active in the Virginia Blog Community, but I'm back now and intend to carry my own weight for a while.

Kat, that wonderfully romantic lady in Pittsylvania County, is the host of this week's Virginia Blog Carnival. Go over and check it out. Many of us former Carnival regulars have been missing in action for quite some time, but Kat dug deep into her RSS reader and came up with a great Carnival, even if she did have to resort to the Draft. Let's see if we can all do better next week when Jason Kenny steps up as host. I promise to, you promise too, OK?

Now that I've been back online more I've noticed some Virginia Blogs that should be more widely recognized, such as Johnathan Maxfield's excellent Journal of the Common Man. John is an attorney somewhere in the Shenandoah Valley. I spent the before dawn hours this morning reading his entire archive and I find it to be refreshing. He'll find his way to my right side Virginia blogroll sometime today.

Another that deserves recognition is Dogwood Pundit. While not exactly new, I don't think I've properly welcomed Michael yet. So here is your welcome, Michael. I'm always excited when I see a new post from you reflected in the BNN Bulletin.

I can't leave out Rightside Virginia. Another not quite new blog, and again from the Shenandoah Valley, that deserves to be on my blog roll but isn't yet. I'll fix that later today, Steve.

Finally, I find that I've even managed to miss Conaway's return. Hmph, I knew that wouldn't last.

Bob McDonnell For Senate? Sounds Like A Great Idea To Me

One of my favorite things is this quilt, hanging proudly in my den, which was given to me by the attendees at the first annual Blogs United Conference. I point out to all who see it that it is signed by the next Governor of Virginia, I just don't know who yet. Bob McDonnell, Bill Bolling, and Leslie Byrne all signed the quilt, so I'm sure to have the next Governor's signature.

There is quite a bit of talk out in the Virginia Blog community that has caused me to wonder if the quilt has not only the next Governor's signature, but also the next Virginia Senator's as well.

There are many compelling arguments in favor of that happening, and I agree completely with most of them. I'm speaking of course, about the speculation (hopes? wishes?) that Bob McDonnell will run for a vacant John Warner seat in 2008.

Besides, it will also add just a little more panache to my already great quilt.

Check out the following sites for some interesting thoughts on the idea;

• Black Velvet Bruce Li
• From On High
• Southwest by Southeast
• SWAC Girl
• The Mason Conservative
• UPDATE AT: Black Velvet Bruce Li
  

BOS Member Under Fire, Discloses Subject Of Recent (Improperly Held) Closed Session.

Jim McMillian, Board of Supervisors member in the Collinsville District of Henry County, has come under fire from Chamber of Commerce President Kim Adkins and BOS Chairman H.G. Vaughn for revealing the subject of a recent closed meeting held by the BOS.

Ms. Adkins recently sent a letter to Henry County BOS Chairman H.G. Vaughn, County Administrator Benny Summerlin, Martinsville Mayor Kimble Reynolds Jr., and City Manager Dan Collins inviting them all to an informal meeting to discuss the possibility of the City reverting to town status. It's not clear in news reports I've seen whether the invitation was intended for these four officials only, or if it extended to the entire BOS and City Council.

Shortly after recieving the letter from Ms. Adkins, Benny Summerlin suggested to Vaughn that it should be discussed by the Board of Supervisors in a closed meeting. Subsequently, Mr. McMillian disclosed the subject of that closed meeting during the course of a local cable access television show interview.

McMillian can be something of a "loose cannon", as evidenced by his recent demand for the resignation of Mr. Summerlin and his assistant Tim Hall in an unrelated incident. But, before Mr. Vaughn and Ms. Adkins go too far in their criticism of McMillian they need to stop and realize that the closed meeting he discussed was in fact an illegal meeting. There are many legitimate reasons for holding a closed meeting, but discussing an invitation from the local Chamber of Commerce to attend another closed meeting with the neighboring City Council is not one of them. Also, if the circumstances surrounding the meeting being planned by Ms. Adkins are not handled correctly it too could be in violation of Virginia's Open Meeting law.

Brad Coleman Signs With Joe Gibbs Racing

Brad Coleman, Houston native and 2006 graduate of Carlisle School in Martinsville, has signed a contract with Joe Gibbs Racing. The 18-year-old will drive in 17 of the 35 NASCAR Busch Series races during the 2007 season, sharing the No. 18 Chevrolet with Tony Stewart and Aric Almirola. This ends speculation that he would continue with the Owensboro, KY based Brewco racing.

Brad has just concluded a very successful season in the ARCA RE/MAX series, posting the highest average finishing position this year (third) by scoring eight top-fives in his nine total ARCA starts. Among those eight top-fives was his first stock car win at Kentucky Speedway in July, holding off eight-time ARCA champion Frank Kimmel during two green-white-checkered restarts. Brad ran the first of his two NASCAR Busch Series races in 2006 at Nashville Superspeedway and posted a respectable 29th-place result a mere week after graduating from Carlisle in Martinsville, Virginia. "We are excited about Brad joining our race team and what the future may hold for him," said Gibbs Racing President J.D. Gibbs. "He brings a total package approach to the sport. At a very young age, he has proven himself in a wide variety of race cars in a number of different series."

His already impressive career includes a 17th place finish in the 2005 Rolex 24 Hours at Daytona, as part of the youngest driver lineup in that series history, and open wheel experience in Formula Mazda and the NASA Fran-Am 1600 Series. Speed Network's Dave Despain has referred to him as "The prototype NASCAR young gun of the future."

Like another "Prototype NASCAR young gun" that came before him in 1992, Jeff Gordon, Coleman moved away from his hometown in order to facilitate his racing career. His move from Houston to Martinsville placed him in close proximity to Virginia International Raceway, a little known jewel of a road course just southeast of Danville, VA. (If I said it was located in Alton, VA you would think I was kidding, but I'm not.)

In an August interview with David Smith, Brad said, "I really feel like my extensive cross-training background has prepared me for any race venue. I have driven open-wheel formula cars on almost every road course in North America, Porsches and Daytona Prototypes on many different big speedways including Daytona, and stock cars at the smallest of Friday night ovals and now Superspeedways. It's all about preparation, dedication, and commitment. My family and I have made the sacrifices and paid the price. It wasn't easy leaving home at 14 to go live and train with 24 Hours of LeMans Champion and driving coach Price Cobb, but it was well worth it. I haven't just given up weekends to be successful in this sport, I have given up my childhood."

While Brad may regret giving up his childhood, he does not regret the move to Martinsville. He told David Smith, "I moved from Houston to Danville, VA to live and train with Price Cobb at Virginia International Raceway and the many short tracks in the area. After living with him for two years, I moved 30 miles down the road to Martinsville, VA so that I could finish my schooling at Carlisle School. That is the greatest high school in the world! They let me go to all of my training and races and made sure they caught me up when I returned. It was an awesome experience and I could hear the stock cars on the speedway from my apartment window. Carlisle even threw a pep-rally for my teammate Colin Braun and I before a big race. It was so cool, 500 kids and a band cheering for two 16-year-old race car drivers!"

Merry Christmas To All..

Rest gently, the soothing blues and cool white template will be back after the holidays.

I'm in a somewhat festive mood this Christmas season, and since I'm not going to be doing much decorating here at the house I decided to decorate here at the blog instead. Hey, I'm a straight, single guy with no kids in the house, I'm not expecting guests for the holidays, and I have no grand parties planned, so why go to all of the bother of decorating the interior of my home? This way I can express my creativity and hopefully provide my readers with a little Christmas Spirit with each visit for the next few weeks.

I hope you enjoy the change, and I'm wishing all of you a very happy and joyous Christmas season.

Hey Jim, The Campaign Is Over

Jim Webb apparently thinks he's still out campaigning. By now I'm sure you've heard of his petulant little stance against George Bush, if not you can find an excellent summary of it here by George Will.

What I find most odd about this kerfuffle is the fact that Webb's staff seems to have been pushing the story. Now that would make some sense if he were still campaigning, but he's now a Senator. Or he will be as soon as he is sworn into office. It's time now to stop the schoolyard taunting tactics and begin representing us Virginians in a somewhat more dignified manner.

Now I Know How Jerry Feels

I got a phone call last night from Tonya, my daughter. It started with a statement very similar to this; "Hi daddy, I need to learn how to shoot a rifle".

Now I've heard a lot of people say they "want" to learn how to shoot a rifle, but this was the first time I had ever heard anyone, not to mention my sweet petite daughter, say I "need" to learn how to shoot a rifle. Tonya is fairly well acquainted with a pistol, as is her mother. Her mother, by the way was always able to outshoot me with a pistol or revolver. But Tonya and I have never shot pop bottles with a rifle of any sort.

Naturally I had to ask, "Tonya, why do you 'need' to learn how to shoot a rifle"? I then went into roughly the same dialogue with her I just had with you about the difference between 'needing to' and 'wanting to'.

It seems that quite some time ago Tonya applied to the Danville City Police Department, and at about the same time to the Pittsylvania County Sheriff's Department. She was subsequently called in for some interviews with the Danville Police Department and, without getting too deep into the particulars, it seems a reverse discrimination affirmative action kind of thing kept her from being hired. Then, last week she was called by the Pittsylvania County Sheriff's Department for an interview and some physical testing. She passed the physical stuff, and apparently the interview portion as well, and is scheduled to take some firearms tests on Thursday. Tomorrow! She was worried that she may have to show some proficiency with a rifle at that test, and she is somewhat intimidated by that thought because she has never handled a rifle. In my ham-handed fatherly way I assured her that she would probably not have to deal with a rifle because a deputy would most likely be issued a shotgun instead. Oops, that was hardly reassuring. Now she's not worried about a rifle, instead she is concerned that she must deal with some big bad shotgun. I think I was able to convince her that actual proficiency with the weapon would not be what they are looking for, that can be taught, but instead a general knowledge of firearms handling. On that score I know she will do well.

Of course after all of this was settled, I had to ask why she waited until this late date to let me know all of this. She was afraid that my reaction would be too similar to that of her mother, a patronizing tone and a questioning of why anyone would want to aspire to such a silly thing. Yep, her mother has always been a great cheerleader for Tonya. Of course I told her just how proud I was of her for making this decision, and how I was behind her all the way. I didn't express my concern that in Pittsylvania County, it being Virginia's largest County, backup may take some time to respond. She just needs to know that I love her, I'm proud of her, and I'm behind her. And I'll pray for her safety every day.

Roscoe's Challenger To Be Introduced Here Soon

I'm out of the kitchen now. The apron is hanging by the door and I'm ready to join the big kids back out here in the political arena.

I mentioned in an earlier post that Roscoe Reynolds (D)-Ineptitude, will face a challenger during this election cycle. I'm almost prepared to name him, and I will as soon as I speak with him. For now you will know that he is from the western portion of the 20th SD, an area that Roscoe has ignored even more than he has those of us in the eastern portion.

I called this candidate this evening, but unfortunately I got his answering machine. It was around 6:30pm when I called, so I assume he was at church.

Check back often, as I may be able to update this post as early as later this evening.

Thanksgiving, Part Four

Thanksgiving day was spent at my best friend's house and I reported earlier on that. Tomorrow, Sunday, I will spend with my Dad and my stepmother at their house in Franklin County. Last April Dad remarried. It is such a delight whenever I see him and Betty Jo together. They just exude happiness.

In the late sixties and early seventies Dad built and maintained a late model stock car. His shop was in the back of a local body shop owned and operated by a good man named David Clark. It was located on Cherward St. in Collinsville, on property now occupied by KFC, the fried chicken place. I first met Betty Jo then. She was the wife of David Clark, and as a youngster I thought she was a very nice lady. David passed on some time ago, and circumstances I am not fully aware of (hey, I haven't asked) brought Dad and Betty Jo to a re-meeting. Needless to say, I was pleased when they married on a rainy day this past spring.

Tomorrow's Thanksgiving dinner will be a potluck type of affair, with everyone bringing something. I will be bringing my chicken and wild rice casserole. I have no wild turkey to make my wild turkey casserole with, so I'll fall back on this proven crowd pleaser. Get your pencil and paper ready, for another I'm Not Emeril cooking show is about to ensue.

This recipe will serve eight hearty adult diners, so you may want to adjust things accordingly if you want to serve this to your family.

Gather together the following stuff;

• 6 cups cooked, chopped chicken breasts
  
• 2 packages quick cooking wild rice, cooked according to package directions
  
• 2 packages frozen French green beans, thawed and drained
  
• 4 tablespoons butter
  
• 1 cup chopped onion
  
• 6 tablespoons flour
  
• 2 cup chicken stock
  
• 1 cup cream or milk
  
• 1 cup grated parmesan cheese
  

Of course you want a pre-heated 350 degree oven. For the chicken I use frozen chicken tenderloin strips, available in most market freezer sections in one to three pound units. To cook these I heat a large skillet, coated with a liberal dose of olive oil, and sweat about a half cup of finely chopped onion. When the onion has turned translucent I add two mashed cloves of garlic and continue until the garlic is nicely browned. At this point, remove the garlic. Nothing in this world tastes worse than burned garlic. Remove as much of the onion as possible and cook a few of the thawed chicken strips at a time, adding olive oil if needed. About twelve nice sized chicken strips will provide the six cups of chopped chicken needed. Now let's clarify the term "chopped". I don't mean minced. I don't mean tiny little pieces. Just cut it up into many small chunks, don't go overboard and achieve the consistency of chopped barbeque.

While you are frying the chicken strips you can also be preparing the wild or long grain brown rice. Just follow Zaterain's or Uncle Ben's directions and you will do fine. Also, you can be thawing the frozen green beans. You really don't need me to tell you how to thaw frozen green beans, do you?

Once the chicken and rice are done, and the green beans have been thawed, combine them all in a buttered 9x13 casserole dish. Grab a small saucepan and melt the butter over medium high heat. Add the onions and cook for a minute or so, just until the onions have wilted a bit. Now add the flour and whisk with a wire whisk to thoroughly blend the flour into the melted butter. When the flour is thoroughly blended, add the chicken stock, whisk and bring to a simmer. Once the mixture heats back up after the addition of the stock, add the cream and bring to a simmer again. After a few minutes the sauce will begin to thicken, at that point pour the sauce over the chicken and rice mixture in the casserole. Sprinkle a liberal covering of parmesan over the casserole and bake for 30 minutes.

Thanksgiving, Part Three

Sometime back Red Queen sent me a small canister of Market District Espresso rub. Available at Giant Eagle Stores, it's a great product. But I'm nowhere near a Giant Eagle. Basically, if Lowe's, Food Lion, Wal-Mart or Kroger does not have it I ain't gonna to be able to just run out and get it.

I liked it so well on everything from chicken breast to hamburgers and even scrambled eggs I decided I needed to find a reliable source. Then I thought, why not just make it. It seemed simple enough. The ingredient list was very basic, no odd scientific items, just seven common kitchen spices. In order they are;

• Sugar
• Salt
• Pepper
• Espresso Powder
• Onion
• Paprika
• Cayenne

I poured a small amount out on a light green sheet of paper (for contrast, none of the ingredients are green) and checked it out with a powerful magnifying glass under a bright light. I could immediately tell that the sugar was integrated, being composed of a mixture of light brown and granulated, with the granulated being in the minority. So, I wrote down 2 parts light brown sugar and 1 part granulated. Next I noticed that the salt crystals slightly outnumbered the granulated sugar crystals. So next I wrote 1.5 parts salt. The coffee and the black pepper seemed to be about evenly matched, so I set them at 1 part each. Even with a powerful magnifier I could not determine the onion, cayenne, and paprika ratio, so I decide to just use my best judgment and wing it.

My first small batch was every bit the equal of Market District Espresso Rub. But I wanted better! What would happen if I took the base of sugar, salt, coffee, and black pepper and kicked it up a notch?

I began to think about what I wanted it be like. I immediately decided that a bit of garlic would certainly be a welcome addition. I also thought that since this is used primarily on roasted or broiled foods, and since ancho chiles are simply roasted jalepenos, logically I would replace the cayenne with ancho chile powder.

Well, I may be a bit prejudiced, but I think my final version is much better than Market District's already good rub. Throw together a batch yourself and see if you think I'm right.

• 2 parts light brown sugar, firmly packed
• 1.5 parts salt
  
• 1 part granulated sugar
• 1 part ground black pepper
• 1 part espresso coffee, I used Cafe' Bustelo simply because it readily available here due to a rather large Mexican population, but something from Honduras Coffee in Stuart will be included in my next batch.
  
• 1/16 part onion powder
  
• 1/16 part garlic powder
• 1/16 part ancho chile powder

(Note; if you set the size of 1 part at 1/4 cup, you will make about 1.6718 cups, enough for a whole summer of grilling. Oh, and 1/16 of 1/4 cup is 1 teaspoon, if you don't believe me check it out with this great little piece of free software, Convert. Convert is an easy to use unit conversion program that will convert the most popular units of distance, temperature, volume, time, speed, mass, power, density, pressure, energy and many others, including the ability to create custom conversions! Happy grilling!)

(Note II; To Susan and Kilo, watch your mailbox for a 1.6718 cup sample.)

Thanksgiving, Part Two

I Am The Stuffing

According to Blogthings I am complicated and complex, yet all my pieces fit together. People miss me if I'm not there - but they're not sure why.

What Part of Thanksgiving Are You?

Let's File This Under "Ethical Blogging"

Shaun Kenny is one of Virginia's most ethically focused bloggers. A trait I admire greatly. In a recent post, however, he highlighted this quote from our fellow Virginia blogger Waldo Jaquith.

I'm surprised at how often I see bloggers post about private exchanges, or exchanges that occurred where there was a reasonable belief that no press was present and people felt comfortable speaking accordingly. I would never dare write about these sorts of things. It helps to brand bloggers as unpredictable radicals, rather than as reasonable people who happen to publicly reflect on the events of the day.

Would that be the same Waldo Jaquith that recently posted this unsubstantiated gossip. If so, I applaud his return to ethical blogging.

Now that the election is over, let me be the first to welcome you back from the dark side, Waldo.

Caption Contest Continues

As all except the comotose in the Virginia blog community are aware Chad Dotson has gone on hiatus, possibly for good. I hope he will drop in on a few blogs with a comment from time to time, but even if he does not I wish him well in his 2007 re-election efforts.

One of the most enjoyable aspects of http://vaconservative.com/ was the notorious caption contest. While most of us will miss Chad's patented quick hit links, we need not mourn the passing of the Caption Contest.

SouthwestBySoutheast has taken up the mantle and will continue the weekly tradition.

This week's contest.

Some Intemperate Thoughts

• Howling Latina recently used the following phrase; "The yummy gravy on the political souffle is Obama's opposition from the very beginning to the U.S. invasion of Iraq. Just like Webb." Now that's a nauseating thought. I have numerous recipes for souffles, including one for a great bread pudding souffle with a bourbon sauce I begged and cajoled out of the chef at a great little restaurant in Augusta, GA. None of them would be enhanced by the addition of gravy.


• I don't expect the new Democratic-controlled Senate to immediately confirm Robert Gates for defense secretary. My bet is they will hold out for a like-minded nominee. Is Cindy Sheehan available?


• Look around. The stock market is at a record high. Interest rates are fairly low. Unemployment is at its lowest point in decades. The economy is generally sound and growing. And Nancy Pelosi wants to take us in a new direction.


• First thing to go with the Democrats now in control? Wendy's "Super Value Menu".


• A new Virginia blog. The Direction. It's a blog about blogs. In a weekly video format. I love the concept, I just hope it works. Good luck with it Ken.


• To the lady in Collinsville; When I see your vanity license plate with "KY GIRL" on it I'm guessing you want to let everyone know you're from Kentucky. I'm afraid that's not what immediately comes to mind.


• It is amazing that after all the recent weeping, wailing and gnashing of teeth from the liberal bloggers about electronic voting machines we just had an election with no major complaints about being denied the right to vote and no major problems with the electronic machines. I wonder why?


• Once upon a time there was a great little airline named Piedmont. US Air bought it out and promptly ruined it. US Air now wants to do the same with Delta.


• I could possibly enjoy reading Politics With Pam if she would change either her background color or her text color. I'm sorry Pam, a black background is bad enough, but blue on black is just plain wrong.


• In 2004 much was made of the exit polls. Two years later, with exit polls showing corruption to be at the top and Iraq way down on voter's agenda, Nancy Pelosi's first action was to place John Murtha in charge of clearing the US out of Iraq. She must have read those polls from the bottom up. And stopped before she reached the top.


• Mark Martin will end his final full season in NASCAR today. Quite possibly the driver most deserving of a championship to have never won one.


• A mention of NASCAR without a mention of Denny Hamlin's phenomenal rookie season is like Benny Parsons going more than 10 laps without mentioning how great Dale Earnhart Jr. is.

Welcome Home Roscoe

With one election cycle over and done, it's time to begin thinking about another. Wednesday, Nov.8 marked the beginning of the Roscoe Reynolds homecoming tour.

No, that may not mean quite what you think I mean. I like to think that 2007 will be the year that Roscoe comes home to stay. No more gruelling weeks in Richmond pretending to be effective for the 20th Senatorial District. No more of those exhausting fund raising dinners in Richmond and Central Virginia where he has historically picked up more than 50% of his campaign contributions. No more of those same tiring fundraisers outside his district, where the percentage rises to nearly 84%.

That's right folks. While Roscoe has been pretending to be effective for the cities of Martinsville and Galax, and the counties of Henry, Patrick, Floyd, Carroll, and portions of Grayson and Wythe, he has been collecting almost 84% of his campaign contributions from outside this area. Including almost 17% from outside the Commonwealth. His constituents are so fond of him they have only contributed 16% of his campaign funds, or maybe, due to his and Ward's complete ineptitude it's because there are so few industries left in their districts to generate any more than 16%.

Now I'm not saying that Roscoe is more beholden to those who have been paying his way for all these years than he is to those of us here in his district, but one does have to wonder if that may have become some small factor in his apparent lack of interest in representing these Blue Ridge Counties and the Southside City of Martinsville.

Of course one's opponent's campaign contributions are not really much of a campaign issue, if that's all you have, just ask Al Weed. There is much more to come. I'll be focusing on many of Roscoe's other well known traits as well, including his apparent ignorance of just what it is that the Supreme Court of the United States actually does. Remember, he's a lawyer. Roscoe's ignorance on this subject is documented within the pages of this blog. Yes, Roscoe, your ideas regarding Eminent Domain will be spread across this district.

Roscoe has a challenger this time. A challenger you will read more about here in the days, weeks, and months to come. I have volunteered myself to be the Henry County Chairman of the William Roscoe Reynolds Homecoming festival that will be celebrated for the following twelve months, culminating on the eve of November 6th, 2007.

Oh, Roscoe, one more thing. Welcome to Henry County, (tongue planted firmly in cheek).

Who's To Blame? Not Diebold Nor Acorn.

There has been much speculation, both in the blogging community and in the major media, that the recent election was a repudiation of George W. Bush's administration. I reject this premise based on quite a few observations.

One caveat that should be mentioned though, is that in my opinion Bush did contribute somewhat with two of his tendencies. One, and probably foremost, was his reluctance to use his veto pen. Second was his insistence upon regarding illegal immigration as a job creation program.

The Republican voters are who turned the Congress over to the Democrats. Not me, of course, and probably not you either, but the more "moderate" Republican voter. The same one who does not report for duty when the election is somewhat uncontroversial, or chooses not to vote when he sees the result as being in some manner already decided. This Republican voter saw this election as a chance to make a statement on what he sees as a reversal of his ideals. I've stated before that the Republicans who were brought to the forefront by Newt Gingrich in '94 now seem to be nowhere to be found, replaced by Democrat clones in a Stepford Wife fashion in Washington DC. Those voters who can ordinarily be counted upon to vote Republican (when they vote at all) registered their discontent with the party by voting for the opposition. (Keep in mind I'm speaking nationally, not just of Virginia. George Allen had a few other issues to deal with, that do not necessarily coincide with the nationwide rout administered to the Republican Party.)

Exit polls listed as the most important issue to be dealt with by the voters to be corruption and fiscal responsibility. I do not believe that either was George Allen's downfall. It was, however, a factor overall. Tom Delay and Jack Abramhoff, Duke Cunningham, Mark Foley (no relation, please!) and Dennis Hastert's do nothing attitude, bridges in Alaska and a lack of action on illegal immigration all contributed in no small way to create a cumulative effect across the country.

What that average voter did not consider was what effect their cumulative votes might have on the Nation. I hope that the recent election will cause Mr. Bush to use his Veto pen, if he can find it and if the ink has not dried up and the ball stuck permanently. He will soon receive from the Pelosi/Reid Congress legislation that will increase the minimum wage, (check back tomorrow for reasons against this and other issues soon to follow), calls for an immediate drawdown of troops from Iraq, no action (if not a reversal) on making the recent tax cuts permanent, not to mention a renewed stonewall of Administration appointments.

The title of this piece may lead you to believe that I am a "Rabid Republican". Not so. I consider myself to be a very moderate Republican. But I did vote. I voted for George Allen, based solely upon his prior service to the Commonwealth. I voted for Bill Carrico, because he is not Rick Boucher (and because I could post one final vote to cancel out your's Barnie....GRIN). I also voted against the marriage amendment. I know, I live now in the 5th District. I voted last year by absentee ballot and thought that I had changed my registration at the time I applied for that absentee ballot. I didn't. On Monday, November 6th, I went to bed early and set my alarm clock for 2:30am Tuesday morning. I drove 4 hours plus to Hurley Virginia, in Buchanan County in order to vote. I did not run into my ex-wife at the precinct, thankfully. I was back at work by 9:30.

Blogging, Elections, And SOB's

My posts here became much more infrequent recently, partially in response to the increasingly hostile atmosphere on some of Virginia's political blogs, and partially due to an increase in demands on my time by my career. If the truth were known, it may well be that the former reason held the greater influence subconsciously. I was disheartened by the lack of ethics shown by some, and refused to join in that type of political battle.

The election is now over. My side lost. Neither Diebold nor ACORN is to blame. The Republicans who swept into power in 1994 on the ideas and platforms of Newt Gingrich somehow metamorphosed into the Democrats they replaced. Did the Republican party deserve the spanking it recently received? Sure it did. The party now must look back at the past twelve years and (hopefully) see where it lost it's way. Here's a hint guys, look somewhere between my wallet and a bridge in Alaska. Of course there were other factors involved. Many of them in fact. Duke Cunningham. Tom Delay. Jack Abramoff. Dennis Hastert apparently ignoring Mark Foley's indiscretion. (Why do conservative politicians and evangelical preachers always seem to go for either strippers or young boys? Whatever happened to an old fashioned fling with the secretary?) A complete abandonment of border security and immigration law violations. And then there is Iraq. While not the primary reason cited in exit polls, the situation we find ourselves in now after an easy victory in a very brief war contributed in no small way to the Republican party's defeat.

Now, in the immortal words of Rocky, (the squirrel, not the boxer), here's something you'll really like;

Several weeks ago I received an e-mail from Conaway Haskins briefly describing an idea he had for an "association" of sorts for Virginia bloggers. Bloggers who may fit in any slot of the political spectrum. He has been working on a plan for a Virginia blogger's association, something along the lines of Media Bloggers Association. Conaway's own explanation is much better than any treatment I can give his idea here. Mash your mouse here to read it.

As for me, I'll be pleased to become a Commonwealth SOB.

John Brownlee Continues To Impress Me

John Brownlee continues to impress me.

Those of you who do not know my recent background may not be aware that the current problems here in Henry County are not my first introduction to John Brownlee, United States Attorney for the Western District of Virginia.

Some of you may make the connection to the recent blog conference I organized (with substantial help) here in Henry County, which featured as one of it's speakers John Brownlee. That was my second introduction to Mr. Brownlee. Even though it was my first personal meeting with him.

I'm willing to wager that most of you do not remember the "Big Coon Dog" investigation a few years ago in Buchanan County. Go read the link, I'll be here when you get back.

In May of 2002 there was a devastating flood in the Northwestern portion of Buchanan County where I lived at the time. It took us all by surprise, I was working at the time in Kemper Kentucky, about 25 miles away, and had spent the day in placid solitude in my office realizing that it had been raining most of the day. It was only during my drive home that I realized that this particular rain was different. When I got near the small town of Phelps, Kentucky on my way home I noticed that the water level in the small creeks feeding into the Knox River was exceedingly high. In order to get home that evening I had to take a few detours through some surface mining roads that I was aware of due to my occupation at that time.

My home was quite a bit upstream from the town of Hurley, and although the kid's swingset was threatened, there was no damage incurred on the Foley estate. I called work the following morning to inform them that I was volunteering to work to clean up the community. I am fortunate that I was raised the son of a heavy equipment operator, so I was familiar with a backhoe, loader, bulldozer and other such equipment.

I went to work the following morning operating a bobcat loader. While cleaning up the debris I personally found one of the two fatalities of the flood.

I also noticed that after putting one or two dipper loads into the waiting dump truck, I would turn around and find that truck gone and another truck backing in to receive a load. A bobcat cannot load a dump truck with two scoops. It quickly became apparent to me what was happening, since I knew the trucks were being paid by the load. I told Joe Stephens that I would no longer have a part in this operation and went back to work in Kemper the following day.

I was doing this work for Joe Stephens, the owner of Vansant Lumber in Vansant, Virginia, just east of Grundy on US 460. Joe was subsequently indicted in the Big Coon Dog investigation I linked to above. I'll go even further here. I made a deal with Joe for some lumber to be used for a deck on my home in Hurley. It was to be paid for by my service as a loader operator on some property in the southwest corner of Buchanan County, property he acquired through the previously named scam. I did the work. I'm still being dunned for the lumber.

Sheriff Without A Gun

Regular readers (Hi Leslie, Anne, and Dad) may have noticed a lack of activity here lately. Here at the board factory we have just finished upgrading a couple of systems to improve the quality of our finished product, a project that has kept me pretty much occupied for the past month.

During this period though I have not been living in a vacuum. I know, for example, that George Allen is up in the polls, in spite of (or perhaps because of) the Webb campaign's insistence upon focusing on catch words, slanders, and innuendoes instead of actual issues.

But even that is not what brought me out of hibernation. It seems there has been another "Big News Day" in Henry County's history of deplorable big news days. Why is it that every time Martinsville or Henry County gains national attention it because of some extremely negative news? Here is just a short list, in no particular order;

1. Textile plants closing
2. Sid Clower, County Administrator, convicted of embezzlement
3. Short family murders
4. The notorious jingle contest
5. Ramona and the cable access station's reporter
6. MZM and Duke Cunningham
7. The largest mortgage scam in history
8. And last, but by no means least, 8% of the Sheriff's uniformed Officers and the Sheriff were indicted today on drug, money laundering, and racketeering charges
   

I have no idea whether or not they are all guilty, I hope at least some of them are not.

The news today has been full of people saying that out of an employee base of 120 (approx.) employees, "only" eight were indicted. Only eight? Wow, that's comforting. That completely ignores the fact that 96 of that 120 are active, sworn law enforcement officers, 8 of which were indicted, that comes to 8.33%, a failure rate I strive to avoid at the plant in my production numbers. Add in the 5 other former sworn law enforcement officers who have been indicted and you get 13 out of 101, or almost 13%. With a failure rate like that Frank Cassell should have also been indicted for incompetence, if that was a crime.

The one intriguing thing about this story happens to be Frank Cassell himself. WDBJ, Channel 7 in Roanoke has undercover video of Sheriff Cassell discussing ways to launder drug money with former deputy James Alden Vaught. The quality of the video is very poor, but the audio is adequate to convey the intentions of Sheriff Cassell. Why would Sheriff Cassell go along with such a scheme if he was not afraid of information Mr. Vaught might have on him? Could there be any other explanation? I can't conceive of one, so you might want to watch for the proverbial "other shoe" to drop.

Sheriff Cassell was released today on $25,000 unsecured bond, with the caveat that he have no interaction with any law enforcement personnel. This effectively renders him useless as Sheriff, yet his attorney states that he will report for duty tomorrow. What will he do besides sit in his office and answer his phone, which I doubt he will do. Today the Henry County Board of Supervisors passed a resolution calling for the resignation of Sheriff Cassell. Functionally this resolution is impotent, as Frank Cassell is an elected official, and thus not subject to the wishes of the BOS. Several people have asked me if the Board of Supervisors can cut the budget of the Sheriff's office to eliminate the pay of those active duty employees who have been indicted. I don't think that's an option available to the BOS.

I don't know of any parallel situation that has ever occurred in the history of the Commonwealth of Virginia.

Apparently we will wake up tomorrow with a Sheriff without a gun. Having been charged with a felony Mr. Cassell will have to dispose of any firearms he owns. But the bigger question remains, will Sheriff Cassell, guilty or not, ever regain the trust of the citizens of Henry County?

New Allen ad and Allen supporter's website

One of the latest ads from the Allen campaign is featured below. Consisting of three United States Naval Academy (USNA) graduates discussing the disrespectful, misogynistic attitudes of James Webb and his effect on their military careers.

Mara Matthes, USNA Class of '82, stated that "Mr. Webb's accusations were a roar and his apology was a whisper."

Kathleen Murray, USNA Class of '84, expressed that "Mr. Webb's recent statements concerning his support of women in the military ring hollow in light of his long history of negative writings concerning women in the armed forces and can only be attributed to his political aspirations. I want to make clear to the voters of Virginia that James Webb is no advocate for women."

Carolyn Slowikowski, USNA Class of '82, stated that "James Webb intentionally used character assassination tactics against the women of the Naval Academy to promote his position that our presence was destroying the Academy and harming the men who trained there. His purposeful slander made us carry the extra burden of defending our honor with the additional requirement that we prove the legitimacy of our presence at the Academy."

For contrast, Webb campaign spokeswoman Kristian Denny Todd said, "...These women need to re-examine their priorities."

While I have your attention, let me suggest you also visit this website, http://www.webbagainstwomen.com/

Has The Smear Campaign Gone Too Far For DNC's Comfort?

Via e-mail from a reader who lives and works inside the beltway I have learned that Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid have been growing concerned about the nastiness of the Webb campaign.

I've been told they have been monitoring this campaign, and are not happy with what they have been hearing and reading, primarily from the leftist blogs connected with the Webb campaign.

The two party leaders are currently blaming it on youthful exuberance, and a frustration with recent election losses.

My source says that both Pelosi and Reid have asked Howard Dean to renounce the racist and anti-semitic language and methods employed by Webb's supporters. He has refused to do so, essentially saying he doesn't think it's a problem.

She ends her e-mail by saying that some within the DNC have been monitoring the Webb campaign, concerned that influences from Daily Kos, Democratic Underground, and MoveOn.org may negatively impact the Senate race.

UPDATE:
For a complete compilation of all of the Webb campaign's smear orchestration, go read what Ward Smythe has posted.

UPDATE-UPDATE:
Another (much more in-depth) report of the Reid-Pelosi concerns can be found at The American Spectator.

Muslims for America Endorses Senator George Allen

Thanks to Charles at Two Conservatives. His recent post looks into another endorsement for George Allen's senate bid.

Muslims For America Endorses Senator George Allen - The Senator Allen That We Know

This article by Muhammad Ali Hasan is quite telling;

As an American Muslim activist, I am growing upset over the accusations that Senator George Allen is facing. Granted, the use of the word 'macaca' was completely inappropriate, but I forgive Senator Allen for good reason. I have met Senator Allen personally, our organization has provided advice to his campaign, and I want to confirm it now and for all - Senator Allen is not racist; in fact, he is one of the Senate's most open-minded and unbigoted leaders. Senator Allen has maintained an excellent track record of confronting major issues within the War On Terror, without having to alienate Muslims in order to do it.

Did Ken Shelton Channel Recent North Carolina News?

Was this the inspiration for Shelton's deer head story?

Link 1

Link 2

Link 3

Link 4

More later, I'm at work.

UPDATE:
In a previous post I referenced a charge by Dr. Ken Shelton, a former teammate of George Allen's while both played football at UVA. It seems Dr. Shelton has suddenly remembered an episode that occurred during a hunting trip with George Allen and Billy Lanahan, a wide receiver on the team who is now deceased.

That means the good Doctor now has no one except Allen himself to dispute the story.

Until now.

It seems there was a big story for a few days this past winter in eastern North Carolina about this very subject. Doctor Shelton has a clinic in Hendersonville, just west of Charlotte. He also is an anti-tobacco lobbyist who must obviously spend much time in Raleigh. This story got considerable airtime in the Raleigh market. I would imagine the good Doctor also has a beach house somewhere between Raleigh and Wilmington, this story also got plenty of airtime in the Wilmington area.

That leaves us with the 800 pound gorilla in the room asking, did Dr. Shelton take a local story, a hatred for "big tobacco", and a hatred for the Republican ideals of George Allen, and "interstate" it?

H/T to Captain's Quarters

UPDATE-UPDATE:
I find it interesting that Dr. Shelton has let George Allen get elected numerous times before coming forth with this information. Information he has said he wants to get out because he can't in good conscious allow George Allen to remain in the Senate.

But, he waits until Billy Lanahan is deceased and no longer able to verify or deny his story. He embellishes his claims of racism with a deer head story eerily similar to an episode that occurred in his own state earlier this year. A google search for similar episodes turns up only one other, in Maine in 1976. (Thanks Jim, for the research.)

One other thing, Dr. Shelton claims that this event ocurred right after the movie "The Godfather", with it's infamous horse head scene, came out. That movie was released in March of 1972. Is the good doctor willing to admit that he was deer hunting more than 2 months out of season?

Eye Opener

Proof positive that 42% of Americans are too stupid to be allowed to vote.

Another Democrat(ic) Smear Job

UPDATE:
I'll fix I've fixed those annoying foreign characters that arise from working in MS Word later earlier this evening. For now just read around them, and know that they are quotation marks, apostrophes, or dashes.

It's interesting that, after a week with the spotlight turned on Lowell and Josh at Raising Kaine, the tone from that site seems to have changed. Lowell's posts have suddenly become more focused on policy, and Brian has risen to the top once again for analysis. I wonder if there have been certain mandates handed down from the campaign for the site to "cool down" the rhetoric. It certainly seems so. And if so, it's a good move. Brian is respectable, and I doubt if he can be as nasty as Lowell even if he tried to be.

That said, let's look at Brian's analysis of the Salon article by Michael Scherer. The article in question examines the charge by one former UVA teammate of Allen's that he was a racist in college, regularily using the common racial epithet of the day. This former teammate also charges that Allen used the occasion of a hunting outing to place a severed deer head in the mailbox of a black family in the area.

Brian uses a carefully selected section of the article to portray Allen as a racist. The Salon article itself waits until very late in the piece before you get to this paragraph;

Over the past week, Salon has interviewed 19 former teammates and college friends of Allen from the University of Virginia. In addition to the three who said Allen used the word "nigger," two others who were contacted said they remember being bothered by Allen's displaying the Confederate flag in college, but said they do not remember him acting in an overtly racist manner. Seven others said they did not know Allen well outside the football team, but do not remember Allen demonstrating any racist feelings. A separate seven teammates and friends said they knew Allen well and did not believe he held racist views. "I don't believe he was insensitive," said Paul Ryczek, who played center in Allen's year before joining the Atlanta Falcons. "He had no prejudices, biases or anything else."

After reading that paragraph we now know that some of Allen's teammates are willing to go on record saying he was a racist while in college. But wait, only one is named. And that one has a long history of Democratic activism and Party loyalty.

So we have Dr. Ken Shelton calling Allen a racist. But we also have 16 former teammates who dispute that claim. Salon did not bother to name the other 16 players, but I will name four of them.

George Korte, linebacker on the University of Virginia football team from 1970 through 1973
"Contrary to Ken Shelton, I have kept up with George Allen the past thirty-five years. During this time, I have never known or heard him use racial epithets to describe blacks either in public or private.

"Specific items in the article that are not true are as follows:
1. As stated above, George Allen did not use racial epithets or demonstrate racist attitudes towards blacks in the early 1970s.
2. George came to University of Virginia because his father became the head coach of the Washington Redskins. Instead of continuing his undergraduate education at UCLA, he transferred to be closer to his family. He came to University of Virginia to attend one of the top public Universities in the nation not as the article states “because he wanted to play football in a place where 'blacks knew their place'.
3. Many of the nicknames used to describe the players were not given by George. Mine was Tez. I received this nickname because a coach mispronounced my name as Cortez. This resulted in my nickname given to me from another linebacker. Ken Shelton received his nickname because of his ability as a tight end to magically get open and catch the football not because he shared someone’s last name.
"It appears to me that Kenny Shelton has some deep rooted problems with his self identity and a rather hyper active imagination."

Doug Jones, defensive back on the University of Virginia football team 1971 thru 1974 and roomed with Ken Shelton in his second year
"I was on the University of Virginia football team with George Allen for the 1972 and 1973 seasons. During that time I never heard George Allen use any racially disparaging word nor did I ever witness or hear about him acting in a racially insensitive manner.
"He was a scholar-athlete and a leader. I was proud to be his teammate."

Joe Gieck, the University of Virginia football team trainer for 43 years and a professor in sports medicine; he retired in 2005
"I seem to recall that Ken Shelton got the 'Wizard' nickname for his pass catching ability and before George Allen came to the University of Virginia."

Charlie Hale, center on the University of Virginia football team from 1970 through 1973
"I received an athletic scholarship and attended the University of Virginia from 1972 till 1977. I was a member of the football team and met George Allen in 1972. During my first year the position I played was center and Senator Allen was a quarterback. Neither Senator Allen nor I were on the starting team and our job was to run the opposition offense for our starting defense to prepare for upcoming games. It was during this time we became close personal friends.

"When I was being recruited by UVA, the head coach Don Lawrence, informed me and my family that we would have a new quarterback, it was the son of Coach George Allen who was going to be taking over as head coach of the Washington Redskins. The reason that Senator Allen came to Virginia to play football from UCLA was the fact that he was very close to his father, loved professional football and wanted to be near his family who would be living in Leesburg, Virginia.

"Senator Allen and I were team mates for a period of two years 1972 and 1973 when he finished undergraduate school and then he attended law school also at UVA. We have maintained a close friendship now for 34 years. In the summer of 1976 we spent 6 weeks together driving and camping across the United States to visit his home and family in California. After graduation from law school at UVA the Senator worked in Abingdon, Virginia as a law clerk, and I lived in Grundy, Virginia we continued to see each other and go hunting.

"In 1988 I returned to UVA for a celebration marking 100 years of football at the school. I had been living in the western US since 1978 and we renewed our friendship. He took me home with him that night where I was to meet his wife Susan. Since that time we have remained close personal friends.

"During the 34 years I have known George Allen I have never heard him use racial slurs or derogatory language to describe a person or group of persons.

"Ken Shelton is a close personal friend of mine for the same period of time I have known Senator Allen. Ken was and still remains an amazing athlete, he is one who contained the 'complete package' height, speed, toughness, coupled with an uncanny ability to block, run and catch the football. I lived in the same apartment with him for two years (1973 and 1974) and got to know him very well. I have always known him by the nickname, 'Wizard'. I have always thought the name came from his ability to catch passes (like the day against the Naval Academy when he caught 3 for touchdowns) or his ability to somehow get open in the field. Personally I believe that he was a true 'Wizard' because he always had the ability to sneak out after curfew and never get caught."

Virginia Blog Carnival At Spark It Up!

I'm not sure if it was a coin toss or arm wrestling, but Kilo got the task of putting together the carnival this week. Mash your mouse here to check it out.

I Missed One

I rearranged my "Other Virginia Blogs" blogroll Saturday, (yeah, my life is that interesting), and I meant to add Southwest by Southeast to that list. Actually, I thought I had until I noticed Chad mentioned the new blog by a fellow Southwestern Virginian. He has been added to the right hand column now.

I've been reading this guy for a couple of weeks now, since J.R. introduced me to him. If you haven't checked it out I suggest you do, there's some good stuff going on there.

Jim Webb's Dark Ride, Continued

Recently Flora McDonald produced a video that has stirred emotions all over Virginia. It certainly stirred mine, and I was proud to have given it it's debut showing here on I'm Not Emeril. There were some who had "issues" with the video, and some of those complaints could have been interpreted as valid. Flora has since made a final revision, and once again I'm proud to show it here. I think a perfect introduction for it comes from frequent comment poster JPTERP (I'm guessing, maybe there is a Maryland connection) who said on NLS;

I'm serious about this authorship issue. I'm not an expert in digital editing, but I doubt that lawyers and industry lobbyists without video production skills could have made that on their own.

An amateur could have done that sure, but it wasn't done with typical in the box production software.

Posted by: JPTERP | September 21, 2006 at 12:30 AM

You're right JPTERP, no lawyer or industry lobbyists could have made this video. Regardless of whether they used "in the box" or custom software.

But a mother could. A mother did.

Using freeware software, and a heart, and a love and admiration for her son's contribution toward Iraqi freedom. And an anger that Jim Webb is attempting to re-build a failed political future in the same manner that John Kerry built his 25 years ago. Watch this again and be moved.

Lowell Is Stuck On A Dark Ride

Lowell Feld is imploding. After a whole summer of his lies and spin going relatively unchallenged, this past week has paid its toll on him. He has seen his candidate refer to questions about him as "absurd". Lowell, I've never been referred to as "absurd", could you tell us how it feels to know that the candidate you have so passionately supported is now obviously embarrassed when he is linked to you? But I'm sure Tim Kaine is proud to have lent his name to your site, right? What? You mean he's not?

Lowell has been reduced to posting his wet dreams as "news". Current visitors to that site that I refuse to provide a link to are greeted with the "news" that Dick Wadhams (note to Lowell, et al, there are no parentheses in his name) has been or will be demoted. Lowell claims "sources" that have said that Chris LaCavita told them "off the record" of this development.

Let's ignore the fact for the moment that I'm quite sure my sources are more reliable than anything Lowell posts. Hell, I ain't even sure I believe the time stamps on the posts over there, much less anything contained in the posts. The premise that LaCavita would tell anyone that "off the record" and expect it to go unreported is completely unbelievable. Besides, I have been assured that there is no truth whatsoever in Lowell's latest wet dream. Instead, Lowell's nightmare continues while he is stuck in Jim Webb's dark ride.

Born Quitting?

Jim Webb's campaign, and Jim Webb himself, has said on numerous occasions that he spent 4 years in the Reagan administration. The first 3 years as one of many assistant Secretaries of Defense. The last 10 months was spent as Secretary of the Navy, a promotion in anybody's book.

What Mr. Webb and the campaign staff want to gloss over is his manner of departure from the position as Secretary of the Navy. I could go through all of the history, but in the interest of saving space and time, I'll instead direct you to a contemporaneous account from the Washington Post, (March 7, 1988).

Jim Webb - novelist, lawyer, decorated Vietnam veteran - quit his job as Navy secretary two weeks ago in a fiery barrage of moral outrage and personal frustration.

It was an explosive ending to a short, stormy tenure as the civilian chief of the Navy and Marine Corps. Although his resignation came abruptly, it did not surprise some colleagues who had watched the growing tensions between Webb and his boss, Defense Secretary Frank C. Carlucci.

You can read the entire article at the A-Team blog.

The Washington Post article also contains this little nugget. While I was aware of the circumstances surrounding his resignation, I learned from this article that he also quit his previous position as well.

Webb, 42, was recommended for the Navy post shortly after he quit the Pentagon job he'd held for three years as assistant secretary of defense for reserve affairs.

Since his Marine career ended, Mr. Webb has held two political jobs. Both of which he resigned when he saw he could not get his way. Is this the temperament Virginians expect from their Senator? This Virginian doesn't think so.

I'll end this post with 2 quotes from Jim Webb.

On your (or anyone's) military career;

It [the military] functions not on money but on nonmaterial recognition. Do something good and you receive a good fitness report, an award, a meritorious mast, promotion to higher rank. Do something bad and you are reprimanded, court-martialed, jailed, demoted. You cannot quit your duties if you don't like your job or your boss or the place they're sending you.

And ironically we find that his father's military career ended in an eerily similar manner. In Jim Webb's own words;

During the Vietnam war he [James H. Webb Sr.] served at Air Force Systems command on sensitive satellite link programs and as a legislative affairs officer in the Pentagon, leading him to become a vocal critic of Defense Secretary McNamara's leadership methods and causing him eventually to retire from the Air Force, partially in protest of the manner in which the Vietnam War was being micromanaged by the political process.

Webb Campaign Has Anti-Semitic History

From a Jeff Schapiro story in today's Richmond Times-Dispatch;

In addition to posts on Democratic blogs focusing on Allen's lineage, Wadhams cited Webb's use of a controversial handbill during the primary campaign as evidence of anti-Semitism.

"Anti-Semitic themes run through the Webb campaign," Wadhams said. "I distinctly make that assertion and that charge."

During the Democratic primary, Webb was criticized for a flier featuring a cartoon likeness of his Jewish opponent, Harris Miller, with a large nose and cash spilling from his pockets.

Download the pdf file here.Or click the image to see it get bigger.

Finally Lowell And Josh Get The Recognition They Deserve

Well, Jim Webb has been paying Lowell and Josh for lo these many months. By continuing to keep them on the campaign payroll he signals that he must be very happy with the job they are doing. Finally Chris Matthews gives Jim an opportunity to publically recognize Feld and Chernila, and praise them for the hard work they have put forth on behalf of the Webb campaign...
NOT!

Instead, he is visibly angered at the question and refuses to answer it.
UPDATE:
Welcome NLS readers. While you're here, feel free to browse. If there is anything I can do for you, please ask.

A Few Jim Webb Quotes

Today I'll give you some Jim Webb Quotes, all from the pages of the Wall Street Journal.

ON AFFIRMATIVE ACTION:
"Affirmative action, which originally sought to repair the state-induced damage to blacks from slavery and its aftermath, has within one generation brought about a permeating state-sponsored racism that is as odious as the Jim Crow laws it sought to countermand."

"A Soviet-style bureaucracy of political commissars now monitors every level of our society to ensure that racial and gender "diversity" matches pre-ordained models, using the awesome powers of government to make certain that white males are not "overrepresented" in education, employment or government contracts."

"He watched the Democratic Party, once a champion of the worker-producer, abandon him in favor of special interests who define their advancement mostly through the extent of his own demise. To him "diversity" is a code word used to exclude him-but seldom better-situated whites no matter the extent of his qualifications and no matter the obstacles he has had to overcome, The Republican Party, to which he swung in the last election, has embraced him on certain social issues, but has yet to support policies that would override the tendency of elites to simply protect their own rather than reverse the travails of affirmative action and the collapse of public education."

ON DEMOCRATIC PARTY SLEAZE:
"It is a pleasurable experience to watch Bill Clinton finally being judged, even by his own party, for the ethical fraudulence that has characterized his entire political career. But allowing Jimmy Carter a free pass on the issue of presidential pardons... ignores both the evidence of history and the trauma that President Carter visited on this country during his earliest days in office."

"Indeed, it could be said that the seeds of Bill Clinton's political arrogance were sown by Jimmy Carter's own hand."

"These acts resonate when one evaluates Bill Clinton's incessantly arrogant presidency, from the endless string of conscious and serious abuses of power to the "conversion" of White House furniture and china on his way out the door. For what we are seeing are the echoes of a pervasive elitism, from people who were taught when young that the laws that applied to their countrymen did not necessarily apply to them."

"Bill and Hillary's misadventures provide an echo of a different time and place, another set of values. Of bright students brought to good schools and becoming convinced, as Ben Stein wrote of his years at Yale Law School with the Clintons, "that we were supermen, floating above history and precedent, the natural rulers of the universe. . . . The law did not apply to us."

"Nor did President Carter's abuse of power end with the pardoning of draft evaders."

Be sure to tune in tomorrow for more Jim Webb quotes. While choosing these quotes I've found Jim Webb being openly hostile toward every President since Kennedy except one. That one he openly praised. I'll give you a while to guess which one before I reveal the answer.

Ms. Fox, Why Is It Relevant?

I haven't seen yesterdays debate in it's entirety yet, but Badrose taped it so I expect to see it soon. I know George Allen was there, but from the reaction I've read on various Webb supporter's blogs It's hard to tell if Jim Webb was there or not.

It seems they are much more interested in getting out the news that George Allen may have a Jew or two in his ancestry. That group includes one two Democrat blogger bloggers I thought I could respect. Is Jewish ancestry something to be ashamed of? I don't think so, but the Webb campaign has a history of going in that direction. Just ask Harris Miller. Is Joe Stanley feverishly working with PhotoShop to create another racist flyer similar to the one he created for Webb in the primary?

I have found this clip of the tasteless question. You watch it and judge for yourself.

I have e-mailed Ms. Fox and WUSA management asking just that question. If you would also like to ask Ms. Fox why this is relevant, here is her e-mail address pfox@wusa9.com

Other WUSA Station contacts;
The President & General Manager, Darryll Green dgreen@wusa9.com
News Director, Randal Stanley rstanley@wusa9.com
Vice President Community Relations, Khalim Piankhi kpiankhi@wusa9.com

UPDATE: Statement From George Allen

ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator George Allen released the following statement this afternoon:

"Yesterday, I found it especially reprehensible that a reporter would impugn the attitudes of my mother, as Ms. Peggy Fox did in her first question at the Fairfax County Chamber of Commerce Senate debate. My mother and father both taught me to abhor bigotry, and Ms. Fox's suggestion to the contrary was deeply offensive.

"The notion peddled by the Webb campaign that I am somehow embarrassed by my heritage is equally offensive, and also absurd.

"I was raised as a Christian and my mother was raised as a Christian. And I embrace and take great pride in every aspect of my diverse heritage, including my Lumbroso family line's Jewish heritage, which I learned about from a recent magazine article and my mother confirmed.

"On several occasions through the years, I have mentioned publicly that my mother's father was incarcerated by the Nazis. I have never known whether he was persecuted by the Nazis because of his nationality, his religious faith, his role as a community leader, or his part in the anti-Nazi resistance.

"What I do know is that my grandfather's imprisonment by the Nazis had a profound impact on my mother. It was a subject she found painful to discuss and so we almost never discussed it.

"Some may find it odd that I have not probed deeply into the details of my family history, but it's a fact. We in the Allen household were simply taught that what matters is a person's character, integrity, effort, and performance - not race, gender, ethnicity or religion. And so whenever we would ask my mother through the years about our family background on her side, the answer always was, "Who cares about that?"

"My mother has lived a long and full life, and I hope and pray she will enjoy many more years. She deserves respect and she also deserves privacy, especially where painful memories are concerned. I sincerely hope that simple decency will be respected."

No Words Necessary

But I do wonder why this photo does not appear anywhere on Jim Webb's campaign website, not even in the photo gallery.

Virginia Blog Carnival Is Up At Belowthebeltway

Doug has the Carnival posted at Belowthebeltway.

The Weakly Webb Woundup, Brought To You By The B-Team

Welcome to the first Weakly Webb Woundup. Today you will meet the George Allen B-Team. Several Virginia bloggers have decided to gather their favorite posts on the major subjects covered during the past week in the campaign for Virginia's junior Senator seat.

I also want to point out that neither Allen Team is comprised of paid bloggers. We all do this simply because we believe in George Allen and his quest to maintain his seat in the Senate.










I am pleased to have been asked by Chris at STD to compile the inaugural week's submissions to the Weakly Webb Woundup.Since the B-Team was the brainchild of our lovely Flora who dominates the scene at United Conservatives of Virginia, I'll lead off with a video she just completed sometime in the wee hours of this morning. Instead of embedding it here, I'll just link to the YouTube site until Flora gets it posted on her site. Click on the screen capture below to see what an incredible job she's done watch the video here.

You guys know Chris, the T-shirt purveyor who does Spank That Donkey, right? Chris is very fond of the 2nd amendment (aren't we all?) and would like to point out a few differences between the candidates.
Let's begin with Chris questioning Jim Webb's commitment to the 2nd amendment. Here he wonders if Webb will work to reinstate the Clinton era "assault weapons" ban.

He also tells us that even though Webb currently holds a CWP (concealed carry permit). Will Jim Webb support Allen's new bill to allow reciprocity between states on concealed carry permits

And finally, a couple of posts about the very important NRA endorsement. It's sure to go to Allen, but does Webb even want it?

Nickfinity, who can be found mostly at The Jefferson Mammoth, also has some concerns with jim Webb's commitment to the 2nd amendment. Check out his thoughts here, or here.
I'm going to break somewhat from the traditional carnival protocol and link to one of my own pieces. After a full week of reading about Jim Webb's apparent misogyny, I reached back into my Scots-Irish heritage and composed this little limerick to serve as an intro to my post.

In Virginia there's a writer and Marine
Who told us of a horney woman's dream
But when faced with the facts
He has no clue how to act
He may even make the feminists scream

Kilo has this on the same subject, but he didn't write a limerick to go with it. His blog partner One Wise Girl looks at it this way.

Ward, at the appropriately named The Ward View, looks into some of the fairy tales that seem to spring forth with regularity at Raising Kaine. He also has taken a look at the footwear of choice of both George Allen and Jim Webb.

The photo he links to was supposedly taken during the MTP debate yesterday. Even though it was an "under the table shot" that photo could not confirm a rumor I've heard. Was Jim Webb actually sitting on a couple of pillows to conceal his relative lack of stature while seated beside George Allen?

To end this on a humorous note, let's go back to Flora for this amusing look at Jim Webb's problems with making an endorsement and sticking to it.

Thanks for dropping by the Weakly Webb Woundup for this week. Keep an eye on the B-Team sites to see who will be holding the woundup next week.

A Little On Two Upcoming Seasons

I've never written anything here about the second amendment. I've never written just about guns, either. I think in my archives you will find a couple of articles about hunting, though. I love upland bird hunting. There is so much to be said about watching a well trained dog work a field, not to mention the dinner that often results from such a day.

Here in Virginia we are in the midst of a campaign for the Senate. Both candidates on the surface appear to be "gun friendly", one holding NRA endorsements since forever, and the other being an ex-Marine and action fiction writer. For myself I'm going with the one that had the NRA's blessing in the past, and is most likely to have it this time, as opposed to the candidate that will owe much to Senators Schumer, Kerry, and Kennedy for his campaign.


Enough politics for now. Allow me to tell you about my favorite weapon.

Born in Springfield MA, and spending it's working life with the Martinsville City Police Department, I obtained my model 686 357 Magnum upon its retirement. I don't know which officer carried it daily, but he obviously treated it very well. It shows some holster wear, but the trigger work he had done to it is awesome. It has been with me on most of my hunting trips (I think I can hear it whimpering during black powder season when it has to stay at home), both as a camp gun and as a tool for harvesting game. It has several deer to it's credit and one turkey. That does not include, of course, all of the various snakes, foxes, other vermin, and one bat.

About that bat. A friend and I often go frog gigging. A canoe, a very good light, a farm pond, and a long stick with a barbed fork on the end. You get the idea. On those occasions I am loaded with .38 rat shot, a miniature shotgun shell that works in my revolver. On one such trip Joe's dad, Russell, was with us and a bat kept swooping down toward us in the canoe. It wasn't a real threat, just annoying as hell. After one of those dive bombings I muttered something about "shooting that bat out of the sky" if it made another kamakaze run on us like that. Russell, who did not know I was loaded with rat shot came back with a typical "yeah, right. Like you could hit a bat in flight with a 357". Well, just a few minutes later the bat started another series of passes down toward our light and I unholstered that revolver and splashed the bat into the farm pond. To this day Russell thinks I'm the greatest pistolero in Virginia. And no, I will never tell him it wasn't a 145 gr. Winchester Silvertip that did the deed.

Oh yeah, one other thing. It sleeps daily in a readily accessable location, always prepared to defend my little homestead.

Would It Be Sexist Of Me...

to wonder if all women think alike?

Could the "woman vote" be the deciding factor in the coming Senatorial election? If so it may be too early for George Allen to sigh a breath of relief just yet.

Badrose just called me to direct my attention to her take on the debate, one that is remarkably similar to opinion held by Norman's wife.

I'm not prepared to say this is a trend in any sense of the word, and I'm not prepared to say that these two ladies reaction is good or bad for one candidate or the other. But it is rather remarkable that two conservative (I'm obviously assuming in the case of Mrs. Leahy) women, one in Richmond and the other in Martinsville would come away from the debate with such similar thoughts. It makes me wonder if it's more widespread.

More On The Debate This Morning

Those of you who watched the debate this morning on Meet The Press heard a reference by Tim Russert to a letter he had recieved from Kathleen Murray, USNA Class of 1984, Commander, United States Navy, Retired. In her letter she requested that Mr. Russert ask James Webb about his well know stand on women in the military and how it has affected all military women since the early '80s, and specifically women midshipmen at Annapolis (United States Naval Academy). Mr. Russert did indeed ask Mr. Webb to defend or denounce his earlier position, and was answered with neither. James Webb claimed to have apologized for his remarks with the standard "if anyone was offended, I'm truly sorry" non-defense. That's the equivalent of me hitting you in the face and then saying I'm sorry it hurt, not that I'm sorry I hit you, I'm just sorry you felt that it was painful.

Rather than issue a real retraction of his misogynistic writings Webb states that he is "comfortable with the position women hold in the current military" (paraphrased). Look also for the Webb campaign to attempt to deflect this issue as one manufactured by the Allen campaign using old, outdated, no longer relevant material.

That last tactic will not work. In order to head it off before it comes up I present for your perusal the letter from Cmdr. Murray; (emphasis mine)

Mr. Russert,

Thank you in advance for addressing the issue of Mr. Webb's positions on women in the military, specifically those concerning women midshipman of the Naval Academy. As the one who initiated Wednesday's press conference in Richmond, let me reiterate that it was my idea ALONE to approach the Allen campaign requesting assistance in getting our message out. For 24 years, as a midshipman, and later as a commissioned officer, I remained apolitical, following the orders of "those appointed over me", as I was sworn to do. Now, as a retired Naval Commander, I am free to exercise my First Amendment rights and it bothers me greatly that the press is spinning this as an Allen campaign initiative. Our story is one about James Webb, and I while I appreciate the assistance of George Allen's campaign in making our story public, I want the focus to remain on Webb, for without his poison pen, I would not be writing you today.

I would like to further reiterate that in November of 1979, when "Women Can't Fight", was published, I was still in high school. Yet, the following year, when I was a plebe or freshman midshipman, the article was brandished in my face by my upperclass and gave legitimacy to the sexual harassment experienced by me and my fellow women midshipmen. Worse yet, was the effect the article had on my own male classmates, to whom I found justifying my very presence.

It came as no surprise that Mr. Webb submitted a statement, which can best be described as a non-apology, following our press conference. As they say, it was too little, too late. Too little, because he steadfastly refuses to acknowledge that the CONTENT of his article, "Women Can't Fight" was a scurrilous attack on women midshipmen. I simply cannot accept that as a graduate of the institution, Mr. Webb would not anticipate the widespread reaction to his article. As a "professional" writer, he must have known full well the impact that his sophomoric use of the English language, eg, "a horny woman's paradise", would have on the Brigade. I would ask Mr. Webb if his attack on the women midshipmen, in any way added to his coffers. He personally singled out and attacked then Midshipman Liz Belzer, knowing full well that she and the other women at the Naval Academy would have no means of rebuttal. That is, until today.

His "apology" comes too late. The time for Mr. Webb to apologize for the CONTENT of his article, would have been back in 1983 when he claims that he visited the Academy and called for "harmony among male and female midshipmen". The time to apologize would have been as Secretary of the Navy, to publicly acknowledge that he was WRONG in what he wrote about women Midshipmen and their potential for leadership in the naval service. His recent statement concerning his support of women in the military rings hollow in light of his long history of negative writings concerning women in the armed forces and can only be attributed to his political aspirations.

Sincerely,
Kathleen Murray, USNA Class of 1984, Commander, United States Navy, Retired

Blog Conference revisited

I've been meaning to link to Badrose's latest round of photographs from the recent Blog Conference, but for one reason or another I've managed to procrastinate until now. It seems we had a major actor from a 1999 hit movie in our midst. He registered under an assumed name apparently, and it seems everyone thought he was vaguely familiar, but Badrose has finally discovered his true identity. (Scroll to the bottom.)

Allen-Webb Debate On Meet The Press

It's 9:00am Sunday morning.

Put on your official George Allen cap and tune in to Meet The Press for the Allen-Webb debate. Don't miss it.

UPDATE: 10:01am
Jon Henke followed the debate closely and has just finished live-blogging the show. He has some very interesting commentary with a timeline, go check it out.