Guest Op-Ed, Del. Danny Marshall (R, Danville)

Transportation Update: What Just Happened ??

By Delegate Danny Marshall

Your Virginia General Assembly is, by the design of our founding fathers, a “part-time” legislature. Our legislative sessions in Richmond are usually handled in 45 or 60 days. The rest of the year we live and work among the citizens of our district. The idea is efficiency and less state government interference in your lives.

We have just completed a “special” transportation session called by Governor Tim Kaine, who declared a transportation “crisis.” This session cost the Virginia taxpayers more than $100,000. It is interesting that there was no transportation “crisis” recognized during January and February when we were putting together the state budget. Actually, during the 2008 regular session we restored $180 million for key transportation projects that the Governor had diverted to other projects.

When we reconvened this week, the Governor’s proposals of tax and fee increases that he had presented at more than a dozen town hall meetings across the state were not even agreed to by his own party. When his original bill was brought to a floor vote in the House of Delegates, the vote was 0 yes and 98 no. This was the bill that Martinsville Delegate Ward Armstrong carried for the Governor.

What just happened? Why were we called to Richmond when preliminary work had not been properly completed? The Governor called the session. It is his responsibility to request that bipartisan committees work on viable solutions before the whole body was called in to vote, if indeed he was expecting a workable solution. I have never been very tolerant of wasting time and money, especially for political grandstanding.

I will be straightforward. All proposals introduced by the Governor and the Democrats were to raise taxes: higher gas taxes during a time of record high gas prices, higher taxes on auto sales during an auto industry recession, higher taxes on home purchases when the housing market is already down, and a higher sales and use tax when consumers are already cutting their family budgets to make ends meet.

If legislators do not vote to raise taxes, we are summoned back to Richmond to “take responsibility, to make the hard choices.” Raising taxes seems to be the first and only answer in some minds for solving all problems. Is that really the hard choice? Actually, it is relatively easy for a legislature to do-- just press the voting buttons and declare that taxpayers must reach in their pockets and give the state more money. How innovative is that? The hard choice and responsible position during difficult economic times is taking the money you have and spending it carefully and wisely, while looking for all possible solutions to problems. Many Southside citizens seem to agree, since that was the overwhelming theme in the responses sent to me on my district survey.

While we were in Richmond we did try to make progress without raising statewide taxes. There were bills introduced that were geared toward responsible spending and laying solid groundwork for use of transportation money. The results are below. You will see a pattern of those who refused to lock up transportation dollars for transportation use only and who voted against accountability and alternative solutions. Note the House has a Republican majority and the Senate has a Democrat majority.

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1. Transportation Trust Fund Constitutional Amendment – HJ 6005 (Danny Marshall-R) combined with/rolled into HJ 6001 (Oder-R)
• Provides a guarantee to the citizens of Virginia that money dedicated to transportation will be spent on transportation.
• Passed House 94-0, Senate Adjourned Before Taking Action

2. Performance Audit of VDOT – HB 6023 (Lingamfelter-R); HB 6046 (Lingamfelter-R – Emergency)
• Provides more realistic assessment of maintenance needs and revenues that will be available, as well as thorough audit of VDOT to identify waste and inefficiencies. Based on successful Washington state model.
• HB 6023 Passed House 95-0, Left in Senate Rules
• HB 6046 Passed House 90-0, Killed in Senate Finance
  

3. Transportation Accountability Commission Enhancement – HB 6051 (May-R)
• Clarifies that Commission has a direct role in overseeing the PPTA process as practiced by VDOT or the other agencies within the Transportation Secretariat. Helps ensure that needed projects are delivered more quickly – thus speeding congestion relief and saving taxpayers money.
• Passed House 98-0, Left in Senate Rules

4. PPTA Expedited Schedule – HB 6044 (Hamilton-R)
• Provides specific timeline for acting on critical PPTA projects so VDOT will be forced to act on these proposals in a timely manner.
• Passed House 67-28, Killed in Senate Transportation

5. Bridge Maintenance Contracts – HB 6047 (Lingamfelter-R)
• Provides means to maximize allocated resources to address bridge maintenance and improve safety. Based on successful Missouri model.
• Passed House 86-6, Killed in Senate Transportation

6. PPTA Concessions for Hampton Roads – HB 6019 (Hamilton-R)

• Directs VDOT to impose tolls or issue an RFP for a transportation concession on three major Hampton Roads transportation “choke” points and on all Hampton Roads HOV lanes that are converted to tolled HOT lanes.
• Passed House 51-44, Killed in Senate Transportation

7. Offshore Drilling Royalties –HB 6006 (Saxman-R)
• Dedicates future royalties from offshore drilling of natural gas and oil in Virginia to transportation funding, Chesapeake Bay clean-up and energy research and development.
• Passed House 56-39, Killed in Senate 16-18

8. Transportation Funding for Northern Virginia and Hampton Roads – HB 6055 (Hamilton-R)
• Provides up to $600 million in Northern Virginia and $300 million in Hampton Roads for transportation funding through dedication of 30% of future growth of certain revenue sources derived from economic activity relating to Dulles and Reagan National airports and the Hampton Roads Ports respectively.
• Passed House 51-45, Killed in Senate Finance

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Each year we have addressed transportation issues and increased the funding. Here are some seldom-publicized facts:

• In 2005, invested $850 million to reduce congestion (HB 1500)
• In 2006, built upon that progress by directing $568 million in surplus dollars and ongoing funding (HB 5002)
• In 2007, financed largest investment in two decades, $3 billion for road, rail & transit projects. (HB 3202)
• In 2008, restored $180 million in funding for key projects diverted by Governor Kaine. (HB 30)

I still believe that this was NOT the right time to raise taxes statewide, but it WAS the right time to pass common sense legislation that would secure the transportation fund and explore alternative ways to alleviate transportation problems. What just happened….we missed an opportunity.

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Delegate Danny Marshall represents the 14^th House District which includes:

City of Danville: all precincts

Henry County precincts: Ridgeway, Irisburg, Mt. Olivet, Fontaine, Hillcrest

Pittsylvania County precincts: Ringgold, Ferry Road, Brosville, Bachelors Hall

Contact Information:

District office: 434-797-5861

E-mail: DelDMarshall@house.state.va.us

Postal mail: P.O. Box 439, Danville, VA 24543

Website: www.dannymarshall.com

NOTE: The above Op-Ed was previously contributed to the Martinsville Bulletin, prior to the publication of Sunday's biased editorial. It remains to be seen whether the Bulletin publishes the other side of the debate or not.

(I'm taking bets via e-mail, right now the odds are long against it.)

Tom Perriello

Just the other day, on a local TV program, Congressional Candidate Tom Perriello decried partisanship.

Tell me Tom, Which Republican, in any part of the Country, you would endorse?

I'm looking forward to an answer.

Another Guest Shot By Barnie Day

My regular readers have most likely noticed I'm off on another of my periods when I seldom write anything. It doesn't mean I don't want to write, but writing is a lot like sex. It takes more than simply wanting to in order to get around to actually doing it.

One of my dream jobs would be to write for a newspaper, but an editor would insist that I actually do it—write, that is—all the time.

In a way I do, though. I write at least one article a day for this site. In my head. While I'm thinking, or maybe pondering is a better word, about the state of our Union and Virginia. Or our local community. But what I write up there seldom reaches the level of competency that I place on myself. Perhaps, if I made myself sit down at a keyboard and work the roughness off the words I've head-composed, I could put up an article a day. I'll work on that. At least an article a week. I promise.

In the meantime, as Rocky used to say to Bullwinkle, "Here's something you'll really like."

Barnie Day, former Delegate, former SCC judge candidate, and current farm-pond fisherman and banker from Meadows of Dan, has managed to sum up the upcoming Presidential race. Those of us who think politics all day, everyday, have known this all along. It takes the writing skills of one much more disciplined than I to put it so succinctly.

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Bubba Believes In Religion
(and other true facts)

B. K. Day

Bubba doesn’t write checks, or use ATMs. Bubba’s ol’ lady keeps up with the money. Bubba prefers folding, front pocket whip-out.

Bubba doesn’t send emails. He owns a cell phone, but he only uses it during deer season. He doesn’t own a Blackberry. Bubba likes blackberry cobbler.

Bubba doesn’t wear Crocs, or cook with olive oil. Or balsamic vinegar. Bubba doesn’t peel his tomatoes.

Bubba doesn’t think men ought to marry men, or women women. He’s got a cousin who’s a little bit light in the loafers, but everybody knows that’s ‘cause his mama let him put on lipstick and play dress-up when he was little.

Bubba might call his mother-in-law by her first name, and he might not. It depends on whether or not she’s still alive. When he’s just thinking about her, the b-word rises in his mind.

Bubba thought a lot of Jesse Helms. He wouldn’t vote for Hillary if she was the last man on earth—and not just because of the fat ankles. Bubba never had trouble with fat ankles. His mama and his sister and his wife have them. Too bad about ol’ Jesse.

Bubba doesn’t shop. His ol’ lady buys his clothes for him—she knows what to get—he likes logos and decals. Anything else he needs, his sister orders it from Cabella’s on her credit card and Bubba gives her the money from his whip-out.

Bubba knows some good minorities. He works with a few of them. The ones he knows are alright. He don’t trust the rest of them—and he don’t like it when they marry Americans. Bubba thinks folks ought to marry their own kind.

Bubba will lie to a pollster. It’s none of their damn business. He don’t like McCain, or Obama, neither, but he’ll probably vote. He just ain’t decided how yet. Not for certain. McCain’s ol’ lady’s just got too much money. He wishes Dale, Jr. would run.

Bubba don’t like banks or insurance companies. He thinks they’re all sonsofbitches. He don’t like preachers, neither. He thinks most of them are sonsofibtches, too—except the ones he knows.

Bubba believes in religion. He thinks everybody ought to believe in something, but he don’t get too tangled up in the details. Bubba thinks religions are all about the same when it comes right down to it—except for the Jews and the Catholics and the Muslims, the Lutherans, the Episcowhatyoucallems, and them high and mighty Presbyterians. And a ‘nother thang—he don’t trust them churches that run off good preachers every four years. Or them you have to go to on Saturdays. Or them that call the head man anything besides ‘preacher.’

Bubba thinks we ought to bomb the hell out of whoever is making gas go to four dollars a gallon.

Bubba doesn’t have a garden. Bubba’s got a garden-spot. He puts out beans, and taters and such.

Bubba doesn’t play golf. He sights in his blackpowder on the weekends. He’ll go to Myrtle Beach for a day or two, just to shut his ol’ lady up, but he prefers Buggs Island.

Bubba has never paid someone to change his oil. Bubba doesn’t have a job that pays mileage reimbursement.

Bubba drinks—a little—on the weekends—mostly beer. If he’s got a bottle of Old Crow—and he does—it’s in the tool box in the back of his truck. He’d drink water out of a mudhole before he would a glass of wine.

Bubba used to smoke—and he still does when his ol’ lady ain’t around—too much chin music now—but not in the house—out in his shop where he keeps his stuff.

Bubba ain’t had a physical in years—if he had insurance, they wouldn’t cover it, the sonsofbitches. Besides that, Bubba don’t like rubber gloves.

Bubba don’t worry about physicals. Bubba knows none of us get out of this alive—we all got to go sometime.

Bubba doesn’t know what “empowered” means. Bubba doesn’t know what “empowered” feels like, and hasn’t thought about it. Bubba doesn’t know his time has come.

Bubba doesn’t know what a “swing” voter is. He doesn’t know that’s what he is.

Bubba doesn’t know he’s going to elect the next President.

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Barnie doesn't mention it, but there are two Bubbas in this land. Each alike as Barnie describes them, yet totally opposite in a more important way.

Bubba One is a Demmycrat. Daddy was a Demmycrat, Granddaddy was a Demmycrat, Great-Granddaddy was a Demmycrat, and by-cracky he'll always vote Demmycrat for their sake if no other.

Bubba Two claims no political affiliation. He votes for the candidate that best fits his conservative ideals, which means he most often votes Republican. Oh, sure, he voted for Virgil "back then" and still does, because he can count on Virgil to stand on those conservative principles. He did "back then", he does so now.

Here's where the problem comes in;

Bubba One, the Demmycrat for tradition's sake, will have a real hard time voting for "that-black-muslim-guy-with-the-funny-name"*. After all, southern Democrats fought civil rights tooth and nail for years. His Daddy did. His Granddaddy did, his Great-Granddaddy did. In short, he's conflicted.

Bubba Two, on the other hand, has always had a real hard line conservative to choose from. A conservative who has shown a real belief in smaller government, less intrusion into his private life, and the ideal that all men are created equal. He will have a hard time with the guy who has consistently tweaked the Republican party's nose, fought for and passed needless intrusion into Bubba's right to contribute his whip-out to the candidate of his choice, and has expressed a desire to immunize those who are currently in the country illegally.

With Obama scrambling toward the right, even loosening his stance on keeping troops in Iraq, Bubba One is starting to wonder...

With McCain lurching leftward, even denouncing oil exploration in areas previously deemed OK for drilling, Bubba Two is starting to wonder...

* I know he's not really Muslim, but he is perceived to be by many Bubbas.

Father's Day

I have a part-time job. I sell fine imported, handmade cigars and cheap cigarettes at a little tobacco shop in Collinsville. Actually, I simply ring up the sales of the cigarettes, (our customers generally know exactly what they want), only the cigars require a small amount of salesmanship.

Today was Father's Day, so I did do quite a bit of cigar selling. It occurred to me at some point during the day that today was very much different from Mother's Day. Today we sold a bunch of fine imported handmade cigars. No chewing tobacco, though. Not a single pouch.

Mother's day surprised me. Over and over on Mother's Day folks would come in to buy mom a box or more of chewing tobacco. And snuff. Not the modern Copenhagen type preferred by baseball pitchers and rodeo riders, the old fashioned kind my Dadaw used. Brands like Dental, Navy, and Bruton that comes in the old style can that could never fit into a back pocket of a pair of Wranglers.

We sold completely out of chewing tobacco and snuff that weekend.

One, or more accurately, a pair, of my customers on Mother's Day was a couple of sisters buying a treat for their 98 year old mom who lived in a local nursing home that no longer allowed smoking anywhere on the premises. Of course they nervously tried to justify their purchase by explaining mom's situation.

As I told those two ladies; "If mom wants chewing tobacco at 98 years of age, give her chewing tobacco. If mom wants a couple of 25 year old twin guys at 98 years of age, let's see if we can find some volunteers."

Happy Father's Day and a belated happy Mother's Day.

OK, Let's Talk About Oil Demand

I keep hearing about how China and India are driving up demand for oil and thus are to blame for our current gasoline prices.

Not many are mentioning the fact that the other side of DEMAND is SUPPLY.

When ANWR, oil shale deposits in the west, the deposits on the continental shelf and others are figured in, we have as much oil as Saudi Arabia.

It's true Governors would have a hissy fit, but could they really stand on such a position in the face of voters paying through the nose? I think not. Hell, even Mark Warner is campaigning on such a platform, as is Jim Gilmore.

Someone, (McCain maybe, or was it Gilmore?), suggested recently that our closed military bases would be perfect locations for new refineries. An excellent, innovative idea, no matter where it came from.

You only need to remember one "talking point". Right now, China is drilling 45 miles off the coast of Key West. China. Drilling on OUR continental shelf. And the Democrats have no backbone to admit that we MUST do so as well.

And don't even get me started on coal.

Now, let's move on to an op-ed in yesterday's Roanoke Times. Allen Louderback, former Delegate from Luray, says we must create a huge government project, comparable to the Manhattan Project, that would double our fuel mileage. News flash, Mr. Louderback, we HAVE doubled our fuel mileage. And the private sector is currently conducting at least a billion dollars worth of such research today. It's called NASCAR and it and NHRA have been largely responsible for that doubling of our gas mileage.

He then goes on to allude to those miraculous gas mileage carburetors. You know, the ones the oil companies bought out the patent rights on and held them in secrecy all these years. I've been hearing these tales since I was a child. Another news flash for Mr. Louderback. A patent only lasts 17 years. If such devices ever existed, they could be produced royalty free today. Tell me that no aftermarket automotive parts company would be interested in producing the miracle parts.

It's way past time to stop blaming "Big Oil", (which is mostly owned by teachers, firemen, policemen, and just ordinary folks in their retirement plans), and place the blame squarely where it belong, on the floor of the House and Senate.

Certainly there will come a day when petroleum based fuel is no longer viable, in the meantime research into alternative energy sources is being conducted. Chevron alone invested 20 Billion last year into such research.

It's only logical. These companies know that we will soon no longer desire or need their current services. They know that they must make a move, a logical move, into other forms of energy or someday be forced to shut their doors forever. They are, after all, energy companies. It's logical, and sound business practice, to begin searching for their new replacement product.

It's Commencement Time Again

Once again it's time for those boring commencement speeches. In honor of this occasion I present one that's not. Boring, that is.

Barnie Day Remarks
Southampton Academy Graduation
June 3, 2006

Good evening. Thank you very much. This is a big evening for Southampton Academy and I am pleased to be a part of it.

I want to begin with a housekeeping chore that we must get out of the way first. I want the graduating seniors to repeat after me. “Thank you, Mom. Thank you, Dad.”

Raising a kid is a difficult undertaking. Part of the difficulty seems to be a built-in dichotomy. On the one hand, as parents we want nothing so much as to raise you to be an independent thinker, to stand on your own hind legs, so to speak. At the same time, we expect you to believe everything we tell you. Those two positions are not always compatible.

My guess is that at some point every parent here has looked at you with this thought: “This fool cannot possibly be my kid. Somebody switched them in the delivery room. We got the wrong baby.”

Here’s the thing: Despite all the stupid things you’ve done, they’ve loved you anyway. Isn’t that a miracle?

Their love is boundless and unflinching. It is unconditional. You will never encounter the likes of it again. If you live to be a hundred, you will never find the love your parents have for you in any other embrace.

There is another group of people here this evening that we must pay homage to—the faculty and staff of this wonderful institution.

Teaching is a high and sacred calling, yet as a society we continue to under-appreciate teachers, undervalue them, and underpay them. Every one of them here at Southampton Academy could do less work and make more money doing something else.

Not only have they put you into the game of life, they have cheered you on incessantly. They have found joy and sadness when you found it. They have lived with you, laughed with you, cried with you. And make no mistake, they have loved you, too—and on some days looked at you with this thought: “I am glad this fool doesn’t belong to me.”

Please get on your feet and join me in a round of applause for the faculty and staff of Southampton Academy.

My favorite observation on writing was uttered by Bobby Knight, the legendary basketball coach.

“We learn to write in the second grade. Most of us go on to larger things.”

Even as a small boy, I could never get past a hornet’s nest without throwing something at it. Most anything would do—sticks, rocks, pop bottles, shoes—but my choice was always a brick if I could find one.

Bricks are harder to throw—and you have to stand closer—but you can do some damage with a brick.

I don’t throw bricks now. My arm is shot. But I do throw words once in a while. It’s what political columnists do.

A love of words came to me as a child - spoken words. I didn’t grow up in a household with a lot of books - but I did grow up around extraordinary talkers - gifted talkers, a gallery of them - artists who painted with spoken words, with language.

Words and their clever usage were the coin of value in my house - finding new ones akin to putting jingle in my pocket. It still is. The use of them, though, was not a frivolous thing, not a lightly taken exercise for me.

Baseball players, pitchers, gloves clamped in their armpits, always work the slickness from new baseballs before they throw them. The use their naked hands and do it with some intensity.

Words are best done that way, too—rubbed, and understood, measured for fit and feel and balance. You never want to throw a word until it’s ready. Believe me, I’ve done it. They nearly always miss their mark and ricochet into the stands.

Mark Twain said the difference between the right word and the near - right word is the difference between a lightning bug and lightning.

An interest in politics, something insatiable, started early, too. Like so many interests did for me, this one began with newspapers. I know this is an exaggeration—but I cannot remember not reading a newspaper.

When I was a small boy, my folks pulled off something magical. They bought a subscription to Life magazine—just in time for the run - up to the 1960 election.

I distinctly remember, as a kid, standing shirtless, nothing on but shorts, barefooted, dust at our mailbox warm and powdery in the summer sun, looking at that magazine.

I was your age in 1968. It was the year I began paying attention politically. Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King were gunned down in 1968. The war was still raging in Vietnam. In 1968, we were still a long way from civil rights for all Americans.

When I was a kid, discrimination was openly expressed in public signs that read “White Only” or “Colored Only”. Some days now I think the same thing is expressed in terms of ‘gay’ and ‘straight.’

Today we debate immigration policy. In 1968 women were not admitted to the University of Virginia. That didn’t come about until 1970 - largely due to the efforts of Alan Diamonstein, who served in the House of Delegates from Newport News for 33 years.

I got my first job in 1968, after school, working second shift, loading trucks at a factory that made aluminum siding. Cam Johnson was a black man who worked on the loading dock with me. He was about 40, but he looked 65 - from doing hard, manual labor his whole life. He had worked second shift on that dock for eleven years. In fact, he had helped build that factory. He had carried bricks and mortar to the bricklayers and when they got it built, Cam got a job there.

In eleven years he had never missed a day of work. Cam Johnson couldn’t afford to miss a day. He had six children to feed and clothe. He was a gentle man. Not educated. Not militant. He didn’t know politics from theoretical physics. Cam Johnson just worked. I was a white boy, just a kid, and Cam Johnson was a black man with a wife and six children and we worked on the dock together.

We did exactly the same job. We loaded boxes of aluminum siding onto trucks, Cam on one end of the box, me on the other. The only real difference was our age, the color of our skin, the responsibility we had for other people and how much money we were paid. They hired me at $1.85 an hour. Cam Johnson, with six children, who hadn’t missed a day of work in 11 years, was making $1.80 an hour. He showed me his pay stub one day.

It was then that I understood about the food Cam brought for his supper every night. Half the time it was a pig ear sandwich. Two slices of bread, with mustard, and a boiled pig’s ear. Cam didn’t eat pig’s ears because he preferred them over ham and pork chops. A pig’s ear was all Cam could afford.

So what to do?

I did the only thing I thought I could do. It was the way my mother raised me.

I went to our boss, a beer-bellied, red-necked cracker named Harold, and I put it to Harold like this:

“You either give Cam a raise or cut my pay. I’m not working for more than he’s making.”

Harold looked at me like I’d spoken to him in Egyptian. And I said it again. And here’s what he said to me:

“You must be one of them stinking Democrats!” and I smiled at him and said, “I must be.”

Cam got the raise, by the way. Dime an hour.

When my friend Jerry Flowers asked me to speak to you this evening, I began to jot down a few things that I wanted to say to you on this departure.

Some of them you will forget before you leave here this evening - -some you will remember years from now. I give them to you in no particular order.

• Know first that life is not so much some destination. It is the trip itself that matters. This is not a dress rehearsal. You’re not going to get a lot of do-overs. This is the real deal you’re in.
• Impatience is a good thing. Impatience is what drives us. Impatience is what effects change - but know that you won’t get any real brains until you’re about fifty. My sixth grade teacher told me once: “Son, it’s what you learn after you know it all that really matters.”
• If you want to make God laugh, tell Him what your plans are.
• Keep art in your life. Long-term, it is art that endures, not wealth, not might. Art is how we know the ancient civilizations that have come before us. It is how we know Persia and the Aztecs, how we know the ancient Egyptians. Keep art in your life.
• Get yourself a good dog. A good dog will always be glad to see you. There will be days ahead when you’re going to need somebody who is glad to see you. Get yourself a good dog.
• From time to time, commit to an irrational act of kindness. Make yourself do it. It will come back to you over, and over, and over again.
• Live below your means. You cannot borrow yourself out of debt. You cannot spend your way to a savings plan. Less really is more where material things are concerned. It is a great blessing in life to want what you have. But, of course, if you’re into materialism know that you can marry more money in five minutes that you can make in a lifetime.
• Call your mama once in a while. You owe her. It is the least you can do. Call your mama.
• Read 2000 good books. Amazon-dot-com lists over a million titles. If you read a book a week throughout your life, you’re going to have time to read about 2000. Don’t waste your time on trash. Read 2000 good books. And if you never read another thing in your life, please, read Martin Luther King’s Letter from a Birmingham Jail.
• Speak to the people who wait on you. Speak with kindness and respect to those who serve you. And don’t just speak to them. Thank them. They have lives. They’re human beings, too. It is not asking a lot. Speak to them. The only difference between you and them is one of circumstance.
• Don’t trifle with someone’s heart just because you can. Hearts are tough resilient wonders, but they are fragile, too, and easy to break. Don’t trifle with them.
• In the years ahead, if you find yourself in need of a cheap lawyer or a cheap accountant, you don’t need a lawyer or an accountant. Cheap lawyers and cheap accountants get you into more trouble than they can get you out of.
• Laughter is a good thing. And conventional wisdom is mostly just conventional. People will tell you that you should never go to bed mad with your spouse. I guess it’s better to stay up and fight. Or this one: you should never criticize someone until you’ve walked a mile in their shoes. What that means is that at least you’ll be a mile away when the trouble starts, plus you’ll have their shoes.
• Always stop and examine the truth when you stumble over it. Don’t pick yourself up and rush on as if nothing happened.
• A word or two on the social graces: the fork goes on the left, the knife and spoon on the right. And, guys, please—put the seat down.
• Consensus is overrated. If you get ten people to agree to do something stupid, where are you? Don’t trade away your independent judgment just for the sake of getting along.
• And finally this one. God gives some people talent beyond what He gives others. I don’t know why. I do know this. If God has given you such a talent, you should use it. I believe He will take it away from you if you don’t—and give it to someone who will.

I wish you Godspeed as you leave here this evening. We all do. This institution has given you the tools you need. We expect you to use them.

You leave good days behind you here at Southampton, but believe me when I say this: your very best days still await you.

We are proud. We are envious. Our hearts do go with you.

I am going to sit down before I wear my welcome out. My parting shot is this—and if you remember nothing else I’ve said this evening, remember this one.

Nothing shrinks to greatness - not organizations, not companies, not countries - and not you.

You cannot sit on your backsides. The world doesn’t owe you anything. If you want a meaningful life, you must pursue it with purpose.

Of all the people here this evening, only you can reach your potential.

I have in my possession three words that will help you. They were given to me by a great man. This evening I give them to you. I hope you will cherish them, for they will comfort you always.

Pope John Paul said: “Be not afraid.”

Be not afraid as you go forward.

God bless and keep you. Thank you very much.

SWVA Bloggers Sued By Developer

Over in Christiansburg there is a development called Oak Tree Townhomes. I see their ads on local television every day, from the ads one gets the impression that Oak Tree is a great neighborhood. And it may very well be. I don't live there, I don't go there, and I know no one who does.

A couple of ladies in Christiansburg do know, though. They operate a blog called "Think, Christiansburg!", a blog dedicated to happenings in and around Christiansburg.

It seems Roger Woody, the developer of Oak Tree, has left a bit to be desired in his efforts to create a nice community. Primarily in the storage of construction debris and fill dirt. Think, Christiansburg! recently took note of the development and has been hit with a multi-million dollar lawsuit.

Come on Roger, ease up. If you don't like the publicity you're getting, talk to the community. Make an effort to improve your relationship with the community you built. Don't unleash a couple of highly paid attorneys to silence your detractors with threats of a lawsuit that will benefit no one.

Taxes, Marshall, Gilmore and Vetos, Oh My!

Remember Del. Bob Marshall? He's the guy running against former Governor Jim Gilmore for the Republican nomination for Senate candidate later this month. He's also the guy who told me on the phone that one of the biggest reasons I should vote for him at the Republican Convention is that he's the guy who filed the lawsuit to overturn the Regional Taxing Authorities recently set up by the General Assembly and approved by Governor Kaine.

Well, my friend, (and fellow ODBA member), Chris Green, the proprietor of Spank That Donkey has done a bit of research on regional taxing authorities. One of the things his research has turned up was quite surprising. Be sure to check in with him and see what he's got. I promise you'll love it, (unless you're a supporter of Del. Bob Marshall for Senate or a supporter of regional taxing authorities).

Brenda Campbell, VFRW President

I, along with the rest of the Henry County GOP and many of her personal friends, would like to take an opportunity to congratulate the new president of the Virginia Federation of Republican Women, Brenda Campbell. Brenda is also a very valuable member of the Henry County Republican Unit Committee, as well as a 14 year member of the Ridgeway Town Council.

The VFRW is not a trivial group. It is most certainly not just a social club. This is a hard working team of Republican Women all over Virginia that work constantly to promote Republican Candidates and Republican values. Their mission statement pretty much sums it all up;

Our goal is to provide the opportunity for women from all age groups and walks of life to actively participate in the political arena on national, state and local issues.

We promote political awareness and recruit qualified candidates.

We encourage women to assume leadership roles in government, the Republican Party, and in the community as policy planners, decision makers, and potential candidates.

Congratulations Brenda. You make Henry County and all of the 5th District proud.


From the National Federation of Republican Women website;

PRESIDENT'S BIOGRAPHY

Brenda H. Campbell was elected Virginia FRW President at the 55th Annual Convention in Newport News, Virginia, April 19, 2008.

Brenda has served as Sergeant-At-Arms for the NFRW under three Presidents.

She has served the VFRW as District Representative, Corresponding Secretary, Second Vice President, First Vice President, and has assisted in campaign management workshops, and on various other committees.

At the local level, Brenda is a charter member of the Southside Republican Women’s Club, having served as Club President and as Treasurer.

In her local Henry County Committee, Brenda has served on various committees and is currently Treasurer. She has served as Legislative District and Senatorial District Chairman and as campaign coordinator for numerous candidates.

At the District level, she has been Secretary and State Central member of the Republican Party of Virginia for 8 years. Brenda has been the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year Award for the Republican party several years and most recently the 2007 Volunteer of the Year Award from her District.

Brenda has served 14 years on the Ridgeway Town Council and was presented a Commendation from the Virginia House of Delegates for Recognition of Service to Ridgeway Town Council and Outstanding Civic and Community Leadership. She was appointed to the Virginia Museum of Natural History Board and served for 5 years and is currently a member of the museum's advisory board.

Brenda was owner and operator of Carolina Furniture Outlet, Eden, NC from 1994-2005. She resides in Ridgeway, Virginia, with her husband, Richard. They have two grown sons, Richard Jr. and Christopher.

Creigh Deeds Explained

My friend Billy Jack, a former Democrat, does a great job of deconstructing Creigh Deeds, all from the contents of a single video.

I understand that Deeds had been supporting anyone with a D, as a sign of his partisan loyalties, in an attempt to curry favor in support of his bid for governor in 2009. This is an accepted practice within the political community. These men would praise people they've never even met as long as they felt it would achieve their desired ends. However, praise often leads to hyperbole and hyperbole in turn to falsehood. Furthermore, Deeds does know this man, and he knows that he lied.

Check it out. [LINK]

Governor Gilmore Speaks To 5th District

This past Saturday Jim Gilmore, (and many others, of course), spoke to the 5th District Convention. I have, (so far), Governor Gilmore, Congressman Goode, and Senator Ken Cuccinelli posted here. Click on the title in this little widget to listen to each.

Tucker Watkins For 5th District Chairman

What do I have in common with George Allen, Jerry Kilgore, Pat Barksdale, Nick Fowler, Nathan Pick, Jason Gray, Dr. John Donaldson, Bill Wheaton, Annie Celoto, Ed Early, Bob Cranston, Jack Watts, The Contemporary Conservative, Shelby Ralston, Keith Drake, Kathy Ferguson, John Putney, Steve Kendall, Gary Lowe, and many more conservative Republicans in Virginia's Heartland?

We all enthusiastically endorse Tucker Watkins for 5th District Chairman.

John Brownlee To Announce For AG??

U.S. Attorney John Brownlee has scheduled a press conference this afternoon at which he is expected to announce his resignation from that post. Will he also announce that he will challenge Ken Cuccinelli to be the Republican nominee for Attorney General in 2009? Watch this space to find out.

Tucker Watkins for 5th District Chair

I am pleased to join George Allen, Jerry Kilgore, and thirty past and present Unit Chairmen in endorsing my friend and mentor, Tucker Watkins, for the position of Chairman of the Republican Party in the 5th Congressional District of Virginia. Tucker has sent out a rather lengthy letter, I ask that you take the time to read his accomplishments and his continuing efforts on behalf of the Republican Party.

Dear Fellow Republican,

Being the Chairman of the Fifth District Committee is a great honor and a great responsibility. It takes a commitment of time and resources. It takes experience and the willingness to travel many times over long distances to get the job done. I have done it in the past and want, with your help, to do it again.

We will have challenges his year and next like we have never faced before. With Virgil’s extremely liberal opponent raising more money than anyone in the past, we will face attacks of negativity in volumes that we have not ever seen before. Add to that the tens of millions that Mark Warner will reach into his own pocket for and the possibility that Virginia may be a contested state in the national election and this is a year that could be, without proven committed leadership, a disaster.

2009 could be even more challenging. It will be the year that the Democrats believe they can retake the House of Delegates. I have no question that they are looking right now for someone to oppose and defeat many of our members of the House of Delegates, We cannot let that happen.

In the past ten years while I have been chairman, the Fifth District has been recognized as one that finds and elects solid conservatives to Congress and the General Assembly. I am proud to have been a part of making the Fifth District be recognized as one of the most conservative in Virginia. I have worked to find candidates and am working now to find ones to get more seats in our hands in the fifth district. I have been humbled over the past several months when I have been traveling in the district with the outpouring of support from over thirty current and past unit chairmen and republican leaders who have offered me their vocal support. I hope you will join us because together we can do a great deal more than we have even dreamed of before

Together we have found and elected excellent legislators and through them advanced our Republican agenda. Unlike other parts of Virginia, we have not lost a single seat we have gained in twenty five attempts by the Democrats to defeat our legislators. We have won races in Senate and House districts, never giving one back.

The job of the fifth district chairman is one to get things done. I have worked since I returned from Viet Nam in 1971 in every election and always supported the Republican candidate. For my work I have been recognized as the most outstanding volunteer in Virginia by the Republican Party of Virginia. That award was really one we all earned together.

Frank Atkinson, the best author of books about political history in the past five decades in Virginia, inscribed in the last book he wrote about our history from 1981-2006 , “To Tucker Watkins One of the heroes of this book. Thanks for your dedicated leadership in behalf of Senator Allen, Our Republican Party and our proven principled principles of honest, limited government .” In the book I was humbled at be given credit along with one other person to be the principal people who made it easier for Congressman Goode to become a Republican. There are many others who helped make that happen and I and everyone in this district will always be in your debt.

Through networking with people all over Virginia, I have been able to assist financially in every election we have had a Republican running.

We have gotten hundreds of thousands of dollars of assistance from outside he district. I have hosted a number of events at my home to raise money so that we could assist in local races in addition to the larger ones, something that few congressional districts do.

I have never missed a meeting of the state central committee nor the executive committee, not a convention either state or national, not an advance, nor a gala since being elected chairman. I have averaged over thirty five thousand miles on my car every year going to GOP events. With today’s gas prices that isn’t going to be cheap for the next two years.

I have been fortunate to be asked over the past ten years to take a number of leadership roles within our party. I was selected as the Chairman of the Resolutions committee in 2004 and we wrote the most conservative platform that the Virginia GOP had seen in years. I will serve on that committee again this year and I will only support a strong conservative platform. If you have ideas for items to be included, please contact me.

I don’t like being negative toward an opponent but when there have been clear misstatements of facts in his letter to you, I think you need to know.

Tim says if elected he will have more experience than others elected to be the district chairman. He points to his fifteen years of activity and very short time as a Vice chairman of his local unit.

I started helping republican units in 1971. By 1998, when elected chair, I had thirty seven years years, almost twice what he offers. I now have forty seven years. I had been elected to lead three statewide civic organizations before running for chairman and was recognized by one as one of their most outstanding leaders when they named one of their awards after me.

The only person elected district chair with less experience than Tim would be Donivan Edwards, someone Tim supported. Every other chair I have known since 1971 had vastly more experience.

He says he wants to take the party back to winning again. AGAIN ? The Fifth District has been the most winning district in Virginia in the past ten years. In 2007, I personally assisted in every campaign where we had a challenger and was named as one of the biggest winners in Virginia. Tim was at meetings where assistance was asked for and he never assisted a single contested legislative campaign in any way even those that were close to his home.

He talks about not injecting himself into local unit affairs. He and his brother have a long history of doing exactly that, traveling from county to county to try to oust local chairmen. I have never done that. I work with who the county wants as their leader, not who trying to insert someone who pleases me. Ask those in almost every county that borders on his own if this is true. Right now he is even trying to find some technical way to disqualify people who have been elected by their units to come to our 5^th District convention. Doing that will make it impossible to build a district wide team and I call on Tim and Rick to stop and apologize publicly today for these actions.

I am pleased to have over thirty present and past Chairmen and recognized Republican leaders supporting me. You will see emails from all of them in the next few days I am even more pleased that Senator Allen and Jerry Kilgore have also endorsed me and you will see those in the next few days also. That is the foundation for a very strong team for the future

We are not perfect in the district right now. But I have plans to take us to the highest levels in this country. These plans come from talking to the units about what they want, not what I want to impose on them.

1. Recruit opponents to oppose Ward Armstrong and Roscoe Reynolds. I have already started doing this and have met with potential financial backers in Martinsille and Henry County.

2. Get better voter information in legislative districts where we are most likely to be challenged in 2009. I am already working with members of the legislature and committed College Republicans to team up and make this happen.

3. Know all newspapers and bloggers who cover our area so we can get our message out. I have already met with a number of the media in a number of counties. I have attended every blogger conference and all the conservative bloggers know me well.

4. Get software in place for every county to manage their membership and allow them to work smarter. I have already been working on this project with highly qualified software writers fin our district for several months now.

5. Network with even more people statewide to bring more assets in to fifth district. I was in DC yesterday to meet with leaders and will be at the shad planking today. This is already being done

6. Assist every unit with a welcome package for new members. Many new members just do not understand what is going on when they join us. Not only do we need to sign up new people but we must keep them. I designed such a package for new members of a statewide civic organization that is still used today twenty years later. I already have the format down

7. Bring regular quality training into the district. I have been a certified trainer myself and have attended classes given by the Leadership Institute and many others. I get requests to train every year from organization I have been involved in. I am still going to classes and will attend one this Friday. Not a future idea but already being done.

8. Assist local units in planning events to make them more successful. I was the national promotions manager for the 1988 convention of the United states Junior Chamber of commerce. I have been planning and executing events large and small for over thirty five years and have hosted many district picnics at my home. I have already made plans for future events

9. Do more cross unit team building in the district. We have taken district trips to see DC and other places in the past and will again. They have brought together people who didn’t know one another at all for the good of the District. We have great assets that we need to share. I already have talked to people in Dc to make a greta trip possible.

10. Work with our allied groups. I have already attended meetings and spoken to every College Republican Unit in our district and work with the leadership of the Virginia Federation of Republican Women. I have already spoken to many of their units and have already attended a number of their state wide meetings.

When the question comes up about who is truly ready to hit the ground running, there is only one person who is already running and who, with your help, make us an even better district than we are. I am not asking for time to get to know people, I know them. I am not asking for time to get programs started, I have already started. This is not a time to stop and train anyone, especially when our opponents are better funded and organized than ever. We just don’t have the time to spare.

I ask for your support and hope you will join the over thirty present and previous chairmen and recognized leaders who are supporting me.

With the spirit of building rather than tearing down, we can dream and achieve those dreams. I had dreams ten years ago about how we could have successes that others thought impossible. Together, we have made almost all of them come true. Together, united, we can reach out, find great candidates, fund them, elect them, and move a solid conservative agenda forward.

If you want to quickly become a member of this mission. Please let me know with a return email. It can’t be done by one but one can lead a team. I ask for your vote to let me return to lead the best district in Virginia.

CLICK HERE for a light-hearted look at the evening Tucker and I first met.

Congratulations Delegate and Mrs. Rob Bell

It seems congratulations are due the Bell family, as I hear the Delegate and his wife, Jessica, will soon be welcoming their second child. I'm sure I join many in Virginia in sharing their joy. Unfortunately for some, this news may be a cause for mixed feelings. Some will be very happy for the Bells, while at the same time saddened to learn that Del. Bell will not be challenging Ken Cuccinelli for Attorney General.

Meanwhile, Paul Harris is still not pregnant...

The Big Yellow Bus Ain't Coming

Let's get local for a few minutes. Here in Henry County a story is developing that I find interesting, I hope you do as well.

Around the last day of March or the first day of April a Henry County school bus driver was faced with a dilemma. At the end of Maple Drive, a residential street a little over 1/3 of a mile long here in Collinsville, his usual turn-around spot was occupied by a vehicle. What's a guy to do? Did he pull his big yellow bus into the parking lot of the apartment complex to execute his turn-around? Nope. Not our hero the bus driver. Instead, he "secured the bus" by setting the air brakes, placing the transmission in neutral, and with the engine running and the children waiting patiently on board, he proceeded to beat on the door of the apartment dweller who had so impetuously taken his turn-around spot. Yep, woke him up. Berated him loudly, using very colorful language according to a 10 year-old eyewitness, and still he lost the argument.

Our hero then pulled his big yellow bus into the parking lot of the apartment complex to execute his turn-around...

Now, in most communities the ellipses at the end of the previous sentence would be replaced with the phrase "which has now become his new turn-around procedure". And that would be the end of the story. At least as far as those students are concerned it would be the end of the story. In most other communities the bus driver would be in pretty deep doo-doo. You don't leave a bus with the engine running and a load of impish youngsters on it, to go pick a fight with someone you've just woke up.

But, like I said, that's not quite how the story ends. Not here in Henry County. Nothing is ever quite that simple or logical here in Henry County.

The following morning, a bright, sunshiny Spring morning, all seven children on Maple Drive were out waiting for their big yellow ride. It never came. Well, it did come. Sorta. It came to the intersection of Maple and Meadow Drive and stopped. No one got on at that stop. There was no one there to get on. No one had told the parents of those seven little children that the bus would no longer go to the apartment building at the end of Maple Drive.

Henry County's Honeywell Instant Alert system works great. When it's activated it will ring every phone you got until you get the message. It's used for the normal emergency notifications for which it was designed. It's also used to let parents know that the candles they ordered for the most recent fund-raiser have arrived, could you please come pick them up? But no one can be bothered to call seven mothers and let them know that the bus will not magically appear at its usual time and at its usual place tomorrow morning. Or any other morning.

Again, in most communities a few phone calls to the school superintendent and the kerfuffle would have ended. The bus would suddenly reappear one morning and all would be over. Over for all except the bus driver who would now be searching for another part-time job. But not here.

Calls were made, of course. Many calls. Calls to school board members. Calls to the Transportation Supervisor, Velera Gammons. Even calls to the School Superintendent, Sharon Dodson. Polite, courteous calls. But it seems the more calls that were made, the more Ms. Gammons and Ms. Dodson dug in their heels. They are NOT going to send a bus up Maple Drive. No, they WILL NOT discipline the bus driver, Jim Martin. And those seven little kids, some in kindergarten and first grade, WILL walk to where the bus is or, as Ms. Dodson so rudely put it to some of the mothers, they WILL provide their own transportation.

I don't know how this story will end. Will Dodson and Gammons follow their own Henry County Schools Policies and Regulations, which states clearly that roads over .2 miles in length will be served with bus transportation?

The school buses of Henry County Public Schools do not operate for elementary students on state maintained roads that are .2 mile or less. These buses do not operate for middle and high school students on state maintained roads that are .3 miles or less. In developing bus routes, the distance between designated bus stops will be no less than .1 mile. [LINK]

Or will they merely change this policy to suit their whims? Will Jim Martin, the bus driver, be disciplined?

While we wait for this story to come to its end I have a few questions of my own.

Ms Gammons and Ms. Dodson say that Henry County School buses may not use private property as a turn-around spot, ruling out the apartment building's parking lot. But the original turn around spot is part of the apartment building property, the owner of which has given his blessing for its use. I live on a different street in Collinsville, another cul-de-sac like Maple Drive, guess where the bus that serves my street turns around. Right. In an apartment building's parking lot.

There are many cases in Henry County where a school bus actually picks up its riders who are waiting at a strip-mall, secure and dry under the portico. I believe, though it may need to be explained to me, that strip-malls are actually private property.

Both ladies claim that an accident occurring on private property cannot be reported to the State Police in order to obtain a police report for insurance purposes. Wrong. A call to the Salem Headquarters confirmed that the Virginia State Police will certainly come to such a scene at the request of the School System, they even have a special form designed just for that purpose, Captain Denny proudly stated.

I have many more stories about Ms. Dodson the School Superintendent. If this one does not end soon I'll be happy to share a few others. Stories like the one about secret meetings while on retreat. Oh, and there is a great story about her tossing a special education student out of school on a bogus charge of being a non-resident. I'll bet you can't wait to read that one.

John Hager Or Jeff Fredrick For RPV Chair?

It's that time once again. Time for Republicans to reflect upon the direction and future of the Republican Party of Virginia. On May 30 & 31 Delegates to the State Convention will have to decide on their choice for a Chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia, John Hager or Jeff Fredrick. Both men have nothing but good intentions for the future of our Party. Both men have a solid resume to run on. Let's take a quick look at those resumes.

John Hager's history within the Republican Party is extensive and impressive. According to his page on Wikipedia;

In 1975, he volunteered for Lieutenant Governor John N. Dalton, and in 1984 he was a delegate to the Republican National Convention. In 1994, he co-chaired the Senatorial campaign for Oliver North.

Hager has served as the director of Virginia's homeland security under Governors Jim Gilmore and Mark Warner. Hager was elected Lieutenant Governor of Virginia in 1997, defeating Democrat Lewis F. Payne, Jr.. Hager is believed to be the first disabled individual to serve in an elected statewide office in Virginia.

In 2001, Hager ran for Governor of Virginia, but lost in the Republican primary to Virginia's then Attorney General, Mark Earley.

Hager is the former Assistant Secretary of the Department of Education's Office of Special Education and Rehabilitation Services. He was appointed to this position by President George W. Bush on May 24, 2004, confirmed by the Senate on November 21, 2004 and resigned effective August 1, 2007.

In July 2007, Hager was elected to serve as chairman of the Republican Party of Virginia.

Quite a list of accomplishments, to be sure. Thank you John Hager for your lifetime of dedicated service to our State, our Nation, and our Party.

His challenger, Delegate Jeff Fredrick, has a less lengthy resume, but a much stronger association with grassroots politics. As a Delegate, Jeff has had to campaign every two years for his own political future. He's done so successfully in a heavily Democratic district, while maintaining a solidly conservative record in the General Assembly. Fredrick's statement from his website;

I represent the 52nd district in the House of Delegates, which is located in eastern Prince William County (the southern end of Northern Virginia). My district has not been won by a statewide Republican since the 1990’s, and notwithstanding the fact that I am viewed as one of the most conservative members of the House, I just won re-election to my third term with 59% of the vote.

I know how to win tough elections. I have consistently been a top fundraiser in the legislature, having raised more than $1.3 million as a House candidate in just 4 years. I’m an effective and aggressive communicator, experienced at getting our common-sense conservative message out to the public, and I’ve spent a career moving the grassroots to action.

Lastly, I’ve successfully been able to appeal to independent and conservative Democratic voters by articulating our values in a way that earns me their votes, in significant numbers – and, importantly – without violating my conservative principles. With a district like mine, I simply can’t afford to alienate my conservative base, nor can I win without non-Republican votes.

While Virginia (statewide) may not closely resemble my district, I think it is safe to say that communities and neighborhoods around the Commonwealth are increasingly voting more and more like the people I’m honored to represent. Virginians as a whole seem past the point where they will simply vote for someone because they are a Republican.

Two men, each highly qualified, but with quite different backgrounds. Since this is an opinion piece, I suppose it's time for me to give you my opinion.

The purpose of the Republican Party of Virginia is to support, in as many ways possible, our candidates. Local candidates, statewide candidates, and national candidates. As a perennially successful candidate himself, Jeff Fredrick has proven that he can connect with not only voters, but donors, grassroots supporters, and volunteers as well. With more experience as a candidate, not to mention more recent experience as a candidate, Fredrick knows what campaigns need from the higher organization. My own recent experience as a campaign manager has shown me that RPV, as it currently exists, does not know what it needs to provide our candidates and their campaigns.

The RPV has other problems besides a disconnect with its candidates. Let's face it, it just does not look good when the Executive Director hires family members as contractors for the Party. At what many say is a grossly inflated rate of pay.

The staff at RPV have often appeared incompetent, or at least not very well organized. The candidate and committee classes which were held last Fall are a prime example of this type of incompetence and or disorganization. Poorly promoted, poorly organized, and consequently poorly presented and poorly attended, these classes were simply a waste of time and money. Both of which are resources a campaign cannot afford to waste. These are only two of many issues that I and many others looked forward to being corrected when John Hager was elected Chairman last summer. It's an issue that I and many others have sadly concluded will not be corrected without a change in leadership.

My conclusion? In a perfect world Jeff Frederick would be our new Chairman. Then, in that perfect world, Jeff's first two acts would be to fire Executive Director Charlie Judd (and his son, the contractor), and immediately hire John Hager as Executive Director, a position his background is much more suitable for.

UPDATE:
Elle, at In-Politically Correct, follows up on this subject with a quote from a letter of endorsement from the 11 District Chairs along with a response from Del. Fredrick. Her post is followed by a comment from J. Tyler Ballance, among his thoughts was this statement;

I encourage a fair and open competition for the RPV Chairmanship. This sort of open and honest discussion of ideas is what our Republican Party is supposed to be about.

Amen, J. Tyler, but I doubt we have anything to worry about on that front from these two solid Republicans.

New To Blogging? Still In College? Got A Facebook Page?

If any of the above applies to you, and you also have aspirations to work politically in the future, please pay attention.

If you've been following the Crooked Road Commentary, a nice little liberal blog created recently by an idealistic George Mason University student, you have by now noticed it has closed its doors.

This student has learned the pitfalls of posting humorous photos depicting drinking, and funny poses on a Facebook page. He's also learned the problems that may arise from irresponsible commenting and posts placed on various community forums such as a despicable local forum here in Martinsville which exercises very little control over its contributors.

Apparently the young Mr. Sizemore has now realized that what is funny to post when one is drunk, doesn't look so good after the photos have been downloaded to someone else's hard drive. I'm terribly sorry that you had to learn this lesson the hard way, Mike, but there is nothing the more responsible Virginia Bloggers can do to fix your problem.

Adios, indeed.

Fitna The Video

In an earlier article I mentioned that racism, as the word is properly defined, is relatively rare in America. I said, "Today, finding someone who truly believes in the genetic superiority of any given group is very difficult, if not impossible. Those that do believe such are typically old and impotent, or a member of certain religious factions."

After fielding a few email questions, I guess I need to clarify that statement. Here is a current example. At one point in the film a child, only three years old, is being taught that her neighbors are less than apes and pigs. This is true racism. This is despicable.

Congratulations Anne!

Read SWAC Girl's writeup about her accomplishment here.

Chris has more.

Kilo's piece.

Yankee Phillip and Alex Davis each offer Anne congratulations as well.

Three Strikes, You're A Racist!

There has been an awful lot of talk lately, but not much discussion, regarding racial issues in America, sparked in part by remarks made by Senator Obama’s pastor, Jeremiah Wright, and further expanded by Barry’s speech in response to the uproar caused by his pastor’s remarks.

We can hardy open a newspaper or go to a politically oriented website without reading charges of racism – coming from both black and white commentators and aimed at both black and white targets. This has got to stop.

What bothers me the most, or at least in my top 10 list of bothers, is the rampant misuse of the words that describe some of these racial issues.

A fine writer and friend of mine once compared written words and phrases to a baseball and its pitcher. My friend wrote, “Baseball players, pitchers, gloves clamped in their armpits, always work the slickness from new baseballs before they throw them. They use their naked hands and do it with some intensity. Words are best done that way, too—rubbed, and understood, measured for fit and feel and balance. You never want to throw a word until it’s ready. Believe me, I’ve done it. They nearly always miss their mark and ricochet into the stands.”

As bloggers go, I’m this really ancient dude with an unmanageable mustache and hair that is not cut often enough. Fair enough. But like my friend the writer, (an ex-blogger who is roughly the same age as me, but with much better hair and no mustache), I too, love words.

Again, my friend from up on the mountain described us both when he wrote; “A love of words came to me as a child—spoken words. I didn’t grow up in a household with a lot of books—but I did grow up around extraordinary talkers—gifted talkers, a gallery of them—artists who painted with spoken words, with language. Words and their clever usage were the coin of value in my house—finding new ones akin to putting jingle in my pocket. It still is. The use of them, though, was not a frivolous thing, not a lightly taken exercise for me.”

Like my friend, I believe words have meaning. And I like for a word’s meaning to stand still. Don’t go using a word to mean something it doesn’t or you run the risk of changing the meaning of that word. It happens. Over time it’s happened with many words in the English language. It’s happened with at least one of the words I’m about to discuss. And it has cheapened the meaning of that word.

Now, let’s work the slickness off a couple or three words that I believe are routinely thrown around recklessly, sometimes merely missing their mark, more often hitting the batter with painful results. Two of these words are seriously underused, while the third is too often tossed in their place. Way too often.

The era in which I grew up was populated with many people who held a deep racial bias. Many of these people were in my own family. Many of these people were in your family. Let’s look back now at some of those people and the words that describes them while we work those words into our naked hands and take the shine off them.

Our first word is prejudice. This is a word that we can all identify with, a word that has changed little in definition over the years. It’s a word that in many ways describes us all. We’ve all done it. What I call "jumping to confusions". When a situation has been described to us we immediately form a mental image that in many cases is incorrect. The situation does not necessarily need to involve race. It simply means that we automatically ascribe a social context to the situation we’ve just heard described.

For example, in Martinsville last week there was a shootout in a local shopping center parking lot. Not a terribly uncommon occurrence here, I’m sorry to report. I’m sure there were many here who, upon hearing of the event, thought something along the lines of, “OK, another drug related shooting by a couple of black guys”. Well, that was not the case. The shooter, as identified and arrested by the Sheriff’s Department, was a young white guy. Drug related it may be, but it was not the black on black crime that unfortunately is too common in Martinsville.

Jumping to confusions of that sort is a classic definition of PREJUDICE. Let’s face it guys, in many situations, we are all prejudiced.

Next up is the word “BIGOT”

A bigot is someone who, through prejudice or otherwise, refuses to associate with someone who is different in one way or another with oneself.

Right now we are in the middle of the basketball playoffs. March Madness, I think it’s called. I hate basketball. I’m no good at it. I don’t fully understand it, and I just don’t like to watch it. Just 10 guys in squeaky shoes as far as I’m concerned. Let’s suppose for a moment that one of the reasons I refuse to attend a March Madness game is that I simply do not want to sit among a bunch of guys that do “get it” regarding basketball. I would then be a BIGOT.

Or let’s suppose you can’t abide the thought of joining a few thousand rednecks at a NASCAR event like this weekend’s race in Martinsville. If that’s the case, we would both be bigots, but the DNA of those we choose not to associate with is never considered when making that choice.

Once again, we are all, to some degree, bigots.

Now, let’s move on to the most misused word in this triumvirate of misused words. Racism and its cousin, racist.

In my library there is an old edition of the Funk and Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary. It sits on my desk as a ready reference when needed, even though I can easily access dictionary.com. Back when I was a younger man, admittedly a long time ago, racism and racist had a very constricted definition;

Ra-cism (ra siz-em) 1:An irrational belief in or advocacy of the superiority of a given group, people, or nation - usually one's own - on the basis of racial differences having no scientific validity. 2: Social action or government policy based upon such assumed differences.

Funk and Wagnalls Standard Desk Dictionary, 1979 edition, copyright 1976.

(In an interesting side note, badrose was kind enough to check her Websters New International Dictionary, 2nd edition, abridged. copyright 1954. Apparently the word did not exist in 1954. "Racialism" and "racialist" carried the same meaning at that time.)

The terms “racism” and “racist” have been too loosely thrown about lately. Much too loosely. Today, one can be labeled a racist on the basis of something as benign as a poorly phrased sentence. Or a politically incorrect thought expressed in public.

Any one of us over a certain age know first-hand of racists. Most of us know few, if any, real-world racists alive and active today.

Today, finding someone who truly believes in the genetic superiority of any given group is very difficult, if not impossible. Those that do believe such are typically old and impotent, or a member of certain religious factions. Of the dozens of friends that I can describe as bigoted or prejudicial, I can’t think of a single one that is a racist.

Whether you are writing or speaking, remember to always work those words over. Be sure that it fits and all the slickness has been rubbed out. That it truly is the word you want to throw, or you may be faced with a line drive that can't be fielded.

College Republican Federation of Virginia Blog

The Old Dominion Blog Alliance just gained ten new members in one fell swoop. The College Republican Federation of Virginia Blog is now under the ODBA banner. Welcome guys, the conservative cause is well served by young, energetic folks like these.

• Kevin Bolling
• Grozet
• VirginiaforMitt08
• Bert
• Jacques Lemaire
• Monica Block
• Righthanded
• Hokie Vision
• Archimedes
• Mr. Churchill

We look forward to working with the new members. SWAC Girl and Kilo have more about this. Check out their blog here - College Republican Federation of Virginia Blog.

The War In Southwest Virginia

I just finished a very interesting history of the Civil War in Southwest Virginia.

Typically, history books of this sort are quite dull as recreational reading goes, but Gary C. Walker brings the era and participants back to life in "The War In Southwest Virginia, 1861-1865". Gary takes us back to the Tazewell, Wytheville, Saltville area during the war, with research and details that are astounding.

He shows the brilliance of Union General Stoneman and the ineptitude of General Burbridge, the determination of Confederate General "Devil" Morgan and Union General Crook, and the bravery and cunning of Confederate Generals Breckinridge and Jackson.

He leads the reader through each of the failed attempts on the saltmines in Saltville, the lead mines at Austinville, and the long bridge over the New River near Wytheville, ending the story with the one somewhat successful raid in the closing days of the war which temporarily disrupted work at both mines.

Gary lives in Roanoke, give him a call at (540) 427-1154 and order this book. Tell him Alton sent you.

VA GOP Caucus Blog Ruffles Some Feathers

There's a new blog on the block, and some Virginia bloggers are slightly discomfited by it.

Yes, once again Virginia's blogging ethics police are on the prowl. It seems that Waldo gets his undies in a wad whenever his own ethical lapses are on display, so it may be time to refresh some memories. Some time back I visited this issue, check out this article and all its attendant links and then come back here, I'll wait.

Waldo's latest problem seems to be with the VA GOP Caucus Blog. It's a perfectly partisan blog created and maintained by a writer (or writers) on behalf of the House Republican Caucus, somewhat in the manner of its counterpart on the left, Assembly Access.

His problem? He seems to think that since Republicans object to the added expense, time, and overall inefficiency involved in broadcasting all sub-committee meetings they should not broadcast any video on their blog. Or only floor video. Or only Democrat friendly video. Or something. Other than that, there is very little difference in the blogs operated by each Caucus.

There also seems to be a problem with some on the left (and in Waldo's family) with the unsigned nature of the blog's posts. No mention is made, however, of the fact that AA is also an anonymous blog.

J. Kenny also weighs in with a few suggestions. J apparently thinks that those who use Blogspot have no way of tracking comments by IP address. Guess what? I use Blogspot and I can easily track comments by IP. Sorry J, WordPress and a hosting service is not the only legitimate blogging platform available, especially to those who do not wish to sink real dollars into a simple blog. We are conservative, after all.

J also suggests that the VA GOP Caucus Blog include a blogroll. Guess what? It does. As a matter of fact, this blog proudly occupies a slot on that blogroll. I'm just above Not Larry Sabato.

IMPORTANT NOTE:
Waldo is the creator of Richmond Sunlight, a very useful website that takes most of the information available on the General Assembly's website and re-formats it into a more user friendly, more colorful and generally better platform. If there is anyone in Virginia more capable of setting up a site to showcase all General Assembly video, I don't know who it would be.

Letter From Cuccinelli To Houck

Pretty straightforward and self-explanatory I think (emphasis added).

Monday, February 11, 2008

The Honorable R. Edward Houck
Virginia Senate
General Assembly Building, Room 326

Dear Senator Houck:

Thank you for sharing your perspective of Data Point when you spoke against my SB585 in the General Laws and Technology Committee on January 30. SB585 directed the Auditor of Public Accounts, the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission and the Director of Virginia Enterprise Applications to work together to coordinate efforts to use Data Point to provide a more citizen friendly, more searchable, less state-lingo oriented presentation.

Given your hearty endorsement of the efficacy of Data Point being sufficient for budget, expenditure and performance transparency for ordinary citizens, I would like ten minutes of your time for a meeting with me and a group of reporters, perhaps some time after crossover. Given a typical question or two from a reporter about our state budget or expenditures or performance, we would like to have you show how both the process of asking a question in Data Point and the resulting response can be commended to our citizens as effective and easy to use.

Please let me know if you are willing to participate in such a demonstration and when you would be available and I will help issue the invitations.


Sincerely,
Kenneth T. Cuccinelli, II

Voting to kill this bill and opposing transparency in the budget process;
* George Barker
George Barker (D-39)
Served: 2008–
(D-39)
* Chuck Colgan
Chuck Colgan (D-29)
Served: 1976–
(D-29)
* Mark Herring
Mark Herring (D-33)
Served: 2006–
(D-33)
* Edd Houck
Edd Houck (D-17)
Served: 1984–
(D-17)
* Mamie Locke
Mamie Locke (D-2)
Served: 2004–
(D-2)
* Don McEachin
Don McEachin (D-9)
Richmond, VA
Served: 2008–
(D-9)
* John Miller
John Miller (D-1)
Newport News, VA
Served: 2008–
(D-1)
* Walter Stosch
Walter Stosch (R-12)
Suite 110 Glen Allen, VA
Served: 1992–
(R-12)
* William Wampler
William Wampler (R-40)
Suite 308 Bristol, VA
Served: 1988–
(R-40)

Welcome Jody Wilcox to ODBA

Today the Old Dominion Blog Alliance welcomes its newest affiliate, Jody Wilcox of The Contemporary Conservative.

http://thecontemporaryconservative.blogspot.com/