Category: Local

Election winners and losers

Lots of lists of winners and losers in the election are showing up in various places. The latest list comes from Michael Shear at the Washington Post. Among his winners is Delegate Donald McEachin: The black Democratic delegate from Richmond supported Webb in the primary, when none of his African American political colleagues did. Included … Continue reading Election winners and losers →

The new Democratic leadership

Thursday, the Democrats elected new leadership for the 110th Congress, which begins in January. As expected, Nancy Pelosi was elected Speaker, becoming the first woman in history to hold that office. After a somewhat contentious battle, Steny Hoyer was elected Majority Leader. Pelosi, in my opinion, used up a bit of her political capital in … Continue reading The new Democratic leadership →

A couple of comments on Economics

First, somehow I missed that yesterday, Milton Friedman died. Friedman won the Nobel Prize for economics in 1976. His ideas of monetarism were in contrast to those of John Maynard Keynes. These were the two dominant economists that I studied (in the dark ages) of college. He [Friedman] said government should allow the free market … Continue reading A couple of comments on Economics →

HB619: Repeal predatory lending

I received the following via email tonight: On Tuesday, December 5th, the Virginia House Commerce and Labor Committee will vote on HB 619, a bill sponsored by Delegate John O'Bannon that would repeal the Payday Loan Act of 2002. It's important that this bill be approved and sent to the House floor when the Legislature … Continue reading HB619: Repeal predatory lending →

HR550: Paper trail

If they can give you a slip of paper verifying an electronic transaction from an ATM machine, then they can give you a piece of paper verifying your vote. This isn't rocket science, folks. Putting paper trails on electronic voting machines is a no-brainer to me. Just take a look at what's going on in … Continue reading HR550: Paper trail →

Don’t blame it on Turbo Tax

One of the most popular tax prep programs for the do-it-yourself crowd is Turbo Tax. But any tax prep software requires the user to have an idea about what information needs to be put in - the old garbage in, garbage out rule applies. And when you put garbage in, don't try to use the … Continue reading Don’t blame it on Turbo Tax →

Delegate Lionell Spruill

In case you missed today's Pilot, they did a front page, below-the-fold article on Delegate Lionell Spruill, Sr. (D-77th) that is worth a read. Included in the article is this chart (click to enlarge) which shows just how hard Delegate Spruill works on behalf of his candidates. Spruill is a hard worker. His pancake breakfasts … Continue reading Delegate Lionell Spruill →

On Ethics

From Answers.com: eth·ic (ĕth'ĭk) n. A set of principles of right conduct. A theory or a system of moral values: “An ethic of service is at war with a craving for gain” (Gregg Easterbrook). ethics (used with a sing. verb) The study of the general nature of morals and of the specific moral choices to … Continue reading On Ethics →

Drinking liberally: Norfolk & Va Beach

Over at VBDems, there is an announcement of the Virginia Beach gathering of Drinking Liberally, which will be held tonight. The Norfolk group will hold its meeting this Thursday, November 16, from 5-7pm upstairs at the New Belmont in Ghent at 21st & Colonial. Go ahead and put this third Thursday of the month event … Continue reading Drinking liberally: Norfolk & Va Beach →