GA update from Sen. Ralph Northam

By Sen. Ralph Northam With only one full week remaining in the 2011 General Assembly session, the House and Senate are working hard to complete action on the budget and other legislation. Several of my bills have passed both chambers and now await the Governor’s signature, including measures to ease access for our veterans to … Continue reading GA update from Sen. Ralph Northam →

Friday fun: US Presidents

Monday is Presidents' Day, also known as the federal holiday to recognize the birthday of our first president, George Washington. (According to snopes, it's really not for any other president, and it seems the official name is still Washington's Birthday.) Regardless of which president you are celebrating, in honor of the holiday, here's a little … Continue reading Friday fun: US Presidents →

First female chief justice SCOVA

The first ever female chief justice of the Supreme Court of Virginia was sworn in Wednesday. My congratulations to Justice Cynthia Kinser. Whenever one of these "firsts" comes along, I'm reminded of a post of mine from from four years ago where I first (at least on this blog) discussed the whole dynamic of race … Continue reading First female chief justice SCOVA →

The Byrd machine’s continuing influence

My latest op ed, title above, appeared in Wednesday's The Virginian-Pilot. The shadow of Harry F. Byrd, Sr. is a long one, despite his death almost 45 years ago. It permeates so much of what we do in modern day Virginia. I found it ironic that Byrd's rise to prominence was based on his opposition … Continue reading The Byrd machine’s continuing influence →

Remarks to City Council on Tivest Project

Sometimes, right and left take a back seat to right and wrong. With that, here's what I said to City Council today about the Midtown Office Building project: By Coby Dillard That a majority of City Council has spoken in support of this project, in a time where our schools continue to fall apart and … Continue reading Remarks to City Council on Tivest Project →

Sunshine Week starts March 13th

By Mark Brooks March 16, 2011 is James Madison's birthday. It is also during Sunshine Week for this year. Megan Rhyne, Director of the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, has a post on her blog with some early information. Her organization (VCOG), is the Virginia coordinator for Sunshine Week. The Freedom of Information Act is … Continue reading Sunshine Week starts March 13th →

Norfolk: Just say no

This morning's newspaper reported that the developer of the office building project paid delinquent real estate taxes on properties it owns in the city. The taxes, penalty and interest on more than a dozen properties were paid for properties the company owns in Broad Creek, a development in central Norfolk in which the city has … Continue reading Norfolk: Just say no →

Replacing Webb

The announcement that Senator Jim Webb will not seek reelection caught a lot of people by surprise. While thanking him for his service, speculation began almost immediately as to whom the Democrats would nominate to replace him. A meme quickly developed among the main stream media: the candidate would be former governor and current DNC … Continue reading Replacing Webb →

Journalists angry over … journalism

Glenn Greenwald nails it: Identifying lies told by powerful political leaders -- and describing them as such -- is what good journalists do, by definition.  It's the crux of adversarial journalism, of a "watchdog" press.  "Objectivity" does not require refraining from pointing out the falsity of government claims.  The opposite is true; objectivity requires that a … Continue reading Journalists angry over … journalism →