Governors – and voters – pushed aside

My latest op-ed, title above, appeared in The Virginian-Pilot this morning.  The topic is one that has bothered me for a long time: the timing of the budget. Virginia clings to the outmoded single term governor and then further handicaps him by essentially allowing him to implement only one budget during his term. Writing when … Continue reading Governors – and voters – pushed aside →

Huffington Post sold to AOL for $315 million

The Huffington Post has been sold to AOL for $315 million. According to this article, all but $15 million of the purchase price will be paid in cash. When I last wrote about HuffPo, it was to refer to this Newsweek article from July 2010.  The 5-year-old site - I remember the day it launched … Continue reading Huffington Post sold to AOL for $315 million →

Black History Month: Recognizing our shared heritage

My latest op-ed appeared in The Virginian-Pilot last Wednesday. (Although I love the fact that the columns are online, I have to admit that the printed newspaper looks a lot better.) A couple of points in the piece that bear a little additional information. First, despite the president's proclamation, I still consider it Black History … Continue reading Black History Month: Recognizing our shared heritage →

Norfolk City Council: 2/8/11

By:  Tommy Smigiel This week I have highlighted three items of interest on the City Council formal agenda.  Below you will find a consent item which is a quarterly update on the City’s Legal Debt Margin.  I thought the public would like to know where we stand on our debt limit.  I am also including … Continue reading Norfolk City Council: 2/8/11 →

Plagarism? Say it ain’t so, Norfolk

Another one for the "OMG Norfolk" file. Take a look at these screenshots (click to enlarge). The first one is from seattle.gov while the second one is what the new Norfolk website looked like - at least for a couple of days. That is, until somebody noticed the similarities. According to The Virginian-Pilot, Seattle officials … Continue reading Plagarism? Say it ain’t so, Norfolk →

Where McDonnell’s ABC plan went wrong

By Steve Vaughan Governor Bob McDonnell' s much-discussed, often-changed, plan to privatize the state's ABC stores and get the Commonwealth out of the liquor business is likely dead for the year.  Del. Chris Jones (R-Suffolk), chairman of the House General Laws Committee has said he'll use his chairman's discretion not to bring the bill up … Continue reading Where McDonnell’s ABC plan went wrong →

Push to replace pension with 401(k)-like plans dies

According to The Virginian-Pilot, Del. Chris Jones will no longer pursue the replacement of Virginia's defined benefit retirement plan with a defined contribution plan, like a 401(k), for state workers. The Suffolk Republican had proposed phasing out the Virginia Retirement System's current pension model, which promises a specified payout amount at retirement, in favor of … Continue reading Push to replace pension with 401(k)-like plans dies →

OMG Norfolk – again

I thought I was going to be able to retire the "OMG Norfolk" shtick. But I should have known better. Credit cards again. This time, it is the police chief, who has been under fire lately for a death that occurred in training. The City Auditor said he reported his concerns about taxpayers footing the … Continue reading OMG Norfolk – again →

Rigell’s first town hall

Freshman Rep. Scott Rigell (R-2nd) held his first town hall meeting since taking office Monday evening. An overflow crowd showed up for the event, which was held in the auditorium of the Virginia Beach Central Library. The event itself started a little late, because Rigell stood in the hallway talking to those who were unable … Continue reading Rigell’s first town hall →