Kaine St. Paddy’s parade Grand Marshall

Governor Tim Kaine will be the Grand Marshall for Norfolk's 39th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade. The parade kicks off at 10am on Saturday, March 18. Details of the route can be found here. Too bad I won't be able to be there. Saturdays during tax season are just another work day for me. Go … Continue reading Kaine St. Paddy’s parade Grand Marshall →

Phil Kellam website

Phil Kellam, the Democratic candidate for the 2nd Congressional district, has gotten his website up. Head over and take a look. Kellam is seeking to replace Republican Thelma Drake. The 2nd Congressional district covers the city of Virginia Beach, the Eastern Shore, a part of Norfolk (including where I live) and a part of Hampton.

VA Blog Carnival

Head on over to NoVA Democrat to have a look at the VA Blog Carnival. There you will find a link to the top stories blogged across Virginia. Enjoy!

Gay marriage amendment

This Commonwealth and its political subdivisions shall not create or recognize a legal status for relationships of unmarried individuals that intends to approximate the design, qualities, significance, or effects of marriage. Nor shall this Commonwealth or its political subdivisions create or recognize another union, partnership, or other legal status to which is assigned the rights, … Continue reading Gay marriage amendment →

Bob McDonnell and Diebold

By now, everyone knows that AG Bob McDonnell's legal opinion declaring Governor Tim Kaine's Executive Order No. 1, which expanded Virginia's nondiscrimination policy to include sexual orientation, to be unconstitutional. You can find discussions of this opinion on just about any of the blogs listed in my blogroll so I'm not going to beat that … Continue reading Bob McDonnell and Diebold →

Why wasn’t this in VP?

I ran across this Associated Press article on Yahoo news a couple of days ago and have been waiting for it to appear in our local newspaper. NORFOLK, Va. - Fellow conservative religious leaders have expressed concern and even open criticism over Pat Robertson's habit of shooting from the hip on his daily religious news-and-talk … Continue reading Why wasn’t this in VP? →

Bay Oaks Park: Judge rules petition not valid

No doubt you'll see this in The Virginian-Pilot tomorrow but in a story posted today on PilotOnline, the Alexandria judge brought in to hear the case of the citizen's petition to save Bay Oaks Park has ruled against the petitioners. Alfred D. Swersky, a retired Alexandria judge assigned to handle the case, said he "reluctantly … Continue reading Bay Oaks Park: Judge rules petition not valid →

Riddick at civic league

Paul Riddick attended my civic league meeting last night. I thought he did a great job covering quite a few topics. He talked some about the light rail project - seems that federal funding for this is nearly assured and he hopes that Virginia Beach will buy in as well. He explained that Norfolk has … Continue reading Riddick at civic league →

Why America is Polarized

A lot has been said about the existence of "red" states versus "blue" states. Little has been written to explain why and how such polarization has come about. Philip Slater has a thoughtful essay which attempts to explain the phenomena.

DYK…Virginia is a Dillon Rule state?

In 1865, an Iowa judge by the name of John Dillon ruled in the case of Clark v City of Des Moines: It is a general and undisputed proposition of law that a municipal corporation possesses and can exercise the following powers and no others: First, those granted in express words; second, those necessarily or … Continue reading DYK…Virginia is a Dillon Rule state? →