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Tuesday, September 30, 2003RATZINGER: "WE SHOULD PRAY FOR THE POPE" Cardinal Ratzinger has asked the Roman Catholic faithful to pray for the health of Pope John Paul II. Monday, September 29, 2003Play Hookie! It's beautiful outside. Grab your jacket, call the boss, and eat lunch outside or something. I for one am going downtown after lunch. What a great day! Half Human - Half Rabbit Get ready to be disgusted: Researchers in Shanghai have produced a promising new way of creating embryonic stem cells -- fusing human skill cells with rabbit eggs -- that may one day be used for treating disease. Elaine Kurtenbach reports Dr Sheng Huizhen has traveled far in her career as a medical researcher. But for her most advanced work, she returned home to China.The article is much more descriptive on the potential benefits of regenerative medicine. This is the sort of thing we talk about when we start saying that pigs can grow human hearts or lungs because of the similarities in genetic structure. Truly a disturbing trend, although not unexpected from the communist Chinese. First aid for Alum Spring Volunteers are cleaning up Alum Spring Park. Admirable indeed. Usually overflowing with people on a sunny fall weekend, Alum Spring Park was eerily quiet except for a few volunteers hauling away wheelbarrows of debris and hacking through fallen tree limbs left by Hurricane Isabel.Yet another example of volunteerism at work! I really wish that more people would get into this sort of thing. It's time better spent than watching television, and you can always listen to the Redskins game on the radio. . . Iran Acknowledges Uranium Find But they say that the highly enriched uranium was a contaminant from its previous buyer: In Vienna, IAEA spokesman Mark Gwozdecky would not comment on the Iranian acknowledgement. He said a team of senior agency inspectors will begin meetings in Tehran on Thursday and they would be joined by "technical experts" on Friday ready to begin a new round of inspections.Seems honest enough an explanation, and demonstrable if anything else. Friday, September 26, 2003The Gollum Rap For any and all Lord of the Rings fans who enjoy life in da 'hood, here you go. DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no idea what this is saying because the speakers on this computer do not operate. So if Gollum starts rapping about getting his honeys doped up with da 40 and gettin' bank, please don't take it out on me just yet. Instead, try the Full Metal Jacket Soundboard, which even if I don't know how it sounds, I know what it says scumbag! French Terrorist Playing Cards? Now here is an interesting tidbit: I don't know about everyone else in and about Pentagon City that day, but Meyssan is full of crap. Pact Signed to Revitalized Maury School And this time its for real! Yesterday, a further commitment to that end was made when officials from Fredericksburg, Mary Washington College and George Washington's Fredericksburg Foundation signed a memorandum of understanding to restore the former school that closed in 1980.Strange to think that Maury School has been closed for almost as long as I have been alive. More action from the "Do-Nothing" Council! Thursday, September 25, 2003Now Cough Up Those WMD! Could be a breakthrough for Coalition forces in Iraq. The former Iraqi Minister of Defence just surrendered, and could provide a wealth of information concerning the Ba'athist regime's WMD program. Icing on the cake. Mmm mmm good! University Shuts Down Race-Based Bake Sale In response to the University of Michigan's racial standards, many College Republican groups have been holding race-based bake sales in protest. A cookie costs $1.00. . . unless you are black, in which case it is only $.80, or female in which case it is only worth $.90. Minority females pay $.70. . . etc, all of which is based off of the Univ. of Michigan standards of admission. It seems as if the ivory tower doesn't enjoy the humor: Southern Methodist University shut down a bake sale Wednesday in which cookies were offered for sale at different prices, depending on the buyer's race or gender.This has been performed successfully at the University of Richmond and at UVA. I wonder if we can hold a bake sale at Mary Washington? Hmmm. . . Wednesday, September 24, 2003How Fickle the Public Can Be. . . Want to take a look at some of the fads that have come and gone over the past 80+ years? Then take a look at Crazy Fads. Pretty cool stuff. I wonder what '00 will get stuck for? Monday, September 22, 2003The Coming Christian Persecution? Now this is a call to arms from the other Limbaugh. . . copied from the Drudge Report: **IN 1776, 99.8% OF THE PEOPLE IN AMERICA WERE PROFESSED CHRISTIANSI'll buy it and let you folks know what I think. I tend to agree, but sometimes the argument wears pretty thin. Developing. . . Happy Pill? Care for a happy pill? Courtesy of relicious. Doors Slam Shut on Affordable Housing Concern number one regarding the impact of growth on Fredericksburg. Well. . . on my list that is probably sprawl and the effects on the environment. But concern number two is most definitely the impact it has on working families and fixed-income residents. Affordable housing is a big part of that, and I am relieved to see that the Free Lance-Star is starting to pay attention to the issue: The housing market and industry have become unfriendly to poor families, and to young people just starting out. That has become abundantly clear in the Fredericksburg region over the past decade as the prices of new and resold housing--propelled by rising land costs--have skyrocketed. "Affordable housing" has become the oxymoron of the 21st century.Smart growth initiatives - wrongly applied - only exacerbate the problem. Who wants to build a bunch of townhomes when it is more cost effective for planners to build $400K homes on five acre lots? Fewer kids to educate, and more tax dollars for localities. Damn shame. . . Saddam to U.S.: Exile for WMD The UK Sunday Mirror is reporting that Saddam Hussein has approached American forces with a deal - in return for exile, Saddam will hand over information detailing his WMD program: It is believed the US authorities will simply string Saddam along, aiming to track the go-betweens until they know exactly where to find the rogue leader.. . . but isn't it interesting that even Saddam Hussein says there are WMD in Iraq. Betcha the anti-Bush liberals are squirming in their chairs now. 'Surprise' revamp for Iraq's economy Namely that the new ecomony will be drastically liberalized from its previous command economy system the Ba'athists installed over the past 20 years. Before the advent of the Ba'athist Party, Iraq was one of the most advanced nations in the Middle East, having the highest literacy rate and the most children attending schools. That has all sadly diminished under the Ba'athist regime. A new democratic Iraq, with a free-market economy, with oil revenues pouring in. Wow. Friday, September 19, 2003Hurricane Isabel = $$$ Why you ask? Because Lowe's is selling generators for about $600 a pop! I don't know which is worse. . . that generators cost that much, or that everyone and their brother is lining up to get them. And to think that all I wanted was a damn rake. Power went off at about 9:00pm last night - right in the middle of the Tech-A&M game - and was restored here at about 3:00pm today. All in all not too bad of a storm, although further down the Northern Neck and in Fredericksburg it looks pretty bad. Nothing unmanagable though. Give emergency services, police, and electrical linemen credit though - they are busting their butts to get things done. Kudos fellas. Thursday, September 18, 2003Yes I stole this from Jay, but it is a great graphic of what happens in a 50-foot storm. Notice that Kenmore Avenue - built over the old Kenmore Canal - goes in the drink. Hope folks know how to swim. . . although now it seems as if we are going to be on the windward side of the hurricane, which means less rain and more wind. Stay tuned.  The red dot is where my brother lives. He'll be just fine. . . Saudi Arabia Considering the Nuclear Option Disturbing evidence that the Saudis are counting their friends and enemies. . . and from the looks of Israel and Iran, the Saudis want in on the nuclear club. Don't really blame them, so long as the United States is willing to turn a blind eye towards Israel and demand accountability with Iran, it makes perfect sense for the Saudis to go down this road. 'Tacky' fireworks signs mar lovely Port Royal Another letter to the editor concerning Port Royal. As some may know, I have a soft spot in my heart for Port Royal and would love to see it return to its former glory as a community/tourist attraction along the Rt. 17 corridor. The town has a wonderful history and some beautiful homes. Unfortunately it also have a good number of empty lots thanks to a fire that swept through the town in the 1770's, and a bunch of trailers that have taken its place: I was so surprised when I read a summertime Free Lance-Star article ["Fireworks fascination sparks family business," July 3]. Every year the sight of the fireworks stand and all the homemade signs nailed to many abandoned sites made me feel ashamed to say I live in Port Royal. This town has so much history and potential for revitalization.I do have one item of conern though. Most folks travel to Port Royal to get fireworks, not to see dilapidated homes and empty lots. Sure it may not look like Colonial Williamsburg, but neither does the motel on the corner lot of 207 and 17. Talk about an eyesore that could be converted into a museum! Rather than spending all that money on the old Lodge (which you could probably go to the Masonic Lodge in Arlington and get money for its restoration), citizens of Port Royal should really consider revitalizing the old motel as a museum. I could even buy some fireworks while I am there. . . Wednesday, September 17, 2003HURRICANE WARNING EXTENDED Now we are starting to get specifics: The center early on Wednesday extended a hurricane warning, alerting residents to hurricane conditions within 24 hours, for the coast from Cape Fear in North Carolina north to Chincoteague in Virginia, including the Chesapeake Bay south of Smith Point. A hurricane watch, meaning possible hurricane conditions in 36 hours, was in effect north of Smith Point and the tidal Potomac.10 inches of rain?! Yeppers, that's enough to flood the Rappahannock River Basin. I don't think I'll be going anywhere on Friday. . . other than to play poker at Jay's for a while. Fun fun fun. . . Of course, the order to evacuate Norfolk would explain the mass exodus on northbound I-95. Lots of people on the road. Glass Used for Chalices? As you may or may not know, there has been a general crackdown on liturgical abuses in the Catholic Church. The new General Instruction (GIRM) was issued about a year ago, and Catholic parishes are scrambling to meet the new guidelines. Specifically at the heart of much controversy is the use of glass chalices during the consecration of the wine. As the wine is about to become the Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, there is an issue as to whether or not glass is a "precious metal" or some other valuable material consistent with the object being consecrated (e.g. Jesus deserves gold and silver, not wood). Now certainly the wooden chalices get the boot. But what about glass or crystal? Even in the case of glass, if it is well made or well cut, doesn't that mean that we could use an equally well-designed wooden chalice as well? Here is some Q & A from Zenit: From the historical point of view, glass chalices were known in antiquity up to about the time of St. Gregory the Great (died 604), although most Christians preferred gold and silver vessels, even in time of persecution.The verdict seems to be that it must be ornamented enough for it to be generally recognized to be of a high degree of value. Therefore Venitian glass might be in order lacking a gold chalice, but a Dixie cup would be out of the question. Interesting stuff. National Life Chain! This is an event that occurs the first Sunday of October from about 2:30-3:30pm. In the Fredericksburg area, Birthright usually heads up the organization effort, with many many people lining up along Route 1 in defense of the unborn. For more information, go to the National Life Chain website and check out one of the most effective forms of protest in defense of pro-life values. Cool stuff! Tuesday, September 16, 2003Study: Bush Tax Cuts Will Produce 'Explosive Growth' in the Economy The source may be dubious to some (GOPUSA), but the study is indeed valid: The report found that since March 2000, the stock market had lost approximately $7 trillion. Investors had been wary of investing money because of the poor state of the economy. Monday, September 15, 2003Daily Show to Cover the Borders Incident? Wow. . . real inside information here. It looks as if the Julia Rose incident in which she excused her lack of decorum and subsequent dismissal by the Fredericksburg Borders store on a comment about "Bush's chicken legs" just may be covered by Jon Stewart's Daily Show. This is really a non-event if I have ever heard of one. Rose if you will remember was ingloriously thrown out of the local Fredericksburg Borders for comments to the effect of making love to a multi-faceted blow up doll with sound effects. Not exactly the kind of thing that mothers and young children want to hear. After several such comments and complaints, Rose was asked not to return. Enter the local Free Lance-Star and a jilted Julia Rose, who emphatically stated that her removal was not for her commentary on blow-up dolls, but for her singular commentary on the presidents legs. Needless to say, every anti-Bush junkie within 50 miles jumped on the bandwagon and raked Borders over the coals. Now anyone who knows the folks at Borders knows that these guys are some of the most liberal people you would ever care to meet (not that they specifically hire liberals, it's just that my brother who works there makes up for the conservative counterbalance). The very idea that these guys would usher Rose out of the store for that comment is ludicrous at best. It was probably the high point in her otherwise lackluster performance. But to charge these guys with banning Rose for a Bush comment? It just doesn't play out. . . they let her go because she was scaring off little kids and their moms. Really looking forward to the Daily Show treatment on this one, if it is forthcoming. There are a number of ways this tree could fall, and whichever way it does fall the only sound it will make will be the shrill sound of it landing on a opportunist. Hopefully the FLS will redeem its journalistic integrity before national comedy television exposes the story for what it is. Are you an intellectual? Well, according to the UK Guardian I am. . . Well done. You are an intellectual who is clearly at ease with big questions and strong coffee. Your know your Sartre from your Schopenhauer. But remember: the line between an intellectual and a pretentious bore is at best thin. Iraq Report Late? This is a 1,400 page report. The Washington Times is now reporting that the report on Saddam's WMD capabilities will be published late, if it is published at all. . . Reasons why? Let's assume that you are writing a report on a matter of some importance - what incidents will prevent you from pubishing a very important report? New information that disproves the earlier thesis is my best bet. Now assuming that what we have heard before is true, i.e. there are a great number of dual-use facilities, the botulism toxins, the chemicals necessary to make nerve gas being dumped into the Euphrates, etc., this generally leads me to believe that the report was simply amassing the preponderance of evidence against the Ba'athist regime. To scrap such a report, one would either have to be able to explain away the evidence (an impossibility), or come up with viable concrete evidence of WMD ready-to-go. Seeing as the latter is the most plausible explanation, we may be able to assume that Coalition forces have found something in Iraq. Stay tuned. Here Comes the 'Canes Keep your eye on this one: Current Projected Paths National Weather Service Statement Get some candles, get some batteries for a portable radio, find a deck of cards, stay home on Friday and have yourselves a hurricane party. The last major hurricane that I can remember hitting the Fredericksburg area with any real force was Hurricane Hugo back in 1989. Sure it got us out of school for a couple of days, but with winds gusting at about 60mph it wasn't all that bad for folks inland. Now I do remember stories from some of the older folks in town about Hurricane Camille. That put Downtown Fredericksburg under 10 feet of water, and it was on the backside of the Shenandoah coming in. Now it seems as if Hurricane Isabel is going to come right up the Chesapeake Bay, getting us from the front, sides, and at the Shendandoah. The last major flood of recent memory was the 1995 storm that dumped 10 inches of rain in Madison County, effectively flooding the Rappahannock Watershed. This storm will bring a swell all the way up to the fall line, dump 4-5 inches of rain in the area, plus dump just as much rain further north. Hang on to your britches, this one's could get real bad before everything is said and done. Keep your eye on Kenmore Avenue. . . this is the once-every-100-year storm that the planners were telling us about concerning the flooding. Friday, September 12, 2003Johnny Cash, John Ritter Dead Yes yes, I know that everyone and their brother will be lamenting the loss of Cash and Ritter on their weblogs. So in the spirit of me-too-ism, I will do the same. Godspeed. THE JERUSALEM POST CALLS FOR ARAFAT TO BE KILLED Read the first paragraph and sense the disgust. I'll just copy this directly, courtesy of the Drudge Report. Talk about pulling the pin out of a grenade! The world will not help us; we must help ourselves. We must kill as many of the Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders as possible, as quickly possible, while minimizing collateral damage, but not letting that damage stop us. And we must kill Yasser Arafat, because the world leaves us no alternative. No one seriously argues with the fact that Arafat was preventing Mahmoud Abbas, the prime minister he appointed, from combating terrorism, to the extent that was willing to do so. Almost no one seriously disputes that Abbas on whom Israel, the US, and Europe had placed all their bets failed primarily because Arafat retained control of much of the security apparatus, and that Arafat wanted him to fail. The new prime minister, Ahmed Qurei, clearly will fare no better, since he, if anything, has been trying to garner more power for Arafat, not less. Under these circumstances, the idea of exiling Arafat is gaining currency, but the standard objection is that he will be as much or more of a problem when free to travel the world than he is locked up in Ramallah. If only three countries Britain, France, and Germany joined the US in a total boycott of Arafat this would not be the case. If these countries did not speak with Arafat, it would not matter much who did, and however much a local Palestinian leader would claim to consult with Arafat, his power would be gone. But such a boycott will not happen. Only now, after more than 800 Israelis have died in three years of suicide bombings and other terrorist attacks, has Europe finally decided that Hamas is a terrorist organization. How much longer will it take before it cuts off Arafat? Yet Israel cannot accept a situation in which Arafat blocks any Palestinian break with terrorism, whether from here or in exile. Therefore, we are at another point in our history at which the diplomatic risks of defending ourselves are exceeded by the risks of not doing so. Such was the case in the Six Day War, when Israel was forced to launch a preemptive attack or accept destruction. And when Menachem Begin decided to bomb the Iraqi nuclear reactor in 1981. And when Israel launched Operation Defensive Shield in Palestinian cities after the Passover Massacre of 2002. In each case, Israel tried every fashion of restraint, every plea to the international community to take action that would avoid the need for "extreme" measures, all to no avail. When the breaking point arrives, there is no point in taking half-measures. If we are going to be condemned in any case, we might as well do it right. Arafat's death at Israel's hands would not radicalize Arab opposition to Israel; just the opposite. The current jihad against us is being fueled by the perception that Israel is blocked from taking decisive action to defend itself. Arafat's survival and power are a test of the proposition that it is possible to pursue a cause through terror and not have that cause rejected by the international community. Killing Arafat, more than any other act, would demonstrate that the tool of terror is unacceptable, even against Israel, even in the name of a Palestinian state. Arafat does not just stand for terror, he stands for the refusal to make peace with Israel under any circumstances and within any borders. In this respect, there is no distinction, beyond the tactical, between him and Hamas. Europe's refusal to utterly reject him condemns Palestinians, no less than Israelis, to endless war and dooms the possibility of the two-state solution the world claims to seek. While the prospect of a Palestinian power vacuum is feared by some, the worst of all worlds is what exists now: Terrorists attack Israel at will under the umbrella of legitimacy provided by Arafat. Hamas would not be able to fill a post-Arafat vacuum; on the contrary, Hamas would lose the cover it has today. A word must be said here about the most common claim made by those who would not isolate Arafat, let alone kill him: that he is the elected leader of the Palestinian people. Even if Arafat was chosen in a truly free election (when does his term end?), which we would dispute, this does not close the question of his legitimacy. Whom the Palestinians choose to lead them is none of our business, provided it is a free choice, and provided they do not opt for leaders who choose terror and aggression. So long as the Palestinians choose such a leadership, it should be held no more immune to counterattack by Israel than the Taliban and Saddam Hussein were by the United States. We complain that a double standard is applied to us, and it is. But we cannot complain when we apply that double standard to ourselves. Arafat's survival, under our watchful eyes, is living testimony to our tolerance of that double standard. If we want another standard to be applied, we must begin by applying it ourselves. Paul Lewis vs. John Goolrick This looks like a winner. It seems as if Mr. Lewis of RAG fame has his hands on a letter that is nothing short of a smoking gun - a Silver Companies strategy to emasculate the current Fredericksburg City Council: Were these two councilmen aware that a suit would be brought against their colleagues? I cannot say. But there is no doubt that Councilman Joe Wilson was aware of a movement by certain political foes of Beck to discredit the mayor's efforts and hamper potential progress during his tenure. I say this because of a document passed to me by Wilson when requested under FOIA, and a matter of public record.Some FACTS need not be distributed to the general public, eh? I am quite sure that someone will respond, if not Mr. Goolrick himself. Most folks in the city know of the collusion bewteen the Beck opposition and the Silver Companies. To have it in paper only justifies previously held suspicions. The real question is how the open government crowd will handle themselves in the upcoming elections. Mayor Beck won by small margins in a surprise election that split Mayfield. With Mayfield solidly behind the Silver Companies, the extra votes have to come from somewhere. This has the potential to turn into a dirty race, as the Silvers and their allies have been waiting for Bill Beck's number for some time now. Nearly Half of Area Schools Fail Federal Standards That's right. Only 55% of Virginia schools met the No Child Left Behind standards, with only 18 school systems adequately meeting the standards. No school systems in the Fredericksburg area passed, although a number of individual schools did meet the federal standards: In Stafford County, eight fully accredited schools did not make AYP. In Spotsylvania, five fully accredited schools missed the mark.This is sure to become an issue in local races. Stay tuned. . . Thursday, September 11, 2003Remembering September 11th Take a moment to remember the families, friends, and colleagues of those who lost thier lives on September 11th, 2001. . . and remember that the bad guys are still out there waiting to do it again. CHA_CHING say Catholic Pedophile Victim Lawyers! Guess how much of the $85 million dollar settlement is going to attorneys? ONE THIRD. So much for the cause of the victims. . . although the lawyers are doing their best to plead their case. I Won't Grow Up. . . I Won't Grow Up Dinosaurs rock! So you answer a quiz with a bunch of options for dinosaurs, and guess how old my inner child becomes? Props to Jason for the link.  My inner child is six years old!
How To Emasculate a Pope Pope John Paul II is in Bratislava, Slovakia this week, promoting a return to Christian values in the face of an ever-secularizing European Union. So what does the world report on? That the Pope failed to read his one-page address to churchgoes during Mass, appearing weak and frail. Now the Yahoo! article really isn't that bad, but every time the press mentions JP II, they never seem to address his message - only his health. It's effective in leading astray those who only read the first two paragraphs, but anyone who takes the time to read the address knows that the Pope is doing an incredible amount. Some great stuff is coming out of the Vatican nowadays, and with one simple sleight-of-hand trick the international press seems able to shrug it off. Hopefully mainstream Catholics can see through the veneer. Maybe it really is time to go back to an era of Catholic schools, Catholic press, Catholic hospitals, etc. . . At least now I understand why the practice was instituted in the first place in the United States and abroad. Customs Fails to Detect Depleted Uranium — Again or, for a better headline: ABCNEWS Officals Break Law - Again; Facing Possible Criminal Charges Thanks for the tip guys! Thing is, don't you need 75-90 kilos of fissable material to make one nuclear bomb? That's not something you just toss in a cargo hold and hand carry out. Now I'm sure that you could roll the dice and take your chances with six or seven suitcases weighing 15lbs each and transport them to one location, but that's not very smart. You just don't roll the dice that many times. . . If they were smart, you'd smuggle the material in the same way the Columbians smuggle in narcotics - through Canada. But that is another issue altogether. . . Stan Beason Dies at 44 Who is Stan Beason? You should be so lucky to know: Though he never ran for public office himself, he was known for challenging elected officials through his involvement in quasi-political civic organizations.I never knew the man personally, but I knew of him. Godspeed, Mr. Beason. Tuesday, September 09, 2003Putin puts 'Soviet' bar on poll coverage Here you go. Reason #1 why we don't have equal time in America for political candidates: The Kremlin has introduced a draconian election law which threatens the media with closure if they give details of candidates' personal lives or analyse their policies.Take note, for two reasons. Firstly, because it shows exactly why Americans are allowed to dredge up the worst and conduct polling right up to the election - and it allows room for our journalists and politicos to police themselves. Secondly, "reforms" such as these show us that Russia is indeed headed towards a more autocratic form of government more in line with its past rather than a truly Western style government. Just goes to show that for all it's imperfections, we really do have the best method of electing public officials. All hail the impregnable two-party system! Concordia Group Releases List of Recommendations The Free Lance-Star is reporting that the Fredericksburg Concordia group has released its recommendations to City Council: The following are just some of the committee's ideas:The results will be posted on the group's Fredericksburg Community Planning Project's website shortly. Monday, September 08, 2003Meeting Tonight on Proposed Spotsylvania Development There will be a meeting tonight in the upstairs meeting room of Liberty Lanes Bowling Alley regarding a 583 home age-restricted development adjacent to Massaponax High School. From the look of the article, it doesn't look half bad, with 103 acres being set aside as parkland and a nine-hole public golf course. Doesn't sound bad to me, provided that it is environmentally sound. Al-Qaida issues a chilling warning . . .and most likely timed for the September 11th anniversary. Al Qaeda has issued a warning that "obliterate memories of the September 11 suicide attacks." Apparently this warning has gotten Israel riled up, as HAMAS issued a warning in response to PM Sharon's indication that he would begin targeting HAMAS leadership: Israel and the Palestinians were braced last night for a spiral of bloodshed after Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, called the Hamas leadership "marked men" and the terrorist group said the Holy Land was entering the "gates of Hell".Gee, I wonder why we didn't hear that on CNN? Sunday, September 07, 2003VSS/Committee of 5(00?) Announce Endorsements So the endorsements of the anti-sprawl community came out yesterday, and the Free Lance-Star put its spin on things. Here is my favorite one from Democratic Committee Chairman Jim Smith: Jim Smith, chairman of the county's Democratic Party and a former county supervisor, said the endorsements can help draw attention to issues, but he's not sure how much impact they will have.Go git 'em, Bob! The fact of the matter is - while growth is a strong issue in the county - it is only an issue insomuch as it effects standards of living. In other words, taxes, education, and traffic. Those are your real issues folks, and unfortunately the Committee of 5 really doesn't have the issues to make much of a difference. Yesterday's rally was the aggregate total of environmentalists from around the area, which is personally sad to me, because (a) there should have been 1000 people there rather than 100, and (b) it shows the true depth of the anti-sprawl movement in the County. The Spotsy GOP can get 500 people to an event without blinking. . . that should tell you how much the party label matters in Spotsylvania County elections. Unfortunately, VSS lumped its endorsement with the Cof5, which in my opinion only waters down the impact of the anti-sprawl agenda on this election. Sure I think its important (I align myself more with the VSS rather than the Committee of 500, and even more so with the Spotsy GOP), but not as important as the Free Lance-Star wants it to be. Friday, September 05, 2003What Are You Doing This Friday Night? If you are looking for something to do this Friday night, stop by St. Mary Catholic Church at the corner of William St. and Stafford Ave. this evening. Tonight is First Friday, meaning that there will be an exposition of the Blessed Sacrament and all-night Eucharistic Adoration. In short, if you want to talk to Jesus, stop on by. . . Something amiss at Blogger. . . For whatever reason, Blogger seems to be posting strangely. So if something seems strange in the blogosphere, its just the normal wear-and-tear we have all come to know and love. Virginia Bond Rating Under Scrutiny From the Free Lance-Star: The bond rating agency Moody's has placed Virginia on its watch list, a possible precursor to downgrading the state's AAA bond rating.Well gee, that's what happens when your Republican-led General Assembly spends its way out of prosperity!!! Of course, conservatives will become the scapegoat, which is a laughable proposition. State expenditures certainly didn't decrease over the past five years - they only increased by 50%! And that's under Republican leadership. . . why are we electing these guys if they aren't going to wield the budget ax?! Thursday, September 04, 2003KILLER OF ABORTION KILLER KILLED Paul Hill was put to death by the State of Florida yesterday, which poses an interesting conundrum. Pro-lifers are chastised daily for people who perform acts of violence against abortion clinics. Yet while pro-lifers are not expected to confront violence with violence, putting down Paul Hill somehow becomes a decent and moral form of violence against perpetrators of violence. And yes, I stole the headline from Matt Drudge et al. Victims Attorneys Funding SNAP? That's right, guess who is funding the organizations attacking the Catholic Church over the pederasty scandal? None other than the attorneys for the victims themselves. From a press release sent by the Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights: Dan Lyons has written an article in the September 15 edition of Forbes magazine detailing how some lawyers for alleged victims of priestly misconduct have generously donated to victims’ advocacy groups. Major Bomb Attacked Foiled in Kirkuk We're getting them one by one, but the al-Qaeda connection with the former Ba'athist regime is slowly coming to the fore: Kurdish security forces have found 1,200kg of explosives in three rubbish skips, one of which had been placed on a key bridge in the northern oil capital of Kirkuk, a senior investigator said on Thursday. Wednesday, September 03, 2003Anti-Taxers to Chichester: Stand Up Or Get Out Wow. . . not one, but two high-octane letters against Sen. Chichester's tax plan. Here is the one that caught my eye first, from Mr. Joe Catalano: State Sen. John Chichester's proposal to raise taxes in Virginia ["Chichester: Bond rating at risk," Aug. 23] is just as dumb as former Del. Jack Rollison's proposal to raise taxes in Northern Virginia.Now it is my thinking that the recent alliance between Democrats and moderate Republicans in the 28th District spells the beginning of something big in Virginia politics, namely that the old "fiscally responsible" moderate wing of the GOP no long finds itself welcome in a resurgent conservative Republican Party. GOP moderates may feel as if they had a victory in June, but the fact of the matter is that the Democrats really saved the day. So what's the big deal? When you see Sen. Edd Houck joining hands with Sen. Chichester in support of the latter's candidacy, plus when you see collusion with the Democratic governor on tax reform issues, that's a problem. In short, don't be surprised if moderate Republicans just up and leave the party within five-years. It would be entirely consistent with the re-definition of the national Democratic party along more moderate lines, and fit perfectly with the current trend within a state GOP that is becoming increasingly conservative over time. Bush Administration Invites U.N. to Participate in Iraq Not that the United Nations is going to be likely to support the cause without having its hand in the till, but the Bush Administration seems to be moving forward with plans to involve the international community: "It's a long-term, major undertaking, and it's an international issue that requires an international response," McClellan said. "And we are continuing to have those discussions with other countries. We are continuing to discuss this at the U.N. [which] has a very vital role to play in this process." Tuesday, September 02, 2003THE HISTORICAL CREDIBILITY OF HANS KUNG Meaning to say that there is none. I haven't read through all of this quite yet, but I will be working on it shortly. Surprisingly, there is little out there on Kung and his writings in the way of scholarly work, and it took quite a bit of digging to find even this. But now that it is found, I'll be sure to make certain that it finds its way to the top of the Google charts. No Matter How You Cut the Mustard See this? The strongest contender against President Bush is none other than Hillary Clinton at 41% against Bush's 48%. All others fall woefully short. As a Presidential candidate, Senator Hillary Clinton attracts more Democratic votes than other contenders but still trails President Bush 48% to 41%.Doesn't seem like a biased poll at first glance, which means that I am inclined to believe its findings. Looks like a strong start for the President, and rightly so.
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JEFFERSONIAD POLL: Whom do you support for Virginia Attorney General?1) John Brownlee2) Ken Cuccinelli AboutShaunKenney.com is one of Virginia's oldest political blogs, focusing on the role of religion and politics in public life. Shaun Kenney, 30, lives in Fluvanna County, Virginia.ContactThe Jeffersoniad
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