The RVA Blog Carnival is an intro to and a collection of links to presentations gathered from Richmond’s vibrant blogosphere. It’s a potpourri of this and that, which might acquaint a reader with a new point of view, or provide a moment of pleasant diversion.
Yet, if you have no curiosity about new things, if off-the-wall notions scare you, or if you feel that time is not on your side -- this may not be your cup of tea.
It’s also a project-in-progress for the yet-to-be named group of local bloggers, who have recently taken a few baby steps toward becoming a coalescence of independent self-publishers trying to be good. Click here to travel to Geistweg, the host/editor of this week’s offerings.
Then you’re on your own -- don’t say you weren’t warned.
Since 1985, in various formats, SLANT -- an independent voice based in the heart of Richmond, Virginia -- has offered its readers original commentary on politics and popular culture. Warning: Occasionally, that means wiseass cartoons and satirical content. Naturally, all rights are reserved.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Sunday, March 18, 2007
VCU Rams lose in OT
The VCU Rams lost their second round NCAA tournament game to the Pittsburgh Panthers in overtime: Pittsburgh 84, VCU 79.
The overachieving Rams finished their first season under head coach Anthony Grant with a record of 28-7, which speaks for itself, in a way.
Having won the CAA regular season and tournament championships, and having defeated mighty Duke by two points in a first-round NCAA game, this team put up some fancy numbers when it counted. No VCU team has ever won 28 games in a single season’s campaign.
For fans who just beam up the final scores on their cell phones and watch highlights on ESPN, that’s all one needs to know. Stats. To such in-a-hurry, semi-devotees of college basketball the bottom line is everything. Numbers.
Which is fine for how to pay off bets, but it says little about why there is a sports section in daily newspapers. The character and team spirit this VCU squad showed -- with special mention of the two senior starters Jesse Pellot-Rosa and B.A. Walker, who both scored 20 points -- in coming back from being behind by 19 points in the second half was truly amazing.
Yes, this hard-fought game was a perfect example of why the NCAA tournament has such appeal -- there were three overtime games today, out of eight games played.
Click here to read the AP report and box score. Here is one quote from the story:
“‘More than losing,’ Grant said [of his players], ‘they’re disappointed that this team doesn’t get to play together (anymore).’”
More than they lost, the gritty Rams ran out of time. My congratulations go out to Coach Grant, his players and staff, and the VCU family of supporters. Stay tuned for more commentary on NCAA action...
The overachieving Rams finished their first season under head coach Anthony Grant with a record of 28-7, which speaks for itself, in a way.
Having won the CAA regular season and tournament championships, and having defeated mighty Duke by two points in a first-round NCAA game, this team put up some fancy numbers when it counted. No VCU team has ever won 28 games in a single season’s campaign.
For fans who just beam up the final scores on their cell phones and watch highlights on ESPN, that’s all one needs to know. Stats. To such in-a-hurry, semi-devotees of college basketball the bottom line is everything. Numbers.
Which is fine for how to pay off bets, but it says little about why there is a sports section in daily newspapers. The character and team spirit this VCU squad showed -- with special mention of the two senior starters Jesse Pellot-Rosa and B.A. Walker, who both scored 20 points -- in coming back from being behind by 19 points in the second half was truly amazing.
Yes, this hard-fought game was a perfect example of why the NCAA tournament has such appeal -- there were three overtime games today, out of eight games played.
Click here to read the AP report and box score. Here is one quote from the story:
“‘More than losing,’ Grant said [of his players], ‘they’re disappointed that this team doesn’t get to play together (anymore).’”
More than they lost, the gritty Rams ran out of time. My congratulations go out to Coach Grant, his players and staff, and the VCU family of supporters. Stay tuned for more commentary on NCAA action...
Saturday, March 17, 2007
Colin Powell's blue drapes
by F. T. Rea
In February of 1981 I saw Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica” with my then-11-year-old daughter. When the Museum of Modern Art’s elevator doors opened the sight of the 25-foot wide masterpiece was so stunning the doors began to close before the spell was broken.
A few months later, upon the 100-year anniversary of Picasso’s birth, history’s most celebrated piece of anti-war art was packed up and sent to the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, Spain. However, a large copy of “Guernica” hangs on the second floor of the United Nations building -- a tapestry donated to the U.N. by Nelson Rockefeller’s estate in 1985.
On the occasion of then-Secretary of State Colin L. Powell’s February 5, 2003 presentation -- underlining his president’s impatience with U.N. members seeking to avoid, or delay, war in Iraq -- the tapestry was completely covered that day by a blue drape. Powell apparently realized that even a replica of that particular piece had to be avoided as a backdrop of any photographs of him on that fateful day.
Now four years into the war-of-choice in Iraq, when I think of what has already been uncovered by investigations into the run-up to the invasion, I wonder how much of what Powell said that day he knew then had been ginned up by propagandists in the Bush administration. And, I wonder how much of what he said he believed was true.
In some ways little has changed at the heart of arguments concerning war and occupation since France’s army -- as driven by the empire-building vision of Napoleon Bonaparte -- was an occupying force in Spain.
Overwhelmed by the brutality of France’s campaign of terror to crush the Spanish will to resist, Francisco Goya (1746-1828) -- a well-connected artist who had much to lose -- took it upon himself to remove the romantic veil of glory which had always been draped over paintings of war in European art. Documenting what he saw of war, firsthand, the images Goya hurled at viewers of his paintings and prints radically departed from tradition.
Instead of heroic glorification Goya offered horrific gore. The art world hasn’t been the same since.
Following in Goya’s footsteps artists such as Honore Daumier (1808-1879), Georges Rouault (1871-1959), Frans Masereel (1889-1971), Otto Dix (1892-1969), among many others, created still more haunting images illustrating the grittier aspects of modern war. In the midst of the Spanish Civil War, with the storm clouds of World War II gathering, Spaniard Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) created “Guernica.”
On April 27, 1937, to field test state-of the-art equipment, Adolf Hitler loaned a portion of Germany’s air force, the Condor Legion, to a fellow fascist dictator -- Spain’s Francisco Franco. The mission: to bomb a small town a few miles inland from the Gulf of Biscay; a Basque village that had no strategic value whatsoever.
The result: utter terror.
Bombs rained on Guernica for over three hours; cold-blooded machine gunners mowed down the poor souls who fled into the surrounding fields.
Four days later with grim photographs of mutilated corpses on the front pages of French newspapers a million outraged Parisians took to their streets to protest the bombing of Guernica.
That same day Picasso, who was in Paris, dropped everything else and began sketching studies for what became “Guernica.” As Spain’s government-in-exile had already commissioned him to create a mural for its pavilion in the upcoming Paris World’s Fair, the inspired artist already had the perfect place to exhibit his statement -- a shades-of-gray, cartoonish composition made up of a terrified huddle of people and animals.
When the fair closed “Guernica” needed a home. Not only was the Spain of Generalissimo Franco out of the question, Picasso decided it wouldn’t be safe anywhere in Europe. He was probably right. Thus, the huge canvas was shipped to the USA and eventually wound up calling MOMA its home until 1981.
Colin Powell, a former four-star general, who, unlike some of Bush’s hawkish neoconservative experts, knew war firsthand, from the inside out. It seems the Secretary knew something about art history, as well. Six weeks before the invasion of Iraq, he apparently retained a firm grasp on the potential of “Guernica” to cast a bitterly ironic light upon his history-making utterances.
That, while he may have lost his grip on what had been his honor. Instead of resigning because he disagreed with the Bush policy, Powell said, “We also have satellite photos that indicate that banned materials have recently been moved from a number of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction facilities...”
Now Powell lives with the memory of the strategic blue drape that was thrown over “Guernica,” and the symbolic blue drape that he helped to throw over the truth.
In February of 1981 I saw Pablo Picasso’s “Guernica” with my then-11-year-old daughter. When the Museum of Modern Art’s elevator doors opened the sight of the 25-foot wide masterpiece was so stunning the doors began to close before the spell was broken.
A few months later, upon the 100-year anniversary of Picasso’s birth, history’s most celebrated piece of anti-war art was packed up and sent to the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, Spain. However, a large copy of “Guernica” hangs on the second floor of the United Nations building -- a tapestry donated to the U.N. by Nelson Rockefeller’s estate in 1985.On the occasion of then-Secretary of State Colin L. Powell’s February 5, 2003 presentation -- underlining his president’s impatience with U.N. members seeking to avoid, or delay, war in Iraq -- the tapestry was completely covered that day by a blue drape. Powell apparently realized that even a replica of that particular piece had to be avoided as a backdrop of any photographs of him on that fateful day.
Now four years into the war-of-choice in Iraq, when I think of what has already been uncovered by investigations into the run-up to the invasion, I wonder how much of what Powell said that day he knew then had been ginned up by propagandists in the Bush administration. And, I wonder how much of what he said he believed was true.
*
In some ways little has changed at the heart of arguments concerning war and occupation since France’s army -- as driven by the empire-building vision of Napoleon Bonaparte -- was an occupying force in Spain.
Overwhelmed by the brutality of France’s campaign of terror to crush the Spanish will to resist, Francisco Goya (1746-1828) -- a well-connected artist who had much to lose -- took it upon himself to remove the romantic veil of glory which had always been draped over paintings of war in European art. Documenting what he saw of war, firsthand, the images Goya hurled at viewers of his paintings and prints radically departed from tradition.
Instead of heroic glorification Goya offered horrific gore. The art world hasn’t been the same since.
Following in Goya’s footsteps artists such as Honore Daumier (1808-1879), Georges Rouault (1871-1959), Frans Masereel (1889-1971), Otto Dix (1892-1969), among many others, created still more haunting images illustrating the grittier aspects of modern war. In the midst of the Spanish Civil War, with the storm clouds of World War II gathering, Spaniard Pablo Picasso (1881-1973) created “Guernica.”
On April 27, 1937, to field test state-of the-art equipment, Adolf Hitler loaned a portion of Germany’s air force, the Condor Legion, to a fellow fascist dictator -- Spain’s Francisco Franco. The mission: to bomb a small town a few miles inland from the Gulf of Biscay; a Basque village that had no strategic value whatsoever.
The result: utter terror.
Bombs rained on Guernica for over three hours; cold-blooded machine gunners mowed down the poor souls who fled into the surrounding fields.
Four days later with grim photographs of mutilated corpses on the front pages of French newspapers a million outraged Parisians took to their streets to protest the bombing of Guernica.
That same day Picasso, who was in Paris, dropped everything else and began sketching studies for what became “Guernica.” As Spain’s government-in-exile had already commissioned him to create a mural for its pavilion in the upcoming Paris World’s Fair, the inspired artist already had the perfect place to exhibit his statement -- a shades-of-gray, cartoonish composition made up of a terrified huddle of people and animals.
When the fair closed “Guernica” needed a home. Not only was the Spain of Generalissimo Franco out of the question, Picasso decided it wouldn’t be safe anywhere in Europe. He was probably right. Thus, the huge canvas was shipped to the USA and eventually wound up calling MOMA its home until 1981.
*
Colin Powell, a former four-star general, who, unlike some of Bush’s hawkish neoconservative experts, knew war firsthand, from the inside out. It seems the Secretary knew something about art history, as well. Six weeks before the invasion of Iraq, he apparently retained a firm grasp on the potential of “Guernica” to cast a bitterly ironic light upon his history-making utterances.
That, while he may have lost his grip on what had been his honor. Instead of resigning because he disagreed with the Bush policy, Powell said, “We also have satellite photos that indicate that banned materials have recently been moved from a number of Iraqi weapons of mass destruction facilities...”
Now Powell lives with the memory of the strategic blue drape that was thrown over “Guernica,” and the symbolic blue drape that he helped to throw over the truth.
-- 30 --
Dr. StrangeRove, or...
Dr. StrangeRove gasped, "It would not be difficult, Mein Führer! Nuclear reactors could easily provide, heh... I'm sorry, Mr. President."Apologies to Peter Sellers and Stanley Kubrick. 'Toon by F.T. Rea
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Rams outlast Blue Devils
It was an intense 40 minutes of postseason basketball. The Rams beat the Blue Devils in a contest that will be remembered, both teams gave it their all: VCU 79, Duke 77.
It came down to two squads quite evenly-matched, but from way different ends and expectations. Still, when push came to shove, one team didn’t have the best guard on the floor, the other did. He was VCU’s Eric Maynor, who scored 22 points in the game and hit the winning basket.
The last person to be surprised by this turn of events was probably Jeff Capel, VCU’s former head coach -- now at Oklahoma -- who originally recruited Maynor from Fayetteville, North Carolina, Capel’s home town.
My published prediction for this game read this way: “...Yeah, I know this prediction could look way too home-cooked after the game is played, but here goes anyway: VCU 69, Duke 64.”
As one who has covered VCU’s basketball program as a sportswriter for over two decades, I have to say this is as good a Rams team as I've written about. And, as a guy who went to VCU, I have to say head coach Anthony Grant is already the best coach the Rams have ever had; he is the ninth in school history.
That’s no slam on Capel, or anybody else. No, Grant is just that good.
It came down to two squads quite evenly-matched, but from way different ends and expectations. Still, when push came to shove, one team didn’t have the best guard on the floor, the other did. He was VCU’s Eric Maynor, who scored 22 points in the game and hit the winning basket.
The last person to be surprised by this turn of events was probably Jeff Capel, VCU’s former head coach -- now at Oklahoma -- who originally recruited Maynor from Fayetteville, North Carolina, Capel’s home town.
My published prediction for this game read this way: “...Yeah, I know this prediction could look way too home-cooked after the game is played, but here goes anyway: VCU 69, Duke 64.”
As one who has covered VCU’s basketball program as a sportswriter for over two decades, I have to say this is as good a Rams team as I've written about. And, as a guy who went to VCU, I have to say head coach Anthony Grant is already the best coach the Rams have ever had; he is the ninth in school history.
That’s no slam on Capel, or anybody else. No, Grant is just that good.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
Suckered Again by Uncle Sam
“Suckered Again” by Ted Rall is a bitter piece that looks at how veterans have been cheated and mistreated in the past. So, in a way Rall cuts the Bush administration some slack, because in the wake of Walter Reed revelations, it allows for its apologists to say, “We’re just living up to tradition.” That, right before those same lame White House spin doctors chide Democrats again for “not supporting the troops.”
“...More than 300,000 soldiers were wounded in combat during World War I, but the Veterans Bureau, predecessor of the V.A., rejected all but 47,000 claims. ‘The Veterans Bureau,’ a columnist wrote in 1925, ‘has probably made wrecks of more men since the war than the war itself took in dead and maimed.’
“America’s first major military defeat led to mistreatment of those who had served in the Korean War by those who said they hadn't fought hard enough. Among other indignities, P.O.W.‘s were denied their back pay of $2.50 for each day of captivity.
“Thousands of Vietnam vets were discarded like used tissues, reduced to homelessness and starvation after being denied adequate medical treatment and cash benefits. As recently as 2004, according to the Christian Science Monitor, ‘an estimated 500,000 veterans were homeless at some time during 2004 [but] the V.A. had the resources to tend to only 100,000 of them.’
“It took a decade after the fall of Hanoi before Vietnam vets began turning up on the streets, but troops who served in Afghanistan and Iraq have already become homeless. ‘This kind of inner city, urban guerrilla warfare that these veterans are facing probably accelerates mental-health problems,’ says Yogin Ricardo Singh, director of a veterans advocacy program in Brooklyn.
“‘You can have all of the yellow ribbons on cars that say Support Our Troops that you want,’ adds Linda Boone of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. ‘But it’s when they take off the uniform and transition back to civilian life that they need support the most.’ As usual, they're not getting it.”
Click here to read the whole piece.
An honest person has to wonder what President Bush thinks the horror story that has oozed out of Walter Reed has done/is doing for morale in the armed services.
My own grandfather, a WWI veteran who served with the Richmond Light Infantry Blues in Europe, never forgave President Herbert Hoover for ordering the rout of the camp of the Bonus Expeditionary Force in 1932, which some observers still see as one of the most shameless episodes in American history.
So, today, when you hear someone chanting mindlessly about supporting the troops and staying the course, it’s worth remembering the history of what slogans of that sort of have actually meant to those who did their duty, then found themselves abandoned by Uncle Sam afterwards.
All of which serves to remind us of why war should always be the last resort.
“...More than 300,000 soldiers were wounded in combat during World War I, but the Veterans Bureau, predecessor of the V.A., rejected all but 47,000 claims. ‘The Veterans Bureau,’ a columnist wrote in 1925, ‘has probably made wrecks of more men since the war than the war itself took in dead and maimed.’
“America’s first major military defeat led to mistreatment of those who had served in the Korean War by those who said they hadn't fought hard enough. Among other indignities, P.O.W.‘s were denied their back pay of $2.50 for each day of captivity.
“Thousands of Vietnam vets were discarded like used tissues, reduced to homelessness and starvation after being denied adequate medical treatment and cash benefits. As recently as 2004, according to the Christian Science Monitor, ‘an estimated 500,000 veterans were homeless at some time during 2004 [but] the V.A. had the resources to tend to only 100,000 of them.’
“It took a decade after the fall of Hanoi before Vietnam vets began turning up on the streets, but troops who served in Afghanistan and Iraq have already become homeless. ‘This kind of inner city, urban guerrilla warfare that these veterans are facing probably accelerates mental-health problems,’ says Yogin Ricardo Singh, director of a veterans advocacy program in Brooklyn.
“‘You can have all of the yellow ribbons on cars that say Support Our Troops that you want,’ adds Linda Boone of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. ‘But it’s when they take off the uniform and transition back to civilian life that they need support the most.’ As usual, they're not getting it.”
Click here to read the whole piece.
An honest person has to wonder what President Bush thinks the horror story that has oozed out of Walter Reed has done/is doing for morale in the armed services.
My own grandfather, a WWI veteran who served with the Richmond Light Infantry Blues in Europe, never forgave President Herbert Hoover for ordering the rout of the camp of the Bonus Expeditionary Force in 1932, which some observers still see as one of the most shameless episodes in American history.
So, today, when you hear someone chanting mindlessly about supporting the troops and staying the course, it’s worth remembering the history of what slogans of that sort of have actually meant to those who did their duty, then found themselves abandoned by Uncle Sam afterwards.
All of which serves to remind us of why war should always be the last resort.
The Rams can beat the Blue Devils
VCU Rams senior guard B.A. Walker On top of that, this year’s VCU team is good enough to beat this year’s Duke team, maybe four out of ten times. And, this time around the Rams may well be more motivated than their opponents.
The Rams guards are smart and versatile enough. They are quick and athletic enough. They are more experienced -- Duke doesn’t have savvy seniors like B.A. Walker and Jesse Pellot-Rosa. Sophomore Eric Maynor, the Rams point guard, may actually be a better pro prospect than any of the Blue Devils guards.
OK. Duke may be stronger inside than the Rams, at least on paper. But so was Drexel. So were other teams that totally wilted under the pressure VCU can put on the ballhandler. In the ACC nobody plays a full-court press quite like VCU does.
Photo: SLANT
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Where are honest Republicans keeping their honor?
Do everyday Republicans have any sense of honesty and fair play left? Or, is staying the course, and calling Democrats running for office names, all that really matters now?
Republicans have heard smirking President George “The Decider” Bush tell the voters deliberate lies to get America into a war -- a war that now is being seen by many as the worst foreign policy blunder in American history. Using the fear that was in the air after 9/11, they have heard blustery Vice President Dick Cheney say all sorts of things that have turned out to be deliberate prevarications.
They have seen torture defended as proper conduct. They have heard decorated veterans, such as Rep. John Murtha and Sen. Jim Webb, called “cowards” for opposing the tough-guy snarls of Cheney, the loudest poseur in an administration of such blowhards who avoided military service.
They have seen what happened in New Orleans. They have seen the corruption and overcharges, etc, associated with Haliburton in Iraq. They have seen Jack Abramoff, Randy “Duke” Cunningham, Tom DeLay, Mark Foley, Robert Ney and Ralph Reed parade by. They have seen Scooter Libby convicted of lying.
Now they see Bush’s Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, squirming under the scrutiny his corrupted-by-politics office has brought on itself. Gonzales says he “takes responsibility.” What does that mean?
This isn’t to say the basic conservative philosophy once espoused by Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan is bankrupt. It is to say that Bush and his cronies are morally bankrupt and incompetent at running the federal government. Bush and his neoconservatives are absolute traitors to all Goldwater held dear. Do Republicans care about that?
In truth, Bush has used traditional conservatives to get elected, then betrayed them in every way. How bad does it have to get before true conservatives wake up and walk away from the most dangerously dishonest and incompetent president anybody alive can remember?
So, in these telling times, where are honest Republicans keeping their honor? At what point does being an American matter more than beating Team Donkey?
Republicans have heard smirking President George “The Decider” Bush tell the voters deliberate lies to get America into a war -- a war that now is being seen by many as the worst foreign policy blunder in American history. Using the fear that was in the air after 9/11, they have heard blustery Vice President Dick Cheney say all sorts of things that have turned out to be deliberate prevarications.They have seen torture defended as proper conduct. They have heard decorated veterans, such as Rep. John Murtha and Sen. Jim Webb, called “cowards” for opposing the tough-guy snarls of Cheney, the loudest poseur in an administration of such blowhards who avoided military service.
They have seen what happened in New Orleans. They have seen the corruption and overcharges, etc, associated with Haliburton in Iraq. They have seen Jack Abramoff, Randy “Duke” Cunningham, Tom DeLay, Mark Foley, Robert Ney and Ralph Reed parade by. They have seen Scooter Libby convicted of lying.
Now they see Bush’s Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales, squirming under the scrutiny his corrupted-by-politics office has brought on itself. Gonzales says he “takes responsibility.” What does that mean?
This isn’t to say the basic conservative philosophy once espoused by Barry Goldwater and Ronald Reagan is bankrupt. It is to say that Bush and his cronies are morally bankrupt and incompetent at running the federal government. Bush and his neoconservatives are absolute traitors to all Goldwater held dear. Do Republicans care about that?
In truth, Bush has used traditional conservatives to get elected, then betrayed them in every way. How bad does it have to get before true conservatives wake up and walk away from the most dangerously dishonest and incompetent president anybody alive can remember?
So, in these telling times, where are honest Republicans keeping their honor? At what point does being an American matter more than beating Team Donkey?
Art by F.T. Rea
Truly convenient inconsistencies
The obsession that some of the most outspoken Republican/rightwing commentators and bloggers have with bashing gays, or just the subject of homosexuality, is easy to see/hear any day of the week. It’s been that way for a long time, and, it seems, it’s getting more that way all the time. One could easily get the idea that they fear if they don’t do all they can to stand firmly against same-sex relationships, that any number of practicing heterosexuals would hear the call to take a walk on the wild side.
So, to these anti-gay patriots, calling a politician such as John Edwards a “faggot” is one of the worst things one can say about a man who is running for president.
However, at the same time we have some of the same rightwing voices bashing Edwards (pictured left) because he is a guy who grew up poor, pulled himself up by the bootstraps and lives well today. It seems they feel that if Edwards is going to campaign on a platform of wanting to help the least fortunate in America, economically, that he should himself be a poor man, or at least live like one.
So, to those who criticize Edwards for being wealthy, I have to ask -- when did Republicans decide that making good money is a problem?
History has shown us enough about rightwingers who do all they can to persecute homosexuals -- J. Edgar Hoover and Roy Cohn come to mind first, more recently Mark Foley and Rev. Ted Haggard -- to understand about that syndrome.
But now, what in the world are we to think of rightwing Republicans who beat up on a politician because the guy has made a fortune and lives in a big house?
It seems that in truth, the convenient inconsistencies from the so-called cultural conservatives are getting more consistent all the time. Rather than put a label on that phenomenon, I’ll allow readers to draw their own conclusions.
So, to these anti-gay patriots, calling a politician such as John Edwards a “faggot” is one of the worst things one can say about a man who is running for president.
However, at the same time we have some of the same rightwing voices bashing Edwards (pictured left) because he is a guy who grew up poor, pulled himself up by the bootstraps and lives well today. It seems they feel that if Edwards is going to campaign on a platform of wanting to help the least fortunate in America, economically, that he should himself be a poor man, or at least live like one.
So, to those who criticize Edwards for being wealthy, I have to ask -- when did Republicans decide that making good money is a problem?
History has shown us enough about rightwingers who do all they can to persecute homosexuals -- J. Edgar Hoover and Roy Cohn come to mind first, more recently Mark Foley and Rev. Ted Haggard -- to understand about that syndrome.
But now, what in the world are we to think of rightwing Republicans who beat up on a politician because the guy has made a fortune and lives in a big house?
It seems that in truth, the convenient inconsistencies from the so-called cultural conservatives are getting more consistent all the time. Rather than put a label on that phenomenon, I’ll allow readers to draw their own conclusions.
Image from Edwards camp
Greens on Richmond water rates
This notice just came in from the Richmond Green Party:
"At Monday’s Richmond City Council meeting, the Chairperson for the Richmond Green Party, Scott Burger, addressed city leaders about the City’s residential water rates. The Richmond Green Party is very concerned about the wise use of limited natural resources, including water. In recent years, shortages of water have occurred in the Richmond area as the result of serious droughts and the unwise use of the resource. One important variable that influences conservation of water is the rates charged to the consumer. Unfortunately, the rates charged to residential consumers of water in the City of Richmond provide a discount for those using the greatest amount of water, and cause those who conserve water to subsidize those who waste water.
"In other words, Richmond’s utility charges each citizen $43.55 in minimum water and wastewater service charges. Burger noted that with a mandatory solid waste charge of $17.50, and a recycling charge of $1.64 tacked onto the minimum water bill, the first glass of water from a typical residential service in Richmond will cost $62.70. It is unjust for the city to place these exorbitant service charges on minimum water use.
“'It is shameful that Richmond provides a half-price discount in residential water rates for those who use vast amounts of water, over 100 CCF (hundred cubic feet). This encourages waste at a time when the water resources of the region are stressed,' said Burger, who also brought a chart of typical minimum bills for the area and displayed it at the City Council meeting.
"Reforming Richmond's draconian water rate structure is both a conservation issue and a social justice issue. No longer should we force those who conserve water to subsidize half-price discounts for those who waste water. No longer should a senior citizen or indigent family have to pay a ridiculous fee for minimum water and sewer service. By acting now, the City of Richmond will minimize water shortages in the future."
According to Burger, comparing Richmond’s approach on this issue to that of cities, such as Alexandria, Hopewell, Norfolk -- even New York City! -- puts Richmond in a bad light. To read more about the principles of the Green Party, or to get involved, click here.
"At Monday’s Richmond City Council meeting, the Chairperson for the Richmond Green Party, Scott Burger, addressed city leaders about the City’s residential water rates. The Richmond Green Party is very concerned about the wise use of limited natural resources, including water. In recent years, shortages of water have occurred in the Richmond area as the result of serious droughts and the unwise use of the resource. One important variable that influences conservation of water is the rates charged to the consumer. Unfortunately, the rates charged to residential consumers of water in the City of Richmond provide a discount for those using the greatest amount of water, and cause those who conserve water to subsidize those who waste water.
"In other words, Richmond’s utility charges each citizen $43.55 in minimum water and wastewater service charges. Burger noted that with a mandatory solid waste charge of $17.50, and a recycling charge of $1.64 tacked onto the minimum water bill, the first glass of water from a typical residential service in Richmond will cost $62.70. It is unjust for the city to place these exorbitant service charges on minimum water use.
“'It is shameful that Richmond provides a half-price discount in residential water rates for those who use vast amounts of water, over 100 CCF (hundred cubic feet). This encourages waste at a time when the water resources of the region are stressed,' said Burger, who also brought a chart of typical minimum bills for the area and displayed it at the City Council meeting.
"Reforming Richmond's draconian water rate structure is both a conservation issue and a social justice issue. No longer should we force those who conserve water to subsidize half-price discounts for those who waste water. No longer should a senior citizen or indigent family have to pay a ridiculous fee for minimum water and sewer service. By acting now, the City of Richmond will minimize water shortages in the future."
According to Burger, comparing Richmond’s approach on this issue to that of cities, such as Alexandria, Hopewell, Norfolk -- even New York City! -- puts Richmond in a bad light. To read more about the principles of the Green Party, or to get involved, click here.
Monday, March 12, 2007
RVA blog carnival
One of the constructive ideas that came out of the Saturday meeting for local bloggers at the Baja Bean was to institute a regular roundup of the best posts from the well-known, as well as the not-so-well-known, blogs based in Richmond. Jason Kenney, of J’s Notes, volunteered to get the ball rolling, and he wasted no time in doing so.
Click here to view the first installment of the RVA Blog Carnival, perhaps a new tradition in the making.
Update: Since I can't figure out how to leave a comment at J's Notes, here's what I wanted to say to Jason:
It seems we local bloggers, whatever we end up calling ourselves -- The March 10thers? River City Know-It-Alls? Richmond Blogs Aplenty? -- have established a little bit of momentum. Thanks for the good job on the carnival and for turning it around so promptly, to keep that momentum going.
Click here to view the first installment of the RVA Blog Carnival, perhaps a new tradition in the making.
Update: Since I can't figure out how to leave a comment at J's Notes, here's what I wanted to say to Jason:
It seems we local bloggers, whatever we end up calling ourselves -- The March 10thers? River City Know-It-Alls? Richmond Blogs Aplenty? -- have established a little bit of momentum. Thanks for the good job on the carnival and for turning it around so promptly, to keep that momentum going.
Final VA Top Five for this season
This will be the last installment of my Virginia Top Five. Once the NCAA tournament games begin, I see no point in continuing to compare the teams in this way. The best news for area hoops fans is that four teams from among the 14 Division I programs in this commonwealth are going to the Big Dance. It’s been 21 years since Virginia sent four teams to the NCAA championship tournament.
Virginia Top Five
No. 1: Va. Tech (21-11); RPI: No. 34 (2-3 in last five games)
No. 2: VCU (27-6); RPI: No. 42 (5-0 in last five games)
No. 3: Virginia (20-10); RPI: No. 55 (2-3 in last five games)
No. 4: ODU (24-8); RPI: No. 37 (4-1 in last five games)
No. 5: George Mason (18-15); RPI: No. 119 (3-2 in last five games)
Virginia Top Five
No. 1: Va. Tech (21-11); RPI: No. 34 (2-3 in last five games)
No. 2: VCU (27-6); RPI: No. 42 (5-0 in last five games)
No. 3: Virginia (20-10); RPI: No. 55 (2-3 in last five games)
No. 4: ODU (24-8); RPI: No. 37 (4-1 in last five games)
No. 5: George Mason (18-15); RPI: No. 119 (3-2 in last five games)
The RPI numbers cited come from RealTime RPI.
Opening round matchups:- ODU, seeded 12th in the Midwest Region, will face Butler (27-6) in Buffalo at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday.
- VCU, seeded 11th in the West Region, will face Duke (26-6) in Buffalo at 7:10 p.m. on Thursday.
- Virginia, seeded fourth in the South Region, will face Albany (23-9) in Columbus at 12:15 p.m. on Friday.
- Va. Tech, seeded fifth in the West Region, will face Illinois (23-11) in Columbus at 7:10 p.m. on Friday.
Bloggers reactions to Saturday's meeting
Reactions to/reports on the local bloggers meeting, which was held on Saturday afternoon at the Baja Bean in Richmond's Fan District, are starting to appear on blogs. I'll post them (with updates) below as I notice them:
J' Notes: "RVA Blogger Meet-Up And The Return Of The RVA Blog Carnival"
Haduken: "Bloggers do it on Saturday."
Buttermilk and Molasses: "Richmond Weblogger Throwdown"
SLANTblog: "Richmond bloggers meeting report"
River City Rapids: "Richmond Blog Carnival"
J' Notes: "RVA Blogger Meet-Up And The Return Of The RVA Blog Carnival"
Haduken: "Bloggers do it on Saturday."
Buttermilk and Molasses: "Richmond Weblogger Throwdown"
SLANTblog: "Richmond bloggers meeting report"
River City Rapids: "Richmond Blog Carnival"
Sunday, March 11, 2007
VCU and Duke?
This press release just came in from Phil Stanton, VCU Director of Athletic Communications:
"VCU will travel to Buffalo, N.Y., to face Duke in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament on Thurs., March 15. The Rams are the No. 11 seed in the West Region, while the Blue Devils are the No. 6 seed. This will be the first meeting between VCU and Duke.
"Under first-year head coach Anthony Grant, the Rams are 27-6 overall and 16-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association. VCU earned the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament be defeating George Mason 65-59 in the championship game of the CAA Tournament this past Monday at the Richmond Coliseum. The Rams enter the NCAA Tournament on a five-game winning streak.
'Duke, under long-time head coach Mike Krzyzewski, compiled an overall record of 22-10 and posted an 8-8 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Blue Devils enter the NCAA Tournament having lost three straight and seven of their past 11 contests."
The irony is that when VCU hired Jeff Capel, an ex-Dookie, as its head coach in 2002, many postive-thinking observers thought that would surely bring on a regular season game with Duke. Maybe two there, and one here. It didn’t happen. Capel is now coaching Oklahoma, a school which did not make the NCAA cut this time.
Now the first-ever matchup with the high and mighty Blue Devils comes by way of the NCAA tournament, a year after Capel’s departure. This irony won’t be lost on the VCU players, who, facing this first-round game, may well be much hungrier than Duke’s.
Well, I think VCU has an excellent chance to defeat Duke. This is the weakest Duke squad we’ve seen in years and VCU is being coached by the first-year head coach who surely will be one of the most, if not THE most, sought-after coaches in the country in a month -- Anthony Grant.
Meanwhile, for the fun of it, I’m going to say the upstart Rams will actually do it in an underachievers vs. overachievers scenario. Yeah, I know this prediction could look way too home-cooked after the game is played, but here goes anyway: VCU 69, Duke 64.
"VCU will travel to Buffalo, N.Y., to face Duke in the first round of the 2007 NCAA Tournament on Thurs., March 15. The Rams are the No. 11 seed in the West Region, while the Blue Devils are the No. 6 seed. This will be the first meeting between VCU and Duke.
"Under first-year head coach Anthony Grant, the Rams are 27-6 overall and 16-2 in the Colonial Athletic Association. VCU earned the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament be defeating George Mason 65-59 in the championship game of the CAA Tournament this past Monday at the Richmond Coliseum. The Rams enter the NCAA Tournament on a five-game winning streak.
'Duke, under long-time head coach Mike Krzyzewski, compiled an overall record of 22-10 and posted an 8-8 mark in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Blue Devils enter the NCAA Tournament having lost three straight and seven of their past 11 contests."
The irony is that when VCU hired Jeff Capel, an ex-Dookie, as its head coach in 2002, many postive-thinking observers thought that would surely bring on a regular season game with Duke. Maybe two there, and one here. It didn’t happen. Capel is now coaching Oklahoma, a school which did not make the NCAA cut this time.
Now the first-ever matchup with the high and mighty Blue Devils comes by way of the NCAA tournament, a year after Capel’s departure. This irony won’t be lost on the VCU players, who, facing this first-round game, may well be much hungrier than Duke’s.
Well, I think VCU has an excellent chance to defeat Duke. This is the weakest Duke squad we’ve seen in years and VCU is being coached by the first-year head coach who surely will be one of the most, if not THE most, sought-after coaches in the country in a month -- Anthony Grant.
Meanwhile, for the fun of it, I’m going to say the upstart Rams will actually do it in an underachievers vs. overachievers scenario. Yeah, I know this prediction could look way too home-cooked after the game is played, but here goes anyway: VCU 69, Duke 64.
Saturday, March 10, 2007
VCU's Roland on CBS tomorrow
This March Madness item just came in from Phil Stanton, VCU Director of Athletic Communications:
"Senior center Calvin Roland will be featured on 'The Road to the Final Four' on CBS on Sunday, March 11, at 12 p.m."
Roland, who came off the bench to score 12 points in the Rams victory over George Mason to win the CAA’s tournament championship, was named to the conference’s all-academic team for his accomplishments in the classroom.
"Senior center Calvin Roland will be featured on 'The Road to the Final Four' on CBS on Sunday, March 11, at 12 p.m."
Roland, who came off the bench to score 12 points in the Rams victory over George Mason to win the CAA’s tournament championship, was named to the conference’s all-academic team for his accomplishments in the classroom.
Richmond bloggers meeting report
On what was a beautiful afternoon in the Fan District the Richmond bloggers’ meeting at the Baja Bean went quite well. About half of those who showed up to talk and listen were folks who publish blogs that are generally seen as at least somewhat political, the other half fell into a category that might be called other-than-political -- meaning blogs about community, food, girls, or whatever.
The discussion ranged from what we all have in common to what to do next. The spirit of the meeting was informal and collegial. It was decided that the group will meet again next month, to continue discussing what undertakings we might pursue together. Unanimous agreement was reached over the importance of having inexpensive beer available at the next meeting, too, unless we can figure a way to make it free.
The group seemed happy to entertain the notion that we could ban together to perform a community service, the nature of which will be determined down the road. The possibility of staging a full-fledged blog convention, with workshops and speakers, seemed to have some traction, but no firm decisions were made on that front.
Out of this meeting. we can expect to see a new eclectic Richmond Blog Carnival appearing on the horizon of the blogosphere, which Jason Kenney, of J’s Notes, will be telling us more about in the near future. The group apparently liked the idea that it would focus on quality posts, and seek out original material, rather than be centered around politics or any other limited category.
Among the other blogs that were represented were: Awkward Things I Say To Girls, Church Hill People’s News, River City Food and Wine, River City Rapids, RVA blogs, Save Richmond, The Shambling Darkness Project, Sisyphus, SLANTblog, West of Shockoe and West of the Boulevard News.
Mark Holmberg (formerly of the Richmond Times-Dispatch) showed up with his notepad and a camera man to cover the event for WTVR Channel 6.
At this point the ad hoc group of local bloggers has not named itself, nor has it elected officers. But something new is underway in Richmond. So far ... so good. We’ll see what happens next.
The discussion ranged from what we all have in common to what to do next. The spirit of the meeting was informal and collegial. It was decided that the group will meet again next month, to continue discussing what undertakings we might pursue together. Unanimous agreement was reached over the importance of having inexpensive beer available at the next meeting, too, unless we can figure a way to make it free.
The group seemed happy to entertain the notion that we could ban together to perform a community service, the nature of which will be determined down the road. The possibility of staging a full-fledged blog convention, with workshops and speakers, seemed to have some traction, but no firm decisions were made on that front.
Out of this meeting. we can expect to see a new eclectic Richmond Blog Carnival appearing on the horizon of the blogosphere, which Jason Kenney, of J’s Notes, will be telling us more about in the near future. The group apparently liked the idea that it would focus on quality posts, and seek out original material, rather than be centered around politics or any other limited category.
Among the other blogs that were represented were: Awkward Things I Say To Girls, Church Hill People’s News, River City Food and Wine, River City Rapids, RVA blogs, Save Richmond, The Shambling Darkness Project, Sisyphus, SLANTblog, West of Shockoe and West of the Boulevard News.
Mark Holmberg (formerly of the Richmond Times-Dispatch) showed up with his notepad and a camera man to cover the event for WTVR Channel 6.
At this point the ad hoc group of local bloggers has not named itself, nor has it elected officers. But something new is underway in Richmond. So far ... so good. We’ll see what happens next.
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Richmond bloggers to converge on the Bean
As previously mentioned here at SLANTblog, on Saturday, March 10, there will be an informal meeting at the Baja Bean to discuss putting together what would amount to a local blog convention, or “summit,” if you prefer that term. The gathering is open to all, but the point of it is for local bloggers to meet one another and air out their ideas on that topic.
Hopefully, we will leave the restaurant with a better sense of what we bloggers have in common, and what the agenda and format of a Richmond bloggers’ convention ought to be. If we’re lucky we’ll have formed a consensus on some matters. And, we should have a better idea who would be willing to give some of their time to the project.
As we all know, there are many motivations to blog. Some bloggers focus on politics and current events, others on their family pets. Some blogs are about art, or a hobby, others are about a neighborhood. Still others cover a variety of topics. What they all have in common is the desire on the part of the blogger to document some aspect of what they care about.
Accordingly, I see no reason for any Richmond blogger to feel unwelcome at this meeting. Please know, this call for a bloggers meeting hasn’t been made by corporate interests, or any existing group. No sticky name tags will be handed out, so if you want to wear one, make your own.
The Baja Bean is located at 1520 W. Main St. (across the street from Main Art), in Richmond’s Fan District. The meeting is set to begin at 1 p.m. and last until approximately 4 p.m., or as long as the spirit is willing. By the way, cold beer will be on sale at Happy Hour prices.
Update: The Bean has a WiFi system on the premises. So for anyone who wants to bring a laptop and blog the bloggers meeting, the opportunity is there. And, yes, in case anybody is wondering, elements of the working press will be covering the event.
Hopefully, we will leave the restaurant with a better sense of what we bloggers have in common, and what the agenda and format of a Richmond bloggers’ convention ought to be. If we’re lucky we’ll have formed a consensus on some matters. And, we should have a better idea who would be willing to give some of their time to the project.
As we all know, there are many motivations to blog. Some bloggers focus on politics and current events, others on their family pets. Some blogs are about art, or a hobby, others are about a neighborhood. Still others cover a variety of topics. What they all have in common is the desire on the part of the blogger to document some aspect of what they care about.
Accordingly, I see no reason for any Richmond blogger to feel unwelcome at this meeting. Please know, this call for a bloggers meeting hasn’t been made by corporate interests, or any existing group. No sticky name tags will be handed out, so if you want to wear one, make your own.
The Baja Bean is located at 1520 W. Main St. (across the street from Main Art), in Richmond’s Fan District. The meeting is set to begin at 1 p.m. and last until approximately 4 p.m., or as long as the spirit is willing. By the way, cold beer will be on sale at Happy Hour prices.
Update: The Bean has a WiFi system on the premises. So for anyone who wants to bring a laptop and blog the bloggers meeting, the opportunity is there. And, yes, in case anybody is wondering, elements of the working press will be covering the event.
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