think that it’s, well, a little self-defeating to publish a Kindle edition of The Case for Books?
[...]edited by: Vivian Paige,
Virginia Editor
think that it’s, well, a little self-defeating to publish a Kindle edition of The Case for Books?
[...]
Kristen J. Amundson back when she thought The Big Six-Oh was a laughing matter. Happy birthday, KJA!
I have been, all things considered, remarkably circumspect since Sarah Palin burst on the scene. But now she’s gone too far.
In Going Rogue, she misattributes a quotation to legendary (heck, best of all time) basketball coach John Wooden. Instead, she uses a quote from someone called John Wooden Legs.
The [...]
Look, I HATE the BCS. But I am not sure this is what I would have suggested for an image improvement.
[...]Okay, so it was a Swiss study. And there might be just the teensiest bit of bias by the investigators.
Still, it’s comforting to know that chocolate really does relieve stress. Hey, that’s not me talking. It’s science.
[...]I heard an interview with David Plouffe, who managed the Obama 2008 Presidential campaign. He was talking about his early years. And, almost as a throwaway, he added that in one of his early jobs, he sold knives door to door.
Over the years, one of the tidbits I learned when [...]
Well, any Democrat who doesn’t start studying the lessons from yesterday is going to be in big trouble. Bob McDonnell ran a nearly perfect campaign, and he deserves tremendous credit for his victory. Lesson learned: you simply have to talk about what you are going to do for voters.
There was [...]
In the New York Times, artist Tucker Nichols extols the value of a bake sale on Election Day. He calls it “an added incentive to vote.”
Not in Virginia, of course. Sigh.
[...]From this morning’s Richmond Times-Dispatch:
“Now a high school administrator in Myrtle Beach, S.C., O’Brien also remembers McDonnell’s sense of humor.
“‘He had a nickname for everyone,’ O’Brien said.”
[...]” . . .one of the best things about state capitols is that they are places where people who have most of their teeth and some of their hair can count on feeling pretty darned attractive.”
NYT columnist Gail Collins, commenting on the weighty issues being discussed up [...]
I miss diagramming. Here are other sentences from the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. Way cool.
[...]Today is National Punctuation Day. That means it’s pretty much a Holy Day of Obligation here at 7 West. (Bob and I, after all, were both English majors.)
We particularly like the fact that the Punctuation Day folks support the serial comma (the one that goes before the and in [...]
“It was the President’s only speech this week where the audience did not act like children.”
Peter Sagal, Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!
[...]
NASA released this compelling image of what the attack on the World Trade Center looked like from space. On this very sad day, it is another reminder of an event we can never forget.
[...]The Harry Golden Rule (from Calvin Trillin by way of Barnie Day) holds that “In present-day America it’s very difficult, when commenting on events of the day, to invent something so bizarre that it might not actually come to pass while your piece is still on the presses.”
So it [...]
Proponents of vouchers know that they are not very popular with the general public. So they have come up with a different approach: a tax-credits-for-scholarships plan.
Except, according to a recent expose in the East Valley Tribune, Arizona’s tax credit scholarship plan has become a national scandal. “It has fostered [...]
Over the last few days, we heard many eulogies for Sen. Edward Kennedy. I found that the comments of Sen. Orrin Hatch were among the most fascinating. Here are a few of my take-aways:
- There are elected officialswho belong in the Executive Branch and those who belong in the Legislative [...]
Bob and I have always admitted that this whole blogging thing does not come naturally to us. So we’re grateful for anything that helps us stay even vaguely au courant.
Which is why the Beloit Mindset List is so valuable. Each year, Beloit College in Wisconsin publishes a list [...]
Well, not exactly. But one week from today, I am starting a new job at Education Sector, an education think tank in Washington, DC. I’ll be their communications manager, helping them get the word out about their thoughtful reports and analysis. Their motto, “Independent Analysis, Innovative Ideas,” tells you [...]
There’s a lot of talk about how Creigh Deeds has “raised the issue of abortion” in this year’s race for Governor.
But, as I told the Women for Deeds rally this morning, concerns go well beyond the often divisive issue of abortion. Here are some other issues:
In 2004, Delegate James Dillard [...]
This morning, Virginia–well, at least a big chunk of the Richmond-oriented folks–woke up adrift. There were no Whipple Clips in our inboxes.
Each morning, like clockwork, Arlingtonian Tom Whipple (yes, he is married to Senator Mary Margaret Whipple) gets up at some ungodly hour and begins to read newspapers from around [...]
So we’re headed back to Richmond. There seems to be a growing consensus on the fact that a recent Supreme Court decision requires Virginia to find a legislative fix to the problems raised in Melendez-Diaz v. Massachusetts.
Both parties had agreed that this would be the only issue that would [...]
For those of you who noticed me laughing at strange and unusual times this week, it’s because I was corresponding with Chris Saxman on a Washington Post piece that appears today.
UPDATE: Vivian Paige links to the original School House Rock video. Thanks, Vivian!
[...]When describing the life of a legislator, I would often say, “Basically, it’s like working the 3 to 11 shift.” Legislators work when other people can go to meetings. So late afternoon and evening times are nearly always booked.
Saturdays, too. It’s a light Saturday that includes only two or three [...]
Today, our friend Chris Saxman announced he would not be running for re-election to the House. He’ll be missed.
Chris is that rare breed of partisan who always takes the issues seriously–but never takes himself seriously. During long and less-than-riveting floor sessions, he and I spent more time than we [...]
In today’s urbanized society, few children have the opportunity to know where their food comes from. But at Hollin Meadows Elementary School, a school garden provides enough salad-makings for 900 people at the yearly Thanksgiving lunch—and fresh produce for a local food bank.
The garden has become an integral part of [...]
In Richmond this morning, I read a newspaper article about “Operation Air, Land, and Speed,” a State Police speeding enforcement effort targeting I-95 and I-81. Read, but didn’t absorb. Five minutes onto I-95 northbound, I got a ticket. 72 in a 55. My first since September 1969, when [...]
I really couldn’t believe it. I read that Missouri State Representative Cynthia Davis had allegedly opposed extending school lunch programs into the summer months.
And I simply couldn’t imagine it.The National School Lunch Program is one of those Federal programs that attracts wide, bipartisan support. Who could NOT support a program [...]
We’ve always tried to stay away from foreign policy on this blog. But since the news of the takeover of the government by the military, people have been calling me to get my take. (I have a long relationship with Honduras and with individual Hondurans, and have visited the country [...]
Hmpf.
So you’ve read Kris’ announcement that she’s hanging up her spurs at the end of this session. Sure — it may be the right decision for her. But — in the spirit of the Toby Keith song that we proclaimed as the Politicians’ National Anthem — [...]
I announced today that I will not be running for re-election to the House. I have loved my service for the past ten years. I loved the time I spent on the School Board before that. (OK, I didn’t love the times that School Board meetings or floor sessions ran [...]
I’ve been to three graduations in three days, at Mount Vernon High School, Quander Road School, and West Potomac High School. All were filled with joyful grads and proud parents. All included speeches filled with advice and hope for the future. All were happy occasions.
But the graduation [...]
It’s a rite of passage. Seniors, on their way out the door, want to leave behind some clever prank by which they can be remembered. The senior class at Wakefield High School just pulled off what I’d consider a high-quality senior prank.
On the day of the Democratic primary, the [...]
Maybe this video will help ROVA understand life on our mean streets:
(HT: NLS)
[...]Not sure our colleague Chris Saxman is thrilled to be featured on a blog called the Daily Beast (where other headline stories include Madonna’s latest adoption and Brad Pitt’s latest art purchase), but it’s nice to see him named as one of the Faces of the Future for the [...]
The best thing about Twitter is that it allows people to share their thoughts instantly.
It’s also the worst thing about Twitter.
As these Minnesota legislators confirm, perhaps it’s not such a good idea for folks in our line of work to share their every thought with the electorate.
[...]It was a hard-fought primary. I supported another candidate. But Creigh Deeds won–decisively–tonight. We have a great ticket of highly qualified candidates who are ready to win in November.
I congratulate all the members of our statewide ticket AND all the down-ballot House candidates who were successful tonight. Savor your victory [...]
The astonishing thing about that comment is that it comes from former Assistant Secretary of Education (during the first Bush Administration) Diane Ravitch.
Ravitch is hardly an education apologist. She’s a tough-minded education critic, a former Fellow at the Hoover Institution, and a person who has always led the fight [...]
Where would you rather get sick? That’s not exactly the question posed by Atul Gawande’s “The Cost Conundrum,” in this week’s New Yorker, but it might be.
The author, a physician on the faculty at Harvard Medical School, starts out by visiting McAllen, Texas, a place where health care costs [...]
“Things will have to change.” That wonderful line from the movie The Leopard has been going through my mind ever since I first read the talk about the GM bankruptcy.
I grew up in a car dealer’s household. A small-town auto dealer like my dad did a lot more than sell [...]
Live in southern Fairfax County? Feeling kind of sluggish in the morning? I think I may know why.
[...]
